Project Access is a collaborative two-year program between the Frist Center and Nashville Public Library with funding from a National Leadership Grant (2003) for Library-Museum Collaboration by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, Washington, D.C. These grants support innovative projects that model how museums and libraries can work together to expand their services to the public, with an emphasis on serving the community, using technology, or enhancing education. A total of 16 grants were made nationally in 2003 out of the 85 applications received.

Project Access is designed to help increase adult English language learners’ skill in language, arts and computer literacy. Two hundred participants in the two-year program will engage in art-making, computer-based learning, museum and library visits through the Metropolitan Nashville Public School Adult Education Programs, which include the Refugee English Program and immigrant English classes, United Way Family Resource Centers, and the Salvation Army. Little Planet Learning, a Nashville technology company, has designed Project Access’s website with arts and Nashville native Red Grooms as host of the site.  The website allows the program to have a wider impact in the community and nationally. A feature of this website will allow visitors to access their artwork created in ArtQuest that is stored on ArtQuest’s digital portfolio.

For more information about Project Access, visit the Project Access website at www.projectaccess.org.

The Institute of Museum and Library Services, a federal agency that fosters innovation, leadership and a lifetime of learning, supports the Frist Center for the Visual Arts.