"Stanford’s dedication to music education and its impact on the students accessing Play On Philly is unquestionable. His understanding that the arts are a tool for social and community change makes him an ideal honoree for the ACLA Award."

Romona Riscoe Benson

Chair, Mid Atlantic Arts

Stanford Thompson Receives the

2021 Alan Cooper Leadership in the

Arts Award

Philadelphia musician and educator, Stanford Thompson, was presented with the 2021 Alan Cooper Leadership in the Arts Award during a virtual award event on Friday, February 11 during Mid Atlantic Arts' winter board meeting. The Alan Cooper Award recognizes an active arts leader who has demonstrated outstanding leadership in the arts sector within the mid-Atlantic region.

Stanford Thompson serves as the Founder and Executive Director of Play On Philly and founding member of El Sistema USA and the National Instrumentalist Mentoring and Advancement Network. Recognized as a TED Fellow, Stanford believes that music education is a powerful tool for positive personal and community change. Mr. Thompson serves on the faculty of the Global Leaders Program and regularly presents at major universities and music conservatories about leadership, entrepreneurship and social justice. As a consultant, he has guided the development of dozens of music programs across the United States and collaborated with major orchestras, higher education institutions, and arts organizations to develop new strategies and initiatives that help provide equitable access to the arts. As a professional trumpeter, Stanford has performed as a soloist and member with major orchestras around the world and continues to perform throughout the Philadelphia region. Stanford is a native of Atlanta, GA, a graduate of the Atlanta Symphony Orchestra’s Talent Development Program and holds degrees from The Curtis Institute of Music and the New England Conservatory’s Sistema Fellows Program.

Previous Alan Cooper Award recipients include: Rebecca Medrano (2020), Julia Olin (2019), and Michael L. Royce (2018).

Nominations for the 2022 Award will open this summer. For more information, please review the program guidelines.

USArtists International Round Three Deadline!

Wednesday, March 30, 2022

USArtists International (USAI) provides grants of up to $18,000 to performing artists and ensembles that have been invited to perform at international festivals and global performing arts marketplaces outside of the United States. USAI currently accepts applications for support of both in-person and virtual engagements.

The next deadline to apply is March 30, 2022 for engagements taking place between July 1, 2022 and June 30, 2023.

The 2022-2023 USAI guidelines and deadlines will be available in summer 2022.

Photo: USArtists International 2021 supported Ragamala Dance Company’s Just Festival (UK) engagement. Here, the Company performs Fires of Varanasi. Credit: Arun Kumar.

Three women perform a traditional Indian dance. They wear bright orange and red traditional Indian dress and stand with their arms raised over their heads palms together. The background is a soft grey.

Delaware Individual Artist Fellows Announced!

Congratulations to our state partners at the Delaware Division of the Arts (DDOA) who recently announced their 2022 Individual Artist Fellows. Mid Atlantic Arts provides administrative services in support of the Fellowships program.

Delaware’s Individual Artist Fellowships recognize artists for their outstanding quality of work and provide monetary awards. In 2022, work samples were submitted from 132 Delaware choreographers; composers; musicians; writers; and folk, media, and visual artists. The work samples were reviewed by out-of-state arts professionals who considered the demonstrated creativity and skill in each artist’s respective art form.

Twenty-five artists were awarded fellowships, including:

Masters Award ($10,000)

Linda Blaskey, Lincoln, Literature: Poetry

Established Professional Award ($6,000)

JoAnn Balingit, Newark, Literature: Creative Nonfiction

Joseph Barbaccia, Georgetown, Visual Arts: Crafts

Tim Broscious, Townsend, Music: Contemporary Performance

Jamie Brunson, Wilmington, Literature: Playwriting

Caleb Curtiss, Newark, Literature: Poetry

t. a. hahn, Middletown, Visual Arts: Sculpture

Jeff Knoettner, Wilmington, Jazz: Performance

Roger Matsumoto, Newark, Visual Arts: Photography

Isai Jess Muñoz, Hockessin, Music: Solo Recital

Mia Muratori, Wilmington, Visual Arts: Painting

Tad Sare, Wilmington, Media Arts: Video/Film

Aaron Terry, Wilmington, Visual Arts: Works on Paper

William Torrey, Middletown, Literature: Fiction

Emerging Professional Award ($3,000)

Stephanie Boateng, Newark, Visual Arts: Painting

Christina Durborow, Wilmington, Literature: Creative Nonfiction

Kiara Florez, Magnolia, Visual Arts: Painting

Gregory Hammond, Wilmington, Literature: Fiction

Jim Hawkins, Smyrna, Literature: Playwriting

Gail Husch, Wilmington, Visual Arts: Crafts

Alice Morris, Lewes, Literature: Poetry

Maia Palmer, Wilmington, Visual Arts: Works on Paper

TANKSLEY, Middletown, Music: Contemporary Performance

Leanna Thongvong, Dover, Folk Art: Visual Arts

Katie West, Wilmington, Visual Arts: Photography

Guidelines and application for the 2023 Individual Artist Fellowships will be available this spring with a Monday, August 1, 2022 deadline.

Opportunity Quick Links

The J.M. Kaplan Fund’s Furthermore program supports nonfiction book publishing about art, architecture, and design; cultural history, the city, and related public issues; and conservation and preservation. Individual grants ranging from $1,500 to $15,000 may be used to support writing, research, editing, design, indexing, photography, illustration, and/or printing and binding. Deadline: March 1, 2022.

The Ucross Foundation is accepting applications for fall 2022 residencies, which will provide each artist with living accommodations, meals, a workspace, and uninterrupted time so artists can focus on their creative process. The Ucross Residency Program is open to visual artists, writers, composers, choreographers, interdisciplinary artists, and performance artists, as well as collaborative teams. Both mature and emerging artists are welcome to apply. Deadline: March 1, 2022.

The Houston Center for Contemporary Craft is inviting applications for its Artist Residency Program, which will support artists working in clay, fiber, glass, metal, wood, and mixed media. Deadline: March 1, 2022.

The Guild of Carillonneurs in North America invites applications to the Ronald Barnes Memorial Fund, which was established in 1998 to honor Barnes's extraordinary contributions to the art of carillon in North America. Grants of up to $13,632 (depending on the number of successful applicants) will be awarded to individuals pursuing studies in North American carillon performance, composition, music history, or instrument design. Deadline: March 1, 2022.

The Chautauqua School of Art residency program is a centerpiece of the Chautauqua Visual Arts (CVA) and is an incubator of inclusive and expansive programming in the visual arts composed of workshops and one-on-one time with mentors covering all media. The residency program is open to all. Deadline: March 2, 2022.

The Jim Henson Foundation is inviting applications for the creation and development of new, innovative works of live puppet theater through three funding mechanisms. Production grants, workshop grants, and family grants, all vary in grant amount. Deadline: March 7, 2022 (Letters of Intent)

The Ms. Foundation for Women has issued its 2022 RFP for the Asian Women Giving Circle, Women, Arts & Progressive Social Change program, which adheres to the belief that culture can play an essential role in any strategy for social change and supports Asian-American women-led organizations and individual artists in New York City who are using arts and culture to bring about progressive social transformation and raise awareness and catalyze action around critical issues that affect Asian American women, girls, and families. Deadline: March 11, 2022.

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