Best Travis County Grants for Nonprofits in Texas

Austin Arts, Culture, Music and Entertainment

Austin Arts, Culture, Music and Entertainment (ACME) was established to streamline the city's cultural efforts into one hub, combining all resources for cultural arts, public arts, heritage centers, heritage tourism, music, and special events. ACME strives to enhance coordination, improve services, and create synergistic opportunities to sustain and develop Austin’s rich creative ecosystem and places, ensuring Austin remains a global destination for creative experiences while honoring the city’s rich heritage.

Heritage Preservation Grant 

The Heritage Preservation Grant promotes tourism through historic preservation projects and activities rooted in local history and heritage at historic sites.

Grant funds support capital projects or heritage events that expand access to historic places and heritage resources and market the site's history to engage new audiences and tourists. All capital projects require a historic designation.  

Program goals include to increase Austin's heritage tourism; preserve and open access to historic spaces; bring local history to life through interpretation, activations, and storytelling; and support jobs in the creative economy. 

Heritage Events 

Support proposals that expand access to historic places and heritage experiences by highlighting local history and storytelling, connecting communities, and drawing both residents and tourists at historic sites. While bids are not required for Heritage Events, a proposed budget breakdown is required as part of the application process.  

Sites must be historically designated (or eligible for historic designation), occur within and approved by the City Council as a heritage district or corridor, or historically significant.

• Events must include historic research and highlight the history of the site
• Applicants must identify a specific location, with or without a historic designation, and explain why it’s historically important and how it connects to the project or activities
• Proposals must describe the specific historic event, person, community, group, or aspect of city history that your project will highlight and how the project promotes the tourism and hotel industries. (See Historical Associations Category in CoA Historic Zoning Application)
• Applicants must explain how the proposal will uncover untold stories associated with the location
• Proposals must include the development of a printed and digital itinerary, a site map, and a listing of nearby historic museums or heritage sites

Heritage Events - Eligible Properties WITHOUT Historic Designation but Pursuing Designation or a Historic Location

• Project may occur at a site eligible and pursuing a local, state, or national historic designation
• If pursuing, the historic designation must be completed within the grant agreement term
• Explain why the selected site is historically important and how it connects to the project or activities.
• Proposals must describe the specific historic event, person, community, group, or aspect of city history that your project will highlight and how the project promotes the tourism and hotel industries. (See Historical Associations Category in CoA Historic Zoning Application)

Heritage Event Project Types

• Events, festivals, or programs at a historic designated location or within a historic district and marketed regionally, nationally, or internationally
• Heritage, historic, or interpretive history-focused exhibits
• Projects or activities in heritage districts with historic assets previously approved by the City Council (includes the Red River Cultural District, African American Cultural Heritage District, and the 5th Street Mexican American Heritage Corridor)
• Production of special events and programs that highlight the history of the site
• Tour development: historic, heritage, legacy business, and natural resources 

Heritage Event Requirements

• Activities must occur in a Council District or Extraterritorial Jurisdiction
• For projects on City owned park land please upload your approved Austin Parks and Recreation (APR) Project Feasibility Form. This form is due to APR by July 28 for Heritage Events on City owned Parkland. This is to ensure that you receive the approved form in time to submit with your application.
• For projects planned for Austin History Center (AHC) please use this form. This form is due to AHC by August 4 for Heritage Events at AHC.
• In accordance with Texas Tax Code Ch 351, the proposal and application must meet the following two criteria: (1) The use must directly enhance and promote tourism and the hotel industry; (2) For historic preservation and restoration projects, the project must be: (A) at or in the immediate vicinity of convention center facilities or visitor information centers; or (B) located in the areas that are reasonably likely to be frequented by tourists
• Obtain and maintain project insurance throughout the agreement term
• Preservation projects and programs that highlight storytelling and invite tourists and convention visitors to explore historic sites and museums
• Projects must be open to the public, serve the public interest, and be actively promoted to Austin residents, visitors, and tourists, including hours of operation or visitation on the website
• Proposals at City-owned site must gain approval through the managing department
• Proposals must complete the budget table in the application
• Review and acquire necessary permits through Austin Build + Connect (AB+C)
• Projects that are preservation-related or history-focused and are actively promoted to tourists, hotel guests, and convention delegates to expand audiences and tourists

The Jean Griswold Foundation

The Jean Griswold Foundation (JGF) is a non-profit organization dedicated to supporting Caregivers through educational opportunities and scholarships. 

Our Mission

The mission of the Jean Griswold Foundation is to support Caregivers by providing educational scholarships* to enable them to further their training, enhance their careers, and better assist the clients they serve.

By offering educational scholarships*, our Foundation will not only make a positive impact on the Caregivers themselves, but also the clients they assist and the home healthcare agencies where they are employed, as well as help advance the overarching home-care industry.

Scholarships will be paid directly to the federally accredited educational institutions of the winning Scholars’ choosing.

Empowering Caregivers Through Education

The Jean Griswold Foundation Scholarship Program awards scholarships to deserving Caregivers who wish to further their education in a care-related field. Applicants do not have to be associated with Griswold in any way, and the funds will be paid directly to the institution where the caregiver will be receiving education.  

Our Winter 2026 Scholarship Application period is now open! Applications will be accepted until 11:59pm ET August 31, 2026. Join our email list to get the first notice of all Scholarship happenings.  

Where would we be without Caregivers? 

Their selflessness is astounding, yet they are often overlooked and underappreciated. 

The Jean Griswold Foundation is dedicated to supporting Caregivers, the backbone of the care industry. We provide educational scholarships so Care Professionals can further their training, enhance their skills, elevate their careers, and better assist the people they serve.

Cox Enterprises Scholarship Program

A need-based scholarship for students attending UNCF member institutions with preference given to students majoring in STEM.

Individual Award

• Up to $5,000