FORT WAYNE, Ind. – The Jesters program of the University of Saint Francis has been awarded a $30,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).
The award is a $5,000 increase over the NEA’s support last year. The grant is another illustration of the continuing value of the program, which is recognized locally and nationally. Sponsored by the University of Saint Francis since 1978, the Jesters is a performing group of people with developmental disabilities, supported in part by the National Endowment for the Arts.
“USF and the Jesters team continues to appreciate the opportunities this funding provides Jesters participants, as well as the credibility it gives the Jesters program,” Jesters Director Allison Ballard said.
The Jesters program is made possible by the AWS Foundation, the M.E. Raker Foundation, the Community Foundation of Greater Fort Wayne, the James Foundation, the Indiana Arts Commission and Arts United of Greater Fort Wayne, and the National Endowment for the Arts. To learn more about the Jesters, visit the USF Jesters page.
To find out more about how National Endowment for the Arts grants impact individuals and communities, visit www.arts.gov.
Founded in 1890 in the Catholic Franciscan tradition, the University of Saint Francis offers more than 70 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs through the School of Health Sciences, School of Liberal Arts and Sciences, Keith Busse School of Business and Entrepreneurial Leadership and School of Creative Arts. In addition to its traditional programs, USF designs focused curricula for working adults in Fort Wayne, Crown Point and online. USF Downtown houses the university’s business and music technology programs while offering enhanced internship and networking opportunities for students. The University of Saint Francis campus experience includes 16 athletic programs boasting two individual and four team NAIA national championships and is recognized as an NAIA Five-Star Champion of Character institution. Approximately 2,200 students from a broad geographic region attend USF.