Thank you members and supporters

The full annual report with financials and supporters can be downloaded here.

Letter from Jocelyn Hale, Executive Director

As I reflect on this last year at the Loft, I wonder if you feel, as I do, that navigating this bewildering world is becoming more perplexing? We are barraged with political change, debates about values, concerns about the environment, and financial woes. I’m confounded by many current events, but I do know with absolute certainty that I have never needed writers in my life more than I do now.  

Daily, I turn to novels, literary nonfiction, poetry, and spoken word to listen, to reflect, to learn, to escape, and to find community. It is through the creative expression of language that I start to create an understandable narrative for our world.

I’m often asked, what does the Loft do? As you read this report you’ll see an impressive list of outputs (our activities). These are one set of indicators, but ultimately, the Loft’s staff and board are mostly concerned with outcomes and impact. Our impact can be tricky to track because the Loft does not create a product but rather is an incubator for the creative process. Many of the nation’s leading authors have passed through our doors while other writers have taken classes for years and may consider writing a private pursuit.

Our goal is that every constituent who takes a class or is mentored by the Loft will become a better writer. If you attend a reading or spoken word event at the Loft you will leave having heard something new and having a deeper knowledge and love for the literary arts. In many cases you will be delighted with what you have heard, but not always—that is the unexpected nature of new work.

The more time you spend with the Loft, the more connected you will feel to a literary community. A community enthralled with language is intellectually engaged, has a deep understanding of the wide range of human experiences, and understands nuance. By being engaged with this community you will be better equipped to compassionately navigate and impact the modern world.

I hope you’ll agree with me that the Loft has much to be proud of in this past year. We have an extraordinary community of colleagues, writers, collaborators, funders, and readers who join us in our mission to support writers and build a literary community. As one student summarized, “OMG, this class was life changing.” That is the kind of impact we are looking for.

FY11 Achievements and Activities

Awards and Mentorships Support 36 Writers
One of the Loft’s core services is to offer awards and intensive mentoring to writers. In FY11, the Loft awarded 36 established and emerging writers with mentorships, exclusive learning opportunities, career advancement, and cash awards. The impact of awards to individual writers is immeasurable. This letter came from one of the participants:

“The afternoon this summer when I found out I’d been selected to participate in the Mentor Program, I was so happy I could hardly think. But I know you’re not just in this to make a dozen writers dizzy one day each July, so I want to tell you this: the Loft Mentor Program has been important to me for years. Years. When I first found out about the program, six years ago, I decided to make it a long-term goal to write enough, and write well enough, to participate. Since then, I’ve applied to the program three times. … Knowing about this possibility, and plugging away towards it, has formed a large part of the story I tell myself about my writing life.”   

4,200 Students Participated in Loft Educational Offerings
The Loft teaches creative writing to all skill levels and ages through our hundreds of classes and conferences at Open Book, in Hennepin Country libraries, public schools, and community centers. In FY11, Loft teaching artists touched the lives of 4,200 students. Of adult students surveyed 89% reported that their writing improved and 90% identified their next steps as a writer. We are continually evaluating the impact of our programs so that we can learn and improve.  

But students are not the only beneficiaries of Loft educational offerings. Last year, the Loft paid almost $400,000 dollars to 300 writers. Think about that, $400,000 dollars. We’ve heard from many people that having an opportunity to teach at the Loft helps them earn enough to piece together a career as a writer. This is part of what the Loft does to support the literary ecosystem.

Online Classes Launch and Grow Throughout the Year
This year we set out with the ambitious goal to launch online learning and to expand our online content and community. With board leadership and deep generosity from our donors, we raised $391,000 for the initiative and were able to recruit an outstanding online learning manager. In the first year, we trained 40 teaching artists and ran twelve online classes. We will continue the rapid expansion of our offerings in FY12.

Our online offerings are growing outside the classroom too. We’ve established a YouTube channel, and have been creating original content, short videos, and podcast interviews. In the past two years, traffic to our website has increased 40%.

This is what I heard from a student from Lanesboro, Minnesota who participated in our pilot online class,

“For years I have wanted to take a class at the Loft, but the times available never seemed to work out for me. With this online class, I finally had something that fit my schedule, so I knew that now it was really up to me to make my book happen. The online class gave me access to many people’s writing and creative processes, much more than I would have seen in a traditional class. This online writing course is the thing that has brought me to my computer and to the work of putting my words on paper.”

A Year of Great Events, Including the Award-Winning Equilibrium
For ten years, the Loft has been a leader in supporting spoken word artists. In FY11 we were proud to win the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits “Anti-Racism Initiative Award” for Equilibrium which we call EQ.  

MCN produced a three minute video for their award ceremony:


This year the Loft curated or cosponsored close to 75 readings and events including readings with Derek Walcott, Toi Dericotte, David Ulin, Robert McKee, Bill Moyers, Gary Snyder, and Dessa. In addition, Talking Volumes had another great season with authors Jonathan Franzen, Nicole Krauss, Nora Ephron, and Anita Shreve.

Thanks to the Minnesota arts and cultural heritage fund (which you voted for, so thank you!), we received a Minnesota State Arts Board Access Grant to hold focus groups for people living with disabilities; urban teens; and new immigrants and refugees, and then design new literary programming to serve them.

Last September, Milkweed Editions released Views From the Loft: A Portable Writer’s Workshop. It received strong reviews from local and national media outlets and Milkweed handed us our first royalty check this spring.  

Loft’s Board of Directors Provides Strategic Guidance and Unwavering Commitment
These are rocky days for nonprofits. Our mission-driven sector has never been more needed. In many cases demand for our free services increased while funding diminished. You add this economic pressure to technology-driven changes in the literary arts field and you will understand the immense pressure put on our volunteer board of directors. The Loft is guided by an extraordinary board from all walks of life and experience. Not only does the Loft board commit countless hours to serving the Loft’s mission but it also contributes 33% of the Loft’s annual membership donations through 100% participation.

With the close of FY11, I’d like to give special recognition to retiring board members, Shawn Lawrence Otto, David Grant, Jacquelyn Fletcher, and Blanche Hawkins. These four served on the board for six years, most of which has been in the role of the executive committee. They guided the organization through an executive director transition and have kept the Loft stable and future-oriented during the economic challenges of the last four years. We are grateful to them for their service.  

OFFICERS
Shawn Lawrence Otto, Chair
Sarah Stoesz, Vice Chair
Jacquelyn Fletcher, Secretary
John Schenk, Treasurer
Jocelyn Hale, Ex-Officio

DIRECTORS
Thomas J. (T.J.) Conley
Lorena Duarte
Neil Erickson
Dobby Gibson
David Grant
Blanche Hawkins
Sharon Hendry
Rachael Jarosh
Lorna Landvik
Susan Lenfestey
Jim Levi
Alisa Miller
Isabell Monk O’Connor
Carla Paulson
Tiffany Scalzitti Monroe
Angela Shannon
Faith Sullivan
Bryan Thao Worra
Margaret Wurtele

A Peek at FY12
The Loft’s 2012–2020 strategic vision is to share Loft’s resources nationally—radiating from outstanding literary arts programming and services in Minnesota.

Foundation and corporate funding shifts away from the arts coupled with shrinking institutional funding pools mean that individual member support and earned revenue are more important than ever. We’ve positioned the organization for growth by planning more online classes, strengthening content on
loft.org, focusing on award-winning spoken word programs, and continuing to nurture and strengthen our flagship programs including creative writing classes, mentorships, awards, and author readings.

In addition, we will be putting more attention and resources toward strengthening our infrastructure and building community and ownership among our constituents.  


Sincerely,

Jocelyn Hale
Executive Director
The Loft Literary Center