The Harvard Cultural Council (HCC), along with State Representative Jennifer Benson and State Senator James Eldridge, have announced the award of 15 grants from the Massachusetts Cultural Council totaling $4,500 for cultural programming in Harvard and at selected regional locations in fiscal 2015.
“Thanks to the Harvard Cultural Council, the Harvard community has access to high quality programs in the arts and humanities,” said Eldridge. “The local council volunteers make limited resources go as far as possible and ensure a wide variety of cultural programming for all Harvard residents.”
The HCC received 25 applications this year. Each was scored on its impact to the Harvard community, financial need, application completeness, and several additional factors.
Fiscal 2015 grant recipients include the following events and activities:
- Harvard Council on Aging for “An Evening with Walt Whitman” in March
- Concerts at the Common at the Harvard Unitarian Universalist Church in April
- Bob Eiland production of “The Stone Girl” at the Harvard General Store in May
- Bromfield Middle School Drama Society for the Mass. Middle School Drama Festival in May
- Nashoba Valley Concert Band for the Memorial Day Remembrance at the Harvard Common in May
- Harvard Pro Musica for “Getting Together: Generations of Singers” in May
- Scott Jameson performance at the Harvard Public Library in May
- Harvard PTO curriculum enrichment at Hildreth Elementary School in May
- Sharing a New Song Chorus at the Harvard Unitarian Universalist Church in June
- Fruitlands Museum for Centennial Saturday and Open Gates Initiative in June
- Concord Band Association for summer concerts at Fruitlands
- Old Frog Pond Farm for a summer Plein Air Poetry Chapbook
- Virginia Thurston Healing Garden for Exploring Our Creative Spirits in fall and winter
- Harvard PTO science curriculum enrichment at the Bromfield School in December
- bfor several narrative evenings throughout the year
The Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC) is a state agency whose mission is to promote “excellence, access, education, and diversity in the arts, humanities, and interpretive sciences,” according to its website. MCC receives an annual appropriation from the state Legislature as well as funds from the National Endowment for the Arts and other sources. The money is used to fund local cultural councils and other activities.
“The Harvard Cultural Council is part of a network of 329 local cultural councils (LCC) serving all 351 cities and towns in Massachusetts,” explained Benson. “The LCC program is the largest grassroots cultural funding network in the nation, supporting thousands of community-based projects in the arts, sciences, and humanities every year. I am proud that the state Legislature consistently provides support for this program and look forward to seeing the grant recipients’ work.”
—Edited from a press release provided by the Harvard Cultural Council.
