When I started Teaching Artists ROC, it wasn’t because I wanted to run a nonprofit. In fact, I was adamant that I wasn’t going to launch yet another organization that would add overhead to artist fees and pile on bureaucracy.
I simply saw a need that wasn’t being met: a need for more art, more creativity, and more connection in schools and communities.
I believed — and still believe — that art changes lives. It belongs everywhere, not just in museums or concert halls, but in classrooms, libraries, senior centers, and parks. It shouldn’t be something you have to “go see.” It should be part of daily life. Integrated into everything we do.
Not everyone learns by sitting in lectures. Art triggers different parts of the brain, helping people absorb information through creativity, movement, and emotional connection. Some people need to hear. Some need to see. Some need to do. Art taps into all of it.
At first, it felt simple: build something useful. Fill the gaps. Get great artists into the spaces that needed them most.
What I didn’t fully understand, and what no one warns you about, is just how hard it is to keep something like that alive. Foundations don’t fund you just because you have a good idea. They want to fund organizations, recognized 501(c)(3)s, with detailed plans, clear missions, measurable outcomes, and proof you can manage money and operations.
So I reluctantly gave in. I agreed to help start an organization. But I still wasn’t going to run it. I just wanted to facilitate getting it off the ground. And yet, here I am — rarely getting to create art myself, because I spend my time writing about creating art, managing finances, searching for software, building systems, and attending meetings.
And to my surprise, running this entity hasn’t been what I feared.
It’s been so much worse.
The programs are beautiful. The impact is real. I’ve grown into this position and am glad I’m doing what I do. I’m glad I was encouraged to build this organization. It’s rewarding for the groups receiving our services and for me personally. It turns out that this move to form a nonprofit was entirely the right thing to do for so many reasons. But help is needed.
Behind the scenes, the work of running a small nonprofit feels like trying to balance a heavy table.
There are enough legs meant to support it, but no matter how carefully you plan, no matter how much good you do, there’s a constant, exhausting fight to keep it standing. Because only one leg actually touches the ground. All the others hover just short of providing real support.
Let’s think about that table for a moment.
In the center, there’s one sturdy pedestal: uncompensated labor. The late nights. The weekends. The work done not because anyone is paying for it, but because it has to get done.
Those other legs are supposed to help carry the weight. But they don’t quite reach the floor. They’re important, but not reliable. Sometimes they shift and wobble. Sometimes they barely make a difference at all.
The truth is, small nonprofits survive not because the funding is strong, but because the people inside are stronger. We lean harder. We work longer. We sacrifice more than anyone knows.
But it’s not sustainable. No one can carry that kind of load forever. And the more we pretend everything is fine, the longer broken systems stay broken.
I’m sharing this not to complain, but to be honest.
If you love the work small nonprofits do in your community, if you’ve ever been touched by an arts program, a camp, a workshop, a community project, know that behind every success story, there’s someone quietly holding up the table with everything they’ve got.
We can do better.
Please help us fund this work like it matters.
Because it does.
If you’re able, please consider donating to Teaching Artists ROC or another small arts organization you believe in.
Your contribution helps bring art into schools, libraries, senior centers, and community spaces. It helps students learn in new ways. It helps artists do what they do best: inspire, connect, and transform.
Give because you believe art belongs everywhere.
Give because community matters.
Give because small organizations can’t survive on passion alone.
If you are unable to donate, you can still help us by sharing this post. Help us spread the word about the realities small nonprofits face, and the impact we can make together.
Learn more about Teaching Artists ROC.