Beckley, W.Va. (Jan. 24, 2023) – The Tamarack Foundation for the Arts (TFA) is extending the deadline for applicants of the TFA ‘Arts Business Accelerator’ program, a six-month training program set to kick off with a two-day bootcamp at the Beckley Arts Center next month. Local artists and creative entrepreneurs are encouraged to apply by February 1. Those in the cohort will receive at no charge small-business development training, coaching, access to accountants, learning workshops, monetary subsidies to access markets, and networking opportunities from a seasoned professional trainer.

The West Virginia Hive is working in partnership with TFA to support this training. Judy Moore, executive director of the WV Hive and a board member of TFA, said the deadline has been extended to February 1 to capture any interested participants. She said 11 applications have been received, and the goal is to reach 20 eligible artists.

Moore said the TFA ‘Arts Business Accelerator’ program is focused on women from low to moderate income households and members of the BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, Person of Color) community of any gender or income who live in or own a business in the program service area, which includes Boone, Fayette, Lincoln, Logan, Mingo, McDowell, Mercer, Monroe, Raleigh, Summers, and Wyoming counties. Nationally recognized professional trainer Elaine Grogan Luttrull of Minerva Financial Arts , Dublin, Ohio, is leading the workshop.

Kandi Workman, TFA Program Manager, said “those of us in the local arts community recognized a need to support the development of women and BIPOC-owned small businesses within southern West Virginia counties and areas declared distressed or at-risk by the Appalachian Regional Commission.” She said the TFA Arts Business Accelerator is made possible through a grant from the Truist Foundation. Childcare and dependent care stipends for participants are available on an as needed basis for the in-person bootcamp. The stipends are funded by WV American Water.

The registration form is available here: https://forms.gle/B3UFzmedu51goibj7

Full details and information on how to apply can be found on the TFA website: https://tamarackfoundation.org/workshops-trainings/

Questions about the program and the application process can be directed to Workman at TFA: [email protected]