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More Than $82 Million Awarded for Arts Projects Nationwide Includes $10,000 awarded to The Rockwell Museum

National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu has approved more than $82 million to fund local arts projects and partnerships in the NEA’s second major funding announcement for fiscal year 2016. 

Included in this announcement is an Art Works award of $10,000 to The Rockwell Museum to support the ongoing “Great Circle Artist-in-Residency Program.” The Art Works category supports the creation of work and presentation of both new and existing work, lifelong learning in the arts, and public engagement with the arts through 13 arts disciplines or fields. 

“The arts are all around us, enhancing our lives in ways both subtle and obvious, expected and unexpected,” said NEA Chairman Jane Chu. “Supporting projects like the one from The Rockwell offers more opportunities to engage in the arts every day.” 

NEA Chairman Jane Chu said, “The arts are part of our everyday lives – no matter who you are or where you live – they have the power to transform individuals, spark economic vibrancy in communities, and transcend the boundaries across diverse sectors of society. Supporting projects like the one from The Rockwell offers more opportunities to engage in the arts every day.” 

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Senior Educator Mary Mix works with a student on a collage project inspired by artwork from The Rockwell. The project ties in with Common Core learning modules and the goals of the teachers.

The Great Circle Artist-in-Residency is a program that allows Rockwell resources to travel to the classroom and provides added exposure to the arts for students, especially at a time when art classes are limited due to state budget cuts.  We believe in authentic art experiences and are delighted that this initiative will continue with support from NEA,” says Mary E. Mix, Senior Museum Educator at The Rockwell. 

The Great Circle program is an early childhood Artist-in Residency collaborative program that includes four in-classroom visits by a local artist and one multi-experience visit to The Rockwell.  Students explore the overall theme of “The Great Circle: Growing, Moving, and Helping,” which focuses on nature—the seasons, sun, moon, plants, animals and human relationships with natural cycles. 

These topics complement the New York State Common Core curriculum and encourage students to learn in new ways. Working as a professional learning community, the artist and school team align and integrate the project with the curriculum to promote deep learning. Artist in Residency program brings a contemporary experience to the classroom along with a perspective that applies 21st century skills to teaching art. 

To join the Twitter conversation about this announcement, please use #NEASpring16. For more information on projects included in the NEA grant announcement, go to arts.gov

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