PARKERSBURG - The Mid-Ohio Valley has officially been recognized for its arts and culture by the West Virginia Commission on the Arts.
The area was officially named a Certified Arts Community Nov. 10 by the state commission on the arts during its quarterly meeting in Charleston, said John Hoffman, executive director of Artsbridge.
"We have been working on this since March 11 getting information and paperwork together and working with other arts organizations and the Wood County Commission," Hoffman said. "While it has been months of work, everything really happened pretty fast."
Wood County Commission officially and unanimously signed a resolution and application Sept. 4 to seek consideration for the Mid-Ohio Valley to be given this distinction.
"The naming of the Mid-Ohio Valley as a Certified Arts Community is wonderful news and delightful for the organizations and the community," said Wood County Commissioner Blair Couch. "The process of making this a Certified Arts Community will benefit all arts programs in the area."
The arts and culture organizations that participated in the application process and will benefit from the endowment include the Actors Guild, Artsbridge, The Mid-Ohio Valley Ballet, The Mid-Ohio Valley Players, The Ohio River Border Initiative, Parkersburg Art Center, The Parkersburg Choral Society, The River Cities Symphony Orchestra, The Schrader Youth Ballet, Smoot Theatre, Washington State Community College, West Virginia Symphony Orchestra - Parkersburg, West Virginia University at Parkersburg, Wood County Schools and many more.
"The two most gratifying aspects of the effort were the discussions about obtaining the Certified Arts Community designation and the willingness of every group to participate and work together to make this happen," Hoffman said. "The teamwork between the arts organizations and the community was really wonderful."
Following the Sept. 4 acceptance of the application and Wood County Commission resolution by Randall Reid-Smith, commissioner of the West Virginia Division of Culture and History, the application was reviewed by a panel of commission members and readily approved for the designation, Hoffman said.
Couch said the designation allows the arts community and commission to seek out and apply for grants and other funds that non-certified arts communities cannot.
"This certification allows us opportunities we were not able to participate in before and we plan to use it to help our community grow," he said.
Hoffman said one of the monetary funds the area will seek with the help of the certification is for an application to the National Endowment for the Humanities for a multi-group community-related arts project.
"There are now more things we can do and accomplish with being named a Certified Arts Community," Hoffman said.
Other Certified Arts Communities in West Virginia include Lewisburg and Berkeley Springs.
What makes the Mid-Ohio Valley different from other Certified Arts Communities is that it is not just one city or one county, but the entire area that includes Marietta and Washington County, Hoffman said.
"While the West Virginia Commission on the Arts did approve the certification, it also includes Marietta because many of our arts programs and organizations work in Washington County as well as Wood County," he said. "That makes us more unique than the other communities."
Hoffman also recognizes the support and work of the Wood County Commission, while Couch said the commission has always and will continue to support the arts in the community.
"We are fortunate to have a strong arts presence in our community and the commission's support is unwavering and we hope to be able to secure more funds to help the arts and the community grow," Couch said.
