New York City, New York, December 13, 2016—The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) announced today awards totaling more than $30 million in its first funding round of fiscal year 2017, including an Art Works award to Words Without Borders to support its flagship online magazine of international literature.

The Art Works category focuses on the creation of art that meets the highest standards of excellence, public engagement with diverse and excellent art, lifelong learning in the arts, and the strengthening of communities through the arts.

NEA Chairman Jane Chu said: 

“The arts are for all of us, and by supporting organizations such as Words Without Borders, the National Endowment for the Arts is providing more opportunities for the public to engage with the arts. Whether in a theater, a town square, a museum, or a hospital, the arts are everywhere and make our lives richer.”

“We are honored to again be the recipients of an NEA grant,” said WWB executive director Karen Phillips. “Our mission to connect people through literature has never been more critical than it is today, and this grant will help us bring U.S. readers into contact with exciting literary voices and new perspectives from around the world.”

With the support of the NEA, Words Without Borders will publish new issues of its free online magazine dedicated to writing from Bulgaria, Colombia, West Africa, Tunisia, and elsewhere. Upgrades to its Web site and the public launch of its online education initiative, WWB Campus, are also planned for the grant period.

To join the Twitter conversation about this announcement, please use #NEAFall16.

For more information on projects included in the NEA grant announcement, visit arts.gov/news.

WORDS WITHOUT BORDERS is a 501c3 nonprofit organization that fosters cultural understanding through the translation, publication, and promotion of international literature. To date WWB has translated over 2,200 pieces of literature and poetry from 130 countries and 110 languages. In 2014, WWB launched WWB Campus, an online education initiative designed to bring contemporary international literature into high school and college classrooms.

For additional information, please contact:
Contact: Savannah Whiting, Communications Coordinator
Email Address: press@wordswithoutborders.org
Web site Address: www.wordswithoutborders.org
Twitter: @wwborders