Today, the California Arts Council announced it has awarded three grants to the Luther Burbank Memorial Foundation [the Foundation] as part of its Artists in Schools, Arts Integration Training, and Youth Arts Action grant programs. These state funds will help the Foundation in its mission to increase access to arts education for youth throughout the North Bay region as well as expand its teacher training programs.
"We are immensely honored to have been selected to receive three grants from the California Arts Council," said Rick Nowlin, President and CEO of Luther Burbank Center for the Arts. "These vital funds are necessary now more than ever and will help us to continue to provide arts programming and education to thousands of children during the COVID-19 pandemic."
"Creativity sits at the very heart of our identity as Californians and as a people. In this unprecedented moment, the need to understand, endure, and transcend our lived experiences through arts and culture is all the more relevant for each of us," said Nashormeh Lindo, Chair of the California Arts Council. "The California Arts Council is proud to be able to offer more support through our grant programs than ever before, at a time when our communities' need is perhaps greater than ever before. These grants will support immediate and lasting community impact by investing in arts businesses and cultural workers across the state."
The Artists in Schools program grant will allow the Foundation to provide arts-integrated residencies to 70 classrooms, 50 of which will be offered free of charge, serving more than 1,750 K-8 North Bay youth. Through these residencies, teaching artists will help fill the gap in classroom arts instruction by providing schools with arts-integration techniques to teach core subjects, utilizing art forms to enhance student learning, and reducing barriers to participation. The Arts Integration Training program grant will allow the Foundation to expand enrollment in its Tools for Teachers professional development program by 50% through targeted outreach to underserved North Bay schools. Tools for Teachers is key to growth in arts-integrated activities and to providing greater access and opportunity for North Bay youth. The Youth Arts Action program grant will allow the Foundation to offer, free of charge, safe learning spaces for 288 underserved youth during three Mariachi Summer Camps as well as a year-round Mariachi Ensemble program. At these programs, expert instructors will teach music fundamentals and cultural practices of this unique Mexican art form while strengthening key social, performance, and life skills.
The Foundation was featured as part of a larger announcement from the California Arts Council of more than 1,500 grants awarded to nonprofit organizations and units of government throughout the state for their work in support of the agency's mission to strengthen arts, culture, and creative expression as the tools to cultivate a better California for all. The investment of nearly $30 million marks a more than $5 million increase over the previous fiscal year, and the largest in California Arts Council history.
Organizations were awarded grants across 15 different program areas addressing access, equity, and inclusion; community vibrancy; and arts learning and engagement; and directly benefiting our state's communities, with youth, veterans, returned citizens, and California's historically marginalized communities key among them. Successful projects aligned closely with the agency's vision of a California where all people flourish with universal access to and participation in the arts.
Amid the COVID-19 pandemic, the California Arts Council recognizes that some grantees may need to postpone, modify, or cancel their planned activities supported by CAC funds, due to state and local public health guidelines. The state arts agency is prioritizing flexibility in addressing these changes and supporting appropriate solutions for grantees.
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