Search Through Grants for the Arts in Louisiana in the U.S.

We care about the communities in which we live and work. Amcor Cares (formerly the Bemis Company Foundation) was founded as our principal tool in the United States to serve our Amcor Flexibles communities. From volunteer work to monetary donations and community support, Amcor Cares donates several million per year to charitable organizations.

Community Support Grants

Encourage

• Fighting Hunger & Homelessness
• Supporting Disaster Relief

Empower

• Expanding STEM Education
• Building Life Skills
• Improving Health & Wellness

Elevate

• Promoting Arts & Culture
• Funding Amcor Scholarships

Types of support:

• Non-profit Organization Programs
• Non-profit Organization Operating Support
• Capital Campaigns
• STEM Programs

American Electric Power Foundation

The AEP Foundation focuses on improving lives through education from early childhood through higher education in science, technology, engineering and math (STEM) and by providing support to help meet basic needs such as emergency shelter, affordable housing and eliminating hunger.

The Foundation also supports organizations whose mission and/or programming is committed to positive social justice outcomes. Other Foundation support may be offered to protect the environment, promote healthcare and safety, and enrich life through art, music and cultural heritage.

Focus Areas

The following focus areas will be eligible for consideration by the Foundation:

• Improving lives through education from early childhood through higher education, with an emphasis in the areas of STEM (science, technology, engineering and mathematics).
• Providing basic human services in the areas of hunger and housing to assure that people have the necessities to build successful lives.
• Embracing change and equity through sustainable programs that move social justice forward.

First Horizon Foundation

Through the First Horizon Foundation we are constantly investing in organizations across our footprint that do important work every day to make the places we serve better and stronger.

Contributions from the Foundation include the following areas:

• Arts and Culture
• Education & Leadership
• Environment
• Financial Literacy
• Health & Human Services

Our contributions are targeted to strengthen these pillars of the communities we serve:

• Improving the well-being of our communities
• Investing in the financial future
• Educating and developing the next generation of leaders
• Promoting excellence and enrichment in the arts
• A more sustainable tomorrow and future

The Holt Family Foundation

The Holt Family Foundation was originally organized by our founder Gregory Holt as The Daybrook Foundation following the aftermath of Hurricane Katrina. At that time, the Foundation was designed to provide assistance to the Daybrook Company employees and to the local surrounding community in the devastated Gulf Coast region. Following the sale of the Daybrook group of companies, the Foundation was reorganized through the Gregory F. Holt Charitable Trust as a Louisiana domiciled private foundation. Today, the Holt Family Foundation continues its vision of supporting local communities and families by providing grants to non-profit organizations and college scholarships to students in Louisiana.

Our Mission

The Holt Family Foundation seeks to positively impact communities by providing support to organizations and students actively working to enhance quality of life through innovative programs, education, and advanced research. To this end, the Foundation is guided by the shared values, interests and passions of our founder. The primary focus of the Foundation is to provide college scholarships to Louisiana students. Additionally, the Foundation provides support to qualified 501(c) non-profit organizations that provide community outreach in the arts, education, health, and environment. 

Community Organizations Grant

The Foundation supports primarily Louisiana-based non-profit 501(c)3 organizations that provide public programs in the arts, early childhood education, and community engagement.

Our MissionAdvancing Southern vitality through the arts.

Headquartered in Atlanta, Georgia, South Arts is a nonprofit regional arts organization empowering artists, organizations, and communities, and increasing access to arts and culture.

In partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts and the State Arts Agencies of Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee — with additional funding from other public and private donors such as the Doris Duke Foundation, the Ford Foundation, and Mellon Foundation — South Arts supports artists and organizations through a rich and responsive portfolio of grants, fellowships, and programs.

Why? Because South Arts believes that the arts elevate the region, increasing connectedness and inspiring meaningful change in the process. 

Professional Development Grants for Arts Organizations

Program Description

South Arts strongly believes that skill and knowledge building for arts organizations are integral to success and sustainability. These grants are designed to support the professional development needs of Southern arts organizations for increasing organizational capacity to achieve long-term sustainability, growth, and/or operational stability. This grant program is open to film, visual arts, performing arts, traditional arts, literary arts, and multidisciplinary arts organizations.

Funding can support staff or board participation at conferences, workshops, and other professional development opportunities and events. In addition, these grants can support expenses for in-person and virtual professional development for organization-wide staff learning and training. Funds support travel expenses (for example, lodging and air/ground transportation), admission/registration fees, or other related expenses (for example, consultant/service fees for staff learning/training sessions). 

Wendell & Anne Gauthier Family Foundation Grant

A family foundation is one whose funds are derived from members of a single family. At least one family member, but usually more, serves as an officer or board member of the foundation. The family members play a significant role in governing and/or managing the foundation throughout its life. Family foundations tend to reflect the personal concerns of the individual families that govern them. Grantmaking areas and how funding is granted vary widely from one family foundation to the next.

Areas of Focus

Cultural Economy

Coastal Louisiana has an outsized presence in the public consciousness. Leveraging this soft power is more than just fun and games; it’s a key path to building a better tomorrow for the region. The foundation supports the highest levels of performance excellence through grants to the Louisiana Philharmonic Orchestra (LPO), Jefferson Performing Arts Society (JPAS), and others while also supporting culture-makers more directly through Culture Aid NOLA and the George Rodrigue Foundation of the Arts.

Education

Education transforms lives. The Gauthier family’s largest contributions have been to provide chairs at Loyola and Tulane as well as spaces for learning, including a 16,000 sqft four-story wing of the Loyola University School of Law, an Auditorium at Tulane’s Law School, a section of the new Louisiana Children’s Museum in City Park, and a combination stairwell/art gallery at the Metairie Park Country Day School.

Equity

Equity is at the root of all the priorities of the foundation. However, it is given a special emphasis to honor the ways the Gauthier Family has greatly benefited from equal access to opportunity. In an effort to bridge equity gaps in our community, the Gauthier Family Foundation funds initiatives that ensure community members have access to needed services. In previous years, the foundation funded: Bridge House & Grace House, Culture Aid NOLA, Second Harvest Food Bank, Angel’s Place, New Orleans Women & Children Shelter, and Lighthouse for the Blind.

Urban Resilience

Coastal Louisiana consistently perseveres in the face of adversity, much in part to our communities’ resilience. The Gauthier Family Foundation is dedicated to investing in initiatives that strengthen the capacity for the Gulf South to flourish and thrive despite future challenges. The foundation recognizes that green space is an integral part of Urban Resiliency and supports NOLA Trees Project, Friends of City Park, Audubon Nature Institute, and the New Orleans Botanical Gardens Foundation.

Funding

We prefer smaller grants ($500-$5,000) that more directly support individuals or specific projects.

In 1973, Lane Grigsby started a small contracting and engineering company called Cajun Contractors and Engineers, Inc., which has grown into Cajun Industries, LLC, a nationally recognized construction leader providing a broad range of services to various markets.

In 2007, Lane decided to create a family foundation to help oversee his philanthropic interests. To date, the Boo Grigsby Foundation has made over $2,500,000 in donations to organizations and non-profits in Louisiana and nationally. 

The Boo Grigsby Foundation is a 501(c)(3) that operates for the express purpose of giving financial support to charitable organizations that serve the communities of Baton Rouge and the state of Louisiana, as well as national organizations. The foundation supports many different types of organizations and is always looking for new ways to support our communities.

Areas of Support

Education

We support a variety of education programs and initiatives in the Baton Rouge area. We believe every student should have access to a quality education and support organizations that strive to impact education. We support all areas of education: public, private and charter.

Medical/Health Services

The Foundation supports a wide array of medical and health related organizations and programs. We donate to research initiatives as well as preventative and support services affecting people of all ages.

Arts and Humanities

Our broad goals in Arts are to support a vibrant community of local performing and visual arts organizations and to ensure that children have access to arts education programs and activities. The Foundation provides funding for performing and visual arts organizations and for community-based arts education.

Human Services

Human services grantmaking supports local nonprofit organizations involved in providing direct services to people and families in the community, including family education classes as well as food or other direct needs.

Community Initiatives

The Foundation supports organizations involved in community development and planning. We believe that by supporting organizations that strive to make our communities a better place, we are investing in the future of Baton Rouge, the state of Louisiana and all of its residents. The main focus of our funding of community initiatives is locally in and around Baton Rouge and the state of Louisiana.

Conservation and Science

Our local conservation and science grantmaking supports nonprofit organizations that are engaged in conservation work and/or providing environmental education for children.

Background

The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities (LEH), with the support of the state of Louisiana, is offering grants to cover general operating expenses for humanities-based organizations operating within the sixty-four parishes of Louisiana.

Funding Amounts

A grant of $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000 will be awarded to successful applicants. Award amounts are dependent on organizational annual operating budget categories as follows:

• less than $100,000: awards of $5,000
• $100,000-$999,999: awards of $10,000
• $1 million or more: awards of $15,000

Humanities Focus

The term “humanities” includes, but is not limited to, the study and interpretation of the following: language, both modern and classical; linguistics; literature; history; jurisprudence; philosophy; archaeology; comparative religion; ethics; the history, criticism, and theory of the arts; those aspects of the social sciences which have humanistic content and employ humanistic methods; and the study and application of the humanities to the human environment with particular attention to reflecting our diverse heritage, traditions, and history and to the relevance of the humanities to the current conditions of national life.

GPOA Foundation Grant

The GPOA Foundation is a grant-making, independent foundation which supports programs that serve children in Orleans Parish, Louisiana.

The GPOA Board has adopted the following priorities for the coming three years, in our effort to level the playing field for the most vulnerable children and youth. In brief, the outcomes we want to see are:

• Children who are ready for kindergarten
• Children who can read on-level by third grade
• At-risk Youth who are equipped for work and independence

Funding Priorities

The GPOA Foundation DOES consider funding

• Nonprofit organizations that serve children and youth in Orleans Parish
• Operational costs of programs (including staff and materials)
• Multi-year requests for three years of declining support will be considered for organizations which have clear impact objectives and an evaluation plan. However, grants will be approved a single year at a time.
• Collaborative grant request, involving up to three organizations working on a common outcome, are encouraged.

Our Grantmaking Will Support

• Early Childhood Education
  • Helping Children 0-8 meet attainable developmental goals through Kindergarten readiness and access to early childhood education
• Children who read on grade level by third grade
  • SuSummer learning loss prevention programs for K-3rd grade students
• Out of School Programs for K-12
  • Enrichment programs (music, art, dance, STEM)
  • Behavioral health and social-emotional supports
• Children with Special Needs​
  • Special Education and Autism Spectrum programs
• At-risk youth who are equipped for work and independence
  • Youth experiencing homelessness, youth with special needs, and youth who are in foster care, group homes, or juvenile justice facilities
  • Educational remediation or growth opportunities
  • Vocational and work-readiness training and apprenticeships
  • Life-skills training and leadership opportunities

Collins C. Diboll Private Foundation 

Collins C. Diboll Private Foundation was established in the Last Will and Testament of Collin’s C. Diboll dated August 13, 1984. The foundation’s mission is to provide charitable and educational benefits for the New Orleans community. 

The Collins C. Diboll Private Foundation (the "Foundation") is a private charitable foundation operating in New Orleans, Louisiana. The Foundation primarily makes grants to charitable organizations that have been recognized by the IRS as being described in Section 501(c)(3) and 509(a)(1) or 509(a)(2) of the Internal Revenue Code.

Program Areas

The Foundation supports programs that work to strategically resolve societal problems and promote the arts, education and health.  

Grants range from $1,000 to $250,000 annually. Applicants may apply for one-year or multi-year grants for their project.  

Presentation Grants Program

Presentation Grants are an opportunity for organizations in South Arts' nine-state region to receive fee support to present Southern guest film directors, visual and performing artists, or writers from outside of the presenter's state. Artist fee support is awarded for:

• film (documentary, fiction, experimental, and animation),
• performing arts (theater, music, opera, musical theater, and dance),
• literary arts (fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry),
• traditional arts, and
• visual arts (crafts, drawing, experimental, painting, photography, sculpture, and mixed media).

Projects must include both a public presentation (film screening, performance, reading, or exhibition) and an educational/community engagement component. These grants are limited and very competitive. Based on the artist fee, the maximum request is $9,500 for modern dance and contemporary ballet or $7,500 for other artistic disciplines. 

South Arts is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. We have prioritized this commitment to ensure that Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) led organizations, LGBTQIA+ led organizations, and organizations representing persons with disabilities are represented as both applicants and grantees. In addition, we encourage applications for projects that engage BIPOC artists, LGBTQIA+ artists, and artists with disabilities.

Background

LEH Rebirth Grants support programmatic initiatives focused on the humanities. Eligible projects include public humanities programs that involve audience participation and discussion; documentary photography, podcast, and radio projects; humanities-based festivals and exhibition development; digital humanities projects including websites and online documentation of Louisiana history and culture; speaker series; assistance with publication projects and humanities-based educational initiatives; and more.

LEH projects should include:

• Humanities Scholars Involvement - Humanities scholars must play a central role in all phases of an LEH-funded project as planners, speakers, resource persons, panelists, and/or evaluators. The LEH defines a humanities scholar as an individual professionally trained and primarily engaged in the study, research, writing, and/or teaching of humanities disciplines. The individual can be employed in their field, retired, not employed, or on temporary leave from a professional position in the humanities. Affiliation with a college or university is usual but not mandatory. Scholars usually have a PhD in a humanities discipline or at least alternative credentials.
• Humanities Focus- All LEH projects must focus on topics and themes drawn from the humanities or bring the analytical potential of the humanities to bear on current political, social, or economic concerns and issues. The 1965 legislation that established the National Endowment for the Humanities, defines the humanities as follows: “The term ‘humanities’ includes, but is not limited to, the study and interpretation of the following: language, both modern and classical; linguistics; literature; history; jurisprudence; philosophy; archaeology; comparative religion; ethics; the history, criticism and theory of the arts; those aspects of the social sciences which have humanistic content and employ humanistic methods; and the study and application of the humanities to the human environment with particular attention to reflecting our diverse heritage, traditions, and history and to the relevance of the humanities to the current conditions of national life.”

• Balanced Viewpoints - To avoid advocacy and bias, programs sponsored by the LEH must provide for a balance of viewpoints, especially those projects dealing with controversial contemporary issues. For example, a project addressing the First Amendment’s relation to religion in public schools should provide subject matter for both sides of the issue.

• Public Audiences - Programs must be designed to address the out-of-school public rather than exclusively the scholarly community. The LEH especially encourages applications from minority-serving institutions and organizations as well as from rural and underserved areas of the state, but applications are welcome regardless of an organization’s size, audience, and location. The LEH encourages research and publishing project proposals to include a public component as well.

• Community Involvement - Representatives of the community must be involved in all phases of a project to complement the presence of the humanities scholars. The LEH encourages advance planning with community groups.

Our Mission & Our Purpose

Now in its fourth decade, the Arts Council New Orleans is a private, nonprofit organization dedicated to supporting arts and culture in the city. Our mission is to improve quality of life in New Orleans by supporting, activating, and investing in our city’s greatest natural resource: our artists, cultural producers, and creative community.

Our Vision: Art in Everything.

Building on the abundant cultural wealth and creativity of our community, the Arts Council envisions a New Orleans in which arts and culture play a pivotal role in all areas of policy, planning, and placemaking.

In pursuit of a more equitable, joyful, and resilient city, art and artists should be central to all community and economic development efforts – from public health to public safety, education to infrastructure.

Community Arts Grants

Community Arts Grants (CAG) are funded by the City of New Orleans. These grants support 501(c)(3) arts non-profits domiciled in Orleans Parish through the New Orleans as Cultural Capital category. This program provides support for a broad range of arts activities that take place in and have an impact on the residents of Orleans Parish. Arts New Orleans believes that all citizens should be able to participate in a creative life and that the arts drive a vibrant and equitable community. All people, their culture, and their art contribute to the meaning and understanding of our humanity and should be honored and celebrated.

The Program

Professional Development and Artistic Planning Grants are available to support the professional development needs of Southern presenters, programmers, or curators, for strengthening program design or increasing organizational capacity. South Arts strongly believes professional development for presenters/programmers/curators is integral to success, including traveling to see new works and attending convenings. This grant program is open to film, visual arts, performing arts, traditional arts, literary arts, and multidisciplinary organizations.

This funding can support staff’s travel expenses to conferences, festivals, exhibitions, workshops, and other professional development opportunities. Funding also supports guest artists’ or guest curators’ travel expenses for onsite planning meetings with presenting organizations. These grants support travel expenses (for example, lodging and air/ground transportation), admission/registration fees, and other related expenses. In addition, these grants support expenses for virtual professional development opportunities and staff training (for example, diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility training or technology training for virtual engagements).

South Arts is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility. We have prioritized this commitment to ensure that Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) led organizations, LGBTQIA+ led organizations, and organizations led by people with disabilities are represented as both applicants and grantees. In addition, we encourage applications for projects that engage BIPOC artists, LGBTQIA+ artists, and artists with disabilities.

Legends & Lore Marker Grant Program

This program commemorates folktales, legends and folklife as an important part of every community’s cultural heritage.

Does your community have a great piece of folklore that should be shared? Legends & Lore is designed to promote cultural tourism and commemorate legends and folklore as part of our heritage.

Generally speaking, folklore is the stories, customs, traditions, and expressive arts and crafts that are passed on from one person to another, often from generation to generation. Folklore is the knowledge that people share as members of a group or community. Our shared identities and sense of belonging are the result of shared traditions, stories, customs, and activities.

Legends & Folklore Guidelines

Successful Legends & Lore marker applications typically fall within three main categories:

Folktale- Fictional stories passed down about people or events not proven to have existed. (e.g. Thirteen Curves, Champy, Headless Horseman, Tramping Ground)

Legends- Stories passed down that are popularly regarded as historical although not verifiable. (e.g. John Henry, Grancer’s Ghost, Betsy’s Ride, Natty Bumppo, “Natty Bumppo”)

Folklife- Traditions such as music, skills, crafts, and events passed along within a community. Often involving real people that can be verified with primary sources. (e.g. “Goose Day,” The Arborglyphs, Dennis McGee, Herbs & Healing, Folk Singer)

Subjects which are not successful include:

• Historical events lacking a folkloric aspect
• Purely literary creations
• Personal/family folklore which does not extend to the greater community

The Gladys Brooks Foundation was created under the will of Gladys Brooks Thayer of New York. 

Its purpose is to provide for the intellectual, moral and physical welfare of the people of this country by establishing and  supporting non-profit libraries, educational institutions, hospitals and clinics.

Scope of Grants Considered

The Foundation will consider major grant applications for innovative projects in the fields of libraries, education, hospitals and clinics.

Grants for Libraries 

Grant applications will be considered generally for resource Endowments (print, film, electronic database, speakers/workshops) capital construction and innovative equipment. Projects fostering broader public access to global information sources utilizing collaborative efforts, pioneering technologies and equipment are encouraged.

Grants for Educational Institutions

Grant applications from universities, colleges and secondary schools will be considered generally for:

• educational endowments to fund scholarships based solely on educational achievements, leadership and academic ability of the student; 
• endowments to support fellowships and teaching chairs for educators who confine their activities primarily to classroom instruction in the liberal arts, mathematics and the sciences during the academic year;
• erection or endowment of buildings, wings or additions thereto of buildings, and equipment for educational purposes;
• capital equipment for educational purposes.

Grants for Hospitals & Clinics

Grant proposals from hospitals and clinics where the proposal addresses a new health need, an improvement in the quality of health care or reduced health costs with better patient outcomes will be considered generally for:

• endowments for programs;
• erection or endowment of buildings, wings of or additions to buildings;
• capital equipment.

Louisiana Project Grants

Mission

The Louisiana Division of the Arts (LDOA) in cooperation with the Louisiana State Arts Council (LSAC) is the catalyst for participation, education, development and promotion of excellence in the arts.

Vision

It is the responsibility of LDOA to support established arts institutions, nurture both emerging arts organizations and our overall cultural economy, assist individual artists, encourage the expansion of audiences and stimulate public participation in the arts in Louisiana.

Core Values

The arts are an essential and unique aspect of life in Louisiana to which each citizen has a right. Access to the arts should not depend on your geographical location, physical abilities, or income. All residents should have an equitable stake in the arts in Louisiana, which provide a wonderful quality of life and add to our rich cultural heritage.

LDOA Equity Statement: LDOA aspires to intentionally advance diversity, equity and inclusion in every aspect of our work. LDOA celebrates our state’s diversity and promotes the role of the arts to connect people, bridge our differences, and inspire an appreciation of our shared humanity. LDOA is committed to integrating DEI into the fabric of our organization and our work, from our internal culture to how we partner with communities and other organizations to how we use our resources. We continually seek ways to expand our impact and improve our performance on these measures.

Louisiana Project Grant (LPG) Goals

• Diversity, Equity and Inclusion
• Stimulate healthy competition in grant proposal submissions
• Increase the level of creativity, innovation and awareness of new trends in project development
• Encourage professional artists to undertake projects that have meaningful community involvement and collaboration
• Leverage additional local and national support for the arts in Louisiana

LPG Priorities

• Must be an ART project involving dance, design arts, folklife, literature, media, music, theatre, or visual arts
• Must show how the project accounts for the population of the region and promotes diversity, equity, inclusion and accessibility
• Emphasis on Innovation and Artistry
• Risk Taking/Trying something new
• Focus on learning as an outcome as well as quantitative outcomes
• Cross-parish partnerships between larger, urban organizations and their rural counterparts or vice versa
• Projects that have a trajectory to continue to enhance the region beyond the funding period

Artistic Disciplines

Louisiana Project Grants provide funding for arts projects. The artistic disciplines described below are considered eligible art forms:

• Dance - Dance projects can focus on ballet, modern, jazz or ethnic dance. Dance project grants assist artists and organizations to make innovative dance programs that meet a need in their community and are accessible to all.

• Design - Design Arts projects can involve the design fields of architecture; landscape architecture; urban design; historic preservation and planning; interior design; industrial design; graphic design; and fashion design. This project area provides an opportunity for visual arts and design professionals to collaborate on projects involving design practice, media, theory, research, and education about design. Projects may include publications, audiovisual presentations, or conferences. Design arts do not include purchase of plantings, seeds, gardening equipment, construction equipment, or building supplies.

• Folklife - Folklife refers to traditions currently practiced within a community that have been passed down informally over time and not learned through workshops, classes, or magazines. Folklife includes Performing Traditions (music, dance, storytelling) and Traditional Arts & Crafts (occupational, festive and food ways traditions). See definition of folk artist in the glossary. Folk traditions are created within specific cultural contexts that need to be understood to be appreciated. Most folklife projects are greatly enhanced with the services of a professional folklorist or other trained cultural specialists such as those with academic training in folklore, cultural anthropology, ethnomusicology or other related fields. Cultural specialists should be involved in planning and implementation phases of a project. Folklife does not include historical re-enacting or living history. Folklife projects are evaluated for the cultural significance of the art form and the involvement of trained cultural specialists (folklorists, anthropologists, ethnomusicologists).

• Literature - Literature project grants are intended to support innovative projects that utilize the literary arts such as works of poetry, fiction, and creative non-fiction to meet a community need and promote diversity, equity and inclusion. In addition, the category supports not-for-profit small presses and magazines that publish fiction, poetry, creative prose, or literary criticism for production and distribution projects. Such magazines must have been published at least once.

• Media - Media project grants provide financial assistance to organizations and artists involved in film, video, radio, or related media. Projects should focus on the development of film, video, and radio as art forms where experimentation, technique and, creative processes are included in the project design.

• Music - Music project grants assist artists or organizations sponsoring musical programming or the presentation and development of musicians, composers, and/or music ensembles and orchestras in all genres, including band, chamber, choral, ethnic, jazz, new, opera, orchestral, popular, solo/recital.

• Theater - Theater project grants are intended to use dramatic and musical theater to engage the public, promote diversity, equity and inclusion and help meet a community need or support the development of nonprofit professional and community theater, puppetry, mime, and storytelling.

• Visual Arts and Crafts -Visual Arts and Crafts project grants are intended to support projects or services of museums, art galleries, art centers, and other community organizations concerned with visual arts. This includes drawing, painting, printmaking, sculpture, photography, glass, ceramics, fiber, wood, metal, mixed media, and art in public places.

Community Partnership Grants

Since 1979, the Jazz & Heritage Foundation has invested proceeds directly into the community with grants to fund projects that support the Foundation’s mission.

The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation is now accepting requests for funding of up to $5,000 to support music and art education programs, cultural events put on by Louisiana arts-based nonprofits, new artistic works that interpret Louisiana culture, and other projects that support the Jazz & Heritage Foundation’s mission.

Through the Community Partnership Grants program, the Foundation provides grants to schools, artists, and arts-based nonprofit organizations throughout the state. Over the last decade, more than $13.5 million in grants have been distributed to Louisiana communities.

Jazz & Heritage After-School and Summer Education Programs in Music, Arts, and Cultural Traditions

This category supports after-school and summer educational arts programs offered by nonprofit organizations. Organizations may apply for money only to pay the professional teaching fees of the artists or educators who provide arts instruction. Only nonprofit organizations in Louisiana may apply.

Community Partnership Grants

Since 1979, the Jazz & Heritage Foundation has invested proceeds directly into the community with grants to fund projects that support the Foundation’s mission.

The New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation is now accepting requests for funding of up to $5,000 to support music and art education programs, cultural events put on by Louisiana arts-based nonprofits, new artistic works that interpret Louisiana culture, and other projects that support the Jazz & Heritage Foundation’s mission.

Through the Community Partnership Grants program, the Foundation provides grants to schools, artists, and arts-based nonprofit organizations throughout the state. Over the last decade, more than $13.5 million in grants have been distributed to Louisiana communities..

Jazz & Heritage Media: Documentation + Creation 

This category supports the creation, documentation, or exhibition of artworks that reflect, interpret, document, or preserve the indigenous culture of Louisiana. Individuals and non-profits may apply. Priority will be given to Louisiana-based applicants.

Community Partnership Grants

Since 1979, the Jazz & Heritage Foundation has invested proceeds from the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Festival presented by Shell directly into the community with grants to fund projects that support the Foundation’s mission.

Through the Community Partnership Grants program, the Foundation provides grants to schools, artists, and arts-based nonprofit organizations throughout the state. Over the last decade, more than $15 million in grants have been distributed to Louisiana communities.

In each grant cycle, the New Orleans Jazz & Heritage Foundation reviews hundreds of requests for funding of up to $7,500 to support music and art education programs, cultural events put on by Louisiana arts-based nonprofits, new artistic works that interpret Louisiana culture, and other projects that support the Jazz & Heritage Foundation’s mission.

Jazz & Heritage Presenting: Festivals and Concerts in Music and Performing Arts

This category supports job opportunities for Louisiana performing artists through financial support to local nonprofit organizations to facilitate the hiring of Louisiana-based performers for festivals and public cultural events within the state. Eligible organizations for this funding are limited to nonprofits located in Louisiana.

Beaird Family Foundation Grant

The majority of our grants support qualified nonprofit organizations in the Shreveport-Bossier City area of North Louisiana. 

Our Mission

Carolyn and Charles established a Foundation that continues their work under the direction of their family’s second, third and fourth generations and an Executive Director. The Foundation awards grants to qualified nonprofit organizations, mostly in the Shreveport and Bossier City region of Louisiana. It has supported a wide range of interests, including but not limited to education, housing, health care, social services, the arts and community development. From its small beginnings in 1960, the Carolyn W. and Charles T. Beaird Family Foundation has grown, enabling its Board to award over $1,400,000 to nonprofit organizations in 2020.

The Carolyn W. and Charles T. Beaird Family Foundation is committed to improving the Shreveport and Bossier City region of Louisiana through assisting organizations to add opportunity, freedom of action and choice, self-betterment and a climate for change to the lives of the people they serve.

The Foundation’s priority is to fund organizations in, or projects which take place in, the Shreveport and Bossier City region, but it may also fund requests from other locations, especially those with the potential to be replicated in its geographic scope if proven effective.

The Foundation is particularly interested in supporting those programs which are small, local, innovative and perhaps even unpopular. The Foundation leaves to others the funding of grants to individuals and the support of large national causes such as the American Cancer Society and the American Red Cross.

Cross-Sector Impact Grants

South Arts’ mission is advancing Southern vitality through the arts, and this program addresses a strategic goal to cultivate and strengthen deep, cross-sector partnerships that are artist and community centered. As our communities continue to change, the arts play an incomparable role in addressing many of our communal and individual challenges and strengths. The value of partnership and working together across sectors brings new opportunities, increased effectiveness, and greater depth to our collective work. Through this program, South Arts seeks to provide significant support to projects developed by partners that harness the power of “Arts & …” (these are projects at the intersection of arts and other sectors). This year, we are shifting to a new program model.

Over the next three years, South Arts is committed to one community impact area – Health and Wellness. Eligible projects must focus on the “Arts & Health and Wellness” theme - for example, arts & mental wellness or arts & physical health. Matching grants of up to $15,000 will be awarded to support approximately 18 projects. We anticipate funding these 18 projects for three grant cycles and expect applicants to commit to the collaborative work for a three-year duration. Funding will be awarded in three separate fiscal years with streamlined, grant renewal forms submitted for cycles two and three. Matching grants of up to $10,000 will be awarded to continue or advance the project with the same two partners in cycles two and three.  

South Arts’ mission is advancing Southern vitality through the arts. This program addresses two of South Arts’ strategic goals:

• Connect artists and arts professionals in the South to resources that will increase opportunities for success within and outside the region
• Advance impactful arts-based programs that recognize and address trends and evolving needs of a wide range of communities in the South

Project Requirements

SSouth Arts welcomes applications from partnering entities working together on a project that addresses Arts & Health and Wellness through cross-sector partnerships. Projects must utilize the arts as a tool in creative approaches to address and advance a health and wellness issue that is of importance in their community. Projects should also establish or advance relationships across at least two different sectors, one being in the arts. 

Arts disciplines may include, but are not limited to:

• Performing arts, including dance, music, theater, musical theater, opera;
• Literary arts, including fiction, creative non-fiction, poetry;
• Visual arts, including craft, drawing, experimental, painting, photography, sculpture, mixed media;
• Film or media;
• Traditional and folk arts, including music, craft, storytelling, dance; or
• Multidisciplinary and interdisciplinary artforms.

Community impact areas may include, but are not limited to:

• Physical (overall well-being and the ability of the body to function properly);
• Mental/Emotional (overall well-being that enables people to cope with the stresses of life and their emotions);
• Social (overall well-being that stems from connection and community); or
• Occupational (overall physical, mental, and social well-being of workers). 

Matching Requirements

The minimum grant request is $5,000 and the maximum request is $15,000 (subject to funding availability). A match of at least 1:2 is required; meaning for each grant dollar, the grantee must provide $.50 towards the project expenses. For returning grantees, in cycles two and three, the maximum request is $10,000 (subject to funding availability).

Up to half of the match may be comprised of in-kind contributions such as donated materials, donated services, or other contributed non-cash assets or staff time diverted to this project. At least half of the match must be cash. For staff time diverted to this project, up to 10% of the total project expenses, but no more than $5,000 can be included as a cash expense or cash match for staff time. The remaining staff time must be an in-kind contribution. Contracted individuals and services specifically for this project are eligible cash expenses. 

Who We Are

Community Foundation of North Louisiana brings people and resources together to solve problems and enhance our community. Our mission is to promote philanthropy and improve the quality of life in the North Louisiana community by serving as a permanent and growing resource of expertise and funds.

Established in 1961, the Foundation oversees more than $200 million in assets for the benefit of North Louisiana. The funds managed by the Foundation are invested for the community’s benefit and then are returned to the community in the form of grants to a wide variety of charitable endeavors. Since inception, the Community Foundation has granted over $150 million in grants to nonprofit organizations.

Small Grants

Small Organization Grants are awarded to organizations with annual revenue of less than $250,000. The amount of funding requested cannot exceed $10,000. 

Program Area

The proposed program must align with one of the following Community Foundation program areas:

• Arts and Culture
• Civic Engagement
• Economic Development
• Education
• Environment
• Health & Science
• Human Services
• Organizational Development

Types of Funding Request

Program support, general operating support, or capital support may be requested.

Amount of Funding

The maximum that can be requested in this category is $10,000.

Detailed Program Description

Grants of up to $2,500 for organizations to make arts programs accessible to persons with disabilities.

The Southeast is home to some of the world’s more diverse and vibrant artistic communities. At South Arts, we believe that the arts are for everyone. The arts enrich the lives of people of all abilities and backgrounds. In our commitment to amplifying the success of the Southeast’s arts ecology, South Arts offers micro-funding to supplement the efforts of arts organizations throughout our service area.

Art making is for everyone too! South Arts encourages arts organizations to hire artistic personnel of all abilities at all levels; for these grants in particular, we encourage arts organizations to work directly with artists who identify as disabled. 

Through our partnership with the National Endowment for the Arts, South Arts offers small grants that compliment existing efforts by arts organizations to include audiences and artists with disabilities. Accessibility micro-grants are available to support Nonprofit, 501c3, arts organizations located within the South Arts Service region states: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee. This funding program is open to a wide variety of organizations, including community cultural organizations, museums, performing arts presenters, theatre companies, visual arts and music organizations. Priority funding will be given to new applicants to South Arts.

South Arts has prioritized the following:

• South Arts prioritizes applications from BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ identifying organizations.
• South Arts prioritizes applications from organizations led by persons with disabilities or organizations that provide significant programming to artists or audiences with disabilities.
• South Arts is committed to funding artists organizations in rural communities (with populations under 50,000).
• Primary consideration will be given to new applicants.

Usage of Funds

Grants awards may reimburse the applicant for any combination of qualifying expenses incurred during the grant period. Projects may include but are not limited to the following:

Programs

• Usage of large print or braille program materials for patrons/audiences with low vision
• Artist/consultant fees to provide accessibility training or audits
• Transportation of constituents or performers with disabilities
• Preparation for special exhibitions (i.e. space modifications or accessibility audit)
• Audio description
• Sign language interpretation
• Website accessibility
• Docent training for visual or audio enhancement
• Consultant fee to develop an overall accessibility plan for your organization
• Inclusive programming
• Staff training to learn about accessibility as it relates to programming, operations, or facilities modifications (i.e. travel to a workshop and/or training)
• Other accommodations that make programs accessible

Facilities Enhancements

• Accessibility signage for exterior and/or interior space
• Modification of restroom(s) signage
• Modification to drinking fountain(s) signage
• Installation of Braille plaques

STEM + Families Science Festival, sponsored by Bayer Fund

This program is for elementary schools. Forty (40) local PTAs will be selected, and each will be awarded $1,500 in funding. Science Festivals empower PTAs with resources to host hands-on, fun STEM experiences that bring students and families together and help families experience and explore activities in STEM. To be considered, PTAs must hold their programs in-person.

ABOUT ROOTED IN JUSTICE

“Rooted in Justice” is a funding program designed to help amplify youth voices and actions in the environmental and food justice movements.  Rooted in Justice supports community-based organizations and groups that manage established, youth-led, urban greening programs within a justice framework as a core part of their work, with two-year grants of $25,000/year.  

Rooted in Justice recognizes the importance and undeniable right of every young person to have the ability to develop their own relationship with the environment, be it through growing food, spending time with nature, creating community green spaces, or becoming environmental stewards. Rooted in Justice also honors the power and possibilities that arise when young people collectively work to be change-makers in their communities.

Rooted in Justice supports organizations, groups, collectives, and programs that work with young people between the ages of 12 to 20 in youth-led programming for communities or cultures which have historically or currently experience:

• A lack of access to land or nature;
• Agricultural oppression and/or neglect;
• Food apartheid; and/or
• Other forms of injustice based on race, ethnicity, religion, gender identity or expression, sexual orientation, national origin, genetics and disability.

Rooted in Justice awards a small number of grants each year with applications due in the fall and decisions made the following spring. Final grant decisions are recommended to the Cedar Tree board via a participatory grantmaking process with outside reviewers who have experience in youth-led urban greening, as well as food or climate justice programming. So far the program has awarded multi-year grants to 21 organizations and one-time grants to 10 additional organizations since 2021. 

Definitions

Rooted in Justice grants support organizations or programs that include all four of the elements described below: social justice, youth-led, urban greening, and cohort-based youth work. We articulate our understanding of those terms below in an effort to provide a guide for prospective organizations to use in determining whether their program is a good fit. However as we continue our work towards questioning and dismantling some of our preconceived notions, we recognize that these are not finite definitions and encourage prospective applicants who still feel their work may be a good fit to describe in their proposals why this is the case.  

Social Justice-Based Programs

Programs dedicated to creating equitable outcomes for communities directly affected by different aspects of injustice by:

• Sharing and redistributing power and resources;
• Amplifying voices and leadership;
• Tackling root problems through ongoing engagement and collaboration to find solutions, organize against oppression of all kinds and create mechanisms for change; and
• Developing a critical analysis with youth and community members.

Youth-Led

The development of youth leadership skills is a core part of programs funded by Rooted in Justice. Young people have the opportunity to play a role in the planning and decision-making for their program and may help shape the internal workings of the organization. Examples of youth-led programs include programs where participants: 

• Managing a portion of their programming budget;
• Co-facilitating program activities, meetings and gatherings;
• Shape their own programming and/or organizational strategic planning;
• Have regular and end-of-program opportunities to provide program feedback and evaluation; and
• Have opportunities for personal and/or professional growth within the program and organization.

Urban Greening

For the purpose of this grant we define “urban greening” as any activity that creates a mutually beneficial relationship between city dwellers and their environments. Programs that are a strong fit for Rooted in Justice will have many opportunities for youth to be outdoors.  Project settings can include, but are not limited to: 

• Urban and aquaponic farms
• Greenhouses and rooftop gardens
• Community gardens, green spaces, and rain gardens
• Composting sites
• Land conservation efforts
• Urban forests
• River or other water restoration  

Cohort-Based Youth Works

Rooted in Justice looks to fund organizations that build community with cohorts of youth through intentional, recurring programming. This grant is intended to support programs that offer youth significant learning and leadership opportunities as a group and as individuals. Priority will be given to organizations that have program infrastructure that supports a cohort of youth over time.  Drop-in programming, one-time conferences, or individual internships are not a good fit for Rooted in Justice.  

Youth Budgeting

As part of grant proposal, all Rooted in Justice grantees must share a plan to allocate a portion of the grant funds for youth participants to manage. What do we mean by this? We ask applicants to specifically set aside some amount of grant funds for youth to allocate to priorities of their choosing.  For example, youth participants can use their allocated funding to:

• Fund an entrepreneurial endeavor;
• Design the brand or swag for their group;
• Hire a speaker or outside expert to teach a new skill;
• Purchase supplies for a community-based art project;
• Host a celebration for their families, friends and neighbors;
• Pay for transportation to programming, special events, or conferences; and/or
• Any other youth-led activity the group may find beneficial.

Use of Funds

Rooted in Justice funding must be used for project support of existing youth led, urban greening, social justice work and associated general operating expenses. Operating expenses can include anything from program costs like staff salaries and youth stipends to organizational sustainability needs like major equipment purchases and leadership/staff training. If your organization’s entire mission is youth led, urban greening, social justice work, the Rooted in Justice grant can be general support. 

Funding

Two Year Grant

• Rooted in Justice Grant awards are two-year grants of $25,000 per year.
• After the initial two year grant, grantees may be eligible for a third year of funding at the same or lower level through a simple renewal process.
• In the 2025-2026 grant cycle, the Cedar Tree Foundation expects to support 4 organizations with multi-year grant awards.

Funding for Professional Development

• Each Rooted in Justice grantee organization also has access to an additional $6,000 to support professional development opportunities identified by each organization.  Half of these funds must be used to directly support the professional development of youth. 
• Rooted in Justice grantees can request reimbursement from this professional development fund to attend conferences, hire consultants, purchase equipment or software that increases organizational capacity, or participate in any activities that strengthen youth programming or justice practice of program providers in support of their youth development programming. The funds set aside for youth professional development can be used for youth exchanges or youth participation in conferences and other professional development opportunities directly for youth.  

Community Professional Development Calls

• Cedar Tree works with grantee partners to assess their professional development interests and facilitates on-line gatherings of staff or youth for skill shares, trainings, and networking opportunities.
• These network calls will likely happen 2-3 times per year.