Uke Fest

Dates: Friday August 25 thru Sunday August 27, 2017

Location: Ukrainian American Cultural Center of New Jersey and the Morristown Green

Finances - we are almost ready to announce ticket pricing.

Booking - we are working on booking artists.

Request for the Board:

When we first launched the Uke Fest one of our goals was to reach a new audience that was largely independent from the Folk Project and we have been quite successful at doing so: For example, our 2016 NJUF survey showed that approximately 3/4 of the Workshop attendees were not Folk Project members. As far as we can tell, however, we have been less successful at turning this new audience into active FP members. Folks who attend Uke Fest are already self-selected as ideal FP members: they're interested in the kind of music we present and many of them are already active musicians.

This year, the Uke Fest committee has an idea how to better integrate the Uke Fest community with the larger FP community. We think the FP should offer a one-time $10 discount on FP membership to Uke Fest attendees who are not already FP members. How much this proposal would cost depends on how many people take us up on the offer. In 2016, of the 97 surveys collected, 72 either didn't respond or said they were not FP members. A plausible best case estimate is that we might get 50 of them to join the FP, in which case a $10 discount that would amount to $500.00.

The Uke Fest itself doesn't generate enough profit to cover this kind of expense. And, more importantly the expenditure would really benefit the FP at large, not the Uke Fest directly. We think this kind of activity might be a good use for the Arts Council grant.

Motion -

NJUF committee be authorized to offer a $10 discount on membership to new members who join the FP at the time of their Registration. The discount will be offered to those who register for either the full weekend or Saturday workshops. Funds for the discount will be taken from the 2017 Morris Arts Grant.

I have checked with Barb Moo and she has indicated that this use of funds seems to be consistent with the grant guidelines.

Pam Robinson