Florida Keys Council of the Arts Awards $18,200 in Grants to Local Artists/School Programs

The Florida Keys Council of the Arts (FKCA), the local arts agency for Monroe County, is pleased to announce the 2017 Spring Artists in Schools and Special Project Grants award winners.

FKCA’s Artists in Schools grant program invites teaching artists in the performing, visual, literary or historical arts into the classroom. Teaching artists are encouraged to collaborate with school teachers on creative projects to enhance existing curriculum or teach a new topic using the arts. Projects presented at all Monroe County public and private schools, as well as other county organizations that serve children ages 5-18, are eligible. Recent award winners include:

  • $2,000 to artist Donna Wissinger for her art project Preserving Our Coral Reefs at the Key Largo School, Treasure Village Montessori in Islamorada, Marathon Middle School, Sugarloaf School and Horace O’Bryant Middle School in Key West.
  • $500 to artist Kirk Whipple for his music program Superior Solos at the Key Largo Middle School.
  • $1,000 to Fringe Theatre, with teaching artist Alicia Merel, for the theater group’s Shakespeare in Schools program to be presented at Marathon School, Treasure Village Montessori in Islamorada and the Sigsbee Charter School in Key West.
  • $2,000 to artist Diane Smith for her Coral Reef Habitat Model arts program at the Key Largo School.
  • $1700 to the Mel Fisher Museum, with teaching artist Monica Brook, for the museum’s Clay Pot Challenge for students from Horace O’Bryant Middle School in Key West.
  • $2,000 to teaching artist Stefanie Anarumo for her American Sign Language in Mainstream Theater program at the Key West High School.
  • $750 to artist Bria Andasa for her Indigenous Florals art program at Key West Montessori Children’s School.
  • $1,500 to artist Renee Benbark for her Dance and Learn program for the Boys & Girls Clubs of the Keys., Inc.

The Arts Council Special Projects Grant provides short-term support vital to creative projects that do not fit into other grant categories. Special project funding is limited to once in three years for arts and cultural organizations, as well as individual artists in Monroe County. Recent award winners include:

  • $750 to artist Harry Schroeder for his project Three Jazz Concerts, one featuring singer Amandah Jantzen, another with KeyWest/Boston Jazz Collective, and a third concert by the Isle of Bones trombone quartet.
  • $750 to artist Craig Gray for his sculpture placement and artist workshop project Slices of Heaven Sculpture Outreach.
  • $1,750 to the South Florida Symphony Orchestra to support their Florida Keys Photo Documentary Project covering all the activities they perform in Monroe County.
  • $1,750 to Fringe Theater for a new outreach program Plays Out Loud.
  • $1,750 to artist Lois Markham for her project Marathon Writes 2017, a writing competition for Marathon High School and Florida Keys Community College students.

The deadline for the next round of Artist in Schools and Special Project Grants is June 30, 2017. Applications can be found online at www.keysarts.com. For more information, please contact the Florida Keys Council of the Arts at 305-295-4369.

The Florida Keys Council of the Art’s mission is to advance the creative development and promotion of the arts in our cultural community by providing excellence in leadership, advocacy, education and financial support for artists, cultural organization and citizens of Monroe County. FKCA grants are sponsored in part by the Florida Keys Council of the Arts, the State of Florida, Department of State, Division of Cultural Affairs, the Florida Arts Council, the National Endowment for the Arts, and private donations.

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