Arts Services Initiative of WNY announces 2017 community arts, arts education, and individual artist grants available for Erie, Niagara counties

New online application process; expanded arts education eligibility

Arts Services Initiative of Western New York recently announced the application process for New York State Council on the Arts Decentralization regrants (NYSCA Department of Environmental Conservation) in Erie and Niagara counties, with a new online application process and expanded arts education eligibility to include after-school programs.

Attendance at an information session is highly encouraged due to these changes. Applications are due Oct. 14 for the following grants: Erie County community arts, Erie County arts education, Niagara County community arts, Niagara County arts education, Erie County individual artist and Niagara County individual artist.

The grants are intended for smaller cultural organizations, non-cultural organizations with arts programs or events, arts and cultural coalitions and networks, individual artists and teaching artists.

More than $118,000 in total will be available. Guidelines, applications and a list of information sessions are available now at www.asiwny.org.

"Now in our fifth grant cycle, we are pleased to announce a new online grant portal for ASI's DEC grants, and for all of our grants moving forward," ASI Associate Director and DEC coordinator Jen Swan said. "The new online portal is intended to streamline the grant application process and introduce applicants to this system; other local funding agencies and foundations also use this system, and we can begin teaching applicants transferrable grant application skills."

In addition to the new online application system, also new this year is expanded eligibility for the arts education grants. After-school programs are now eligible for funding in this category, as long as they provide five sequential hands-on learning sessions for youth.

"ASI strives to increase access to opportunities for our area's artists and cultural organizations, and the DEC grants have always been a key part of our work," ASI Executive Director Tod A. Kniazuk said. "Now with the streamlined application process and widened scope of the arts education grants, it is even easier for applicants to obtain funding to do their great work all across Niagara and Erie Counties."

Timeline

Deadline: Noon, Friday, Oct. 14

Grants Available Through DEC

•The community arts DEC grant is a competitive grant that provides financial and technical assistance for community-based arts activities offered by eligible nonprofit organizations and/or individual artists with community partners in Erie and Niagara counties. Requests can be made for between $500 and $5,000.

•The arts education DEC grant is a competitive grant that provides financial and technical assistance to eligible organizations and/or individual artists to support arts education projects in K-12 public school and publicly funded charter school settings and afterschool programs. Funds can support arts education projects that take place in-school during the school day and/or in after-school settings for youth. Requests can be made for between $500 and $5,000.

•The individual artist commission DEC grant is a grant intended to support the creation of new work that engages the community through the artists' creative process. Artists residing in Erie and Niagara counties are eligible to apply for this grant for community-based projects. The goal of this grant is to support the creative work of individual artists in all disciplines while encouraging interaction between artists and community members to highlight the role of the artists as a community resource. Requests are a flat $2,500 commission.

Application and guidelines are available now.

These grants are administered by ASI and funded by NYSCA. The grants are awarded for specific projects occurring between Jan. 1 and Dec. 31, 2017.

Information Sessions

Information sessions will be held at a variety of locations in Erie and Niagara counties (see schedule below). A new online grants portal is being used for applications this year. RSVP at [email protected] or at 716-362-8389, ext. 512.

Schedule

Erie County

• Wednesday, Aug. 17, 1:15 p.m.: Eggertsville-Snyder Library, 4622 Main St., Snyder
• Wednesday, Aug. 24, 3 p.m.: Aurora Town Library, 550 Main St., East Aurora
• Thursday, Aug. 25, 11:30 a.m.: Buffalo & Erie Botanical Gardens Administration Building, 2655 South Park Ave., Buffalo
• Monday, Aug. 29,5:30 p.m.: Clarence Public Library, 3 Town Place
• Thursday, Sept. 1, 2 p.m.: Springville Center for the Arts, 37 N. Buffalo St.
• Wednesday, Sept. 7, 1 p.m.: Frank E. Merriweather Library, 1324 Jefferson Ave., Buffalo

Niagara County

• Thursday, Aug. 18, 3:30 p.m.: Lewiston Library, 305 S. Eighth St.
• Wednesday, Aug. 31, 3 p.m.: Lockside Art Center, 21 Main St., Lockport
• Tuesday, Sept. 6, 1:30 p.m.: Buffalo Suzuki Strings, 4 Webster St., North Tonawanda
• Thursday, Sept. 8, 5:30 p.m.: Niagara Arts and Cultural Center, 1201 Pine Ave., Niagara Falls

Last Chance Session

• Monday, Sept. 12, 5:30 p.m.: Arts Services Initiative of WNY, 95 Perry St., Fourth Floor, Buffalo