Local arts programs are getting some financial assistance for 2025 in the form of grant awards from the North Carolina Arts Council.
The Vance County Arts Council will receive $34,728 for a Grassroots Arts Program, and the Embassy Cultural Center Foundation, Inc. – that is to say, McGregor Hall – is the recipient of a $21,000 sustaining support grant, according to information from the N.C. Arts Council.
McGregor Hall is one of 85 new organizations to get flexible funding through an expanded category called Sustaining Support, which more than doubles the agency’s investment in work that promotes stability and sustainability in the arts sector.
Vance County’s $55,728 is part of more than $11.5 million that is being distributed across the state. A total of 366 grants were awarded to nonprofit arts organizations, schools, after-school programs, municipalities and artists in all 100 counties this year. The grants range from $5,000 to $338,000.
This year’s grant awards significantly increase the N.C. Arts Council’s investment in small and mid-sized arts organizations.
Funding priorities went to projects that emphasize community outreach and audience engagement, connect K-12 students with a variety of artists and disciplines, notably traditional arts of North Carolina, as well as to projects that foster public-private partnerships to weave local support with state and federal funding and those that provide outreach to military veterans and their families.
In Granville County, for example, a project called Military and Veterans Healing Arts will get $10,000 to create a veteran artist-led community based mural project and accompanying educational activities.
The Granville Educational Foundation will get $46,631 for a Grassroots Arts Program, bringing the total in Granville County to $56,631.
“The record number of applications we received this grant cycle signals that artists are inspiring audiences and producing arts experiences that make our state a wonderful place to live, work, and visit,” said Jeff Bell, the Arts Council’s executive director. “I thank Governor Cooper and the General Assembly for championing our arts and culture sector. The arts deliver more than $2 billion in economic impact annually to our state and are a powerful tool to uplift entire communities.”
“The arts are woven into the fabric of our state’s identity, and as I travel across North Carolina, I see firsthand how much the creative sector contributes to the cultural and economic vibrancy of cities, towns, and regions. When the arts flourish, communities flourish,” said Department of Natural and Cultural Resources Secretary Reid Wilson.
Franklin County was awarded $55,946 for a Grassroots Arts Program.
In Warren County, the school district will receive $22,965 for its Grassroots Arts Program.
See the complete list of FY2024-25 grant recipients at https://www.ncarts.org/fy2024-25.
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