The Southern Maryland Folklife Center at St. Marys College of Maryland has received $82,500 from the Maryland State Arts Council for the second year in a row, funding that will sustain monthly workshops, broaden regional programming and enhance its Traditional Artist Resource Guide.
The grant, awarded through the councils Folklife Network program, supports the centers efforts to document and promote living cultural traditions across Calvert, Charles and St. Marys counties. Established in 2021, the center has hosted various workshops and events highlighting traditional arts, aligning with a new three-year strategic plan focused on increasing community engagement and cultural diversity.
Jerry Gabriel, co-director of the center, noted its relative newness compared to other folklife centers in the Maryland Traditions network. Its taken us some time to get our sea legs, to identify the audiences we would like to reach and identify the folks who are in some way involved in the traditional arts in Southern Maryland, he said.
Gabriel highlighted emerging collaborations with local organizations, including Historic Sotterley, Historic St. Marys City and the St. Marys County Library. Continuing to get these block grants will allow us to do a better and better job of highlighting the arts that are already happening in Southern Maryland, as well as allowing us to bring artists to Southern Maryland from other parts of the state and beyond, he said.
The Folklife Network, administered by the Maryland State Arts Council, provides ongoing funding to eight regional centers statewide, each serving as a hub for identifying, documenting and presenting community-based cultural traditions. These include the Chesapeake Bay Maritime Museum in Talbot County, Common Ground on the Hill in Carroll County, Creative Alliance in Baltimore City, Frostburg State University in Allegany County, Sandy Spring Museum in Montgomery County, the University of Maryland Baltimore County in Baltimore County, the Ward Foundation in Wicomico County and St. Marys College for Southern Maryland. The program evolved from 2019 recommendations by folklife specialists and cultural workers, building on prior collaborations to sustain traditional arts through grants that require detailed reporting on projects and outcomes.
In fiscal year 2025, the Maryland State Arts Council distributed more than $24 million in operating grants to 364 nonprofit arts organizations, including those in the Folklife Network, to bolster cultural programs across the state. The councils Grants for Organizations program awarded $18,136,157 to 309 entities, with applications reviewed by panels to ensure alignment with goals like community access and artistic preservation. For regional folklife centers, these funds enable activities such as workshops and resource development, with payments processed six to eight weeks after grant agreements.
The Southern Maryland center, dedicated to preserving community-based traditions, has conducted workshops in areas like making stuffed ham, quilting, pinata creation, paleontology, natural dyeing, folk music, poetry writing and exploring the life of the Patuxent River. Its 2025 summer workshops, held May 31, included hands-on sessions in tile making, beekeeping, dance and poetry, open to participants interested in regional crafts. The Traditional Artist Resource Guide, which the grant will expand, serves as a directory for local practitioners in fields like woodworking, storytelling and maritime skills, aiding connections between artists and communities.
Marylands 13 heritage areas, including the Southern Maryland National Heritage Area, span every county and Baltimore City, managed by the Maryland Heritage Areas Authority to foster economic development via preserved sites. In Southern Maryland, dozens of historical locations, cultural monuments and parks focus on themes like early colonial settlements, tobacco farming and water-based livelihoods. Collaborators such as Historic Sotterley, a former plantation site, offer educational programs on African American history and enslavement, while Historic St. Marys City recreates 17th-century life through archaeological exhibits.
The centers three-year plan emphasizes expanding reach, with grants enabling invitations to artists from beyond the region to enrich local offerings. This aligns with Maryland Traditions overarching mission to archive thousands of stories from folk artists statewide, housed in the Maryland Traditions Archives as a community resource. Events like the Maryland Folk Festival feature demonstrations from the Folklife Network, showcasing traditions such as decoy carving and indigenous crafts.
St. Marys College hosts the center on its campus in St. Marys City, integrating academic resources with community programming. The Folklife Center also maintains an online presence for registration and updates, encouraging participation in preserving traditions like ghost storytelling and river ecology. As part of the network, it contributes to statewide goals of cultural sustainability, with funding decisions based on applications demonstrating impact on diverse audiences.
Maryland State Arts Council, established in 1967, oversees such grants to ensure arts accessibility, with fiscal year 2025 allocations reflecting commitments to nonprofit sustainability. The councils Creativity Grants, including those for general operating support, accept applications on a rolling basis through December 2025, reviewed monthly for awards. For folklife-specific funding, emphasis remains on regional centers roles in tradition-bearing activities.
This repeated funding underscores the centers growth since 2021, positioning it to deepen collaborations and resource development for Southern Marylands cultural landscape.
