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Arts Initiatives

The Conrad Prebys Foundation is excited to announce new initiatives as part of our Arts Strategy! Through these, the foundation will fund organizations located in and serving San Diego County that align with our vision and goals in this focus area. 

Blue Colored Smoke in Alley
Artsgoal
  • What is the Leaders in Belonging Initiative?
    The inaugural recipients of the Leadership in Belonging Initiative work in a variety of areas that the Prebys Foundation has committed to supporting, including medical research, health care, youth success, and the visual and performing arts. The foundation, and its selection committee, is inspired by these leaders who are shaping the narrative around the type of leadership the region will need to meet the challenges of the years ahead. The initiative is designed to connect the foundation to a larger network of community expertise and knowledge. Prebys Foundation is dedicated to helping create an inclusive, equitable, and dynamic future for all San Diegans. The foundation believes that investing in and celebrating these leaders will strengthen their efforts and contribute to a more connected and welcoming region. Annually, Prebys Foundation will name five leaders with a track record of building a spirit of equity and belonging in San Diego in the fields of medical research, health care, youth success, and the arts. The five leaders chosen for the award will each receive $100,000 in unrestricted funding.
  • How does the Foundation define Belonging?
    We use the definition offered by the Othering and Belonging Institute, namely: “a world based on inclusion, fairness, justice, and care for the earth.” “The concept of belonging describes more than a feeling of inclusion or welcome. Its full power is as a strategic framework for addressing ongoing structural and systemic othering, made visible, for example, in the wide disparities in outcomes found across a variety of sectors and identity groups. Belonging, as OBI defines it, means having a meaningful voice and the opportunity to participate in the design of political, social, and cultural structures that shape one’s life — the right to both contribute and make demands upon society and political institutions. At its core, structural belonging holds a radically inclusive vision because it requires mutual power, access, and opportunity among all groups and individuals within a shared container (such as a society, organization, club, etc).”
  • When will the awardees be announced?
    Awardees for the 2023 cycle will be notified by December. They will be announced publicly in January of 2024.
  • What are the selection criteria?
    Any resident of San Diego County can be nominated. Awardees are selected based on the following criteria: Through work related to one or more of our four focus areas: visual and performing arts, healthcare, medical research, and youth success—the candidate embraces and advances a universal goal that would benefit our entire community. The candidate acknowledges and seeks to improve institutions, practices, or systems that get in the way of achieving that universal goal. The candidate offers solutions and a broadly inclusive vision for why those solutions are worth pursuing. As a leader, the candidate is adept at “bridging,” and connects with different parts of the community, is collaborative, and galvanizes others into action. The candidate has deep experience and expertise related to one or more of our focus areas. The candidate also has lived experience relevant to their work. The candidate’s story is inspiring, and the work they do will benefit from this recognition.
  • Who is on the Selection Committee?
    Selection committee members for the first cycle were: Constance Carroll President and CEO, California Community College Baccalaureate Association; Chancellor Emerita, San Diego Community College District; Prebys Foundation Board Member Irma Cota Immediate Past President & Chief Executive Officer, North County Health Services; Prebys Foundation Board Member Peter Ellsworth, Prebys Foundation Board Member Linda L. Katz, Civic/Social Activist Walter Lam President & Chief Executive Officer, Alliance for African Assistance David Miyashiro Superintendent, Cajon Valley Union School District Grant Oliphant Chief Executive Officer and Prebys Foundation Board Member Crystal Page Director of Communications, Prebys Foundation Staff Member
  • What is the timeline for the process?
    In May of 2023, the foundation invited the community to nominate leaders for consideration. The foundation received a total of 326 nominations. After an initial review by staff, a selection committee made up of members of the San Diego community as well as members of the Prebys Foundation staff and board selected the five awardees. These awardees will be announced in January of 2024.

Frequently Asked Questions

For more about each initiative and application:

Jump to Communities of Belonging

Jump to Anchoring the Arts

Jump to Art Bridging Communities

Jump to the FAQ.

Comunity of Belonging
Communities of Belonging

Through Communities of Belonging, we seek to ensure community arts organizations and artists can elevate their voices, work, and communities. We will specifically support efforts to:

  • Improve capacity, which can be internal (ex. staffing, operating site, organizational model) or external (audience reach, performance/exhibition location)

  • Build greater sustainability, through increased donations, audiences, and staffing resources

  • Partner/collaborate

​

This initiative will provide two-year General Operating or Project/Program funds ranging from $10K-$100K per year ($20K-$200K total).

Communities of Belonging FAQs

These grants are meant to help organizations become more sustainable and highlight San Diego’s vibrant arts scene.

  • What is the Leaders in Belonging Initiative?
    The inaugural recipients of the Leadership in Belonging Initiative work in a variety of areas that the Prebys Foundation has committed to supporting, including medical research, health care, youth success, and the visual and performing arts. The foundation, and its selection committee, is inspired by these leaders who are shaping the narrative around the type of leadership the region will need to meet the challenges of the years ahead. The initiative is designed to connect the foundation to a larger network of community expertise and knowledge. Prebys Foundation is dedicated to helping create an inclusive, equitable, and dynamic future for all San Diegans. The foundation believes that investing in and celebrating these leaders will strengthen their efforts and contribute to a more connected and welcoming region. Annually, Prebys Foundation will name five leaders with a track record of building a spirit of equity and belonging in San Diego in the fields of medical research, health care, youth success, and the arts. The five leaders chosen for the award will each receive $100,000 in unrestricted funding.
  • How does the Foundation define Belonging?
    We use the definition offered by the Othering and Belonging Institute, namely: “a world based on inclusion, fairness, justice, and care for the earth.” “The concept of belonging describes more than a feeling of inclusion or welcome. Its full power is as a strategic framework for addressing ongoing structural and systemic othering, made visible, for example, in the wide disparities in outcomes found across a variety of sectors and identity groups. Belonging, as OBI defines it, means having a meaningful voice and the opportunity to participate in the design of political, social, and cultural structures that shape one’s life — the right to both contribute and make demands upon society and political institutions. At its core, structural belonging holds a radically inclusive vision because it requires mutual power, access, and opportunity among all groups and individuals within a shared container (such as a society, organization, club, etc).”
  • When will the awardees be announced?
    Awardees for the 2023 cycle will be notified by December. They will be announced publicly in January of 2024.
  • What are the selection criteria?
    Any resident of San Diego County can be nominated. Awardees are selected based on the following criteria: Through work related to one or more of our four focus areas: visual and performing arts, healthcare, medical research, and youth success—the candidate embraces and advances a universal goal that would benefit our entire community. The candidate acknowledges and seeks to improve institutions, practices, or systems that get in the way of achieving that universal goal. The candidate offers solutions and a broadly inclusive vision for why those solutions are worth pursuing. As a leader, the candidate is adept at “bridging,” and connects with different parts of the community, is collaborative, and galvanizes others into action. The candidate has deep experience and expertise related to one or more of our focus areas. The candidate also has lived experience relevant to their work. The candidate’s story is inspiring, and the work they do will benefit from this recognition.
  • Who is on the Selection Committee?
    Selection committee members for the first cycle were: Constance Carroll President and CEO, California Community College Baccalaureate Association; Chancellor Emerita, San Diego Community College District; Prebys Foundation Board Member Irma Cota Immediate Past President & Chief Executive Officer, North County Health Services; Prebys Foundation Board Member Peter Ellsworth, Prebys Foundation Board Member Linda L. Katz, Civic/Social Activist Walter Lam President & Chief Executive Officer, Alliance for African Assistance David Miyashiro Superintendent, Cajon Valley Union School District Grant Oliphant Chief Executive Officer and Prebys Foundation Board Member Crystal Page Director of Communications, Prebys Foundation Staff Member
  • What is the timeline for the process?
    In May of 2023, the foundation invited the community to nominate leaders for consideration. The foundation received a total of 326 nominations. After an initial review by staff, a selection committee made up of members of the San Diego community as well as members of the Prebys Foundation staff and board selected the five awardees. These awardees will be announced in January of 2024.
Anchoring the Arts
Anchoring the Arts

The goal of this initiative is to invest in organizations’ ability to connect with diverse communities and organizations and provide a platform for diverse artists. The foundation seeks to help organizations:

   Reach and build new audiences through:

  • Mutually beneficial partnerships and collaboration with small, community-based organizations that lack the facilities, time, or personnel to move outside their locale and reach new audiences

  • Providing a platform for diverse individual artists, and their voices and perspectives

   Unlock future philanthropic capital through: 

  • “Matching” or “catalytic” grants

  • Unique capacity building opportunities such as mergers or shared services projects

 

This initiative will provide programmatic grants. One-year grants will range $100K-$500K and two-year grants will range $50K-$250K per year ($100K-$500K total).

Anchoring the Arts FAQs

Anchor institutions are rooted in the local community through their missions, invested capital, and relationships, and are vital to stimulating economic development and opportunity. They have a powerful ability to connect with diverse communities and organizations and provide a platform for diverse artists. The foundation aims to support cross-pollination, creativity, and vibrancy in the arts sector so it can rebuild audiences, drive new audience engagement, and ensure long-term sustainability.

  • What is the Leaders in Belonging Initiative?
    The inaugural recipients of the Leadership in Belonging Initiative work in a variety of areas that the Prebys Foundation has committed to supporting, including medical research, health care, youth success, and the visual and performing arts. The foundation, and its selection committee, is inspired by these leaders who are shaping the narrative around the type of leadership the region will need to meet the challenges of the years ahead. The initiative is designed to connect the foundation to a larger network of community expertise and knowledge. Prebys Foundation is dedicated to helping create an inclusive, equitable, and dynamic future for all San Diegans. The foundation believes that investing in and celebrating these leaders will strengthen their efforts and contribute to a more connected and welcoming region. Annually, Prebys Foundation will name five leaders with a track record of building a spirit of equity and belonging in San Diego in the fields of medical research, health care, youth success, and the arts. The five leaders chosen for the award will each receive $100,000 in unrestricted funding.
  • How does the Foundation define Belonging?
    We use the definition offered by the Othering and Belonging Institute, namely: “a world based on inclusion, fairness, justice, and care for the earth.” “The concept of belonging describes more than a feeling of inclusion or welcome. Its full power is as a strategic framework for addressing ongoing structural and systemic othering, made visible, for example, in the wide disparities in outcomes found across a variety of sectors and identity groups. Belonging, as OBI defines it, means having a meaningful voice and the opportunity to participate in the design of political, social, and cultural structures that shape one’s life — the right to both contribute and make demands upon society and political institutions. At its core, structural belonging holds a radically inclusive vision because it requires mutual power, access, and opportunity among all groups and individuals within a shared container (such as a society, organization, club, etc).”
  • When will the awardees be announced?
    Awardees for the 2023 cycle will be notified by December. They will be announced publicly in January of 2024.
  • What are the selection criteria?
    Any resident of San Diego County can be nominated. Awardees are selected based on the following criteria: Through work related to one or more of our four focus areas: visual and performing arts, healthcare, medical research, and youth success—the candidate embraces and advances a universal goal that would benefit our entire community. The candidate acknowledges and seeks to improve institutions, practices, or systems that get in the way of achieving that universal goal. The candidate offers solutions and a broadly inclusive vision for why those solutions are worth pursuing. As a leader, the candidate is adept at “bridging,” and connects with different parts of the community, is collaborative, and galvanizes others into action. The candidate has deep experience and expertise related to one or more of our focus areas. The candidate also has lived experience relevant to their work. The candidate’s story is inspiring, and the work they do will benefit from this recognition.
  • Who is on the Selection Committee?
    Selection committee members for the first cycle were: Constance Carroll President and CEO, California Community College Baccalaureate Association; Chancellor Emerita, San Diego Community College District; Prebys Foundation Board Member Irma Cota Immediate Past President & Chief Executive Officer, North County Health Services; Prebys Foundation Board Member Peter Ellsworth, Prebys Foundation Board Member Linda L. Katz, Civic/Social Activist Walter Lam President & Chief Executive Officer, Alliance for African Assistance David Miyashiro Superintendent, Cajon Valley Union School District Grant Oliphant Chief Executive Officer and Prebys Foundation Board Member Crystal Page Director of Communications, Prebys Foundation Staff Member
  • What is the timeline for the process?
    In May of 2023, the foundation invited the community to nominate leaders for consideration. The foundation received a total of 326 nominations. After an initial review by staff, a selection committee made up of members of the San Diego community as well as members of the Prebys Foundation staff and board selected the five awardees. These awardees will be announced in January of 2024.
Art Bridging Communities

Art is a powerful vehicle to bridge and connect across difference and communities. We will support the creation, production, or presentation of dynamic art that:

  • Brings people of different communities and backgrounds together

  • Builds empathy and reveals shared values

  • Generates learning and dialogue

 

This initiative will provide one-year grants ranging $25K-$250K. Funds will be paid in 2023 and may be used over a grant term of up to 24 months.

Art Bridging Communities

Art Bridging Communities FAQs

San Diego is home to innovative organizations and artists leveraging the arts to bring people together around unique experiences, increase our collective empathy, and build shared understanding. The Conrad Prebys Foundation hopes to identify and fund exciting projects that will have deep impact and lead to innovative bridging work.

  • What is the Leaders in Belonging Initiative?
    The inaugural recipients of the Leadership in Belonging Initiative work in a variety of areas that the Prebys Foundation has committed to supporting, including medical research, health care, youth success, and the visual and performing arts. The foundation, and its selection committee, is inspired by these leaders who are shaping the narrative around the type of leadership the region will need to meet the challenges of the years ahead. The initiative is designed to connect the foundation to a larger network of community expertise and knowledge. Prebys Foundation is dedicated to helping create an inclusive, equitable, and dynamic future for all San Diegans. The foundation believes that investing in and celebrating these leaders will strengthen their efforts and contribute to a more connected and welcoming region. Annually, Prebys Foundation will name five leaders with a track record of building a spirit of equity and belonging in San Diego in the fields of medical research, health care, youth success, and the arts. The five leaders chosen for the award will each receive $100,000 in unrestricted funding.
  • How does the Foundation define Belonging?
    We use the definition offered by the Othering and Belonging Institute, namely: “a world based on inclusion, fairness, justice, and care for the earth.” “The concept of belonging describes more than a feeling of inclusion or welcome. Its full power is as a strategic framework for addressing ongoing structural and systemic othering, made visible, for example, in the wide disparities in outcomes found across a variety of sectors and identity groups. Belonging, as OBI defines it, means having a meaningful voice and the opportunity to participate in the design of political, social, and cultural structures that shape one’s life — the right to both contribute and make demands upon society and political institutions. At its core, structural belonging holds a radically inclusive vision because it requires mutual power, access, and opportunity among all groups and individuals within a shared container (such as a society, organization, club, etc).”
  • When will the awardees be announced?
    Awardees for the 2023 cycle will be notified by December. They will be announced publicly in January of 2024.
  • What are the selection criteria?
    Any resident of San Diego County can be nominated. Awardees are selected based on the following criteria: Through work related to one or more of our four focus areas: visual and performing arts, healthcare, medical research, and youth success—the candidate embraces and advances a universal goal that would benefit our entire community. The candidate acknowledges and seeks to improve institutions, practices, or systems that get in the way of achieving that universal goal. The candidate offers solutions and a broadly inclusive vision for why those solutions are worth pursuing. As a leader, the candidate is adept at “bridging,” and connects with different parts of the community, is collaborative, and galvanizes others into action. The candidate has deep experience and expertise related to one or more of our focus areas. The candidate also has lived experience relevant to their work. The candidate’s story is inspiring, and the work they do will benefit from this recognition.
  • Who is on the Selection Committee?
    Selection committee members for the first cycle were: Constance Carroll President and CEO, California Community College Baccalaureate Association; Chancellor Emerita, San Diego Community College District; Prebys Foundation Board Member Irma Cota Immediate Past President & Chief Executive Officer, North County Health Services; Prebys Foundation Board Member Peter Ellsworth, Prebys Foundation Board Member Linda L. Katz, Civic/Social Activist Walter Lam President & Chief Executive Officer, Alliance for African Assistance David Miyashiro Superintendent, Cajon Valley Union School District Grant Oliphant Chief Executive Officer and Prebys Foundation Board Member Crystal Page Director of Communications, Prebys Foundation Staff Member
  • What is the timeline for the process?
    In May of 2023, the foundation invited the community to nominate leaders for consideration. The foundation received a total of 326 nominations. After an initial review by staff, a selection committee made up of members of the San Diego community as well as members of the Prebys Foundation staff and board selected the five awardees. These awardees will be announced in January of 2024.
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