Editor's note: This information was compiled mid-March 2020. Please double check deadlines and availability.
Emergency Grant for Curators
The Kinkade Family Foundation is proud to administer a new Emergency Grant for curators who are developing projects that promote artwork of contemporary and experimental nature. The Emergency Grant provides funding for a curatorial project that sheds light on the world during this time of darkness. Priority will be given to curators who have a venue secured for their project and are greatly impacted by the challenges we are facing due to COVID-19. Click here for details.
International Museum Day
The worldwide community of museums will celebrate International Museum Day on and around May 18, 2020. With the theme Museums for Equality: Diversity and Inclusion, International Museum Day 2020 aims at becoming a rallying point to both celebrate the diversity of perspectives that make up the communities and personnel of museums, and champion tools for identifying and overcoming bias in what they display and the stories they tell.
Blue Star Museums 2020
Registration is now open for Blue Star Museums 2020! Each summer, the National Endowment for the Arts and Blue Star Families work with museums across the country to provide free admission to the nation’s active duty military personnel and their families. This summer marks the 10th year of the program. It will begin on May 16, Armed Forces Day, and run through September 7, Labor Day. More than 2,000 museums across America participate each summer, including children's museums, fine art museums, history and science museums, zoos, and nature centers. For more information and to register, visit arts.gov/bluestarmuseums, and don't forget to check out #bluestarmuseums on Twitter and Facebook.
2020 Matching Grants for Historic Preservation in New England
The 1772 Foundation announces that funding in the form of 1:1 matching grants of up to $10,000 will be made available for the following historic preservation projects: exterior painting, finishes and surface restoration, fire detection/lightning protection/security systems, repairs to/restoration of porches, roofs and windows, repairs to foundations and sills, and chimney and masonry repointing. Organizations must submit letters of inquiry. Not all letters of inquiry will result in an invitation to submit a full application.
Google Ad Grants
Up to $10,000 per month in-kind AdWords advertising available to nonprofits to promote their missions and initiatives on Google.com. You create advertisement and key word searches that relate your nonprofit, services, and organization as a whole, and when people use Google to search for related offerings online, your ad may appear next to the search results. When people click the ad, they will be directed to your website. For full program details, click here.
National Leadership Grants for Museums
The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) issues grants in size from $5,000 - $1,000,000 to support projects that address critical needs of the museum field and that have the potential to advance practice in the profession so that museums can improve services for the American public. This program has five project categories: collections care and public access, data analysis and assessment, digital platforms and applications, diversity and inclusion, and professional development. Deadline: April 13, 2020.
New England Presenter Travel Fund
The New England Foundation for the Arts supports travel costs associated with researching artistic work that may eventually be presented in New England. Rolling deadline: due no later than on month prior to departure date.
National Dance Project Travel Fund
Through the New England Foundation for the Arts, the National Dance Project Travel Fund provides monetary assistance for U.S. based presenters, curatorial staff, and residency directors or for current NDP artist grantees to connect in person to explore feasibility of presenting NDP-funded works. Rolling deadline.
NEH and IMLS Offer Digital Humanities Advancement Grants
Digital Humanities Advancement Grants (DHAG) support digital projects at different stages throughout their lifecycles, from early start-up phases through implementation and sustainability. Experimentation, reuse, and extensibility are hallmarks of this program, leading to innovative work that can scale to enhance scholarly research, teaching, and public programming in the humanities. Deadline: June 30, 2020.
NEH Grants Available
The Digital Projects for the Public program supports projects that interpret and analyze humanities content in primarily digital platforms and formats, such as websites, mobile applications and tours, interactive touch screens and kiosks, games, and virtual environments. The projects must be designed to attract broad public audiences. Deadline: June 19, 2020.
Through NEH-Mellon Fellowships for Digital Publication, the National Endowment for the Humanities and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation jointly support individual scholars pursuing interpretive research projects that require digital expression and digital publication. To be eligible for this special opportunity, an applicant’s plans for digital publication must be integral to the project’s research goals. Successful projects will likely incorporate visual, audio, and/or other multimedia materials or flexible reading pathways that could not be included in traditionally published books, as well as an active distribution plan. Deadline: April 22, 2020.
NEH Fellowships are competitive awards granted to individual scholars pursuing projects that embody exceptional research, rigorous analysis, and clear writing. Applications must clearly articulate a project’s value to humanities scholars, general audiences, or both. Fellowships provide recipients time to conduct research or to produce books, monographs, peer-reviewed articles, e-books, digital materials, translations with annotations or a critical apparatus, or critical editions resulting from previous research. Projects may be at any stage of development. Deadline: April 8, 2020.
NEH Preservation and Access Education and Training supports the development of knowledge and skills among professionals responsible for preserving and establishing access to humanities collections. Thousands of libraries, archives, museums, and historical organizations across the country maintain important collections of books and manuscripts, photographs, sound recordings and moving images, archaeological and ethnographic artifacts, art and material culture collections, electronic records, and digital objects. The challenge of preserving and making accessible such large and diverse holdings is enormous, and the need for knowledgeable staff is significant and ongoing. Deadline is May 15, 2020.
NEA Grants Available
Challenge America grants support projects that extend the reach of the arts to underserved populations. Matching grants are for $10,000. A minimum cost share/match equal to the grant amount is required. Total project costs must be at least $20,000 or greater. Deadline: April 9, 2020.
NEA Grants for Arts Projects
These grants support artistically excellent projects that celebrate our creativity and cultural heritage, invite mutual respect for differing beliefs and values, and enrich humanity. Cost share/matching grants generally range from $10,000 to $100,000. A minimum cost share/match equal to the grant amount is required. Deadline: July 9, 2020.
Standards and Excellence Program for History Organizations
StEPs is AASLH's self-study standards program designed specifically for small- to mid-sized history organizations, including volunteer-run institutions. Through a workbook, online resources, and an online community, organizations enrolled in StEPS assess their policies and practices and benchmark themselves against nationally recognized standards. NEMA members that enroll in StEPs receive a free AASLH webinar registration. For complete details, click here.
National Trust for Historic Preservation Emergency Funds
Intervention funding from the National Trust for Historic Preservation is awarded in emergency situations when immediate and unanticipated work is needed to save a historic structure, such as when a fire or other natural disaster strikes. Funding is restricted to nonprofit organizations and public agencies. Emergency grants typically range from $1,000 to $5,000, but unlike the majority of our grant funding, a cash match is not required for intervention projects. Contact the NTHP if you believe your project qualifies for this type of funding. Funding is very limited.
National Trust Offers Preservation Grants
Grants from National Trust Preservation Funds (NTPF) are intended to encourage preservation at the local level by providing seed money for preservation projects. These grants help stimulate public discussion, enable local groups to gain the technical expertise needed for particular projects, introduce the public to preservation concepts and techniques, and encourage financial participation by the private sector. A small grant at the right time can go a long way and is often the catalyst that inspires a community to take action on a preservation project. Grants generally start at $2,500 and range up to $5,000. Deadline: June 1, 2020.
The National Fund for Sacred Places
This grant-making program of Partners for Sacred Places in collaboration with the National Trust for Historic Preservation. The National Fund is guided by an Advisory Committee, bringing together faith leaders, architects, and philanthropists from across the country to inform the grant-making process. The National Fund is made possible by generous financial support from the Lilly Endowment, Inc., with additional support in 2019 from the Gerry Charitable Trust. Letter of intent is due April 22, 2020
TD Charitable Foundation
TD Charitable Foundation grants will be awarded to area non-profit and public institutions to create meaningful change and improvement in the communities.
The Edwin S. Webster Foundation
The Edwin S. Webster Foundation will consider requests for capital programs, special projects or operating income. They support organizations with an emphasis on hospitals, medical research, education, youth agencies, cultural activities, and programs addressing the needs of minorities. Generally, the foundation confines its grants primarily to the New England area. Before submitting a request, please contact foundation assistant Phil Cappello at: pcappello@gmafoundations.com. The deadline is May 1.
Sherlock Holmes Teaching Grant
The Beacon Society announces that once again, grants to U.S. and Canadian teachers, librarians, children's museums, and Sherlockian literary societies are available. The grants, in honor of a wonderful Sherlockian, Jan Stauber, will provide up to $500 to fund the development of a project that will introduce young people to Sir Arthur Conan Doyle's stories about his famous fictional detective, Sherlock Holmes. Deadline: May 1, 2020.
The U.S. Department of Agriculture Rural Development Community Facilities
This program provides affordable funding to develop essential community facilities in rural areas. An essential community facility is defined as a facility that provides an essential service to the local community for the orderly development of the community in a primarily rural area, and does not include private, commercial or business undertakings. Rolling deadline.
Walmart Community Grant Program
The Walmart Foundation is accepting applications for their Community Grant Program, which awards grants from $250 to $2,500 to nonprofits, government entities, schools, or churches in the service area of Walmart stores. Deadline: December 31, 2020, but submissions can be made at any time.
Massachusetts Nonprofit Awareness Day
On June 15, 2020, hundreds of nonprofit, government, and business leaders will descend on the State House to celebrate Nonprofit Awareness Day: A Celebration of Nonprofit Excellence, a statewide holiday honoring the contributions of nonprofits in Massachusetts. The celebration is hosted by Massachusetts Nonprofit Network and is presented by Citizens Bank.
Mass Humanities Discussion Grant
Partly inspired by traditional Reading & Discussion series, a Discussion Grant project may be a series of events, such as a film-and-discussion series; it may be a one-time event that includes active reflecting and discussing; or it may be something different, such as the creation of an exhibit or walking tour along with a discussion. Rather than requiring reading, Discussion Grant projects allow for the exchange of thoughts, opinions, and ideas in response to almost any kind of text or event: films, talks, performances, tours, exhibits, lectures, and more. Letter of intent deadline: June 1, 2020. Final application deadline: July 7, 2020.
Massachusetts Roving Archivist and Archival Supplies
Through generous funding from the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC), the Massachusetts Archives is pleased to provide funding for the Roving Archivist program and funding for the purchase of supplies and materials needed to arrange, describe, preserve, and make accessible archival collections.
Awesome Foundation Grants (Massachusetts)
Awesome Foundation awards $1,000 grants every month for awesome project ideas. Chapters exist in three Massachusetts cities: Boston, Gloucester, and Rockport. Rolling submissions online.
New Hampshire Charitable Foundation
In 2020, the Foundation's Commuity Grants program is dedicated exclusively to meeting urgent needs related to the COVID-19 crisis.
New Hampshire Community Project Grants
New Hampshire Humanities Council awards two types of Community Project Grants. Mini Grants offer up to $1,000 to support simple, single-event or short-series projects, and are available in as little as six weeks from submission deadline. The next Mini Grant application deadline is May 1, 2020. Major Grants of up to $10,000 enable organizations to design and carry out larger projects that attract diverse audiences, engage minds, and stimulate meaningful community dialogue. Draft proposal deadline: April 1, 2020.
Rhode Island Foundation COVID-19 Response Funds
Available to Rhode Island nonprofit organizations at the forefront of COVID-19 response, thanks to many generous donors, and a partnership between the Rhode Island Foundation and United Way of Rhode Island.
Rhode Island Mini Grant Program
Rhode Island Council for the Humanities' Mini Grant Program for requests up to $2,000 invites individual researchers, nonprofit organizations, and schools to apply for funding in support of public humanities projects. Deadline: May 1, 2020.
Rhode Island State Council on the Arts
RISCA’s Investments in Arts & Culture Program (IAC) provides annual operating support to arts and culture organizations across Rhode Island that make important contributions to the vitality of our communities, the economy of our state, the enrichment of all Rhode Islanders, and our quality of life. Organizations must demonstrate excellent artistic, educational, and cultural value; responsiveness and engagement with their community; and a high level of financial and managerial accountability, including a history of support from RISCA. April 1st, 2020 deadline has been extended to April 15th, 2020 due to Coronavirus.
Vermont Community Foundation COVID-19 Response Fund
The Vermont Community Foundation has established the VT COVID-19 Response Fund to support nonprofits that are particularly equipped to address community impacts of the spread of the novel coronavirus in Vermont. In order to disburse grant resources quickly, we are not hosting a formal application process at this time. In the first phase of the fund’s grantmaking, we are prioritizing community-based organizations and networks that have history and experience serving communities and vulnerable individuals who are immediately and disproportionately suffering from this crisis. Grants will be made on a rolling basis as our fundraising continues.
Vermont Community Foundation Spark Grants
Spark grants program continues to focus on building social capital and connection; however, we recognize the inherent challenges of bringing people together at a time when social distancing is essential and in-person gatherings are not safe. Deadline March 30, 2020.
Vermont Community Foundation Special & Urgent Needs
The Special and Urgent Needs (SUN) grant round helps Vermont nonprofits with unexpected expenses that impact their ability to meet their mission. A SUN grant can help an organization manage an unbudgeted, unforeseen, and time-sensitive emergency or take advantage of an unanticipated opportunity that will enhance its work. Details online here.
Vermont Community Foundation Samara Fund Grants
The Samara Fund seeks proposals for new or existing projects, programs, and organizations that serve LGBTQ communities in Vermont and help the Fund achieve its mission. The deadline is Friday, May 29, 2020.
Vermont Community Foundation Samara Fund Grants
Nonprofit Capacity Building grants offer $2,500 each to support the cost of consultants to facilitate discussions related to strategic planning, development of an organizational fundraising strategy, or orchestrating a merger. Ongoing application process.
Vermont Arts Endowment Fund
The Vermont Arts Endowment Fund offers grants up to $5,000 to Vermont artists and Vermont arts organizations. Deadline: June 5, 2020.
Vermont Arts Council
Arts Impact Grants support nonprofit organizations, municipalities, and schools in their efforts to add vibrancy to Vermont communities by providing equal and abundant access to the arts. The Arts Council seeks applications for projects that identify and break down barriers to participation. Deadline: May 1, 2020