VAC: Creative Aging Grants

The Vermont Arts Council offers Creative Aging Grants to support non-profits in providing skill-based arts instruction for older adults aged 60 and above. Grants of up to $6,000 can be used for projects that foster social engagement and community building through the arts. Priority is given to projects led by Vermont artists that align with the Council's creative aging approach. This initiative aims to enhance emotional well-being and strengthen social bonds among older adults.

Creative Aging grants support skill-based instruction alongside opportunities for social engagement and community building in and through the arts for older adults. Applicants to the Creative Aging grant program are non-profits with 501(c)(3) status, such as arts organizations, area agencies on aging, or social service organizations for example.
Organizations may apply for up to $6,000 to support activities designed for older adults aged 60+ led by experienced teaching artists.
Priority is given to projects facilitated by Vermont artists and to projects that link with the Council’s approach to creative aging in Vermont. On the Council’s Creative Aging Teaching Artist Roster, applicants may find a list of Vermont artists who have trained with Lifetime Arts to design creative aging programs that include skill-based instructional lessons and intentional social engagement opportunities. Other experienced teaching artists can be found on the Council’s general Teaching Artist Roster. Applicants may submit proposals for projects led by teaching artists not on the roster. Teaching artist fees vary from artist to artist.
Example projects may include:

• hiring a teaching artist to lead a series of photography workshops with a local senior center

hiring a teaching artist to lead remote workshops for older adults in their homes, supplying materials, providing opportunities for social engagement, and giving support to caregivers
hiring teaching artists or mentors to work with older adults to capture and/or create a series of stories or poems at a local library, arts organization, or community center
Vermont Creative Aging | FY2024 Guidelines
Creative Aging grants support organizations in providing skill-based activities that engage older adults in artistic creation and intentional social engagement for older adults. Organizations may apply for up to $6,000 to support activities designed for older adults aged 60+ led by experienced teaching artists. Fundable project activities take place between January 1, 2024, and August 31, 2024.
Our Approach to Creative Aging:
Research points to the power of Creative Aging activities in improving emotional well-being, supporting both physical and cognitive health, strengthening social bonds, and bringing both purpose and joy to older adults.
Vermont’s vision for an age-friendly state highlights the critical importance of providing accessible and affordable opportunities for older adults to share their time, joy, wisdom, and talents through creative connections. It also centers partnerships to provide a coordinated system of support, which may include, for example, organizations such as local arts and culture organizations, libraries or other community organizations, Senior Centers, Area Agencies on Aging, or Adult Day Services.
This program is supported, in part, by the E.A. Michelson Foundation and the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies which place emphasis on a learning model (rather than a health intervention model). This approach:
respects the capabilities of older adults by challenging them to develop artistic skills offers sequential arts instruction in a sustained and organized fashion deepens social engagement for older adults, including caregivers employs teaching artists (including older adults) to design and deliver arts programs for older adults

Eligibility

Who May Apply:Vermont nonprofit organizations, educational institutions, agencies of state government, counties, and municipalities are eligible to apply. This includes arts organizations, senior centers, and area agencies on aging. Collaborations with or among such organizations are welcomed.

Ineligibility

Who May Not Apply:IndividualsOrganizations with outstanding or incomplete reporting for any Vermont Arts Council grant