A new $25,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts will enable the Alabama Shakespeare Festival to produce “Shakespeare for a New Generation.”

U.S. Sen. Jeff Sessions, R.-Ala., announced Monday that ASF later this week will receive the NEA grant, which will provide essential funding to help further the arts education of Alabama’s youth.

“It’s important that young people have the opportunity to learn from masters, such as William Shakespeare, who have had such an impact on theater and the English language,” he said in the release.

Part of the NEA’s “Shakespeare for a New Generation,” the national program aims to expose schoolchildren to the works of Shakespeare. Since 2003, the NEA has awarded 175 grants to professional theater companies, providing live performances of Shakespeare to schools and communities in all 50 states and the District of Columbia. So far, more than 1 million youngsters have attended such performances.

Sessions said ASF is a fabulous part of Alabama’s culture and is known nationally for its artistic excellence and professional productions. “I am always proud to support the fine men and women at the Festival who make such a wonderful contribution to our state.”