ALTA loses NEA grant

Our colleagues at the American Literary Translators Association (ALTA) were recently informed that their grant funding from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) has been cancelled. We are sharing below the information received from ALTA Executive Director Katrine Øgaard Jensen. AATIA regrets the loss of this crucial funding and stands in solidarity with ALTA.

Dear ALTA Community, I had hoped that my first time writing directly to you as ALTA’s new Executive Director would be a happier occasion.  However, on Friday night—at the end of my first week in the role—we received word that ALTA’s NEA grant to support the annual ALTA Conference and Emerging Translator Mentorship Program has been terminated, as our programming “no longer effectuates agency priorities.” Fortunately the funds, awarded for last year’s conference and mentorship program, have already been received in full. Unfortunately,the letter leads us to conclude that ALTA can no longer rely on this vital source of financial support for this year’s conference and beyond. While we have been preparing for this eventuality, this remains a jarring, disturbing development—not just for ALTA, but for the arts community at large. Funding from the NEA has not just been helpful over the past years to ALTA; it has been crucial. Our annual conference and mentorship program have benefitted directly from this funding, allowing us to grow these programs, nurture our community, and stabilize our organization in ways that otherwise would not have been possible.  ALTA will continue to be dedicated to the work of promoting and uplifting voices from all backgrounds, especially lesser-served ones, in our programming and beyond. We will continue to hold our annual conference, the largest gathering of literary translators in the United States and the only one of its kind. We will continue to work with our partners to recognize the work of promising emerging translators through our mentorship program, now in its 10th year, and Travel Fellowships, now in its 31st year.  We are not alone in this staggering development. I know you are receiving many such letters this week; there are too many organizations that are, similarly, facing difficult and uncertain circumstances. But if you can, please help us in our mission. You can do this in various ways: Propose panels for our upcoming conference. Help us keep our programming vibrant and diverse.  Join ALTA if you haven’t already, renew your membership, or consider gifting a membership. We are only as strong as our community. Follow us on social media, and subscribe to our newsletter.  If you are in a position to do so, consider donating to help us cover the costs of our programming.  But most of all: Keep translating. Keep writing. Keep reading literature from around the world. Stay curious. Stay connected.  These are profoundly uncertain and distressing times. But it is my hope that—together—we will get through them. Thank you for being with us.   Yours sincerely, Katrine Øgaard Jensen Executive Director, American Literary Translators Association     ALTA is a non-profit arts membership organization. Our work is made possible by member contributions. To support the work of ALTA on behalf of translators and literary translation, please consider making a donation.