Deadline: 11-Feb-21
National Endowment for the Arts has launched Grants for Arts Projects – a principal grants program for organizations based in the United States.
Through project-based funding, the program supports public engagement with, and access to, various forms of art across the nation, the creation of excellent art, and learning in the arts at all stages of life, and the integration of the arts into the fabric of community life.
The Arts Endowment encourages applications from a variety of eligible organizations, e.g., with small, medium, or large budgets, and from rural to urban communities. Similarly, projects may be large or small, existing or new, and may take place in any part of the nation’s 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories.
The Arts Endowment encourages projects that use the arts to unite and heal in response to current events, as well as address any of the following:
- Celebrate America’s creativity and/or cultural heritage.
- Invite a dialogue that fosters mutual respect for the diverse beliefs and values of all persons and groups.
- Enrich our humanity by broadening our understanding of ourselves as individuals and as a society.
- Originate from or are in collaboration with the following constituencies encouraged by White House Executive Orders:
- Historically Black Colleges and Universities,
- Tribal Colleges and Universities,
- American Indian and Alaska Native tribes,
- African American Serving Institutions,
- Hispanic Serving Institutions,
- Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, and
- Organizations that support the independence and lifelong inclusion of people with disabilities.
Funding Information
- Grants range from $10,000 to $100,000.
- Designated local arts agencies eligible to subgrant may request from $10,000 to $150,000 for sub granting in the Local Arts Agencies discipline.
- Grants awarded under these guidelines generally may cover a period of performance of up to two years.
Eligibility Criteria
Nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c) (3), U.S. organizations; units of state or local government; or federally recognized tribal communities or tribes may apply. Applicants may be arts organizations, local arts agencies, arts service organizations, local education agencies (school districts), and other organizations that can help advance the goals of the National Endowment for the Arts.
To be eligible, the applicant organization must:
- Meet the National Endowment for the Arts’ “Legal Requirements” including nonprofit, tax-exempt status at the time of application. (All organizations must apply directly on their own behalf. Applications through a fiscal sponsor/agent are not allowed.
- Have completed a three-year history of arts programming prior to the application deadline. For the purpose of defining eligibility, “three-year history” refers to when an organization began its programming and not when it incorporated or received nonprofit, tax-exempt status.
- Have submitted acceptable Final Report packages by the due date(s) for all National Endowment for the Arts grant(s) previously received.
Application Process
Submitting an application is a multi-step process:
- Part 1: Submit to Grants.gov the “Application for Federal Domestic Assistance/Short Organization Form.”
- Part 2: Complete the “Grant Application Form (GAF)” and upload items through the Arts Endowment’s Applicant Portal.
- Read through both Part 1 and Part 2 instructions fully, as they each include important step-by-step directions to ensure that both required parts of your application are submitted successfully.
- Be sure to select the discipline that corresponds to your project (e.g., Arts Education, Dance, Music, Visual Arts, etc.) as instructions and requirements vary between disciplines.
- They will conduct a live webinar on Wednesday, January 6, 2021, from 3:00 to 4:00 pm Eastern Time featuring an overview presentation followed by a Q&A session. Register to attend the webinar or watch the recording of the webinar after it is concluded.
Review Criteria
Below are the review criteria that panellists will refer to when evaluating applications, with the equal weight assigned to Artistic Excellence and Artistic Merit. While proposals need not address every criterion marked “if appropriate,” applicants may wish to consider all of the criteria when developing their proposals. Projects should be for specific, definable activities.
Artistic Excellence
The artistic excellence of the project includes:
- The quality of the artists, arts organizations, arts education providers, works of art, and/or services that the project will involve.
- If appropriate, the extent to which the project deepens and extends the arts’ value.
Artistic Merit
The artistic merit of the project includes:
- The importance and appropriateness of the project to the organization’s mission, artistic field, artists, audience, community, and/or constituency.
- The ability to carry out the project based on such factors as the appropriateness of the budget, the quality and clarity of the project activities and goals, the resources involved, and the qualifications of the project’s personnel.
- If appropriate, the potential to serve and/or reach individuals whose opportunities to experience the arts are limited by geography, ethnicity, economics, or disability.
- The appropriateness of proposed performance measurements. This includes, where relevant, measures to assess student and/or teacher learning in arts education.
- If appropriate, plans for documentation and dissemination of the project results.
- Evidence of direct compensation to artists, art collectives, and/or art workers.
- The potential to reflect the purpose of the Grants for Arts Projects grants program.
- If appropriate, engagement with the following constituencies (as encouraged by White House Executive Orders):
- Historically Black Colleges and Universities,
- Tribal Colleges and Universities,
- American Indian and Alaska Native tribes,
- African American Serving Institutions,
- Hispanic Serving Institutions,
- Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, and
- Organizations that support the independence and lifelong inclusion of people with disabilities.
NOTE: They fund arts projects, and make grants only for specific, definable activities. Your application may be rejected if it does not sufficiently describe the project activities.
For more information, visit https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/view-opportunity.html?oppId=330284