Cultural Sustainability: Community Roots Grant

Cultural Sustainability, a new grant program offered by the six U.S. Regional Arts Organizations (USRAOs) in partnership with The Wallace Foundation, provides general operating support to arts organizations rooted in communities of color.

Donor Name: Mid Atlantic Arts

State: Selected States

County: All Counties

Type of Grant: Grant

Deadline: 01/06/2025

Size of the Grant: $10,000 to $100,000

Grant Duration: 1 Year

Details:

The program provides general operating support to arts and culture organizations serving BIPOC communities with budgets under $500,000 and at least three years of programming. Mid Atlantic Arts will select up to 20 grantees from the ten states and territories they serve (DC, DE, MD, NJ, NY, PA, PR, USVI, VA, and WV).

Funding Information

Mid Atlantic Arts will select up to 20 grantees from its 10 states and territories:

10 selected organizations (one per state and territories) with operating expenses between $0-$249,999 will receive a general operating grant up to $46,000.
10 selected organizations (one per state and territories) with operating expenses between $250,000 – $499,999 will receive a general operating grant up to $66,000.

Grant Period

May 2025-June 2026.

Eligibility Criteria

To be eligible for this grant, your organization needs to meet the following criteria:

Budget: Operating budget under $500,000 (excluding emergency funding like COVID relief, CARES Act, ARPA).
Experience: At least three years of arts and cultural programming. These years don’t have to be consecutive or tied to your incorporation date.
Community Focus: Your programming should show a strong commitment to supporting historically underserved communities of color.
Leadership: Your leadership team must be closely connected to the communities they serve, whether artistically or administratively.
Mission: Your mission should prioritize serving arts organizations founded by, with, and for communities of color.
Your organization is working to address systemic inequities through their practices.
Your organization must also be one of the following:
- 501(c)(3) nonprofit
- For-profit entity (LLC, S-corp, etc.)
- Artist collective (either incorporated with a tax ID or with a fiscal sponsor from an established for-profit or non-profit entity that has a tax ID)
Not have received ArtsHERE funding from your RAO.