Berkshire Organizations Awarded Cultural Council Grants

08:06AM / Monday, December 09, 2024Print Story | Email Story

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The Mass Cultural Council awarded $7.2 Million to 394 nonprofit cultural organizations statewide for operating support, many from Berkshire County.

This funding provides unrestricted operating support to the recipients through two programs, Operating Grants for Organizations and the Cultural Investment Portfolio.

In Berkshire County:

Adams

Susan B. Anthony Birthplace Museum: $9,000

Great Barrington

Center for Peace Through Culture: $14,700
The Du Bois Freedom Center: $9,000

Lenox

Ventfort Hall Association: $15,300

Pittsfield

Berkshire Film and Media Collaborative: $9,000
Kids 4 Harmony: $12,200
Roots Rising: $9,100

As the Commonwealth’s independent state arts agency, Mass Cultural Council is charged with bolstering the creative and cultural sector, thereby advancing economic vitality, supporting transformational change, and celebrating, preserving, and inspiring creativity across all Massachusetts communities.

Mass Cultural Council has long provided unrestricted operating support to cultural organizations through the Cultural Investment Portfolio. First launched in 2009, this program provides multi-year grants to cultural nonprofit organizations that provide public programs in the arts, sciences, and humanities. Following the adoption of the Agency’s new equity plans in 2021, the Agency paused applications to conduct a review of the program.

The result of this review was the decision to sunset the Cultural Investment Portfolio and launch a new organizational support grant program for cultural nonprofits, Operating Grants for Organizations.

In designing Operating Grants for Organizations, the Agency solicited feedback from key stakeholders and the cultural sector at large to ensure that the values that are important to grantees would be maintained, while also centering equity in the evaluation and program revisions.

FY25 is the first round of investment through Operating Grants for Organizations.

Mass Cultural Council is awarding unrestricted operating support to 56 more organizations in FY25 than FY24. In total, 155 organizations will receive funding through the Operating Grants for Organizations program, in addition to 239 organizations that will continue to receive funding through the Cultural Investment Portfolio.

Funding lists detailing the organizations receiving FY25 support from Operating Grants for Organizations and the Cultural Investment Portfolio are available online.

In this first round of Operating Grants for Organizations, when reviewing the 155 grantees, Mass Cultural Council notes that:

129 are receiving operating support from Mass Cultural Council for the first time
54 are BIPOC-Centered Organizations
66 voluntarily participate in the Card to Culture Program

Organizations receiving awards from the Operating Grant for Organizations program expressed support for the new program.

Tags: Mass Cultural Council,

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Pittsfield Council Revisiting DEI Office Rename

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
04:11PM / Tuesday, October 13, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The conversation about the DEI office renaming that was halted by a charter objection will resume on Tuesday.

The City Council will discuss a request from Mayor Peter Marchetti to rename the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

It proposes to rename the DEI office to the Office of Equity, Access, and Opportunity and merge the Human Rights Commission and Affirmative Action Committee into an Equity, Access and Opportunity Commission.

The Ordinance and Rules Subcommittee supported the changes in August, and in September, Ward 2 Councilor Cameron Cunningham delayed the vote with a charter objection.

Pittsfield's City Code prohibits charter states that "if a single member present objects to the taking of the vote, the vote shall be postponed until the next meeting of the city council." It also stipulates that at least four members must object if it is an emergency measure.

Cunningham also submitted a petition, which was referred to O&R under Rule 27, to replace the DEI Office and the Human Rights Commission with an equity, access, and opportunity coordinator in the Department of Community Development, with formal complaints and Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action functions assigned to Human Resources.

At the last meeting, he spent more than an hour querying the mayor and chief diversity officer about functions and effectiveness of the department, wanting more quantitative data. Cunningham proposed an ordinance that he says keeps Pittsfield's commitment to equity, access, and opportunity, "refocuses it on measurable results for our residents, and delivers it at a fraction of the current cost."

Under this petition, the equity, access, and opportunity coordinator would be a $60,000 to $80,000 per year position.

The DEI Office's fiscal year 2027 budget was about $200,000 after cuts during budget season; $106,700 for the chief diversity officer and $58,000 for the administrative assistant. The coordinator would be appointed by the director of community development and the mayor.

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