Dance Education Grant Opportunity

Dance Education Grant Deadline January 31, 2019

Don’t miss this great opportunity for Maine schools and teaching artists

January 31, 2019, 5:00 p.m. is the deadline for the Maine Arts Commission’s dance education grant for PK-12 schools and teaching artists. Applications must be filed using the Commission’s online grants management system at www.MaineArts.com.

Launched in 2015, the dance education grant provides high quality learning opportunities for students and educators in schools where dance education is not being offered. Dance education changes lives, yet only 5 percent of all schools in Maine offer opportunities in this artistic discipline, according to the Arts Education Census study conducted in 2016 by the Maine Arts Commission.

During this past grant cycle, the program funded artist residencies at Maranacook Middle School in Readfield and Freeport High School. Both residencies are taking place during this school year. Nancy Salmon is the teaching artist on the  Maine Arts Commission’s Teaching Artist Roster who is providing instruction.

You can read the stories of past recipients of the dance education grant. Six schools have been awarded funding during the last three years. You can read about the success stories on this blog by searching using “dance education”.

Funding for this program is made possible through the generosity of an annual dance performance in November called “Fall Into Dance”. This year two schools and ten dance studios collaborated to put on the performance. It is facilitated by Thornton Academy dance educator and Maine Arts Leadership Initiative Teacher Leader Emma Arenstam Campbell.

This year the event raised $3,810.00. To date the dance education grant has awarded $17,421.00. Dancers Making a Difference contributing one year to this grant in addition to the funds raised by Fall Into Dance. All of this money goes directly to schools to create a dance education opportunity that works towards establishing dance education programs.

“We are extremely appreciative of these contributions and the impact they will have on dance education in Maine,” said Julie Richard, Executive Director of the Maine Arts Commission. “There are so few dance education programs in our state and this is one important way we can make a difference for the students that we serve.”

Review Criteria

1. Clear demonstration of high-quality arts education teaching and learning opportunity.
2. Evidence of significant collaborative planning among teachers and other partners, and the capacity to carry it out.
3. Clear demonstration of equity and access to learning addressing the differences of learners.
4. Description of evaluation methodology with clear objectives and outcomes.
5. Alignment with dance standards.
6. Commitment beyond the conclusion of the project.

Grant guidelines and application criteria are at www.MaineArts.com and the Commission encourages PK-12 educators or teaching artists to review them prior to applying. The funding cycle for these grants is for projects from September 1, 2019 through March 30, 2020. Applicants may apply up to $2,500 and are not eligible if they’ve applied in the past.

For more information visit the grants and the teaching artist roster webpages at www.MaineArts.com.

Watch for a notice announcing when the application will be available. Begin planning and be sure and communicate about your ideas with Argy Nestor, Director of Arts Education at 207-287-2713 or email at argy.nestor@maine.gov.

All photos in this blog post were taken at the November 2018 Dance Into Fall performance at Thornton Academy.