The Regional Arts Commission of St. Louis is announcing a set of comprehensive changes to reduce expenses and direct even more funding to the artists, arts programs, and arts organizations that play a pivotal role in helping the region thrive.
As part of a multi-year strategic planning process, RAC gathered feedback from the arts sector and responded by streamlining programs to direct more dollars to grantees. In 2023, the organization distributed $1.6M in grants to arts organizations. By 2025, that amount had increased to $3.2M, and for 2026, RAC is on track to distribute $5.3M across all grant categories.
With increased public scrutiny and arts funding under pressure in St. Louis and across the country, RAC recognized the need to further streamline expenses and increase funding for artists, arts programs, and arts organizations. “Protecting public funding for the arts has never mattered more than it does now, and RAC is evolving to meet the moment,” said Tino Ochoa, chair of the RAC’s Board of Commissioners. “The world RAC was built for in 1985 is not the world we work in today, and an institution that exists to promote, foster, and encourage the arts has to be willing to change in order to protect them.”
Changes include:
RAC has contracted with the St. Louis Community Foundation to administer its annual grantmaking process. This structure is designed to significantly reduce RAC’s expenses while maintaining the high-quality grantmaking and community engagement for which RAC is known. Working with the St. Louis Community Foundation allows RAC to leverage the Foundation’s extensive reach and experience. As the second-oldest community foundation in the country, the Foundation has served as the region’s philanthropic hub for more than 100 years, with $776 million in total assets as of December 31, 2025, and more than $118 million in grants issued last year. While the Foundation will assist RAC with administering its annual grants, all funding decisions will remain with the Commission.
RAC’s Board of Commissioners has also voted to return to non-allocation accounting beginning January 1, 2027, meaning costs such as rent, salaries, and marketing will be recorded as a combined administrative total rather than allocated to individual arts programs.
Over the next year, RAC will continue to sunset directly managed programs and/or outsource them to trusted partners. RAC will also implement a new staffing model. The organization’s headcount has decreased by more than 40% since 2024, and the new structure will involve additional reductions, including eliminating the President & CEO role. “My responsibility has been to put RAC’s mission first and help shape a future that directs more resources to the artists, arts programs, and arts organizations that make St. Louis extraordinary,” said Vanessa Cooksey, RAC President & CEO. “Leading RAC through this transition has meant making difficult decisions about how we can best serve the arts community. I’m grateful to our staff, whose dedication has made this work possible, and I recognize the personal impact of these changes. As I prepare to conclude my time at RAC at the end of the year, I’m grateful to have led this work alongside colleagues who care deeply about the future of the arts in St. Louis.”
What remains unchanged is that the arts are vital to a vibrant community, and RAC has been and will remain a cornerstone of that vibrancy in St. Louis. “Roads connect places. The arts connect people,” said Sam Fiorello, Vice Chair of RAC’s Board of Commissioners. “That’s the work RAC has done for more than forty years, and it’s the work that continues.”
The fifteen independent commissioners, appointed by the Mayor and the County Executive, will continue to oversee grant strategy, serve as ambassadors for the arts in the community, and ensure the Regional Arts Commission’s legacy endures for decades to come. The Regional Arts Commission and all its supporters remain staunch advocates for public funding of the arts.
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