Facts & Stats

Download the latest fact sheets and grant funding statistics:

• Fact Sheet: The North Carolina Arts Council
• Background: The North Carolina Arts Council

North Carolina Research Studies

Creative Economy | Local Government Funding | NEA Funding
Arts & Economic Prosperity | HomegrownHandmade
Just the Ticket | Cultural Tourism

Creative Economy: The Arts Industry in North Carolina

Creative workers, creative enterprises, and creative communities bring the entrepreneurial strengths of the private sector to economic development. The Creative Industry in North Carolina accounts for nearly 300,000 jobs, more than five and half percent of the state's workforce, with a market value of $41.4 billion.
Click here for creative economy research reports.

Local Government Funding of Local Arts Councils

Since 1978, the North Carolina Arts Council has conducted an annual survey of local government funding of local arts councils. Many arts councils have told us that these statistics have been helpful in their efforts to obtain new and increased funding from county and municipal governments.
[Click here for a summary of FY01 - FY06 surveys. ]

[Click here for a report of the FY06 - 07 survey. ]

NEA Funding in North Carolina FY05 and FY06

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is the federal agency dedicated to supporting excellence in the arts and to bringing the arts to all Americans. During the fiscal years FY2005 and FY2006, North Carolina received 74 NEA competitive grants totaling more than $1.4 million. Cooperative, partnership, touring and outreach activities brought nearly $1.6 million more to the state.
[Click here for the full FY2005 and FY2006 report. ]

The Arts & Economic Prosperity III

Americans for the Arts conducted a national study of nonprofit arts organizations to estimate economic impact from organization and audience expenditures. Buncombe, Forsyth, Guilford, Mecklenburg, and Wake counties participated in this study. From the five metropolitan areas surveyed in North Carolina, direct economic activity of nonprofit arts and culture organizations in 2005 generated more than $463 million, including audience expenditures of more than $271 million. Average spending in the arts per person totaled $19.89 for residents and $39.67 for non-residents.
[Download Printable Summary with links to local data]

HomegrownHandmade Visitor Analysis

In 2003 the North Carolina Arts Council and the North Carolina Cooperative Extension Service, with funding from the Golden Leaf Foundation, began a partnership between the arts and agriculture showcasing the tourist resources in rural North Carolina. A Web site featuring farms, art galleries, retail stores, restaurants and lodging venues is at http://www.homegrownhandmade.com. East Carolina University studied visitors to the venues and the Web site in 2006 in order to make projections about visitor behavior at similar locations.
[Download Printable Version ]

Just the Ticket!
The Arts Make Money in North Carolina

The economic impact of the non-profit creative sector in our state is $723 million. An Arts Council-supported study in 2003 showed that there were 6,669 direct full time jobs in the non-profit arena. Major non-profit arts groups employ an average of 13 full time people and can double that number with part time and seasonal staff, according to Just The Ticket!
[Download Printable Version]

The Artful Traveler:
Cultural Tourism in North Carolina

A study released by the North Carolina Arts Council in 2005 shows that cultural travelers to the state spend nearly a third more than the national average and almost twice the per-day spending of general travelers to the state. Cultural travelers in North Carolina spend an average of $102 per person per day-the national average is $70. The per-day spending of North Carolina's general traveler is $59, compared to cultural travelers who spend $102, according to The Artful Traveler: Cultural Tourism in the State of North Carolina.
[Download Printable Version]

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Research Resources

Click here for links to on-line arts studies and reference sources.