GRANTS FOR ARTS PROJECTS

Overview

The National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is proud to support the nation’s arts sector with grant opportunities so that together we can help everyone live more artful lives. The arts contribute to our individual well-being, the well-being of our communities, and to our local economies. The arts are also crucial to helping us make sense of our circumstances from different perspectives as we emerge from the pandemic and plan for the future.

Grants for Arts Projects is our largest grants program for organizations, providing comprehensive and expansive funding opportunities for communities. Through project-based funding, the program supports opportunities for public engagement with the arts and arts education, for the integration of the arts with strategies promoting the health and well-being of people and communities, and for the improvement of overall capacity and capabilities within the arts sector.

We fund arts projects in the following disciplines:

• Artist Communities
• Arts Education
• Dance, Design, Folk & Traditional Arts
• Literary Arts
• Local Arts Agencies
• Media Arts
• Museums
• Music
• Musical Theater
• Opera
• Presenting & Multidisciplinary Arts
• Theater
• Visual Arts

Projects may be small, medium, or large; existing or new; and may take place in any part of the nation’s 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. jurisdictions. A project may consist of one or more specific events or activities; it may be a new initiative or part of your organization’s regular season or activities. Organizations that undertake a single short-term program in a year could apply for that event, or they could identify certain components (such as the presentation of a particular artist and the associated activities) as their project. Organizations may apply for any or all phases of a project, from its planning through its implementation.

Areas of Particular Interest
The NEA is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, and fostering mutual respect for the diverse beliefs and values of all individuals and groups. We encourage projects that address any of the following:

• Elevate artists as integral and essential to a healthy and vibrant society.
• Celebrate the nation’s creativity and/or cultural heritage.
• Facilitate cross-sector collaborations that center the arts at the intersection of other disciplines, sectors, and industries.
• Contribute to healthy and thriving local, regional, state-wide, and national arts ecosystems and arts infrastructures.
• Invest in organizational capacity-building and leadership development for arts organizations, arts workers, and artists.
• Build arts organizations’ capacity to serve a broad public through digital or emergent technology and/or support tech-centered creative practices across all artistic disciplines and forms.

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,
• Predominantly Black Institutions,
• Hispanic Serving Institutions, 
• Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, and

Organizations that support the independence and lifelong inclusion of people with disabilities.
In recognition of the United States of America’s 250th anniversary in 2026, we also welcome arts projects that educate and engage communities in dialogue about the past, present, and future of our nation.

ASU may submit only one application to the FY 2023 Grants for Arts Projects program Except in the Media Arts category

Our grants cannot exceed 50% of the total cost of the project. All grants require a nonfederal cost share/match of at least 1 to 1. For example, if an organization receives a $10,000 grant, the total eligible project costs must be at least $20,000 and the organization must provide at least $10,000 toward the project from nonfederal sources.