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Part 1 Grants.gov deadline: March 23, 2026; Part 2 NEA Portal deadline: April 2, 2026
Research Grants in the Arts is sponsored by National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Supports research studies investigating the value and impact of the arts in American life, including studies on BIPOC artists.
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GRANTS FOR ARTS PROJECTS | National Endowment for the Arts The NEA is committed to supporting excellent arts projects for the benefit of all Americans. Activities funded through Grants for Arts Projects (GAP) enable Americans throughout the nation to experience the arts, foster and celebrate America’s artistic heritage and cultural legacy, and benefit from arts education at all stages of life.
We also support arts and health programs, including creative arts therapies, that advance the well-being of people and communities. We strongly encourage applications for arts projects that focus on one or more agency funding priorities .
We welcome applications from first-time and returning applicants; from organizations serving rural, urban, suburban, and tribal communities of all sizes; and from organizations with small, medium, or large operating budgets.
We fund arts projects in the following disciplines: Arts Education, Challenge America, Dance, Design & Our Town, Folk & Traditional Arts, Literary Arts, Local Arts Agencies, Museums, Music, Opera, Presenting & Multidisciplinary Works, Theater & Musical Theater, and Visual & Media Arts. A full grant program description can be found below under Grant Program Guidelines below.
For detailed instructions on how to apply, see Application Instructions below. Access for individuals with disabilities: Contact accessibility@arts. gov to request an accommodation or an alternate format of the guidelines at least 2 weeks prior to the application deadline.
Review the GAP Program Guidelines document below for full details. Organizations eligible to apply include: Nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3), U.S. organizations; Units of state or local government; or Federally recognized tribal communities or tribes. Applicant organizations must have completed at least 5 years of arts programming prior to the application deadline.
An applicant organization must have had a minimum of $20,000 in organization operating expenses in its most recently completed fiscal year. Generally, an applicant may submit one application per calendar year. Funding is not available in this category for individuals, applications submitted by a fiscal sponsor, commercial/for-profit enterprises, or State Arts Agencies and Regional Arts Organizations.
Challenge America applicants may only request $10,000. Applications submitted to Challenge America for an amount higher than $10,000 will be marked ineligible. Other GAP applicants may request from $10,000 to $100,000.
Eligible applicants for Local Arts Agencies subgranting projects may request from $30,000 to $150,000. See the Local Arts Agencies Application Instructions below for more information on subgranting eligibility. 1:1 Cost share required.
Sources may include both cash and in-kind. Review the GAP Program Guidelines document below for full details. Applications are accepted during two funding cycles each year.
Grant Program Details and Application Instructions Published Early December 2025 Part 1 Application Package Available on Grants.
gov Early December 2025 Submission deadline February 12, 2026 Part 2 NEA Applicant Portal Opens to applicants February 18, 2026 Part 2 NEA Applicant Portal Submission deadline February 25, 2026 Notification of recommended funding* or rejection November 2026 Earliest project start date January 1, 2027 *If your project is recommended for funding, you must submit additional information to the NEA for approval before an award can be finalized.
Review the GAP Program Guidelines for more information. Specific due dates will be included in the tentative funding recommendation notice.
Grant Program Guidelines & Instructions GAP Grant Program Guidelines (all disciplines) This document includes a detailed description of the grant program, eligibility information, award information, an application calendar, a list of unallowable activities/costs, application review details, FAQs, and federal award administration information. Review this information before you decide to apply.
Application Instructions : Each document includes a discipline description, the types of accepted projects, and full instructions on how to complete and submit both parts of the application, including all application questions. Select the discipline that most closely corresponds with your proposed project activities from the list below.
Presenting & Multidisciplinary Works Theater & Musical Theater Detailed instructions on how to complete and submit the both parts of the application package can be found in the Application Instructions documents above. Applying for a federal grant can be time consuming, we estimate that after registering, the process to draft and submit an application takes approximately 24 hours.
Before you can submit an application, you must register with Login. gov , the System for Award Management (SAM) at SAM. gov , and Grants.
gov or renew/verify these registrations. Registration can take several weeks. Application Part 1, Grants.
gov Submit the Application for Federal Domestic Assistance/Short Organization Form . Clicking the link below will take you directly to the pre-populated application package in Grants. gov. PART 1 GRANTS.
GOV APPLICATION PACKAGE July Cycle: Funding opportunity number 2026NEA01GAP2 After clicking the link above: The Grants. gov “View Grant Opportunity” screen will open, click the red “Apply” button . To create the Workspace application, you must be logged into Grants.
gov with a participant role of either Workspace Manager or Authorized Organization Representative (AOR). If the Apply button is grey or you receive a “bad request” error, please see instructions on how to troubleshoot . Create a Workspace application : Fill in the Application Filing Name field with your organization name, then Click the Create Workspace button.
Go to the Manage Workspace page , where you can begin working on the application. Application Part 2, NEA Applicant Portal Complete the Grant Application Form (GAF) . Login instructions and step-by-step directions for filling out the GAF are available via the Application Instructions documents above.
The Applicant Portal (AP) is a separate website from grants. gov, click the link above to access the portal. Applicants may receive a courtesy email at the beginning of the Part 2 submission window as a reminder that the AP is open – you do not need to wait for this email to access the AP, it will open promptly at 9:00 am Eastern Time on the date indicated on the calendar.
Emails can occasionally get caught in spam filters, for this reason non-receipt of the courtesy email does not provide grounds for an extension, nor should it be interpreted to mean that Part 1 of your application was not received. See the Applicant Resources on the sidebar for video tutorials, an application checklist and template, and other helpful resources.
Before applying, we recommend that you review reporting requirements and other information related to managing a federal award, including the General Terms and Conditions, on our Manage Your Award page. Learn about grantees, artists, arts organizations, and arts events around the country through our blog, podcasts, interviews, videos, and magazine.
Scoring criteria used to review proposals for this grant.
According to the current listing, eligibility includes: Nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3) U.S. organizations; units of state or local government; federally recognized tribal communities or tribes. Confirm the full requirements in the official notice before applying.
This listing does not include a published deadline, but it is an annual program. Check the official notice for the current cycle's exact dates.
Research Grants in the Arts is funded by National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). Verify program details on the funder's official page before applying.
Yes — this listing is flagged as national in scope, so applicants across the U.S. may apply, subject to the sponsor's other eligibility criteria.
Applications go through the funder's official portal — the Apply Now link on this page goes there directly.
The solicitation lists 2 required documents: Grants.gov federal form (Part 1) and NEA Grant Application Form (Part 2). Check the official notice for formatting and page-limit rules.
Past winners and funding trends for this program
Access: An Accommodations Program for Organizations is sponsored by National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) via Creative West. Access: An Accommodations Program for Organizations is a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, administered by Creative West, that helps arts and cultural organizations make their programming more accessible to people with disabilities.
Living Traditions: Folk Art and Beyond Grant is sponsored by National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) via Creative West. Living Traditions: Folk Art and Beyond Grant is a grant from the National Endowment for the Arts, administered by Creative West, that funds projects celebrating and investing in cultural practices and creative expressions that connect communities across the Creative West region.
Jerome Early-Career Project Grants is a grant from Forecast Public Art, funded by the Jerome Foundation, that funds the creation of new public art projects by early-career artists based in Minnesota. Two grants of $8,000 each are awarded annually to support temporary or permanent public artworks anywhere in Minnesota. Projects may be supported by public or nonprofit agencies but private commissions are not eligible, and a secured project site is required at the time of application. The program places special emphasis on supporting BIPOC and Native artists, LGBTQIA+ artists, women artists, immigrant artists, rural artists, and artists with disabilities. Eligible applicants are Minnesota-based individual artists with 2–10 years of generative experience. The application deadline was October 15, 2025.
The Local Cultural Council Program is a grant from the Massachusetts Cultural Council distributing $1,000 to $10,000 through a statewide network of 329 Local Cultural Councils (LCCs) representing every city and town in the Commonwealth. Each LCC awards funds based on local community cultural needs as assessed by council members. Eligible applicants include artists, nonprofits, schools, and organizations pursuing arts, humanities, and science projects. Applications are submitted directly to local councils and are typically due by October 16. Grants from most LCCs are reimbursement-based. Massachusetts Cultural Council funds the LCCs centrally, which then regrant to community projects.