Vermont Arts Council Grant Supports Big Heavy World Operations

Big Heavy World has received a Vermont Arts Council Arts Operating Grant to support our work of preserving and promoting Vermont-made music. To all involved in providing the resources to create this fund and in the decision-making to determine grantees, thank you! The press release below was shared by the VAC on September 5, 2023.

MONTPELIER—The Vermont Arts Council announces grant awards to 79 Vermont organizations—from arts nonprofits to arts schools, museums to makerspaces, from libraries to community art centers, and more. All are helping to expand arts access through specific programs or are bringing year-round, high-quality arts programs and services to Vermonters across the state.

The grants are a part of two programs: Arts Operating (formerly Arts Partnership) and Arts Project (formerly Arts Impacts).

Both programs are supported through a combination of support from the Vermont Community Foundation, the State of Vermont, and the National Endowment for the Arts.

Arts Operating Grants provide unrestricted, general operating funds to arts organizations that offer year-round, high-quality arts programs and services that support the Council’s mission to “cultivate and advance the arts and creativity throughout Vermont.”

Under this program, a total of $400,000 in funding was awarded to 54 organizations. The funding represents the highest amount ever awarded in the program, thanks to increased funding.

Grants were awarded to organizations from 12 counties, including those based in Vermont’s largest cities and smallest villages. The awardees include organizations that are led by or primarily serve under-represented groups and include a broad variety of organization types (theaters, community art centers, art schools, makerspaces, and more) and artistic disciplines (visual arts, fine crafts, film, theatre, music, literary arts, and more).

Organizations could apply for either one-year or three-years of operating support, depending on the size of the organization. External panelists reviewed and evaluated proposals based on the quality of arts programming, the response to community and audience, evaluation and measurable outcomes, and organizational capacity.

For more information about the Arts Operating Grant and a list of recipients, visit https://www.vermontartscouncil.org/grants/find-a-grant/organizations/arts-operating/

“Support for arts projects and unrestricted operating support for organizations are crucial to a thriving creative sector across our state. We are proud to support Vermont’s cultural organizations as they work to strengthen our communities by making new connections and expanding arts opportunities for everyone,” said Vermont Arts Council Executive Director Susan Evans McClure.

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About the Vermont Arts Council

The Vermont Arts Council envisions a Vermont where all people have access to the arts and creativity in their lives, education, and communities. Engagement with the arts transforms individuals, connects us more deeply to each other, energizes the economy, and sustains the vibrant cultural landscape that makes Vermont a great place to live. Since 1965, the Council has been the state's primary provider of funding, advocacy, and information for the arts in Vermont. Learn more at www.vermontartscouncil.org

CONTACT: Catherine Crawley, Vermont Arts Council Communications Director, ccrawley@vermontartscouncil.org, 802-828-5422

Arts Operating Grant Recipients:

Big Heavy World, Burlington
$4,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Burlington Writers Workshop, Burlington
$3,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Epsilon Spires, Brattleboro
$4,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Foul Contending Rebels Theatre Collective, Burlington
$3,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Island Arts, North Hero
$4,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Middlebury New Filmmakers Festival, Leicester
$4,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

ONE Arts, Burlington
$4,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Plainfield Arts, Plainfield
$3,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Seven Stars Arts Center, Sharon
$4,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Shidaa Projects, Montpelier
$3,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Summit School of Traditional Music and Culture, Montpelier
$3,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Telling My Story, Wilder
$4,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Upright Steeple Society, Lyndon
$3,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Wild Goose Players, Bellows Falls
$4,000 to support operating and administrative costs for one year

Arts Bus, Randolph
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Brattleboro Museum & Art Center, Brattleboro
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Brattleboro Music Center, Brattleboro
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Burlington City Arts, Burlington
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Carving Studio & Sculpture Center, West Rutland
$8,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Catamount Film and Arts Center, St. Johnsbury
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Chandler Center for the Arts, Randolph
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Circus Smirkus, Greensboro
$8,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Clemmons Family Farm, Charlotte
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Flynn Center for the Performing Arts, Burlington
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Generator, Burlington
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Inclusive Arts Vermont, Essex Junction
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Kingdom County Productions, Barnet
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Lake Champlain Chamber Music Festival, Winooski
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Mad River Valley Arts, Waitsfield
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Middlebury Community Music Center, Middlebury
$8,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Middlebury Studio School, Middlebury
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Next Stage Arts Project, Putney
$8,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Northern Stage Company, White River Junction
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

River Arts, Morrisville
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Rural Arts Collaborative, Greensboro
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

SafeArt, Chelsea
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Sandglass Theater, Putney
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Scrag Mountain Music, Marshfield
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Shelburne Craft School, Shelburne
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Southern Vermont Arts Center, Manchester
$8,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Spruce Peak Arts, Stowe
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Stone Valley Arts, Poultney
$8,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

The Current, Stowe
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

The Hatch, Brattleboro
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Town Hall Theater, Middlebury
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Vermont Arts Exchange, North Bennington
$8,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Vermont International Film Festival, Burlington
$8,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Vermont Jazz Center, Brattleboro
$8,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Vermont Stage Company, Burlington
$8,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Vermont Symphony Orchestra, Burlington
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Vermont Youth Orchestra Association, Colchester
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Waterbury Area MakerSphere Cooperative Inc, Waterbury
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Weston Theatre Company, Weston
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years

Yellow Barn, Putney
$9,000 to support operating and administrative costs for three years