Grants to Organizations

Welcome to the Alaska State Council on the Arts Grants to Organizations Page

(Updated April 2021)

Grant programs reflect and support the mission and goals of the Alaska State Council on the Arts (ASCA), as set by the Council. Guidelines and eligibility information are specific to each program. All grants are contingent upon availability of funds. ASCA operates on a July 1-June 30 fiscal year, and application deadlines shown are aligned with that fiscal year.

Information about specific grant programs as well as links to guidelines and applications for currently available grants is included below. To access applications available through the online grants system (GOSmart) you must create a profile, as an individual or an organization.

The Alaska State Council on the Arts will continue to update this page, and this website, as additional grant programs come online. If you are unable to access grant materials or application processes as cited on this webpage, please contact the Alaska State Council on the Arts for technical assistance.

COVID Notice:

During this time we appreciate all the good work grantees are doing in support of the arts, culture and community. Conditions are different within each community as the context of COVID-19 changes over time. The Alaska State Council on the Arts encourages all grantees to consider and adhere to guidelines in your community, the State of Alaska, and as provided by the US Centers for Disease Control and Prevention. ASCA celebrates the creativity and adaptive capacity of our grantees as you consider how to safely gather, work within school and community contexts, travel, and engage Alaska’s citizens with art, artistry and artists.

Grants and Timelines

Category	Application Deadlines	Award Timeline
Operating Support (Annual and Biennial)	Annually: March 1	Following the June meeting of the Council Trustees.
Community Arts Development	Quarterly: • June 1 (For activity beginning July 1 ending by June 30) • September 1 (For activity beginning October 1 ending by June 30) • December 1 (For activity beginning January 1 ending by June 30) • March 1 (For activity beginning April 1 ending by June 30)	Following the quarterly meeting of the Council Trustees, most immediately following the quarterly grant deadline.
Workshop Grants	Quarterly: • June 1 (For activity beginning July 1 ending by June 30) • September 1 (For activity beginning October 1 ending by June 30) • December 1 (For activity beginning January 1 ending by June 30) • March 1 (For activity beginning April 1 ending by June 30)	Following the quarterly meeting of the Council Trustees, most immediately following the quarterly grant deadline.
Helen Walker Performing Arts Grants	Quarterly: • June 1 (For activity beginning July 1 ending by June 30) • September 1 (For activity beginning October 1 ending by June 30) • December 1 (For activity beginning January 1 ending by June 30) • March 1 (For activity beginning April 1 ending by June 30)	Following the quarterly meeting of the Council Trustees, most immediately following the quarterly grant deadline.
Harper Arts Touring Fund	Rolling: at least 90 days prior to the planned activity. (in FY22, this deadline may be flexible, contact the program director with questions)	Generally, within two weeks of receipt of a completed application.
Cultural Collaborations Project Grants	Biannually: June 1 and December 1	Generally, within 2-3 weeks following the deadline.
Cultural Collaborations Access Grants	Rolling: at least 30 days prior to the planned activity.	Generally, within two weeks of receipt of a completed application.
Youth Cultural Heritage Fast Track Grants (See Arts Education Grants Page)	Rolling: at least 30 days prior to the planned activity.	Generally, within two weeks of receipt of a completed application.
Youth Cultural Heritage Project Grants	November 15, 2024	Generally, within 2-3 weeks following the deadline
Artists in Schools Grants	Biannually: April 15 and November 1	Following the quarterly meeting of the Council Trustees, most immediately following the AIS grant deadline.

Operating Support Grants

Annual Grant Deadline: March 1. The activity must begin no sooner than one month after the deadline and end by June 30.

Operating Support grants are annual or biennial grants available to eligible organizational applicants to support a portion of ongoing artistic and administrative functions. These may include, but are not limited to salaries, travel, promotion and production costs of an entire program, or a majority of the organization's yearly activities.

For complete information and application, visit the online grant system.

For technical assistance, contact Charlie Sears at (907) 269-6608 or charles.sears@alaska.gov

Community Arts Development

Quarterly Grant Deadlines: June 1, September 1, December 1, March 1. The activity must begin no sooner than one month after the deadline and end by June 30.

Community Arts Development Grants assist small nonprofit Alaskan organizations in developing art programs in underserved areas of the state and/or underserved disciplines. Exhibits, concerts, dance performances and festivals, workshops, readings, theater productions are examples of the kinds of arts projects funded through this grant category. Grants will also be given to assist developing organizations in the area of arts administration such as board development, accounting systems and budget development. Priority will be given to those organizations that operate on a volunteer basis with no paid staff. Grant awards will not exceed $5000.

For complete information and application, visit the online grant system.

For technical assistance, contact Charlie Sears at (907) 269-6608 or charles.sears@alaska.gov

Workshop Grants

Quarterly Grant Deadlines: June 1, September 1, December 1, March 1. The activity must begin no sooner than one month after the deadline and end by June 30.

Workshop Grants support unique, arts-related activities of limited duration that offer Alaskans the opportunity to participate in an arts activity not regularly available in their community. All areas of the visual, performing, traditional, craft, media, and literary arts, as well as arts administration, are eligible disciplines for this grant category.

For complete information and application, visit the online grant system.

For technical assistance, contact Charlie Sears at (907) 269-6608 or charles.sears@alaska.gov

Helen Walker Performing Arts Grants

Notice:

The Helen Walker Grant Category has modified its eligible projects to make them compatible with the restrictions placed on the performing arts due to the pandemic. Please read the guidelines and grant information on the online grant system thoroughly, before applying.

Quarterly Grant Deadlines: June 1, September 1, December 1, March 1

The Helen Walker Performing Arts Fund Grant is named for Helen A. Walker, a major arts advocate in the state until her death in 1996. Ms. Walker was a recipient of the Governor's Award for the Arts in 1984, a founder of the Fairbanks Arts Association and the Sitka Summer Music Festival, as well as Arts Alaska. She served as a board member for numerous cultural groups, including the Alaska Repertory Theater, the Fairbanks Library Foundation, the University of Alaska's KUAC Advisory Board, and Fairbanks Commissions for Urban Beautification, Parks and Recreation, and the Library.

Arts Alaska provided professional management services for the state's performing arts tours and other programs from 1975 to 1988. Since that time, the Arts Alaska Endowment Fund awarded over $100,000 to qualifying sponsors/presenters for performing arts projects in small Alaskan communities.

In 2006, the Arts Alaska Board of Directors voted to dissolve the organization and invest the funds through the Alaska Arts and Culture Foundation. Each year, interest from this fund will provide grants to support the performing arts in Alaska.

For complete information and application, visit the online grant system.

For technical assistance, contact Andrea Noble at (907) 269-6605 or laura.forbes@alaska.gov.

Harper Arts Touring Fund

Applications are accepted on an ongoing basis; deadlines are rolling, at least 90 days prior to the planned activity.

The Harper Arts Touring Fund was established by the Rasmuson Foundation in 2002 to increase access to high quality performing arts, visual arts and culture exhibitions in communities throughout Alaska, and is named for Alaskan arts leader, Jerry Harper. The Harper Arts Touring Fund now continues as a program of the Alaska State Council on the Arts, supported by Rasmuson Foundation. The program is designed to encourage tours of Alaska’s arts presentations and exhibitions; build the capacity of organizations in small communities to present and exhibit; and to build audiences for cultural events and exhibitions. The Fund provides grants to subsidize travel and freight expenses associated with the presentation of touring performances, or visual arts and material culture exhibitions in communities without regular access to these types of programs. Through a partnership with the Alaska State Council on the Arts, training and technical assistance are provided to help communities strengthen their ability to successfully present performing arts activities and visual arts and material culture exhibitions.

Please carefully read through the Harper Arts Touring Fund Grant Guidelines before beginning an application. Contact Laura Forbes at (907) 269-6682 or laura.forbes@alaska.gov for technical assistance.

Harper Arts Touring Fund Grant Guidelines:

Harper Arts Touring Fund Grant Application

Harper Arts Touring Fund Grant Final Report Form