2025 City of Wichita Cultural Funding Program

Welcome! Below you will see all of our current opportunities.

Arts Thrive Grant Program

The City of Wichita Arts and Cultural Services division will open applications for Arts Thrive, a new funding program made possible through a $75,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) on Friday, August 23rd, 2024.

Developed to align more closely with the City’s recently adopted 2024-2028 Cultural Arts Strategic Plan, three $25,000 grants are expected to be awarded, although exact award amount may fluctuate depending on applicant project budgets.

Eligible applicants include individual artists, artist groups, or nonprofit organizations with a project that aligns with both the Division’s mission of ensuring everyone has equitable access to cultural arts opportunities and the 2024-2028 Cultural Arts Strategic Plan. Projects may be of any scope, with the grant funds representing any percentage of the project’s budget. Thus, selected projects will not be required to add or match funds. Business entities may apply as part of a group, so long as that group contains at least one nonprofit or individual artist.

Special consideration will be given to projects that are Woman-led, LGBTQ+-led, BIPOC/ALAANA-led, or will serve those same communities. For the purposes of this grant program, those terms describe organizations that meet one of these three categories: they are led or were founded by members of those communities, 51% of their Board of Directors identifies as a member of one of those communities, or the organization identifies as specifically serving or representing those communities. Individuals or groups of individuals who self-identify as one or more of those communities will be given the same special consideration.

Special consideration will also be given toward those projects where the grant funds represent at least 50% of the budget, as one of the goals of this program is to fund those projects that would not occur without this funding. So, projects with a total cost of $50,000 and below will receive extra consideration by the Cultural Funding Committee.

Eligibility

All individuals, groups, and organizations that serve the residents of Wichita, except for those directly employed by the City of Wichita, City departments, or City-owned operations (CityArts, Old Cowtown Museum, etc.), are eligible to apply. Nonprofit status is required for organizational applicants. Individuals do not need business or nonprofit status to apply. Business entities may apply in partnership with a nonprofit or individual artist. Applicants cannot be barred from doing business with the Federal government.

You can read the full guidelines here.

The Grants

The Division of Arts and Cultural Services is offering three grants of $25,000 to support arts projects that serve the residents of Wichita. A recipient of the grant funding does not need to use the entire amount, though it is recommended. 

Subrecipients can receive their funding as a lump sum payment after the contract has been finalized. Funding is only to be used for authorized purposes, which may include indirect costs. Indirect costs are facility and administrative costs required to meet the goals of the received award. As such, unless otherwise negotiated with the Federal Government, subrecipients can allocate up to 10% of the grant funding they use (up to $2,500 of the $25,000 award) to help cover salary, facility, utility, or other applicable costs.

Please see “Completing the Project” in the guidelines for more information about the amount that can be applied to indirect costs.

Examples

Examples of projects that can be funded include, but are not limited to:

• Special events
• Lectures
• Artist residencies
• Public art
• Film productions
• Performances

Examples of projects that cannot be funded include, but are not limited to:

• Projects that are capital in nature
• Projects that do not serve the residents of Wichita
• Projects involving historical or archeological sites that do not follow the National Historic Preservation Act

If you are uncertain whether your project qualifies, please contact Division staff.

Application Timeline

• August 23 – Application period begins
• September 4 & 11 – Grant Information Sessions (Please see wichita.gov/arts for more information)
• October 1 – Applications are due
• December 3 – Awardees announced 
• January 30, 2025 – Funding is available for projects

Additional Guidelines

Additional guidelines can be found in the guidelines document.

Artist Access Grants

Artist Access grants help cover professional development costs for artists who serve the Wichita community. Applications should open in Q4 of this year, with information coming out ahead of time. If you have questions about this, please reach out to Jesse Koza at jkoza@wichita.gov or 316.350.3241.

Operational Funding Grants

Applications for our FY25 Operational Funding grants closed on August 5, 2024.

Developing Arts Grants

The Developing Arts Grant were not offered for 2025. Instead, organizations who would have previously qualified were eligible to apply for the general Operating Grant which closed on August 5, 2024.

Technical Questions?

Check out the Submitter Resource Center or contact Submittable Customer Support.