Half a dozen arts and cultural organizations in Michigan’s Great Southwest garnered a piece of the more than $9-million pie last week when the Michigan Council for Arts & Cultural Affairs announced approval of grants to 470 organizations across the state, while others in the region did not score high enough to gain even a share of the amount they had applied for.
Last week the Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs (MCACA) approved a total of $9,168,440 in grants to 470 organizations including arts and history centers, performance arts and cultural institutions for arts and culture projects in Michigan, according to word today from the Michigan Economic Development Corporation. Those critical funds are being infused into communities and organizations around Michigan, representing 58 of the state’s 83 counties.
Alison Watson, Director of MCACA, says, “It is really wonderful to see so many great grant applications,” and adds, “During these tough times, it is a strong affirmation that the field is still vibrant, and the value of our programs is not only recognized, but can contribute to ongoing efforts support vibrancy in our communities throughout the state.”
The association received 597 applications requesting $19,432,218 for fiscal year 2021 programs. These are the applications from Southwest Michigan agencies and organizations and how they fared:
- Lake Michigan College Mendel Center sought $30,000 and got $21,000
- The City of Niles History Center sought $15,250.00 but got nothing.
- The Krasl Art Center in St. Joe sought $40,000 and got $24,000
- Water Street Glassworks in Benton Harbor sought $25,000 and got $12,500
- The South Haven Art Association sought $25,000 and got $12,500
- The Southwest Michigan Symphony Orchestra sought $30,000 and got $13,500
- The Heritage Museum & Cultural Center in St. Joseph sought $30,000 but got nothing.
- The Acorn Center for the Performing Arts in Three Oaks sought $30,000 but got nothing.
- The Liberty Hyde Bailey Museum Memorial Fund in South Haven sought $25,000 but got nothing.
Several organizations in the region also sought capital improvement grants from the association. All of them were shut out for capital improvement dollars. Here’s what was sought:
- The City of St. Joseph sought $89,319 but got nothing.
- The Acorn Center for the Performing Arts in Three Oaks sought $99,836 but got nothing.
- Ghostlight Productions, Inc of Benton Harbor sought $30,000 but got nothing.
- The Heritage Museum & Cultural Center in St. Joseph sought $23,000 but got nothing.
- The South Haven Art Association sought $34,000 but got nothing.
Long Haul Productions of Berrien County was one of 11 organizations awarded “Services to the Field” program grants. They will get $40,000 out of the $585,000 set aside for that series of grants.
MCACA used a peer review process over the course of 30 days of panel reviews to evaluate the grant applications and made recommendations to the MCACA Governor’s Council. The applications were evaluated by 153 peer reviewers during the open panel process. Nearly 500 interested members of the public attended the panels on-line. Grant award announcement letters and grant agreements will be sent out this week, and for those applicants who are interested, grant reviewer comments will be visible within the SmartSImple system in the upper-right hand corner under “Reviewer Feedback.”
For a complete list of grant awards, click the link below:
MCACA-fy21-funding-plan-program
Earlier this year, MCACA awarded a total of $502,400 in Emergency Relief Fund grants to 176 nonprofit arts and cultural organizations around Michigan to provide relief from the negative impacts of the COVID-19 outbreak. MCACA also leveraged $83,834 in funds from Arts Midwest, a nonprofit regional arts organization and partner to MCACA, to award grants to an additional 28 Michigan organizations.
The Michigan Council for Arts and Cultural Affairs is dedicated to ensuring that every citizen and community in Michigan enjoys the civic, economic and educational benefits of arts and culture.
