New WCC Chair Morgan Drewniany holds a card advertising the 2019 grant cycle, which will be distributed around the city. Deadline to apply is Oct. 15. (Photo by Amy Porter)
WESTFIELD – The Westfield Cultural Council (WCC) is looking to give out over $20,000 in grants for creative programs, projects and organizations in Westfield. The application process opened Sept. 1, and all applications are due by Oct. 15.
Artists, arts-and-humanities based nonprofits, and municipal groups such as schools are invited to apply for up to $5,000 in grant funding. The online application is simple, asking applicants for basic budget information and a scope of project. The WCC encourages any interested parties to apply, even if they have not in prior years.
Funding priorities are given to community-wide programs in Westfield, and to collaborative projects between cultural groups and community organizations. All events must take place in Westfield. Applications for field trips will not be considered.
New cultural events may be fully funded in the first year; and partially funded in subsequent years. Applicants requesting grant funds over $800, or first-time applicants, may be asked to attend a WCC meeting. The next scheduled meeting is on Oct. 9.
This month’s meeting was held on Wednesday, and was the first led by new chair Morgan Drewniany. Westfield artist Pat Conant came to the meeting, saying she intended to apply for a grant in regards to a Westfield 350 mural for City Hall. Conant said she has a similar one in the courthouse in Westfield.
Conant said the work involves a metal photo process, and she wanted an idea of the size of the grants.
Drewniany said the largest grant they usually give out is $3,000, because they only get $23,600 from the Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC), and last year had more than 50 applications for the funds. She said Conant could ask for more than the grant amount, and include her donated time to the project as part of the budget request. The largest grant allowed is $5,000.
Drewniany explained that all applications are submitted to the Massachusetts Cultural Council online, and then sent to the WCC as a panel book in November or December. The link to the grant application may be found on the city website at www.cityofwestfield.org/102/Cultural-Council or on the MCC website at https://www.mass-culture.org/westfield. Interested applicants may also email [email protected] for more information.
Examples of previously funded projects include Volunteers in Public Schools “Into the Arts Festival,” the Elm Corridor Utility Box Mural Program spearheaded by Drewniany; Westfield Veterans Services “Remembering the War to End All Wars,” Westfield Farmers Market’s “Music in the Market,” and Stanley Park’s “Sunday Night Concert Series.”
The WCC is a commission appointed by the City, whose main function is to grant money allocated to Westfield annually by the Massachusetts Cultural Council (MCC). This decentralized granting process was created to authentically nurture the creative community and encourage economic growth through the arts and humanities locally. Each municipality across the state is allocated grant funding by the MCC to distribute as they see fit. MCC has the largest local Cultural Council program in the country, Drewniany said.
