Tucson arts organizations just got a financial boost.
The Arizona Commission on the Arts recently awarded $2.65 million to 233 arts organizations and festivals throughout the state; $646,483 of that went to 58 Pima County groups.
Grants went to a variety of groups, including the Mini Time Machine Museum of Miniatures, Tucson Jewish Community Center, and Tohono Chul Park.
While the Arizona Commission on the Arts awards yearly grants, the number this year was higher than previous years. According to Steve Wilcox of the Arizona Commission on the Arts, the agency had extra wiggle room in this year’s budget.
The agency received 350 applications from arts organizations around the state. Organizations are selected by a panel of volunteers who “represent diversity of our state,” Wilcox said.
Grants in Pima County ranged from $2,000 to $47,000 and were awarded in three categories — festivals, schools, and community investment.
Community investment grants act as operating funds, meaning organizations are able to use the funds how they see fit. Forty-seven of the 58 organizations were given community investment grants.
“The community investment grants offer general operating support, which is one of the most difficult types of funding for organizations to get a hold of,” Wilcox says.
The Children’s Museum Tucson and the Loft Cinema received the largest grants from the agency —$47,000 went to each.
“For our organization, which is small but very nimble, the grant means the world,” says Autumn Rentmeester, Children’s Museum’s director of development. “Our philosophy is that the museum should be a right and not a privilege, so having a commitment financially means that children will have access to our museum.”
“We can all come from different backgrounds or family lives, but no matter who you are, you should be able to come to the museum and learn, grow and discover,” she adds.
Rentmeester says the Children’s Museum wouldn’t be able to run special promotions, such as free admission days, or certain events without the generosity of the Arizona Commission on the Arts.
“They really are helping us make the museum accessible for everyone,” she says.
And even grants as small as $2,000 can help organizations massively.
“We wanted to invest more in those small and midsize arts organizations, where an extra $2,000 could really make a difference,” Wilcox says.
The Arizona Commission on the Arts was established in 1967 to “ensure Arizonans had access to arts and cultural experience,” Wilcox says, adding that the arts programs help “lift up Arizona residents.”
