Rhode Island schools, organizations, community centers and
artists were awarded $163,181 in the December 2018 round of grants from the
Rhode Island State Council on the Arts. The Arts Council's board approved the
awarding of these grants at its December meeting in Cranston. These grants will
go to support arts in education, community-based projects by organizations and
individual artist fellowships and projects for the remainder of this fiscal
year. Statewide, 73 grants were awarded in response to 230 applications
received at RISCA's October 1 deadline.

Governor Gina Raimondo applauded the recipients of these grants,
saying, "The arts are an important part of Rhode Island's economy. Each of
these grants from the State Arts Council contributes to our economy in
meaningful ways, while at the same time contributing to the cultural vitality
of our state. I'm proud that Rhode Island invests in the arts, and happy to
live in a state that values the arts in our everyday lives."

"We're particularly pleased with this round of grant
awards," said Randall Rosenbaum, Executive Director of the Rhode Island
State Council on the Arts. "Programs in arts education and projects that
support the work of artists in communities throughout our state contribute to
our great quality of life here in Rhode Island."

This year to date the State Arts Council has awarded 414 grants
totaling $986,387 to non-profit organizations, schools, artists and community
groups. RISCA funds are matched by businesses, individuals, and earned income.
The Council receives its support through an annual appropriation from the Rhode
Island General Assembly and from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal
agency.

Examples of projects supported in the
current round of grants include:

Awarded $1625, Festival Ballet Providence (FBP) will bring their
Part of the Oath program to ELL students at Alan Shawn Feinstein Elementary
School in Providence, RI. "Part of the Oath" is an innovative,
youth-driven community arts program that has established itself as a model for
engaging and inspiring students with in-school workshops and residencies. Its
programs engage participants' creativity and empower their own agency, giving
them tools to create meaningful movement based on original poetry and other
texts. Their residency at the Alan Shawn Feinstein Elementary School, will
serve a total of 40 classes comprised of 20 classes for each 2nd grade and 4th
grade ELL student groups. FBP educators will work in collaboration with Alan
Shawn Feinstein Elementary ELL teachers to integrate dance in the students'
curriculum.

International Charter School in Pawtucket received $7,500 for
"Documenting Our Identities" with roster photographer Mary Beth Meehan.
Third graders will take cameras home with them as they explore concepts of
identity, culture & community. Students will work with teachers and the
artist to expand their visual sense and write in two languages about what their
photographs show. This ongoing arts education project is integrated with the
school's International Baccalaureate unit.

Artist Oliver Arias will receive $3,000 for a
"Student-Centric Arts and Social Justice Curriculum Development and
Implementation" project. This involves a multi-visit arts based curriculum
development project at Central HS and Paul Cuffee HS that explores the
complexity of racial identity with students and teachers, while concurrently
developing an arts and social justice based video curriculum that uses student
voices to expand upon difficult but necessary conversations about racial
inequality in classrooms across our state.

Artist Benjamin Lundberg Sanchez Torres received $2,250 for
"Se Aculilló? | Primxs", a project which will feature art created by
people who have origins, ancestral roots, and/or cultural ties to geographies
colonized by the former Spanish Empire, selected via open call with strong
consideration for Black artists, Indigenous artists, LGBTQAI artists, and
artists who have been marginalized from traditional presentations of art.

Artist Cathren Housley and the Peace Flag Project will receive
$3,000 to engage children from diverse Rhode Island communities in a
collaborative art work called, THE CHILDREN'S FLAG OF AMERICA, the third in the
American Peace Flag Trilogy. Children will express their hopes for a better
future by creating their own Peace Flag during one of 25 workshops held in
libraries, schools, community organizations, and refugee centers throughout
Rhode Island. Each small individual flag will be assembled into a final 20' X
10' Flag, which will be exhibited around the state.

The Puerto Rican Institute for Arts and Advocacy, Inc. (PRIAA)
is a non-profit organization dedicated to using the arts to promote civic,
cultural awareness and advocacy for Puerto Ricans and Latinos. In CARIBBEAN ART
DIASPORA: MEJUNJE (Series 4): BOMBA Y PATRIA, PRIAA will demonstrate what it
means to be Puerto Rican in the USA through traditional music and dance from
Puerto Rico, combined with rap and video projections. The piece will represent
the current generation of the Puerto Ricans in diaspora in the United States.
The songs and messages will reflect the "pride, courage, sorrow, and
triumphs of the Puerto Rican people." PRIAA will receive $2,000 to support
this project.

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