Soon Orcas Center will be joining the world of social networking and “tweeting” with the best of them, aiming to expand its audience base thanks to a new grant from the Paul G. Allen Family Foundation.

“Orcas Center doesn’t just serve one demographic or one generation; we serve everybody,” said Executive Director Barbara Courtney.

Courtney believes the current system at Orcas Center is not effectively reaching the younger population.

“The current website is static and expensive to maintain, and not using current technology,” she explained.

The recent $45,000 grant from the foundation will provide Orcas Center with a complete technical upgrade that includes a new server, computers, and website design and upgrade.

“With the Allen grant we’re really going to be able to invest further, through an interactive website, reaching younger people through social networking,” Courtney said. “In addition to coverage from the Sounder, our best form of promotion is word of mouth. We also hope to help Orcas Center become a destination place for visitors by reaching off-island markets as well.”

In recent years, the use of social networking sites like Twitter and Facebook has come to be considered an important component of brand marketing, termed “social media optimization.” The New York Times, for one, appointed its own “social media” editor in May 2009. Orcas Center’s grant application gained an edge in the midst of tough competition by showing savvy in this regard.

Foundation culture program officer Jim McDonald explained the selection:

“We look for … things that are really going to make an impact in the community. Orcas Center is a destination spot, and we understood the challenge of getting funding. We liked the fact that they are not just thinking about programming but audience development and driving them to the web page and becoming more linked up to the center.”

McDonald said the grant is intended to help improve the center’s financial performance and ensure its future stability.

“We are trying to help organizations get through these tough times, and be more efficient with less. This organization made a very strong case and we have confidence in the results,” added foundation Vice President Susan Coliton.

According to Coliton, Orcas Center has lost volunteers due to the difficulty of using the old software, but she says the center expects a 100 percent increase in volunteer hours as a result of the upgrades.

Other Paul G. Allen Family Foundation grants to Orcas Center have included $50,000 for expansion in 2000, and another $25,000 in 2006 for a facilities management position.

“That is still a funded position at the center. It’s a perfect example of how these grants help organizations improve and sustain,” McDonald said.

Courtney says the foundation is the biggest arts philanthropy organization in the northwest. Since 1990, it has contributed $91.9 million of its total $404 million awards disbursement to Pacific Northwest arts and culture organizations.

The foundation has given a total of $1.3 million to various San Juan County groups since 1997. In this round of grants, Orcas Center is the only San Juan County recipient.

“We are really blessed that we have the Allen Foundation’s confidence and a really strong, positive history with them,” Courtney said.