2023 Marks 10 Years of a Successful Co-Funding Partnership with Cuyahoga Arts & Culture
CLEVELAND (December 21, 2022) – Neighborhood Connections has approved $322,453 in grants to support 91 projects in Cleveland and East Cleveland. Cuyahoga Arts & Culture (CAC), the region's largest funder for arts and culture, will co-fund 17 of these resident-led arts and culture projects through a partnership with Neighborhood Connections.
Highlights of the grants include:
- Canaan Community Garden received $5,000 for their Canaan-Clara Tagg Brewer Community Garden in the Lee Harvard neighborhood that will be filled with organic, pesticide-free vegetables for members of the community to enjoy, as well as milkweed plants that will attract the Monarch butterfly in an attempt to address the issue of their near extinction.
- Cleveland Dance Movement received $4,000 for their dance project, Supporting the Unsung, which seeks to address issues of systemic racism and inequality by providing a safe space for minority community dancers, choreographers, and activists to process cultural trauma, create cathartic forms of release, and address social issues using movement as a catalyst.
- Future Ink Graphics received $3,000 to host the Accessible Digital Arts Open Studio Series, an open studio design and training workshop in the Clark Fulton neighborhood that is open to anyone but particularly geared towards artists with disabilities.
- One Love received $4,000 for their senior appreciation project aimed at bringing together the seniors of the Cudell/Edgewater neighborhoods to bond over shared interests and activities, as well as compiling a 117th Street Business Directory with complimentary gift certificates and access to goods and services.
“These grassroots organizations demonstrate the creativity and ingenuity that permeate Cleveland’s neighborhoods. And the individuals organizing these initiatives are just a few of the tens of thousands of people who are contributing to making our community a better, more just, and connected city.” said Tom O’Brien, program director of Neighborhood Connections. “Our partnership with CAC allows Neighborhood Connections to support many grassroots arts and culture organizations that otherwise would not get essential financial support.”
Cuyahoga Arts & Culture granted $50,000 to Neighborhood Connections in 2022 and will make a level investment in 2023 to support community-based arts and culture activities organized by and for Cuyahoga County residents. CAC defines arts and culture broadly to include nature, science, cultural heritage, and history in addition to other art forms. Through this partnership with Neighborhood Connections, CAC has co-funded more than 420 resident-led arts and culture projects in Cleveland and East Cleveland since 2013.
“We are proud to continue our partnership with Neighborhood Connections for a tenth year,” said Jill M. Paulsen, executive director of Cuyahoga Arts & Culture. “Our investment in Neighbor Up grants acknowledges the power and importance of arts and culture as a tool for change, connection, and community.”
Since 2003, Neighborhood Connections has invested more than $14 million in resident-led projects in Cleveland and East Cleveland.
Neighbor Up grants are offered several times each year to groups of residents in Cleveland and East Cleveland and, for projects related to the pandemic, to residents in Cuyahoga, Lake and Geauga counties, to do projects that improve the quality of life in their neighborhoods. Groups are encouraged to work with partners and to propose creative solutions to challenges in their community.
About Neighborhood Connections
Neighborhood Connections is a nationally recognized community-building program established in 2003. Its mission is to fuel the power of neighbors to create, together, an extraordinary world right where they live. Our small grants program is one of the largest in the country. For more information, visit NeighborUpCLE.org.
About Cuyahoga Arts & Culture
Cuyahoga Arts & Culture (CAC) is the region’s largest funder for arts and culture, helping hundreds of organizations in Cuyahoga County connect millions of people to cultural experiences each year. Since 2006, CAC has invested $230 million in 472 organizations, making our community a more vibrant place to live, work and play. CAC is a separate government entity and a political subdivision of the State of Ohio. For more information, visit cacgrants.org.
View a list of Projects Funded December 2022.
About the author
CAC Staff