Arts Grants Available from Town of Clayton

Grants to local artists and arts groups are available through the town of Clayton's Cultural Arts Grants Program, which has awarded more than $50,000 to various arts groups in the last few years.

"Our reputation as an arts community depends on the wonderful artists we have in this area, and we want to offer them all the support we can," said Mayor Jody McLeod. "We've awarded more than $50,000 in grants since the program began, and we've been very happy with the results."

Some of the arts groups that have received grants in recent years include Clayton Visual Arts, the Johnston County Chorale, the Clayton Historical Association, the Johnston County Artist Guild, the Clayton High School Band and the Clayton Youth Theater.

Clayton has long supported the arts through special allocation funding, but decided to establish the grant program in an effort to insure an efficient and effective division of its grant money. The Town wanted to strengthen its support of arts organizations and cultural programs, while also promoting diversity and encouraging creativity.

Officials also want to generate more interest in arts programming as well as encourage residents to step forward to lead new cultural arts activities.

For more information, please contact Heidi Stump, Executive Director of The Clayton Center, at 553-3152.