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CREATE to Receive $20,000 Grant from the National Endowment for the Arts

Feb 20, 2019 04:46PM ● By Press Release

Lafayette, LA – National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) Acting Chairman Mary Anne Carter has approved more than $27 million in grants as part of the Arts Endowment’s first major funding announcement for fiscal year 2019. The agency received 1,605 Art Works applications for this round of grant making, and will award 972 grants in this category. Included in this announcement is an Art Works grant of $20,000 to Lafayette Parish’s CREATE Initiative for the development of a parish-wide Culture and Recreation Online Asset Inventory Portal. 

“The Art Works grant is one of the most competitive grant programs in the country,” stated Mayor-President Joel Robideaux. “Receiving funding from such a distinguished program reinforces Lafayette’s role as a leader in the arts and cultural economy. This award accomplishes one of the goals of the CREATE Initiative, namely leveraging local dollars to attract outside funding.” 

“The arts enhance our communities and our lives, and we look forward to seeing these projects take place throughout the country, giving Americans opportunities to learn, to create, to heal, and to celebrate,” said Carter.

“We are excited that our collaboration with the CREATE Initiative has led to a sought-after NEA Art Works grant award” stated Dr. Shaneá Nelson, Community Development Director.  “This asset inventory serves Lafayette in many ways. It will provide better awareness of what we already have and show gaps that CREATE can help address while also helping to attract future investment.” According to Nelson, anyone in the greater community applying for grants can benefit by referencing this public resource portal to construct more compelling, data-driven applications to better show the community which the intended grants will serve. “We look forward to continuing to work together on actively pursuing additional grant opportunities with this new tool.”

The data collection of assets for the portal is already underway and anyone can submit information at https://www.research.net/r/9XP96DJ.

The NEA grant will be used as a match with CREATE funds to support the development of an online asset portal that will provide public access to the asset inventory. This parish-wide effort to inventory and promote cultural and recreational assets is a critical infrastructure project of the CREATE Initiative. CREATE will utilize asset mapping to guide meaningful investment that matches cultural needs and experiences with inclusive, transparent policies. Through the use of technology, CREATE will improve public access to these assets and track arts and culture job creation, local business development, citizen engagement, and equitable investments throughout the community.

This is the first time Lafayette Consolidated Government has received an NEA grant and builds on previous NEA grants locally awarded to the Acadiana Center for the Arts, Louisiana Folk Roots, Vermilionville, Performing Arts Society of Acadiana, University of Louisiana – Lafayette, and Festival International. Individual artists Michael Doucet and Carol Tappin have also received National Heritage Fellowships in previous years. Since 2012, Lafayette organizations and individuals have been awarded $325,000 in Art Works grant funds.

For more information on this National Endowment for the Arts grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.

Source: LCG Press Release

 

For more information on CREATE, visit: www.createlafayette.la or www.facebook.com/createlft.