New funding opportunity available for faculty to integrate arts into curriculum

The Center for the Performing Arts at Penn State invites faculty members to submit proposals for ways to increase curricular engagement with the arts.

Mini grants are available for “The Reflection Project: Looking at Who WE ARE,” which provides opportunities for faculty to integrate the arts into their existing curriculum through supplemental activities, including bringing classes to performances, inviting guest speakers to campus or research travel. 

The core mission of the Center for the Performing Arts’ Mellon-funded WE ARE Project states that by engaging students with the arts, students can more fully discover their identities, understand other points of view, be able to confidently tell their own and others’ stories, and recognize how they fit into the world.

“We are very excited that the funding provided to us by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation allows us to offer this unique opportunity for faculty members to consider new ways of opening their curricula to the possibilities the arts can bring,” center Audience and Program Development Director Amy Dupain Vashaw said.

The Reflection Project is accepting proposals for as much as $2,000 to fund the following activities related to Mellon Foundation-sponsored performances during fall semester 2021: 

• Purchase of tickets for students to attend performances;

• Transportation to and from Commonwealth Campuses to attend performances;

• Research travel as part of the course development process in support of pre- and/or post-performance engagement activities;

• Materials planned for classroom use to support pre- and/or post-performance engagement activities; 

• Stipends to invite complementary artists/speakers into classes to enhance students’ performance experiences.

A question-and-answer session will be conducted via the Zoom online conferencing app at 1 p.m. Wednesday, Feb. 3. Register for the Q&A. 

Find more information about the program. 

Proposal applications are due by 5 p.m. Friday, Feb. 12, with awards to be announced March 10. Apply for a mini grant.