Congratulations to the 2025 ArtsForward
Grant Recipients!
Photo credit Ilenia Pezzaniti
The Nightlight Cinema
The Nightlight Documentary Club
$5,000
The Nightlight Cinema announces the launch of Doc Club, a new community documentary film series premiering in 2026 that will bring together diverse audiences through the power of storytelling and facilitated dialogue. The series will feature four carefully curated documentaries, followed by moderated discussions led by Akron-based documentary filmmaker Saelyx Finna. Participants will receive custom “Doc Club” journals to encourage active reflection and meaningful conversation about each film’s themes and cultural perspectives. Doc Club aims to create a welcoming space for community connection and understanding, transforming traditional film viewing into an engaging, collaborative experience that fosters empathy and critical thinking.
Photo credit, provided by ArtSparks
ArtSparks
ArtSparks Summer Camp
$10,000
ArtSparks is launching its own summer arts camps for the first time, serving 250 Akron Public Schools students aged 3–12 who lack access to arts education, especially with the cancellation of APS Mystery Camps. Partnering with Akron After School and APS staff, ArtSparks will offer free, weeklong camps at four neighborhood schools to remove barriers like cost and transportation. The program is designed to combat summer learning loss and provide inclusive access to high-quality arts experiences, especially for students with disabilities and those from low-income families. Family engagement is also emphasized through take-home activities and final performances, with the broader goal of building a lasting appreciation for the arts in the community.
Photo credit, provided by Stow Players
Brandi Eaton in partnership with Stow Players
Everyone Can Be A Playwright – Tell YOUR Story
$3,500
A Play writing course broken into three groups – Elementary Aged, Middle to High School Aged, and Adults. The course will explore taking characters and situations based on personal experiences and the diversity of environment and culture to allow for artistic expression and communication of a variety of backgrounds and viewpoints.
Photo credit, provided by Citizens Akron Church
Citizens Akron Church – The Vincent House
The Dance Exchange Recital for Middlebury Children
$7,500
The Dance Exchange is a dance studio program created by Citizens Akron Church’s The Vincent House in partnership with Martell School of Dance. We provide children in Middlebury K-5 with dance classes free of charge and help supplement the funding of dance attire and shoes during the year. Support by ArtsNow will help to fund the self-production of The Dance Exchange’s recital this upcoming year.
Photo credit, provided by Katie Butler
Katie Butler
The NEO Studio Program: Applying for Arts Opportunities
$5,000
The NEO Studio Program will offer a free six-week course on applying for arts opportunities, including residencies, grants, public art commissions, and graduate programs. This course is designed to walk artists through each step of the process and provide individualized feedback, culminating in a completed application packet for a specific opportunity. Along the way, participants will engage in discussions about career goals and aspirations and gain insights from visiting artists’ own experiences. Led by artists and educators, this course is designed to build relationships and foster mentorship in the NEO arts community.
Photo credit, provided by Akron Civic Theatre
Akron Civic Theatre
The Arts Incubator Performing Arts Makerspace at the Akron Civic Theatre
$8,000
With generous support from ArtsNow, the Akron Civic Theatre’s Wild Oscar’s venue will be transformed into Akron’s first Performing Arts Makerspace, led by the Arts Inclusion Incubator. This initiative will provide developing artists with access to professional-grade lighting, sound, and projection technology in a flexible, tech-forward environment. In addition to supporting creative development, the Makerspace will expand Akron’s cultural landscape by offering the community another venue for innovative performances and events.
Photo credit, provided by Summit County Domestic Relations Court
Summit County Domestic Relations Court
Children: In Their Best Interest
$10,000
The Children: In their Best Interest project will bring a student art exhibition to the Summit County Domestic Relations Court, showcasing artwork by area high school students, and highlighting one of the Court’s primary goals – to prioritize the best interest of children. The project aims to expand access to the arts, engage youth, and strengthen community connection by integrating meaningful, student-created artwork into a public space. Displayed throughout public and private areas of the Court, the exhibition will help create a more compassionate, reflective environment for families, children, and staff navigating emotionally challenging matters. A public art acquisition budget will support the purchase of select student artworks, establishing a permanent, locally sourced collection that promotes healing.
Photo credit, provided by Ballet Excel Ohio
Ballet Excel Ohio
Two Legacies, One Stage: 50 & 60 Years of Dance
$25,000
As part of its 50th anniversary, Ballet Excel Ohio (BXO) has initiated a new collaboration with the Canton Ballet, which is celebrating its 60th anniversary. As part of this project BXO will commission an original ballet honoring the legacies of these two nationally recognized pre-professional ballet companies and collaborate on shared performances at the Akron Civic Theatre and the Canton Palace Theater. Additionally, while continuing to provide its youth dancers with the highest quality, pre-professional ballet training, BXO will provide its students with special opportunities to participate in a Student Choreographic Exchange and a Legacy Master Class Series, featuring alumni, guest artists, and current artistic directors to showcase the evolution and diversity of ballet, a panel discussion and Q and A. Members of the community will be welcome to attend.
Photo credit, provided by Sabertooth Public Art
Sabertooth Public Art
Akron Neighborhood Public Art Plan & Toolkit
$15,000
Sabertooth Public Art is launching a community-led initiative to support 2-3 Akron neighborhoods in developing public art plans. Through asset walks, Sabertooth and each neighborhood will identify and assess several potential sites for murals or installations, helping prioritize opportunities for public art and creative placemaking. The project also includes a Public Art Planning Toolkit with resources like sample calls for artists and neighborhood specific budget templates. This initiative will equip communities with the tools and knowledge to continue planning and implementing their public art visions beyond the scope of this project.
Photo credit, provided by Chris Coles
Christopher Coles, Monika Bowman, and NCCAkron
AVIMANCY
$10,000
For AVIMANCY, jazz saxophonist Chris Coles is collaborating with Monika Bowman, Wildlife Communications Specialist of the Ohio Division of Wildlife, to engage Summit County residents with our region’s natural environment through a new project that combines music, dance, and bird songs. Bowman and Coles will focus on local bird species chosen for their representation of habitats, instrumentation, and how they physically engage with each other. After transcribing the bird songs, Coles will collaborate with Jamey Haddad and Patrick Graney, both on percussion to create original music inspired by the transcriptions. NCCAkron will facilitate additional jam sessions between the musicians and visiting percussive dance artists to explore utilizing bird songs and their migration patterns as the foundation for this new work.
Photo credit, provided by Ebony Hill
Ebony Hill
The Akron Griot Project
$12,500
The Akron Griot Project is a multigenerational celebration of our elders, honoring their stories, gleaning from their wisdom, and passing it along like a treasured heirloom. Rooted in the African proverb “When an elder dies, a library burns,” this legacy-building initiative preserves their journeys through rich storytelling, stunning photography, and heartfelt video, all grounded in the powerful Nguzo Saba principles. It’s about giving our elders their flowers now, surrounding them with love and dignity, and letting their truths ripple through our families, neighborhoods, and hearts. This is community healing, cultural pride, and joy in motion, and everyone who touches it will feel like they’re part of something sacred.
Photo credit, provided by Cuyahoga Valley Choral Arts, Inc.
Cuyahoga Valley Choral Arts, Inc.
Cuyahoga Valley Children’s Choir: Serving the Youth in Akron’s North Hill and Beyond
$10,000
The Cuyahoga Valley Children’s Choir, under the umbrella of Cuyahoga Valley Choral Arts, Inc., was formed out of a desire by artistic leaders, Ted Shure and Colleen Coyle Miller, to serve the youth in the culturally diverse and under-resourced Akron neighborhood known as North Hill, through a partnership with Urban Vision. Under the direction of Mrs. Miller, the choir, made up of children ages 8-12, will rehearse weekly beginning this fall. They will perform two major concerts at Urban Vision (late fall and spring), outreach performances at retirement/nursing homes, and a side-by-side performance with the organization’s sought after adult choir, the Cuyahoga Valley Community Chorus. Cuyahoga Valley Choral Arts, Inc. is most grateful to ArtsNow for being a major sponsor of this project.
Photo credit, provided by Kavé Coffee Bar
Kavé Coffee Bar / Neighborhood Development Services
O.C.Barber Mansion Mural Community Celebration
$10,000
Kavé Coffee Bar is partnering with many community organizations to bring to life a massive public art piece focused around the razed O.C.Barber Mansion and surrounding Anna Dean Farm. With the funds from ArtsNow, our goal is light up the soon to be painted mural at night and to place an emphasis on downtown placemaking by hosting an unveiling event at the completion of the mural. This celebration of Barberton History and public art within our Arts and Entertainment district will hopefully be the first of many placemaking projects/events in our downtown. Overall, we plan on hosting an event that is a celebration of our city and its humble beginnings, while rallying together to support the arts and local organizations in a way that will engage our community in a sense of hometown pride, and draw others into our downtown to be inspired.
Photo credit, provided by Rubber City Theatre
Rubber City Theatre
Big Famous, the Polka Musical
$25,000
Rubber City Theatre is working with Leah Michalos (Assistant Professor of Arts Administration at UA) and the creative team for Big Famous: The Polka Musical about the true story of Jan Lewan. This work has only received a developmental reading in New York this spring and we plan to bring the show to Akron in 2026. We plan to use Akron as a launching point for the musical, which will move from Akron to New York. The team is excited about Akron with our rich Eastern European heritage and polka community!
Photo credit, provided by The Hudson Players
The Hudson Players
Theater Workshop Weekend
$3,500
The Theater Workshop Weekend will be an opportunity for local area community theater participants to learn more about their craft from experts in fields such as set design, set painting, acting, lighting, publicity, etc. This will help all theaters that participate improve their craft and success in a way that is not currently available.
Photo credit, provided by Civic Saturday Akron
Civic Saturday Akron
Civic Saturday Akron: Co-Creative Placemaking
$3,000
Civic Saturday offers a distinctive approach to advancing the Akron/Summit Cultural Plan’s priority of Placemaking by infusing creative energy into civic participation and modeling healthy civic culture in public spaces. Civic Saturday brings an arts and entertainment approach to civic engagement, reinvigorating a sense of connection and ownership in our civic and public spaces. By fostering meaningful dialogue around critical issues in these spaces, we encourage Akronites to see themselves as co-creators of our public experience and co-generators of the change we envision as a community.
Photo credit, provided by Carolyn Behrman
Carolyn Behrman, filmmaker
CATAC, fiscal sponsor
The Bettie Street Project
$7,000
At the heart of this story are the residents of Bettie Street in Akron whose lives were abruptly transformed by the arrival of a waste transfer station on nearby Fountain Street in 1998. The film traces the erosion of their economic, social, and emotional lives along with their health and the physical environment. But it also highlights their grit and grace as, through grassroots organizing and intrepid work, they stand up to a multinational corporation. Recent plans to close Fountain Street and open a new facility in another neighborhood with a long history of disinvestment compel the project to take an even deeper look at rustbelt urban dilemmas of community and trash. The film explores the emerging web of sustainability-centered efforts, Akronites actively rethinking what we value and what we throw away.
Photo credit, provided by Akron Makerspace
Akron Makerspace
The Akron Makerspace Maker-in-Residence Program
$15,980
The Akron Makerspace Maker-in-Residence (MIR) Program is a three-month opportunity for local makers and artists. Makers-in-Residence are selected for a residency at Akron Makerspace, where they will share their craft, creativity, and experience with a community of fellow makers. The program also connects participants with valuable resources and the broader Akron Makerspace network.
During the residency, Makers-in-Residence will offer instruction in their area of expertise while also exploring new techniques and creative tools, supported by access to studio space and equipment.
Participants will have the chance to engage with members, attend classes, assist with tool maintenance, and contribute to community projects and events hosted by Akron Makerspace.
Photo credit, provided by The Summit FM
The Summit FM
Summit FM Music and Wellness Programming
$10,000
The Summit FM Music & Wellness programming is a multimedia experience that harnesses the power of music to enhance mental health and wellness across diverse communities.
Initially launched as Rock and Recovery in 2011, the program has since evolved to address a broader spectrum of mental health topics through engaging music experiences and public service campaigns. Led by behavioral health professionals passionate about music and the arts, The Summit FM Music & Wellness programming collaborates with local artists to provide innovative wellness experiences that reach underserved populations.
The public radio station makes community connections while promoting mental well-being for individuals of all ages, utilizing music as a powerful tool to reduce stigma and offer hope.
Photo credit, provided by Summit Artspace
Summit Artspace
Creating a Culture of Inclusion at Summit Artspace
$15,000
This project is vital to creating and sustaining safe, welcoming spaces for local artists who experience disability at the same 1-in-4 prevalence as the general population. It will improve programs and ensure artists with disabilities can equitably leverage SAS programming. For community visitors—including those with autism, PTSD, dementia, and other conditions—the project will help SAS provide necessary accommodations—such as sensory bags, staff/volunteer training, signage, exhibition accommodations, and accessibility guides—to create a more welcoming environment. Many of the devices purchased via this grant are essential for artists and community members who hope to create art and experience art activities throughout their lifetimes.
Photo credit, provided by Jen Maurer
Jen Maurer / Curated Storefront
Lift Me Community Music Video
$23,000
The Lift Me Community Video Project will offer Summit County residents an “in-the-scenes” and “behind-the-scenes” opportunity to participate in the making of a large-scale, high production music video. The project will provide everything needed for 4-5 Summit County musicians play to a previously recorded Americana original song called “Lift Me” while 250-400 community members participate in the music video by singing, dancing, or acting along, or by aiding the crew. In addition the project will release a documentary of the video making process so that county creatives and residents alike can gain an appreciation for and learn about the effort that goes into this kind of art. This project highlights video as an easily accessible and lasting public art form.
Photo credit, provided by Michael Davis Seng
Michael Davis Seng
Art Capture Lab: From Studio to Submission
$18,600
Art Capture Lab is a multi-phase project to provide Summit County artists with the skills and tools to create high-quality, print-ready images of their work for sales, marketing, and exhibition application use. The project features free workshops that teach both professional and accessible documentation methods, including the use of household items and public resources like the Summit County Library. Each workshop is supported by three free instructional booklets and companion videos available for ongoing use and adaptation by partner organizations. These materials will be available for free at my website michaeldavisseng.com. After each session, a collaborative photo lab allows artists to practice by photographing each other’s work, with additional pop-up sessions offered for those who need documentation but aren’t enrolled in the workshops.
Photo credit, provided by PBS Western Reserve
PBS Western Reserve
The Remember Balloons Live!
$8,000
PBS Western Reserve will bring to broadcast The Remember Balloons Live!; this performance of dance and music tells the award-winning children’s book The Remember Balloons which deals with the topic of Alzheimer’s Disease in a loved one. PBS Western Reserve will film the performance and then broadcast it to extend its reach. To make the show even more accessible, PBS Western Reserve will hold multiple screenings throughout the region with resources available for those dealing with Alzheimer’s in loved ones.
Photo credit, provided by South Street Ministries
South Street Ministries
Akron ABC’s: Art, Bikes, Community
$15,000
South Street Ministries has operated the Bike Shop for over two decades! In 2024, the Bike Shop moved to a new location in Summit Lake through a renovated storage container, and in 2025 a second storage container was dropped in the Kenmore community. These containers are activated in the evenings where youth and families can repair and earn their own bicycles. This Arts Forward grant will paint the containers thematically for the Summit Lake and Kenmore neighbors respectively, using resident input and service and integrating mixed media arts into the project through upcycled bicycles!
Photo credit, provided by Summit Choral Society
Summit Choral Society
The Community Music Lending Library: Expanding Access to Music for greater Akron’s Schools, Organizations and Musicians
$25,000
Summit Choral Society will launch a Community Music Lending Library, offering free access to thousands of choral and orchestral works. This project will support Akron-area schools, educators and community groups by removing financial barriers to high-quality sheet music and expanding access to the arts for all.
Photo credit, provided by Main Street Barberton
Main Street Barberton
Main Street Barberton: Downtown Wayfinding Project -Connecting Our Thriving Community
$20,000
As our downtown grows, we’ve identified a practical need for better navigation. With new businesses opening and more activities happening downtown, clear wayfinding would help visitors and residents more easily find their way to destinations and discover what Barberton has to offer.
Photo credit, provided by Village of Lakemore
Village of Lakemore
Lakemore Summer Youth Program
$3,200
The Village of Lakemore wants to provide a safe area where kids can walk or ride their bikes to, have snacks and meals, spend time together playing games and learning. Many of the kids in the community are of lower-income families, who may not get regular meals or safe social interactions.
The Village of Lakemore are collaborating with local studios and community partners to provide fun workshops each week for the kids. We want our kids to enjoy a safe summer together!
Photo credit, provided by The Movement Project
The Movement Project
Moving Through: Navigating Pregnancy, Infant Loss, and Infertility through community and movement
$25,000
Through dance and dialogue, “Moving Through” gives voice to the often-unspoken journeys of women navigating pregnancy loss, infant loss, and infertility. Led by Artistic Director Megan L. Gargano and The Movement Project team, the project combines movement, community workshops, and storytelling to co-create a powerful performance shaped by real women’s voices. The initiative also includes two community panels, one focused on raising awareness around maternal health disparities, and another highlighting vital resources and support for families navigating loss. Through performance and conversation, “Moving Through” creates a space for healing, connection, and advocacy, honoring grief while envisioning a more supported future for all mothers and families.
Photo credit, provided by Downtown Akron Partnership
Downtown Akron Partnership
Making Downtown Move: A Campaign for Culture & Commerce
$25,000
In an increasingly crowded media landscape, breaking through the noise and capturing attention requires targeted investment. This pilot program will use high-impact, data-driven advertising techniques to elevate Downtown Akron’s vibrant arts and culture scene—boosting attendance at performances and exhibitions, driving restaurant traffic tied to cultural outings, and increasing ticket sales for local events