CHANGE IN FUNDING PERIOD FOR FY19

The Connecticut Office of the Arts will be changing the funding period for its FY19 arts grants. The new funding period will be October 1, 2018 - September 30, 2019. We are currently in the process of finalizing our FY19 grant programs which include: Arts Learning, Regional Initiatives, Arts Project Grants and Supporting Arts in Place. Please note that for FY19 the Supporting Arts in Place program will have significant revisions including new criteria and application requirements. Arts Learning, Regional Initiatives and the Arts Project grant programs will remain relatively the same, perhaps a few minor tweaks, as they were in FY18. The programs' guidelines and information on how to apply will be made available before April 2018. Please know that we will send out a stand-alone newsletter (via this platform) to announce the release of the grants. All information will also be posted on our website and shared via our Facebook and Twitter feeds. Stay tuned!

CONNECTICUT ARTS DAY - APRIL 25, 2018

The third annual Connecticut Arts Day will take place on Wednesday, April 25, 2018 along Hartford's Church Street at three exciting venues including Hartford Stage, Upward Hartford and the Hartford Hilton! The day will bring together the state's arts and cultural leaders, mayors, legislators, artists, educators, business owners and residents along with noted national voices to celebrate and learn about the successes and aspirations of the arts and culture sector in our great state! The keynote speaker will be Dr. Bettina Love. Dr. Love is an award-winning author and Associate Professor of Educational Theory & Practice at the University of Georgia. She is a powerful speaker with a powerful message! Future Partners will present their radical problem-solving system, A Think Wrong Blitz that gets people and organizations "thinking wrong" to solve their "most wicked problems". They have used this methodology to help the White House, Harvard Business School, The City of New York and Microsoft to become more innovative! Join us for a day with panel discussions, workshops, networking opportunities, special performances and the presentation of the 2018 Arts Hero Awards! Arts Day Concierges will be available to guide you to/from the various venues on Church Street along with dynamic street performances! Registration will be opening soon! Check out our Facebook and Twitter feeds and our website for updates! #CTARTSDAY18

Nominate an Arts Hero!

The 2018 Arts Hero Awards will be presented on April 25 as part of Connecticut Arts Day. An Arts Hero is someone who is doing extraordinary things in, for or through the arts in their community. This year's theme is RESILIENCY! Take a moment to NOMINATE someone who has overcome adversity and came back stronger than ever! #NOMINATEAHERO #ARESILIENTHERO The deadline to submit a nomination is Friday, March 23.

UPDATE - CONNECTICUT ARTS ENDOWMENT

The list of recipients and grant amounts for the FY18 Connecticut Arts Endowment grant program will be announced the week of March 26, 2018. This is an exciting year for the Endowment! Thanks to changes made to the Endowment Fund the interest earned on the account to be distributed to eligible Connecticut non-profit arts organizations is an outstanding $772,121! The full list will be published on our website and shared via our Facebook and Twitter feeds. Take a moment to mark your calendars with the deadline for FY19 Connecticut Arts Endowment - December 15, 2019!

ELIZABETH L. MAHAFFEY ARTS ADMINISTRATION FELLOWSHIP - APPLY NOW!

The Elizabeth L. Mahaffey Arts Administration Fellowship provides $2,500 to emerging or mid-career arts administrators so they may pursue professional development and other opportunities that will advance their careers. The funds may be used towards: Tuition and registration fees for workshops, conferences and training; Hotel and travel costs associated with attending a workshop, conference or training; Consultants and career coaches; Other costs directly related to professional development activities. Professional development activities must take place within the funding period of May 1, 2018 - April 30, 2019. For more information, please contact  Rhonda Olisky .

Guidelines & How to Apply

APPLY NOW! The deadline has been extended to Monday, March 5!

Poetry Out Loud is a nationwide contest that encourages high school students to learn about poetry through memorization, performance, and competition. During the 2016‐2017 school year, nearly 7,000 students from a record 49 high schools participated in Poetry Out Loud in Connecticut. Join us at the 2018 State Finals to be held on Saturday, March 3, 2018 from 9 am - 4 pm at Manchester Community College. The event is free and open to the public. The Connecticut State Champion will advance to the National Finals, which will take place April 23-25, 2018 in Washington, DC.

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITY: Arts Integration - Reaching All Learners

COA's Higher Order Thinking (HOT) Schools in partnership with Integrated Day Charter School in Norwich, has been awarded a contract with  VSAarts  at the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts to provide a unique professional development opportunity.  Classroom teachers, special education teachers, arts essentialists, and teaching artist will explore the alignment of the HOT Approach, Universal Design for Learning, and Multiple Intelligence Theory through adapted inclusive units of study featuring Music and Social Studies, Visual Arts and Literacy, and Dance and Science. Teams will have an opportunity to develop and receive feedback on their own units. Sessions, free of charge, will be held at the New Britain Museum of American Art . Teams must commit to participating from 9:00 am -3:30 pm on both days: March 22, and May 2, 2018    To learn more and to register: Register

WNPR INTERVIEW WITH LYNNE WILLIAMSON

Check out the recent WNPR interview with Lynne Williamson, Director of the Connecticut Cultural Heritage Program regarding the current exhibit “ Passing It On: Southern New England Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program” at the Connecticut Historical Society. The Southern New England Traditional Arts Apprenticeship Program is a unique regional program for over 20 years has assisted 142 accomplished artists in teaching a folk or traditional art form to students. Primary funding for this program comes from the National Endowment for the Arts and the Connecticut Office of the Arts. The exhibit is on view through March 10, 2018, Tuesday - Thursday: 12 noon - 5 pm and Friday - Saturday: 9 am - 5 pm. Find more information here. LISTEN TO WNPR INTERVIEW

ARE YOU A TEACHING ARTIST?

We are accepting new artists to the Directory of Teaching Artists roster! Teaching artists are individual practicing artists who specialize in teaching both in the classroom and in the community. There is no requirement for teaching artists to be certified teachers.  The Connecticut Office of the Arts is committed to advancing arts learning through high quality arts engagement, integration, arts exploration, creation, and discovery experiences. In support, we maintain a Directory of Teaching Artists - a reliable resource of high-quality Connecticut teaching artists who have been juried for excellence in their art forms and readiness and capacity to work in schools and community settings. Directory teaching artists are teaching partners. The passion, commitment, and skill that teaching artists bring to the classroom and to the community help to engage students (of all ages) in authentic learning, to advance creative and critical thinking, and help classroom teachers discover new ways to energize their instructional practice. Interested artists should review the guidelines and contact Bonnie Koba with questions.

FUNDING OPPORTUNITY: ARTS ACCESS GRANTS

We are still accepting applications to the  Access category  of the Arts Learning grant program. Arts Learning: Access grants provide funding, up to $700, for exposure to the arts through field trips, school or classroom visits, performance(s), "informance(s)" and/or lecture demonstrations by artists or artist groups or arts venues. Applicants who have applied to other COA grant programs  may also apply  for an Arts Learning: Access grant. The application "deadline" is rolling and funds are dispersed on a first come (and eligible) first serve basis. No match is required. Eligible applicants for  Arts Learning: Access  grants are: PK-12 Schools 501(c)(3) arts organization seeking to provide art experience(s) for PK-12 students Arts program of a 501(c)(3) non-arts organization seeking to provide art experience(s) for PK-12 students Note: Arts Learning: Access funds can be used towards transportation to/from an arts experience!

Arts Learning Guidelines

The Arts Learning guidelines include information on all three (3) Arts Learning categories. Please be sure to focus on the information pertaining to the Access category.

EXHIBIT AT THE CONNECTICUT BUILDING AT THE 2018 BIG E

The Department of Economic and Community Development (DECD) is accepting applications for exhibition space in the Connecticut Building at the 2018 Eastern States Exposition aka The Big E . The goal of the Connecticut Building is to promote the best of Connecticut! It highlights and celebrates the talent, skill and innovation of Connecticut artists, craftspeople, agricultural producers and manufacturers. It is an amazing opportunity for arts and culture organizations as well as individual artists and crafters to promote themselves and their products to the over 1 million people who visit the Connecticut Building. There are three (3) types of exhibition opportunities: Full-time exhibitor (17 days); Part-time exhibitor (2 or more consecutive days); OR Connecticut Showcase Vendor (1-2 days only) The 2018 Big E runs from Friday, September 14 - Sunday September 30, 2018 in West Springfield, Massachusetts. The deadline to submit an APPLICATION is Friday, March 9, 2018. For more information, please contact Rosemary Bove.