👋Grant Information Sessions for people
A note on grant funding...
Please be aware that the East Central Regional Arts Council (ECRAC) now knows exactly how much State funding will be available to us for the fiscal year that started July 1, 2020 and ends June 30, 2021. We will have 15% less in the Arts and Cultural Heritage Legacy funding. Keep in mind we are making every effort to maintain or increase our grant funding from last year’s levels.
The next grant deadlines are in 2021 on February 1, March 1, and April 1 and, well, we need the arts now more than ever. Please keep in mind that all funded art grant projects will need to follow required health protocols and/or be held online or via broadcast. Feel free to think creatively how to keep art events going.
We are grateful for the support and patience of our artists and organizational partners as we work through these challenges together. As always, if you have questions, comments or suggestions, please contact us by email: director@ecrac.org or by phone 320.591.7033.
Grant Information Sessions
Are you an artist and want to learn about funding available for the upcoming grant deadlines? This information session will be online via Zoom on Thursday, November 19, 2020 at 10 a.m. Advance registration is not required. ECRAC Artist Grant Info Session Link
Would you rather attend in December? How about Saturday, December 12, 2020, at 10 a.m.?
ECRAC December Artist Grant Info Session Link
Are you with an art group, non-profit, school, or public entity and want to learn about funding available for your organization's art project for the upcoming ECRAC grant deadlines? This information session will be online via Zoom on Friday, November 20, 2020 at 2:30 p.m. Advance registration is not required. ECRAC Organization Grant Info Session Link
Would you rather attend in December? How about Thursday, December 10 at 11:30 a.m.?
ECRAC December Organization Grant Info Session Link
If you need the call-in only phone numbers for any of these sessions let Katina know at 320-591-7034 or by email at grantinfo@ecrac.org
A message from Sarah Ratermann Beahan of Center City
When the news of the coronavirus hit, I was in a period of transition. My husband and I recently moved both our residence and studio from the Twin Cities to the Chisago Lakes area. I was nearing the end of my tenure as writer-in-residence at Banfill-Locke Center for the Arts. I’d made the decision to leave my part-time job to focus fully on both my freelance work, my own writing and teaching the Deep Dive, a creativity workshop I’ve cultivated.
The global pandemic hit hard and quick. Classes and retreats were cancelled. Publications where I was a contributing writer folded. Frankly, I was panicked.
Thanks to the East Central Regional Arts Council, I began to find my footing. I received an ECRAC COVID-19 Emergency Response Grant for a project called The COVID-19 Chronicles. I wrote short essays on the day-to-day experience of dealing with the pandemic, posted the pieces to my blog and readings to my Facebook page.
I’d never considered engaging with the public in this way pre-pandemic. But the support from the community both locally and across the globe has been overwhelmingly positive. I’ve been lucky enough to receive a Resiliency Grant to continue the work with a slightly broader focus: Reckoning & Delight in 2020.
These projects have pushed me out of my comfort zone. Through the virtual readings, I am engaging an audience I would never have reached by simply publishing my work on my blog. Not only is this project supporting my writing, but by reaching a larger audience I am also seeing an uptick in enrollment in my online classes. I am so grateful for the funding and support to nimbly adapt to this year of change!
Sarah is pictured below and you can find information on her and her artwork at www.sarahratermannbeahan.com
The ECRAC COVID-19 Recovery Grants are now also focused on equity issues and have been renamed Resiliency Grants. The links to these applications are below and you probably won't need a grant info session for them! There are only a few questions.