Oklahoma Arts Council News
December 2018
Give Us Your Feedback: Oklahoma Arts Conference Survey
What were the highlights of your 2018 Oklahoma Arts Conference experience? Which sessions and speakers did you find most valuable?
It's not too late to share with us your thoughts about the 2018 Oklahoma Arts Conference. Attendees who have not yet submitted their responses are encouraged to give us their feedback through this brief, 10-minute survey.
In addition to letting us know how we can improve the conference to better meet your needs in the arts, this is an opportunity for you to suggest future conference sessions and speakers. Your input is important in our efforts to serve Oklahoma's arts community.
Oklahoma Arts Council Seeks Executive/Finance Assistant
The Oklahoma Arts Council is seeking an experienced candidate to fill the position of Executive/Finance Assistant. This position not only assists with the day-to-day needs of the executive director, it also supports the agency's financial administration.
The Oklahoma Arts Council strives to build a diverse team comprised of the best and brightest individuals to support the agency's mission of leading the advancement of Oklahoma's thriving arts industry.
For a full job description and application instructions, visit the Oklahoma Arts Council jobs page.
Other Oklahoma Arts Job Opportunities
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Oklahoma Humanities seeks a new executive director. Learn more.
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Ahha (formerly the Arts & Humanities Council of Tulsa) seeks a Manager of Advocacy & Partnerships. Learn more.
NEA Art Works Grant Deadline
The first deadline for one of the National Endowment for the Arts' (NEA) main grant programs is February 14, 2019. Through the NEA's Art Works grant category, a wide variety of projects across artistic disciplines is supported.
Eligible applicants may apply for matching grants ranging from $10,000 to $100,000. Nonprofit 501(c)(3) organizations, units of local government, federally recognized tribes, and school districts are eligible.
NOTE: The NEA is strongly encouraging applications for projects that relate to the following:
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The 2020 centennial of women's voting rights in the United States
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Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs); Hispanic or Latino organizations; or the Native American, Alaskan Native, and Native Hawaiian arts
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America's creativity and cultural heritage
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Dialog that fosters a mutual respect for the diverse beliefs and values of all persons and groups
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A broadening of our understanding of ourselves as individuals and as a society
Visit the NEA's Art Works page for application guidelines. Deadline is February 14.
Community/Artist Partnership Grant Offered by OVAC
Through the Community/Artist Partnership grant program, the Oklahoma Visual Arts Coalition (OVAC) is offering grants of up to $1,200 to artists who initiate community-based projects leading to the creation of new work.
Artists are not required to be OVAC members in order to apply and receive a grant. Community/Artist Partnership grants require a project description that details a concept and purpose. It also requires a description of how the project will impact the community. The project partner organization must provide matching funds for the grant.Application deadlines occur four times throughout the year: January 15, April 15, July 15, and October 15. Artists do not have to be members of OVAC to apply or receive a grant.
Learn more by visiting the OVAC website.
Travel Assistance Fund for Indigenous Performers
Through the Western Arts Alliance's (WAA) new Travel Assistance Fund, U.S.-based Indigenous performing artists can receive support for professional development activities that will lead to future presenting and touring opportunities. The travel subsidy program is aimed at helping Indigenous artists further develop partnerships and network with other artists and presenters. Showcases and conferences are among the activities eligible to be supported through the fund.
Funding cycles occur throughout the year, with the first deadline being December 7, 2018. The second deadline is February 15, 2019 for travel occuring between April and June.
Individual performing artists and ensembles may be considered for funding. Eligible applicants include Native American, Alaska Native, Native Hawaiian artists, and others. Maximum award for individual artists is $1,500 (for ensembles the maximum is $4,000).
Learn more about the Travel Assistance Fund here.
The Travel Assistance Fund is a component of WAA's Advancing Indigenous Performance program.
Native Language Immersion Initiative
Since 2002, First Nations Development Institute has supported Native communities working to strengthen their cultural connections, identities, and practices through language, traditional art forms, and other means of cultural expression. In 2017, First Nations launched its Native Language Immersion Initiative, with the first cycle of grant funding awarded in 2018. First Nations recently announced a request for proposals for its second cycle of funding under the initiative.
Grants of up to $90,000 will be awarded to directly support and aid in building capacity for Native language-immersion programs. Applicants must be Native-controlled institutions or organizations with an existing language-immersion program.
Applications are due December 18.
Read How First Peoples Fund is Impacting Oklahoma Native Artists
Funding from First Peoples Fund is helping Shawnee, Oklahoma-based Citizen Potawatomi Community Development Corporation (CPCDC) invest in local artists. Recipients of an Indigenous Arts Ecology grant, CPCDC is using the funding to match money saved by artists through an Individual Development Accounts program. The program encourages participating artists to plan and commit to saving money for specific items related to their mediums as a way of furthering their arts-related business efforts. It also provides training sessions featuring values-based curriculum.
In 2018, trainings were held in Shawnee, Lawton, and Tulsa. As their second year in the grant program nears, the CPCDC is looking expand their network.
Read this blog article by Sarah Elisabeth Sawyer (Choctaw Nation) to learn more about how the CPCDC program is helping artists achieve sustainability.
About First Peoples Fund
Based in South Dakota, First Peoples Fund has been honoring and supporting the collective spirit of Native artists and culture bearers since 1995. To learn about their fellowships, awards, workshops, and other programs, visit firstpeoplesfund.org.
Students Can Apply for Summer Music Institute
Oklahoma students ages 15-20 are encouraged to learn about the Summer Music Institute of the National Symphony Orchestra (NSO). Every summer, students from across the country are selected to attend the four-week tuition-free program in Washington, D.C. that is designed to prepare students for a 21st century orchestral career.
The program includes private lessons taught by NSO members, master classes and seminars, performance opportunities in the Washington D.C. area, exposure to internationally-renowned conductors and soloists, and more.
There is no tuition for the program. Housing, lessons, and local transportation are provided. The 2019 program will take place July 1-29.
Learn how to apply. Deadline to apply is January 22, 2019.
he National Symphony Orchestra is an artistic affiliate of the John F. Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts. The orchestra has performed a full season of concerts at the The Kennedy Center since it opened in 1971.
Report Could Help Schools Tap ESSA Funds for Arts Education
A new report from The Wallace Foundation could help schools learn how to qualify for federal funding for arts education under the Every Student Succeeds Act (ESSA). The report presents a review of evidence about arts education interventions, identifying approaches that appear to meet requirements laid out in ESSA.
Signed in to law in 2015, arts education is included in ESSA as part of the law's emphasis on promoting well-rounded education. ESSA provides opportunities for states, local educational agencies, and schools to receive funding to support school improvement and student success. As school improvement activities funded through ESSA must include qualifying interventions that are evidence-based, the Wallace Foundation report details studies that meet the required standards of evidence.
See the report, Review of Evidence: Arts Education Through the Lens of ESSA.
SEE ALSO:
ESSA and the Arts from Arts Education Partnership.
Inside ESSA: What It Means for Arts Studies from Edweek.