COMMUNITY RESIDENCY PROGRAM

From San Benito and Rio Bravo to San Elizario and Pecos, Texas Folklife's Community Residency Program has brought esteemed Texas musicians and traditional artists to more than 90 rural towns throughout Texas. During a Community Residency, musicians and artists share their talents with young and old in schools, nursing homes, cafes and art centers, involving whole towns in a celebration of our living cultural heritage. Residencies may be one or two weeks in length, and may culminate in exhibitions, public performances, or arts festivals. The goal of the Community Residency Program is to encourage greater appreciation for local cultural traditions and inspire their continuation in participating communities.


Click here to see a map of communities who have hosted a Community Residency.

What's new in 2008

Texas Folklife is committed to helping each host community to develop an appropriate individualized residency plan that sparks a dialogue on the arts and local traditions. Host communities have several choices in the Community Residency Program.

  • Host communities may elect to work with traditional artists from other disciplines, in addition to musicians.

  • Host communities may now select artists from within their community as well as artists from the Texas Folklife artist roster .

  • A community residency plan might include public programs in schools, nursing homes, cultural centers, factories or cafes, workshops and demonstrations, informal talks, classroom discussions and demonstrations, hands-on workshops, K-12 teacher professional development, jam sessions with local musicians, and opportunities for the exchange of information and craft techniques with local artists.

  • Residencies are one or two weeks in length, and may be one-time events, or be part of a long-term collaboration with Texas Folklife.

How will Texas Folklife's community residency program benefit your community?

Texas Folklife assists host communities in developing an exciting residency plan tailored to community needs and resources. For example, we offer each host site assistance with:


• Hands-on training in event planning and management
• Documentation of local traditional artists
• Financial support
• Program development and scheduling
• Publicity plans and materials
• Grant writing
• Teacher training and curriculum materials

What are the ingredients for a successful community residency?

A diverse local committee
In order to bring in as broad a population of your community as possible, it is important to create a diverse local committee, made up of local business people, educators, and others with an interest in local traditions and cultural programs. Your committee needs some 'doers', folks willing to help create the plans, prepare the applications, organize all the local participants, keep the records, and gather up evaluations. But a committee can also use some folks who are happy to accompany and introduce the artist during the residency, and to make sure that friends and neighbors come and enjoy the events.

Good communication and planning
A Community Residency is the most exciting when it is inclusive, and involves your whole community, as audience, participants, and organizers. Texass Folklife staff will do a planning session with your local committee prior to the residency, and will be available to advise and assist your committee throughout the process

What does it cost?

Texas Folklife's Community Residency Program receives support from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), which covers most of the cash costs of the program. Host sites are asked to make a modest cash and in-kind contribution commitment:

Matching funds
Host sites are required to apply for a Texas Commission on the Arts (TCA) mini-grant of $1,000 - $2,000, which is applied for several weeks prior to the residency. TCA requires that you match their grant with $1,000 in cash, and $1,000 in-kind support. The community's cash match may be provided by documented release time for a civic leader or teacher who helps organize the program.

Lodging
Host sites are asked to provide lodging for artists (if they are from out of town) and for a Texas Folklife coordinator during the planning and residency period. Other forms of in-kind donations might be: meeting and performance space, local advertising, etc.

How to apply
The Community Residency Program is intended for rural, underserved towns, towns with populations of under 10,000 residents.

Application process
Download the Community Residency Application here.

Complete the application form and submit to:

The Community Residency Program
Texas Folklife
1317 South Congress Ave.
Austin, TX 78704

Or, you may fax to: (512) 441-9222