In addition to their recent approval and funding from the City of Savannah for their alternative Savannah-Safe Jazz Festival 2020, Savannah Jazz was awarded a Resiliency Grant by the Georgia Council for the Arts (GCA), a division of the Georgia Department of Economic Development. Sixty-three Georgia arts organizations in all 14 Congressional districts will receive a one-time competitive grant funded through the Coronavirus Aid, Relief, and Economic Security (CARES) Act. As a State Arts Agency, the Georgia Council for the Arts was designated to distribute these ‘Resiliency Grant’ funds from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to help sustain Georgia’s nonprofit arts sector. 

“Georgia arts organizations are an economic engine, and a collective of visionary leadership that has brought us together as one community, to heal, remember, confront challenges, and triumphantly celebrate joy. They comprise an industry devastated by COVID-19 and worth supporting and fighting for,” said Georgia Council for the Arts Executive Director Karen Paty. “We are grateful for the federal support of this essential industry, and while we wish we were able to support all of the organizations that sought this support, we are delighted to be able to fund a small portion of a resiliency plan for the 63 organizations that we are able to fund.” 

In April, the NEA awarded 40% of the agency’s funding provided by Congress in the CARES Act, nearly $30 million, to state and territorial arts agencies and regional arts organizations for their funding programs to ensure wide distribution throughout the country. Georgia received $507,900 in CARES Act funding, which Georgia Council for the Arts utilized for its Resiliency Grant. An additional $60,000 was awarded to GCA from South Arts to support rural and/or culturally specific organizations through this program. One hundred and seventy-one organizations submitted applications for this grant program, requesting a total of $1.78 M. Georgia Council for the Arts today announced recipients of these competitive grants to nonprofit arts organizations across Georgia. 

“We at Savannah Jazz are so grateful to receive the Georgia Council for the Arts’ Resiliency Grant during these times of great need for the arts in America. Our offices have been closed for the most part because we have not been able to raise funds for many months and have lost several corporate sponsors. The grant will help us fund staff and overhead to produce our ambitious Savannah-Safe Jazz Festival 2020, educational programs, monthly concerts, and continue work on the upcoming Savannah Jazz History and Hall of Fame Exhibit,” said Interim Executive Director, Paula Fogarty. 

Upon review of applications, final selections were determined by Peer Review Panels, which included fellow professionals who are experienced in the arts discipline or type of grant being reviewed; or are Georgia citizens with a record of involvement in arts activities, experience and knowledge.