2024-25 Fiscal Year Finance and Program Report:
They say, “It’s all about the numbers,” and the IBMA Foundation numbers for the past fiscal year were pretty great! But more important are the names and faces, programs, stories, and wonderful bluegrass music behind each number. We’ll share some of both with you below.
- Since the beginning of the Foundation in 2007, more than $530,000 has been awarded for grants, scholarships and programs.
- This past year we awarded more than $74,400 in grants, scholarships, and program support.
- More than 500 supporters shared in our mission to support the future of bluegrass music, with donations totaling $198,000.
- We ended the 2024-25 fiscal year with $644,326 in net assets.
- The Foundation’s agency endowment funds totaled $539,431 at the Community Foundation of Middle Tennessee and in a quasi-endowment fund at Morgan Stanley.
58 ways we made the future brighter for bluegrass in 2024-25:
7 – Bluegrass in the Schools Mini-grants to schools in Kentucky, Illinois, North Carolina, New York, and West Virginia
5 – College scholarships for students in Tennessee, Kentucky, Delaware, and Pennsylvania
9 – Fletcher Bright Memorial Grants for Young Musicians for lessons and camp tuition at The Ashokan Center Bluegrass Camp, Brevard Music Center (Blue Ridge Banjo Camp), the ETSU Bluegrass Camp, the Idaho Bluegrass & Banjo Camp, Michigan Academy of Folk Music (lessons), Rocky Grass Academy, and mandolin lessons in Texas
8 – Terry Baucom Bluegrass Education grants for students of all ages, to assist with studies at Brevard Music Center (Blue Ridge Banjo Camp), the Idaho Bluegrass & Banjo Camp, the Midwest Banjo Camp, and Live Oak Fiddle Camp
1 – Emcee Masterclass – part 2 seminar at World of Bluegrass 2024 featuring Katy Daley, Cindy Baucom, Jim Lauderdale, and Ben Wright, with a recording available on the Foundation website
1 – “Demystifying Grant Writing” webinar free to the public, with video and an amazing handout available on the Foundation website
2 – Nights of Bluegrass College Band Showcases at the 2024 World of Bluegrass in Raleigh, featuring 10 student bands from Colorado, Kentucky, Ohio, Massachusetts, North Carolina, Tennessee, and Washington state
1 – New Bill Breen Bluegrass Youth Education Fund ($50,000), established to honor the memory of banjo player and Northwestern University professor, Bill Breen
15 – Project grants awarded in eight states plus Switzerland, the Czech Republic, and China, including six grants to afterschool Junior Appalachian Musicians programs.
8 – Arnold Shultz Fund grants to encourage participation in bluegrass by people of color. Grants awarded to programs and individuals in four states, China, Kenya, Thailand, and Uganda
1 – And more!
THE BOTTOM LINE: Fiscal Year July 1, 2024 – June 30, 2025:
$254,346 Total Revenue
– 123,007 Total Expense
$131,339 Net Revenue
$644,326 Net Assets at year-end
COMING IN 2025-26:
- A two-night Bluegrass College Band Showcase Sept. 19-20 at World of Bluegrass (WOB) in Chattanooga featuring 12 bands from nine states
- The new Biscuits for Bluegrass Sept. 20 at WOB in Chattanooga—with VIP artists, a silent auction, and a country breakfast with all the trimmings. SOLD OUT in one week!
- A Silent Auction fundraiser kicked off online on September 5, closing at 10:20 a.m. on September 20.
- A first-time reception & jam session for college showcase band students at WOB, sponsored by Laurie Greenberg
- We’re awarding two first-time college scholarships in August 2025: The Gloria Belle Memorial Scholarship and the Mike Auldridge Memorial Scholarship!
- Seven college scholarships; the Rosenberg Bluegrass Scholar Award (recipient Nathaniel Mitchell, University of Delaware), sponsored in 2025 and 2026 by Paolo Dettwiler; educational grants named for Terry Baucom, Bill Breen, and Fletcher Bright; multiple project grants; and Arnold Shultz Fund grants!
- And did you hear about the Arnold Shultz induction into the Bluegrass Music Hall of Fame on Sept. 18?
- The prize for the 2026 Strings for Dreams Bluegrass Raffle is a Herringbone Martin D-35 guitar, donated by Dr. Richard Brown.
The IBMA Foundation is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit that supports programs fostering the growth of bluegrass music through charitable giving.We are a growing foundation with an international reach that provides a way for donors to create a lasting bluegrass legacy. Check out bluegrassfoundation.org, get involved, and let’s work together to support a wonderful, bright future for bluegrass music!
Board members: Trisha Tubbs (chair/president), Alan Tompkins (vice-chair), Wendy Tyner (treasurer), Mona Salyer (secretary), Kissy Black, Dr. Sam Blumenthal, Katy Daley, Michael Hall, Susan Newberry, Matthew Royles, Dr. Peter Salovey, Mark Schuster, Lillian Werbin, Ken White (IBMA), John Young, and IBMA Foundation executive director Nancy Cardwell
RETURN to the September 2025 issue of The Cornerstone.
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