Folk and Traditional Arts is sponsored by California Arts Council. Supports culture bearers practicing folk and traditional arts across California, prioritizing small organizations with revenues $250,000 or below and first-time grantees.

Folk and Traditional Arts - California Grants Portal Folk and traditional art forms are rooted in and reflective of the cultural life of a community, whose members may share common ethnic heritage, cultural mores, language, religion, occupation, or geographic regions. The Folk and Traditional Arts (FTA) grant program supports the culture bearers practicing these arts across California.

Folk and traditional art forms are rooted in and reflective of the cultural life of a community, whose members may share common ethnic heritage, cultural mores, language, religion, occupation, or geographic regions. These art forms are preserved and revitalized through efforts to pass down skills and knowledge across generations.

By providing opportunities for hands-on learning, collaboration, and practice within families and communities, these traditions remain vibrant and continue to evolve, ensuring the lasting strength of cultural legacies. The Folk and Traditional Arts (FTA) grant program supports the culture bearers practicing these arts across California.

FTA will redirect resources at the local level by funding one or more Administering Organizations (AO) with demonstrated capacity for statewide and regional reach that will regrant funds, provide technical assistance, and/or build capacity with artists and arts organizations in support of folk and traditional arts expressions. The AO will work directly with artists or cultural organizations who practice traditional art forms.

The forms of traditional expression can include but are not limited to: crafts, music, dance, ritual, and technical skills. This program centralizes local artists and their artistic processes as vehicles for community vitality. This funding opportunity recognizes that artists are integral to healthy communities, and that the arts are a societal cornerstone that brings people together, builds community, and fosters social progress.

The CAC will award funds to an AO that will develop and administer FTA grants statewide.

The awarded AO will be responsible for the planning and implementation of FTA programs, including but not limited to: development of program components and timeline providing technical assistance capacity building at the local level implementing statewide and community-specific engagement strategies with trusted culture bearers collaboration with the CAC on outreach to ensure diverse statewide representation of applicants management of regranting processes for artists and arts organizations through releasing a request for applications, adjudication by individuals with knowledge and expertise in specific cultural traditions, managing awards, and regular reporting to the CAC Organizations eligible to apply include: Nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3), California organizations Units of municipal, county or Tribal governments Applicants must have a principal place of business in California.

2025/26 Funding Priorities Organizations serving historically and systemically underserved communities located in the lower two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index, including rural and inland areas, as well as regions with a history of low investment from the CAC; First-time grantees; and Small organizations with Total Revenues of $250,000 or below.

The date (and time, where applicable) by which all applications must be submitted to the grantmaker. Time listed as “00:00” equates to midnight. Expected award announcement The date on which the grantor expects to announce the recipient(s) of the grant.

The length of time during which the grant money must be utilized. Total estimated available funding The total projected dollar amount of the grant. Expected number of awards A single grant opportunity may represent one or many awards.

Some grantors may know in advance the exact number of awards to be given. Others may indicate a range. Some may wish to and wait until the application period closes before determining how many awards to offer; in this case, a value of “Dependent” will display.

Estimated amount per award Grant opportunities representing multiple awards may offer awards in the same amount or in varied amounts. Some may wish to wait until the application period closes before determining per-award amounts; in this case, a value of “Dependent” will display. Letter of Intent Required?

Certain grants require that the recipient(s) provide a letter of intent. Requires Matched Funding? Certain grants require that the recipient(s) be able to fully or partially match the grant award amount with another funding source.

Total funding available will be determined based on passage of the state budget and Council allocation priorities. The funding source allocated to fund the grant. It may be either State or Federal (or a combination of both), and be tied to a specific piece of legislation, a proposition, or a bond number.

The manner in which the grant funding will be delivered to the awardee. Funding methods include reimbursements (where the recipient spends out-of-pocket and is reimbursed by the grantor) and advances (where the recipient spends received grant funds directly).

FTA will redirect resources at the local level by funding one or more Administering Organizations (AO) with demonstrated capacity for statewide and regional reach that will regrant funds, provide technical assistance, and/or build capacity with artists and arts organizations in support of folk and traditional arts expressions. State agencies/departments recommend you read the full grant guidelines before applying.

For questions about this grant, contact: Arielle Rubin, 1-916-322-6555, folkartsgrant@arts. ca.

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