Arts in Academics Grant

The Arts in Academics Grant, endowed by Karel Greenblatt Gertsacov in 2004, supports educational projects that integrate arts into core academic subjects for Rhode Island public school children. Grants ranging from $500 to $1,000 fund collaborations between artists and educators, field trips for hands-on learning, and professional training for teachers to enhance arts literacy. This initiative fosters creativity and engagement in education, emphasizing the importance of the arts as a vital part of the learning process.

In 2004, retired Rhode Island art educator Karel Greenblatt Gertsacov endowed the Arts in Academics Fund to support educational projects that integrate art disciplines into other core academic subjects. Successful Arts in Academics projects create collaborations among artists and educators and promote the arts as an integral part of the learning process.
Grant amounts range from $500 to $1,000. Potential projects might include:
Collaboration between artist and educator: An architect and a math teacher help students learn about scale by reading and using rulers when building a scale model.
Field trips: Students take a trip to the zoo to study symmetrical patterns as they relate to mathematics. (Trips may not be for entertainment purposes, but must serve an academic need.)
Professional training: A teacher attends a workshop or other course in critical/creative problem-solving to expand arts literacy skills and incorporate its principles into other core academic areas.

Eligibility

Any K-12 public or charter school teacher, artist, or nonprofit organization is eligible to apply as long as the proposed project benefits Rhode Island public school children. Grants may be used for stipends, materials, equipment, honorariums, and other costs associated with implementing the project. (Funds may only be used to support performances or exhibitions that are the result of the grant project.)

Ineligibility

This fund is not intended to support performances where students are passive participants. Literacy projects are generally not funded unless they are exceptionally creative and include other core academic subjects.