NORWICH – The Chenango Arts Council is gearing up for an afternoon to promote cultural programs in schools across the county with its annual pig roast fundraiser for the Grants for Teachers program.

For more than 10 years, the Grants for Teachers program has given money to area educators to help fund a number of ideas, from student field trips to the purchase of art supplies for the classroom. As long as funding applications fall within the parameters of the program, requests are limited only by the imagination of the teacher, said Chenango Arts Council Executive Director Victoria Kappel.

Inspired by a community-wide survey to find what teachers need for their classroom, The Chenango Arts Council started the Grants for Teachers program in 2003. The program has been a big help for Chenango County teachers of every grade and in every subject ever since.

“What we heard back from that survey is that teachers need an avenue to get small amounts of funding for critical needs in the classroom with minimal amounts of red tape,” Kappel explained.