Arts & Education Council Grants Available for Fenton, High Ridge Area Teachers

Arts and Education Council representatives will accept applications for the Maritz Arts and Education Fund for Teachers until Friday, Sept. 7. Applicants may visit council's website for more information.

Grants will be made only for programs that take place from Oct. 15, 2012 to June 14, 2013 in the 16-county, bi-state St. Louis metropolitan region:

• Missouri—St. Louis City and County, Jefferson, Franklin, Lincoln, St. Charles, Warren and Washington.
• Illinois—Bond, Calhoun, Clinton, Jersey, Macoupin, Madison, Monroe and St. Clair.

Arts and Education Council managers announced Thursday they had received a $30,000 donation from to fund the third year of the highly successful and award-winning Maritz Arts and Education Fund for Teachers. The money will be used by A&E to provide grants ranging from $500 to $5,000 for education projects in individual schools and nonprofit education organizations during the 2012-13 academic year. That means schools, as well as local private schools—such as , and —are all eligible.

“We want to continue to provide the opportunity for students and teachers to maximize their creative potential within an educational setting and help lay the groundwork for them in their future higher-learning endeavors. We are extremely pleased with the results of the first two years of this program. We’re thrilled so many of these students have been recognized and awarded college scholarships to continue on with their arts education,” stated Debbie Schirmer, Maritz senior community affairs manager, in the announcement.

This past academic year, a $5,000 grant awarded to McCluer High School to fund a student production of the musical Dreamgirls led to $156,000 in performing arts scholarships for the cast and crew. The students earned their scholarships through The Cappies, “Critics and Awards Program,” following rave reviews of their production, according to council. The McCluer students and their teacher even had the opportunity to meet Jennifer Holliday, Tony award-winning actress who originated the role of Effie on Broadway, cast and crew members backstage prior to The Muny’s production of the same show in July.

In addition to McCluer, nine other St. Louis Metropolitan area schools received a Maritz Arts and Education Fund for Teachers grant in 2011-2012. Maritz, in collaboration with the Arts and Education Council, awarded a total of $20,000 in grants ranging from $150 to $5,000 to support special projects and opportunities that encouraged creativity in the classroom. These schools included:

• Churchill Center & School for Learning Disabilities
• Gibson Elementary School
• Hancock Place Elementary School
• O’Fallon Township High School
• Orchard Farm Middle School;
• Our Lady of Lourdes Catholic Elementary School
• Our Lady of Providence School
• St. Mary’s High School 
• St. Patrick School.

During the program’s inaugural year in 2010-2011, $16,000 was awarded to six programs throughout the area.

“We are incredibly excited about the growth and success of this program during these past two years, especially during a period when education has experienced dramatic budget cuts in the arts,” stated Cynthia Prost, president of the Arts and Education Council.  

“The positive results of this program will have lasting effects on many of these students for years to come as they continue on with their higher education.”

Grant announcements will be made by Oct. 12.