For Immediate Release: 4/1/2011 1:14 pm
Worcester, MA (April 1, 2011) - The Worcester Arts Council (WAC) has announced the recipients of funding for the 2011 granting cycle. WAC awarded a total of $74,304 to 37 Worcester area artists, organizations and educational institutions. The 2011 allocation includes two $4,000 Artist Fellowships, awarded to individual artists to assist in the funding of their artistic endeavors, which were granted to the initiator of a local poetry movement, Alex Charalambides, and visual artist, Derek Ring.
WAC selected a wide range of grant recipients ranging from innovative arts outreach initiatives, educational programming, visual arts, live music and cultural events that foster arts collaboration in the community. WAC reviews application in the fall during a series of meetings conducted to evaluate the overall quality of the proposed programs, the project's potential benefit to a large and diverse audience and the proposed project's viability.
WAC (formerly the Worcester Cultural Commission) is a municipal body consisting of nine members appointed by the City Manager. WAC accepts grant applications on an annual basis between mid-August and October 15th, with determinations made before the end of the calendar year. Grants are issued to support arts, humanities and interpretive sciences; visual artists, performing artists, science educators, historians and other humanists; as well as community, business and civic groups, social service organizations, schools, neighborhood centers, and youth, senior and family associations. For 2010, the Worcester Arts Council granted just over $75,000 to some 60 artists and Worcester-based organizations.
On Sunday, April 10, 2011 WAC will host a Grant Reception to all 2011 recipients from 1:00 PM to 3:00 PM at the Goddard House (1199 Main Street, Worcester.) A complete listing of the 2011 Worcester Arts Council grant recipients can be found by visiting www.worcestermass.org/WAC.
The Worcester Arts Council is part of a network of 329 Local Cultural Councils serving all 351 cities and towns on the Commonwealth. The LCC Program is the largest grassroots cultural funding network in the nation, supporting thousands of community-based projects in the arts, sciences and humanities every year. The state legislature provides an annual appropriation to he Massachusetts Cultural Council, a state agency, which then allocates funds to each community.
For more information or to schedule an interview, please contact Ellen Ganley at (508) 799-1400 x241 or ganleye@worcesterma.gov. Connect with WAC by visiting www.facebook.com/worcesterartscouncil.
