Sunday, February 3, 2002

By ROBERT BAXTER
Courier-Post Staff

Honoring its commitment to award South Jersey one fourth of its funds, the New Jersey State Council on the Arts announced three new initiatives at its meeting in New Brunswick on Tuesday.

The initiatives meet the needs the council discovered on a listening tour of South Jersey last spring after the Courier-Post revealed funding inequities between arts groups in the northern and southern halves of the state. The three programs will be paid from the more than $500,000 that remains in South Jersey's $5 million share of the council's $20 million appropriation from the Legislature.

The first initiative starts a four-year grant program that will provide funds for South Jersey arts groups to hire new staff.

Grants will also be available to increase staff hours and salaries.

The council invites South Jersey arts groups to submit proposals.

Grants will be approved in May.

The arts council also approved two requests for proposals for projects that will benefit the southern region.

The council is seeking a partner to design and implement a research study of cultural facilities in South Jersey.

The council is also requesting a proposal to design a technical-assistance program for South Jersey arts groups.

"It's clear to me they listened very clearly to the suggestions and recommendations that came out of our meeting last spring," says Mark Packer, the executive director of the Appel Farm in Elmer. "These are the most important issues we raised, and the council is responding to them."

Barry Taylor, president of Wheaton Village in Millville, is excited by the staffing initiative. Taylor searched for a development director for almost a year before recently hiring Claire Morris of Woodbury.

"South Jersey arts groups have trouble competing for highly trained professionals," notes Taylor. "Most want to live in an urban area and all expect more money than we can afford to pay them. This initiative will help us increase our staffs and hire more experienced people."

The staffing initiative is a four-year program. Grants will pay the full salary for the first year and then be reduced by one-fourth in successive years until the organizations are able to pay the salaries themselves.

The initiative is modeled on a successful program the council created to increase staffs at county cultural and heritage commissions across the state.

Meanwhile, on a different fiscal front, South Jersey arts leaders take another step to create a community foundation when they converge on Wheaton Village on Wednesday.

So far, cultural groups have led the drive to create a philanthropic fund. They are asking representatives from other non-profit groups and businesses to join the effort.

Robert Baxter is the arts critic for the Courier-Post.He can be reached by telephone at (856) 486-2436 or by fax at ( 856) 663-2831 and by e-mail at rbaxter@courierpostonline. com.