Americana Project Arts Outreach Scholarship

Even in this beautiful place, children are struggling. Reasons for their families’ difficulties vary; single-parent homes, an incarcerated family member, homelessness, mental illness and loss of income all contribute to a sense of isolation. Each year, our scholarship program provides access to creative outlets like piano, guitar, dance, drumming and art lessons. But what it does for these children goes far beyond learning a new skill.

As the Americana Project has grown in the public schools, and relationships deepened, it has become clear there are barriers to the arts for certain children. To improve accessibility, Sisters Folk Festival partnered with Family Access Network and created the Americana Project Arts Outreach Scholarship fund (APAOS). Started in 2011, the collaboration opens doors to long-term lessons and intensive arts-related programs.

FAN focuses on basic necessities and access to resources. SFF works on nourishing the creative aspirations of youngsters from pre-school to graduation. Part of surviving and thriving after a rough beginning includes having nurturing relationships. SFF is dedicated to having a positive impact on all Sisters children through the arts. With years of encouraging stories from parents, teachers and mentors, we know creative outlets and achieving goals can make a huge difference in a child’s life.

The children aren’t the only ones who benefit from the program. Arts-related businesses have grown because of increased enrollment. APAOS recipients can attend after-school programs, fee-based public school classes and many other arts-related learning opportunities. Each year the need has grown, and it’s our intention to increase support to match the demand.

Individuals, foundations, businesses and other non-profits help us keep up with the expansion. We invite you to help a struggling child. When they sit down at the piano or strap on their dance shoes, they’ll know there are people who cared enough to pay for their lessons. There are many children in Sisters who received a gift from someone they’ll never meet. But there’s one thing we know for sure: everyone wins when everyone cares.