The Alabama State Council on the Arts has announced that Rachel Patterson School in Atmore has received a Rural School Touring Program grant. This is the 12th year of the program which is a result of the increase in funding the Council has received from the legislature.

On Wednesday, March 30, at 1 p.m. Christi Strickland, actor and director, will perform for students at Rachel Patters School, which is one out of 25 schools in 17 counties benefiting from the Council’s statewide School Touring Program.

According to the press release from the Arts Council, Strickland holds professional credits as an actor, stage manager, makeup artist, wig stylist and director. She is the founder and artistic director of the Birmingham based Plays on the Go Touring Company (PGTC). They present plays from their children’s repertoire in elementary schools throughout the Jefferson County, and also produces/programs acting classes, theatre workshops and drama residencies for grades 3-8. Strickland has received a bachelor’s degree in theatre arts from Alabama State University and continued her study in a three-year professional internship at the St. Louis Black Repertory Theatre in St. Louis, Mo.

The Rural School Touring Program provides performances of music, dance and theatre by Alabama artists for Alabama children.

“Alabama is indeed fortunate to have an abundance of outstanding performing artists,” said Al Head, executive director of the Council. “Providing opportunities for students to enjoy and learn through the arts is a top priority for the Council.”

The Alabama State Council of the Arts is the official state arts agency of Alabama. The staff of the Council, directed by Al Head, administers the grants programs and provides financial assistance in arts education and programming. The Council receives its support through an annual appropriation from the Alabama Legislature and funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, a federal agency.