Colts Third Year As Iowa Arts Council Cultural Leadership Partner With FY2021 Operating Support Grant

August 5, 2020

The Colts Youth Organization was recently honored to receive a Cultural Leadership Partner Operating Support Grant from the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs. The organization received a grant award of $20,000. This is the third and final year of the three-year grant cycle.

Cultural Leadership Partners demonstrate their investment in a rich cultural environment that improves the quality of life for all Iowans. Partners are selected every three years and receive grant funds to support operating costs throughout the three-year cycle. Investments in art, film and history help boost quality of life and promote economic growth, which has become especially important in the midst of the COVID-19 pandemic.

“These funds are critical to help sustain arts, film, heritage and cultural vibrancy across the state and showcase Iowa’s world-class cultural programs and destinations with help from our state’s hard-working artists, historic caretakers and creative business owners,” Chris Kramer, director of the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, said. "It is important that we support our creative economy when this sector needs it more than ever."

The Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs announced in July that it has awarded more than $2 million in grants for art, film, history and culture including much needed operating support funds to help 43 of Iowa's leading nonprofit arts and cultural organizations — recognized as Cultural Leadership Partners by the department — maintain excellence in delivering programs and serving their communities. The Colts were selected because of their exemplary record of programming, managerial excellence and community service on a year-round basis to the citizens of Iowa.

Research shows that investments in arts and culture — in museums, performances and historic buildings, for example — help communities boost tourism, attract businesses, retain workers and improve the overall quality of life for residents. Accordingly, the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs helps Iowans invest in the people, places and points of pride that define our state.

Colts programs serve young people who desire high levels of challenge, achievement and success and they carry an expectation that members are committed to hard work and dedication. The organization has been in continuous existence since their founding in 1963. The Colts are proud to represent Iowans across the country each summer as "Iowa's Ambassadors of Music."

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