Arts Transcending Borders Receives $30,000 Grant From the National Endowment for the Arts

Holy Cross' Arts Transcending Borders (ATB) program has been approved for a $30,000 Grants for Arts Projects award from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to support artistic programming and community engagement initiatives in Worcester during the 2021-2022 season. This marks the first time the College has received NEA funding.

The award will support ATB's work with community partners who serve senior citizens, youth and the diverse communities who call Worcester home, to bring the arts into conversation with elder care, learning and civic engagement through participatory activities that help build community on and off campus.

"Since its inception in 2014, ATB has enjoyed remarkable success in welcoming to the region artists who thrive at the intersection of arts, ideas and civic engagement, with deliberate programming that challenges perspectives, creates dialogue and builds community," said Yonca Karakilic, director of the Arts Transcending Borders program at Holy Cross. "As we look to open the doors of our new performing arts center, ATB will be integral to making this space come to life and become a community gateway to our campus."

Holy Cross' state-of-the-art Prior Center for Performing Arts is set to open in late 2022 and will include dedicated spaces for the fine and performing arts, as well as spaces and technology to support creative interactions between the arts and other disciplines.

"As the country and the arts sector begin to imagine returning to a post-pandemic world, the National Endowment for the Arts is proud to announce funding that will help arts organizations such as Arts Transcending Borders at the College of the Holy Cross reengage fully with partners and audiences," said NEA Acting Chairman Ann Eilers. "While the arts have been a sustaining force for many during the pandemic, the chance to gather with one another and share arts experiences is its own necessity and pleasure."

Holy Cross' project is among the more than 1,100 projects across America totaling nearly $27 million that were selected during this second round of Grants for Arts Projects fiscal year 2021 funding.

For more information on the projects included in the Arts Endowment grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.