Department of Public Transformation

Activate rural community assets: the yes house is a multi-use community social and creative gathering space currently under renovation through and artist-led community design and build process. The organization hosted events as possible given staff capacity and construction schedules, including organizing and/or collaborating on 18 in-person events, performances, and gatherings in southwest Minnesota. Construction progress continued throughout 2022. Activate rural program began planning activities, and received multi-year funding in 2022 for the program period of 2023-2025. Activate rural uses a cohort-based learning lab to cultivate and increase welcoming physical infrastructure in rural communities using an artist-led asset activation framework.

Nurture the rural arts and culture field: beyond the clock is a series of virtual learning exchanges connecting and lifting up rural artists, culture workers, and connectors across the country. Dopt hosted 10 beyond the clock events throughout 2022. Dopt engaged in mentorship, coaching and keynote opportunities, including presenting 12 keynotes and breakout sessions at conferences and summits across the united states. Dopt also facilitated and/or participated in various partnerships, cohorts, program design sessions, round tables, exchanges, coalitions, and communities of practice.

Support rural arts and cultural workers: ignite rural supports rural artists and culture bearers to implement creative projects in their communities. The 2022 ignite rural artist cohort supported four artists and culture bearers based in the 18-county southwest Minnesota region in a four-month at-home residency. Fiscal sponsorship (model c) supports small, start-up arts groups and projects working in or with rural communities that do not want (or are not ready) to become tax-exempt nonprofit organizations. In 2022, dopt managed 31,400 in fiscal sponsorship funds (29,958 in regranted funds.)

Connect rural municipalities and artists. Rural civic arts partnership is a cohort-based learning lab that supports rural community leaders in working with artists to develop creative strategies to address community challenges and opportunities. During 2022, rural civic arts partnership engaged a cohort of 3 communities in southwest Minnesota for a six-month learning journey, including in-person and virtual workshops, resource materials, project design sessions, and facilitated conversations.