February 10, 2006

Arts Council Silicon Valley puts the arts in little hands

From a baby’s first lullaby to a 5 –year-old’s performance of a favorite story, the arts play a significant role in a child’s cognitive, motor, language, and social/emotional development. Access to developmentally appropriate arts experiences is critical for all young children at all ability levels.

Arts Council Silicon Valley and FIRST 5 Santa Clara County today announced the recipients of the Arts Enrichment Grant (AEG) Program to provide early education arts experiences at 20 preschools and community sites throughout Santa Clara County. More than $120,000 in total funding was awarded to five artists and seven community arts organizations to serve more than 1,500 children under the age of 6.

“FIRST 5 Santa Clara County is pleased to be able to offer a high-quality, integrated fine arts program for our youngest children,” said Jolene Smith, executive director of FIRST 5 Santa Clara County. “The Commission is committed to ensuring children prenatal through 5 years have the opportunity to experience the arts as they begin their journey of learning.”

In addition to providing hands-on arts programming for young children and increasing the awareness of the importance of early arts education, the AEG Program will help early educators examine opportunities to integrate fine arts learning for young children as part of a comprehensive kindergarten readiness curriculum.

“We know that the arts are a natural way for young children to develop physically, socially and intellectually,” said Bruce W. Davis, executive director of Arts Council Silicon Valley. “Thanks to FIRST 5’s continued support, the Arts Council is able to increase the number of arts enrichment opportunities for our youth.”

The Arts Enrichment Grants recipient artists are:

Mara Beckerman – a music and movement artist from Cupertino working at Kennedy and Hillsdale Head Start programs in San Jose.

Mark Engel – a visual artist from Santa Clara working at Rosemary Elementary School Family Learning Center in Campbell and Hellyer Head Start in San Jose.

Kristen Kusanovich – a dancer from Santa Clara working at Parkway Child Development Center and McKinley Head Start in San Jose.

Gertrud Turner – a visual artist from Mt. Hamilton working at Estrella Family Services in San Jose.

Olga Loya – a storyteller from San Jose working at Leavsely and Del Buono child centers in Gilroy.

The Arts Enrichment Grants community arts organization recipients are:

Association of Viet Arts (AVA), San Jose – a nonprofit organization dedicated to cultivating, nurturing and promoting Vietnamese American Arts.

Community School of Music and Arts (CSMA), Mountain View – enhances the quality by engaging our community in high-quality arts education, performances and exhibitions.

Kaisahan, San Jose – a Filipino dance company dedicated to the promotion and preservation of Filipino culture through dance and music.

Oriki Theatre, Mountain View – a nonprofit community-based theater that provides opportunities for shared experience of the real Africa, its people and their way of life through a unique combination of dance, drama, music, poetry, chants, folk stories, and the drum.

Triton Museum of Art, Santa Clara (TMA) – The Triton Museum of Art exists both to embrace and expand the lives of the people of Santa Clara County and the Greater Bay Area through a program of art, education and community involvement.

Young Audiences, San Jose (YA) – The mission of Young Audiences, San Jose is to make the arts - classical, contemporary and multicultural - an essential part of every child’s education and life.

Zohar Dance Company, Palo Alto - Zohar is dedicated to promoting dance as an art form in the community and as a catalyst for personal development and academic achievement in youth.

“We strongly believe that this program is a step in the right direction,” said Yolanda Garcia, Director of E3 Institute. “By the time children enter into kindergarten, many are already behind academically and socially. By providing arts experiences to our youth early on, we can help build the foundation for future successes.”

FIRST 5 Santa Clara County has funded the Arts Council Silicon Valley, Cultural Initiative Silicon Valley, San Jose Public Library, and Wolftrap Institute for Early Learning to work in collaboration with the FIRST 5-funded E3 Institute to conduct this AEG Program.

About Arts Council Silicon Valley
Founded in 1982, Arts Council Silicon Valley is an independent, nonprofit arts agency dedicated to providing funding and advocacy support, and fundraising and marketing services to the region’s arts organizations and artists. As the official state/local partner with the California Arts Council and the County of Santa Clara, Arts Council Silicon Valley is now the largest nonprofit arts council in the state. Over the past 13 years, the Arts Council has distributed nearly $8 million to local arts and cultural organizations, individual artists, schools, and community groups.