2 Princeton Nonprofits Receives NJ Arts & Culture Grant

PRINCETON, NJ — Two Princeton-based organizations are among 60 nonprofits to be awarded a grant from the New Jersey Arts and Culture Recovery Fund (NJACRF).

The Historical Society of Princeton and the American Repertory Ballet received funding as they work to recover from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Historical Society of Princeton develops programs that help residents and visitors learn and discover more about historic sites in Princeton. The organization regularly conducts walking tours, exhibitions, and other outreach programs.

The Princeton arm of the American Repertory Ballet was founded in 1954 by Audrée Estey. The nonprofit helps nurture developing dancers in a safe and progressive way, teaching age and developmentally appropriate ballet technique classes. In total, six Mercer County organizations received funding.

In the second round, NJACRF awarded $1.3 million in grants to nonprofits. Earlier this year, the fund provided $2.6 million in grants to more than 100 organizations.

The NJACRF was established last year with a gift from the Grunin Foundation in response to the needs of the arts and culture community who were struggling to survive during the pandemic.

The fund is hosted by the Lawrenceville-based Princeton Area Community Foundation and chaired by Jeremy Grunin, President of the Grunin Foundation, and Sharnita C. Johnson, Program Director – Arts, of the Geraldine R. Dodge Foundation. Members include Prudential Foundation, Stone Foundation of NJ, E. J. Grassmann Trust, NJ State Council on the Arts, and the NJ Historical Commission. Other major donors include the New Jersey Pandemic Relief Fund, the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, Amazon and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Here are the six Mercer County organizations who received funding:

• Hopewell Valley Arts Council, Hopewell
• People & Stories / Gente y Cuentos, Lawrenceville
• Historical Society of Princeton, Princeton
• American Repertory Ballet/Princeton Ballet Society, Princeton
• Storytelling Arts, Princeton Junction section of West Windsor
• Preservation New Jersey, Trenton

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