FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
Media Contact:
Miriam Taylor
Ogden Museum of Southern Art
925 Camp Street
New Orleans, LA 70130
504‐539‐9631

NEW ORLEANS, LA- The Ogden Museum of Southern Art is pleased to announce that the National Endowment for the Arts Chairman Jane Chu has approved an Art Works grant of $16,000 for the Museum's Teen Docent Program as part of NEA's first major funding announcement for fiscal year 2017. The Art Works category focuses on the creation of art that meets the highest standards of excellence, public engagement with diverse and excellent art, lifelong learning in the arts, and the strengthening of communities through the arts. The Ogden Museum of Southern Art was the only museum in Louisiana to be approved for a grant.

"The arts are for all of us, and by supporting organizations such as the Ogden Museum of Southern Art, the National Endowment for the Arts is providing more opportunities for the public to engage with the arts," said NEA Chairman Jane Chu. "Whether in a theater, a town square, a museum, or a hospital, the arts are everywhere and make our lives richer."

"We are thrilled to be recognized as one of just 12 organizations from Louisiana approved for funding to support this distinguished program," said Ogden Museum Education Manager, Ellen Balkin. "Since its inception, the Teen Docent Program has worked with more than 40 teens, providing leadership development training, job skills, and arts enrichment to promote success in high school, college and beyond. Funding will allow us to continue to provide this impactful program to New Orleans area youth."

ABOUT THE PROGRAM - Since 2008, the Ogden Museum of Southern Art's Teen Docent Program has been an integral part of the museum's summer programming.

This program trains New Orleans public high-school students to lead tours of the Ogden Museum, serve as counselors for Museum summer camps, and participate in an outreach program that brings art to children and adults who are unable to visit the Museum. Past programs have brought original puppet shows inspired by artwork in the Museum's collection to local summer camps, New Orleans Public Library story hours, and to patients at Children's Hospital. Directed by Ogden Museum Education Manager Ellen Balkin, the program not only cultivates the Teen Docents' interest in the arts and museum studies, but also empowers them to become community leaders.

In 2015 the program was one of twelve programs selected for the National Arts and Humanities Youth Program Award, the nation's highest honor for out-of-school arts and humanities programs that celebrate the creativity of America's young people, particularly those from underserved communities.

This program is supported in part by funding from the Daybrook Foundation, Eugenie & Joseph Jones Family Foundation, Freeport-McMoRan Foundation, The Helis Foundation, MaggieGeorge Foundation, RosaMary Foundation, and the Goldring Family Foundation.

For more information on projects included in the NEA grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.

###

Located in the vibrant Warehouse Arts District of downtown New Orleans, Louisiana, the Ogden Museum of Southern Art holds the largest collection of Southern art and is recognized for its original exhibitions, public events, and educational programs which examine the development of visual art alongside Southern traditions of music, literature, and culinary heritage to provide a comprehensive story of the South. Established in 1999 and in Stephen Goldring Hall since 2003, the Museum welcomes almost 80,000 visitors annually, and attracts diverse audiences through its broad range of programming including exhibitions, lectures, film screenings, and concerts which are all part of its mission to broaden the knowledge, understanding, interpretation, and appreciation of the visual arts and culture of the American South.

The Ogden Museum is open Wednesday through Monday from 10AM-5PM and also on Thursdays from 6-8PM for Ogden After Hours. Admission is free to Museum Members and $13.50 for adults, $11 for seniors 65 and older, $7.25 for children ages 5-17 and free for children under 5.

The Ogden Museum is free to Louisiana Residents on Thursdays from 10AM-5PM courtesy of The Helis Foundation. The Helis Foundation is a Louisiana private foundation, established by the William Helis Family. The Art Funds of the Helis Foundation advance access to the arts for the community through contributions that sustain operations for, provide free admission to, acquire works of art, and underwrite major exhibitions and projects of institutions within the Greater New Orleans area.

The Museum is closed Martin Luther King Day, Lundi Gras and Mardi Gras, July 4th, Labor Day, Thanksgiving Day, Christmas Day and New Years Day.

The Museum is located at 925 Camp Street, New Orleans Louisiana 70130. For more information visit ogdenmuseum.org or call 504-539-9650.