Arts Council of Greater Lansing to Receive $250,000 Grant
from the National Endowment for the Arts as part of the American Rescue Plan
Arts Council Greater Lansing is pleased to announce that they have been awarded a $250,000 American Rescue Plan grant from the National Endowment for the Arts. The Arts Council will use funds to create a regranting program to provide pandemic recovery dollars to the region’s arts and cultural sector. Available funds will be redistributed to eligible recipients to fund nonprofit operations and facilities, as well as community arts projects. In total, the NEA will award grants totaling $20,200,000 to 66 local arts agencies nationwide for subgranting.
“The NEA’s significant investment in local arts agencies, including Arts Council of Greater Lansing, is a key element in helping the arts and culture sector recover and reopen, while ensuring that 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.”
“We are so proud to be among the 66 organizations receiving ARP regranting funds,” said Meghan Martin, Arts Council executive director. “It is an incredible honor for the Arts Council to be recognized on a national level as an agency doing impactful work,” Martin said. “These funds are going to be such a great boost to Greater Lansing’s creative sector, and as a result, our entire region will benefit. We look forward to administering a program that serves those greatly in need of support,” said Martin.
The Arts Council is currently designing the regranting program. Area artists and federal nonprofit arts and cultural organizations will be able to apply for funds if they meet all NEA and Arts Council criteria. The goal is to make an equitable, simple, accessible application process for all interested applicants to get funds into the hands of grantees as quickly as possible. The Arts Council hopes to complete the application and panel selection process in time to present financial awards in early 2023.
“Being recognized and trusted by the NEA to administer these dollars to our arts and culture community is extremely important and speaks to the strength and stability of our organization,” said Arts Council board president Lolo Robison. “Our mission is to support our region’s artists, as well as arts and cultural organizations. These grant funds will allow us to achieve this on an unprecedented scale.” Robison said.
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 the NEA American Rescue Plan website.