The Westcott House Foundation led local organizations, landing three grants – Arts Partnership, ArtsNEXT and Sustainability – totaling $58,865.
Other Clark County organizations with multiple awards were the Springfield Museum of Art and the Springfield Symphony Orchestra, which both got Arts Partnership and Sustainability grants for $50,736 and $42,038 respectively.
“We definitely rely on grants to keep our doors open and for some of the special things we do,” said Lou Ross, executive director of the Springfield Symphony Orchestra. “We appreciate the state’s legislators seeing how important the arts are in our communities.”
Monies given during the COVID-19 pandemic have run out, Ross said, making OAC grants are even more important. Sustainability helps with operational costs, while the Arts Partnership will go toward educational efforts in local schools and events including the Carnegie Hall Link Up concert that gathers hundreds of local students to the Clark State Performing Arts Center annually.
“This is such a booster for us as we still face challenges post COVID. We’re hoping to share new things with our community with these funds,” said Ross.
Receiving single grants were the Springfield Arts Council (Sustainability, $33,146), Friends of the Hartman Rock Garden (Sustainability, $4,525), Clark State Community College (Arts Partnership, $6,892), Ohio Masonic Home (ArtSTART, $3,628) and Springfield-Clark Career Technology Center (TeachArtsOhio, $4,200).
Champaign County organizations receiving grants were the Champaign County Arts Council (Sustainability, $6,000) and the GrandWorks Foundation (ArtSTART, $4,137).
Marta Wojcik, executive director and curator of the Westcott House Foundation, said the Sustainability grant is a Godsend “for all of our arts and culture organizations, as the grant funding for the general operations is very hard to find.”
The Partnership grant will allow Westcott to continue work on educational programs such as the Westcott Design Hub, which is a series of design education programs for children and adults.
Wojcik said the process gave the organization valuable feedback from panelists.
“We received praise for our effort to bring some activities outside of the house and into the community, as well as our efforts to remove cost and access barriers,” she said. “Panelists recognized us for fun and creative outreach and engagement strategies, excellent measurements and clear goals, and also acknowledged our organization for building a diverse board, and pursuing initiatives that are innovative and responsive to community needs.”
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