NEFA Seeks Proposals for Impact Study

NEFA seeks research proposals for the next economic and community impact study of New England arts and culture nonprofits to be published during summer 2011. Deadline for submitting proposals is January 31, 2011.

Using the 2005 Update methodology and CultureCount’s comprehensive data store as primary resources, the proposed nonprofit study should:
• Use publicly available data and a transparent and replicable methodology (NEFA will provide digitized IRS Form 990 data)
• Provide analysis of the financial data of the cultural nonprofit sector by state and discipline
• Provide economic impact estimates for state-level arts advocacy of each New England state
• Compare recent financial data with that of the prior three years
• Make meaning of the data with narrative descriptions

All research proposals should include:
1. Research question/objectives
2. Study design and methodology
3. Qualification of investigators and collaborators
4. Budget request (appropriate for work anticipated, additional data acquisition fees, time, and rationale included)

Please direct questions to NEFA’s research manager, Dee Schneidman, at 617-951-0010 x530, The PDF of instructions for this project can be found here. Proposals will be reviewed by NEFA staff in early February. Report activities should transpire during the spring in order for the study to be designed and ready to be published on NEFA’s website June/July 2011.