Forty-nine arts and cultural organizations will receive $579,896 in matching grants from the Howard County Arts Council (HCAC) for fiscal 2016. The awards were announced at the HCAC’s recent annual meeting and reception at the Howard County Center for the Arts.

These matching grants will be used by 19 Howard County organizations, 19 Howard County public schools and 11 key Baltimore City organizations to support general operations and projects taking place in Howard County, artist residencies and special projects in the arts.

Community Arts Development Grants fund day-to-day activities for Howard County arts organizations, as well as special projects in the arts. $309,372 was awarded to the following organizations for fiscal 2016:

  • Candlelight Concert Society: Operating, $33,217
  • Columbia Bands: Project, $4,620
  • Columbia Center for Theatrical Arts: Operating, $68,628
  • Columbia Festival of the Arts: Operating, $78,809
  • The Columbia Orchestra: Operating, $27,870
  • Columbia Pro Cantare: Operating, $22,649
  • First Evangelical Lutheran Church: Project, $5,000
  • Howard County Ballet: Operating, $8,700
  • Howard County Concert Orchestra: Project, $4,000
  • Howard County Poetry & Literature Society: Operating, $11,729
  • Kinetics Dance Theatre: Operating, $12,000
  • Little Patuxent Review: Project, $4,125
  • ManneqArt: Project, $5,000
  • Misako Ballet Company: Project, $4,800
  • Red Branch Theatre Company: Project, $3,375
  • Rep Stage: Project, $5,000
  • ShowTime Singers: Project, $3,350
  • Silhouette Stages: Project, $4,000
  • Sundays At Three: Project, $2,500

Organizational Development and Equipment Grants fund efforts to stabilize and support the organizational development and professional business management skills of arts organizations in Howard County. One-time funding is also available to purchase equipment to enhance or improve the production and presentation of artistic or cultural programming. $18,933 was awarded to the following organizations for fiscal 2016:

  • Candlelight Concert Society: Equipment, $5,974
  • Kinetics Dance Theatre: Equipment, $6,189
  • ManneqART: Organizational Development, $6,770

Artists-in-Education Project Grants are a partnership between the HCAC and local Parent Teacher Associations (PTAs) to place professional artists in residence at Howard County Schools to help students foster creative expression. $30,484 in funding was awarded to the following schools for the first fiscal ‘16 grant deadline:

  • Bellows Springs Elementary School PTA, $1,680
  • Bonnie Branch Middle School PTA, $225
  • Bryant Woods Elementary School PTA, $2,737
  • Bushy Park Elementary School PTA, $447
  • Clarksville Elementary School PTA, $940
  • Clarksville Middle School PTA, $1,400
  • Dayton Oaks Elementary School PTA, $1,483
  • Dunloggin Middle School PTA, $2,748
  • Glenwood Middle School PTA, $2,550
  • Harpers Choice Middle School PTA, $1,408
  • Longfellow Elementary School PTA, $2,000
  • Northfield Elementary School PTA, $1,433
  • Running Brook Elementary School PTA, $2,141
  • Thomas Viaduct Middle School PTA, $1,667
  • Thunder Hill Elementary School PTA, $987
  • Waterloo Elementary School PTA, $1,680
  • West Friendship Elementary School PTA, $2,053
  • Wilde Lake Middle School PTA, $1,167
  • Worthington Elementary School PTA, $1,738

Baltimore City Arts and Cultural Grants provide funding to key Baltimore City organizations that provide significant services to Howard County residents. $156,212 was awarded to the following organizations for fiscal ’16:

  • American Visionary Art Museum, $4,923
  • Baltimore Museum of Art, $21,763
  • Baltimore Museum of Industry, $8,751
  • Baltimore Symphony Orchestra, $27,261
  • Center Stage Associates Inc., $21,768
  • Maryland Science Center, $13,766
  • Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, $15,157
  • National Aquarium, $16,609
  • Port Discovery Children’s Museum, $9,997
  • The Walters Art Museum, $16,219

Outreach Howard Grants provide funding to key Baltimore City organizations to bring projects and programs directly to Howard County residents. $44,000 was awarded to the following organizations:

  • American Visionary Art Museum, $1,500
  • Baltimore Museum of Industry, $2,905
  • Chesapeake Shakespeare Company, $17,500
  • Maryland Science Center, $4,500
  • Maryland Zoo in Baltimore, $4,529
  • Port Discovery Children’s Museum, $4,476
  • Walters Art Museum, $8,590

The Jim Rouse Theatre Subsidy Program assists community arts groups by partially underwriting theater rental fees at The Jim Rouse Theatre for the Performing Arts. $20,895 was awarded to the following organizations for fiscal ’16:

  • Columbia Bands, $620
  • Columbia Festival of the Arts, $7,280
  • The Columbia Orchestra, $6,720
  • Columbia Pro Cantare, $3,060
  • Kinetics Dance Theatre, $1,715
  • Misako Ballet Company, $1,500

HCAC grants are awarded on the basis of artistic merit, ability of the applicant to carry out the project and level of service to the community. Grants are made through a competitive process in which applications are reviewed by an advisory panel made up of academics and artists representing a variety of disciplines. Grant award recommendations are then reviewed and approved by the Howard County Arts Council Board of Directors.

The grant program is supported through grants from the Howard County government and the Maryland State Arts Council, as well as through the Howard County Arts Council’s own foundation, corporate and individual giving initiatives.