Deadline: 16-Nov-20
The Boston Cultural Council is awarding grants to local nonprofits that offer arts and cultural programming in Boston. The Boston Cultural Council (BCC), under the umbrella of the Mayor’s Office of Arts and Culture, helps to ensure that grant making responds to the needs of the cultural community and that best practices for grant solicitation, review and disbursement are followed.
The BCC annually distributes funds allocated by the City of Boston and the Mass Cultural Council, a state agency, to support innovative arts, humanities, and interpretive science programming that enhances the quality of life in our city.
The council members are Boston residents appointed by Mayor Martin J. Walsh for up to two
consecutive three year terms. Council members are selected on the basis of their demonstrated
commitment to Boston’s cultural community and their knowledge of various arts disciplines. The BCC
reviews applications to evaluate the quality of proposed programming and potential benefit to diverse
audiences in Boston.
Categories
You can apply for the grant for the following art categories:
- music;
- film and video;
- folk and traditional art;
- visual art;
- theater;
- dance;
- humanities;
- literary arts;
- performance or time-based arts;
- social and civic practices, and;
- multi-disciplinary arts.
Funding Information
Organizations may apply for grants up to a set limit, based on their organizational size (total expenses from the most recently completed fiscal year). If an organization is selected as a recipient, they will receive the total amount they are eligible in their budget category. The categories are:
- Organizations with budgets less than $100,000 may apply for a grant of $2,000;
- Organizations with budgets between $100,000 and $500,000 may apply for a grant of $3,500;
- Organizations with budgets between $500,000 and $2,000,000 may apply for a grant of $5,000.
Grant Fund Restrictions
Grant funding may not be used for the following items:
- To pay salaries or stipends for employees of the school system, library, parks department, or municipality.
- On capital expenditures for schools, libraries, other municipal agencies.
- On programming that discriminates or discourages participation on the basis of race, gender, religious creed, color, national origin, ancestry, disability, sexual orientation, or age.
The BCC does not award grants to:
- K-12 schools or K-12 school foundations;
- Main Streets organizations;
- Colleges or universities;
- “Friends of…” organizations whose primary purpose is to support government entities.
- Non-profit cultural organizations with budgets under $2 million whose mission and programming is focused in the following disciplines: Music, Film and Video, Traditional and Folk Art, Visual Art, Theater, Dance, Humanities, Literary Arts, Performing Arts, Social/Civic Practice, Multidisciplinary Arts.
- Non-profits whose mission is not primarily arts and culture based, but who are looking to fund arts and culture programs are welcome to apply.
- Organizations not based in the City of Boston, but whose primary programming takes place in Boston, are eligible.
- Unincorporated groups can apply with a fiscal sponsor as long as they meet the rest of the eligibility criteria. This includes: artist collectives, volunteer groups, publications, and any other group jointly working toward common goals.
- Organizations can submit only one proposal per funding cycle.
- Non-profits with L3C designations are eligible to apply.
For more information, visit https://www.boston.gov/departments/arts-and-culture/how-apply-organizational-grant
