Press release from Count Basie Theatre
National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu has approved more than $25 million in grants as part of the NEA’s first major funding announcement for fiscal year 2018. Included in this announcement is an Art Works grant of $100,000 to the nonprofit Count Basie Theatre for its mindALIGNED collective impact initiative. The Art Works category is the NEA’s largest funding category and supports projects that focus on the creation of art that meets the highest standards of excellence, public engagement with diverse and excellent art, lifelong learning in the arts, and/or the strengthening of communities through the arts. “It is energizing to see the impact that the arts are making throughout the United States.
These NEA-supported projects, such as this one to the Count Basie Theatre, are good examples of how the arts build stronger and more vibrant communities, improve well-being, prepare our children to succeed, and increase the quality of our lives,” said NEA Chairman Jane Chu.
“At the National Endowment for the Arts, we believe that all people should have access to the joy, opportunities and connections the arts bring.”
“We are extremely grateful to the NEA for the Basie’s collective impact grant,” said Count Basie Theatre President / CEO Adam Philipson. “We share the NEA’s belief that when multiple stakeholders come together to focus on complex issues the results can be groundbreaking. We are honored to be the mindALIGNED backbone organization and thank the NEA on behalf of our partners for helping to transform our communities and schools.”
mindALIGNED is spearheaded by the Basie, in partnership with the New Jersey State Council on the Arts, the Jay and Linda Grunin Foundation, OceanFirst Foundation, Monmouth University, Bob Morrison and Quadrant Arts Education Research, county freeholders and arts councils, several arts partners and the Monmouth County Department of Education. Over the last year, the Basie has set the agenda and hosted meetings between these individuals and organizations while keeping a continuous flow of communication.
Modeled after nationally-recognized MINDPOP collective impact initiative, the goal is to create like-minded program for schools and students in Monmouth and Ocean counties in New Jersey.
mindALIGNED is a modern approach to arts engagement in the classroom, whose teaching strategies span across disciplines, brightening the classroom pupil to pupil. By 2030, our goal is for every school district and community in Monmouth and Ocean counties to become mindALIGNED and engaged in the arts. For more information on projects included in the NEA grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news. For more information on mindALIGNED, visit mind-aligned.org.
