20 Grant Programs That Can Help Your Organization Get Ahead

Right now is the perfect time to check out what grant programs are available for organizations affected by the recent pandemic. Fortunately, there are a plethora of options, from private corporate programs to government funding. We have put together this brief list of twenty grants and corporate funding programs to check out when researching grants for your organization.

3M Foundation Grant

3M strives to maximize social impact within our communities and support a culture of service among our people. To do this, 3M Foundation partners with leading organizations that are aligned to our global footprint and have proven track records for making a difference. For more information please visit 3m.com

The American Theater Wing

National Rapid Relief – 2020

With regional theaters going dark in communities all across the nation, the American Theatre Wing is committed to supporting as many of these institutions as possible during their time of need. Through the newly formed National Rapid Relief Fund, The Wing will be making immediate gifts, in the amount of $1,000, to each of the 82 prior recipients of the National Theatre Company Grants. These companies, large and small, play very important cultural and economic roles in their communities, and their survival is fundamental to the nation’s wider recovery effort. For more information please visit: AmericanTheaterWing.org

American Express Theater Grant

American Express invests in theaters and theater organizations across the United States, but prioritizes giving to six U.S. locations. To be eligible for this grant you must be a nonprofit. For more information please visit: AmericanExpress.com

National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts is committed to supporting activities that reflect the dynamic, diverse, and evolving nature of the media arts field. Applicants may apply in this Grants for Arts Projects category for media arts projects that support creation, exhibition, education, and distribution of historic and contemporary artworks in all genres and forms that use electronic media, film, and technology (analog & digital; old and new) as an artistic medium or a medium to broaden arts appreciation and awareness (of any discipline). All genres are welcome to apply; all phases of project support are eligible. To learn more please visit: Arts.gov

The Morris and Gwendolyn Cafritz Foundation

The Foundation seeks to be responsive to community issues and needs. Our process is highly competitive and is open to new projects and new organizations. The following summary, Examples of our Grant-Making, is offered to help guide applicants. While this is not intended to be an exhaustive description and may, as appropriate, change over time, we hope that the following will suggest the kind of meaningful work in which the Foundation is seeking to invest. For more information please visit: CafritzFoundation.org

New England Foundation for the Arts (NEFA)

Expeditions funds the development and presentation of cross-disciplinary touring projects for New England communities. Grants are made to New England-based nonprofit organizations to support planning or touring of projects with performing, literary, and/or visual arts components.

New England States Touring (NEST) provides support to New England-based nonprofit organizations for performances, readings, and related community activities by artists on the New England States Touring roster.

Presenter Travel Fund provides monetary assistance to arts programmers or curatorial staff in New England so that they may investigate new or unfamiliar work outside of their home community. Applicants may apply for funding to help cover the expense of attending festivals, showcases, conferences, or other cultural events.

NEFA funds other grants programs; see their website below for more details of available opportunities. https://www.nefa.org/

The Joyce Foundation

The Culture Program supports the efforts of cultural institutions, primarily in Chicago, Cleveland, Detroit, Indianapolis, Milwaukee, and Minneapolis-St. Paul, to serve and represent the city’s diverse populations. The Program is interested in projects that bring diverse audiences together to share common cultural experiences and encourage more people to see the arts as integral to their lives. For more information please visit: joycefdn.org

The Trust for Mutual Understanding

The Trust for Mutual Understanding awards grants to American nonprofit organizations to support the international travel component of cultural and environmental exchanges conducted in partnership with institutions and individuals in Russia and Central and Eastern Europe. Priority consideration is given to projects that involve direct, in-depth professional interaction, with the potential for sustained collaboration; that show evidence of professional accomplishment and innovation; and/or that respond to social contexts and engage local communities.
The trust’s cultural program encompasses the visual and performing arts, traditional as well as contemporary. For more information please visit: TMUNY.org

Fleishhacker Foundation

Small Arts Grants: these are between $1,000 and $10,000; grants are made to support a range of artistic efforts within the following disciplines: dance, film/video and media arts, interdisciplinary arts, music, theater; and visual arts. Grants may be for: artists’ fees for creative time, production costs for performances or films, exhibition/installation costs for visual, media, or interdisciplinary arts, and projects which aid the organization’s overall artistic development.

Special Arts Grants: these are generally around $10,000 and do not exceed $25,000; grants are for larger mid-sized arts organizations to support special artistic projects or initiatives, artistic collaborations or commissions involving local artists, and upgrading facilities to benefit artists and audiences. San Francisco Bay Area only.

For more information please visit: www.fleishhackerfoundation.org

Arts Midwest

Grants primarily fund presenting organizations, and those must be in the Midwest. But funding can also benefit outside groups that present in the region. Theater is a major focus. For more information please visit: https://www.artsmidwest.org/

Iowa Culture

Each year, the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs invests grant funding into projects, organizations and communities that enhance quality of life in Iowa through arts, history and culture. For more information please visit: https://iowaculture.gov/arts/grants

Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation

Mid Atlantic Arts Foundation (MAAF) was established in 1979 to promote and support multi-state arts programming in a region that includes Delaware, the District of Columbia, Maryland, New Jersey, New York, Pennsylvania, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Virginia, and West Virginia. It is one of six regional arts organizations in the United States, and works in close partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and its member state and jurisdictional arts agencies. MAAF distinguishes itself through its work in international cultural exchange, model programs in performing arts touring, its knowledge and presence in the jazz field, and its support of Folk and Traditional Arts. For more information please visit: midatlanticarts.org

The Foundation Center

The Foundation Center is a leading source of information about philanthropy worldwide. The Center maintains the most comprehensive database on U.S. and, increasingly, global grant makers and their grants. For more information please visit foundationcenter.org

National Endowment for the Humanities

NEH is an independent grant-making agency of the United States government dedicated to supporting research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. For more information please visit: neh.gov

Foundation for Contemporary Arts

 Its mission is to encourage, sponsor and promote innovative work in the arts. Through a nomination process, individual artists and organizations working in dance, music/sound, theater/performance art, poetry, and the visual arts are awarded unrestricted grants for projects of their own choosing. For more information please visit: foundationforcontemporaryarts.org

Sundance Institute Foundation

Foundation Giving enables Sundance Institute to support the vital work of independent storytellers. We work closely with each foundation to connect it to Institute activities that reflect shared values and priorities. Through these efforts, we have built a community of donors who share our commitment to cultivating original voices in film, television, theatre and digital media. Foundation grants provide stability for existing Programs and seed the launch of new initiatives. These activities empower artists to create high-quality stories that inspire audiences by speaking to the issues that shape our world. Foundations also help us achieve excellence as an organization and foster a culture of learning, mentorship, and accountability. For more information please visit: sundance.org

The Shubert Foundation

The Shubert Foundation is dedicated to sustaining and advancing the live performing arts in the United States, with a particular emphasis on theatre and a secondary focus on dance. For more information please visit: https://www.shubertfoundation.org/all-programs

Embery Family Foundation

The Embrey Family Foundation invests in theater productions and organizations across the United States. For more information please visit: https://embreyfdn.org/

The David Rockefeller Fund

The David Rockefeller Fund supports visual and performing arts organizations around the United States. For more information please visit: http://www.drfund.org/

Macy’s Grant for Theaters

Macy’s makes substantial and widespread contributions in the area of arts and culture, and theater is at the forefront of this giving. National theater programming is funded by the foundation. For more information please visit: https://macyfoundation.org/our-grantees/apply