Members of the state Cultural Trust Fund in June awarded more than $60,000 to five Jackson Hole nonprofits through their annual funding program.

The five-person panel approved funding that will allow the organizations to hire new staff, expand existing programs and, in one case, start building an endowment.

Board members agreed to match each dollar up to $25,000 raised by the Art Association of Jackson Hole during its endowment campaign.

“It should give them a good start,” Trust Fund administrator Renee Bovee said.

The board approved $14,800 for Dancers’ Workshop to help pay for members of Contemporary Dance Wyoming — Dancers’ Workshop’s resident modern dance company — to perform in cities outside of Jackson, Bovee said.

C-Bar-V Ranch received $7,640 for its arts and education programs. Ranch staff has regularly brought in artists from Jackson Hole and surrounding communities to teach and do demonstrations, Bovee said. The grant should help expand those programs and allow more in-depth activities, she said.

The National Museum of Wildlife Art was granted $7,000 for a “Traveling Trout” school contest and exhibition, Bovee said. The program will distribute small trout maquettes to teachers in the state for students to decorate and submit for competition, Bovee said.

And board members awarded $6,000 to Jackson Hole Writers to help it pay for hiring a development director.

Only Wyoming nonprofits are eligible for the program. While grants in Jackson went to arts organizations this year, board members have in the past supported archaeological and history projects, Bovee said.

The trust uses interest generated by a $14.4 million endowment that legislators and other state officials aren’t allowed to use. The endowment generates about $800,000 in interest a year.

The board typically doesn’t award the full amount of interest, opting to set some aside for unexpected expenses. This year, the board approved 41 projects representing roughly $759,000 in funding requests. It received a total of 50 applications totaling $1.4 million.

All grants require some kind of match, either dollar-for-dollar or with in-kind contributions such as donated staff time. The maximum award that can be given out through the program is $50,000.