Gov. Kathy Hochul this week announced $45 million in grant awards through the New York State Council on the Arts (NYSCA). Grants administered by NYSCA this year will provide critical aid to bolster nonprofit arts and culture organizations and artists as they embark on a dynamic multi-year recovery process.

In June 2021, NYSCA rolled out a reimagined grantmaking process to increase access to state funds through expanded eligibility that embraced a vast range of artmaking in New York State, and led to a nearly 40% increase in applications for FY2022 to date. Following a streamlined application process, the agency will continue to support those severely impacted by the ongoing effects of COVID-19 through flexible funding accommodations.

NYSCA’s Round Three grants include Support for Organizations, Support for Artists, Special Opportunities, and Recovery Grants. All four categories of funding provide organizations and artists with vital dollars to boost their recovery process in response to the devastating economic impact of the last year and a half. More than 60% of NYSCA’s FY2022 grantees have organizational budgets of $1 million or less.

In the Adirondacks, Round 3 awards to go:

Caroga Arts Collective: Funding will support this interdisciplinary organization based in Caroga. Founded in 2016, the group typically presents over fifty performances and community events which focus on inter-arts collaborations among musicians, artists, scholars, and their communities. In 2020 all of Caroga Arts’ events transitioned to virtual and socially distanced, which allowed them to maintain contact with their community and reach new audiences during the period of isolation.

A full list of Round Three grantees is available here.

NYSCA’s fourth and final round of funding, a $20 million Capital Projects opportunity is currently accepting applications. The application portal will close on January 14, 2022. More information is available here.

Photo: A barge concert as part of the Caroga Arts Collective’s annual Caroga Lake Music Festival. Photo by Katherine Esposito