2013-2014 By The Numbers

Little Opera is a fiscally sponsored project or Fractured Atlas, a non-profits arts service organization. Through their sponsorship we are able to solicit tax-deductible donations and apply for grants without being our own 501(c)(3) organization.

As we have grown, our numbers have kept pace — thankfully in both income and expenses! We are happy to report that our finances continue to look healthy in 2013-2014.
Income Comparison Analysis
  • Contributions from individuals doubled in 2013-2014 thanks to increased exposure and additional development staff.
  • Institutional giving saw a rise again after a dip in 2012-2013.
  • Event income took a giant leap upwards thanks to our first ever Little Gala.
  • While the percentage of students paying full tuition has dropped, 2013-2014 ticket sales increased.
Expense Comparison Analysis
  • Programming expenses are  on the rise, but the increase goes hand in hand with an increase in the number of teaching artists, hours, and students Little Opera worked with this year. 
  • Fundraising costs also rose - as did our fundraising output and success.
  • Administration costs are a little higher than last year , matching the growth of the Little Opera administrative team.
  • Other expenses decreased from 2012-2013. 

Scholarships and Tuition Assistance

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Access to our programming remains a top priority at Little Opera. This year we worked hard to clearly articulate our Scholarship and Tuition Assistance Program - what it is, how it works, and what steps we take to ensure that access really does mean access. 

Program Goals
  1. To offer elementary aged children from low income families the opportunity to participate in a comprehensive after-school arts program.
  2. To identify students who show a flare for the arts who would otherwise not self identify

How we do it
  • Full Scholarships: Little Opera offers full scholarships that cover the cost of a year’s tuition.
  • Sliding Scale Tuition: No student is turned away for lack of funds.  Little Opera offers sliding scale tuition assistance to all.
  • Teacher Recommendations: We found that students from low socio-economic backgrounds do not self identify for arts programs such as Little Opera. In response to this, we use teacher recommendations to break down this barrier. In collaboration with San Francisco Unified School District elementary school teachers we identify students who we believe would benefit most from the program. Teachers observe how well students respond to the arts throughout the school year, and recommend scholarship students based on recognizing a student’s love for the arts, and knowledge that the student’s family would not be able to enroll their child in other after-school arts programs.

Student Demographics

At the beginning of each school year Little Opera asks its families to complete a questionnaire to help us gather important data on our participants for grant proposals. 

Here are a few visuals that describe our 2013-2014 participants. 

Ethnicity Stats
Students Served By Grade