NEA Awards $45,000 in Grants to Montclair

Montclair will receive more than $40,000 in National Endowment for the Arts grants as part of the agency’s state and regional grant program, according to a published report.

While the state will receive 15 grants totaling $284,500, according to a Tuesday NJ.com report, the township will receive $45,000 in grants of that money for events and programs including a free outdoor jazz festival presented by Jazz House Kids, a series of dance works at Montclair State University as well as a $25,000 award to Montclair State’s “Permission Grants: Three New Works Without Compromise,” according to a Tuesday report on NJ.com.

Each April, the NEA awards the grants, the report said, singling out $879,000 to the New Jersey State Council on the Arts last year. However, this year, the federal budget sequester has delayed awarding the grants.

The 817 awards represent projects in 13 artistic fields and disciplines, including arts education, dance, design, folk and traditional arts, literature, museums, opera, theater and media and total $26.3 million, the report said.

The Montclair grants break down as follows:

• Jazz House Kids, Inc. for a free outdoor jazz festival at Nishuane Park, $10,000.
• Sharron Miller’s Academy of Performing Arts for it to expand its in-school residency program in the East Orange School District, $10,000
• Permission Grants: Three New Works Without Compromise, $25,000