Fendig Theatre for Children
Creative/performing Arts for Children by Children
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Mission
Organization's Mission: To help children discover themselves, build confidence and connect with their community through creative/performing arts activities. Organization’s Expanded Vision: To become the organization known for bringing all people of Jasper County together to collaborate, learn new things, tell stories of the past, present and future, consider different perspectives, share ideas, seek understanding and connect with each other.
Ruling year
1987
Board President
Heather Heinig
Main address
503 S Melville St
RENSSELAER, IN 47978 USA
Formerly known as
Rensselaer Summer Theatre
Ralph & Lilian Fendig Summer Theatre for Children
EIN
35-1691308
NTEE code
Single Organization Support (A11)
IRS filing requirement
This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990-N.
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Communication
Programs and results
What we aim to solve
Since 1976, Fendig Summer Theatre has aimed to teach our community's children how to run a theatrical production all on their own. Adults assist the children in learning how to produce a show, but everything the night of the performances is done by the children. Every child who auditions is given a role or can assist in the various aspects it takes to run a production. Being able to provide this experience for the community makes Fendig Summer Theatre unique and inclusive to all children regardless of background and experience who live in the Rensselaer Central School District. Fendig serves around seventy children every summer at no cost to the members. Fendig provides the youth with a quality, educational theatre experience.
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Summer Production
The Summer Production is our main program providing an opportunity for children living in and/or attending school at the Rensselaer Central School Corporation district boundaries. The children must have finished 4th grade through 8th grade. Any Child wishing to participate will receive a role and/or participate in the technical portions of the show such as lighting, sound, set construction, make-up, costuming or any other areas of the production. We have three performances, when the show starts, the children runs the show. Theatre for children by children.
Fendig Virtual Programs
Fendig Theatre for Children is providing digital content on our Facebook and Instagram pages, Youtube episodes, creative/performance workshops, radio shows, video performances, Zoom meets and more. Our organization was looking for ways to increase our impact. The pandemic forced us to try something we never even thought about, showing us just how much we really can make a difference. To date we have had participants not only from our local community but from thirty four additional Indiana counties and seven other states!
Where we work
Photos
Our results
How does this organization measure their results? It's a hard question but an important one.
Number of pre-recorded hours of broadcast
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Non-adult children, Economically disadvantaged people, Children and youth
Related Program
Fendig Virtual Programs
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Total number of free performances given
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Families, Non-adult children, Parents
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Number of participants engaged in programs
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth
Related Program
Summer Production
Type of Metric
Output - describing our activities and reach
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of people trained
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Artists and performers, Students, Teachers
Type of Metric
Outcome - describing the effects on people or issues
Direction of Success
Increasing
Number of volunteers
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Adults, Children and youth, Families
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Increasing
Context Notes
The pandemic reduced volunteers in our program dramatically. We are working very hard to get a more robust group of volunteers to come back to the program.
Number of grants received
This metric is no longer tracked.Totals By Year
Population(s) Served
Children and youth, Young adults, Families, Artists and performers, Students
Related Program
Summer Production
Type of Metric
Input - describing resources we use
Direction of Success
Holding steady
Our Sustainable Development Goals
Learn more about Sustainable Development Goals.
Goals & Strategy
Learn about the organization's key goals, strategies, capabilities, and progress.
Charting impact
Four powerful questions that require reflection about what really matters - results.
What is the organization aiming to accomplish?
Our program goals include giving the children an opportunity to learn about the performing arts through a high quality theatre experience. This experience also provides the children and other community members to engage with each other to enhance the quality of life within the community.
What are the organization's key strategies for making this happen?
Strategies to be successful are to have a board of directors dedicated to the longevity of our program throughout the year. We also strive to hire talented staff to educate and train our children. Staff members must understand that our goals include teaching performing arts skills as well as skills focusing on teamwork and communication with all involved, the children and our volunteers. In the end the participants have experience in how their individual part combines with others to impact a community.
What are the organization's capabilities for doing this?
The Fendig Summer Theatre for Children has been successfully implementing our program for forty nine years. We have worked hard to be a positive presence in the Rensselaer community. Priorities are taken to ensure resources are used efficiently, the community is involved and that we communicate with our patrons. The program has an endowment set up to ensure we have long term investments for the program as well as the generosity of our patrons both in funds donated as well as knowledge to pass on the each year's participants.
What have they accomplished so far and what's next?
The program has produced forty eight successful full length performances. Many of our alumni go on to give back to the program exclaiming experiences shaping how the program shaped their lives and how it helped them understand the power of participating in the community.
What's next? In addition to preparing for our 49th summer production, we are in the process of strengthening our ability to expand education in the arts by offering programs throughout the year.
How we listen
Seeking feedback from people served makes programs more responsive and effective. Here’s how this organization is listening.
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How is your organization using feedback from the people you serve?
To identify and remedy poor client service experiences, To identify bright spots and enhance positive service experiences, To make fundamental changes to our programs and/or operations, To inform the development of new programs/projects, To identify where we are less inclusive or equitable across demographic groups, To strengthen relationships with the people we serve, To understand people's needs and how we can help them achieve their goals
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Which of the following feedback practices does your organization routinely carry out?
We collect feedback from the people we serve at least annually, We aim to collect feedback from as many people we serve as possible, We take steps to ensure people feel comfortable being honest with us, We look for patterns in feedback based on demographics (e.g., race, age, gender, etc.), We look for patterns in feedback based on people’s interactions with us (e.g., site, frequency of service, etc.), We engage the people who provide feedback in looking for ways we can improve in response, We act on the feedback we receive, We share the feedback we received with the people we serve, We ask the people who gave us feedback how well they think we responded
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What challenges does the organization face when collecting feedback?
It is difficult to find the ongoing funding to support feedback collection, Staff find it hard to prioritize feedback collection and review due to lack of time, It is hard to come up with good questions to ask people
Financials
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Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Connect with nonprofit leaders
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- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
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Connect with nonprofit leaders
SubscribeBuild relationships with key people who manage and lead nonprofit organizations with GuideStar Pro. Try a low commitment monthly plan today.
- Analyze a variety of pre-calculated financial metrics
- Access beautifully interactive analysis and comparison tools
- Compare nonprofit financials to similar organizations
Want to see how you can enhance your nonprofit research and unlock more insights? Learn More about GuideStar Pro.
Fendig Theatre for Children
Board of directorsas of 05/08/2024
Heather Heinig
The Ralph & Lilian Fendig Summer Theatre for Children
Term: 2011 -
Jon Messman
Beth Houston
Kyle Geesa
Nichole Schwuchow
Board leadership practices
GuideStar worked with BoardSource, the national leader in nonprofit board leadership and governance, to create this section.
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Board orientation and education
Does the board conduct a formal orientation for new board members and require all board members to sign a written agreement regarding their roles, responsibilities, and expectations? Yes -
CEO oversight
Has the board conducted a formal, written assessment of the chief executive within the past year ? Not applicable -
Ethics and transparency
Have the board and senior staff reviewed the conflict-of-interest policy and completed and signed disclosure statements in the past year? Yes -
Board composition
Does the board ensure an inclusive board member recruitment process that results in diversity of thought and leadership? Not applicable -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? No
Organizational demographics
Who works and leads organizations that serve our diverse communities? Candid partnered with CHANGE Philanthropy on this demographic section.
Leadership
The organization's leader identifies as:
Race & ethnicity
Gender identity
Transgender Identity
Sexual orientation
Disability
We do not display disability information for organizations with fewer than 15 staff.
Equity strategies
Last updated: 05/08/2024GuideStar partnered with Equity in the Center - an organization that works to shift mindsets, practices, and systems to increase racial equity - to create this section. Learn more
- We review compensation data across the organization (and by staff levels) to identify disparities by race.
- We analyze disaggregated data and root causes of race disparities that impact the organization's programs, portfolios, and the populations served.
- We disaggregate data to adjust programming goals to keep pace with changing needs of the communities we support.
- We have long-term strategic plans and measurable goals for creating a culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
- We help senior leadership understand how to be inclusive leaders with learning approaches that emphasize reflection, iteration, and adaptability.
- We engage everyone, from the board to staff levels of the organization, in race equity work and ensure that individuals understand their roles in creating culture such that one’s race identity has no influence on how they fare within the organization.
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