Organizations eligible to apply include:
Nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3), U.S. organizations;
Units of state or local government; or
Federally recognized tribal communities or tribes.
Applicant organizations must have completed at least 3 years of arts programming prior to the application deadline.
To be eligible for the Challenge America grant category, the applicant organization must also:
Be a first-time applicant to the NEA, OR a previous Challenge America, American Rescue Plan (ARP), and CARES Act applicant or grantee; and
Have not received or been recommended for awards in Grants for Arts Projects, Research Awards, or Our Town in any of the previous three fiscal years:
FY23 (application deadlines in 2022);
FY24 (application deadlines in 2023); or
FY25 (application deadlines in 2024).
Funding is not available in this category for individuals, applications submitted by a fiscal sponsor, or commercial/for-profit enterprises.
Challenge America supports projects that extend the reach of the arts to underserved groups/communities. The program welcomes applications from applicants that are primarily small organizations, first-time applicants to the NEA, and/or returning Challenge America applicants. Eligible applicants include: nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3), U.S. organizations; units of state or local government; Federally recognized tribal communities or tribes; and applicants that have not been recommended for funding in any of the three most recent Fiscal Years in the NEA’s Grants for Arts Projects, Our Town, or Research Awards grant programs. Funding in this category is not available for individuals, fiscally sponsored entities, commercial/for-profit enterprises, State Arts Agencies (SAA), or Regional Arts Organizations (RAO).
Applicants may request $10,000. Sources may include both cash and in-kind.
1:1 Cost-share/match required.