Four high schools in the tri-state area have won $10,000 grants for their theater programs, part of the R.I.S.E. America Project tied to the upcoming NBC primetime drama "Rise."
Fifty schools across the country have won grants after submitting short videos and written essays detailing how they'd use the money for their theatre arts programs. R.I.S.E. America is inspired by the Jason Katims drama "Rise," which follows the effects a high school theatre department has on its surrounding community.
The four winning high schools in the tri-state are: Union Senior High School in Union, New Jersey; Bound Brook High School in Bound Brook, New Jersey; Peekskill High School in Peekskill, New York; and Hastings High School in Hastings on Hudson, New York.
The Educational Theatre Foundation is the philanthropic arm of the Educational Theatre Association, a national nonprofit organization that provides financial support to enhance theatre education and to expand access to school programs for every student.
"Rise" premieres Tuesday, March 13 at 10 p.m. ET, right after the season finale of "This Is Us." Katims also produced NBC's "Friday Night Lights" and "Parenthood." Josh Radnor, Auli'i Cravalho and Rosie Perez star.
