Apply for your $500 grant before October 1

Assistant Director of the St Johns Cultural Council, Kathe O’Donnelly, announced to Historic City News that the deadline is quickly approaching for those interested in applying for a micro-grant of up to $500; funded by the sale of Florida’s State of the Arts vehicle license plates.

Funds collected through the sale of these specialty plates, created by an act of the Legislature in 1994 and first issued on February 1, 1995, are distributed to the counties where the plates are sold. Each county must designate a recipient organization to administer the funds to support arts activities within that county. In St Johns County, that organization would be the St Johns Cultural Council.

“The Council is especially interested in arts education and outreach to under-served areas,” O’Donnelly told reporters. “Grant applications are limited to non-profit organizations, individual artists, and teachers in St Johns County who apply before October 1st.”

In St Johns County, the Florida Division of Cultural Affairs reports that 7 new tags were sold and 214 renewed during 2011. $4,420 in fees was returned to the county under the Florida Arts License Plate Program that year. As of August 2013, sales and renewals of the Florida Arts License Plate in St Johns County have increased to 380 active tags; generating annual fees of about $7,600.

The Cult Council will review the applications for the next grant cycle and decide who will get the funds. Call them at 904-808-7330 for grant forms, guidelines, and general information or online at www.stjohnsculture.com