NEA awards $25,000 grant to Jesters of University of Saint Francis

FORT WAYNE, Ind.—The Jesters program at the University of Saint Francis is pleased to announce it has been approved by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) to receive a Grants for Arts Projects award of $25,000.

The grant is one of 1,474 Grants for Arts Projects awards of more than $36 million throughout all 50 states. 

Jesters, sponsored by Saint Francis since 1978, offers customized, interdisciplinary performing arts opportunities to people with mild to severe intellectual/developmental disabilities (IDD), ages 8 through senior citizens. The core program meets at Saint Francis each Saturday from September to March and culminates in an original interdisciplinary performance co-created by teaching artists and participants. This year’s performances will be March 8 and 9 in the North Campus Auditorium.

“The Jesters program wishes to express its gratefulness for the support of the NEA,” Jesters Program Director Allison Ballard said. “These funds help enable us to continue our mission with the Jesters, offering the chance to co-create performance art with people with intellectual/developmental disabilities. It takes many people working together to produce the magic that is Jesters. Funding from the NEA and other sources makes that possible.”

“The NEA is proud to continue our nearly 60 years of supporting the efforts of organizations and artists that help to shape our country’s vibrant arts sector and communities of all types across our nation,” said NEA Chair Maria Rosario Jackson, Ph.D. “It is inspiring to see the wide range of creative projects taking place—those that address our past and help us consider our future, integrate arts and culture in new ways into our lives and communities, and provide powerful opportunities for people throughout our nation to come together through a shared arts experience.”

Each year, the NEA assembles panels of experts and knowledgeable laypeople with relevant expertise and experience to review NEA applications and rate them in accordance with published review criteria. More than 340 panelists reviewed the eligible applications for this round of funding. Recommendations were then presented to the National Council on the Arts. The council made its recommendations to the NEA Chair, who made the final decision on all grant awards.

Founded in 1890 in the Catholic Franciscan tradition, the University of Saint Francis offers more than 60 undergraduate, graduate and doctoral programs through the College of Health Sciences and the College of Arts, Sciences, and Business. In addition to its traditional programs, Saint Francis designs focused curricula for working adults in Fort Wayne, Crown Point and online. USF Downtown houses the music technology program while offering enhanced internship and networking opportunities for students. The University of Saint Francis, recognized as an NAIA Five-Star Champion of Character institution, has 20 athletic programs boasting two individual and four team NAIA national championships. Approximately 1,800 students from a broad geographic region attend Saint Francis.