State Funding Keeps the Arts Alive in Westchester and Rockland

Though the COVID-19 pandemic has thrown the cultural sector a curveball, the arts will come alive again throughout both Westchester and Rockland Counties in the coming year. ArtsWestchester’s Arts Alive grant program will help to fund projects by 50 arts groups and artists, making the arts accessible to every resident and countless visitors. This year’s application pool included 20 first-time applicants.

From public murals with a social message to dance classes that are tailored for special needs participants, the Arts Alive program champions local, grassroots arts groups and supports artists in the creation of new work. This aligns with ArtsWestchester’s restated commitment to equity and access, as the intention of the funding is to support programs that provide access to the arts. However, the plethora of proposals also speaks to the perseverance of the arts, and the creative communities that Rockland and Westchester have reinforced during the pandemic. Included among the grantees is: 

Greenburgh Public Library’s World Music Concert Series will showcase various genres of music by Westchester musicians, thereby providing the audience with an opportunity to explore the diverse cultures of the world through music.

Hudson Valley Mural Arts is a Rockland-based project that partners local artists with venues for mural projects.  The project, which is dedicated to educating youth artists through muralism “seeks to create an experiential and enriching program for future generations of artists.”

Chiku Awali African Dance, Arts & Culture in Rockland offers African dancing and drumming classes in-person and on Zoom.

Young at Arts’s education program at Amani Charter School provides comprehensive music education to “encourage young people to expand their horizons and build character, leadership and commitment through music, drama and movement.”

Here is a full list of this year’s Arts Alive grantees:

Adina Andrus (Port Chester)

Alice Mizrachi (West Nyack)

Andrew Algire (Valley Cottage)

Antonia Arts, Inc. (Peekskill)

ArchForKids (Harrison)

Arts and Culture Committee, Town 

of Greenburgh (Greenburgh)

Asbury Crestwood United Methodist

Church (Tuckahoe)

BridgeMusik, Inc., (Tappan)

Brooklyn Demme (Nyack)

Chiku Awali African Dance, Arts &  
  Culture, Inc. (Suffern)

Commemorate (Irvington)

David Simons (Chesnut Ridge)

Emotions Physical Theatre (Suffern)

Friends of Chappaqua Performing Art
  Center (Chappaqua)

Gooseberry Studio (Rye / Yonkers)

Greenburgh Public Library, 

(Greenburgh)

Haifa Bint-Kadi (Yonkers)

Igor Sharapanyuk (New City)

InVision U, Inc (New Rochelle)

Irvington Shakespeare Company 

(Irvington)

JCC of Mid-Westchester (Scarsdale/

New Rochelle)

Jeff Watkins (Pelham)

Just the Place, Inc. (Peekskill)

Katonah Village Library (Katonah)

Katonah-Bedford Hills-Bedford 

Village Arts League (Katonah)

Kris Campbell (Tappan)

Kyle Dries (Mamaroneck)

Limelight Theatre Company
  (Chappaqua)

Mia Brownell (Port Chester)

Miguel Braceli / VAEA New 

Rochelle (New Rochelle)

New Westchester Symphony 

Orchestra, Inc. (White Plains)

Northern Star Quilters’ Guild, LLC 

(Somers)

Nowodworski Foundation

(Port Chester)

Nowodworski Foundation, 

(Yonkers)

Pamela Sklar (Port Chester / Rye)

P-CoC Inc | Parenting Children of 

Color (Hasting on Hudson)

Peekskill Arts Alliance (Peekskill)

Porter Carroll, Jr. (Greenburgh)

Ray Blue (Peekskill)

REALM: Recognizing Enslaved Africans
  of Larchmont Mamaroneck     
  (Mamaroneck)

RISEUP: Research Initiatives for the 

Strategic Empowerment of Urban 

Populace (Mount Vernon)

River’s Edge Theatre Company, Inc. 

(Hasting on Hudson)

Rockland Arts Festival (Bardonia)

Rockland County Pride Center (Nyack)

Savannah Green (Palisades)

Shunzo Ohno (Briarcliff Manor) 

Westchester Public /Private  Partnership for Aging Services
  (Yonkers)
Westchester Youth Alliance  
  (Chappaqua)

Yonkers Public Library/Riverfront Art 

Gallery (Yonkers)

Young at Arts (and school partner:
  Amani Public Charter School)

(Bronxville / Mount Vernon)

Arts Alive Grants are made possible with funds from the Statewide Community Regrants Program, a regrant program of the New York State Council on the Arts with the support of the Office of the Governor and the New York State Legislature and administered by ArtsWestchester.

A version of this article first appeared in the April 2022 issue of ArtsNews, ArtsWestchester’s monthly publication. ArtsNews is distributed throughout Westchester County. A digital copy is also available at artsw.org/artsnews.