Statements
Mission
Centennial Park Conservancy sustains the vibrancy of Nashville's Centennial Park, home to the historic Parthenon, by supporting Metro Parks in revitalizing and activating this public green space to ensure the park remains a welcoming destination for recreation, culture, education, and community connection for all.
Background
Centennial Park Conservancy is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization that works in partnership with Nashville's Metro Parks to support Centennial Park and the Parthenon.
We underwrite and present a variety of enriching programs that make a widespread imprint on the Nashville community and our visitors. Key programs include Nashville Parthenon exhibition and educational initiatives, Musicians Corner, Kidsville, and Nashville Earth Day. Centennial Park Conservancy is also partnering with Metro Parks on the Centennial Park Revitalization, a multi-phase transformation of the park that will preserve and enhance Nashville's central park to better serve current and future generations. We will break ground on the upcoming Park Plaza Phase in Q1 2024.
Impact
At Centennial Park Conservancy, we are committed to ensuring our city has a world-class central park and sustaining its vibrancy through accessible and inclusive programming. CPC's programming includes the following:
• Kidsville: uses the arts and active play to create goal-oriented activities for children ages 2-12 in the areas of literacy, history, art, music, outdoor recreation, and financial education. Kidsville also provides after-school programming at five local Nashville Community Centers during the school year; during the 2023-24 school year, we will increase the reach of this program to eight Community Centers.
• Musicians Corner: a free, family-friendly concert series held during the late spring and early fall months. Musicians Corner welcomed 97,000 to Centennial Park in 2023. Kidsville is onsite at Musicians Corner for the full duration of each event and provides engaging opportunities for attending children and young families.
• Parthenon Programming: CPC underwrites 100% of annual exhibition costs and related museum educational programming, reaching an audience of 350,000 annually. When not at Musicians Corner, Kidsville is held at the Parthenon on Saturday mornings and allows children and young families to access the Parthenon at no cost of admission.
• Nashville Earth Day: CPC is proud to host Nashville's annual celebration of the planet and uses this platform to promote good stewardship of our shared environment. Thousands of Festival-goers can visit environmentally-themed vendors, browse numerous food/beverage trucks, and enjoy live music throughout the afternoon. CPC reinvests net proceeds from this event back into the Nashville community and historically uses these funds to support projects aligned with bees, trees, and clean water. In 2023, we welcomed a record 10,000 visitors to the Festival grounds and will invest $50,000 in grants to support local environmental projects and initiatives.
Needs
Centennial Park Conservancy members signal their belief in the value of arts, education, creative experiences, and access to urban recreation.
Members protect and enhance Centennial Park's green space for all who live and visit here, provide enriching programming at the iconic Parthenon, and keep our arts and education programs free to everyone. Our work strives to enhance the vitality of Nashville and secure the promise of tomorrow for future generations.
Membership Levels include: Friend (Student/Senior/Teacher/Military $25); Advocate ($50); Cultivator ($100); Protector ($250); Hero ($500); Sustainer ($1,000); Nike ($2,500); Olympian ($5,000); Athena ($10,000); Champion ($25,000). Memberships are fully tax deductible.
CEO Statement
Centennial Park and the Parthenon have been essential parts of Nashville's fabric for more than a century. As the Park's nonprofit support organization, we have worked in partnership with Metro Parks for nearly four decades to help maintain the vibrancy of our city's iconic landmark and central park.
From underwriting capital improvements and preservation projects to delivering the majority of our programs at no charge so they remain accessible to all, we could not serve our city without the generosity of others.
We partner with corporations, foundations, and individuals who are dedicated to making a positive impact on our community through a vibrant and equitable urban green space that serves as a central destination for recreation and inclusive programming.
We invite you to partner with us in enriching our community and sustaining Nashville's beloved Centennial Park.
John Tumminello
President, Centennial Park Conservancy
Board Chair Statement
Centennial Park Conservancy (CPC) is the nonprofit support organization that works alongside Metro Parks to revitalize Nashville's central park, home of the historic Parthenon. By presenting popular, family-friendly programs for free like Musicians Corner, Kidsville, Nashville Earth Day, and at the Parthenon's internal museum, we give the community a beautiful public space for recreation and serve as a valuable source of immersion in culture and the arts.
Our organization was founded in 1985 with the exclusive mission of underwriting the construction of the Parthenon's famed 42'-tall statue of Athena Parthenos, the largest indoor sculpture in the western hemisphere. In 2025, we look forward to celebrating the 35th anniversary of the statue's construction with an early summer exhibition honoring the statue and the artist, Alan LeQuire, who brought it to life.
Our name and scope of mission grew in the early 2010s to encompass the programming mentioned above, while we also set out on our journey to raise support for needed revitalization and preservation projects across Centennial Park. Service to the Nashville community by way of the city's beloved 132-acre central park is the very core of our mission. Our programs - especially those focused on kids and young families - are active in community spaces out of Centennial Park while the success of our programming is shared with other like-minded nonprofits across Nashville. Program revenue from Nashville Earth Day is re-granted to environmental projects each year; Kidsville offers access to vibrant arts education at after school Community Center settings; and Musicians Corner provides up-and-coming musical artists with a stage and spotlight to grow their audience and, by extension, cultivate their success in the Music City.
As we move into 2025, CPC will break ground on the most ambitious revitalization project at Centennial Park in decades. The North Side Revitalization will expand access into the Park through a new entrance and adjacent improved pathways; construct a new state-of-the-art events pavilion; and restore the historic Croquet Clubhouse into a fully-functioning cafe. This phase, once completed in early 2026, will completely refresh the north sector of Centennial Park and ensure its viability for generations.
The support of this project, and the ongoing underwriting of all our free-to-access programming, is made possible through support of donors past and present. If you're new to our organization or just discovered us through Giving Matters, I humbly invite you to learn more about our good work and to consider joining us so that we may continue to build Centennial Park's bright future, together.
Yours,
Eric Cook
Chairman of the Board
Centennial Park Conservancy Board of Directors
Service Categories |
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| Primary Category: | Arts, Culture & Humanities - Arts,Culture & Humanities NEC |
| Secondary Category: | Education - Educational Services |
| Tertiary Category: | Environment - Environmental Beautification |
Areas Served
While physically located in Nashville, The Parthenon is a museum/cultural attraction with a broad appeal. Centennial Park is the city's central park, with historical and cultural significance. Although a large portion of guests are from the Southeast United States, we also have many national and international visitors.
| TN - Davidson |
| International |
| National |
| TN |
