Norman Arts Seeks Part-Time Gallery Assistant

THIS POSITION HAS BEEN FILLED

Norman Arts Council is hiring a part-time gallery assistant to join the team in supporting and showcasing the local arts landscape.

This is a front-facing position with the NAC and will interact with visitors to our space, arts organizations within our community, artists within our community, and, of course, with the NAC staff and board. The Gallery Assistant reports directly to the Executive Director.

This is a part-time salaried position paying $22,000 annually. It includes generous paid holidays including a full week for Thanksgiving and two weeks in December/January. In addition, the position is eligible for paid time off beginning with the third month of employment. The NAC has a very flexible paid time off policy that allows for staff to take personal, sick, and family leave as needed.

Hours for the position are Wednesday – Saturday from 10:00am – 4:00pm. Evenings are not required but may be asked in exchange for comp time if employee is available.

Applications are due by 5 p.m. Friday, September 9. Interviews for finalists will be held later that month with the position set to begin on Wednesday, October 19, 2022.

Norman Arts Accepting Fall 2022 Arts Education Scholarship Applications for Norman Students

Norman Arts Council is opening the application window for the Fall 2022 Arts Education Scholarships. These scholarships are intended to provide Norman children with the opportunity to attend arts programming that is offered outside of schools. 

Applicants may use funding — up to $500 — for any arts education program of their choosing beyond what local schools are able to provide, including but not limited to visual art instruction, music lessons, vocal and theater coaching and more.

Priority is given to low income applicants and families facing a hardship, but any student (grades K-12) who lives or attends school in Norman is eligible to apply.

Applications are currently set to be due at 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, August 31.

Learn more with the full guidelines below and apply here.

APPLICATION DEADLINE: 

FALL 2022 Programs – Applications are available on August 9, 2022 and are due by 11:59 p.m. on Wednesday, August 31, 2022!

Note: Please read application guidelines thoroughly to ensure timely completion of all requirements!

ELIGIBILITY: The Norman Arts Council invites students in grades K-12th who live or go to school in Norman, Oklahoma to apply for a scholarship to offset the cost of an arts education experience provided by an established arts organization or educator.

APPLICATIONS: NAC guidelines and criteria should be followed carefully.  Only Applications submitted through the on-line process will be considered for funding. Applications must be 100% completed for consideration. "I don't know" or "unsure" answers will deem an incomplete application.

SELECTION CRITERIA:  The NAC is seeking applications for scholarships from students who:

  • express a strong desire to enhance their arts education experience beyond what is offered in schools, demonstrates a past commitment to visual or performing arts, or a student that a parent, guardian or teacher deems the child could benefit from an arts experience

  • have the ability to commit to the completion of the program

  • have a financial need that prevents them from funding the tuition themselves

  • priority will be given to low income applicants or families facing a hardship

  • $500 is the maximum award a single student will be granted for a single program

  • Applications must be 100% completed

Applicants will not be turned down for not meeting ALL of the criteria. It is encouraged, however, to try to meet as many as possible and to address the criteria directly in the proposal.

AWARDS:  Award notification will be by email. Due to limited funds, applicants may not receive the full funding requested and/or may not receive any funding at this time.  Oftentimes, our requests far exceed our budget each semester.

DISBURSEMENT OF FUNDS:  Upon award notification and receipt of the signed scholarship agreement, the Norman Arts Council will give the awarded funds directly to the organization or individual implementing the program applied for on behalf of the student. Should the program be cancelled for any reason by the organization or individual implementing the program, the funds will be returned to the Norman Arts Council’s scholarship program and may be applied for during the next cycle.

COMMITMENT TO PROGRAM:  Upon award notification, the student’s parent or legal guardian will receive a scholarship agreement that states they will commit to ensuring the student’s regular attendance to the program. If the student fails to attend at least 75% of the program, the student will be asked to withdraw; any remaining funds will be returned to the Norman Arts Council’s scholarship program; and the student will not be eligible in the future.

AVAILABILITY OF FUNDS:  The total amount of scholarship funds available may be awarded to one applicant or divided among multiple applicants. The Norman Arts Council reserves the right to not award any scholarships should there be a lack of qualified candidates or shortage of scholarship funds.

LIABILITY:  Award recipients and their guardians agree to indemnify and hold harmless the NAC, its employees, its agents, and its Board of Directors, in connection with any action, claim, lawsuit, charge, or proceeding, including but not limited to any civil action in State or Federal Court, or before any State or Federal agency, which is made or brought against recipients, NAC, and/or any of NAC's employees, agents, or board members, by any person or entity, based upon and/or arising out of a recipient's use of the funds.

APPEALS:  Any applicant who is denied a scholarship in whole or in part may only appeal directly to the NAC Education Committee on the following grounds: 1) discrimination against the applicant or its membership on the basis of: race, color, national origin, gender, religion, age, or disability, which is shown to have materially and adversely affected the outcome of their application; 2) illegal activity on the part of the Education Committee or a member of the Education Committee, which is shown to have materially and adversely affected the outcome of their application. 

Norman Arts Council Seeks New Grants Review Panelists for 2023-2024 Grant Cycle

Norman Arts Council is seeking new Norman community members to serve on the grants review panel. Panelists will review grant submissions to insure applications are in compliance with Norman Arts grants guidelines and to make award recommendations.

It’s an important role in supporting and empowering our local arts organizations while also guiding the overall cultural landscape into a more diverse, equitable, impressive and attractive one.

The work of grants review panelists involves three required meetings from January through March, along with electronic review of all submitted applications (approx. 25-30) at home.

Grant panelists will receive a $100 honorarium.

Applications are due by Wednesday, November 30, 2022.

Artists Receive Funding for Arts Travel Thanks to Norman Arts

Two Norman artists will be given the opportunity to attend a renowned workshop and hands-on learning experience abroad, respectively, thanks to the Norman Arts Travel Grants program. Selected from a talented pool of deserving artists, Alejandro Vaca and Wesley Kramer will receive $1,500 each to fund exciting opportunities in their artistic journey in the months ahead.

Alejandro Vaca at work

Alejandro Vaca, a fashion designer, will use the funds to travel to his native land of Ecuador to learn traditional weaving techniques form the Salasacas community. He plans to bring his newly learned skills back to his studio in Norman and present demos and interactions with this unique technique.

A print by Wesley Kramer displayed at his recent exhibition at MAINSITE Contemporary Art

Wesley Kramer is a printmaker featured in the OU MFA Thesis exhibit at MAINSITE in April 2022. Wesley will use the travel funds to attend Frogman’s Printmaking workshop in Omaha, Nebraska. He will display his thesis work and lead a printmaking class. This experience will help him prepare for his new role as an adjunct professor of art.

Administered by the Norman Arts Council, the arts travel grant fund was designed to benefit artists of demonstrated merit and ability, providing the opportunity and freedom of travel. Since 2014, Oklahoma artists Marwin Begaye, Douglas Shaw Elder, Sarah Engel-Barnett, Skip Hill, Debby Kaspari, Mayumi Kiefer, Solomon Mahlatini, Beatriz Mayorca, Eric Piper, Liz Roth, Craig Swan and Holly Wilson have been able to travel to conferences, retreats and journeys of inspiration across the world because of awards from the fund, spreading Oklahoma’s creativity to others in the process. 

Norman Arts Council Releases FY 2021-2022 Annual Report

A tumultuous 2020 settled into an eventful and productive 2021 and 2022. Norman Arts Council was able to help aid in the recovery of 25 local arts organizations and events. It featured over 250 artists at MAINSITE Contemporary Art. NAC continued to grow Norman’s public art collection with more on the way, and 2nd Friday Norman Art Walks returned to an in-person event with great crowds.

Read all about everything Norman Arts has been up to, including its operating budget, local impact, board & staff and more below: