The Arts and Education Council is excited to launch the third year of the Arts and Healing Initiative, in partnership with Missouri Foundation for Health. The five-year grant aims to improve the quality of life for people throughout St. Louis City, St. Louis County, and other Missouri counties. The overarching goal of the Arts and Healing Initiative is to increase the capacity to heal through the arts.

Applications for the third cohort are now closed. Please check back for 2023 dates.

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The initiative will provide grants up to $10,000 to 501(c)(3) organizations that have a primary mission that is directly concerned with arts, arts education, healing, and well-being. Program participants will drive a shared process to define arts-based healing over the course of the initiative. The Arts and Education Council defines healing as a transformative process of meaning, well-being or wholeness that reduces suffering or other factors that contribute to a low quality of life.

The Arts and Education Council has created an advisory panel comprised of leaders in the arts, healthcare and research fields to guide the development of this new initiative. The Arts and Healing Initiative Advisory Panel includes: Rebeccah Bennett, InPower Institute; Dr. Jeffrey Carter, Missouri Baptist Medical Center; Marty Casey, Show Me Arts Academy; Aaron Chamberlain, Washington University; Dr. Debbie Depew, St. Luke’s Medical Group; Vicki Friedman, Arts as Healing Foundation; Deidre Griffith, SSM Health; David Gutmann, Washington University Neurofibromatosis Center; Dr. Ken Haller, Saint Louis University; Dr. Terry Harris, Rockwood School District; Shawn Hayden, MO Southwest Initiative to Change Health; Kisha Lee, CareSTL; Dr. Melinda Novik, Missouri State University; Aaron Rogers, Health Equity Consultant and Sheila Suderwalla, Artists First.

Applications will be evaluated by the Arts and Healing Advisory Panel.

If you have questions regarding this initiative, please contact  Jessireé Jenkins, manager of grants and programs, at Jessiree-J@KeepArtHappening.org or 314.289.4015.