Partner
Join the Coalition
Are you a business, nonprofit, or cultural organization? Add your organization's name to our coalition to demonstrate unified, statewide support for arts funding. Together, we can show lawmakers that the creative sector is a powerful, interconnected force across Montana.
Step Up Your Impact: Become a Director or Advisor
To effectively advocate for every corner of our state, Montana Cultural Advocacy (MCA) needs leadership that reflects the true scope of our creative economy. We are actively seeking passionate individuals to join our team as Directors or Advisory Board Members.
We know that the best advocacy is built on authentic local relationships. Because of this, we are looking for a diverse range of arts professionals representing different creative disciplines and different geographic regions across the state. We want to hear from you if you are:
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Deeply connected with your local Montana community or regional cultural networks.
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Actively involved with other arts organizations, particularly MT's statewide service organizations.
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Passionate about ensuring that public arts funding is preserved, expanded, and equitably distributed to all Montanans.
Whether your expertise lies in traditional folk arts, independent live music, K-12 arts education, or museum curation, your localized knowledge will help us shape statewide policy and coordinate highly effective advocacy efforts.
If you are ready to use your voice and your network to help lead the charge for a thriving creative sector in Montana, we want you at the table.
Amplify the Message: A Guide for Arts Organizations & Partner Nonprofits
As a local arts organization, cultural institution, or community nonprofit, you have a deeply trusted relationship with your patrons, donors, and neighbors. You can exponentially increase our collective impact by acting as an ambassador and sharing these advocacy messages and Calls to Action (CTAs) with your own audiences.
You do not need to reinvent the wheel. We encourage you to freely copy, paste, and re-use the messaging, facts, and data directly from this Montana Cultural Advocacy website. You can also pull ready-to-use advocacy tools from trusted national organizations like Americans for the Arts and the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA).
Here are four highly effective ways your organization can easily advocate for your field:
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Send an Email to Your Audience: Include a short advocacy feature or CTA in your next patron newsletter. Grab a powerful statistic from our "Why We Need Art" page, explain how it relates to your specific mission, and provide a link for your readers to contact their legislators.
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Share on Social Media: Post advocacy graphics, success stories, and talking points on your social media channels. You can use our pre-written facts to remind your followers that supporting the arts means supporting the local economy, student success, and community well-being.
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Write a Letter to the Editor: Local newspapers are still heavily monitored by elected officials. Ask a board member or staff leader to draft a short letter to your local paper. You can use our statewide data and connect it directly to a specific, real-world impact your organization is making in your town.
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Activate Your Board of Directors: Encourage your board members to act as dedicated advocates and ambassadors for your organization and the broader cultural sector. Because board members are often well-connected business and civic leaders, their voices carry immense weight with elected officials. Ask your board chair and members to directly contact their legislators to share personal stories of why the arts matter, or equip them with data to champion arts funding within their own professional networks.
Remember, the best messengers often come from outside the traditional advocacy sphere. By equipping your board, staff, and loyal patrons to speak up, you help ensure that a thriving creative sector remains a top priority for Montana’s decision-makers!