Hatchery Arts is committed to advancing cultural equity and inclusion in its staffing, program development, festival management and day-to-day operations.
We believe that access to the joy, catharsis and personal transformation generated by the arts is a fundamental human right. As an organization designed to bring artists together through open access and non-curated programming, we lower the barriers of access for arts creators and enthusiasts. Hatchery Arts also strives to create a safe space for the multitude of cultures, communities, and identities that participate in our activities and programs in Los Angeles and beyond.
We define culture in inclusive terms to consider race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability status, religion, class, and indigenous heritage. These values deeply informed the formulation of the Hatchery Arts’ Vision, Mission and Values and guide us as we critically examine the ways that equity is fostered or hindered in our practices, processes, and organizational culture.
CEI POLICY & PLAN
Hatchery Arts leadership and staff acknowledge that it is critical to include practices throughout the fabric of the organization to advance equity within Hatchery Arts’ community and sphere of influence. This commitment is infused in all areas of the organization’s work as described below. Hatchery Arts will implement its commitment to cultural equity and inclusion by the following:
Attendees and participants for the festival and year-round programming:
- Continue to develop and expand the Hollywood Fringe Festival Scholarship Program to provide financial and production assistance to producers and artists who might otherwise be excluded from participating in the festival due to economic challenges.
- Establish and promote new protocols that facilitate diversity in the festival in terms of race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability status, religion, class, and indigenous heritage.
- Expand our marketing efforts to reach Spanish-speaking audiences
- Develop a code of conduct that defines the bounds of acceptable behavior and respect in our community as it pertains to our diverse population.
- Organize a team of key Hatchery Arts staff members to meet regularly and evaluate and enforce this code of conduct.
Staffing:
- Develop job description language and hiring practices to remove barriers that discourage application submissions from a diverse applicant pool in terms of race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability status, religion, class, and indigenous heritage.
- Assess organizational culture in all teams to check for and address dynamics and conditions that hinder a diverse workforce in terms of race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability status, religion, class, and indigenous heritage.
- Establish frameworks for constructive discourse about identity, equity, diversity, inclusion, and access.
Board and Governance:
- Develop protocols that consider race/ethnicity, gender, sexual orientation, national origin, age, disability status, religion, class, and indigenous heritage to inform board member recruitment.
- Expand the board to include more members from diverse backgrounds.
- Create frameworks for board member contribution plans that include valuation assessments of in-kind and connection-making contributions in lieu of cash board dues, providing pathways for board service from lower-income individuals.
ACCESS COMMITTEE
Hatchery Arts will identify a minimum of two staff, two participants and one board member who will serve as the organization’s Access Committee. This committee will meet on a regular basis to conduct assessments of Hatchery Arts’ above listed organizational practices and processes, document successful approaches to equity, and identify areas of inequity that need addressing by Hatchery Arts leadership and staff.
This committee will also be responsible for making recommendations and setting equity goals for subsequent phases of Hatchery Arts’ CEI planning. This initial phase of work will commence in January of 2020 and conclude September 30, 2021; results of the audits and the recommended next steps will be shared publicly on the Hollywood Fringe Festival website and other publications as appropriate, as well as at regular meetings of the Hatchery Arts Board of Directors.
Hatchery Arts intends to preserve the dignity and professionalism of the workplace as well as protect the right of employees to be free from discrimination, unlawful harassment, retaliation and inappropriate conduct toward others.