Caroline Taiwo joined McKnight in August 2022 as Arts & Culture program officer. In this role she maintains and develops relationships with grantee partners and intermediary funders, manages significant grant portfolios, and actively collaborates with McKnight programs, investments, and operations teams to advance and strengthen the creativity, power, and leadership of Minnesota’s working artists and culture bearers.
Caroline came to McKnight from Springboard for the Arts, where she was the director of economic opportunity. There she led a team of staff and consultants and key community partners in strategic vision and equity-based programming to provide artists, cultural practitioners, and creative entrepreneurs with broader access to career development resources, business technical assistance, and capital. She led the pilot and roll-out of several efforts, including a guaranteed basic income program in tandem with the City of Saint Paul to boost economic recovery for artists; ReadyMade, a virtual makers gallery and pop-up market to platform diverse local makers and craft artists; and Creative Economy Fellowship to recognize artist changemakers creating economic resources and opportunities in their communities.
Alongside her leadership roles, Caroline has been an active speaker, writer, and volunteer. She presented on building local creative economies at the Americans for the Arts Convention, Grantmakers in the Arts Conference, and the Midwest Asset Building Conference. She has contributed arts and culture features to Minnesota Public Radio, MinnPost, and Pollen Midwest. Caroline has also advised on several workgroups and committees, such as The Alliance’s Business Resources Collective, City of Saint Paul’s Financial Empowerment Community Council, and nonprofit research group Creative Minnesota where she currently serves on the board.