Free-Range Drama Farm

So, the first one of our Goals for 2008 is to set up the company’s structure. Ultimately, the goal is to be a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, so that we - and our contributers - get all of the benefits associated with tax-exempt status.

The question is, when and how do we want to make that happen? Filing for tax-exemption is a lengthy and expensive process, and it’s not necessarily something that we need to do right now. Also, because we ultimately want to fund the program with an endowment rather than donations from the public, there may be other legal structures that would work better for our needs than just becoming a 501(c)(3) ourselves.

From the research I’ve done so far, it seems as though we have three viable options:

1. Get fiscal sponsorship with a company like Fractured Atlas, which would give us the benefits of a nonprofit without the hassle of incorporating immediately. I know a lot of small organizations take this route - sometimes indefinitely - and it might be a good way for us to start out. That way we could start operating as a nonprofit while we continue looking into exactly what kind of company structure we need.
2. Incorporate and apply for tax-exempt status now, so that we can start fundraising for ourselves. This is the most common route, but we’re not exactly the most common organization. From what I’ve read, it sounds as though you have to receive a certain percentage of your funding each year from public donations, in order to maintain tax-exempt status. If we’re planning on ultimately getting all of our funding from an endowment, I’m not sure if that qualifies as “public donations.” Any nonprofit lawyers out there who could help with this?
3. Set up a separate organization to raise money, which would then be granted to the Drama Farm organization. I don’t know a lot about this option yet, but I know a lot of educational institutions have a similar setup, so we need to find out why, and whether it would be appropriate for our purposes. I’ve got a few leads on this one, but if you know anyone with experience in this sort of thing, please send ‘em my way!

So that’s where we stand with Goal #1. We’re continuing to research and talk to our contacts about what our options are, but if you or someone you know has any insight into this, please let us know! Also, if you’d like to be more involved in helping us figure this stuff out, we’d love to have your help. Just leave a comment below, or drop us an email - we want to hear from you!

Hello! Sorry I’ve been away for so long - there have been some Big Changes in the works here in Drama Farm Land, and I didn’t want to say anything here until we’d told a few key people in person…

You may remember that at the end of last year we were excited about the possibility of finding the Drama Farm a home of its own. We had hoped to be able to buy or rent the property housing the Red Barn Theatre (just outside of Pittsburgh, PA) from its owners, allowing the Red Barn to continue to operate during the summers while we used the space for our programs through the rest of the year. Sadly, the property was sold to developers the day after the Red Barn closed its 2007 season, so that’s no longer a possibility.

As we considered the ramifications of moving the project to the Red Barn, though, it became clearer and clearer that Pittsburgh would be a much more ideal place to get the Farm up and running - with or without the Red Barn as a venue. After much discussion, we’ve decided to transplant the whole operation to Pittsburgh and set up shop there. It’ll be about a year before we’re fully moved and prepared to get things rolling again, so the pilot program will remain on hold until the spring of 2009.

That’s not to say that we won’t be working, though - we’ve now got a whole year to do nothing but research and plan, so we can jump right in once we’re settled in the ‘Burgh. I’ve got several goals for the coming year, and I’m going to need your help to achieve them - but that’s for another post.

For now, thanks for your continued support, and stay tuned - we’ll have lots more to talk about soon!

I just ordered a box of Moo cards for the Drama Farm. If you haven’t been to moo.com yet, you must have a look - you can get a box of 100 mini-cards with up to 100 different images on the front! For now, we’ve got a collection of six theatrically-inclined chickens (all drawn by yours truly!), but I’m working on expanding the set for the next batch of cards we print. Hopefully these guys will arrive before Saturday, so I can take them to Nonprofit Boot Camp with me!

We’ll be setting up a CafePress store soon with lots of chicken gear for you to make your own - but in the meantime, check out the rest of the chickens on my flickr page, and let me know what you think. All input is greatly appreciated!

Becoming a not-for-profit organization appears to be pretty simple. Getting 501(c)(3) (tax-exempt) status, not quite so easy.

For the poor souls out there who haven’t had a course in Everything You Ever Needed to Know about Theatre Management from the fabulous Don Marinelli (founder and head of Carnegie Mellon’s Entertainment Technology Center), a 501(c)(3) is an organization that the IRS has exempted from paying taxes, because of their charitable work in education, scientific research, religion, or a whole slew of other altruistic things. Even better, though, is the fact that any charitable donations made to a 501(c)(3) are tax-deductible - is that a great way to get people to give you money, or what?

So, I’m looking into what it takes to achieve tax-exempt status, since we’ll definitely want to do that before we start asking people to give us money. Nolo has a great little online guide to get you started, but it seems that - like everything else - the rules for incorportating and applying for tax-exempt status are a little bit different in California than they are in the rest of the country.

Of course, there’s a book for just that problem, so I stopped by Nolo’s outlet in Berkeley the other day and picked it up. I’d never used one of Nolo’s books before, but I’m incredibly impressed, just from the small amount I’ve read so far - if you’re in the market for a layman’s guide to anything law-related, they’re definitely the place to go.

I’ll post updates here as I glean key pieces of information on starting a non-profit, but for now I leave you with this tidbit: If you’re doing anything that involves legal stuff, and you’re in California, research it very carefully, because everything works differently here. Everything.