PUTNAM COUNTY
Georgia Writers Museum (GWM) recently was awarded an Arts Education and an Arts Bridge grant by the Georgia Council for the Arts (GCA), a strategic arm of the Georgia Department of Economic Development.
“Georgia Writers Museum was founded nine years ago to help attract visitors to Eatonton and to educate all ages of the diverse tapestry of Georgia writers,” GWM President Lou Benjamin said. “Today, we are making this dream a reality, supported by our first Georgia Council for the Arts grants for operations and education. We look forward to continuing to foster the literary community across Georgia and creating new educational resources for students and teachers.”
First-round GCA grant funding for fiscal year 2024 includes a total of 269 grants across 47 counties in three funding categories, which range from COVID-19 recovery support to specific projects to educational programming.
“These vital funds bring life into communities all across the state. Music, theatre, dance, and visual art attract tourists, bring community members together, teach children self-confidence, revitalize downtowns, and more,” GCA Executive Director Tina Lilly said. “Through this program, GCA is able to support vibrant communities where people want to live and businesses want to locate.”
The FY24 first-round funding from GCA includes bridge, project, and arts education grants. Bridge grants will provide funding for operating support to 162 nonprofit arts organizations, many of which may have been negatively affected by COVID-19.
Project grants will help fund 44 single art projects, which may include an art exhibit, a theatre production, a series of children’s workshops, or an artist residency. They also may be used for capacity-building projects, such as developing a strategic plan, creating a development plan, or providing professional development.
The arts education grant will be distributed to 63 organizations to support the arts in K-12 education and may include a variety of disciplines, from visual art to music or theatre, to dance and creative writing.
Funds awarded by Georgia Council for the Arts include appropriations from the Georgia General Assembly and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). GCA uses peer review panels to judge and review applications following standard practices set by the NEA. Panelists are GCA council members and professionals experienced in the arts discipline or type of grant being reviewed or are citizens with a record of arts activities, experience, and knowledge. Grant recipients include theaters, dance companies, museums, cities, colleges, and multi-discipline arts entities.
According to the U.S. Bureau of Economic Analysis, arts and cultural production in Georgia account for $29.2 billion in the state, totaling 4.2% of Georgia’s economy, and accounting for more than 149,000 jobs.
For more information, visit Georgia Council for the Arts online at gaarts.org, or Georgia Writers Museum at georgiawritersmuseum.org.