WORCESTER, MA (November 23, 2021) — The Worcester Arts Council and the City of Worcester are pleased to announce they have been selected to receive an American Rescue Plan grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to help the arts and cultural sector recover from the pandemic. The Worcester Arts Council is receiving $250,000 and will use this funding to distribute grants in their community to eligible recipients to save jobs and to fund operations and facilities, health and safety supplies, and marketing and promotional efforts to encourage attendance and participation.
“The NEA’s significant investment in local arts agencies, including the Worcester Arts Council, is a key element in helping the arts and culture sector recover and reopen, while ensuring that American Rescue Plan funding is distributed equitably,” said Ann Eilers, NEA’s acting chair. “These grants recognize the vital role of local arts agencies and will allow them to help rebuild local economies and contribute to the well-being of our communities.”
“This grant is critical in helping our arts community continue to recover from the lasting impact of the COVID-19 pandemic,” said City Manager Edward M. Augustus, Jr. “I thank the National Endowment for the Arts for their recommendation of this grant, and I congratulate the Worcester Arts Council as a recipient. The Arts Council does tremendous work in promoting access to arts and culture for all Worcester residents, and this grant is a significant boost to those efforts.”
“Worcester is a city that understands that the arts aren’t just nice, they are necessary,” noted Jen Riley, Worcester Arts Council chair. “NEA funds will be a tremendous relief for Worcester’s creative community, providing funding for many museums, music halls, theaters, musicians, dancers, storytellers and videographers who have suffered greatly during the shut down. The Worcester Arts Council is poised to bring Worcester back to life by supporting arts and culture for all. NEA funding couldn’t come at a better time.”
This is the second of three installments of the NEA’s American Rescue Plan funding. Last April, the NEA announced that 40 percent of its $135 million in ARP funding would be allocated to 62 state, jurisdictional, and regional arts organizations for regranting through their respective programs. The third installment of APR funding to arts organizations to support their own operations will be announced in early 2022.
For more information on the NEA’s American Rescue Plan grants, including the full list of local arts agencies funded in this announcement, visit https://www.arts.gov/COVID-19/the-american-rescue-plan.
