Texas Folklife Resources, Inc.
Since 1984, we've been presenting, preserving, and promoting the rich cultural heritage of the Lone Star State.
Texas Folklife Resources, Inc.
EIN: 74-2360058
Mission
Texas Folklife is a statewide non-profit organization dedicated to preserving and presenting the diverse cultures and living heritage of the Lone Star State.
Ruling year
1985
Executive Director
Charlie Lockwood
Main address
724 Eberhart Ln #500
Austin, TX 78745 USA
EIN
74-2360058
Arts and culture
Arts services
Arts education
Folk arts
Music
Population served
Children and youth
Adults
Economically disadvantaged people
Veterans
NTEE code
Arts, Cultural Organizations - Multipurpose (A20)
IRS subsection
501(c)(3) Public Charity
IRS filing requirement
This organization is required to file an IRS Form 990 or 990-EZ.
Tax forms
Communication
Programs and results
Reports and documents
Download annual reportsWhat we aim to solve
Our programs
What are the organization's current programs, how do they measure success, and who do the programs serve?
Performance, Exhibit and Media
Since 1984, our award-winning programs have been presented nationwide from the Paramount Theatre in Austin and the Miller Outdoor Theatre in Houston to National Public Radio, PBS, the Library of Congress and the Kennedy Center. Texas Folklife’s programs encourage the preservation of folk traditions, support the work of traditional artists, and educate the public about the cultural richness of the state.
Texas Folklife promotes, presents and documents the state’s rich cultural legacy through a vibrant mix of exhibitions, performances, community residencies, apprenticeships, and educational programs. Texas Folklife is committed to preserving the diverse living heritage of Texans, while exploring the vital role of tradition in contemporary society. Dubbed “one of the state’s true cultural treasures” by the Austin American-Statesman, Texas Folklife is widely viewed as a model for public folk arts programming for the joyful experiences we make possible. Programs such as the “Big Squeeze” statewide youth accordion contest and the “Accordion Kings & Queens” concert bring together diverse audiences to share and experience Texas traditions. We have produced national multi-media projects supported by National Public Radio and PBS, including The Border Radio Show and The Big Squeeze documentary. We are now in the post-production phase of a short documentary film about Santa Muerte, a Mexican folk saint with a growing presence in Texas.
Texas Folklife benefits from a strong reputation among regional and national peers and colleagues in the arts. The American Folklife Center in Washington, D.C. has invited us multiple years to present Texas artists such as blues legend Barbara Lynn, trio Los Tres Reyes, conjunto Los Texmaniacs, and Western Swing and Texas fiddle band The Quebe Sisters at The Library of Congress’ Coolidge Auditorium and the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts in their “Home Grown: The Music of America” series. The National Endowment for the Arts has consistently funded a number of programs, including our youth media program “Stories from Deep in the Heart”, “A Place at the Table,” a statewide study of regional food traditions, and our longstanding “Apprenticeships in the Folk & Traditional Arts” program, with the support of a State Arts Partnership Award with TCA. Recently, the Grammy Museum Foundation granted Texas Folklife a major award for our Archival Preservation Project, helping us to digitize, catalog, and share archival audio holdings that represent a slice of Texas music culture and history.
Education
Texas Folklife’s Apprenticeship and K-12 Folklore in Education programs connect young Texans to the artists, craftspeople, storytellers and musicians who can pass along their traditions to new generations. Texas Folklife community residencies with esteemed traditional artists have reached more than 140 rural Texas towns. Our Texas Essential Knowledge and Skills (TEKS) aligned curriculum materials help teachers integrate high-quality arts programs into their classroom teaching. Texas Folklife collects and archives oral histories, photographs and video and audio files on Texas tradition-bearers, used in research, media and exhibition projects.
Stories from Deep in the Heart is our award-winning youth radio program that teaches high school students and teachers how to document their family and community traditions through audio documentaries.
Audio pieces from this program are also available to public radio stations via our Public Radio Exchange channel.
Archive Preservation Project
Texas Folklife preserves the state’s rich cultural heritage by collecting and archiving oral histories, photographs, video and audio files on Texas tradition bearers, collected for use in research, media and exhibition projects. The Texas Folklife Archive continues to grow in size and depth with each new program, performance, and exhibition.
Where we work
Awards
Presenter/Homegrown Concert Series 2009
Amercan Folklife Center/ Library of Congress
Affiliations & memberships
National Endowment for the Arts 2013
Mid America Arts Alliance 2023
External reviews
Photos
Videos
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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Who are the people you serve with your mission?
TXF prioritizes institutionally underserved communities throughout Texas through our three focus areas of Music & Cultural Heritage, Education & Exploration, and Folk Arts & Health. Our Big Squeeze youth accordion contest brings audiences to Austin to share in accordion-based traditions while fostering the creative and personal development of young people from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. The Apprenticeship in Folk & Traditional Arts program provides awards for artist mentors to train dedicated apprentices in art, cultural, or heritage practices and to share these practices through community showcases.
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How is your organization collecting feedback from the people you serve?
SMS text surveys, Electronic surveys (by email, tablet, etc.), Paper surveys, Focus groups or interviews (by phone or in person), Community meetings/Town halls, Constituent (client or resident, etc.) advisory committees, Suggestion box/email,
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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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What significant change resulted from feedback?
Updated program policies and procedures
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With whom is the organization sharing feedback?
The people we serve, Our staff, Our board, Our community partners,
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How has asking for feedback from the people you serve changed your relationship?
This process has created more ownership by community and program collaborators.
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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 take steps to get feedback from marginalized or under-represented people, 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 tell the people who gave us feedback how we acted on their feedback, 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 get the people we serve to respond to requests for feedback, We don’t have the right technology to collect and aggregate feedback efficiently, The people we serve tell us they find data collection burdensome, 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, It is difficult to get honest feedback from the people we serve, It is difficult to identify actionable feedback,
Financials
Financial documents
Download audited financialsRevenue vs. expenses: breakdown
Liquidity in 2019 info
0.15
Months of cash in 2019 info
1.6
Fringe rate in 2019 info
12%
Funding sources info
Assets & liabilities info
Texas Folklife Resources, Inc.
Revenue & expensesFiscal Year: Jan 01 - Dec 31
SOURCE: IRS Form 990
Texas Folklife Resources, Inc.
Balance sheetFiscal Year: Jan 01 - Dec 31
SOURCE: IRS Form 990
The balance sheet gives a snapshot of the financial health of an organization at a particular point in time. An organization's total assets should generally exceed its total liabilities, or it cannot survive long, but the types of assets and liabilities must also be considered. For instance, an organization's current assets (cash, receivables, securities, etc.) should be sufficient to cover its current liabilities (payables, deferred revenue, current year loan, and note payments). Otherwise, the organization may face solvency problems. On the other hand, an organization whose cash and equivalents greatly exceed its current liabilities might not be putting its money to best use.
Fiscal Year: Jan 01 - Dec 31
SOURCE: IRS Form 990
This snapshot of Texas Folklife Resources, Inc.’s financial trends applies Nonprofit Finance Fund® analysis to data hosted by GuideStar. While it highlights the data that matter most, remember that context is key – numbers only tell part of any story.
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Business model indicators
| Profitability info | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Unrestricted surplus (deficit) before depreciation | $35,042 | -$258,626 | $114,993 | -$1,509 | $28,095 |
| As % of expenses | 6.1% | -55.2% | 26.1% | -0.3% | 5.5% |
| Unrestricted surplus (deficit) after depreciation | $35,042 | -$269,837 | $99,633 | -$17,010 | $12,454 |
| As % of expenses | 6.1% | -56.3% | 21.8% | -3.4% | 2.4% |
| Revenue composition info | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total revenue (unrestricted & restricted) | $542,050 | $467,840 | $569,629 | $480,767 | $501,077 |
| Total revenue, % change over prior year | 33.1% | -13.7% | 21.8% | -15.6% | 4.2% |
| Program services revenue | 1.2% | 1.4% | 2.4% | 3.4% | 3.5% |
| Membership dues | 1.4% | 2.6% | 2.9% | 3.4% | 4.2% |
| Investment income | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% |
| Government grants | 51.1% | 73.9% | 37.8% | 48.2% | 51.2% |
| All other grants and contributions | 41.5% | 3.2% | 12.2% | 14.7% | 10.5% |
| Other revenue | 4.9% | 0.2% | 44.8% | 30.2% | 30.6% |
| Expense composition info | |||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total expenses before depreciation | $579,138 | $468,313 | $441,399 | $478,080 | $509,736 |
| Total expenses, % change over prior year | 38.7% | -19.1% | -5.7% | 8.3% | 6.6% |
| Personnel | 22.8% | 21.1% | 24.3% | 25.2% | 35.4% |
| Professional fees | 35.7% | 29.3% | 4.0% | 5.0% | 3.8% |
| Occupancy | 11.4% | 13.2% | 14.0% | 13.2% | 12.6% |
| Interest | 3.4% | 5.5% | 0.0% | 0.9% | 0.8% |
| Pass-through | 11.2% | 16.0% | 0.0% | 0.0% | 0.2% |
| All other expenses | 15.6% | 14.8% | 57.7% | 55.7% | 47.2% |
| Full cost components (estimated) info | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Total expenses (after depreciation) | $579,138 | $479,524 | $456,759 | $493,581 | $525,377 |
| One month of savings | $48,262 | $39,026 | $36,783 | $39,840 | $42,478 |
| Debt principal payment | $0 | $0 | $0 | $19,329 | $35,536 |
| Fixed asset additions | $660 | $163,011 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Total full costs (estimated) | $628,060 | $681,561 | $493,542 | $552,750 | $603,391 |
Capital structure indicators
| Liquidity info | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Months of cash | 0.4 | 0.7 | 3.8 | 2.2 | 1.6 |
| Months of cash and investments | 0.4 | 0.7 | 3.8 | 2.2 | 1.6 |
| Months of estimated liquid unrestricted net assets | 3.0 | -3.2 | -0.7 | -1.0 | -0.7 |
| Balance sheet composition info | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Cash | $19,734 | $27,901 | $138,109 | $89,234 | $68,408 |
| Investments | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 |
| Receivables | $230,587 | $238,062 | $155,125 | $163,499 | $144,125 |
| Gross land, buildings, equipment (LBE) | $354,148 | $235,277 | $523,277 | $534,542 | $534,542 |
| Accumulated depreciation (as a % of LBE) | 33.1% | 57.1% | 28.6% | 31.0% | 33.9% |
| Liabilities (as a % of assets) | 70.4% | 93.4% | 76.7% | 77.1% | 79.1% |
| Unrestricted net assets | $145,991 | -$123,846 | -$24,213 | -$41,182 | -$28,728 |
| Temporarily restricted net assets | $0 | $167,390 | $180,627 | $184,823 | N/A |
| Permanently restricted net assets | $0 | $0 | $0 | $0 | N/A |
| Total restricted net assets | $0 | $167,390 | $180,627 | $184,823 | $148,069 |
| Total net assets | $145,991 | $660,564 | $156,414 | $143,641 | $119,341 |
Key data checks
| Key data checks info | 2015 | 2016 | 2017 | 2018 | 2019 |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Material data errors | No | Yes | No | No | No |
Operations
The people, governance practices, and partners that make the organization tick.
Documents
Executive Director
Charlie Lockwood
Charlie Lockwood has a decade of experience as a nonprofit arts administrator and public folklorist. A Native Texan, he holds an MA in Ethnomusicology from UC Santa Barbara, where he played the oud with the UCSB Middle East Ensemble and did research with the Mardi Gras Indians of New Orleans. As the Executive Director of Texas Folklife, Lockwood has overseen a variety of flagship public programs and initiatives, including an archival preservation project to organize, digitize and ultimately disseminate the organization’s rich archival holdings dating from 1984. Over the last several years Lockwood has spearheaded programs focusing on the intersections of folk and traditional arts and health, including a military veterans folklore and storytelling initiative with support from NEA Creative Forces and Hechos, No Miedo (Facts, Not Fear), a covid-19 PSA Series in partnership with a variety of central Texas partners.
In 2014 he co-produced Traditional Music of Texas Volume 1: Fiddle Recordings from the Texas Folklife Archives, and in 2015 was honored with a Community Sabbatical Research Award from the University of Texas at Austin Humanities Institute to research historic and contemporary Texas regional music recordings. Lockwood served as Vice President (2018-2019) and President of the Society for Ethnomusicology Southern Plains Chapter (2019-2020), Journal of Folklore in Education 2019 The Art of the Interview Advisory Committee, is a member of the American Folklore Society and Society for Ethnomusicology. In 2021-2022 Lockwood served on the UTSA Institute of Texan Cultures Task Force: Museum of the Future. He is a former board member of the Americans for the Arts Emerging Arts Leaders Austin chapter and has served on a variety of grant review panels and advisory committees for local and national institutions.
Number of employees
Source: IRS Form 990
Texas Folklife Resources, Inc.
Officers, directors, trustees, and key employeesSOURCE: IRS Form 990
Compensation data
There are no highest paid employees recorded for this organization.
Texas Folklife Resources, Inc.
Board of directorsas of 03/07/2023
Board of directors data
Jeff Jackson
Linda Peche
Vietnamese in the Diaspora Digital Archive
Sean Hale
Nydia Tapia – Gonzales
Journalist
Lisa Marie Avendano
Tom Ellis
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 ? Yes -
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? Yes -
Board performance
Has the board conducted a formal, written self-assessment of its performance within the past three years? Yes
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
Sexual orientation
Disability
We do not display disability information for organizations with fewer than 15 staff.
Equity strategies
Last updated: 03/07/2023GuideStar 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 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 employ non-traditional ways of gathering feedback on programs and trainings, which may include interviews, roundtables, and external reviews with/by community stakeholders.
- We disaggregate data by demographics, including race, in every policy and program measured.
- 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 use a vetting process to identify vendors and partners that share our commitment to race equity.
- We have a promotion process that anticipates and mitigates implicit and explicit biases about people of color serving in leadership positions.
- We seek individuals from various race backgrounds for board and executive director/CEO positions within our organization.
- We have community representation at the board level, either on the board itself or through a community advisory board.
- 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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