National Endowment for the Arts Announces 2021 Guidelines

ACA Staff
December 9, 2020

Guidelines and application materials for Grants for Arts Projects funding are now available on the National Endowment for the Arts’ website. Grant applications previously submitted to the Art Works category will now be submitted to the Grants for Arts Projects category. The National Endowment for the Arts supports projects in any part of the nation’s 50 states, the District of Columbia, and U.S. territories.

*** A Grants for Arts Projects guidelines webinar for potential applicants will take place on January 6, 2021 from 3-4 p.m. Eastern Time. ***

Grants for Arts Projects—Application Deadlines: February 11 & July 8, 2021 for projects taking place beginning in 2022. Applicants applying under Artist Communities division must apply by the Feburary 11th deadline.

While the National Endowment for the Arts welcomes applications for a variety of projects, they encourage projects that use the arts to unite and heal in response to current events, as well as address any of the following:

  • Celebrate America’s creativity and/or cultural heritage.

  • Invite a dialogue that fosters a mutual respect for the diverse beliefs and values of all persons and groups.

  • Enrich our humanity by broadening our understanding of ourselves as individuals and as a society.

  • Originate from or are in collaboration with the following constituencies encouraged by White House Executive Orders: 

  • Historically Black Colleges and Universities,

  • Tribal Colleges and Universities,

  • American Indian and Alaska Native tribes,

  • African American Serving Institutions,

  • Hispanic Serving Institutions,

  • Asian American and Pacific Islander communities, and 

  • Organizations that support the independence and lifelong inclusion of people with disabilities.



Questions about any of these guidelines or your application? Please use this list to find the staff contact for the discipline you are applying in.

Visit the NEA’s recent grant search for examples of past NEA grants.