FY 2019-2020 In Review

The Warren County Arts Council has had a busy year for our all-volunteer board. And like every other non-profit, small business, and family in our state and in our nation, we have had some curve balls thrown at us with COVID-19 that impacted programming that was either already scheduled or in the works to be scheduled. Despite all of that, the Warren County Arts Council has continued to evolve and grow. As we move into FY 2020-2021, we wanted to share some highlights from this last year.

One of our flagship programs is our participation in the North Carolina Arts Council's Grassroots Program. Each year, the Warren County Arts Council applies for a Grassroots grant from the state; we then subgrant a majority of the funds to local organizations for arts programming, keeping 20% or less for our own programming and operating costs. The grant requires a 25% match from each organization, including the Warren County Arts Council.

Grassroots funding this year (FY 2019-2020):

Total investment in arts programming in Warren County through the Grassroots program for FY 2019-2020 (grant funding + 25% match) equals $12,366. We are still hopeful that COVID-19 restrictions won't impede the outcomes of the funded programs, but the state has a plan in place for those funds to stay in the county no matter what.

Another step we took as an Arts Council this year was to establish a committee in partnership with Warren County Schools and Preservation Warrenton in an effort to develop a plan for 4 historically significant paintings owned by Warren County Schools.

Kate Pendleton Arrington, Warrenton native and founding president of the North Carolina Arts Society (which launched the NC Art Museum), donated these 4 paintings to John Graham High School in Warrenton, NC in 1926. It was an effort to get more art into the school system. The school system still owns the paintings, but they sit in storage and are in need of restoration repairs. The Arts Council asked the school system to establish a committee to work toward the restoration and future display of these paintings.

Another highlight from the year is that we worked with Warren County Emergency Services to select a piece of art to represent Warren County at the NC Emergency Operations Center in Raleigh.

We also had two new members join the Arts Council this year. Welcome, Drew Cardwell (our Treasurer) and Candy White! They have both been great additions to our team.

We hope to continue these same programs in FY 21, as well as bring more arts programming to Warren County, but we need the support of our community to get this done.