Keene Multicultural Center

Arts Alive offers fiscal sponsorship to new arts organizations working their way towards independence as nonprofits and to artists exploring community-centered projects and creating work in the Monadnock region.

the big idea:

To establish a multi-cultural community center that serves and supports a diverse population of locals and surrounding area residents to build community with new residents to the area through the creation of a welcoming space that connects them with economic and cultural resources. The Keene Multicultural Center will be unique in that it will help existing and new residents build social capital through access to meaningful culture in the form of arts, a shared space that builds community, and an incubation of community resources in a culturally sensitive way.

This project will :

  1. Create a safe and socially conscious place for the communities served

  2. Connect underserved community members to existing resources

  3. Provide New American gardeners the opportunity to grow culturally relevant crops and address food security

  4. Impact the social consciousness and cross-cultural engagement of the community via the planning and hosting a major multicultural event

Goals include:

Securing Funding

  • Secure seed funding / grants (private investor; foundation) $50-150K and pursue an initial fundraising / crowdfunding donor base

Building Community

  • Increase awareness across the community to build advocacy on ethnic and multi-cultural inclusivity.

  • Establish a leadership team of 8-14 members/advisors/coaches from a diverse background

  • Develop a volunteer base of at least 20 individuals to support center activity

Acquiring Space & Resources

  • Secure working space/facility for incubator project that’s open to the community for at least 35 hours per week

  • Identify potential parcels for no less than ten community garden plots measuring 10x10 for New Americans and other underserved clients

  • Establish a library of community resources to support underserved clients including housing, food security, and employment

  • Establish collaborations with partner organizations

Launching Programming

  • Host at least one major multi-cultural event that includes diverse engagement

  • Implement a Job Training pilot program that connects our clients with community employers.

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