SC Arts Commission Press Releases
NEA Awards Six S.C. Organizations More Than $940,000 in Grants
May 7, 2008
Media Contact:
Ken May
(803) 734-8689
COLUMBIA, S.C. –The largest annual national funder of the arts, the National Endowment for the Arts has awarded grants totaling $946,700 to six South Carolina organizations during its second round of fiscal 2008 funding. The grants are a part of $77.4 million in grants that the NEA is distributing to arts organizations throughout the country this quarter to support excellence in the arts, bring the arts to all Americans and provide leadership in arts in education.
As a part of this funding, the S.C. Arts Commission has received an $806,700 annual partnership grant, which goes to fund grant programs for South Carolina artists, arts organizations, schools and communities. Some programs that benefit from those funds include the agency’s Arts in Education, American Masterpieces and Poetry Out Loud programs, as well as general operating support for arts organizations.
The remaining five organizations, their locations, and grant categories and amounts are:
- Arts in Basic Curriculum Project, York County, Learning in the Arts, $20,000
- Charleston Academy of Music, Charleston County, Access to Artistic Excellence, $20,000
- City of Charleston, Charleston County, Access to Artistic Excellence, $25,000
- Greenville Symphony Association, Greenville County, Access to Artistic Excellence, $10,000
- SC ETV, Spartanburg County, Access to Artistic Excellence, $65,000
“NEA support enriches the civic life of the nation by making the best of the arts available throughout the United States,” said NEA Chairman Dana Gioia. “From traditional arts apprenticeships for youth to online museum resources for the public, the range of support represents a valuable investment in American art that will serve the American people.”
In December 2007, President Bush signed an appropriations bill that raised the NEA’s Fiscal 2008 funding to $144.7 million, $20.1 million more than the previous year. South Carolina Arts Commission Executive Director Suzette Surkamer says this is the largest dollar increase in the NEA appropriation since 1979.
“When the NEA receives an increase in funds, partnering regional and state arts organizations such as the S.C. Arts Commission also receive additional funds and are afforded greater opportunities to bring excellent art and arts education programs to the communities they serve,” said Surkamer. “We are grateful to receive these funds.”
The following are brief descriptions of how each grant will benefit South Carolinians:
A collaborative effort of the South Carolina Arts Commission, Winthrop University and the South Carolina State Department of Education, the Arts in Basic Curriculum (ABC) Project Regional Outreach Network will use its $20,000 grant to extend its reach to schools not currently served by the ABC. A network of regional outreach consultants will provide professional development to improve the quality of arts programming in those schools.
Charleston Academy of Music will use its $20,000 grant to provide elementary, middle and high school students classes in piano, violin, viola, cello or voice.
The City of Charleston’s $25,000 grant will help support performances, workshops and a panel discussion as part of the Charleston Jazz Legacy Project. During the 2009 Piccolo Spoleto Festival, trombonist Wycliffe Gordon will host the Charleston Jazz Legacy Project that will highlight the impact regional artists have had on the jazz idiom.
Greenville Symphony Association’s $10,000 grant will help support the association’s “Spotlight Series for Underserved Communities.” Symphony musicians will perform chamber orchestra concerts for rural communities in North and South Carolina.
A $65,000 grant to ETV Endowment of South Carolina will go to support the production of new programs for the weekly radio series Marian McPartland's Piano Jazz. National Public Radio will distribute the programs to listeners on 254 stations in the United States, and to international audiences via NPR's Worldwide Service.
The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) awarded a total 1,014 grants during this round of funding to nonprofit national, regional, state, and local organizations across the country. With the exception of the S.C. Arts Commission annual partnership grant, funding was awarded in the categories of Access to Artistic Excellence, Arts on Radio and Television, Learning in the Arts for Children and Youth, Partnership Agreements (State and Regional), and American Masterpieces: Three Centuries of Artistic Genius. For more information, visit www.nea.gov/news.
About SCAC:
The South Carolina Arts Commission is the state agency charged with creating a thriving arts environment that benefits all South Carolinians, regardless of their location or circumstances. Created by the South Carolina General Assembly in 1967, the Arts Commission is celebrating 40 years of increasing public participation in the arts by providing services, grants and leadership initiatives in three areas: arts education, community arts development and artist development. Headquartered in Columbia, S.C., the Arts Commission is funded by the state of South Carolina and by the federal government through the National Endowment for the Arts. For more information, visit www.SouthCarolinaArts.com or call (803) 734-8696.
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