Tucson Standard

TUCSON, AZ – The Arts Foundation for Tucson and Southern Arizona (Arts Foundation) is pleased to announce the opening of Project Mesquite: 2023 Grants for Organizations. The Arts Foundation, with support from the National Endowment for the Arts and the City of Tucson, will accept proposals for funding from 501(c)3 nonprofit cultural organizations in Tucson and Southern Arizona. The funding comes from the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021 (ARPA). ARPA is designed to fuel the nation’s recovery from the devastating economic and health effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. These funds are intended to help support jobs in the arts sector, keep the doors open to arts organizations nationwide and assist the field in its response to and recovery from the COVID-19 pandemic.

The Arts Foundation will steward ARPA funds to complement a 3-year initiative to equitably rebuild arts economies in the borderlands and strengthen civic participation. Organization Grants will invest in Southern Arizona’s arts economy to 1) Restore/create jobs and 2) Incentivize arts & civic engagement.

“We are grateful for the investment from the City of Tucson and the National Endowment for the Arts ARPA Funding, which will enable us to uplift and support the non-profit arts sector across Southern Arizona,” said Adriana Gallego, Arts Foundation Executive Director. “We look forward to receiving proposals from all communities in our service area.”

The grant program is open to arts organizations located within the Arts Foundation’s service area, which includes counties and Tribal Nations that reside between the southern edges of the Gila River to the US-Mexico international border. Organization Grants intend to make awards of up to $10,000 that will impact a broad constituency. This includes a wide geographic range and organizations that support underserved populations such as those whose opportunities to experience the arts are limited by geography, ethnicity, economics, or disability.

An informational webinar will be held on Thursday, June 15 from 9:30-10:30 am. Attendees will hear from our Grants team and learn about the details of the grant program and application process. Register here: Webinar Registration

The deadline for 501c3 organizations and Tribal Nations interested in applying for Organization Grants is Thursday, July 13, 2023; visit https://artsfoundtucson.org/grant/project-mesquite-2023-organization-grants/ for guidelines and application resources.

For more information, visit the Arts Foundation website: https://artsfoundtucson.org/

The Arts Foundation for Tucson and Southern Arizona is a 501(c)3 nonprofit and funding agency with a mission to advance the artistic expression, civic participation, and equitable economic growth of our diverse communities. Through forward-thinking, accountable leadership, the Arts Foundation works to affect systemic change that fosters an accessible, diverse, inclusive, and equitable local arts community.

As the designated local arts agency, the Arts Foundation provides arts and cultural development across Southern Arizona for individual working artists, artist collectives, ensembles, and nonprofit organizations through grant programs, professional development opportunities and public art management for the City of Tucson and Pima County.

The work of the Arts Foundation is made possible through generous support from the City of Tucson, Pima County, Arizona Commission on the Arts, National Endowment for the Arts, and individual donors. Our service area includes all counties and native sovereign nations South of the Gila River, including 372 miles along the US-Mexico international border in the South and along the 590 mile stretch of the Gila River, which flows west from the New Mexico border to the Colorado River.  

View this original press release here.