Howard County Arts Council Announces FY2015 Grant Awards

Forty-five arts and cultural organizations will receive $527,619 in matching grants from the Howard County Arts Council for Fiscal Year 2015. The awards were announced at the Arts Council’s annual meeting and reception at the Howard County Center for the Arts on September 12, 2014. These matching grants will be used by 20 Howard County organizations; 14 Howard County public schools; and 11 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. $321,894 was awarded to the following organizations for FY2015:

Arc of Howard County Project $1,000
Candlelight Concert Society Operating $32,000
Chesapeake Shakespeare Company Operating $33,528
Columbia Bands Project $4,000
Columbia Center for Theatrical Arts Operating $69,393
Columbia Festival of the Arts Operating $63,047
Columbia Orchestra Operating $26,800
Columbia Pro Cantare Operating $24,982
HopeWorks of Howard County Project $3,040
Howard County Ballet Operating $8,646
Howard County Concert Orchestra Project $4,000
Howard County Poetry & Literature Society Operating $11,800
Kinetics Dance Theatre Operating $11,860
Little Patuxent Review Project $2,500
ManneqArt Project $5,000
Misako Ballet Company Project $5,000
Rep Stage Project $5,000
ShowTime Singers Project $2,899
Silhouette Stages Project $4,899
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. $26,151 in funding was awarded to the following schools for the first FY2015 grant deadline:

Bushy Park ES PTA $1,015

Dayton Oaks ES PTA $2,053
Ducketts Lane ES PTA $2,000
Dunloggin MS PTA $2,748
Glenwood MS PTA $2,748
Harper’s Choice MS PTA $1,376
Laurel Woods ES PTA $3,053

Lime Kiln MS PTA $1,967
Lisbon ES PTA $1,733
Longfellow ES PTA $995
Manor Woods ES PTA $810
Mount View MS PTA $2,053
Northfield ES PTA $1,600
Stevens Forest ES PTA* $2,000

Baltimore City Arts and Cultural Grants provide funding to key Baltimore City organizations that provide significant services to Howard County residents. $173,962 was awarded to the following organizations for FY2015:

American Visionary Art Museum $4,987
Baltimore Museum of Art $24,440
Baltimore Museum of Industry $8,074
Baltimore Symphony Orchestra $27,826
Center Stage Associates, Inc. $26,649

Maryland Historical Society $4,099
Maryland Science Center $13,819
Maryland Zoo in Baltimore $14,980
National Aquarium $22,053
Port Discovery Children’s Museum $9,639
The Walters Art Museum $17,396

Outreach Howard Grants provide funding to key Baltimore City organizations to bring projects and programs directly to Howard County residents. $28,576 was awarded to the following organizations for the first FY2015 grant deadline:

American Visionary Art Museum $3,650
Baltimore Museum of Industry $2,526
Maryland Science Center $7,725
Maryland Zoo in Baltimore $6,038
National Aquarium $4,000
Port Discovery Children’s Museum $4,637

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. $16,136 was awarded to the following organizations for FY2015:

Columbia Bands $1,604
Columbia Festival of the Arts $4,103
Columbia Orchestra $4,329
Columbia Pro Cantare $4,088
Kinetics Dance Theatre $1,073
Misako Ballet Company $939

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.