Macon Arts Alliance Receives Funding from Knight Foundation for 2020 Cultural Plan for Macon
Thursday, January 14th, 2021
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation has awarded a $250,000 grant to the Macon Arts Alliance to build capacity and implement the 2020 Macon Cultural Plan over the next five years. The grant includes funding to support a Project Director who will work to complete recommendations in the Cultural Plan by building partnerships and connecting stakeholders to catalyze new experiences. The funding will also strengthen Macon Arts’ ability to market existing arts and culture initiatives, as well as new ideas born from the Cultural Plan.
Macon Arts’ own strategic plan is closely aligned with the city-wide Cultural Plan and focuses on five strategic priorities: tourism, education, creative industries, neighborhood development and audience cultivation. Macon Arts Alliance believes that arts and culture should be embedded in all sectors of the community, including health, education, law enforcement, government, business, housing, transportation, human services, sports and others. By leveraging the power of creativity, we can unite our community by building relationships, fostering economic growth and encouraging cultural connections throughout Central Georgia.
“The Macon Arts Alliance has long been hard at work promoting local arts initiatives in Central Georgia, and now, during a time in which we’ve seen that the arts are essential, they’ve continued to support artists and organizations that connect people to arts and culture,” said Priya Sircar, Knight’s arts program director. “We’re excited to provide key funding that will enable the Alliance to continue to create a sustainable infrastructure for the local arts sector.”
Among Macon Arts’ initiatives to connect locals to the vibrant arts and cultural scene is Macon365. The digital platform runs a cultural community calendar of events and promotes artists, performances, experiences and exhibits throughout the Central Georgia region.
“We appreciate Knight’s investment in leveraging creativity to bring about transformational change,” said Julie Wilkerson, Executive Director of Macon Arts Alliance. “We are ready to get started connecting the community to the plan and celebrating the successes that arise from it.”
