Effie Louise Colden Award
Honoring the Legacy of Service Through the Arts
Celebrating organizations that use creativity to educate, inspire, heal, and strengthen communities.
Named in honor of Effie Louise Colden’s lifelong commitment to service, the ELC Award recognizes organizations that are creating meaningful opportunities through the arts.
This signature award celebrates the belief that the arts are not simply activities — they are tools for connection, expression, empowerment, and change.
We recognize organizations that are:
✓ Expanding arts opportunities for youth
✓ Creating pathways for creativity and self-expression
✓ Using the arts to strengthen communities
✓ Building partnerships that make a lasting impact
Eligible recipients may include:
This award celebrates those carrying forward a legacy of service by making creativity accessible to al
Innovation & Arts Learning Fund
Expanding access to hands-on learning where creativity, the arts, and innovation come together.
The Innovation & Arts Learning Fund invests in programs, projects, and experiences that inspire curiosity, creativity, and problem-solving through the arts and STEAM. The fund supports organizations and educators who provide meaningful opportunities for young people to explore, create, design, build, and innovate.
By investing in experiences that blend artistic expression with real-world learning, SACFA is helping prepare the next generation of artists, makers, designers, engineers, musicians, entrepreneurs, and creative thinkers.
What the Fund Supports
The Innovation & Arts Learning Fund provides financial support for initiatives that expand access to creative learning opportunities, including:
Who Can Benefit
Funding may be available to:
We believe innovation begins with imagination. When young people have opportunities to create, experiment, collaborate, and solve problems through the arts, they develop skills that extend far beyond the classroom.
The Innovation & Arts Learning Fund exists to remove barriers, spark possibility, and ensure that every young person has access to experiences that nurture creativity, encourage innovation, and build confidence for the future.
Creative Connections
Inspiring young people through creativity, careers, and real-world experiences.
Creative Connections introduces youth to artists, makers, innovators, and professionals who use creativity every day to shape the world around us. Through conversations, demonstrations, studio visits, workshops, and hands-on experiences, participants discover how creativity can lead to meaningful careers, strengthen communities, and solve problems.
This initiative expands the idea of who a creator can be. A Creative Connection may feature a painter, musician, architect, woodworker, chef, engineer, designer, filmmaker, coder, entrepreneur, or any professional whose work is driven by imagination, innovation, and skill.
By connecting young people with creative professionals, SACFA helps participants:
Examples of Creative Connections:
We believe creativity is everywhere and every young person deserves the opportunity to see where their creativity can lead them.
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