Howard County Arts Council Receives John W. Holland Service Award

Community Action Council of Howard County (CAC) will hold its 16th annual Holland Awards Dinner on Wednesday, Oct. 19 at 6 p.m. at Turf Valley Country Club.

Dr. Freeman Hrabowski, President of UMBC, will be the keynote speaker. The event is named in honor of the late Rev. John W. Holland who worked to ensure human rights for all people by seeking solutions to problems and obstacles confronting the disadvantaged. David Weeks from Glenelg Country School will receive the Humanitarian Award. The Howard County Arts Council will be honored with the Service Award for their Head StART in ART partnership with the Ellicott City Head Start Center.

Coleen West, Howard Arts Council Executive Director says, "All of us at the Arts Council are honored and thrilled for being recognized with the Holland Service Award. We are extremely proud of the Head StART in ART program. Education is one of the most important tools that we have to beat poverty and quality early education is the key to success. An essential component of a quality education is the arts. Head StART in ART provides at-risk children with an early introduction to the arts and creative play - which builds social and cognitive skills, encourages exploration, builds self confidence and instills a love of discovery and learning that will last a lifetime!"
The Howard County Arts Council established the Head StART in ART program in partnership with the Ellicott City Head Start Center, to provide hands-on experiences in the arts to pre-K students from low-income families. This program provides students with opportunities to explore the arts and their own creativity under the guidance and inspiration of a visiting artist.

Head StART in ART has been cited as a model early childhood arts education program by the National Endowment for the Arts and the Maryland State Arts Council. The FY11-12 program is funded by the Isadore and Bertha Gudelsky Family Foundation and the Wells Fargo Foundation.
HCAC's mission is to provide programs and services to low-income residents of Howard County in order to alleviate the effects of poverty; to promote self-sufficiency as a means of interrupting the cycle of poverty; and to stimulate increased awareness of, and responsiveness to, the needs of the low-income population on the part of the larger community.

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