Small Arts & Culture Cohort (SMAC)

Thank you for supporting Milwaukee's Small Arts and Culture Cohort!

The Small Arts and Culture Cohort (SMAC) joined forces in 2020 and quickly realized that we are stronger together. In November 2023, we launched a unique fundraising campaign that aligns our fundraising efforts to support all eleven members.    

It is our goal to raise $825,000 by 2026, including $41,250 (5%) for our fiscal sponsor Create Wisconsin.  To date, we have secured $202,205!

• 2024   $101,958 contributions and pledges
• 2025 $53,350  pledges
• 2026   $53,350  pledges

Deepest gratitude goes to the inaugural donors who've given or pledged toward our ambitious 3-year goal, including the Heil Family Foundation's lead gift of $30,000 per year, and the Ponasik Family's gift of $10,000 per year. Thanks to them, we are off to a great start!

When you support the Small Arts and Culture Cohort, you are changing the landscape of arts funding in Milwaukee by strengthening 11 small arts organizations which reach every neighborhood in our city. Your three-year pledge of any amount will allow these organizations to pay artists an equitable wage, build capacity to ensure their vibrancy for the future, and strengthen the cohort’s collaborative impact on the arts and well-being of our city.

You can help us reach our first milestone of $157,000 by the end of 2024. 

• To make a multi-year pledge, or if you prefer not to donate online, please send a check to our fiscal receiver, Create Wisconsin, Box 1054, Madison, WI 53701-1054.  Make your check payable to Create Wisconsin and include a note that the donation is for SMAC.
• You can also support SMAC and its participant organizations today with a monthly or one-time gift of any amount through this MightyCause site.

Thank you so much!

Collectively we…

• Have an operating budget under $300,000

• Are either a registered 501c3 non-profit or have nonprofit fiscal sponsorship

• Has a minimum of one staff person

• Are committed to meeting regularly as a cohort through 2026

We are demographically representative of our community in Milwaukee County:  

• 38% Black/AA 

• 35% White 

• 18% Hispanic/Latinx 

• 4%   Asian 

• 5%   Other Non-White 

To learn more about each company,  please follow this link. To subscribe to our newsletter for monthly updates please click here. 

SMAC Member Organizations
Aperi Animam   CAPITA Productions DanceCircus
Ex Fabula Ko-Thi Dance Company
Milwaukee Opera Theatre Pink Umbrella Theater
Quasimondo Physical Theatre The Constructivists
Walker's Point Center for the Arts WoLF Studios MKE

We welcome your support at any level! Thank you.