FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Alabama State Council on the Arts Secures New Funding for Creative Aging

MONTGOMERY, Ala., (April 19, 2021) — Alabama State Council on the Arts recently secured new funding from a national grant program to advance creative aging programs for older adults in Alabama.

Recognizing that older adults have many contributions to make to their communities—but that they often face ageism and isolation and have been disproportionately affected by COVID-19—the Council on the Arts sought funding from the Leveraging State Investments in Creative Aging program, a joint initiative of the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies (NASAA) and Aroha Philanthropies. Alabama secured $23,000 for Better with Age: Alabama's Creative Aging Initiative.

"NASAA is proud to have Alabama in our creative aging cohort," said Pam Breaux, NASAA President and CEO. "This grant will help to grow opportunities for creative aging in Alabama over time, facilitating lifelong learning, joy, social engagement, and improved well-being for older adults."

"Aroha Philanthropies is proud to partner with NASAA to support creative aging through our state and jurisdictional arts agencies," said Ellen Michelson, founder and president of the foundation. "This initiative marks an important step toward broadened awareness, adoption, and funding of creative aging programs across the country."

The Council on the Arts is one of 36 state arts agencies receiving awards from NASAA. With this funding, each state will conduct creative aging activities tailored to the unique needs of its constituents. Alabama's activities will include bolstering existing creative aging programs, focusing the 2021 Bill Bates Leadership Institute on creative aging, offering workshops for non-profit arts organizations to engage in this work, providing professional development for teaching artists, cultivating creative aging partnerships, and more.

For more information about NASAA's Leveraging State Investments in Creative Aging initiative, visit nasaa-arts.org. For more information about Alabama State Council on the Arts, visit arts.alabama.gov.

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About Alabama State Council on the Arts

The Council on the Arts is the official state agency for the support and development of the arts in Alabama. The Council works to expand and preserve the state's cultural resources by supporting nonprofit arts organizations, schools, colleges, units of local government, and individual artists. Arts programs, assisted by Council grants, have a track record of enhancing community development, education, cultural tourism, and overall quality of life in all regions of the state. The Alabama State Council on the Arts receives an annual appropriation from the Alabama Legislature and additional funds from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.

Press contact:
Perri Hubbard
Communications & Public Relations
334.242.5153
perri.hubbard@arts.alabama.gov