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THE MARY DUKE BIDDLE FOUNDATION 2020

Annual Report

Contents Chair’s Message

Responding to COVID-19

K-12 Education Grants

Arts Grants

Hayti Reimagined: Partnering for the Future

Grants at Duke University and Other Grants

Checking In: Updates on Previously-Funded Projects

Listening to Nonprofits: Changing our Grantmaking Approaches and Practices

Our History

Ramya Sundaresan Kapadia performs during the American Dance Festival’s Creative Healing Parade. Cover photo by William LeFevre.

Mimi O’Brien, Executive Director Kathy L. Harrison, Executive Assistant

Contributors Andrea Cobb, Illustrator Colleen Carrigan, Art Director

LORA CHARLES

Staff

CHAIR’S MESSAGE

CHRIS HILDRETH, ROOSTER MEDIA

This past year has been one of significant challenges, and The Mary Duke Biddle Foundation has admired how nonprofits have responded with creativity and innovation to the hard realities created and exposed by the pandemic. As COVID-19 took hold, the foundation realized we, too, needed to change to be a better partner with the diverse communities we support, through adapting to the circumstances and changing our grantmaking. In the early weeks of the pandemic, we began looking for ways to help. I’m proud we could pivot and provide critically needed operating funds to help organizations survive. Increasing our impact has been my driving goal as chair—and this year gave us a huge opportunity to do that. You can find details on our COVID-19 response and new grantmaking processes in the pages of this report. As I step down from four years as chair and six on the board, I am reflecting on how much we changed. We redefined our brand, clarifying both our role within the community and our direction. We created a new website that gives grantees and partners greater insight into our impact and goals. We welcomed new organizations to the fold, such as El Vínculo Hispano/The Hispanic Liaison, NorthStar Church of the Arts, and Women’s Theatre Festival. Most important, we transformed our grantmaking, zeroing in on the Triangle and launching multi-year grants—a radical shift in how we work.

MDBF Trustees and Administration: Left to right: Lois Deloatch, Ben Jones, Chris Harris (Chair), Mimi O’Brien (Executive Director), Todd Walker, Allison Haltom, Russell Bryan and Joe Lucas.

We also expanded our impact by partnering with the Jenny Lillian Semans Koortbojian Trust on several important grants. Together we supported the innovative, three-year “Reimagining Arts Education” project at Duke University. While COVID-19 prevented performances and residencies from taking place as planned, the initiative has engaged local dancers, musicians, and filmmakers as well as K-12 learners. This collaborative,

Yomi Adigun Elected New Trustee CHRIS HILDRETH, ROOSTER MEDIA

Dr. Abayomi (Yomi) Adigun, originally from Houston, Texas, joined the Biddle Foundation Board of Trustees in January 2021. He earned his undergraduate degree from Cornell University with honors and his PhD in Pharmacology and Cancer Biology from Duke University. Dr. Adigun, a resident of Chapel Hill, is an Investment Manager with the Public Securities team at DUMAC (formerly Duke Management Company) since 2014. Before moving to North Carolina, he worked at Goldman Sachs in New York City as a High Yield and Investment Grade Credit Analyst with a focus on Healthcare, Insurance and Managed Care. Dr. Adigun also worked at Duke University Medical Center and University of North Carolina School of Medicine earlier in his career where he presented his research and published numerous papers. Yomi is on the board of directors for the SECU Family House at UNC Hospitals. He just finished his board term at Caring House in June 2020. Caring House provides affordable housing for patients at Duke Cancer Institute. As a former college basketball player, he and his family are avid sports fans.

community-centered model can grow and continue to improve the quality of life for everyone. Thank you to fellow board member and friend, Russell Bryan, for all of his efforts to honor my Aunt Jenny’s memory in such an impactful manner. Diversity, equity, and inclusion is a growing focal point for MDBF. As we ask nonprofit applicants about the populations they serve and the composition of their boards and staff, we are looking critically at our own organization. The foundation recognizes the imperative to infuse equity throughout our operations, including how we can better connect with nonprofits led by people of color, where we can use our non-grant spending to support inclusion, and when we have opportunities to add diversity to our board and staff. We welcome to the board Dr. Abayomi (Yomi) Adigun, a member of the DUMAC investment team. He will take on the pivotal role of treasurer after Todd Walker steps down at the end of 2021. We will continue working to advance equity and inclusion in all areas of our work and will strive to support organizations that share this goal. The Foundation is able to have a positive impact because of our experienced, cooperative, caring board. We were a strong team already, but, surprisingly, with the shift to virtual meetings we grew closer this year. Our small but mighty staff likewise deserves tremendous thanks. Mimi O’Brien and Kathy

Harrison provided invaluable insight and support throughout my tenure, but this year they had to operate under much different and challenging circumstances. I’m also incredibly grateful for Jon Zeljo, my cousin and the previous chair, who initiated much that I later put in motion and set us all up for continued success. I welcome my cousin Ben Jones as the new chair. While we are both great-grandsons of Mary Duke Biddle, he, unlike me, brings valuable Duke experience to the table as a Duke graduate and veteran of other Dukeaffiliated boards. Ben has a keen mind, broad expertise, and objective decision-making. He will be an incredible asset as chair as MDBF continues to help our community deal with the multi-faceted effects of the pandemic. I will support him and the board as chair emeritus, ex officio, in 2021. Philanthropy and nonprofit business have been my life’s work. It has been an honor to serve this Foundation and continue the vision that my great-grandmother had 65 years ago. This work has been incredibly rewarding, and I look forward to seeing the Foundation continue to thrive and support our local communities.

RESPONDING TO

COVID‑19

by Kimberly Moore

he COVID-19 pandemic caused unprecedented challenges throughout our society. For the nonprofit sector, the impact was particularly intense. Some saw demand for their services increase, while others addressed new needs created by the pandemic. All had to figure out how to safely provide their services. This occurred as revenues and donations plummeted. The Mary Duke Biddle Foundation and the Jenny Lillian Semans Koortbojian Trust partnered to provide $365,000 in operating support to area K-12 education and arts nonprofits to help with these challenges. We also partnered to provide $50,000 to five organizations that offer emergency relief to individuals and families in need. Below, we highlight just a few of the nonprofits to applaud their spirit, tenacity, and ability to adapt as they reinvented their service delivery models and responded deftly to needs in our communities. (Full list follows.) Children were significantly impacted by COVID-19 pandemic as school went virtual, out-of-school programs closed, and parents lost jobs. The Durham Children’s Initiative (DCI) answered the call of the more than 800 children in their community. Parent surveys revealed that over half of the respondents were unemployed and unsure about future employment. Parents were concerned about

their children’s academic progress. DCI moved their entire service portfolio to various online platforms. They started Zoom calls, produced and shared YouTube videos, broadcasted Facebook Live for story time, produced STEAM Saturdays and Parent Cafés, and created a virtual preschool program. The DCI staff also created the Frontline Fellows program, which placed older students in organizations that were doing COVID-19 outreach and matched their salaries. These students were able to save over $20,000 and many of them used the money to support their families. The Chatham Education Foundation (CEF) responded to the needs of students in the Chatham public schools in several ways. Instead of the book fair usually held in schools, they collaborated with the Chatham County Nutrition Department to distribute books based on grade level at the various

food distribution sites. Staff worked for weeks to package and distribute the books. They also moved the Students Obtaining Advancement in Reading program to a virtual environment. The internet infrastructure in this predominantly rural county is limited, and CEF provided hotspots where possible and traditional school supplies like paper, pens, pencils, and lap desks for those students who could not access the internet. The arts are vital to thriving communities, particularly during times of duress, providing personal enjoyment to individuals and families and giving voice to the human condition. Arts organizations and artists have struggled as a result of the loss of in-person performances, teaching opportunities, and other events. Many have responded to these challenges through creative use of online platforms and safe performance practices.

El Vínculo Hispano delivers school supplies and care packages to students in Siler City, NC.

Walltown Children’s Theater (WCT) implemented virtual classes, such as a creative writing class that produced a 70-page story and poetry book. WCT reached out to students who were “super interested” in the arts and found there was a sense of hopelessness especially among teens. Walltown staff responded with “Company Connect.” This weekly meeting uses Zoom to encourage sharing with the goal of highlighting the positive aspects of their lives. An unexpected role of the theater has been its location in a residential neighborhood and a safe place the children gravitated

to during the past year. They marked their 20th Anniversary with a socially-distanced celebration promoting community as an asset even during challenging times. One of Durham’s most distinctive nonprofits, the African American Dance Ensemble (AADE) also made significant shifts in their operations in 2020. With the season canceled in March, this led the organization to redefine themselves. Their goal is to bring awareness to the injustices and unfairness plaguing their communities through the art of African dance, community activism, engaging more young people, and expanding opportunities for artists. AADE opened a satellite space in Raleigh and finalized a name change to the African American Community Collaborative.

Several artists were given computers to facilitate virtual performing, teaching, and workshops. Over more than 30 years, the Collaborative has used African dance with the hope of creating positive change in their community. Their motto of “Peace! Love! Respect! For Everybody” is timeless. Though 2020 was filled with challenges, these nonprofits and many others met unforeseen obstacles with resilience and determination. They reinvented and recalibrated their service models and stretched their limits in ways that will continue to influence our community long after the pandemic comes to an end. The entire Durham community and region will benefit from this for years to come.

COVID-19 GRANTS • $225,000 These organizations received additional support totaling $140,000 from the Jenny Lillian Semans Koortbojian Trust, which partnered with the Biddle Foundation’s COVID-19 response.

Arts and K-12 Organizations African American Dance Ensemble Durham, NC • $10,000 Chatham Education Foundation Pittsboro, NC • $25,000

Durham Children’s Initiative (DCI) Durham, NC • $12,500

EARL BYNUM

Durham Arts Council Durham, NC • $12,500 DPSF providing students digital access.

St. Joseph’s Historic Foundation/ Hayti Heritage Center Durham, NC • $10,000 TheGifted Arts Raleigh, NC • $10,000 Walltown Children’s Theatre Durham, NC • $10,000 Student U Durham, NC • $12,500 DCI community gardeners at work.

Artists and Arts Relief Funds

Durham Public Schools Foundation Durham, NC • $25,000

Chatham County Arts Council Pittsboro, NC • $15,000

The Hispanic Liaison/El Vínculo Hispano, Siler City, NC • $12,500

Durham Arts Council Durham, NC • $20,000

NorthStar Church of the Arts Orange County Arts Commission • $15,000 Durham, NC • $10,000

Baba Chuck puppet honoring Chuck Davis, founder of the African American Dance Ensemble.

Community Relief Organizations Chatham Outreach Alliance Pittsboro, NC • $5,000 Chatham Solidarity Fund • $5,000 Inter-Faith Council for Social Service Carrboro, NC • $5,000 Urban Ministries of Durham Durham, NC • $5,000 Walltown Neighborhood Ministries Durham, NC • $5,000

K-12 EDUCATION GRANTS • $130,000 Boys & Girls Clubs of Central Carolina Siler City, NC • $11,500

Full Frame/The Center for Documentary Studies Durham, NC • $10,000

Chatham Education Foundation Pittsboro, NC • $11,500

Helps Education Fund Raleigh, NC • $11,500

Durham Colored Library/ Techies4 Tomorrow Durham, NC • $11,500

Kidznotes Durham, NC • $11,500

Durham Public Schools Foundation Durham, NC • $11,500 El Sistema USA Durham, NC • $5,000 Empower Dance Foundation Durham, NC • $11,500

Shaundra Daily, Engineering Professor by Techies4 Tomorrow

Paperhand Puppet Intervention Haw River, NC • $11,500 Spanish Dance Arts Company Bahama, NC • $6,500 Walking Classroom Institute Chapel Hill, NC • $11,500 World Relief Durham Durham, NC • $5,000

Shani’s mother wanted her to know that she could have any career she chose. She could be a doctor, a nurse, a school teacher, a dancer, or maybe an engineer.

Phil Freelon, Architect by Techies4 Tomorrow

Not only was Phil good at math and English, but he liked to draw like his grandfather and he could create beautiful designs. NC State had an excellent architecture program and Phil enjoyed his studies there.

Above: Durham Colored Library’s Techies4 Tomorrow program encourages Black students to consider STEM careers. Left: Students walk and learn through the Walking Classroom Institute’s audio lessons. Opposite page: Empower Dance students rehearse.

7 DENNIS SZERSZEN

Durham Arts Council Durham, NC • $10,000

The Arts Center Carrboro, NC • $11,500

Durham Symphony Orchestra Durham, NC • $11,500

Artspace Raleigh, NC • $11,500

Wonderful Nova/Maya Freelon Durham, NC • $11,500

Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle Chapel Hill, NC • $10,000

North Carolina Master Chorale Raleigh, NC • $11,500

Chatham County Arts Council Pittsboro, NC • $11,500

ShaLeigh Dance Works Durham, NC • $11,500

PETER J. MUELLER

American Dance Festival Durham, NC • $10,000

ERIN BELL WITH BULL CITY PHOTOGRAPHY

ARTS GRANTS • $265,000

Soapbox Audio Collective Durham, NC • $ $11,500 Southern Documentary Fund Durham, NC • $11,500 St. Joseph’s Historic Foundation/ Hayti Heritage Center Durham, NC • $50,000

JON FULLER, GRAPHIC DESIGN

Triangle ArtWorks Raleigh, NC • $5,000 Triangle Community Foundation Cultural Arts Grant Program RTP, NC • $5,000 University of North Carolina School of the Arts Winston-Salem, NC • $60,000 Women’s Theatre Festival Raleigh, NC • $11,500

Above: Chamber Orchestra of the Triangle and The Monti collaborate in “Unlikely Alliances.” Opposite page, upper right: Soapbox Audio Collective artists rehearse an original audio drama. Opposite page, bottom: UNC School of the Arts created a film version of “The Nutcracker” in 2020.

HAYTI REIMAGINED:

PARTNERING FOR THE FUTURE ust shy of 130 years ago, the foundation was laid for St. Joseph AME Church in the Hayti District of Durham, North Carolina. Here, formerly enslaved black men and women created an independent and self-sufficient community that flourished from the 1880s until the 1940s. Urban renewal in the 1950s destroyed much of the Hayti business district, resulting in massive permanent displacement of its thriving community. However, the brick building that stands today, overlooking the very freeway that divided the district, is a powerful testament to black resilience, prosperity, and the importance of preserving the cultural health of blackness across the African diaspora. Today, the Hayti Heritage Center still holds true to its original design and purpose. Although it is no longer a church, it is still a sanctuary—a place where people of all backgrounds and experiences go to find refuge, to disperse joy, to promote healing, and to cultivate relationships. Hayti is a legacy. For generations, the Center has served as a welcoming space for local and international activists, artists, and performers including late congressman John L. Lewis, Dr. Martin Luther King Jr., poet and activists Ruby Dee, author and anthropologist Zora Neale Hurston, singer

and songwriter James Brown, as well as countless others. A community staple for visual and performing arts, Hayti offers a variety of programs and events that promote crosscultural engagement and understanding. African dance and drumming classes as well

HAYTI PHOTOS BY EARL BYNUM

by Ayanna Albertson

as historic tours of the Hayti neighborhood have been available to all who desired to partake. Pre-COVID-19, the Center held a variety of in-person festivals, concerts, programs, and competitions throughout the year. A signature event for 26 years, the Hayti Heritage Film Festival attracts film producers and enthusiasts alike as a means to promote and elevate Southern Black Film. The Center also houses a monthly poetry competition called Jambalaya Soul Slam, also known as the Bull City Slam. Directed by poet,

artist, and educator Dasan Ahanu, it brings together some of the best local poets in the area to compete for a cash prize and a chance to represent Hayti, and the Durham community at-large, in various regional and national competitions. Since 2007, the Bull City Slam team has made the finals in regional competitions four times, semifinals in national competitions three times, and even brought home two first-place victories in 2010 and 2014. From the Durham Symphony Orchestra’s spring concert, to the North Carolina Jazz Ensemble’s annual

holiday concert, Hayti has been known for its quality live programming. As the pandemic crisis began shifting and even dismantling organizations and businesses across the world, the Center quickly recognized the need to adapt new ways to sustain audiences and most importantly, support artists and the arts. Hayti’s commitment to continuing its role in community impact and development comes as no surprise as it has always been an institution that symbolizes resilience. Robin Emmons, the development manager at Hayti, had faith in the Center’s ability to “quickly pivot online.” “We did what black people have been doing since we were brought to this country,” Ms. Emmons says, “made a way out of no way.” Although the Center has developed a strong financial position under the leadership of Angela Lee, the executive director, this new way of life could not be supported to its greatest potential with the facility’s current resources. In order to efficiently implement new programming, one that could provide high quality virtual experiences, the Center would need to develop and acquire a technological face lift. No stranger to Hayti, The Mary Duke Biddle Foundation has recognized the Center’s contribution to Durham’s cultural enrichment multiple times through grant funding. Ms. Lee proposed “Hayti Reimagined” to the foundation, seeking support to expand current programming, develop new programming, and innovate new programs and operations to provide a

more secure and unified system on which Hayti can build into the future. “I am constantly surprised and empowered by the magnitude of Hayti,” Lee says, “and there are so many more stories to share and tell.” Not only would this funding help ensure the organization’s operability and viability, but it would provide immediate financial assistance to get the ball rolling. “The Hayti Heritage Center is an anchor institution in Durham, and the Board of Trustees enthusiastically approved this proposal,” said Mimi O’Brien, the Biddle Foundation’s executive director. A testament to the growing relationship maintained between Hayti and the Biddle Foundation, the grant was awarded and Hayti quickly began its upgrade process. While some upgrades have yet to begin due to COVID-19, many technical upgrades, integral to the current virtual and future in-person experience, have already been implemented in this historic building. With funding from the foundation, Hayti has been able to upgrade its A/V and lighting systems, as well as install new monitors in the lobby and refresh furnishings in the performance hall and offices. Angel Dozier, a former volunteer for the Center who now serves as the communications specialist, is excited for the opportunities these upgrades offer. Having been a volunteer at the Film Festival for four consecutive seasons, Dozier quickly became a cheerleader for Hayti. “We have a 60-foot screen,” Dozier says, “this money is already expanding the vision of the festival.”

music every Tuesday for the entire month of June. From virtual ballet classes to virtual quilting workshops, Hayti has truly reimagined and reenvisioned the capacity by which they could operate and grow. At Hayti, the spirit of creativity is fed. A direct beneficiary of the Center’s power and impact, I’d be remiss if I didn’t recognize their role in my own artistic development Above: A new lighting system and sound booth are installed in the and success. As an historic performance hall. Inset: The stained glass window depicts active member of the Washington Duke, Mary Duke Biddle’s grandfather and patron of the Bull City Slam team and original St. Joseph’s A.M.E. Church. participant in various While navigating the challenges caused events and programs at the center, I can by COVID-19 wasn’t easy, the Center still honestly say that Hayti helped me develop managed to keep the community engaged and solidify my craft. Within the church through virtual programming. In April, walls of this historic monument, I found my just a few weeks into the pandemic, Hayti ministry and my voice. With the luminance had already displayed ingenuity through of 24 stained glass windows behind me, I its virtual program “Piano & A Poet,” in performed in my first poetry slam. celebration of National Poetry and Jazz Now, just four years from my first slam Month. Program director Quentin Talley appearance, I am ranked the second-best hosted a series of half-hour shows streamed woman spoken-word poet in the world. I can live from the Hayti lobby through the undoubtedly say that Hayti has been, and Center’s social media pages. Not too long still is, my creative haven. Even more special after, in honor of Black Music Month, Hayti is having supportive people like Angela presented “Don’t Stop the Music,” which Lee and Dasan Ahanu constantly there to paid homage to various forms of black encourage and affirm you, contributing

to the healthy and thriving legacy of relationship-building that already exists. This year, the Hayti is recognizing the Sankofa, an African symbol that expresses and reinforces remembering the past to help build a better future. “We recognize Sankofa by reflecting on how dynamic Hayti has been, and working through the issues, both good and bad, to move forward and claim the legacy that has always been ours,” Dozier says. For an institution with so much history, it only seems fitting for the Center to prosper while continuing to cultivate connections in the community and beyond. In fact, Dozier describes it as “a cultural cannon that distributes so much to all people.” While the pivot to a virtual reality was quick and unpredictable, the lasting effects of The Mary Duke Biddle Foundation’s contribution will be visible in Hayti’s infrastructure for generations to come. When asked about how the public will react to “Hayti Reimagined’’ once inperson programming is permitted, Emmons replied, “It will be like a reunion. Our past is in the building and so will be our future, but it’ll be even more grand because of the investment that has been made. Just wait until you get back into the building.”

J. CALDWELL

GRANTS AT DUKE UNIVERSITY • $635,000

Duke Performances • $63,000 Nasher Museum of Art • $105,000 Sarah P. Duke Gardens • $120,000

Duke University School of Medicine Medical School Scholarships • $25,000 Duke University Medical Center Arts & Health at Duke • $70,000

JARED LAZARUS, DUKE UNIVERSITY

TESS MANGUM

PIERRE LIDAR

JOEL PETER JOHNSON

Trinity College of Arts & Sciences • $252,000

Above: Duke Performances records “Music in Your Garden” in summer 2020, as part of the Show Must Go Online initiative. Above left: Duke University hosted Imani Winds as artists-in-residence. Below left: William Dawson of Arts & Health at Duke performs in the Duke Children’s Hospital.

OTHER GRANTS • $45,000 These grants reflect the long history shared by the churches, Mary Duke Biddle, and the Biddle Foundation. Christ Church United Methodist New York, New York • $5,000

North Carolina Center for Nonprofits Raleigh, NC • $5,000

Duke Memorial United Methodist Church Durham, NC • $5,000

TABLE (In honor of Chris Harris, MDBF trustee) Chapel Hill, NC • $5,000

Irvington Presbyterian Church Irvington, NY • $5,000

Triangle Capacity Building Network RTP, NC • $15,000

These grants reflect the long history shared by the churches, Mary Duke Biddle, and the Biddle Foundation.

United Way of the Greater Triangle RTP, NC • $5,000

GIFTS The following grants are made through an estate gift to MDBF from the Jenny Lillian Semans Koortbojian Trust. Jenny was a granddaughter of Mary Duke Biddle. COURTESY OF TABLE

The ArtsCenter Carrboro, NC • $11,500

Durham Colored Library Durham, NC • $11,500 Durham Symphony Orchestra Durham, NC • $11,500 Helps Education Fund RTP, NC • $11,500

PATRICK PHELPS-MCKEOWN

Chatham Education Foundation Pittsboro, NC • $11,500 Above: TABLE volunteers deliver meals to school children in Orange County. Left: Artist JP Jermaine Powell paints a mural in Carrboro for The ArtsCenter’s inaugural Public Art Initiative.

CHECKING IN:

UPDATES ON PREVIOUSLY-FUNDED PROJECTS by Kathy Harrison

Some MDBF-supported projects take more time to come to fruition—we caught up with several organizations.

Durham Library Foundation With the untimely death of our long-time trustee and friend, James D.B.T. Semans in December 2018, the board and staff searched for a fitting tribute to mark his 26 years of service. “Transformation Main,” the complete renovation and expansion of the Durham Library’s primary campus, provided the perfect opportunity. In recognition of Mr. Semans’ love of Durham, his respect for buildings both old and new, and his fascination with technology, the Biddle Foundation and the Jenny Lillian Semans Koortbojian Trust named the Innovation/Maker Lab in his honor. While available for all ages, the Innovation/Maker Lab is geared towards older makers, from older teens to seniors. When the library can safely return to inperson programming, the Innovation Lab will provide space to foster innovation and the entrepreneurial spirit, helping people from ideation to creation and prototyping. The space will also have open lab hours and workshops to learn how to use the STEAM equipment. Planned programs will range from introduction to 3D printing and design on opensource operating systems, to crafting, to coding, and more.

Click! Photography Festival Click! Photography is a month-long photography festival with curated exhibits and programming for all levels of photographic art. MDBF’s grant in September 2019 supported an expansion of the Programming Innovations for Click! (PIC) artist grants for innovative works to be exhibited during the 2020 festival. Click! was able to convert to a virtual festival easily, with programming addressing current issues such as racial justice and the COVID-19 pandemic. Six Feet Photography, Big Backyard, and Big Camera: Postcards for the Pandemic were the three projects selected for the 2020 virtual festival. The pop-up Camera Obscura event is shown above.

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Durham Art Guild (DAG) Durham Art Guild (DAG) is a visual arts nonprofit whose mission is to enrich and connect artists and arts enthusiasts in our community. In September 2018, the foundation gave a grant for the Art@Work program, which connects a broad range of area businesses and individuals with local artists to purchase or lease artwork. Working with the business client, DAG discusses options, evaluates the space, and curates the art, including installation. Artists receive a generous stipend for leasing their work or 100% of purchase price if bought outright. Art@Work facilitates and simplifies the process for the artist and art lover while providing sustainable revenue to DAG for the professional services offered.

EDDE BURGESS | KELLY SHEPPARD MURRAY, EXHIBITING ARTIST

Six Feet Six Feet is a collaborative photography project that began as an urgent call to encourage people to share personal images during this time of social distancing. During the pandemic, the Six Feet project is a doorway to community for thousands of people. The free platform offers forums and practice groups, artist talks, calls-forengagement, and photographers of all levels willing to share their personal lives. “To be honest, our project has had an astounding impact well beyond what we could have ever imagined,’” said Susan Patrice, one of the founders.

Additionally, with people spending more time in their homes due to the COVID-19 pandemic, DAG has created an Art@Home component to respond to individuals’ desire to have original art in their spaces. People will be able to browse mini-portfolios of artists, photographers, and other artisans.

Triangle ArtWorks In September of 2018, Triangle ArtWorks received funding for ArtSwell, a collaboration with regional arts nonprofits to develop a coordinated program of high-quality professional development opportunities for artists and arts professionals. Just as they were preparing to launch these programs, the COVID-19 pandemic required them to reevaluate how to serve the needs of the art sector and develop a new plan. ArtSwell moved quickly to online training courses that focused on challenges created by the pandemic. The “Market Runner” program works with arts/crafts markets to create virtual venues and a collaborative marketplace while the monthly “Artist Entrepreneurship” explores topics such as Instagram as a sales tool. “Coping with COVID: Financial Implications for Creative Individuals,” offered guidance on money matters. They worked with the National Alliance on Mental Illness to provide quality emotional support. From this collaboration, they developed “Creative Centering,” which offers morning meditation guidance, and “Conversation Café,” a bi-monthly forum for sharing and problem solving.

V I R T U A L

September 1-15, 2020 STAY HOME • TUNE IN • BUY ART

LISTENING TO NONPROFITS:

CHANGING OUR GRANTMAKING APPROACHES AND PRACTICES Supporting the arts and education the Triangle by in Karen Kemp region of North Carolina DURHAM COUNTY

ORANGE COUNTY

CHATHAM COUNTY

WAKE COUNTY

How can The Mary Duke Biddle Foundation help www.mdbf.org strengthen the Triangle nonprofit sector and increase the impact of its grantmaking? What do nonprofits need in order to be healthy for the long haul and resilient when times are tough?

xploration of these questions prompted a series of changes to the Biddle Foundation’s geographic scope, timelines, and grant criteria over the last few years. In 2018, the foundation began to offer a limited number of multi-year operating grants aimed at capacity building. At the time, no one was thinking about a global pandemic. Then came 2020, a year like no other. “COVID hit, and it really shined a spotlight on the issue of fluctuating revenue,” says Mimi O’Brien, MDBF executive director. “So many nonprofits that had strong earned income— from ticket sales or charges for services—saw those funds dry up.” At the same time, crowd size restrictions aimed at reducing the spread of the new virus erased special event fundraising nearly overnight. “We saw the impact on local nonprofits. These organizations are important to our communities and we want them to be around when we come out the other side,” O’Brien says. The foundation changed course quickly. Funds intended for a third cohort of multi-year grants and other purposes were redirected to provide operating support totaling $225,000, with an emphasis on organizations led by people of color. POC-led organizations received 54% of these funds. In partnership with MDBF, the Jenny Lillian Semans Koortbojian Trust made gifts totaling $140,000 to the same organizations, 70% of which went to POC-led organizations. “Because the trustees and staff had already sought out knowledge about what we could be doing differently, we were able to move quickly to make the COVID relief grants,” O’Brien says. “The nonprofits I have talked with appreciate this responsiveness at such a critical time.” The crisis of 2020 accelerated grantmaking shifts the foundation had been implementing gradually. Beginning in 2021, approximately 80% of competitive grant dollars will go toward two-year operating grants, and 20% toward one-year opportunity grants. This will include 20 two-year grants totaling $20,000 each, half in the K-12 Education Program and half in the Arts Program. In addition, 10 opportunity grants of $5,000

each are planned in 2021, also divided equally between the two areas the Biddle Foundation supports. The smaller grants are aimed at start-ups, organizations without a prior relationship with MDBF, or those seeking seed funding for an innovation. Racial equity is an important driver of the changes. “We were recognizing that we weren’t seeing applications from organizations that I thought would apply,” O’Brien says. The research is clear: nonprofits led by people of color tend to lack access to financial support and tend to be less well funded. They are less likely to have the staffing needed to comply with the

New Grants Approved 2020*

time-intensive application and reporting requirements that foundations often require. Along with the change to operating support and prioritizing organizations led by people of color, the Biddle Foundation is changing its proposal and reporting processes to reduce the workload for nonprofits. Formerly, organizations would submit a letter of inquiry before submitting a full proposal. Now, the first step of the application process is to schedule a phone call to discuss the funding proposal, a less formal approach that also saves nonprofits’ time. The funding application itself provides more detail on how MDBF evaluates

2020 New Grants Paid New Grants Paid

Arts, $265,000 Arts, $265,000

COVID-19 Grants, $225,000 Total, $1,300,000 Total, $1,300,000

*$1,450,000 total grants paid

Duke University, $635,000 Duke University, $635,000

Other, $45,000 Other, $45,000

K-12 K-12 Education, Education, $130,000 $130,000

proposals, which brings more translucency into the process. MDBF also will increase outreach to organizations led by people of color as the new grantmaking changes go into practice. In addition, two-year grantees will not submit a written report after one year. Instead, “we will have a conversation, helping us get to know them better,” says O’Brien. “We are working to reduce the amount of time, effort, and, therefore, expense that goes into working with us.” The grantmaking changes at MDBF grew out of multi-year exploration by the board along with other members of the Triangle Capacity Building Network, a group of funders working to strengthen the effectiveness and resiliency of both individual nonprofits and the nonprofit sector. Nationally, philanthropic organizations are moving toward funding the operational needs of established nonprofits—such as staff, facilities, and supplies—the basics that make their community services possible. “We’re making significant changes in the way we do our grantmaking,” O’Brien says. “Before, we were funding newer efforts. If a project had been operating for more than five years, it was not eligible. Now we want to support organizations for the good they are doing in their communities.”

OUR HISTORY

Mrs. Biddle valued the input and wisdom of her friends and trusted advisors, and, from the beginning, the foundation’s Board of Trustees has included family and non-family members. The foundation continues her practice of actively engaging members of the community to serve as trustees. Currently, the board is comprised of three family and four non-family members. Mrs. Biddle’s vision for current and purposeful giving drives the work of the foundation’s trustees and staff. Above: A 1910 portrait of Miss Mary Lillian Duke. Right: The Roney Fountain in the Mary Duke Biddle Rose Garden in Duke Gardens. Back cover: Chinfloo family performs at ADF’s Healing Parade.

MEGAN MENDENHALL

ary Lillian Duke Biddle (1887-1960) was born in Durham, N.C., the daughter of Benjamin Newton Duke and Sarah Pearson Angier Duke. She attended public schools in Durham and graduated from Trinity College, later named Duke University in honor of her grandfather, Washington Duke. Mrs. Biddle developed an appreciation for the importance of philanthropy from her father, who was the guiding hand behind many of the Duke family’s charitable activities. Duke University, in particular, flourished in its early days thanks to the financial backing of her grandfather, father, and uncle James B. Duke, who were successful entrepreneurs as well as philanthropists. In September 1956, she established The Mary Duke Biddle Foundation. Mrs. Biddle directed that at least one-half of the foundation’s grants be made to Duke University and identified three churches as institutions important to her. Otherwise, she was intentionally broad in her directions to future trustees on how and where to distribute grants.

LORA CHARLES

MissionPost, PMB #101 | 318 Blackwell Street, Suite 130 Durham, NC 27701 | 919.493.5591 | www.mdbf.org