For Immediate Release: April 26, 2007
Contact: Jeff Morgan
Public Relations
515.281.3858
Jeff.Morgan@iowa.gov
New IAC grants support school and community partnerships
(DES MOINES, Iowa)—A new program created by the Iowa Arts Council supports partnerships between schools and communities in Iowa to enhance student learning by collaborating on arts education in the schools, particularly when they occur over an extended period of time.
Arts Building Community in Schools (ABC) grants up to $5,000 will be awarded on a three-year cycle to allow the time needed to establish communication and understanding between partners; to find ways to combine existing resources in creative ways; and to develop new learning opportunities for students. The ABCs program replaces Arts Partners for Achievement, a pilot program ending in June.
“Grants awarded through this pilot program will support the development of school and arts partnerships to enhance the delivery of local K-12 education in and through the arts,” IAC’s Education Coordinator Dawn Martinez Oropeza said.
The school and community partners are required to work as a team to develop and implement the program. Each applicant team must include a school administrator, two teachers (one must be a certified arts or music specialist), at least one community arts organization and one teaching artist from the school’s community. The grant recipient must provide a minimum of 25 percent of the grant award amount, or $1250, as a match. Both cash and in-kind donations may be used for the match.
ABC grants will be awarded for the following purposes:
- To pay arts partners for their time and services for planning and reflection time, and in-classroom time spent collaboratively implementing the lessons developed by the team
- To pay teachers for planning and reflection time that occurs beyond the school day
- To pay for substitute teachers when needed to facilitate daytime planning and reflection meetings
- To use no more than 10 percent ($500) of the grant funds to pay for curricular materials or art-making supplies
Subsequent continuation grants in amounts up to $5,000 each may be awarded for up to two additional years depending on availability of funds and successful completion of project activities and reporting. Continuation teams are expected to annually increase their focus on identifying and addressing specific curricular needs through arts integration, assessing student achievement as a result of partnership activities, and sharing the model they are developing with others within and beyond the partner school.
IAC anticipates awarding up to three grants for the 2007-08 academic year. Application materials must be received in the IAC offices at 600 E. Locust Street, Des Moines, Iowa 50319 by 4:30 p.m. on June 1, 2007. Visit www.iowaartscouncil.org or contact Dawn Martinez Oropeza at dawn.oropeza@iowa.gov for more information.
The Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs is responsible for developing the state’s interest in the areas of the arts, history and other cultural matters with the advice and assistance from its two divisions, the State Historical Society of Iowa and the Iowa Arts Council. The DCA preserves, researches, interprets and promotes an awareness and understanding of local, state and regional history and stimulates and encourages the study and presentation of the performing and fine arts and public interest and participation in them. It implements tourism-related art and history projects as directed by the General Assembly and designs a comprehensive, statewide, long-range plan with the assistance of the Iowa Arts Council to develop the arts in Iowa. More information about DCA is available at www.culturalaffairs.org.