Oregon

Meet Your Federal Arts Advocacy Captain

Jeff Hawthorne

Jeff Hawthorne is the Arts Program Manager for the City of Portland, Oregon, and a board member for the state’s Cultural Advocacy Coalition. Prior to joining the City, Jeff provided fundraising consultation for local nonprofit organizations and published an arts advocacy newsletter with a special focus on helping artists and arts organizations navigate resources during the Covid-19 crisis, and mobilizing support for local, state, and federal relief. In the summer of 2020, he helped secure $50 million in CARES funding from the state legislature for arts organizations and entertainment venues. From 2002-2019 Jeff was the Director of Community Engagement for the Regional Arts & Culture Council (RACC), leading the organization’s advocacy, communications, fundraising, and outreach initiatives, launching the state’s first United Arts Fund, developing the organization’s equity initiatives, and building a public-private partnership to support arts integration in classrooms through a program known as The Right Brain Initiative. In 2012 Jeff worked with then-Mayor Sam Adams to secure 62% voter approval for Portland’s Arts Education and Access Income Tax, which generates $12 million per year to fund art and music teachers in every Portland elementary school and grants for local nonprofit organizations. He graduated from the University of Portland with a degree in Theater Management and worked for several years with Portland Center Stage and the Oregon Shakespeare Festival in Ashland.

Favorite Art Form: Theatre

Contact Jeff Hawthorne

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