Mariposa arts council highlights Smithsonian collaboration and growth of free youth programs

Kara Goger, executive director of the Mariposa County Arts Council, presented the council's annual update and a slate of recent initiatives at the June 2 Board of Supervisors meeting.

Goger outlined school-based programming (artists in the schools residencies for 4th and 5th graders, a high-school visual-literacy program and Poetry Out Loud participation), and said the council's free day camp has grown from about 90 children to roughly 160 this year.

She described community-facing work including Music on the Green, grants to local artists for community projects, an indigenous cultural residency on the Mariposa Creek Parkway and a sustained jail poetry program supported by the sheriff. Goger said the council works to embed creative placemaking into county plans and to leverage regional partnerships.

A notable development is a new relationship with the Smithsonian Institution: Goger said Smithsonian experts conducted a three-day convening in Mariposa and will work on projects including a community storytelling effort and a possible STEM school partnership for the high school.

Board members and community leaders praised the Arts Council's ability to attract funding and national attention: Jesse Shacran, the arts council board president, told the board the council had brought more than $1 million in resources to the county and said the programs provide economic and social benefits.

Goger asked the board and the community to continue supporting the council's outreach and programming, noting the council often acts as a conduit for outside resources that benefit local artists and residents.