PEABODY — The Peabody Cultural Council (PCC) is accepting applications for fiscal year 2022 grants for organizations and individuals that support cultural activities and programs in the community.
The grants support a variety of Peabody-based artistic projects and initiatives, including exhibits, festivals, school field trips, short-term artist residencies, school performances, workshops, Senior Center classes and lectures.
Department of Community Development Grants Manager Lisa Greene said the amount of funding the city has from the Mass Cultural Council this year — $26,700 — is up compared to past years.
“It’s a little more than we got in the last few years, so we are really excited to be able to give out a little more,” Greene said. “We’re trying to get more schools involved and have reached out to the superintendent’s office to make sure that more teachers are aware of the opportunities this money can provide to their programs. We are excited and hoping that we will see some really innovative ideas this year.”
Greene said that the pandemic has caused a reduction in the number of applicants compared to pre-COVID years when the number of applications averaged around 15 to 16.
“The good news about last year was the state extended the deadline to use the funds beyond the calendar year, which really helped,” said Greene. “We’re lucky in that many of our applicants are repeat applicants, but sometimes we see that people may be waiting for the right project before they apply.”
Greene said it’s all a matter of getting the word out to the community.
“The gentlemen (John Early) who offers the woodcarving classes at the Torigian Senior Center had been paying for his own supplies, but once he found out about the PCC grants, he was able to expand the program significantly,” said Greene. “His class, the shipbuilding class, and the painting class are all very well attended every year.
“Many people just don’t know about the other programs Mass Cultural Council offers, like the Big Yellow School Bus grant. We buy the tickets and the Big Yellow Bus pays for the bus, so there is a lot of money out there.”
Greene said most grant requests are “modest,” but the PCC committee is always excited about being able to distribute funds that will help individuals and organizations expose the community to the arts every year.
“We have six people on the committee, which represents a great assortment of volunteers who are truly committed to what we do,” said Greene. “Sometimes they can be just as excited to give these grants as they would be if they were receiving them.”
PCC is part of a network of 329 local cultural councils (LCC) serving 351 cities and towns in the commonwealth. The LCC program is the largest grassroots cultural funding network in the United States, supporting thousands of community-based projects in the arts, sciences and humanities every year.
The state legislature provides an annual appropriation to the Mass Cultural Council (MCC), a state agency, which then allocates funds to each community.
Previously funded PCC projects include Peabody’s Free Summer Concert Series on the Leather Commons, classes in painting, theater, and woodcarving for seniors, an instrument lending program for children, and school field trips to the Peabody Essex Museum, the Boston Symphony Orchestra, and an assortment of other local theatrical performances throughout the region.
The deadline to apply is Oct. 15. For any additional questions, contact Greene at [email protected].
