The Foundation today announced the awardees of its Creative Community Engagement Grant Program. The program is intended to direct both financial and knowledge resources to select Worcester non-profit cultural organizations. These resources are aimed to empower non-profits to develop innovative ways to increase engagement with diverse communities that represent Worcester's changing demographics.

In its pilot year, this program is just one element of the Foundation's Creative Worcester Initiative, which the Foundation has launched in partnership with the Barr Foundation and its Creative Commonwealth Initiative. Those organizations receiving funds this year are:

• ArtsWorcester for support of a comprehensive strategy to diversify artist membership in the organization in line with the current demographics of the City and to help expand and diversify gallery interest.
• Crocodile River Music for support of an outreach effort to identify and create a roster of African performing artists from among Worcester's immigrant and refugee communities, and then to connect those artists with performance and teaching opportunities.
• Main IDEA/Render Creative for support of program expansion to increase youth served, allow for deeper collaborations, and firmly embed this small organization in the larger community.
• Music Worcester for support of a comprehensive strategy to increase and deepen audience engagement through outreach, expanded program development and promotion of non-classical music brought to the community.
• Worcester Chamber Music Society for support of deepening engagement with the circles of community in Downtown and Main South neighborhoods that surround participants in the very successful Neighborhood Strings program.