Arts-in-Education (AIE) Program Grants provide programming
and operational support for community/arts organizations to meet their stated
priorities towards serving young people. The organization’s strategies
to improve current K-12 audiences through projected programming efforts will
be a key factor in the application review.
These programs may take place during and after school hours.
Public and private K-12 schools as well as community colleges
are ineligible to apply.
Arts-in-Education Program Grants do not fund the following:
costs related to the commission of art work
student-related costs (such as tuition, ticket subsidies,
buses, medals, trophies)
scholarships for participating students or teachers
purchase of supplies or equipment
The following organizations are eligible to apply:
organizations whose major activity is to involve
artists with students and teachers, either statewide or in a region of the
state, with arts education programs;
arts producing organizations which place significant
emphasis on a specific K-12 arts educational program;
activities sponsored by schools not part of the
public, parochial or private not-for-profit school system whose primary activities
supplement K-12 arts education in the community served.
Dance Program Grants are designed to support professional,
regional and community companies including ballet, modern, avant-garde, jazz,
tap and historical dance companies and mime.
Ethnic and Folk Arts Program Grants are designed to support
organizations, programs and projects which focus on the traditional arts of
Illinois; this support may be conducted through creation, presentation, performance,
exhibition or documentation.
Ethnic and Folk Arts are defined as those artistic practices
which have a community or family base; express that community’s aesthetic,
heritage and tradition; and have endured through several generations. These
artistic practices should express the particular culture of the language, regional,
tribal or nationality group from which they spring. The work of artists should
reflect their own heritage.
Types of organizations supported by Ethnic and Folk Arts
Program Grants include but are not limited to museums, park districts, historical
societies, schools, traditional choral groups, traditional dance groups, traditional
arts publications, social service organizations, refugee and immigrant settlement
associations and traditional arts presenters.
Literature Program Grants are designed to support organizations
that promote the creation, publication and distribution of creative writing
(fiction, poetry and creative non-fiction). Creative non-fiction is distinguished
from non-fiction by its strong narrative, literary quality, as found in personal
essays or memoirs. This does not include works that are primarily analytical,
scholarly or journalistic. Grants often support the publication of books and
literary magazines, literary centers, distribution projects, readings, workshops,
book fairs, festivals and conferences. Student publications are not eligible.
IAC funds cannot be used to pay literary agents’ fees.
Local Arts Agencies Program Grants are designed to provide
project and/or operational support to Illinois local arts agencies. A local
arts agency must be a community-based organization or an agency of city or county
government that supports the growth and development of all of the arts in the
identified area of service which meets all of the standards listed under Narrative.
The Illinois Arts Council will not fund an Artstour presentation through both
the Artstour Program and the Program Grants.
Media Arts Program Grants are designed to support organizations
that promote the production, exhibition and distribution of film/video
and audio art. This includes documentary, experimental, animated
and narrative works. This does not include work that is primarily
instructional, journalistic, archival or promotional.
Audio art consists of recorded work on cassette, compact
disc (CD) or digital audiotape (DAT) created for radio broadcast, audio installation
and independent distribution or on-line real-time audio via the World Wide Web.
It includes experimental narratives, spoken word compositions, radio drama,
documentaries, sound compositions, audio collages and montages, and radio artworks.
Proposals should emphasize the creative use of the medium.
These grants also support organizations that produce, broadcast
and distribute radio programming of and about the arts. A higher
priority will be given to locally-produced programs and applicants who have
a commitment to advancing the field of under-represented art forms. Grants are
available for single radio productions or series. Projects may include documentaries,
drama, literature and music as well as arts reporting. Proposals should emphasize
the creative use of the medium.
Grants in media arts often support production, exhibition/broadcast,
distribution, classes, seminars, publications and publicity.
The Illinois Arts Council will not fund
an Artstour presentation through both the Artstour Program and the Program Grants.
If applicant plans to apply to the Artstour Program for partial funding for
any performers/exhibits listed in their Program Grant narrative or attachments,
clearly indicate that intention.
If plans for Artstour programming are not indicated, applicant
will be ineligible to apply for Artstour funding for the proposed performers/exhibits.
Multi-Disciplinary Program Grants are designed to support
organizations offering programming which involves or fuses two or more distinct
artistic disciplines. Programs should be distinct, not supplemental in nature,
and must integrally involve each of the participating art forms rather than
be in service to a single art form.
Grants are available for ongoing programming, new projects,
staff, production costs, marketing and audience development.
Music Program Grants are designed to support professional,
regional and community companies including opera, vocal ensembles, orchestras,
chamber music, jazz ensembles, contemporary and early music group, concerts
and wind bands.
Presenters Development Program Grants are designed to provide
programming and/or operational support to Illinois presenters.
A presenter is defined as an organization that has a distinct
program which:
contracts for the presentation of professional
performing arts programs which have been prepared or created under some other
organization’s auspices and
exercises full fiscal and managerial responsibility
over an ongoing schedule of three or more such events in each fiscal year.
Visual Arts Program Grants are designed to support organizations
such as museums, non-commercial galleries, art centers, guilds/ leagues and
other non-profit organizations doing visual arts programming or other activities
which further the public interest in the visual arts. Grants in the visual arts
often support exhibitions, performance art events, promotional activities, publications,
seminars, workshops, projects that support discourse among visual artists and
other programs in the service of visual arts.
