Foundation News

We know that many of the dedicated staff, volunteers, and supporters of education and arts organizations throughout Oregon are facing uncertainty and stress connected to the restriction, pause, or cancellation of federal grants. Please know that we see you, we stand by you, and we remain unwavering in our commitment to supporting our grantees and the sectors we serve.

Our grantmaking is grounded in the belief that the arts help us make sense of our world—more important than ever in these uncertain times—and that holistic educational approaches give every student an equitable chance at success. We know general operating support and multi-year funding are most useful for arts and education organizations, and we are committed to continuing this support through each of our grant programs. While we cannot replace the funds provided by all impacted federal grants, we want to reassure you that we are steadfast in our support of the community.

Oregonians are resilient, and we will navigate the changes ahead together. For Miller grantees, reporting deadlines are always flexible. It’s as easy as sending us an email with the date that would work better for you! We can also often accelerate a payment if you have a sudden need. Simply reach out and let us know what is going on. In each report, we always ask, “What would you like the foundation to know about your organization’s recent successes and challenges?” This is a great place to share your direct experience with federal changes. We want to know what is happening for you.

We encourage you to stay informed through Nonprofit Association of Oregon and Foundations for a Better Oregon, which we support as reliable, informative, and trusted channels. We also closely follow activity in the Oregon State Legislature, especially updates from both the bipartisan Arts and Culture Caucus and the advocacy group Cultural Advocacy Coalition of Oregon. The Oregon Legislative Information System makes it easy to select bills of particular interest and get emails about work sessions, hearings, and all the updates as bills move through the legislative process. You can set up your own Bill Alerts here.

The nationally renowned artist Taylor Mac said, “An artist’s job is to dream the future forward.” Miller’s Executive Director Carrie Hoops recently reflected on Mac’s statement by saying, “Oregon’s artists help us understand new perspectives, challenge us to think more critically, and perhaps most importantly, help us imagine, together, a better future for all of us.”

The Miller Foundation is in the middle of a three-year pilot program to support individual artists: the Spark Award for Oregon Artists. You can learn more about our 2024 performing artists cohort here. The application for our 2025 media and literary awards opens in mid-May and the submission deadline is July 2. You can sign up for our newsletter to receive periodic updates about this program and more.

In the meantime, we are here to be flexible and supportive to our grantees and applicants. Please keep in touch and let us know how we can be of service.