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BTW helps arts organizations maximize their audience impact.

Arts organizations face myriad challenges in a competitive funding environment. By evaluating educational programming or defining the theory of change behind it, BTW helps these organizations focus their work and measure their impact.

BTW has designed and implemented evaluations for the Getty Foundation and New Conservatory Theatre Center. We have also guided Artsopolis of the Silicon Valley in developing its theory of change and a short-term action plan.

Read about our work with these champions of the arts:

 

The Getty Foundation

The Getty Foundation’s Multicultural Undergraduate Internship (MUI) program works to increase the diversity of professionals in the arts. When BTW came into the picture, the program’s impact on participants had not been measured in 15 years of existence. The Foundation engaged us to evaluate MUI’s effectiveness.

BTW conducted a retrospective, longitudinal evaluation to determine how MUI influenced the careers of participants. We partnered with program stakeholders to clarify the program’s theory of change, develop evaluation tools, and conduct survey and focus-group research.

The study’s results were used to make strategic decisions about refining MUI’s focus in light of the economic downturn. In addition, BTW developed a data tracking system the Foundation now uses to continue collecting data on the career trajectory of program participants.

New Conservatory Theatre Center

New Conservatory Theatre Center (NCTC) has been providing theater-in-education programs to schools across California for more than 25 years. Productions include The Other Side of the Closet, Outspoken, Party Daze, and Gorgeous.

NCTC has a genuine interest in understanding the impact of its productions. The Center contracted with BTW to evaluate the effect of its educational theater programs on young people’s attitudes about intolerance, personal identity, acceptance and sexual assault.

BTW undertook the following:

  • Measured the changes in attitude students underwent as a result of viewing the performances
  • Measured their awareness of the opportunities and challenges in their school environment for supporting change
  • Developed a series of post-performance instruments
  • Helped build NCTC’s capacity to administer the surveys and analyze the results

NCTC is now able to document and understand the impact of its programs over time.

Artsopolis

Artsopolis is an innovative Arts Marketing Partnership program of the Arts Council of Silicon Valley. The program wanted to focus its work and develop tools to understand its impact. They asked us to help.

BTW facilitated meetings of the organization’s leaders, partners and community stakeholders to create a theory of change and an action plan for the immediate future.

Today, Artsopolis.com is the Silicon Valley’s premier online guide to arts and culture.