For Immediate Release
Contact: Amy Day
Tel: 515.271.0344 (o)
515.612.0775 (c)
aday@desmoinesartcenter.org

DES MOINES, IA (March 2025) – Principal® Foundation, a global nonprofit organization committed to helping people and communities build financially secure futures, is deepening its partnership with the Des Moines Art Center through a new grant for general operations and an additional contribution to the Art Center’s 75th Anniversary Campaign. This expanded support will increase access to community art programs for Iowa youth.   

The only art museum in Des Moines and one of the few art museums in the nation to offer free admission, the Des Moines Art Center welcomes over 300,000 people each year to its galleries and Pappajohn Sculpture Park. This new grant from Principal Foundation will provide operational support through 2025, helping to maintain free admission and extended museum hours for all who visit. The grant will also fund Principal Foundation’s signature MyVoice program, an art mentorship initiative for Des Moines area youth, which the Art Center delivers in partnership with By Degrees Foundation, a local nonprofit dedicated to increasing high school graduate rates. This program, now in its third year, offers impactful art experiences to students from Findley Elementary School, Harding Middle School, and North High School.  

Additionally, Principal Foundation’s leadership gift to the Art Center’s 75th Anniversary Campaign includes a ten-year commitment to youth programming. In honor of Principal Foundation’s commitment, the Art Center is launching Principal Foundation Youth Learning and Engagement Initiative. Through this endeavor, along with other local funders and donors, Principal Foundation will help support free access to youth-oriented programs such as school tours, Creativity Days, High School Days, Teen Academy, Clay Academy, and Entirely Kids Day for the more than 115,0000 youth who visit the Art Center each year. This initiative will also enable the creation of new youth programs at the Art Center in the future. 

“Arts education is essential for our youth, and access to art programs enables students to become more bold and creative critical thinkers – essential skills to have in one’s personal and professional life,” said Jo Christine Miles, director of Principal Foundation and Community Relations. “Thus, Principal Foundation is supporting the Youth Learning and Engagement Initiative at the Des Moines Art Center, which provides not only an opportunity for students to express themselves through art but also helps advance the skills they’ll need to become future leaders in their communities and professional careers.”   

In addition to their commitment to Iowa youth, Principal Foundation has supported Des Moines Art Center programs for Iowans with disabilities. In October 2024, Principal Foundation was the presenting sponsor of the Art Center’s Taste of ReelAbilities, a film festival dedicated to showcasing films by and about people with disabilities.  

“I am enormously grateful to Principal Foundation and its Director, Jo Christine Miles, for their visionary support of the Art Center’s programs and operations,” says Kelly Baum, John and Mary Pappajohn Director. “Principal Foundation’s multi-year gift is critical to helping us advance and protect our mission to provide meaningful encounters with art, to explore the transformative potential of creativity, and to inspire new generations of artists and thinkers. In investing in the Art Center, Principal Foundation has also invested in the great city of Des Moines and the extraordinary residents of the Greater Des Moines region. Vibrant museums help make vibrant cities that benefit everyone.”  

About the Des Moines Art Center
The Des Moines Art Center is a vibrant, AAM-accredited (American Association of Museums) institution located in the capital city of Iowa that welcomes over 300,000 visitors annually from across the country and around the globe. Its historic campus consists of three buildings designed by major architects of the 20th century—Eliel Saarinen, I. M. Pei, and Richard Meier—incorporated into the natural landscape of Greenwood Park. The Art Center is home to one of the strongest collections of 20th and 21st century art in the region, and it hosts a series of ground-breaking exhibitions and lectures each year featuring artists known regionally, nationally, and internationally. The experimental art for which the Art Center cares is reflected in its creative offerings, including a celebrated education program that prioritizes access and collaboration, an art school with studio classes for all ages, and the John and Mary Pappajohn Sculpture Park, situated on 4.4 acres in downtown Des Moines. The Art Center is committed to the values of diversity, equity, and inclusion, which are incorporated into every facet of its mission and identity. 

About Principal® Foundation
Principal Financial Group Foundation, Inc. (“Principal Foundation”) is a duly recognized Section 501(c)(3) entity focused on providing philanthropic support to programs that build financial security in the communities where Principal Financial Group, Inc. (“Principal”) operates. While Principal Foundation receives funding from Principal, Principal Foundation is a distinct, independent, charitable entity. Principal Foundation does not practice any form of investment advisory services and is not authorized to do so. Established in 1987, Principal Foundation works with organizations that are helping to shape and support the journey to financial security by ensuring access to essential needs, fostering social and cultural connections, and promoting financial inclusion. Principal Foundation supports a diverse community of more than 86 charitable organizations across the globe.
4314903-032025 

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