Purple and black circles in a graphic, with white text reading "News," Beside a purple bubble with yellow text reading "Nov 2024."

Apply to Cultural Sustainability: Community Roots

A colorful graphic against a pink and yellow gradient background with illustrations of people engaged in folk arts activities. Black text reads, "Cultural Sustainability: Community Roots"

The application for Cultural Sustainability: Community Roots is now open! This new grant program is offered by the six U.S. Regional Arts Organizations (USRAOs) in partnership with The Wallace Foundation. The program provides unrestricted operational funding to arts organizations founded by, with, and for communities of color, allowing them to sustain and expand their practices to benefit the communities they serve.


Arts and culture organizations serving BIPOC communities with budgets under $500,000 and at least three years of programming are eligible to apply.


The application deadline is Monday, January 6, 2025. Learn more here.

Illustration by Uzo Njoku, 2024.

Southern Arts Relief & Recovery Fund

The Southern Arts Relief & Recovery Fund Now Accepting Applications! 

Artists impacted by Hurricanes Helene and Milton, especially those in North Carolina, can now apply for grants to support their recovery and rebuild their creative work. Grants start at $500, offering critical help to those affected.


Want to make a difference? Donate today to help us reach even more artists across the region. Your contribution goes directly to those in need.


Learn more and apply today!
Graphic of a rust red oblong circle with white text in the middle reads, "Financial Support for Artists Impacted by Storms" above a South Arts logo.

Performing Arts Program Applications Open
An ensemble of strings performers play on a purple-lit stage against columns in front of an audience.

ArtsCONNECT


ArtsCONNECT supports touring projects collaboratively developed by three or more presenters working together in the mid-Atlantic region. Regional presenters who partner to present the same artist/company during the project period can each receive up to 50% subsidy for that artist/company’s compensation plus support for other eligible project expenses. Projects that demonstrate clear mission impact, strong artistry, well-rounded community and artist engagements, and thoughtful and inclusive efforts to engage audiences systemically underserved by the arts are encouraged to apply.


Upcoming webinars and deadlines include:


Thursday, December 12, 2024, 2:00pm-3:30pm Eastern: Presenter Pitch Session. Register here.


Thursday, February 13, 2025: Projects in Development Submission Deadline.


Tuesday, February 25, 2025: ArtsCONNECT Application Deadline.


Guidelines and narrative questions will also be available in Spanish. Learn more about ArtsCONNECT on our website.

Image: Sphinx Virtuosi performed at Caramoor on July 7, 2024. Comprising some of the nation’s top young Black and Latinx professional musicians, Sphinx Virtuosi serves as a cultural and diversity ambassador around the United States and abroad. Credit: Gabe Palacio.
A trombone player on stage, pictured from the center with a graphic t shirt.

Special Presenter Initiatives


Special Presenter Initiatives (SPI) provide additional opportunities for the support of small to mid-sized performing arts presenters in Delaware, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, West Virginia, and Native nations that share this geography.


Fee support is available for engagements of performing artists based anywhere worldwide. Engagements include performances as well as community activities that offer meaningful exchanges between touring artists and a presenter’s community.


We're hosting a SPI Presenter Information Webinar on Thursday, November 21 at 11am ET. Register here.


The application deadline is Thursday, March 13, 2025. Learn more about Special Presenter Initiatives on our website.

Image: Artist performing on stage playing trombone. Credit: Justin Odendhal, Freeman Arts Pavilion.

Folk and Traditional Arts Program Applications Open
Traditional instrumentalists on a purple-lit stage performing.

Folk and Traditional Arts Community Projects Grants


The Folk and Traditional Arts Community Projects Grants applications are open! Folk and Traditional Arts Community Projects grants fund projects that support the vitality of traditional arts and cultures in the mid-Atlantic region.


Organizations hoping to engage folk and traditional artists, practitioners, and culture bearers in community-based projects are eligible to apply. Grant activities may include performances, public art collaborations, workshops/trainings, exhibitions, fieldwork/documentation, and the creation of new traditional arts work. 


We have upcoming webinars for those interested in applying:


Wednesday, December 4, 2024, 3:00-4:00pm ET: Folk and Traditional Arts Community Projects Grants: The Basics Webinar. Register here.


Wednesday, January 15, 2025, 3:00-4:00pm ET: For Appalachian Applicants: CALT Experiences Grants vs. Folk & Traditional Arts Community Projects Grants. Register here.


Tuesday, January 21, 2025, 1:00-2:00pm ET: For U.S. Virgin Islands Applicants: Application Workshop. Register here.


Tuesday, January 28, 2025, 3:00-4:00pm ET: For Puerto Rican and Spanish-Speaking Applicants. Register here.


The application deadline is Monday, March 10, 2025. For more information, visit our Folk and Traditional Community Projects Grants webpage.

Image: Diali Cissokho of band Kaira Ba. Credit: Katen Reynolds/Courtesy The Front Porch CVille.
A man in beige sits behind an upside down wooden chair, in front of woven baskets.

Central Appalachia Living Traditions (CALT) Experiences


Applications are open for the Central Appalachia Living Traditions (CALT) Experiences grants. These grants fund public-facing projects and events in Appalachian Regional Commission-designated counties of Ohio, Virginia, and West Virginia that bring community members together around traditional arts and cultural knowledge.


Non-profit organizations and individual folk and traditional artists/practitioners may apply. Supported activities may include hands-on learning workshops, public art projects, exhibitions, performances or performance series, films or videos, radio broadcasts or podcasts, or archival collections and fieldwork with a significant public-facing component.


Upcoming webinars include:


Thursday, December 5, 2024, 3:00-4:00pm ET: CALT Experiences Grants: The Basics Webinar. Register here.


Wednesday, January 15, 2025, 3:00-4:00pm ET: For Appalachian Applicants: CALT Experiences Grants vs. Folk & Traditional Arts Community Projects Grants. Register here.  


The application deadline is Monday, March 10, 2025. Learn more at the CALT Experiences webpage.

Image: Chair caner Paul Kitchen. Credit: Kristine Carter/Courtesy Floyd Community Center for the Arts

Welcome, New Staff!

We recently welcome two new staff members to the Mid Atlantic Arts team!
Headshot of Sarah Branch, smiling from the chest up with a coral blazer and dangling earrings.

Sarah Branch (she/her) is our Program Director of Creativity in Community. Since 2017, Sarah has developed and facilitated arts education and public programming for theatre organizations, dance companies, museums, youth development nonprofits, schools, and Universities across New York City and Philadelphia. She holds a B.A. in Theatre, Educational Studies, and Sociology from Swarthmore College and a M.S. in Arts Administration from Drexel University. Her research and practice focus on the intersections of youth activism, community health and wellbeing, racial justice, and the role of artists in social change movements. Sarah also received a certificate in Community Leadership and Social Change through the Institute for Nonprofit Practice and was an inaugural Fellow in the Downtown Brooklyn Arts Management Fellowship. She is an advocate for community-focused arts programs and is passionate about advancing equitable practices in the arts and culture sector.
Headshot of Jeannette Pacheco pictured from teh chest up, smiling in a black blazer against a gray backdrop.

Jeannette Pacheco (she/her) is the Executive Assistant to the Executive Director, Juan Souki. With over a decade of experience as an Executive Administrator, Jeanette brings a wealth of organizational expertise to her new role. While she is new to the arts sector, she is excited to serve as a key liaison between staff, Juan, the Board of Directors, and State Agency Partners. Jeanette is passionate about supporting Mid Atlantic Arts' mission and its diverse grantees and vibrant communities.


Jeanette is a proud graduate of Graphic Communication Arts High School and the New York Institute of Technology in New York City. Born and raised in New York, she now resides in Southwest Florida. Outside of her professional life, Jeanette is a devoted wife and mother of three. She enjoys cooking, boxing, traveling, attending concerts, and going to the theater.

Opportunity Quick Links
Close-up of two people dancing closely among a crowd of dancers.
  • Looking for a team building workshop for remote workers? Musician and artist Alexa Dexa offers Bespoke Team Building experiences to foster collaborative music-making opportunities to inspire teams to listen and work closely with each other. Learn more here.
  • Saratoga Arts invites letters of intent for its Community Arts Grants program. Priorities in 2025 include the encouragement of diverse arts and cultural programming of high artistic quality throughout Fulton, Montgomery, or Saratoga County that promote inclusivity; creative, original, and new approaches for bringing the arts to the public; participation of rural, minority, and economically disadvantaged populations; and efforts to strengthen collaborative efforts between nonprofit organizations, between artists, and between organizations and artists. Deadline: Friday, November 22, 2024. Learn more here.
  • The Ezra Jack Keats Foundation invites entries for the annual Ezra Jack Keats Award for a writer and an illustrator of children’s books. The award intends to identify and encourage early talent and promote the creation of outstanding diverse literature for children. The EJK Writer Award is given for distinguished writing and text, not for illustration, while the EJK Illustrator Award is given for distinguished artwork that creatively and skillfully embodies the essence of the story or text. Deadline: Sunday, December 1, 2024. Learn more here.
  • The Philip L. Graham Fund invites applications from organizations in the D.C. region for awards. This fund supports 501(c)(3) organizations that provide educational, health, community enrichment, and arts programs and services to communities in and around the greater Washington, D.C. area. Deadline: Monday, December 2, 2024. Learn more here.
  • The Shubert Foundation invites applications from nonprofit theaters for general operating support. not-for-profit theaters and dance companies are eligible to apply for unrestricted funding, with awards starting at $15,000. Deadline: Wednesday, December 4, 2024. Learn more here.
  • The Fine Arts Work Center invites applications for its 2025-26 Writing Fellowship, which is open to writers in the emerging stages of their careers. The seven-month fellowship includes an apartment, a monthly stipend of $1,250, plus an exit stipend of $1,000. Deadline: Monday, December 16, 2024. Learn more here.

Image: Plena Libre’s spirited percussionists and brass players provided a vibrant evening of Afro-Caribbean music, inspiring dancing couples and clapping children who filled Strathmore’s lawn at a Mid Atlantic Tours engagement.

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