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March 1st Applications are Open - And other arts grant info!

Authored on

February 7, 2024

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Only have time for a quick newsletter summary? Here's what you'll find below!

March 1st Applications are OPEN!
All grant amounts have been increased!
Grant information sessions are available. Click here to register.
Upcoming arts grant deadline information.

The East Central Regional Arts Council (ECRAC) is accepting application for the March 1st deadline

The East Central Regional Arts Council (ECRAC) is accepting applications arts funding. Funding is available to artists, k-12 students, and eligible arts organizations located in Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Mille Lacs and Pine Counties. Available arts grants for the March 1st deadline include:

Essential Artist Award: this $9,000 Essential Artist Award program is designed to recognize, reward, and encourage outstanding professional artists and culture bearers and culture bearers. The Council will fund artists and culture bearers at various stages in their professional careers. These Essential Artist Awards will allow artists and culture bearers to set aside time to work, purchase supplies and materials, undertake advanced study (not related to a degree) or to pursue other artistic career goals.

K-12 Student Art Scholarship: this $500 arts scholarship funding is for special arts learning projects or programs for kids. The program provides at least one student award annually, based upon a competitive review of submitted applications. Applications must be for a specific art project that will advance the skills of the student in their art form. The Arts Council is interested in funding projects such as training with a mentor or summer art programs such as music or visual art camps. All young artists in kindergarten through 12th grade who strive to improve their artistic abilities can apply.

Essential Support Grant: This program provides general operating support to high quality, established arts organizations that produce, present, or exhibit works of art; to organizations that provide a broad range of services to artists; and to community arts groups that make arts learning available to regional individuals of all ages and abilities. NEW GRANT AMOUNT! The Essentials Support (formerly known as General Operating Support) grant program offers $3,000 to $10,000 of funding to qualified organizations to maintain their ongoing organizational operating needs. This program recognizes that organizations with an established record of programmatic service and administrative stability should have access to funds to support their organizational goals and objectives, and to maintain their ongoing programs, services, and facilities without any emphasis on new initiatives or programs as justification for funding.

Upcoming Deadlines

In addition to the above grants the April 1st arts grant deadline will be here soon. Applications will be open to apply at the end of February. These grants for artists include Resiliency Grant – up to $600; Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund Grant – up to $2,000; and the Mid-Career Artist Grant – up to $3,600. Grants for organizations include Resiliency Grants - up to $600; Art in Our Schools Grant – up to $5,000; Small/Arts Project Grant - $600 to $5,000; and the Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund Grant - $5,000 to $20,000.

For further details on eligibility and how to apply, please check out the ECRAC website at ecrac.org. If you have questions about which grant application is a good fit for your art project, please contact the Grant Program Officer at grantinfo@ecrac.org or call 320-336-0200.

Grant Information Sessions

ECRAC is hosting hybrid grant information sessions in persona and via zoom for anyone interested in learning more about ECRAC and these grant programs. These sessions cover basic information about ECRAC grant programs, as well as recent changes to the grant application processes. Grant Information Sessions for Artists who want to learn about funding available for the upcoming grant deadlines will be hosted on Tuesday, February 6, 2024 from 4:30 to 5:30 p.m. and Tuesday, March 5, 2024 from 2 to 3 p.m.. Grant Information Sessions for Organizations who want to learn about funding available for the upcoming grant deadlines will be held on February 6, 2024 from 2 to 3 p.m. and Wednesday, March 6, 2024 from 2 to 3 p.m..

For more information, please contact Katina Eklund, Grant Program Officer, East Central Regional Arts Council, at grantinfo@ecrac.org or by calling 320-336-0200 (this is our new phone number!), or click here to register.