Howard County Arts Council Grant Awards Announced

Forty-six arts and cultural organizations will receive $559,209 in matching grants from the Howard County Arts Council for Fiscal Year 2017. The awards were announced at the Arts Council's annual meeting and reception at the Howard County Center for the Arts on September 16, 2016. These matching grants will be used by 20 Howard County organizations, 14 Howard County public schools, and 12 key Baltimore City organizations to support general operations and projects taking place in Howard County, artist residencies, and special projects in the arts.

Community Arts Development Grants fund day-to-day activities for Howard County arts organizations as well as special projects in the arts. $319,479 was awarded to the following organizations for FY2017:

Candlelight Concert Society	Operating	$41,301
Columbia Bands	Project	$5,000
Columbia Center for Theatrical Arts	Operating	$65,575
Columbia Festival of the Arts	Operating	$67,250
Columbia Orchestra	Operating	$34,838
Columbia Pro Cantare	Operating	$24,481
First Evangelical Lutheran Church	Project	$5,000
HopeWorks of Howard County	Project	$2,600
Howard County Concert Orchestra	Project	$5,000
Howard County Poetry and Literature Society	Operating	$14,075
Kinetics Dance Theatre	Operating	$15,000
Little Patuxent Review	Project	$4,500
ManneqArt	Project	$4,659
Misako Ballet Company	Project	$5,000
Red Branch Theatre Company	Project	$5,000
Rep Stage	Project	$5,000
ShowTime Singers	Project	$5,000
Silhouette Stages	Project	$4,850
Sundays at Three	Project	$2,500

Artists-in-Education Project Grants are a partnership between the Arts Council and local Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs) to place professional artists in residence at Howard County schools to help students foster creative expression. $26,738 in funding was awarded to the following schools for the first FY2017 grant deadline:

Bonnie Branch MS PTA	$1,325	Chesapeake Shakespeare Company residency
Bushy Park ES PTA	$1,052	Animated video residency with Leila Cabib
Clarksville MS PTA	$1,400	Chesapeake Shakespeare Company residency
Clemens Crossing ES PTA	$2,000	Weaving residency with Nancy Charamella
Dunloggin MS PTA	$2,993	Chesapeake Shakespeare Company residency
Glenwood MS PTSA	$3,056	Chesapeake Shakespeare Company residency
Harpers Choice MS PTA	$1,300	Drama residency with InterAct Story Theatre
Ilchester ES PTA	$2,400	Mural residency with Tara S. Holl
Lime Kiln ES PTA	$2,633	Chesapeake Shakespeare Company residency
Lisbon ES PTA	$3,343	Mosaic residency with Carien Quiroga
Marriotts Ridge HS PTSA	$1,234	Chesapeake Shakespeare Company residency
Stevens Forest ES PTA	$2,000	Mosaic residency with Suzanne Herbert-Forton
Talbott Springs ES PTA	$767	Mosaic residency with Susan Stockman
Thunder Hill ES PTA	$1,235	Felting residency with Katherine Dilworth

Baltimore City Arts and Cultural Grants provide funding to key Baltimore City organizations that provide significant services to Howard County residents. $156,212 was awarded to the following organizations for FY2017:

American Visionary Art Museum	$4,085
Baltimore Museum of Art	$18,384
Baltimore Museum of Industry	$8,030
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra	$24,954
Center Stage Associates, Inc.	$23,428
Maryland Historical Society	$3,255
Maryland Science Center	$14,700
Maryland Zoological Society, Inc.	$16,151
National Aquarium, Inc.	$14,656
Port Discovery Children's Museum	$10,658

Outreach Howard Grants provide funding to key Baltimore City organizations to bring projects and programs directly to Howard County residents. $40,000 was awarded to the following organizations:

American Visionary Art Museum	$2,750
Baltimore Museum of Industry	$3,340
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra	$9,685
Chesapeake Shakespeare Company	$15,000
Maryland Science Center	$3,000
Maryland Zoological Society, Inc.	$2,835
Port Discovery Children's Museum	$3,390

The Jim Rouse Theatre Subsidy Program assists community arts groups by partially underwriting theatre rental fees at The Jim Rouse Theatre for the Performing Arts. $16,780 was awarded to the following organizations for FY2017:

Columbia Festival of the Arts	$4,883
Columbia Orchestra	$5,676
Columbia Pro Cantare	$2,638
Kinetics Dance Theatre	$2,341
Misako Ballet Company	$1,242

Howard County Arts Council grants are awarded on the basis of artistic merit, ability of the applicant to carry out the project, and level of service to the community. Grants are made through a competitive process in which applications are reviewed by an advisory panel made up of academics and artists representing a variety of disciplines. Grant award recommendations are then reviewed and approved by the Howard County Arts Council Board of Directors.

The Arts Council's grant program is supported through grants from the Howard County government and the Maryland State Arts Council as well as through the Howard County Arts Council's own foundation, corporate, and individual giving initiatives.