2019-696-E Arts - Kim Lane arts grant

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DocuSign Envelope ID:53DEBE36-7231-45B8-A7CC-2442AA9665F7 Project/Program The goal of this project is developed in response to what I see as an Summary opportunity to more fully develop Hillsborough's reputation as a robust literary town. That is, to serve not just as a home to well- established bestselling authors and respected university professors, but also to shine a spotlight on talented emerging poets and singer- songwriters--particularly women, people of color, and prodigious high school students currently at work in our community. Hillborough, NC, has become well-known as "America's Little Literary Town," (per the Wall Street Journal, Sept, 2014,) largely thanks to bestselling writers and Hillsborough residents Lee Smith, Jill McCorkle, Alan Gurganis, and others. This reputation has greatly benefited Hillsborough, and undoubtedly contributed to the town's growth and popularity. One reality behind that reputation, however, is that the work of incredibly talented, emerging local writers and singer- songwriters gets lost in the long shadows cast by these notable writers and by marquis literary events at our regional universities. This project seeks to support a yearlong performance series (one event per month) featuring truly local (from central North Carolina) poets, spoken word artists, and singer-songwriters in an "artist in the round" format. There will be intentional focus on spotlighting the voices of local women, nonbinary people on the gender spectrum, and people of color. It will also engage with local (Hillsborough, Carrboro-Chapel Hill, and greater Orange County) high schools to feature emerging young writers. Featuring diversity of age in performers will also be a guiding principle of this arts series. Each event would feature one poet or spoken word artist, and one singer- songwriter, with me serving as event host and artist-in-the-round facilitator with the audience. I have met with Ronda Tucker, director of the Burwell School, and she is enthusiastic about supporting this project by providing a regular venue for the series each month. (She is the person who encouraged me to apply for this grant.) WHUP's radio show"Pass The Hat" is also a press supporter of this project, as well as an opportunity pipeline for emerging singer-songwriters. I have researched interest among artists for the series, and it has been high among those who regularly perform at Durham's Hayti Center, Winston-Salem's Word of Mouth Society, writers involved with the West End Poetry Festival, and the North Carolina Songwriters Co-Op. I am also a gifted education specialist and longtime educator in the Chapel Hill-Carrboro Schools, and am a supporter and mentor for some of the groups who nurture Orange County's young writers. This project proposes to fill what I see as being an opportunity gap between emerging and established local writers, and is committed to featuring diverse voices in one of Hillsborough's most valued venues. With the support of this grant, I would like to build widespread community support for its continued sustainability into 2020 and beyond.