Central Florida Community Arts Inc.

CFCArts ultimately aspires to become a national leader of community arts programs and to serve as a model for the efficacy and necessity of inclusive, multidisciplinary, intergenerational arts organizations.

To achieve this, our specific goals for 2023-2024 are as follows:

Strategic realignment and continued excellence:
In 2021, CFCArts Founder and Executive Director Joshua Vickery departed CFCArts to pursue opportunities outside of Central Florida. While we remain extremely grateful for Mr. Vickery's contributions to the organization, his exit has provided restructuring and strategic planning opportunities. While our Board of Directors is still searching for a new CEO, CFCArts staff are already taking steps to build on the growth many of our program areas experienced during the COVID-19 pandemic: hiring staff, restructuring positions, and engaging in meaningful dialogue with our community of members about our vision for the future of CFCArts. We are committed to an open and transparent process, reflecting our value of contributing to and creating community through servant leadership.

Identify and secure a permanent venue for our weekly recurring rehearsals, administration, and educational programming:
For over ten years, CFCArts programs and staff have shown terrific innovation and flexibility in adapting to various rented spaces throughout the Central Florida area. While we are extremely grateful to our venue partners, the continual changing of rehearsal, performance, and educational program venues does not serve the interests of our member artists or patrons, who must continually keep up with changes, sometimes with limited notice. Unfortunately, we have not been able to find such a space to date due to our size and the specific needs of our program areas. In 2023 and 2024, we will redouble our efforts and are committed to taking meaningful steps toward securing a long-term venue by the end of 2024.

Expand performance schedules to accommodate multiple weeks/weekends of performance:
Currently, many of our large-venue shows - Choir and Orchestra - are limited to one or two days of performances due to venue restrictions on multiple-week shows and the intense amount of work that goes into each production. These major shows attract thousands of patrons, and CFCArts will see unprecedented growth if we can expand them over two weekends. While our previously-stated goal to secure our own venue space will go a long way toward meeting this goal, we also must broaden our production staffing and capacity.

Our specific, measurable objectives for 2023-2024 will include the following:

Strategic realignment and continued excellence:
A full season of Choir, Orchestra, CYAP, Theatre, and SOAH programs and performances, reaching thousands in our community with low-cost or free arts experiences that reflect the vision of CFCArts' 'arts for all,' multidisciplinary approach;
A solidified organizational plan for 2024 and beyond, with the new CEO onboarded and in place;
Positive survey results from staff and members concerning the realignment and the quality of CFCArts offerings generally.
Identify and secure a permanent venue for our weekly recurring rehearsals, administration, and educational programming.
Completion of a full assessment of CFCArts spatial and performance needs, to be discussed with staff and stakeholders;
Identification of a permanent venue, with a plan in place to transition into that space;
Successful relationships with current venue partners, ensuring performance space remains available until we move to our next location.
Expand performance schedules to accommodate multiple weeks/weekends of performance.
At least one mainstage performance offered across multiple weekends by the end of the project period;
Positive survey results from members who will be most impacted by the change;
Continued high marks from patrons concerning the quality of shows, with 90% giving us a 5/5 for quality and experience across all shows, including any offered over multiple weekends.

CFCArts thrives due to the vision of its co-founders, the commitment of its board members, and the dedication and professionalism of its staff and performing arts faculty. CFCArts employs experienced professionals to lead every aspect of the business, resulting in a consistently high retention rate of senior staff, volunteer leaders, and board members. With combined arts and nonprofit experience of more than 45 years, the Executive Team of 3 Vice Presidents serves at the organization's helm.

CFCArts board members are actively engaged with the organization in board meetings, strategy sessions, committees, and board/staff social events. They take seriously their governance role as stewards of CFCArts and clearly support the leadership team. Board members serve on committees including finance, planning, programming and development, often working with staff leadership to advance those areas effectively. Clear engagement of the Board of Directors, Executive Committee, and Finance Committee has resulted in a financial history free from deficits since inception.

Much of the organization's success can be attributed to steady growth in membership, patronage, individual giving, sponsorships from local businesses and regional corporate leaders, and grants from regional foundations and city, county, and state government agencies alike. In addition to the dues that most members pay to participate in programs, many members also generously invest through contributions to specific fundraising campaigns and in recurring monthly support. We are also indebted to our partners, who provide venue spaces and outreach, enabling us to reach underserved communities.

Each of our performance areas and programs areas has unique progress markers; however, general progress is measured by observable, consistent growth in:
Program offerings
Age-specific and intergenerational programs
Membership
Audience attendance
Volunteer support
Community partnerships
Diverse funding strategies and sources

We continue to benefit from member referrals and audience patrons who seek to join the organization to participate in future events. The consistency and stability of our membership base are very important both for steady revenue and as a resource in our efforts to supply other local non-profits with musical entertainment to support their mission. Every year, we see more and more artists join the thousands who are engaged with CFCArts, and we expect this number to grow as virtual opportunities for participation continue to be offered for those in need of accessible solutions. Inclusion and diversity also continue to be a priority for all of our program areas and shows, and we are looking toward strategic outreach and membership drives to further our progress in this area.

Continued growth and progress at this stage also include finding venues large enough for our performance groups and audiences. Our continued growth has forced us to consider multiple rehearsals and performances to accommodate member demand. As such, our ultimate indicator of long-term success is the development and acquisition/construction of a centrally located performing arts center, where artists of all disciplines can join us in helping to continue making Central Florida a major regional destination for arts and culture.