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CURRENT AND UPCOMING GRANTS

GrantFiscal
Year		Applications
Open		Application
Deadline		Notifications
Organization Operations 2023 Jan. 9, 2023  Feb. 10, 2023 @5 p.m. By March 31
Ticket to Ride 2023 Open Open ASAP


More Upcoming Opportunities
  • Organizational Project - (TBD)
  • Artist Springboard - (TBD)
  • Artist Project - (TBD)
  • Artist Fellowship - (TBD)
  • Traditional Apprenticeship - (TBD)
  • Craft Apprenticeship – December (TBD)
  • Percent For Art Calls – Variable Timeline

* All Dates subject to change until applications open for that grant.

   Fiscal Year 2023 - July 1, 2022 to June 30, 2023

   Fiscal Year 2024 - July 1, 2023 to June 30, 2024

Welcome!

The Maine Arts Commission is a State agency that supports artists, arts organizations, educators, policy makers, and creative workers throughout the state. We award grants to nonprofit organizations, individual artists, school districts, and municipalities.  

The Maine Arts Commission current grant programs are grouped into two categories; individual artists and organizations. The Agency also offers Fellowship awards, Apprenticeship support, and bussing funds for K-12 students to attend cultural events. Explore the Funding section of this website to learn more about available grant programs, including deadlines, staff contacts, review criteria, and more.

We're Here to Help 

If you plan to prepare a grant application, don’t forget to review the current guidelines. Application language can change between funding cycles and updates to some eligibility criteria, funding amounts, applicant restrictions, staff contacts, and other information may have changed. Make sure to review the current guidelines for any program you’re considering applying to, and, of course, contact the program staff if you have questions.

Maine Arts Commission staff are available to provide technical assistance and guidance to applicants, and to share best practices information about grant support to the creative sector. We encourage new applicants to contact program staff before planning their application.

Statement on Diversity, Equity, Inclusion, Access

A staff committee of The Maine Arts Commission, along with a diverse team of advisors, reviews our current programming and funding practices through a diversity, equity, inclusion, and access (DEIA) lens.

We are looking at our own record of ways we have, and have not, supported under-resourced Maine communities due to geography, gender, race/ethnicity, disability, or socioeconomic status. We are soliciting feedback from the field and will be embedding equity efforts into our programs and practices.

We invite the Maine arts and culture community to join us in this inquiry, reflection, and transformation. This will help us better understand longstanding and emerging needs, and determine ways we can steer funding, professional development, outreach, and other resources to ensure all Maine people have access to creative expression. We will learn and grow together.

GRANTS FAQ

Below is a quick access menu to assist with questions about grants, eligibility, application materials, and the review process. For more information, please go to the grant guidelines page of the specific grant.

GRANTS

A full list of all Agency grants can be found on the Grants Overview Page.  

The Maine Arts Commission offers grant funding to Maine organizations, individuals, schools, and municipalities. The grant cycle opens in January each year with the majority of deadlines before the end of April. Funding support is usually for projects that occur between July 1 and June 30 of the following year. All applications must be made through the agency online Grants Management System.

Grants For Individuals - Grants for individuals are offered to support Maine artists with their work. Funds assist individual artists with the creation of new work, the continuation of existing practices, and participation in professional development programs and activities. Grants for Individuals can fund activities undertaken by a singular artist, artist collectives, and multifaceted collaborative arts projects. Funding can also support arts educators, artists working in public schools, and artists engaging with other public sector entities.  

Grants For Organizations - Grants for organizations are offered to support Maine organizations in their operations and in their production of high-quality creative activities, the creation of new work, and the continuation of existing arts programs. Applicants must be is a nonprofit organization with 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status from the Internal Revenue Service or be a unit of municipal, county or tribal government, legally established in the state of Maine. K-12 public schools are encouraged to apply, but must do so through their district office. 

GRANT HELP

If you have questions about our grants process, please take a look at the Grants Help Page. It contains information about preparing your application, the application process, navigating the Grants Portal, award management, and has links to forms you may need. If you are unable to find answers to your questions from the Help Page please contact program staff by email or phone for assistance. 

GRANTS PORTAL - VENDOR CODE

All applications and Final Reports must be submitted through the Grants Portal. To access the portal you will need create a (free) account for yourself and/or your organization. You will also need a Vendor Code for yourself and/or your organization to receive an award. If you do not have a Vendor Code, you can get one by filling out a Vendor Form and submitting it to the Agency prior to the application deadline. We will process the form and attach the code to your account once it is assigned.

ELIGIBILITY - FISCAL SPONSORS

Please make sure you meet the eligibility requirements before you decide to apply for a grant. For organization applicants, a primary requirement is having 501c3 status (unless applying as an education institution or municipality). The Maine Arts Commission does not accept applications from non 501c3 organizations nor from fiscal sponsors applying on behalf of non 501c3 organizations. Non-501c3 organizations may have an individual from the organization apply for an artist grant, or could collaborate with a 501c3 organization and have the 501c3 organization apply on behalf of the collaborative project.

APPLICATION RESTRICTIONS

Applicants may only request funding for expenses that will occur within the funding cycle and requests should not exceed the maximum award amount. The agency does not offer multi-year funding. However, awardees are welcome to apply every year and are able to receive grants multiple years in a row (unless otherwise stated).

Application restrictions are clarified in the grant guidelines. There are three general restrictions. 

  • An applicant may only submit one application, per grant program, per funding cycle. 
  • An applicant may only receive one agency grant award, per funding cycle. (unless otherwise indicated). 
  • Multiple applicants may not seek funding for the same part of the same project (only one project, per grant, per funding cycle).

Restrictions relate to the Agency core grants and may not relate to non-grants funding (Apprenticeships, Fellowships, etc.), relief funding, and grants that we administer for other State agencies.