Carole Morse, Arts & Business Leader, joins Oregon Cultural Trust Board

February 15, 2012, Salem, ORE — Governor John Kitzhaber has appointed Carole Morse, PGE Foundation president and community investments manager for Portland General Electric to a four-year term on the Oregon Cultural Trust board. The Trust board consists of 11 citizens appointed by the Governor and confirmed by the Oregon Senate, and one member each appointed by the president of the Senate and the speaker of the House.

Carole Morse is one of Oregon’s most recognized advocates for arts and culture. Her work with PGE’s Foundation and as its community investments manager has received national and regional attention, including a BCA Top Ten award, recognizing the top 10 companies in the country that support the arts; and an Oregon Governor’s Award in 2001.

Morse currently serves on the boards of the Creative Advocacy Network, All Hands Raised (formerly the Portland Schools Foundation), and E3 – Employers for Education Excellence. As a former chair of the Regional Arts & Culture Council, she advocated for the development of the Right Brain Initiative, returning integrated arts education into the Portland metro region schools. As a former chair of Business for Culture & the Arts, she promoted corporate giving to the arts, setting an example through PGE’s recognition as the No. 1 donor to the arts over the past 10 years. The company and its employees have been consistently called out for their support of the arts and arts education. PGE is the No. 1 Work for Art employee giving campaign so far in 2011/2012 and Morse serves as the honorary chair of the campaign in the tri-county region.

Morse explained her interest in joining the Trust board: “As a business person, I realize the importance of the business and arts connection that helps local economies thrive whether in a big city or rural town,” Morse said. “I am looking forward to continuing my support of the Oregon Cultural Trust, which has proven that Oregonians are enthusiastic supporters of our arts and cultural treasures.”

 

About the Oregon CulturalTrust

The Oregon Cultural Trust is aninnovative, statewide private-public program raising significant new funds tosupport and protect Oregon’s arts, humanities and heritage. In addition to the creation of apermanent endowment, funds are distributed annually through threemulti-faceted, wide-ranging grant programs. Donors to the Trust are eligible for a 100% Oregon incometax credit for contributions of up to $500 for individuals, $1,000 for couplesfiling jointly and $2,500 for corporations. To motivate Oregonians to increasedirect giving to cultural groups, Trust donors must also make matching gifts toone or more of nearly 1,300 cultural nonprofits in order to qualify for the credit. No other state in the nation has aprogram like the Oregon Cultural Trust, which has been ranked with the bottlebill and the vote-by-mail bill as among Oregon’s most forward-thinking publicpolicy measures.
More information: (503) 986-0088 or www.culturaltrust.org.

In 2003, the Oregonlegislature moved the operations of the Oregon Cultural Trust to the OregonArts Commission, streamlining operations and making use of the Commission’sexpertise in grantmaking, arts and cultural information, and community culturaldevelopment.  The Arts Commissionand the Cultural Trust are part of the Business Oregon (Oregon Business DevelopmentDepartment) in recognition of the expanding role arts and culture play in thebroader social, economic and educational arenas of Oregon communities. 

The Oregon Business Development Department works to create, retain,expand and attract businesses that provide sustainable, living-wage jobs forOregonians through public-private partnerships, leveraged funding, and supportof economic opportunities for Oregon companies and entrepreneurs. Visit www.oregon4biz.com for more information on doing business in Oregon.