
3 minute read
Directors Letter
from 2022 Annual Report
by crookedroots
Chairman’s Letter
This year, we worked to refresh and enliven the MoH indoors and out.
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We began 20222 with ambitious plans— to increase engagement and retention through innovative, time-tested programs that attract audiences, engage community, and spark connections; to deepen relationships and collaboration through mutually beneficial partnerships that leverage resources and expertise to benefit the public; and to build resilience and capacity through streamlined practices in all areas of management and operations. These three strategies are at the core of our new strategic plan, based on which we undertook a number of major initiatives, dedicating ourselves with great sincerity and perseverance. We are proud to report the year ’s successes. In 2022 the MoH:
• Completed year one of our strategic plan. We focused on the three overarching strategies—which honor the MAH’s exemplary past and advance its vision and mission—and accomplished specific tactical work within them in the areas of programs,
People, and practices. Ultimately, we reached or exceeded a number of our first-year targets. • Introduced new content, programming, and collection highlights. We launched a new residency program in which artists and historians share our space and resources to produce newly commissioned work. We debuted our new biennial festival series with
Frequency—a 4-day, mostly free festival of light, sound, and digital culture in and around the museum— and presented a full schedule of exhibitions, performances, and other special events throughout the year. • Fueled our local creative economy.
Through commissions, residencies, and other opportunities, we invested over $100,000—more than a third of our annual programming budget—in Santa
Cruz County-based artists, writers, curators, designers, fabricators, production personnel, and other members of the creative sector. We
believe in the value of cultural workers and their right to fair compensation.
• Aligned with key stakeholders and
constituencies. Recognizing the need to focus attention on some important relationships in order to achieve our long-term goals, we developed and deepened our work with community nonprofits and businesses, and expanded our collaborations with UC Santa Cruz, CSU Monterey Bay, and other academic institutions.
• Extended our reach and impact. We increased paid attendance, digital engagement, and institutional visibility overall through higher profile exhibitions, large-scale public installations, and compelling content, experiences, and campaigns. We are proud to share that we earned the highest admission revenue in the museum’s history this past fiscal year. • Scaled up technological capacity. We launched a multi-year effort to digitize the museum’s archives. We hope to be a model for how to preserve and increase access to research materials, particularly collections that feature
LGBTQ+ and BIPOC communities. • Inspired greater community support.
We had considerable growth in individual giving this year, with gains in revenue, new and returning donors, retention, and the size and number of gifts. Our membership program saw a year-over-year increase, with renewal rates exceeding 70%. • Secured new funding. We received grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, Institute of Museum and
Library Services, California
Humanities, California State Library, and more. We continue to build our grants pipeline by actively pursuing opportunities focused


on program development, capacity building, and collaborative initiatives. We have also implemented an expanded fundraising strategy to engage new and legacy supporters.
• Improved management
effectiveness. We strengthened organizational infrastructure and policy frameworks, updated and restated governing documents, and streamlined institutional practices. We have also made great progress on bettering internal systems, processes, and procedures that will enable our institution to grow and prosper. The MAH is proud to play a central role in Santa Cruz County’s thriving creative industries. Located in the downtown center of Santa Cruz, our museum sits at the crossroads of arts, culture, business, and economic development. As a center for humanities and interdisciplinary work, we bring art, history, and cultural experiences to diverse audiences. As a center for business and commerce, we use creative practice to promote place identity, enhance livability, grow engagement, drive tourism, and invigorate the entrepreneurial ecosystem. As a center for community and exchange, we cultivate ideas, amplify voices, encourage reciprocity, and inspire innovation. Ultimately, however, the MAH is about celebrating the human experience. By offering forums for a wide range of creative expression and subject matter, along with space to collaborate, create, research, and explore, we provide our residents and guests with unique opportunities to celebrate our humanity through shared, real-time experiences— connecting us to our inner artists and storytellers, to one another, and to the world beyond.
Steve Robinson Chairman Claremore MoH Board of Directors