Our grant deadline for 2012 has passed.
The next deadline for Arts & Culture is February 2013.
The Seattle Foundation believes that the arts play a crucial role in the health of our community. The well-being of the arts in our region depends on the vitality of arts groups large and small, on artists and audiences of all types, in all media, in every neighborhood. Together these combine to create a kind of arts ecology, a natural system that needs balance to thrive. The arts are neither a luxury nor a bonus, but a critical component in our community.
Arts & Culture Strategies
The Foundation is currently looking to fund organizations working to make significant progress towards the following three strategies:
- Broaden community engagement in the arts
- Programs that build diverse audiences and encourage participation in the arts
- Organizations that provide support for artists and smaller arts groups
- Support a continuum of arts education for students
- Organizations that integrate arts content into a school's entire curriculum
- Arts experiences serving predominantly low-income students or students with limited access to arts learning
- Organizations that foster connections between school districts and arts organizations
- Preserve and fully utilize arts space
- Organizations that offer space for artists to live, work and present
- Utilize public spaces such as schools, libraries and community centers
Eligibility
To qualify for a grant from The Seattle Foundation’s Grantmaking Program, an organization must:
- be a 501(c)(3) tax-exempt nonprofit organization;
- serve residents of King County; and
- provide programming in Arts & Culture that aligns with one of our three strategies.
Please note that we have eliminated our two-year eligibility period. All organizations are eligible to apply for Arts & Culture funding for our February 1, 2013 deadline.
If you haven’t received funding from the Foundation in the past, we recommend that you contact us to discuss your funding request before submitting an application. Please contact grantmaking@seattlefoundation.org or call (206) 515-2109.
Other Things to Consider
- Capital campaign funding requests are considered a low priority.
- Organizations that have less than a two-year operating history after receiving its 501(c)(3) classification are considered a low priority.
- Organizations that have an annual operating budget less than $100,000 as reflected in the most recently filed IRS Form 990 are considered a low priority.
- Multi-year grants are not considered.
Grant Types
The Foundation awards grants to provide general support to organizations working to address the three prioritized strategies within the Arts & Culture element.
Deadline
The next deadline for Arts & Culture is February 1, 2013. Grants will be awarded in September 2013.
Application Instructions
The following steps outline the application process and information we are requesting.
Step One
If you have not received funding from the Foundation in the past, the first step of the process is to contact the Foundation’s grantmaking staff to ensure that you are currently a strong fit for our refined funding strategies. Please contact grantmaking@seattlefoundation.org or call (206) 515-2109.
Step Two
The second step is to create an account login on our website. If you don't have one yet, we encourage you to create an account as soon as possible, as it can take up to two business days to validate your login.
Step Three
The third step is to edit or create a profile for your organization on our website. You will need to submit our Profile Request Form, available by going to www.seattlefoundation.org/nonprofits and clicking on the “Profile Access Request Form” link in the right-hand column. (If you are new to our website, you will be taken to a login/registration page first, where you will need to create an account -- see Step Two above.)
The information required to establish your nonprofit organization's profile includes: mission statement, organization and program description, and recent successes and challenges.
Step Four
The fourth step is to complete an online application. The components of the online application include: responding to narrative questions, providing a three-year financial snapshot, and submitting attachments.
Please refer to the Application Components for a complete list of narrative questions and required attachments.
Step Five (For grant recipients only)
The fifth step requires completion of a Status Report within one year from the date an organization receives a grant.
Application Submission
Please do not submit any books, DVDs or videos with your application.
If you have any questions about the application process, please contact our grantmaking team at grantmaking@seattlefoundation.org or (206) 515-2109.