As ETC begins our 20th year (in 2018), we are continuing in our focus to serve the under-served members of our community. The ETC community is vast, covering ages and locations beyond other similar organizations. Our goal is to reach more students ages 3-103 where they are - by increasing our offerings at more schools, more community centers, and more senior living homes. By increasing our administrative capacity through new staff members and increased administrative hours, ETC aims to diversify our funding, bring in increased donations, and in turn provide more free-to-participate or subsidized programming throughout our area.

To continue in our growth beyond an adolescent company, ETC is consistently working toward growing our administrative capacity to include a third full-time position. Through our strategic plan (2017-2020), we will undergo a 360* assessment, supported by our Board of Directors, to best identify how this additional position will serve the company. Additionally, our strategic plan sets forth monthly, quarterly, and annual goals to grow our key programs - notably ETCB, Creative Age, and Devising Hope - and maintain a continued level of growth within individual and corporation donations.

As of the end of 2017, ETC's Board of Directors is working at near-capacity with a group of active and engaged community members providing time, money, communication, and leadership for the company as a whole. Our Director of Development position has been increased to a greater number of hours per week, and our grant-writing team is continually adding new members. As our Executive Staff meetings continue to occur weekly, the end of 2017 also saw the implementation of annual staff reviews for Executive Staff members. This annual review process will increase in 2018 to include all members of our core staff.

The three-year strategic plan initiated in 2017 outlines key indicators for all areas of growth and maintenance throughout the year. Each section of the plan includes monthly, quarterly, and annual goals as well as clearly identified staff positions to be held accountable for each goal. This plan is checked monthly by our Managing Director, Ashley Hammond, who oversees the completion of each task as assigned.

ETC is very excited to celebrate our 20th birthday in 2018! What began as a small company offering in-school Shakespeare programming, has spent the years growing into a year-round theatre education organization. Each summer, we offer upwards of 30 summer camps for ages 3-18 while providing work for 40-50 artists in the community, including teenage interns and counselors who gain both work experience and gainful employment. Throughout the school year, ETC is in schools throughout the National Capital Area providing after school classes and in-school programming. Our partnership with McKinley Elementary in Arlington was identified three years ago as the longest running arts partnership in Arlington Public Schools' history, and it continues to this day. Our STEAM (Science-Technology-Engineering-ARTS-Math) programming has grown beyond after school classes to include in-school partnerships designed to reach learners of all styles using theatre to teach core subjects often overlooked by other arts programming. Throughout it all, ETC has remained committed to supporting teaching artists in the area, providing work, support, and education to our staff whether a one-week employee or a core staff member with us for years.