Arts Council of Anne Arundel County Inc

1. To generate regional investment in the visual arts, performing arts, and cultural resources through direct grants to local nonprofit organizations.
2. To enhance arts education and create arts performance opportunities Anne Arundel County public and private schools.
3. To create opportunity for artists and allied professionals by through marketing assistance and support for virtual and in-person performances and exhibits.
4. To recognize excellence and celebrate the achievements of local artists, performers, writers, and arts advocates.
5. To support the growth of art in Annapolis and Anne Arundel County public spaces.
6. To expand diversity, inclusion, and multi-culturalism within the local arts community.

Grantmaking
The Arts Council is committed to fiscally supporting the organizations and programs that advance our mission. General operating support is available to established organizations through Community Arts Grants, and Founding Grants, for new organizations. This funding is provided predominately by county hotel tax revenue and grants from the Maryland State Arts Council. Mini Grants are offered twice a year, and support innovative, well-defined arts-related projects that are directed to a new or broader audience, preferably within underserved communities. Strategic Impact Grants are by invitation only, and specifically target arts and cultural resource projects that fall outside the scope of an organization’s normal programming but have the potential to create a major impact on the local community.

Arts in Education
The Arts in Education program brings the arts into our public and private elementary, middle, and high schools through three targeted initiatives:
• The Teachers Institute provides workshops with a featured guest speaker emphasizing the benefits of arts-integrated teaching methods.
• Arts in Education Showcases present short performances by artists, to raise awareness of educational arts programs among stakeholders.
• Auditorium & Residency Grants assist schools and PTO/PTA groups in presenting quality performances and residencies for students in dance, history, music, theatre, and arts related or integrated projects.

Supporting Art Students, Artists, and Arts Professionals
Throughout the year we provide training workshops, sponsor marketing opportunities, and host networking events for our grantees and artists. ACAAC also offers a job bank, a free resource to share arts-related job opportunities around the area, and an online directory of local artists. Arts Angel scholarships provide local students with the resources to study the creative or performing arts.

Annie Awards
Since 2000, ACAAC has annually recognized “Annie Award” winners in ten categories for their lasting, significant, and inspiring contribution to an art form, an arts organization and/or the community.

Public Art
ACAAC and its partners are key drivers of the thriving local public art scene. Wie promote strategically placed art showcasing our deep history, maritime culture, and country residence, works that evoke wonder and diversity. ACAAC continues to be an advocate for a designated “Arts and Entertainment District” in Annapolis, generating economic growth for the city while creating a welcoming environment where artists can live and work.

Advancing Diversity, Inclusion, and Accessibility
ACAAC embraces the Maryland State Arts Council’s directives to enhance diversity and inclusion within the local arts community. We are working within the county to support innovative programs that can dismantle persistent inequities, increase the sustainability of all organizations, and celebrate the creativity and diversity of all members of our community.

Executive Director April Nyman has led the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County since 2007. During her tenure, the ACAAC’s budget has tripled, exponentially expanding its ability to impact the local arts community. She has fostered strong partnerships with the city of Annapolis, Anne Arundel County leaders, and the state of Maryland, all of which have helped to generate investment and support growth in the local arts community.

Members of the Board of Directors, representing the diversity of Anne Arundel County, serve up to three consecutive two-year terms. They are recruited to bring a breadth of skills and talents to the table, including legal, financial, marketing, management, and entrepreneurial expertise. Artists, arts advocates, and local arts organizations leaders are also represented, to ensure that working artists have a voice is at every level of leadership. Board members are actively engaged in Anne Arundel County Arts Council operations, and are required to belong to at least two standing committees. These bodies focus on either organizational oversight, including Finance, Government Relations, Governance, Marketing, and Personnel, or program delivery, such as the Annie Awards, Arts in Education, Exhibits, Gala, and Grants.

Over the last decade, the Arts Council of Anne Arundel County has tripled its annual investment in the local arts community. We have greatly expanded our grant programs, helped to create an Arts District in the city of Annapolis, provided support to myriad individual artists, and partnered with public and private local schools to bring the creative and performing arts to our elementary, middle, and high school students.

The COVID-19 pandemic devastated the local arts community. ACAAC was able to step in to help by diverting strategic funds to provide immediate economic relief. Working with County Executive Steuart Pittman, In 2020 the Arts Council received a CARES Act allocation of $1,000,000, which was regranted to 77 artists and 54 arts organization to help offset the pandemic's impacts. In 2022, partnering with Anne Arundel County and the Maryland State Arts Council, ACAAC will againbe offering emergency support grants to both artists and arts organizations, accelerating the recovery of our art community.

Looking at the next ten years, ACAAC is working strategically to expand our reach within the local community. New initiatives will broaden inclusivity in the arts through education, training, and outreach. We will continue to support increased diversity, accessibility, and multiculturalism among our artists and performers, arts organization administrators and leaders, and most importantly, our audience. We know that in unity, there is strength. Working together, we can realize our vision of creating a vibrant cultural arts community that enriches the quality of life for every Anne Arundel County resident.