Being an artist isn’t easy. Leading an arts organization also isn’t easy. But the ambitious nonprofit arts organizations that graduated from our 2014 Springboard cohort program now have plans in place to better serve their missions.

The 2014 graduation class includes Hugo House, Macha Monkey Productions, Pacific Ballroom Dance, Pacific MusicWorks, and Puget Sound Group of Northwest Artists.

Arts organizations involved in Springboard are assigned two consultants who help identify key areas of improvement, create an action plan for strategic and organizational advancement, and equip their board and staff with the tools to effectively lead their organizations and accomplish their mission.

Hugo House in particular is a tremendously exciting success story. An organization who prides itself on being a supportive hub for local literary talent, in the spring of 2014 Hugo House joined 501 Commons’ Springboard program to strengthen their ability to inspire, nurture and celebrate their family of writers.

The two Springboard consultants who worked with Hugo House identified three areas where they could further grow: 1. Program evaluation, 2. Marketing strategy and 3. Board development. Today, executive director Tree Swenson believes Hugo House is in a better position to support Seattle’s boundless creative energy.

“One of the things that was most important for us for Springboard was just having the help to take a step backwards and get a larger overview of what’s going on in the organization so that we could be very deliberate about where we put our time and energy,” Swenson says.

Do you manage a nonprofit arts organization? Right now we’re actively seeking new applicants for Springboard 2015 which runs from February through June. Click here to apply.

Watch this video of Tree Swenson speaking about how Hugo House has benefitted from participating in Springboard this past year.