TACA—The Arts Community Alliance—has selected six arts groups for the organization’s second cohort of the Arts Accelerator, following up on the successful pilot launched last year. The “learning experience” is designed for small, emerging arts and culture nonprofits in Dallas County.
The second cohort features everything from dance to music to fiction and beyond, and includes the following organizations:
Reading a work at The Writer’s Garret. [Photo: Azul Sordo]
“We created the Arts Accelerator in response to needs voiced by the community,” Maura Sheffler, Donna Wilhelm Family President & Executive Director at TACA, said in a statement. “TACA is uniquely positioned to observe and learn about needs across arts groups of all sizes, genres, and geographics in North Texas. In recent years, we saw the advent of organizations poised for growth that would benefit from a more comprehensive support system to cultivate and execute their respective visions. The Arts Accelerator answers that need and based on the tremendous success of our first cohort, we’re thrilled to continue the program in 2024-2025.”
TACA says its Arts Accelerator “created an opportunity to learn fundamental practices of managing an arts nonprofit, while also creating a space for participants to build community with other leaders taking their organizations from startup into growth stages.”
The accelerator is made possible by support from the Communities Foundation of Texas and Sapphire Foundation, and is “an intensive investment in the Dallas arts community, supporting these visionary arts organizations as they pursue their mission and future vision,” TACA said.
2023-2024 program called ‘a game changer’
Avery-Jai Andrews, Arts Mission Oak Cliff [Photo: Gary Donihoo]
“The Arts Accelerator Program is a game changer because it levels the playing field. As an arts worker stepping into a non-profit management role, I didn’t know what I didn’t know,” Arts Mission Oak Cliff Executive Director Avery-Jai Andrews said in a statement. “I was up for the challenge, but I needed more support. That’s where the Arts Accelerator stepped in and equipped me. Not only with tools, resources, and community connections but also confidence! I am so grateful and excited for what’s next! I feel prepared to do my job well because of the Arts Accelerator program.”
Diana Crowder, Pegasus Contemporary Ballet [Photo: Gary Donihoo]
Pegasus Contemporary Ballet Artistic Director and Founder Diana Crowder stated “The Arts Accelerator did not just teach us what to think, it taught us how to think. We received a wealth of information on how to approach managing our organization and our future that could be applied to our unique goals and artistic endeavors. The Accelerator also created a fantastic and invaluable community of emerging arts leaders with shared experience and values. This creation of community has fostered lasting relationships, unity, and collaboration in the Dallas Arts ecosystem.”
The program’s first cohort included:
TACA said it developed The Arts Accelerator in collaboration with Suzanne Smith, Founder & CEO of Social Impact Architects and an adjunct professor at UTA and SMU.
“TACA has cracked the code of capacity-building for emerging arts groups, moving beyond one-and-done workshops to create a learning community focused on achieving real, sustainable growth for organizations,” said Smith.
The program’s content is based on “the flywheel effect,” an impact originally expressed in Jim Collins’ book Good to Great. For nonprofits, the flywheel is connected to “long-term sustainability and addresses core elements, including growth and performance improvement in operations, financing, and other functional components of organizational management, as well as arts-specific content in audience development, fundraising, board development, and impact,” the organization said. A “flywheel effect” is created when organizations become stronger and more sustainable over time through its momentum—and that’s the goal of The Arts Accelerator.
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