Access Copyright Foundation congratulates this year’s Professional Development Grant recipients
Wednesday, August 19, 2020
TORONTO: August 19, 2020 – Access Copyright Foundation (ACF) is pleased to continue to support the professional development of creators and the organizations that serve them by awarding over $40,000 in grant funding this year. Professional Development grants given out this year by ACF will facilitate important opportunities for mentorship, skills building, and to attend industry conferences and workshops.
Please join us in congratulating this year’s grant recipients:
- Art Babayants; Toronto, ON
- Frances Boyle; Ottawa, ON
- Janine Cross; North Vancouver, BC
- Nora Decter; Winnipeg, MB
- Michelle Elrick; Halifax, NS
- Aaron Friend Lettner; North Vancouver, BC
- Guernica Editions Inc.; Hamilton, ON
- Erica Isomura; Vancouver, BC
- Terry Jordan; Quadra Island, BC
- Carol Kavanagh; Saskatoon, SK
- Katherine Koller; Edmonton, AB
- Aleksandra McHugh; Saskatoon, SK
- Leanna Dawn McLennan; Vancouver, BC
- Sean Michaels; Montreal, QC
- Ontario Book Publishers Organization; Picton, ON
- Lisa Richter; Toronto, ON
- Mohammed Tabesh; Toronto, ON
- Jess Taylor; Toronto, ON
- Phoebe Tsang; Toronto, ON
- Kenneth Wilson; Regina, SK
ACF is excited that this year’s Professional Development grants will facilitate a variety of exciting and interesting projects, including examining the connection between Artificial Intelligence and poetry, permitting an independent Canadian publisher to train an in-house sales assistant and furthering the development of a new Canadian, multilingual play through taking part in an online playwrighting course.
“A critical part of creative work is the opportunity to develop new skills, network and meet with colleagues, and to learn and be mentored by more experienced peers,” said ACF Co-Chair Margaret Reynolds. “This year’s Professional Development grants help to continue to further these important components that will ultimately result in new Canadian published works.”
During the pandemic, ACF has remained nimble by extending the deadline for Professional-Development grant applications and accommodating grant recipients as they had to adjust and shift plans, thereby ensuring that its grant programs continue to support Canadian creators. More information on how the Foundation is responding to COVID-19 can be found here: https://acfoundation.ca/covid-19-impact-on-acf-grants/.
ACF grants are awarded through a peer adjudication process administered on behalf of the Foundation by the Saskatchewan Arts Board. Jurors for the 2020 Professional Development Grant program were Owen Percy, teacher, writer, editor, critic and professor of literary studies at Sheridan College; Michelle Peters, executive director of the Association of Manitoba Book Publishers; and Shoshanna Wingate poet, writer and executive director of the Writers’ Federation of New Brunswick.
About the Professional Development Grant
Access Copyright Foundation Professional Development grants provide access to specialized training and continuing education for writers and visual artists; arts professionals employed by or working freelance for Canadian publishers and publishing, writing, and visual arts organizations.
About the Access Copyright Foundation
Access Copyright Foundation provides support to creators and organizations engaged in the development and dissemination of publishable Canadian works in the literary and visual arts. We are an arm’s length foundation of Access Copyright, the collective voice of creators and publishers in Canada.
To learn more about Access Copyright Foundation and the Saskatchewan Arts Board, please visit: https://sk-arts.ca/menu/grants/grant-programs/access-copyright-foundation-grants.html.
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For media inquiries:
Brian Henderson, Co-Chair, ACF
brihen1@gmail.com
Margaret Reynolds, Co-Chair, ACF
megjreynolds@gmail.com
For information on Access Copyright Foundation Grants Programs:
Joanne Gerber, Program Consultant
Saskatchewan Arts Board
306-964-1163
jgerber@saskartsboard.ca