HCAC Supporters and Partners
The Hill City Arts Council could not do its work without substantial support from local sponsors—especially for individual programs, like Sculpture in the Hills—and also organizations that provide grants and logistical / advisory support.
STATEWIDE, two organizations serve South Dakotans and their communities through supporting the arts. Both provide programming, information, support, and networking for artists, smaller organizations, schools, and the public. We enjoy programming assistance from the South Dakota Arts Council (SDAC) and South Dakotans for the Arts (SoDA).
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SDAC is a state agency housed within the Department of the Tourism, and in addition to sponsoring programming, it also provides grants to individuals and organizations. Council members are appointed by the governor, and they advise the SDAC staff. Not only does HCAC apply to SDAC for annual funding for programming, but also individual artists can apply to SDAC for professional development grants, and schools can sign up to have Touring Artists visit for week-longresidencies. Finally, SDAC is the administrator of the South Dakota Art in State Buildings Collection, an exciting opportunity for visual artists. Click here for more information on this program. |
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SoDA provides information to assist organizations like ours; it also supports efforts to encourage arts in education, as well as advocating for the arts in the state legislature. Because of these three areas of focus, SoDA staff and its board spend time working with the legislature, making sure to educate Congressional members about how the arts contribute to the economy, how SDAC’s funding funnels through the NEA, the state, and local arts organizations—and, importantly, how sponsor dollars translate to economic impact. Potential council members are invited to participate by the current Board. SoDA also produces two publications, Arts Alive—a monthly print newsletter—and CANMail—a monthly electronic newsletter—as well as acting as the umbrella organization for two important action committees:
The Hill City Arts Council is a member of both SDAC and SoDA, and we participate in a variety of programs that benefit our local area. Some of our favorite programs include:
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AT THE REGIONAL LEVEL, Arts Midwest is our umbrella organization—our region's section of the National Endowment for the Arts. We are currently partnering with Arts Midwest to offer Arts Midwest World Fest, an international program in which music ensembles from around the world travel to the midwest, one city per state every two years. Hill City's schedule includes Egypt (October 2011), Israel (May 2012), Bali (September 2012), and China (March 2013). Click here for more information on World Fest. |
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AND ON THE NATIONAL LEVEL, we apply directly to the National Endowment for the Arts larger programming grants, such as one we received to conduct Inside-Out: Transforming the Built Environment, an architecture symposium held in 2010. We hope to implement another NEA grant in upcoming programming meant to expand the reach of Sculpture in the Hills. |
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Also on the national level is an amazing organization called Americans for the Arts, which serves more than 150,000 organizational and individual members and stakeholders. It provides its members with data and research to support their programming, and focuses on four primary goals:
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