Welcome, and thank you for helping us bring the Passport Program to WIC recipients in your community! We hope these resources will help you share about the program in a way that is clear, easy, and flexible to how you engage with your visitors.

Below, you will find:

• Information about our website and the Passport Program
• Resources and language for your website and/or newsletter
• Posts and assets for social media
• Other general assets related to the Passport Program

Program Overview

The Passport Program, a collaboration between the Virginia Commission for the Arts (VCA) and the Virginia Department of Health (VDH), offers free or discounted tickets and arts programs to Women, Infants, and Children (WIC) cardholders in Virginia. To receive a discount, all Passport holders need to do is show their WIC card at participating locations. Many participating locations also allow caregivers of children in WIC families to access the discounts!

Since its inception in 2023, the Passport Program has partnered with dozens of arts organizations across Virginia and connected participants with thousands of free and discounted arts opportunities. Partners include Signature Theatre (Arlington), the Charlottesville Opera (Charlottesville), the Taubman Museum (Roanoke), and the Academy Center of the Arts (Lynchburg). Now entering its second full program year, the Passport Program is expected to welcome thousands of WIC beneficiaries to new arts experiences in every corner of the Commonwealth.

Current Opportunities

All of our active partners, where they are located, and what discounts they offer are listed on our page for Passport Holders. This dynamic list is updated regularly as we hear from those organizations about their season. We encourage you to check this page quarterly to ensure that any information in your spaces is accurate.

To find Passport arts partners near you, you can sort the list alphabetically by location name. Don’t forget to look for partners in your county and nearby independent cities!

Translation Services

For non-English speaking visitors, the VCA offers translated versions of our website through our partner Smartling. If you or any of your clients would like to view the Passport opportunities list in another language, simply use the toolbar at the top-right of the page.

Simply clicking on the desired language will translate the entire VCA website!

Example Website Language

If you’d like to add the Passport Program to a page about community engagement or partnerships, this language can be a helpful starting point:

[Library] is a proud partner of the Passport Program, which offers free or discounted tickets, classes, and other experiences to WIC (Women, Infants, and Children) recipients across Virginia. The Passport Program is a collaboration between the Virginia Commission for the Arts (VCA), the Virginia Department of Health (VDH), and dozens of community partners across the Commonwealth.

In [YOUR CITY/COUNTY], Passport holders and other caregivers of children who receive WIC benefits can receive a discount at [LOCAL PARTNER(s)]. To redeem this discount, just show your WIC card at the guest services/welcome desk when entering, or tell them you are a WIC cardholder on their online ticketing platform.

For more information about the Passport Program, including other organizations that offer discounts, visit the VCA’s website here. If you have any questions about [Organization Name]’s participation in this program, please contact [Jane Smith jane@organization.com].

Example Newsletter Blurbs

These brief paragraphs fit perfectly in your library’s regular newsletter, email outreach, and more. We encourage you to alter them to fit your needs.

Blurb 1:

Libraries across Virginia have come together to tell you about the Passport Program, a way for WIC cardholders to get free and discounted arts tickets at dozens of venues! To learn more about the Passport Program, ask a librarian or visit the Virginia Commission for the Arts (https://vca.virginia.gov/initiatives/passport-program/passport-holders/).

Blurb 2:

Did you know that WIC cardholders in Virginia can get free or discounted arts tickets? Through the Passport Program, you can! We’re working with the Virginia Commission for the Arts to bring the program to you, so you can access the arts at places like [LOCAL PARTNER]. To learn more, ask a librarian or visit vca.virginia.gov.

Blurb 3:

This holiday season, the arts may be coming to you! Through the Passport Program, WIC cardholders can use their card to see The Nutcracker, sing along to Messiah, or watch the winter come alive at local museums. We’re partnering with the Virginia Commission for the Arts to bring these opportunities and more to WIC cardholders in [CITY/COUNTY]. To learn more, ask a librarian or visit vca.virginia.gov.

Making a Website Banner or Element

If your library is interested in making a special page or scrolling element on their homepage, they can easily use the assets on this website. You may wish to include the following elements:

Tagline/Header, e.g.:

• “Your WIC Card is Your Passport to the Arts!”
• “Access the Arts of Virginia!”
• “Get to Know the Passport Program”

Background Image. In addition to the logos below, you may wish to use a picture of a recent arts event in your space or from the website of one of the Passport partners in your area. We have also provided the following free images for your use:

Links. It may be useful for you to link to:

• Our website (vca.virginia.gov)
• Our page for Passport holders (https://vca.virginia.gov/initiatives/passport-program/passport-holders/)
• The homepage of a local Passport organization
• If you’re making a homepage banner: the special page on your website talking about community programs, including the Passport Program

For Your Social Media

Social Media Templates

We’ve designed flyers and social media graphics that you can customize to your own organization! To edit and download, just click on a design, and you’ll be navigated to a fully customizable design in Canva, a free online graphic editing platform.

All of the below resources are also available in Spanish. To request Spanish versions of any template, please contact casey.polczynski@vca.virginia.gov or call (804) 387-1972.

How To Use These Templates

When you click on any of the images below, you’ll be redirected to Canva, which is free when you sign in with your email, Facebook, or work account. Canva works on any device, but a desktop computer may be ideal.

The templates have generic text that you can fill in with your organization’s name, discount offerings, and ticketing information. To edit the text, just double-click on the text box and change whatever you’d like as if you were using a word processor like Microsoft Word.

We have also recorded a YouTube video demonstrating how to use the templates. It can be found at this link.

All of the flyers below are available in navy, white, or grayscale – you can click your desired template and download it directly in Canva.

These social media posts, like the posters, have places for you to put in your logo, the discounts you offer, and any other messaging you choose to provide – just type and go!

This story post, for your Instagram or Facebook accounts, can share upcoming discounts, performances, or program updates.

General Assets

Logos

Click on the image below to download a folder of high-quality logos for your use in designing your own materials, including website, flyers, and social media!

QR Code

Click on the image below to download a QR code that will direct users to our Passport Program website, which lists all of the opportunities available and gives crucial program information! We encourage you to use this QR code whenever you can.

The VCA looks forward to seeing your great work with the Passport Program in action! If you have any questions, comments, or suggestions on resources we can provide, please contact:

Casey Polczynski, Ph.D.
Deputy Director and Accessibility Coordinator
Virginia Commission for the Arts
casey.polczynski@vca.virginia.gov