Grants for organizations
These are grants available to nonprofit and fiscally sponsored organizations operating in Minnesota.
To learn more about fiscal sponsorship, read about our Incubator program.
For emergency grants and funding specifically related to COVID-19, please see our COVID-19 resources page.
State agencies
Minnesota State Arts Board – A state agency that stimulates and encourages the creation, performance, and appreciation of the arts in the state.
American Rescue Plan —American Rescue Plan Grants will help small and midsized Minnesota nonprofit arts organizations and arts affiliates support costs related to their employees or contractors, facilities, health and safety, and marketing or promotion. These are general operating funds that can be used to help organizations rebuild and reopen as the COVID-19 pandemic wanes.
Creative Support for Organizations — Grantees will be able to use funds to support people and activities that will be needed to stay relevant and connected to audiences, participants, students, or communities now and in the future.
MN CARES Act Grants —With CARES Act funding from the National Endowment for the Arts, the Minnesota State Arts Board will award MN CARES Act Grants to arts organizations across the state to help these entities, their employees, and their contracted artists and workers weather the economic hardships caused by the forced cancellation of their activities or closure of their operations due to the spread of COVID-19.
Operating Support —This program provides general operating support to high quality, established arts organizations that produce, present, or exhibit works of art; to organizations that provide a broad range of services to artists; and to community arts schools and conservatories that make arts learning available to Minnesotans of all ages and abilities.
In the past, MSAB has provided nine grant opportunities for any nonprofit or fiscally sponsored organization in Minnesota. These programs are currently suspended for fiscal years 2021 and '22.
Community Arts Education Support
Regional Arts Councils - Minnesota's unique, decentralized system of eleven regional arts councils.
The RACs disseminate state and other funding for local arts projects, arts in education residencies, general operating support for organizations and other local arts activities in each region of the state. Check the map for your region.
Please note! Due to uncertainties regarding Arts and Cultural Heritage and State General Fund appropriation amounts because of the impacts of COVID-19, many arts grant rounds for organizations in each region have been suspended for the 2020-21 fiscal year. Check the pages below regularly for updates.
NWMAC (Region 1) - Application deadlines are in August, November, February, monthly, and on an ongoing basis for five grant categories. Serving Kittson, Marshall, Norman, Pennington, Polk, Red Lake, and Roseau counties.
Region 2 - Grant deadlines in five categories, August through April. Serving Beltrami, Clearwater, Hubbard, Lake of the Woods, and Mahnomen counties
Arrowhead Regional Arts Council (Region 3) - Serving Aitkin, Carlton, Cook, Itasca, Koochiching, Lake, and Saint Louis counties. Grant deadlines for five categories in October, January, April, and July, as well as rolling deadlines.
Lake Regions Arts Council (Region 4) - Grant deadlines in four categories, September through March. Serving Becker, Clay, Douglas, Grant, Otter Tail, Pope, Stevens, Traverse, and Wilkin counties.
Five Wings Arts Council (Region 5) - Grant deadlines in six categories on January 15th, April 15th, July 15th, October 15th, monthly, and on an ongoing basis. Serving Cass, Crow Wing, Morrison, Todd, and Wadena counties.
Southwest Minnesota Arts Council (Regions 6&8) - Seven grant categories. Serving Big Stone, Chippewa, Cottonwood, Jackson, Kandiyohi, Lincoln, Lac qui Parle, Lyon, McLeod, Meeker, Murray, Nobles, Pipestone, Redwood, Renville, Rock, Swift, and Yellow Medicine counties.
East Central Arts Council (Region 7E) - Four grant categories. Serving Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Mille Lacs, and Pine counties.
Central Minnesota Arts Board (Region 7W) - Seven grant categories. Serving Benton, Sherburne, Stearns, and Wright counties.
Prairie Lakes Regional Arts Council (Region 9) - All deadlines July through February. Four grant categories. Serving Blue Earth, Brown, Faribault, LeSueur, Martin, Nicollet, Sibley, Waseca, and Watonwan counties.
Southeast Minnesota Arts Council (Region 10) - Most grant deadlines October 1st and April 1st, in six categories. Serving Dodge, Fillmore, Freeborn, Goodhue, Houston, Olmsted, Mower, Rice, Steele, Wabasha, and Winona counties.
Metropolitan Regional Arts Council (Region 11) - Two grant programs for organizations in Fiscal Year 2020-21: Flexible Support ($15,000 for groups to respond to their needs during this reality of COVID-19) and Equity Response ($2,500 grant program open to groups that are led by 50% or more Black, Indigenous, People of Color [BIPOC] individuals, People with Disabilities [PWD], and/or those who are Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, Asexual/Agender, Two-Spirit [LGBTQIA2+]). Serving Anoka, Carver, Dakota, Hennepin, Ramsey, Scott, and Washington counties.
Private, corporate and community foundations
Minnesota Grants Directory - A publication produced by the Minnesota Council of Nonprofits (MCN), designed to help grantseekers by providing an overview of the state's most active foundations and giving programs. The directory includes basic information on over 100 community foundations, corporate giving programs and private foundations. Copies can be purchased from MCN's website for $80 for nonmembers, and $40 for members.
Foundation Directory Online by Candid – A subscription-based resource with information about philanthropic opportunities worldwide. This resource has free access at many libraries.
GrantSpace – A subscription-based resource from Candid providing "easy-to-use, self-service tools and resources to help nonprofits worldwide become more viable grant applicants and build strong, sustainable organizations." This resource has free access at many locations across the country.
You can access Candid resources for free during regular hours at these locations in Minnesota:
Central Minnesota Community Foundation, St. Cloud (call ahead to reserve time and a brief orientation for new users)
Duluth Public Library - Main Branch
Hennepin County Libraries - Any of HCL's 41 branches
St. Paul Public Library - George Latimer Central Library, Workforce and Innovation Center (3rd floor)
West Central Initiative, Fergus Falls (call ahead for an appointment)
Willmar Area Community Foundation (call ahead to reserve time and a brief orientation for new users)
Crowdfunding
See this FAQ to learn more about crowdfunding platforms, including GoFundMe, IndieGoGo, Kickstarter and Patreon.