F

Rose Center has announced new efforts to drive public awareness and participation in Arts & Economic Prosperity 6 (AEP6), the most comprehensive economic impact study of the nonprofit arts and culture industry ever conducted in the United States. Administered by Americans for the Arts approximately every five years, AEP6 will examine the economic impact of the arts and culture in Hamblen County and 398 additional communities representing all 50 states, Puerto Rico, and the District of Columbia.

Audience-intercept surveys are currently being collected from attendees at arts events in Hamblen County through May 2023. The simple, anonymous surveys take about three minutes to complete and ask about expenses related to the arts event being attended (meals, parking, babysitting). New for AEP6, the traditional paper version of the survey has been translated into 23 languages, and is also available electronically via customized QR codes (in English and Spanish). An additional survey of nonprofit arts and culture organizations will occur from January through April 2023.

Americans for the Arts is committed to addressing equity and inclusion as a critical component of the methodology, organizational participation, and collection of data for AEP6 by centering and representing BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, People of Color) and ALAANA (African, Latinx, Asian, Arab, Native American) identifying communities—a segment of the nonprofit arts and culture sector that has been underrepresented in past studies.

For the first time, AEP6 will require that the local and state research partners collect a portion of audience surveys from attendees at events hosted by arts and culture organizations that primarily serve BIPOC/ALAANA communities.

The AEP6 study will establish a benchmark of arts and culture organizations that primarily serve these communities, and the audiences that attend their events.

It will also identify organizations that have a chief executive who identifies as BIPOC/ALAANA. Researchers will use this data to calculate and report on the economic impact of the BIPOC/ALAANA arts sector in each of the 399 study regions.

The national and local findings will be made public in October 2023, to lead off National Arts & Humanities Month. Rose Center will receive a customized report on the unique economic impact results for Hamblen County, including the number of jobs that are supported and the amount of government revenue that is generated by our community’s nonprofit arts industry.

An additional analysis will be done on the economic impact of each community’s BIPOC/ALAANA arts organizations as well as the event-related spending by their audiences, documenting for the first time both their economic and social impact benefits to the community.

“Hamblen County residents enjoy a wide range of arts and cultural events throughout the year. We all know the arts bring us joy, help us connect, and make life more fulfilling. By participating in this study, we can also show how the arts help drive our economy and help our community thrive,” said Beccy Hamm, Rose Center’s Executive Director. “We greatly appreciate the efforts of our partner organizations in collecting these surveys, and I hope our local audiences will have their voices heard by completing surveys at these events.”

Nolen V. Bivens, president and CEO of Americans for the Arts, commented, “The arts are fundamental to our humanity. Arts and culture inspires us—fostering creativity, empathy, and beauty. The arts also strengthen our communities socially, educationally, and economically. Community is where the arts make a difference, and while the national impact data are impressive, at its core, AEP6 is a local story. We are at a critical moment where data collection in local communities will provide a necessary narrative to support the arts, which will be key in persuading decision-makers that the arts benefit all people in all communities.”

In 2017, AEP5 documented that the nonprofit arts and culture industry generated $166.3 billion in economic activity (spending by organizations plus the event-related spending by their audiences) which supported 4.6 million jobs and generated $27.5 billion in government revenue. The AEP series demonstrates that an investment in the arts provides both cultural and economic benefits. Hamblen County’s arts industry generated $2M: $760K by six organizations; $1.2M by their audiences. This resulted in $190K in state and local tax dollars. The study also showed over $1M value in volunteer hours.

For more information and a full list of the communities participating in the AEP6 study, visit www.americansforthearts.org/AEP6.

This project is being supported, in whole or in part, by federal award number SLFRP5534 awarded to the State of Tennessee by the U.S. Department of the Treasury. Rose Center, located at 442 W 2nd North Street in Morristown, is a United Way Agency and a Designated Agency of the Tennessee Arts Commission.