Grantee Database Results
| Grant Program | Grant Year | Organization Name | County | Award Amount | |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | California Arts Council | Sacramento | More » | |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SODE SCHOOL OF PERFORMING ARTS AND SOPHIE OLSON DANCE EXPLOSION INC | Los Angeles | $21,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SLOMA | San Luis Obispo | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sarah Bush Dance Project | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | FOTTC | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | DISCO RIOT | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | KULARTS | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Women's Voices Now | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Project Color Corps | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Mil-Tree | San Bernardino | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | PLUMAS ARTS | Plumas | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Poverty Department | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Dramatic Results | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Ammunition Theatre Company | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Oaxaca Tierra del Sol | Sonoma | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Relampago del Cielo, Inc. | Orange | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Melodia Mariposa | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Siskiyou County Arts Council | Siskiyou | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Siskiyou County Arts Council | Siskiyou | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Luke Madrigal Indigenous Storytelling Non Profit | Riverside | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Crescent Moon Theater Productions | Marin | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Shruti Abhishek Dance | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Shruti Abhishek Dance | Alameda | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Ferndale Rep | Humboldt | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | About Productions | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Conceptual Art Therapy | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | SPACE | Mendocino | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SPACE | Mendocino | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | World Arts West | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Creative Acts | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | World Builders Incubator | Alameda | $20,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | South Bay Guitar Society | Santa Clara | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | DSTL Arts | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | No Limits for deaf children and families | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Oakland Style Lab | Alameda | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | RootStock Arts | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | San Diego Jewish Arts Festival | San Diego | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Ballet Resource Active Volunteer Assoc | Riverside | $17,865.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Youth ARTS Alive | Santa Barbara | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Makers Hub | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Worldwide Starship Foundation | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Prospect Art | Los Angeles | $6,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Chapter 510 INK | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Baking Wellness | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Worldwide Starship Foundation | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | BACCES | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Road Theatre Company | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | SMILE-ING BOYS INC | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Long Beach Youth Chorus | Los Angeles | $9,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | West End Arts District | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | CALIFORNIA HERITAGE MUSEUM | Los Angeles | $10,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Screamfest Horror Film Festival | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Miller Music Academy | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Project Sheba | San Bernardino | $9,100.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Good Dirt Collective | Fresno | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | San Francisco Transgender Film Festival | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | ABADA-Capoeira San Francisco | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Old First Concerts | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | San Francisco Transgender Film Festival | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | The Beat Within | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Muckenthaler Cultural Center | Orange | $17,472.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | PARANGAL DANCE COMPANY | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Bakersfield Community Theatre | Kern | $8,475.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | 4C LAB | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Everybody Dance LA! | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | La Puerta | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | WATER & POWER | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Institute of Inquiry | San Bernardino | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | PURPLE SILK MUSIC EDUCATION FOUNDATION | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TTPC | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Company of Angels | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Taste of Freedom Project | Fresno | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | ArtsOC | Orange | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Taste of Freedom Project | Fresno | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | CALIFORNIA DANCE INSTITUTE | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Sketch Odyssey East Bay | Contra Costa | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAFE HOME HOUSING | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Arts Council Napa Valley | Napa | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Karen Organization of San Diego | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Outside the Lens | San Diego | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Dohee Lee Puri Arts | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | HOME SOIL PROJECTS | Orange | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | California Poets in the Schools | Alameda | $11,490.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | TILTshift Dance | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | "" | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | California Karen Youth Connection | Sacramento | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | 4C LAB | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | SAFE HOME HOUSING | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Capoeira Arts Foundation | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Creative Netwerk | Santa Barbara | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Theatre Academy | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Oaktown Jazz Workshops | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAMMAY Productions | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Santa Barbara Dance Institute | Santa Barbara | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Santa Barbara Dance Institute | Santa Barbara | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Oaktown Jazz Workshops | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | International Documentary Association | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Mountain Theater Alliance | Kern | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Friends of the Chinese American Museum | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Long Beach Cello Orchestra | Los Angeles | $7,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | TOArts | Ventura | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | THE GALA PRIDE AND DIVERSITY CENTER | San Luis Obispo | $16,975.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Vita Art Center | Ventura | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Citizen Film | San Francisco | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Filmforum | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SAN FRANCISCO GIRLS CHORUS | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SAM Academy | Fresno | $21,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | South Tower Community Land Trust | Fresno | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | THE GALA PRIDE AND DIVERSITY CENTER | San Luis Obispo | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Hayward Arts Council | Alameda | $18,638.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Alameda County Arts Commission | Alameda | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | MIXED BAG PRODUCTIONS | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | MIXED BAG PRODUCTIONS | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | City of Soledad | Monterey | $16,862.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Nava Dance Theatre | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Modoc County Arts Council | Modoc | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Beautiful Beginnings Arts Collective | San Francisco | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Cabrillo Playhouse | Orange | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Samuel Lawrence Foundation | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | 916 Ink | Sacramento | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TILTshift Dance | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Community Youth Orchestra of So California | Orange | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Rise Up Industries | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Safe Black Space | Sacramento | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | HDTS | San Bernardino | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Fresno Arts Council | Fresno | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Lodi Community Art Center | San Joaquin | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Walking Water | Sonoma | $20,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | LA River Arts | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Laity Institute of the Arts | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | San Diego Tijuana International Jazz Festival | San Diego | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Stage | Placer | $10,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Public Glass | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Museum of Dance | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Trinity County Arts Council | Trinity | $72,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Clazzical Notes | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | San Diego Made | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Poet Society | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TONALITY | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Imperial Valley Symphony Association | Imperial | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Capital Storytelling | Sacramento | $17,220.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | "" | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | KDA | Kern | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | KDA | Kern | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | A.B.O. Comix | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Polaris Education Foundation | San Bernardino | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Black Butte Center for Railroad Culture | Siskiyou | $9,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ARTERITANO FOUNDATION | Solano | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | LOMPOC VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION | Santa Barbara | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Laity Institute of the Arts | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Bob Baker Marionette Theatre | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | CLA | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | TeenTix LA | Los Angeles | $9,282.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Community Arts & Empowerment | Santa Cruz | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Safe Black Space | Sacramento | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | East West Players | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Lotus Tao Culture Association | San Francisco | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Pacific Opera Project | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Opera Modesto | Stanislaus | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | ConAmor Building Bridges | Tuolumne | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Civic Design Studio | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Visalia Art League | Tulare | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Indivisible Arts | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Rhythm Arts Alliance | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | North Coast Symphony Orchestra | San Diego | $20,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | San Diego Made | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Ventura County Ballet | Ventura | $25,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | KZFR 90.1FM | Butte | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Women Who Submit | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Arenas Dance Company | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Hmong Youth and Parents United | Sacramento | $17,462.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | DIAVOLO | Architecture In Motion | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Women Who Submit | Los Angeles | $9,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Independent Arts & Media (fiscal sponsor) | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Small Art Music Projects | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Salastina | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | T2 Dance Company | Los Angeles | $12,825.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Reimagine The Land | Los Angeles | $19,994.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Drawing Together | Los Angeles | $10,000.00 | More » |
| More » | |||||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | City of Selma Arts Center | Fresno | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Westside Ballet of Santa Monica | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | FUNDING TEAM | Fresno | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SODE SCHOOL OF PERFORMING ARTS AND SOPHIE OLSON DANCE EXPLOSION INC | Los Angeles | $21,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SLOMA | San Luis Obispo | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sarah Bush Dance Project | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | FOTTC | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | DISCO RIOT | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | KULARTS | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Women's Voices Now | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Project Color Corps | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Mil-Tree | San Bernardino | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | PLUMAS ARTS | Plumas | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Poverty Department | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Dramatic Results | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Ammunition Theatre Company | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Oaxaca Tierra del Sol | Sonoma | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Relampago del Cielo, Inc. | Orange | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Melodia Mariposa | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Siskiyou County Arts Council | Siskiyou | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Siskiyou County Arts Council | Siskiyou | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Luke Madrigal Indigenous Storytelling Non Profit | Riverside | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Crescent Moon Theater Productions | Marin | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Shruti Abhishek Dance | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Shruti Abhishek Dance | Alameda | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Ferndale Rep | Humboldt | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | About Productions | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Conceptual Art Therapy | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | SPACE | Mendocino | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SPACE | Mendocino | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | World Arts West | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Creative Acts | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | World Builders Incubator | Alameda | $20,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | South Bay Guitar Society | Santa Clara | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | DSTL Arts | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | No Limits for deaf children and families | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Oakland Style Lab | Alameda | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | RootStock Arts | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | San Diego Jewish Arts Festival | San Diego | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Ballet Resource Active Volunteer Assoc | Riverside | $17,865.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Youth ARTS Alive | Santa Barbara | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Makers Hub | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Worldwide Starship Foundation | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Prospect Art | Los Angeles | $6,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Chapter 510 INK | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Baking Wellness | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Worldwide Starship Foundation | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | BACCES | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Road Theatre Company | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | SMILE-ING BOYS INC | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Long Beach Youth Chorus | Los Angeles | $9,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | West End Arts District | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | CALIFORNIA HERITAGE MUSEUM | Los Angeles | $10,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Screamfest Horror Film Festival | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Miller Music Academy | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Project Sheba | San Bernardino | $9,100.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Good Dirt Collective | Fresno | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | San Francisco Transgender Film Festival | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | ABADA-Capoeira San Francisco | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Old First Concerts | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | San Francisco Transgender Film Festival | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | The Beat Within | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Muckenthaler Cultural Center | Orange | $17,472.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | PARANGAL DANCE COMPANY | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Bakersfield Community Theatre | Kern | $8,475.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | 4C LAB | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Everybody Dance LA! | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | La Puerta | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | WATER & POWER | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Institute of Inquiry | San Bernardino | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | PURPLE SILK MUSIC EDUCATION FOUNDATION | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TTPC | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Company of Angels | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Taste of Freedom Project | Fresno | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | ArtsOC | Orange | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Taste of Freedom Project | Fresno | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | CALIFORNIA DANCE INSTITUTE | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Sketch Odyssey East Bay | Contra Costa | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAFE HOME HOUSING | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Arts Council Napa Valley | Napa | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Karen Organization of San Diego | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Outside the Lens | San Diego | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Dohee Lee Puri Arts | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | HOME SOIL PROJECTS | Orange | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | California Poets in the Schools | Alameda | $11,490.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | TILTshift Dance | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | "" | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | California Karen Youth Connection | Sacramento | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | 4C LAB | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | SAFE HOME HOUSING | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Capoeira Arts Foundation | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Creative Netwerk | Santa Barbara | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Theatre Academy | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Oaktown Jazz Workshops | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAMMAY Productions | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Santa Barbara Dance Institute | Santa Barbara | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Santa Barbara Dance Institute | Santa Barbara | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Oaktown Jazz Workshops | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | International Documentary Association | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Mountain Theater Alliance | Kern | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Friends of the Chinese American Museum | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Long Beach Cello Orchestra | Los Angeles | $7,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | TOArts | Ventura | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | THE GALA PRIDE AND DIVERSITY CENTER | San Luis Obispo | $16,975.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Vita Art Center | Ventura | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Citizen Film | San Francisco | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Filmforum | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SAN FRANCISCO GIRLS CHORUS | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SAM Academy | Fresno | $21,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | South Tower Community Land Trust | Fresno | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | THE GALA PRIDE AND DIVERSITY CENTER | San Luis Obispo | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Hayward Arts Council | Alameda | $18,638.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Alameda County Arts Commission | Alameda | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | MIXED BAG PRODUCTIONS | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | MIXED BAG PRODUCTIONS | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | City of Soledad | Monterey | $16,862.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Nava Dance Theatre | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Modoc County Arts Council | Modoc | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Beautiful Beginnings Arts Collective | San Francisco | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Cabrillo Playhouse | Orange | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Samuel Lawrence Foundation | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | 916 Ink | Sacramento | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TILTshift Dance | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Community Youth Orchestra of So California | Orange | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Rise Up Industries | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Safe Black Space | Sacramento | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | HDTS | San Bernardino | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Fresno Arts Council | Fresno | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Lodi Community Art Center | San Joaquin | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Walking Water | Sonoma | $20,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | LA River Arts | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Laity Institute of the Arts | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | San Diego Tijuana International Jazz Festival | San Diego | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Stage | Placer | $10,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Public Glass | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Museum of Dance | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Trinity County Arts Council | Trinity | $72,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Clazzical Notes | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | San Diego Made | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Poet Society | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TONALITY | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Imperial Valley Symphony Association | Imperial | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Capital Storytelling | Sacramento | $17,220.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | "" | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | KDA | Kern | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | KDA | Kern | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | A.B.O. Comix | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Polaris Education Foundation | San Bernardino | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Black Butte Center for Railroad Culture | Siskiyou | $9,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ARTERITANO FOUNDATION | Solano | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | LOMPOC VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION | Santa Barbara | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Laity Institute of the Arts | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Bob Baker Marionette Theatre | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | CLA | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | TeenTix LA | Los Angeles | $9,282.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Community Arts & Empowerment | Santa Cruz | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Safe Black Space | Sacramento | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | East West Players | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Lotus Tao Culture Association | San Francisco | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Pacific Opera Project | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Opera Modesto | Stanislaus | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | ConAmor Building Bridges | Tuolumne | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Civic Design Studio | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Visalia Art League | Tulare | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Indivisible Arts | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Rhythm Arts Alliance | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | North Coast Symphony Orchestra | San Diego | $20,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | San Diego Made | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Ventura County Ballet | Ventura | $25,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | KZFR 90.1FM | Butte | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Women Who Submit | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Arenas Dance Company | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Hmong Youth and Parents United | Sacramento | $17,462.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | DIAVOLO | Architecture In Motion | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Women Who Submit | Los Angeles | $9,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Independent Arts & Media (fiscal sponsor) | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Small Art Music Projects | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Salastina | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | T2 Dance Company | Los Angeles | $12,825.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Reimagine The Land | Los Angeles | $19,994.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Drawing Together | Los Angeles | $10,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Merced County Arts Council Inc | Merced | $75,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TeenTix LA | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra | Kern | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Palm Springs Cultural Center | Riverside | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Fountain Theatre | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | 826LA | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Get Lit - Words Ignite | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Dancers Group - Fiscal Sponsor for Grown Women Dance Collective | Contra Costa | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | PLAY Theatre Company | Marin | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | The S.W.A.E Foundation | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Beautiful Beginnings Arts Collective | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Independent Arts & Media (fiscal sponsor) | San Francisco | $21,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Mariposa Arts Council | Mariposa | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Miracle Makers International Film Festival | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | PAC LA | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | California Karen Youth Connection | Sacramento | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Angeles Chorale | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | GLOBAL VILLAGE FOUNDATION | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Big Idea Theatre | Sacramento | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Root Access Hackerspace | Fresno | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Autism Society Inland Empire | Riverside | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | A.B.O. Comix | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | FRIENDS OF PERALTA HACIENDA HISTORICAL PARK | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | ARTogether | Alameda | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ARTogether | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | "" | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Culture Kids Productions | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Calaveras Arts Council | Calaveras | $72,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | SAMMAY Productions | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Tehachapi Symphony Orchestra | Kern | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | VOLTI | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Greenhouse Project | Santa Cruz | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Benkadi, a project of Community Partners | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Oakland Style Lab | Alameda | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Benkadi, a project of Community Partners | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | HOLLYWOOD ARAB FILM ASSOCIATION | Orange | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Fountain Theatre | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Arts United San Pedro | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Paul Dresher Ensemble | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Movement Liberation | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Pacifico Dance Company | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Sacramento County | Sacramento | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | AFRO-AMERICAN CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY ORCHESTRA | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | LAWTF | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Maya's Music Therapy Fund | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Unscripted Learning | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Rocklin Fine Arts | Placer | $5,423.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Teatro Mascara Magica | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | San Benito County Arts Council | San Benito | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Filmforum | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Eye Zen Presents | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sketch Odyssey East Bay | Contra Costa | $24,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Modoc County Arts Council | Modoc | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ESMoA | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | PiYoDa Flow | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | "" | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Oakland Civic Orchestra | Alameda | $20,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Mercury Music Foundation | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Tuolumne County Arts Alliance Inc. | Tuolumne | $72,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Resonance Collective | Los Angeles | $8,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sons and Daughters of Guam Club, Inc. | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Teatro Nagual | Sacramento | $18,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Youth ARTS Alive | Santa Barbara | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SDYAMA | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | E4TT | San Francisco | $16,800.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | CIRCUIT NETWORK | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | GADKS | Kern | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Salmon Creek Farm Arts | Mendocino | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Institute of Inquiry | San Bernardino | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Wayward Artist | Orange | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sacramento Master Singers | Sacramento | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Coin & Ghost | Los Angeles | $8,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | HEMET VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION INC | Riverside | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Robey Theatre Company | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Mezzanine Film Inc | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Midtown Radio | Sacramento | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Sacred Rok | Mariposa | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TaikoMix | Riverside | $20,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Solano County Library Foundation | Solano | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Lake County Arts Council, Soper Reese Theatre, Main Street Gallery | Lake | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Sacred Fools Theater | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | East Wind Lion Dance | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Art Forces | Alameda | $15,890.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Calaveras Arts Council | Calaveras | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sanctuary for the Sacred Arts | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Black Women's Roots Festial | Alameda | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Coachella Valley Arts Institute | Riverside | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | The Young Shakespeareans | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | CENTER FOR MUSIC AND WELLNESS INC | Orange | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Ravi & Shashi Bellare Arts Foundation | San Bernardino | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | CENTER FOR MUSIC AND WELLNESS INC | Orange | $17,150.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | San Diego Creative Youth Development Network | San Diego | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | San Diego Creative Youth Development Network | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | EST/LA | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Whacking Los Angeles | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Art + Climate Action | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | YouthBeat | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Audiopharmacy Prescriptions | Alameda | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Bay Philharmonic | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Noah Purifoy Foundation | San Bernardino | $18,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | The Arts Council of Kern | Kern | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Life On Art | Sonoma | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | RX BALLROOM DANCE | Orange | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Young Shakespeareans | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Claudia Biezunski | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Claudia Biezunski | San Diego | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | E4TT | San Francisco | $17,297.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | OLD TOWN ARTISAN STUDIOS | Riverside | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Cunamacué | Alameda | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | YG2D | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | VELASLAVASAY PANORAMA | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | MarinArts | Marin | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | HILLCREST WIND ENSEMBLE | San Diego | $10,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Friends of the Arts | Butte | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Neococo Collective | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Marin Cultural Association | Marin | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | CALIFORNIA DANCE INSTITUTE | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Tenderloin Museum | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SLOMA | San Luis Obispo | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAN FERNANDO VALLEY YOUTH CHORUS | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | THE CITY | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Elsie May Goodwin Gallery | San Joaquin | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Inland Empire Harm Reduction | Riverside | $17,441.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Lab | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | YOUR BIG VOICE FOUNDATION | Ventura | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Asociación Nacional de Grupos Folklóricos (ANGF) | Fresno | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Canal Arts | Marin | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Ammunition Theatre Company | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | "" | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | MoFundamentals | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Skid Row Brigade, Inc. | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association (VAALA) | Orange | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Arts Council Santa Cruz County | Santa Cruz | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | RX BALLROOM DANCE | Orange | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | CITY OF CALEXICO - RECREATION DEPARTMENT | Imperial | $24,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Shasta County Arts Council | Shasta | $72,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Theatre | Shasta | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Santa Barbara County Office of Arts and Culture | Santa Barbara | $75,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Coachella Valley Arts Institute | Riverside | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Urban Jazz Dance Company | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Classical Crossroads, Inc. | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Poetic Justice | San Diego | $17,389.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Foglifter Press | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Heartizens | Sonoma | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | KOL SEPHARDIC CHOIR ROSE INC | Los Angeles | $6,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Geoffrey's Inner Circle | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Songwriter Sanctuary San Diego | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SMILE-ING BOYS INC | Los Angeles | $14,960.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | pateldanceworks | Alameda | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Rogue Artists Ensemble | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Olive Branch Theatricals | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | LA Swing Dance Posse | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAN DIEGO WOMENS CHORUS | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Act Out Theatre Company | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | SMP RISE 501(c)(3) | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | KALADHAARA ARTS ACADEMY | Sacramento | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | CHORAL ARTS INITIATIVE | Orange | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | JAZZLINE INSTITUTE | Santa Clara | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Nopal | San Joaquin | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Art Time Presents | Los Angeles | $10,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | JAZZLINE INSTITUTE | Santa Clara | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Non Profit Organization | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Activities4all | Santa Cruz | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Scarab Creative Arts | Fresno | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | YG2D | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Mariachi Juvenil | San Diego | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Rich & Successful Film Community | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Moving Arts | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Arts4MC | Monterey | $75,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Indigenous Regeneration | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | THE AJA PROJECT | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern California | Riverside | $10,816.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | THE AJA PROJECT | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Poetic Justice | San Diego | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | ARTERITANO FOUNDATION | Solano | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Escondido Arts Partnership | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirits (BAAITS) | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | NAKA Dance Theater | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | The Regents of the University of California, Santa Cruz | Santa Cruz | $21,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Write4Art Productions | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Girls' Jazz and Blues Society | Sacramento | $6,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Leela Institute | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Green Room Theatre Company | Riverside | $21,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | California Chamber Orchestra | Riverside | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Hmong Culture Camp | Merced | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | OUTWORDS | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Modest Fly Art Studio Gallery Inc. | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Modest Fly Art Studio Gallery Inc. | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | NAKA Dance Theater | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Dorland Mountain Arts | Riverside | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Jazz Organ Fellowship | Santa Clara | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Herencia Mariachi Academy | Riverside | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Mending of Mothers | Sacramento | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | PLUMAS ARTS | Plumas | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Live Out L!ve Foundation | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | CLARE ROSE FOUNDATION CENTER FOR CREATIVE YOUTH DEVELOPMENT | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Vanguard Culture | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | The LA Local | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Painted Brain | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Painted Brain | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | AAACC | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | KIDSINGERS | Orange | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | PiYoDa Flow | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Arts Education Connection San Diego | San Diego | $17,476.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Playwrights Project | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Womxn 2 Womxn | Fresno | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Pinecones and Portals Hiking Theater Company | Alameda | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Red Hen Press | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Red Hen Press | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Unearth and Empower Communities | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Media Arts Center San Diego | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Sacramento Ballet | Sacramento | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Coronado Philharmonia Orchestra | San Diego | $13,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Blue Plum Productions, Inc. | San Diego | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | South Yuba River Citizens League | Nevada | $18,369.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | LA Choreographers & Dancers/ Louise Reichlin & Dancers | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Young Audiences of Northern California | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Muralism | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | MoBand | Stanislaus | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Nova Community Arts | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Glenn County Arts & Culture | Glenn | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Loco Bloco | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | Original Scraper Bike Team | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » | |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Wonder Center | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Cantilever Collective | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | INCA, the Peruvian Ensemble | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Lightning Rod Theater | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | monca | Butte | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | A PLACE OF HER OWN | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | A PLACE OF HER OWN | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | GAPA FUND | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Justice for My Sister | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Art in the Park | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Nevada County Arts & Culture | Nevada | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Dance Resource Center / DRC | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Dance Resource Center / DRC | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SODE SCHOOL OF PERFORMING ARTS AND SOPHIE OLSON DANCE EXPLOSION INC | Los Angeles | $20,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | ACMA | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Art in the Park | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Women's Theatre Collective | Sacramento | $25,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Fulcrum Arts | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Access Humboldt | Humboldt | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Green Room Theatre Company | Riverside | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Vallejo Choral Society | Solano | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Museum of Us | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Embodiment Project | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Redwood Arts Council | Sonoma | $10,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | CAT Corona | Riverside | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SUNSET MUSIC AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION | Riverside | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Temecula Valley Writers and Illustrators | Riverside | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Seen&Heard | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | L.A. Dance Project | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | california lgbt arts alliance | Los Angeles | $7,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | IGBO Union | Contra Costa | $6,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | KALADHAARA ARTS ACADEMY | Sacramento | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Asociacion Cultural Los Angeles | Los Angeles | $6,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Oakland Art Murmur | Alameda | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Prison Arts Project, TeamWorks Art Mentoring | Santa Cruz | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | --None-- | Mendocino | $16,880.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Timken Museum of Art | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | CMAC | Fresno | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | WESTWIND BRASS INC | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The San Francisco Neo-Futurists | San Francisco | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | In My Section | Contra Costa | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Give 4 Kidz | Riverside | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Versa-Style Dance Company | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Filmmakers Collaborative SF | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Joyful Art Center | Solano | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sacramento Women's Chorus | Sacramento | $13,040.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | YOUR BIG VOICE FOUNDATION | Ventura | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | 82-2363154 | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Heidi Schwegler | San Bernardino | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | New Krma Media | Alameda | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | LRCC | Ventura | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | JC CULTURE Foundation | Los Angeles | $8,438.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Comic-Con Museum | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra | Kern | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | KARMIC ACTION RETRIBUTION MANAGEMENT AGENCY | Los Angeles | $25,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Citric Acid | Orange | $3,960.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Jail Guitar Doors - USA | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Matriarchy Theatre | Sacramento | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Chrysalis Studio/Queer Ancestors Project | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Lake Almanor Basin Performing Arts Association | Plumas | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | 11:11 Projects | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SANTA BARBARA REVELS | Santa Barbara | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | "" | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | David Herrera Performance Company | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | City of San Fernando | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Silicon Valley Shakespeare | Santa Clara | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Anna H. Wang Concert Series West | Riverside | $5,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Opera Parallele | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Media Arts Center San Diego | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Sojourner Truth African Heritage Museum | Sacramento | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | WisdoMania Foundation | Los Angeles | $17,064.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Songwriter Sanctuary San Diego | San Diego | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Cerritos Chinese School | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | ACPC | Placer | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Kid City Hope Place | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Institute for Traditional Studies | Mendocino | $6,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Poverty Department | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | SO SAY WE ALL | San Diego | $16,671.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SBAA-(SAN BERNARDINO ART ASSOCIATION) | San Bernardino | $11,958.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | GALLERY ROUTE ONE | Marin | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | CubaCaribe | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | CubaCaribe | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Long Beach Symphony Orchestra | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ICC | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | San Pedro Waterfront Arts District | Los Angeles | $21,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | San Pedro Waterfront Arts District | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | 943153475 | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SO SAY WE ALL | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Give 4 Kidz | Riverside | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | 95-2265589 | Los Angeles | $4,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Chrysalis Studio/Queer Ancestors Project | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | San Francisco Youth Theatre | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | cultural programming | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | D.I.Y. ART | Humboldt | $18,715.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Street Poets | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Jazz Hands for Autism | Los Angeles | $10,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Project READ-Redwood City (RCFOL) | San Mateo | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Izcalli | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Izcalli | San Diego | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Bridge Live Arts | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | FOOLS FURY THEATER | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Mongolian Arts & Education Center | Alameda | $18,746.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Eritrean Community Center (ECC) of the Bay Area | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State Local Partner Mentorship | 2026-27 | The Arts Council of Kern | Kern | $50,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | artEquity Community | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Sausalito Center for the Arts | Marin | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | PIECE BY PIECE | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Sisters of Nia, Inc. | Sacramento | $7,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | PIECE BY PIECE | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Burbank Community Band | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | In The Band | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sausalito Center for the Arts | Marin | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | In The Band | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Theatre Flamenco of San Francisco Inc | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Muslim DEIN | Yolo | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Women's Audio Mission | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Rhodessa Jones Productions - The Medea Project: Theatre for Incarcerated Women/HIV Circle | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Justice for My Sister | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | June Lake Arts | Mono | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Santa Clara Chorale Inc | Santa Clara | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | DrawBridge | Marin | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ORCHESTRA NOVA LA | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Cheza Nami Foundation | Alameda | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Harmony Project Bay Area | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | The Creartive Freedom Family | Ventura | $16,240.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Spectrum Stage | Sacramento | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Afsaneh Arts | Marin | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | SF Recovery Theatre | San Francisco | $20,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | BRITE | Ventura | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Petaluma Arts Center | Sonoma | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Arose from concrete | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | School of The Getdown | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Equal Means Equal | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Feminist Center for Creative Work | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Street of Dreams, MFE | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Ri-Nu Imagination | Sacramento | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Mi Gente CA | Santa Cruz | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Mi Gente CA | Santa Cruz | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Healing Heels | Sacramento | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Chico Art Center | Butte | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | California Music Center | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Bay Area Music Project | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Riverside Community Arts Association | Riverside | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Actors' Reading Collective | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Santa Cecilia Arts & Learning Center | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Santa Cecilia Arts & Learning Center | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Friends of the Arts | Butte | $72,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Conundrum Theatre Company | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Italian American Museum of Los Angeles | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | FAF | Santa Barbara | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | RENAISSANCE INSTITUTE OF MUSIC, INC. | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | LACP | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | LA Commons | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Chimaera Project | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Dare to Dance in Public Film Festival | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | pateldanceworks | Alameda | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | City of Westminster | Orange | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Meztli Projects | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | UpStage Napa Valley | Napa | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Mil-Tree | San Bernardino | $13,650.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Meztli Projects | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Muses & Melanin Fellowship | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Diamond Wave, a fiscally sponsored project of Independent Arts & Media | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SF Recovery Theatre | San Francisco | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Borrego Art Institute | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Kearny Street Workshop | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Zawaya | San Mateo | $9,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Poetic Research Bureau | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | BoxoPROJECTS | San Bernardino | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Genryu Arts | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Genryu Arts | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Fort Mason Artists | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Tahoe Truckee School of Music | Nevada | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Zaccho Dance Theatre | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | American Canyon Arts Foundation | Napa | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Zaccho Dance Theatre | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SoCal Arts | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Luna Dance and Creativity | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Viva Downtown | Shasta | $10,800.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Project Commotion | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | URBAN VOICES PROJECT | Los Angeles | $8,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Mendocino Dance Project | Mendocino | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | MEXICAN HERITAGE CENTER | Fresno | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Playwrights Foundation | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Red Poppy Art House | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Cafe Puente | Sonoma | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Red Poppy Art House | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Morro Bay Art Association | San Luis Obispo | $2,696.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Sheed | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | homeLA | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Mariposa Arts Council | Mariposa | $74,250.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Office of Economic Development and Government Affairs | San Diego | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | GRAND PERFORMANCES | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Altadena Music Theatre | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | homeLA | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | California Institute for Community, Art & Nature | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Act Out Theatre Company | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Flyaway Productions | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Burbank Philharmonic Orchestra | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Write Out Loud | San Diego | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Long Beach Camerata Singers | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | "" | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Acme Theatre Company | Yolo | $8,320.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Yeah, Art! | Alameda | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Yeah, Art! | Alameda | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Desert Community Orchestra Association | Kern | $7,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Healing Music Seeds | Sacramento | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Free Thought Revolution | San Diego | $21,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Artists of the High Desert | San Bernardino | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Son of Semele | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Son of Semele | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Hi-Desert Artists | San Bernardino | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Reel Start | Los Angeles | $21,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Reel Start | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Hidden GEM Creative Studios | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Larry Spring Museum | Mendocino | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Radio Bilingüe | Fresno | $17,465.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | TuYo Theatre | San Diego | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Active Cultures | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Hidden GEM Creative Studios | Alameda | $21,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Casa de Brazilian Folkloric Arts of Sacramento | Sacramento | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Casa de Brazilian Folkloric Arts of Sacramento | Sacramento | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | The Arts and Enrichment Academy | Los Angeles | $21,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Inclusive Kids Network | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Riverside Arts Council | Riverside | $72,750.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Madera County Arts Council & Circle Gallery | Madera | $72,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Santa Clarita History Center | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | International Orange Chorale of San Francisco | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Support Black Theatre | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | BFF.fm | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Personal Space Projects | Solano | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Personal Space Projects | Solano | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Long Beach Camerata Singers | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Holding Space | Sacramento | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Kern River Valley Art Association | Kern | $17,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Cornerstone | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Support Black Theatre | Los Angeles | $21,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Micaya Presents | Contra Costa | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Kingsmen Shakespeare Company | Ventura | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Children's Musical Theater San Jose | Santa Clara | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Xela Institute of Art | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Everyday Arts | Los Angeles | $21,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Non Stop Bhangra | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Left Coast Music | San Diego | $4,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Sierra Repertory Theatre | Tuolumne | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Oceanica Ballet | San Mateo | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Tea & Verse Poetry Salon | Los Angeles | $16,955.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Colusa County Arts Council | Colusa | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Anna H. Wang Concert Series West | Riverside | $5,625.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Canyon Cinema Foundation | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | 333 Arts | Contra Costa | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Broad Room | Sacramento | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture | Yuba | $148,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Fostering Dreams Project | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | MUSEUM OF VENTURA COUNTY | Ventura | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Arose from concrete | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Highways Performance Space & Gallery | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | RuckusRoots | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | RuckusRoots | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Kultur Mercado | Los Angeles | $8,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Larry Spring Museum | Mendocino | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Legacy LA Youth Development Corporation | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Alliance for California Traditional Arts | Fresno | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Boxtales Theatre Company | Santa Barbara | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Kern Valley Museum | Kern | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Middletown Art Center | Lake | $18,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Tehama Arts Council | Tehama | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Arrowhead Arts Association | San Bernardino | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | ARTSCCC | Contra Costa | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | East Wind Lion Dance | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | LA Artcore | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | American Museum of Ceramic Art | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | WHIPPOORWILL ARTS INC | Contra Costa | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | HaGomel | Ventura | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | ANGELS GATE CULTURAL CENTER | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ANGELS GATE CULTURAL CENTER | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Fresh Meat Productions | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ACMA | San Diego | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Hacienda Happy Tails Corporation | Tulare | $18,750.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Arts Council of Mendocino County | Mendocino | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | AAWAA | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Tuleburg Press/The Write Place | San Joaquin | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Stapleton School of the Performing Arts | Marin | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture | Yuba | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | HALALYWOOD FOUNDATION INC | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAN FRANCISCO BOYS CHORUS | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Synchromy | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Southland Sings | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | KeyNote/SDYS | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Everyday Arts | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Bethesda Repertory Theatre Inc. | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | The Table Art Society | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sunday Jump | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ARTS VISALIA | Tulare | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | International Eye LA | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Four Seasons Arts Inc | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | The Compton Arts Project | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Compton Arts Project | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The World Stage | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | TeamWorks Art Mentoring Program | Marin | $16,293.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Yosemite Sierra Artists | Madera | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Electric Company Theatre | Orange | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | 82-2363154 | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Artists of the High Desert | San Bernardino | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | OnStage Playhouse | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SUNSET MUSIC AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION | Riverside | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | "" | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Medical Clown Project | Contra Costa | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Inspire SD | San Diego | $15,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | PLAY Theatre Company | Marin | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | UMEKE INC | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Cultural Odyssey | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Longshadr Productions | Humboldt | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Ventura County Arts Council | Ventura | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | VHM | Orange | $22,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | HOUSE OF PALESTINE INC | San Diego | $17,430.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | San Francisco Women Artists | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Megan Lowe Dances | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Megan Lowe Dances | San Francisco | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Loiter Galleries | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF THE SAN GORGONIO PASS | Riverside | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Mounarath Powell Dance | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | WEAD | Alameda | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Driftseed | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Morro Bay Art Association | San Luis Obispo | $6,800.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Museum of Social Justice | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Art Explorers, Inc. | Mendocino | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Pointeworks | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | POMONA VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION INC | Los Angeles | $7,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | ARTHATCH | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture | San Mateo | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Cultural Odyssey | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Audium Theater | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Deborah Slater Dance Theater | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | The Strindberg Laboratory | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Hanford Multicultural Theater Company | Kings | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Dan Griffiths | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Guitars Antiqua Music Program | Los Angeles | $15,375.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | San Diego Civic Youth Orchestra | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Stanislaus Arts Council | Stanislaus | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Friends of Sacramento Arts | Sacramento | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAN FRANCISCO CHILDRENS ART CENTER | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture | Los Angeles | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Best Practice | San Diego | $9,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SAN FRANCISCO CHILDRENS ART CENTER | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAPPA | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SAPPA | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | OTHER MINDS | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | DTLA Proud | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SACRA/PROFANA | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Riot Productions | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Launch LA | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Tierra Caliente Academy of Arts | San Diego | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Art Spread | Orange | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Longshadr Productions | Humboldt | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Stockton Chorale | San Joaquin | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Detour Productions | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Table Art Society | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Colusa County Arts Council | Colusa | $72,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Bay Area Creative | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Bay Area Creative | Alameda | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sam First | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Pajaro Valley Arts | Santa Cruz | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | MTG | Los Angeles | $7,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | WRIGHTWOOD ARTS CENTER | San Bernardino | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Healing Thru Rhythm | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Strindberg Laboratory | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Tierra Caliente Academy of Arts | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Positive Action Community Theatre (PACT) | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | 3RD I South Asian Independent Film | San Francisco | $6,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | DNACA | Del Norte | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | FUSION PERFORMING DANCE ACADEMY | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | MORONGO BASIN CULTURAL ARTS COUNCIL, Inc. | San Bernardino | $30,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Humboldt Arts Council | Humboldt | $75,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | YoloArts | Yolo | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Contemporary Archive (LACA) | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | MUSYCA Children's Choir | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Grand Vision Foundation | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SACRAMENTO FINE ARTS CENTER | Sacramento | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Palm Springs Gay Men's Chorus | Riverside | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | JUNTOS COLLECTIVE INC | Alameda | $8,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | PASADENA PRO MUSICA | Los Angeles | $3,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Guitars and Ukes in the Classroom | San Diego | $10,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Electric Moon Foundation | Los Angeles | $25,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Arts and Culture El Dorado | El Dorado | $74,250.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Inyo Council for the Arts | Inyo | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Arms Wide Open | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ConAmor Building Bridges | Tuolumne | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Hero Theatre | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ART LEAGUE OF LINCOLN | Placer | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Hero Theatre | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | ARTS AND CULTURE ALPINE COUNTY | Alpine | $72,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TURBINE ARTS COLLECTIVE INC | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Hanford Multicultural Theater Company | Kings | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Artes Vocales | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | School of The Getdown | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Creative Sonoma | Sonoma | $75,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Teatro Espejo | Sacramento | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Shakespeare Youth Festival | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sacramento Educational Cable Consortium | Sacramento | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAINT REMY ARTS AND CULTURE | San Bernardino | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Venice Arts | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Institute of Arts Music & Science | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Viver Brasil Dance Company | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Mono Arts Council | Mono | $74,250.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | SVCREATES | Santa Clara | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | TheatreWorkers Project | Los Angeles | $20,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | WESTWIND BRASS INC | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TheatreWorkers Project | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Amador Arts | Amador | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ARTHATCH | San Diego | $30,000.00 | More » |
| More » | |||||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Kingsmen Shakespeare Company | Ventura | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Children's Musical Theater San Jose | Santa Clara | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Xela Institute of Art | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Everyday Arts | Los Angeles | $21,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Non Stop Bhangra | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Left Coast Music | San Diego | $4,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Sierra Repertory Theatre | Tuolumne | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Oceanica Ballet | San Mateo | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Tea & Verse Poetry Salon | Los Angeles | $16,955.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Colusa County Arts Council | Colusa | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Anna H. Wang Concert Series West | Riverside | $5,625.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Canyon Cinema Foundation | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | 333 Arts | Contra Costa | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Broad Room | Sacramento | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture | Yuba | $148,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Fostering Dreams Project | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | MUSEUM OF VENTURA COUNTY | Ventura | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Arose from concrete | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Highways Performance Space & Gallery | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | RuckusRoots | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | RuckusRoots | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Kultur Mercado | Los Angeles | $8,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Larry Spring Museum | Mendocino | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Legacy LA Youth Development Corporation | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Alliance for California Traditional Arts | Fresno | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Boxtales Theatre Company | Santa Barbara | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Kern Valley Museum | Kern | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Middletown Art Center | Lake | $18,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Tehama Arts Council | Tehama | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Arrowhead Arts Association | San Bernardino | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | ARTSCCC | Contra Costa | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | East Wind Lion Dance | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | LA Artcore | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | American Museum of Ceramic Art | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | WHIPPOORWILL ARTS INC | Contra Costa | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | HaGomel | Ventura | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | ANGELS GATE CULTURAL CENTER | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ANGELS GATE CULTURAL CENTER | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Fresh Meat Productions | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ACMA | San Diego | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Hacienda Happy Tails Corporation | Tulare | $18,750.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Arts Council of Mendocino County | Mendocino | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | AAWAA | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Tuleburg Press/The Write Place | San Joaquin | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Stapleton School of the Performing Arts | Marin | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture | Yuba | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | HALALYWOOD FOUNDATION INC | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAN FRANCISCO BOYS CHORUS | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Synchromy | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Southland Sings | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | KeyNote/SDYS | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Everyday Arts | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Bethesda Repertory Theatre Inc. | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | The Table Art Society | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sunday Jump | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ARTS VISALIA | Tulare | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | International Eye LA | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Four Seasons Arts Inc | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | The Compton Arts Project | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Compton Arts Project | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The World Stage | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | TeamWorks Art Mentoring Program | Marin | $16,293.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Yosemite Sierra Artists | Madera | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Electric Company Theatre | Orange | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | 82-2363154 | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Artists of the High Desert | San Bernardino | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | OnStage Playhouse | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SUNSET MUSIC AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION | Riverside | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | "" | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Medical Clown Project | Contra Costa | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Inspire SD | San Diego | $15,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | PLAY Theatre Company | Marin | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | UMEKE INC | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Cultural Odyssey | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Longshadr Productions | Humboldt | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Ventura County Arts Council | Ventura | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | VHM | Orange | $22,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | HOUSE OF PALESTINE INC | San Diego | $17,430.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | San Francisco Women Artists | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Megan Lowe Dances | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Megan Lowe Dances | San Francisco | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Loiter Galleries | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF THE SAN GORGONIO PASS | Riverside | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Mounarath Powell Dance | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | WEAD | Alameda | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Driftseed | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Morro Bay Art Association | San Luis Obispo | $6,800.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Museum of Social Justice | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Art Explorers, Inc. | Mendocino | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Pointeworks | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | POMONA VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION INC | Los Angeles | $7,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | ARTHATCH | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture | San Mateo | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Cultural Odyssey | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Audium Theater | San Francisco | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Deborah Slater Dance Theater | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | The Strindberg Laboratory | Los Angeles | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Hanford Multicultural Theater Company | Kings | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Dan Griffiths | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Guitars Antiqua Music Program | Los Angeles | $15,375.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | San Diego Civic Youth Orchestra | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Stanislaus Arts Council | Stanislaus | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Friends of Sacramento Arts | Sacramento | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAN FRANCISCO CHILDRENS ART CENTER | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture | Los Angeles | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Best Practice | San Diego | $9,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SAN FRANCISCO CHILDRENS ART CENTER | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAPPA | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | SAPPA | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | OTHER MINDS | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | DTLA Proud | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SACRA/PROFANA | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Riot Productions | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Launch LA | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Tierra Caliente Academy of Arts | San Diego | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Art Spread | Orange | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Longshadr Productions | Humboldt | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Stockton Chorale | San Joaquin | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Detour Productions | San Francisco | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Table Art Society | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Colusa County Arts Council | Colusa | $72,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Bay Area Creative | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Bay Area Creative | Alameda | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sam First | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Pajaro Valley Arts | Santa Cruz | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | MTG | Los Angeles | $7,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | WRIGHTWOOD ARTS CENTER | San Bernardino | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Healing Thru Rhythm | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | The Strindberg Laboratory | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Tierra Caliente Academy of Arts | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Positive Action Community Theatre (PACT) | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | 3RD I South Asian Independent Film | San Francisco | $6,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | DNACA | Del Norte | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | FUSION PERFORMING DANCE ACADEMY | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | MORONGO BASIN CULTURAL ARTS COUNCIL, Inc. | San Bernardino | $30,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Humboldt Arts Council | Humboldt | $75,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | YoloArts | Yolo | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Los Angeles Contemporary Archive (LACA) | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | MUSYCA Children's Choir | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Grand Vision Foundation | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SACRAMENTO FINE ARTS CENTER | Sacramento | $24,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Palm Springs Gay Men's Chorus | Riverside | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | JUNTOS COLLECTIVE INC | Alameda | $8,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | PASADENA PRO MUSICA | Los Angeles | $3,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Guitars and Ukes in the Classroom | San Diego | $10,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Electric Moon Foundation | Los Angeles | $25,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Arts and Culture El Dorado | El Dorado | $74,250.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Inyo Council for the Arts | Inyo | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Arms Wide Open | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ConAmor Building Bridges | Tuolumne | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Hero Theatre | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ART LEAGUE OF LINCOLN | Placer | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Hero Theatre | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | ARTS AND CULTURE ALPINE COUNTY | Alpine | $72,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TURBINE ARTS COLLECTIVE INC | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Hanford Multicultural Theater Company | Kings | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Artes Vocales | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | School of The Getdown | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Creative Sonoma | Sonoma | $75,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Teatro Espejo | Sacramento | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Shakespeare Youth Festival | Los Angeles | $30,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Sacramento Educational Cable Consortium | Sacramento | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | SAINT REMY ARTS AND CULTURE | San Bernardino | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | Venice Arts | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | Institute of Arts Music & Science | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | Viver Brasil Dance Company | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Mono Arts Council | Mono | $74,250.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | SVCREATES | Santa Clara | $74,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | TheatreWorkers Project | Los Angeles | $20,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | WESTWIND BRASS INC | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | TheatreWorkers Project | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | Amador Arts | Amador | $74,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | ARTHATCH | San Diego | $30,000.00 | More » |
| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | LA Commons | Los Angeles | More » | |
| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | EVOAK! | Alameda | More » | |
| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | OPAC | Ventura | More » | |
| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | Stanislaus Arts Council | Stanislaus | More » | |
| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | Arts District Liberty Station | San Diego | More » | |
| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | American Indian Cultural District | San Francisco | More » | |
| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | City of Riverside | Riverside | More » | |
| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | San Jose Taiko | Santa Clara | More » | |
| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | City of Watsonville | Santa Cruz | More » | |
| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | Merced County Arts Council Inc | Merced | More » | |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Latino Center of Art and Culture | Sacramento | $15,975.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Institute of Inquiry | San Bernardino | $13,800.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Au Co Vietnamese Cultural Center | San Francisco | $15,900.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Celebration Theatre | Los Angeles | $18,271.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Ben Free Project | Orange | $22,800.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | City of Twentynine Palms Parks & Recreation | San Bernardino | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | ArtReach | San Diego | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival | Fresno | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | KALEIDOSCOPE | Los Angeles | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Unscripted Learning | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Stay Studio | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | "" | Alameda | $15,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | WOMEN IN FILM | Los Angeles | $15,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | ICYOLA | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | PLUS ME Project | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Pony Box Dance | Los Angeles | $19,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Art in the Park | Los Angeles | $16,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Berkeley Art Center | Alameda | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Valerie Troutt Projects | Alameda | $11,100.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | MOXIE Theatre | San Diego | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Balboa Art Conservation Center | San Diego | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | San Francisco Mime Troupe | San Francisco | $15,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirits (BAAITS) | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Invertigo Dance Theatre | Los Angeles | $19,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Unscripted Learning | San Diego | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Dell'Arte International | Humboldt | $17,868.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Nava Dance Theatre | San Francisco | $20,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Nava Dance Theatre | San Francisco | $12,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | GLAM INC | Los Angeles | $13,800.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Flockworks | Mendocino | $19,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Viet Voices | San Diego | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Queer Cultural Center | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Urban Jazz Dance Company | San Francisco | $21,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Architecture + Advocacy | Los Angeles | $13,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Medical Clown Project | Contra Costa | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | San Francisco Transgender Film Festival | San Francisco | $18,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Fua Dia Kongo | Alameda | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | "" | Alameda | $20,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | SNS Choirs | Los Angeles | $7,840.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Art With Elders | San Francisco | $19,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Art With Elders | San Francisco | $15,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Riverside Art Museum (RAM) | Riverside | $17,320.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Highways Performance Space & Gallery | Los Angeles | $19,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Highways Performance Space & Gallery | Los Angeles | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Plaza de la Raza | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Mariachi Women’s Foundation | Los Angeles | $21,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Napa Valley Youth Symphony | Napa | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | LOCAL COLOR | Santa Clara | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | ART OF ÉLAN | San Diego | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | TCAL | Los Angeles | $21,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | PUSH | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Rainbow Labs | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Community Roots Garden | Ventura | $19,000.00 | More » |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | Kala Art Institute | Alameda | $700,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | T3 TRIPLE THREAT | San Diego | $13,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | California Karen Youth Connection | Sacramento | $13,800.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | ALAS | San Mateo | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | non-profit | San Francisco | $13,200.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Asociación Nacional de Grupos Folklóricos (ANGF) | Fresno | $19,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | TWOPOINT4 DANCE THEATRE | Sacramento | $19,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | ArtyHood Foundation | San Francisco | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | BERKELEY SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA | Alameda | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Mon Petit Mojave | San Bernardino | $19,936.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Amplify Arts Project | Santa Barbara | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Amplify Arts Project | Santa Barbara | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | TeAda Productions | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Alyse Marie Presents | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Better Youth | Los Angeles | $21,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Diversionary Theatre Productions Inc. | San Diego | $15,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Bay Area Book Festival | Alameda | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Maraya Performing Arts Collective | San Diego | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Maraya Performing Arts Collective | San Diego | $21,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Lynda Fairly Carpinteria Arts Center | Santa Barbara | $13,200.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Lyrical Opposition | San Mateo | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Elevate Oakland | Alameda | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Institute of Contemporary Art, San Diego | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Elevate Oakland | Alameda | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Crocker Art Museum | Sacramento | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Barcid Foundation | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Blue Line Arts | Placer | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Southern Exposure | San Francisco | $20,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Rossi Milani | San Francisco | $13,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | ICYOLA | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Casa Circulo Cultural | San Mateo | $20,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Yeah, Art! | Alameda | $21,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Studio ACE | San Diego | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | New Museum Los Gatos | Santa Clara | $6,150.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Sketch Odyssey East Bay | Contra Costa | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | San Jose Multicultural Artists Guild | Santa Clara | $19,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | African-American Shakespeare Company | San Francisco | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | CLA | San Francisco | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Yeah, Art! | Alameda | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Riverside Arts Academy | Riverside | $21,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Litquake Foundation | San Francisco | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | KOHO | San Francisco | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Honey Art Studio | San Francisco | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | The Rosin Box Project | San Diego | $15,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | PAC LA | Los Angeles | $15,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | The Rosin Box Project | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Decentered Arts | San Francisco | $19,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Balboa Art Conservation Center | San Diego | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Jmm Dance Co. | San Benito | $20,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Teatro Visión | Santa Clara | $15,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Teatro Visión | Santa Clara | $22,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | ARTogether | Alameda | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | San Benito County Arts Council | San Benito | $20,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | ARTogether | Alameda | $15,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Liberated Kids | Alameda | $23,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | California Karen Youth Connection | Sacramento | $19,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Blue Line Arts | Placer | $22,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | OAKLAND INTERFAITH GOSPEL CHOIR | Alameda | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | LIGHT BRINGER PROJECT | Los Angeles | $20,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Crescent Moon Theater | Contra Costa | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Tap Fever Studios | San Diego | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Sacred Music Fellowship | Alameda | $22,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Cheza Nami Foundation | Alameda | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | YOSAL | Monterey | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Indivisible Arts | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Resounding Joy | San Diego | $15,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Bach Collegium San Diego | San Diego | $15,900.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Arts and Culture El Dorado | El Dorado | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area | San Francisco | $12,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | San Diego Made | San Diego | $16,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | ABADA-Capoeira San Francisco | San Francisco | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Lovely Bouquet Foundation | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Harmony Project | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Imagine Art s Center | Tulare | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | LIFE I LOVE SCHOOL | Alameda | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | JUiCE Hip Hop | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | San Diego Made | San Diego | $22,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | TONALITY | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Girls Make Beats | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Lou Harrison House | San Bernardino | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Las Fotos Project | Los Angeles | $19,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | TRYBE INC | Alameda | $20,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Bay Area Girls Rock Camp | Alameda | $19,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Junior Center of Art & Science | Alameda | $12,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation | Los Angeles | $22,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Versa-Style Dance Company | Los Angeles | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Jess Curtis/Gravity | San Francisco | $19,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Altadena Music Theatre | Los Angeles | $13,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | CreaTV San Jose | Santa Clara | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Esperanza Community Housing Corporation | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Diamano Coura West African Dance Company | Alameda | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | AfroSolo Theatre Company | San Francisco | $22,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | First Exposures | San Francisco | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | San Francisco Shakespeare Festival | San Francisco | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Los Angeles Poverty Department | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | North American Guqin Association | Alameda | $17,730.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Barrio Artists Partnership | San Diego | $18,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Free 2 Be Me Dance | Los Angeles | $13,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | TaikoMix | Riverside | $8,800.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | I Sound Music Performing Arts Community Development Inc | Sacramento | $19,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Left Coast Chamber Ensemble | San Francisco | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | SFIAF | San Francisco | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Presidio Performing Arts Foundation | San Francisco | $20,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Street Spirit | Alameda | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Arenas Dance Company | San Francisco | $15,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Art Theatre of Long Beach | Los Angeles | $13,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Oakland Ballet Company | Alameda | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Jazzantiqua Dance & Music Ensemble | Los Angeles | $18,522.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | IB Arts | San Diego | $13,800.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Give 4 Kidz | Riverside | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Women's Voices Now | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Relampago del Cielo, Inc. | Orange | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Amador Arts | Amador | $17,729.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | 924 Gilman | Alameda | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Women's Voices Now | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | CounterPulse | San Francisco | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Eye Discover | Los Angeles | $20,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | RICHMOND ART CENTER | Contra Costa | $15,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Street Spirit | Alameda | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | "" | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Via International | San Diego | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | The Strindberg Laboratory | Los Angeles | $13,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Root Division | San Francisco | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | "" | Alameda | $15,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | SLOMA | San Luis Obispo | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | AfroSolo Theatre Company | San Francisco | $21,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Girls Make Beats | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | SambaFunk! | Alameda | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Ryman Arts | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | ARTS | San Diego | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Western Ballet | Santa Clara | $12,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Melodia Mariposa | Los Angeles | $16,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | KZFR 90.1FM | Butte | $22,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Audium Theater | San Francisco | $16,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Liberando Nuestras Voces | San Mateo | $16,133.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | RICHMOND ART CENTER | Contra Costa | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Home of Guiding Hands | San Diego | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Bocón | San Diego | $21,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Center Theatre Group | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | The Art of Elysium | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Stronger Together Now | San Bernardino | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Sol Treasures | Monterey | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Loco Bloco | San Francisco | $20,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | The GR818ERS; UNITE Cultural Center | Los Angeles | $15,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Art at Vibe | Contra Costa | $16,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Dimensions Dance Theater Incorporated | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | MoAD | San Francisco | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Au Co Vietnamese Cultural Center | San Francisco | $18,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Coachella Valley Arts Institute | Riverside | $13,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | The Leela Institute | Los Angeles | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | EAST BAY CHILDREN'S THEATRE | Alameda | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Arab Film Festival | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Young Audiences of Northern California | San Francisco | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Martinez Arts Association | Contra Costa | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Sacramento Comedy Spot | Sacramento | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Murphys Creek Theatre | Calaveras | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Avenue 50 Studio, Inc. | Los Angeles | $13,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth | Alameda | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Fox Cultural Hall | Placer | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Automata | Los Angeles | $21,900.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Community Rejuvenation Project | Alameda | $18,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Jacob Jonas The Company | Los Angeles | $12,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | WriteGirl | Los Angeles | $16,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | "" | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Son of Semele | Los Angeles | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | World Arts West | San Francisco | $19,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | World Arts West | San Francisco | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Musicians at Play | Los Angeles | $23,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | "" | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | New Art City Theatre | Ventura | $12,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Media Arts Santa Ana, a project of Community Partners | Orange | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | RCF Connects | Contra Costa | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | El Teatro Campesino | San Benito | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | WRITERS GROTTO | San Francisco | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | WRITERS GROTTO | San Francisco | $19,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Iranian Women In Networking (IWIN) | Contra Costa | $11,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | CTN | San Francisco | $16,425.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Kala Art Institute | Alameda | $21,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | TODAY'S FUTURE SOUND | Alameda | $20,455.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Root Division | San Francisco | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Museum of Social Justice | Los Angeles | $21,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | VELASLAVASAY PANORAMA | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Riverside Arts Academy | Riverside | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | STUDIO 395 | Riverside | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Arts4MC | Monterey | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Pelisa Arts & Energy | Alameda | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Noe Music | San Francisco | $19,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | GOLDEN THREAD PRODUCTIONS | San Francisco | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | GOLDEN THREAD PRODUCTIONS | San Francisco | $19,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Black Women's Roots Festial | Alameda | $13,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Joshua Tree Living Arts | San Bernardino | $21,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Dance Brigade or Dance Mission | San Francisco | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Dance Brigade or Dance Mission | San Francisco | $21,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | RX BALLROOM DANCE | Orange | $15,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Poetic Justice | San Diego | $13,200.00 | More » |
| State Local Partner Mentorship | 2025-26 | Fresno Arts Council | Fresno | $51,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Junior Center of Art & Science | Alameda | $12,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | TWDCC | Santa Cruz | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Kid City Hope Place | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Yerba Buena Gardens Festival | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Musica Sierra | Sierra | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Film2Future | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Youth in Arts | Marin | $20,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | The Great Star Theater | San Francisco | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | KDA | Kern | $450,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | KDA | Kern | $21,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Give 4 Kidz | Riverside | $16,200.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | JAZZLINE INSTITUTE | Santa Clara | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Autie Carlisle Film Productions | Siskiyou | $22,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Visual Communications Media | Los Angeles | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | La Luz Center | Sonoma | $23,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | La Peña Cultural Center | Alameda | $15,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | City Hearts: Kids Say Yes to the Arts | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | The Colburn School | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Film Independent | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Write Out Loud | San Diego | $15,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Museum of Dance | San Francisco | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | LRCC | Ventura | $20,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Visions Museum of Textile Art | San Diego | $15,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Luna Dance and Creativity | Alameda | $15,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF GREATER SHASTA | Siskiyou | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | No Limits for deaf children and families | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | LA County Library | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | La Raíz Magazine | Santa Clara | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | RAMA Blueprints | San Bernardino | $20,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Mental State Foundation | Riverside | $18,073.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Ignite Arts & STEM | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Active Cultures | Los Angeles | $21,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Majdal | San Diego | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Calidanza | Sacramento | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Geffen Playhouse | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | US | Alameda | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Outside the Lens | San Diego | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Support Black Theatre | Los Angeles | $24,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Tenderloin Museum | San Francisco | $20,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Support Black Theatre | Los Angeles | $16,800.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Ink People Center for the Arts | Humboldt | $19,873.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Chico Art Center | Butte | $21,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | homeLA | Los Angeles | $21,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Tenderloin Museum | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Sonoma Community Center | Sonoma | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Village Arts Inc | Los Angeles | $16,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Sierra Repertory Theatre | Tuolumne | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | GYOPO | Los Angeles | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | ABD Productions / Skywatchers | San Francisco | $20,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | ABD Productions / Skywatchers | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Rogue Artists Ensemble | Los Angeles | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Rogue Artists Ensemble | Los Angeles | $19,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | MashUp Contemporary Dance Company | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Playwrights Project | San Diego | $21,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Shiptyard Trust for the Arts | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | The Arts Council of Kern | Kern | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Salastina | Los Angeles | $12,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Berkeley FILM Foundation | Alameda | $13,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | BEYOND BAROQUE LITERARY ARTS CENTER | Los Angeles | $21,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Aunt Lute Books | San Francisco | $21,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Museum of Dance | San Francisco | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | OPAC | Ventura | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | The Ed Fund | Alameda | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Creative Netwerk | Santa Barbara | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Creative Netwerk | Santa Barbara | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Jazz Organ Fellowship | Santa Clara | $20,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Inlandia Institute | Riverside | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Contempo Ballet | Los Angeles | $20,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Timken Museum of Art | San Diego | $21,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | E4TT | San Francisco | $17,355.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Leap Arts in Education | San Francisco | $22,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Leap Arts in Education | San Francisco | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Arts Benicia | Solano | $19,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | ARTHATCH | San Diego | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Future Leaders California | Los Angeles | $19,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Raising the Curtain Foundation | Los Angeles | $4,332.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Neighborhood Music School Association | Los Angeles | $19,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Sacramento Women's Chorus | Sacramento | $13,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Center for World Music | San Diego | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Center for World Music | San Diego | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Francisco Music Mission Corporation | San Francisco | $20,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Local News Matters | Alameda | $15,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Bay Philharmonic | Alameda | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Los Cenzontles Cultural Arts Academy | Contra Costa | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | FASO | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Una Productions | San Francisco | $19,250.00 | More » |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | ArtsOC | Orange | $700,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Free Arts | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Cinnamongirl | Alameda | $21,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | Los Angeles | $16,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Deborah Slater Dance Theater | San Francisco | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Hidden GEM Creative Studios | Alameda | $21,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Hidden GEM Creative Studios | Alameda | $13,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Mariposa Arts Council | Mariposa | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | City of Berkeley | Civic Arts | Alameda | $15,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Vatthanatham Lao Foundation | Merced | $16,800.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Elemental Music | Los Angeles | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Modoc County Arts Council | Modoc | $21,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Sacramento Master Singers | Sacramento | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | JOYCE GORDON FOUNDATION OF THE ARTS | Alameda | $20,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Masil | Santa Clara | $19,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Rhythmix Cultural Works | Alameda | $20,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Rhythmix Cultural Works | Alameda | $15,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Media Arts Santa Ana, a project of Community Partners | Orange | $19,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Tuleburg Press/The Write Place | San Joaquin | $21,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Blindspot Collective | San Diego | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Pedal Press | Butte | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Los Angeles Master Chorale | Los Angeles | $18,040.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | "" | Alameda | $21,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Geoffrey's Inner Circle | Alameda | $21,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Geoffrey's Inner Circle | Alameda | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Washington Neighborhood Center | Sacramento | $15,900.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Your Neighborhood Museum | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Mil-Tree | San Bernardino | $21,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Pacific Opera Project | Los Angeles | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Cultural Odyssey | San Francisco | $19,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Opera Parallele | San Francisco | $19,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Cultural Odyssey | San Francisco | $15,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | The Wayward Artist | Orange | $16,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Triton Museum of Art | Santa Clara | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | The Center for ArtEsteem | Alameda | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | ANGELS GATE CULTURAL CENTER | Los Angeles | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Sacramento Ballet | Sacramento | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Owens Valley Career Development Center | Inyo | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | BAYCAT | San Francisco | $15,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | TIPEY JOA NATIVE WARRIORS | San Diego | $20,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | SAPPA | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Wheelchair Dancers Organization | San Diego | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Institute of Inquiry | San Bernardino | $18,255.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Bay Area Music Project | Alameda | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | YoloArts | Yolo | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Museum of Latin American Art | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | San Jose Taiko | Santa Clara | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | WIA | Los Angeles | $15,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Pacific Arts Movement | San Diego | $15,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Pacific Arts Movement | San Diego | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Bell Arts Factory | Ventura | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | YG2D | San Francisco | $18,924.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | DISCO RIOT | San Diego | $12,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | San Diego ART Matters | San Diego | $12,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Clarion Alley Mural Project (CAMP) | San Francisco | $15,900.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | ArtsOC | Orange | $19,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Shoong Family Chinese Cultural Center | Alameda | $20,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | About Productions | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Youth Art Exchange | San Francisco | $12,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Green Room Theatre Company | Riverside | $16,200.00 | More » |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | Commission for Arts and Culture / Cultural Affairs | San Diego | $450,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Pacific Chamber Orchestra | Alameda | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | AIMUSIC.US | Santa Clara | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Bithiah's Family Services | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | DFD | Orange | $20,440.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | QWOCMAP | San Francisco | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Red Poppy Art House | San Francisco | $19,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Red Poppy Art House | San Francisco | $12,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | West Edge Opera | Alameda | $15,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | SAINT REMY ARTS AND CULTURE | San Bernardino | $22,800.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | SAN FRANCISCO BOYS CHORUS | San Francisco | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Luther Burbank Center for the Arts | Sonoma | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Women's Audio Mission | San Francisco | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Uprise Theatre | San Diego | $15,800.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | AAW&A | San Diego | $21,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | THE AJA PROJECT | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Lovers Lane | San Francisco | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Joe Goode Performance Group | San Francisco | $19,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | BAVC Media | San Francisco | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Contemporary Art Review Los Angeles | Los Angeles | $16,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Senderos | Santa Cruz | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | MashUp Contemporary Dance Company | Los Angeles | $19,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Chance Theater | Orange | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Páah Áama Paddle Club | Humboldt | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | ArtReach | San Diego | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | Arts Council Santa Cruz County | Santa Cruz | $300,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Arts Council Santa Cruz County | Santa Cruz | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center | Alameda | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Living Jazz | Alameda | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Create Peace Project | Contra Costa | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Artist As First Responder | Alameda | $18,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Remainders Creative Reuse | Los Angeles | $12,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Noorani Dance | San Mateo | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Keshet Chaim Dancers | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | Teatro Nagual | Sacramento | $300,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Maya's Music Therapy Fund | Alameda | $21,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Middletown Art Center | Lake | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Hero Theatre | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Independent Arts & Media (fiscal sponsor) | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Hero Theatre | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Fuse Theatre | San Mateo | $10,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | WHIPPOORWILL ARTS INC | Contra Costa | $12,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Create CA | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | "" | San Bernardino | $12,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Kids & Art Foundation | San Mateo | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Synchromy | Los Angeles | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | San Diego Opera | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Heidi Schwegler | San Bernardino | $12,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | AXIS Dance Company | Alameda | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Long Beach Camerata Singers | Los Angeles | $20,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | San Diego Museum Council | San Diego | $12,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | THE AJA PROJECT | San Diego | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Marin Theatre Company | Marin | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Clockshop | Los Angeles | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Trails and Vistas | Nevada | $18,263.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | California Symphony | Contra Costa | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | DSTL Arts | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Jail Guitar Doors - USA | Los Angeles | $19,246.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | COMPASSPOINT MENTORSHIP | Santa Clara | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Djerassi Resident Artists Program | San Mateo | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | David Herrera Performance Company | San Francisco | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | The Michael's Daughter Foundation | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Marin Society of Artists | Marin | $22,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Tandy Beal & Company (TBC) | Santa Cruz | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Micaya Presents | Contra Costa | $17,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Micaya Presents | Contra Costa | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | RuckusRoots | Los Angeles | $23,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | ESMoA | Los Angeles | $15,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | Los Angeles | $13,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Vita Art Center | Ventura | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Poetic Justice | San Diego | $18,480.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | HAVEN ACADEMY OF THE ARTS | Los Angeles | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Magic Theatre, Inc. | San Francisco | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Fernando Pullum Community Arts Center | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | San Diego Children's Choir | San Diego | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Shasta County Arts Council | Shasta | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Mil-Tree | San Bernardino | $13,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Benkadi, a project of Community Partners | Los Angeles | $16,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Artist As First Responder | Alameda | $12,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center | Alameda | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Benkadi, a project of Community Partners | Los Angeles | $18,489.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Long Beach Camerata Singers | Los Angeles | $12,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Intersection | San Francisco | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | The University of California, Berkeley | Alameda | $20,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Maya's Music Therapy Fund | Alameda | $18,872.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Izcalli | San Diego | $21,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Chopsticks Alley Art | Santa Clara | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Luna Dance and Creativity | Alameda | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | IAMA Theatre Company | Los Angeles | $13,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | The Cypher Spot | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Level Ground | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego | San Diego | $22,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Media Arts Center San Diego | San Diego | $20,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | PIECE BY PIECE | Los Angeles | $19,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | PALENKE ARTS | Monterey | $15,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Deaf West Theatre | Los Angeles | $21,600.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Unearth and Empower Communities | Los Angeles | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Unearth and Empower Communities | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Izcalli | San Diego | $16,200.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center | San Francisco | $21,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | ELM | Marin | $20,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Haemil Performing Group | Los Angeles | $19,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Legends Purpose | Sacramento | $21,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Flyaway Productions | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | 82-2363154 | San Diego | $15,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls San Diego | San Diego | $13,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Hijos del Sol Arts Productions | Monterey | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | URBAN VOICES PROJECT | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | SCARF | Humboldt | $16,316.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Nevada County Arts & Culture | Nevada | $20,500.00 | More » |
| State Local Partner Mentorship | 2025-26 | Nevada County Arts & Culture | Nevada | $56,500.00 | More » |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | Nevada County Arts & Culture | Nevada | $300,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | KeyNote/SDYS | San Diego | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | On the Margins, Inc. | Sonoma | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | LA Commons | Los Angeles | $19,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | UC Riverside | Riverside | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Variety Children's Charity of the Desert | Riverside | $21,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | KULARTS | San Francisco | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | KULARTS | San Francisco | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | White Hall Arts Academy | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | White Hall Arts Academy | Los Angeles | $21,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Prescott Circus Theatre | Alameda | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Children's Fairyland | Alameda | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Lieder Alive | San Francisco | $22,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Table Mountain Rancheria | Fresno | $13,800.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | BAVC Media | San Francisco | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Everyday Arts | Los Angeles | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Vital Arts | Alameda | $17,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Vital Arts | Alameda | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | THE HOUSE OF MAGIC FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INC | Ventura | $19,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | AXIS Dance Company | Alameda | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Foglifter Press | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Chrysalis Studio/Queer Ancestors Project | San Francisco | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Southland Sings | Los Angeles | $21,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Bloom Arts Foundation Inc | Los Angeles | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | The Short Center | Sacramento | $19,853.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | SACRA/PROFANA | San Diego | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | A PLACE OF HER OWN | San Francisco | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Dan Froot & Company | Los Angeles | $20,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Dan Froot & Company | Los Angeles | $16,800.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Fern Street Circus | San Diego | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Fern Street Circus | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Longshadr Productions | Humboldt | $19,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | The High Steppers Drill Team, Inc. | San Diego | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Manilatown Heritage Foundation | San Francisco | $15,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | In The Band | Los Angeles | $13,200.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Drawing Together | Los Angeles | $19,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Mariachi Women’s Foundation | Los Angeles | $22,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Gamelan Sekar Jaya | Alameda | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Gamelan Sekar Jaya | Alameda | $18,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Media Arts Center San Diego | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | TuYo Theatre | San Diego | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | The Crow | Los Angeles | $19,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Golden Gate Men's Chorus | San Francisco | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | MUSYCA Children's Choir | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Encore Programs, Inc. | Orange | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Children's Discovery Museum of the Desert | Riverside | $13,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Independent Arts & Media (fiscal sponsor) | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Fresh Meat Productions | San Francisco | $17,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Tomato Sage Consortium | Los Angeles | $14,800.00 | More » |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | Los Angeles Performance Practice | Los Angeles | $1,000,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Los Angeles Performance Practice | Los Angeles | $15,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Institute of Arts Music & Science | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | The Unusual Suspects Theatre Company | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Meztli Projects | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Hanford Multicultural Theater Company | Kings | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Dance Resource Center / DRC | Los Angeles | $19,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | VOLTI | San Francisco | $12,300.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Arms Wide Open | San Diego | $12,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Alliance for California Traditional Arts | Fresno | $21,600.00 | More » |
| Folk and Traditional Arts | 2025-26 | Alliance for California Traditional Arts | Fresno | $828,415.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Playhouse Merced | Merced | $16,200.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2025-26 | ARTS AND CULTURE ALPINE COUNTY | Alpine | $63,100.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | SACRAMENTO FINE ARTS CENTER | Sacramento | $12,900.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | The Regents of the University of California, Santa Cruz | Santa Cruz | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | The Francisco Homes | Los Angeles | $19,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | RuckusRoots | Los Angeles | $22,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | International Orange Chorale of San Francisco | San Francisco | $6,450.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | School of The Getdown | Alameda | $22,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | EOYDC | Alameda | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Immersive Arts Center | Los Angeles | $21,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Youth Speaks | San Francisco | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Fostering Dreams Project | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | NAKA Dance Theater | San Francisco | $18,250.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Urban Jazz Dance Company | San Francisco | $21,300.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | 18th Street Arts Center | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | The Compton Arts Project | Los Angeles | $21,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | COMMUNITY MUSIC CENTER | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | SAN FRANCISCO CHILDRENS ART CENTER | San Francisco | $18,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Dancers Group - Fiscal Sponsor for Grown Women Dance Collective | Contra Costa | $19,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | San Diego Civic Youth Orchestra | San Diego | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Dancers Group - Fiscal Sponsor for Grown Women Dance Collective | Contra Costa | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | LAMusArt | Los Angeles | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Liberty Arts | Siskiyou | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | CITY OF CALEXICO - RECREATION DEPARTMENT | Imperial | $12,600.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Kearny Street Workshop | San Francisco | $19,250.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Academy of Special Dreams Foundation | Los Angeles | $21,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Humboldt Arts Council | Humboldt | $20,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | San Diego Creative Youth Development Network | San Diego | $19,750.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | San Diego Creative Youth Development Network | San Diego | $22,200.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Asian Improv aRts | San Francisco | $19,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Ventura County Arts Council | Ventura | $18,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | NAKA Dance Theater | San Francisco | $15,900.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Grand Vision Foundation | Los Angeles | $15,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Grand Vision Foundation | Los Angeles | $20,250.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Guitars Antiqua Music Program | Los Angeles | $16,800.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | TheatreWorkers Project | Los Angeles | $21,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Muses & Melanin Fellowship | San Francisco | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Neococo Collective | Los Angeles | $18,750.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | KARMIC ACTION RETRIBUTION MANAGEMENT AGENCY | Los Angeles | $21,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Art Bias | San Mateo | $21,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | WESTWIND BRASS INC | San Diego | $12,600.00 | More » |
| State Local Partner Mentorship | 2025-26 | Amador Arts | Amador | $56,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | California Chamber Orchestra | Riverside | $21,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | "" | San Bernardino | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Bay Area Creative | Alameda | $20,000.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Bay Area Creative | Alameda | $15,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Playhouse Merced | Merced | $18,500.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | Black Humboldt | Humboldt | $18,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Museum of the American Indian | Marin | $16,200.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Black Humboldt | Humboldt | $16,200.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Street Poets | Los Angeles | $20,500.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | Association of California Symphony Orchestras | Los Angeles | $12,300.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Silicon Valley Shakespeare | Santa Clara | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | San Francisco Youth Theatre | San Francisco | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Arts & Learning Conservatory (ALC) | Orange | $17,500.00 | More » |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | Mono Arts Council | Mono | $18,000.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | IN THE MARGIN | Sacramento | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Front Porch Music | Contra Costa | $6,481.00 | More » |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area | San Francisco | $18,517.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Queer Cultural Center | San Francisco | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Healing Rhythms | Riverside | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | East LA Rising | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Mariachi Scholarship Foundation | San Diego | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | People's Conservatory | Alameda | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | CoTA (Collaborations: Teachers and Artists) | San Diego | $18,517.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Fua Dia Kongo | Alameda | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Center for World Music | San Diego | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Teatro Visión | Santa Clara | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | EPACENTER | San Mateo | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | The David's Harp Foundation, Inc. | San Diego | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Lyrical Opposition | San Mateo | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Intersection | San Francisco | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Rios to Rivers | Humboldt | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Healing Heels | Sacramento | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Nava Dance Theatre | San Francisco | $23,147.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | YOSAL | Monterey | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Raizes Collective | Sonoma | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | MID-CITY COMMUNITY MUSIC | San Diego | $23,147.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Office of Arts and Culture | Sacramento | $127,459.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Greater Bay Area Arts and Cultural Advocacy Coalition | Sacramento | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Theatre Bay Area | San Francisco | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Aunt Lute Books | San Francisco | $23,147.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | ArtReach | San Diego | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Theatre Bay Area | San Francisco | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | People's Conservatory | Alameda | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | JOYCE GORDON FOUNDATION OF THE ARTS | Alameda | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center | San Francisco | $20,832.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | Diversionary Theatre Productions Inc. | San Diego | $20,276.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | Latino Center of Art and Culture | Sacramento | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Pony Box Dance | Los Angeles | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Bob Baker Marionette Theatre | Los Angeles | $18,517.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirits (BAAITS) | San Francisco | $20,832.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | San Luis Obispo County Arts Council | San Luis Obispo | $127,459.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | ARTS | San Diego | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Kala Art Institute | Alameda | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Trinity County Arts Council | Trinity | $21,989.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | In Lak'ech Dance Academy | Alameda | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | InterMusic SF | San Francisco | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Casa Circulo Cultural | San Mateo | $21,849.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | 826LA | Los Angeles | $23,147.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Back to the Start | Santa Barbara | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Luke Madrigal Indigenous Storytelling Non Profit | Riverside | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Ophelia's Jump Productions | Los Angeles | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Washington Neighborhood Center | Sacramento | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Del Sol Performing Arts Organization | San Francisco | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Center for Urban Excellence | Solano | $23,147.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | "" | Santa Clara | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | In Lak'ech Dance Academy | Alameda | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | SOMArts | San Francisco | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Muzeo Museum and Cultural Center | Orange | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Viver Brasil Dance Company | Los Angeles | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | SAPPA | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area | San Francisco | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | San Diego Performing Arts League | San Diego | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Berkeley Art Center | Alameda | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Arts Bridging the Gap | Los Angeles | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Side Street Projects | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Freedom Forward | San Francisco | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Coachella Valley Arts Institute | Riverside | $13,888.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Film2Future | Los Angeles | $23,147.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Youth Orchestras of Fresno | Fresno | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | ACCIS | Sacramento | $9,735.00 | More » |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | Guitars and Ukes in the Classroom | San Diego | $18,517.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | VECA | Alameda | $16,203.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | San Francisco Arts Commission | San Francisco | $127,459.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | BAVC Media | San Francisco | $46,293.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | The David's Harp Foundation, Inc. | San Diego | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Healthy Black Families Inc | Alameda | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | PIECE BY PIECE | Los Angeles | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Via International | San Diego | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | East West Players | Los Angeles | $18,517.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Arts Connection - The Arts Council of San Bernardino County | San Bernardino | $140,979.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | CA for the Arts | Sacramento | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Young Musicians Foundation | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Media Arts Center San Diego | San Diego | $46,293.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Mariposa Arts Council | Mariposa | $140,979.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Inland Empire Community Foundation | Riverside | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Long Beach Opera | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Joe Goode Performance Group | San Francisco | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | East Bay Center for the Performing Arts | Contra Costa | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Elevate Oakland | Alameda | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | RACE Matters SLO County | San Luis Obispo | $20,832.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Arts Council Napa Valley | Napa | $127,459.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | Santa Cecilia Orchestra | Los Angeles | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Kearny Street Workshop | San Francisco | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Green Room Theatre Company | Riverside | $16,099.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Yeah, Art! | Alameda | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Infinite Flow Dance | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | Root Division | San Francisco | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Root Division | San Francisco | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | Bloom Arts Foundation Inc | Los Angeles | $23,147.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | White Hall Arts Academy | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | The Sofia, Home of B Street Theatre | Sacramento | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | Turnaround Arts California | Los Angeles | $18,517.00 | More » |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | Artist Magnet Justice Alliance | Alameda | $23,147.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Urban Jazz Dance Company | San Francisco | $23,147.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | Urban Jazz Dance Company | San Francisco | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Los Angeles Ballet | Los Angeles | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | California Humanities | Alameda | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy | San Francisco | $17,356.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | FASO | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Danza Floricanto/USA | Los Angeles | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Women Who Submit | Los Angeles | $17,082.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | Dimensions Dance Theater Incorporated | Alameda | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | ARTE AMERICAS THE MEXICAN ARTS CENTER | Fresno | $16,203.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | "" | Los Angeles | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Museum of Children's Art | Alameda | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Latino Arts Network | Sacramento | $32,405.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | Bay Philharmonic | Alameda | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Cal Shakes | Contra Costa | $18,462.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | SWOP-LA | Los Angeles | $20,813.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Chrysalis Studio/Queer Ancestors Project | San Francisco | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | C5 Studios Community Arts Center | Inyo | $9,844.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Media Arts Center San Diego | San Diego | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Community Arts & Empowerment | Santa Cruz | $17,360.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Stanislaus Arts Council | Stanislaus | $127,459.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Youth Art Exchange | San Francisco | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Youth Art Exchange | San Francisco | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Yeah, Art! | Alameda | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Art Tonic | Sacramento | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Senderos | Santa Cruz | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | The Sidewalk Project | Los Angeles | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Stanford Live | Santa Clara | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Million Little | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | West Coast Songwriters Association | San Mateo | $19,443.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Barcid Foundation | Los Angeles | $21,989.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Madera County Arts Council & Circle Gallery | Madera | $127,459.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | OUTWORDS | Los Angeles | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association (VAALA) | Orange | $16,203.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | Los Angeles Filmforum | Los Angeles | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Everybody Dance LA! | Los Angeles | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | DANCE AND DIALOGUE | Los Angeles | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Ink People Center for the Arts | Humboldt | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Chamber Music Unbound | Mono | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | KALEIDOSCOPE | Los Angeles | $46,293.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | San Benito County Arts Council | San Benito | $140,979.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | POETS & WRITERS INC | Los Angeles | $46,293.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Los Angeles Poverty Department | Los Angeles | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | JAZZLINE INSTITUTE | Santa Clara | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | CELEBRATION ARTS | Sacramento | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Honey Art Studio | San Francisco | $16,203.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Ventura County Arts Council | Ventura | $140,979.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | SLOMA | San Luis Obispo | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Dance Brigade or Dance Mission | San Francisco | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Chopsticks Alley Art | Santa Clara | $21,989.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Creative Sonoma | Sonoma | $127,459.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Dance Brigade or Dance Mission | San Francisco | $46,293.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Friends of the Arts | Butte | $127,459.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | JAZZLINE INSTITUTE | Santa Clara | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Hijos del Sol Arts Productions | Monterey | $17,360.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | DNACA | Del Norte | $140,979.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | Junior Center of Art & Science | Alameda | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Justice for My Sister | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Skid Row Arts Alliance | Los Angeles | $32,405.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Visalia Arts Consortium, Inc. | Tulare | $140,979.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | San Diego Museum Council | San Diego | $32,405.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | CLA | San Francisco | $46,293.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | The Ebell of Los Angeles | Los Angeles | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Playwrights Project | San Diego | $16,203.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | Lead Guitar | Los Angeles | $16,897.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Edge on the Square | San Francisco | $20,832.00 | More » |
| State Local Partner Mentorship | 2024-25 | Arts and Culture El Dorado | El Dorado | $41,664.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | Los Angeles | $20,832.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Youth in Arts | Marin | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | Street Symphony | Los Angeles | $32,405.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Santa Barbara County Office of Arts and Culture | Santa Barbara | $140,979.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Ghetto Film School | Los Angeles | $23,147.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | SPACE | Mendocino | $21,989.00 | More » |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | Musica Sierra | Sierra | $10,439.00 | More » |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | ARTogether | Alameda | $20,832.00 | More » |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | AXIS Dance Company | Alameda | $20,276.00 | More » |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | Calidanza | Sacramento | $23,147.00 | More » |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | Shasta County Arts Council | Shasta | $127,459.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Sojourner Truth African Heritage Museum | Sacramento | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | ARTogether | Alameda | $17,360.00 | More » |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | Sketch Odyssey East Bay | Contra Costa | $16,203.00 | More » |
| Grant Program | Grant Year | Award Amount | Organization Name | Address | County | Region | Phone | Congressional District | State Assembly District | State Senate District | Project Description | Organization Summary |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | California Arts Council | 2750 Gateway oaks Dr. Ste. 300 , Sacramento, CA 95833 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 322-6559 | California's 6th congressional district | District 7 | District 6 | Pianist Yuja Wang today made public an email sent to her by writer, critic and Radio 3 presenter Norman LeBrecht, and her response that accuses the journalist of “derogatory misogynistic bullying”. Lebrecht had written to the musician querying her decision to withdraw from a BBC Lebrecht Interview stating: “I am surprised and disappointed. I thought you were a serious person who stood by her commitments. I may have to revise that opinion.” On her official Instagram account, over the screen grab of his email, Wang wrote her response: “@normanlebrecht this derogatory misogynistic bullying need [sic] to stop. We are human beings who grow with nourishing energy, not characters for you to abuse.” Lebrecht has had a relationship with Radio 3 for more than 25 years, but today that their relationship will not be continuing. | The California Arts Council helps maintain California's unique identity by investing in organizations that keep its artistic energy thriving and make its diverse communities healthy and vibrant. | |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | SODE SCHOOL OF PERFORMING ARTS AND SOPHIE OLSON DANCE EXPLOSION INC | 4566 CLELAND AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90065-4131 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 913-5863 | With the support from the California Art Council, SODE School of Performing Arts and Sophie Olson Dance Explosion Inc., will use Arts and Youth Grant funding to present multicultural dance assemblies for underserved schools throughout LA County. Our assemblies combine world dance styles such as Flamenco, Bollywood, Tahitian, Irish Dance, South African Dance, and Japanese Fan Dance through contemporary storytelling and interactive participation. Students actively engage through movement, music, and cultural exploration rather than remaining passive audience members. We hire professional choreographers and dancers from the cultures represented and prioritize equitable pay, professional rehearsal spaces, costumes, and props. Each assembly serves approximately 800 students. A $25,000 grant would fund five assemblies, allowing us to reach nearly 4,000 students with accessible multicultural arts education experiences. | SODE School of Performing Arts provides high-quality, arts-integrated programming designed to meet the academic and social-emotional needs of diverse student populations. Our core services include multicultural dance and assembly programs that expose students to global cultures; in-school residencies that support standards-based learning; the Happy Dancing Brain program, (letting the brain dance before the body does), after-school STEAM workshops that blend science and the arts through hands-on, project-based learning; multicultural after-school programming that reflects and celebrates the communities we serve; and bilingual musical theater programs that enhance both performance skills and language development. SODE’s programs are designed with measurable impact in mind. Participating students demonstrate increased classroom engagement, improved confidence in self-expression, and strengthened collaboration skills. Schools report higher levels of student participation in arts programming and positive feedback from families, particularly in under served and multilingual communities. By partnering closely with educators, administrators, and parents, SODE ensures that programming is responsive, accessible, and aligned with community needs—creating lasting educational and cultural impact. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | SLOMA | PO BOX 813 1010 Broad Street, San Luis Obispo, CA 93406-0813 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 543-8562 | California's 24th congressional district | District 30 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (SLOMA) will provide free arts education programs for K–12 youth and working families across San Luis Obispo County. The project expands access to enriching out-of-classroom arts experiences for historically underserved communities. The program includes two components: First, SLOMA’s free “Second Saturdays” family art events offer guided and self-guided bilingual art activities on the museum’s Sculpture Lawn in Mission Plaza, encouraging intergenerational creativity and exploration of contemporary art. Second, Central Coast artist Kiel Johnson will lead “The Art of Working Together,” a collaborative art initiative in SLOMA’s new Arts Education Center where youth and adults contribute individual pieces to a collective artwork. Through school partnerships and countywide outreach, SLOMA’s project will foster teamwork, communication, and community connection through free, hands-on arts participation. | The San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (SLOMA) is located in downtown San Luis Obispo on the west end of Mission Plaza, at the heart of the city’s cultural corridor. SLOMA is committed to an exhibition program that brings together visual artists from around the world with renowned artists from California and the US. With free admission and monthly events, SLOMA is the heart of the Central Coast’s visual arts community, serving as both a gathering place for the community and an essential stop for visitors. Programs and services include a robust exhibitions program, public art, and youth and adult arts education. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Sarah Bush Dance Project | 160 John St , Oakland, CA 94611 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 847-2813 | 12th | 18 | 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sarah Bush Dance Project will sustain its programs, staff, and operations from October 2026 through September 2027, a period that encompasses the company's 20th anniversary season. Supported programs include the world premiere of PITCH, a site-specific dance-theater work set on softball fields in Oakland and San Francisco in which nine dancers embody Bay Area dyke ancestors, performed in September 2027 as part of SBDP's Sapphic September celebration; ongoing community engagement through the Sapphic Storytelling Series, Dyke Softball Pickup Series, and Sapphic Book Study of "Wide Open Town"; continued development of the Oakland Dyke HERstory Dance Tour in partnership with the Bay Area Lesbian Archives; contemporary dance classes and workshops; and administrative and production capacity to support the company's most ambitious programming to date. | Dance Performance: Provides dances performances that evoke critical conversations about social justice, equity, environment and place. We produce evening length theater performances and outdoor site-specific dance performances. We produce and present guest artists work in evening length dance shows. Dance Workshops: Provides our audiences with learning opportunities related to dance performances where they can engage and participate in learning and creating dances and embodiment practices. Dance Film: SBDP creates dance films that evoke critical conversations about social justice, equity, environment and place. Financial Equity for Artists: Provide employment opportunities for intergenerational dance artists and interdisciplinary artists with a strong value on financial equity. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | FOTTC | 3320 Civic Center Drive , Torrance, CA 90503 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 243-6882 | 33rd District | 66th Assembly District | 26th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Friends of Torrance Theatre Company will purchase equipment and software required for the Technical Theatre Program. By investing in modern lighting fixtures, a high-lumen laser projection system, an ETC Ion XE 20 lighting console, updated power and data infrastructure, and classroom technology, this project strengthens the organization’s capacity to produce high-quality theatrical work while expanding access to career-connected arts education. The integration of Vectorworks design software and tablet-based instruction ensures students and emerging artists gain practical, workforce-aligned skills in lighting, projection, drafting, and technical collaboration. | Founded in 1999, Torrance Theatre Company (TTC) presents diverse seasons of drama, comedy, and musicals—both classic and contemporary—to inspire, educate, and entertain audiences. Dedicated to producing affordable, professional-quality theater, TTC also delivers impactful educational and outreach programming for the South Bay community. Its productions often explore themes such as women's and LGBTQ rights and racial equity, and the company engages diverse writers and directors to bring their perspectives to the stage. Over the past 24 years, TTC has become a creative home for thousands of volunteer actors, technicians, and artists. It offers a safe space for performers of all levels—many of whom have gone on to national stages, including Broadway productions such as Hamilton, In the Heights, and Aladdin. Others have found a fulfilling return to local performance. TTC’s doors remain open to artists of all backgrounds and aspirations. Each season includes five mainstage shows, cabarets, a summer musical at the 502-seat James Armstrong Theatre, and outdoor park performances, collectively attracting more than 7,000 annual audience members. TTC also provides training and mentorship for 10–20 student interns annually, in collaboration with high school and college theater programs. TTC’s outreach includes summer camps for children ages 6–17 and its long-running partnership with People Actively Learning and Sharing (PALS). In the PALS program, participants engage in theater games and improv, followed by attending a summer dress rehearsal to learn about production and performance. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | DISCO RIOT | 7849 Wing Span Dr. , SAN DIEGO, CA 92119 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 379-8747 | 51 | 78 | 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, DISCO RIOT will continue to support and produce a wide range of dance professionals through our programming that provides essential resources for local movement artists and their communities. DISCO RIOT has developed a shared leadership model that includes a collaborative staff and board support system. Funds from CAC will supplement the compensation of key staff members, including our Operations Lead, Communications Lead, Education & Outreach Lead, and Producing Artist Lead, as well as continue fair wages for our teaching and technical staff. These funds help us provide sustainability, increased impact, and professional development for BIPOC, 2SLGBTQIA+, disabled, and transitional youth artists in our community. | We achieve our mission through a combination of activities that create opportunities for movement-artists to develop their practice that also invite the general public to explore the impact of movement in their own lives. These activities include classes, artist residencies, networking events, performance opportunities, and online projects. Our key programs like Choreo & _____, S P A C E Alliance Studio Residencies, Queer Mvmnt Fest, PIPO (Pop In Pop Out) Workshops, and ongoing donation-based classes allow the larger arts community and the public to come together with socially conscious dance as the fulcrum. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | KULARTS | 65 Langton St , San Francisco, CA 94103-3915 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 295-2677 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, KULARTS will sustain general operations across our multi disciplinary arts programming during the grant period. Funding will support staff capacity, production costs, and operational systems as we develop puppet theater artist Ramon Abad’s 2027 The Great Whoop DeeDoo, Alleluia Panis’ 2028 Mang-Daragat, Burden of Proof 2027 tour, and prepare to open our new 10,750-square-foot multidisciplinary performance space at 262 7th Street in San Francisco's SOMA Pilipinas Filipino Cultural Heritage District. Funds also support our Agos youth program serving young people ages 5 to 24 in Alameda, our TribuTur US-Philippines artist exchange, the Philippine Master Artists-in-Residence program, and local performances. | Every season, KULARTS provides various participatory programming, activities for artists and the greater community including: KULARTS PRESENTS Showcases commissions and presentation of contemporary and tribal Pilipinx art through works by American Pilipinx and international Philippine artists. THE MAKING VISIBLE PROJECT Highlights the under-recognized histories of Pilipinos in San Francisco and places them in dialogue with Pilipinx stories of today through commissions of visual artwork and curated exhibitions in indoor and outdoor spaces. AGOS ED PROGRAM - KULARTS’ new youth & family centered education program of folkloric dance and music and sociopolitical knowledge building. PHILIPPINE MASTER ARTISTS-IN-RESIDENCE - the facilitation of cultural exchanges between master artists and the Pilipinx community; and PHILIPPINE TRIBU TUR - a biennial immersion in Philippine indigenous communities designed for US-based artists and cultural workers. ART DIALOGUE IN THE PILIPINX DIASPORA - gathers contemporary practitioners, master artists, and allied artists in a symposium and performance showcase to discuss urgent issues in the field. KULARTS CURATORIAL CONTINUUM PROGRAM - curatorial committees—Queering Pilipinx Dance Aesthetics and NexGen Curators & Makers—of artists and creators under the mentorship of Artistic Director Alleluia Panis |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Women's Voices Now | 525 Ave F , Redondo Beach, CA 90277 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 247-6130 | District 36 | District 66 | District 24 | Girls' Voices Now (GVN) empowers young women from under-resourced Los Angeles communities through social-impact filmmaking. In 2026, we are expanding to a year-round model with the launch of Beyond the Lens, a professional mentorship initiative, and the inaugural Day of the Girl Summit, a film and media industry leadership forum. GVN is tuition-free, providing technical mastery with Sony equipment, professional stipends, and transportation. Our alumnae have secured Emmy nominations and a win, and advanced into top-tier universities and media careers. We request $25,000 from the California Arts Council to support the transition of our Program Manager to a full-time role and cover essential program costs. These funds will provide the management capacity and production resources necessary to mentor and launch the next generation of filmmakers driving global social change. | We empower filmmakers, produce social-change films, and engage audience members to advance girls' and women's rights through our three core programs: 1. WVN Online Film Festival An annual film festival supporting emerging documentary filmmakers by providing cash prizes, visibility, and connections to film industry professionals. Since 2011, we have received 1500 film submissions from 105 countries, and we have awarded $169,500 in cash prizes. 2. Girls' Voices Now - Youth Development through Arts Education and Empowerment Our youth development program empowers the next generation of youth from under-resourced communities to find, develop, and use their voice for social change through filmmaking. Since 2018, we have served 116 girls from under-resourced LA communities and produced 31 youth-made short films seen by 4.5M+ online viewers. Films produced in this program have gone on to win awards, including festivals and two Emmy nominations (1 win!) 3. Voices For Change: A free film collection advocating for women's and girls' rights Collection of films about women raises awareness of the struggles and triumphs of women and girls around the globe, inviting audience members to contribute to social change supportive of their human rights. Features 360+ films in 73 different languages about women’s and girls’ stories and rights globally. We partner with local organizations to co-facilitate 175+ in-person and virtual screening events and conversations in 15+ countries with 150+ field partners, including universities, nonprofit organizations and international organizations. We also promote these films for individuals to stream for free online through thorough online marketing campaigns (reaching 13.5M+ online viewers globally in 2025 alone!) |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Project Color Corps | 624 EUCLID AVE , BERKELEY, CA 94708-1332 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 652-6237 | 12th Congressional | 14 | 7 | Project Color Corps (PCC) advances equity through arts education that empowers youth in underserved communities to build confidence, creativity, and self-expression through color and design. CAC funds will support an 8-week, hands-on Color and Design course delivered in partnership with schools, engaging students in learning color theory, emotional impact, and real-world application. Led by professional artists and designers, students will explore how color shapes environment and well-being while developing practical skills to communicate ideas visually. The course emphasizes participatory learning, mentorship, and student voice, developing a visual diary to inform a culminating collaborative design or mural project that reflects their experiences and identity. This investment will expand access to high-quality arts education, increase student engagement, and foster belonging and well-being—equipping youth with creative tools that support both personal growth and community connection. | Project Color Corps (PCC) delivers school and community-based arts education programs in communities with limited access to arts resources, combining participatory design, mentorship, and public art creation. PCC evaluates each project to ensure alignment with its mission and potential for meaningful impact, working closely with school and community partners through site visits and needs assessments. A core strength of PCC’s model is its ability to mobilize a robust network of professional artists, designers, muralists, businesses, and volunteers. Each project is guided by a dedicated project lead and supported by artist mentors, ensuring both high-quality artistic outcomes and strong community engagement. PCC’s signature process actively engages youth and community members at every stage. Participants contribute ideas through color surveys and outreach, then deepen their learning in interactive color seminars that explore color theory and its impact on well-being. Professional artists translate this input into design concepts, which are selected through a transparent community voting process. Implementation is hands-on: students, families, and volunteers work alongside artists during Community Paint Days, gaining practical skills while bringing their shared vision to life. Projects culminate in a public unveiling that celebrates community voice, cultural identity, and collective achievement. PCC integrates arts education throughout its work, equipping youth with creative skills, confidence, and real-world application. Through partnerships with schools and community organizations, students are positioned as co-creators—actively shaping spaces that reflect their identities, experiences, and aspirations. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Mil-Tree | P.O. Box 1762 , Joshua Tree, CA 92252 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (323) 791-2986 | District 23rd | District 47 | District 19 | Mil-Tree will use California Arts Council (CAC) grant funds to strengthen organizational capacity and expand access to our programming which brings together veterans, service members, and civilians through the arts, dialogue, shared projects, and creative entrepreneurship. Funds will partially support four key staff positions essential to sustaining and growing this work: an Executive Director to provide organizational leadership and strategic oversight; a Project Director to manage and deliver core arts programming; a Website Manager to maintain our website and expand its content; and a Social Media Manager to broaden community outreach and engagement. Together, these positions will enable Mil-Tree to deepen its creative programming, reach more underserved veterans, and build the infrastructure needed to grow our impact across San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. | Mil-Tree's core programs are creative and art-based workshops and retreats that support our vision to provide safe spaces for veterans returning to civilian life to gather, express themselves and tell their stories in a non-judgmental environment. We do this through ongoing creative programs that engage veterans and their families, active military and the greater community. Mil-Tree is a grassroots nonprofit organization based in the High Desert community of Joshua Tree, California serving San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. The organization is inclusive and offers creative outlets in the arts and held spaces for dialogue and discussion for veterans, active military and civilians. Mil-Tree was created to welcome our veterans home not only with words by providing various opportunities of engagement with the community at large. Recognizing the loss incurred by leaving the close-knit unit formed in the military, this organization strives to help build new relationships within the community. We include active military, family members and civilians to accomplish this goal, and provide different types of art workshops and projects, including movement, writing, art, music, theater, building and rock climbing. We also provide dialogue circles and retreats to help support the ongoing transition from military service into civilian life. Our programs have a strong track record of positive impact on program participants. Those who participate feeling alone or isolated find a fun, safe and creative environment where collaboration and expression lead easily to new friendships. We have found that arts and dialogue are the best way to bridge different parts of community, building on trust and the things we have in common. Often our programs lead to personal transformation and growth, and the synergy created between our participants is recognizable and profound. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | PLUMAS ARTS | PO BOX 600 525 Main Street, QUINCY, CA 95971-0600 | Plumas | Upstate | (530) 283-3402 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Plumas County Arts Commission will facilitate our 37th year of the Artists in the Schools program for under-resourced students of Plumas County. Plumas County, still considered a "frontier" in California, is located in the northeastern Sierra Nevada. With a California Healthy Places Index rating of 44.9, and roughly 70% of its land covered by the Plumas National Forest, most of the estimated 19,000 residents live in small communities like Quincy, Portola, Greenville and Chester. Artists in the Schools is about access, inspiration, and human connection.Through hands-on instruction, the program supports teachers and students by integrating artistic learning into academic subjects such as science, literature, mathematics, and history. These experiences encourage students to think creatively, communicate ideas confidently, and develop problem-solving skills that extend far beyond the arts. | Plumas Arts serves as the local arts planning and programming agency for Plumas County and representative to the California Arts Council's State Local Partnership (since 1981). Our efforts include ARTS EDUCATION workshops in schools and for all ages, VISUAL ARTS GALLERY and art displays showcasing work by dozens of regional artists, INFORMATION SERVICES our county's most comprehensive cultural events calendar, press releases about events and opportunities, as well as an ARTIST DIRECTORY on plumasarts.org in addition to regular features in regional newspapers, PRODUCING FESTIVALS, EVENTS & PERFORMANCES that highlight local culture and celebrate a diversity of traditions, FISCAL SPONSORSHIP and TECHNICAL SERVICES for arts and community groups, serving as a COMMUNICATION LINK among these groups and we own, care for and manage two historic facilities, the PLUMAS ARTS GALLERY & TOWN HALL THEATRE the county's only movie theatre and largest performing arts venue as community resources. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Los Angeles Poverty Department | 250 S Broadway , Los Angeles, CA 90012-3605 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 259-1038 | 28 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Poverty Department (LAPD) will promote cultural and racial equity through the arts for downtown Los Angeles’ Skid Row through its annual Festival for All Skid Row Artists (FASRA). LAPD has hosted this two-day event in Skid Row for the past 16 consecutive years. FASRA was born out of the 2010 study “Making the Case for Skid Row Culture: Findings from a Collaborative Inquiry,” authored by John Malpede and Maria Rosario Jackson. FASRA’s founding also included creating a register of artists to interconnect artists and organizations who would probably go under the radar otherwise. Documenting our festivals and artists is a critical task evidencing the nature of our community: that we remain in crisis to our society, yet hinge on artistic outlets as a form of survival. | Founded by director, performer and activist John Malpede, LAPD was the first performance group in the country made up of homeless and formerly homeless people and the first sustained arts initiative in Skid Row. For 40 years, LAPD has been one of the foremost cultural and artistic resources of the community. LAPD presents live theatrical productions, organizes public discussions and presentations, public art programs, parades and festivals, curates and creates installations and exhibitions, all addressing the lives of the neighborhood residents and the issues they face. LAPD’s performances and theater pieces are developed and realized through an extensive and inclusive process that employs research and engagement strategies and activities designed to enlist and disseminate community wisdom, and which typically take place over the course of more than a year. LAPD makes work to change the narrative about people living in poverty. LAPD's actively maintained (by professional archive staff) Skid Row History Archive documents the history of the Skid Row neighborhood and its achievements and is utilized by scholars, journalists, filmmakers, and community members. The archive is a bulwark against community displacement. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Dramatic Results | 3310 LIME AVE , SIGNAL HILL, CA 90755-4612 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 595-4600 | California's 42nd congressional district | 69th District | District 33 | With support from the California Arts Council, Dramatic Results will deliver Write on Arts, a school-day visual arts residency for 3rd and 4th grade students at Title I elementary schools in Long Beach Unified School District. CAC funds will support Teaching Artist compensation, program planning and coordination, student art materials, and accessibility and evaluation needs to ensure consistent, high-quality implementation across classrooms. Students will engage in sequenced studio projects that build visual arts skills, self and social awareness, and student voice through reflection, structured peer dialogue, critique routines, and short-form writing such as artist statements. Dramatic Results will also document student work and participant experience to inform continuous improvement and strengthen the program’s readiness to scale to additional schools while remaining culturally responsive and accessible to students with disabilities. | Dramatic Results approaches programs with a focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, Art (writing, photography, design, drawing, theater, and so much more), and Math as pathways to spark inquiry, discussion, and critical thinking. Our goal is to increase students’ sense of wonderment and, over time, increase their confidence and creativity within any field. The agency allocates 15% of our organizational budget to evaluate student success through three key measurements: problem-solving (ability to find creative solutions without giving up), wonderment (excitement for making and learning), and self-efficacy (peer communication and collaboration). Our programs are delivered in-class, as a regular part of students’ school day, and outside of school through a collaboration of STEAM professionals. The agency offers a multitude of programs, including opportunities in design, media arts, STEAM, theater, visual arts, assembly workshops, and educator development. To learn more about our programs, visit bit.ly/DRprograms. Dramatic Results’ programs are led by Teaching Artists, professional artists, and makers. Students learn to identify problems, find unique solutions, and lead their learning in a fun and creative environment. Students are encouraged to make mistakes. The agency values failure, and reinvention, as a key part of the learning process. Our programs align with Common Core, Next Generation Science Standards, and Visual and Performing Arts standards, using Design Thinking and iterative strategies to strengthen students’ 21st century skills. The agency is committed to disseminating our program design and outcomes to challenge the practice of education through local, state, and national workshops and conferences. Dramatic Results has presented at conferences for Arts Education Partnership, California Department of Education’s STEAM Symposium, California Science Education, Learning Forward, National and California Arts Education Association, National Association for Gifted Children, and the Joint Mathematics Meeting of the Mathematical Association of America. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Ammunition Theatre Company | P.O. Box 461905 , Los Angeles, CA 90046 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (917) 856-3814 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Ammunition Theatre Company will develop I Am an American (via Los Angeles), a new devised theatrical production exploring the complexity of U.S. citizenship and democracy through a range of personal stories. Artistic company members, nonprofit collaborators, and audience voices will shape and sustain this ever-evolving production. At the heart of this piece is a desire to gather honest reflections on belonging from across Los Angeles, to explore how individual and collective experiences intersect, and to offer a healing space for connection, recognition, and the imagining of a more inclusive future. CAC funds will support the project’s community story circles, ensemble devising workshops, script development, early work-in-progress presentations, artist compensation, accessibility resources, and production costs for workshops and public sharings. | From its inception, AMMO has been inclusive by design, with a membership that mirrors the diversity of our community. We believe theatre thrives when it sparks conversation, inspires action, and embraces a wide spectrum of lived experiences. To that end, we prioritize developing new works by underrepresented artists — amplifying voices that defy convention and expand cultural understanding. By centering fresh perspectives, we aim to foster dialogue, deepen empathy, and build stronger, healthier communities. At the heart of AMMO is our company: a collective of designers, actors, writers, directors, and producers. We are not only artists — we are advocates, collaborators, and active participants in civic life. Beyond the stage, we partner with philanthropic organizations to expand the reach of our work, bringing theatre and arts education to communities too often left behind — including under-served youth and elders. By combining creative expression with hands-on engagement — we break down barriers between art and everyday life and use theatre to spark dialogue, build relationships, and strengthen the world we share. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Oaxaca Tierra del Sol | 1572 grove st. #104 , healdsburg, CA 95448 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 479-9108 | 2nd Congressional Distric of California | 2nd Congressional District of California | Senate Distric 2 | Oaxaca Tierra del Sol is a very small organization dedicated to keeping the traditions and roots of Oaxacans alive in Northern California. We are a group of Oaxacans working on a voluntary basis, and we require resources to continue developing arts programs within our community in addition to organizing the Guelaguetza Sonoma. We also support Indigenous communities by providing resources that enable the continued creation of art, including dance, music, and handicrafts in activities that engage children, youth, and adults alike. | As we are dedicated to spreading culture, we financially support through scholarships to the Indigenous communities already established and located throughout California, this money is used to acquire their Original costumes, thread for the Indigenous communities that spin their own Huipiles, we have artisans and Musicians, We are also a collaboration link carrying information in cases of natural disasters, we help with our census of Indigenous Languages when there is a need for translation. We give folkloric dance classes, indigenous dances, music, etc. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Relampago del Cielo, Inc. | PO BOX 3158 600 W. Santa Ana Blvd. Suite 214-A, SANTA ANA, CA 92704-1388 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 881-4732 | California's 46th congressional district | District 68 | District 34 | With support from the California Arts Council, Relámpago del Cielo, Inc. will continue to expand ballet folklórico dance instruction to local public schools, community partners and public events across Orange County and Southern California. Funding will increase our capacity to provide free and low-cost classes and performances to traditionally underserved children, youth and families in vulnerable communities across Santa Ana, Orange County and throughout Southern California. | Relampago del Cielo arts program provides instruction in Mexican folklorico dance. Students receive weekly classes that are representative of the various regions of Mexico. Approximately 325 students’ ages three to young adult, are in the program. Relámpago offers classes to any interested child regardless of ability to pay. Financial aid is available to low-income families to support tuition fees. Families who meet prerequisite minimum annual income, as established by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, qualify for assistance. Annual Student Recital: The students showcase their accomplishments and learning at the annual student recital. Students are given the opportunity to perform on stage, to an audience of over a thousand attendees. Community Involvement and Performances: The students perform in educational, cultural, business and community events throughout Orange County, such as community parades, civic celebrations, school presentations and church events. Relampago del Cielo also operates a professional ballet folklorico dance company which offers free and paid performances at a variety of venues across Southern California and beyond and reaches thousands of audience members every year. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Melodia Mariposa | 151 S Olive St #1420 , Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 590-5213 | California’s 28th Congressional District | California State Assembly District 41 | California State Senate District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Melodia Mariposa will continue presenting free concerts, outreach performances, and educational programs in Altadena, Pasadena, and surrounding communities during the 2026–2027 grant period. Grant funds will support artist fees, concert production, marketing, and essential operating expenses. By bringing world-class musicians to concert halls, libraries, parks, senior residences, and other community spaces, Melodia Mariposa creates intimate and welcoming live music experiences that are free and accessible to all. | Melodia Mariposa is a nonprofit music organization serving Altadena, Pasadena, and surrounding communities in Los Angeles County, presenting live performances featuring top-tier professional musicians in a wide variety of styles and genres—including classical, ballet, tango, opera, folk, and more. All our concerts are free and open to the public, making high-quality artistic experiences accessible to everyone in the community. We bring free performances to senior homes, memory care centers, cancer support organizations, and underserved neighborhoods. These outreach concerts provide meaningful cultural connection and emotional support to those with limited access to the arts. We offer young musicians the opportunity to perform with us in professional settings, helping them grow artistically and gain valuable experience. Our goal is to give them the space and support to shine. In times of local crisis, such as following the Eaton fire, we’ve also organized benefit concerts and extended support to musicians who lost their houses. These core programs reflect our commitment to serve, uplift, and inspire the local community through music and the arts. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Siskiyou County Arts Council | PO Box 1365 , Mt Shasta, CA 96067 | Siskiyou | Upstate | (530) 918-8380 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Siskiyou County Arts Council will organize and present year four of Siskiyou X Days, a multi-day, county-wide arts celebration and event series. Siskiyou X Days will highlight the vibrancy of arts activities in Siskiyou County while uplifting historically excluded artists, including BIPOC and LGBTQA+, homeless, low-income, living with disabilities, informally trained, and justice impacted. | Our organizational priorities are to increase equity, particularly racial equity, in and through the arts; ensure the long-term vitality of the arts ecosystem by supporting self-organization strategies; and foster individual creativity throughout life. Acknowledging art as a fundamental human need, SCAC ensures we provide equitable access to our arts programming and opportunities. We lead county-wide arts programming that focuses on habitually underserved communities, develop strategic local arts initiatives to connect and highlight the full arts ecosystem, coordinate arts emergency preparedness initiatives and mutual aid funds, and offer fiscal sponsorship for nascent arts organizations and projects by and serving under resourced and excluded communities. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Siskiyou County Arts Council | PO Box 1365 , Mt Shasta, CA 96067 | Siskiyou | Upstate | (530) 918-8380 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Siskiyou County Arts Council will use the arts in service to our constituents by supporting bold initiatives and developing innovative programs that encourage and facilitate strong, inclusive communities. Activities will place particular emphasis on racial equity, environmental protection and awareness, sustainable economic development, and social justice. | Our organizational priorities are to increase equity, particularly racial equity, in and through the arts; ensure the long-term vitality of the arts ecosystem by supporting self-organization strategies; and foster individual creativity throughout life. Acknowledging art as a fundamental human need, SCAC ensures we provide equitable access to our arts programming and opportunities. We lead county-wide arts programming that focuses on habitually underserved communities, develop strategic local arts initiatives to connect and highlight the full arts ecosystem, coordinate arts emergency preparedness initiatives and mutual aid funds, and offer fiscal sponsorship for nascent arts organizations and projects by and serving under resourced and excluded communities. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Luke Madrigal Indigenous Storytelling Non Profit | 31805 TEMECULA PKWY NUM 552 , TEMECULA, CA 92592-8203 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (909) 262-8325 | 48 | 71 | 32 | With California Arts Council support, the LUKE MADRIGAL INDIGENOUS STORYTELLING NONPROFIT will develop, produce, and premiere "The Aanjikiin Riverbank," a new play written by Sophia Madrigal. This performance work examines the impact of the Indian Child Welfare Act, and its intersection with the recent Luke Madrigal Child Welfare Act, legislation focused on bringing additional protections for Indigenous foster youth in California. This Indigenous cultural revitalization storytelling project advances awareness of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous foster youth issue and recent legislative protections.This play will be premiered at a cultural venue in the Riverside/San Bernardino Area, in collaboration with the Dorothy Ramon Learning Center, with outreach to Riverside/San Bernardino County and Tribal Department of Social Services. Audiences will participate in community talkbacks with arts based educational handouts. | We support a wide range of storytelling modalities, including theater, film, and arts workshops, to amplify Indigenous voices and foster community healing, balance, and resilience. Founded in 2020 by Sophia Madrigal (Cahuilla/Chippewa) during the COVID-19 pandemic to honor her father’s legacy, the organization began with virtual workshops titled Healing Through the Indigenous Art of Storytelling. In that same period, Sophia wrote and released Wildflower: Indigenous Spirit, a film exploring grief and loss in Native communities, which has reached over 10,000 viewers online. Her sister, Isabella Madrigal, writer of the acclaimed play Menil and Her Heart, serves as co-director of the organization. Menil and Her Heart first began as a grass-roots effort to highlight Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit People. The theater ensemble that performs Menil and Her Heart consists of eighteen community members, mostly Indigenous people. The winner of the 2020 Yale Young Native Storytellers Contest, Menil and Her Heart has been performed at 16 venues across the nation and was featured at the United Nations’ Girls Speak out Event in 2019 and at the California State Capitol in 2022 for legislators. In 2024, Isabella received a grant from the Center for Cultural Power to go towards the creation of a short film version of Menil and Her Heart. Since Menil and Her Heart, we have produced the play Dragonfly, which explores the harmful legacy of boarding schools, and the multimedia performance piece Skywoman, which centers Indigenous women in climate justice conversations. We also offer arts and culture workshops, which have been hosted in educational spaces, including Noli and Sherman Indian Schools, as well as at the Dorothy Ramon Learning Center, a Native American community center. Additionally, the LMISN recently served as the Master of Ceremonies for the Tribal Ecological Knowledge Region Nine Tribal EPA Conference. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Crescent Moon Theater Productions | 181 Canyon rd , Fairfax, CA 94930 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 504-4330 | California Assembly district 10 | District 10 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, CRESCENT MOON THEATER PRODUCTIONS will strengthen its capacity to create community-centered documentary and immersive theater rooted in oral history, shared authorship, and social connection. CAC funds will support equitable artist compensation, accessibility services, community engagement, production costs, and organizational infrastructure across programs including What We Carry, a collaborative theater project bringing together veterans and refugees, and The Hidden Network, an arts-in-parks redwood storytelling initiative. This support will help CMTP deepen long-term relationships with underserved communities while expanding the reach, accessibility, and statewide impact of its work. | CMTP creates original new work that spans across the disciplines of theater, dance, music, and circus. CMTP also produces Blessed Unrest, an annual arts and social justice festival in San Francisco that unites over thirty artists working at the intersection of art and social change. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Shruti Abhishek Dance | 1524 Murdell Lane , Livermore, CA 94550 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (650) 469-2840 | With support from the California Arts Council, Shruti Abhishek Dance will produce Kismet with Kali, a community-engaged dance-theater project developed through ongoing collaboration with Narika South Asian domestic violence survivors advocacy organization based in Fremont. The project centers stories and voices of South Asian women through bi-weekly movement workshops with Narika's community of survivors, work-in-progress performances that bring community members into the creative process, and the development of a full-length dance-theater work exploring the mythology of the goddess Kali as a lens for mental health and trauma in the South Asian diaspora. The work features an original score by composer Sindhu Natarajan rooted in Theyyam, a ritual art form of Kerala, with choreography drawn from Bharatanatyam and contemporary dance. The project culminates in a public premiere at the SF International Arts Festival in spring 2027. | Creating & Presenting Live Performances – Original performances choreographed and danced by Shruti Abhishek and collaborators. Current projects include Kismet with Kali and As You Are full-length dance-theater collaboration featuring South Asian women’s stories and voices. Arts Practice Community Engagement – Ongoing weekly workshops with Narika Foundation’s community of South Asian women domestic abuse survivors; producing in-house community engaged performances in collaboration with survivors who otherwise would not be able to access performances. Producing and co-curating two festivals – Varnam Salon series of performances by California-based senior art practitioners, mid-career artists, and emerging choreographers; and When Eyes Speak South Asian Choreography festival showcasing a wide range of South Asian movement forms including Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, Chhau, contemporary Indian, theater, fusion, and other styles. Kshetram School of Dance – Intergenerational dance institution founded in 2018. Kshetram helps keep Indian traditions alive in California, while offering space to reflect on how Indian traditions continue to transform, evolve, and grow with each new generation. ArtEchoes Series – An initiative to inspire and educate kids through live performances. The series provides opportunities for young audiences to learn, be inspired, and engage with the artists in candid conversations about their practice. Rhythm Plays with Nadhi Thekkek – An open-level Bharatanatyam workshop for those who have always wanted to learn and have fun with this beautiful dance form. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Shruti Abhishek Dance | 1524 Murdell Lane , Livermore, CA 94550 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (650) 469-2840 | With support from the California Arts Council, Shruti Abhishek Dance will sustain and grow its programs in Bharatanatyam performance, presenting, education, and community engagement in the San Francisco Bay Area. During the grant period, the organization will: produce the world premiere of Kismet with Kali, a socially-engaged dance-theater work by Artistic Director Shruti Abhishek, developed in collaboration with community members from Narika domestic violence survivors advocacy organization; produce the 2027 When Eyes Speak South Asian Choreography Festival; continue weekly community workshops with Narika; expand Kshetram School of Dance enrollment and the ArtEchoes youth arts education series in East Bay schools; and present Varnam Salon showcases for California-based South Asian artists. All public events are offered free or on a sliding scale, with accessibility services provided by Gravity Access Services. | Creating & Presenting Live Performances – Original performances choreographed and danced by Shruti Abhishek and collaborators. Current projects include Kismet with Kali and As You Are full-length dance-theater collaboration featuring South Asian women’s stories and voices. Arts Practice Community Engagement – Ongoing weekly workshops with Narika Foundation’s community of South Asian women domestic abuse survivors; producing in-house community engaged performances in collaboration with survivors who otherwise would not be able to access performances. Producing and co-curating two festivals – Varnam Salon series of performances by California-based senior art practitioners, mid-career artists, and emerging choreographers; and When Eyes Speak South Asian Choreography festival showcasing a wide range of South Asian movement forms including Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, Chhau, contemporary Indian, theater, fusion, and other styles. Kshetram School of Dance – Intergenerational dance institution founded in 2018. Kshetram helps keep Indian traditions alive in California, while offering space to reflect on how Indian traditions continue to transform, evolve, and grow with each new generation. ArtEchoes Series – An initiative to inspire and educate kids through live performances. The series provides opportunities for young audiences to learn, be inspired, and engage with the artists in candid conversations about their practice. Rhythm Plays with Nadhi Thekkek – An open-level Bharatanatyam workshop for those who have always wanted to learn and have fun with this beautiful dance form. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Ferndale Rep | PO BOX 892 , FERNDALE, CA 95536-0892 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 786-5483 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ferndale Repertory Theatre (FRT) will grow its organizational infrastructure to continue serving Humboldt County and Northern California through theater programming and arts education. More specifically, funds will be used to support stipends for local creatives, expand our youth education programming, subsidize production expenses, and amplify accessibility services. | MAINSTAGE SEASON FRT’s primary programming is our annual mainstage season. We produce five shows that are, in the truest sense, community theater. They are cast, designed, and led entirely by local artists. Our community plays an active role in selecting published works that reflect both popular interest and cultural curiosity, with past seasons ranging from Sister Act, Man of La Mancha, and Fun Home to titles like The Prom, Kinky Boots, and Smokey Joe’s Café. All performances take place in the rural, historic town of Ferndale (population 1,550), and run approximately four weekends. Across a season, roughly 150 local community members participate on stage or behind the curtain. Each season, FRT welcomes approximately 8,000 patrons each year from all corners of Humboldt County and beyond. EDUCATION PROGRAM FRT’s education programs have served our region for over 20 years, evolving to meet the needs of our rural community. Our current focus is a summer training intensive for youth ages 8-17, enrolling 25-35 students annually. In a rural region where access to arts training is limited, this program provides an entry point for young people to explore theater in an accessible and supportive environment. The curriculum balances soft skills such as collaboration, confidence-building, and public speaking, with foundational theater training, including singing, acting, design, and basic technical production. OFF-SEASON ENGAGEMENT During the months when our mainstage season is on pause, FRT remains active through a series of smaller, community-centered events. These programs recognize the theater’s role as a cultural and economic hub in Ferndale which plays a greater role in attracting folks from around the County to visit our small town. Our Off-Season Engagement Series has included a community movie series featuring classic and local films, as well as interactive murder mystery events that invite audiences into a playful, “whodunit” experience. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | About Productions | 145 N. RAYMOND AVE. , PASADENA, CA 91103 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 396-0920 | California's 28th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, About...Productions will serve multiple L.A.-area communities including Boyle Heights, Lincoln Heights, Northwest and Central Pasadena, Pacific Palisades, and Pomona with innovative artistic engagement, and arts education programming and services. These crucial funds will be used for staff salaries, office and venue rent, insurance, communications costs, accounting services, and other costs related to operating our programming and expanding our reach to serve more community members. | Now in our 37th year, our itinerant company’s critically acclaimed INTERDISCIPLINARY THEATERWORKS have been seen extensively in Greater L.A., in the U.S. and Canada, and on national TV. We collaboratively create and present innovative original theaterworks with community performing and visual artists to unearth and illuminate cultural histories of Latin America, the Southwest, California and L.A., and explore the human spiritual condition. We are one of the few companies that brings affordable theater to low-income, under-served communities by mining seldom-tapped regional histories that address relevant issues and under-represented voices. In partnership with performing arts and cultural centers, community-based arts organizations, and educational institutions, we have collaborated with many of the region’s leading community artists — performing, media, and visual -- authors and historians. Our interdisciplinary productions have integrated media, music, dance, and innovative storytelling and lighting design. Presented in numerous L.A. County neighborhoods, our productions have also been featured in festivals such as the International Hispanic Theatre Festival in Miami, Telluride Theatre Festival in Colorado, New Voices Festival at The Public Theater in New York City, and SXSW in Austin. Our successful 25+ year YOUNG THEATERWORKS program serves L.A. area highest-risk and educationally disadvantaged youth with standards-based intensive residencies and workshops to impact their academic achievement, creative engagement and connection to their community. The program improves literacy, communication and collaboration skills as students explore personal identity, family and community history, and social issues. Working with committed principals and classroom teachers in the L.A. and Pasadena Unified School Districts we provide free or low-cost 6-10 week residencies and workshops. In conjunction with our original theaterworks we also provide workshops that engage students in the content and artistic strategies of these theaterworks, giving them the opportunity to see professional work and directly connect them to professional artists in their community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Conceptual Art Therapy | 1468 N WHITE AVE , POMONA, CA 91768-1931 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (909) 929-1022 | California's 35th Congressional District | 53rd Assembly District | Senate District 22 | "Voices from the Margins" will engage 30 BIPOC youth (ages 14-25) from under-resourced communities in identifying local social justice issues through art therapy techniques. CAC funds will support a Certified Art Therapy Facilitator/Program Director ($15,000), guest teaching artists and youth mentor stipends ($6,000), art supplies and documentation materials ($3,000), and community engagement activities including venue rental and translation services ($1,000). The program will produce 3 community listening sessions, two neighborhood art installations, and a community policy forum. Youth participants will develop artistic skills, civic leadership capacity, and mental health resilience while creating meaningful dialogue around housing justice, educational equity, and environmental racism. This initiative centers BIPOC youth voices and builds long-term community capacity for social change. | Group Art Therapy on Campus, Summer Youth Art Camp, Summer Youth Artist Retreat, Youth Artwalk, Art and Photography Classes. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | SPACE | 508 W PERKINS ST , UKIAH, CA 95482-4774 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 462-9370 | California Assembly district 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, SPACE will continue Viva La Cultura, its Latinx community performing arts program led by Olivia Zamora in Ukiah, Mendocino County. The program offers weekly dance and theater classes rooted in Latinx cultural traditions, seasonal community performances, the annual Noche de Estrellas Spanish-language variety show, and a Spanish-language summer camp for youth. Viva La Cultura provides a platform for local Latinx artists to share their talents as teachers and performers while offering young people and families culturally relevant arts experiences that are otherwise unavailable in rural Mendocino County. All performances and community events are free and open to the public. The program addresses a community-defined need for Latinx-centered arts programming in a region where Latinos comprise over half the youth population. | SPACE currently offers over 40 classes-a-week, including: Music Together/Rhythm Kids – Music program for children ages infant through 7. Teen Performing Groups – Advanced performing groups for ages 13-18. Teen Intern Training Program – Offering youth job experience and job-related skills in working with children as well as working in technical theater. Participants have gone on to teach at SPACE and other regional and national theaters. Students often list their SPACE Intern Certificate of Completion on their college and job applications. Performance Workshop – 30 students rehearse and perform a fully-staged musical theater production; 1200 school children attend school day matinees at SPACE Theater. Dance/Theater – Students rehearse and perform fully-staged, theme-based shows created from interviews with participants that address social norms, drug & alcohol abuse prevention, social media addiction, bullying, unlearning racism and gender issues specifically focused on rural youth and families. Latino Community Engagement – Engaging the Latino community as creators, producers, and audience in 2 annual productions. Spring & Winter Dance Festivals – 300+ dancers and singers ages 7 to teens with guest artists, perform in several weekends of shows in December and May. Wanna Dance Latin & Social Dance –Ongoing event on the first Saturday of every month, includes diverse local and regional teachers sharing social dance. Classes & Summer Camps – After-school music, dance, acting, voice classes and summer camps for ages infant to 18 yrs. Contract with Ukiah Unified School District – Performing arts instruction to over 2,200 K-12th graders and to South Valley High School students. Art Exploration – Small groups of children work with master artists to create art using a wide variety of materials. All-Ability Arts – Providing access to the arts for children with disabilities; specialized instruction and accommodations are provided within each class to promote a safe space for self-expression and creativity. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | SPACE | 508 W PERKINS ST , UKIAH, CA 95482-4774 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 462-9370 | California Assembly district 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Near & Arnold's School of Performing Arts & Cultural Education (SPACE) will sustain its programs, staff, and operations from October 2026 to September 2027, including: 40+ youth and adult classes per week in dance, theater, music, visual arts, and cultural education; Teen Intern Training Program; Musical Theater Ensemble and original dance/theater teen performances developed from teen interviews; Spring and Winter Dance Festivals; English and Spanish-language Summer Camps; Hispanic Heritage Celebration; Youth Mariachi Gathering; Ya? Bayo-Yin, a bi-weekly Pomo/Indigenous cultural gathering led by Sherwood Valley Band of Pomo Indians culture bearer Buffie Campbell; the All Ability Arts disability inclusion program; and the ReachOut for Rural Arts! afterschool program serving 200+ youth ages 8-18. | SPACE currently offers over 40 classes-a-week, including: Music Together/Rhythm Kids – Music program for children ages infant through 7. Teen Performing Groups – Advanced performing groups for ages 13-18. Teen Intern Training Program – Offering youth job experience and job-related skills in working with children as well as working in technical theater. Participants have gone on to teach at SPACE and other regional and national theaters. Students often list their SPACE Intern Certificate of Completion on their college and job applications. Performance Workshop – 30 students rehearse and perform a fully-staged musical theater production; 1200 school children attend school day matinees at SPACE Theater. Dance/Theater – Students rehearse and perform fully-staged, theme-based shows created from interviews with participants that address social norms, drug & alcohol abuse prevention, social media addiction, bullying, unlearning racism and gender issues specifically focused on rural youth and families. Latino Community Engagement – Engaging the Latino community as creators, producers, and audience in 2 annual productions. Spring & Winter Dance Festivals – 300+ dancers and singers ages 7 to teens with guest artists, perform in several weekends of shows in December and May. Wanna Dance Latin & Social Dance –Ongoing event on the first Saturday of every month, includes diverse local and regional teachers sharing social dance. Classes & Summer Camps – After-school music, dance, acting, voice classes and summer camps for ages infant to 18 yrs. Contract with Ukiah Unified School District – Performing arts instruction to over 2,200 K-12th graders and to South Valley High School students. Art Exploration – Small groups of children work with master artists to create art using a wide variety of materials. All-Ability Arts – Providing access to the arts for children with disabilities; specialized instruction and accommodations are provided within each class to promote a safe space for self-expression and creativity. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | World Arts West | 1446 Market St. , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 474-3914 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, World Arts West will conduct artist service, advocacy, and regranting programs that promote the artistic and economic development of our Northern California community of 600+ cultural dance companies representing over 20,000 artists and 100+ cultures. Awarded funds will support World Arts West's staff and contractors who administer and implement our capacity-building services dedicated to building a sustainable future for California's cultural artists. Funded programming includes: the 2027 World Arts West Dance Festival, now in its 49th year and free to the public; our Artist Service Programs including the Grants Accelerator Program and Career Pathways; Special Artist Commissions; the Cultural Dance Catalyst Fund supporting grassroots BIPOC arts organizations; Cultural Dance Archiving and Documentation programs; and Cultural Artist Visibility and Advocacy programs. | World Arts West Dance Festival The first and most successful cultural event of its kind in the country; each annual festival features 10-15 ensembles – with workshops, panels, film showings and other community programming centered on an overarching theme. Last year, we celebrated our 47th Annual Dance Festival – a 3-weekend experience at PUSH Sanctuary (SF), The Beat (Berkeley), and Presidio Tunnel Tops (SF) focusing on the theme “Dance as Health and Healing,” exploring what constitutes a healthy community. Arts Equity Research WAW conducted the first ever comprehensive needs assessment of Northern California’s cultural dance companies. Funded by the Wallace Foundation and set to be published in 2025, A Community of Dance: A Baseline Study of Culturally Specific Dance Organizations in Northern California, provides a baseline understanding of the unique characteristics of culturally specific dance organizations in Northern California. Through an in-depth community engagement process with 100+ organizations, the study highlights the unique strengths and challenges of culturally specific dance organizations while identifying emerging, effective strategies to support this subsector of the arts ecosystem. Artist Service Programs Workshops, fiscal sponsorship, mentorship, production support, Cultural Artist Archiving Cohort, Career Pathway Roundtable and Comprehensive Equity Resource for cultural artists. Cultural Artist Visibility & Advocacy Ensuring cultural artists are represented on important local, regional & national platforms. Grants Accelerator Program (GAP) Year-long program mentoring 12 Bay Area cultural artists to access grants funding and increase their capacity to present their work. Wallace Foundation National Arts Partners Regranting Cohort Groundbreaking initiative supporting grassroots BIPOC arts organizations; the largest grant in WAW's history, enabling us to enter grantmaking for the first time, the next step in WAW’s equity journey centering cultural artists. Special Artist Commissions WAW supports the production of innovative, new, large scale dance-music projects. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Creative Acts | 10800 S Prairie Ave , Inglewood, CA 90303 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 729-1780 | California Assembly district 43 | District 61 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Creative Acts will sustain core general operations—including staff salaries and organizational infrastructure—to remain rooted in Inglewood and deepen capacity at a crucial moment when gentrification threatens historically Black communities and organizations. Creative Acts is a global majority arts organization led by and centering people with lived experience of incarceration, located in Inglewood, where the Healthy Places Index value is 3.0. We use theater, poetry, music, visual arts, storytelling, and Virtual Reality as vehicles for civic engagement, healing, and disrupting the carceral system. Creative Acts serves incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people who have been systematically denied access to the arts, using creative practice to support healing, civic power, and the radical reimagining of the lives, futures, and communities we serve. | Our impact is driven by 4 key programs. - At the foundation, our Alumni Laboratory is our Brain Trust. A group of 20 formerly incarcerated individuals meet monthly to shape our curriculum, be in community with other past participants with lived experience, and work as teaching artists. Also, our Youth Advisory Council ensure we stay relevant and culturally appropriate. - Our Art Attacks! Civic Engagement Program supports youth currently incarcerated in LA County Probation camps and halls. Using the arts as our driver, we enrich youth with the real history of our country, inform them of the laws and bills that directly impact them and uplift their voices through creative processes. This program has seen a 100% voter participation in the past election, up from 35% in the 2016 election. - Our Arts and VR ReEntry Program supports incarcerated individuals in level 4 prisons with creative tools and experiences that allow them to radically reimagine their life and reentry experience. We work with adults and youth on the main line, and are the first organization to work in mean & women's solitary confinement, and the first in a mental health solitary unit. Merging arts and technology in a 7 day intensive, participants learn ways to process, understand and transmute their trauma creatively. We have a 96% decrease in infractions and are the first program recognized as a mental health resource. - A new Program in partnership with the County's Justice Care and Opportunity Department allows us to support recently returned citizens with arts programming, skills training, reentry housing support (through our partners) and creative resilience. We offer this program at the DOORS South LA Center and have been able to support over 50 returned citizens in the first year. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | World Builders Incubator | 1791 Solano Ave #B06 , Berkeley, CA 94707 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 883-3155 | 12th District | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, World Builders Incubator (WBI) will launch its next, 2-year Story Arc cohort with rigorously selected and commissioned Story Teams, each with one writer, collaborator, and producer/publisher. These California artists from historically excluded or erased communities will create new works of solutions-focused, mass market art and entertainment in their chosen genre of fiction and narrative medium (theatre/tv/film/books). In collaboration with top thought leaders, WBI will train and support these artists from ideation to distribution. The 2027 Story Teams will choose from the following social and environmental issues and world build around their informed solutions: climate change, LGBTQIA+ rights, women’s rights, displaced populations, authoritarianism, or disinformation. Transformative support from CAC would fund the $25,000 commission for one Story Team. | To achieve its mission, WBI’s utilizes a 3-pronged approach. COALITION. The WORLD BUILDING COUNCIL is WBI’s ever-growing, multi-sector, volunteer coalition with 125+ current members. The Council includes creatives, thought leaders, publishers, producers, distributors, students, program partners, funders, luminaries, and community members. WBI programs were developed with over 100 hours of generous one-on-one expertise from these members. The Council is the brain trust, network, and talent bank at the heart of our work. EDUCATION. In collaboration with top Thought Leaders, WBI is developing two free, online resources. The WHEEL OF POSSIBILITIES, which provides details on informed-solutions to over 210 social and environmental issues, answering the question “What can be done?” The ACTIONS LIBRARY provides personal actions toward implementation, answering “What can I do?” Both resources are currently being constructed. In addition to their public benefit, the Wheel and Library are first points of inspiration and ongoing dramaturgical resources for WBI’s solutions-focused arts and entertainment. NARRATIVE CHANGE. WBI’s 2-year, inspiration-to-distribution STORY ARC develops solutions-focused arts and entertainment in all genres of fiction and all narrative mediums (theatre, TV, film, books, video games, podcasts, interactive stories, and more). Projects are created by rigorously selected Story Teams with 1 high-profile artist + 1 collaborator + 1 top producer/publisher, and 1 or more Thought Leaders. The Team’s producer/publisher agrees from the beginning to produce/publish the final project. WBI provides commissions, structure, accountability, cross-medium collaboration, dramaturgy, editing, networking, and administrative support. To assist development, our WBI STORIES program provides top actors and directors for private and public readings. WBI just completed a Story Arc beta test resulting in: 2 plays, 1 TV pilot, 1 screenplay, and 2 books. These beautiful works of fiction uplift solutions for: immigration; climate change; intergenerational trauma; financial literacy; and the patriarchy. Public readings were held at YBCA in San Francisco May 1-3, 2026. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | South Bay Guitar Society | PO BOX 1627 , CUPERTINO, CA 95015-1627 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (650) 279-2385 | 17th Congressional District | District 26 | District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, South Bay Guitar Society of San Jose, a small arts organization, will present 'Boss Guitars,' a series of 8 free masterclasses with renowned Bay Area-based guitarists from the the Black and Latinx cultural traditions of jazz, blues, R&B, gospel, salsa, samba, and South American folk music. 'Boss Guitars' will be collaboratively developed with community members and address a community-identified need to create an accessible environment for intergenerational arts learning and to center Black and Latinx artists whose cultural traditions are threatened by gentrification in the Bay Area. | South Bay Guitar Society offers concerts, monthly in-person and virtual open mic events; performances and presentations at assisted living centers, social service facilities, hospitals, libraries, community centers, and corporate campuses; lectures; educational forums; recitals; school presentations by local and visiting artists; educational resources through our website and social media pages; and referrals and marketing opportunities. We offer a virtual open mic second Tuesdays of the month and present 3-4 in-person open mics per month at local libraries.We present 10-15 concerts and 10-15 masterclasses with featured artists annually, including both local and international talent. We have presented the Jerry Snyder GuitarFest annually for 20 years, including two days of masterclasses and performances, an open, mic and a luthier display. We present an annual Young Date and Inja Kim Composition Competition, offering cash prizes for original works for classical guitar quartet written by composer of all ages. Three winners have their works performed at the annual Jerry Snyder GuitarFest. SBGS has produced over 300 concerts, sponsored over 200 masterclasses and held over 1000 open mic events. Video footage from these events is shared on our website as an educational resource, along with compositional scores and artist interviews. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | DSTL Arts | 1069 W. Avenue 37 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90065 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (760) 521-7018 | California's 34th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the CAC, DSTL Arts will continue providing bilingual literary arts workshops and classes, professional development opportunities, and mentorships for intergenerational cohorts of emerging poets and artists from historically marginalized communities, and we will continue publishing multiple publications featuring the creative writing and artwork produced by participants in our various community-based programs. | DSTL Arts fulfills its mission to inspire, teach, and hire emerging artists from underserved communities through a variety of arts-based programs, mentorships, and publishing opportunities for emerging writers and artists. This includes our Poet/Artist Development Program offering mentorships, professional development, and publishing opportunities to emerging poet/artists, ages 18 and older, specifically from historically marginalized communities. Furthermore, our Art Block Zine and Aurtistic Zine publications feature emerging writers and artists from Los Angeles County and beyond, and in particular, neurodivergent artists from ages 6 and older through Aurtistic Zine. Our Conchas y Café bilingual community writing workshop series produces a zine of the same name featuring the work of bilingual (English/Spanish) and monolingual (Spanish-speaking) adults learning new skills and techniques in creative writing. Lastly, our Creative Impact community-based, social justice-themed arts workshops provide paid teaching artist internships to select emerging poet/artists enrolled in our Poet/Artist Development Program and poet/artist-led, intergenerational, social justice-focused, arts workshops and publishing opportunities for our broader community. To make all of these programs accessible to our community, DSTL Arts offers our Mobile Art Lab as an additional resource, bringing an upfitted, tech-laden vehicle to community settings where local access to large-format scanners/printers, tablets, and WiFi is limited, thereby addressing the digital divide our community members often experience. And to further engage and celebrate our community and program participants, we host a podcast that highlights local artists and featured artists from our zines, as well as provide all of our workshops as both in-person and virtual programs that exist in perpetuity on our YouTube channel where individuals are welcome to continue their learning experience. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | No Limits for deaf children and families | 9801 WASHINGTON BLVD SECOND FLOOR , CULVER CITY, CA 90232-2723 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 280-0878 | California's 37th congressional district | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, No Limits Theater Group Inc. will serve low-income deaf youth through our Los Angeles Theater Workshop program, which teaches theater and life-building skills with culminating public performances of our originally scripted plays. This program focuses on sharing the talents and voices of deaf youth as the country’s only theater program for deaf youth who are learning to speak. | No Limits was founded in 1996 by Dr. Michelle Christie (named a 2017 CNN Hero) as a language-enriched theater program. In 2002, No Limits expanded to provide auditory, speech, and language training, as well as literacy, parent education, advocacy training, tutoring, and enrichment programs. All of our programming is provided free-of-charge. The No Limits Theater Program engages deaf children and adults in professional theatrical productions as actors, storytellers, workshop team members, lighting and sound technicians, and directors. To date, No Limits has produced over 200 theatrical performances, reaching more than 500,000 people nationwide. Our Youth Theater Workshops Program is the only theater program in the country for deaf youth learning to speak. It is an immersive workshop-based model that culminates in public performances by using original, educationally based scripts for deaf children to increase self-esteem, expand vocabulary, and develop public speaking skills that help them confidently move through the world. No Limits also created “Silent NO MORE,” a nationally touring theatrical storytelling production (with a corresponding book) that aims to influence policies and perceptions by educating people across the world about the struggles and triumphs of people with hearing loss. The No Limits Educational Centers (in Los Angeles and Oxnard, CA) and our 64 satellite and pop-up sites nationwide (including 54 in California) provide year-round comprehensive educational services at no cost to low-income families. Our programming includes individual speech and language therapy, literacy classes, academic tutoring, STEM engagement, arts enrichment, parent education and supports, a teen Leadership and Mentoring Academy, auditory device support, and much more. We also provide family learning and support modules through No Limits TV, accessible to all free-of-charge. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Oakland Style Lab | 302 12th Street , Oakland, CA 94607 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 225-6673 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oakland Style Lab will be able to eliminate fees for our dynamic Reimagine Fashion summer program and add 2 cohorts, allowing us to meet our equity goals of serving exponentially more low-income youth. Since 2021, our fashion arts and sustainability program has taught 90+ diverse teens to design their own garments using “upcycling” methods and turn old clothing into “new” one-of-a-kind outfits - then rock the runway. Our climate justice focus ensures youth become stewards of the environment and their communities, while boosting their creativity, confidence, and skills. Without funding, we’ve relied on families to cover costs, allocating 2 scholarships per cohort. CAC’s support will dramatically expand low-income families’ access to this powerful arts programming: from 2 students in 1 cohort, to all 36 students across 3 cohorts. | Olivia Cueva and Jeff Perlstein co-founded Oakland Style Lab in 2021 to connect existing, emerging, and aspiring fashion designers, while centering sustainable practices and racial and economic justice. We teach all aspects of fashion arts and design to boost the technical and entrepreneurial development of historically under-resourced communities for success in the growing creative workforce. We offer no/low-cost classes and workshops in sewing, mending, fashion design, patterning, sneaker repair and resoling, upcycling, biotextile production, and much more. We also produce dynamic events to inspire and educate the public about fashion waste and regenerative practices, including upcycling fashion shows, maker mixers, and gallery exhibits. We provide affordable workspace, gear, and materials to increase community access to knowledge and practices. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | RootStock Arts | 481 59th St , Oakland, CA 94609-1540 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (718) 483-0773 | With support from the California Arts Council, ROOTSTOCK ARTS will establish the groundwork for the RootStock Arts Center, our brick and mortar creative artist development facility in North Oakland. Funds will be dedicated to broader infrastructure needs for the beginning of our journey as an accessible artist community center aimed at supporting local artists in need of space for rehearsal, lessons, and programming. Offsetting monthly rent, utility bills, subscriptions, routine cleaning and maintenance are essential parts of keeping it a viable location for gathering and development. Funds will ensure that our resources remain fixed upon the basic needs for us to achieve long-term sustainability of our artist forward mission. By funding our essential overhead CAC funds allow us to keep our almost 50 annual events staffed and compensated with reliable sound and door personnel. | In addition to presenting over 70 concerts each year, RootStock Arts offers three core programs year-round: Monthly Artist Gatherings: RootStock Arts hosts intimate gatherings that bring artists across disciplines together to break bread, share resources and their personal journeys, mentor one another, and build community away from performance. We emphasize sociality as the fulcrum of our artistic endeavors, as opposed to a purely transactional dynamic that places profit over artistic exploration and community building. At RootStock, dedication to local arts initiatives is enough to have a seat at the table. Weekly Live Music Series: In partnership with WyldFlowr Arts (artist-run venue in Oakland), RootStock Arts presents weekly concerts for musicians to perform their own music without the burden of foregrounding a profit model. Artists decide ticket price, set length, and space use — some record multitrack in front of an audience, others teach workshops. RootStock covers rental, staffing, marketing, accounting, and operations, often with a 90% ticket-sales-to-artists model. Monthly Indian Classical Showcase: In partnership with Medicine for Nightmares (artist-run bookstore in San Francisco), RootStock Arts curates a showcase featuring four short acts of desi-diasporic expression. By presenting South Asian classical arts in non-traditional venues, we invite multi-generational, immigrant, and culturally mixed audiences into living dialogue between tradition and innovation. RootStock Arts has additionally started operations from our permanent headquarters. We are expanding our services to include low-barrier access to equipped rooms, facilities and development opportunies. Offerings in the new RootStock Arts Center include a parking lot live music series, rehearsal/practice space, private teaching rooms, listening library and a maker space where artists receive technical training to produce their own merchandise and branded product. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | San Diego Jewish Arts Festival | 8307 CAMINITO HELECHO , La Jolla, CA 92037 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 431-9175 | JFest and the Jacobs Institute for Innovation in Education are once again partnering in order to expand "Women of STEM," a docu-theater project that turns the lives of local female scientists into professional stage narratives. CAC funds support the creation of a new play, the creation of interactive student kits, and a free regional tour to under-served neighborhoods lacking access to professional arts, such as City Heights, Southeastern San Diego, and Linda Vista. We will perform at trusted local anchors to encourage intergenerational participation. These shows blend live monologues and music with hands-on experiments, giving families a "peek behind the curtain" at the work of local heroes. By bringing high-quality theater directly into these community spaces, we remove financial barriers and use professional storytelling to inspire the next generation of STEM leaders. | For over 30 years, the San Diego Jewish Arts Festival (JFest) has served as a premier cultural engine, producing professional theater, music, and dance that explores the Jewish experience while fostering vibrant cross-cultural dialogue. As we transition into a year-round 501(c)(3) entity, our programming is anchored by three primary pillars: The Jewish Arts Festival and Whole Megillah: Our flagship festival features world-class headliners and professional commissions across music, dance, and theater. This includes the Whole Megillah New Play Festival, a critical incubator for developing new theatrical works that celebrate the diversity of the Jewish diaspora. These performances provide a platform for local premieres and national collaborations, reaching thousands of attendees annually. The Women of Valor Series: This documentary theater initiative honors the "Divine Image" (B’tzelem Elohim) in women who have made significant impacts on our region. The program recently expanded to include the Poderosas initiative, which specifically archives and celebrates the narratives of Latina leaders/innovators and Women of STEM. We bring these stories into classrooms through specialized workshops and school tours, using the Women of Valor model to teach students about resilience, identity, and the contributions of women in science and social justice. Community and Collaborative Programming: We sustain year-round engagement through deep-rooted partnerships with regional hubs like Seacrest Village, Leichtag Commons, and New Village Arts. Our expanded calendar includes an International Dinner and Lecture Series and high-touch "co-productions" like the Punto y Coma collaboration, which explores the intersection of Latinx and Jewish narratives highlighting diverse cultures. These services ensure that high-quality arts remain accessible to diverse populations throughout San Diego and North County, moving beyond a seasonal model to a continuous cycle of community-centered storytelling. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,865.00 | Ballet Resource Active Volunteer Assoc | 56 CORNICHE DR UNIT H , DANA POINT, CA 92629-4066 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 653-0228 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ballet Resource Active Volunteer Association (BRAVA) will: (1) provide significantly discounted student tickets for schools in the Riverside, Alvord, and Moreno Valley school districts to attend a performance of BRAVA’s production of David Allan’s The Nutcracker in December 2026; and (2) offer a series of classroom dance tutorials based on ballet movements for elementary school classrooms in those districts during the spring and fall 2027 semesters, focusing on schools with limited or no arts program budgets. This grant will enable BRAVA to expand student participation in its Art for the Heart Program, which provides dance education and arts engagement opportunities for students with limited access to the arts. | 1. Professional ballet company productions to provide arts engagement to the community: David Allan's The Nutcracker performed annually to a general audience and with outreach performances for local school districts. National renowned professional guest artists are invited for this production. Additional dance programs included in the season in collaboration with local artists and arts organization in our community (depending on funding availability). 2. Arts for the Heart Program: providing dance arts education to public schools with limited arts programming. 3. Movement for Life: a program that utilizes Dance for PD method to enhance the lives of those suffering from movement disorders such as Parkinson's and Multiple sclerosis. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Youth ARTS Alive | 2242 Fallen Leaf Drive , Santa Maria, CA 93456 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 563-0463 | 24th District | District 35 | District 19 | With Support from the California Arts Council, Youth ARTS Alive will provide 700 hours of year-round free classes in Theatre, Dance, Music and Visual Arts for 500 youth ages 8-18 from under-served families in the Santa Maria Valley. Funds will support the coordination of classes and performances in the neighborhoods of Santa Maria impacted by poverty, at sites provided gratis by the City of Santa Maria. Dollars will support the hiring of professional teaching artists who train our students in Guitar, Drumming, Ukulele, Singing, Baile Folklórico, Modern Dance, Theatre, Clowning, Pottery, Screen Printing, Sculpture, Painting and Drawing. CAC funding will also support Arts Fiestas, where our students’ art is displayed, and our performing arts students do free public performances to celebrate the deep roots of our multi-cultural community. | In 2017, Santa Barbara County Action Network (SBCAN) became the fiscal sponsor for Youth ARTS Alive so we could provide Free Summer Arts Education for the Youth in under-served neighborhoods of Santa Maria. YEAR ONE: Four weeks of free classes in Theater, Visual Art, Dance, and Music for 17 youth. YEAR TWO: Five weeks of class at two sites for 60 youth. We produced our first student Performing and Visual Arts Fiesta for an audience of 125. YEAR THREE: We added third class site - Los Adobes de Maria, providing 225 class hours of class to 96 students in five weeks. First community non-profit to use the Performing Arts Center at Pioneer Valley High School for our Arts Fiesta for 200 people. YEAR FOUR: Only summer arts education program in Santa Maria to offer in-person classes. At the Maldonado Youth Center, we educated 60 students (outdoors, in masks) for 3 weeks in Dance, Theatre, Guitar, Ukulele, Drumming, Pottery and Visual Arts, ending each class with a family performance. 20 Los Adobes de Maria students received on-line art classes. YEAR FIVE: Outdoor program expanded to six weeks, educating 119 students, ending with student performances. YEAR SIX: Six weeks of classes for 250 students at four locations, including year-round music and art classes at the Santa Maria Valley Discovery Museum, and two Arts Fiestas for 450 people. YEAR SEVEN: Six weeks of free arts education for 300 students at five locations, adding six weeks of art and music at Mary Buren Elementary School in Guadalupe, plus two Arts Fiestas for 500 people. YEAR EIGHT: Six weeks of classes for 350 students at our five locations, plus two Arts Fiestas for 500 people. YEAR NINE: Five weeks of Classes for 400 students ar our five locations, plus One Grand Arts Fiesta for 300 people. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Makers Hub | 28311 PONTEVEDRA DR , RCH PALOS VRD, CA 90275-1429 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 422-4576 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Makers Hub will expand access to creative spaces, tools, and hands-on arts opportunities to historically underserved Los Angeles Communities. Through open studio access, public workshops, and shared creative resources, participants will explore sewing, screen printing, embroidery, vinyl cutting, laser engraving, and other fabrication-based art forms in a welcoming and low-cost environment. Funding will help The Makers Hub continue to provide accessible opportunities for people to create, learn, and engage with artistic practices that may otherwise feel financially or physically out of reach. By increasing access to shared creative infrastructure and community-centered programming, The Makers Hub aims to strengthen creative confidence, encourage artistic exploration, and foster deeper community connection through collaborative making and public participation in the arts. | The Makers Hub offers a range of hands on programs and community based services designed to increase access to the trades and creative industries. Our approach combines skill development, artistic exploration, and practical application to meet people where they are, whether they are exploring a hobby, building a portfolio, or seeking career readiness. At the heart of our work is a fully equipped makerspace and tool lending library that provides affordable access to tools, equipment, and materials across a wide range of disciplines. Participants can learn and work in areas such as woodworking, sewing, electrical repair, digital design, sublimation printing, and more. We emphasize safety, accessibility, and peer learning, creating a space that is welcoming to both beginners and experienced makers. In addition to our main facility, we deliver targeted programming that engages youth and young adults through creative workshops, mentorship, and entrepreneurial experiences. These programs combine creative expression with practical skill building, helping participants explore career possibilities while gaining confidence and technical knowledge. Workshops are led by artists, tradespeople, and community leaders who reflect the backgrounds and lived experiences of the people we serve. Our services are inclusive, culturally relevant, and guided by community input. We prioritize access for BIPOC youth, LGBTQ youth, disconnected young adults, and others who have been historically excluded from traditional creative or technical education. Through a mix of onsite programming, mobile outreach, and partnerships with schools and community groups, The Makers Hub supports long term engagement in the arts and trades. We view our programs not only as pathways to employment or artistic growth, but as a means to strengthen individual agency, foster community resilience, and advance equity within the creative economy. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Worldwide Starship Foundation | 7650 HASKELL AVENUE NO 4 , VAN NUYS, CA 91406-2047 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 922-8558 | 29th Congressional District | District 46 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, Plan of Action, dba Worldwide Starship Foundation, will provide general support for the Rain Man Initiative, a program that provides scaffolded training in animation to people with autism and other intellectual disabilities. Our students work remotely, learning Toon Boom and Adobe Creative Suite software that is essential for working in animation. We then pair them with animation studios that provide them with paid apprenticeships, leading to jobs in the animation and entertainment industries. Participants who may have struggled to excel in traditional job interview and employment situations can work from the comfort of their own homes, following their passions and creating both animated films and meaningful lives for themselves. | Worldwide Starship Foundation provides a specialized training program in animation, artificial intelligence, and digital arts for adults on the autism spectrum. Taught virtually by live instructors, this program is designed to equip participants with the specific skills necessary for launching successful careers in the animation industry. Our training aims to foster the development of in-demand skills, preparing individuals for entry into the workforce. All instructors skill trainers at VAA are active professionals within animation, AI, and digital arts sectors, possessing extensive experience working with diverse populations. Our curriculum encompasses essential topics such as Story Development, Artificial Intelligence Prompting, Character Design, Storyboarding, Rigging, and Compositing. The pathway to employment includes six months of skills training, advanced training, paid apprenticeships, on-the-job training and comprehensive coaching support. The academy has established partnerships with animation production studios to facilitate job opportunities for top graduates. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $6,000.00 | Prospect Art | 4420 PALMERO DR , LOS ANGELES, CA 90065-4222 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 251-4132 | With support from the California Arts Council, Prospect Art will strengthen its organizational capacity to provide accessible public programming, artist commissions, critical writing, exhibitions, and curatorial opportunities for underrepresented contemporary artists. Based in Los Angeles, Prospect Art supports artists working outside traditional commercial systems through programs that connect artists with writers, curators, and public audiences. CAC funding will support core operational expenses including administration, communications, artist outreach, digital accessibility improvements, and program coordination across Prospect Art’s year-round initiatives including NEW WORK, ONE WORK, BROADCAST, and EXHIBITION. These programs provide artists with professional visibility, commissioned writing, public engagement opportunities, and direct support for the creation and presentation of new work. This funding will help sustain an artist-centered infrastructure focused on accessibility, equitable participation, and long-term cultural engagement. | Providing new project grants to visual artist, publishing monthly articles on artists works, providing public webcast discussions with artists and exhibitions. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Chapter 510 INK | 546 9th Street , OAKLAND, CA 94607 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 326-4231 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Chapter 510 INK will provide free and low-cost creative writing, podcasting, and bookmaking programs to 600+ Oakland youth ages 8–19, centering Black, brown, queer, and immigrant young people from the city’s most under-resourced neighborhoods. CAC funds will support 15 workshops at our Writing Center and Oakland Unified School District partner schools, including an in-school poetry program for 220 fourth graders, storytelling field trips for 300+ elementary students, a credit-bearing creative writing course for Designated English Language Development middle school students, and a podcasting workshop for high school students focused on mental health and wellness. Students will publish their work in 16 anthologies and magazines and perform at school and community events. All programs are led by BIPOC and/or queer Teaching Artists using culturally responsive, trauma-informed pedagogy. | Chapter 510 offers writing, podcasting, and bookmaking workshops to Oakland youth, led by Teaching Artists in affirming and inspiring spaces within a supportive community of volunteers and artists. We also publish our students’ words in beautifully bound and illustrated books and host events to collaborate with and elevate Oakland’s diverse community of artists and creatives. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Baking Wellness | 655 WESLEY AVE APT 9 , OAKLAND, CA 94610-3766 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 759-2157 | 12 | 18 | 07 | With support from the California Arts Council, Baking Wellness will offer 4 cohorts and 3 camps of baking lessons to middle school youth in the Oakland Bay Area. Funds will support student scholarships as well as staff time in designing and implementing innovative and educational baking lessons that support skill building, meaningful relationships, and positive wellbeing. Throughout each baking session, participants become youth "culinary artists", using baking as a creative and culturally rooted art form. Funds will contribute to our curriculum development that uplifts baking as both an artistic and cultural practice, allowing participants to explore identity and self-expression through food. In addition, throughout each lesson we emphasize the concept of “mindful baking”, emphasizing how baking can serve as a healthy outlet for managing stress and expressing creativity. | Baking Wellness provides baking lessons as a method for hands-on learning, artistic expression, leadership development, and social-emotional wellbeing. Our program is designed to support middle school youth in developing practical kitchen skills while also fostering confidence, creativity, and a strong sense of belonging. Lessons are delivered in small-group cohorts of up to eight youth to ensure individualized attention, relationship building, and a safe kitchen environment. We offer two program models: a community-based cohort and a school-based cohort, which ensures accessibility and consistency for youth and families. Our program is designed where each cohort meets for a weekly, two-hour session over eight to ten weeks, aligning with the after-school enrichment calendar. Throughout each cohort, participants become youth "culinary artists", using baking as a creative and culturally rooted art form. We explore relevant recipes and implement collaborative learning that allow participants to practice communication and teamwork. Using evidence-based frameworks centered on social-emotional learning and positive youth development, Baking Wellness intentionally supports youth in developing kitchen and baking skills while providing the space to develop meaningful relationships and a sense of responsibility. In addition, our program introduces youth to the concept of “mindful baking”, where we explore how baking can serve as a healthy outlet for managing stress and expressing creativity. Participants are encouraged to move slowly and fully immerse themselves in the baking process which not only enhances creativity but also calms the mind and fosters a deep sense of presence. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Worldwide Starship Foundation | 7650 HASKELL AVENUE NO 4 , VAN NUYS, CA 91406-2047 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 922-8558 | 29th Congressional District | District 46 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, Plan of Action DBA Worldwide Starship Foundation will provide program support to the Rain Man Initiative, a program that provides scaffolded training in animation to people with autism and other intellectual disabilities. Our students work remotely, learning Toon Boom and Adobe Creative Suite software that is essential for working in animation. We then pair them with animation studios that provide them with paid apprenticeships, leading to jobs in the animation and entertainment industries. Participants who may have struggled to excel in traditional job interview and employment situations can work from the comfort of their own homes, following their passions and creating both animated films and meaningful lives for themselves. | Worldwide Starship Foundation provides a specialized training program in animation, artificial intelligence, and digital arts for adults on the autism spectrum. Taught virtually by live instructors, this program is designed to equip participants with the specific skills necessary for launching successful careers in the animation industry. Our training aims to foster the development of in-demand skills, preparing individuals for entry into the workforce. All instructors skill trainers at VAA are active professionals within animation, AI, and digital arts sectors, possessing extensive experience working with diverse populations. Our curriculum encompasses essential topics such as Story Development, Artificial Intelligence Prompting, Character Design, Storyboarding, Rigging, and Compositing. The pathway to employment includes six months of skills training, advanced training, paid apprenticeships, on-the-job training and comprehensive coaching support. The academy has established partnerships with animation production studios to facilitate job opportunities for top graduates. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | BACCES | 1205 Oak St Apt 1 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 713-7780 | With support from the California Arts Council, BACCES will strengthen its operational capacity to sustain our transformative work centering BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, disabled and low-income circus artists. Operating funding support will stabilize our ongoing infrastructure: (1) staff/volunteer compensation; (2) access coordination (3) data gathering/evaluation; (4) outreach; (5) governance; and (6) financial administration. It will also support administration of our continued programming: (1) artist residency and public performances; (2) Local program microgrants; (3) Festival attendance; (4) Cultural Change initiative; and (5) Open source anti-racist educational training. This investment empowers sustainable operations while ensuring our work remains by-and-for underrepresented communities, meeting CAC's accessibility standards and redistributing resources directly to those historically excluded from circus arts. | As an arts organization dedicated to fostering equity and innovation in circus arts, we center our work on empowering BIPOC acrobats through creative development, performance opportunities, and systemic change in the broader circus industry. Our core program is called ‘Take Power, Make Power’, a multidisciplinary artist residency that equips BIPOC acrobats with artistic tools, collaborative methodologies, and professional development to create original, dynamic performances. This program culminates in public showcases that challenge traditional circus narratives, offering bold, community-driven storytelling rooted in cultural resilience and creative expression.. We also work with acrobatic event organizers to provide access for BIPOC acrobats and help them to evolve their events into more inclusive and decolonized spaces. We support local program initiatives for BIPOC acrobats to further their training or performance needs. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | The Road Theatre Company | 10747 Magnolia Blvd , Los Angeles, CA 91601-4093 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 752-7568 | California Assembly district 44 | District 44 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, The OTHER SIDE OF THE HILL PRODUCTIONS INC will strengthen its organizational infrastructure by supporting key administrative personnel, including the Company Managers and Marketing staff. Competitive compensation for these essential positions ensures the stability, continuity, and operational capacity necessary for the company to remain a leader in the development and production of socially, politically relevant new works by emerging playwrights. Professional staff is central to sustaining The Road's nationally recognized new play development programs, audience growth and fundraising efforts. These personnel also play a vital role in expanding accessibility, community engagement and collaborations with nonprofit partners. By investing in the people who sustain the organization’s daily operations and artistic mission, this funding will help ensure that The Road can continue to nurture innovative voices and serve diverse audiences. | One of the Road’s founding principles is that involvement in the arts creates stronger communities. Through the full engagement of our membership, we are able to produce four to five mainstage productions, a workshop series, weekly staged readings, classes for seniors, and an annual Summer Playwrights Festival – all at affordable or no cost to our community. We believe it is essential for the health of the American ethos to advance the larger theatrical conversation of our national culture. Through this dialogue we animate and inspire both our artists and audiences with the realization that through art and action we are lifted into the searching of soul, the revelation of humanity, the awareness that we are not alone and the struggle to make sense of our existence on this earth – as it is and as we wish it to be. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SMILE-ING BOYS INC | 1027 WILSHIRE BLVD APT 813 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90017-3125 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 303-0506 | With support from the California Arts Council, S.M.I.L.E.-ING Boys Inc will collaborate with lead artist Adekunle “Kay” Rufai to deliver Seen & Heard: Reimagining Black Boyhood Through Art, a youth-centered public art and exhibition project with Black boys in South Los Angeles. CAC funds will support artist-led workshops, cultural access experiences, youth-centered art production, and a professionally presented public exhibition/community activation. Through portraiture, poetry, film, and multimedia storytelling, participants will explore identity, belonging, emotional wellbeing, masculinity, joy, and representation while co-creating work that challenges harmful narratives about Black boyhood. The project will culminate in a public-facing exhibition featuring youth-created texts, portraits, multimedia works, and community dialogue that positions young people as artists, storytellers, and cultural contributors. | S.M.I.L.E-ing Boys Inc. delivers creative, research-informed arts programming that supports the wellbeing, identity development, and social engagement of young people, particularly Black boys and girls aged 13–19. Our core programmes include 16-week, school-based creative arts workshop series integrating photography, poetry, and film with a happiness research framework. Participants explore themes such as identity, belonging, mental health, and gender while developing emotional literacy, self-expression, and critical thinking skills. A key component of the programme is portraiture and visual storytelling. Participants are provided with cameras to document their lived experiences, producing original work that challenges dominant narratives and stereotypes. The organisation produces public exhibitions and humanities-centred programming, including panel discussions, roundtables, artist talks, and wellness events, creating space for community dialogue and elevating youth voice. We also deliver educator engagement and professional development to support more inclusive, restorative school environments. Across all activities, S.M.I.L.E-ing programmes centre arts and humanities as tools for reflection, storytelling, and cultural dialogue. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $9,000.00 | Long Beach Youth Chorus | 2902 Petaluma Ave. , Long Beach, CA 90815 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 972-3324 | California's 42nd congressional district | District 69 | District 34 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Long Beach Youth Chorus will use general operating support to procure storage for our music library and sound equipment, reinstate our twice annual singer retreats, hire new administrative staff for social media and marketing, and secure new rehearsal location(s). | The Long Beach Youth Chorus was started in 2017 under the guidance of Executive Director Stan DeWitt and Artistic Director Steven Clausen to serve the children and youth of Long Beach and surrounding communities (Carson, Bellflower, Lakewood, Cerritos, Los Alamitos, Seal Beach, etc.), an area of over half a million residents. Although Long Beach is the 7th largest city by population in California and the 39th largest in the country, it has never had a significant civic children or youth chorus, and the local school districts do not have choirs in all of their schools. The Long Beach Youth Chorus was founded to fill that gap. In addition, we have kept our tuition at exceedingly low levels with the sole goal that no child should ever be dissuaded from singing due to financial reasons. Our goal is to make it possible for every child to have a chance to sing. Our current Artistic Director is Harlee Balajadia. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | West End Arts District | 1453 WEBSTER ST , ALAMEDA, CA 94501-3342 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 309-8565 | 12th Congressional District | District 18 | District 07 | With support from the California Arts Council, WEST END ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT DISTRICT will sustain accessible, community-centered arts programming in Alameda’s West End. Grant funds will support staff salaries, including contracting a part-time program coordinator focused on community and educational outreach, particularly for our climate arts programming. Ten percent of grant funds will be reserved for access services across programs, such as ASL interpretation, audio guides, audio description, captions, accessible parking/shuttle planning, and related participant supports. By designating these funds specifically for access services, WEAD will protect essential accommodations that can otherwise be reduced when individual program budgets become constrained. This funding will help WEAD maintain free and low-cost public arts experiences while building the staffing and access infrastructure needed to serve the community more consistently. | West End Arts District was founded in 2015 by community member and business owner Sandra Russell. She understood that the best way to build community spirit, and revitalize the area was through the arts. She launched Blues Brews and BBQ, which continues to be our flagship event and brings between 4000-5000 music lovers to the west end every September. Since then the non-profit has grown, expanding our programming to include dance, visual arts and cultural celebrations and developing a relationship with the city and local arts leaders. West End Arts District provides fiscal sponsorship, financial, and logistical support to artists and arts organizations working in our community. Since 2020 WEAD has worked with the West Alameda Business Association to bring a string of successful initiatives to the West End including: the Webster Gateway Mural, the Healing Garden Summer Series, the Life of Flight mural and Fiesta Alameda. In 2023, WEAD began work on a wide-ranging climate arts initiative called RISING TIDES, initially funded by a Bloomberg Philanthropies grant. Events have included “Somewhere to Land,” an outdoor vertical dance piece performed on the buildings of the Naval Air Station and “Capture the King Tide” photography event. In May 2025, we launch “In Plain Site” a free, three-week, outdoor, climate-focused photography festival. The board is committed to continued a continued Climate Art moving forward. Our work contributed to the economic resilience of the West End during the pandemic and continues to grow the cultural vibrancy and diversity of the area today. Our goal is to see the whole of the west end of Alameda, including the new and future developments at Alameda Point develop into a dynamic and progressive arts district. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $10,000.00 | CALIFORNIA HERITAGE MUSEUM | 2612 MAIN ST , SANTA MONICA, CA 90405-4002 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 392-8537 | California's 33rd congressional district | District 50 | District 26 | With support from the CAC, the California Heritage Museum will expand free, culturally responsive arts programming for historically and systemically under-resourced communities in Los Angeles County located within the lower two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index. Funding will support arts workshops, artist stipends, and community partnerships that remove barriers to participation for youth, families, and seniors who have limited access to arts education and cultural experiences. Although the Museum is in a higher-HPI area, this proposal centers on outreach and service to prioritize under-represented communities – specifically Chicano, Black and Women artists that are traditionally underrepresented within museum exhibition programming. As a small organization with an annual budget under $250,000, that has not received prior funds from the CAC, the Museum seeks to build sustainable pathways for equitable arts participation and community connection. | The California Heritage Museum's programming is as diverse as the communities it serves. Each exhibition is a singular event with its own universe of meaning, history, and audience — and we design outreach strategies to match. Our exhibition roster speaks for itself. Arte Chicano Hecho En Los Angeles traces five decades of Chicano art's origins and evolution in L.A. County. Michael C. Thorpe – Quilts & the Celebration of a Black Life explores quilting as an intergenerational art form connecting the artist to both his New England heritage and the renowned Gee's Bend community of African American quilters in Alabama. A recent "Black Lives Matter" quilt exhibition featured celebrated Oakland artist Alice Beasley. Collaborative exhibitions curated by Santa Monica LGBTQ+ activist and historian Lou D'Elia have spotlighted underrepresented voices, while a painting retrospective by Thai-American artist Suong Yangchareon has broadened our representation of Asian artists. Traditional Mexican folk art exhibitions honor the profound influence of Mexican culture on Southern California life. Our Young Women in the Arts program — now adopted as an extracurricular by seven local high schools — encourages students, parents, and educators to embrace the arts as a lifelong pursuit, not merely a school subject. K–12 students, college groups, and history organizations regularly visit under the guidance of docents trained to tailor programming to each audience's age and interest level. Watercolor exhibitions have earned national critical acclaim, and the Museum has produced ten hardcover books distributed internationally through Schiffer Publishing and Amazon — extending our reach far beyond Santa Monica. Each show demands creative outreach: tattoo exhibitions bring us to gyms; quilt shows connect us to quilting guilds and fabric stores; Spanish-language exhibitions engage Univision and bilingual community partners. Our audience has no single face — and that is precisely the point. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Screamfest Horror Film Festival | 8840 Wilshire Blvd. , Beverly Hills, CA 90211 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 358-3273 | California's 33rd congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Screamfest Horror Film Festival will support the annual salaries of its coordinator Fernando Ramos and co-director Karen Martin. | Our core programming gives Southern California residents the opportunity to watch films from around the world exposing them to a diverse culture in filmmaking artistry and to interact with these filmmakers. Screamfest hosts screenings and workshops on directing, writing, storyboarding, cinematography, special effects makeup, acting and sound for underserved at-risk youth as a way to introduce them to potential careers in the arts. Screamfest does new and retrospective screenings throughout the year to further engage its constituents. Monthly screenings include, MOM & DAD with Q&A with Nicolas Cage & Selma Blair, 20th anniversary screening of SCREAM followed by a Q&A with David Arquette, BRIDE OF CHUCKY with Jennifer Tilly, Brad Dourif and Alexis Arquette, screenings and cast reunions of FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VII and NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET PART 4. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Miller Music Academy | 3311 54th St , San Diego, CA 92105-3705 | San Diego | Far South | (702) 635-2899 | With support from the California Arts Council, Miller Music Academy (MMA) will sustain and expand its year-round music education programs serving 600–800 participants annually, including approximately 500 individuals through summer programs across San Diego County and Orange County. CAC funds will support core operations directly tied to program delivery, including teaching artist compensation, program coordination, instructional materials, scholarships, and facility costs. This investment will enable consistent weekly instruction, ensemble rehearsals, community performances, and introductory instrument access opportunities, while preserving affordable participation through MMA’s sliding-scale tuition and family fundraising model. Funds will be used in full compliance with CAC guidelines and will not support ineligible expenses such as fundraising, lobbying, capital improvements, or equipment purchases. | Between July 1, 2026 and June 30, 2027, Miller Music Academy will provide inclusive, community-centered music education and performance opportunities throughout San Diego. Programs take place in schools, parks, community centers, and partner sites, expanding access to high-quality arts learning in neighborhoods where opportunities have been limited. The Academy is also planning Miller Music Academy Creative Studios, a community flex space offering affordable rehearsal, teaching, recording, and creative gathering space to support artistic collaboration and neighborhood vitality. Primary activities include weekly group music classes for children, youth, adults, and seniors in band, orchestra, choir, jazz, modern band, and early childhood music. Programs are designed to serve charter school students, homeschoolers, refugee populations, and youth connected to the San Diego Regional Center, often culminating in shared student showcases. After-school, weekend, and intergenerational programs welcome families to learn together. Partnerships with San Diego Parks and Recreation and Kupanda Kids Refugee Support Organization help provide free and low-cost enrichment opportunities. Public performances, including community concerts and the Pride Pop-Up Symphony founded in 2024, promote connection, visibility, and civic pride. Financial accessibility is supported through sliding-scale tuition, scholarships, loaner instruments, and family-led fundraising. Neurodivergent-affirming programs, including the nature-based In Harmony Educational Enrichment Program for ages 4–14, feature sensory-aware environments and flexible instruction. Serving 600–800 participants annually, Miller Music Academy employs about 10 teaching artists and engages thousands through performances, cultivating belonging, creative expression, and community pride. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $9,100.00 | Project Sheba | PO BOX 1080 , JOSHUA TREE, CA 92252-0809 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (310) 717-5722 | California's 8th congressional district | District 42 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, Project Sheba will produce the Desert Fringe Theatre and Cultural Arts Festival, a multi-day performing arts event in Twentynine Palms bringing original theatre, cabaret, spoken word, improv, music, and performance art to the Hi-Desert community. Festival programming will center culturally diverse and historically underrepresented artists and audiences across multiple accessible community venues, including free and low-cost events at public spaces such as the 29 Palms Farmers Market. CAC funds will support artist fees, venue costs, production materials, community outreach, and program documentation for the 2026 festival season, as well as Juneteenth and Black History Month celebrations at Knott's Sky Park. | Thought Theatre Desert Fringe Theatre and Cultural Arts Festival Juneteenth Festival Black History Month Cultural Celebration New Play reading series: Play by Playwrights and other writers |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Good Dirt Collective | 3011 W BULLARD AVE , FRESNO, CA 93711-1609 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 240-6517 | California Congressional District 21 | California State Assembly District 31 | California State Senate District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, Good Dirt Collective’s Mud Girls Workforce Development Program will provide trauma-informed arts workforce training for transitional-aged young women (18–25) who have aged out of foster care in Fresno County. Through hands-on experience in Good Dirt’s pottery studio, participants will develop skills in ceramic production, studio operations, product development, and creative entrepreneurship while engaging in meaningful arts learning and community connection. CAC grant funds will support artist mentorship, program staffing, studio materials, and workforce development activities that reduce barriers to arts access for a highly vulnerable population. The program also nurtures emerging artists by strengthening creative skills, resilience, and community engagement through sustained participation in the arts. | Current Program and Activities Good Dirt Collective operates a workforce development program that empowers foster youth through creative expression, mentorship, and paid job training. Mud Girls Workforce Development Program Mud Girls is a paid entrepreneurship and job training program for transitional-aged young women who have aged out of the foster care system. Participants work approximately 10 hours per week in Good Dirt’s pottery studio, gaining hands-on experience in pottery production, studio operations, product development, and marketing. Through structured mentorship, small business training, and community partnerships, participants build practical workforce skills while earning income. They create and sell pottery products through local markets, boutique retailers, and online platforms such as Etsy—developing both technical skills and financial independence during a critical transition to adulthood. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | San Francisco Transgender Film Festival | P.O. Box 460670 , San Francisco, CA 94146 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (707) 563-1689 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the CAC, the San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF) will respond with creativity and care to this time of emergency for transgender communities by producing our 29th annual SF Transgender Film Festival at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco. Our annual Festival will run November 12-22, 2026 with 5 in-person and 5 online programs. We will offer ASL interpretation at all of our in-person screenings, and all films (in-person AND online) will be captioned for Deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences. All our programs and events will be offered at $0+ sliding scale, to maximize access since our communities experience significant economic marginalization, employment discrimination, and continued Bay Area gentrification and displacement. We build community by providing opportunities for trans artists and audiences, fighting for intersectional justice in media arts, and supporting trans filmmakers. | As attacks on trans people’s very existence escalate, The San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF) uplifts films celebrating trans ancestors, honoring contemporary leaders, and imagining our liberated futures. SFTFF programming and events are open to everyone. Access is central to our values: all programs are offered on a $0+ sliding scale with no one turned away for lack of funds; all in-person screenings feature ASL interpretation, and all content is captioned; we require/provide KN95 masks; and only choose mobility-accessible venues; Our annual film festival, panels and talkbacks take place in-person at the historic Roxie Theater, and online through on-demand, closed-captioned programs. Our DREAMCommission Program annually awards creation funds to Bay Area BIPOC Trans/GNC filmmakers to support the creation of their new work. We stay connected with these filmmakers, to support and screen their new works in the months and years that follow. SFTFF screens films that offer empowered visions for movement building and social justice, and prioritizes films by and about our community’s most underrepresented and marginalized people: BIPOC folks; trans immigrants; disabled and Deaf trans people; youth and elders. We support both emerging and established artists and prioritize grassroots, experimental, or DIY films, since these are the films often made by our community’s most under-resourced people. Unlike most film festivals, SFTFF only screen works directed by Trans/GNC filmmakers, and where Trans/GNC actors portray Trans/GNC characters, undermining the stereotypes that reinforce the dominant cisgender culture’s transphobia, racism, sexism, and homophobia. Throughout the year, SFTFF provides curatorial support and guest curation for Trans/GNC film programs across the US. SFTFF and its staff also mentor and support emerging Trans/GNC film festivals in cities across the US and countries all over the world. SFTFF also supports and co-presents other local Trans/GNC arts programming. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | ABADA-Capoeira San Francisco | 3221 22nd Street , San Francisco, CA 94110-3006 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 206-0650 | California Assembly District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, ABADÁ-Capoeira San Francisco (ACSF) will expand its Youth Arts Education Program to three additional San Francisco public schools located in neighborhoods ranked in the lowest two quartiles of California’s Healthy Places Index. The program will provide free, comprehensive Afro-Brazilian arts education, primarily Capoeira, to approximately 275 BIPOC youth ages 5–12 who face significant barriers to arts access. Through regular classes and performance opportunities at community events and festivals, students will build confidence, cultural pride, leadership skills, and community connection. Programs are led by master-level BIPOC teaching artists whose lived experiences and cultural backgrounds reflect those of participants. This project advances ACSF’s strategic goal of expanding equitable access to culturally responsive arts education and builds on the organization’s 34-year legacy of serving historically under-resourced populations. | ACSF brings high-quality, culturally authentic Afro-Brazilian arts to streets, schools, and stages throughout the Bay Area. Its programs center on Capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian cultural practice created by enslaved Africans in Brazil as a response to oppression and a tool for liberation. Blending self-defense, dance, ritual, acrobatics, and music, Capoeira fosters a dynamic dialogue between body, mind, and spirit and is recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage. Grounded in resilience, Capoeira’s legacy of uniting diverse communities in pursuit of freedom and justice informs ACSF’s mission and programming. The organization offers year-round arts education; cultural festivals and performances; artist residencies and exchanges; apprenticeships; and employment opportunities, annually serving approximately 12,000 participants, primarily from under-resourced communities. Classes for children, teens, and adults span Capoeira, dance, music, and fitness, creating accessible pathways to engage with traditional arts. ACSF’s programs build artistic and physical skills while supporting cultural practitioners and emerging artists. They promote cultural awareness, conflict resolution, civic participation, and overall wellness, fostering connection and belonging. The Capoeira Arts Center serves as a vibrant cultural hub in San Francisco’s Mission District, housing the performance company, hosting internationally attended festivals, and providing daily classes alongside affordable space for artists and community organizations. ACSF advances equity and access through free and sliding-scale programs, inclusive and culturally relevant curriculum, leadership development opportunities, and outreach in under-resourced communities—strengthening social connection, supporting intergenerational engagement, and amplifying underrepresented artists while advancing gender equity worldwide. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Old First Concerts | 1751 SACRAMENTO ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109-3618 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 474-1608 | With support from the California Arts Council, OLD FIRST CENTER FOR THE ARTS will expand our concert offerings so that local artists presenting programs centering women, BIPOC and LGBTQ+ composers and performers continue to be celebrated and affirmed, and restore our staffing (full time director) to meet the needs of our patrons and artists. | Provide a venue for local artists to perform concerts and engage audiences, especially featuring music from "the margins" that may be neglected by mainstream venues. Live stream all concerts to provide access for those who are otherwise unable to attend musical events. Record all concerts to give performers material for auditions, grant applications, and promotion. Keep an extensive archive of musical performances containing many world and local premieres of newly composed music. Provide a neighborhood hub for cultural expression in an area that does not have other venues. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | San Francisco Transgender Film Festival | P.O. Box 460670 , San Francisco, CA 94146 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (707) 563-1689 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the CAC, the San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF) will respond with creativity and care to this time of emergency for transgender communities by: producing our 29th annual transgender film festival at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco; awarding DREAM Commission Grants to 6 BIPOC Trans filmmakers; partnering with local trans/queer-led organizations to build a strong community of by/of/for Trans and queer people; and co-sponsoring other trans community arts events throughout the year. All programs and events will be offered at $0+ sliding scale, to maximize access since Trans and gender-nonconforming communities experience disproportional economic marginalization, employment discrimination, and continued Bay Area gentrification and displacement. SFTFF builds community by providing opportunities for Trans and gender-nonconforming artists and audiences, fighting for intersectional justice in media arts, and supporting Trans filmmakers. | As attacks on trans people’s very existence escalate, The San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF) uplifts films celebrating trans ancestors, honoring contemporary leaders, and imagining our liberated futures. SFTFF programming and events are open to everyone. Access is central to our values: all programs are offered on a $0+ sliding scale with no one turned away for lack of funds; all in-person screenings feature ASL interpretation, and all content is captioned; we require/provide KN95 masks; and only choose mobility-accessible venues; Our annual film festival, panels and talkbacks take place in-person at the historic Roxie Theater, and online through on-demand, closed-captioned programs. Our DREAMCommission Program annually awards creation funds to Bay Area BIPOC Trans/GNC filmmakers to support the creation of their new work. We stay connected with these filmmakers, to support and screen their new works in the months and years that follow. SFTFF screens films that offer empowered visions for movement building and social justice, and prioritizes films by and about our community’s most underrepresented and marginalized people: BIPOC folks; trans immigrants; disabled and Deaf trans people; youth and elders. We support both emerging and established artists and prioritize grassroots, experimental, or DIY films, since these are the films often made by our community’s most under-resourced people. Unlike most film festivals, SFTFF only screen works directed by Trans/GNC filmmakers, and where Trans/GNC actors portray Trans/GNC characters, undermining the stereotypes that reinforce the dominant cisgender culture’s transphobia, racism, sexism, and homophobia. Throughout the year, SFTFF provides curatorial support and guest curation for Trans/GNC film programs across the US. SFTFF and its staff also mentor and support emerging Trans/GNC film festivals in cities across the US and countries all over the world. SFTFF also supports and co-presents other local Trans/GNC arts programming. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | The Beat Within | PO BOX 34310 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134-0310 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 909-9564 | 11 | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, THE BEAT WITHIN will implement a high-impact literary arts project providing weekly workshops and bi-monthly publication opportunities for over 4,500 justice-impacted youth across nine California counties. This initiative centers on "narrative justice," empowering vulnerable young people to utilize creative writing and visual arts to navigate trauma and cultivate civic agency. CAC funds will directly support the rigorous workshop-to-publication cycle, producing 24 magazine issues that serve as a vital public gallery, bridging the gap between isolated individuals and the broader community. By amplifying the voices of those within the juvenile justice system, this project promotes social equity and artistic healing, transforming juvenile detention environments into spaces of creative discovery. This project ensures California’s most marginalized youth have a consistent, professional platform for self-expression and community connection. | The Beat Within was founded in San Francisco, (1996) when David Inocencio, former assistant director of the Detention Diversion Advocacy Program, teamed up with Pacific News Service, a non-profit media/communications organization, to offer writing workshops to youth detained in San Francisco’s Juvenile Hall. The Beat printed its first publication following the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur when young people sought ways to express their intense feelings of loss. Originally, their work was printed in a 6-page magazine, which was brought back to them the following week. For some, it was the first positive recognition they ever received that they had a voice worthy of an audience. Today, the magazine is 60 pages and printed bi-weekly. Today, The Beat Within staff and volunteers serve over 5,000 youth annually through workshops operated across California county juvenile halls: San Francisco, Alameda, Fresno, Marin, Monterey, San Bernardino, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Solano, Riverside, and Los Angeles. Outside of California, Beat workshops occur in New Mexico, Hawaii, Oregon and in Washington, DC. The Beat Within has partnered with education and criminal justice programs at the University of California at Berkeley, Stanford University, San Francisco State, California College of the Arts, the University of Hawaii, the University of Redlands, and Portland State University. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,472.00 | Muckenthaler Cultural Center | 1201 W MALVERN AVE , FULLERTON, CA 92833-2429 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 738-6595 | California's 39th congressional district | District 65 | District 29 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Muckenthaler Cultural Center will deliver year-round arts education programming for developmentally delayed young adults ages 18–25, in partnership with REACH Services. Through four 13-week sessions, participants at REACH’s Los Nietos facility will engage in twice-weekly, artist-led classes in visual arts and ceramics. Led by teaching artist Jac Alva and supported by master ceramicist Willie Tabata, students will build technical, creative, and communication skills while deepening cultural literacy and community connection. CAC funds will support teaching artist fees, curriculum development, studio materials, and accessible arts experiences, serving sixty participants annually, including gallery visits, hands-on studio instruction, reflective critique, and meaningful opportunities for self-expression, confidence building, social engagement, and lifelong participation in California’s arts ecosystem for underserved young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities across Los Angeles County. | The Muckenthaler produces more than 60 performances, gallery exhibits, festivals and special events; and more than 3,500 hours of arts education classes at the Muck and in 25 outreach sites serving more than 41,000 people every year. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | PARANGAL DANCE COMPANY | 6112 California Street #2 , San Francisco, CA 94121 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 244-5203 | 11 | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Parangal Dance Company will sustain its programs, staff, and operations from October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2027. During this period, Parangal will premiere Kalinga Palin-awa, a new full-length dance-theater work centering the cultural practices of the Indigenous Kalinga people of the Philippines, at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. Following the premiere, the company will tour the work nationally and internationally. Parangal will continue its year-round programming of performances, workshops, and educational outreach rooted in Indigenous Filipino dance, music, and attire for the Northern California Filipino-diasporic community, including weekly Philippine Dance and Culture classes at the University of San Francisco and San Francisco State University, community performances throughout San Francisco, and public workshops sharing Indigenous Filipino cultural traditions. | Our objectives are: a) to provide workshops in ethnic dance, music, and attires inspired from the cultures of the Philippines; b) to sponsor special events involving the public performance of any or all of the above art forms as well as other performing arts by the corporation's performers as well as by other community performing arts groups; c) to directly engage in and to provide support for others to engage in the promotion of the arts; d) to nurture existing members in their artistic potential by empowering them with knowledge and freedom to express their connection and pride in the Philippine heritage; e) to continue to learn, share, and impart Philippine folk arts so the traditions can live on for future generations; and f) to purchase crafts, ethnic textiles, and instruments directly from various indigenous groups in the Philippines to support and help preserve their respective cultural heritage, ensuring transmission of indigenous skills and techniques to the next generation. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $8,475.00 | Bakersfield Community Theatre | 2400 South Chester Avenue , BAKERSFIELD, CA 93304 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 831-8114 | With support from the California Arts Council, BAKERSFIELD COMMUNITY THEATRE (BCT) will expand the number of participants and opportunities for young people in our free Youth Theatre Program. BCT’s Youth Theatre was founded in 1969 to provide free theatre performance training for teenagers. Over time, we expanded our program to include children as young as six years old. Over the years, other organizations began offering pay-to-play youth programs, and today there are six organizations offering youth workshops at a cost of up to $550 per child. BCT remains the only youth program that is completely free to all students, a commitment that has been reviewed and ratified over many decades by the BCT Board of Directors. BCT is committed to continuing this free program to provide this essential training to our most vulnerable children. | Live theatre productions Youth theatre training Technical training for newcomers | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | 4C LAB | 110 S. Orange Ave, Azusa, CA 91702 , AZUSA, CA 91702-4400 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 224-5893 | 32nd Congressional District | 48th Assembly | 22nd Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, 4C LAB will continue to provide no-cost, culturally responsive arts programming for youth ages 6-24 in under-resourced communities in Azusa and East Los Angeles. Funds will support the much needed sustainability of staffing and program coordination to maintain our programming. CAC’s investment will ensure continuity community-rooted programming that uplifts young artists as they heal, express themselves, and build futures in the creative economy as we provide vital access to culturally responsive instruction in visual art, theatre, dance, and creative career pathways for youth who live in the lowest percentile according to the California Healthy Index. With recent cuts to Arts Education, these funds are urgent and essential to keeping our organization alive and accessible. | The 4 C's are: To create, to communicate, to collaborate, to build community. These 4 C's are at the core of all of our programming. 4C LAB Creative Residency programs provide multi-week culturally responsive arts immersion led by professional teaching artists with embedded California curriculum standards for Elementary, Middle and High School students. 4C LAB Creative Residencies introduce the power of building community and creating positive social impact by sharing personal stories through art. The program includes workshops across various art forms including dance, theatre, poetry and multimedia, and culminate in a public performance. "Share Your Voice" Youth Summits- One day events with keynote speakers, multi-disciplinary arts workshops and resources to support positive mental health. SPARC Creative Career Mentorship program- Providing mentorship and job readiness for transitional youth, ages 18-24, for careers in creative fields. Youth are paid stipends and also serve as apprentice teaching artists within our programs Professional Development workshops: Provided for community organizations and school staff. Led by 4C LAB leadership, we provide best practices in creating culturally responsive practices in Arts & Education and using creative strategies to engage students and community building. CREATIVE COALITION is a platform and space for networking enabling like-minded organizations, artists and creatives to partner, share best practices and resources and connect. Events include guest speakers, opportunities for creative inspiration and topic discussions to progress the work as a global creative community. 4C LAB also offers creative consulting, providing best practices and producing creative events for organizations and individuals. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Everybody Dance LA! | 2955 Wilshire Blvd. , LOS ANGELES, CA 90010 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 365-2491 | CA-034 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Everybody Dance LA! (EDLA!) will provide at least 6,500 students in grades K- 12 with high quality, culturally responsive dance education through in-school, after-school, and enrichment programs. In 2026, EDLA! is celebrating 25 years of transformative dance education, advancing equity in arts education for some of Los Angeles’ most underserved youth. EDLA! directly addresses this inequity by bringing rigorous, culturally responsive dance education into the communities that need it most. Ninety-five percent of EDLA! students come from low-income families, and many would not otherwise have access to dance training, performances, or mentorship opportunities. | EDLA!’s work ensures that young people—many carrying the weight of economic hardship, family responsibility, and limited access to the arts—have a safe, supportive place to move, express themselves, and build confidence. Today, EDLA! is reaching 6,834 youth – 6,164 at 40 in-school locations and 670 at five after-school sites in under-resourced communities throughout Los Angeles. Our programs cultivate more than dancers—they nurture collaborators, communicators, and emerging leaders who carry these skills into every area of their lives. EDLA!’s programs form a comprehensive continuum that supports youth from early childhood through young adulthood (ages 4-19). In-School Program: EDLA!’s In-School Program integrates standards-based dance education into the school day across Los Angeles. Professional Teaching Artists collaborate with school administrators and educators to align programming with academic goals and student needs. Classes incorporate movement and mindfulness to support focus, emotional regulation, and engagement in learning. Each residency culminates in a performance that celebrates student growth and strengthens the school community. After-School Programs: EDLA!’s year-round After-School Program offers sequential level dance training led by professional Teaching Artists. Students can study multiple dance forms—including ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip hop, breaking, tap, and salsa—and often take more than one class per week. Every student performs twice annually, building confidence and pride through public performance. Enrichment, Leadership, and College Pathways: To deepen impact and retain middle and high school students, EDLA! offers enrichment programs at no additional cost, serving more than 140 students annually. These include: • Ballet Conservatory (three progressive levels through advanced pointe work) • Audition-based performance groups (Companies 1 & 2) • Student Creators Showcase (original student choreography) • Solos Class (preparation for high school and college auditions) • Mentor Match Program (monthly professional mentoring) • Student Leadership Team (public speaking and leadership development) • Student Teacher Education Program (STEP), providing hands-on job training |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | La Puerta | 3578 Mercer Ct , San Diego, CA 92122-2910 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 692-7323 | California District 50 | State Assembly District 77 | State Senate District 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Legacy Group DBA La Puerta will strengthen its capacity to expand community-based performing arts programs in San Diego. Support will help fund the salary of the Artistic Director and a part-time administrative assistant, providing the leadership and infrastructure necessary to guide programming, partnerships, and daily operations. Through this support, La Puerta will continue developing culturally rooted theater productions, workshops, and mentorship opportunities for emerging and established artists throughout California. The organization also provides training in theatrical production and technical crafts—including set construction, lighting, sound, costumes, and stage management—while creating opportunities for artists and technical workers to develop professional-level skills. This support will allow La Puerta to deepen community engagement, strengthen partnerships, and ensure sustainability of programs that foster artistic excellence and meaningful participation in the performing arts. | La Puerta develops performance, storytelling, and media projects that highlight the cultural voices and lived histories of Southern California communities. For example, "Handed Down" is a storytelling performance series combining theater, music, and dance. Beginning with Kumeyaay families in East County San Diego, the project transforms stories and objects passed through generations into original performances that can be shared with communities throughout California. La Puerta also produces podcasts and video blogs documenting artists and cultural life in under-served communities, exploring how creative expression helps individuals and neighborhoods move from the margins into fuller participation in the cultural life of the region. A third initiative draws inspiration from community-based theater traditions developed by Luis Valdez. Led by theater educator Victor Contreras, this program brings participatory theater into communities with limited access to the performing arts, inviting residents to shape performances drawn from their own experiences. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | WATER & POWER | 3027 S GRAND AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90007-3814 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 607-7689 | CA Congressional District 37 | CA Assembly District 57 | CA Senate District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Water & Power will provide one year of free rehearsal performance and exhibition space to BIPOC, low-income, and trans/LGBTQIA+ artists in Los Angeles facing systemic barriers such as housing insecurity, economic disadvantage and mental health challenges. The program will deliver 600+ hours of free rehearsal space and over 350 hours of free performance and exhibition space, with equipment, staff support and documentation services, enabling artists to develop and present new work without financial burden. CAC funds will support facility operations, production costs, programming staffing, documentation, and accessibility accommodations to ensure the space remains free and fully functional for artists at every stage of their career. Through this grant, we anticipate platforming 216 new artists and providing a total of $174,600 worth of rehearsal and exhibition space. | Water & Power provides performance and exhibition space for emerging artists working in electronic music, performance art, and installation. As an artist-led queer collective, we work to create accessible performance opportunities for our BIPOC LGBTQIA+ community of artists who have aged out of traditional institutional resources or never had access to them to begin with. Our programming focuses on peer-led learning from working artists, grassroots artist education, and hands-on workshops |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Institute of Inquiry | 6875 VALLEY VIEW DRIVE , Twentynine Palms, CA 92277 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (760) 666-8341 | California's 23rd District | State Assembly District 34 | State Senate District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Institute of Inquiry will invest in our local creative economy through arts education programming that includes Creative Fields, a 100-hour arts apprenticeship program for teens and transitional-aged youth, and corresponding career development for Teaching Artists Creative Fields strengthens key equity levers: resilience, self-compassion, and artistic engagement. Research shows contact with professional artists builds creative self-efficacy, widens career knowledge, and fortifies youth's sense of identity and belonging. A longitudinal NEA study found low-income youth with sustained arts education had markedly higher career aspirations and college attendance than peers with limited arts exposure. For local arts workers, Creative Fields provides employment supporting their growth as educators through training in youth-centered approaches, as well as artists-in-residence from the greater Inland Empire region through our partnership with Arts Connection's Estudio Aire program. | As we enter our ninth year as an organization, we are acutely focused on building greater interdependence into our operations. Together, our high desert region and the broader Inland Empire contribute immense creative and cultural value to the state, even as our communities have historically received far less material investment and resources than our urban counterparts. Our work is informed by our deep knowledge of these structural and economic challenges of rural desert life. We are dedicated to the long-term health of our vibrant but underserved communities through providing responsive arts education and substantive, creative employment. Our core programs and services include” Creative Fields”, a 100-hour arts apprenticeship and career mentorship program for teens and transitional-aged youth, and its corresponding career development pathway for Teaching Artists. Arts professionals who participate in Creative Fields receive over 40 hours of mentorship and training in youth-centered approaches to education. Our support of the local creative economy is expanding to the greater Inland Empire through our evolving partnership with Arts Connection, our longtime fiscal sponsor and mentor organization. Arts Connection's Estudio Aire program supports artists through one to two-month long, work-only residencies focused on professional development. Beginning in Fall 2026, the Institute of Inquiry will host two Estudio Aire artists-in-residence annually for an extended period through live-work residencies at our location adjacent to Joshua Tree National Park.For artists who reside in more densely populated and urban parts of the Inland Empire, these residencies offer the gift of extended time in the wildlands of the high desert, where our relationship to the natural world cannot be easily managed or ignored. In opening our programming to a wider geographic region, we are also enriching the lives of youth participants through mentorship with artists representing a broader spectrum of cultural and racial backgrounds. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | PURPLE SILK MUSIC EDUCATION FOUNDATION | 1427 Willow St , Oakland, CA 94607-1523 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 316-2895 | California's 12th Congressional District | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, PURPLE SILK MUSIC EDUCATION FOUNDATION (PSMEF) will strengthen and expand its Chinese music program for K-12 students throughout the San Francisco Bay Area in 2026-2027, promoting and preserving Chinse musical traditions and culture and bringing Chinese music alive for new generations of young people and diverse community audiences. PSMEF’s music education program provides free/low-fee instruction in traditional Chinese musical instruments, taught by Chinese music specialists, to underserved children and youth (grades K-12, primarily BIPIOC and low-income) at local community centers and schools. During the grant period, PSMEF will expand its weekend, afterschool, and summer programming and increase enrollment 60%, from 100 to 160+ students. CAC funds will partially underwrite core operating expenses for PSMEF’s programs at nine sites in Oakland, Berkeley, San Leandro, San Francisco, and Daly City. | CORE PROGRAMS/SERVICES: In 2025, PSMEF marked its 30th Anniversary, celebrating three decades of service to the Bay Area community. This milestone anniversary also represented a turning point for PSMEF, as its long-time Artistic Director and several older artists retired. PSMEF’s Board had been preparing for this transition for several years, recruiting new Board members and artists in anticipation of these departures. PSMEF also hired its first Executive Director in January 2025. As part of this leadership transition, PSMEF has recommitted to its original educational mission and decided to prioritize an enhanced community-based instructional program, while continuing to honor its commitment to performance. In mid-2025, PSMEF moved its core weekend program from Laney College to the Shoong Family Chinese Cultural Center (SFCCC), centrally located in the heart of Oakland’s Chinatown neighborhood, its primary service area. The revised weekend program, now called the Purple Silk Music Academy (PSMA), features a multi-tiered Chinese music education curriculum focused on intensive instruction in traditional Chinese musical instruments, taught by PSMEF’s staff of Chinese music specialists. Instruction is delivered in a small group format, providing in-depth, individualized instruction over time for each student. PSMA also emphasizes ensemble work and upper-level students participate in the Purple Silk Youth Orchestra and perform at community events throughout the year, including Chinese New Year’s celebrations. PSMEF also introduced a new curriculum for its Artists-in-Schools (AIS) program, Introduction to Chinese Music, developed by a former K-12 educator. It is actively pursuing partnerships with Chinese immersion schools throughout the Bay Area, as well as sites with afterschool Mandarin programs. Finally, in 2025, PSMEF piloted its first Summer Music Program (SMP) to counteract “summer learning loss” for students enrolled in its weekend program. In 2026, it will continue the SMP at SFCCC and introduce a shorter summer program at one partner school. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | TTPC | 2600 N ALTADENA DR , ALTADENA, CA 91001-2838 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (732) 939-7875 | With support from the California Arts Council, TONGVA TARAXAT PAXAAVXA CONSERVANCY will expand and sustain Indigenous-led arts, cultural preservation, and community engagement programming centered at Huhuunga, the first parcel of land returned to Tongva stewardship in over 200 years. CAC funds will support free public arts and cultural programming including seasonal cultural gatherings, Indigenous arts workshops, storytelling, music and dance presentations, Native artist collaborations, youth arts engagement, Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) workshops, digital webinars, and accessibility improvements that increase participation for historically underrepresented Native communities and the broader public. Funding will also strengthen organizational infrastructure, artist support, community outreach, accessibility accommodations, and administrative capacity necessary to sustain culturally rooted programming that preserves and uplifts Native cultural practices, Native artistic expression, environmental stewardship, and intergenerational learning. | Land Rematriation & Stewardship: Indigenous-led stewardship and restoration of Tongva ancestral lands, beginning with Huhuunga in Altadena, the first land returned to Tongva stewardship in over 200 years. Huhuunga is home to all of TTPC’s in-person events, as well our administrative headquarters and the future home of our cultural center and Artist-In-Residence. Cultural Ceremonies & Traditional Practice: Hosting seasonal Tongva ceremonies, song, dance, regalia, storytelling, and gatherings at Huhuunga to promote cultural preservation and the passing down of traditions and knowledge. Cultural Education & Webinars: Free quarterly virtual webinars and digital programming sharing Tongva history, art, cultural knowledge, and Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) with community members, educators, and the broader public. Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) & Climate Resilience: Application of TEK to wildfire recovery, native plant restoration, water conservation, and land stewardship practices, including post-fire restoration following the Eaton Fire. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Company of Angels | 1350 San Pablo St. , LOS ANGELES, CA 90033 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 475-8814 | California's 34th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With the support of the California Arts Council, Company of Angels will sustain our theater’s mission and goals by supporting salaries/fees for Artistic Director, Grant writer as well as increasing the number of teaching artists for our community based programs. | Company of Angels is dedicated to creating theater that is deeply connected to its community. We aim to share and help give voice to the many stories that exist in our community. With a collective of Actors, Directors, Playwrights, Designers, and Administrators, our company forges ongoing and meaningful relationships with the residents of Los Angeles. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Taste of Freedom Project | 202 w byrd ave , fresno, CA 93706 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 353-1184 | With support from the California Arts Council, Taste of Freedom Project will present Standing on Their Shoulders, a free intergenerational and multicultural arts celebration at Fresno Pacific University that honors the legacy of Central Valley elders and historically underrepresented communities. This funding will support artist and speaker fees, multicultural drumming and dance performances, storytelling workshops, youth art engagement, visual arts presentations, outreach, materials, accessibility supports, and project coordination. Our project will bring together elders, youth, families, artists, educators, and community partners to preserve cultural memory, uplift overlooked histories, and create a welcoming space for healing, belonging, and creative expression. Through workshops, performances, oral storytelling, poetry, music, and visual art, the project will strengthen intergenerational connection and help community members see their histories reflected with dignity. | The Taste of Freedom Project offers mission-driven programs that preserve and present California’s history through arts and education. Our core initiatives include: 1. Immersive Exhibitions- Engaging, interactive displays that bring California’s history to life through art, sound, and performance, grounded in historical research and community storytelling. 2. Arts-Based Education- Culturally responsive programs for students and educators, featuring workshops and resources that enhance understanding of California’s diverse cultures. 3. Oral History Projects- Collection and presentation of oral histories from underrepresented communities, preserving valuable narratives for exhibits and digital media. 4. Artist Collaborations- Support for artists to create works that explore historical and cultural themes, resulting in public art and community projects. 5. Community Events- Programs like cultural festivals and panel discussions that promote dialogue and connection among diverse communities. 6. Youth Engagement- Empowering youth to explore their heritage and develop leadership skills through mentorship and creative workshops. 7. Accessibility and Equity: Commitment to free or low-cost programming and inclusive planning processes to meet the diverse needs of our communities. The Taste of Freedom Project delivers mission-driven programs that authentically preserve and present California's history through the arts and education. Rooted in truth, dignity, and respect, our core programs offer immersive, inclusive experiences that connect diverse communities to the state’s rich and complex past. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | ArtsOC | 17620 Fitch Avenue Suite 255, Irvine, CA 92614 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 556-5160 | 47 | 73 | 37 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTS ORANGE COUNTY will serve as the agency’s State Local Partner for the County of Orange, championing and connecting our county’s artists, arts organizations, and residents, while representing the interests and policies of the CAC. | Arts Orange County fulfills its mission by offering the following programs and services: Regranting – when funds are available. During pandemic, raised private funds and secured County funding, oversaw regranting of nearly $8 million. In 2023-24, served as Administering Organization for CAC’s Individual Artist Fellowship Program in Region I (Imperial, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego counties). Orange County Arts Awards, honoring artists, arts visionaries and arts patrons Creative Edge Lecture, presenting thought-leaders in the field of creativity Imagination Celebration, county-wide, six-week festival of arts for families & children in collaboration with Orange County Department of Education Día del Niño, a free festival of Latino arts for families and children OC Jails Project, creative writing instruction to Transitional Age Youth SparkOC.com, online arts calendar Newsletter, bi-monthly ArtsOC institutional & arts community news Leadership Convenings, bringing together arts leaders of various cohorts and artists for regular online and in-person gatherings to share concerns, best practices Breaking Through, webinars for arts leaders about exemplary local programs fulfilling diversity, equity and inclusion goals Emerging Arts Leaders-OC Consulting and Project Management services on cultural planning & public art to municipalities and arts organizations |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Taste of Freedom Project | 202 w byrd ave , fresno, CA 93706 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 353-1184 | With support from the California Arts Council, Taste of Freedom Project will strengthen its general operations as a growing arts and cultural organization that preserves underrepresented histories through storytelling, visual art, music, dance, poetry, living history, and intergenerational cultural education. This funding will support organizational capacity, program planning, artist and culture bearer engagement, outreach, accessibility planning, documentation, volunteer coordination, and administrative systems needed to sustain community-centered programming. Operating support will help Taste of Freedom Project expand events such as Standing on Their Shoulders, deepen partnerships with schools, artists, health providers, and cultural leaders, and continue creating accessible arts experiences that uplift Central Valley elders, youth, families, and historically underrepresented communities. | The Taste of Freedom Project offers mission-driven programs that preserve and present California’s history through arts and education. Our core initiatives include: 1. Immersive Exhibitions- Engaging, interactive displays that bring California’s history to life through art, sound, and performance, grounded in historical research and community storytelling. 2. Arts-Based Education- Culturally responsive programs for students and educators, featuring workshops and resources that enhance understanding of California’s diverse cultures. 3. Oral History Projects- Collection and presentation of oral histories from underrepresented communities, preserving valuable narratives for exhibits and digital media. 4. Artist Collaborations- Support for artists to create works that explore historical and cultural themes, resulting in public art and community projects. 5. Community Events- Programs like cultural festivals and panel discussions that promote dialogue and connection among diverse communities. 6. Youth Engagement- Empowering youth to explore their heritage and develop leadership skills through mentorship and creative workshops. 7. Accessibility and Equity: Commitment to free or low-cost programming and inclusive planning processes to meet the diverse needs of our communities. The Taste of Freedom Project delivers mission-driven programs that authentically preserve and present California's history through the arts and education. Rooted in truth, dignity, and respect, our core programs offer immersive, inclusive experiences that connect diverse communities to the state’s rich and complex past. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | CALIFORNIA DANCE INSTITUTE | 1171 S. Robertson Blvd. #602 , Los Angeles, CA 90035 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 301-8900 | California Assembly district 53 | District 53 | District 24 | With support of up to $25,000 from the California Arts Council, California Dance Institute (CDI) will provide 24 weeks of in-school and 32 weeks of after-school dance instruction with live music at Carson-Gore Elementary, a Title I public school site in West Adams, Los Angeles. Students learn rhythm, musicality, passion, perseverance, teamwork, and self-expression, culminating in a professionally produced end-of-year performance that highlights student growth and achievement. | California Dance Institute's (CDI) programs use dance and music to teach children to strive for excellence. The in-school programs teach an athletic style of dance for one hour each week for 25-28 weeks. The after-school programs teach children more advanced choreography for 1.5 to 2 hours each week for 30-34 weeks and culminate with professional-level performances at the end of the year. CDI is currently serving over 1,200 children in public schools in underserved neighborhoods throughout Los Angeles County. During its twenty-two year history, CDI has served over 24,000 Los Angeles-area students with direct programming. CDI programs have been cited by noted neuroscientists and educators as providing activities in its teaching that aid in children's cognitive development, bringing teaching artists in to work directly with students who otherwise would have little access to the arts. As we have for twenty-two years, CDI continues to reach students through our in-school program that emphasizes rigorous yet accessible dance, rhythm and musicality, along with building skills that aid in developing strong executive function skills. Our specialized after-school program provides greater learning opportunities for those students who want to reach a little higher. The demonstrated integrity of our program and the substantial results attested to by our students and their teachers and families further the CAC’s commitment to nurturing cultural programs supporting the arts and education. During the pandemic, CDI developed online programming and new teaching techniques and received accolades from parents, students, teachers and principals who credited CDI for keeping students engaged, focused and connected. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Sketch Odyssey East Bay | 6451 Hazel Avenue , Richmond, CA 94805 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 350-6906 | California Assembly district 14 | District CA-8 | District 7 | Support from the California Arts Council will allow the Children's Art Studio Richmond (CASR) to expand program capacity and meet demonstrated community demand. In addition to expanding core programming, this funding will transition CASR's successful "Pop-Up" workshops into a consistent, permanent-site model for children ages 2–12, directly addressing persistent waitlists. Specifically, resources will support the launch of the Hero Teddy pilot, a trauma-informed collaboration with the Richmond PD designed to foster emotional resilience in children during crises. Funding will facilitate the development of the "Studio for All" in-home model, removing transportation barriers for families. By funding a bilingual educator and specialized materials, CASR will strengthen its "Process-to-Process" curriculum, ensuring that over 80% of its Spanish-speaking households receive high-quality, culturally grounded arts education. | The Children's Art Studio Richmond / Taller de Arte Para Niños Richmond provides free art classes in both English and Spanish to children aged 2 - 5 in the Richmond, CA community, regardless of their background or resources. This program is designed to support each individual child to achieve their highest creative potential, while teaching children basic art-making techniques. We emphasize the importance of cooperation and self-help, self- discipline, and assuming responsibility for the use of these materials. Through this approach, we foster a sense of exploration, creativity, and self- expression in each child. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | SAFE HOME HOUSING | 626 W Lancaster Blvd suite 120 , Lancaster, CA 93534-3108 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 528-8897 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAFE HOME HOUSING AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR CHANGE will use grant funds to support the general operations of its community-based arts and cultural programming serving underserved populations through arts education, cultural expression, creative engagement, and community beautification activities. Funding will support personnel, teaching artists, accessibility efforts, outreach, arts supplies, workshops, public engagement activities, and operational expenses necessary to sustain ongoing arts and cultural services. The organization will continue providing visual arts workshops, decorative arts activities, cultural arts programming, creative home enhancement projects, public art engagement, and intergenerational arts experiences for low-income families, youth, seniors, transitional housing residents, and communities with limited access to arts resources while promoting healing, self-expression, community connection, and cultural enrichment through accessible arts participation. | Our core programs help individuals and families create safe, inspiring, and visually enriching environments that promote creativity, wellness, and community pride. Our services include creative home enhancement programs that support interior and exterior artistic improvements through décor, color coordination, visual design, and culturally inspired creative projects. We offer arts workshops and hands-on learning experiences focused on DIY art, home styling, creative expression, and cultural arts education for youth, adults, seniors, and families. In addition, we promote arts for wellness by helping participants use creative environments and artistic expression to reduce stress, encourage healing, and improve quality of life. Our collaboration with Opportunities For Change also leads community beautification initiatives that engage residents in collaborative art projects, neighborhood enhancement activities, public art displays, and creative revitalization efforts that strengthen community identity and pride. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Arts Council Napa Valley | PO Box 2782 , Napa, CA 94558 | Napa | Bay Area – Other | (707) 257-2117 | California's 5th congressional district | District 4 | District 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts Council Napa Valley (ACNV) serves as the primary engine for connecting, advocating for, and leading the county’s arts community. We achieve this by mobilizing a network of advocates, spearheading policy initiatives, and providing essential education and resources to the creative workforce. Central to our mission is a comprehensive change plan designed to foster a diverse and equitable arts ecosystem that reflects the unique demographics of Napa County. Our impact is driven by three core programs: the Community Grant Fund, providing semi-annual financial support to artists and small organizations; the Arts Education Alliance, which empowers students and educators through recognition and resources; and the Napa County Creative Directory, a vital platform linking working artists with professional opportunities. | As the official local arts agency in Napa County, it is our role to connect, advocate and lead the arts community countywide. By building a network of advocates, organizing policy initiatives, and empowering the industry through education, information, and resources, we serve to benefit all residents with a more sustainable, accessible and quality local arts scene. Arts Council Napa Valley's core programs are The Community Grant Fund, supporting artists and small arts organization through twice yearly grants; The Arts Education Alliance, supporting arts student and teachers as well as selecting the arts student of the month and year; and The Napa County Creative Directory, connecting working artists with hirers. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Karen Organization of San Diego | 5354 UNIVERSITY AVE SUITE 1 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92105-2204 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 582-0783 | the 52nd Congressional district of California | District 79 | District 39 | With the CAC grant funds, Karen Organization of San Diego (KOSD) will offer a Karen Traditional Dance Education Program for refugee youth from Burma who are 3-25 years old. This is the only art programming in San Diego offering traditional Karen Dance instructions, and KOSD aims to support at least 50 youth through the program to make sure that they can participate in free arts learning activities rooted in their own cultural heritage and have opportunities to perform at various local events and cultural festivals. Although the proposed program targets youth with refugee experiences from Burma, KOSD welcomes any youth in the community who are interested in learning Karen traditional dance and who may not otherwise have access to arts learning activities. | Founded in 2009, KOSD has served more than 600 refugees and newcomers from Burma each year through case management, support groups, community education, youth leadership development, and culture preservation. KOSD’s art and culture programming includes traditional dances, weaving, and heritage language classes as well as the oral history preservation project and coordination of various culture events. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Outside the Lens | 125 14th St , San Diego, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 349-7578 | District 50 | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Outside the Lens will, in collaboration with the Sherman Heights Community Center and Groundwork San Diego, implement a new pilot program “Land + Lenses Chollas Creek”, a youth-led media arts project that explores the relationship between people, culture, and land in the Chollas Creek watershed in southern San Diego county. | Outside the Lens engages the next generation of artists, storytellers, and innovators through media arts education. Through our programs, youth learn media arts skills, media literacy, socio-emotional development, vocational exploration, and civic engagement. Our Media Educators create a learning environment centered on trauma-informed practices, culturally responsive teaching, socio-emotional learning, and restorative practices. K-8 Programs: Partnering with schools and districts, we enhance students’ learning by integrating media arts and technology into core curricula (Math, Science, Social Sciences, English Language Arts) for grades K-8. These projects deepen students’ understanding of core content, cultivate media arts skills, and foster a well-rounded educational experience. Our after-school programs and summer camps offer youth opportunities to explore their passions, develop new skills, and discover the transformative power of media arts. Teens and Transitional Age Youth Programs: We provide specialized programming for teens and Transitional Age Youth (TAY) (18-25 years old) through community partnerships. Our projects enhance media literacy, promote social-emotional wellbeing, and foster intergenerational community connections. This programming develops creative pathways for career and college readiness, encourages self-discovery, and civic engagement, empowering teens to amplify their voices and effect positive change. Media Makers inspires young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD)—facilitating independence and creative expression. Educator Trainings: We offer arts-integration teacher training to help educators integrate art-based lessons into their curriculum. Available for individual educators, grade level teams, schools, or districts, these trainings provide innovative ideas, practical skills, and ready-to-use projects aligned with Media Arts and Common Core standards. Summer Camps: Our Media Arts Summer Camps offer youth in grades K-8 to explore various artistic mediums, such as photography, filmmaking, graphic design, and animation. Community Workshops: Our weekend and evening media arts workshops, open to families, teens, and adults, cater to both budding artists and experienced creators seeking further skill development. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Dohee Lee Puri Arts | 44 Gough Street #201 , San Francisco, CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 316-1106 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Dohee Lee Puri Arts will produce, perform and tour contemporary performance art grounded in traditional Jeju Island ritual practices and informed by immigrant and refugee experiences in California today, creating art that heals fractured relationships between people and the land in urban communities. | Artistic Director, Dohee Lee was born on Jeju Island in South Korea. She trained at the master level in Korean dance, Korean percussion, and vocals rooted in Shamanism. Her organization focuses on integrating these traditional ritual forms with contemporary influences into programs and services that emphasize the mythical, experimental, ritualistic, historical and healing aspects of performance and installation, catalyzing new relationships between identity, nature, spirituality, and the political. Programs and services include: -National and international touring of Dohee Lee's multidisciplinary performance works. -Community rituals for healing and justice with partner Asian immigrant and refugee organizations and artists/activists from other communities of color -Workshops, lecture-demos and master classes in dance, ritual arts, performance art/performance-making and healing for a wide range of community, educational and cultural partners across the state, U.S. and internationally |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | HOME SOIL PROJECTS | 30902 CLUBHOUSE DRIVE UNIT 24 F , LAGUNA NIGUEL, CA 92677-2393 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 344-6604 | 49th Congressional District | 74th Assembly District | 38th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Home Soil Projects will produce How Do We Dress for the Weather?, a free participatory dance performance and Civic Performance Lab in partnership with The FRONT / El Salon Theatre in San Ysidro. Led by Zoya Shojaee Sardashti and Zaquia Luisa Salinas, the project will engage immigrant, first- and second-generation diasporic, multilingual, and border-impacted communities through movement practices, vocal performance, multilingual translation, collective writing, and public performance. From January to March 2027, participants will be invited to take part in up to two free Civic Performance Labs, co-create multilingual movement and text scores, and contribute to a culminating public performance, exhibition, and publication. CAC funds will support artist and arts worker fees, accessibility services, rehearsal and venue rental, production, documentation, publication, workshop materials, and community outreach. | Home Soil Projects’ core programmes include artistic education workshops, Civic Performance Labs, participation centered curatorial projects, and live performances or public interventions. Our artistic education workshops bridge critical theory and creative practice through writing, movement, voice, and dialogue. Participants translate lived experience into performance-based research, academic writing, studio practice, and shared reflection. These workshops support artists, students, educators, and community members in developing practical tools for self-knowledge, collaboration, and social justice inquiry. Our Civic Performance Lab is a research-led programme for performances, exhibitions, and public gatherings. Through co-designed scores, movement practices, writing prompts, and facilitated dialogue, participants explore how language, gesture, memory, and public space shape belonging. Each lab is adapted to the needs of the partner site and can result in performances, exhibitions, publications, or community-generated documentation. Our curatorial practice supports participation centered live art and performance within theatres, galleries, public programmes, and community spaces. We design formats where audiences and participants are invited into meaningful exchange rather than passive observation. Our performances and public interventions use embodied artistic practice to address migration, racial justice, ecological grief, gendered violence, and social repair. Across all programmes, Home Soil Projects creates accessible, community-rooted spaces where people can listen, move, reflect, and co-create new ways of responding to exclusion, inequity, and cultural change. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $11,490.00 | California Poets in the Schools | 4055 Telegraph Ave , Oakland, CA 94609 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 221-4201 | District 12 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, CALIFORNIA POETS IN THE SCHOOL will coordinate a narrative change project with youth members of Oakland based organization Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice (CURYJ). Youth will participate in 12 poetry workshops focused on cultural uplift and healing through personal narrative and 3 editing sessions all at CURYJ offices, a chapbook of their collective work will be published as well as 3 public poetry readings will be held in local public venues throughout East Oakland encouraging public discourse and celebration of youth poetry as means of personal empowerment and social commentary. | Since 1964, California Poets in the Schools (CalPoets) has grown into one of the nation’s oldest and largest writers-in-the-schools programs. Each year, more than 100 poetry teaching artists reach over 20,000 students across California, delivering dynamic poetry instruction that nurtures creativity, critical thinking, and self-expression. CalPoets offers a robust professional network for California poets, providing over 50 annual training, creative, and networking events—including a three-day poetry conference. Teaching artists receive fundraising support, affiliation with a respected statewide nonprofit, and a clear pathway to earn income while giving back to their local communities through teaching. Our diverse network of teaching artists includes emerging voices, open mic champions, and established poets with national recognition. All are serious literary artists and trained educators who bring age-appropriate poetry instruction into classrooms and community settings. They serve as living examples of the artistic life, inspiring students through their own commitment to language and expression. CalPoets operates in approximately 25 counties, from Humboldt and Siskiyou to Los Angeles and San Diego, reaching students in public and private schools, juvenile halls, after-school programs, hospitals, and other community spaces—both urban and rural. We amplify the voices of California youth by creating platforms for poetry writing, performance, and publication. Each year, students are featured in school, regional, and a statewide professionally published anthology—offering lasting records of their creative achievements. These opportunities help young people share their voices with broader audiences, often for the first time. CalPoets also supports the Poetry Out Loud program in numerous counties and has played a leadership role in launching Youth Poet Laureate programs in Sonoma, Mendocino, Santa Barbara, and Marin counties since 2020—continuing our commitment to youth development, leadership, and literary excellence across the state. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | TILTshift Dance | 13525 Mira Montana Dr , DEL MAR, CA 92014 | San Diego | Far South | (415) 533-5570 | With support from the California Arts Council, TILTshift Dance will successfully produce and implement our 2027 Asian American Dance Festival (AADF) programming. CAC grant funds will allow us to adequately pay and increase our number of artists, residents, and interns, bring on much needed administrative help, and secure accessible venues, all deepening our community reach and impact. AADF programming includes sub-programs: AADF: Becoming Asian American (festival) – San Diego’s first and only dance festival, centering AAPI artists and communities, consists of Dance Film Screening, Community Day, Residency Showcase, and Mainstage Showcase. AADF Collaborative Residency, Internship & Fellowship – A professional development program, offering mentorship for early/mid-career AAPI artists while serving community. AADF Winter Symposium – A weekend of dance/movement classes, uplifting the visibility of local AAPI dance/movement instructors. AADF Gatherings – Networking events for AAPI dance/movement professionals. | As dance makers, we create works for stage, film, and site specific. As dance teachers, we offer classes in modern, contemporary and conditioning/fitness. As dance educators, we hold workshops in choreography and encourage dialog through facilitated "wrecking" events. As community driven dance artists, we provide opportunities and space for other dance artists to work on their craft, to dig into the creative process, to collaborate artistically, and to tell their stories in their own voices. We curate and present the annual Asian American Dance Festival (AADF), San Diego's first and only full dance festival celebrating AAPI dance artists. In addition to performance showcases, AADF also consists of a residency and internship program for early to mid-career AAPI dance artists. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | "" | 653 CHENERY ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94131-3033 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 586-3733 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bird & Beckett Cultural Legacy Project, a small arts organization, will present 'Saxophones Colossus,' a series of 8 free saxophone masterclasses with master Bay Area artist-educators. This program will respond to a community-defined need to uplift marginalized master musicians from the Black cultural traditions of jazz and blues and provide accessible, culturally relevant, intergenerational learning opportunities. The program will be collaboratively developed with community members and use artistic practices to impact Black Bay Area communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification. | Established in 2008 to formalize and expand cultural programming begun in 1999 at Bird & Beckett Books and Records, Bird & Beckett Cultural Legacy Project (BBCLP) now regularly hosts 4-5 concerts each week, 3 poetry readings, with featured readers and open mic, and 2 cultural talks and conversations per month, along with other cultural and artistic events throughout the year. “Jazz in the Bookshop,” a free Friday-after-work series that showcases local jazz artists from a wide range of ages and backgrounds, has run continuously since 2002 and was augmented with a second after-dinner concert in 2022. “Jazz Club,” a ticketed Saturday night series (since 2016), showcases jazz musicians from the top ranks of local players, spanning many generations, in the top echelon of jazz musicians worldwide. “Which Way West?” a Sunday afternoon series (since 2008), presents Bay Area musicians who bring music from other traditions. This series allows room for “out” and avant garde jazz, world music, western classical music, Americana, and bluegrass, among other “traditional” and generally acoustic genres. “POETS!” (since 2002) and “Virtual POETS!” (since 2020) present two featured poets and an o pen mic each session. “SFLives” (since 2021) is a series of conversations between journalist Denise Sullivan and guests on “arts and arts advocacy in pursuit of equity” focusing on issues of importance to San Francisco’s culture workers and its populace. “Walker Talks” (since 2002) is a scholarly lecture series that takes place once a month hosted by Walker Brents III. Since 2020, BBCLP has significantly increased its technical capacity for live presentation, streaming, and professional-quality recording, and maintains a robust archive of performances, with over 600 videos available on the BBCLP YouTube channel and a selection released on CD by the musicians and/or their record labels. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | California Karen Youth Connection | 399 UCCELLO WAY , SACRAMENTO, CA 95835-2653 | Sacramento | Capital | (510) 434-6355 | 6th | 6 | 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, California Karen Youth Connection (CKYC) will expand access to underserved refugee and immigrant communities through enhanced curriculum development, increased youth leadership opportunities, and stronger intergenerational teaching models that engage elders, cultural practitioners, and emerging youth leaders as co-facilitators. Funding will support operational capacity, including staff and instructor salaries, program materials, facility rentals, outreach, and accessibility supports necessary for statewide implementation. CAC investment will allow CKYC to sustain safe, culturally grounded learning spaces where youth can strengthen cultural identity, artistic skills, leadership development, community connection and creative expression. This project cultivates a new generation of youth artists, cultural leaders, interpreters, and community advocates who contribute to California’s diverse arts ecosystem. Through performances, language revitalization, storytelling, and cultural events, CKYC continues to advance cultural equity, intergenerational healing, and community visibility. | The CKYC is dedicated to empowering both Karen and non-Karen youth and communities statewide through culturally informed leadership education, the arts, advocacy, and human services. With a 13-year track record of leadership, arts education, and community service, CKYC has supported the Karen American refugee and asylum population, as well as other vulnerable and underrepresented communities. We serve over 400 individuals annually across the Bay Area, Sacramento, Manteca, Kern County, and Southern California. Additionally, we collaborate with more than 10 partners to amplify our impact. We deliver four core programs: Arts and Cultural Program, Leadership Development Program, College and Career Mentorship Program, and Civic Engagement Program. These programs and services are critical to the success of our youth and a thriving community. By engaging in cultural practices, youth and the broader community gain not only a sense of pride in their Karen identity but also a deeper connection to their heritage and each other. The preservation of Karen traditions helps break the cycle of trauma and displacement, offering individuals a space to heal, connect, and thrive, furthermore, by passing down knowledge from one generation to the next. The CKYC ensures that these traditions evolve into sources of strength, collaboration, and opportunity for future generations. As youth develop leadership skills, they become ambassadors of their culture, promoting diversity and inclusion both within the Karen community and in society at large. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | 4C LAB | 110 S. Orange Ave, Azusa, CA 91702 , AZUSA, CA 91702-4400 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 224-5893 | 32nd Congressional District | 48th Assembly | 22nd Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, 4C LAB will expand our culturally responsive 12 week “Soundtrack of Our Lives” Creative Residency program for youth, ages 12-18 years old in Azusa, CA. Youth participants will be guided by professional teaching artists to interview family members, Veterans, and Seniors in Azusa to archive and preserve stories by creating original songs and oral stories to be recorded and shared for online listening and at a free public community culmination. Funds will be used to pay guest teaching artists, provide program materials, marketing and culmination expenses. | The 4 C's are: To create, to communicate, to collaborate, to build community. These 4 C's are at the core of all of our programming. 4C LAB Creative Residency programs provide multi-week culturally responsive arts immersion led by professional teaching artists with embedded California curriculum standards for Elementary, Middle and High School students. 4C LAB Creative Residencies introduce the power of building community and creating positive social impact by sharing personal stories through art. The program includes workshops across various art forms including dance, theatre, poetry and multimedia, and culminate in a public performance. "Share Your Voice" Youth Summits- One day events with keynote speakers, multi-disciplinary arts workshops and resources to support positive mental health. SPARC Creative Career Mentorship program- Providing mentorship and job readiness for transitional youth, ages 18-24, for careers in creative fields. Youth are paid stipends and also serve as apprentice teaching artists within our programs Professional Development workshops: Provided for community organizations and school staff. Led by 4C LAB leadership, we provide best practices in creating culturally responsive practices in Arts & Education and using creative strategies to engage students and community building. CREATIVE COALITION is a platform and space for networking enabling like-minded organizations, artists and creatives to partner, share best practices and resources and connect. Events include guest speakers, opportunities for creative inspiration and topic discussions to progress the work as a global creative community. 4C LAB also offers creative consulting, providing best practices and producing creative events for organizations and individuals. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SAFE HOME HOUSING | 626 W Lancaster Blvd suite 120 , Lancaster, CA 93534-3108 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 528-8897 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAFE HOME HOUSING AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR CHANGE will provide community-based arts and cultural programming that promotes creative expression, wellness, community beautification, and equitable access to the arts for underserved populations. Grant funds will support visual arts workshops, cultural arts education, youth and family creative activities, senior arts engagement, community art showcases, and beautification projects that enhance living environments throughout underserved communities. The project will serve low-income families, youth, seniors, and transitional housing residents through accessible and culturally responsive arts experiences. Funding will also support arts supplies, artist facilitators, outreach, accessibility accommodations, and program coordination. Through these activities, we will strengthen community engagement, increase participation in the arts, and create safe, inclusive, and culturally enriching environments that improve quality of life through artistic expression. | Our core programs help individuals and families create safe, inspiring, and visually enriching environments that promote creativity, wellness, and community pride. Our services include creative home enhancement programs that support interior and exterior artistic improvements through décor, color coordination, visual design, and culturally inspired creative projects. We offer arts workshops and hands-on learning experiences focused on DIY art, home styling, creative expression, and cultural arts education for youth, adults, seniors, and families. In addition, we promote arts for wellness by helping participants use creative environments and artistic expression to reduce stress, encourage healing, and improve quality of life. Our collaboration with Opportunities For Change also leads community beautification initiatives that engage residents in collaborative art projects, neighborhood enhancement activities, public art displays, and creative revitalization efforts that strengthen community identity and pride. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Capoeira Arts Foundation | 1901 SAN PABLO AVE , BERKELEY, CA 94702-1611 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 666-1255 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Capoeira Arts Foundation, Inc. (CAF), will continue meeting the evolving needs of our community by providing programming rooted in Afro-Brazilian and Afro-Diasporic cultural arts. CAF’s four core programs focus on education; The healing powers of art music and culture as practiced in a diverse multigenerational community; The security of spaces we can count on - dedicated to belonging - highlighting and embracing our differences; Honoring where we come from as an integral part of our path forward. Today CAF’s programs serve over 1000 people a week, on a shoestring budget. With CAC’s operational support we could to pay much needed staff, invest in organizational growth, and stabilize operations. | CAF has four programs: 1) Saúde: Our public health outreach initiative, Saúde, integrates health and wellness practices with our artistic offerings. 2) Legados: The legacy program focuses on safeguarding and sharing the intellectual property and archives of our artists. This legacy project ensures that the rich cultural heritage of Afro-Brazilian arts remains accessible to future generations. 3) Educação: Our education initiatives provide professional development and continuing education opportunities for our artists as well as classes and workshops for our broader community. 4) Casa de Cultura: Our building in West Berkeley, serves as a vibrant community space for arts and cultural activities that brings together diverse community members, fostering a sense of belonging and inclusion. It is a place where the rich traditions of Afro-Brazilian culture are celebrated and shared. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Creative Netwerk | PO BOX 22960 , Santa Barbara, CA 93121 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (413) 404-6505 | California's 24th Congressional District | District 37 | District 21 | With support from California Arts Council, Creative Netwerk will expand culturally rooted Dance, DJ, and Wellness programs for underserved youth ages 5–18 and families of color and from low-income communities across Santa Barbara County. Programs operate 1–5 days per week during the school day, after school, and in summer at schools, affordable housing sites, community centers, and juvenile justice facilities throughout Santa Barbara, Goleta, Carpinteria, Lompoc, and Santa Maria. Creative Netwerk will provide 35–85 weekly classes in Hip Hop, Breaking, Popping, House, DJing, music production, and wellness practices, serving more than 4,000 youth annually. Funds will support teaching artist employment, professional development, artist residencies, and youth performances while expanding partnerships with Lompoc USD and welcoming guest artists to lead workshops in Dance, DJing, Wellness, MCing, Photography, Theater, and Artist Career Development. | In Santa Barbara County, Creative Netwerk partners with Goleta USD, Carpinteria USD, Lompoc USD, and Santa Barbara USD, offering hip-hop, street/club dance, and DJ programs, and curricula connecting regional dance styles to wellness and family engagement, in after-school weekly classes and events. CN provides access to Winter, Spring Break, and Summer Dance Camps, in partnership with A-OK and United Way, leading to performances and family dance celebrations with live music by DJs. CN reaches 3,500 K–12 students/year across Santa Barbara County in Lompoc, Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, Goleta, Santa Maria, Santa Ynez, Buellton, Guadalupe, Isla Vista. CN partners with Title I public schools, affordable housing, juvenile justice facilities, and CBOs, finding solutions to learning loss, isolation, and trauma through dance culture, music, and community. CN’s diverse arts leaders deepen collaboration and unification of the many regional street dance forms across California. DJs, teaching artists, and community partners expand access to free, life-changing learning, dance cultural development, and family engagement events. Community partners include United Way Fun in the Sun, One Community Bridge Project, the Theater Program at La Cumbre MS, the Dance Program at Santa Barbara HS, Santa Barbara City Parks and Recreation, Santa Maria Juvenile Hall, Notes for Notes, and more. At the Boys & Girls Club of Downtown Santa Barbara, CN teaches four days/week youth and teen Hip-Hop, Breaking, DJ, and Folklorico classes, weekly open sessions, and a monthly family class. With Lompoc HS, CN provides weekly after-school programs and 20 week-long artist residency programs, sharing foundation, history, culture, and training in dance, DJing, event production, photography, videography, MCing, and music production. In LA, CN partners with After-School All-Stars, the ICEF Drama Club, ISANA, Boys & Girls Clubs, Glendale Unified, and the Arc to serve 1,000 students/year, including education in regional dances such as Clowning and Krump. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Los Angeles Theatre Academy | 23254 Lyons Ave , Newhall, CA 91321 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 717-4188 | California's 34th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, LOS ANGELES THEATRE ACADEMY INC will provide accessible after-school arts programming for children ages 5–12 through theater, music, dance, visual arts, and cultural arts experiences. CAC funds will support teaching artists, youth support staff, transportation, arts supplies, performance materials, and program operations that help create safe and enriching opportunities for children. Our program helps remove barriers to arts participation through scholarships, inclusive support, and school pickup transportation for working families, low-income households, English learner families, and children with disabilities. Students will participate in weekly arts instruction, creative projects, rehearsals, and performances that build confidence, creativity, teamwork, leadership, and self-expression. Through culturally responsive arts experiences and community events, children and families are encouraged to feel connected, supported, and proud of their creativity and cultural identity. | After School Program: Weekdays between the hours of 2:20-6:00 PM. This includes theatre classes, art activities, bilingual homework help, and snacks for 45 children between the ages of 5 to 12. We have pickup service that supports working parents. We currently have a waiting list for this program. Summer, Winter and Spring Theatre Camp- a very popular camp that supports working parents with all day-classes and workshops (800 AM- 6:00 PM). Classes include acting, dancing, singing, costuming, props and other theatre -related disciplines. Approximately 55 children per week. Seasonal Performances- With both professional actors and LATA students, we have produced in the past shows that are now annual traditions. Part of our mission is to provide students with a professional stage. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Oaktown Jazz Workshops | 55 Washington Street , OAKLAND, CA 94607 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 649-1785 | California's 12th Congressional District | Assembly District 18 | State Senate District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oaktown Jazz Workshops will provide high-quality music instruction and performance opportunities to youth from low-income families. Grant funds will offset the costs of instruction, administration, and instrument maintenance. We serve systemically under-resourced communities through music education and access to the performing arts. Our year-round classes, lessons, and workshops are taught by professional musicians who provide a safe, supportive environment where youth develop creativity, discipline, interpersonal skills, and confidence. Over half of our students qualify for needs-based scholarships (free tuition) and we provide college/career guidance as students age out of our programs. We are building a community where youth from diverse backgrounds collaborate and grow as artists within the uniquely American tradition and culture of jazz music, developing transferable skills that extend into their personal and professional lives. | Oaktown Jazz Workshops offer intensive instructional workshops and classes for young musicians, ages 10-18 at our Oakland venue located in historic Jack London Square. Our programs include: Combo Workshops (Ages 12 – 18): weekly 2-hour workshops in which young musicians learn to improvise instrumental solos while playing different types of jazz and blues tunes in a full band setting, with guidance from our faculty of professional musicians. Performance Ensemble Workshop (Ages 14-18): weekly 2-hour workshops in which young musicians improve their musicianship, develop their personal voices, and challenge themselves musically in a band setting. Jazz Improvisation Workshop (Ages 10-14): a 10-week course offered every fall and spring that focuses on Ensemble Playing, Ear Training, Melodic Phrasing and Harmonic Forms. Music Theory Workshop (Ages 14-18): a 10-week course offered every fall and spring that focuses on Modes, Chord Analysis, Ear Training, and Composition. Jazz Encounters (Ages 10-18): special clinics in which young musicians meet and learn from world-class touring musicians. One-on-One Private Music Lessons: Oaktown Jazz Workshops offers private lessons from professional musicians. Jazz in the Schools (Ages 10-18): Oaktown Jazz Workshops presents concerts and presentations at local public schools, and our instructors lead sectionals to foster the artistic growth of young musicians. Oaktown Jazz in the Library: Our instructors, Youth Mentors, and students bring multi-generational concerts to public libraries, mixed with presentations on jazz history, influence, and elements. Community Performances (Ages 14-18): Oaktown Jazz Workshops' young musicians perform dozens of concerts, festivals, and community events in Oakland and surrounding communities every year. Special emphasis on bringing performance to underserved communities that lack access to live music. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | SAMMAY Productions | 934 Brannan Street , San Francisco, CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (213) 373-1435 | California's 12th congressional district | With support from the California Arts Council, SAMMAY Productions (SP) will hire a development and communications coordinator to lead fundraising efforts, deepen donor relations, and expand organizational capacity. With a new full length premiere slated for 2028, this strategic hire will ensure SP can refocus on day to day operations including administration, marketing, and accounting. | SAMMAY Productions (SP) was founded in 2015 by Filipinx American choreographer, interdisciplinary artist, and cultural producer SAMMAY Peñaflor Dizon - born from a seed of embodied inquiry and personal longing to be in community with other artists who were wrestling with questions of indigeneity, home, and belonging. SP has been fortunate to call the SOMA Pilipinas Cultural Heritage District home since its inception and is just one point of access to artistic development and engagement within the constellation of Filipina/x/o small business in the cultural district. SP has received numerous awards from the California Arts Council, San Francisco Arts Commission, Center for Cultural Innovation, and Rainin Foundation among others, and has received residencies from the American Conservatory Theater, CounterPulse, and Atlantic Center for the Arts among others. Their live performance work has been featured through Dance Mission Theater, Bindlestiff Theater, and Asian Art Museum among others, and their films have been featured through CAAMFest, San Francisco Dance Film Festival, and Los Angeles Asian American Pacific Film Festival among others. Notable programs include Urban x Indigenous intercultural arts festival (2015-2021) and Daluyan: Embodied Storytelling for Ancestral Healing workshop series (2018-2021). In 2022, SP was commissioned for the inaugural State of Play Festival at ODC Theater in the Mission District of San Francisco. SP continues to create new experimental works at the intersection of ritual, memory, play, and radical futurity, while bridging diasporic communities through cultural activations and movement exchanges. Dizon was the recipient of the 2020 Isadora Duncan Dance Award for Special Achievement in Dance through their work with racial equity-centered choreographer collective Dancing Around Race. | ||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Santa Barbara Dance Institute | 1330 State St., Suite 207 , Santa Barbara, CA 93101 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 245-0794 | California's 24th Congressional District | District 37 | District 21 | With support from California Arts Council, Santa Barbara Dance Institute will provide free, culturally responsive dance education to 550 underserved youth across 426 classes in Santa Barbara, Goleta, and Isla Vista, communities where barriers of poverty, language, and disability limit access to quality arts experiences. Dance education will be offered at Goleta Union School District sites through a Summer Dance Camp for TK–6 students from nine Title I schools, after-school programs at six sites, in-school preschool programs, and at Storyteller Children's Center for toddlers and preschoolers. All programming is free, bilingual in English and Spanish, and grounded in Universal Design for Learning, ensuring full participation for youth with IEPs, in foster care, or experiencing homelessness. CAC funds will support teaching artists, staff, and program operations to expand equitable access to high-quality arts education. | Santa Barbara Dance Institute was founded in 2005 by Rosalina Macisco with the belief that high-quality dance education belongs to everyone, regardless of income, zip code, or ability. For twenty years, SBDI has delivered free, inclusive dance programming directly to low-income, Latinx, and underserved individuals through community schools, early childhood centers, public libraries, and senior care facilities across Santa Barbara County. From toddlers to older adults, SBDI believes movement is a lifelong right. Children - the majority low-income, Latinx, and underserved - receive free creative movement and dance through in-school and after-school programs. Classes build artistic skill alongside social-emotional learning, confidence, and cultural pride. All programming is inclusive of children with IEPs and disabilities, taught in English and Spanish, with Latin cultural rhythms woven throughout to appreciate the heritage of the families served. During the 2024–2025 school year, SBDI delivered 606 classes, serving 221 children. Surveys show that 85% of children improved in behavior and 89% developed critical life skills. A longitudinal study found that more than 28 of the Search Institute’s 40 Developmental Assets improved in SBDI students. SBDI’s Professional Development Program trains educators and staff at under-resourced schools and community organizations to integrate dance into their teaching, building internal capacity for an affordable, sustainable path to arts education that reaches children who would otherwise not have access. In 2024–2025, we trained 17 teachers, impacting 200 children annually. SBDI’s “Dance On” Creative Aging program brings free, bilingual dance and music experiences to older adults in senior centers, rehabilitation facilities, and memory care settings. Designed for all mobility and cognitive levels, including wheelchair users and those living with Alzheimer disease and dementia, Dance On supports mobility, memory, emotional expression, and social connection. In 2024–2025, Dance On served 150 seniors. SBDI has enriched more than 30,000 lives across Santa Barbara County. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Santa Barbara Dance Institute | 1330 State St., Suite 207 , Santa Barbara, CA 93101 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 245-0794 | California's 24th Congressional District | District 37 | District 21 | With general support from California Arts Council, Santa Barbara Dance Institute will build organizational capacity, deepen program reach, and strengthen financial resilience. Funds will support: (1) Programming: sustaining free, culturally responsive dance education for 700+ youth and older adults through partnerships with community-based organizations, including development of 1–2 teaching artists through SBDI’s training in inclusive, social-emotional, and reflective practices; (2) Organizational growth: hiring part-time administrative support to free the Executive/Artistic Director to focus on leading, training, and delivering high-quality programming, cultivating a volunteer corps to deepen impact and expand SBDI’s supporters; (3) Financial stability: implementing a sustainability plan for the “Dance On” Creative Aging Program and delivering Dance Infusion, SBDI’s Professional Development Program, to train community educators while diversifying revenue. This investment ensures SBDI’s long-term resilience and continued service to historically underserved communities. | Santa Barbara Dance Institute was founded in 2005 by Rosalina Macisco with the belief that high-quality dance education belongs to everyone, regardless of income, zip code, or ability. For twenty years, SBDI has delivered free, inclusive dance programming directly to low-income, Latinx, and underserved individuals through community schools, early childhood centers, public libraries, and senior care facilities across Santa Barbara County. From toddlers to older adults, SBDI believes movement is a lifelong right. Children - the majority low-income, Latinx, and underserved - receive free creative movement and dance through in-school and after-school programs. Classes build artistic skill alongside social-emotional learning, confidence, and cultural pride. All programming is inclusive of children with IEPs and disabilities, taught in English and Spanish, with Latin cultural rhythms woven throughout to appreciate the heritage of the families served. During the 2024–2025 school year, SBDI delivered 606 classes, serving 221 children. Surveys show that 85% of children improved in behavior and 89% developed critical life skills. A longitudinal study found that more than 28 of the Search Institute’s 40 Developmental Assets improved in SBDI students. SBDI’s Professional Development Program trains educators and staff at under-resourced schools and community organizations to integrate dance into their teaching, building internal capacity for an affordable, sustainable path to arts education that reaches children who would otherwise not have access. In 2024–2025, we trained 17 teachers, impacting 200 children annually. SBDI’s “Dance On” Creative Aging program brings free, bilingual dance and music experiences to older adults in senior centers, rehabilitation facilities, and memory care settings. Designed for all mobility and cognitive levels, including wheelchair users and those living with Alzheimer disease and dementia, Dance On supports mobility, memory, emotional expression, and social connection. In 2024–2025, Dance On served 150 seniors. SBDI has enriched more than 30,000 lives across Santa Barbara County. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Oaktown Jazz Workshops | 55 Washington Street , OAKLAND, CA 94607 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 649-1785 | California's 12th Congressional District | Assembly District 18 | State Senate District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oaktown Jazz Workshops will provide under-resourced youth with high-quality, year-round instruction in the uniquely American tradition of jazz music. Our year-round classes, one-on-one lessons, ensembles, and workshops will be taught by diverse professional musicians and youth mentors who will provide a safe, supportive environment for youth (age 10-18) to develop their creativity, discipline, musical skills, and confidence to perform. Students will also receive extensive performance opportunities throughout the year. For students who are aging out of our programs, we will provide comprehensive college and career guidance that helps close opportunity gaps between under-resourced youth and youth from more affluent families. We will also provide performance opportunities for alumni at our concert space, helping young adult musicians gain professional experience and advance their careers. | Oaktown Jazz Workshops offer intensive instructional workshops and classes for young musicians, ages 10-18 at our Oakland venue located in historic Jack London Square. Our programs include: Combo Workshops (Ages 12 – 18): weekly 2-hour workshops in which young musicians learn to improvise instrumental solos while playing different types of jazz and blues tunes in a full band setting, with guidance from our faculty of professional musicians. Performance Ensemble Workshop (Ages 14-18): weekly 2-hour workshops in which young musicians improve their musicianship, develop their personal voices, and challenge themselves musically in a band setting. Jazz Improvisation Workshop (Ages 10-14): a 10-week course offered every fall and spring that focuses on Ensemble Playing, Ear Training, Melodic Phrasing and Harmonic Forms. Music Theory Workshop (Ages 14-18): a 10-week course offered every fall and spring that focuses on Modes, Chord Analysis, Ear Training, and Composition. Jazz Encounters (Ages 10-18): special clinics in which young musicians meet and learn from world-class touring musicians. One-on-One Private Music Lessons: Oaktown Jazz Workshops offers private lessons from professional musicians. Jazz in the Schools (Ages 10-18): Oaktown Jazz Workshops presents concerts and presentations at local public schools, and our instructors lead sectionals to foster the artistic growth of young musicians. Oaktown Jazz in the Library: Our instructors, Youth Mentors, and students bring multi-generational concerts to public libraries, mixed with presentations on jazz history, influence, and elements. Community Performances (Ages 14-18): Oaktown Jazz Workshops' young musicians perform dozens of concerts, festivals, and community events in Oakland and surrounding communities every year. Special emphasis on bringing performance to underserved communities that lack access to live music. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | International Documentary Association | 3600 WILSHIRE BLVD STE 1810 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90010-2622 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 232-1660 | With support from the California Arts Council, INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY ASSOCIATION INC will continue to offer an ongoing robust slate of support educational and cultural services for documentary filmmakers. | IDA delivers programs and content designed for our 3,600 members and the broader international documentary community. Programs include filmmaker support, grantmaking, year round educational services including webinars and workshops, Getting Real, our biennial conference about the art and business of documentary filmmaking, screening programs, and the quarterly publication of Documentary Magazine. IDA's key initiatives reflect four programmatic pillars: Advocacy: Coordinated international resistance to suppression tactics, emergency hotline, media relations, filmmaker assistance program,and legal aid fund. Convening: Getting Real conference with increased international reach, events and programs nationally and internationally. Knowledge Sharing: Sustained quarterly Documentary Magazine with expanded investigative capacity, enhanced documentary.org platform, and comprehensive professional resource directories. Filmmaker Services: Access to insurance, training in safety, security and other critical skills, visa support, partnerships to provide pro bono legal services, and R&D on strategies to connect films to audiences. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Mountain Theater Alliance | PO BOX 5405 , PINE MTN CLB, CA 93222-5405 | Kern | Central Valley | (805) 440-8005 | 20th Congressional District | 32nd Assembly District | 21st Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, MOUNTAIN THEATER ALLIANCE will host a fully subsidized performing arts camp for the Frazier Mountain community in rural Kern County. Access to arts enrichment is scarce, and the need is profound. For many of these students, from elementary through high school, this will be their only opportunity to experience the transformative power of live performance. We piloted a summer camp in 2025 in partnership with Motion Arts Collective, and want to expand this program to provide access to more youth. This grant will directly fund production costs and fairly compensate local teaching artists, ensuring a high-quality learning experience. The Frazier Mountain community is under-resourced and historically underserved. By investing in this camp, you are investing in our youth's academic and creative success. | a) To produce live theater productions for public viewing within our mountain community. b) Provider performing arts education and opportunities for local youth c) To present a wide range of theater from classic to contemporary pieces. d) To actively seek and nurture new artists and materials. e) To provide an opportunity and place for local actors, directors, writers, designers and technicians to express their creativity. d) To improve the quality of life for members of the community through direct involvement in the productions or audience viewing. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Friends of the Chinese American Museum | 125 PASEO DE LA PLAZA STE 202 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90012-2932 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 485-8484 | 34th | 54 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Friends of the Chinese American Museum will sustain essential operations while advancing a community-centered museum model. Funding will strengthen CAM’s capacity to deliver innovative exhibitions, arts-based programs, and educational initiatives that uplift Chinese American and Asian American Pacific Islander voices. Guided by the museum’s IMPACT initiative and its commitment to equity and accessibility, CAM will amplify historically marginalized narratives, foster cross-cultural dialogue, and build solidarity across communities. These efforts directly confront anti-Asian hate and broader social inequities by ensuring that underrepresented histories are preserved, shared, and recognized as vital to California’s cultural landscape. | Create and present exhibitions detailing the rich history and legacy of Chinese Americans. Provide educational programs to students and patrons. Collect historical and contemporary arts, documents, images, and artifacts. Provide thought provoking presentations to the general public on issues that impact the community, to create dialogue and |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $7,500.00 | Long Beach Cello Orchestra | 3950 N VIRGINIA RD , LONG BEACH, CA 90807-2657 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 600-8151 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Long Beach Cello Orchestra will do three things: 1. Increase our Community Engagement activities: We currently have close relationships with 50% of Long Beach high schools, and 30% of its middle schools. Our 2027 goal is to increase enrollment by fifty percent. In order to accomplish this, we need to increase our engagement with the rest of the schools in the Long Beach area. 2. Increase size of our administrative department: We will increase the size of our administrative team to account for an increased need to coordinate outreach activities, and to handle an increase in paperwork as student enrollment rises. 3. We will increase the size of our development department so we can offer more scholarships to new students who sign up for our program. | We produce cello programs that serve all skill levels and ages. Our flagship prgoram is cello orchestra year round program and summer camp. We also run smaller cello ensemble programs for students wanting even more musical education. We also create more casual community building events on a regular basis so our students can continue getting to know each other. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | TOArts | 2100 EAST THOUSAND OAKS BLVD , THOUSAND OAKS, CA 91362-2996 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 449-2590 | California's 26th congressional district | District 44 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, TOArts (Thousand Oaks Alliance for the Arts) will expand Arts Odyssey, a multifaceted arts education initiative delivering high-quality, supplemental arts experiences to over 1,200 youth across Title 1 schools and continuation education in Ventura County. CAC grant funds will support three program tracks: professional guest teaching artist instruction in Music Production & Sound Engineering at Conejo Valley High School; a dance assembly tour and workshop series with blind and deaf dancer Sarah Ysordia at four Title 1 elementary schools; and a comprehensive suite of programming at Madroña Elementary, including Improv in the Classroom, Theatre Arts, Ceramics for Dexterity, and field trips to professional arts and cultural institutions. Together, these programs remove systemic barriers to arts access, affirm diverse identities, and cultivate creative confidence in youth who need it most. | TOArts serves as the private fundraising and presenting partner for the Bank of America Performing Arts Center, functioning as Ventura County's arts resource organization. Our comprehensive programming spans arts workforce development, education, accessibility, and world-class performances. Workforce Development lies at the heart of our mission. The Youth Arts Leadership Academy (YALA) provides year-round training for high school and college students, developing essential life skills—project management, teamwork, budgeting—alongside artistic growth through hands-on experience and professional mentorship. Our Summer Creators Conservatory offers intensive two-week programs where students create, produce, and perform original works with professional guidance. The Artist Incubator fellowship connects adult artists at all stages of their career emerging to legacy with professional advisors to build sustainable creative careers and entrepreneurial skills. Central to this work is our advocacy for thriving wages; ensuring artists can sustain careers locally rather than migrating to larger markets. We position artists as essential workers deserving competitive compensation and create pathways to income stability through paid opportunities and professional advancement. Beyond economic sustainability, our programming addresses the critical intersection of arts and mental health. Creative expression reduces isolation, builds social connection, and provides therapeutic benefits essential to community wellbeing—outcomes particularly vital in post-pandemic recovery. AccessArts provides grant funding that brings arts programming directly into elementary classrooms, while Kids and the Arts delivers free tickets and transportation for 7,000+ students annually to experience live performances. Olson Performance Grants provide $150,000 in subsidized theatre rent to nonprofit performing arts groups. Our presenting work includes 70+ diverse performances annually attracting 52,000+ patrons, with our cross-subsidization model allowing commercially viable shows to underwrite mission-driven programming. This integrated approach, combining presenting, education, artist services, and accessibility positions TOArts as essential cultural infrastructure while maintaining fiscal sustainability through diversified revenue streams. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $16,975.00 | THE GALA PRIDE AND DIVERSITY CENTER | 1060 PALM ST , SN LUIS OBISP, CA 93401-3221 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 541-4252 | 24 | 30 | 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Gala Pride & Diversity Center (GPDC) will expand our LGBTQ+-specific artistic events with a specific focus on Art After Dark programming, a free year-round arts initiative in San Luis Obispo County and additional. Through monthly exhibitions, artist honoraria, community-curated programming, poetry workshops, film screenings, and multidisciplinary performances, GPDC addresses the lack of affirming and financially accessible creative spaces for LGBTQIA+ people on the Central Coast. Grant funds will support a curatorial stipend for program curator Daniel Montoya, honoraria for exhibiting artists, and expanded community arts programming rooted in social connection, visibility, and cultural equity. GPDC prioritizes California LGBTQ+ artists, emerging creatives, and low- to no-cost public participation while maintaining an equitable model in which artists retain 70% of artwork sales. | We offer support groups and programming that empowers and uplifts our LGBTQ on the central coast. Our programming promotes civic engagement, art creation and consumption and access to healthcare resources. We currently have over 50 active support groups through GPDC which includes our Youth Program and Tranz Central Coast. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Vita Art Center | 28 West Main St. 28 West Main St., Ventura, CA 93001 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 644-9214 | 26th congressional district | Steve Bennett | 19th State Senate district | With support from the California Arts Council, Vita Art Center will strengthen the core operations that make its community arts programs accessible, inclusive, and sustainable. General Operating Support will help sustain staff, teaching artists, exhibitions, studio programs, outreach partnerships, scholarships, and the day-to-day systems needed to serve Ventura artists, youth, families, seniors, and adults. CAC funds will support Vita’s ongoing work as a visual arts and cultural hub, including free and low-cost classes, youth and teen programs, adaptive ceramics for children with disabilities, programs at nearby low-income housing sites, LGBTQ+ teen workshops, artist studios, gallery exhibitions, and culturally responsive community programming. This support will help Vita remove barriers to participation, fairly compensate artists and staff, and continue building a welcoming creative community where people of all ages can learn, make, exhibit, and connect. | Since 2008, Vita Art Center has been an important part of Ventura’s cultural life, offering high-quality arts education, exhibitions, and community-based programming. The organization creates opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds to engage with the visual arts through classes, workshops, exhibitions, and artist-centered spaces that support both creative practice and community connection. Vita Art Center’s campus includes four galleries, a dedicated teen exhibition wall, a ceramics studio, an outdoor classroom, and 45 artist studios, making it a vibrant place where art is made, experienced, and shared. With more than 30 classes offered onsite each week, Vita Art Center serves youth, teens, and adults through hands-on instruction led by teaching artists who bring both skill and passion to their work. These programs help participants build artistic techniques while also developing creativity, confidence, critical thinking, and self-expression. In addition to its onsite offerings, Vita Art Center brings free arts programming to low-income housing communities, serving youth, seniors, and formerly homeless adults. The organization also offers cultural classes taught by Chumash artists and knowledge keepers, connected to the building of a tomol onsite, as well as a ceramics program created for children with disabilities. Across all of its work, Vita Art Center is committed to making the arts accessible, inclusive, and deeply connected to community. By bringing together exhibitions, education, working artist studios, and outreach programs, the organization helps foster belonging, cultural understanding, and meaningful creative exchange throughout Ventura. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Citizen Film | 1111 Buchanan St suite 11 , San Francisco, CA 94115-4808 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 206-1880 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | Citizen Film (CF) requests California Arts Council support to bring its established youth media program to under-resourced classrooms in Del Norte, Humboldt and Trinity counties in partnership with the Redwood Writing Project (RWP). The Bay Area Writing Project (BAWP), a longtime CF partner experienced with CF's PBS LearningMedia content, will provide expertise to RWP teachers guiding students to compose original photography, writing, audio, and short videos documenting their communities, exploring civic ideals and identities. Students’ work will be disseminated to a peer audience via KQED's Youth Media Challenge with opportunities for peer-to-peer dialogue and collaborative activities. A capstone workshop at the California Writing Project (CWP) 2027 convention will share the results of teacher evaluations and extend the program to educators statewide. CAC funds support teacher stipends, professional development, student publishing, and the capstone event. | Citizen Film is the storytelling partner for a broad network of California community-based organizations serving historically under-resourced populations. Since 2002, we have steadily deepened and refined a collaborative approach to documentary practice, connecting local organizations to national amplification partners like PBS. With ten full-time employees and a deep network of community collaborators, we produce multimodal projects that include films, public dialogues, live multimedia performances, place-based installations, and educational activities—all in coalition with arts-based, educational, and civic organizations. Our work ranges from nationally disseminated PBS documentaries to hyperlocal documentary campaigns. In San Francisco, we collaborate with residents in one of the city’s last remaining majority-Black neighborhoods to create tiled photo walls, documentary murals, and “audio domes” featuring neighborhood dialogue across eight city blocks. In New York, we partnered with refugee service organizations to create a series of Times Square video billboards showcasing the personal objects young refugees value most. Our approach positions communities not as subjects, but as creators of civic art. Our long-term commitment to California communities informs our national work. Beginning with a PBS documentary launch in 2018, our AMERICAN CREED project has produced an ongoing series of documentary films, as well as short films, photo essays, and audio essays distributed by PBS LearningMedia along with curricular guides. Over many years and several projects, we have partnered with the National Writing Project (NWP), a national educator network with 50+ years of experience supporting student-centered public writing and media initiatives. NWP provides our youth media programs with professional development frameworks, publication pathways, and infrastructure connecting its regional and statewide sites to national audiences. This proposed project expands that framework within California, bringing under-resourced rural students into dialogue with peers statewide through civic media-making and publication that explores America’s democratic ideals and their relevance to students’ own communities and traditions. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Los Angeles Filmforum | 1465 Tamarind Ave #155 , Los Angeles, CA 90028-8412 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 377-7238 | 30 | 51 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, FILMFORUM INC will present The Warriors Journey by Guillermo Bert, a community-centered mobile public art installation honoring essential Latino and immigrant workers through large-scale sculptural portraits, storytelling, film documentation, and augmented reality. Launching in October 2026 with a confirmed activation at the LAND + SKY event at Rancho Santa Clara del Norte in Ventura County during Latino/Hispanic Heritage Month, the project will bring exhibitions, workshops, and educational programming to underserved communities across Ventura County, East Los Angeles, Oxnard, Fresno, and surrounding agricultural regions. CAC funds will support educational programming, transportation and operational costs associated with the Warriors Truck mobile exhibition platform, and film/recording documentation connected to public exhibitions and community engagement activities developed in partnership with Self Help Graphics, MoLAA, and Studio Channel Islands. | Filmforum is currently the longest-running venue in Southern California dedicated exclusively to the ongoing, non-commercial exhibition of independent, experimental, and progressive cinema. We screen films, sponsor independent experimental films, and communicate about other screenings in the county. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SAN FRANCISCO GIRLS CHORUS | 44 PAGE ST Suite 200, San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 863-1752 | 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Francisco Girls Chorus (SFGC) will provide 44 weeks of choral learning for 400+ girls, young women, non-binary, and gender-expansive youth ages 4 to 18. It is one of the few Bay Area arts organizations that exclusively meets the needs of this population, and is recognized as one of the finest of its kind in the nation. Comprised of six levels, SFGC’s program is a sequential experience that takes students from their introduction to music through a full course of study. Multiple supports—including tuition assistance, mental health care, and adaptations to a variety of abilities—ensure that the program is accessible to the broadest possible constituency. | Founded in 1978, and hailed by the California Arts Council as "a model in the country" for training young singers, the GRAMMY Award-winning and WASC-accredited San Francisco Girls Chorus (SFGC) provides choral music training for treble voices at the most rigorous level, serving as both an anchor in the lives of our young people—some of whom spend up to 14 years with the chorus—and a resource for the countless arts organizations that partner with us for high-quality vocal talent and multi-year collaborative projects. Our sequential training program encourages long-term personal investment while building holistic age and developmentally appropriate skills. SFGC champions personal expression at every level of the organization—from prioritizing globally-expansive repertoire and collaborations with a range of guest artists, to ensuring inclusion for youth that identify across the gender and ability spectrum. Each year, more than 400 young singers participate in SFGC's 44-week rehearsal and performance programs, led by a 9-member Music Faculty overseen by Artistic Director Valérie Sainte-Agathe. SFGC offers training at the Kanbar Performing Arts Center in downtown San Francisco and the East Bay German International School in Emeryville, and provides comprehensive tuition assistance, and in any given year provides between $150,000-$250,000 in need-based scholarship support to meet the equity and access needs of our community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | SAM Academy | 750 N ST , SANGER, CA 93657-3114 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 288-4953 | 21st Congressional District | 31st Assembly District | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAM Academy will launch weekly mariachi and ballet folklórico classes for youth. Experienced instructors in each discipline will lead sessions in the SAM Academy Music Studio, complemented by community performances throughout the year. The program is designed to serve underserved students from rural communities around Sanger, expanding access to arts and cultural experiences that are often limited. Participants will build both fine and gross motor skills through music, movement, coordination, and balance. At the same time, they will cultivate positive relationships with peers and adults while deepening their understanding of their heritage language, cultural traditions, dance, and music. | Values: • Every child deserves access to STEM & Arts enrichment activities. • Every child should feel connected to school and community through highly motivating STEM and Arts programs and activities in out-of-school time. • Every child deserves mentors to help guide them to becoming career ready. • Every member of the community has a role in building a culture of success for all children. Services: SAM Academy serves youth and parents who are economically disadvantaged and struggle to maintain employment to make ends meet also lack educational enrichment opportunities such as Science, Art and Music, which are important for developing a learner identity and school success. The Science Workshop and Community Music Studio maintains affordable services for youth and families from Sanger and surrounding communities to learn and explore their talents through classical methods in piano, guitar, drums/percussion, voice, mariachi ensemble, and ballet folklorico. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | South Tower Community Land Trust | 115 N CALAVERAS ST , FRESNO, CA 93701-1843 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 492-7249 | California's 21st congressional district | California's 31st State Assembly District | State Senate District 14 | South Tower Community Land Trust will use California Arts Council funds to support a community-centered design process for the creation of an accessible and culturally grounded Zócalo at a recently acquired community-owned building in Fresno’s South Tower neighborhood. Currently, the site frontage consists of cracked asphalt and weeds. Through community engagement, digitally fabricated metal panels, native landscaping, and outdoor gathering elements, the project will transform the entry into a welcoming public-facing space that reflects local identity, resilience, and shared prosperity. The Zócalo will create a more inviting transition from the public street into a protected community-centered environment designed to foster visibility, connection, and belonging for historically underserved communities. The completed space will support future arts, cultural, and community programming rooted in accessibility and community care. | South Tower Community Land Trust advances a range of programs designed to expand equitable development, community ownership, and neighborhood vitality in Fresno’s Tower District, with a strong emphasis on arts, culture, and community identity. Our Affordable Housing program remains a core focus, creating sustainable homeownership opportunities for low- and moderate-income individuals and families through the Community Land Trust (CLT) model. By separating land ownership from housing, we ensure long-term affordability while enabling residents to build equity and maintain community control. Our work includes the rehabilitation of existing homes, new infill development, and long-term stewardship to prevent displacement and stabilize neighborhoods. Arts and culture are central to our approach to community development. Through our Parks and Arts programming, we activate public spaces and foster a sense of belonging. At Broadway Parque and other neighborhood sites, we host community events, performances, and gatherings that bring residents together. Our public art initiatives further contribute to neighborhood beautification while reflecting the cultural identity, history, and creativity of the community. We also convene the annual Queer Housing Summit, which integrates cultural expression with housing advocacy, creating space for dialogue, storytelling, and community-led solutions. Together, these programs reflect a holistic approach that uplifts housing, arts, and culture as essential to a thriving and inclusive neighborhood. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | THE GALA PRIDE AND DIVERSITY CENTER | 1060 PALM ST , SN LUIS OBISP, CA 93401-3221 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 541-4252 | 24 | 30 | 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Gala Pride and Diversity Center (GPDC) will sustain and expand our community-centered arts and cultural programming that uplifts LGBTQ+ artists, preserves local queer cultural expression, and increases access to creative opportunities across California’s Central Coast. The financial support from the grant will strengthen GPDC’s capacity to provide free and low-cost arts programming, public cultural events, artist development opportunities, and community storytelling initiatives that center historically underserved communities. This funding will support three goals for this year: *Expand access to LGBTQ+ arts and cultural programming in San Luis Obispo County through public events, performances and workshops; *Strengthen professional development opportunities for LGBTQ+ and allied artists to grow their practice and show their work locally; and *Sustain GPDC’s long-term organizational infrastructure by investing staffing, operational capacity and accessibility. | We offer support groups and programming that empowers and uplifts our LGBTQ on the central coast. Our programming promotes civic engagement, art creation and consumption and access to healthcare resources. We currently have over 50 active support groups through GPDC which includes our Youth Program and Tranz Central Coast. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,638.00 | Hayward Arts Council | 22380 Foothill Blvd , Hayward, CA 94541-2710 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 538-2787 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Hayward Arts Council, in partnership with the REACH Ashland Youth Center's Arts & Creativity Program (Alameda County Office of Education), will implement Roots & Future, a school-year visual and media arts program for youth ages 14–24 in the unincorporated communities of Ashland, Cherryland, and South Hayward. CAC funds will support lead artists, a teaching artist, youth stipends, materials, and a culminating public exhibition. Guided by established community-rooted artists, youth will engage in visual arts, photography, painting, mixed media, and digital image-making, anchored by two questions: Where do we come from? Where are we going? Participants document cultural memory and neighborhood history while producing original works that envision the futures they want to inhabit. The program culminates in a public exhibition and advances REACH's cascading mentorship model. | Hayward Arts Council – Core Programs & Services 1. Art Exhibitions & Galleries HAC curates rotating exhibitions in six venues across Hayward, including: John O’Lague Galleria and Gallery 2 (Within City Hall) HAHS Art Gallery (within Hayward Area Historical Society) Senior Center, Library Gallery Downtown, Weekes Branch Library These spaces showcase local and regional artists and provide public access to diverse artworks. 2. Artist Support & Membership Through its membership program, HAC offers: Exhibition opportunities (in-person and online) Calls for art and public art opportunities Social media and monthly newsletter promotion Networking events and receptions for artists and art lovers 3. Community Engagement & Education HAC runs programs that foster creative growth and access to the arts: Exhibits showcasing emerging, mid career and professional artists in a variety of media. Exhibits such as AAPI, Pride Month, Black History, and community highlights are presented every year. Arts Education Exhibits showcasing students work highlighting foster care and neurodivergent youth are always part of the programs. Teen poetry workshops Presentation of student art awards and scholarships. Arts Now Community Partnership with Create CA and HUSD, promoting equitable arts education 4. Online Exhibitions & Artist Spotlights HAC features virtual exhibits and member artist highlights on its website, expanding visibility and access to local art. 5. Free Family Fun Art Classes In partnership with Hayward Public Library, HAC presents art classes for ages 5-12 and caregivers in a inclusive environment where creativity grows and a teaching artist guides attendees with a hands-on-class once a month. HAC selects and pay teaching artists and provides supplies for attendees. 6. Older Adults Free Art Classes At the Weekes Branch Library, HAC offers free classes for older adults where a teaching artist guides attendees with a hands-on-demo once a month. HAC selects and pay teaching artists and provides supplies for attendees. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Alameda County Arts Commission | 1106 Madison St., Suite 336 , Oakland, CA 94607 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 208-9646 | California's 12th congressional district | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Alameda County Arts Commission will provide a broad range of essential arts programs, including arts advocacy, arts education, grants for arts, and public art, to the dynamic and vibrant arts and culture community and extremely diverse 1.7 million Alameda County residents. The CAC funds enliven and sustain the arts and culture ecosystem of this region. | The Arts Commission fulfills its mission through: • Arts Advocacy: Arts Commission is an active leader of local, state and national level activities. Local efforts focus on arts education through CREATE Alameda County. Advancing the arts, local artists, leaders and art orgs through Arts Leadership Awards program honoring 5-7 County leaders each year. Local activities are in partnership with the Alameda County Board of Supervisors. State level leadership with state advocacy orgs: California Arts Advocates, California for the Arts, CREATE CA and the Coalition of County Arts Agencies. National level includes advancing the National Arts Education Week in September and National Arts and Humanities Month of October which is celebrated by the County Board of Supervisors when honoring the local Arts Leadership awardees. • Arts Funding: Annually distributes over $325k+ to over 120 nonprofits organizations serving over 750,000 residents each year. Currently in 50th consecutive year. Has granted over $5.5 million. • Public Art: Over 1,000 artworks inside 26 County facilities and at 20 outdoor spaces; viewed by over 1 million residents each year. Established in 1994 by County “2% for Public Art” ordinance. • Arts Education: Programs are Arts, Culture & Creativity Month, Veterans Art Partnership, 100 Families, Poetry Out Loud, Arts Learning Exhibitions and year-round CREATE Alameda County program. Information provided on website and social media. Community members attend free exhibitions, workshops, events, etc. • Arts Resource and Networking Services: On-going technical information and art resources are provided to partners and the public. Arts Commission’s City-Level Arts Partnership Network is a peer-learning environment for the 24 city-level arts organizations which meet monthly and share information. Arts Commission connects with the 375 nonprofit arts and cultural organizations who are current or recent ARTSFUND grantees. The Arts Commission strengthens this network by providing ongoing information and resources through email communications, social media and direct mailings. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | MIXED BAG PRODUCTIONS | 499 ALABAMA ST APT 201, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-1380 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 734-7344 | California Congressional District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mixed Bag Productions will produce “Are We Listening?”, a community-engaged dance project developed through ongoing collaboration with On Lok Always Active, a San Francisco nonprofit serving over 1,000 seniors and people with disabilities at 15 locations across the Bay Area. The project centers the creative voices of On Lok community members through twice-weekly movement sessions utilizing Sara Shelton Mann’s Moving Alchemy methodology, adapted for seated, standing, and assisted movement. Community members generate movement material, imagery, and narratives that are woven into the developing performance work. The project culminates in a series of 10 site-specific community performances at On Lok locations and a full-length premiere at Fort Mason in September 2027, featuring professional MBP performers alongside elderly and disabled On Lok community members. | Mixed Bag Productions seeds the success of emerging west coast choreographers and connects dance makers to an international network of artists and organizations spanning New York, Berlin, Vienna and Northern California. MBP serves as an umbrella for Sara's mentoring work with young dancers. A master healer and a socially engaged artist, Sara is an innovator of the somatic-activist hybridity that informs contemporary dance practices internationally. She is at the cutting edge of dance practices, where poetic experimentation meets embodied alchemy, and soulful improvisation inspires choreographic vision. Her dances are often contextualized or juxtaposed with a writing/speaking technique that shapes space and articulates movement with language. Sara believes that our energetic bodies convey deeper-rooted messages than any culture or identity can express. Like many artists who have spent a lifetime in the heart of their craft, Sara has come to believe that the exploration of these stories forms a vital collective heritage that transcends the artifact of performance. Her art is meant to reveal and transmit the story of our collective humanity—our potential for excellence, our danger—in a time of global change, chaos, and paradigm shift. It is an antidote to fear, doubt, and greed as the face of who we are. Recent home seasons in San Francisco have been presented at CounterPulse, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, ODC Theater, Dance Mission Theater, Joe Goode Annex and Z Space at Project Artaud. In December 2015, Mixed Bag presented Sara's large-scale retrospective Erasing Time, a 5-hour durational performance featuring over 40 dancers with whom she'd worked over the past 35 years. In 2020, Mixed Bag launched Sara's 7 Excavations series, workshop and performance experiments informed by the pandemic and based in Sara's pedagogy developed over 50-plus years. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | MIXED BAG PRODUCTIONS | 499 ALABAMA ST APT 201, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-1380 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 734-7344 | California Congressional District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mixed Bag Productions (MBP) will produce core programming during the project period: twice-weekly movement sessions with On Lok Always Active senior and disabled community members at locations across the Bay Area; six Moving Alchemy workshops and six salon performances at our San Francisco dance studio, offering free and low-cost access to new work by Artist Director Sara Shelton Mann and guest artists. These ongoing programs culminate in a series of 10 site-specific community performances at On Lok sites in San Francisco and a full-length socially engaged dance theater performance at Fort Mason, San Francisco. The work will be choreographed by Sara Shelton Mann and will feature professional MBP performers alongside senior and disabled On Lok community members. | Mixed Bag Productions seeds the success of emerging west coast choreographers and connects dance makers to an international network of artists and organizations spanning New York, Berlin, Vienna and Northern California. MBP serves as an umbrella for Sara's mentoring work with young dancers. A master healer and a socially engaged artist, Sara is an innovator of the somatic-activist hybridity that informs contemporary dance practices internationally. She is at the cutting edge of dance practices, where poetic experimentation meets embodied alchemy, and soulful improvisation inspires choreographic vision. Her dances are often contextualized or juxtaposed with a writing/speaking technique that shapes space and articulates movement with language. Sara believes that our energetic bodies convey deeper-rooted messages than any culture or identity can express. Like many artists who have spent a lifetime in the heart of their craft, Sara has come to believe that the exploration of these stories forms a vital collective heritage that transcends the artifact of performance. Her art is meant to reveal and transmit the story of our collective humanity—our potential for excellence, our danger—in a time of global change, chaos, and paradigm shift. It is an antidote to fear, doubt, and greed as the face of who we are. Recent home seasons in San Francisco have been presented at CounterPulse, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, ODC Theater, Dance Mission Theater, Joe Goode Annex and Z Space at Project Artaud. In December 2015, Mixed Bag presented Sara's large-scale retrospective Erasing Time, a 5-hour durational performance featuring over 40 dancers with whom she'd worked over the past 35 years. In 2020, Mixed Bag launched Sara's 7 Excavations series, workshop and performance experiments informed by the pandemic and based in Sara's pedagogy developed over 50-plus years. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $16,862.00 | City of Soledad | 248 Main St. , Soledad, CA 93960-3206 | Monterey | Central Coast | (831) 223-5000 | 19th Congressional District | 29th Assembly District | 17th State Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, City of Soledad Parks and Recreation Department will implement a free, artist-led after-school arts program serving youth ages 6–10. Through weekly hands-on workshops held at Orchard Lane Park and the Community Center, participants will engage in visual and multi-media arts, encouraging creativity, collaboration, and connection. Programming will prioritize youth with limited access to arts and enrichment opportunities outside of school. Grant funds will support artist services, supplies, outreach, and implementation. Activities may include painting, mixed media, mosaic art, and nature-based projects utilizing natural materials. Programming will take place in the park and at the Community Center depending on weather and programming. The project will be implemented through partnerships with schools and arts partners to ensure inclusive and cultural experiences supporting positive development and continued participation in the arts. | The City of Soledad provides a broad range of municipal services focused on enhancing quality of life, supporting community well-being, and maintaining essential public infrastructure, facilities, and programs for residents. Core services include parks and recreation programming, public works and infrastructure maintenance, community events, youth and senior services, economic and community development, facility operations, and administrative services that support the day-to-day needs of the community. Through its Parks and Recreation Department, the City offers year-round recreational, cultural, educational, and arts-based programming designed to serve residents of all ages and backgrounds. Programs and services include youth sports, after-school and seasonal recreation activities, wellness and enrichment programs, community events and celebrations, park activation initiatives, facility rentals, and partnerships that increase access to safe and inclusive opportunities for residents. The Department also manages community facilities and public spaces that serve as gathering places for recreation, arts, cultural activities, and community engagement. The City regularly collaborates with local schools, nonprofits, artists, community organizations, and regional partners to expand programming opportunities and improve access to services for underserved populations. Through these partnerships, the City works to foster community connection, positive youth development, cultural engagement, and equitable access to recreational and creative experiences. The City remains committed to strengthening programs and services that support community pride, wellness, inclusion, and opportunities for meaningful civic participation. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Nava Dance Theatre | 80 Turk Street , San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (925) 457-1140 | 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, NAVA DANCE THEATRE will sustain and expand its culturally responsive dance, residency, and community engagement programs that center South Asian diasporic stories and historically underrepresented communities. CAC funds will support artist compensation, rehearsal and performance costs, accessibility services, and free or low-cost public programming. Activities include the creation and presentation of new dance works exploring migration, labor, identity, and healing; the Unrehearsed Artist Residency and Commissioning Program; Varnam Salon; subsidized bharatanatyam classes and workshops; and school and community engagements across the Bay Area. NAVA DANCE THEATRE will continue partnering with immigrant, BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, disabled, and community-based organizations to create accessible, intergenerational artistic experiences that connect contemporary social issues with culturally rooted performance practices while supporting equitable opportunities for artists and audiences. | Nava Dance Theatre (NDT), led by Artistic Director Nadhi Thekkek, is a Bharatanatyam company using South Indian dance as a medium for reflection and discovery. We focus on two main programs: original dance works and our Unrehearsed: Artist Residency and Commissioning program. We also offer subsidized workshops, co-produce the Varnam Salon, and organize classes as part of our community engagement. Highlights include residencies at CounterPulse and A.C.T., two commissions from Oakland Ballet, and support from the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project. Our work has also been funded by the MAP Fund, National Endowment for the Arts, California Arts Council, San Francisco Arts Commission, and more. Since 2013, we’ve performed nationally at venues such as La Mama (NYC), National Steinbeck Center, SF Ethnic Dance Festival, Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, UC Davis Mondavi Center, and UMass Amherst Fine Arts Center. NDT creates immersive, community-centered performances rooted in South Asian storytelling through Bharatanatyam and experimental movement. Our blend of dance, music, and narrative reflects the lived experiences of Indian and South Asian communities. Drawing from oral histories and interviews, we explore themes like migration, identity, and justice. Through responsible, culturally responsive storytelling, we center underrepresented voices and invite audiences to reflect, connect, and take pride in our shared histories. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles | 5225 WILSHIRE BLVD Suite 617, LOS ANGELES, CA 90036-4301 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 990-5014 | With support from the California Arts Council, Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) will present the 25th annual film festival. CAC funds will support staff salaries and office rent. | In response to community-identified needs, IFFLA brings groundbreaking independent cinema from South Asia and its diasporas to audiences across Greater Los Angeles, in a vibrant, highly curated program comprising narrative, documentary, and animated features and shorts. In addition to film screenings, the festival offers systemically under-resourced storytellers mentorship and networking opportunities through masterclasses, panels, and events. Our programming removes access barriers and promotes the diverse perspectives of South Asian filmmakers and their diasporic communities in Los Angeles, California, and abroad. In 2024, IFFLA launched IFFLA Industry Day, a day-long forum in Los Angeles for rising and established film and television creatives and executives. Informed by direct feedback from our community, IFFLA expanded Industry Day into a two-day forum in 2025. This expansion specifically addressed the lack of access to creative, financing and professional mentorship for South Asian storytellers. In 2026, IFFLA Industry Days took place over two days with more panels, masterclasses, and mentorship events as well as the IFFLA Connect and IFFLA One on Ones programs, which link projects in development to financiers and collaborators. All three editions of Industry Days have featured Launchpad, a dynamic live pitch competition where finalists pitch their film and television projects to a panel of industry executives receiving feedback in front of an audience. The winner is awarded a $10,000 development grant to further advance their project. IFFLA serves as a culturally responsive space that removes structural barriers to the entertainment industry. By integrating community feedback into our program design, we ensure that our programming, mentorship, grants, and networking events are accessible and prioritize those most impacted by systemic exclusion. IFFLA has become an enlightening cultural space which builds context and buzz about upcoming work, provides an avenue for new, underrepresented work, leverages relationships by imparting vital mentorship and grants, and fosters community. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Modoc County Arts Council | 212 W. Third St. , Alturas, CA 96101 | Modoc | Upstate | (530) 708-7233 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Modoc County Arts Council will provide free monthly coloring contests and a culminating youth art contest for ages 5–18 across rural Modoc County. The project will bring artist-designed activities into grocery stores, schools, and partner sites to reduce barriers related to cost, distance, and limited access to arts learning in rural communities. Through monthly themes focused on health, safety, wellness, and community identity, youth will build creative confidence and visual art skills while connecting their artwork to local issues and everyday life. The project will culminate in original youth artwork displayed on a local billboard and Main Street banners in Alturas, creating public recognition and a visible celebration of youth creativity during National Arts and Humanities Month | The Modoc County Arts Council is organized into four main programs: Visual Arts, Arts Education, Performing Arts, & Culture. Under Visual Arts we have gallery shows including a student art show, and a digital art gallery (pending), Sponsorship of galleries in two Modoc towns, mural projects on buildings in Alturas and Cedarville; under Arts education we have consulting and collaborating with the Modoc High Art Classes, our Arts Instructors Program in partnership with The Art Center of Alturas, and sponsorship of local galleries in two Modoc County towns that have arts educational programs; under Performing Arts we have the Missoula Children’s Theatre one-week residency and the Poetry Out Loud programs for Modoc County, as well as partner with the Modoc Performing Arts Theater and the Modoc High School Drama Club. We have implemented the Modoc Community Concert Series and have four concerts per year – we hope to expand this to eight concerts per year with additional funding. We have a community radio station KILN 99.1 LP FM that has local content from area musicians and provides consulting and assistance with recording. Under Culture we have anticipated partnerships with the Library, Museum, local ranches, and Tribes to provide venues, events, and classes that foster the celebration and understanding, and artwork of different cultures in Modoc County. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Beautiful Beginnings Arts Collective | 869 Ingerson Ave. , San Francisco, CA 94124 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 217-9885 | With support from the California Arts Council, Beautiful Beginnings Arts Collective will create paid, part-time staff positions of: 1) Operations Manager; 2) Social Engagement Manager; and 3) Youth Program Coordinator supporting our programming, including free community arts classes, youth leadership program, and annual San Francisco Carnaval cultural arts performance. | BBAC’s arts and cultural programs and services focus on creating an inclusive and accessible multigenerational creative community, centered on culturally relevant traditions from the African diaspora and folkloric art forms from Latin America. We offer a comprehensive arts-based curriculum at several coordinated venues in South East San Francisco, including Community Well (a holistic wellness center in the Excelsior neighborhood), Southeast Community Center (community hub in Bayview neighborhood) and San Francisco Community School (public K-8 school in the Excelsior). 6 free classes each week for youth and families, provide opportunities for creative expression, empowerment, and social connection. These educational programs culminate in our annual production in the San Francisco Carnaval Parade. Throughout a nine-month development process, our multigenerational artist collective meets weekly. Youth participants take leadership roles in all aspects of our production, including overall concept/planning, design and creation of costumes/visual arts, and performance of music and dance. Rehearsals for all participants start in January and run until Carnaval at the end of May. We also offer our Artist-in-Training Youth Leadership Program. Each year, our master teaching artists mentor 12 youth ages 14-21 in a range of artistic practices. Participating youth receive a stipend while receiving intensive arts training, job readiness, wellness, and communication skills. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Cabrillo Playhouse | 202 AVENIDA CABRILLO , SAN CLEMENTE, CA 92672-4002 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 492-0465 | 4th Congressional DIstrict | District 74 | District 36 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN CLEMENTE COMMUNITY THEATRE will sustain core operations for Cabrillo Playhouse, including payroll, utilities, artist support, and increased theatrical script royalty and rental expenses associated with its six-show season. Funding will support accessible, community-centered live theater programming serving San Clemente and the greater South Orange County region while helping stabilize operations following major facility and ADA accessibility improvements completed through the organization’s recent capital campaign. Support will also strengthen the organization’s long-term sustainability by allowing Cabrillo Playhouse to rebuild reserves, expand community engagement, maintain affordable public access to the arts, and continue providing artistic and volunteer opportunities for performers, technicians, designers, and community members of varying ages, backgrounds, and experience levels. | Cabrillo Playhouse provides year-round theatrical programming and community-based arts opportunities that engage a wide range of participants, including local artists, students, volunteers, and audiences throughout South Orange County. *Mainstage Productions The Playhouse produces a full season of live theatrical performances each year, featuring a diverse range of plays and musicals. These productions provide paid and volunteer opportunities for actors, directors, designers, and technicians, while offering audiences affordable access to high-quality live theater in their community. *Artist and Volunteer Engagement Cabrillo Playhouse operates through a highly engaged network of local artists and volunteers who contribute to all aspects of production and operations. This model fosters hands-on learning, skill development, and meaningful community involvement in the arts. *Educational and Emerging Artist Opportunities The organization supports emerging performers and youth participants by providing opportunities to gain experience in live theater production, performance, and backstage work. These opportunities help build confidence, creativity, and practical skills in the performing arts. *Community Access and Cultural Enrichment Cabrillo Playhouse is committed to making theater accessible through affordable ticket pricing and a welcoming, community-centered environment. Its programming serves a broad audience, including families, seniors, and first-time theatergoers, helping to reduce barriers to arts participation in the region. Cabrillo Playhouse continues to expand its efforts to broaden participation and reduce barriers to access by fostering inclusive casting, outreach, and community engagement practices. *Facility as a Cultural Resource As one of the few dedicated live theater venues in the immediate area, Cabrillo Playhouse provides a consistent and reliable space for the performing arts, supporting ongoing cultural activity and community gathering. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Samuel Lawrence Foundation | PO BOX F , DEL MAR, CA 92014-0137 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 481-1673 | 49th Congressional District | District 78 | District 39 | Dance Start, a flagship program of the Samuel Lawrence Foundation, uses dance as a pathway to literacy and community connection for underrepresented children ages 3–8 across San Diego County. CAC grant funds will sustain free classes at Neighborhood House Association Head Start Centers, King Chavez Academy, and William J. Oakes Boys' & Girls' Club; expand programming to South Bay, Solana Beach, and San Marcos in partnership with Episcopalian Community Services, Southwestern College, La Colonia Boys' & Girls' Club, and CSU San Marcos; and increase workshops at Pacific Beach Recreation Center. Funds will also provide children and families free tickets to professional dance performances and offer paid teaching experience to college dance students. Through movement and storytelling, Dance Start nurtures vocabulary, listening comprehension, and social-emotional development in historically underserved San Diego communities. | All SLF programs and projects demonstrate the power of our guiding principles: collaboration, shared learning, innovation. The Samuel Lawrence Foundation (SLF) strives to promote human interaction and encourage broader community access to science, education, and the arts. Behind every successful SLF project are creative ideas, persistent hope, and clear communications, which invite others to be inspired and contribute their talent. We achieve this work by connecting with our community’s knowledge and collaborating on solutions. Our collective impact among direct programs is a testament to the power of collaboration and encouragement. SLF has several programs categorized into 5 main categories : Environment (San Onofre and Beyond, Top to Top, Social Justice in Uniontown Alabama, Climate Resilience Initiative) Science and Medicine (Microbiome Research and Earth Microbiome Project, Electromagnetic Field Research) Education (Kabul Schools Connection, Floating Schools of Bangladesh, Barrio Botany, Steam Leadership Series) Arts (Dance Start, Dually Noted, Open Door for the Arts, National STEAM photography exhibition) and Unsung Hero-ines. Each program seeks to help make the world a better place and to improve the lives of its inhabitants. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | 916 Ink | 3301 37th Ave , Sacramento, CA 95824 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 826-7323 | California's 6th congressional district | District 7 | District 6 | With the support of the California Arts Council, 916 Ink will launch The Next Chapter: Literary Media Fellowship. This fellowship program will serve to empower students who have previously completed our Creative Writing/Literacy programs to gain skills and pursue careers in writing, publishing, media and communications. This year-long mentorship program for alumni, ages 16-21, will provide fellows with coaching and mentorship on career and education goals, opportunities to network with communication professionals and local guest artists, and opportunities to produce original creative media which expresses their unique perspective. Each Fellow will complete a capstone project in the form of a publication, performance, or production. | 916 Ink is Sacramento’s arts-based creative writing and literacy nonprofit that provides workshops and tutoring to transform Sacramento youth into strong readers, confident communicators, and published authors. Our programs increase literacy skills, improve vocabulary, teach empathy, positively impact social and emotional learning, and expand communication skills. We envision a Sacramento region where every child and teen is given access to a culturally relevant creative writing program that leads them to believe in themselves and to understand the power of the written word. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | TILTshift Dance | 13525 Mira Montana Dr , DEL MAR, CA 92014 | San Diego | Far South | (415) 533-5570 | With support from the California Arts Council, TILTshift Dance will successfully implement and further build our 2027 programming. CAC grant funds will allow us to adequately pay and increase our number of artists, residents, and interns served, as well as bring on much needed administrative help, deepening our community reach and impact. Some of our notable programs include: Asian American Dance Festival (AADF) – San Diego’s first and only dance festival, centering AAPI artists, stories, and communities. AADF Collaborative Residency, Internship & Fellowship – A professional development program, offering mentorship for early/mid-career AAPI artists. AADF Winter Symposium – A weekend of dance/movement classes, uplifting the visibility of our local AAPI dance/movement instructors. AADF Gatherings – Networking events for AAPI dance/movement professionals. ChoreoWreck – Choreographic research process that incorporates community engagement. OpenLAB – Communal studio space for dance artists to work. | As dance makers, we create works for stage, film, and site specific. As dance teachers, we offer classes in modern, contemporary and conditioning/fitness. As dance educators, we hold workshops in choreography and encourage dialog through facilitated "wrecking" events. As community driven dance artists, we provide opportunities and space for other dance artists to work on their craft, to dig into the creative process, to collaborate artistically, and to tell their stories in their own voices. We curate and present the annual Asian American Dance Festival (AADF), San Diego's first and only full dance festival celebrating AAPI dance artists. In addition to performance showcases, AADF also consists of a residency and internship program for early to mid-career AAPI dance artists. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Community Youth Orchestra of So California | 27472 Portola Pkwy, ste 205-367 , Foothill Ranch, CA 92610 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 529-2950 | California's 45th congressional district | District 74 | District 37 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Community Youth Orchestra of Southern California (CYOSC) will strengthen its core operations by expanding instructional staffing and securing higher-quality rehearsal and performance venues. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit serving young musicians throughout Orange County since 1990, CYOSC's greatest asset — and greatest expense — is its team of skilled coaches who provide weekly, in-person sectional instruction and support across strings, winds, and brass. Current tuition revenue does not fully cover the cost of a complete coaching staff, leaving some orchestral sections underserved. CAC funds will enable us to hire additional section coaches, ensuring every student receives the individualized guidance essential to their musical development. Funding will also support venue costs, allowing CYOSC to provide a more professional environment for students, families, and the broader Southern California community. | Currently CYOSC has 3 ensembles that provide young musicians with the opportunity to play in an ensemble, learning ensemble skills and developing their general musical ability. There are several performances each year, as well as the chance to participate in an annual concerto competition. The winner of this competition performs as a soloist at the Finale Concert. Selected other participants in the competition perform as a soloist with a chamber orchestra of hired professionals. The three ensembles are: Sinfonietta - a string orchestra ensemble for students K-4th Grade; Philharmonia - a string ensemble for students in grades 5-8; Symphony Orchestra - a full orchestra including strings, winds, and brass for student in grades 8-12. There is also an invitation-only Solisti ensemble that meets for part of the season to perform in community events (e.g., the Holiday Music program and Santa Ana Airport and City of Irvine events). All students in these programs and ensembles are paying members, although we offer hardship scholarships, performance scholarships, and brass and viola scholarships. Finally, there is a volunteer program for high school students wishing to help younger musicians. Most of students sit alongside their younger peers and help them to play their instruments and support their learning environment. A small number of the volunteers help to take photos and videos for the organization. All volunteers help with general operations at concerts and rehearsals. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Rise Up Industries | 5275 MARKET ST STE 1 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92114-2215 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 457-0790 | With support from the California Arts Council, Rise Up Leadership Academy (RULA), a gang prevention program, will expand access to local art institutions, creative/cultural expression, and social-emotional learning for youth at risk for gang involvement in San Diego's City Heights neighborhood. In partnership with the San Diego Museum of Art, RULA students will participate in three Saturday art workshops through the museum's Art Express! initiative, which provides transportation, admission, and hands-on art experiences for the City Heights community. During RULA's after-school and summer programming, students will also participate in weekly art classes, including a minimum of 10 museum-developed art activities that bring arts education directly to youth onsite. By removing barriers to arts access, this project will foster healing, self-confidence, social-emotional growth, and positive peer collaboration among historically under-resourced youth vulnerable to gang involvement. | Rise Up Leadership Academy (RULA) RULA is RUI’s prevention strategy to work toward dismantling the intergenerational gang involvement cycle in San Diego. Launched in 2024, this program empowers at-risk youth from fifth grade through high school in a long-term, after-school and summer program. RULA operates from City Heights Recreation Center nearly every weekday of the year, as well as occasional Saturdays, and currently supports students from Rosa Parks Elementary and Clark Middle School. RULA’s goal is to prevent at-risk youth from gang involvement by strengthening their positive attachments to self, peers, and community. RULA aims to support at-risk youth in paving foundational and empowering pathways toward being leaders of their own lives and achieving their future life goals. RULA’s approach incorporates these key prevention components: improved supervision, interpersonal skills training, peer relationship-building, safe recreational spaces, and academic engagement. Each student has access to 1,000+ annual hours of services and activities, including: art activities (weekly); sports and recreation (daily); homework support (daily); skill building (biweekly); guest speakers (monthly); community engagement (monthly); mental health support with an associate clinician (weekly); and silent mentorship (daily, with weekly staff debriefs). RULA uses art experiences and education to empower and uplift youth as leaders and creative thinkers while strengthening connections to peers, community, and a sense of self – protective factors that can reduce the likelihood of gang involvement and increase belonging and agency. Reentry Program RUI's first program, the Reentry Program, launched in 2016. The program empowers formerly gang-involved justice-impacted citizens in gaining access to 3,000+ hours of comprehensive, wraparound services including employment, job training, case management, tattoo removal, counseling, mentoring, education assistance, financial literacy, life skills, work ethic development, and ultimately job placement. All services occur onsite at our San Diego facility. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Safe Black Space | 1026 FLORIN RD #294 , SACRAMENTO, CA 95831-3513 | Sacramento | Capital | (530) 683-5101 | 7th Congressional District | 10 | 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAFE BLACK SPACE (SBS), a 501(c)(3) organization specializing in African-centered wellness, will implement the Black Men’s Healing Facilitator Initiative from February 2027 through June 2027. This leadership development program addresses "racial battle fatigue" and systemic trauma among Black men by certifying them in culturally rooted healing arts. The funding supports: Capacity Building: Training a cohort of 10 Black men in the SAFE BLACK SPACE Community Healing Circle methodology—a Community-Defined Evidence Practice. Cultural Arts Integration: Partnering with artist Leon Willis (AlphabetEx) to integrate embodied movement, visual storytelling, and mindfulness into the wellness curriculum. Direct Community Impact: Supporting a public-facing cohort-led wellness activation, culminating in a large-scale Juneteenth Celebration in collaboration with another local organization. Economic Support: Providing stipends to the cohort and trainers, ensuring equitable compensation for cultural labor. | Safe Black Space implements cultural and community-driven healing and connection activities. • Community Healing and African Drum Circles: Facilitating safe environments for emotional processing of racial stress and trauma and connecting with Black culture and joy. Inclusive of artistic forms of healing. • Wellness Activities: Providing culturally rooted self and community care services that increase health and wellness, such as African-centered yoga, sound baths, stress management techniques • Culturally Anchored Events: Hosting gatherings like the annual Kwanzaa Kutoa Celebration which affirm identity, build social cohesion, and celebrate community honorees. • Educational Outreach: Providing healing-centered education, meditation sessions, and book study groups to equip participants with long-term coping strategies. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | HDTS | 62953 Sullivan Rd , JOSHUA TREE, CA 92252 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (760) 507-4190 | California's 23rd congressional district | District 47 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, High Desert Test Sites (HDTS) will partner with local artist Carolyn Pennypacker Riggs to present High Desert Choir, a free, no-audition community chorus. The project addresses urgent regional needs—social isolation, limited access to mental health support, and civic disconnection—through collaborative song-writing, singing, and public performance. Rooted in the Morongo Basin, where residents often experience geographic and social isolation, Choir creates a consistent, inclusive space for creative expression and reconnection. Weekly workshops, community-based performances, and the creation of a 12-song album will engage approximately 200 participants and reach over 1,200 audience members. CAC funds will support artist fees, workshop facilitation, performance production, and album creation. By centering collective voices, High Desert Choir strengthens community cohesion, supports mental well-being, and expands much-needed local opportunities for civic and artistic participation. | We engage local and visiting artists, critical thinkers, and general audiences in intimate exchanges and immersive experiences. HDTS programming includes performance, site-specific installation, workshops, screenings, publications, and residencies. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Fresno Arts Council | 1245 Van Ness Ave. 1245 Van Ness Ave., FRESNO, CA 93721-1711 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 237-9734 | California's 21st congressional district | District 31 | District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council FRESNO ARTS COUNCIL INC (FAC) will engage with the local arts community in Fresno County to support growth and development through mentoring, technical assistance, and identifying grant and job opportunities. We will provide support for program development through individual planning sessions. FAC acts as a resource for the general public, developers, and public entities for issues and information related to Fresno's vast arts ecosystem. We will continue to stage events such as ArtHop, Horizon Awards, and Arts Alive in Agriculture to ensure that Art in all its forms is fully represented in the region, and that local artists receive public attention. We will use CAC grant funds to specifically support staff positions. | Fresno Arts Council Programs and Services • ARTHOP- Multiple venues and days • Curate Art at FAC • Curate Art at City Hall • Public Art Projects – FAT Airport, Cal Trans multiple projects, Crosswalks • Poet Laureate • Readings • Poetry Out Loud – High School Students • Arts in Education- Selma Unified • Teaching Artist Training • Art Haven Project for the Unhoused • State of the Arts/Horizon Awards • Arts Alive in Agriculture • Technical Assistance • Fiscal Receiverships • General Resources and Referrals for local artists • Rural Access to the Arts Grants |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Lodi Community Art Center | 110 W. Pine St , LODI, CA 95240 | San Joaquin | Central Valley | (209) 333-3855 | California 9th Congressional District | District 9 | District 5 | With support from the California Arts Council, LODI COMMUNITY ART CENTER will use the grant funds to pay for the lease, utilities, insurance, and other operational expenses. This will include promotional materials and social media and printed ads for our non-profit business. It will help us to reach out to the communities on a more consistent basis and to be more visible to potential youth, seniors, and the many diverse groups. This will help sustain our business through recent and future economic struggles, and an ever-changing art world and market. | Art Gallery open to public. Art Classes are available to all at a reasonable price. We provide community service and communication through art. We have outreach programs for kids and teens in many areas including underserved areas to provide free classes, learning and instruction, art kits, other programs, a Youth Gallery wall with monthly exhibitions, and low cost membership available to the youth. There are various monthly exhibitions and shows for members and often for non-members in our gallery. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | Walking Water | PO Box 516 , Graton, CA 95444 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (310) 307-6963 | District 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Walking Water (WW) and artists Henry Lipkis and Kate Morales will co-create "Waters Becoming Puppet Parades: Reimagining Payahuunadü" -a participatory public art project, in partnership with the Owens Valley Indian Water Commission, Accelerate Resilience LA, Weaving Earth, and Friends of the Inyo. Grounded in Waters Becoming, a WW publication developed through Morales’s visual scribing of community voices, this public reimagination project transforms these water stories into embodied, collective forms. Through story circles, walking-based gatherings, and hands-on workshops, participants will co-create large-scale puppets of “water beings and protectors” (salmon, otter, blue heron). Led by Lipkis’s mastery in puppetry and public spectacle, these culminate in immersive parades and “Portals” in Bishop and Lone Pine, transforming public space while amplifying Indigenous leadership, community voice, and a shared vision for water justice. | Walking Water (WW) offers participatory, arts-based programming that integrates storytelling, walking, and collaborative creation to explore the cultural, social, and ecological dimensions of water. Since 2012, WW has developed a distinct methodology that centers community voice as both source material and creative driver, using artistic practice to translate lived experience into collective, public expression. Core programming includes story circles, walking-based gatherings, workshops in visual and performative arts, and large-scale public events. Walking is a foundational practice—an accessible, low-impact method that invites participants to engage directly with land, water, and one another while grounding the work in shared experience and place-based awareness. Artistic processes such as puppet-making, printmaking, and visual storytelling are used to create multi-sensory entry points for participation, allowing individuals of different ages, abilities, and backgrounds to contribute meaningfully. WW places a strong emphasis on collaboration with artists, culture bearers, and community members, often engaging participants as co-creators in the development of artistic work. This approach culminates in immersive public experiences, such as processions, performances, and installations, that transform shared spaces into sites of dialogue, reflection, and collective imagination. Projects are frequently informed by prior community engagement and artistic research, including publications like Waters Becoming, which document and translate community narratives into visual and conceptual frameworks. Across all programming, WW prioritizes accessibility through free, public offerings, flexible participation formats, and multi-modal artistic practices. By combining relational facilitation with creative production, Walking Water creates inclusive platforms for cultural expression, intergenerational learning, and community-led exploration of environmental justice and collective futures. Virtual Story Shares |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | LA River Arts | 6624 DUME DR , MALIBU, CA 90265-4221 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 854-4765 | California Assembly district 50 | District 50 | District 27 | Operational support for the LA River Arts will increase core operational positions (e.g. programs manager, outreach coordinator). This will strengthen the organizational infrastructure needed to deliver and expand community-centered arts programming along the 51-mile Los Angeles River corridor. Funds will increase staff capacity, program coordination, community outreach, and operational systems across three flagship programs: River Sessions, an ongoing series of free, site-based public workshops and performances; River Solstice, a biannual festival featuring performative, installation, and musical artists along the river; and River Landmarks, a new biannual initiative commissioning permanent public artworks developed in collaboration with river corridor communities. Programming serves communities in the lower two quartiles of the California Healthy Places Index — including Long Beach, Downtown Los Angeles, the Gateway Cities, and San Fernando Valley — where access to free cultural programming remains critically underserved. | LA River Arts advocates for an arts and cultural infrastructure integral to the many revitalization projects along the river's 51-mile corridor from Canoga Park to Long Beach. We believe that cultural projects are a dynamic way to share the river's potential with a large public audience, and deepen community connections. Through art-based projects, our work has impacted the conversation on multiple levels. We have heightened the discussion about public space; tilted the conversation about the LA River toward community-driven social spaces; and demonstrated the confluence of nature, art, and play. Our efforts confirm the value of inclusionary art-based public projects, introduce artists and communities to each other, and envision a robust river cultural environment. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Laity Institute of the Arts | 3053 RNCH VST BLVD STE H336 , PALMDALE, CA 93551-4823 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 200-5695 | California Assembly district 36 | District 36 | District 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, LAITY THEATER COMPANY will expand LEAP through a Creative Youth Development initiative serving approximately 100 underserved students in grades 1–8 across the Antelope Valley while creating paid arts employment for five young adult community members, ages 18–25. These near-peer teaching aides, recruited from the same neighborhoods and schools as our students, will work alongside professional arts faculty in after-school visual and performing arts classes, supporting standards-aligned instruction and serving as culturally resonant role models. Grant funds will also support two curated arts exposure field trips and two participatory assemblies connected to classroom learning. This initiative expands meaningful arts access for children while providing young adults with mentorship, workforce experience, and professional development. | Laity's Organization's Core Programs and Services are courses in: Art, Animation, Ceramic Arts, Dance, Drama and Music. These courses are taught by professional and semi-professional artist in their field of study. Our courses are designed to help increase the overall awareness in the visual and performing arts in schools, and the tremendous role they play in the overall development of the student. Laity has developed the Laity Education Arts Program. LEAP is an after-school arts program designed to help augment and support the teaching of the arts during the traditional school day with a comprehensive content-based arts program. To reach this goal, LIA focuses on three key areas: · Skills – what the student learns from the instructor · Confidence - how the student executes what he/she has learned · Motivation – what the student is willing to learn next To achieve this classes in art, animation, ceramic art, dance, drama and music are taught after school 3 hours a day Monday through Friday. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | San Diego Tijuana International Jazz Festival | 3535 1ST AVE UNIT 8A STE 110 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92103-7804 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 883-7373 | 51 | 78 | 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN DIEGO JAZZ VENTURES INC will present the 3rd annual San Diego Tijuana International Jazz Festival from Oct 1-4, 2026. Funds will support activities on the US side of the border, including both our opening night on Oct 1, a free admission “Jazz Party” in downtown San Diego's East Village, and our "Mainstage" program on Oct 3, a free and ticketed event at the California Center for the Arts Escondido. The festival features regional, national, and international artists and has a strong educational component that engages high school and university students from both sides of the border. Our mission is to explore the musical history of the border region, drawing connections between jazz and Latin music, and to support the present and future of jazz in our region. | San Diego Jazz Ventures Inc's primary activity is the production of the annual San Diego Tijuana International Jazz Festival (SDTJ Jazz). The festival takes place over four days including the first weekend of October, including performances in Escondido, downtown San Diego, and Tijuana. Our second annual festival in October 2025 attracted attendance of more than 4,500 on both sides of the border. 75% attended at no fee for admission. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $10,000.00 | The Stage | 2091 Letterkenny Lane , LINCOLN, CA 95648 | Placer | Upstate | (916) 258-2082 | District 4 | District 6 | District 1 | The Stage is seeking CAC support to help more children and teens throughout Placer County discover the confidence, creativity, friendships, and sense of belonging that can happen through the performing arts. For many of the families we serve, theater becomes more than a performance — it becomes a safe place to grow, connect, and feel truly seen. Grant funding will support inclusive musical theater workshops, summer camps, mentorship opportunities, and youth externships for ages 6–19, including hands-on experience in directing, stage management, costume design, lighting, sound, and production management. Funding will also help us continue offering financial-need scholarships and inclusive programming for neurodiverse participants through programs like Broadway Besties, ensuring every child has the opportunity to belong, create, and shine both on and off the stage. | Currently, WPAA offers a comprehensive children and youth theatre program through The Stage. Children ages 5-13 are offered four two week work shops And two 10 week mini musicals a year. Youth are offered two youth productions a year. Both our children and youth productions encompass theatrical training, not just paid workshop performances. The children’s workshops encompass foundations dance, acting, and vocal training, while the youth productions require three hours a week of skill building in all three disciplines. In this way, WPAA is equipping students to use their artistic skills anywhere and throughout their lives, in a healthy and sustainable way, limiting injury, burnout, and unrealistic expectations. WPAA offers tuition scholarships to students in need, as Lincoln is home to many families under the poverty line. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Public Glass | 1750 ARMSTRONG AVE , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124-2610 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 671-4916 | 11th Congressional district of California | California State Assembly District 17 | State Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Public Glass will expand its Light-a-Spark program to develop free STEAM-focused glass art workshops for San Francisco’s Bayview neighborhood schools and youth-serving organizations. This project will offer hands-on learning experiences that connect art, science, design, and engineering to provide youth ages 13–19 in the Bayview with free arts programming through field trips, workshops, and summer programs. As San Francisco’s only public-access glass studio, located in the Bayview, we are uniquely positioned to support students in exploring processes including hot glass, kilnforming, and flameworking while developing creative thinking and problem-solving skills. Funding will support curriculum development, accessibility accommodations, instruction, and outreach, and will culminate in a youth exhibition. Through this project, Public Glass will empower a new generation of confident, creative, and engaged youth. | Public Glass is San Francisco’s only nonprofit public-access glass art studio and educational center, offering dynamic, hands-on experiences in glassmaking for artists, students, and community members of all ages and skill levels. For nearly 30 years, Public Glass has been a vibrant creative hub where people can explore the transformative power of glass through accessible, community-centered programming that sparks curiosity, creativity, and connection. Our core programs include educational classes and workshops across a wide range of glass disciplines, including hot glass, kilnforming, flameworking, stained glass, and coldworking. From first-time experiences to advanced master classes led by nationally and internationally recognized artists, our programs encourage experimentation, collaboration, and artistic growth. Through scholarships, work exchange opportunities, subsidized tuition, and our Emerging Artist Membership, we actively work to remove financial barriers and expand equitable access to the arts. At the heart of our community engagement is the intergenerational Light-a-Spark program, which provides free and reduced-cost workshops for schools, youth organizations, seniors, and underserved communities throughout the Bay Area. These programs emphasize participation, culturally responsive learning, teamwork, and creative problem-solving, helping participants build confidence and valuable life skills through hands-on artmaking. Public Glass also produces lively public events that bring artists and communities together, including exhibitions, artist talks, community markets, and our signature Hot Glass Cold Beer events featuring live glassblowing demonstrations, music, food, and local artists. Our gallery showcases an ever-changing collection of work by emerging and established artists, creating opportunities for artists to exhibit, sell work, and connect with new audiences. Through education, public programming, and strong community partnerships, Public Glass continues to expand access to glass art while inspiring creativity, cultural connection, and the next generation of artists, makers, and innovators. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Museum of Dance | 77 Van Ness Avenue Ste 101 , San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (520) 780-6672 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | The International Museum of Dance (IMOD) requests $30,000 in general operating support during a pivotal year of growth. In 2026, IMOD opens IMOD HQ, its first ground-floor presence at 434 Post Street in Union Square. This 2,500 sf experiential space serves as a living laboratory, inviting the public, collaborators, and scholars to participate in the design of what will become a state-of-the-art museum. The HQ hosts the Digital Dance Constellation (the world's first global interactive dance map, built with the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center), a live performance stage, podcast studio, and the IMOD Museum Store. Funds will support staffing, programming, marketing, and community engagement across IMOD's programs: Archives, Education, and Exhibitions, sustaining the infrastructure required as IMOD transitions into this next phase in the heart of San Francisco. | Our core programs and services include: Education Partnerships: Collaborating with local and national schools, we provide comprehensive dance education programs for students of all ages, including movement, technique, choreography, performance, and dance history. We also offer civic engagement projects and paid internships, fostering a deep connection between dance and community. Artist Partnerships: Working closely with local and national dance artists, we offer support, resources, and space for their presentations, performances, lectures, and teaching work. By nurturing these partnerships, we contribute to the growth and visibility of dance artists. Archive Partnerships: We collaborate with local and international dance archives, shining a spotlight on hidden dance archives and assisting in the interpretation and understanding of their significance. By showcasing these archives, we contribute to the broader appreciation and preservation of dance history. Exhibition Planning and Preparation: Engaging with students, local artists, national and international historians, and archivists, we design and create dynamic "Pop-Up" exhibitions that explore the connections between dance and communities. These exhibitions foster a sense of community engagement and connection. At the Museum of Dance, we are dedicated to creating an inclusive and enriching environment that celebrates the art of dance and its profound impact on our lives. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | Trinity County Arts Council | 55 Sharron Ct. , WEAVERVILLE, CA 96093 | Trinity | Upstate | (530) 623-2760 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, TRINITY COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL ASSOCIATION will pay our overhead costs so that we can serve as a conduit, bridge builder, producer and advocate of accessible arts education for all ages, the professional development of artists and culture bearers, and increased access to artistic opportunities for underserved and historically marginalized communities. We foster cultural vitality, sustainability and pride through culturally relevant artistic experiences, events and programs that empower artists and culture bearers to meaningfully enrich our community, with a commitment to prioritize our most historically marginalized peoples first, and to support a broad spectrum of artistic expression, mediums and traditional cultural practices in order to uplift and nurture the well-being of our county’s diverse creative and cultural ecosystem. | Trinity County Arts Council represents a deeply rural and underserved community and has an abiding commitment to prioritize social and racial equity. Outreach and Access to our underserved communities is highly prioritized and underlies all of our programming, including those regions in the lowest 15% HPI, and underserved cultural communities including the Hmong, Native American, Latinx, LGBTQ+, and the geographically remote. All TCAC programs and services are designed, evaluated, and regularly improved in order to equitably reach all of our citizens, provide direct access to the arts and culture by diverse ages and demographics, and assist in the development of professional artists and community arts organizations while promoting Trinity County as an Arts & Culture Destination. We facilitate arts education for all ages through workshops offered locally and outside of Trinity. We prioritize youth arts education through the Festival of Light Art Music & Dance Scholarship, and Artists in Schools Programs, augmenting k-12 arts education, and involvement in the North State Together internship program. We provide opportunities for musicians and artists to network, exhibit and sell their art through the signature events that we produce. These events have a proven track record for attracting residents and visitors from beyond Trinity County; Monthly Art Walk, Artists in Action, Wintu We Are Still Here Project, Get To Know Your Neighbors Storytelling and Culture Project; Festival of Light Crafts Event and Art, Music and Dance Lessons Scholarship Program, Art 4 Arts Sake, Music in the Park, Trinity Alps Chamber Music Festival, and Trinity Heritage Days Festival. Artists enjoy increased exposure to a wide audience through the Art in Public Places Program. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Clazzical Notes | 50 N. Mentor Ave #430 , PASADENA, CA 91106 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 833-2750 | California's 28th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Clazzical Notes will produce and present a series of live music performances in the greater Pasadena region. It will encompass an eclectic range of musical genres and styles, performed by professional world-class musicians and other artists, including spoken word and dance. Funding will support artist fees, production costs, marketing/public relations, accessibility, and administrative staff. | Clazzical Notes stages music programs that are designed to achieve three goals: engaging individuals through high-quality musical performances; educating audiences through information about culture, history and musical genres; and experiencing unique levels of audience interaction with performers. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | San Diego Made | 2031 Commercial Street , San Diego, CA 92113 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 817-5517 | California's 52nd congressional district | District CA-52 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Diego Made will continue our “My Creative Journey” | “Mi Viaje Creativo” artist residency initiative through a sixth residency serving San Diego’s Promise Zone communities during the FY26 grant activity period. Building on five successfully implemented residencies, including four funded through the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture and one currently supported by a California Arts Council Impact Grant, the project will provide one local artist with free studio space, a living wage stipend, mentorship, and organizational support to develop community centered programming. The artist will lead free bilingual and ADA accessible workshops, artist talks, youth engagement activities, open studio hours, and a culminating exhibition supporting creative entrepreneurship, cultural preservation, and equitable access to arts opportunities. | San Diego Made is an artist-led creative hub that drives social, cultural, and economic opportunities for artists, small businesses, and organizations throughout the region. We’re building a creative ecosystem that equips community members with the resources, support, and connections they need in order to build thriving futures. At our headquarters at the Factory in Logan Heights, our community has access to 12,000 sq. ft. of inspiring studio spaces, event facilities, and exhibition areas where people can hone their craft and showcase their work in a bold, welcoming environment. Through our public programming, artist residencies, and signature maker’s markets, we create immersive experiences that bring creatives and community together—fostering dialogue, sparking collaboration, and promoting meaningful engagement with the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Los Angeles Poet Society | 238 Jessie Street, Unit 4 , San Fernando, CA 91340 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 441-6495 | California Assembly district 39 | District 39 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, the LA Poet Society will be able to sustain our 75 events year-round literary arts programming serving LA County. Funds support operational expenses including artist honoraria, staffing, program coordination, venue costs, outreach, marketing, and administrative infrastructure. Our monthly programming includes weekly typewriter poetry activations in public spaces, multiple open mics across Los Angeles, and online, an inclusive writing circle for all levels, ongoing social media community-building support for creatives. It will also support our annual literary festivals and cultural celebrations such as Women’s Roar, Queer Writers Festival, LA Street Poetry Festival, Always Running Book Festival, and the organization’s annual anniversary celebration. These programs provide free opportunities for creative expression, community connection, and equitable access to the literary arts. Funding will ensure continued access to consistent, community-rooted arts programming. | Our core programming includes organizing and hosting a series of Los Angeles county literary events, currently hosted via online platforms, such as Zoom, and Instagram, and a few in person writing events and open mic offerings since post-pandemic. We offer an average of 75 events a year free to the public including: open mics, writing workshops, mediation practices, author interviews, BIPOC interviews, and more. We have a social justice, BIPOC focused, small press, Los Angeles Poet Society Press, and an online literary journal where we publish poetry, art, and literature. We hold 2-3 poetry contests a year. LAPS conducts poetry workshops within our community for all ages in English and Spanish. These workshops are curated for free to the public so that all people have access to the tools to express themselves and share their voices. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | TONALITY | 325 N Larchmont Suite 306 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90004-6717 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (910) 358-7130 | California's 30th congressional district | District 51 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Tonality will sustain its core operations, including staff salaries, artist/vocalist compensation, and production costs for its annual season of social justice-themed choral concerts. The funds will allow Tonality to maintain its programming infrastructure, deepen partnerships with community organizations, and continue building the organizational capacity needed to grow its reach/impact. Funds will support the continued delivery of full-length seasonal concerts - including programming on issues affecting historically marginalized communities. Funds will also support the Tonality Scholars Choral Education Program, which creates pathways for young Black and brown singers to pursue careers in classical music. Tonality will continue its work as one of the most racially diverse professional choral ensembles in the country: elevating diverse voices, stories, and causes through the power of choral music. | Tonality was established in 2016 to serve as a professional choral environment where racial and ethnic diversity would be represented both in the vocal performers and in the genres of music presented. In its second year, Tonality added an extra focus of presenting topics of social justice, particularly issues that affect the most marginalized within our community. Currently, Tonality is proving to be one of the most racially diverse professional choral ensembles in the country. Our commitment to present diverse composers and perspectives to issues of social justice increases every year. Furthermore, our endeavors to expand diversity extends to our Board of Directors, who also strive to maintain a strong sense of diversity in both racial and gender identities. Lastly, Tonality work's to reflect diversity within the artists and composers is also reflected in the collective mission to serve a diverse audience. Tonality's core programs include its seasonal concerts, Tonality Youth Scholars Choral Education Program, Systems change in classical music Speaker Series and increasing diverse voices in Music, Film, Tv Special Projects. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Imperial Valley Symphony Association | PO BOX 38 , EL CENTRO, CA 92244-0038 | Imperial | Far South | (760) 554-9911 | 25th Congressional District | 36th Assembly District | District 18 | The Imperial Valley Symphony, serving El Centro and the greater Imperial Valley, requests support through the Impact Projects program. Our predominantly Hispanic, underserved community faces barriers to arts access, education, and representation. This project centers a collaborative tour featuring pianist Tian Jiang, engaging local musicians and community members in performances, workshops, and outreach. By elevating artists from a rural border region, we address inequities in cultural representation while fostering intergenerational learning and community connection. Funding will ensure equitable participation, offsetting costs that would otherwise limit access for our musicians. This initiative aligns with Impact Projects’ goals by using artistic practice to address economic disparity, arts access, and cultural equity. With your support, we will amplify underrepresented voices and strengthen community resilience through the arts. | The Imperial Valley Symphony (IVS) is a non-profit community orchestra based in El Centro, California, that provides local musicians a creative outlet and the community access to live classical performances. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,220.00 | Capital Storytelling | 35 Alvares Ct , Sacramento, CA 95833-1143 | Sacramento | Capital | (864) 419-2843 | District 6 | District 6 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, Capital Storytelling will lead 5 community based workshops and one large showcase event through our Immigrant Stories Project. The storytelling workshops will be hosted throughout Sacramento and are intended for first and second generation immigrants to come together and share their true stories with one another in a healing act of community building and solidarity. We will then invite workshop participants to share their stories on stage in front of a live public audience at a culminating showcase event in Sacramento intended to amplify the stories from the immigrant community. Our ultimate goal is to empower immigrants and to change the societal narrative surrounding immigrants. | General Education Program: Oral Storytelling 101 workshop (3 times a year) Oral Storytelling 201 workshop (2 times a year) Podcasting 101 workshop (2 times a year) Events Programming: Monthly Storytelling Open-mic Series (12 times a year) Live Main Event Series (3-4 times a year) Story Ambassadors Program Immigrant Storytelling Program |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | "" | 1532 35th Ave. , Oakland, CA 94601 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 320-6534 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Afro Urban Society will support two part-time positions to carry out our mission of a Black-led community-powered arts & cultural organization dedicated to centering creatives and communities of African descent through professional development trainings, arts & cultural workshops, youth programs, festivals, original and curated productions, arts education, and community engagement activities in the SF Bay Area. AUS provides diverse program offerings that sustains the resiliency, interconnection and unique artistic and cultural expressions and contributions of people of African descent in our society. | Incubate: We curate and host various fellowship and training programs enabling our community members to level up on their creative and artistic craft and practice. Our offerings include: **Lit from the Black!: A design & technical production fellowship and training program for Black womxn and gender non-binary people to create a professional career pathway into the field **Onye Ozi Artist Fellowship: A multidisciplinary artistic exchange and inquiry on Afro-diasporic relations and identity **Afro Culture Kids Camp: Pan African Arts & Culture camp for school-age children Celebrate: We celebrate the work of community of artists and creatives with and through performance, cultural expression, media, and community events such as: **Bakanal de Afrique: bi-annual multidisciplinary festival that explores and celebrates the odyssey of urban Afro-descended people through art and culture **Gbedu Town Radio: Afro-pop ensemble of dancers and musicians **Afro Urban Dance Community Workshops and Events Elevate: **Connect our community members with work opportunities beyond Afro Urban Society **Share about the work of Artists through our various online and in-print publications **One3snapshot design collective: Original & Unique apparel, merch, publications and art |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | KDA | PO BOX 12407 , BAKERSFIELD, CA 93389-2407 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 491-5376 | California's 23rd Congressional District | District 34 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council KERN DANCE ALLIANCE (KDA) will produce the 11th annual Books in Motion: DANCE + LITERACY, a free, multilingual summer reading program fostering literacy through the arts for 5,000 children (ages 0-9) in Kern County’s underserved communities. Targeting low-income and marginalized youth, Books in Motion delivers 50+ dance performances across 30 Kern County libraries, educational institutions, and community centers. Children engage with literature through performances, choreography, crafts, and free books. With American Sign Language (ASL) services and Spanish-language offerings, Books in Motion ensures inclusivity. By integrating dance with Common Core literacy standards, Books in Motion cultivates critical thinking, cultural responsiveness, and positive self-expression, empowering youth in a region with limited arts access. Funds will support artist honorariums, books, craft supplies, and accessibility accommodations to transform lives through equitable arts education. | KDA serves a diverse population through our programs: - ADAPTIdance®: DANCE + DISABILITY offers adaptive dance classes for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. - BOOKS IN MOTION®: DANCE + LITERACY links dance and literacy to inspire children to read. - CHILDREN'S DANCE EDUCATION + OUTREACH PROGRAM provides at-risk youth with an afternoon of dance at the Bakersfield Fox Theater. - DANCING with the ANGELS connects foster care families through the arts. - HealingMOTION: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for cancer patients and survivors. - KDA INDIVIDUAL ARTISTS FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM provides unrestricted funds to individual artists living in California's Central Valley and Eastern Sierra counties. - NATIONAL DANCE DAY provides a celebratory day of dance classes for the community to enjoy. - NATIONAL HONORS SOCIETY FOR DANCE ARTS recognizes artistic merit, leadership, and academic achievement in students studying dance. - MemoryMOVES®: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients. - MightyMOVERS: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for pediatrics patients. - OPEN STAGE affords creatives access to the Bakersfield Fox Theater’s technical staff and theater amenities for free. - PASO A PASO utilizes dance to support empowerment through life-skills workshops for Kern County high school girls, specifically Latinas. - SHINE DANCE + MATH = SUCCESS combines dance with math to improve girls’ math scores and spark interest in STEAM. - TASTE OF DANCE celebrates cultural diversity in Kern County by showcasing cultures through culinary and performing arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | KDA | PO BOX 12407 , BAKERSFIELD, CA 93389-2407 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 491-5376 | California's 23rd Congressional District | District 34 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, KERN DANCE ALLIANCE (KDA) will fund general operations, including but not limited to artist honorariums, resources for people with disabilities, marketing initiatives, and event facility fees. This support will advance KDA’s mission to provide equitable arts access in Kern County’s underserved Central Valley, reaching up to 200,000 residents. Inclusive programs like ADAPTIdance: DANCE + DISABILITY, Books in Motion: DANCE + LITERACY, and MemoryMOVES: DANCE + THERAPY deliver transformative arts education, literacy, and therapy programs to marginalized groups, including youth, disabled individuals, and low-income communities. By sustaining KDA's general operating procedures, the grant will ensure KDA fosters creativity, empowerment, and cultural engagement by bridging divides and uplifting cultural vitality throughout the region. | KDA serves a diverse population through our programs: - ADAPTIdance®: DANCE + DISABILITY offers adaptive dance classes for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. - BOOKS IN MOTION®: DANCE + LITERACY links dance and literacy to inspire children to read. - CHILDREN'S DANCE EDUCATION + OUTREACH PROGRAM provides at-risk youth with an afternoon of dance at the Bakersfield Fox Theater. - DANCING with the ANGELS connects foster care families through the arts. - HealingMOTION: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for cancer patients and survivors. - KDA INDIVIDUAL ARTISTS FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM provides unrestricted funds to individual artists living in California's Central Valley and Eastern Sierra counties. - NATIONAL DANCE DAY provides a celebratory day of dance classes for the community to enjoy. - NATIONAL HONORS SOCIETY FOR DANCE ARTS recognizes artistic merit, leadership, and academic achievement in students studying dance. - MemoryMOVES®: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients. - MightyMOVERS: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for pediatrics patients. - OPEN STAGE affords creatives access to the Bakersfield Fox Theater’s technical staff and theater amenities for free. - PASO A PASO utilizes dance to support empowerment through life-skills workshops for Kern County high school girls, specifically Latinas. - SHINE DANCE + MATH = SUCCESS combines dance with math to improve girls’ math scores and spark interest in STEAM. - TASTE OF DANCE celebrates cultural diversity in Kern County by showcasing cultures through culinary and performing arts. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | A.B.O. Comix | 2520 Telegraph Ave. , Oakland, CA 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (619) 727-9771 | California's 13th congressional district | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Abolition Inc will develop and produce The Things We Made in Captivity: Lessons in Art, Survival, and Freedom with Queer/Trans Prisoners, a collaborative illustrated book documenting ten years of A.B.O. Comix’s arts, publishing, correspondence, and community-building work with incarcerated and formerly incarcerated LGBTQ2S+ artists. CAC funds will support archival review, manuscript development, contributor consultation, editorial labor, design, image preparation, accessibility materials, printing, and public engagement. The project will gather artwork, letters, comics, interviews, essays, and first-person reflections exploring censorship, chosen family, survival, grief, reentry, creativity, and abolitionist care. The book will be shared through an initial printed publication and related Oakland-based community programming that connects public audiences with the art, stories, and cultural knowledge of system-impacted queer and trans artists. | Publishing and Artist Development Abolition Inc DBA A.B.O. Comix provides a publishing and artistic development platform for incarcerated and system-impacted LGBTQ2S+ artists and writers. We work with contributors to develop artwork, writing, comics, memoir, and other creative projects, provide editorial support, and help artists build skills, portfolios, and credentials. Programs include annual comic anthologies, solo publications, autobiographical works, omnibus collections, and multi-volume comic series. Artist Compensation and Material Support We fundraise for and provide financial assistance to incarcerated LGBTQ2S+ contributors and community members, especially those with little or no outside support. Revenue from publications, events, and donations is reinvested into commissary assistance, supplies, reentry needs, and material aid. Correspondence, Community Connection, and Solidarity We maintain LGBTQ2S+ community contact, friendship, and support across prison walls through correspondence, contributor relationships, referrals, and ongoing communication. We connect incarcerated artists with outside organizations, publishers, advocacy groups, and resources that support their creative, legal, personal, or reentry needs. Public Education, Exhibitions, and Community Engagement We introduce the public to the experiences, creativity, and political realities of LGBTQ2S+ people impacted by incarceration through publications, exhibitions, workshops, book/zine fairs, community events, public programs, and collaborations. Oral History and Media Through long-form interviews, podcast production, and narrative media, we document the experiences of currently and formerly incarcerated contributors, advocates, organizers, and people working in solidarity with those inside prisons. Reentry, Parole, and Homecoming Support We provide parole and reentry support for LGBTQ2S+ people preparing for release or returning home, including recommendation letters, documentation of artistic participation, referrals, resource navigation, community connection, and material support. Community Space and Organizational Infrastructure We maintain a physical space that supports programming, community gatherings, volunteer engagement, outreach, and collaboration with aligned organizations. Our space helps us reach neighbors, build local relationships, host safer community activities, and sustain long-term arts and solidarity work. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Polaris Education Foundation | 5125 BRANDING IRON PL , RCH CUCAMONGA, CA 91739-2273 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (909) 975-1588 | With support from the California Arts Council, POLARIS EDUCATION FOUNDATION will present the 4th annual Harmony of Hearts Young Art Exhibition, a free community-based visual arts program serving historically underserved K–12 youth throughout the Inland Empire, including students from Title I schools, multilingual families, and youth with disabilities. The project will provide equitable access to public arts engagement through youth art exhibitions, workshops, artist demonstrations, multilingual outreach, and accessibility accommodations. Activities will take place at ADA-compliant community venues, including the Goldy S. Lewis Community Center, and will connect schools, families, artists, and community partners through inclusive arts experiences. CAC funds will support youth arts programming, exhibition production, accessibility resources, multilingual community outreach, and public engagement activities that uplift youth voices, cultural identity, and creative expression through the visual arts. | The Polaris Education Foundation is passionately committed to nurturing the educational, artistic, and personal growth of K–12 students, especially those from low-income and multicultural backgrounds. Our core programs provide free or low-cost access to high-quality arts and enrichment experiences, ensuring that every child has the opportunity to explore their creativity and connect with their community. Youth Arts Programs (Flagship Focus): At the center of our mission is a deep commitment to youth arts. Our flagship program, the Harmony of Hearts Young Art Exhibition, celebrates the creative voices of hundreds of young artists annually, offering a public platform for self-expression, confidence-building, and cultural connection. In addition, we provide year-round art workshops, exhibitions, and hands-on creative activities that inspire youth and foster a lasting appreciation for the arts. Creative and Cultural Enrichment Programs: We offer a variety of free or affordable programs that support artistic growth and cultural learning, including: • Visual Arts & Crafting Clubs – where students explore drawing, painting, mixed media, and design. • Little Chef & Culinary Arts – introducing creativity through cooking, presentation, and cultural traditions. • Girls’ Dance & Cultural Expression – combining movement, music, and heritage to build confidence and community. • Themed Art Camps & Seasonal Projects – including rock painting, pin-making, and multicultural crafts tied to community events. By making the arts accessible to all, Polaris cultivates creativity, celebrates diversity, and supports the development of confident, expressive, and connected youth. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $9,000.00 | Black Butte Center for Railroad Culture | 800 BLACK BUTTE RD , WEED, CA 96094-9705 | Siskiyou | Upstate | (530) 938-3856 | California Assembly district 1 (for now) | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Black Butte Center for Railroad Culture will sustain and expand programming as an explicitly anti-racist, all-volunteer arts nonprofit in rural, under-resourced Siskiyou County. We host art shows, concerts, zine releases, and community events in our restored railcar gallery and performance spaces in Weed. Our programming centers the working-class and immigrant histories of North American railroad culture, in solidarity with the Lao community of south Weed, undocumented migrants, and LGBTQ railroad enthusiasts. This grant would help us pay artist and curator honoraria, cover outreach and marketing, print and design exhibitions and zines, rent equipment, and contract bookkeeping and admin support. It would expand our community reach, ease volunteer burnout, and sustain BBCRC as one of the region's few multidisciplinary arts venues. | On-site library and art gallery space in a restored Pacific Fruit Express boxcar. This includes an evolving archive of materials, including many rare historic documents and photographs. The gallery normally hosts 2-3 art shows per year. Ongoing development of the online "Hobo Bibliography" the most comprehensive resource on books, journal articles and other materials on this subject ever assembled. This has included a past partnership with the University of Washington's Library Studies Program. Assistance to travelers visiting our site (food, cooking facilities, camping facilities, caboose accommodations during inclement weather, rail travel information). Collaboration with the California State Railway Museum in Sacramento to save and restore the historic 1888 Southern Pacific Pullman car 109, "Shasta." The car was based in Dunsmuir during the early 1900s and is now back in Siskiyou County after being donated by CSRM to BBCRC. Outreach though www.bbcrc.org website, monthly newsletter reaching over 600 people, maintaining an email list serve for 250 people and social media Visitor center featuring eight historic railcars, several of which have been converted to functional uses, as well as other interpretive resources. Production of booklets, pamphlets/zines and music CDs Events including music shows, art displays, volunteer work events. Engagement with local arts and creative communities in Siskiyou County through participation in the annual Dunsmuir Railroad Days event, collaborations with the Siskiyou Arts Museum, Siskiyou County Arts Council, Siskiyou Land Trust and various special events. Partnership with The Long Memory (memorial foundation set up to honor the legacy of famed folk musician Utah Phillips) through hosting the organization's Flanger (similar to a caboose) Car and 1-2 yearly events. Forest restoration work on 50-acre site including wildfire risk reduction and forest resilience, prescribed burning, enhancement of wildlife habitat. Partnership with Railway Workers United to protect the interests of rail workers. Advocacy for undocumented migrants. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | ARTERITANO FOUNDATION | 607 ELMIRA RD PMB 364 , VACAVILLE, CA 95687-4655 | Solano | Capital | (832) 585-4823 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTERITANO FOUNDATION will sustain and strengthen its core operations in service of its mission to preserve, promote, and celebrate Hispanic arts and culture in Vacaville and greater Solano County. Grant funds will support organizational infrastructure including artistic programming, community engagement, administrative operations, and the continued development of the foundation's five core programs — Raices, the Arteritano Flamenco Training Program, Carmen, Tertulias, and Entretejidas. As the only organization in Solano County dedicated to the full depth of Hispanic artistic traditions, the Arteritano Foundation serves Latino immigrant families, underserved youth, seniors, and the broader Vacaville community through culturally responsive, bilingual programming that preserves living traditions at risk of being lost and builds a more inclusive cultural future for our city. | Our programs span education, performance, cultural preservation, and community gathering. Raices is our school residency program bringing flamenco and Hispanic cultural arts directly into Vacaville classrooms. In our pilot at Markham Elementary, we served 120 students and families through a multi-week residency culminating in a school performance. Raices is expanding to additional schools in 2026, supported by Vacaville Unified School District. The Arteritano Flamenco Training Program offers EFA-accredited flamenco instruction for all ages — from Pre-Flamenco for children as young as five through adult levels — at two studio locations in Vacaville. Students train toward Spain-recognized examinations and feed into the Arteritano Flamenco Company pipeline. Carmen is our annual flagship production — a flamenco ballet adaptation of the opera presented each September-October during Hispanic Heritage Month at the Vacaville Performing Arts Theatre. Now in its third year, Carmen is the cultural anchor of Hispanic Heritage Month in our region. Tertulias are monthly community gatherings where students, families, and neighbors share food, explore a cultural theme, and deepen their connection to Hispanic traditions. Low-barrier, multilingual, and community-generated. Entretejidas is our cultural preservation and exchange program — documenting and transmitting traditional artisan practices from Latin America and Spain, beginning with Peruvian weaving traditions through our Rotary International partnership. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | LOMPOC VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION | 119 E CYPRESS AVE , LOMPOC, CA 93436-6801 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 737-1129 | With support from the California Arts Council, LOMPOC VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION will anchor local arts access and solidify organizational capacity in the Lompoc Valley. Assistance with general operating expenses and procedural documentation through a generational leadership transition is critical to the organization in the coming year. Funds will also sustain consistent outreach, clearer public communications, and free monthly programming through Cypress Gallery, broadening local impact. LVAA will preserve and strengthen volunteer-led operations while improving the systems that keep those operations viable: member onboarding, gallery procedures, marketing coordination, accessibility information, and public program planning. To ensure creative labor in Lompoc is fairly compensated, grant funds will also provide stipends for member artists and presenters who lead free public programs. | Each month, the Cypress Gallery brings to our community a new show of art, planned and arranged by its members. The gallery is owned and operated by the Lompoc Valley Art Association, an active community organization that has drawn local artists together since 1965. Desiring a permanent, public space to exhibit their artwork, LVAA established the Cypress Gallery in 1994, creating a local art space for the benefit of all. Members include both amateur and professional artists, who work in a wide range of media, and businesses / organizations interested in or promoting the arts. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Laity Institute of the Arts | 3053 RNCH VST BLVD STE H336 , PALMDALE, CA 93551-4823 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 200-5695 | California Assembly district 36 | District 36 | District 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, Laity Theatre Company (dba Laity Institute of the Arts) will sustain and enhance its LEAP (Laity Education Arts Program) — an after-school program in art, animation, acting, dance, and music for underserved and marginalized students in grades K–8 across the Antelope Valley. Grant funds will support key operational costs, including hiring professional instructors, securing program materials, and extending our instructional day by one additional hour. | Laity's Organization's Core Programs and Services are courses in: Art, Animation, Ceramic Arts, Dance, Drama and Music. These courses are taught by professional and semi-professional artist in their field of study. Our courses are designed to help increase the overall awareness in the visual and performing arts in schools, and the tremendous role they play in the overall development of the student. Laity has developed the Laity Education Arts Program. LEAP is an after-school arts program designed to help augment and support the teaching of the arts during the traditional school day with a comprehensive content-based arts program. To reach this goal, LIA focuses on three key areas: · Skills – what the student learns from the instructor · Confidence - how the student executes what he/she has learned · Motivation – what the student is willing to learn next To achieve this classes in art, animation, ceramic art, dance, drama and music are taught after school 3 hours a day Monday through Friday. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Bob Baker Marionette Theatre | 4949 YORK BLVD , LOS ANGELES, CA 90042-1609 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 250-9995 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | Bob Baker Marionette Theater (BBMT) will offer 23 low- and no-cost field trips for Title I schools in the California Healthy Places Index's lower quartiles, pairing our marionette performances with a post-show social-emotional workshop facilitated by BBMT's puppeteers. Workshops align with California T-SEL Competencies and extend into the classroom through an existing CAC-supported standards-aligned K–5 take-home curriculum. CAC funds will sustain the subsidized field trip program for majority Title I schools by providing 20 field trips ($10 subsidy per child @80 children each), broaden reach by adding three fully subsidized trips ($25 per child) with dedicated outreach and coordination in identified HPI Q1 service gaps, and improve its quality by investing $2,500 in professional development to advance our puppeteers as teaching artists, and $373 to design and implement an observation rubric to evaluate student learning. | Our annual programming focuses on performances, educational workshops and cultural events. We inspire and educate over 100,000 intergenerational Angelenos annually through world-class puppetry performances in-theater, touring shows, community and civic events, field trips and educational workshops in collaboration with artist partners, our annual free community festival, Bob Baker Day, traveling exhibitions, and special musical and performance events with cultural partners. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | CLA | 2 MARINA BLVD FORT MASON CTR C-265, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123-0000 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 775-7200 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, California Lawyers for the Arts (CLA) will continue to provide legal, educational and dispute resolution programs and services for artists and arts organizations throughout California, while expanding access to job training, mentorship and career counseling through creative workforce development programs for under-resourced youth and formerly incarcerated persons. | Our core services include legal consultations with attorneys who specialize in arts and entertainment fields; alternative dispute resolution services, including negotiations counselling, conciliation, mediation, arbitration, and facilitation; education programs that are designed to help artists and arts organization leaders understand legal rights, relationships and responsibilities so that they can become more sustainable; and arts workforce development programs for youth and adults. Since the organization's inception in 1974, we have also been engaged in advocacy to support artists' rights, freedom of expression, and public funding for the arts. Cross sector initiatives have included community development, arts and environment, and arts in corrections. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $9,282.00 | TeenTix LA | 1000 N. Alameda Street Suite 240 - TeenTix LA, Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 802-0807 | California’s 34th Congressional District | 54th Assembly District | 26th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, TeenTix LA will partner with the Skirball Cultural Center to create a youth-led arts activation as part of the annual Skirball Puppet Festival. Through TeenTix LA’s Internship Program and the Skirball Teen Advisory Council will collaborate with Skirball staff, teaching artists, and TeenTix LA staff to design a “Teen Space” within the festival. Participants will gain experience in puppetry, storytelling, event planning, marketing, audience engagement, and arts administration while helping shape the festival experience for peers. The project will include collaborative planning sessions, workshops, and creative development before the festival. During the event, teens will facilitate activities in a welcoming, youth-centered environment. This project advances Creative Youth Development by positioning teens as creators and leaders while fostering creativity, belonging, collaboration, and wellbeing through meaningful in-person arts engagement. | TeenTix LA expands equitable access to the arts for teens across Los Angeles County through two core programs: the TeenTix Pass Program and the TeenTix Internship Program. The TeenTix Pass Program provides free membership to teens ages 13–19, giving them access to $5 day-of-show tickets at 40+ arts and cultural partners across Los Angeles, including theaters, museums, music venues, and more. Through a curated online calendar, TeenTix LA demystifies the arts-going experience and empowers teens to independently discover and attend events that reflect their interests. The TeenTix Internship Program offers paid, hands-on learning opportunities for young people to build skills in arts administration, marketing, and community engagement. Interns contribute directly to program outreach, content creation, and event activation, ensuring that teen voice remains central to all aspects of the organization’s work. Together, these programs remove financial and cultural barriers to arts participation while cultivating the next generation of arts audiences, advocates, and leaders. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Community Arts & Empowerment | 240 MAPLE AVE , WATSONVILLE, CA 95076-4815 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 498-6048 | With support from the California Arts Council, COMMUNITY ARTS & EMPOWERMENT will foster intergenerational healing and cultural connection through a collaborative public art installation at Watsonville's Senior Center. CAC funds will support California-based artist Julian De La Cruz to co-create a large-scale painted mural integrating hand-crafted mosaic butterflies made by paired youth and senior community members. At least 40 butterfly mosaics — each a collaboration between one young person and one elder — will be designed and fabricated together, centering community voice and multigenerational artistic practice. The completed work will adorn the newly renovated Senior Center, creating a lasting, publicly accessible symbol of resilience and shared cultural identity for Watsonville's historically under resourced Latinx community. Youth participants will also assist Jessica in painting the surrounding mural. | Through community engagement, we help identify the values of a neighborhood and the visual aesthetics of its members. We seek out local artists to assist in the design of local community-based public artwork and facilitate community builds for the fabrication of permanent public art. Our process empowers communities by encouraging their members to spend time with each other, defining their social and physical identities. Returning individuals teach and learn new skills together for the benefit of all; transforming a physical space into a magical place. We operate a free after-school mosaic arts center in Watsonville for youth aged 11-22. We are open 5 days a week for 25 hours. Youth are engaged in all the phases needed to create public art mosaics in their community. Our largest project is called Watsonville Brillante, and consists of 12,500 square feet of mosaics covering the Watsonville Civic Parking Garage. Our process empowers communities by encouraging its members to spend time with each other defining their social and physical identities. Returning individuals teach and learn new skills together for the benefit of the all; transforming a physical space into a magical place. We operate a free afterschool mosaic arts center in Watsonville for youth aged 11-22. We are open 5 days a week for 25 hours. Youth are engaged in all the phases needed to create public art mosaics in thier community. Our current project is called Watsonville Brillante and when completed will consist of 12,500 square feet of mosaics covering the Watsonville Civic Parking Garage. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Safe Black Space | 1026 FLORIN RD #294 , SACRAMENTO, CA 95831-3513 | Sacramento | Capital | (530) 683-5101 | 7th Congressional District | 10 | 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAFE BLACK SPACE will sustain staffing and operations to continue culturally grounded arts, healing, and wellness programming for historically under-resourced Sacramento County communities. SAFE BLACK SPACE is a California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit with eight years of African diasporic arts and wellness programming, including the Kwanzaa Kutoa Celebration, drumming, healing circles, book clubs, and visual/spoken word events. Programs create trusted spaces for cultural expression, healing, and community connection in Sacramento neighborhoods including Oak Park and Del Paso Heights, both identified as lower-resource areas in the California Healthy Places Index. This is our first CAC grant. The requested $30,000 will support staff salaries, ensuring program continuity, stability, and year-round service. Funding will allow SAFE BLACK SPACE to maintain accessible in-person and virtual programming that strengthens cultural identity and fosters creative expression. | Safe Black Space implements cultural and community-driven healing and connection activities. • Community Healing and African Drum Circles: Facilitating safe environments for emotional processing of racial stress and trauma and connecting with Black culture and joy. Inclusive of artistic forms of healing. • Wellness Activities: Providing culturally rooted self and community care services that increase health and wellness, such as African-centered yoga, sound baths, stress management techniques • Culturally Anchored Events: Hosting gatherings like the annual Kwanzaa Kutoa Celebration which affirm identity, build social cohesion, and celebrate community honorees. • Educational Outreach: Providing healing-centered education, meditation sessions, and book study groups to equip participants with long-term coping strategies. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | East West Players | 120 Judge John Aiso St. , Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 625-7000 | California's 34th Congressional district | District 54 | District 26 | East West Players (EWP) will enhance its Theater for Youth (TFY) program, reaching more Southern California students. TFY commissions and produces plays centering significant AAPI historical figures, providing free or low-cost performances to schools, as well as public audiences via libraries and community partners. The 2026-27 production is a revival of Rosie Narasaki’s WHEN YURI MET MALCOM, first produced by EWP in 2022. This play explores the legacy of civil rights activist Yuri Kochiyama through her unlikely friendship with Malcolm X. Audiences follow Yuri’s life from Japanese American internment to her decades of subsequent activism. Support will help us serve up to 5,000 students through 40 performances and enable us to collect teacher feedback, ensuring the program's effectiveness and enriching students' understanding of AAPI history while promoting empathy and critical thinking skills. | EWP’s signature programs are its mainstage productions. Each season they produce three to five original and classic works (including one musical and at least one world premiere), hire hundreds of creative and technical personnel, and nearly 20,000 audience members, all of which contribute to the Little Tokyo community and its businesses. To supplement EWP’s mainstage productions, throughout the year they program free community conversations, readings, and workshops of new works to explore current issues affecting our society, such as immigration, houselessness, and mental health. EWP’s largest arts education programs are Theatre for Youth (TFY) and EWPlay!: TFY commissions playwrights to devise a script centered around notable Asian American historical figures. It is fully produced and performed in schools, libraries, and community centers all over Los Angeles County at little to no cost for host venues. Performances are 45 minutes. Tours are accompanied by a standards-based study guide to help educators frame and explore the themes of the play in the classroom. EWPlay! is an after-school program for middle schoolers that introduces youth to the theatre arts and connects students with AAPI culture and experience. More than 60% of student audiences are from underserved Title I schools. As one participant from Palms Middle School explains: “One thing I learned is to be myself no matter what anybody else thinks of me, and no matter who is judging me, to be myself because if they’re not gonna like me for who I am, they don’t deserve to know me. What I liked about these classes were how free we were to be ourselves and how we could express ourselves in the way I personally loved.” Arts education programs extend beyond youth programming with our year-round adult Professional Enrichment courses, designed to provide training to the next generation of entertainment industry professionals. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Lotus Tao Culture Association | 1038 POWELL ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108-1514 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 999-6101 | California’s 11th Congressional District | California State Assembly District 19 | California State Senate District 11 | The Lotus Tao Culture Association (LTCA) requests California Arts Council support for its traditional Kung Fu youth program, a weekly arts education initiative serving K–12 youth in San Francisco's Chinatown. Led by Sifu Richard Ow of the Yau Kung Moon system, the program integrates traditional Cantonese martial arts with Taoist (an indigenous Chinese folk spirituality) culture, history, and public performance — serving low-income immigrant youth and children of immigrants who face significant barriers to culturally relevant arts engagement. CAC funds will be used to compensate lead artist Sifu Richard Ow and teaching assistants, transition the program to a pay-what-you-can model to expand access, and support public performances at community events throughout Chinatown. The grant period runs February through August 2027, culminating in a final student presentation at LTCA's annual Hungry Ghost Festival in San Francisco. | LTCA's programs serve the full arc of community life — from daily spiritual practice to major public ceremony — offering pathways for immigrants, elders, youth, and anyone seeking connection to Chinese cultural heritage. At the temple on Irving Street, open daily, LTCA offers ongoing classes in Taoist meditation, Chi Gong, chanting, and Taoist Kung Fu classes for youth. These practices draw on centuries of Taoist understanding of the body, breath, and energy, adapted to meet the needs of a contemporary immigrant community navigating the pressures of daily life in America. Joss divination and personalized spiritual consultations provide guidance to community members across life's transitions, maintaining the temple's role as a cornerstone of community wellness. LTCA also leads and participates in key Chinatown festivals and public ceremonies that mark the Chinese ritual calendar. These include the Hungry Ghost Festival at Portsmouth Square — where LTCA performs Keyi for the spirits of the living and the dead, culminating in a neighborhood-wide procession of the Ghost King — as well as Qing Ming (Chinese Day of the Dead) memorials at Bay Area cemeteries, Lunar New Year blessing ceremonies, among many other community events and celebrations. LTCA also led the blessing ceremony for the opening of Rose Pak Central Station in Chinatown. Central to all of LTCA's programming is the transmission of ritual knowledge to the next generation. Through formal apprenticeship, mentorship within the temple community, and the intentional inclusion of youth and women in ritual leadership, LTCA actively works to ensure that the Lung Moon lineage does not end with its current generation of practitioners. Each ceremony is simultaneously a community offering and a classroom — a living demonstration that these traditions are not relics, but a vital, evolving expression of who we are. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Pacific Opera Project | 125 S. Avenue 57 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90042 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 739-6122 | 34th Congressional District | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pacific Opera Project will sustain and scale our education and engagement programming, connecting the diverse communities of Northeast Los Angeles to live opera. CAC funds will support a new FY27 touring production of #Superflute (Mozart's The Magic Flute) at 10 libraries and schools, including communities recovering from the Altadena/Pasadena wildfires; POP's first early childhood family programming, The Very Hungry Caterpillar & Other Stories (August 2026); and continued growth of ¡Cuentos Cantados!, the only Spanish-language opera education program in Los Angeles. Funds will also support FY27 compensation increases for artists and staff, supporting the infrastructure behind POP’s 16th season. | Founded in 2011 by Artistic Director Josh Shaw, POP produces 4-5 fully staged operas with orchestra annually. POP’s team includes 3 FT and 7 PT staff, c. 40 volunteers, and c. 150 contracted artists. With tickets starting at $15, POP’s production model attracts audiences seeking an accessible entry point while high artistic standards sustain our devoted audience base. POP’s institutional maturity is reflected in its inclusion on the LA Times “Best of 2024 in Classical Music” list. POP’s Education & Engagement Department (est. 2021) helps youth and adults experience opera as a vehicle for human connection and creativity through free and low-cost educational school residencies and community performances. Core Programs 1. Mainstage Programs POP produces 4-5 staged operas each season. With a base of $15-$35 tickets, POP prioritizes access for newcomers and underserved audiences. POP’s trademark style features adventurous reimaginings of classic operas, such as our Super Mario Bros.-themed staging of Mozart's The Magic Flute. POP continues to expand its commitment to culturally-centered storytelling through productions such as a Japanese/English bilingual Madama Butterfly 蝶々夫人, featuring a predominantly AAPI cast and creative team, and Spanish-language works by Latine creators, including Héctor Armienta’s Zorro, and Foglia & Martinez’s Cruzar la cara de la luna, strengthening engagement with Los Angeles’ diverse communities. Since 2011, POP has produced 70 mainstage productions, most livestreamed for free and available on our site with 416K+ views. 2. Youth Programs POP’s equity-based Youth Education Programs serve K–12 students, strengthening well-being through creative expression and access to professional arts experiences. Our four in-school residencies, including a Spanish-language program, extend learning beyond the classroom through free student attendance at mainstage dress rehearsals and the option to participate in POP’s Youth Chorus. 3. Highland Park Recital Series A culturally expansive recital series at POP's Highland Park headquarters, showcasing emerging artists. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Opera Modesto | 1214 11th St #3 , MODESTO, CA 95354 | Stanislaus | Central Valley | (209) 523-6426 | California's 10th congressional district | District 21 | District 5 | With support from the California Arts Council, Opera Modesto, Inc. will be able to continue to provide high caliber opera education and performance opportunities to youth living in the Central Valley of California through our Summer Opera Institute, Story-Into-Song Literacy Initiative, free dress rehearsal performances for students, the Kristina Townsend Memorial Competition, and our newly launched Opera In The Schools program. | Opera Modesto produces three main-stage operas per season, featuring a combination of local, regional, national and international talent; also producing several high level concerts per season, as well as intimate concerts throughout the region. The company is investing in new modes of community engagement, impact and collaboration. One such initiative is the annual Story Into Song Literacy Initiative, combining reading of great literature with the imaginative power of live performance and opera, performed in a welcoming alternative venue. Opera Modesto provides free short and long form Curriculum Companion Guides to all schools, after school programs and homeschoolers who attend. The production draws attention and business to downtown area of Modesto, while playing for public and thousands of "Readers" (students of all ages reading the source books). For since 2022, this innovative community initiative has more than doubled each year. In 2026 it reached 13,000+ students TK-12th & University from 5 counties with performances in 11 regional community theaters. Opera Modesto is very proactive in collaborating with other arts companies in the region, including Ballet Tradiciones Folklorico, Stanislaus County Libraries, Central West Ballet, Modesto Symphony Orchestra and Stanislaus Arts Council. Opera Modesto's year-round TOP Young Artists program (educational and training) includes an inclusive, low-tuition, annual conservatory level Summer Opera Institute for teens (13-18 years old), concluding with a free admission public concert. 50% of the diverse youth artists are provided with need based full or partial scholarships. An annual multi-cultural concert encourages performers of all ages to investigate the languages and musical styles of their ancestors, educating themselves, their families and the public about the diverse make up of the central valley region (often includes 13+ languages). In addition, hundreds of performing arts students are invited to attend mainstage production dress rehearsals and performances for free. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | ConAmor Building Bridges | PO BOX 1573 , TWAIN HARTE, CA 95383-1573 | Tuolumne | Central Valley | (209) 768-3615 | District 5 | District 8 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, ConAmor Building Bridges project will advance a more inclusive historical narrative at Columbia Historic State Park by centering the essential—yet long overlooked—contributions of Latino and Mexican pioneers. History is not fixed; it is shaped by who is invited to speak and whose stories are heard. While the Gold Rush is typically framed through a Eurocentric lens, this initiative reframes the story through the 1862 Cinco de Mayo origin event, a pivotal moment in Tuolumne County’s multicultural past. The public will experience this shift through an immersive cultural festival featuring traditional and contemporary performances, bilingual storytelling, and interpretive exhibits. By reclaiming this narrative, the project highlights the political agency of the Mexican community and lays the groundwork for a more accurate and inclusive understanding of California’s Gold Rush heritage. | Our programs aim to transform community relationships by honoring multicultural art and history, amplifying underrepresented voices, and fostering meaningful dialogue across differences. One of the placemaking strategies chosen by ConAmor is the use of a multicultural festival framework. Festivals create ongoing opportunities for dialogue and negotiation within communities, as individuals and groups explore meaningful concepts of identity, belonging and dynamics of exclusion. Celebrations like these offer a sense of joy, and shared pride while opening space to embrace art, collective histories, and a diversity of cultural expressions that challenge discriminatory values. Multicultural festivals also provide powerful opportunities to educate younger generations about artistic and cultural traditions, beliefs, and practices They help strengthen protective factors -connection, cultural pride, intergenerational learning, and community cohesion- that benefit everyone in our region. Our approach: Civic Engagement: Programs that elevate marginalized voices and expand participation in local decision making. Cultural Celebrations: Events that honor immigrant contributions and strengthen community pride. Educational Initiatives: Articles, publications, and public facing materials that bring overlooked art and history into mainstream. Bridge Building Dialogues: Spaces that invite exchange and reflection, moving us toward stronger community connection. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Civic Design Studio | 4124 MacArthur Blvd. Suite B , Oakland, CA 94619 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 381-2013 | 12th Congressional district of California | 18 | 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Civic Design Studio will advance our organization’s capacity to spearhead a burgeoning movement of creativity, community, education and ecology that has local to international reach. We are considered cultural ambassadors in our city and beyond where we are bridging a wide network of local artists, cultural practitioners, and community leaders to create large-scale award-winning public art. Funds will enable us to build creative workforce pathways for multigenerational creatives, builders, and urban planners living and working in Oakland and across the Bay Area. We will provide paid art opportunities for historically underserved youth and individuals to guide them post graduation into creative and community serving fields. Our multi-collaborative initiatives are generative, tipping point efforts that weave communities together to beautify, activate and enrich our public and shared spaces. | Our core programs and services are Creative Industry Pathways and Urban Agroecology, focusing on education integration and industry pathway development in both sectors. All of our projects focus on bringing together local schools and artists, community, and creative industry partners towards civic change across a city and its underserved, diverse communities. We make an intentional effort to work with multigenerational and multi-ethnic communities to create public displays and spaces to affirm the expression and visibility of our diverse neighborhoods in the Bay Area. To demonstrate, with our Urban Agroecology initiative, we have worked alongside high school students and teachers to create environmentally focused large-scale art and design pieces aimed to improve local neighborhoods by enriching public spaces while expanding cultural zones. Already, we’ve facilitated urban agroecology projects where students constructed and installed over 100+ planters that are spread throughout East Oakland neighborhoods and small businesses as a way to increase environmental awareness and to foster sustainable practices. With our Creative Industry Pathways, we have held cultural events and art celebrations in Old Oakland and Chinatown from 2018 to present that bring together folks from all races, economic backgrounds, and ages to convene. In doing so, we worked with local businesses and merchants to facilitate the events and to bring positive recognition. We’ve also worked directly with local artists to create murals, art installations, and lantern displays that have been seen throughout Chinatown, East Oakland, Fruitvale and Little Saigon to symbolize the rich history and cultures of those communities. Our impact programs work with local artists, schools, and cultural practitioners to help beautify the neighborhoods with public art and creative displays. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Visalia Art League | 1902 S. Pinkham , VISALIA, CA 93292 | Tulare | Central Valley | (559) 972-0981 | US House District 20 | 33rd Assembly District | Senate District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Visalia Art League (VAL) will secure and sustain a dedicated, accessible facility in the City of Visalia. Grant funds will support rent, utilities, and basic facility setup, enabling consistent delivery of year-round arts programming, including classes, workshops, demonstrations, and exhibitions. Funding will also provide for limited staffing support and outreach to underserved communities across Tulare County. Establishing a permanent space will strengthen VAL’s organizational stability, expand equitable access to arts participation, and increase program frequency and community engagement. This investment directly supports ongoing operations and long-term sustainability to help advance access, equity, and cultural vitality in Tulare County. | Art educational programs, demonstrations, and exhibitions, as well as a community support initiatives, including fundraising to support community needs and youth art scholarships. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Indivisible Arts | 618 CYPRESS AVE , HERMOSA BEACH, CA 90254-4644 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (831) 601-8137 | Los Angeles, CA | 66 | D-CA | With support from the California Arts Council, South Bay Artist Collective (now known as Indivisible Arts) will sustain Creative Wisdom Tools (CWT), a multi-site, youth-led arts education program serving young people ages 7-22 across South Bay Los Angeles. CAC funds will support personnel, art supplies, and accessibility accommodations across weekly sessions held at Indivisible Arts programming site, Resin, and through various Creative Wisdom Tools satellite programs. | Indivisible Arts operates through: 2 youth arts programs - Creative Wisdom Tools and the Visual Arts Program; a professional artist collective (South Bay Artist Collective); and its gallery + event space, Resin. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Rhythm Arts Alliance | 2116 Arlington Ave. , LA, CA 90018 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 999-8894 | California Assembly district 37 | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Rhythm Arts Alliance will help sustain staff salaries directly connected to RAA’s programming, including our work in the juvenile probation system, school-based arts education programs, specialized classes for students with special needs and on the autism spectrum, our Drum Council Project, Community Drum and Dance classes, and our annual Dununba Festival. | School Programs: RAA provides inclusive, healing-centered cultural education through programs like "Drum, Dance and Connection" for youth on the spectrum and year-long residencies at McKinley Elementary in Compton. These workshops integrate social skills with West African arts, reaching hundreds of students annually. Probation Programs: Our "Drum Council Workshops" serve over 100 system-impacted youth in LA County probation camps. We offer emotional release and nervous system awareness through rhythm, centering the needs of youth of color navigating the justice system. Community Wellness: Through our annual African Diaspora Community Festival and weekly drum circles in Leimert Park, we foster unity and cultural pride. These programs serve over 500 community members, providing a restorative space for families and underserved youth at risk of the school-to-prison pipeline. Professional Training: In partnership with the LA County Department of Arts and Culture, we train over 1,500 educators and mental health professionals annually in somatic self-soothing and healing-centered teaching methods. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | North Coast Symphony Orchestra | PO BOX 235815 , ENCINITAS, CA 92023-5815 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 944-0872 | With support from the California Arts Council, the NORTH SHORE SYMPHONY, dba North Coast Symphony, will enhance its outreach and attract a wider audience, including from underserved communities, by promoting and offering engaging musical experiences. General operating support will enhance our ability to provide more audience attendance opportunities, including chamber music performances at libraries, family-friendly concerts in various venues, and engaging with communities to foster inclusivity. Funding will also enable the orchestra to invite diverse professional soloists, providing inspiring opportunities for both our musicians and the audience. Additionally, we plan to elevate our members’ musicianship and to enrich our programming by performing contemporary musical works from a variety of composers. By expanding and diversifying our offerings, we aim to strengthen our role as a cultural asset and create a more vibrant, inclusive musical community. | The North Coast Symphony Orchestra (NCSO), founded in Encinitas over 75 years ago, is a cornerstone of the North County San Diego arts community. As a volunteer-based community orchestra, NCSO is committed to making high-quality orchestral music accessible, affordable, and relevant to a broad and diverse audience. We present a full concert season each year, offering engaging, family-friendly performances that span classical masterworks, pops favorites, and works by underrepresented composers, including women and people of color. These thoughtfully curated programs reflect our dedication to cultural inclusivity and musical diversity. To ensure accessibility, NCSO performs in a variety of community-based venues such as libraries, churches, retirement homes, community centers, and shopping malls—removing traditional barriers to the performing arts. We maintain one of the most affordable ticket pricing models in the region: general admission is $15, with discounted $12 tickets for seniors, students, and military members, and free admission for children. NCSO also actively engages with the broader community through outreach. We have performed at senior living facilities and collaborated with local choruses and other musical groups to create inclusive, intergenerational experiences. For example, in 2025 and 2026 we partnered with North Coast Singers, a group of young singers who have not had the opportunity to perform with a live orchestra. We performed a free family concert that was promoted to local schools to reach underserved communities. The orchestra also did an outreach performance at a local senior community. These partnerships deepen community connections and broaden the reach of our programming. By prioritizing affordability, community partnerships, inclusive repertoire, and accessible venues, the North Coast Symphony Orchestra serves as both a cultural asset and a gathering point for the community. We remain committed to enriching lives through the shared experience of live music, fostering connection, creativity, and joy across the communities we serve. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | San Diego Made | 2031 Commercial Street , San Diego, CA 92113 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 817-5517 | California's 52nd congressional district | District CA-52 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Diego Made will support the general operations of the San Diego Made Factory, an affordable and accessible creative hub located in San Diego’s Promise Zone. Serving more than 13,000 community members annually, the Factory provides subsidized studio space, cultural programming, workshops, exhibitions, and community events that uplift local artists, creative small businesses, and historically under-resourced communities. Grant funds will help sustain key operational expenses, including staffing, facility costs, accessibility accommodations, and community programming infrastructure. Through sliding scale affordability initiatives, multilingual outreach, ADA-accessible facilities, and community-informed programming, San Diego Made works to ensure that artists and community members of all backgrounds and abilities have equitable access to creative opportunities, cultural participation, and supportive spaces that strengthen the local arts ecosystem. | San Diego Made is an artist-led creative hub that drives social, cultural, and economic opportunities for artists, small businesses, and organizations throughout the region. We’re building a creative ecosystem that equips community members with the resources, support, and connections they need in order to build thriving futures. At our headquarters at the Factory in Logan Heights, our community has access to 12,000 sq. ft. of inspiring studio spaces, event facilities, and exhibition areas where people can hone their craft and showcase their work in a bold, welcoming environment. Through our public programming, artist residencies, and signature maker’s markets, we create immersive experiences that bring creatives and community together—fostering dialogue, sparking collaboration, and promoting meaningful engagement with the arts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $25,000.00 | Ventura County Ballet | 505 POLI STREET , VENTURA, CA 93001-4964 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 765-1734 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ventura County Ballet will produce a Sensory Friendly Performance of The Nutcracker in December 2026 in Oxnard, CA. Individuals with sensory processing challenges and other cognitive, emotional and physical differences are often not comfortable or welcome at live performances. This robs them of the enjoyment and benefits. Ventura County Ballet’s sensory friendly performance will be a welcoming, inclusive environment for those with autism and other sensory processing, physical, cognitive or emotional challenges.. It will gives these youth and their families the opportunity to participate in activities they could otherwise not experience. Low lights stay on in the theater, music is played more quietly, communication devices and headphones are welcome and guests can move about and vocalize. If someone wants to take a break, a quiet area is available. | Ventura County Ballet presents fully staged dance programs in theaters and interactive educational outreach programs in diverse community settings including schools, youth organizations, community centers, senior citizen centers, parks, libraries, hospitals, shopping centers, and more. We provide supplemental materials to teachers to use with their students before and after attending a Ventura County Ballet performance. teachers We also provide training and performing opportunities for aspiring preprofessional dancers as well as exposure for emerging musicians, choreographers and composers of diverse cultures and backgrounds. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | KZFR 90.1FM | 341 Broadway St Ste 411, Chico, CA 95928-5321 | Butte | Upstate | (530) 895-0706 | 1st Congressional District of California | District 3 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Golden Valley Community Broadcasters will sustain and expand its role as a nonprofit arts and cultural broadcaster serving rural and underserved communities in Northern California. CAC funds will support general operating costs—including staff compensation, utilities, program administration, and volunteer training—enabling KZFR to produce free, accessible arts and cultural programming. Building on recent growth, KZFR will continue expanding locally produced content, including music programming, public affairs, and community-based storytelling that amplify regional artists and underrepresented voices. Funding will support arts education and workforce development, including youth media training and community partnerships that increase access to creative expression and media production. Through these efforts, KZFR will strengthen its role as a platform for artistic expression, cultural exchange, and community connection, ensuring broad public access to the arts across Northern California. | KZFR operates with the support of approximately 120 community volunteers who provide a wide variety of music programming as well as local public affairs and information programs. These volunteers also assist a small paid staff with fundraising, outreach and events for the northern Sacramento Valley and beyond. Agreement with the principles and goals of KZFR is the sole criteria for participation. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $12,600.00 | Women Who Submit | 5619 N Angelus Ave , San Gabriel, CA 91776 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 484-0582 | California's 28th congressional district | District 49 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Women Who Submit (WWS) will produce the Writers Spotlight Project. This project features writers from historically underrepresented communities including women, nonbinary, BIPOC, queer, and senior citizen writers through online publications and in person events. The Writers Spotlight Project offers paid professional opportunities for our writers through the WWS Blog series, PUBLISHED! Reading series, WWS Open Mic, and the WWS Chapters Reading Regrant, which distributes funds to a selection of California-based WWS Chapters to produce readings in their regions. | WWS offers free public workshops lead by local, professional writers and orientations to submission strategies every other month. Topics for these workshops have included applying for academic jobs, applying for artist workshops, residencies and fellowships, strategies for submitting to contests, strategies for performing in public, pitching an essay, and strategies for writing while mothering. We also host private submission parties aka community coworking events on the off months for our members in private homes around Los Angeles. These submission parties are the core vision of our organization. In 2009, Vida, Women in Literary Arts published the first VIDA Count, which gave quantitative evidence of the disparity between men and women representation in top tier journals. The "submission party" was created as an action to change those numbers by creating a safe and supportive space for women and nonbinary writers to share resources and submit their work with community support. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Arenas Dance Company | 3316 24th Street , San Francisco, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 623-6043 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arenas Dance Company will continue our mission to preserve and promote Afro-Cuban art and culture via dance and drum classes and original dance and music works. Funds will be used to: pay a monthly stipend to our Artistic Director/choreographer and our core staff, including our access manager; compensate our dancers and drummers at "market rate" for both rehearsals and performances; and rent studio space for rehearsals and storage space for costumes. | Arenas Dance Company (ADC) produces, presents, and creates dance performances celebrating the complexity and beauty of Cuban culture. We work to present the Cuban culture in its fullness and depth. ADC teaches weekly Cuban folkloric and popular dance classes throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, and is frequently invited to guest teach - leading workshops and giving lectures - at schools (Elementary through University), libraries, and camps on Cuban dance, music and traditions. ADC also takes students on annual cultural exchange and study trips to Cuba. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,462.00 | Hmong Youth and Parents United | 631 ELEANOR AVE , SACRAMENTO, CA 95815-1614 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 418-4016 | 6 | 6 | 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, HMONG YOUTH AND PARENTS UNITED will support the cultural arts development of youth ages 12–25 in Sacramento’s Del Paso Heights and North Sacramento communities through a culturally responsive Youth Mentorship Circle. The program will immerse participants in Hmong traditional arts—such as Paj Ntaub textile design, Paj Huam spoken‑word poetry, and performance‑based storytelling—while introducing complementary visual and digital art practices. Through guided instruction and intergenerational knowledge‑sharing with Hmong artists and elders, youth will strengthen their self‑identities, deepen their connections to Hmong history, language, and cultural practices, and cultivate pride in their heritage. By integrating contemporary tools with Hmong cultural artforms, the program will provide innovative pathways for youth to reinterpret Hmong traditions, culminating in a collaboratively created interactive cultural arts journal that will be shared with the broader community. | Youth Development: To empower youth to have an opportunity to learn about culture, language, leadership, and other positive youth development in a safe and supportive environment so they can be productive members to their families, schools, and communities. Health and Social Services: Our program breaks the cultural and societal stigmas around disparities. Through advocacy, community collaborations, empowerment, education, and resource navigation we close the gaps of marginalized communities. Culturally Competent Outreach and Advocacy As trusted messengers of the community, we connect marginalized underserved communities to resources through strategic outreach, community engagement, and public awareness campaigns. Language & Cultural Arts Program Cultural Arts Program is a way to preserve the Hmong arts, language, and culture by providing the community an opportunity to learn, appreciate, participate, and practice Hmong cultural arts through classes and events. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | DIAVOLO | Architecture In Motion | 616 MOULTON AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90031-3237 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 225-4290 | 34th Congressional District of California | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, DIAVOLO will expand THE DIAVOLO INSTITUTE’s arts education programming serving underserved youth across Los Angeles County. Grant funds will support T.R.U.S.T. in-school assembly performances, L.A. UNITY residency workshops, DISCOVERY field trips at L’ESPACE DIAVOLO, and additional youth engagement initiatives connected to live performances. Programs will provide students with direct access to professional artists through movement workshops, creative collaboration, interactive performances, and live arts experiences designed to foster confidence, teamwork, resilience, and self-expression. Activities will primarily serve students attending Title I schools and under-resourced communities throughout Los Angeles County. California | Founded by Artistic Director Jacques Heim in 1992, DIAVOLO is a cultural pillar of the community as a leading California dance company to consistently perform locally, nationally and internationally. Over its 30-year history, DIAVOLO has presented dozens of dance works, creating one of the field’s most compelling repertoires. On the road, DIAVOLO creates education and engagement activities, including student matinees, master classes, lectures, and intensive trainings. In Los Angeles, the DIAVOLO Institute provides dance education and engagement programs with a focus on low-income youth. Programs are delivered at Title I schools, community centers, and DIAVOLO’s downtown Los Angeles studio. Each program culminates in a choreographed performance in the distinct DIAVOLO style, incorporating physical objects such as tables, ladders, and wheels. In 2016, DIAVOLO expanded its community engagement program to include The Veterans Project. DIAVOLO provides restorative movement workshops paired with creative writing exercises for local veterans. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $9,000.00 | Women Who Submit | 5619 N Angelus Ave , San Gabriel, CA 91776 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 484-0582 | California's 28th congressional district | District 49 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Women Who Submit (WWS) will maintain regular operations meant to empower women and nonbinary writers to submit work for publication. This includes free quarterly workshops and new member orientations, publication and funding opportunities, in-person and online community support, and resources for demystifying the submission process and minimizing barriers to career advancement in literary publishing. | WWS offers free public workshops lead by local, professional writers and orientations to submission strategies every other month. Topics for these workshops have included applying for academic jobs, applying for artist workshops, residencies and fellowships, strategies for submitting to contests, strategies for performing in public, pitching an essay, and strategies for writing while mothering. We also host private submission parties aka community coworking events on the off months for our members in private homes around Los Angeles. These submission parties are the core vision of our organization. In 2009, Vida, Women in Literary Arts published the first VIDA Count, which gave quantitative evidence of the disparity between men and women representation in top tier journals. The "submission party" was created as an action to change those numbers by creating a safe and supportive space for women and nonbinary writers to share resources and submit their work with community support. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Independent Arts & Media (fiscal sponsor) | 2830 20th Street, Ste 201 , San Francisco, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 269-0073 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, StageWrite will strengthen its organizational infrastructure to sustain and expand its long-term partnerships with San Francisco public schools, while delivering year-round theatre-based literacy programs that serve over 1,000 students annually. Funds will support core staffing, teaching artist training, and program coordination that ensure consistent, high-quality residencies, educator workshops, and inclusive programming for neurodiverse students. By investing in both people and systems, CAC support will enable StageWrite to deepen its impact in historically under-resourced school communities and maintain stable, responsive arts access during a time of ongoing uncertainty in public education funding. | StageWrite serves approximately 1000 students annually in San Francisco public elementary schools. StageWrite’s Building Literacy through Theatre sequential drama program begins with kindergarten and 1st grade students participating in story dramas based on social issues; 2nd and 3rd graders explore narrative story elements creating performances that reimagine grade-level texts; and 4th and 5th grade students write original work, including monologues and one-act plays, which are performed by the students and by professional actors. Our ADAPTS (Autism & Drama with Artists, Parents, Teachers & Students) program serves students with autism in inclusive residencies to engage students in creative play, improve communication, and encourage personal growth. All StageWrite programs are designed and implemented using student-centered methodology. It is our belief that students learn the most from examining their own thoughts and feelings, and thinking critically about the world. We believe in theatre as a tool for social change, and a means of empowering students and communities. This principle of StageWrite’s work has been a guiding force for 20+ years and has been essential in informing our response to the challenges of today. As a response to the pandemic, StageWrite developed, piloted, and refined two new curricula: “Zoom-a-Rama: Community Through Drama,” designed for distance learning at the start of the pandemic, and “Room-a-Rama” which re-imagined our curriculum to use improvisational drama games and collaborative storytelling activities to build classroom communities and support social emotional learning as students returned in-person, serving 45 classrooms at 6 San Francisco public elementary schools. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Small Art Music Projects | 335 BERRY ST UNIT 106 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94158-1704 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 425-6687 | California District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, SMALL ART MUSIC PROJECTS will provide free, family-centered music workshops and performances that foster cultural exchange, creative participation, and arts accessibility for Bay Area children and families. Through hands-on Instrumental Music Open Houses, participants explore a collection of over 100 instruments representing musical traditions from around the world, including African-American, Latin American, South Asian, East Asian, Middle Eastern, European, and American roots traditions. Since 2014, SAMP has built long-term relationships with low-income, immigrant, LGBTQIA2S+, and culturally diverse families from the San Francisco Bay Area, through joyful, welcoming programming designed to remove barriers to participation. CAC funding will support artist/production fees, educational programming, accessibility efforts, and free public concerts that connect children and families through music, curiosity, and shared cultural experience. | Small Art Music Projects (SAMP) began in 2005 as a fiscal sponsor of Intersection for the Arts, and transitioned into being its own 501c3 in 2014. SAMP’s core organizational programs and services have included a vast array of performance/music education projects, all of which were supported by grant funding including major awards from American Composers Forum, The Ford, Zellerbach, Hewlett, and Bank of America Charitable Foundations, and The California Arts Council. SAMP’s core performance activities have been centered in SF and the Bay Area, and its music educational work has focused on serving low-median income families and their children living in SF. Matt Small, the founder and Artistic Director of SAMP, has an extensive artistic history as a professional bassist/composer/educator/bandleader for the past 25 years, having had his music performed all over the world, and having performed with musical luminaries such as Yo-Yo Ma and The Silk Road Ensemble, among many others. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Salastina | PO Box 4164 , Glendale, CA 91222 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 332-6874 | California's 28th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Salastina will continue to enrich lives through its three core programs: 1) Presenting affordable, equitable, and world-class live classical chamber music concerts in the greater Los Angeles area, offering a generous allocation of complimentary tickets to under-resourced communities. 2) Nurturing the next generation of music creators through our zero-cost Composer Collective program. 3) Bringing comfort and connection to critically ill patients through Vital Sounds, our program of one-on-one, virtual performances at hospital bedsides. | Salastina provides three areas of program activity: 1) Live performances that invite audiences into our creative space. Salastina's programming seeks to add depth and breadth to traditional classical music. All concerts are live-streamed. Notably, our in-person audience attendance has surged 198% when comparing our last complete pre-pandemic season to the current one. On average, Salastina presents 25 performances per season, at least one of which is free. Five Main Series programs are repeated in Pasadena, West Los Angeles, Orange County, and Palos Verdes, with additional events rounding out the season. Our proprietary concert formats include: - Sounds Unknown: an exploration of the many reasons -- from racism to misogyny to bad luck -- why some composers never gain due recognition - Sounds Mysterious: a musical guessing game in which the composer's identity is redacted; the audience and musicians guess who wrote the piece together - Sounds Delicious: our contemporary take on the Salon tradition — pairing gourmet courses and music around themes from history, science, literature, or pop culture - Happy Hours: casual performances by, and spirited conversation with, a well-known guest artist. This "peek behind the creative curtain" prioritizes personal interaction between musicians and fellow music lovers at an accessible $20 price point. 2) The Composer Collective is Salastina's tuition-free Young Composer apprenticeship program serving up to five young composers free of charge. All instruction occurs virtually. Most participants are local to Southern California. 3) Vital Sounds: one-on-one virtual bedside concerts for ICU patients. Since May 2020, Salastina has provided private, virtual bedside concerts to the bedsides of critically ill patients at Huntington Health. Our musicians have provided over 85,000 minutes to more than 6,500 patients and their caregivers. We provide two hours of free, one-on-one, virtual bedside concerts weekly at no cost to patients or hospital partners. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $12,825.00 | T2 Dance Company | 311 15th St , Santa Monica, CA 90402-2211 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (703) 981-3951 | T2 Dance Company will use California Arts Council funds to deliver the Color Wheel Project (CWP) in West Los Angeles, serving elementary-aged children in Santa Monica and surrounding communities. CWP is a free program inviting children to submit original visual artworks based on a chosen color. T2's professional dancers select submissions and choreograph a professional performance inspired by the student work, presented at the Glorya Kaufman Performing Arts Center in spring 2027. All submissions are showcased in a slideshow during the performance and on the T2 website. T2 will host at least two free community art creation days at local recreation centers where children create and submit artworks. Bilingual study guides are provided to all participants. Funds cover artist fees, venue rental, production, study guides, and community event costs. | T2 Dance Company is a nonprofit contemporary dance organization providing a) dance classes and programming for preschool and elementary-aged kids, b) professional development for emerging artists, c) performing opportunities for national dance companies, and d) collaborative dance productions for our patrons. Founded in 2017, T2 Dance Company (T2) is committed to the development of the arts, both for artists and audiences. T2 became a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 2018. Since then, the company has performed work in CA, CO, DC, FL, IL, MD, MI, NY, and UT. The company has collaborated with visual artists, literary artists, fiber artists, and dance companies. T2 is both a performing and presenting dance company. T2 performs dance works (often created in collaboration with other artists) and presents other artists and companies through its festivals. T2 provides arts education to preschool and elementary school students, and mentoring for emerging dance artists. Annual programming/activities includes: a) Versatility Dance Festival - presenting national dance companies and international dance films. b) The Color Wheel Project (CWP) - integrating visual arts and dance for elementary students, and culminating in a performance by the T2 company dancers. c) Open Marley Night - a free studio event showcasing works-in-progress from local dance companies, fostering community and networking. d) T2's ChoreoFest - professional development and mentoring for emerging dance artists. e) Company Productions - featuring contemporary dance collaborations with other artists. f) Gala fundraiser - Annenberg Beach House, Santa Monica. g) Mini E-Motions (MEM) - combining dance with emotional development for 2-5 year olds. h) M.A.D. Creators Camp - day camp for kids combining music, art, and dance. A collaboration with Confident Concerts. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $19,994.00 | Reimagine The Land | 3746 Foothill Blvd #7447 , Glendale, CA 91214-1740 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 925-5442 | 30th | 44th | 25th | The California Flute Revival is a series of Learning Days and Culmination Days organized by RTL, Lázaro Arvizu and Summer Wilson. At these free public workshops and concerts, attendees will make a California Flute from Blue elder and learn to play an Indigenous composition. Each workshop location will host three Flute Learning Days–crafting, tuning, and playing the flute, and a Culmination concert. Workshops include historically underserved locations in Greater Los Angeles. Participants will spend two to three hours in each workshop, and then enjoy storytelling and song from Tongva and Chumash elders. Culmination Day, the fourth event, will feature workshop members, Western classical players, and a guest world flute player. We believe these workshops will be empowering for attendees, and vital for the transmission of an Indigenous musical lineage that was nearly lost in California. | Our core services and programs have included: “Social Forest: Oaks of Tovaangar” with Lázaro Arvizu Jr, the California Flute Revival with Lázaro Arvizu Jr and Summer Wilson, a Rarámuri ra’icha language server, and cleanups in Big Tujunga Canyon with Tongva culture bearers and volunteers |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $10,000.00 | Drawing Together | 45 S. Arroyo Parkway , Pasadena, CA 91105 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 657-0065 | CA-28 | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Drawing Together will leverage general operating funds to support the promotion and retention of existing staff, facility fees, professional services fees for a strategic plan, professional development, and updated marketing materials and cloud storage. As an organization in its seventh year of operations, we are working on building out a plan for our legacy of our work that has included contemporary arts education, workshops focused on positive mental health outcomes, community-based art projects based on specific health indicators, and publication of workbooks that conceptualize our projects. | Our organization serves early childhood ages, school age, teens, youth in group homes, and adults in two counties (Los Angeles and San Bernardino) through a variety of formats that includes culturally responsive, contemporary arts education; workshops through different curriculum such as our mindfulness and authenticity as a trauma-informed tools; community projects that address specific health indicators as determined by health organizations; workbook publication that is utilized in our workshops and help to contextualize our community projects; and outreach and advocacy services that connect art making to social outcomes. Some of our ongoing programs include: Summer Art & Nature Camp program in Wrightwood - offered for the last 4 years that serves residents of both counties, as this rural community is made up of both Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties. Art Exploration classes - offered weekly for ages 2 years through teens in Wrightwood and Pasadena throughout the year. Workshops - offered in Mindfulness, Art & Authenticity, and Art as a Positive Coping Mechanism, based on client request of grant funds |
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| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | City of Selma Arts Center | 1710 Tucker St. , SELMA, CA 93662-3728 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 891-2238 | California's 21st congressional district | District 31 | District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, City of Selma will sustain and expand operating support for the Selma Arts Center (SAC), a municipally operated cultural institution serving Selma and rural communities in Fresno County. Funds will support personnel, utilities, facility maintenance, accessibility services, and year-round programming. Funding will help SAC continue providing equitable, low- and no-cost arts programming, including theatrical productions, youth arts education through the Cool Kid Players (CKP) and SACTeen programs, community events, and original works by Central Valley artists. As one of the few year-round arts organizations serving this predominantly low-income, Hispanic region, SAC expands access to culturally relevant arts experiences through bilingual outreach, inclusive programming, and accommodations for individuals with disabilities. This investment will strengthen organizational sustainability, increase participation among underserved populations, and ensure community access to arts programming regionwide. | The Selma Arts Center (SAC) is home to a variety of programs offered through the City of Selma Recreation and Community Services Department. Completed in 2013 to more effectively carry out the mission of the Selma Arts Council that has been established since 1990, the Arts Center advances the humanities and strives to enrich the lives of all people who pass through its doors by leading a culturally diverse collective of local artists who provide quality theatre and artistic experiences for the community at large. Home to the City’s dramatic, visual, literary, and musical arts activity, SAC works to create experiences that are inspirational, educational, and of the highest caliber. To this end, SAC provides a variety of humanities- and arts-focused programs that reflect the diverse interests of the communities we serve. Examples of opportunities for the community include the Cool Kid Player's (CKP) Youth Performing Arts Program and the SACademy, both of which are open to the public at large. CKP is a sign-up program offering youth ages 6 to 18 of all skill levels the opportunity to perform in full scale theater productions. For nearly 20 years, this program has provided the Selma youth with the opportunity to experience the performing arts. Similarly, through the SACademy arts workshop series, the Arts Center has been able to help artists and patrons in the community expand their crafts and access opportunities in the arts. Previous SACademy courses have included audition workshops, dance intensives, improv comedy courses and set design basics. On average, SAC reaches over 2,500 youth and community members annually through these opportunities. This represents an especially critical resource for a community such as Selma, which is located in California’s San Joaquin Valley and where over 25 percent of the City’s approximately 24,800 residents live in poverty. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Westside Ballet of Santa Monica | 1709 STEWART ST , SANTA MONICA, CA 90404-4021 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 828-6211 | With support from the California Arts Council, YLC Ballet (dba Westside Ballet of Santa Monica) will deliver Summer Dance to Dreams, our free, five-day ballet workshop for youth ages 5-12. The program provides under-resourced and economically disadvantaged youth with an exploration of ballet and experiential learning in a welcoming and creative environment. In addition to free and open enrollment, we also provide free ballet shoes and free daily lunches/snacks for all youth, as well as free transportation for any family requesting it. Through this program, we aim to address a dearth of ballet experiential learning opportunities and reduce barriers of engagement, particularly for economically disadvantaged and BIPOC youth. | WBSM operates two core programs: Mainstage Productions: WBSM produces two mainstage productions, “The Nutcracker” and a Spring Showcase. Our production of “The Nutcracker” is the longest running in Southern California, featuring our original choreography and a live orchestra. Our Spring Showcase features a varied repertoire of classical ballet favorites (including “Coppélia,” “Sleeping Beauty,” “Swan Lake,” and “Giselle”), contemporary pieces, and new works. We are proud to also present George Balanchine’s ballets, which must be done with permission of the Balanchine Trust and by staged by trust-designated repetiteurs. Our mainstage productions are danced each year by approximately 120 youth, ages 8-18, who are attendees of our affiliated dance academy (Westside School of Ballet). These productions also feature professional alumni and principals from prominent companies, such as New York City Ballet’s Tiler Peck and Roman Mejia. WBSM provides 15% of all of our seats free-of-charge to partner organizations serving low-income and vulnerable community members. We also facilitate annual school matinees of an abbreviated “The Nutcracker” for 5th graders, including all of Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District and portions of Los Angeles Unified School District, followed by a Q&A with the dancers and choreographers. Summer Dance to Dreams: This program is our free ballet workshop committed to equity and access for all youth ages 5-12, regardless of family economic circumstance. It has been particularly designed for underserved BIPOC youth to gain access to ballet through experiential learning. WBSM piloted Dance to Dreams as a one-day workshop in Aug. 2022. We grew to a three-day workshop in 2023, then to a full-week (five-day) workshop in 2024 that served 62 youth. In 2025, the program grew to serve 78 students, with the aim to continue growing its enrollment in 2026 and beyond. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | FUNDING TEAM | 1040 E HERNDON AVE STE 101 , FRESNO, CA 93720-3158 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 240-2181 | California Congressional District 20 | California Assembly District 31 | California Senate District 12 | Creative Legacies: Youth Artists Documenting Fresno’s Arts Impact is a youth-centered documentary and storytelling initiative that engages Fresno 35 youth ages 16–24 in creating a short documentary film that highlights the cultural impact of a local nonprofit arts organization. The project transforms filmmaking into a participatory public art process where youth research, interview, and document community stories. The project serves communities in ZIP Code 93740 in Fresno, which falls within the lower two quartiles of the California Healthy Places Index (HPI), indicating historically under-resourced conditions with reduced access to key health and economic opportunities. In partnership with 12Creatives, youth collaborate with professional filmmakers to research, interview, and produce the documentary. The film will premiere at a public screening reaching 200+ community members. The Funding Team has not previously received CAC funding. | TFT facilitates arts, literacy, and enrichment programming to underserved youth across Fresno and surrounding counties. Programs include cultural arts workshops led by national artists, watercolor instruction for refugee children (K–6), America 250 arts education for youth with disabilities (K–12), and filmmaking training for underserved teens. We are celebrating our tenth year of partnering with CSU Fresno Service Learning whereby we teach Fresno State students employable skills such as developing an environmental literacy materials to be used during outdoor learning experiences such as youth fishing events. Through these programs, TFT has served more than 200 youth annually, with targeted programming reaching diverse and high-need populations. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | SODE SCHOOL OF PERFORMING ARTS AND SOPHIE OLSON DANCE EXPLOSION INC | 4566 CLELAND AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90065-4131 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 913-5863 | With the support from the California Art Council, SODE School of Performing Arts and Sophie Olson Dance Explosion Inc., will use Arts and Youth Grant funding to present multicultural dance assemblies for underserved schools throughout LA County. Our assemblies combine world dance styles such as Flamenco, Bollywood, Tahitian, Irish Dance, South African Dance, and Japanese Fan Dance through contemporary storytelling and interactive participation. Students actively engage through movement, music, and cultural exploration rather than remaining passive audience members. We hire professional choreographers and dancers from the cultures represented and prioritize equitable pay, professional rehearsal spaces, costumes, and props. Each assembly serves approximately 800 students. A $25,000 grant would fund five assemblies, allowing us to reach nearly 4,000 students with accessible multicultural arts education experiences. | SODE School of Performing Arts provides high-quality, arts-integrated programming designed to meet the academic and social-emotional needs of diverse student populations. Our core services include multicultural dance and assembly programs that expose students to global cultures; in-school residencies that support standards-based learning; the Happy Dancing Brain program, (letting the brain dance before the body does), after-school STEAM workshops that blend science and the arts through hands-on, project-based learning; multicultural after-school programming that reflects and celebrates the communities we serve; and bilingual musical theater programs that enhance both performance skills and language development. SODE’s programs are designed with measurable impact in mind. Participating students demonstrate increased classroom engagement, improved confidence in self-expression, and strengthened collaboration skills. Schools report higher levels of student participation in arts programming and positive feedback from families, particularly in under served and multilingual communities. By partnering closely with educators, administrators, and parents, SODE ensures that programming is responsive, accessible, and aligned with community needs—creating lasting educational and cultural impact. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | SLOMA | PO BOX 813 1010 Broad Street, San Luis Obispo, CA 93406-0813 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 543-8562 | California's 24th congressional district | District 30 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (SLOMA) will provide free arts education programs for K–12 youth and working families across San Luis Obispo County. The project expands access to enriching out-of-classroom arts experiences for historically underserved communities. The program includes two components: First, SLOMA’s free “Second Saturdays” family art events offer guided and self-guided bilingual art activities on the museum’s Sculpture Lawn in Mission Plaza, encouraging intergenerational creativity and exploration of contemporary art. Second, Central Coast artist Kiel Johnson will lead “The Art of Working Together,” a collaborative art initiative in SLOMA’s new Arts Education Center where youth and adults contribute individual pieces to a collective artwork. Through school partnerships and countywide outreach, SLOMA’s project will foster teamwork, communication, and community connection through free, hands-on arts participation. | The San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (SLOMA) is located in downtown San Luis Obispo on the west end of Mission Plaza, at the heart of the city’s cultural corridor. SLOMA is committed to an exhibition program that brings together visual artists from around the world with renowned artists from California and the US. With free admission and monthly events, SLOMA is the heart of the Central Coast’s visual arts community, serving as both a gathering place for the community and an essential stop for visitors. Programs and services include a robust exhibitions program, public art, and youth and adult arts education. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Sarah Bush Dance Project | 160 John St , Oakland, CA 94611 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 847-2813 | 12th | 18 | 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sarah Bush Dance Project will sustain its programs, staff, and operations from October 2026 through September 2027, a period that encompasses the company's 20th anniversary season. Supported programs include the world premiere of PITCH, a site-specific dance-theater work set on softball fields in Oakland and San Francisco in which nine dancers embody Bay Area dyke ancestors, performed in September 2027 as part of SBDP's Sapphic September celebration; ongoing community engagement through the Sapphic Storytelling Series, Dyke Softball Pickup Series, and Sapphic Book Study of "Wide Open Town"; continued development of the Oakland Dyke HERstory Dance Tour in partnership with the Bay Area Lesbian Archives; contemporary dance classes and workshops; and administrative and production capacity to support the company's most ambitious programming to date. | Dance Performance: Provides dances performances that evoke critical conversations about social justice, equity, environment and place. We produce evening length theater performances and outdoor site-specific dance performances. We produce and present guest artists work in evening length dance shows. Dance Workshops: Provides our audiences with learning opportunities related to dance performances where they can engage and participate in learning and creating dances and embodiment practices. Dance Film: SBDP creates dance films that evoke critical conversations about social justice, equity, environment and place. Financial Equity for Artists: Provide employment opportunities for intergenerational dance artists and interdisciplinary artists with a strong value on financial equity. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | FOTTC | 3320 Civic Center Drive , Torrance, CA 90503 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 243-6882 | 33rd District | 66th Assembly District | 26th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Friends of Torrance Theatre Company will purchase equipment and software required for the Technical Theatre Program. By investing in modern lighting fixtures, a high-lumen laser projection system, an ETC Ion XE 20 lighting console, updated power and data infrastructure, and classroom technology, this project strengthens the organization’s capacity to produce high-quality theatrical work while expanding access to career-connected arts education. The integration of Vectorworks design software and tablet-based instruction ensures students and emerging artists gain practical, workforce-aligned skills in lighting, projection, drafting, and technical collaboration. | Founded in 1999, Torrance Theatre Company (TTC) presents diverse seasons of drama, comedy, and musicals—both classic and contemporary—to inspire, educate, and entertain audiences. Dedicated to producing affordable, professional-quality theater, TTC also delivers impactful educational and outreach programming for the South Bay community. Its productions often explore themes such as women's and LGBTQ rights and racial equity, and the company engages diverse writers and directors to bring their perspectives to the stage. Over the past 24 years, TTC has become a creative home for thousands of volunteer actors, technicians, and artists. It offers a safe space for performers of all levels—many of whom have gone on to national stages, including Broadway productions such as Hamilton, In the Heights, and Aladdin. Others have found a fulfilling return to local performance. TTC’s doors remain open to artists of all backgrounds and aspirations. Each season includes five mainstage shows, cabarets, a summer musical at the 502-seat James Armstrong Theatre, and outdoor park performances, collectively attracting more than 7,000 annual audience members. TTC also provides training and mentorship for 10–20 student interns annually, in collaboration with high school and college theater programs. TTC’s outreach includes summer camps for children ages 6–17 and its long-running partnership with People Actively Learning and Sharing (PALS). In the PALS program, participants engage in theater games and improv, followed by attending a summer dress rehearsal to learn about production and performance. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | DISCO RIOT | 7849 Wing Span Dr. , SAN DIEGO, CA 92119 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 379-8747 | 51 | 78 | 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, DISCO RIOT will continue to support and produce a wide range of dance professionals through our programming that provides essential resources for local movement artists and their communities. DISCO RIOT has developed a shared leadership model that includes a collaborative staff and board support system. Funds from CAC will supplement the compensation of key staff members, including our Operations Lead, Communications Lead, Education & Outreach Lead, and Producing Artist Lead, as well as continue fair wages for our teaching and technical staff. These funds help us provide sustainability, increased impact, and professional development for BIPOC, 2SLGBTQIA+, disabled, and transitional youth artists in our community. | We achieve our mission through a combination of activities that create opportunities for movement-artists to develop their practice that also invite the general public to explore the impact of movement in their own lives. These activities include classes, artist residencies, networking events, performance opportunities, and online projects. Our key programs like Choreo & _____, S P A C E Alliance Studio Residencies, Queer Mvmnt Fest, PIPO (Pop In Pop Out) Workshops, and ongoing donation-based classes allow the larger arts community and the public to come together with socially conscious dance as the fulcrum. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | KULARTS | 65 Langton St , San Francisco, CA 94103-3915 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 295-2677 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, KULARTS will sustain general operations across our multi disciplinary arts programming during the grant period. Funding will support staff capacity, production costs, and operational systems as we develop puppet theater artist Ramon Abad’s 2027 The Great Whoop DeeDoo, Alleluia Panis’ 2028 Mang-Daragat, Burden of Proof 2027 tour, and prepare to open our new 10,750-square-foot multidisciplinary performance space at 262 7th Street in San Francisco's SOMA Pilipinas Filipino Cultural Heritage District. Funds also support our Agos youth program serving young people ages 5 to 24 in Alameda, our TribuTur US-Philippines artist exchange, the Philippine Master Artists-in-Residence program, and local performances. | Every season, KULARTS provides various participatory programming, activities for artists and the greater community including: KULARTS PRESENTS Showcases commissions and presentation of contemporary and tribal Pilipinx art through works by American Pilipinx and international Philippine artists. THE MAKING VISIBLE PROJECT Highlights the under-recognized histories of Pilipinos in San Francisco and places them in dialogue with Pilipinx stories of today through commissions of visual artwork and curated exhibitions in indoor and outdoor spaces. AGOS ED PROGRAM - KULARTS’ new youth & family centered education program of folkloric dance and music and sociopolitical knowledge building. PHILIPPINE MASTER ARTISTS-IN-RESIDENCE - the facilitation of cultural exchanges between master artists and the Pilipinx community; and PHILIPPINE TRIBU TUR - a biennial immersion in Philippine indigenous communities designed for US-based artists and cultural workers. ART DIALOGUE IN THE PILIPINX DIASPORA - gathers contemporary practitioners, master artists, and allied artists in a symposium and performance showcase to discuss urgent issues in the field. KULARTS CURATORIAL CONTINUUM PROGRAM - curatorial committees—Queering Pilipinx Dance Aesthetics and NexGen Curators & Makers—of artists and creators under the mentorship of Artistic Director Alleluia Panis |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Women's Voices Now | 525 Ave F , Redondo Beach, CA 90277 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 247-6130 | District 36 | District 66 | District 24 | Girls' Voices Now (GVN) empowers young women from under-resourced Los Angeles communities through social-impact filmmaking. In 2026, we are expanding to a year-round model with the launch of Beyond the Lens, a professional mentorship initiative, and the inaugural Day of the Girl Summit, a film and media industry leadership forum. GVN is tuition-free, providing technical mastery with Sony equipment, professional stipends, and transportation. Our alumnae have secured Emmy nominations and a win, and advanced into top-tier universities and media careers. We request $25,000 from the California Arts Council to support the transition of our Program Manager to a full-time role and cover essential program costs. These funds will provide the management capacity and production resources necessary to mentor and launch the next generation of filmmakers driving global social change. | We empower filmmakers, produce social-change films, and engage audience members to advance girls' and women's rights through our three core programs: 1. WVN Online Film Festival An annual film festival supporting emerging documentary filmmakers by providing cash prizes, visibility, and connections to film industry professionals. Since 2011, we have received 1500 film submissions from 105 countries, and we have awarded $169,500 in cash prizes. 2. Girls' Voices Now - Youth Development through Arts Education and Empowerment Our youth development program empowers the next generation of youth from under-resourced communities to find, develop, and use their voice for social change through filmmaking. Since 2018, we have served 116 girls from under-resourced LA communities and produced 31 youth-made short films seen by 4.5M+ online viewers. Films produced in this program have gone on to win awards, including festivals and two Emmy nominations (1 win!) 3. Voices For Change: A free film collection advocating for women's and girls' rights Collection of films about women raises awareness of the struggles and triumphs of women and girls around the globe, inviting audience members to contribute to social change supportive of their human rights. Features 360+ films in 73 different languages about women’s and girls’ stories and rights globally. We partner with local organizations to co-facilitate 175+ in-person and virtual screening events and conversations in 15+ countries with 150+ field partners, including universities, nonprofit organizations and international organizations. We also promote these films for individuals to stream for free online through thorough online marketing campaigns (reaching 13.5M+ online viewers globally in 2025 alone!) |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Project Color Corps | 624 EUCLID AVE , BERKELEY, CA 94708-1332 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 652-6237 | 12th Congressional | 14 | 7 | Project Color Corps (PCC) advances equity through arts education that empowers youth in underserved communities to build confidence, creativity, and self-expression through color and design. CAC funds will support an 8-week, hands-on Color and Design course delivered in partnership with schools, engaging students in learning color theory, emotional impact, and real-world application. Led by professional artists and designers, students will explore how color shapes environment and well-being while developing practical skills to communicate ideas visually. The course emphasizes participatory learning, mentorship, and student voice, developing a visual diary to inform a culminating collaborative design or mural project that reflects their experiences and identity. This investment will expand access to high-quality arts education, increase student engagement, and foster belonging and well-being—equipping youth with creative tools that support both personal growth and community connection. | Project Color Corps (PCC) delivers school and community-based arts education programs in communities with limited access to arts resources, combining participatory design, mentorship, and public art creation. PCC evaluates each project to ensure alignment with its mission and potential for meaningful impact, working closely with school and community partners through site visits and needs assessments. A core strength of PCC’s model is its ability to mobilize a robust network of professional artists, designers, muralists, businesses, and volunteers. Each project is guided by a dedicated project lead and supported by artist mentors, ensuring both high-quality artistic outcomes and strong community engagement. PCC’s signature process actively engages youth and community members at every stage. Participants contribute ideas through color surveys and outreach, then deepen their learning in interactive color seminars that explore color theory and its impact on well-being. Professional artists translate this input into design concepts, which are selected through a transparent community voting process. Implementation is hands-on: students, families, and volunteers work alongside artists during Community Paint Days, gaining practical skills while bringing their shared vision to life. Projects culminate in a public unveiling that celebrates community voice, cultural identity, and collective achievement. PCC integrates arts education throughout its work, equipping youth with creative skills, confidence, and real-world application. Through partnerships with schools and community organizations, students are positioned as co-creators—actively shaping spaces that reflect their identities, experiences, and aspirations. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Mil-Tree | P.O. Box 1762 , Joshua Tree, CA 92252 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (323) 791-2986 | District 23rd | District 47 | District 19 | Mil-Tree will use California Arts Council (CAC) grant funds to strengthen organizational capacity and expand access to our programming which brings together veterans, service members, and civilians through the arts, dialogue, shared projects, and creative entrepreneurship. Funds will partially support four key staff positions essential to sustaining and growing this work: an Executive Director to provide organizational leadership and strategic oversight; a Project Director to manage and deliver core arts programming; a Website Manager to maintain our website and expand its content; and a Social Media Manager to broaden community outreach and engagement. Together, these positions will enable Mil-Tree to deepen its creative programming, reach more underserved veterans, and build the infrastructure needed to grow our impact across San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. | Mil-Tree's core programs are creative and art-based workshops and retreats that support our vision to provide safe spaces for veterans returning to civilian life to gather, express themselves and tell their stories in a non-judgmental environment. We do this through ongoing creative programs that engage veterans and their families, active military and the greater community. Mil-Tree is a grassroots nonprofit organization based in the High Desert community of Joshua Tree, California serving San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. The organization is inclusive and offers creative outlets in the arts and held spaces for dialogue and discussion for veterans, active military and civilians. Mil-Tree was created to welcome our veterans home not only with words by providing various opportunities of engagement with the community at large. Recognizing the loss incurred by leaving the close-knit unit formed in the military, this organization strives to help build new relationships within the community. We include active military, family members and civilians to accomplish this goal, and provide different types of art workshops and projects, including movement, writing, art, music, theater, building and rock climbing. We also provide dialogue circles and retreats to help support the ongoing transition from military service into civilian life. Our programs have a strong track record of positive impact on program participants. Those who participate feeling alone or isolated find a fun, safe and creative environment where collaboration and expression lead easily to new friendships. We have found that arts and dialogue are the best way to bridge different parts of community, building on trust and the things we have in common. Often our programs lead to personal transformation and growth, and the synergy created between our participants is recognizable and profound. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | PLUMAS ARTS | PO BOX 600 525 Main Street, QUINCY, CA 95971-0600 | Plumas | Upstate | (530) 283-3402 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Plumas County Arts Commission will facilitate our 37th year of the Artists in the Schools program for under-resourced students of Plumas County. Plumas County, still considered a "frontier" in California, is located in the northeastern Sierra Nevada. With a California Healthy Places Index rating of 44.9, and roughly 70% of its land covered by the Plumas National Forest, most of the estimated 19,000 residents live in small communities like Quincy, Portola, Greenville and Chester. Artists in the Schools is about access, inspiration, and human connection.Through hands-on instruction, the program supports teachers and students by integrating artistic learning into academic subjects such as science, literature, mathematics, and history. These experiences encourage students to think creatively, communicate ideas confidently, and develop problem-solving skills that extend far beyond the arts. | Plumas Arts serves as the local arts planning and programming agency for Plumas County and representative to the California Arts Council's State Local Partnership (since 1981). Our efforts include ARTS EDUCATION workshops in schools and for all ages, VISUAL ARTS GALLERY and art displays showcasing work by dozens of regional artists, INFORMATION SERVICES our county's most comprehensive cultural events calendar, press releases about events and opportunities, as well as an ARTIST DIRECTORY on plumasarts.org in addition to regular features in regional newspapers, PRODUCING FESTIVALS, EVENTS & PERFORMANCES that highlight local culture and celebrate a diversity of traditions, FISCAL SPONSORSHIP and TECHNICAL SERVICES for arts and community groups, serving as a COMMUNICATION LINK among these groups and we own, care for and manage two historic facilities, the PLUMAS ARTS GALLERY & TOWN HALL THEATRE the county's only movie theatre and largest performing arts venue as community resources. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Los Angeles Poverty Department | 250 S Broadway , Los Angeles, CA 90012-3605 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 259-1038 | 28 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Poverty Department (LAPD) will promote cultural and racial equity through the arts for downtown Los Angeles’ Skid Row through its annual Festival for All Skid Row Artists (FASRA). LAPD has hosted this two-day event in Skid Row for the past 16 consecutive years. FASRA was born out of the 2010 study “Making the Case for Skid Row Culture: Findings from a Collaborative Inquiry,” authored by John Malpede and Maria Rosario Jackson. FASRA’s founding also included creating a register of artists to interconnect artists and organizations who would probably go under the radar otherwise. Documenting our festivals and artists is a critical task evidencing the nature of our community: that we remain in crisis to our society, yet hinge on artistic outlets as a form of survival. | Founded by director, performer and activist John Malpede, LAPD was the first performance group in the country made up of homeless and formerly homeless people and the first sustained arts initiative in Skid Row. For 40 years, LAPD has been one of the foremost cultural and artistic resources of the community. LAPD presents live theatrical productions, organizes public discussions and presentations, public art programs, parades and festivals, curates and creates installations and exhibitions, all addressing the lives of the neighborhood residents and the issues they face. LAPD’s performances and theater pieces are developed and realized through an extensive and inclusive process that employs research and engagement strategies and activities designed to enlist and disseminate community wisdom, and which typically take place over the course of more than a year. LAPD makes work to change the narrative about people living in poverty. LAPD's actively maintained (by professional archive staff) Skid Row History Archive documents the history of the Skid Row neighborhood and its achievements and is utilized by scholars, journalists, filmmakers, and community members. The archive is a bulwark against community displacement. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Dramatic Results | 3310 LIME AVE , SIGNAL HILL, CA 90755-4612 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 595-4600 | California's 42nd congressional district | 69th District | District 33 | With support from the California Arts Council, Dramatic Results will deliver Write on Arts, a school-day visual arts residency for 3rd and 4th grade students at Title I elementary schools in Long Beach Unified School District. CAC funds will support Teaching Artist compensation, program planning and coordination, student art materials, and accessibility and evaluation needs to ensure consistent, high-quality implementation across classrooms. Students will engage in sequenced studio projects that build visual arts skills, self and social awareness, and student voice through reflection, structured peer dialogue, critique routines, and short-form writing such as artist statements. Dramatic Results will also document student work and participant experience to inform continuous improvement and strengthen the program’s readiness to scale to additional schools while remaining culturally responsive and accessible to students with disabilities. | Dramatic Results approaches programs with a focus on Science, Technology, Engineering, Art (writing, photography, design, drawing, theater, and so much more), and Math as pathways to spark inquiry, discussion, and critical thinking. Our goal is to increase students’ sense of wonderment and, over time, increase their confidence and creativity within any field. The agency allocates 15% of our organizational budget to evaluate student success through three key measurements: problem-solving (ability to find creative solutions without giving up), wonderment (excitement for making and learning), and self-efficacy (peer communication and collaboration). Our programs are delivered in-class, as a regular part of students’ school day, and outside of school through a collaboration of STEAM professionals. The agency offers a multitude of programs, including opportunities in design, media arts, STEAM, theater, visual arts, assembly workshops, and educator development. To learn more about our programs, visit bit.ly/DRprograms. Dramatic Results’ programs are led by Teaching Artists, professional artists, and makers. Students learn to identify problems, find unique solutions, and lead their learning in a fun and creative environment. Students are encouraged to make mistakes. The agency values failure, and reinvention, as a key part of the learning process. Our programs align with Common Core, Next Generation Science Standards, and Visual and Performing Arts standards, using Design Thinking and iterative strategies to strengthen students’ 21st century skills. The agency is committed to disseminating our program design and outcomes to challenge the practice of education through local, state, and national workshops and conferences. Dramatic Results has presented at conferences for Arts Education Partnership, California Department of Education’s STEAM Symposium, California Science Education, Learning Forward, National and California Arts Education Association, National Association for Gifted Children, and the Joint Mathematics Meeting of the Mathematical Association of America. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Ammunition Theatre Company | P.O. Box 461905 , Los Angeles, CA 90046 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (917) 856-3814 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Ammunition Theatre Company will develop I Am an American (via Los Angeles), a new devised theatrical production exploring the complexity of U.S. citizenship and democracy through a range of personal stories. Artistic company members, nonprofit collaborators, and audience voices will shape and sustain this ever-evolving production. At the heart of this piece is a desire to gather honest reflections on belonging from across Los Angeles, to explore how individual and collective experiences intersect, and to offer a healing space for connection, recognition, and the imagining of a more inclusive future. CAC funds will support the project’s community story circles, ensemble devising workshops, script development, early work-in-progress presentations, artist compensation, accessibility resources, and production costs for workshops and public sharings. | From its inception, AMMO has been inclusive by design, with a membership that mirrors the diversity of our community. We believe theatre thrives when it sparks conversation, inspires action, and embraces a wide spectrum of lived experiences. To that end, we prioritize developing new works by underrepresented artists — amplifying voices that defy convention and expand cultural understanding. By centering fresh perspectives, we aim to foster dialogue, deepen empathy, and build stronger, healthier communities. At the heart of AMMO is our company: a collective of designers, actors, writers, directors, and producers. We are not only artists — we are advocates, collaborators, and active participants in civic life. Beyond the stage, we partner with philanthropic organizations to expand the reach of our work, bringing theatre and arts education to communities too often left behind — including under-served youth and elders. By combining creative expression with hands-on engagement — we break down barriers between art and everyday life and use theatre to spark dialogue, build relationships, and strengthen the world we share. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Oaxaca Tierra del Sol | 1572 grove st. #104 , healdsburg, CA 95448 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 479-9108 | 2nd Congressional Distric of California | 2nd Congressional District of California | Senate Distric 2 | Oaxaca Tierra del Sol is a very small organization dedicated to keeping the traditions and roots of Oaxacans alive in Northern California. We are a group of Oaxacans working on a voluntary basis, and we require resources to continue developing arts programs within our community in addition to organizing the Guelaguetza Sonoma. We also support Indigenous communities by providing resources that enable the continued creation of art, including dance, music, and handicrafts in activities that engage children, youth, and adults alike. | As we are dedicated to spreading culture, we financially support through scholarships to the Indigenous communities already established and located throughout California, this money is used to acquire their Original costumes, thread for the Indigenous communities that spin their own Huipiles, we have artisans and Musicians, We are also a collaboration link carrying information in cases of natural disasters, we help with our census of Indigenous Languages when there is a need for translation. We give folkloric dance classes, indigenous dances, music, etc. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Relampago del Cielo, Inc. | PO BOX 3158 600 W. Santa Ana Blvd. Suite 214-A, SANTA ANA, CA 92704-1388 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 881-4732 | California's 46th congressional district | District 68 | District 34 | With support from the California Arts Council, Relámpago del Cielo, Inc. will continue to expand ballet folklórico dance instruction to local public schools, community partners and public events across Orange County and Southern California. Funding will increase our capacity to provide free and low-cost classes and performances to traditionally underserved children, youth and families in vulnerable communities across Santa Ana, Orange County and throughout Southern California. | Relampago del Cielo arts program provides instruction in Mexican folklorico dance. Students receive weekly classes that are representative of the various regions of Mexico. Approximately 325 students’ ages three to young adult, are in the program. Relámpago offers classes to any interested child regardless of ability to pay. Financial aid is available to low-income families to support tuition fees. Families who meet prerequisite minimum annual income, as established by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, qualify for assistance. Annual Student Recital: The students showcase their accomplishments and learning at the annual student recital. Students are given the opportunity to perform on stage, to an audience of over a thousand attendees. Community Involvement and Performances: The students perform in educational, cultural, business and community events throughout Orange County, such as community parades, civic celebrations, school presentations and church events. Relampago del Cielo also operates a professional ballet folklorico dance company which offers free and paid performances at a variety of venues across Southern California and beyond and reaches thousands of audience members every year. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Melodia Mariposa | 151 S Olive St #1420 , Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 590-5213 | California’s 28th Congressional District | California State Assembly District 41 | California State Senate District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Melodia Mariposa will continue presenting free concerts, outreach performances, and educational programs in Altadena, Pasadena, and surrounding communities during the 2026–2027 grant period. Grant funds will support artist fees, concert production, marketing, and essential operating expenses. By bringing world-class musicians to concert halls, libraries, parks, senior residences, and other community spaces, Melodia Mariposa creates intimate and welcoming live music experiences that are free and accessible to all. | Melodia Mariposa is a nonprofit music organization serving Altadena, Pasadena, and surrounding communities in Los Angeles County, presenting live performances featuring top-tier professional musicians in a wide variety of styles and genres—including classical, ballet, tango, opera, folk, and more. All our concerts are free and open to the public, making high-quality artistic experiences accessible to everyone in the community. We bring free performances to senior homes, memory care centers, cancer support organizations, and underserved neighborhoods. These outreach concerts provide meaningful cultural connection and emotional support to those with limited access to the arts. We offer young musicians the opportunity to perform with us in professional settings, helping them grow artistically and gain valuable experience. Our goal is to give them the space and support to shine. In times of local crisis, such as following the Eaton fire, we’ve also organized benefit concerts and extended support to musicians who lost their houses. These core programs reflect our commitment to serve, uplift, and inspire the local community through music and the arts. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Siskiyou County Arts Council | PO Box 1365 , Mt Shasta, CA 96067 | Siskiyou | Upstate | (530) 918-8380 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Siskiyou County Arts Council will organize and present year four of Siskiyou X Days, a multi-day, county-wide arts celebration and event series. Siskiyou X Days will highlight the vibrancy of arts activities in Siskiyou County while uplifting historically excluded artists, including BIPOC and LGBTQA+, homeless, low-income, living with disabilities, informally trained, and justice impacted. | Our organizational priorities are to increase equity, particularly racial equity, in and through the arts; ensure the long-term vitality of the arts ecosystem by supporting self-organization strategies; and foster individual creativity throughout life. Acknowledging art as a fundamental human need, SCAC ensures we provide equitable access to our arts programming and opportunities. We lead county-wide arts programming that focuses on habitually underserved communities, develop strategic local arts initiatives to connect and highlight the full arts ecosystem, coordinate arts emergency preparedness initiatives and mutual aid funds, and offer fiscal sponsorship for nascent arts organizations and projects by and serving under resourced and excluded communities. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Siskiyou County Arts Council | PO Box 1365 , Mt Shasta, CA 96067 | Siskiyou | Upstate | (530) 918-8380 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Siskiyou County Arts Council will use the arts in service to our constituents by supporting bold initiatives and developing innovative programs that encourage and facilitate strong, inclusive communities. Activities will place particular emphasis on racial equity, environmental protection and awareness, sustainable economic development, and social justice. | Our organizational priorities are to increase equity, particularly racial equity, in and through the arts; ensure the long-term vitality of the arts ecosystem by supporting self-organization strategies; and foster individual creativity throughout life. Acknowledging art as a fundamental human need, SCAC ensures we provide equitable access to our arts programming and opportunities. We lead county-wide arts programming that focuses on habitually underserved communities, develop strategic local arts initiatives to connect and highlight the full arts ecosystem, coordinate arts emergency preparedness initiatives and mutual aid funds, and offer fiscal sponsorship for nascent arts organizations and projects by and serving under resourced and excluded communities. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Luke Madrigal Indigenous Storytelling Non Profit | 31805 TEMECULA PKWY NUM 552 , TEMECULA, CA 92592-8203 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (909) 262-8325 | 48 | 71 | 32 | With California Arts Council support, the LUKE MADRIGAL INDIGENOUS STORYTELLING NONPROFIT will develop, produce, and premiere "The Aanjikiin Riverbank," a new play written by Sophia Madrigal. This performance work examines the impact of the Indian Child Welfare Act, and its intersection with the recent Luke Madrigal Child Welfare Act, legislation focused on bringing additional protections for Indigenous foster youth in California. This Indigenous cultural revitalization storytelling project advances awareness of the Missing and Murdered Indigenous foster youth issue and recent legislative protections.This play will be premiered at a cultural venue in the Riverside/San Bernardino Area, in collaboration with the Dorothy Ramon Learning Center, with outreach to Riverside/San Bernardino County and Tribal Department of Social Services. Audiences will participate in community talkbacks with arts based educational handouts. | We support a wide range of storytelling modalities, including theater, film, and arts workshops, to amplify Indigenous voices and foster community healing, balance, and resilience. Founded in 2020 by Sophia Madrigal (Cahuilla/Chippewa) during the COVID-19 pandemic to honor her father’s legacy, the organization began with virtual workshops titled Healing Through the Indigenous Art of Storytelling. In that same period, Sophia wrote and released Wildflower: Indigenous Spirit, a film exploring grief and loss in Native communities, which has reached over 10,000 viewers online. Her sister, Isabella Madrigal, writer of the acclaimed play Menil and Her Heart, serves as co-director of the organization. Menil and Her Heart first began as a grass-roots effort to highlight Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit People. The theater ensemble that performs Menil and Her Heart consists of eighteen community members, mostly Indigenous people. The winner of the 2020 Yale Young Native Storytellers Contest, Menil and Her Heart has been performed at 16 venues across the nation and was featured at the United Nations’ Girls Speak out Event in 2019 and at the California State Capitol in 2022 for legislators. In 2024, Isabella received a grant from the Center for Cultural Power to go towards the creation of a short film version of Menil and Her Heart. Since Menil and Her Heart, we have produced the play Dragonfly, which explores the harmful legacy of boarding schools, and the multimedia performance piece Skywoman, which centers Indigenous women in climate justice conversations. We also offer arts and culture workshops, which have been hosted in educational spaces, including Noli and Sherman Indian Schools, as well as at the Dorothy Ramon Learning Center, a Native American community center. Additionally, the LMISN recently served as the Master of Ceremonies for the Tribal Ecological Knowledge Region Nine Tribal EPA Conference. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Crescent Moon Theater Productions | 181 Canyon rd , Fairfax, CA 94930 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 504-4330 | California Assembly district 10 | District 10 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, CRESCENT MOON THEATER PRODUCTIONS will strengthen its capacity to create community-centered documentary and immersive theater rooted in oral history, shared authorship, and social connection. CAC funds will support equitable artist compensation, accessibility services, community engagement, production costs, and organizational infrastructure across programs including What We Carry, a collaborative theater project bringing together veterans and refugees, and The Hidden Network, an arts-in-parks redwood storytelling initiative. This support will help CMTP deepen long-term relationships with underserved communities while expanding the reach, accessibility, and statewide impact of its work. | CMTP creates original new work that spans across the disciplines of theater, dance, music, and circus. CMTP also produces Blessed Unrest, an annual arts and social justice festival in San Francisco that unites over thirty artists working at the intersection of art and social change. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Shruti Abhishek Dance | 1524 Murdell Lane , Livermore, CA 94550 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (650) 469-2840 | With support from the California Arts Council, Shruti Abhishek Dance will produce Kismet with Kali, a community-engaged dance-theater project developed through ongoing collaboration with Narika South Asian domestic violence survivors advocacy organization based in Fremont. The project centers stories and voices of South Asian women through bi-weekly movement workshops with Narika's community of survivors, work-in-progress performances that bring community members into the creative process, and the development of a full-length dance-theater work exploring the mythology of the goddess Kali as a lens for mental health and trauma in the South Asian diaspora. The work features an original score by composer Sindhu Natarajan rooted in Theyyam, a ritual art form of Kerala, with choreography drawn from Bharatanatyam and contemporary dance. The project culminates in a public premiere at the SF International Arts Festival in spring 2027. | Creating & Presenting Live Performances – Original performances choreographed and danced by Shruti Abhishek and collaborators. Current projects include Kismet with Kali and As You Are full-length dance-theater collaboration featuring South Asian women’s stories and voices. Arts Practice Community Engagement – Ongoing weekly workshops with Narika Foundation’s community of South Asian women domestic abuse survivors; producing in-house community engaged performances in collaboration with survivors who otherwise would not be able to access performances. Producing and co-curating two festivals – Varnam Salon series of performances by California-based senior art practitioners, mid-career artists, and emerging choreographers; and When Eyes Speak South Asian Choreography festival showcasing a wide range of South Asian movement forms including Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, Chhau, contemporary Indian, theater, fusion, and other styles. Kshetram School of Dance – Intergenerational dance institution founded in 2018. Kshetram helps keep Indian traditions alive in California, while offering space to reflect on how Indian traditions continue to transform, evolve, and grow with each new generation. ArtEchoes Series – An initiative to inspire and educate kids through live performances. The series provides opportunities for young audiences to learn, be inspired, and engage with the artists in candid conversations about their practice. Rhythm Plays with Nadhi Thekkek – An open-level Bharatanatyam workshop for those who have always wanted to learn and have fun with this beautiful dance form. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Shruti Abhishek Dance | 1524 Murdell Lane , Livermore, CA 94550 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (650) 469-2840 | With support from the California Arts Council, Shruti Abhishek Dance will sustain and grow its programs in Bharatanatyam performance, presenting, education, and community engagement in the San Francisco Bay Area. During the grant period, the organization will: produce the world premiere of Kismet with Kali, a socially-engaged dance-theater work by Artistic Director Shruti Abhishek, developed in collaboration with community members from Narika domestic violence survivors advocacy organization; produce the 2027 When Eyes Speak South Asian Choreography Festival; continue weekly community workshops with Narika; expand Kshetram School of Dance enrollment and the ArtEchoes youth arts education series in East Bay schools; and present Varnam Salon showcases for California-based South Asian artists. All public events are offered free or on a sliding scale, with accessibility services provided by Gravity Access Services. | Creating & Presenting Live Performances – Original performances choreographed and danced by Shruti Abhishek and collaborators. Current projects include Kismet with Kali and As You Are full-length dance-theater collaboration featuring South Asian women’s stories and voices. Arts Practice Community Engagement – Ongoing weekly workshops with Narika Foundation’s community of South Asian women domestic abuse survivors; producing in-house community engaged performances in collaboration with survivors who otherwise would not be able to access performances. Producing and co-curating two festivals – Varnam Salon series of performances by California-based senior art practitioners, mid-career artists, and emerging choreographers; and When Eyes Speak South Asian Choreography festival showcasing a wide range of South Asian movement forms including Bharatanatyam, Kathak, Odissi, Chhau, contemporary Indian, theater, fusion, and other styles. Kshetram School of Dance – Intergenerational dance institution founded in 2018. Kshetram helps keep Indian traditions alive in California, while offering space to reflect on how Indian traditions continue to transform, evolve, and grow with each new generation. ArtEchoes Series – An initiative to inspire and educate kids through live performances. The series provides opportunities for young audiences to learn, be inspired, and engage with the artists in candid conversations about their practice. Rhythm Plays with Nadhi Thekkek – An open-level Bharatanatyam workshop for those who have always wanted to learn and have fun with this beautiful dance form. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Ferndale Rep | PO BOX 892 , FERNDALE, CA 95536-0892 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 786-5483 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ferndale Repertory Theatre (FRT) will grow its organizational infrastructure to continue serving Humboldt County and Northern California through theater programming and arts education. More specifically, funds will be used to support stipends for local creatives, expand our youth education programming, subsidize production expenses, and amplify accessibility services. | MAINSTAGE SEASON FRT’s primary programming is our annual mainstage season. We produce five shows that are, in the truest sense, community theater. They are cast, designed, and led entirely by local artists. Our community plays an active role in selecting published works that reflect both popular interest and cultural curiosity, with past seasons ranging from Sister Act, Man of La Mancha, and Fun Home to titles like The Prom, Kinky Boots, and Smokey Joe’s Café. All performances take place in the rural, historic town of Ferndale (population 1,550), and run approximately four weekends. Across a season, roughly 150 local community members participate on stage or behind the curtain. Each season, FRT welcomes approximately 8,000 patrons each year from all corners of Humboldt County and beyond. EDUCATION PROGRAM FRT’s education programs have served our region for over 20 years, evolving to meet the needs of our rural community. Our current focus is a summer training intensive for youth ages 8-17, enrolling 25-35 students annually. In a rural region where access to arts training is limited, this program provides an entry point for young people to explore theater in an accessible and supportive environment. The curriculum balances soft skills such as collaboration, confidence-building, and public speaking, with foundational theater training, including singing, acting, design, and basic technical production. OFF-SEASON ENGAGEMENT During the months when our mainstage season is on pause, FRT remains active through a series of smaller, community-centered events. These programs recognize the theater’s role as a cultural and economic hub in Ferndale which plays a greater role in attracting folks from around the County to visit our small town. Our Off-Season Engagement Series has included a community movie series featuring classic and local films, as well as interactive murder mystery events that invite audiences into a playful, “whodunit” experience. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | About Productions | 145 N. RAYMOND AVE. , PASADENA, CA 91103 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 396-0920 | California's 28th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, About...Productions will serve multiple L.A.-area communities including Boyle Heights, Lincoln Heights, Northwest and Central Pasadena, Pacific Palisades, and Pomona with innovative artistic engagement, and arts education programming and services. These crucial funds will be used for staff salaries, office and venue rent, insurance, communications costs, accounting services, and other costs related to operating our programming and expanding our reach to serve more community members. | Now in our 37th year, our itinerant company’s critically acclaimed INTERDISCIPLINARY THEATERWORKS have been seen extensively in Greater L.A., in the U.S. and Canada, and on national TV. We collaboratively create and present innovative original theaterworks with community performing and visual artists to unearth and illuminate cultural histories of Latin America, the Southwest, California and L.A., and explore the human spiritual condition. We are one of the few companies that brings affordable theater to low-income, under-served communities by mining seldom-tapped regional histories that address relevant issues and under-represented voices. In partnership with performing arts and cultural centers, community-based arts organizations, and educational institutions, we have collaborated with many of the region’s leading community artists — performing, media, and visual -- authors and historians. Our interdisciplinary productions have integrated media, music, dance, and innovative storytelling and lighting design. Presented in numerous L.A. County neighborhoods, our productions have also been featured in festivals such as the International Hispanic Theatre Festival in Miami, Telluride Theatre Festival in Colorado, New Voices Festival at The Public Theater in New York City, and SXSW in Austin. Our successful 25+ year YOUNG THEATERWORKS program serves L.A. area highest-risk and educationally disadvantaged youth with standards-based intensive residencies and workshops to impact their academic achievement, creative engagement and connection to their community. The program improves literacy, communication and collaboration skills as students explore personal identity, family and community history, and social issues. Working with committed principals and classroom teachers in the L.A. and Pasadena Unified School Districts we provide free or low-cost 6-10 week residencies and workshops. In conjunction with our original theaterworks we also provide workshops that engage students in the content and artistic strategies of these theaterworks, giving them the opportunity to see professional work and directly connect them to professional artists in their community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Conceptual Art Therapy | 1468 N WHITE AVE , POMONA, CA 91768-1931 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (909) 929-1022 | California's 35th Congressional District | 53rd Assembly District | Senate District 22 | "Voices from the Margins" will engage 30 BIPOC youth (ages 14-25) from under-resourced communities in identifying local social justice issues through art therapy techniques. CAC funds will support a Certified Art Therapy Facilitator/Program Director ($15,000), guest teaching artists and youth mentor stipends ($6,000), art supplies and documentation materials ($3,000), and community engagement activities including venue rental and translation services ($1,000). The program will produce 3 community listening sessions, two neighborhood art installations, and a community policy forum. Youth participants will develop artistic skills, civic leadership capacity, and mental health resilience while creating meaningful dialogue around housing justice, educational equity, and environmental racism. This initiative centers BIPOC youth voices and builds long-term community capacity for social change. | Group Art Therapy on Campus, Summer Youth Art Camp, Summer Youth Artist Retreat, Youth Artwalk, Art and Photography Classes. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | SPACE | 508 W PERKINS ST , UKIAH, CA 95482-4774 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 462-9370 | California Assembly district 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, SPACE will continue Viva La Cultura, its Latinx community performing arts program led by Olivia Zamora in Ukiah, Mendocino County. The program offers weekly dance and theater classes rooted in Latinx cultural traditions, seasonal community performances, the annual Noche de Estrellas Spanish-language variety show, and a Spanish-language summer camp for youth. Viva La Cultura provides a platform for local Latinx artists to share their talents as teachers and performers while offering young people and families culturally relevant arts experiences that are otherwise unavailable in rural Mendocino County. All performances and community events are free and open to the public. The program addresses a community-defined need for Latinx-centered arts programming in a region where Latinos comprise over half the youth population. | SPACE currently offers over 40 classes-a-week, including: Music Together/Rhythm Kids – Music program for children ages infant through 7. Teen Performing Groups – Advanced performing groups for ages 13-18. Teen Intern Training Program – Offering youth job experience and job-related skills in working with children as well as working in technical theater. Participants have gone on to teach at SPACE and other regional and national theaters. Students often list their SPACE Intern Certificate of Completion on their college and job applications. Performance Workshop – 30 students rehearse and perform a fully-staged musical theater production; 1200 school children attend school day matinees at SPACE Theater. Dance/Theater – Students rehearse and perform fully-staged, theme-based shows created from interviews with participants that address social norms, drug & alcohol abuse prevention, social media addiction, bullying, unlearning racism and gender issues specifically focused on rural youth and families. Latino Community Engagement – Engaging the Latino community as creators, producers, and audience in 2 annual productions. Spring & Winter Dance Festivals – 300+ dancers and singers ages 7 to teens with guest artists, perform in several weekends of shows in December and May. Wanna Dance Latin & Social Dance –Ongoing event on the first Saturday of every month, includes diverse local and regional teachers sharing social dance. Classes & Summer Camps – After-school music, dance, acting, voice classes and summer camps for ages infant to 18 yrs. Contract with Ukiah Unified School District – Performing arts instruction to over 2,200 K-12th graders and to South Valley High School students. Art Exploration – Small groups of children work with master artists to create art using a wide variety of materials. All-Ability Arts – Providing access to the arts for children with disabilities; specialized instruction and accommodations are provided within each class to promote a safe space for self-expression and creativity. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | SPACE | 508 W PERKINS ST , UKIAH, CA 95482-4774 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 462-9370 | California Assembly district 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Near & Arnold's School of Performing Arts & Cultural Education (SPACE) will sustain its programs, staff, and operations from October 2026 to September 2027, including: 40+ youth and adult classes per week in dance, theater, music, visual arts, and cultural education; Teen Intern Training Program; Musical Theater Ensemble and original dance/theater teen performances developed from teen interviews; Spring and Winter Dance Festivals; English and Spanish-language Summer Camps; Hispanic Heritage Celebration; Youth Mariachi Gathering; Ya? Bayo-Yin, a bi-weekly Pomo/Indigenous cultural gathering led by Sherwood Valley Band of Pomo Indians culture bearer Buffie Campbell; the All Ability Arts disability inclusion program; and the ReachOut for Rural Arts! afterschool program serving 200+ youth ages 8-18. | SPACE currently offers over 40 classes-a-week, including: Music Together/Rhythm Kids – Music program for children ages infant through 7. Teen Performing Groups – Advanced performing groups for ages 13-18. Teen Intern Training Program – Offering youth job experience and job-related skills in working with children as well as working in technical theater. Participants have gone on to teach at SPACE and other regional and national theaters. Students often list their SPACE Intern Certificate of Completion on their college and job applications. Performance Workshop – 30 students rehearse and perform a fully-staged musical theater production; 1200 school children attend school day matinees at SPACE Theater. Dance/Theater – Students rehearse and perform fully-staged, theme-based shows created from interviews with participants that address social norms, drug & alcohol abuse prevention, social media addiction, bullying, unlearning racism and gender issues specifically focused on rural youth and families. Latino Community Engagement – Engaging the Latino community as creators, producers, and audience in 2 annual productions. Spring & Winter Dance Festivals – 300+ dancers and singers ages 7 to teens with guest artists, perform in several weekends of shows in December and May. Wanna Dance Latin & Social Dance –Ongoing event on the first Saturday of every month, includes diverse local and regional teachers sharing social dance. Classes & Summer Camps – After-school music, dance, acting, voice classes and summer camps for ages infant to 18 yrs. Contract with Ukiah Unified School District – Performing arts instruction to over 2,200 K-12th graders and to South Valley High School students. Art Exploration – Small groups of children work with master artists to create art using a wide variety of materials. All-Ability Arts – Providing access to the arts for children with disabilities; specialized instruction and accommodations are provided within each class to promote a safe space for self-expression and creativity. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | World Arts West | 1446 Market St. , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 474-3914 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, World Arts West will conduct artist service, advocacy, and regranting programs that promote the artistic and economic development of our Northern California community of 600+ cultural dance companies representing over 20,000 artists and 100+ cultures. Awarded funds will support World Arts West's staff and contractors who administer and implement our capacity-building services dedicated to building a sustainable future for California's cultural artists. Funded programming includes: the 2027 World Arts West Dance Festival, now in its 49th year and free to the public; our Artist Service Programs including the Grants Accelerator Program and Career Pathways; Special Artist Commissions; the Cultural Dance Catalyst Fund supporting grassroots BIPOC arts organizations; Cultural Dance Archiving and Documentation programs; and Cultural Artist Visibility and Advocacy programs. | World Arts West Dance Festival The first and most successful cultural event of its kind in the country; each annual festival features 10-15 ensembles – with workshops, panels, film showings and other community programming centered on an overarching theme. Last year, we celebrated our 47th Annual Dance Festival – a 3-weekend experience at PUSH Sanctuary (SF), The Beat (Berkeley), and Presidio Tunnel Tops (SF) focusing on the theme “Dance as Health and Healing,” exploring what constitutes a healthy community. Arts Equity Research WAW conducted the first ever comprehensive needs assessment of Northern California’s cultural dance companies. Funded by the Wallace Foundation and set to be published in 2025, A Community of Dance: A Baseline Study of Culturally Specific Dance Organizations in Northern California, provides a baseline understanding of the unique characteristics of culturally specific dance organizations in Northern California. Through an in-depth community engagement process with 100+ organizations, the study highlights the unique strengths and challenges of culturally specific dance organizations while identifying emerging, effective strategies to support this subsector of the arts ecosystem. Artist Service Programs Workshops, fiscal sponsorship, mentorship, production support, Cultural Artist Archiving Cohort, Career Pathway Roundtable and Comprehensive Equity Resource for cultural artists. Cultural Artist Visibility & Advocacy Ensuring cultural artists are represented on important local, regional & national platforms. Grants Accelerator Program (GAP) Year-long program mentoring 12 Bay Area cultural artists to access grants funding and increase their capacity to present their work. Wallace Foundation National Arts Partners Regranting Cohort Groundbreaking initiative supporting grassroots BIPOC arts organizations; the largest grant in WAW's history, enabling us to enter grantmaking for the first time, the next step in WAW’s equity journey centering cultural artists. Special Artist Commissions WAW supports the production of innovative, new, large scale dance-music projects. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Creative Acts | 10800 S Prairie Ave , Inglewood, CA 90303 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 729-1780 | California Assembly district 43 | District 61 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Creative Acts will sustain core general operations—including staff salaries and organizational infrastructure—to remain rooted in Inglewood and deepen capacity at a crucial moment when gentrification threatens historically Black communities and organizations. Creative Acts is a global majority arts organization led by and centering people with lived experience of incarceration, located in Inglewood, where the Healthy Places Index value is 3.0. We use theater, poetry, music, visual arts, storytelling, and Virtual Reality as vehicles for civic engagement, healing, and disrupting the carceral system. Creative Acts serves incarcerated and formerly incarcerated people who have been systematically denied access to the arts, using creative practice to support healing, civic power, and the radical reimagining of the lives, futures, and communities we serve. | Our impact is driven by 4 key programs. - At the foundation, our Alumni Laboratory is our Brain Trust. A group of 20 formerly incarcerated individuals meet monthly to shape our curriculum, be in community with other past participants with lived experience, and work as teaching artists. Also, our Youth Advisory Council ensure we stay relevant and culturally appropriate. - Our Art Attacks! Civic Engagement Program supports youth currently incarcerated in LA County Probation camps and halls. Using the arts as our driver, we enrich youth with the real history of our country, inform them of the laws and bills that directly impact them and uplift their voices through creative processes. This program has seen a 100% voter participation in the past election, up from 35% in the 2016 election. - Our Arts and VR ReEntry Program supports incarcerated individuals in level 4 prisons with creative tools and experiences that allow them to radically reimagine their life and reentry experience. We work with adults and youth on the main line, and are the first organization to work in mean & women's solitary confinement, and the first in a mental health solitary unit. Merging arts and technology in a 7 day intensive, participants learn ways to process, understand and transmute their trauma creatively. We have a 96% decrease in infractions and are the first program recognized as a mental health resource. - A new Program in partnership with the County's Justice Care and Opportunity Department allows us to support recently returned citizens with arts programming, skills training, reentry housing support (through our partners) and creative resilience. We offer this program at the DOORS South LA Center and have been able to support over 50 returned citizens in the first year. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | World Builders Incubator | 1791 Solano Ave #B06 , Berkeley, CA 94707 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 883-3155 | 12th District | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, World Builders Incubator (WBI) will launch its next, 2-year Story Arc cohort with rigorously selected and commissioned Story Teams, each with one writer, collaborator, and producer/publisher. These California artists from historically excluded or erased communities will create new works of solutions-focused, mass market art and entertainment in their chosen genre of fiction and narrative medium (theatre/tv/film/books). In collaboration with top thought leaders, WBI will train and support these artists from ideation to distribution. The 2027 Story Teams will choose from the following social and environmental issues and world build around their informed solutions: climate change, LGBTQIA+ rights, women’s rights, displaced populations, authoritarianism, or disinformation. Transformative support from CAC would fund the $25,000 commission for one Story Team. | To achieve its mission, WBI’s utilizes a 3-pronged approach. COALITION. The WORLD BUILDING COUNCIL is WBI’s ever-growing, multi-sector, volunteer coalition with 125+ current members. The Council includes creatives, thought leaders, publishers, producers, distributors, students, program partners, funders, luminaries, and community members. WBI programs were developed with over 100 hours of generous one-on-one expertise from these members. The Council is the brain trust, network, and talent bank at the heart of our work. EDUCATION. In collaboration with top Thought Leaders, WBI is developing two free, online resources. The WHEEL OF POSSIBILITIES, which provides details on informed-solutions to over 210 social and environmental issues, answering the question “What can be done?” The ACTIONS LIBRARY provides personal actions toward implementation, answering “What can I do?” Both resources are currently being constructed. In addition to their public benefit, the Wheel and Library are first points of inspiration and ongoing dramaturgical resources for WBI’s solutions-focused arts and entertainment. NARRATIVE CHANGE. WBI’s 2-year, inspiration-to-distribution STORY ARC develops solutions-focused arts and entertainment in all genres of fiction and all narrative mediums (theatre, TV, film, books, video games, podcasts, interactive stories, and more). Projects are created by rigorously selected Story Teams with 1 high-profile artist + 1 collaborator + 1 top producer/publisher, and 1 or more Thought Leaders. The Team’s producer/publisher agrees from the beginning to produce/publish the final project. WBI provides commissions, structure, accountability, cross-medium collaboration, dramaturgy, editing, networking, and administrative support. To assist development, our WBI STORIES program provides top actors and directors for private and public readings. WBI just completed a Story Arc beta test resulting in: 2 plays, 1 TV pilot, 1 screenplay, and 2 books. These beautiful works of fiction uplift solutions for: immigration; climate change; intergenerational trauma; financial literacy; and the patriarchy. Public readings were held at YBCA in San Francisco May 1-3, 2026. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | South Bay Guitar Society | PO BOX 1627 , CUPERTINO, CA 95015-1627 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (650) 279-2385 | 17th Congressional District | District 26 | District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, South Bay Guitar Society of San Jose, a small arts organization, will present 'Boss Guitars,' a series of 8 free masterclasses with renowned Bay Area-based guitarists from the the Black and Latinx cultural traditions of jazz, blues, R&B, gospel, salsa, samba, and South American folk music. 'Boss Guitars' will be collaboratively developed with community members and address a community-identified need to create an accessible environment for intergenerational arts learning and to center Black and Latinx artists whose cultural traditions are threatened by gentrification in the Bay Area. | South Bay Guitar Society offers concerts, monthly in-person and virtual open mic events; performances and presentations at assisted living centers, social service facilities, hospitals, libraries, community centers, and corporate campuses; lectures; educational forums; recitals; school presentations by local and visiting artists; educational resources through our website and social media pages; and referrals and marketing opportunities. We offer a virtual open mic second Tuesdays of the month and present 3-4 in-person open mics per month at local libraries.We present 10-15 concerts and 10-15 masterclasses with featured artists annually, including both local and international talent. We have presented the Jerry Snyder GuitarFest annually for 20 years, including two days of masterclasses and performances, an open, mic and a luthier display. We present an annual Young Date and Inja Kim Composition Competition, offering cash prizes for original works for classical guitar quartet written by composer of all ages. Three winners have their works performed at the annual Jerry Snyder GuitarFest. SBGS has produced over 300 concerts, sponsored over 200 masterclasses and held over 1000 open mic events. Video footage from these events is shared on our website as an educational resource, along with compositional scores and artist interviews. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | DSTL Arts | 1069 W. Avenue 37 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90065 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (760) 521-7018 | California's 34th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the CAC, DSTL Arts will continue providing bilingual literary arts workshops and classes, professional development opportunities, and mentorships for intergenerational cohorts of emerging poets and artists from historically marginalized communities, and we will continue publishing multiple publications featuring the creative writing and artwork produced by participants in our various community-based programs. | DSTL Arts fulfills its mission to inspire, teach, and hire emerging artists from underserved communities through a variety of arts-based programs, mentorships, and publishing opportunities for emerging writers and artists. This includes our Poet/Artist Development Program offering mentorships, professional development, and publishing opportunities to emerging poet/artists, ages 18 and older, specifically from historically marginalized communities. Furthermore, our Art Block Zine and Aurtistic Zine publications feature emerging writers and artists from Los Angeles County and beyond, and in particular, neurodivergent artists from ages 6 and older through Aurtistic Zine. Our Conchas y Café bilingual community writing workshop series produces a zine of the same name featuring the work of bilingual (English/Spanish) and monolingual (Spanish-speaking) adults learning new skills and techniques in creative writing. Lastly, our Creative Impact community-based, social justice-themed arts workshops provide paid teaching artist internships to select emerging poet/artists enrolled in our Poet/Artist Development Program and poet/artist-led, intergenerational, social justice-focused, arts workshops and publishing opportunities for our broader community. To make all of these programs accessible to our community, DSTL Arts offers our Mobile Art Lab as an additional resource, bringing an upfitted, tech-laden vehicle to community settings where local access to large-format scanners/printers, tablets, and WiFi is limited, thereby addressing the digital divide our community members often experience. And to further engage and celebrate our community and program participants, we host a podcast that highlights local artists and featured artists from our zines, as well as provide all of our workshops as both in-person and virtual programs that exist in perpetuity on our YouTube channel where individuals are welcome to continue their learning experience. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | No Limits for deaf children and families | 9801 WASHINGTON BLVD SECOND FLOOR , CULVER CITY, CA 90232-2723 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 280-0878 | California's 37th congressional district | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, No Limits Theater Group Inc. will serve low-income deaf youth through our Los Angeles Theater Workshop program, which teaches theater and life-building skills with culminating public performances of our originally scripted plays. This program focuses on sharing the talents and voices of deaf youth as the country’s only theater program for deaf youth who are learning to speak. | No Limits was founded in 1996 by Dr. Michelle Christie (named a 2017 CNN Hero) as a language-enriched theater program. In 2002, No Limits expanded to provide auditory, speech, and language training, as well as literacy, parent education, advocacy training, tutoring, and enrichment programs. All of our programming is provided free-of-charge. The No Limits Theater Program engages deaf children and adults in professional theatrical productions as actors, storytellers, workshop team members, lighting and sound technicians, and directors. To date, No Limits has produced over 200 theatrical performances, reaching more than 500,000 people nationwide. Our Youth Theater Workshops Program is the only theater program in the country for deaf youth learning to speak. It is an immersive workshop-based model that culminates in public performances by using original, educationally based scripts for deaf children to increase self-esteem, expand vocabulary, and develop public speaking skills that help them confidently move through the world. No Limits also created “Silent NO MORE,” a nationally touring theatrical storytelling production (with a corresponding book) that aims to influence policies and perceptions by educating people across the world about the struggles and triumphs of people with hearing loss. The No Limits Educational Centers (in Los Angeles and Oxnard, CA) and our 64 satellite and pop-up sites nationwide (including 54 in California) provide year-round comprehensive educational services at no cost to low-income families. Our programming includes individual speech and language therapy, literacy classes, academic tutoring, STEM engagement, arts enrichment, parent education and supports, a teen Leadership and Mentoring Academy, auditory device support, and much more. We also provide family learning and support modules through No Limits TV, accessible to all free-of-charge. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Oakland Style Lab | 302 12th Street , Oakland, CA 94607 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 225-6673 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oakland Style Lab will be able to eliminate fees for our dynamic Reimagine Fashion summer program and add 2 cohorts, allowing us to meet our equity goals of serving exponentially more low-income youth. Since 2021, our fashion arts and sustainability program has taught 90+ diverse teens to design their own garments using “upcycling” methods and turn old clothing into “new” one-of-a-kind outfits - then rock the runway. Our climate justice focus ensures youth become stewards of the environment and their communities, while boosting their creativity, confidence, and skills. Without funding, we’ve relied on families to cover costs, allocating 2 scholarships per cohort. CAC’s support will dramatically expand low-income families’ access to this powerful arts programming: from 2 students in 1 cohort, to all 36 students across 3 cohorts. | Olivia Cueva and Jeff Perlstein co-founded Oakland Style Lab in 2021 to connect existing, emerging, and aspiring fashion designers, while centering sustainable practices and racial and economic justice. We teach all aspects of fashion arts and design to boost the technical and entrepreneurial development of historically under-resourced communities for success in the growing creative workforce. We offer no/low-cost classes and workshops in sewing, mending, fashion design, patterning, sneaker repair and resoling, upcycling, biotextile production, and much more. We also produce dynamic events to inspire and educate the public about fashion waste and regenerative practices, including upcycling fashion shows, maker mixers, and gallery exhibits. We provide affordable workspace, gear, and materials to increase community access to knowledge and practices. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | RootStock Arts | 481 59th St , Oakland, CA 94609-1540 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (718) 483-0773 | With support from the California Arts Council, ROOTSTOCK ARTS will establish the groundwork for the RootStock Arts Center, our brick and mortar creative artist development facility in North Oakland. Funds will be dedicated to broader infrastructure needs for the beginning of our journey as an accessible artist community center aimed at supporting local artists in need of space for rehearsal, lessons, and programming. Offsetting monthly rent, utility bills, subscriptions, routine cleaning and maintenance are essential parts of keeping it a viable location for gathering and development. Funds will ensure that our resources remain fixed upon the basic needs for us to achieve long-term sustainability of our artist forward mission. By funding our essential overhead CAC funds allow us to keep our almost 50 annual events staffed and compensated with reliable sound and door personnel. | In addition to presenting over 70 concerts each year, RootStock Arts offers three core programs year-round: Monthly Artist Gatherings: RootStock Arts hosts intimate gatherings that bring artists across disciplines together to break bread, share resources and their personal journeys, mentor one another, and build community away from performance. We emphasize sociality as the fulcrum of our artistic endeavors, as opposed to a purely transactional dynamic that places profit over artistic exploration and community building. At RootStock, dedication to local arts initiatives is enough to have a seat at the table. Weekly Live Music Series: In partnership with WyldFlowr Arts (artist-run venue in Oakland), RootStock Arts presents weekly concerts for musicians to perform their own music without the burden of foregrounding a profit model. Artists decide ticket price, set length, and space use — some record multitrack in front of an audience, others teach workshops. RootStock covers rental, staffing, marketing, accounting, and operations, often with a 90% ticket-sales-to-artists model. Monthly Indian Classical Showcase: In partnership with Medicine for Nightmares (artist-run bookstore in San Francisco), RootStock Arts curates a showcase featuring four short acts of desi-diasporic expression. By presenting South Asian classical arts in non-traditional venues, we invite multi-generational, immigrant, and culturally mixed audiences into living dialogue between tradition and innovation. RootStock Arts has additionally started operations from our permanent headquarters. We are expanding our services to include low-barrier access to equipped rooms, facilities and development opportunies. Offerings in the new RootStock Arts Center include a parking lot live music series, rehearsal/practice space, private teaching rooms, listening library and a maker space where artists receive technical training to produce their own merchandise and branded product. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | San Diego Jewish Arts Festival | 8307 CAMINITO HELECHO , La Jolla, CA 92037 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 431-9175 | JFest and the Jacobs Institute for Innovation in Education are once again partnering in order to expand "Women of STEM," a docu-theater project that turns the lives of local female scientists into professional stage narratives. CAC funds support the creation of a new play, the creation of interactive student kits, and a free regional tour to under-served neighborhoods lacking access to professional arts, such as City Heights, Southeastern San Diego, and Linda Vista. We will perform at trusted local anchors to encourage intergenerational participation. These shows blend live monologues and music with hands-on experiments, giving families a "peek behind the curtain" at the work of local heroes. By bringing high-quality theater directly into these community spaces, we remove financial barriers and use professional storytelling to inspire the next generation of STEM leaders. | For over 30 years, the San Diego Jewish Arts Festival (JFest) has served as a premier cultural engine, producing professional theater, music, and dance that explores the Jewish experience while fostering vibrant cross-cultural dialogue. As we transition into a year-round 501(c)(3) entity, our programming is anchored by three primary pillars: The Jewish Arts Festival and Whole Megillah: Our flagship festival features world-class headliners and professional commissions across music, dance, and theater. This includes the Whole Megillah New Play Festival, a critical incubator for developing new theatrical works that celebrate the diversity of the Jewish diaspora. These performances provide a platform for local premieres and national collaborations, reaching thousands of attendees annually. The Women of Valor Series: This documentary theater initiative honors the "Divine Image" (B’tzelem Elohim) in women who have made significant impacts on our region. The program recently expanded to include the Poderosas initiative, which specifically archives and celebrates the narratives of Latina leaders/innovators and Women of STEM. We bring these stories into classrooms through specialized workshops and school tours, using the Women of Valor model to teach students about resilience, identity, and the contributions of women in science and social justice. Community and Collaborative Programming: We sustain year-round engagement through deep-rooted partnerships with regional hubs like Seacrest Village, Leichtag Commons, and New Village Arts. Our expanded calendar includes an International Dinner and Lecture Series and high-touch "co-productions" like the Punto y Coma collaboration, which explores the intersection of Latinx and Jewish narratives highlighting diverse cultures. These services ensure that high-quality arts remain accessible to diverse populations throughout San Diego and North County, moving beyond a seasonal model to a continuous cycle of community-centered storytelling. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,865.00 | Ballet Resource Active Volunteer Assoc | 56 CORNICHE DR UNIT H , DANA POINT, CA 92629-4066 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 653-0228 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ballet Resource Active Volunteer Association (BRAVA) will: (1) provide significantly discounted student tickets for schools in the Riverside, Alvord, and Moreno Valley school districts to attend a performance of BRAVA’s production of David Allan’s The Nutcracker in December 2026; and (2) offer a series of classroom dance tutorials based on ballet movements for elementary school classrooms in those districts during the spring and fall 2027 semesters, focusing on schools with limited or no arts program budgets. This grant will enable BRAVA to expand student participation in its Art for the Heart Program, which provides dance education and arts engagement opportunities for students with limited access to the arts. | 1. Professional ballet company productions to provide arts engagement to the community: David Allan's The Nutcracker performed annually to a general audience and with outreach performances for local school districts. National renowned professional guest artists are invited for this production. Additional dance programs included in the season in collaboration with local artists and arts organization in our community (depending on funding availability). 2. Arts for the Heart Program: providing dance arts education to public schools with limited arts programming. 3. Movement for Life: a program that utilizes Dance for PD method to enhance the lives of those suffering from movement disorders such as Parkinson's and Multiple sclerosis. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Youth ARTS Alive | 2242 Fallen Leaf Drive , Santa Maria, CA 93456 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 563-0463 | 24th District | District 35 | District 19 | With Support from the California Arts Council, Youth ARTS Alive will provide 700 hours of year-round free classes in Theatre, Dance, Music and Visual Arts for 500 youth ages 8-18 from under-served families in the Santa Maria Valley. Funds will support the coordination of classes and performances in the neighborhoods of Santa Maria impacted by poverty, at sites provided gratis by the City of Santa Maria. Dollars will support the hiring of professional teaching artists who train our students in Guitar, Drumming, Ukulele, Singing, Baile Folklórico, Modern Dance, Theatre, Clowning, Pottery, Screen Printing, Sculpture, Painting and Drawing. CAC funding will also support Arts Fiestas, where our students’ art is displayed, and our performing arts students do free public performances to celebrate the deep roots of our multi-cultural community. | In 2017, Santa Barbara County Action Network (SBCAN) became the fiscal sponsor for Youth ARTS Alive so we could provide Free Summer Arts Education for the Youth in under-served neighborhoods of Santa Maria. YEAR ONE: Four weeks of free classes in Theater, Visual Art, Dance, and Music for 17 youth. YEAR TWO: Five weeks of class at two sites for 60 youth. We produced our first student Performing and Visual Arts Fiesta for an audience of 125. YEAR THREE: We added third class site - Los Adobes de Maria, providing 225 class hours of class to 96 students in five weeks. First community non-profit to use the Performing Arts Center at Pioneer Valley High School for our Arts Fiesta for 200 people. YEAR FOUR: Only summer arts education program in Santa Maria to offer in-person classes. At the Maldonado Youth Center, we educated 60 students (outdoors, in masks) for 3 weeks in Dance, Theatre, Guitar, Ukulele, Drumming, Pottery and Visual Arts, ending each class with a family performance. 20 Los Adobes de Maria students received on-line art classes. YEAR FIVE: Outdoor program expanded to six weeks, educating 119 students, ending with student performances. YEAR SIX: Six weeks of classes for 250 students at four locations, including year-round music and art classes at the Santa Maria Valley Discovery Museum, and two Arts Fiestas for 450 people. YEAR SEVEN: Six weeks of free arts education for 300 students at five locations, adding six weeks of art and music at Mary Buren Elementary School in Guadalupe, plus two Arts Fiestas for 500 people. YEAR EIGHT: Six weeks of classes for 350 students at our five locations, plus two Arts Fiestas for 500 people. YEAR NINE: Five weeks of Classes for 400 students ar our five locations, plus One Grand Arts Fiesta for 300 people. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Makers Hub | 28311 PONTEVEDRA DR , RCH PALOS VRD, CA 90275-1429 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 422-4576 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Makers Hub will expand access to creative spaces, tools, and hands-on arts opportunities to historically underserved Los Angeles Communities. Through open studio access, public workshops, and shared creative resources, participants will explore sewing, screen printing, embroidery, vinyl cutting, laser engraving, and other fabrication-based art forms in a welcoming and low-cost environment. Funding will help The Makers Hub continue to provide accessible opportunities for people to create, learn, and engage with artistic practices that may otherwise feel financially or physically out of reach. By increasing access to shared creative infrastructure and community-centered programming, The Makers Hub aims to strengthen creative confidence, encourage artistic exploration, and foster deeper community connection through collaborative making and public participation in the arts. | The Makers Hub offers a range of hands on programs and community based services designed to increase access to the trades and creative industries. Our approach combines skill development, artistic exploration, and practical application to meet people where they are, whether they are exploring a hobby, building a portfolio, or seeking career readiness. At the heart of our work is a fully equipped makerspace and tool lending library that provides affordable access to tools, equipment, and materials across a wide range of disciplines. Participants can learn and work in areas such as woodworking, sewing, electrical repair, digital design, sublimation printing, and more. We emphasize safety, accessibility, and peer learning, creating a space that is welcoming to both beginners and experienced makers. In addition to our main facility, we deliver targeted programming that engages youth and young adults through creative workshops, mentorship, and entrepreneurial experiences. These programs combine creative expression with practical skill building, helping participants explore career possibilities while gaining confidence and technical knowledge. Workshops are led by artists, tradespeople, and community leaders who reflect the backgrounds and lived experiences of the people we serve. Our services are inclusive, culturally relevant, and guided by community input. We prioritize access for BIPOC youth, LGBTQ youth, disconnected young adults, and others who have been historically excluded from traditional creative or technical education. Through a mix of onsite programming, mobile outreach, and partnerships with schools and community groups, The Makers Hub supports long term engagement in the arts and trades. We view our programs not only as pathways to employment or artistic growth, but as a means to strengthen individual agency, foster community resilience, and advance equity within the creative economy. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Worldwide Starship Foundation | 7650 HASKELL AVENUE NO 4 , VAN NUYS, CA 91406-2047 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 922-8558 | 29th Congressional District | District 46 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, Plan of Action, dba Worldwide Starship Foundation, will provide general support for the Rain Man Initiative, a program that provides scaffolded training in animation to people with autism and other intellectual disabilities. Our students work remotely, learning Toon Boom and Adobe Creative Suite software that is essential for working in animation. We then pair them with animation studios that provide them with paid apprenticeships, leading to jobs in the animation and entertainment industries. Participants who may have struggled to excel in traditional job interview and employment situations can work from the comfort of their own homes, following their passions and creating both animated films and meaningful lives for themselves. | Worldwide Starship Foundation provides a specialized training program in animation, artificial intelligence, and digital arts for adults on the autism spectrum. Taught virtually by live instructors, this program is designed to equip participants with the specific skills necessary for launching successful careers in the animation industry. Our training aims to foster the development of in-demand skills, preparing individuals for entry into the workforce. All instructors skill trainers at VAA are active professionals within animation, AI, and digital arts sectors, possessing extensive experience working with diverse populations. Our curriculum encompasses essential topics such as Story Development, Artificial Intelligence Prompting, Character Design, Storyboarding, Rigging, and Compositing. The pathway to employment includes six months of skills training, advanced training, paid apprenticeships, on-the-job training and comprehensive coaching support. The academy has established partnerships with animation production studios to facilitate job opportunities for top graduates. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $6,000.00 | Prospect Art | 4420 PALMERO DR , LOS ANGELES, CA 90065-4222 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 251-4132 | With support from the California Arts Council, Prospect Art will strengthen its organizational capacity to provide accessible public programming, artist commissions, critical writing, exhibitions, and curatorial opportunities for underrepresented contemporary artists. Based in Los Angeles, Prospect Art supports artists working outside traditional commercial systems through programs that connect artists with writers, curators, and public audiences. CAC funding will support core operational expenses including administration, communications, artist outreach, digital accessibility improvements, and program coordination across Prospect Art’s year-round initiatives including NEW WORK, ONE WORK, BROADCAST, and EXHIBITION. These programs provide artists with professional visibility, commissioned writing, public engagement opportunities, and direct support for the creation and presentation of new work. This funding will help sustain an artist-centered infrastructure focused on accessibility, equitable participation, and long-term cultural engagement. | Providing new project grants to visual artist, publishing monthly articles on artists works, providing public webcast discussions with artists and exhibitions. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Chapter 510 INK | 546 9th Street , OAKLAND, CA 94607 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 326-4231 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Chapter 510 INK will provide free and low-cost creative writing, podcasting, and bookmaking programs to 600+ Oakland youth ages 8–19, centering Black, brown, queer, and immigrant young people from the city’s most under-resourced neighborhoods. CAC funds will support 15 workshops at our Writing Center and Oakland Unified School District partner schools, including an in-school poetry program for 220 fourth graders, storytelling field trips for 300+ elementary students, a credit-bearing creative writing course for Designated English Language Development middle school students, and a podcasting workshop for high school students focused on mental health and wellness. Students will publish their work in 16 anthologies and magazines and perform at school and community events. All programs are led by BIPOC and/or queer Teaching Artists using culturally responsive, trauma-informed pedagogy. | Chapter 510 offers writing, podcasting, and bookmaking workshops to Oakland youth, led by Teaching Artists in affirming and inspiring spaces within a supportive community of volunteers and artists. We also publish our students’ words in beautifully bound and illustrated books and host events to collaborate with and elevate Oakland’s diverse community of artists and creatives. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Baking Wellness | 655 WESLEY AVE APT 9 , OAKLAND, CA 94610-3766 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 759-2157 | 12 | 18 | 07 | With support from the California Arts Council, Baking Wellness will offer 4 cohorts and 3 camps of baking lessons to middle school youth in the Oakland Bay Area. Funds will support student scholarships as well as staff time in designing and implementing innovative and educational baking lessons that support skill building, meaningful relationships, and positive wellbeing. Throughout each baking session, participants become youth "culinary artists", using baking as a creative and culturally rooted art form. Funds will contribute to our curriculum development that uplifts baking as both an artistic and cultural practice, allowing participants to explore identity and self-expression through food. In addition, throughout each lesson we emphasize the concept of “mindful baking”, emphasizing how baking can serve as a healthy outlet for managing stress and expressing creativity. | Baking Wellness provides baking lessons as a method for hands-on learning, artistic expression, leadership development, and social-emotional wellbeing. Our program is designed to support middle school youth in developing practical kitchen skills while also fostering confidence, creativity, and a strong sense of belonging. Lessons are delivered in small-group cohorts of up to eight youth to ensure individualized attention, relationship building, and a safe kitchen environment. We offer two program models: a community-based cohort and a school-based cohort, which ensures accessibility and consistency for youth and families. Our program is designed where each cohort meets for a weekly, two-hour session over eight to ten weeks, aligning with the after-school enrichment calendar. Throughout each cohort, participants become youth "culinary artists", using baking as a creative and culturally rooted art form. We explore relevant recipes and implement collaborative learning that allow participants to practice communication and teamwork. Using evidence-based frameworks centered on social-emotional learning and positive youth development, Baking Wellness intentionally supports youth in developing kitchen and baking skills while providing the space to develop meaningful relationships and a sense of responsibility. In addition, our program introduces youth to the concept of “mindful baking”, where we explore how baking can serve as a healthy outlet for managing stress and expressing creativity. Participants are encouraged to move slowly and fully immerse themselves in the baking process which not only enhances creativity but also calms the mind and fosters a deep sense of presence. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Worldwide Starship Foundation | 7650 HASKELL AVENUE NO 4 , VAN NUYS, CA 91406-2047 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 922-8558 | 29th Congressional District | District 46 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, Plan of Action DBA Worldwide Starship Foundation will provide program support to the Rain Man Initiative, a program that provides scaffolded training in animation to people with autism and other intellectual disabilities. Our students work remotely, learning Toon Boom and Adobe Creative Suite software that is essential for working in animation. We then pair them with animation studios that provide them with paid apprenticeships, leading to jobs in the animation and entertainment industries. Participants who may have struggled to excel in traditional job interview and employment situations can work from the comfort of their own homes, following their passions and creating both animated films and meaningful lives for themselves. | Worldwide Starship Foundation provides a specialized training program in animation, artificial intelligence, and digital arts for adults on the autism spectrum. Taught virtually by live instructors, this program is designed to equip participants with the specific skills necessary for launching successful careers in the animation industry. Our training aims to foster the development of in-demand skills, preparing individuals for entry into the workforce. All instructors skill trainers at VAA are active professionals within animation, AI, and digital arts sectors, possessing extensive experience working with diverse populations. Our curriculum encompasses essential topics such as Story Development, Artificial Intelligence Prompting, Character Design, Storyboarding, Rigging, and Compositing. The pathway to employment includes six months of skills training, advanced training, paid apprenticeships, on-the-job training and comprehensive coaching support. The academy has established partnerships with animation production studios to facilitate job opportunities for top graduates. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | BACCES | 1205 Oak St Apt 1 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94117 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 713-7780 | With support from the California Arts Council, BACCES will strengthen its operational capacity to sustain our transformative work centering BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, disabled and low-income circus artists. Operating funding support will stabilize our ongoing infrastructure: (1) staff/volunteer compensation; (2) access coordination (3) data gathering/evaluation; (4) outreach; (5) governance; and (6) financial administration. It will also support administration of our continued programming: (1) artist residency and public performances; (2) Local program microgrants; (3) Festival attendance; (4) Cultural Change initiative; and (5) Open source anti-racist educational training. This investment empowers sustainable operations while ensuring our work remains by-and-for underrepresented communities, meeting CAC's accessibility standards and redistributing resources directly to those historically excluded from circus arts. | As an arts organization dedicated to fostering equity and innovation in circus arts, we center our work on empowering BIPOC acrobats through creative development, performance opportunities, and systemic change in the broader circus industry. Our core program is called ‘Take Power, Make Power’, a multidisciplinary artist residency that equips BIPOC acrobats with artistic tools, collaborative methodologies, and professional development to create original, dynamic performances. This program culminates in public showcases that challenge traditional circus narratives, offering bold, community-driven storytelling rooted in cultural resilience and creative expression.. We also work with acrobatic event organizers to provide access for BIPOC acrobats and help them to evolve their events into more inclusive and decolonized spaces. We support local program initiatives for BIPOC acrobats to further their training or performance needs. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | The Road Theatre Company | 10747 Magnolia Blvd , Los Angeles, CA 91601-4093 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 752-7568 | California Assembly district 44 | District 44 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, The OTHER SIDE OF THE HILL PRODUCTIONS INC will strengthen its organizational infrastructure by supporting key administrative personnel, including the Company Managers and Marketing staff. Competitive compensation for these essential positions ensures the stability, continuity, and operational capacity necessary for the company to remain a leader in the development and production of socially, politically relevant new works by emerging playwrights. Professional staff is central to sustaining The Road's nationally recognized new play development programs, audience growth and fundraising efforts. These personnel also play a vital role in expanding accessibility, community engagement and collaborations with nonprofit partners. By investing in the people who sustain the organization’s daily operations and artistic mission, this funding will help ensure that The Road can continue to nurture innovative voices and serve diverse audiences. | One of the Road’s founding principles is that involvement in the arts creates stronger communities. Through the full engagement of our membership, we are able to produce four to five mainstage productions, a workshop series, weekly staged readings, classes for seniors, and an annual Summer Playwrights Festival – all at affordable or no cost to our community. We believe it is essential for the health of the American ethos to advance the larger theatrical conversation of our national culture. Through this dialogue we animate and inspire both our artists and audiences with the realization that through art and action we are lifted into the searching of soul, the revelation of humanity, the awareness that we are not alone and the struggle to make sense of our existence on this earth – as it is and as we wish it to be. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SMILE-ING BOYS INC | 1027 WILSHIRE BLVD APT 813 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90017-3125 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 303-0506 | With support from the California Arts Council, S.M.I.L.E.-ING Boys Inc will collaborate with lead artist Adekunle “Kay” Rufai to deliver Seen & Heard: Reimagining Black Boyhood Through Art, a youth-centered public art and exhibition project with Black boys in South Los Angeles. CAC funds will support artist-led workshops, cultural access experiences, youth-centered art production, and a professionally presented public exhibition/community activation. Through portraiture, poetry, film, and multimedia storytelling, participants will explore identity, belonging, emotional wellbeing, masculinity, joy, and representation while co-creating work that challenges harmful narratives about Black boyhood. The project will culminate in a public-facing exhibition featuring youth-created texts, portraits, multimedia works, and community dialogue that positions young people as artists, storytellers, and cultural contributors. | S.M.I.L.E-ing Boys Inc. delivers creative, research-informed arts programming that supports the wellbeing, identity development, and social engagement of young people, particularly Black boys and girls aged 13–19. Our core programmes include 16-week, school-based creative arts workshop series integrating photography, poetry, and film with a happiness research framework. Participants explore themes such as identity, belonging, mental health, and gender while developing emotional literacy, self-expression, and critical thinking skills. A key component of the programme is portraiture and visual storytelling. Participants are provided with cameras to document their lived experiences, producing original work that challenges dominant narratives and stereotypes. The organisation produces public exhibitions and humanities-centred programming, including panel discussions, roundtables, artist talks, and wellness events, creating space for community dialogue and elevating youth voice. We also deliver educator engagement and professional development to support more inclusive, restorative school environments. Across all activities, S.M.I.L.E-ing programmes centre arts and humanities as tools for reflection, storytelling, and cultural dialogue. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $9,000.00 | Long Beach Youth Chorus | 2902 Petaluma Ave. , Long Beach, CA 90815 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 972-3324 | California's 42nd congressional district | District 69 | District 34 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Long Beach Youth Chorus will use general operating support to procure storage for our music library and sound equipment, reinstate our twice annual singer retreats, hire new administrative staff for social media and marketing, and secure new rehearsal location(s). | The Long Beach Youth Chorus was started in 2017 under the guidance of Executive Director Stan DeWitt and Artistic Director Steven Clausen to serve the children and youth of Long Beach and surrounding communities (Carson, Bellflower, Lakewood, Cerritos, Los Alamitos, Seal Beach, etc.), an area of over half a million residents. Although Long Beach is the 7th largest city by population in California and the 39th largest in the country, it has never had a significant civic children or youth chorus, and the local school districts do not have choirs in all of their schools. The Long Beach Youth Chorus was founded to fill that gap. In addition, we have kept our tuition at exceedingly low levels with the sole goal that no child should ever be dissuaded from singing due to financial reasons. Our goal is to make it possible for every child to have a chance to sing. Our current Artistic Director is Harlee Balajadia. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | West End Arts District | 1453 WEBSTER ST , ALAMEDA, CA 94501-3342 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 309-8565 | 12th Congressional District | District 18 | District 07 | With support from the California Arts Council, WEST END ARTS AND ENTERTAINMENT DISTRICT will sustain accessible, community-centered arts programming in Alameda’s West End. Grant funds will support staff salaries, including contracting a part-time program coordinator focused on community and educational outreach, particularly for our climate arts programming. Ten percent of grant funds will be reserved for access services across programs, such as ASL interpretation, audio guides, audio description, captions, accessible parking/shuttle planning, and related participant supports. By designating these funds specifically for access services, WEAD will protect essential accommodations that can otherwise be reduced when individual program budgets become constrained. This funding will help WEAD maintain free and low-cost public arts experiences while building the staffing and access infrastructure needed to serve the community more consistently. | West End Arts District was founded in 2015 by community member and business owner Sandra Russell. She understood that the best way to build community spirit, and revitalize the area was through the arts. She launched Blues Brews and BBQ, which continues to be our flagship event and brings between 4000-5000 music lovers to the west end every September. Since then the non-profit has grown, expanding our programming to include dance, visual arts and cultural celebrations and developing a relationship with the city and local arts leaders. West End Arts District provides fiscal sponsorship, financial, and logistical support to artists and arts organizations working in our community. Since 2020 WEAD has worked with the West Alameda Business Association to bring a string of successful initiatives to the West End including: the Webster Gateway Mural, the Healing Garden Summer Series, the Life of Flight mural and Fiesta Alameda. In 2023, WEAD began work on a wide-ranging climate arts initiative called RISING TIDES, initially funded by a Bloomberg Philanthropies grant. Events have included “Somewhere to Land,” an outdoor vertical dance piece performed on the buildings of the Naval Air Station and “Capture the King Tide” photography event. In May 2025, we launch “In Plain Site” a free, three-week, outdoor, climate-focused photography festival. The board is committed to continued a continued Climate Art moving forward. Our work contributed to the economic resilience of the West End during the pandemic and continues to grow the cultural vibrancy and diversity of the area today. Our goal is to see the whole of the west end of Alameda, including the new and future developments at Alameda Point develop into a dynamic and progressive arts district. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $10,000.00 | CALIFORNIA HERITAGE MUSEUM | 2612 MAIN ST , SANTA MONICA, CA 90405-4002 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 392-8537 | California's 33rd congressional district | District 50 | District 26 | With support from the CAC, the California Heritage Museum will expand free, culturally responsive arts programming for historically and systemically under-resourced communities in Los Angeles County located within the lower two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index. Funding will support arts workshops, artist stipends, and community partnerships that remove barriers to participation for youth, families, and seniors who have limited access to arts education and cultural experiences. Although the Museum is in a higher-HPI area, this proposal centers on outreach and service to prioritize under-represented communities – specifically Chicano, Black and Women artists that are traditionally underrepresented within museum exhibition programming. As a small organization with an annual budget under $250,000, that has not received prior funds from the CAC, the Museum seeks to build sustainable pathways for equitable arts participation and community connection. | The California Heritage Museum's programming is as diverse as the communities it serves. Each exhibition is a singular event with its own universe of meaning, history, and audience — and we design outreach strategies to match. Our exhibition roster speaks for itself. Arte Chicano Hecho En Los Angeles traces five decades of Chicano art's origins and evolution in L.A. County. Michael C. Thorpe – Quilts & the Celebration of a Black Life explores quilting as an intergenerational art form connecting the artist to both his New England heritage and the renowned Gee's Bend community of African American quilters in Alabama. A recent "Black Lives Matter" quilt exhibition featured celebrated Oakland artist Alice Beasley. Collaborative exhibitions curated by Santa Monica LGBTQ+ activist and historian Lou D'Elia have spotlighted underrepresented voices, while a painting retrospective by Thai-American artist Suong Yangchareon has broadened our representation of Asian artists. Traditional Mexican folk art exhibitions honor the profound influence of Mexican culture on Southern California life. Our Young Women in the Arts program — now adopted as an extracurricular by seven local high schools — encourages students, parents, and educators to embrace the arts as a lifelong pursuit, not merely a school subject. K–12 students, college groups, and history organizations regularly visit under the guidance of docents trained to tailor programming to each audience's age and interest level. Watercolor exhibitions have earned national critical acclaim, and the Museum has produced ten hardcover books distributed internationally through Schiffer Publishing and Amazon — extending our reach far beyond Santa Monica. Each show demands creative outreach: tattoo exhibitions bring us to gyms; quilt shows connect us to quilting guilds and fabric stores; Spanish-language exhibitions engage Univision and bilingual community partners. Our audience has no single face — and that is precisely the point. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Screamfest Horror Film Festival | 8840 Wilshire Blvd. , Beverly Hills, CA 90211 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 358-3273 | California's 33rd congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Screamfest Horror Film Festival will support the annual salaries of its coordinator Fernando Ramos and co-director Karen Martin. | Our core programming gives Southern California residents the opportunity to watch films from around the world exposing them to a diverse culture in filmmaking artistry and to interact with these filmmakers. Screamfest hosts screenings and workshops on directing, writing, storyboarding, cinematography, special effects makeup, acting and sound for underserved at-risk youth as a way to introduce them to potential careers in the arts. Screamfest does new and retrospective screenings throughout the year to further engage its constituents. Monthly screenings include, MOM & DAD with Q&A with Nicolas Cage & Selma Blair, 20th anniversary screening of SCREAM followed by a Q&A with David Arquette, BRIDE OF CHUCKY with Jennifer Tilly, Brad Dourif and Alexis Arquette, screenings and cast reunions of FRIDAY THE 13TH PART VII and NIGHTMARE ON ELM STREET PART 4. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Miller Music Academy | 3311 54th St , San Diego, CA 92105-3705 | San Diego | Far South | (702) 635-2899 | With support from the California Arts Council, Miller Music Academy (MMA) will sustain and expand its year-round music education programs serving 600–800 participants annually, including approximately 500 individuals through summer programs across San Diego County and Orange County. CAC funds will support core operations directly tied to program delivery, including teaching artist compensation, program coordination, instructional materials, scholarships, and facility costs. This investment will enable consistent weekly instruction, ensemble rehearsals, community performances, and introductory instrument access opportunities, while preserving affordable participation through MMA’s sliding-scale tuition and family fundraising model. Funds will be used in full compliance with CAC guidelines and will not support ineligible expenses such as fundraising, lobbying, capital improvements, or equipment purchases. | Between July 1, 2026 and June 30, 2027, Miller Music Academy will provide inclusive, community-centered music education and performance opportunities throughout San Diego. Programs take place in schools, parks, community centers, and partner sites, expanding access to high-quality arts learning in neighborhoods where opportunities have been limited. The Academy is also planning Miller Music Academy Creative Studios, a community flex space offering affordable rehearsal, teaching, recording, and creative gathering space to support artistic collaboration and neighborhood vitality. Primary activities include weekly group music classes for children, youth, adults, and seniors in band, orchestra, choir, jazz, modern band, and early childhood music. Programs are designed to serve charter school students, homeschoolers, refugee populations, and youth connected to the San Diego Regional Center, often culminating in shared student showcases. After-school, weekend, and intergenerational programs welcome families to learn together. Partnerships with San Diego Parks and Recreation and Kupanda Kids Refugee Support Organization help provide free and low-cost enrichment opportunities. Public performances, including community concerts and the Pride Pop-Up Symphony founded in 2024, promote connection, visibility, and civic pride. Financial accessibility is supported through sliding-scale tuition, scholarships, loaner instruments, and family-led fundraising. Neurodivergent-affirming programs, including the nature-based In Harmony Educational Enrichment Program for ages 4–14, feature sensory-aware environments and flexible instruction. Serving 600–800 participants annually, Miller Music Academy employs about 10 teaching artists and engages thousands through performances, cultivating belonging, creative expression, and community pride. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $9,100.00 | Project Sheba | PO BOX 1080 , JOSHUA TREE, CA 92252-0809 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (310) 717-5722 | California's 8th congressional district | District 42 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, Project Sheba will produce the Desert Fringe Theatre and Cultural Arts Festival, a multi-day performing arts event in Twentynine Palms bringing original theatre, cabaret, spoken word, improv, music, and performance art to the Hi-Desert community. Festival programming will center culturally diverse and historically underrepresented artists and audiences across multiple accessible community venues, including free and low-cost events at public spaces such as the 29 Palms Farmers Market. CAC funds will support artist fees, venue costs, production materials, community outreach, and program documentation for the 2026 festival season, as well as Juneteenth and Black History Month celebrations at Knott's Sky Park. | Thought Theatre Desert Fringe Theatre and Cultural Arts Festival Juneteenth Festival Black History Month Cultural Celebration New Play reading series: Play by Playwrights and other writers |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Good Dirt Collective | 3011 W BULLARD AVE , FRESNO, CA 93711-1609 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 240-6517 | California Congressional District 21 | California State Assembly District 31 | California State Senate District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, Good Dirt Collective’s Mud Girls Workforce Development Program will provide trauma-informed arts workforce training for transitional-aged young women (18–25) who have aged out of foster care in Fresno County. Through hands-on experience in Good Dirt’s pottery studio, participants will develop skills in ceramic production, studio operations, product development, and creative entrepreneurship while engaging in meaningful arts learning and community connection. CAC grant funds will support artist mentorship, program staffing, studio materials, and workforce development activities that reduce barriers to arts access for a highly vulnerable population. The program also nurtures emerging artists by strengthening creative skills, resilience, and community engagement through sustained participation in the arts. | Current Program and Activities Good Dirt Collective operates a workforce development program that empowers foster youth through creative expression, mentorship, and paid job training. Mud Girls Workforce Development Program Mud Girls is a paid entrepreneurship and job training program for transitional-aged young women who have aged out of the foster care system. Participants work approximately 10 hours per week in Good Dirt’s pottery studio, gaining hands-on experience in pottery production, studio operations, product development, and marketing. Through structured mentorship, small business training, and community partnerships, participants build practical workforce skills while earning income. They create and sell pottery products through local markets, boutique retailers, and online platforms such as Etsy—developing both technical skills and financial independence during a critical transition to adulthood. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | San Francisco Transgender Film Festival | P.O. Box 460670 , San Francisco, CA 94146 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (707) 563-1689 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the CAC, the San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF) will respond with creativity and care to this time of emergency for transgender communities by producing our 29th annual SF Transgender Film Festival at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco. Our annual Festival will run November 12-22, 2026 with 5 in-person and 5 online programs. We will offer ASL interpretation at all of our in-person screenings, and all films (in-person AND online) will be captioned for Deaf and hard-of-hearing audiences. All our programs and events will be offered at $0+ sliding scale, to maximize access since our communities experience significant economic marginalization, employment discrimination, and continued Bay Area gentrification and displacement. We build community by providing opportunities for trans artists and audiences, fighting for intersectional justice in media arts, and supporting trans filmmakers. | As attacks on trans people’s very existence escalate, The San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF) uplifts films celebrating trans ancestors, honoring contemporary leaders, and imagining our liberated futures. SFTFF programming and events are open to everyone. Access is central to our values: all programs are offered on a $0+ sliding scale with no one turned away for lack of funds; all in-person screenings feature ASL interpretation, and all content is captioned; we require/provide KN95 masks; and only choose mobility-accessible venues; Our annual film festival, panels and talkbacks take place in-person at the historic Roxie Theater, and online through on-demand, closed-captioned programs. Our DREAMCommission Program annually awards creation funds to Bay Area BIPOC Trans/GNC filmmakers to support the creation of their new work. We stay connected with these filmmakers, to support and screen their new works in the months and years that follow. SFTFF screens films that offer empowered visions for movement building and social justice, and prioritizes films by and about our community’s most underrepresented and marginalized people: BIPOC folks; trans immigrants; disabled and Deaf trans people; youth and elders. We support both emerging and established artists and prioritize grassroots, experimental, or DIY films, since these are the films often made by our community’s most under-resourced people. Unlike most film festivals, SFTFF only screen works directed by Trans/GNC filmmakers, and where Trans/GNC actors portray Trans/GNC characters, undermining the stereotypes that reinforce the dominant cisgender culture’s transphobia, racism, sexism, and homophobia. Throughout the year, SFTFF provides curatorial support and guest curation for Trans/GNC film programs across the US. SFTFF and its staff also mentor and support emerging Trans/GNC film festivals in cities across the US and countries all over the world. SFTFF also supports and co-presents other local Trans/GNC arts programming. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | ABADA-Capoeira San Francisco | 3221 22nd Street , San Francisco, CA 94110-3006 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 206-0650 | California Assembly District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, ABADÁ-Capoeira San Francisco (ACSF) will expand its Youth Arts Education Program to three additional San Francisco public schools located in neighborhoods ranked in the lowest two quartiles of California’s Healthy Places Index. The program will provide free, comprehensive Afro-Brazilian arts education, primarily Capoeira, to approximately 275 BIPOC youth ages 5–12 who face significant barriers to arts access. Through regular classes and performance opportunities at community events and festivals, students will build confidence, cultural pride, leadership skills, and community connection. Programs are led by master-level BIPOC teaching artists whose lived experiences and cultural backgrounds reflect those of participants. This project advances ACSF’s strategic goal of expanding equitable access to culturally responsive arts education and builds on the organization’s 34-year legacy of serving historically under-resourced populations. | ACSF brings high-quality, culturally authentic Afro-Brazilian arts to streets, schools, and stages throughout the Bay Area. Its programs center on Capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian cultural practice created by enslaved Africans in Brazil as a response to oppression and a tool for liberation. Blending self-defense, dance, ritual, acrobatics, and music, Capoeira fosters a dynamic dialogue between body, mind, and spirit and is recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage. Grounded in resilience, Capoeira’s legacy of uniting diverse communities in pursuit of freedom and justice informs ACSF’s mission and programming. The organization offers year-round arts education; cultural festivals and performances; artist residencies and exchanges; apprenticeships; and employment opportunities, annually serving approximately 12,000 participants, primarily from under-resourced communities. Classes for children, teens, and adults span Capoeira, dance, music, and fitness, creating accessible pathways to engage with traditional arts. ACSF’s programs build artistic and physical skills while supporting cultural practitioners and emerging artists. They promote cultural awareness, conflict resolution, civic participation, and overall wellness, fostering connection and belonging. The Capoeira Arts Center serves as a vibrant cultural hub in San Francisco’s Mission District, housing the performance company, hosting internationally attended festivals, and providing daily classes alongside affordable space for artists and community organizations. ACSF advances equity and access through free and sliding-scale programs, inclusive and culturally relevant curriculum, leadership development opportunities, and outreach in under-resourced communities—strengthening social connection, supporting intergenerational engagement, and amplifying underrepresented artists while advancing gender equity worldwide. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Old First Concerts | 1751 SACRAMENTO ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109-3618 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 474-1608 | With support from the California Arts Council, OLD FIRST CENTER FOR THE ARTS will expand our concert offerings so that local artists presenting programs centering women, BIPOC and LGBTQ+ composers and performers continue to be celebrated and affirmed, and restore our staffing (full time director) to meet the needs of our patrons and artists. | Provide a venue for local artists to perform concerts and engage audiences, especially featuring music from "the margins" that may be neglected by mainstream venues. Live stream all concerts to provide access for those who are otherwise unable to attend musical events. Record all concerts to give performers material for auditions, grant applications, and promotion. Keep an extensive archive of musical performances containing many world and local premieres of newly composed music. Provide a neighborhood hub for cultural expression in an area that does not have other venues. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | San Francisco Transgender Film Festival | P.O. Box 460670 , San Francisco, CA 94146 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (707) 563-1689 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the CAC, the San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF) will respond with creativity and care to this time of emergency for transgender communities by: producing our 29th annual transgender film festival at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco; awarding DREAM Commission Grants to 6 BIPOC Trans filmmakers; partnering with local trans/queer-led organizations to build a strong community of by/of/for Trans and queer people; and co-sponsoring other trans community arts events throughout the year. All programs and events will be offered at $0+ sliding scale, to maximize access since Trans and gender-nonconforming communities experience disproportional economic marginalization, employment discrimination, and continued Bay Area gentrification and displacement. SFTFF builds community by providing opportunities for Trans and gender-nonconforming artists and audiences, fighting for intersectional justice in media arts, and supporting Trans filmmakers. | As attacks on trans people’s very existence escalate, The San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF) uplifts films celebrating trans ancestors, honoring contemporary leaders, and imagining our liberated futures. SFTFF programming and events are open to everyone. Access is central to our values: all programs are offered on a $0+ sliding scale with no one turned away for lack of funds; all in-person screenings feature ASL interpretation, and all content is captioned; we require/provide KN95 masks; and only choose mobility-accessible venues; Our annual film festival, panels and talkbacks take place in-person at the historic Roxie Theater, and online through on-demand, closed-captioned programs. Our DREAMCommission Program annually awards creation funds to Bay Area BIPOC Trans/GNC filmmakers to support the creation of their new work. We stay connected with these filmmakers, to support and screen their new works in the months and years that follow. SFTFF screens films that offer empowered visions for movement building and social justice, and prioritizes films by and about our community’s most underrepresented and marginalized people: BIPOC folks; trans immigrants; disabled and Deaf trans people; youth and elders. We support both emerging and established artists and prioritize grassroots, experimental, or DIY films, since these are the films often made by our community’s most under-resourced people. Unlike most film festivals, SFTFF only screen works directed by Trans/GNC filmmakers, and where Trans/GNC actors portray Trans/GNC characters, undermining the stereotypes that reinforce the dominant cisgender culture’s transphobia, racism, sexism, and homophobia. Throughout the year, SFTFF provides curatorial support and guest curation for Trans/GNC film programs across the US. SFTFF and its staff also mentor and support emerging Trans/GNC film festivals in cities across the US and countries all over the world. SFTFF also supports and co-presents other local Trans/GNC arts programming. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | The Beat Within | PO BOX 34310 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134-0310 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 909-9564 | 11 | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, THE BEAT WITHIN will implement a high-impact literary arts project providing weekly workshops and bi-monthly publication opportunities for over 4,500 justice-impacted youth across nine California counties. This initiative centers on "narrative justice," empowering vulnerable young people to utilize creative writing and visual arts to navigate trauma and cultivate civic agency. CAC funds will directly support the rigorous workshop-to-publication cycle, producing 24 magazine issues that serve as a vital public gallery, bridging the gap between isolated individuals and the broader community. By amplifying the voices of those within the juvenile justice system, this project promotes social equity and artistic healing, transforming juvenile detention environments into spaces of creative discovery. This project ensures California’s most marginalized youth have a consistent, professional platform for self-expression and community connection. | The Beat Within was founded in San Francisco, (1996) when David Inocencio, former assistant director of the Detention Diversion Advocacy Program, teamed up with Pacific News Service, a non-profit media/communications organization, to offer writing workshops to youth detained in San Francisco’s Juvenile Hall. The Beat printed its first publication following the murder of rapper Tupac Shakur when young people sought ways to express their intense feelings of loss. Originally, their work was printed in a 6-page magazine, which was brought back to them the following week. For some, it was the first positive recognition they ever received that they had a voice worthy of an audience. Today, the magazine is 60 pages and printed bi-weekly. Today, The Beat Within staff and volunteers serve over 5,000 youth annually through workshops operated across California county juvenile halls: San Francisco, Alameda, Fresno, Marin, Monterey, San Bernardino, Santa Clara, San Mateo, Santa Cruz, Solano, Riverside, and Los Angeles. Outside of California, Beat workshops occur in New Mexico, Hawaii, Oregon and in Washington, DC. The Beat Within has partnered with education and criminal justice programs at the University of California at Berkeley, Stanford University, San Francisco State, California College of the Arts, the University of Hawaii, the University of Redlands, and Portland State University. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,472.00 | Muckenthaler Cultural Center | 1201 W MALVERN AVE , FULLERTON, CA 92833-2429 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 738-6595 | California's 39th congressional district | District 65 | District 29 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Muckenthaler Cultural Center will deliver year-round arts education programming for developmentally delayed young adults ages 18–25, in partnership with REACH Services. Through four 13-week sessions, participants at REACH’s Los Nietos facility will engage in twice-weekly, artist-led classes in visual arts and ceramics. Led by teaching artist Jac Alva and supported by master ceramicist Willie Tabata, students will build technical, creative, and communication skills while deepening cultural literacy and community connection. CAC funds will support teaching artist fees, curriculum development, studio materials, and accessible arts experiences, serving sixty participants annually, including gallery visits, hands-on studio instruction, reflective critique, and meaningful opportunities for self-expression, confidence building, social engagement, and lifelong participation in California’s arts ecosystem for underserved young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities across Los Angeles County. | The Muckenthaler produces more than 60 performances, gallery exhibits, festivals and special events; and more than 3,500 hours of arts education classes at the Muck and in 25 outreach sites serving more than 41,000 people every year. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | PARANGAL DANCE COMPANY | 6112 California Street #2 , San Francisco, CA 94121 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 244-5203 | 11 | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Parangal Dance Company will sustain its programs, staff, and operations from October 1, 2026 to September 30, 2027. During this period, Parangal will premiere Kalinga Palin-awa, a new full-length dance-theater work centering the cultural practices of the Indigenous Kalinga people of the Philippines, at Yerba Buena Center for the Arts in San Francisco. Following the premiere, the company will tour the work nationally and internationally. Parangal will continue its year-round programming of performances, workshops, and educational outreach rooted in Indigenous Filipino dance, music, and attire for the Northern California Filipino-diasporic community, including weekly Philippine Dance and Culture classes at the University of San Francisco and San Francisco State University, community performances throughout San Francisco, and public workshops sharing Indigenous Filipino cultural traditions. | Our objectives are: a) to provide workshops in ethnic dance, music, and attires inspired from the cultures of the Philippines; b) to sponsor special events involving the public performance of any or all of the above art forms as well as other performing arts by the corporation's performers as well as by other community performing arts groups; c) to directly engage in and to provide support for others to engage in the promotion of the arts; d) to nurture existing members in their artistic potential by empowering them with knowledge and freedom to express their connection and pride in the Philippine heritage; e) to continue to learn, share, and impart Philippine folk arts so the traditions can live on for future generations; and f) to purchase crafts, ethnic textiles, and instruments directly from various indigenous groups in the Philippines to support and help preserve their respective cultural heritage, ensuring transmission of indigenous skills and techniques to the next generation. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $8,475.00 | Bakersfield Community Theatre | 2400 South Chester Avenue , BAKERSFIELD, CA 93304 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 831-8114 | With support from the California Arts Council, BAKERSFIELD COMMUNITY THEATRE (BCT) will expand the number of participants and opportunities for young people in our free Youth Theatre Program. BCT’s Youth Theatre was founded in 1969 to provide free theatre performance training for teenagers. Over time, we expanded our program to include children as young as six years old. Over the years, other organizations began offering pay-to-play youth programs, and today there are six organizations offering youth workshops at a cost of up to $550 per child. BCT remains the only youth program that is completely free to all students, a commitment that has been reviewed and ratified over many decades by the BCT Board of Directors. BCT is committed to continuing this free program to provide this essential training to our most vulnerable children. | Live theatre productions Youth theatre training Technical training for newcomers | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | 4C LAB | 110 S. Orange Ave, Azusa, CA 91702 , AZUSA, CA 91702-4400 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 224-5893 | 32nd Congressional District | 48th Assembly | 22nd Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, 4C LAB will continue to provide no-cost, culturally responsive arts programming for youth ages 6-24 in under-resourced communities in Azusa and East Los Angeles. Funds will support the much needed sustainability of staffing and program coordination to maintain our programming. CAC’s investment will ensure continuity community-rooted programming that uplifts young artists as they heal, express themselves, and build futures in the creative economy as we provide vital access to culturally responsive instruction in visual art, theatre, dance, and creative career pathways for youth who live in the lowest percentile according to the California Healthy Index. With recent cuts to Arts Education, these funds are urgent and essential to keeping our organization alive and accessible. | The 4 C's are: To create, to communicate, to collaborate, to build community. These 4 C's are at the core of all of our programming. 4C LAB Creative Residency programs provide multi-week culturally responsive arts immersion led by professional teaching artists with embedded California curriculum standards for Elementary, Middle and High School students. 4C LAB Creative Residencies introduce the power of building community and creating positive social impact by sharing personal stories through art. The program includes workshops across various art forms including dance, theatre, poetry and multimedia, and culminate in a public performance. "Share Your Voice" Youth Summits- One day events with keynote speakers, multi-disciplinary arts workshops and resources to support positive mental health. SPARC Creative Career Mentorship program- Providing mentorship and job readiness for transitional youth, ages 18-24, for careers in creative fields. Youth are paid stipends and also serve as apprentice teaching artists within our programs Professional Development workshops: Provided for community organizations and school staff. Led by 4C LAB leadership, we provide best practices in creating culturally responsive practices in Arts & Education and using creative strategies to engage students and community building. CREATIVE COALITION is a platform and space for networking enabling like-minded organizations, artists and creatives to partner, share best practices and resources and connect. Events include guest speakers, opportunities for creative inspiration and topic discussions to progress the work as a global creative community. 4C LAB also offers creative consulting, providing best practices and producing creative events for organizations and individuals. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Everybody Dance LA! | 2955 Wilshire Blvd. , LOS ANGELES, CA 90010 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 365-2491 | CA-034 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Everybody Dance LA! (EDLA!) will provide at least 6,500 students in grades K- 12 with high quality, culturally responsive dance education through in-school, after-school, and enrichment programs. In 2026, EDLA! is celebrating 25 years of transformative dance education, advancing equity in arts education for some of Los Angeles’ most underserved youth. EDLA! directly addresses this inequity by bringing rigorous, culturally responsive dance education into the communities that need it most. Ninety-five percent of EDLA! students come from low-income families, and many would not otherwise have access to dance training, performances, or mentorship opportunities. | EDLA!’s work ensures that young people—many carrying the weight of economic hardship, family responsibility, and limited access to the arts—have a safe, supportive place to move, express themselves, and build confidence. Today, EDLA! is reaching 6,834 youth – 6,164 at 40 in-school locations and 670 at five after-school sites in under-resourced communities throughout Los Angeles. Our programs cultivate more than dancers—they nurture collaborators, communicators, and emerging leaders who carry these skills into every area of their lives. EDLA!’s programs form a comprehensive continuum that supports youth from early childhood through young adulthood (ages 4-19). In-School Program: EDLA!’s In-School Program integrates standards-based dance education into the school day across Los Angeles. Professional Teaching Artists collaborate with school administrators and educators to align programming with academic goals and student needs. Classes incorporate movement and mindfulness to support focus, emotional regulation, and engagement in learning. Each residency culminates in a performance that celebrates student growth and strengthens the school community. After-School Programs: EDLA!’s year-round After-School Program offers sequential level dance training led by professional Teaching Artists. Students can study multiple dance forms—including ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip hop, breaking, tap, and salsa—and often take more than one class per week. Every student performs twice annually, building confidence and pride through public performance. Enrichment, Leadership, and College Pathways: To deepen impact and retain middle and high school students, EDLA! offers enrichment programs at no additional cost, serving more than 140 students annually. These include: • Ballet Conservatory (three progressive levels through advanced pointe work) • Audition-based performance groups (Companies 1 & 2) • Student Creators Showcase (original student choreography) • Solos Class (preparation for high school and college auditions) • Mentor Match Program (monthly professional mentoring) • Student Leadership Team (public speaking and leadership development) • Student Teacher Education Program (STEP), providing hands-on job training |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | La Puerta | 3578 Mercer Ct , San Diego, CA 92122-2910 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 692-7323 | California District 50 | State Assembly District 77 | State Senate District 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Legacy Group DBA La Puerta will strengthen its capacity to expand community-based performing arts programs in San Diego. Support will help fund the salary of the Artistic Director and a part-time administrative assistant, providing the leadership and infrastructure necessary to guide programming, partnerships, and daily operations. Through this support, La Puerta will continue developing culturally rooted theater productions, workshops, and mentorship opportunities for emerging and established artists throughout California. The organization also provides training in theatrical production and technical crafts—including set construction, lighting, sound, costumes, and stage management—while creating opportunities for artists and technical workers to develop professional-level skills. This support will allow La Puerta to deepen community engagement, strengthen partnerships, and ensure sustainability of programs that foster artistic excellence and meaningful participation in the performing arts. | La Puerta develops performance, storytelling, and media projects that highlight the cultural voices and lived histories of Southern California communities. For example, "Handed Down" is a storytelling performance series combining theater, music, and dance. Beginning with Kumeyaay families in East County San Diego, the project transforms stories and objects passed through generations into original performances that can be shared with communities throughout California. La Puerta also produces podcasts and video blogs documenting artists and cultural life in under-served communities, exploring how creative expression helps individuals and neighborhoods move from the margins into fuller participation in the cultural life of the region. A third initiative draws inspiration from community-based theater traditions developed by Luis Valdez. Led by theater educator Victor Contreras, this program brings participatory theater into communities with limited access to the performing arts, inviting residents to shape performances drawn from their own experiences. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | WATER & POWER | 3027 S GRAND AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90007-3814 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 607-7689 | CA Congressional District 37 | CA Assembly District 57 | CA Senate District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Water & Power will provide one year of free rehearsal performance and exhibition space to BIPOC, low-income, and trans/LGBTQIA+ artists in Los Angeles facing systemic barriers such as housing insecurity, economic disadvantage and mental health challenges. The program will deliver 600+ hours of free rehearsal space and over 350 hours of free performance and exhibition space, with equipment, staff support and documentation services, enabling artists to develop and present new work without financial burden. CAC funds will support facility operations, production costs, programming staffing, documentation, and accessibility accommodations to ensure the space remains free and fully functional for artists at every stage of their career. Through this grant, we anticipate platforming 216 new artists and providing a total of $174,600 worth of rehearsal and exhibition space. | Water & Power provides performance and exhibition space for emerging artists working in electronic music, performance art, and installation. As an artist-led queer collective, we work to create accessible performance opportunities for our BIPOC LGBTQIA+ community of artists who have aged out of traditional institutional resources or never had access to them to begin with. Our programming focuses on peer-led learning from working artists, grassroots artist education, and hands-on workshops |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Institute of Inquiry | 6875 VALLEY VIEW DRIVE , Twentynine Palms, CA 92277 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (760) 666-8341 | California's 23rd District | State Assembly District 34 | State Senate District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Institute of Inquiry will invest in our local creative economy through arts education programming that includes Creative Fields, a 100-hour arts apprenticeship program for teens and transitional-aged youth, and corresponding career development for Teaching Artists Creative Fields strengthens key equity levers: resilience, self-compassion, and artistic engagement. Research shows contact with professional artists builds creative self-efficacy, widens career knowledge, and fortifies youth's sense of identity and belonging. A longitudinal NEA study found low-income youth with sustained arts education had markedly higher career aspirations and college attendance than peers with limited arts exposure. For local arts workers, Creative Fields provides employment supporting their growth as educators through training in youth-centered approaches, as well as artists-in-residence from the greater Inland Empire region through our partnership with Arts Connection's Estudio Aire program. | As we enter our ninth year as an organization, we are acutely focused on building greater interdependence into our operations. Together, our high desert region and the broader Inland Empire contribute immense creative and cultural value to the state, even as our communities have historically received far less material investment and resources than our urban counterparts. Our work is informed by our deep knowledge of these structural and economic challenges of rural desert life. We are dedicated to the long-term health of our vibrant but underserved communities through providing responsive arts education and substantive, creative employment. Our core programs and services include” Creative Fields”, a 100-hour arts apprenticeship and career mentorship program for teens and transitional-aged youth, and its corresponding career development pathway for Teaching Artists. Arts professionals who participate in Creative Fields receive over 40 hours of mentorship and training in youth-centered approaches to education. Our support of the local creative economy is expanding to the greater Inland Empire through our evolving partnership with Arts Connection, our longtime fiscal sponsor and mentor organization. Arts Connection's Estudio Aire program supports artists through one to two-month long, work-only residencies focused on professional development. Beginning in Fall 2026, the Institute of Inquiry will host two Estudio Aire artists-in-residence annually for an extended period through live-work residencies at our location adjacent to Joshua Tree National Park.For artists who reside in more densely populated and urban parts of the Inland Empire, these residencies offer the gift of extended time in the wildlands of the high desert, where our relationship to the natural world cannot be easily managed or ignored. In opening our programming to a wider geographic region, we are also enriching the lives of youth participants through mentorship with artists representing a broader spectrum of cultural and racial backgrounds. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | PURPLE SILK MUSIC EDUCATION FOUNDATION | 1427 Willow St , Oakland, CA 94607-1523 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 316-2895 | California's 12th Congressional District | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, PURPLE SILK MUSIC EDUCATION FOUNDATION (PSMEF) will strengthen and expand its Chinese music program for K-12 students throughout the San Francisco Bay Area in 2026-2027, promoting and preserving Chinse musical traditions and culture and bringing Chinese music alive for new generations of young people and diverse community audiences. PSMEF’s music education program provides free/low-fee instruction in traditional Chinese musical instruments, taught by Chinese music specialists, to underserved children and youth (grades K-12, primarily BIPIOC and low-income) at local community centers and schools. During the grant period, PSMEF will expand its weekend, afterschool, and summer programming and increase enrollment 60%, from 100 to 160+ students. CAC funds will partially underwrite core operating expenses for PSMEF’s programs at nine sites in Oakland, Berkeley, San Leandro, San Francisco, and Daly City. | CORE PROGRAMS/SERVICES: In 2025, PSMEF marked its 30th Anniversary, celebrating three decades of service to the Bay Area community. This milestone anniversary also represented a turning point for PSMEF, as its long-time Artistic Director and several older artists retired. PSMEF’s Board had been preparing for this transition for several years, recruiting new Board members and artists in anticipation of these departures. PSMEF also hired its first Executive Director in January 2025. As part of this leadership transition, PSMEF has recommitted to its original educational mission and decided to prioritize an enhanced community-based instructional program, while continuing to honor its commitment to performance. In mid-2025, PSMEF moved its core weekend program from Laney College to the Shoong Family Chinese Cultural Center (SFCCC), centrally located in the heart of Oakland’s Chinatown neighborhood, its primary service area. The revised weekend program, now called the Purple Silk Music Academy (PSMA), features a multi-tiered Chinese music education curriculum focused on intensive instruction in traditional Chinese musical instruments, taught by PSMEF’s staff of Chinese music specialists. Instruction is delivered in a small group format, providing in-depth, individualized instruction over time for each student. PSMA also emphasizes ensemble work and upper-level students participate in the Purple Silk Youth Orchestra and perform at community events throughout the year, including Chinese New Year’s celebrations. PSMEF also introduced a new curriculum for its Artists-in-Schools (AIS) program, Introduction to Chinese Music, developed by a former K-12 educator. It is actively pursuing partnerships with Chinese immersion schools throughout the Bay Area, as well as sites with afterschool Mandarin programs. Finally, in 2025, PSMEF piloted its first Summer Music Program (SMP) to counteract “summer learning loss” for students enrolled in its weekend program. In 2026, it will continue the SMP at SFCCC and introduce a shorter summer program at one partner school. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | TTPC | 2600 N ALTADENA DR , ALTADENA, CA 91001-2838 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (732) 939-7875 | With support from the California Arts Council, TONGVA TARAXAT PAXAAVXA CONSERVANCY will expand and sustain Indigenous-led arts, cultural preservation, and community engagement programming centered at Huhuunga, the first parcel of land returned to Tongva stewardship in over 200 years. CAC funds will support free public arts and cultural programming including seasonal cultural gatherings, Indigenous arts workshops, storytelling, music and dance presentations, Native artist collaborations, youth arts engagement, Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) workshops, digital webinars, and accessibility improvements that increase participation for historically underrepresented Native communities and the broader public. Funding will also strengthen organizational infrastructure, artist support, community outreach, accessibility accommodations, and administrative capacity necessary to sustain culturally rooted programming that preserves and uplifts Native cultural practices, Native artistic expression, environmental stewardship, and intergenerational learning. | Land Rematriation & Stewardship: Indigenous-led stewardship and restoration of Tongva ancestral lands, beginning with Huhuunga in Altadena, the first land returned to Tongva stewardship in over 200 years. Huhuunga is home to all of TTPC’s in-person events, as well our administrative headquarters and the future home of our cultural center and Artist-In-Residence. Cultural Ceremonies & Traditional Practice: Hosting seasonal Tongva ceremonies, song, dance, regalia, storytelling, and gatherings at Huhuunga to promote cultural preservation and the passing down of traditions and knowledge. Cultural Education & Webinars: Free quarterly virtual webinars and digital programming sharing Tongva history, art, cultural knowledge, and Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) with community members, educators, and the broader public. Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK) & Climate Resilience: Application of TEK to wildfire recovery, native plant restoration, water conservation, and land stewardship practices, including post-fire restoration following the Eaton Fire. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Company of Angels | 1350 San Pablo St. , LOS ANGELES, CA 90033 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 475-8814 | California's 34th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With the support of the California Arts Council, Company of Angels will sustain our theater’s mission and goals by supporting salaries/fees for Artistic Director, Grant writer as well as increasing the number of teaching artists for our community based programs. | Company of Angels is dedicated to creating theater that is deeply connected to its community. We aim to share and help give voice to the many stories that exist in our community. With a collective of Actors, Directors, Playwrights, Designers, and Administrators, our company forges ongoing and meaningful relationships with the residents of Los Angeles. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Taste of Freedom Project | 202 w byrd ave , fresno, CA 93706 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 353-1184 | With support from the California Arts Council, Taste of Freedom Project will present Standing on Their Shoulders, a free intergenerational and multicultural arts celebration at Fresno Pacific University that honors the legacy of Central Valley elders and historically underrepresented communities. This funding will support artist and speaker fees, multicultural drumming and dance performances, storytelling workshops, youth art engagement, visual arts presentations, outreach, materials, accessibility supports, and project coordination. Our project will bring together elders, youth, families, artists, educators, and community partners to preserve cultural memory, uplift overlooked histories, and create a welcoming space for healing, belonging, and creative expression. Through workshops, performances, oral storytelling, poetry, music, and visual art, the project will strengthen intergenerational connection and help community members see their histories reflected with dignity. | The Taste of Freedom Project offers mission-driven programs that preserve and present California’s history through arts and education. Our core initiatives include: 1. Immersive Exhibitions- Engaging, interactive displays that bring California’s history to life through art, sound, and performance, grounded in historical research and community storytelling. 2. Arts-Based Education- Culturally responsive programs for students and educators, featuring workshops and resources that enhance understanding of California’s diverse cultures. 3. Oral History Projects- Collection and presentation of oral histories from underrepresented communities, preserving valuable narratives for exhibits and digital media. 4. Artist Collaborations- Support for artists to create works that explore historical and cultural themes, resulting in public art and community projects. 5. Community Events- Programs like cultural festivals and panel discussions that promote dialogue and connection among diverse communities. 6. Youth Engagement- Empowering youth to explore their heritage and develop leadership skills through mentorship and creative workshops. 7. Accessibility and Equity: Commitment to free or low-cost programming and inclusive planning processes to meet the diverse needs of our communities. The Taste of Freedom Project delivers mission-driven programs that authentically preserve and present California's history through the arts and education. Rooted in truth, dignity, and respect, our core programs offer immersive, inclusive experiences that connect diverse communities to the state’s rich and complex past. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | ArtsOC | 17620 Fitch Avenue Suite 255, Irvine, CA 92614 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 556-5160 | 47 | 73 | 37 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTS ORANGE COUNTY will serve as the agency’s State Local Partner for the County of Orange, championing and connecting our county’s artists, arts organizations, and residents, while representing the interests and policies of the CAC. | Arts Orange County fulfills its mission by offering the following programs and services: Regranting – when funds are available. During pandemic, raised private funds and secured County funding, oversaw regranting of nearly $8 million. In 2023-24, served as Administering Organization for CAC’s Individual Artist Fellowship Program in Region I (Imperial, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego counties). Orange County Arts Awards, honoring artists, arts visionaries and arts patrons Creative Edge Lecture, presenting thought-leaders in the field of creativity Imagination Celebration, county-wide, six-week festival of arts for families & children in collaboration with Orange County Department of Education Día del Niño, a free festival of Latino arts for families and children OC Jails Project, creative writing instruction to Transitional Age Youth SparkOC.com, online arts calendar Newsletter, bi-monthly ArtsOC institutional & arts community news Leadership Convenings, bringing together arts leaders of various cohorts and artists for regular online and in-person gatherings to share concerns, best practices Breaking Through, webinars for arts leaders about exemplary local programs fulfilling diversity, equity and inclusion goals Emerging Arts Leaders-OC Consulting and Project Management services on cultural planning & public art to municipalities and arts organizations |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Taste of Freedom Project | 202 w byrd ave , fresno, CA 93706 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 353-1184 | With support from the California Arts Council, Taste of Freedom Project will strengthen its general operations as a growing arts and cultural organization that preserves underrepresented histories through storytelling, visual art, music, dance, poetry, living history, and intergenerational cultural education. This funding will support organizational capacity, program planning, artist and culture bearer engagement, outreach, accessibility planning, documentation, volunteer coordination, and administrative systems needed to sustain community-centered programming. Operating support will help Taste of Freedom Project expand events such as Standing on Their Shoulders, deepen partnerships with schools, artists, health providers, and cultural leaders, and continue creating accessible arts experiences that uplift Central Valley elders, youth, families, and historically underrepresented communities. | The Taste of Freedom Project offers mission-driven programs that preserve and present California’s history through arts and education. Our core initiatives include: 1. Immersive Exhibitions- Engaging, interactive displays that bring California’s history to life through art, sound, and performance, grounded in historical research and community storytelling. 2. Arts-Based Education- Culturally responsive programs for students and educators, featuring workshops and resources that enhance understanding of California’s diverse cultures. 3. Oral History Projects- Collection and presentation of oral histories from underrepresented communities, preserving valuable narratives for exhibits and digital media. 4. Artist Collaborations- Support for artists to create works that explore historical and cultural themes, resulting in public art and community projects. 5. Community Events- Programs like cultural festivals and panel discussions that promote dialogue and connection among diverse communities. 6. Youth Engagement- Empowering youth to explore their heritage and develop leadership skills through mentorship and creative workshops. 7. Accessibility and Equity: Commitment to free or low-cost programming and inclusive planning processes to meet the diverse needs of our communities. The Taste of Freedom Project delivers mission-driven programs that authentically preserve and present California's history through the arts and education. Rooted in truth, dignity, and respect, our core programs offer immersive, inclusive experiences that connect diverse communities to the state’s rich and complex past. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | CALIFORNIA DANCE INSTITUTE | 1171 S. Robertson Blvd. #602 , Los Angeles, CA 90035 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 301-8900 | California Assembly district 53 | District 53 | District 24 | With support of up to $25,000 from the California Arts Council, California Dance Institute (CDI) will provide 24 weeks of in-school and 32 weeks of after-school dance instruction with live music at Carson-Gore Elementary, a Title I public school site in West Adams, Los Angeles. Students learn rhythm, musicality, passion, perseverance, teamwork, and self-expression, culminating in a professionally produced end-of-year performance that highlights student growth and achievement. | California Dance Institute's (CDI) programs use dance and music to teach children to strive for excellence. The in-school programs teach an athletic style of dance for one hour each week for 25-28 weeks. The after-school programs teach children more advanced choreography for 1.5 to 2 hours each week for 30-34 weeks and culminate with professional-level performances at the end of the year. CDI is currently serving over 1,200 children in public schools in underserved neighborhoods throughout Los Angeles County. During its twenty-two year history, CDI has served over 24,000 Los Angeles-area students with direct programming. CDI programs have been cited by noted neuroscientists and educators as providing activities in its teaching that aid in children's cognitive development, bringing teaching artists in to work directly with students who otherwise would have little access to the arts. As we have for twenty-two years, CDI continues to reach students through our in-school program that emphasizes rigorous yet accessible dance, rhythm and musicality, along with building skills that aid in developing strong executive function skills. Our specialized after-school program provides greater learning opportunities for those students who want to reach a little higher. The demonstrated integrity of our program and the substantial results attested to by our students and their teachers and families further the CAC’s commitment to nurturing cultural programs supporting the arts and education. During the pandemic, CDI developed online programming and new teaching techniques and received accolades from parents, students, teachers and principals who credited CDI for keeping students engaged, focused and connected. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Sketch Odyssey East Bay | 6451 Hazel Avenue , Richmond, CA 94805 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 350-6906 | California Assembly district 14 | District CA-8 | District 7 | Support from the California Arts Council will allow the Children's Art Studio Richmond (CASR) to expand program capacity and meet demonstrated community demand. In addition to expanding core programming, this funding will transition CASR's successful "Pop-Up" workshops into a consistent, permanent-site model for children ages 2–12, directly addressing persistent waitlists. Specifically, resources will support the launch of the Hero Teddy pilot, a trauma-informed collaboration with the Richmond PD designed to foster emotional resilience in children during crises. Funding will facilitate the development of the "Studio for All" in-home model, removing transportation barriers for families. By funding a bilingual educator and specialized materials, CASR will strengthen its "Process-to-Process" curriculum, ensuring that over 80% of its Spanish-speaking households receive high-quality, culturally grounded arts education. | The Children's Art Studio Richmond / Taller de Arte Para Niños Richmond provides free art classes in both English and Spanish to children aged 2 - 5 in the Richmond, CA community, regardless of their background or resources. This program is designed to support each individual child to achieve their highest creative potential, while teaching children basic art-making techniques. We emphasize the importance of cooperation and self-help, self- discipline, and assuming responsibility for the use of these materials. Through this approach, we foster a sense of exploration, creativity, and self- expression in each child. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | SAFE HOME HOUSING | 626 W Lancaster Blvd suite 120 , Lancaster, CA 93534-3108 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 528-8897 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAFE HOME HOUSING AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR CHANGE will use grant funds to support the general operations of its community-based arts and cultural programming serving underserved populations through arts education, cultural expression, creative engagement, and community beautification activities. Funding will support personnel, teaching artists, accessibility efforts, outreach, arts supplies, workshops, public engagement activities, and operational expenses necessary to sustain ongoing arts and cultural services. The organization will continue providing visual arts workshops, decorative arts activities, cultural arts programming, creative home enhancement projects, public art engagement, and intergenerational arts experiences for low-income families, youth, seniors, transitional housing residents, and communities with limited access to arts resources while promoting healing, self-expression, community connection, and cultural enrichment through accessible arts participation. | Our core programs help individuals and families create safe, inspiring, and visually enriching environments that promote creativity, wellness, and community pride. Our services include creative home enhancement programs that support interior and exterior artistic improvements through décor, color coordination, visual design, and culturally inspired creative projects. We offer arts workshops and hands-on learning experiences focused on DIY art, home styling, creative expression, and cultural arts education for youth, adults, seniors, and families. In addition, we promote arts for wellness by helping participants use creative environments and artistic expression to reduce stress, encourage healing, and improve quality of life. Our collaboration with Opportunities For Change also leads community beautification initiatives that engage residents in collaborative art projects, neighborhood enhancement activities, public art displays, and creative revitalization efforts that strengthen community identity and pride. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Arts Council Napa Valley | PO Box 2782 , Napa, CA 94558 | Napa | Bay Area – Other | (707) 257-2117 | California's 5th congressional district | District 4 | District 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts Council Napa Valley (ACNV) serves as the primary engine for connecting, advocating for, and leading the county’s arts community. We achieve this by mobilizing a network of advocates, spearheading policy initiatives, and providing essential education and resources to the creative workforce. Central to our mission is a comprehensive change plan designed to foster a diverse and equitable arts ecosystem that reflects the unique demographics of Napa County. Our impact is driven by three core programs: the Community Grant Fund, providing semi-annual financial support to artists and small organizations; the Arts Education Alliance, which empowers students and educators through recognition and resources; and the Napa County Creative Directory, a vital platform linking working artists with professional opportunities. | As the official local arts agency in Napa County, it is our role to connect, advocate and lead the arts community countywide. By building a network of advocates, organizing policy initiatives, and empowering the industry through education, information, and resources, we serve to benefit all residents with a more sustainable, accessible and quality local arts scene. Arts Council Napa Valley's core programs are The Community Grant Fund, supporting artists and small arts organization through twice yearly grants; The Arts Education Alliance, supporting arts student and teachers as well as selecting the arts student of the month and year; and The Napa County Creative Directory, connecting working artists with hirers. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Karen Organization of San Diego | 5354 UNIVERSITY AVE SUITE 1 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92105-2204 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 582-0783 | the 52nd Congressional district of California | District 79 | District 39 | With the CAC grant funds, Karen Organization of San Diego (KOSD) will offer a Karen Traditional Dance Education Program for refugee youth from Burma who are 3-25 years old. This is the only art programming in San Diego offering traditional Karen Dance instructions, and KOSD aims to support at least 50 youth through the program to make sure that they can participate in free arts learning activities rooted in their own cultural heritage and have opportunities to perform at various local events and cultural festivals. Although the proposed program targets youth with refugee experiences from Burma, KOSD welcomes any youth in the community who are interested in learning Karen traditional dance and who may not otherwise have access to arts learning activities. | Founded in 2009, KOSD has served more than 600 refugees and newcomers from Burma each year through case management, support groups, community education, youth leadership development, and culture preservation. KOSD’s art and culture programming includes traditional dances, weaving, and heritage language classes as well as the oral history preservation project and coordination of various culture events. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Outside the Lens | 125 14th St , San Diego, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 349-7578 | District 50 | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Outside the Lens will, in collaboration with the Sherman Heights Community Center and Groundwork San Diego, implement a new pilot program “Land + Lenses Chollas Creek”, a youth-led media arts project that explores the relationship between people, culture, and land in the Chollas Creek watershed in southern San Diego county. | Outside the Lens engages the next generation of artists, storytellers, and innovators through media arts education. Through our programs, youth learn media arts skills, media literacy, socio-emotional development, vocational exploration, and civic engagement. Our Media Educators create a learning environment centered on trauma-informed practices, culturally responsive teaching, socio-emotional learning, and restorative practices. K-8 Programs: Partnering with schools and districts, we enhance students’ learning by integrating media arts and technology into core curricula (Math, Science, Social Sciences, English Language Arts) for grades K-8. These projects deepen students’ understanding of core content, cultivate media arts skills, and foster a well-rounded educational experience. Our after-school programs and summer camps offer youth opportunities to explore their passions, develop new skills, and discover the transformative power of media arts. Teens and Transitional Age Youth Programs: We provide specialized programming for teens and Transitional Age Youth (TAY) (18-25 years old) through community partnerships. Our projects enhance media literacy, promote social-emotional wellbeing, and foster intergenerational community connections. This programming develops creative pathways for career and college readiness, encourages self-discovery, and civic engagement, empowering teens to amplify their voices and effect positive change. Media Makers inspires young adults with intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD)—facilitating independence and creative expression. Educator Trainings: We offer arts-integration teacher training to help educators integrate art-based lessons into their curriculum. Available for individual educators, grade level teams, schools, or districts, these trainings provide innovative ideas, practical skills, and ready-to-use projects aligned with Media Arts and Common Core standards. Summer Camps: Our Media Arts Summer Camps offer youth in grades K-8 to explore various artistic mediums, such as photography, filmmaking, graphic design, and animation. Community Workshops: Our weekend and evening media arts workshops, open to families, teens, and adults, cater to both budding artists and experienced creators seeking further skill development. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Dohee Lee Puri Arts | 44 Gough Street #201 , San Francisco, CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 316-1106 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Dohee Lee Puri Arts will produce, perform and tour contemporary performance art grounded in traditional Jeju Island ritual practices and informed by immigrant and refugee experiences in California today, creating art that heals fractured relationships between people and the land in urban communities. | Artistic Director, Dohee Lee was born on Jeju Island in South Korea. She trained at the master level in Korean dance, Korean percussion, and vocals rooted in Shamanism. Her organization focuses on integrating these traditional ritual forms with contemporary influences into programs and services that emphasize the mythical, experimental, ritualistic, historical and healing aspects of performance and installation, catalyzing new relationships between identity, nature, spirituality, and the political. Programs and services include: -National and international touring of Dohee Lee's multidisciplinary performance works. -Community rituals for healing and justice with partner Asian immigrant and refugee organizations and artists/activists from other communities of color -Workshops, lecture-demos and master classes in dance, ritual arts, performance art/performance-making and healing for a wide range of community, educational and cultural partners across the state, U.S. and internationally |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | HOME SOIL PROJECTS | 30902 CLUBHOUSE DRIVE UNIT 24 F , LAGUNA NIGUEL, CA 92677-2393 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 344-6604 | 49th Congressional District | 74th Assembly District | 38th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Home Soil Projects will produce How Do We Dress for the Weather?, a free participatory dance performance and Civic Performance Lab in partnership with The FRONT / El Salon Theatre in San Ysidro. Led by Zoya Shojaee Sardashti and Zaquia Luisa Salinas, the project will engage immigrant, first- and second-generation diasporic, multilingual, and border-impacted communities through movement practices, vocal performance, multilingual translation, collective writing, and public performance. From January to March 2027, participants will be invited to take part in up to two free Civic Performance Labs, co-create multilingual movement and text scores, and contribute to a culminating public performance, exhibition, and publication. CAC funds will support artist and arts worker fees, accessibility services, rehearsal and venue rental, production, documentation, publication, workshop materials, and community outreach. | Home Soil Projects’ core programmes include artistic education workshops, Civic Performance Labs, participation centered curatorial projects, and live performances or public interventions. Our artistic education workshops bridge critical theory and creative practice through writing, movement, voice, and dialogue. Participants translate lived experience into performance-based research, academic writing, studio practice, and shared reflection. These workshops support artists, students, educators, and community members in developing practical tools for self-knowledge, collaboration, and social justice inquiry. Our Civic Performance Lab is a research-led programme for performances, exhibitions, and public gatherings. Through co-designed scores, movement practices, writing prompts, and facilitated dialogue, participants explore how language, gesture, memory, and public space shape belonging. Each lab is adapted to the needs of the partner site and can result in performances, exhibitions, publications, or community-generated documentation. Our curatorial practice supports participation centered live art and performance within theatres, galleries, public programmes, and community spaces. We design formats where audiences and participants are invited into meaningful exchange rather than passive observation. Our performances and public interventions use embodied artistic practice to address migration, racial justice, ecological grief, gendered violence, and social repair. Across all programmes, Home Soil Projects creates accessible, community-rooted spaces where people can listen, move, reflect, and co-create new ways of responding to exclusion, inequity, and cultural change. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $11,490.00 | California Poets in the Schools | 4055 Telegraph Ave , Oakland, CA 94609 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 221-4201 | District 12 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, CALIFORNIA POETS IN THE SCHOOL will coordinate a narrative change project with youth members of Oakland based organization Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice (CURYJ). Youth will participate in 12 poetry workshops focused on cultural uplift and healing through personal narrative and 3 editing sessions all at CURYJ offices, a chapbook of their collective work will be published as well as 3 public poetry readings will be held in local public venues throughout East Oakland encouraging public discourse and celebration of youth poetry as means of personal empowerment and social commentary. | Since 1964, California Poets in the Schools (CalPoets) has grown into one of the nation’s oldest and largest writers-in-the-schools programs. Each year, more than 100 poetry teaching artists reach over 20,000 students across California, delivering dynamic poetry instruction that nurtures creativity, critical thinking, and self-expression. CalPoets offers a robust professional network for California poets, providing over 50 annual training, creative, and networking events—including a three-day poetry conference. Teaching artists receive fundraising support, affiliation with a respected statewide nonprofit, and a clear pathway to earn income while giving back to their local communities through teaching. Our diverse network of teaching artists includes emerging voices, open mic champions, and established poets with national recognition. All are serious literary artists and trained educators who bring age-appropriate poetry instruction into classrooms and community settings. They serve as living examples of the artistic life, inspiring students through their own commitment to language and expression. CalPoets operates in approximately 25 counties, from Humboldt and Siskiyou to Los Angeles and San Diego, reaching students in public and private schools, juvenile halls, after-school programs, hospitals, and other community spaces—both urban and rural. We amplify the voices of California youth by creating platforms for poetry writing, performance, and publication. Each year, students are featured in school, regional, and a statewide professionally published anthology—offering lasting records of their creative achievements. These opportunities help young people share their voices with broader audiences, often for the first time. CalPoets also supports the Poetry Out Loud program in numerous counties and has played a leadership role in launching Youth Poet Laureate programs in Sonoma, Mendocino, Santa Barbara, and Marin counties since 2020—continuing our commitment to youth development, leadership, and literary excellence across the state. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | TILTshift Dance | 13525 Mira Montana Dr , DEL MAR, CA 92014 | San Diego | Far South | (415) 533-5570 | With support from the California Arts Council, TILTshift Dance will successfully produce and implement our 2027 Asian American Dance Festival (AADF) programming. CAC grant funds will allow us to adequately pay and increase our number of artists, residents, and interns, bring on much needed administrative help, and secure accessible venues, all deepening our community reach and impact. AADF programming includes sub-programs: AADF: Becoming Asian American (festival) – San Diego’s first and only dance festival, centering AAPI artists and communities, consists of Dance Film Screening, Community Day, Residency Showcase, and Mainstage Showcase. AADF Collaborative Residency, Internship & Fellowship – A professional development program, offering mentorship for early/mid-career AAPI artists while serving community. AADF Winter Symposium – A weekend of dance/movement classes, uplifting the visibility of local AAPI dance/movement instructors. AADF Gatherings – Networking events for AAPI dance/movement professionals. | As dance makers, we create works for stage, film, and site specific. As dance teachers, we offer classes in modern, contemporary and conditioning/fitness. As dance educators, we hold workshops in choreography and encourage dialog through facilitated "wrecking" events. As community driven dance artists, we provide opportunities and space for other dance artists to work on their craft, to dig into the creative process, to collaborate artistically, and to tell their stories in their own voices. We curate and present the annual Asian American Dance Festival (AADF), San Diego's first and only full dance festival celebrating AAPI dance artists. In addition to performance showcases, AADF also consists of a residency and internship program for early to mid-career AAPI dance artists. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | "" | 653 CHENERY ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94131-3033 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 586-3733 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bird & Beckett Cultural Legacy Project, a small arts organization, will present 'Saxophones Colossus,' a series of 8 free saxophone masterclasses with master Bay Area artist-educators. This program will respond to a community-defined need to uplift marginalized master musicians from the Black cultural traditions of jazz and blues and provide accessible, culturally relevant, intergenerational learning opportunities. The program will be collaboratively developed with community members and use artistic practices to impact Black Bay Area communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification. | Established in 2008 to formalize and expand cultural programming begun in 1999 at Bird & Beckett Books and Records, Bird & Beckett Cultural Legacy Project (BBCLP) now regularly hosts 4-5 concerts each week, 3 poetry readings, with featured readers and open mic, and 2 cultural talks and conversations per month, along with other cultural and artistic events throughout the year. “Jazz in the Bookshop,” a free Friday-after-work series that showcases local jazz artists from a wide range of ages and backgrounds, has run continuously since 2002 and was augmented with a second after-dinner concert in 2022. “Jazz Club,” a ticketed Saturday night series (since 2016), showcases jazz musicians from the top ranks of local players, spanning many generations, in the top echelon of jazz musicians worldwide. “Which Way West?” a Sunday afternoon series (since 2008), presents Bay Area musicians who bring music from other traditions. This series allows room for “out” and avant garde jazz, world music, western classical music, Americana, and bluegrass, among other “traditional” and generally acoustic genres. “POETS!” (since 2002) and “Virtual POETS!” (since 2020) present two featured poets and an o pen mic each session. “SFLives” (since 2021) is a series of conversations between journalist Denise Sullivan and guests on “arts and arts advocacy in pursuit of equity” focusing on issues of importance to San Francisco’s culture workers and its populace. “Walker Talks” (since 2002) is a scholarly lecture series that takes place once a month hosted by Walker Brents III. Since 2020, BBCLP has significantly increased its technical capacity for live presentation, streaming, and professional-quality recording, and maintains a robust archive of performances, with over 600 videos available on the BBCLP YouTube channel and a selection released on CD by the musicians and/or their record labels. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | California Karen Youth Connection | 399 UCCELLO WAY , SACRAMENTO, CA 95835-2653 | Sacramento | Capital | (510) 434-6355 | 6th | 6 | 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, California Karen Youth Connection (CKYC) will expand access to underserved refugee and immigrant communities through enhanced curriculum development, increased youth leadership opportunities, and stronger intergenerational teaching models that engage elders, cultural practitioners, and emerging youth leaders as co-facilitators. Funding will support operational capacity, including staff and instructor salaries, program materials, facility rentals, outreach, and accessibility supports necessary for statewide implementation. CAC investment will allow CKYC to sustain safe, culturally grounded learning spaces where youth can strengthen cultural identity, artistic skills, leadership development, community connection and creative expression. This project cultivates a new generation of youth artists, cultural leaders, interpreters, and community advocates who contribute to California’s diverse arts ecosystem. Through performances, language revitalization, storytelling, and cultural events, CKYC continues to advance cultural equity, intergenerational healing, and community visibility. | The CKYC is dedicated to empowering both Karen and non-Karen youth and communities statewide through culturally informed leadership education, the arts, advocacy, and human services. With a 13-year track record of leadership, arts education, and community service, CKYC has supported the Karen American refugee and asylum population, as well as other vulnerable and underrepresented communities. We serve over 400 individuals annually across the Bay Area, Sacramento, Manteca, Kern County, and Southern California. Additionally, we collaborate with more than 10 partners to amplify our impact. We deliver four core programs: Arts and Cultural Program, Leadership Development Program, College and Career Mentorship Program, and Civic Engagement Program. These programs and services are critical to the success of our youth and a thriving community. By engaging in cultural practices, youth and the broader community gain not only a sense of pride in their Karen identity but also a deeper connection to their heritage and each other. The preservation of Karen traditions helps break the cycle of trauma and displacement, offering individuals a space to heal, connect, and thrive, furthermore, by passing down knowledge from one generation to the next. The CKYC ensures that these traditions evolve into sources of strength, collaboration, and opportunity for future generations. As youth develop leadership skills, they become ambassadors of their culture, promoting diversity and inclusion both within the Karen community and in society at large. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | 4C LAB | 110 S. Orange Ave, Azusa, CA 91702 , AZUSA, CA 91702-4400 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 224-5893 | 32nd Congressional District | 48th Assembly | 22nd Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, 4C LAB will expand our culturally responsive 12 week “Soundtrack of Our Lives” Creative Residency program for youth, ages 12-18 years old in Azusa, CA. Youth participants will be guided by professional teaching artists to interview family members, Veterans, and Seniors in Azusa to archive and preserve stories by creating original songs and oral stories to be recorded and shared for online listening and at a free public community culmination. Funds will be used to pay guest teaching artists, provide program materials, marketing and culmination expenses. | The 4 C's are: To create, to communicate, to collaborate, to build community. These 4 C's are at the core of all of our programming. 4C LAB Creative Residency programs provide multi-week culturally responsive arts immersion led by professional teaching artists with embedded California curriculum standards for Elementary, Middle and High School students. 4C LAB Creative Residencies introduce the power of building community and creating positive social impact by sharing personal stories through art. The program includes workshops across various art forms including dance, theatre, poetry and multimedia, and culminate in a public performance. "Share Your Voice" Youth Summits- One day events with keynote speakers, multi-disciplinary arts workshops and resources to support positive mental health. SPARC Creative Career Mentorship program- Providing mentorship and job readiness for transitional youth, ages 18-24, for careers in creative fields. Youth are paid stipends and also serve as apprentice teaching artists within our programs Professional Development workshops: Provided for community organizations and school staff. Led by 4C LAB leadership, we provide best practices in creating culturally responsive practices in Arts & Education and using creative strategies to engage students and community building. CREATIVE COALITION is a platform and space for networking enabling like-minded organizations, artists and creatives to partner, share best practices and resources and connect. Events include guest speakers, opportunities for creative inspiration and topic discussions to progress the work as a global creative community. 4C LAB also offers creative consulting, providing best practices and producing creative events for organizations and individuals. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SAFE HOME HOUSING | 626 W Lancaster Blvd suite 120 , Lancaster, CA 93534-3108 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 528-8897 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAFE HOME HOUSING AND OPPORTUNITIES FOR CHANGE will provide community-based arts and cultural programming that promotes creative expression, wellness, community beautification, and equitable access to the arts for underserved populations. Grant funds will support visual arts workshops, cultural arts education, youth and family creative activities, senior arts engagement, community art showcases, and beautification projects that enhance living environments throughout underserved communities. The project will serve low-income families, youth, seniors, and transitional housing residents through accessible and culturally responsive arts experiences. Funding will also support arts supplies, artist facilitators, outreach, accessibility accommodations, and program coordination. Through these activities, we will strengthen community engagement, increase participation in the arts, and create safe, inclusive, and culturally enriching environments that improve quality of life through artistic expression. | Our core programs help individuals and families create safe, inspiring, and visually enriching environments that promote creativity, wellness, and community pride. Our services include creative home enhancement programs that support interior and exterior artistic improvements through décor, color coordination, visual design, and culturally inspired creative projects. We offer arts workshops and hands-on learning experiences focused on DIY art, home styling, creative expression, and cultural arts education for youth, adults, seniors, and families. In addition, we promote arts for wellness by helping participants use creative environments and artistic expression to reduce stress, encourage healing, and improve quality of life. Our collaboration with Opportunities For Change also leads community beautification initiatives that engage residents in collaborative art projects, neighborhood enhancement activities, public art displays, and creative revitalization efforts that strengthen community identity and pride. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Capoeira Arts Foundation | 1901 SAN PABLO AVE , BERKELEY, CA 94702-1611 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 666-1255 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Capoeira Arts Foundation, Inc. (CAF), will continue meeting the evolving needs of our community by providing programming rooted in Afro-Brazilian and Afro-Diasporic cultural arts. CAF’s four core programs focus on education; The healing powers of art music and culture as practiced in a diverse multigenerational community; The security of spaces we can count on - dedicated to belonging - highlighting and embracing our differences; Honoring where we come from as an integral part of our path forward. Today CAF’s programs serve over 1000 people a week, on a shoestring budget. With CAC’s operational support we could to pay much needed staff, invest in organizational growth, and stabilize operations. | CAF has four programs: 1) Saúde: Our public health outreach initiative, Saúde, integrates health and wellness practices with our artistic offerings. 2) Legados: The legacy program focuses on safeguarding and sharing the intellectual property and archives of our artists. This legacy project ensures that the rich cultural heritage of Afro-Brazilian arts remains accessible to future generations. 3) Educação: Our education initiatives provide professional development and continuing education opportunities for our artists as well as classes and workshops for our broader community. 4) Casa de Cultura: Our building in West Berkeley, serves as a vibrant community space for arts and cultural activities that brings together diverse community members, fostering a sense of belonging and inclusion. It is a place where the rich traditions of Afro-Brazilian culture are celebrated and shared. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Creative Netwerk | PO BOX 22960 , Santa Barbara, CA 93121 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (413) 404-6505 | California's 24th Congressional District | District 37 | District 21 | With support from California Arts Council, Creative Netwerk will expand culturally rooted Dance, DJ, and Wellness programs for underserved youth ages 5–18 and families of color and from low-income communities across Santa Barbara County. Programs operate 1–5 days per week during the school day, after school, and in summer at schools, affordable housing sites, community centers, and juvenile justice facilities throughout Santa Barbara, Goleta, Carpinteria, Lompoc, and Santa Maria. Creative Netwerk will provide 35–85 weekly classes in Hip Hop, Breaking, Popping, House, DJing, music production, and wellness practices, serving more than 4,000 youth annually. Funds will support teaching artist employment, professional development, artist residencies, and youth performances while expanding partnerships with Lompoc USD and welcoming guest artists to lead workshops in Dance, DJing, Wellness, MCing, Photography, Theater, and Artist Career Development. | In Santa Barbara County, Creative Netwerk partners with Goleta USD, Carpinteria USD, Lompoc USD, and Santa Barbara USD, offering hip-hop, street/club dance, and DJ programs, and curricula connecting regional dance styles to wellness and family engagement, in after-school weekly classes and events. CN provides access to Winter, Spring Break, and Summer Dance Camps, in partnership with A-OK and United Way, leading to performances and family dance celebrations with live music by DJs. CN reaches 3,500 K–12 students/year across Santa Barbara County in Lompoc, Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, Goleta, Santa Maria, Santa Ynez, Buellton, Guadalupe, Isla Vista. CN partners with Title I public schools, affordable housing, juvenile justice facilities, and CBOs, finding solutions to learning loss, isolation, and trauma through dance culture, music, and community. CN’s diverse arts leaders deepen collaboration and unification of the many regional street dance forms across California. DJs, teaching artists, and community partners expand access to free, life-changing learning, dance cultural development, and family engagement events. Community partners include United Way Fun in the Sun, One Community Bridge Project, the Theater Program at La Cumbre MS, the Dance Program at Santa Barbara HS, Santa Barbara City Parks and Recreation, Santa Maria Juvenile Hall, Notes for Notes, and more. At the Boys & Girls Club of Downtown Santa Barbara, CN teaches four days/week youth and teen Hip-Hop, Breaking, DJ, and Folklorico classes, weekly open sessions, and a monthly family class. With Lompoc HS, CN provides weekly after-school programs and 20 week-long artist residency programs, sharing foundation, history, culture, and training in dance, DJing, event production, photography, videography, MCing, and music production. In LA, CN partners with After-School All-Stars, the ICEF Drama Club, ISANA, Boys & Girls Clubs, Glendale Unified, and the Arc to serve 1,000 students/year, including education in regional dances such as Clowning and Krump. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Los Angeles Theatre Academy | 23254 Lyons Ave , Newhall, CA 91321 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 717-4188 | California's 34th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, LOS ANGELES THEATRE ACADEMY INC will provide accessible after-school arts programming for children ages 5–12 through theater, music, dance, visual arts, and cultural arts experiences. CAC funds will support teaching artists, youth support staff, transportation, arts supplies, performance materials, and program operations that help create safe and enriching opportunities for children. Our program helps remove barriers to arts participation through scholarships, inclusive support, and school pickup transportation for working families, low-income households, English learner families, and children with disabilities. Students will participate in weekly arts instruction, creative projects, rehearsals, and performances that build confidence, creativity, teamwork, leadership, and self-expression. Through culturally responsive arts experiences and community events, children and families are encouraged to feel connected, supported, and proud of their creativity and cultural identity. | After School Program: Weekdays between the hours of 2:20-6:00 PM. This includes theatre classes, art activities, bilingual homework help, and snacks for 45 children between the ages of 5 to 12. We have pickup service that supports working parents. We currently have a waiting list for this program. Summer, Winter and Spring Theatre Camp- a very popular camp that supports working parents with all day-classes and workshops (800 AM- 6:00 PM). Classes include acting, dancing, singing, costuming, props and other theatre -related disciplines. Approximately 55 children per week. Seasonal Performances- With both professional actors and LATA students, we have produced in the past shows that are now annual traditions. Part of our mission is to provide students with a professional stage. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Oaktown Jazz Workshops | 55 Washington Street , OAKLAND, CA 94607 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 649-1785 | California's 12th Congressional District | Assembly District 18 | State Senate District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oaktown Jazz Workshops will provide high-quality music instruction and performance opportunities to youth from low-income families. Grant funds will offset the costs of instruction, administration, and instrument maintenance. We serve systemically under-resourced communities through music education and access to the performing arts. Our year-round classes, lessons, and workshops are taught by professional musicians who provide a safe, supportive environment where youth develop creativity, discipline, interpersonal skills, and confidence. Over half of our students qualify for needs-based scholarships (free tuition) and we provide college/career guidance as students age out of our programs. We are building a community where youth from diverse backgrounds collaborate and grow as artists within the uniquely American tradition and culture of jazz music, developing transferable skills that extend into their personal and professional lives. | Oaktown Jazz Workshops offer intensive instructional workshops and classes for young musicians, ages 10-18 at our Oakland venue located in historic Jack London Square. Our programs include: Combo Workshops (Ages 12 – 18): weekly 2-hour workshops in which young musicians learn to improvise instrumental solos while playing different types of jazz and blues tunes in a full band setting, with guidance from our faculty of professional musicians. Performance Ensemble Workshop (Ages 14-18): weekly 2-hour workshops in which young musicians improve their musicianship, develop their personal voices, and challenge themselves musically in a band setting. Jazz Improvisation Workshop (Ages 10-14): a 10-week course offered every fall and spring that focuses on Ensemble Playing, Ear Training, Melodic Phrasing and Harmonic Forms. Music Theory Workshop (Ages 14-18): a 10-week course offered every fall and spring that focuses on Modes, Chord Analysis, Ear Training, and Composition. Jazz Encounters (Ages 10-18): special clinics in which young musicians meet and learn from world-class touring musicians. One-on-One Private Music Lessons: Oaktown Jazz Workshops offers private lessons from professional musicians. Jazz in the Schools (Ages 10-18): Oaktown Jazz Workshops presents concerts and presentations at local public schools, and our instructors lead sectionals to foster the artistic growth of young musicians. Oaktown Jazz in the Library: Our instructors, Youth Mentors, and students bring multi-generational concerts to public libraries, mixed with presentations on jazz history, influence, and elements. Community Performances (Ages 14-18): Oaktown Jazz Workshops' young musicians perform dozens of concerts, festivals, and community events in Oakland and surrounding communities every year. Special emphasis on bringing performance to underserved communities that lack access to live music. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | SAMMAY Productions | 934 Brannan Street , San Francisco, CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (213) 373-1435 | California's 12th congressional district | With support from the California Arts Council, SAMMAY Productions (SP) will hire a development and communications coordinator to lead fundraising efforts, deepen donor relations, and expand organizational capacity. With a new full length premiere slated for 2028, this strategic hire will ensure SP can refocus on day to day operations including administration, marketing, and accounting. | SAMMAY Productions (SP) was founded in 2015 by Filipinx American choreographer, interdisciplinary artist, and cultural producer SAMMAY Peñaflor Dizon - born from a seed of embodied inquiry and personal longing to be in community with other artists who were wrestling with questions of indigeneity, home, and belonging. SP has been fortunate to call the SOMA Pilipinas Cultural Heritage District home since its inception and is just one point of access to artistic development and engagement within the constellation of Filipina/x/o small business in the cultural district. SP has received numerous awards from the California Arts Council, San Francisco Arts Commission, Center for Cultural Innovation, and Rainin Foundation among others, and has received residencies from the American Conservatory Theater, CounterPulse, and Atlantic Center for the Arts among others. Their live performance work has been featured through Dance Mission Theater, Bindlestiff Theater, and Asian Art Museum among others, and their films have been featured through CAAMFest, San Francisco Dance Film Festival, and Los Angeles Asian American Pacific Film Festival among others. Notable programs include Urban x Indigenous intercultural arts festival (2015-2021) and Daluyan: Embodied Storytelling for Ancestral Healing workshop series (2018-2021). In 2022, SP was commissioned for the inaugural State of Play Festival at ODC Theater in the Mission District of San Francisco. SP continues to create new experimental works at the intersection of ritual, memory, play, and radical futurity, while bridging diasporic communities through cultural activations and movement exchanges. Dizon was the recipient of the 2020 Isadora Duncan Dance Award for Special Achievement in Dance through their work with racial equity-centered choreographer collective Dancing Around Race. | ||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Santa Barbara Dance Institute | 1330 State St., Suite 207 , Santa Barbara, CA 93101 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 245-0794 | California's 24th Congressional District | District 37 | District 21 | With support from California Arts Council, Santa Barbara Dance Institute will provide free, culturally responsive dance education to 550 underserved youth across 426 classes in Santa Barbara, Goleta, and Isla Vista, communities where barriers of poverty, language, and disability limit access to quality arts experiences. Dance education will be offered at Goleta Union School District sites through a Summer Dance Camp for TK–6 students from nine Title I schools, after-school programs at six sites, in-school preschool programs, and at Storyteller Children's Center for toddlers and preschoolers. All programming is free, bilingual in English and Spanish, and grounded in Universal Design for Learning, ensuring full participation for youth with IEPs, in foster care, or experiencing homelessness. CAC funds will support teaching artists, staff, and program operations to expand equitable access to high-quality arts education. | Santa Barbara Dance Institute was founded in 2005 by Rosalina Macisco with the belief that high-quality dance education belongs to everyone, regardless of income, zip code, or ability. For twenty years, SBDI has delivered free, inclusive dance programming directly to low-income, Latinx, and underserved individuals through community schools, early childhood centers, public libraries, and senior care facilities across Santa Barbara County. From toddlers to older adults, SBDI believes movement is a lifelong right. Children - the majority low-income, Latinx, and underserved - receive free creative movement and dance through in-school and after-school programs. Classes build artistic skill alongside social-emotional learning, confidence, and cultural pride. All programming is inclusive of children with IEPs and disabilities, taught in English and Spanish, with Latin cultural rhythms woven throughout to appreciate the heritage of the families served. During the 2024–2025 school year, SBDI delivered 606 classes, serving 221 children. Surveys show that 85% of children improved in behavior and 89% developed critical life skills. A longitudinal study found that more than 28 of the Search Institute’s 40 Developmental Assets improved in SBDI students. SBDI’s Professional Development Program trains educators and staff at under-resourced schools and community organizations to integrate dance into their teaching, building internal capacity for an affordable, sustainable path to arts education that reaches children who would otherwise not have access. In 2024–2025, we trained 17 teachers, impacting 200 children annually. SBDI’s “Dance On” Creative Aging program brings free, bilingual dance and music experiences to older adults in senior centers, rehabilitation facilities, and memory care settings. Designed for all mobility and cognitive levels, including wheelchair users and those living with Alzheimer disease and dementia, Dance On supports mobility, memory, emotional expression, and social connection. In 2024–2025, Dance On served 150 seniors. SBDI has enriched more than 30,000 lives across Santa Barbara County. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Santa Barbara Dance Institute | 1330 State St., Suite 207 , Santa Barbara, CA 93101 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 245-0794 | California's 24th Congressional District | District 37 | District 21 | With general support from California Arts Council, Santa Barbara Dance Institute will build organizational capacity, deepen program reach, and strengthen financial resilience. Funds will support: (1) Programming: sustaining free, culturally responsive dance education for 700+ youth and older adults through partnerships with community-based organizations, including development of 1–2 teaching artists through SBDI’s training in inclusive, social-emotional, and reflective practices; (2) Organizational growth: hiring part-time administrative support to free the Executive/Artistic Director to focus on leading, training, and delivering high-quality programming, cultivating a volunteer corps to deepen impact and expand SBDI’s supporters; (3) Financial stability: implementing a sustainability plan for the “Dance On” Creative Aging Program and delivering Dance Infusion, SBDI’s Professional Development Program, to train community educators while diversifying revenue. This investment ensures SBDI’s long-term resilience and continued service to historically underserved communities. | Santa Barbara Dance Institute was founded in 2005 by Rosalina Macisco with the belief that high-quality dance education belongs to everyone, regardless of income, zip code, or ability. For twenty years, SBDI has delivered free, inclusive dance programming directly to low-income, Latinx, and underserved individuals through community schools, early childhood centers, public libraries, and senior care facilities across Santa Barbara County. From toddlers to older adults, SBDI believes movement is a lifelong right. Children - the majority low-income, Latinx, and underserved - receive free creative movement and dance through in-school and after-school programs. Classes build artistic skill alongside social-emotional learning, confidence, and cultural pride. All programming is inclusive of children with IEPs and disabilities, taught in English and Spanish, with Latin cultural rhythms woven throughout to appreciate the heritage of the families served. During the 2024–2025 school year, SBDI delivered 606 classes, serving 221 children. Surveys show that 85% of children improved in behavior and 89% developed critical life skills. A longitudinal study found that more than 28 of the Search Institute’s 40 Developmental Assets improved in SBDI students. SBDI’s Professional Development Program trains educators and staff at under-resourced schools and community organizations to integrate dance into their teaching, building internal capacity for an affordable, sustainable path to arts education that reaches children who would otherwise not have access. In 2024–2025, we trained 17 teachers, impacting 200 children annually. SBDI’s “Dance On” Creative Aging program brings free, bilingual dance and music experiences to older adults in senior centers, rehabilitation facilities, and memory care settings. Designed for all mobility and cognitive levels, including wheelchair users and those living with Alzheimer disease and dementia, Dance On supports mobility, memory, emotional expression, and social connection. In 2024–2025, Dance On served 150 seniors. SBDI has enriched more than 30,000 lives across Santa Barbara County. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Oaktown Jazz Workshops | 55 Washington Street , OAKLAND, CA 94607 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 649-1785 | California's 12th Congressional District | Assembly District 18 | State Senate District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oaktown Jazz Workshops will provide under-resourced youth with high-quality, year-round instruction in the uniquely American tradition of jazz music. Our year-round classes, one-on-one lessons, ensembles, and workshops will be taught by diverse professional musicians and youth mentors who will provide a safe, supportive environment for youth (age 10-18) to develop their creativity, discipline, musical skills, and confidence to perform. Students will also receive extensive performance opportunities throughout the year. For students who are aging out of our programs, we will provide comprehensive college and career guidance that helps close opportunity gaps between under-resourced youth and youth from more affluent families. We will also provide performance opportunities for alumni at our concert space, helping young adult musicians gain professional experience and advance their careers. | Oaktown Jazz Workshops offer intensive instructional workshops and classes for young musicians, ages 10-18 at our Oakland venue located in historic Jack London Square. Our programs include: Combo Workshops (Ages 12 – 18): weekly 2-hour workshops in which young musicians learn to improvise instrumental solos while playing different types of jazz and blues tunes in a full band setting, with guidance from our faculty of professional musicians. Performance Ensemble Workshop (Ages 14-18): weekly 2-hour workshops in which young musicians improve their musicianship, develop their personal voices, and challenge themselves musically in a band setting. Jazz Improvisation Workshop (Ages 10-14): a 10-week course offered every fall and spring that focuses on Ensemble Playing, Ear Training, Melodic Phrasing and Harmonic Forms. Music Theory Workshop (Ages 14-18): a 10-week course offered every fall and spring that focuses on Modes, Chord Analysis, Ear Training, and Composition. Jazz Encounters (Ages 10-18): special clinics in which young musicians meet and learn from world-class touring musicians. One-on-One Private Music Lessons: Oaktown Jazz Workshops offers private lessons from professional musicians. Jazz in the Schools (Ages 10-18): Oaktown Jazz Workshops presents concerts and presentations at local public schools, and our instructors lead sectionals to foster the artistic growth of young musicians. Oaktown Jazz in the Library: Our instructors, Youth Mentors, and students bring multi-generational concerts to public libraries, mixed with presentations on jazz history, influence, and elements. Community Performances (Ages 14-18): Oaktown Jazz Workshops' young musicians perform dozens of concerts, festivals, and community events in Oakland and surrounding communities every year. Special emphasis on bringing performance to underserved communities that lack access to live music. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | International Documentary Association | 3600 WILSHIRE BLVD STE 1810 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90010-2622 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 232-1660 | With support from the California Arts Council, INTERNATIONAL DOCUMENTARY ASSOCIATION INC will continue to offer an ongoing robust slate of support educational and cultural services for documentary filmmakers. | IDA delivers programs and content designed for our 3,600 members and the broader international documentary community. Programs include filmmaker support, grantmaking, year round educational services including webinars and workshops, Getting Real, our biennial conference about the art and business of documentary filmmaking, screening programs, and the quarterly publication of Documentary Magazine. IDA's key initiatives reflect four programmatic pillars: Advocacy: Coordinated international resistance to suppression tactics, emergency hotline, media relations, filmmaker assistance program,and legal aid fund. Convening: Getting Real conference with increased international reach, events and programs nationally and internationally. Knowledge Sharing: Sustained quarterly Documentary Magazine with expanded investigative capacity, enhanced documentary.org platform, and comprehensive professional resource directories. Filmmaker Services: Access to insurance, training in safety, security and other critical skills, visa support, partnerships to provide pro bono legal services, and R&D on strategies to connect films to audiences. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Mountain Theater Alliance | PO BOX 5405 , PINE MTN CLB, CA 93222-5405 | Kern | Central Valley | (805) 440-8005 | 20th Congressional District | 32nd Assembly District | 21st Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, MOUNTAIN THEATER ALLIANCE will host a fully subsidized performing arts camp for the Frazier Mountain community in rural Kern County. Access to arts enrichment is scarce, and the need is profound. For many of these students, from elementary through high school, this will be their only opportunity to experience the transformative power of live performance. We piloted a summer camp in 2025 in partnership with Motion Arts Collective, and want to expand this program to provide access to more youth. This grant will directly fund production costs and fairly compensate local teaching artists, ensuring a high-quality learning experience. The Frazier Mountain community is under-resourced and historically underserved. By investing in this camp, you are investing in our youth's academic and creative success. | a) To produce live theater productions for public viewing within our mountain community. b) Provider performing arts education and opportunities for local youth c) To present a wide range of theater from classic to contemporary pieces. d) To actively seek and nurture new artists and materials. e) To provide an opportunity and place for local actors, directors, writers, designers and technicians to express their creativity. d) To improve the quality of life for members of the community through direct involvement in the productions or audience viewing. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Friends of the Chinese American Museum | 125 PASEO DE LA PLAZA STE 202 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90012-2932 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 485-8484 | 34th | 54 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Friends of the Chinese American Museum will sustain essential operations while advancing a community-centered museum model. Funding will strengthen CAM’s capacity to deliver innovative exhibitions, arts-based programs, and educational initiatives that uplift Chinese American and Asian American Pacific Islander voices. Guided by the museum’s IMPACT initiative and its commitment to equity and accessibility, CAM will amplify historically marginalized narratives, foster cross-cultural dialogue, and build solidarity across communities. These efforts directly confront anti-Asian hate and broader social inequities by ensuring that underrepresented histories are preserved, shared, and recognized as vital to California’s cultural landscape. | Create and present exhibitions detailing the rich history and legacy of Chinese Americans. Provide educational programs to students and patrons. Collect historical and contemporary arts, documents, images, and artifacts. Provide thought provoking presentations to the general public on issues that impact the community, to create dialogue and |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $7,500.00 | Long Beach Cello Orchestra | 3950 N VIRGINIA RD , LONG BEACH, CA 90807-2657 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 600-8151 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Long Beach Cello Orchestra will do three things: 1. Increase our Community Engagement activities: We currently have close relationships with 50% of Long Beach high schools, and 30% of its middle schools. Our 2027 goal is to increase enrollment by fifty percent. In order to accomplish this, we need to increase our engagement with the rest of the schools in the Long Beach area. 2. Increase size of our administrative department: We will increase the size of our administrative team to account for an increased need to coordinate outreach activities, and to handle an increase in paperwork as student enrollment rises. 3. We will increase the size of our development department so we can offer more scholarships to new students who sign up for our program. | We produce cello programs that serve all skill levels and ages. Our flagship prgoram is cello orchestra year round program and summer camp. We also run smaller cello ensemble programs for students wanting even more musical education. We also create more casual community building events on a regular basis so our students can continue getting to know each other. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | TOArts | 2100 EAST THOUSAND OAKS BLVD , THOUSAND OAKS, CA 91362-2996 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 449-2590 | California's 26th congressional district | District 44 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, TOArts (Thousand Oaks Alliance for the Arts) will expand Arts Odyssey, a multifaceted arts education initiative delivering high-quality, supplemental arts experiences to over 1,200 youth across Title 1 schools and continuation education in Ventura County. CAC grant funds will support three program tracks: professional guest teaching artist instruction in Music Production & Sound Engineering at Conejo Valley High School; a dance assembly tour and workshop series with blind and deaf dancer Sarah Ysordia at four Title 1 elementary schools; and a comprehensive suite of programming at Madroña Elementary, including Improv in the Classroom, Theatre Arts, Ceramics for Dexterity, and field trips to professional arts and cultural institutions. Together, these programs remove systemic barriers to arts access, affirm diverse identities, and cultivate creative confidence in youth who need it most. | TOArts serves as the private fundraising and presenting partner for the Bank of America Performing Arts Center, functioning as Ventura County's arts resource organization. Our comprehensive programming spans arts workforce development, education, accessibility, and world-class performances. Workforce Development lies at the heart of our mission. The Youth Arts Leadership Academy (YALA) provides year-round training for high school and college students, developing essential life skills—project management, teamwork, budgeting—alongside artistic growth through hands-on experience and professional mentorship. Our Summer Creators Conservatory offers intensive two-week programs where students create, produce, and perform original works with professional guidance. The Artist Incubator fellowship connects adult artists at all stages of their career emerging to legacy with professional advisors to build sustainable creative careers and entrepreneurial skills. Central to this work is our advocacy for thriving wages; ensuring artists can sustain careers locally rather than migrating to larger markets. We position artists as essential workers deserving competitive compensation and create pathways to income stability through paid opportunities and professional advancement. Beyond economic sustainability, our programming addresses the critical intersection of arts and mental health. Creative expression reduces isolation, builds social connection, and provides therapeutic benefits essential to community wellbeing—outcomes particularly vital in post-pandemic recovery. AccessArts provides grant funding that brings arts programming directly into elementary classrooms, while Kids and the Arts delivers free tickets and transportation for 7,000+ students annually to experience live performances. Olson Performance Grants provide $150,000 in subsidized theatre rent to nonprofit performing arts groups. Our presenting work includes 70+ diverse performances annually attracting 52,000+ patrons, with our cross-subsidization model allowing commercially viable shows to underwrite mission-driven programming. This integrated approach, combining presenting, education, artist services, and accessibility positions TOArts as essential cultural infrastructure while maintaining fiscal sustainability through diversified revenue streams. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $16,975.00 | THE GALA PRIDE AND DIVERSITY CENTER | 1060 PALM ST , SN LUIS OBISP, CA 93401-3221 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 541-4252 | 24 | 30 | 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Gala Pride & Diversity Center (GPDC) will expand our LGBTQ+-specific artistic events with a specific focus on Art After Dark programming, a free year-round arts initiative in San Luis Obispo County and additional. Through monthly exhibitions, artist honoraria, community-curated programming, poetry workshops, film screenings, and multidisciplinary performances, GPDC addresses the lack of affirming and financially accessible creative spaces for LGBTQIA+ people on the Central Coast. Grant funds will support a curatorial stipend for program curator Daniel Montoya, honoraria for exhibiting artists, and expanded community arts programming rooted in social connection, visibility, and cultural equity. GPDC prioritizes California LGBTQ+ artists, emerging creatives, and low- to no-cost public participation while maintaining an equitable model in which artists retain 70% of artwork sales. | We offer support groups and programming that empowers and uplifts our LGBTQ on the central coast. Our programming promotes civic engagement, art creation and consumption and access to healthcare resources. We currently have over 50 active support groups through GPDC which includes our Youth Program and Tranz Central Coast. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Vita Art Center | 28 West Main St. 28 West Main St., Ventura, CA 93001 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 644-9214 | 26th congressional district | Steve Bennett | 19th State Senate district | With support from the California Arts Council, Vita Art Center will strengthen the core operations that make its community arts programs accessible, inclusive, and sustainable. General Operating Support will help sustain staff, teaching artists, exhibitions, studio programs, outreach partnerships, scholarships, and the day-to-day systems needed to serve Ventura artists, youth, families, seniors, and adults. CAC funds will support Vita’s ongoing work as a visual arts and cultural hub, including free and low-cost classes, youth and teen programs, adaptive ceramics for children with disabilities, programs at nearby low-income housing sites, LGBTQ+ teen workshops, artist studios, gallery exhibitions, and culturally responsive community programming. This support will help Vita remove barriers to participation, fairly compensate artists and staff, and continue building a welcoming creative community where people of all ages can learn, make, exhibit, and connect. | Since 2008, Vita Art Center has been an important part of Ventura’s cultural life, offering high-quality arts education, exhibitions, and community-based programming. The organization creates opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds to engage with the visual arts through classes, workshops, exhibitions, and artist-centered spaces that support both creative practice and community connection. Vita Art Center’s campus includes four galleries, a dedicated teen exhibition wall, a ceramics studio, an outdoor classroom, and 45 artist studios, making it a vibrant place where art is made, experienced, and shared. With more than 30 classes offered onsite each week, Vita Art Center serves youth, teens, and adults through hands-on instruction led by teaching artists who bring both skill and passion to their work. These programs help participants build artistic techniques while also developing creativity, confidence, critical thinking, and self-expression. In addition to its onsite offerings, Vita Art Center brings free arts programming to low-income housing communities, serving youth, seniors, and formerly homeless adults. The organization also offers cultural classes taught by Chumash artists and knowledge keepers, connected to the building of a tomol onsite, as well as a ceramics program created for children with disabilities. Across all of its work, Vita Art Center is committed to making the arts accessible, inclusive, and deeply connected to community. By bringing together exhibitions, education, working artist studios, and outreach programs, the organization helps foster belonging, cultural understanding, and meaningful creative exchange throughout Ventura. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Citizen Film | 1111 Buchanan St suite 11 , San Francisco, CA 94115-4808 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 206-1880 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | Citizen Film (CF) requests California Arts Council support to bring its established youth media program to under-resourced classrooms in Del Norte, Humboldt and Trinity counties in partnership with the Redwood Writing Project (RWP). The Bay Area Writing Project (BAWP), a longtime CF partner experienced with CF's PBS LearningMedia content, will provide expertise to RWP teachers guiding students to compose original photography, writing, audio, and short videos documenting their communities, exploring civic ideals and identities. Students’ work will be disseminated to a peer audience via KQED's Youth Media Challenge with opportunities for peer-to-peer dialogue and collaborative activities. A capstone workshop at the California Writing Project (CWP) 2027 convention will share the results of teacher evaluations and extend the program to educators statewide. CAC funds support teacher stipends, professional development, student publishing, and the capstone event. | Citizen Film is the storytelling partner for a broad network of California community-based organizations serving historically under-resourced populations. Since 2002, we have steadily deepened and refined a collaborative approach to documentary practice, connecting local organizations to national amplification partners like PBS. With ten full-time employees and a deep network of community collaborators, we produce multimodal projects that include films, public dialogues, live multimedia performances, place-based installations, and educational activities—all in coalition with arts-based, educational, and civic organizations. Our work ranges from nationally disseminated PBS documentaries to hyperlocal documentary campaigns. In San Francisco, we collaborate with residents in one of the city’s last remaining majority-Black neighborhoods to create tiled photo walls, documentary murals, and “audio domes” featuring neighborhood dialogue across eight city blocks. In New York, we partnered with refugee service organizations to create a series of Times Square video billboards showcasing the personal objects young refugees value most. Our approach positions communities not as subjects, but as creators of civic art. Our long-term commitment to California communities informs our national work. Beginning with a PBS documentary launch in 2018, our AMERICAN CREED project has produced an ongoing series of documentary films, as well as short films, photo essays, and audio essays distributed by PBS LearningMedia along with curricular guides. Over many years and several projects, we have partnered with the National Writing Project (NWP), a national educator network with 50+ years of experience supporting student-centered public writing and media initiatives. NWP provides our youth media programs with professional development frameworks, publication pathways, and infrastructure connecting its regional and statewide sites to national audiences. This proposed project expands that framework within California, bringing under-resourced rural students into dialogue with peers statewide through civic media-making and publication that explores America’s democratic ideals and their relevance to students’ own communities and traditions. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Los Angeles Filmforum | 1465 Tamarind Ave #155 , Los Angeles, CA 90028-8412 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 377-7238 | 30 | 51 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, FILMFORUM INC will present The Warriors Journey by Guillermo Bert, a community-centered mobile public art installation honoring essential Latino and immigrant workers through large-scale sculptural portraits, storytelling, film documentation, and augmented reality. Launching in October 2026 with a confirmed activation at the LAND + SKY event at Rancho Santa Clara del Norte in Ventura County during Latino/Hispanic Heritage Month, the project will bring exhibitions, workshops, and educational programming to underserved communities across Ventura County, East Los Angeles, Oxnard, Fresno, and surrounding agricultural regions. CAC funds will support educational programming, transportation and operational costs associated with the Warriors Truck mobile exhibition platform, and film/recording documentation connected to public exhibitions and community engagement activities developed in partnership with Self Help Graphics, MoLAA, and Studio Channel Islands. | Filmforum is currently the longest-running venue in Southern California dedicated exclusively to the ongoing, non-commercial exhibition of independent, experimental, and progressive cinema. We screen films, sponsor independent experimental films, and communicate about other screenings in the county. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SAN FRANCISCO GIRLS CHORUS | 44 PAGE ST Suite 200, San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 863-1752 | 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Francisco Girls Chorus (SFGC) will provide 44 weeks of choral learning for 400+ girls, young women, non-binary, and gender-expansive youth ages 4 to 18. It is one of the few Bay Area arts organizations that exclusively meets the needs of this population, and is recognized as one of the finest of its kind in the nation. Comprised of six levels, SFGC’s program is a sequential experience that takes students from their introduction to music through a full course of study. Multiple supports—including tuition assistance, mental health care, and adaptations to a variety of abilities—ensure that the program is accessible to the broadest possible constituency. | Founded in 1978, and hailed by the California Arts Council as "a model in the country" for training young singers, the GRAMMY Award-winning and WASC-accredited San Francisco Girls Chorus (SFGC) provides choral music training for treble voices at the most rigorous level, serving as both an anchor in the lives of our young people—some of whom spend up to 14 years with the chorus—and a resource for the countless arts organizations that partner with us for high-quality vocal talent and multi-year collaborative projects. Our sequential training program encourages long-term personal investment while building holistic age and developmentally appropriate skills. SFGC champions personal expression at every level of the organization—from prioritizing globally-expansive repertoire and collaborations with a range of guest artists, to ensuring inclusion for youth that identify across the gender and ability spectrum. Each year, more than 400 young singers participate in SFGC's 44-week rehearsal and performance programs, led by a 9-member Music Faculty overseen by Artistic Director Valérie Sainte-Agathe. SFGC offers training at the Kanbar Performing Arts Center in downtown San Francisco and the East Bay German International School in Emeryville, and provides comprehensive tuition assistance, and in any given year provides between $150,000-$250,000 in need-based scholarship support to meet the equity and access needs of our community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | SAM Academy | 750 N ST , SANGER, CA 93657-3114 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 288-4953 | 21st Congressional District | 31st Assembly District | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAM Academy will launch weekly mariachi and ballet folklórico classes for youth. Experienced instructors in each discipline will lead sessions in the SAM Academy Music Studio, complemented by community performances throughout the year. The program is designed to serve underserved students from rural communities around Sanger, expanding access to arts and cultural experiences that are often limited. Participants will build both fine and gross motor skills through music, movement, coordination, and balance. At the same time, they will cultivate positive relationships with peers and adults while deepening their understanding of their heritage language, cultural traditions, dance, and music. | Values: • Every child deserves access to STEM & Arts enrichment activities. • Every child should feel connected to school and community through highly motivating STEM and Arts programs and activities in out-of-school time. • Every child deserves mentors to help guide them to becoming career ready. • Every member of the community has a role in building a culture of success for all children. Services: SAM Academy serves youth and parents who are economically disadvantaged and struggle to maintain employment to make ends meet also lack educational enrichment opportunities such as Science, Art and Music, which are important for developing a learner identity and school success. The Science Workshop and Community Music Studio maintains affordable services for youth and families from Sanger and surrounding communities to learn and explore their talents through classical methods in piano, guitar, drums/percussion, voice, mariachi ensemble, and ballet folklorico. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | South Tower Community Land Trust | 115 N CALAVERAS ST , FRESNO, CA 93701-1843 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 492-7249 | California's 21st congressional district | California's 31st State Assembly District | State Senate District 14 | South Tower Community Land Trust will use California Arts Council funds to support a community-centered design process for the creation of an accessible and culturally grounded Zócalo at a recently acquired community-owned building in Fresno’s South Tower neighborhood. Currently, the site frontage consists of cracked asphalt and weeds. Through community engagement, digitally fabricated metal panels, native landscaping, and outdoor gathering elements, the project will transform the entry into a welcoming public-facing space that reflects local identity, resilience, and shared prosperity. The Zócalo will create a more inviting transition from the public street into a protected community-centered environment designed to foster visibility, connection, and belonging for historically underserved communities. The completed space will support future arts, cultural, and community programming rooted in accessibility and community care. | South Tower Community Land Trust advances a range of programs designed to expand equitable development, community ownership, and neighborhood vitality in Fresno’s Tower District, with a strong emphasis on arts, culture, and community identity. Our Affordable Housing program remains a core focus, creating sustainable homeownership opportunities for low- and moderate-income individuals and families through the Community Land Trust (CLT) model. By separating land ownership from housing, we ensure long-term affordability while enabling residents to build equity and maintain community control. Our work includes the rehabilitation of existing homes, new infill development, and long-term stewardship to prevent displacement and stabilize neighborhoods. Arts and culture are central to our approach to community development. Through our Parks and Arts programming, we activate public spaces and foster a sense of belonging. At Broadway Parque and other neighborhood sites, we host community events, performances, and gatherings that bring residents together. Our public art initiatives further contribute to neighborhood beautification while reflecting the cultural identity, history, and creativity of the community. We also convene the annual Queer Housing Summit, which integrates cultural expression with housing advocacy, creating space for dialogue, storytelling, and community-led solutions. Together, these programs reflect a holistic approach that uplifts housing, arts, and culture as essential to a thriving and inclusive neighborhood. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | THE GALA PRIDE AND DIVERSITY CENTER | 1060 PALM ST , SN LUIS OBISP, CA 93401-3221 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 541-4252 | 24 | 30 | 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Gala Pride and Diversity Center (GPDC) will sustain and expand our community-centered arts and cultural programming that uplifts LGBTQ+ artists, preserves local queer cultural expression, and increases access to creative opportunities across California’s Central Coast. The financial support from the grant will strengthen GPDC’s capacity to provide free and low-cost arts programming, public cultural events, artist development opportunities, and community storytelling initiatives that center historically underserved communities. This funding will support three goals for this year: *Expand access to LGBTQ+ arts and cultural programming in San Luis Obispo County through public events, performances and workshops; *Strengthen professional development opportunities for LGBTQ+ and allied artists to grow their practice and show their work locally; and *Sustain GPDC’s long-term organizational infrastructure by investing staffing, operational capacity and accessibility. | We offer support groups and programming that empowers and uplifts our LGBTQ on the central coast. Our programming promotes civic engagement, art creation and consumption and access to healthcare resources. We currently have over 50 active support groups through GPDC which includes our Youth Program and Tranz Central Coast. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,638.00 | Hayward Arts Council | 22380 Foothill Blvd , Hayward, CA 94541-2710 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 538-2787 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Hayward Arts Council, in partnership with the REACH Ashland Youth Center's Arts & Creativity Program (Alameda County Office of Education), will implement Roots & Future, a school-year visual and media arts program for youth ages 14–24 in the unincorporated communities of Ashland, Cherryland, and South Hayward. CAC funds will support lead artists, a teaching artist, youth stipends, materials, and a culminating public exhibition. Guided by established community-rooted artists, youth will engage in visual arts, photography, painting, mixed media, and digital image-making, anchored by two questions: Where do we come from? Where are we going? Participants document cultural memory and neighborhood history while producing original works that envision the futures they want to inhabit. The program culminates in a public exhibition and advances REACH's cascading mentorship model. | Hayward Arts Council – Core Programs & Services 1. Art Exhibitions & Galleries HAC curates rotating exhibitions in six venues across Hayward, including: John O’Lague Galleria and Gallery 2 (Within City Hall) HAHS Art Gallery (within Hayward Area Historical Society) Senior Center, Library Gallery Downtown, Weekes Branch Library These spaces showcase local and regional artists and provide public access to diverse artworks. 2. Artist Support & Membership Through its membership program, HAC offers: Exhibition opportunities (in-person and online) Calls for art and public art opportunities Social media and monthly newsletter promotion Networking events and receptions for artists and art lovers 3. Community Engagement & Education HAC runs programs that foster creative growth and access to the arts: Exhibits showcasing emerging, mid career and professional artists in a variety of media. Exhibits such as AAPI, Pride Month, Black History, and community highlights are presented every year. Arts Education Exhibits showcasing students work highlighting foster care and neurodivergent youth are always part of the programs. Teen poetry workshops Presentation of student art awards and scholarships. Arts Now Community Partnership with Create CA and HUSD, promoting equitable arts education 4. Online Exhibitions & Artist Spotlights HAC features virtual exhibits and member artist highlights on its website, expanding visibility and access to local art. 5. Free Family Fun Art Classes In partnership with Hayward Public Library, HAC presents art classes for ages 5-12 and caregivers in a inclusive environment where creativity grows and a teaching artist guides attendees with a hands-on-class once a month. HAC selects and pay teaching artists and provides supplies for attendees. 6. Older Adults Free Art Classes At the Weekes Branch Library, HAC offers free classes for older adults where a teaching artist guides attendees with a hands-on-demo once a month. HAC selects and pay teaching artists and provides supplies for attendees. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Alameda County Arts Commission | 1106 Madison St., Suite 336 , Oakland, CA 94607 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 208-9646 | California's 12th congressional district | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Alameda County Arts Commission will provide a broad range of essential arts programs, including arts advocacy, arts education, grants for arts, and public art, to the dynamic and vibrant arts and culture community and extremely diverse 1.7 million Alameda County residents. The CAC funds enliven and sustain the arts and culture ecosystem of this region. | The Arts Commission fulfills its mission through: • Arts Advocacy: Arts Commission is an active leader of local, state and national level activities. Local efforts focus on arts education through CREATE Alameda County. Advancing the arts, local artists, leaders and art orgs through Arts Leadership Awards program honoring 5-7 County leaders each year. Local activities are in partnership with the Alameda County Board of Supervisors. State level leadership with state advocacy orgs: California Arts Advocates, California for the Arts, CREATE CA and the Coalition of County Arts Agencies. National level includes advancing the National Arts Education Week in September and National Arts and Humanities Month of October which is celebrated by the County Board of Supervisors when honoring the local Arts Leadership awardees. • Arts Funding: Annually distributes over $325k+ to over 120 nonprofits organizations serving over 750,000 residents each year. Currently in 50th consecutive year. Has granted over $5.5 million. • Public Art: Over 1,000 artworks inside 26 County facilities and at 20 outdoor spaces; viewed by over 1 million residents each year. Established in 1994 by County “2% for Public Art” ordinance. • Arts Education: Programs are Arts, Culture & Creativity Month, Veterans Art Partnership, 100 Families, Poetry Out Loud, Arts Learning Exhibitions and year-round CREATE Alameda County program. Information provided on website and social media. Community members attend free exhibitions, workshops, events, etc. • Arts Resource and Networking Services: On-going technical information and art resources are provided to partners and the public. Arts Commission’s City-Level Arts Partnership Network is a peer-learning environment for the 24 city-level arts organizations which meet monthly and share information. Arts Commission connects with the 375 nonprofit arts and cultural organizations who are current or recent ARTSFUND grantees. The Arts Commission strengthens this network by providing ongoing information and resources through email communications, social media and direct mailings. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | MIXED BAG PRODUCTIONS | 499 ALABAMA ST APT 201, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-1380 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 734-7344 | California Congressional District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mixed Bag Productions will produce “Are We Listening?”, a community-engaged dance project developed through ongoing collaboration with On Lok Always Active, a San Francisco nonprofit serving over 1,000 seniors and people with disabilities at 15 locations across the Bay Area. The project centers the creative voices of On Lok community members through twice-weekly movement sessions utilizing Sara Shelton Mann’s Moving Alchemy methodology, adapted for seated, standing, and assisted movement. Community members generate movement material, imagery, and narratives that are woven into the developing performance work. The project culminates in a series of 10 site-specific community performances at On Lok locations and a full-length premiere at Fort Mason in September 2027, featuring professional MBP performers alongside elderly and disabled On Lok community members. | Mixed Bag Productions seeds the success of emerging west coast choreographers and connects dance makers to an international network of artists and organizations spanning New York, Berlin, Vienna and Northern California. MBP serves as an umbrella for Sara's mentoring work with young dancers. A master healer and a socially engaged artist, Sara is an innovator of the somatic-activist hybridity that informs contemporary dance practices internationally. She is at the cutting edge of dance practices, where poetic experimentation meets embodied alchemy, and soulful improvisation inspires choreographic vision. Her dances are often contextualized or juxtaposed with a writing/speaking technique that shapes space and articulates movement with language. Sara believes that our energetic bodies convey deeper-rooted messages than any culture or identity can express. Like many artists who have spent a lifetime in the heart of their craft, Sara has come to believe that the exploration of these stories forms a vital collective heritage that transcends the artifact of performance. Her art is meant to reveal and transmit the story of our collective humanity—our potential for excellence, our danger—in a time of global change, chaos, and paradigm shift. It is an antidote to fear, doubt, and greed as the face of who we are. Recent home seasons in San Francisco have been presented at CounterPulse, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, ODC Theater, Dance Mission Theater, Joe Goode Annex and Z Space at Project Artaud. In December 2015, Mixed Bag presented Sara's large-scale retrospective Erasing Time, a 5-hour durational performance featuring over 40 dancers with whom she'd worked over the past 35 years. In 2020, Mixed Bag launched Sara's 7 Excavations series, workshop and performance experiments informed by the pandemic and based in Sara's pedagogy developed over 50-plus years. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | MIXED BAG PRODUCTIONS | 499 ALABAMA ST APT 201, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-1380 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 734-7344 | California Congressional District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mixed Bag Productions (MBP) will produce core programming during the project period: twice-weekly movement sessions with On Lok Always Active senior and disabled community members at locations across the Bay Area; six Moving Alchemy workshops and six salon performances at our San Francisco dance studio, offering free and low-cost access to new work by Artist Director Sara Shelton Mann and guest artists. These ongoing programs culminate in a series of 10 site-specific community performances at On Lok sites in San Francisco and a full-length socially engaged dance theater performance at Fort Mason, San Francisco. The work will be choreographed by Sara Shelton Mann and will feature professional MBP performers alongside senior and disabled On Lok community members. | Mixed Bag Productions seeds the success of emerging west coast choreographers and connects dance makers to an international network of artists and organizations spanning New York, Berlin, Vienna and Northern California. MBP serves as an umbrella for Sara's mentoring work with young dancers. A master healer and a socially engaged artist, Sara is an innovator of the somatic-activist hybridity that informs contemporary dance practices internationally. She is at the cutting edge of dance practices, where poetic experimentation meets embodied alchemy, and soulful improvisation inspires choreographic vision. Her dances are often contextualized or juxtaposed with a writing/speaking technique that shapes space and articulates movement with language. Sara believes that our energetic bodies convey deeper-rooted messages than any culture or identity can express. Like many artists who have spent a lifetime in the heart of their craft, Sara has come to believe that the exploration of these stories forms a vital collective heritage that transcends the artifact of performance. Her art is meant to reveal and transmit the story of our collective humanity—our potential for excellence, our danger—in a time of global change, chaos, and paradigm shift. It is an antidote to fear, doubt, and greed as the face of who we are. Recent home seasons in San Francisco have been presented at CounterPulse, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, ODC Theater, Dance Mission Theater, Joe Goode Annex and Z Space at Project Artaud. In December 2015, Mixed Bag presented Sara's large-scale retrospective Erasing Time, a 5-hour durational performance featuring over 40 dancers with whom she'd worked over the past 35 years. In 2020, Mixed Bag launched Sara's 7 Excavations series, workshop and performance experiments informed by the pandemic and based in Sara's pedagogy developed over 50-plus years. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $16,862.00 | City of Soledad | 248 Main St. , Soledad, CA 93960-3206 | Monterey | Central Coast | (831) 223-5000 | 19th Congressional District | 29th Assembly District | 17th State Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, City of Soledad Parks and Recreation Department will implement a free, artist-led after-school arts program serving youth ages 6–10. Through weekly hands-on workshops held at Orchard Lane Park and the Community Center, participants will engage in visual and multi-media arts, encouraging creativity, collaboration, and connection. Programming will prioritize youth with limited access to arts and enrichment opportunities outside of school. Grant funds will support artist services, supplies, outreach, and implementation. Activities may include painting, mixed media, mosaic art, and nature-based projects utilizing natural materials. Programming will take place in the park and at the Community Center depending on weather and programming. The project will be implemented through partnerships with schools and arts partners to ensure inclusive and cultural experiences supporting positive development and continued participation in the arts. | The City of Soledad provides a broad range of municipal services focused on enhancing quality of life, supporting community well-being, and maintaining essential public infrastructure, facilities, and programs for residents. Core services include parks and recreation programming, public works and infrastructure maintenance, community events, youth and senior services, economic and community development, facility operations, and administrative services that support the day-to-day needs of the community. Through its Parks and Recreation Department, the City offers year-round recreational, cultural, educational, and arts-based programming designed to serve residents of all ages and backgrounds. Programs and services include youth sports, after-school and seasonal recreation activities, wellness and enrichment programs, community events and celebrations, park activation initiatives, facility rentals, and partnerships that increase access to safe and inclusive opportunities for residents. The Department also manages community facilities and public spaces that serve as gathering places for recreation, arts, cultural activities, and community engagement. The City regularly collaborates with local schools, nonprofits, artists, community organizations, and regional partners to expand programming opportunities and improve access to services for underserved populations. Through these partnerships, the City works to foster community connection, positive youth development, cultural engagement, and equitable access to recreational and creative experiences. The City remains committed to strengthening programs and services that support community pride, wellness, inclusion, and opportunities for meaningful civic participation. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Nava Dance Theatre | 80 Turk Street , San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (925) 457-1140 | 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, NAVA DANCE THEATRE will sustain and expand its culturally responsive dance, residency, and community engagement programs that center South Asian diasporic stories and historically underrepresented communities. CAC funds will support artist compensation, rehearsal and performance costs, accessibility services, and free or low-cost public programming. Activities include the creation and presentation of new dance works exploring migration, labor, identity, and healing; the Unrehearsed Artist Residency and Commissioning Program; Varnam Salon; subsidized bharatanatyam classes and workshops; and school and community engagements across the Bay Area. NAVA DANCE THEATRE will continue partnering with immigrant, BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, disabled, and community-based organizations to create accessible, intergenerational artistic experiences that connect contemporary social issues with culturally rooted performance practices while supporting equitable opportunities for artists and audiences. | Nava Dance Theatre (NDT), led by Artistic Director Nadhi Thekkek, is a Bharatanatyam company using South Indian dance as a medium for reflection and discovery. We focus on two main programs: original dance works and our Unrehearsed: Artist Residency and Commissioning program. We also offer subsidized workshops, co-produce the Varnam Salon, and organize classes as part of our community engagement. Highlights include residencies at CounterPulse and A.C.T., two commissions from Oakland Ballet, and support from the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project. Our work has also been funded by the MAP Fund, National Endowment for the Arts, California Arts Council, San Francisco Arts Commission, and more. Since 2013, we’ve performed nationally at venues such as La Mama (NYC), National Steinbeck Center, SF Ethnic Dance Festival, Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, UC Davis Mondavi Center, and UMass Amherst Fine Arts Center. NDT creates immersive, community-centered performances rooted in South Asian storytelling through Bharatanatyam and experimental movement. Our blend of dance, music, and narrative reflects the lived experiences of Indian and South Asian communities. Drawing from oral histories and interviews, we explore themes like migration, identity, and justice. Through responsible, culturally responsive storytelling, we center underrepresented voices and invite audiences to reflect, connect, and take pride in our shared histories. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles | 5225 WILSHIRE BLVD Suite 617, LOS ANGELES, CA 90036-4301 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 990-5014 | With support from the California Arts Council, Indian Film Festival of Los Angeles (IFFLA) will present the 25th annual film festival. CAC funds will support staff salaries and office rent. | In response to community-identified needs, IFFLA brings groundbreaking independent cinema from South Asia and its diasporas to audiences across Greater Los Angeles, in a vibrant, highly curated program comprising narrative, documentary, and animated features and shorts. In addition to film screenings, the festival offers systemically under-resourced storytellers mentorship and networking opportunities through masterclasses, panels, and events. Our programming removes access barriers and promotes the diverse perspectives of South Asian filmmakers and their diasporic communities in Los Angeles, California, and abroad. In 2024, IFFLA launched IFFLA Industry Day, a day-long forum in Los Angeles for rising and established film and television creatives and executives. Informed by direct feedback from our community, IFFLA expanded Industry Day into a two-day forum in 2025. This expansion specifically addressed the lack of access to creative, financing and professional mentorship for South Asian storytellers. In 2026, IFFLA Industry Days took place over two days with more panels, masterclasses, and mentorship events as well as the IFFLA Connect and IFFLA One on Ones programs, which link projects in development to financiers and collaborators. All three editions of Industry Days have featured Launchpad, a dynamic live pitch competition where finalists pitch their film and television projects to a panel of industry executives receiving feedback in front of an audience. The winner is awarded a $10,000 development grant to further advance their project. IFFLA serves as a culturally responsive space that removes structural barriers to the entertainment industry. By integrating community feedback into our program design, we ensure that our programming, mentorship, grants, and networking events are accessible and prioritize those most impacted by systemic exclusion. IFFLA has become an enlightening cultural space which builds context and buzz about upcoming work, provides an avenue for new, underrepresented work, leverages relationships by imparting vital mentorship and grants, and fosters community. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Modoc County Arts Council | 212 W. Third St. , Alturas, CA 96101 | Modoc | Upstate | (530) 708-7233 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Modoc County Arts Council will provide free monthly coloring contests and a culminating youth art contest for ages 5–18 across rural Modoc County. The project will bring artist-designed activities into grocery stores, schools, and partner sites to reduce barriers related to cost, distance, and limited access to arts learning in rural communities. Through monthly themes focused on health, safety, wellness, and community identity, youth will build creative confidence and visual art skills while connecting their artwork to local issues and everyday life. The project will culminate in original youth artwork displayed on a local billboard and Main Street banners in Alturas, creating public recognition and a visible celebration of youth creativity during National Arts and Humanities Month | The Modoc County Arts Council is organized into four main programs: Visual Arts, Arts Education, Performing Arts, & Culture. Under Visual Arts we have gallery shows including a student art show, and a digital art gallery (pending), Sponsorship of galleries in two Modoc towns, mural projects on buildings in Alturas and Cedarville; under Arts education we have consulting and collaborating with the Modoc High Art Classes, our Arts Instructors Program in partnership with The Art Center of Alturas, and sponsorship of local galleries in two Modoc County towns that have arts educational programs; under Performing Arts we have the Missoula Children’s Theatre one-week residency and the Poetry Out Loud programs for Modoc County, as well as partner with the Modoc Performing Arts Theater and the Modoc High School Drama Club. We have implemented the Modoc Community Concert Series and have four concerts per year – we hope to expand this to eight concerts per year with additional funding. We have a community radio station KILN 99.1 LP FM that has local content from area musicians and provides consulting and assistance with recording. Under Culture we have anticipated partnerships with the Library, Museum, local ranches, and Tribes to provide venues, events, and classes that foster the celebration and understanding, and artwork of different cultures in Modoc County. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Beautiful Beginnings Arts Collective | 869 Ingerson Ave. , San Francisco, CA 94124 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 217-9885 | With support from the California Arts Council, Beautiful Beginnings Arts Collective will create paid, part-time staff positions of: 1) Operations Manager; 2) Social Engagement Manager; and 3) Youth Program Coordinator supporting our programming, including free community arts classes, youth leadership program, and annual San Francisco Carnaval cultural arts performance. | BBAC’s arts and cultural programs and services focus on creating an inclusive and accessible multigenerational creative community, centered on culturally relevant traditions from the African diaspora and folkloric art forms from Latin America. We offer a comprehensive arts-based curriculum at several coordinated venues in South East San Francisco, including Community Well (a holistic wellness center in the Excelsior neighborhood), Southeast Community Center (community hub in Bayview neighborhood) and San Francisco Community School (public K-8 school in the Excelsior). 6 free classes each week for youth and families, provide opportunities for creative expression, empowerment, and social connection. These educational programs culminate in our annual production in the San Francisco Carnaval Parade. Throughout a nine-month development process, our multigenerational artist collective meets weekly. Youth participants take leadership roles in all aspects of our production, including overall concept/planning, design and creation of costumes/visual arts, and performance of music and dance. Rehearsals for all participants start in January and run until Carnaval at the end of May. We also offer our Artist-in-Training Youth Leadership Program. Each year, our master teaching artists mentor 12 youth ages 14-21 in a range of artistic practices. Participating youth receive a stipend while receiving intensive arts training, job readiness, wellness, and communication skills. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Cabrillo Playhouse | 202 AVENIDA CABRILLO , SAN CLEMENTE, CA 92672-4002 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 492-0465 | 4th Congressional DIstrict | District 74 | District 36 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN CLEMENTE COMMUNITY THEATRE will sustain core operations for Cabrillo Playhouse, including payroll, utilities, artist support, and increased theatrical script royalty and rental expenses associated with its six-show season. Funding will support accessible, community-centered live theater programming serving San Clemente and the greater South Orange County region while helping stabilize operations following major facility and ADA accessibility improvements completed through the organization’s recent capital campaign. Support will also strengthen the organization’s long-term sustainability by allowing Cabrillo Playhouse to rebuild reserves, expand community engagement, maintain affordable public access to the arts, and continue providing artistic and volunteer opportunities for performers, technicians, designers, and community members of varying ages, backgrounds, and experience levels. | Cabrillo Playhouse provides year-round theatrical programming and community-based arts opportunities that engage a wide range of participants, including local artists, students, volunteers, and audiences throughout South Orange County. *Mainstage Productions The Playhouse produces a full season of live theatrical performances each year, featuring a diverse range of plays and musicals. These productions provide paid and volunteer opportunities for actors, directors, designers, and technicians, while offering audiences affordable access to high-quality live theater in their community. *Artist and Volunteer Engagement Cabrillo Playhouse operates through a highly engaged network of local artists and volunteers who contribute to all aspects of production and operations. This model fosters hands-on learning, skill development, and meaningful community involvement in the arts. *Educational and Emerging Artist Opportunities The organization supports emerging performers and youth participants by providing opportunities to gain experience in live theater production, performance, and backstage work. These opportunities help build confidence, creativity, and practical skills in the performing arts. *Community Access and Cultural Enrichment Cabrillo Playhouse is committed to making theater accessible through affordable ticket pricing and a welcoming, community-centered environment. Its programming serves a broad audience, including families, seniors, and first-time theatergoers, helping to reduce barriers to arts participation in the region. Cabrillo Playhouse continues to expand its efforts to broaden participation and reduce barriers to access by fostering inclusive casting, outreach, and community engagement practices. *Facility as a Cultural Resource As one of the few dedicated live theater venues in the immediate area, Cabrillo Playhouse provides a consistent and reliable space for the performing arts, supporting ongoing cultural activity and community gathering. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Samuel Lawrence Foundation | PO BOX F , DEL MAR, CA 92014-0137 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 481-1673 | 49th Congressional District | District 78 | District 39 | Dance Start, a flagship program of the Samuel Lawrence Foundation, uses dance as a pathway to literacy and community connection for underrepresented children ages 3–8 across San Diego County. CAC grant funds will sustain free classes at Neighborhood House Association Head Start Centers, King Chavez Academy, and William J. Oakes Boys' & Girls' Club; expand programming to South Bay, Solana Beach, and San Marcos in partnership with Episcopalian Community Services, Southwestern College, La Colonia Boys' & Girls' Club, and CSU San Marcos; and increase workshops at Pacific Beach Recreation Center. Funds will also provide children and families free tickets to professional dance performances and offer paid teaching experience to college dance students. Through movement and storytelling, Dance Start nurtures vocabulary, listening comprehension, and social-emotional development in historically underserved San Diego communities. | All SLF programs and projects demonstrate the power of our guiding principles: collaboration, shared learning, innovation. The Samuel Lawrence Foundation (SLF) strives to promote human interaction and encourage broader community access to science, education, and the arts. Behind every successful SLF project are creative ideas, persistent hope, and clear communications, which invite others to be inspired and contribute their talent. We achieve this work by connecting with our community’s knowledge and collaborating on solutions. Our collective impact among direct programs is a testament to the power of collaboration and encouragement. SLF has several programs categorized into 5 main categories : Environment (San Onofre and Beyond, Top to Top, Social Justice in Uniontown Alabama, Climate Resilience Initiative) Science and Medicine (Microbiome Research and Earth Microbiome Project, Electromagnetic Field Research) Education (Kabul Schools Connection, Floating Schools of Bangladesh, Barrio Botany, Steam Leadership Series) Arts (Dance Start, Dually Noted, Open Door for the Arts, National STEAM photography exhibition) and Unsung Hero-ines. Each program seeks to help make the world a better place and to improve the lives of its inhabitants. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | 916 Ink | 3301 37th Ave , Sacramento, CA 95824 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 826-7323 | California's 6th congressional district | District 7 | District 6 | With the support of the California Arts Council, 916 Ink will launch The Next Chapter: Literary Media Fellowship. This fellowship program will serve to empower students who have previously completed our Creative Writing/Literacy programs to gain skills and pursue careers in writing, publishing, media and communications. This year-long mentorship program for alumni, ages 16-21, will provide fellows with coaching and mentorship on career and education goals, opportunities to network with communication professionals and local guest artists, and opportunities to produce original creative media which expresses their unique perspective. Each Fellow will complete a capstone project in the form of a publication, performance, or production. | 916 Ink is Sacramento’s arts-based creative writing and literacy nonprofit that provides workshops and tutoring to transform Sacramento youth into strong readers, confident communicators, and published authors. Our programs increase literacy skills, improve vocabulary, teach empathy, positively impact social and emotional learning, and expand communication skills. We envision a Sacramento region where every child and teen is given access to a culturally relevant creative writing program that leads them to believe in themselves and to understand the power of the written word. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | TILTshift Dance | 13525 Mira Montana Dr , DEL MAR, CA 92014 | San Diego | Far South | (415) 533-5570 | With support from the California Arts Council, TILTshift Dance will successfully implement and further build our 2027 programming. CAC grant funds will allow us to adequately pay and increase our number of artists, residents, and interns served, as well as bring on much needed administrative help, deepening our community reach and impact. Some of our notable programs include: Asian American Dance Festival (AADF) – San Diego’s first and only dance festival, centering AAPI artists, stories, and communities. AADF Collaborative Residency, Internship & Fellowship – A professional development program, offering mentorship for early/mid-career AAPI artists. AADF Winter Symposium – A weekend of dance/movement classes, uplifting the visibility of our local AAPI dance/movement instructors. AADF Gatherings – Networking events for AAPI dance/movement professionals. ChoreoWreck – Choreographic research process that incorporates community engagement. OpenLAB – Communal studio space for dance artists to work. | As dance makers, we create works for stage, film, and site specific. As dance teachers, we offer classes in modern, contemporary and conditioning/fitness. As dance educators, we hold workshops in choreography and encourage dialog through facilitated "wrecking" events. As community driven dance artists, we provide opportunities and space for other dance artists to work on their craft, to dig into the creative process, to collaborate artistically, and to tell their stories in their own voices. We curate and present the annual Asian American Dance Festival (AADF), San Diego's first and only full dance festival celebrating AAPI dance artists. In addition to performance showcases, AADF also consists of a residency and internship program for early to mid-career AAPI dance artists. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Community Youth Orchestra of So California | 27472 Portola Pkwy, ste 205-367 , Foothill Ranch, CA 92610 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 529-2950 | California's 45th congressional district | District 74 | District 37 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Community Youth Orchestra of Southern California (CYOSC) will strengthen its core operations by expanding instructional staffing and securing higher-quality rehearsal and performance venues. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit serving young musicians throughout Orange County since 1990, CYOSC's greatest asset — and greatest expense — is its team of skilled coaches who provide weekly, in-person sectional instruction and support across strings, winds, and brass. Current tuition revenue does not fully cover the cost of a complete coaching staff, leaving some orchestral sections underserved. CAC funds will enable us to hire additional section coaches, ensuring every student receives the individualized guidance essential to their musical development. Funding will also support venue costs, allowing CYOSC to provide a more professional environment for students, families, and the broader Southern California community. | Currently CYOSC has 3 ensembles that provide young musicians with the opportunity to play in an ensemble, learning ensemble skills and developing their general musical ability. There are several performances each year, as well as the chance to participate in an annual concerto competition. The winner of this competition performs as a soloist at the Finale Concert. Selected other participants in the competition perform as a soloist with a chamber orchestra of hired professionals. The three ensembles are: Sinfonietta - a string orchestra ensemble for students K-4th Grade; Philharmonia - a string ensemble for students in grades 5-8; Symphony Orchestra - a full orchestra including strings, winds, and brass for student in grades 8-12. There is also an invitation-only Solisti ensemble that meets for part of the season to perform in community events (e.g., the Holiday Music program and Santa Ana Airport and City of Irvine events). All students in these programs and ensembles are paying members, although we offer hardship scholarships, performance scholarships, and brass and viola scholarships. Finally, there is a volunteer program for high school students wishing to help younger musicians. Most of students sit alongside their younger peers and help them to play their instruments and support their learning environment. A small number of the volunteers help to take photos and videos for the organization. All volunteers help with general operations at concerts and rehearsals. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Rise Up Industries | 5275 MARKET ST STE 1 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92114-2215 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 457-0790 | With support from the California Arts Council, Rise Up Leadership Academy (RULA), a gang prevention program, will expand access to local art institutions, creative/cultural expression, and social-emotional learning for youth at risk for gang involvement in San Diego's City Heights neighborhood. In partnership with the San Diego Museum of Art, RULA students will participate in three Saturday art workshops through the museum's Art Express! initiative, which provides transportation, admission, and hands-on art experiences for the City Heights community. During RULA's after-school and summer programming, students will also participate in weekly art classes, including a minimum of 10 museum-developed art activities that bring arts education directly to youth onsite. By removing barriers to arts access, this project will foster healing, self-confidence, social-emotional growth, and positive peer collaboration among historically under-resourced youth vulnerable to gang involvement. | Rise Up Leadership Academy (RULA) RULA is RUI’s prevention strategy to work toward dismantling the intergenerational gang involvement cycle in San Diego. Launched in 2024, this program empowers at-risk youth from fifth grade through high school in a long-term, after-school and summer program. RULA operates from City Heights Recreation Center nearly every weekday of the year, as well as occasional Saturdays, and currently supports students from Rosa Parks Elementary and Clark Middle School. RULA’s goal is to prevent at-risk youth from gang involvement by strengthening their positive attachments to self, peers, and community. RULA aims to support at-risk youth in paving foundational and empowering pathways toward being leaders of their own lives and achieving their future life goals. RULA’s approach incorporates these key prevention components: improved supervision, interpersonal skills training, peer relationship-building, safe recreational spaces, and academic engagement. Each student has access to 1,000+ annual hours of services and activities, including: art activities (weekly); sports and recreation (daily); homework support (daily); skill building (biweekly); guest speakers (monthly); community engagement (monthly); mental health support with an associate clinician (weekly); and silent mentorship (daily, with weekly staff debriefs). RULA uses art experiences and education to empower and uplift youth as leaders and creative thinkers while strengthening connections to peers, community, and a sense of self – protective factors that can reduce the likelihood of gang involvement and increase belonging and agency. Reentry Program RUI's first program, the Reentry Program, launched in 2016. The program empowers formerly gang-involved justice-impacted citizens in gaining access to 3,000+ hours of comprehensive, wraparound services including employment, job training, case management, tattoo removal, counseling, mentoring, education assistance, financial literacy, life skills, work ethic development, and ultimately job placement. All services occur onsite at our San Diego facility. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Safe Black Space | 1026 FLORIN RD #294 , SACRAMENTO, CA 95831-3513 | Sacramento | Capital | (530) 683-5101 | 7th Congressional District | 10 | 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAFE BLACK SPACE (SBS), a 501(c)(3) organization specializing in African-centered wellness, will implement the Black Men’s Healing Facilitator Initiative from February 2027 through June 2027. This leadership development program addresses "racial battle fatigue" and systemic trauma among Black men by certifying them in culturally rooted healing arts. The funding supports: Capacity Building: Training a cohort of 10 Black men in the SAFE BLACK SPACE Community Healing Circle methodology—a Community-Defined Evidence Practice. Cultural Arts Integration: Partnering with artist Leon Willis (AlphabetEx) to integrate embodied movement, visual storytelling, and mindfulness into the wellness curriculum. Direct Community Impact: Supporting a public-facing cohort-led wellness activation, culminating in a large-scale Juneteenth Celebration in collaboration with another local organization. Economic Support: Providing stipends to the cohort and trainers, ensuring equitable compensation for cultural labor. | Safe Black Space implements cultural and community-driven healing and connection activities. • Community Healing and African Drum Circles: Facilitating safe environments for emotional processing of racial stress and trauma and connecting with Black culture and joy. Inclusive of artistic forms of healing. • Wellness Activities: Providing culturally rooted self and community care services that increase health and wellness, such as African-centered yoga, sound baths, stress management techniques • Culturally Anchored Events: Hosting gatherings like the annual Kwanzaa Kutoa Celebration which affirm identity, build social cohesion, and celebrate community honorees. • Educational Outreach: Providing healing-centered education, meditation sessions, and book study groups to equip participants with long-term coping strategies. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | HDTS | 62953 Sullivan Rd , JOSHUA TREE, CA 92252 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (760) 507-4190 | California's 23rd congressional district | District 47 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, High Desert Test Sites (HDTS) will partner with local artist Carolyn Pennypacker Riggs to present High Desert Choir, a free, no-audition community chorus. The project addresses urgent regional needs—social isolation, limited access to mental health support, and civic disconnection—through collaborative song-writing, singing, and public performance. Rooted in the Morongo Basin, where residents often experience geographic and social isolation, Choir creates a consistent, inclusive space for creative expression and reconnection. Weekly workshops, community-based performances, and the creation of a 12-song album will engage approximately 200 participants and reach over 1,200 audience members. CAC funds will support artist fees, workshop facilitation, performance production, and album creation. By centering collective voices, High Desert Choir strengthens community cohesion, supports mental well-being, and expands much-needed local opportunities for civic and artistic participation. | We engage local and visiting artists, critical thinkers, and general audiences in intimate exchanges and immersive experiences. HDTS programming includes performance, site-specific installation, workshops, screenings, publications, and residencies. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Fresno Arts Council | 1245 Van Ness Ave. 1245 Van Ness Ave., FRESNO, CA 93721-1711 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 237-9734 | California's 21st congressional district | District 31 | District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council FRESNO ARTS COUNCIL INC (FAC) will engage with the local arts community in Fresno County to support growth and development through mentoring, technical assistance, and identifying grant and job opportunities. We will provide support for program development through individual planning sessions. FAC acts as a resource for the general public, developers, and public entities for issues and information related to Fresno's vast arts ecosystem. We will continue to stage events such as ArtHop, Horizon Awards, and Arts Alive in Agriculture to ensure that Art in all its forms is fully represented in the region, and that local artists receive public attention. We will use CAC grant funds to specifically support staff positions. | Fresno Arts Council Programs and Services • ARTHOP- Multiple venues and days • Curate Art at FAC • Curate Art at City Hall • Public Art Projects – FAT Airport, Cal Trans multiple projects, Crosswalks • Poet Laureate • Readings • Poetry Out Loud – High School Students • Arts in Education- Selma Unified • Teaching Artist Training • Art Haven Project for the Unhoused • State of the Arts/Horizon Awards • Arts Alive in Agriculture • Technical Assistance • Fiscal Receiverships • General Resources and Referrals for local artists • Rural Access to the Arts Grants |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Lodi Community Art Center | 110 W. Pine St , LODI, CA 95240 | San Joaquin | Central Valley | (209) 333-3855 | California 9th Congressional District | District 9 | District 5 | With support from the California Arts Council, LODI COMMUNITY ART CENTER will use the grant funds to pay for the lease, utilities, insurance, and other operational expenses. This will include promotional materials and social media and printed ads for our non-profit business. It will help us to reach out to the communities on a more consistent basis and to be more visible to potential youth, seniors, and the many diverse groups. This will help sustain our business through recent and future economic struggles, and an ever-changing art world and market. | Art Gallery open to public. Art Classes are available to all at a reasonable price. We provide community service and communication through art. We have outreach programs for kids and teens in many areas including underserved areas to provide free classes, learning and instruction, art kits, other programs, a Youth Gallery wall with monthly exhibitions, and low cost membership available to the youth. There are various monthly exhibitions and shows for members and often for non-members in our gallery. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | Walking Water | PO Box 516 , Graton, CA 95444 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (310) 307-6963 | District 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Walking Water (WW) and artists Henry Lipkis and Kate Morales will co-create "Waters Becoming Puppet Parades: Reimagining Payahuunadü" -a participatory public art project, in partnership with the Owens Valley Indian Water Commission, Accelerate Resilience LA, Weaving Earth, and Friends of the Inyo. Grounded in Waters Becoming, a WW publication developed through Morales’s visual scribing of community voices, this public reimagination project transforms these water stories into embodied, collective forms. Through story circles, walking-based gatherings, and hands-on workshops, participants will co-create large-scale puppets of “water beings and protectors” (salmon, otter, blue heron). Led by Lipkis’s mastery in puppetry and public spectacle, these culminate in immersive parades and “Portals” in Bishop and Lone Pine, transforming public space while amplifying Indigenous leadership, community voice, and a shared vision for water justice. | Walking Water (WW) offers participatory, arts-based programming that integrates storytelling, walking, and collaborative creation to explore the cultural, social, and ecological dimensions of water. Since 2012, WW has developed a distinct methodology that centers community voice as both source material and creative driver, using artistic practice to translate lived experience into collective, public expression. Core programming includes story circles, walking-based gatherings, workshops in visual and performative arts, and large-scale public events. Walking is a foundational practice—an accessible, low-impact method that invites participants to engage directly with land, water, and one another while grounding the work in shared experience and place-based awareness. Artistic processes such as puppet-making, printmaking, and visual storytelling are used to create multi-sensory entry points for participation, allowing individuals of different ages, abilities, and backgrounds to contribute meaningfully. WW places a strong emphasis on collaboration with artists, culture bearers, and community members, often engaging participants as co-creators in the development of artistic work. This approach culminates in immersive public experiences, such as processions, performances, and installations, that transform shared spaces into sites of dialogue, reflection, and collective imagination. Projects are frequently informed by prior community engagement and artistic research, including publications like Waters Becoming, which document and translate community narratives into visual and conceptual frameworks. Across all programming, WW prioritizes accessibility through free, public offerings, flexible participation formats, and multi-modal artistic practices. By combining relational facilitation with creative production, Walking Water creates inclusive platforms for cultural expression, intergenerational learning, and community-led exploration of environmental justice and collective futures. Virtual Story Shares |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | LA River Arts | 6624 DUME DR , MALIBU, CA 90265-4221 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 854-4765 | California Assembly district 50 | District 50 | District 27 | Operational support for the LA River Arts will increase core operational positions (e.g. programs manager, outreach coordinator). This will strengthen the organizational infrastructure needed to deliver and expand community-centered arts programming along the 51-mile Los Angeles River corridor. Funds will increase staff capacity, program coordination, community outreach, and operational systems across three flagship programs: River Sessions, an ongoing series of free, site-based public workshops and performances; River Solstice, a biannual festival featuring performative, installation, and musical artists along the river; and River Landmarks, a new biannual initiative commissioning permanent public artworks developed in collaboration with river corridor communities. Programming serves communities in the lower two quartiles of the California Healthy Places Index — including Long Beach, Downtown Los Angeles, the Gateway Cities, and San Fernando Valley — where access to free cultural programming remains critically underserved. | LA River Arts advocates for an arts and cultural infrastructure integral to the many revitalization projects along the river's 51-mile corridor from Canoga Park to Long Beach. We believe that cultural projects are a dynamic way to share the river's potential with a large public audience, and deepen community connections. Through art-based projects, our work has impacted the conversation on multiple levels. We have heightened the discussion about public space; tilted the conversation about the LA River toward community-driven social spaces; and demonstrated the confluence of nature, art, and play. Our efforts confirm the value of inclusionary art-based public projects, introduce artists and communities to each other, and envision a robust river cultural environment. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Laity Institute of the Arts | 3053 RNCH VST BLVD STE H336 , PALMDALE, CA 93551-4823 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 200-5695 | California Assembly district 36 | District 36 | District 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, LAITY THEATER COMPANY will expand LEAP through a Creative Youth Development initiative serving approximately 100 underserved students in grades 1–8 across the Antelope Valley while creating paid arts employment for five young adult community members, ages 18–25. These near-peer teaching aides, recruited from the same neighborhoods and schools as our students, will work alongside professional arts faculty in after-school visual and performing arts classes, supporting standards-aligned instruction and serving as culturally resonant role models. Grant funds will also support two curated arts exposure field trips and two participatory assemblies connected to classroom learning. This initiative expands meaningful arts access for children while providing young adults with mentorship, workforce experience, and professional development. | Laity's Organization's Core Programs and Services are courses in: Art, Animation, Ceramic Arts, Dance, Drama and Music. These courses are taught by professional and semi-professional artist in their field of study. Our courses are designed to help increase the overall awareness in the visual and performing arts in schools, and the tremendous role they play in the overall development of the student. Laity has developed the Laity Education Arts Program. LEAP is an after-school arts program designed to help augment and support the teaching of the arts during the traditional school day with a comprehensive content-based arts program. To reach this goal, LIA focuses on three key areas: · Skills – what the student learns from the instructor · Confidence - how the student executes what he/she has learned · Motivation – what the student is willing to learn next To achieve this classes in art, animation, ceramic art, dance, drama and music are taught after school 3 hours a day Monday through Friday. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | San Diego Tijuana International Jazz Festival | 3535 1ST AVE UNIT 8A STE 110 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92103-7804 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 883-7373 | 51 | 78 | 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN DIEGO JAZZ VENTURES INC will present the 3rd annual San Diego Tijuana International Jazz Festival from Oct 1-4, 2026. Funds will support activities on the US side of the border, including both our opening night on Oct 1, a free admission “Jazz Party” in downtown San Diego's East Village, and our "Mainstage" program on Oct 3, a free and ticketed event at the California Center for the Arts Escondido. The festival features regional, national, and international artists and has a strong educational component that engages high school and university students from both sides of the border. Our mission is to explore the musical history of the border region, drawing connections between jazz and Latin music, and to support the present and future of jazz in our region. | San Diego Jazz Ventures Inc's primary activity is the production of the annual San Diego Tijuana International Jazz Festival (SDTJ Jazz). The festival takes place over four days including the first weekend of October, including performances in Escondido, downtown San Diego, and Tijuana. Our second annual festival in October 2025 attracted attendance of more than 4,500 on both sides of the border. 75% attended at no fee for admission. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $10,000.00 | The Stage | 2091 Letterkenny Lane , LINCOLN, CA 95648 | Placer | Upstate | (916) 258-2082 | District 4 | District 6 | District 1 | The Stage is seeking CAC support to help more children and teens throughout Placer County discover the confidence, creativity, friendships, and sense of belonging that can happen through the performing arts. For many of the families we serve, theater becomes more than a performance — it becomes a safe place to grow, connect, and feel truly seen. Grant funding will support inclusive musical theater workshops, summer camps, mentorship opportunities, and youth externships for ages 6–19, including hands-on experience in directing, stage management, costume design, lighting, sound, and production management. Funding will also help us continue offering financial-need scholarships and inclusive programming for neurodiverse participants through programs like Broadway Besties, ensuring every child has the opportunity to belong, create, and shine both on and off the stage. | Currently, WPAA offers a comprehensive children and youth theatre program through The Stage. Children ages 5-13 are offered four two week work shops And two 10 week mini musicals a year. Youth are offered two youth productions a year. Both our children and youth productions encompass theatrical training, not just paid workshop performances. The children’s workshops encompass foundations dance, acting, and vocal training, while the youth productions require three hours a week of skill building in all three disciplines. In this way, WPAA is equipping students to use their artistic skills anywhere and throughout their lives, in a healthy and sustainable way, limiting injury, burnout, and unrealistic expectations. WPAA offers tuition scholarships to students in need, as Lincoln is home to many families under the poverty line. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Public Glass | 1750 ARMSTRONG AVE , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124-2610 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 671-4916 | 11th Congressional district of California | California State Assembly District 17 | State Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Public Glass will expand its Light-a-Spark program to develop free STEAM-focused glass art workshops for San Francisco’s Bayview neighborhood schools and youth-serving organizations. This project will offer hands-on learning experiences that connect art, science, design, and engineering to provide youth ages 13–19 in the Bayview with free arts programming through field trips, workshops, and summer programs. As San Francisco’s only public-access glass studio, located in the Bayview, we are uniquely positioned to support students in exploring processes including hot glass, kilnforming, and flameworking while developing creative thinking and problem-solving skills. Funding will support curriculum development, accessibility accommodations, instruction, and outreach, and will culminate in a youth exhibition. Through this project, Public Glass will empower a new generation of confident, creative, and engaged youth. | Public Glass is San Francisco’s only nonprofit public-access glass art studio and educational center, offering dynamic, hands-on experiences in glassmaking for artists, students, and community members of all ages and skill levels. For nearly 30 years, Public Glass has been a vibrant creative hub where people can explore the transformative power of glass through accessible, community-centered programming that sparks curiosity, creativity, and connection. Our core programs include educational classes and workshops across a wide range of glass disciplines, including hot glass, kilnforming, flameworking, stained glass, and coldworking. From first-time experiences to advanced master classes led by nationally and internationally recognized artists, our programs encourage experimentation, collaboration, and artistic growth. Through scholarships, work exchange opportunities, subsidized tuition, and our Emerging Artist Membership, we actively work to remove financial barriers and expand equitable access to the arts. At the heart of our community engagement is the intergenerational Light-a-Spark program, which provides free and reduced-cost workshops for schools, youth organizations, seniors, and underserved communities throughout the Bay Area. These programs emphasize participation, culturally responsive learning, teamwork, and creative problem-solving, helping participants build confidence and valuable life skills through hands-on artmaking. Public Glass also produces lively public events that bring artists and communities together, including exhibitions, artist talks, community markets, and our signature Hot Glass Cold Beer events featuring live glassblowing demonstrations, music, food, and local artists. Our gallery showcases an ever-changing collection of work by emerging and established artists, creating opportunities for artists to exhibit, sell work, and connect with new audiences. Through education, public programming, and strong community partnerships, Public Glass continues to expand access to glass art while inspiring creativity, cultural connection, and the next generation of artists, makers, and innovators. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Museum of Dance | 77 Van Ness Avenue Ste 101 , San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (520) 780-6672 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | The International Museum of Dance (IMOD) requests $30,000 in general operating support during a pivotal year of growth. In 2026, IMOD opens IMOD HQ, its first ground-floor presence at 434 Post Street in Union Square. This 2,500 sf experiential space serves as a living laboratory, inviting the public, collaborators, and scholars to participate in the design of what will become a state-of-the-art museum. The HQ hosts the Digital Dance Constellation (the world's first global interactive dance map, built with the New York Public Library for the Performing Arts at Lincoln Center), a live performance stage, podcast studio, and the IMOD Museum Store. Funds will support staffing, programming, marketing, and community engagement across IMOD's programs: Archives, Education, and Exhibitions, sustaining the infrastructure required as IMOD transitions into this next phase in the heart of San Francisco. | Our core programs and services include: Education Partnerships: Collaborating with local and national schools, we provide comprehensive dance education programs for students of all ages, including movement, technique, choreography, performance, and dance history. We also offer civic engagement projects and paid internships, fostering a deep connection between dance and community. Artist Partnerships: Working closely with local and national dance artists, we offer support, resources, and space for their presentations, performances, lectures, and teaching work. By nurturing these partnerships, we contribute to the growth and visibility of dance artists. Archive Partnerships: We collaborate with local and international dance archives, shining a spotlight on hidden dance archives and assisting in the interpretation and understanding of their significance. By showcasing these archives, we contribute to the broader appreciation and preservation of dance history. Exhibition Planning and Preparation: Engaging with students, local artists, national and international historians, and archivists, we design and create dynamic "Pop-Up" exhibitions that explore the connections between dance and communities. These exhibitions foster a sense of community engagement and connection. At the Museum of Dance, we are dedicated to creating an inclusive and enriching environment that celebrates the art of dance and its profound impact on our lives. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | Trinity County Arts Council | 55 Sharron Ct. , WEAVERVILLE, CA 96093 | Trinity | Upstate | (530) 623-2760 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, TRINITY COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL ASSOCIATION will pay our overhead costs so that we can serve as a conduit, bridge builder, producer and advocate of accessible arts education for all ages, the professional development of artists and culture bearers, and increased access to artistic opportunities for underserved and historically marginalized communities. We foster cultural vitality, sustainability and pride through culturally relevant artistic experiences, events and programs that empower artists and culture bearers to meaningfully enrich our community, with a commitment to prioritize our most historically marginalized peoples first, and to support a broad spectrum of artistic expression, mediums and traditional cultural practices in order to uplift and nurture the well-being of our county’s diverse creative and cultural ecosystem. | Trinity County Arts Council represents a deeply rural and underserved community and has an abiding commitment to prioritize social and racial equity. Outreach and Access to our underserved communities is highly prioritized and underlies all of our programming, including those regions in the lowest 15% HPI, and underserved cultural communities including the Hmong, Native American, Latinx, LGBTQ+, and the geographically remote. All TCAC programs and services are designed, evaluated, and regularly improved in order to equitably reach all of our citizens, provide direct access to the arts and culture by diverse ages and demographics, and assist in the development of professional artists and community arts organizations while promoting Trinity County as an Arts & Culture Destination. We facilitate arts education for all ages through workshops offered locally and outside of Trinity. We prioritize youth arts education through the Festival of Light Art Music & Dance Scholarship, and Artists in Schools Programs, augmenting k-12 arts education, and involvement in the North State Together internship program. We provide opportunities for musicians and artists to network, exhibit and sell their art through the signature events that we produce. These events have a proven track record for attracting residents and visitors from beyond Trinity County; Monthly Art Walk, Artists in Action, Wintu We Are Still Here Project, Get To Know Your Neighbors Storytelling and Culture Project; Festival of Light Crafts Event and Art, Music and Dance Lessons Scholarship Program, Art 4 Arts Sake, Music in the Park, Trinity Alps Chamber Music Festival, and Trinity Heritage Days Festival. Artists enjoy increased exposure to a wide audience through the Art in Public Places Program. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Clazzical Notes | 50 N. Mentor Ave #430 , PASADENA, CA 91106 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 833-2750 | California's 28th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Clazzical Notes will produce and present a series of live music performances in the greater Pasadena region. It will encompass an eclectic range of musical genres and styles, performed by professional world-class musicians and other artists, including spoken word and dance. Funding will support artist fees, production costs, marketing/public relations, accessibility, and administrative staff. | Clazzical Notes stages music programs that are designed to achieve three goals: engaging individuals through high-quality musical performances; educating audiences through information about culture, history and musical genres; and experiencing unique levels of audience interaction with performers. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | San Diego Made | 2031 Commercial Street , San Diego, CA 92113 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 817-5517 | California's 52nd congressional district | District CA-52 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Diego Made will continue our “My Creative Journey” | “Mi Viaje Creativo” artist residency initiative through a sixth residency serving San Diego’s Promise Zone communities during the FY26 grant activity period. Building on five successfully implemented residencies, including four funded through the City of San Diego Commission for Arts and Culture and one currently supported by a California Arts Council Impact Grant, the project will provide one local artist with free studio space, a living wage stipend, mentorship, and organizational support to develop community centered programming. The artist will lead free bilingual and ADA accessible workshops, artist talks, youth engagement activities, open studio hours, and a culminating exhibition supporting creative entrepreneurship, cultural preservation, and equitable access to arts opportunities. | San Diego Made is an artist-led creative hub that drives social, cultural, and economic opportunities for artists, small businesses, and organizations throughout the region. We’re building a creative ecosystem that equips community members with the resources, support, and connections they need in order to build thriving futures. At our headquarters at the Factory in Logan Heights, our community has access to 12,000 sq. ft. of inspiring studio spaces, event facilities, and exhibition areas where people can hone their craft and showcase their work in a bold, welcoming environment. Through our public programming, artist residencies, and signature maker’s markets, we create immersive experiences that bring creatives and community together—fostering dialogue, sparking collaboration, and promoting meaningful engagement with the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Los Angeles Poet Society | 238 Jessie Street, Unit 4 , San Fernando, CA 91340 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 441-6495 | California Assembly district 39 | District 39 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, the LA Poet Society will be able to sustain our 75 events year-round literary arts programming serving LA County. Funds support operational expenses including artist honoraria, staffing, program coordination, venue costs, outreach, marketing, and administrative infrastructure. Our monthly programming includes weekly typewriter poetry activations in public spaces, multiple open mics across Los Angeles, and online, an inclusive writing circle for all levels, ongoing social media community-building support for creatives. It will also support our annual literary festivals and cultural celebrations such as Women’s Roar, Queer Writers Festival, LA Street Poetry Festival, Always Running Book Festival, and the organization’s annual anniversary celebration. These programs provide free opportunities for creative expression, community connection, and equitable access to the literary arts. Funding will ensure continued access to consistent, community-rooted arts programming. | Our core programming includes organizing and hosting a series of Los Angeles county literary events, currently hosted via online platforms, such as Zoom, and Instagram, and a few in person writing events and open mic offerings since post-pandemic. We offer an average of 75 events a year free to the public including: open mics, writing workshops, mediation practices, author interviews, BIPOC interviews, and more. We have a social justice, BIPOC focused, small press, Los Angeles Poet Society Press, and an online literary journal where we publish poetry, art, and literature. We hold 2-3 poetry contests a year. LAPS conducts poetry workshops within our community for all ages in English and Spanish. These workshops are curated for free to the public so that all people have access to the tools to express themselves and share their voices. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | TONALITY | 325 N Larchmont Suite 306 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90004-6717 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (910) 358-7130 | California's 30th congressional district | District 51 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Tonality will sustain its core operations, including staff salaries, artist/vocalist compensation, and production costs for its annual season of social justice-themed choral concerts. The funds will allow Tonality to maintain its programming infrastructure, deepen partnerships with community organizations, and continue building the organizational capacity needed to grow its reach/impact. Funds will support the continued delivery of full-length seasonal concerts - including programming on issues affecting historically marginalized communities. Funds will also support the Tonality Scholars Choral Education Program, which creates pathways for young Black and brown singers to pursue careers in classical music. Tonality will continue its work as one of the most racially diverse professional choral ensembles in the country: elevating diverse voices, stories, and causes through the power of choral music. | Tonality was established in 2016 to serve as a professional choral environment where racial and ethnic diversity would be represented both in the vocal performers and in the genres of music presented. In its second year, Tonality added an extra focus of presenting topics of social justice, particularly issues that affect the most marginalized within our community. Currently, Tonality is proving to be one of the most racially diverse professional choral ensembles in the country. Our commitment to present diverse composers and perspectives to issues of social justice increases every year. Furthermore, our endeavors to expand diversity extends to our Board of Directors, who also strive to maintain a strong sense of diversity in both racial and gender identities. Lastly, Tonality work's to reflect diversity within the artists and composers is also reflected in the collective mission to serve a diverse audience. Tonality's core programs include its seasonal concerts, Tonality Youth Scholars Choral Education Program, Systems change in classical music Speaker Series and increasing diverse voices in Music, Film, Tv Special Projects. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Imperial Valley Symphony Association | PO BOX 38 , EL CENTRO, CA 92244-0038 | Imperial | Far South | (760) 554-9911 | 25th Congressional District | 36th Assembly District | District 18 | The Imperial Valley Symphony, serving El Centro and the greater Imperial Valley, requests support through the Impact Projects program. Our predominantly Hispanic, underserved community faces barriers to arts access, education, and representation. This project centers a collaborative tour featuring pianist Tian Jiang, engaging local musicians and community members in performances, workshops, and outreach. By elevating artists from a rural border region, we address inequities in cultural representation while fostering intergenerational learning and community connection. Funding will ensure equitable participation, offsetting costs that would otherwise limit access for our musicians. This initiative aligns with Impact Projects’ goals by using artistic practice to address economic disparity, arts access, and cultural equity. With your support, we will amplify underrepresented voices and strengthen community resilience through the arts. | The Imperial Valley Symphony (IVS) is a non-profit community orchestra based in El Centro, California, that provides local musicians a creative outlet and the community access to live classical performances. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,220.00 | Capital Storytelling | 35 Alvares Ct , Sacramento, CA 95833-1143 | Sacramento | Capital | (864) 419-2843 | District 6 | District 6 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, Capital Storytelling will lead 5 community based workshops and one large showcase event through our Immigrant Stories Project. The storytelling workshops will be hosted throughout Sacramento and are intended for first and second generation immigrants to come together and share their true stories with one another in a healing act of community building and solidarity. We will then invite workshop participants to share their stories on stage in front of a live public audience at a culminating showcase event in Sacramento intended to amplify the stories from the immigrant community. Our ultimate goal is to empower immigrants and to change the societal narrative surrounding immigrants. | General Education Program: Oral Storytelling 101 workshop (3 times a year) Oral Storytelling 201 workshop (2 times a year) Podcasting 101 workshop (2 times a year) Events Programming: Monthly Storytelling Open-mic Series (12 times a year) Live Main Event Series (3-4 times a year) Story Ambassadors Program Immigrant Storytelling Program |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | "" | 1532 35th Ave. , Oakland, CA 94601 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 320-6534 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Afro Urban Society will support two part-time positions to carry out our mission of a Black-led community-powered arts & cultural organization dedicated to centering creatives and communities of African descent through professional development trainings, arts & cultural workshops, youth programs, festivals, original and curated productions, arts education, and community engagement activities in the SF Bay Area. AUS provides diverse program offerings that sustains the resiliency, interconnection and unique artistic and cultural expressions and contributions of people of African descent in our society. | Incubate: We curate and host various fellowship and training programs enabling our community members to level up on their creative and artistic craft and practice. Our offerings include: **Lit from the Black!: A design & technical production fellowship and training program for Black womxn and gender non-binary people to create a professional career pathway into the field **Onye Ozi Artist Fellowship: A multidisciplinary artistic exchange and inquiry on Afro-diasporic relations and identity **Afro Culture Kids Camp: Pan African Arts & Culture camp for school-age children Celebrate: We celebrate the work of community of artists and creatives with and through performance, cultural expression, media, and community events such as: **Bakanal de Afrique: bi-annual multidisciplinary festival that explores and celebrates the odyssey of urban Afro-descended people through art and culture **Gbedu Town Radio: Afro-pop ensemble of dancers and musicians **Afro Urban Dance Community Workshops and Events Elevate: **Connect our community members with work opportunities beyond Afro Urban Society **Share about the work of Artists through our various online and in-print publications **One3snapshot design collective: Original & Unique apparel, merch, publications and art |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | KDA | PO BOX 12407 , BAKERSFIELD, CA 93389-2407 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 491-5376 | California's 23rd Congressional District | District 34 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council KERN DANCE ALLIANCE (KDA) will produce the 11th annual Books in Motion: DANCE + LITERACY, a free, multilingual summer reading program fostering literacy through the arts for 5,000 children (ages 0-9) in Kern County’s underserved communities. Targeting low-income and marginalized youth, Books in Motion delivers 50+ dance performances across 30 Kern County libraries, educational institutions, and community centers. Children engage with literature through performances, choreography, crafts, and free books. With American Sign Language (ASL) services and Spanish-language offerings, Books in Motion ensures inclusivity. By integrating dance with Common Core literacy standards, Books in Motion cultivates critical thinking, cultural responsiveness, and positive self-expression, empowering youth in a region with limited arts access. Funds will support artist honorariums, books, craft supplies, and accessibility accommodations to transform lives through equitable arts education. | KDA serves a diverse population through our programs: - ADAPTIdance®: DANCE + DISABILITY offers adaptive dance classes for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. - BOOKS IN MOTION®: DANCE + LITERACY links dance and literacy to inspire children to read. - CHILDREN'S DANCE EDUCATION + OUTREACH PROGRAM provides at-risk youth with an afternoon of dance at the Bakersfield Fox Theater. - DANCING with the ANGELS connects foster care families through the arts. - HealingMOTION: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for cancer patients and survivors. - KDA INDIVIDUAL ARTISTS FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM provides unrestricted funds to individual artists living in California's Central Valley and Eastern Sierra counties. - NATIONAL DANCE DAY provides a celebratory day of dance classes for the community to enjoy. - NATIONAL HONORS SOCIETY FOR DANCE ARTS recognizes artistic merit, leadership, and academic achievement in students studying dance. - MemoryMOVES®: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients. - MightyMOVERS: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for pediatrics patients. - OPEN STAGE affords creatives access to the Bakersfield Fox Theater’s technical staff and theater amenities for free. - PASO A PASO utilizes dance to support empowerment through life-skills workshops for Kern County high school girls, specifically Latinas. - SHINE DANCE + MATH = SUCCESS combines dance with math to improve girls’ math scores and spark interest in STEAM. - TASTE OF DANCE celebrates cultural diversity in Kern County by showcasing cultures through culinary and performing arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | KDA | PO BOX 12407 , BAKERSFIELD, CA 93389-2407 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 491-5376 | California's 23rd Congressional District | District 34 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, KERN DANCE ALLIANCE (KDA) will fund general operations, including but not limited to artist honorariums, resources for people with disabilities, marketing initiatives, and event facility fees. This support will advance KDA’s mission to provide equitable arts access in Kern County’s underserved Central Valley, reaching up to 200,000 residents. Inclusive programs like ADAPTIdance: DANCE + DISABILITY, Books in Motion: DANCE + LITERACY, and MemoryMOVES: DANCE + THERAPY deliver transformative arts education, literacy, and therapy programs to marginalized groups, including youth, disabled individuals, and low-income communities. By sustaining KDA's general operating procedures, the grant will ensure KDA fosters creativity, empowerment, and cultural engagement by bridging divides and uplifting cultural vitality throughout the region. | KDA serves a diverse population through our programs: - ADAPTIdance®: DANCE + DISABILITY offers adaptive dance classes for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. - BOOKS IN MOTION®: DANCE + LITERACY links dance and literacy to inspire children to read. - CHILDREN'S DANCE EDUCATION + OUTREACH PROGRAM provides at-risk youth with an afternoon of dance at the Bakersfield Fox Theater. - DANCING with the ANGELS connects foster care families through the arts. - HealingMOTION: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for cancer patients and survivors. - KDA INDIVIDUAL ARTISTS FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM provides unrestricted funds to individual artists living in California's Central Valley and Eastern Sierra counties. - NATIONAL DANCE DAY provides a celebratory day of dance classes for the community to enjoy. - NATIONAL HONORS SOCIETY FOR DANCE ARTS recognizes artistic merit, leadership, and academic achievement in students studying dance. - MemoryMOVES®: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients. - MightyMOVERS: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for pediatrics patients. - OPEN STAGE affords creatives access to the Bakersfield Fox Theater’s technical staff and theater amenities for free. - PASO A PASO utilizes dance to support empowerment through life-skills workshops for Kern County high school girls, specifically Latinas. - SHINE DANCE + MATH = SUCCESS combines dance with math to improve girls’ math scores and spark interest in STEAM. - TASTE OF DANCE celebrates cultural diversity in Kern County by showcasing cultures through culinary and performing arts. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | A.B.O. Comix | 2520 Telegraph Ave. , Oakland, CA 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (619) 727-9771 | California's 13th congressional district | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Abolition Inc will develop and produce The Things We Made in Captivity: Lessons in Art, Survival, and Freedom with Queer/Trans Prisoners, a collaborative illustrated book documenting ten years of A.B.O. Comix’s arts, publishing, correspondence, and community-building work with incarcerated and formerly incarcerated LGBTQ2S+ artists. CAC funds will support archival review, manuscript development, contributor consultation, editorial labor, design, image preparation, accessibility materials, printing, and public engagement. The project will gather artwork, letters, comics, interviews, essays, and first-person reflections exploring censorship, chosen family, survival, grief, reentry, creativity, and abolitionist care. The book will be shared through an initial printed publication and related Oakland-based community programming that connects public audiences with the art, stories, and cultural knowledge of system-impacted queer and trans artists. | Publishing and Artist Development Abolition Inc DBA A.B.O. Comix provides a publishing and artistic development platform for incarcerated and system-impacted LGBTQ2S+ artists and writers. We work with contributors to develop artwork, writing, comics, memoir, and other creative projects, provide editorial support, and help artists build skills, portfolios, and credentials. Programs include annual comic anthologies, solo publications, autobiographical works, omnibus collections, and multi-volume comic series. Artist Compensation and Material Support We fundraise for and provide financial assistance to incarcerated LGBTQ2S+ contributors and community members, especially those with little or no outside support. Revenue from publications, events, and donations is reinvested into commissary assistance, supplies, reentry needs, and material aid. Correspondence, Community Connection, and Solidarity We maintain LGBTQ2S+ community contact, friendship, and support across prison walls through correspondence, contributor relationships, referrals, and ongoing communication. We connect incarcerated artists with outside organizations, publishers, advocacy groups, and resources that support their creative, legal, personal, or reentry needs. Public Education, Exhibitions, and Community Engagement We introduce the public to the experiences, creativity, and political realities of LGBTQ2S+ people impacted by incarceration through publications, exhibitions, workshops, book/zine fairs, community events, public programs, and collaborations. Oral History and Media Through long-form interviews, podcast production, and narrative media, we document the experiences of currently and formerly incarcerated contributors, advocates, organizers, and people working in solidarity with those inside prisons. Reentry, Parole, and Homecoming Support We provide parole and reentry support for LGBTQ2S+ people preparing for release or returning home, including recommendation letters, documentation of artistic participation, referrals, resource navigation, community connection, and material support. Community Space and Organizational Infrastructure We maintain a physical space that supports programming, community gatherings, volunteer engagement, outreach, and collaboration with aligned organizations. Our space helps us reach neighbors, build local relationships, host safer community activities, and sustain long-term arts and solidarity work. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Polaris Education Foundation | 5125 BRANDING IRON PL , RCH CUCAMONGA, CA 91739-2273 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (909) 975-1588 | With support from the California Arts Council, POLARIS EDUCATION FOUNDATION will present the 4th annual Harmony of Hearts Young Art Exhibition, a free community-based visual arts program serving historically underserved K–12 youth throughout the Inland Empire, including students from Title I schools, multilingual families, and youth with disabilities. The project will provide equitable access to public arts engagement through youth art exhibitions, workshops, artist demonstrations, multilingual outreach, and accessibility accommodations. Activities will take place at ADA-compliant community venues, including the Goldy S. Lewis Community Center, and will connect schools, families, artists, and community partners through inclusive arts experiences. CAC funds will support youth arts programming, exhibition production, accessibility resources, multilingual community outreach, and public engagement activities that uplift youth voices, cultural identity, and creative expression through the visual arts. | The Polaris Education Foundation is passionately committed to nurturing the educational, artistic, and personal growth of K–12 students, especially those from low-income and multicultural backgrounds. Our core programs provide free or low-cost access to high-quality arts and enrichment experiences, ensuring that every child has the opportunity to explore their creativity and connect with their community. Youth Arts Programs (Flagship Focus): At the center of our mission is a deep commitment to youth arts. Our flagship program, the Harmony of Hearts Young Art Exhibition, celebrates the creative voices of hundreds of young artists annually, offering a public platform for self-expression, confidence-building, and cultural connection. In addition, we provide year-round art workshops, exhibitions, and hands-on creative activities that inspire youth and foster a lasting appreciation for the arts. Creative and Cultural Enrichment Programs: We offer a variety of free or affordable programs that support artistic growth and cultural learning, including: • Visual Arts & Crafting Clubs – where students explore drawing, painting, mixed media, and design. • Little Chef & Culinary Arts – introducing creativity through cooking, presentation, and cultural traditions. • Girls’ Dance & Cultural Expression – combining movement, music, and heritage to build confidence and community. • Themed Art Camps & Seasonal Projects – including rock painting, pin-making, and multicultural crafts tied to community events. By making the arts accessible to all, Polaris cultivates creativity, celebrates diversity, and supports the development of confident, expressive, and connected youth. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $9,000.00 | Black Butte Center for Railroad Culture | 800 BLACK BUTTE RD , WEED, CA 96094-9705 | Siskiyou | Upstate | (530) 938-3856 | California Assembly district 1 (for now) | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Black Butte Center for Railroad Culture will sustain and expand programming as an explicitly anti-racist, all-volunteer arts nonprofit in rural, under-resourced Siskiyou County. We host art shows, concerts, zine releases, and community events in our restored railcar gallery and performance spaces in Weed. Our programming centers the working-class and immigrant histories of North American railroad culture, in solidarity with the Lao community of south Weed, undocumented migrants, and LGBTQ railroad enthusiasts. This grant would help us pay artist and curator honoraria, cover outreach and marketing, print and design exhibitions and zines, rent equipment, and contract bookkeeping and admin support. It would expand our community reach, ease volunteer burnout, and sustain BBCRC as one of the region's few multidisciplinary arts venues. | On-site library and art gallery space in a restored Pacific Fruit Express boxcar. This includes an evolving archive of materials, including many rare historic documents and photographs. The gallery normally hosts 2-3 art shows per year. Ongoing development of the online "Hobo Bibliography" the most comprehensive resource on books, journal articles and other materials on this subject ever assembled. This has included a past partnership with the University of Washington's Library Studies Program. Assistance to travelers visiting our site (food, cooking facilities, camping facilities, caboose accommodations during inclement weather, rail travel information). Collaboration with the California State Railway Museum in Sacramento to save and restore the historic 1888 Southern Pacific Pullman car 109, "Shasta." The car was based in Dunsmuir during the early 1900s and is now back in Siskiyou County after being donated by CSRM to BBCRC. Outreach though www.bbcrc.org website, monthly newsletter reaching over 600 people, maintaining an email list serve for 250 people and social media Visitor center featuring eight historic railcars, several of which have been converted to functional uses, as well as other interpretive resources. Production of booklets, pamphlets/zines and music CDs Events including music shows, art displays, volunteer work events. Engagement with local arts and creative communities in Siskiyou County through participation in the annual Dunsmuir Railroad Days event, collaborations with the Siskiyou Arts Museum, Siskiyou County Arts Council, Siskiyou Land Trust and various special events. Partnership with The Long Memory (memorial foundation set up to honor the legacy of famed folk musician Utah Phillips) through hosting the organization's Flanger (similar to a caboose) Car and 1-2 yearly events. Forest restoration work on 50-acre site including wildfire risk reduction and forest resilience, prescribed burning, enhancement of wildlife habitat. Partnership with Railway Workers United to protect the interests of rail workers. Advocacy for undocumented migrants. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | ARTERITANO FOUNDATION | 607 ELMIRA RD PMB 364 , VACAVILLE, CA 95687-4655 | Solano | Capital | (832) 585-4823 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTERITANO FOUNDATION will sustain and strengthen its core operations in service of its mission to preserve, promote, and celebrate Hispanic arts and culture in Vacaville and greater Solano County. Grant funds will support organizational infrastructure including artistic programming, community engagement, administrative operations, and the continued development of the foundation's five core programs — Raices, the Arteritano Flamenco Training Program, Carmen, Tertulias, and Entretejidas. As the only organization in Solano County dedicated to the full depth of Hispanic artistic traditions, the Arteritano Foundation serves Latino immigrant families, underserved youth, seniors, and the broader Vacaville community through culturally responsive, bilingual programming that preserves living traditions at risk of being lost and builds a more inclusive cultural future for our city. | Our programs span education, performance, cultural preservation, and community gathering. Raices is our school residency program bringing flamenco and Hispanic cultural arts directly into Vacaville classrooms. In our pilot at Markham Elementary, we served 120 students and families through a multi-week residency culminating in a school performance. Raices is expanding to additional schools in 2026, supported by Vacaville Unified School District. The Arteritano Flamenco Training Program offers EFA-accredited flamenco instruction for all ages — from Pre-Flamenco for children as young as five through adult levels — at two studio locations in Vacaville. Students train toward Spain-recognized examinations and feed into the Arteritano Flamenco Company pipeline. Carmen is our annual flagship production — a flamenco ballet adaptation of the opera presented each September-October during Hispanic Heritage Month at the Vacaville Performing Arts Theatre. Now in its third year, Carmen is the cultural anchor of Hispanic Heritage Month in our region. Tertulias are monthly community gatherings where students, families, and neighbors share food, explore a cultural theme, and deepen their connection to Hispanic traditions. Low-barrier, multilingual, and community-generated. Entretejidas is our cultural preservation and exchange program — documenting and transmitting traditional artisan practices from Latin America and Spain, beginning with Peruvian weaving traditions through our Rotary International partnership. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | LOMPOC VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION | 119 E CYPRESS AVE , LOMPOC, CA 93436-6801 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 737-1129 | With support from the California Arts Council, LOMPOC VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION will anchor local arts access and solidify organizational capacity in the Lompoc Valley. Assistance with general operating expenses and procedural documentation through a generational leadership transition is critical to the organization in the coming year. Funds will also sustain consistent outreach, clearer public communications, and free monthly programming through Cypress Gallery, broadening local impact. LVAA will preserve and strengthen volunteer-led operations while improving the systems that keep those operations viable: member onboarding, gallery procedures, marketing coordination, accessibility information, and public program planning. To ensure creative labor in Lompoc is fairly compensated, grant funds will also provide stipends for member artists and presenters who lead free public programs. | Each month, the Cypress Gallery brings to our community a new show of art, planned and arranged by its members. The gallery is owned and operated by the Lompoc Valley Art Association, an active community organization that has drawn local artists together since 1965. Desiring a permanent, public space to exhibit their artwork, LVAA established the Cypress Gallery in 1994, creating a local art space for the benefit of all. Members include both amateur and professional artists, who work in a wide range of media, and businesses / organizations interested in or promoting the arts. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Laity Institute of the Arts | 3053 RNCH VST BLVD STE H336 , PALMDALE, CA 93551-4823 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 200-5695 | California Assembly district 36 | District 36 | District 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, Laity Theatre Company (dba Laity Institute of the Arts) will sustain and enhance its LEAP (Laity Education Arts Program) — an after-school program in art, animation, acting, dance, and music for underserved and marginalized students in grades K–8 across the Antelope Valley. Grant funds will support key operational costs, including hiring professional instructors, securing program materials, and extending our instructional day by one additional hour. | Laity's Organization's Core Programs and Services are courses in: Art, Animation, Ceramic Arts, Dance, Drama and Music. These courses are taught by professional and semi-professional artist in their field of study. Our courses are designed to help increase the overall awareness in the visual and performing arts in schools, and the tremendous role they play in the overall development of the student. Laity has developed the Laity Education Arts Program. LEAP is an after-school arts program designed to help augment and support the teaching of the arts during the traditional school day with a comprehensive content-based arts program. To reach this goal, LIA focuses on three key areas: · Skills – what the student learns from the instructor · Confidence - how the student executes what he/she has learned · Motivation – what the student is willing to learn next To achieve this classes in art, animation, ceramic art, dance, drama and music are taught after school 3 hours a day Monday through Friday. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Bob Baker Marionette Theatre | 4949 YORK BLVD , LOS ANGELES, CA 90042-1609 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 250-9995 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | Bob Baker Marionette Theater (BBMT) will offer 23 low- and no-cost field trips for Title I schools in the California Healthy Places Index's lower quartiles, pairing our marionette performances with a post-show social-emotional workshop facilitated by BBMT's puppeteers. Workshops align with California T-SEL Competencies and extend into the classroom through an existing CAC-supported standards-aligned K–5 take-home curriculum. CAC funds will sustain the subsidized field trip program for majority Title I schools by providing 20 field trips ($10 subsidy per child @80 children each), broaden reach by adding three fully subsidized trips ($25 per child) with dedicated outreach and coordination in identified HPI Q1 service gaps, and improve its quality by investing $2,500 in professional development to advance our puppeteers as teaching artists, and $373 to design and implement an observation rubric to evaluate student learning. | Our annual programming focuses on performances, educational workshops and cultural events. We inspire and educate over 100,000 intergenerational Angelenos annually through world-class puppetry performances in-theater, touring shows, community and civic events, field trips and educational workshops in collaboration with artist partners, our annual free community festival, Bob Baker Day, traveling exhibitions, and special musical and performance events with cultural partners. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | CLA | 2 MARINA BLVD FORT MASON CTR C-265, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94123-0000 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 775-7200 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, California Lawyers for the Arts (CLA) will continue to provide legal, educational and dispute resolution programs and services for artists and arts organizations throughout California, while expanding access to job training, mentorship and career counseling through creative workforce development programs for under-resourced youth and formerly incarcerated persons. | Our core services include legal consultations with attorneys who specialize in arts and entertainment fields; alternative dispute resolution services, including negotiations counselling, conciliation, mediation, arbitration, and facilitation; education programs that are designed to help artists and arts organization leaders understand legal rights, relationships and responsibilities so that they can become more sustainable; and arts workforce development programs for youth and adults. Since the organization's inception in 1974, we have also been engaged in advocacy to support artists' rights, freedom of expression, and public funding for the arts. Cross sector initiatives have included community development, arts and environment, and arts in corrections. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $9,282.00 | TeenTix LA | 1000 N. Alameda Street Suite 240 - TeenTix LA, Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 802-0807 | California’s 34th Congressional District | 54th Assembly District | 26th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, TeenTix LA will partner with the Skirball Cultural Center to create a youth-led arts activation as part of the annual Skirball Puppet Festival. Through TeenTix LA’s Internship Program and the Skirball Teen Advisory Council will collaborate with Skirball staff, teaching artists, and TeenTix LA staff to design a “Teen Space” within the festival. Participants will gain experience in puppetry, storytelling, event planning, marketing, audience engagement, and arts administration while helping shape the festival experience for peers. The project will include collaborative planning sessions, workshops, and creative development before the festival. During the event, teens will facilitate activities in a welcoming, youth-centered environment. This project advances Creative Youth Development by positioning teens as creators and leaders while fostering creativity, belonging, collaboration, and wellbeing through meaningful in-person arts engagement. | TeenTix LA expands equitable access to the arts for teens across Los Angeles County through two core programs: the TeenTix Pass Program and the TeenTix Internship Program. The TeenTix Pass Program provides free membership to teens ages 13–19, giving them access to $5 day-of-show tickets at 40+ arts and cultural partners across Los Angeles, including theaters, museums, music venues, and more. Through a curated online calendar, TeenTix LA demystifies the arts-going experience and empowers teens to independently discover and attend events that reflect their interests. The TeenTix Internship Program offers paid, hands-on learning opportunities for young people to build skills in arts administration, marketing, and community engagement. Interns contribute directly to program outreach, content creation, and event activation, ensuring that teen voice remains central to all aspects of the organization’s work. Together, these programs remove financial and cultural barriers to arts participation while cultivating the next generation of arts audiences, advocates, and leaders. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Community Arts & Empowerment | 240 MAPLE AVE , WATSONVILLE, CA 95076-4815 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 498-6048 | With support from the California Arts Council, COMMUNITY ARTS & EMPOWERMENT will foster intergenerational healing and cultural connection through a collaborative public art installation at Watsonville's Senior Center. CAC funds will support California-based artist Julian De La Cruz to co-create a large-scale painted mural integrating hand-crafted mosaic butterflies made by paired youth and senior community members. At least 40 butterfly mosaics — each a collaboration between one young person and one elder — will be designed and fabricated together, centering community voice and multigenerational artistic practice. The completed work will adorn the newly renovated Senior Center, creating a lasting, publicly accessible symbol of resilience and shared cultural identity for Watsonville's historically under resourced Latinx community. Youth participants will also assist Jessica in painting the surrounding mural. | Through community engagement, we help identify the values of a neighborhood and the visual aesthetics of its members. We seek out local artists to assist in the design of local community-based public artwork and facilitate community builds for the fabrication of permanent public art. Our process empowers communities by encouraging their members to spend time with each other, defining their social and physical identities. Returning individuals teach and learn new skills together for the benefit of all; transforming a physical space into a magical place. We operate a free after-school mosaic arts center in Watsonville for youth aged 11-22. We are open 5 days a week for 25 hours. Youth are engaged in all the phases needed to create public art mosaics in their community. Our largest project is called Watsonville Brillante, and consists of 12,500 square feet of mosaics covering the Watsonville Civic Parking Garage. Our process empowers communities by encouraging its members to spend time with each other defining their social and physical identities. Returning individuals teach and learn new skills together for the benefit of the all; transforming a physical space into a magical place. We operate a free afterschool mosaic arts center in Watsonville for youth aged 11-22. We are open 5 days a week for 25 hours. Youth are engaged in all the phases needed to create public art mosaics in thier community. Our current project is called Watsonville Brillante and when completed will consist of 12,500 square feet of mosaics covering the Watsonville Civic Parking Garage. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Safe Black Space | 1026 FLORIN RD #294 , SACRAMENTO, CA 95831-3513 | Sacramento | Capital | (530) 683-5101 | 7th Congressional District | 10 | 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAFE BLACK SPACE will sustain staffing and operations to continue culturally grounded arts, healing, and wellness programming for historically under-resourced Sacramento County communities. SAFE BLACK SPACE is a California-based 501(c)(3) nonprofit with eight years of African diasporic arts and wellness programming, including the Kwanzaa Kutoa Celebration, drumming, healing circles, book clubs, and visual/spoken word events. Programs create trusted spaces for cultural expression, healing, and community connection in Sacramento neighborhoods including Oak Park and Del Paso Heights, both identified as lower-resource areas in the California Healthy Places Index. This is our first CAC grant. The requested $30,000 will support staff salaries, ensuring program continuity, stability, and year-round service. Funding will allow SAFE BLACK SPACE to maintain accessible in-person and virtual programming that strengthens cultural identity and fosters creative expression. | Safe Black Space implements cultural and community-driven healing and connection activities. • Community Healing and African Drum Circles: Facilitating safe environments for emotional processing of racial stress and trauma and connecting with Black culture and joy. Inclusive of artistic forms of healing. • Wellness Activities: Providing culturally rooted self and community care services that increase health and wellness, such as African-centered yoga, sound baths, stress management techniques • Culturally Anchored Events: Hosting gatherings like the annual Kwanzaa Kutoa Celebration which affirm identity, build social cohesion, and celebrate community honorees. • Educational Outreach: Providing healing-centered education, meditation sessions, and book study groups to equip participants with long-term coping strategies. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | East West Players | 120 Judge John Aiso St. , Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 625-7000 | California's 34th Congressional district | District 54 | District 26 | East West Players (EWP) will enhance its Theater for Youth (TFY) program, reaching more Southern California students. TFY commissions and produces plays centering significant AAPI historical figures, providing free or low-cost performances to schools, as well as public audiences via libraries and community partners. The 2026-27 production is a revival of Rosie Narasaki’s WHEN YURI MET MALCOM, first produced by EWP in 2022. This play explores the legacy of civil rights activist Yuri Kochiyama through her unlikely friendship with Malcolm X. Audiences follow Yuri’s life from Japanese American internment to her decades of subsequent activism. Support will help us serve up to 5,000 students through 40 performances and enable us to collect teacher feedback, ensuring the program's effectiveness and enriching students' understanding of AAPI history while promoting empathy and critical thinking skills. | EWP’s signature programs are its mainstage productions. Each season they produce three to five original and classic works (including one musical and at least one world premiere), hire hundreds of creative and technical personnel, and nearly 20,000 audience members, all of which contribute to the Little Tokyo community and its businesses. To supplement EWP’s mainstage productions, throughout the year they program free community conversations, readings, and workshops of new works to explore current issues affecting our society, such as immigration, houselessness, and mental health. EWP’s largest arts education programs are Theatre for Youth (TFY) and EWPlay!: TFY commissions playwrights to devise a script centered around notable Asian American historical figures. It is fully produced and performed in schools, libraries, and community centers all over Los Angeles County at little to no cost for host venues. Performances are 45 minutes. Tours are accompanied by a standards-based study guide to help educators frame and explore the themes of the play in the classroom. EWPlay! is an after-school program for middle schoolers that introduces youth to the theatre arts and connects students with AAPI culture and experience. More than 60% of student audiences are from underserved Title I schools. As one participant from Palms Middle School explains: “One thing I learned is to be myself no matter what anybody else thinks of me, and no matter who is judging me, to be myself because if they’re not gonna like me for who I am, they don’t deserve to know me. What I liked about these classes were how free we were to be ourselves and how we could express ourselves in the way I personally loved.” Arts education programs extend beyond youth programming with our year-round adult Professional Enrichment courses, designed to provide training to the next generation of entertainment industry professionals. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Lotus Tao Culture Association | 1038 POWELL ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108-1514 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 999-6101 | California’s 11th Congressional District | California State Assembly District 19 | California State Senate District 11 | The Lotus Tao Culture Association (LTCA) requests California Arts Council support for its traditional Kung Fu youth program, a weekly arts education initiative serving K–12 youth in San Francisco's Chinatown. Led by Sifu Richard Ow of the Yau Kung Moon system, the program integrates traditional Cantonese martial arts with Taoist (an indigenous Chinese folk spirituality) culture, history, and public performance — serving low-income immigrant youth and children of immigrants who face significant barriers to culturally relevant arts engagement. CAC funds will be used to compensate lead artist Sifu Richard Ow and teaching assistants, transition the program to a pay-what-you-can model to expand access, and support public performances at community events throughout Chinatown. The grant period runs February through August 2027, culminating in a final student presentation at LTCA's annual Hungry Ghost Festival in San Francisco. | LTCA's programs serve the full arc of community life — from daily spiritual practice to major public ceremony — offering pathways for immigrants, elders, youth, and anyone seeking connection to Chinese cultural heritage. At the temple on Irving Street, open daily, LTCA offers ongoing classes in Taoist meditation, Chi Gong, chanting, and Taoist Kung Fu classes for youth. These practices draw on centuries of Taoist understanding of the body, breath, and energy, adapted to meet the needs of a contemporary immigrant community navigating the pressures of daily life in America. Joss divination and personalized spiritual consultations provide guidance to community members across life's transitions, maintaining the temple's role as a cornerstone of community wellness. LTCA also leads and participates in key Chinatown festivals and public ceremonies that mark the Chinese ritual calendar. These include the Hungry Ghost Festival at Portsmouth Square — where LTCA performs Keyi for the spirits of the living and the dead, culminating in a neighborhood-wide procession of the Ghost King — as well as Qing Ming (Chinese Day of the Dead) memorials at Bay Area cemeteries, Lunar New Year blessing ceremonies, among many other community events and celebrations. LTCA also led the blessing ceremony for the opening of Rose Pak Central Station in Chinatown. Central to all of LTCA's programming is the transmission of ritual knowledge to the next generation. Through formal apprenticeship, mentorship within the temple community, and the intentional inclusion of youth and women in ritual leadership, LTCA actively works to ensure that the Lung Moon lineage does not end with its current generation of practitioners. Each ceremony is simultaneously a community offering and a classroom — a living demonstration that these traditions are not relics, but a vital, evolving expression of who we are. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Pacific Opera Project | 125 S. Avenue 57 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90042 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 739-6122 | 34th Congressional District | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pacific Opera Project will sustain and scale our education and engagement programming, connecting the diverse communities of Northeast Los Angeles to live opera. CAC funds will support a new FY27 touring production of #Superflute (Mozart's The Magic Flute) at 10 libraries and schools, including communities recovering from the Altadena/Pasadena wildfires; POP's first early childhood family programming, The Very Hungry Caterpillar & Other Stories (August 2026); and continued growth of ¡Cuentos Cantados!, the only Spanish-language opera education program in Los Angeles. Funds will also support FY27 compensation increases for artists and staff, supporting the infrastructure behind POP’s 16th season. | Founded in 2011 by Artistic Director Josh Shaw, POP produces 4-5 fully staged operas with orchestra annually. POP’s team includes 3 FT and 7 PT staff, c. 40 volunteers, and c. 150 contracted artists. With tickets starting at $15, POP’s production model attracts audiences seeking an accessible entry point while high artistic standards sustain our devoted audience base. POP’s institutional maturity is reflected in its inclusion on the LA Times “Best of 2024 in Classical Music” list. POP’s Education & Engagement Department (est. 2021) helps youth and adults experience opera as a vehicle for human connection and creativity through free and low-cost educational school residencies and community performances. Core Programs 1. Mainstage Programs POP produces 4-5 staged operas each season. With a base of $15-$35 tickets, POP prioritizes access for newcomers and underserved audiences. POP’s trademark style features adventurous reimaginings of classic operas, such as our Super Mario Bros.-themed staging of Mozart's The Magic Flute. POP continues to expand its commitment to culturally-centered storytelling through productions such as a Japanese/English bilingual Madama Butterfly 蝶々夫人, featuring a predominantly AAPI cast and creative team, and Spanish-language works by Latine creators, including Héctor Armienta’s Zorro, and Foglia & Martinez’s Cruzar la cara de la luna, strengthening engagement with Los Angeles’ diverse communities. Since 2011, POP has produced 70 mainstage productions, most livestreamed for free and available on our site with 416K+ views. 2. Youth Programs POP’s equity-based Youth Education Programs serve K–12 students, strengthening well-being through creative expression and access to professional arts experiences. Our four in-school residencies, including a Spanish-language program, extend learning beyond the classroom through free student attendance at mainstage dress rehearsals and the option to participate in POP’s Youth Chorus. 3. Highland Park Recital Series A culturally expansive recital series at POP's Highland Park headquarters, showcasing emerging artists. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Opera Modesto | 1214 11th St #3 , MODESTO, CA 95354 | Stanislaus | Central Valley | (209) 523-6426 | California's 10th congressional district | District 21 | District 5 | With support from the California Arts Council, Opera Modesto, Inc. will be able to continue to provide high caliber opera education and performance opportunities to youth living in the Central Valley of California through our Summer Opera Institute, Story-Into-Song Literacy Initiative, free dress rehearsal performances for students, the Kristina Townsend Memorial Competition, and our newly launched Opera In The Schools program. | Opera Modesto produces three main-stage operas per season, featuring a combination of local, regional, national and international talent; also producing several high level concerts per season, as well as intimate concerts throughout the region. The company is investing in new modes of community engagement, impact and collaboration. One such initiative is the annual Story Into Song Literacy Initiative, combining reading of great literature with the imaginative power of live performance and opera, performed in a welcoming alternative venue. Opera Modesto provides free short and long form Curriculum Companion Guides to all schools, after school programs and homeschoolers who attend. The production draws attention and business to downtown area of Modesto, while playing for public and thousands of "Readers" (students of all ages reading the source books). For since 2022, this innovative community initiative has more than doubled each year. In 2026 it reached 13,000+ students TK-12th & University from 5 counties with performances in 11 regional community theaters. Opera Modesto is very proactive in collaborating with other arts companies in the region, including Ballet Tradiciones Folklorico, Stanislaus County Libraries, Central West Ballet, Modesto Symphony Orchestra and Stanislaus Arts Council. Opera Modesto's year-round TOP Young Artists program (educational and training) includes an inclusive, low-tuition, annual conservatory level Summer Opera Institute for teens (13-18 years old), concluding with a free admission public concert. 50% of the diverse youth artists are provided with need based full or partial scholarships. An annual multi-cultural concert encourages performers of all ages to investigate the languages and musical styles of their ancestors, educating themselves, their families and the public about the diverse make up of the central valley region (often includes 13+ languages). In addition, hundreds of performing arts students are invited to attend mainstage production dress rehearsals and performances for free. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | ConAmor Building Bridges | PO BOX 1573 , TWAIN HARTE, CA 95383-1573 | Tuolumne | Central Valley | (209) 768-3615 | District 5 | District 8 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, ConAmor Building Bridges project will advance a more inclusive historical narrative at Columbia Historic State Park by centering the essential—yet long overlooked—contributions of Latino and Mexican pioneers. History is not fixed; it is shaped by who is invited to speak and whose stories are heard. While the Gold Rush is typically framed through a Eurocentric lens, this initiative reframes the story through the 1862 Cinco de Mayo origin event, a pivotal moment in Tuolumne County’s multicultural past. The public will experience this shift through an immersive cultural festival featuring traditional and contemporary performances, bilingual storytelling, and interpretive exhibits. By reclaiming this narrative, the project highlights the political agency of the Mexican community and lays the groundwork for a more accurate and inclusive understanding of California’s Gold Rush heritage. | Our programs aim to transform community relationships by honoring multicultural art and history, amplifying underrepresented voices, and fostering meaningful dialogue across differences. One of the placemaking strategies chosen by ConAmor is the use of a multicultural festival framework. Festivals create ongoing opportunities for dialogue and negotiation within communities, as individuals and groups explore meaningful concepts of identity, belonging and dynamics of exclusion. Celebrations like these offer a sense of joy, and shared pride while opening space to embrace art, collective histories, and a diversity of cultural expressions that challenge discriminatory values. Multicultural festivals also provide powerful opportunities to educate younger generations about artistic and cultural traditions, beliefs, and practices They help strengthen protective factors -connection, cultural pride, intergenerational learning, and community cohesion- that benefit everyone in our region. Our approach: Civic Engagement: Programs that elevate marginalized voices and expand participation in local decision making. Cultural Celebrations: Events that honor immigrant contributions and strengthen community pride. Educational Initiatives: Articles, publications, and public facing materials that bring overlooked art and history into mainstream. Bridge Building Dialogues: Spaces that invite exchange and reflection, moving us toward stronger community connection. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Civic Design Studio | 4124 MacArthur Blvd. Suite B , Oakland, CA 94619 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 381-2013 | 12th Congressional district of California | 18 | 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Civic Design Studio will advance our organization’s capacity to spearhead a burgeoning movement of creativity, community, education and ecology that has local to international reach. We are considered cultural ambassadors in our city and beyond where we are bridging a wide network of local artists, cultural practitioners, and community leaders to create large-scale award-winning public art. Funds will enable us to build creative workforce pathways for multigenerational creatives, builders, and urban planners living and working in Oakland and across the Bay Area. We will provide paid art opportunities for historically underserved youth and individuals to guide them post graduation into creative and community serving fields. Our multi-collaborative initiatives are generative, tipping point efforts that weave communities together to beautify, activate and enrich our public and shared spaces. | Our core programs and services are Creative Industry Pathways and Urban Agroecology, focusing on education integration and industry pathway development in both sectors. All of our projects focus on bringing together local schools and artists, community, and creative industry partners towards civic change across a city and its underserved, diverse communities. We make an intentional effort to work with multigenerational and multi-ethnic communities to create public displays and spaces to affirm the expression and visibility of our diverse neighborhoods in the Bay Area. To demonstrate, with our Urban Agroecology initiative, we have worked alongside high school students and teachers to create environmentally focused large-scale art and design pieces aimed to improve local neighborhoods by enriching public spaces while expanding cultural zones. Already, we’ve facilitated urban agroecology projects where students constructed and installed over 100+ planters that are spread throughout East Oakland neighborhoods and small businesses as a way to increase environmental awareness and to foster sustainable practices. With our Creative Industry Pathways, we have held cultural events and art celebrations in Old Oakland and Chinatown from 2018 to present that bring together folks from all races, economic backgrounds, and ages to convene. In doing so, we worked with local businesses and merchants to facilitate the events and to bring positive recognition. We’ve also worked directly with local artists to create murals, art installations, and lantern displays that have been seen throughout Chinatown, East Oakland, Fruitvale and Little Saigon to symbolize the rich history and cultures of those communities. Our impact programs work with local artists, schools, and cultural practitioners to help beautify the neighborhoods with public art and creative displays. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Visalia Art League | 1902 S. Pinkham , VISALIA, CA 93292 | Tulare | Central Valley | (559) 972-0981 | US House District 20 | 33rd Assembly District | Senate District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Visalia Art League (VAL) will secure and sustain a dedicated, accessible facility in the City of Visalia. Grant funds will support rent, utilities, and basic facility setup, enabling consistent delivery of year-round arts programming, including classes, workshops, demonstrations, and exhibitions. Funding will also provide for limited staffing support and outreach to underserved communities across Tulare County. Establishing a permanent space will strengthen VAL’s organizational stability, expand equitable access to arts participation, and increase program frequency and community engagement. This investment directly supports ongoing operations and long-term sustainability to help advance access, equity, and cultural vitality in Tulare County. | Art educational programs, demonstrations, and exhibitions, as well as a community support initiatives, including fundraising to support community needs and youth art scholarships. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Indivisible Arts | 618 CYPRESS AVE , HERMOSA BEACH, CA 90254-4644 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (831) 601-8137 | Los Angeles, CA | 66 | D-CA | With support from the California Arts Council, South Bay Artist Collective (now known as Indivisible Arts) will sustain Creative Wisdom Tools (CWT), a multi-site, youth-led arts education program serving young people ages 7-22 across South Bay Los Angeles. CAC funds will support personnel, art supplies, and accessibility accommodations across weekly sessions held at Indivisible Arts programming site, Resin, and through various Creative Wisdom Tools satellite programs. | Indivisible Arts operates through: 2 youth arts programs - Creative Wisdom Tools and the Visual Arts Program; a professional artist collective (South Bay Artist Collective); and its gallery + event space, Resin. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Rhythm Arts Alliance | 2116 Arlington Ave. , LA, CA 90018 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 999-8894 | California Assembly district 37 | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Rhythm Arts Alliance will help sustain staff salaries directly connected to RAA’s programming, including our work in the juvenile probation system, school-based arts education programs, specialized classes for students with special needs and on the autism spectrum, our Drum Council Project, Community Drum and Dance classes, and our annual Dununba Festival. | School Programs: RAA provides inclusive, healing-centered cultural education through programs like "Drum, Dance and Connection" for youth on the spectrum and year-long residencies at McKinley Elementary in Compton. These workshops integrate social skills with West African arts, reaching hundreds of students annually. Probation Programs: Our "Drum Council Workshops" serve over 100 system-impacted youth in LA County probation camps. We offer emotional release and nervous system awareness through rhythm, centering the needs of youth of color navigating the justice system. Community Wellness: Through our annual African Diaspora Community Festival and weekly drum circles in Leimert Park, we foster unity and cultural pride. These programs serve over 500 community members, providing a restorative space for families and underserved youth at risk of the school-to-prison pipeline. Professional Training: In partnership with the LA County Department of Arts and Culture, we train over 1,500 educators and mental health professionals annually in somatic self-soothing and healing-centered teaching methods. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | North Coast Symphony Orchestra | PO BOX 235815 , ENCINITAS, CA 92023-5815 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 944-0872 | With support from the California Arts Council, the NORTH SHORE SYMPHONY, dba North Coast Symphony, will enhance its outreach and attract a wider audience, including from underserved communities, by promoting and offering engaging musical experiences. General operating support will enhance our ability to provide more audience attendance opportunities, including chamber music performances at libraries, family-friendly concerts in various venues, and engaging with communities to foster inclusivity. Funding will also enable the orchestra to invite diverse professional soloists, providing inspiring opportunities for both our musicians and the audience. Additionally, we plan to elevate our members’ musicianship and to enrich our programming by performing contemporary musical works from a variety of composers. By expanding and diversifying our offerings, we aim to strengthen our role as a cultural asset and create a more vibrant, inclusive musical community. | The North Coast Symphony Orchestra (NCSO), founded in Encinitas over 75 years ago, is a cornerstone of the North County San Diego arts community. As a volunteer-based community orchestra, NCSO is committed to making high-quality orchestral music accessible, affordable, and relevant to a broad and diverse audience. We present a full concert season each year, offering engaging, family-friendly performances that span classical masterworks, pops favorites, and works by underrepresented composers, including women and people of color. These thoughtfully curated programs reflect our dedication to cultural inclusivity and musical diversity. To ensure accessibility, NCSO performs in a variety of community-based venues such as libraries, churches, retirement homes, community centers, and shopping malls—removing traditional barriers to the performing arts. We maintain one of the most affordable ticket pricing models in the region: general admission is $15, with discounted $12 tickets for seniors, students, and military members, and free admission for children. NCSO also actively engages with the broader community through outreach. We have performed at senior living facilities and collaborated with local choruses and other musical groups to create inclusive, intergenerational experiences. For example, in 2025 and 2026 we partnered with North Coast Singers, a group of young singers who have not had the opportunity to perform with a live orchestra. We performed a free family concert that was promoted to local schools to reach underserved communities. The orchestra also did an outreach performance at a local senior community. These partnerships deepen community connections and broaden the reach of our programming. By prioritizing affordability, community partnerships, inclusive repertoire, and accessible venues, the North Coast Symphony Orchestra serves as both a cultural asset and a gathering point for the community. We remain committed to enriching lives through the shared experience of live music, fostering connection, creativity, and joy across the communities we serve. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | San Diego Made | 2031 Commercial Street , San Diego, CA 92113 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 817-5517 | California's 52nd congressional district | District CA-52 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Diego Made will support the general operations of the San Diego Made Factory, an affordable and accessible creative hub located in San Diego’s Promise Zone. Serving more than 13,000 community members annually, the Factory provides subsidized studio space, cultural programming, workshops, exhibitions, and community events that uplift local artists, creative small businesses, and historically under-resourced communities. Grant funds will help sustain key operational expenses, including staffing, facility costs, accessibility accommodations, and community programming infrastructure. Through sliding scale affordability initiatives, multilingual outreach, ADA-accessible facilities, and community-informed programming, San Diego Made works to ensure that artists and community members of all backgrounds and abilities have equitable access to creative opportunities, cultural participation, and supportive spaces that strengthen the local arts ecosystem. | San Diego Made is an artist-led creative hub that drives social, cultural, and economic opportunities for artists, small businesses, and organizations throughout the region. We’re building a creative ecosystem that equips community members with the resources, support, and connections they need in order to build thriving futures. At our headquarters at the Factory in Logan Heights, our community has access to 12,000 sq. ft. of inspiring studio spaces, event facilities, and exhibition areas where people can hone their craft and showcase their work in a bold, welcoming environment. Through our public programming, artist residencies, and signature maker’s markets, we create immersive experiences that bring creatives and community together—fostering dialogue, sparking collaboration, and promoting meaningful engagement with the arts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $25,000.00 | Ventura County Ballet | 505 POLI STREET , VENTURA, CA 93001-4964 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 765-1734 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ventura County Ballet will produce a Sensory Friendly Performance of The Nutcracker in December 2026 in Oxnard, CA. Individuals with sensory processing challenges and other cognitive, emotional and physical differences are often not comfortable or welcome at live performances. This robs them of the enjoyment and benefits. Ventura County Ballet’s sensory friendly performance will be a welcoming, inclusive environment for those with autism and other sensory processing, physical, cognitive or emotional challenges.. It will gives these youth and their families the opportunity to participate in activities they could otherwise not experience. Low lights stay on in the theater, music is played more quietly, communication devices and headphones are welcome and guests can move about and vocalize. If someone wants to take a break, a quiet area is available. | Ventura County Ballet presents fully staged dance programs in theaters and interactive educational outreach programs in diverse community settings including schools, youth organizations, community centers, senior citizen centers, parks, libraries, hospitals, shopping centers, and more. We provide supplemental materials to teachers to use with their students before and after attending a Ventura County Ballet performance. teachers We also provide training and performing opportunities for aspiring preprofessional dancers as well as exposure for emerging musicians, choreographers and composers of diverse cultures and backgrounds. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | KZFR 90.1FM | 341 Broadway St Ste 411, Chico, CA 95928-5321 | Butte | Upstate | (530) 895-0706 | 1st Congressional District of California | District 3 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Golden Valley Community Broadcasters will sustain and expand its role as a nonprofit arts and cultural broadcaster serving rural and underserved communities in Northern California. CAC funds will support general operating costs—including staff compensation, utilities, program administration, and volunteer training—enabling KZFR to produce free, accessible arts and cultural programming. Building on recent growth, KZFR will continue expanding locally produced content, including music programming, public affairs, and community-based storytelling that amplify regional artists and underrepresented voices. Funding will support arts education and workforce development, including youth media training and community partnerships that increase access to creative expression and media production. Through these efforts, KZFR will strengthen its role as a platform for artistic expression, cultural exchange, and community connection, ensuring broad public access to the arts across Northern California. | KZFR operates with the support of approximately 120 community volunteers who provide a wide variety of music programming as well as local public affairs and information programs. These volunteers also assist a small paid staff with fundraising, outreach and events for the northern Sacramento Valley and beyond. Agreement with the principles and goals of KZFR is the sole criteria for participation. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $12,600.00 | Women Who Submit | 5619 N Angelus Ave , San Gabriel, CA 91776 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 484-0582 | California's 28th congressional district | District 49 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Women Who Submit (WWS) will produce the Writers Spotlight Project. This project features writers from historically underrepresented communities including women, nonbinary, BIPOC, queer, and senior citizen writers through online publications and in person events. The Writers Spotlight Project offers paid professional opportunities for our writers through the WWS Blog series, PUBLISHED! Reading series, WWS Open Mic, and the WWS Chapters Reading Regrant, which distributes funds to a selection of California-based WWS Chapters to produce readings in their regions. | WWS offers free public workshops lead by local, professional writers and orientations to submission strategies every other month. Topics for these workshops have included applying for academic jobs, applying for artist workshops, residencies and fellowships, strategies for submitting to contests, strategies for performing in public, pitching an essay, and strategies for writing while mothering. We also host private submission parties aka community coworking events on the off months for our members in private homes around Los Angeles. These submission parties are the core vision of our organization. In 2009, Vida, Women in Literary Arts published the first VIDA Count, which gave quantitative evidence of the disparity between men and women representation in top tier journals. The "submission party" was created as an action to change those numbers by creating a safe and supportive space for women and nonbinary writers to share resources and submit their work with community support. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Arenas Dance Company | 3316 24th Street , San Francisco, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 623-6043 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arenas Dance Company will continue our mission to preserve and promote Afro-Cuban art and culture via dance and drum classes and original dance and music works. Funds will be used to: pay a monthly stipend to our Artistic Director/choreographer and our core staff, including our access manager; compensate our dancers and drummers at "market rate" for both rehearsals and performances; and rent studio space for rehearsals and storage space for costumes. | Arenas Dance Company (ADC) produces, presents, and creates dance performances celebrating the complexity and beauty of Cuban culture. We work to present the Cuban culture in its fullness and depth. ADC teaches weekly Cuban folkloric and popular dance classes throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, and is frequently invited to guest teach - leading workshops and giving lectures - at schools (Elementary through University), libraries, and camps on Cuban dance, music and traditions. ADC also takes students on annual cultural exchange and study trips to Cuba. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,462.00 | Hmong Youth and Parents United | 631 ELEANOR AVE , SACRAMENTO, CA 95815-1614 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 418-4016 | 6 | 6 | 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, HMONG YOUTH AND PARENTS UNITED will support the cultural arts development of youth ages 12–25 in Sacramento’s Del Paso Heights and North Sacramento communities through a culturally responsive Youth Mentorship Circle. The program will immerse participants in Hmong traditional arts—such as Paj Ntaub textile design, Paj Huam spoken‑word poetry, and performance‑based storytelling—while introducing complementary visual and digital art practices. Through guided instruction and intergenerational knowledge‑sharing with Hmong artists and elders, youth will strengthen their self‑identities, deepen their connections to Hmong history, language, and cultural practices, and cultivate pride in their heritage. By integrating contemporary tools with Hmong cultural artforms, the program will provide innovative pathways for youth to reinterpret Hmong traditions, culminating in a collaboratively created interactive cultural arts journal that will be shared with the broader community. | Youth Development: To empower youth to have an opportunity to learn about culture, language, leadership, and other positive youth development in a safe and supportive environment so they can be productive members to their families, schools, and communities. Health and Social Services: Our program breaks the cultural and societal stigmas around disparities. Through advocacy, community collaborations, empowerment, education, and resource navigation we close the gaps of marginalized communities. Culturally Competent Outreach and Advocacy As trusted messengers of the community, we connect marginalized underserved communities to resources through strategic outreach, community engagement, and public awareness campaigns. Language & Cultural Arts Program Cultural Arts Program is a way to preserve the Hmong arts, language, and culture by providing the community an opportunity to learn, appreciate, participate, and practice Hmong cultural arts through classes and events. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | DIAVOLO | Architecture In Motion | 616 MOULTON AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90031-3237 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 225-4290 | 34th Congressional District of California | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, DIAVOLO will expand THE DIAVOLO INSTITUTE’s arts education programming serving underserved youth across Los Angeles County. Grant funds will support T.R.U.S.T. in-school assembly performances, L.A. UNITY residency workshops, DISCOVERY field trips at L’ESPACE DIAVOLO, and additional youth engagement initiatives connected to live performances. Programs will provide students with direct access to professional artists through movement workshops, creative collaboration, interactive performances, and live arts experiences designed to foster confidence, teamwork, resilience, and self-expression. Activities will primarily serve students attending Title I schools and under-resourced communities throughout Los Angeles County. California | Founded by Artistic Director Jacques Heim in 1992, DIAVOLO is a cultural pillar of the community as a leading California dance company to consistently perform locally, nationally and internationally. Over its 30-year history, DIAVOLO has presented dozens of dance works, creating one of the field’s most compelling repertoires. On the road, DIAVOLO creates education and engagement activities, including student matinees, master classes, lectures, and intensive trainings. In Los Angeles, the DIAVOLO Institute provides dance education and engagement programs with a focus on low-income youth. Programs are delivered at Title I schools, community centers, and DIAVOLO’s downtown Los Angeles studio. Each program culminates in a choreographed performance in the distinct DIAVOLO style, incorporating physical objects such as tables, ladders, and wheels. In 2016, DIAVOLO expanded its community engagement program to include The Veterans Project. DIAVOLO provides restorative movement workshops paired with creative writing exercises for local veterans. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $9,000.00 | Women Who Submit | 5619 N Angelus Ave , San Gabriel, CA 91776 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 484-0582 | California's 28th congressional district | District 49 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Women Who Submit (WWS) will maintain regular operations meant to empower women and nonbinary writers to submit work for publication. This includes free quarterly workshops and new member orientations, publication and funding opportunities, in-person and online community support, and resources for demystifying the submission process and minimizing barriers to career advancement in literary publishing. | WWS offers free public workshops lead by local, professional writers and orientations to submission strategies every other month. Topics for these workshops have included applying for academic jobs, applying for artist workshops, residencies and fellowships, strategies for submitting to contests, strategies for performing in public, pitching an essay, and strategies for writing while mothering. We also host private submission parties aka community coworking events on the off months for our members in private homes around Los Angeles. These submission parties are the core vision of our organization. In 2009, Vida, Women in Literary Arts published the first VIDA Count, which gave quantitative evidence of the disparity between men and women representation in top tier journals. The "submission party" was created as an action to change those numbers by creating a safe and supportive space for women and nonbinary writers to share resources and submit their work with community support. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Independent Arts & Media (fiscal sponsor) | 2830 20th Street, Ste 201 , San Francisco, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 269-0073 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, StageWrite will strengthen its organizational infrastructure to sustain and expand its long-term partnerships with San Francisco public schools, while delivering year-round theatre-based literacy programs that serve over 1,000 students annually. Funds will support core staffing, teaching artist training, and program coordination that ensure consistent, high-quality residencies, educator workshops, and inclusive programming for neurodiverse students. By investing in both people and systems, CAC support will enable StageWrite to deepen its impact in historically under-resourced school communities and maintain stable, responsive arts access during a time of ongoing uncertainty in public education funding. | StageWrite serves approximately 1000 students annually in San Francisco public elementary schools. StageWrite’s Building Literacy through Theatre sequential drama program begins with kindergarten and 1st grade students participating in story dramas based on social issues; 2nd and 3rd graders explore narrative story elements creating performances that reimagine grade-level texts; and 4th and 5th grade students write original work, including monologues and one-act plays, which are performed by the students and by professional actors. Our ADAPTS (Autism & Drama with Artists, Parents, Teachers & Students) program serves students with autism in inclusive residencies to engage students in creative play, improve communication, and encourage personal growth. All StageWrite programs are designed and implemented using student-centered methodology. It is our belief that students learn the most from examining their own thoughts and feelings, and thinking critically about the world. We believe in theatre as a tool for social change, and a means of empowering students and communities. This principle of StageWrite’s work has been a guiding force for 20+ years and has been essential in informing our response to the challenges of today. As a response to the pandemic, StageWrite developed, piloted, and refined two new curricula: “Zoom-a-Rama: Community Through Drama,” designed for distance learning at the start of the pandemic, and “Room-a-Rama” which re-imagined our curriculum to use improvisational drama games and collaborative storytelling activities to build classroom communities and support social emotional learning as students returned in-person, serving 45 classrooms at 6 San Francisco public elementary schools. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Small Art Music Projects | 335 BERRY ST UNIT 106 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94158-1704 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 425-6687 | California District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, SMALL ART MUSIC PROJECTS will provide free, family-centered music workshops and performances that foster cultural exchange, creative participation, and arts accessibility for Bay Area children and families. Through hands-on Instrumental Music Open Houses, participants explore a collection of over 100 instruments representing musical traditions from around the world, including African-American, Latin American, South Asian, East Asian, Middle Eastern, European, and American roots traditions. Since 2014, SAMP has built long-term relationships with low-income, immigrant, LGBTQIA2S+, and culturally diverse families from the San Francisco Bay Area, through joyful, welcoming programming designed to remove barriers to participation. CAC funding will support artist/production fees, educational programming, accessibility efforts, and free public concerts that connect children and families through music, curiosity, and shared cultural experience. | Small Art Music Projects (SAMP) began in 2005 as a fiscal sponsor of Intersection for the Arts, and transitioned into being its own 501c3 in 2014. SAMP’s core organizational programs and services have included a vast array of performance/music education projects, all of which were supported by grant funding including major awards from American Composers Forum, The Ford, Zellerbach, Hewlett, and Bank of America Charitable Foundations, and The California Arts Council. SAMP’s core performance activities have been centered in SF and the Bay Area, and its music educational work has focused on serving low-median income families and their children living in SF. Matt Small, the founder and Artistic Director of SAMP, has an extensive artistic history as a professional bassist/composer/educator/bandleader for the past 25 years, having had his music performed all over the world, and having performed with musical luminaries such as Yo-Yo Ma and The Silk Road Ensemble, among many others. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Salastina | PO Box 4164 , Glendale, CA 91222 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 332-6874 | California's 28th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Salastina will continue to enrich lives through its three core programs: 1) Presenting affordable, equitable, and world-class live classical chamber music concerts in the greater Los Angeles area, offering a generous allocation of complimentary tickets to under-resourced communities. 2) Nurturing the next generation of music creators through our zero-cost Composer Collective program. 3) Bringing comfort and connection to critically ill patients through Vital Sounds, our program of one-on-one, virtual performances at hospital bedsides. | Salastina provides three areas of program activity: 1) Live performances that invite audiences into our creative space. Salastina's programming seeks to add depth and breadth to traditional classical music. All concerts are live-streamed. Notably, our in-person audience attendance has surged 198% when comparing our last complete pre-pandemic season to the current one. On average, Salastina presents 25 performances per season, at least one of which is free. Five Main Series programs are repeated in Pasadena, West Los Angeles, Orange County, and Palos Verdes, with additional events rounding out the season. Our proprietary concert formats include: - Sounds Unknown: an exploration of the many reasons -- from racism to misogyny to bad luck -- why some composers never gain due recognition - Sounds Mysterious: a musical guessing game in which the composer's identity is redacted; the audience and musicians guess who wrote the piece together - Sounds Delicious: our contemporary take on the Salon tradition — pairing gourmet courses and music around themes from history, science, literature, or pop culture - Happy Hours: casual performances by, and spirited conversation with, a well-known guest artist. This "peek behind the creative curtain" prioritizes personal interaction between musicians and fellow music lovers at an accessible $20 price point. 2) The Composer Collective is Salastina's tuition-free Young Composer apprenticeship program serving up to five young composers free of charge. All instruction occurs virtually. Most participants are local to Southern California. 3) Vital Sounds: one-on-one virtual bedside concerts for ICU patients. Since May 2020, Salastina has provided private, virtual bedside concerts to the bedsides of critically ill patients at Huntington Health. Our musicians have provided over 85,000 minutes to more than 6,500 patients and their caregivers. We provide two hours of free, one-on-one, virtual bedside concerts weekly at no cost to patients or hospital partners. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $12,825.00 | T2 Dance Company | 311 15th St , Santa Monica, CA 90402-2211 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (703) 981-3951 | T2 Dance Company will use California Arts Council funds to deliver the Color Wheel Project (CWP) in West Los Angeles, serving elementary-aged children in Santa Monica and surrounding communities. CWP is a free program inviting children to submit original visual artworks based on a chosen color. T2's professional dancers select submissions and choreograph a professional performance inspired by the student work, presented at the Glorya Kaufman Performing Arts Center in spring 2027. All submissions are showcased in a slideshow during the performance and on the T2 website. T2 will host at least two free community art creation days at local recreation centers where children create and submit artworks. Bilingual study guides are provided to all participants. Funds cover artist fees, venue rental, production, study guides, and community event costs. | T2 Dance Company is a nonprofit contemporary dance organization providing a) dance classes and programming for preschool and elementary-aged kids, b) professional development for emerging artists, c) performing opportunities for national dance companies, and d) collaborative dance productions for our patrons. Founded in 2017, T2 Dance Company (T2) is committed to the development of the arts, both for artists and audiences. T2 became a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization in 2018. Since then, the company has performed work in CA, CO, DC, FL, IL, MD, MI, NY, and UT. The company has collaborated with visual artists, literary artists, fiber artists, and dance companies. T2 is both a performing and presenting dance company. T2 performs dance works (often created in collaboration with other artists) and presents other artists and companies through its festivals. T2 provides arts education to preschool and elementary school students, and mentoring for emerging dance artists. Annual programming/activities includes: a) Versatility Dance Festival - presenting national dance companies and international dance films. b) The Color Wheel Project (CWP) - integrating visual arts and dance for elementary students, and culminating in a performance by the T2 company dancers. c) Open Marley Night - a free studio event showcasing works-in-progress from local dance companies, fostering community and networking. d) T2's ChoreoFest - professional development and mentoring for emerging dance artists. e) Company Productions - featuring contemporary dance collaborations with other artists. f) Gala fundraiser - Annenberg Beach House, Santa Monica. g) Mini E-Motions (MEM) - combining dance with emotional development for 2-5 year olds. h) M.A.D. Creators Camp - day camp for kids combining music, art, and dance. A collaboration with Confident Concerts. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $19,994.00 | Reimagine The Land | 3746 Foothill Blvd #7447 , Glendale, CA 91214-1740 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 925-5442 | 30th | 44th | 25th | The California Flute Revival is a series of Learning Days and Culmination Days organized by RTL, Lázaro Arvizu and Summer Wilson. At these free public workshops and concerts, attendees will make a California Flute from Blue elder and learn to play an Indigenous composition. Each workshop location will host three Flute Learning Days–crafting, tuning, and playing the flute, and a Culmination concert. Workshops include historically underserved locations in Greater Los Angeles. Participants will spend two to three hours in each workshop, and then enjoy storytelling and song from Tongva and Chumash elders. Culmination Day, the fourth event, will feature workshop members, Western classical players, and a guest world flute player. We believe these workshops will be empowering for attendees, and vital for the transmission of an Indigenous musical lineage that was nearly lost in California. | Our core services and programs have included: “Social Forest: Oaks of Tovaangar” with Lázaro Arvizu Jr, the California Flute Revival with Lázaro Arvizu Jr and Summer Wilson, a Rarámuri ra’icha language server, and cleanups in Big Tujunga Canyon with Tongva culture bearers and volunteers |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $10,000.00 | Drawing Together | 45 S. Arroyo Parkway , Pasadena, CA 91105 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 657-0065 | CA-28 | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Drawing Together will leverage general operating funds to support the promotion and retention of existing staff, facility fees, professional services fees for a strategic plan, professional development, and updated marketing materials and cloud storage. As an organization in its seventh year of operations, we are working on building out a plan for our legacy of our work that has included contemporary arts education, workshops focused on positive mental health outcomes, community-based art projects based on specific health indicators, and publication of workbooks that conceptualize our projects. | Our organization serves early childhood ages, school age, teens, youth in group homes, and adults in two counties (Los Angeles and San Bernardino) through a variety of formats that includes culturally responsive, contemporary arts education; workshops through different curriculum such as our mindfulness and authenticity as a trauma-informed tools; community projects that address specific health indicators as determined by health organizations; workbook publication that is utilized in our workshops and help to contextualize our community projects; and outreach and advocacy services that connect art making to social outcomes. Some of our ongoing programs include: Summer Art & Nature Camp program in Wrightwood - offered for the last 4 years that serves residents of both counties, as this rural community is made up of both Los Angeles and San Bernardino counties. Art Exploration classes - offered weekly for ages 2 years through teens in Wrightwood and Pasadena throughout the year. Workshops - offered in Mindfulness, Art & Authenticity, and Art as a Positive Coping Mechanism, based on client request of grant funds |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $75,000.00 | Merced County Arts Council Inc | 645 W MAIN ST , MERCED, CA 95340-4717 | Merced | Central Valley | (209) 388-1090 | 13th District of California | District 27 | District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, MERCED COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL INC, will sustain and expand public exhibitions, cultural programs, and free or low-cost events that reflect Merced County’s diversity and broaden access to the arts. CAC funds will support exhibits showcasing advanced high school art students, local artists, and a retrospective celebrating our 30th anniversary as an arts center. We’ll continue free programs like our monthly Kids & Family Days, where families participate together in hands-on cultural arts activities, and grow culturally specific programs such as the Lao Arts & Culture Summer Camp. Operating support will strengthen our role as the countywide hub for artists, arts organizations, and cultural groups, enhancing collaboration, resource-sharing, and technical assistance so that residents in urban and rural communities alike can create, experience, and benefit from the arts. | Incorporated in 1978, the Merced County Arts Council was operated originally from a small office space on Main Street. In 1996, the City of Merced entrusted the Arts Council to manage the Merced Multicultural Arts Center. In addition to operating this 28,000 sq. foot, multipurpose arts center, the Arts Council manages an arts-in-education program; an arts facility for adults with developmental disabilities; performances and visual/performing arts classes for children and adults; professional support for artists through fiscal sponsorship; exhibits of about 20 professional artists each year; and newfound coalitions for visual and performing artists. The Multicultural Arts Center, lovingly known as the MAC, has been the arts and cultural hub of Merced since its opening in 1997. Managed by the Merced County Arts Council, the MAC is home to: The Enrichment Center, a day program for artists with disabilities The Arbor Gallery, a co-op of local artists The Merced Academy of Dance The Bear Creek Ukulele Society Local theater groups LGBTQ+ groups Local artists and so much more. The MAC offers a wide variety of classroom, conference, and general meeting spaces to meet all of your creative, personal, and professional facility needs as well as four art galleries, a black box theater, and a serving kitchen. The Multicultural Arts Center is truly a multi-use facility that can handle almost any event. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | TeenTix LA | 1000 N. Alameda Street Suite 240 - TeenTix LA, Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 802-0807 | California’s 34th Congressional District | 54th Assembly District | 26th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, TeenTix LA will expand and sustain ongoing work that breaks down barriers to arts participation for teens across Los Angeles County through affordable tickets, partnerships, and youth-focused initiatives. CAC funds will support the TeenTix Pass Program, which provides free membership for teens ages 13–19 to access $5 tickets at 40+ arts partners, along with outreach and infrastructure that connect teens to these opportunities. This includes partnerships with schools and community-based organizations, teen-friendly communications that demystify the arts-going process, and systems that support participation. Funding will also support youth leadership pathways, including stipends for teen interns and expansion of the Ambassador Program. Together, this work increases access to the arts, fosters youth engagement, and invests in the long-term sustainability of Los Angeles’ arts ecosystem. | TeenTix LA expands equitable access to the arts for teens across Los Angeles County through two core programs: the TeenTix Pass Program and the TeenTix Internship Program. The TeenTix Pass Program provides free membership to teens ages 13–19, giving them access to $5 day-of-show tickets at 40+ arts and cultural partners across Los Angeles, including theaters, museums, music venues, and more. Through a curated online calendar, TeenTix LA demystifies the arts-going experience and empowers teens to independently discover and attend events that reflect their interests. The TeenTix Internship Program offers paid, hands-on learning opportunities for young people to build skills in arts administration, marketing, and community engagement. Interns contribute directly to program outreach, content creation, and event activation, ensuring that teen voice remains central to all aspects of the organization’s work. Together, these programs remove financial and cultural barriers to arts participation while cultivating the next generation of arts audiences, advocates, and leaders. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra | 2300 Truxtun Avenue, Suite 200 , Bakersfield, CA 93301 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 323-7928 | California's 20th Congressional District | District 32 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council General Operating Grant, the Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra will sustain and strengthen its artistic and mission by funding day-to-day operations that make all programming possible. These unrestricted operating funds are critical to maintaining a stable, regional orchestra and ensuring delivery of concerts, education initiatives, and community engagement throughout Kern County. Grant support would be applied across organizational needs, including compensation for professional musicians and artistic personnel, administrative staffing, and production and performance costs. Funds would help cover facility expenses such as rehearsal and performance venue rent, utilities, insurance, and equipment maintenance. In addition, operating support sustains the Symphony’s education and outreach infrastructure, programs like BSO Next, by underwriting program development, school partnerships, transportation, and culturally-responsive engagement efforts that expand access to music education for thousands of students annually. | The Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra (BSO), founded in 1932, serves Kern County through professional orchestral performances and a range of music education programs designed to expand access to the arts. These programs are offered to schools throughout the county, with intentional outreach to communities and schools with limited access to arts education. BSO’s education initiatives include three core programs: BSO Next, Young People’s Concerts, and Kids Discover Music. BSO Next provides students in grades 4–12 with access to live symphony performances through field-based experiences that include transportation, meals, and exposure to professional orchestral music. The program is designed to broaden students’ understanding of the arts while fostering engagement with live performance settings. Young People’s Concerts serve elementary school students through daytime orchestral performances designed specifically for school audiences. These concerts integrate educational content aligned with music learning objectives and provide students with structured exposure to orchestral instruments and repertoire. Kids Discover Music brings professional BSO musicians directly into elementary school classrooms. Through interactive presentations and demonstrations, students are introduced to orchestral instruments, musical concepts, and the collaborative nature of ensemble performance. Across all programs, the BSO prioritizes increasing access to music education for students who may not otherwise have opportunities to experience live orchestral music or in-school arts instruction. These programs serve thousands of Kern County students annually and are designed to support music exposure, cultural enrichment, and early arts engagement. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Palm Springs Cultural Center | 2300 E Baristo Rd , PALM SPRINGS, CA 92262 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (760) 325-2582 | California's 36th congressional district | District 42 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, PALM SPRINGS CULTURAL CENTER will expand Rank and File: LGBTQ+ Digital Oral History Project, which captures the stories of LGBTQ+ individuals from the Silent Generation (1928–1945) and Baby Boomer Generation (1946–1964). In collaboration with California-based LGBTQ+ artists and filmmakers, this project will document and preserve coming-out stories often erased from dominant narratives. CAC funds will support the development of an accessible digital platform to host these oral histories and interactive content, as well as integrate them into Cinema Diverse: The Palm Springs LGBTQ+ Film Festival. Rank and File addresses a critical community-defined need for cultural visibility, intergenerational connection, and equitable representation in the arts. | Our programs include: American Documentary Film Festival, Artist in Residence Program, Arthur Lyons Film Noir Festival, Camelot Theatres, Certified Farmers’ Markets (Palm Springs), Cinema Diverse: The Palm Springs LGBTQ Film Festival, Community Theatre, Palm Springs Speaks, Rank & File: LGBTQ+ Digital Oral History Project |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Fountain Theatre | 5060 FOUNTAIN AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90029-1422 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 663-1525 | California Assembly district 43 | District 43 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Fountain Theatre will launch Stories of Home: Object Memories LA, the inaugural cycle of FOUNTAIN STORIES, a community-based storytelling initiative centered on immigrant and refugee voices in East Hollywood. CAC funds will support artist fees, participant stipends, workshops, community engagement activities, production costs, accessibility services, and public performances. Through facilitated storytelling workshops, participants will develop personal narratives inspired by objects brought from “home,” culminating in a live performance series and post-show community conversations at the Fountain Theatre. The project responds to a growing need for community gathering spaces that foster empathy, visibility, and dialogue across boundaries. By centering local immigrant experiences, the project will strengthen community connection and expand representation within the arts, deepening the Fountain’s role as an accessible neighborhood cultural hub. | The Fountain Theatre produces world class theatre productions with professional artists at our intimate venue in the East Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles, provides underserved youth with engaging, one-of-a-kind arts enrichment programming, and builds intersectional, intergenerational community through a variety of outreach offerings and events including our longstanding Flamenco program. Under the new artistic leadership of Raymond O. Caldwell, all facets of our programming are intentionally interconnected around the mainstage season bring all facets of our community into conversation around the themes and increase impact. Mainstage seasons and program delivery are carefully deliberated during the season planning process to be in alignment to our mission to produce new works that address urgent social issues while being responsive to community need. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | 826LA | 1714 W SUNSET BLVD , LOS ANGELES, CA 90026-3225 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 413-3388 | 30 | 52 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, 826LA will facilitate our Field Trips program at our Writing Labs in Los Angeles and traveling field trips to Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) schools, introducing over 2,000 students to the literary arts annually. In our improv-style program, “Barnacle and Barnacle Publishing” is owned and operated by the mysterious Professor Barnacle who engages 826LA volunteers to help students learn the fundamentals of storytelling-including plot, characters, setting, and dialogue–and publishing. Students work collaboratively and independently, and at the end of each field trip, leave as published authors, taking home a copy of the book they worked together to write. | We provide after-school tutoring, evening and weekend workshops, in-school tutoring, help for English language learners, and assistance with student publications. All of our programs are challenging and enjoyable, and ultimately strengthen each student’s power to express ideas effectively, creatively, confidently, and in their individual voice. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Get Lit - Words Ignite | 672 S LA FAYETTE PARK PL STE 10, LOS ANGELES, CA 90057-3234 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 388-8639 | 34th Congressional district of California | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Get Lit - Words Ignite will provide our award-winning In-School Program to 5 schools in the Compton Unified School District. This is the only program in the nation that combines learning and performance of classic poetry with creation of original spoken word poems, strengthening youth literacy, wellness, and community. | Our programs span from classroom to career including training in high-demand fields, leading to life-changing creative opportunities, internships, scholarships, and jobs. They include: In-School Program: Our robust curricula for the classroom engage students in the deep study and performance of classic/contemporary poems combined with creation and performance of original response poems. The program includes UNI(VERSE), our pioneering interactive literacy and poetry platform for the classroom; After-School: Free weekly poetry, film, and music production workshops; open mics; Classic Slam: One of the largest teen poetry competitions in the U.S.; Get Lit Players: Award-winning teen performance troupe; and our Creative Suite: the Film Lab, a semester-long program for high-schoolers with weekly workshops, Creative Camp, summer workshops in screenwriting, filmmaking, music production, and performance, and our Creative Career Lab that offers young adults job training in creative fields culminating in full-time job placement. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Dancers Group - Fiscal Sponsor for Grown Women Dance Collective | 44 Gough Street, Suite 201 , San Francisco, CA 94103 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (925) 680-4400 | California's 12th congressional district | District 15 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Grown Women Dance Collective will produce world-class dance performances, community arts and wellness classes for children, adults, and seniors in under-resourced communities, and dance and movement-based workforce development training. Funds will support artists and staff, increasing our capacity to empower BIPOC artists, center the voices of historically marginalized community members, and strengthen our organizational partners’ missions through art. We will celebrate and strengthen Black and Brown communities; support cultural resistance, resilience, self-empowerment, and joy. Support will help create spaces that inspire a sense of belonging, dignity, trust, joy, collaboration, and innovation, and empower folks from historically disinvested groups to leverage their strengths, imagine new possibilities, achieve goals, reinvest people-power back into our communities, and collectively create a more just future. | Our programs celebrate resistance, resilience, self-empowerment and joy. Performances & Narrative Shift Choreography: We create world class performances led by dancers of color in our 50's and 60's, centered around African American experiences and achievements. Our choreography shifts the narrative on important societal issues such as mass incarceration, homelessness, voting rights, and environmental justice. We challenge stereotypes, create cross-cultural, intergenerational, and cross-class bridges, catalyze new conversations and community action, and create a forum for healing based on art, justice, and human connection. Dance and Healthy Movement Instruction in Under Resourced Communities: We teach Dance (Technique & Dance with Literacy) to youth and therapeutic movement to adults (Dance, Pilates for Back & Joint Pain, Pre/Post Natal Pilates, & Fall Prevention for Seniors); bringing access to the arts, wellness skills, and the growth and emotional well-being associated with both. Pilates Certification Training and Mentorship for Underestimated Community Members: We provide Comprehensive Pilates Certification training for disinvested community members. Programs include full scholarships to receive internationally accredited certifications, mentoring, mental health counseling, financial literacy, nutrition classes, paid internships and job placement assistance. This empowerment program helps break the cycle of intergenerational poverty, helps stave off gentrification, decreases health disparities, and creates healthier, more joyous communities. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | PLAY Theatre Company | 230 PANORAMIC HWY , MILL VALLEY, CA 94941-2631 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 579-3173 | California’s 2nd Congressional District | California State Assembly District 12 | California State Senate District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, PLAY Theatre Company will provide access to free field trip performances of our 2026-2027 season musicals for Title 1 Schools across the Bay Area. | We are a nonprofit performing arts organization focused on bringing the joy of theater to life for children and families. We believe theater kids really do run the world, and the life skills that theater provides have a resounding impact for future generations. Igniting imaginations can change the world! We accomplish this through play in the classroom, in the rehearsal room, and on the stage. PLAY On Stage! offers a season of engaging, theatrical performances by professional actors, bringing children’s books to life on stage. We also offer exceptional educational programming, with performance based classes that build theater skills while also teaching essential life skills like teamwork, confidence, and empathy for others. We believe learning should be fun, and everyone is a theater person. Whether you enjoy being on the stage, behind the scenes, running the show, writing the stories we tell, or enjoying them from the audience, all are welcome at PLAY theater company. Founded in October of 2023, this company was born out of a love for the arts and a commitment to investing in the future of performing arts by cultivating the audiences of tomorrow. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | The S.W.A.E Foundation | 8549 WILSHIRE BLVD , BEVERLY HILLS, CA 90211-3104 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 916-2289 | With support from the California Arts Council, S.W.A.E. FOUNDATION will implement the Elevate Excellence Youth Arts Academy, a 6-week arts and leadership development program serving 20 Black teen girls ages 13 to 17 in Inglewood. Each cohort uses spoken word, performance arts, and creative storytelling to build creative voice, civic leadership, and self-efficacy among youth from communities with historically limited access to structured arts learning. Participants develop and publicly present original community impact projects at a culminating public showcase. Two cohorts will run during the grant activity period, serving 40 young women total, with a minimum of 15 participants per cohort. CAC funds support lead teaching artist facilitation, participant materials, accessibility accommodations, program evaluation, and all direct program costs. All programming is free to participants. | The S.W.A.E. Foundation's core program is the Elevate Excellence Youth Arts Academy, a structured arts and leadership development program serving teen girls ages 13 to 17 in underserved Los Angeles Inglewood community. The Academy provides a 6-week cohort experience integrating spoken word, performance arts, and creative storytelling as the primary tools for building confidence, civic voice, and community leadership. Participants engage in workshops covering public speaking, wellness, and advocacy, and develop individual community impact projects mentored by program facilitators. The cohort culminates in a platform pitch competition where participants present their projects and compete for seed funding to implement their ideas locally. Through this model, the Academy creates a pipeline of young women leaders who are equipped to serve and uplift their California communities through the power of artistic expression. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Beautiful Beginnings Arts Collective | 869 Ingerson Ave. , San Francisco, CA 94124 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 217-9885 | With support from the California Arts Council, Beautiful Beginnings Arts Collective will produce our youth educational programming from October 1, 2026 - September 30, 2027. This includes our comprehensive arts based curriculum for youth ages 5-24, focusing on culturally relevant traditions from the African diaspora and folkloric art forms from Latin America, and our annual dance and drumming contingent in San Francisco Carnaval, in which youth performers take leadership roles in all aspects of planning and implementation. | BBAC’s arts and cultural programs and services focus on creating an inclusive and accessible multigenerational creative community, centered on culturally relevant traditions from the African diaspora and folkloric art forms from Latin America. We offer a comprehensive arts-based curriculum at several coordinated venues in South East San Francisco, including Community Well (a holistic wellness center in the Excelsior neighborhood), Southeast Community Center (community hub in Bayview neighborhood) and San Francisco Community School (public K-8 school in the Excelsior). 6 free classes each week for youth and families, provide opportunities for creative expression, empowerment, and social connection. These educational programs culminate in our annual production in the San Francisco Carnaval Parade. Throughout a nine-month development process, our multigenerational artist collective meets weekly. Youth participants take leadership roles in all aspects of our production, including overall concept/planning, design and creation of costumes/visual arts, and performance of music and dance. Rehearsals for all participants start in January and run until Carnaval at the end of May. We also offer our Artist-in-Training Youth Leadership Program. Each year, our master teaching artists mentor 12 youth ages 14-21 in a range of artistic practices. Participating youth receive a stipend while receiving intensive arts training, job readiness, wellness, and communication skills. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | Independent Arts & Media (fiscal sponsor) | 2830 20th Street, Ste 201 , San Francisco, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 269-0073 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, StageWrite will serve 500+ students with 10-session theatre arts residencies in 21 classrooms at two San Francisco public elementary schools, Glen Park and William Cobb. Residencies will happen in General Education, Spanish Bi-Literacy, and Special Education classrooms, serving all PreK through 5th grade classrooms at each school site, deepening our long-standing partnerships in these school communities. StageWrite will also facilitate interactive, arts integration professional development workshops for partnering classroom teachers to enhance the collaborative relationships between artists and teachers while building a body of shared knowledge in theatre-in-education pedagogy. StageWrite’s Community Drama Events offered at each school site will further strengthen our collaboration between teachers, teaching artists, students, and families. | StageWrite serves approximately 1000 students annually in San Francisco public elementary schools. StageWrite’s Building Literacy through Theatre sequential drama program begins with kindergarten and 1st grade students participating in story dramas based on social issues; 2nd and 3rd graders explore narrative story elements creating performances that reimagine grade-level texts; and 4th and 5th grade students write original work, including monologues and one-act plays, which are performed by the students and by professional actors. Our ADAPTS (Autism & Drama with Artists, Parents, Teachers & Students) program serves students with autism in inclusive residencies to engage students in creative play, improve communication, and encourage personal growth. All StageWrite programs are designed and implemented using student-centered methodology. It is our belief that students learn the most from examining their own thoughts and feelings, and thinking critically about the world. We believe in theatre as a tool for social change, and a means of empowering students and communities. This principle of StageWrite’s work has been a guiding force for 20+ years and has been essential in informing our response to the challenges of today. As a response to the pandemic, StageWrite developed, piloted, and refined two new curricula: “Zoom-a-Rama: Community Through Drama,” designed for distance learning at the start of the pandemic, and “Room-a-Rama” which re-imagined our curriculum to use improvisational drama games and collaborative storytelling activities to build classroom communities and support social emotional learning as students returned in-person, serving 45 classrooms at 6 San Francisco public elementary schools. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Mariposa Arts Council | 5009 CA-140 , Mariposa, CA 95338 | Mariposa | Central Valley | (209) 966-3155 | California's 4th congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Mariposa County Arts Council (MCACI) will continue its Arts in Corrections program, providing weekly, in-person poetry workshops for individuals incarcerated in the Mariposa County Jail. Mariposa is a geographically large and entirely rural county with limited access to arts programming and rehabilitative services, this initiative addresses a critical gap for an often-overlooked population. In partnership with the Mariposa County Sheriff’s Office, the program creates a consistent, supportive space for participants to explore creative expression, strengthen communication skills, and reflect on their lived experiences. Through guided writing, discussion, and performance, participants build tools that support personal growth, emotional regulation, and connection. CAC funds will support teaching artist fees, program coordination, materials, and evaluation, ensuring sustained, high-quality arts access in this rural setting. | The Mariposa County Arts Council (MCACI) opened its doors in 1981 and is dedicated to enriching Mariposa through the arts. Serving the county at large and working closely with our local government leaders as well as individuals, regional organizations and businesses, we develop and implement cultural policies, creative placemaking projects, arts educations initiatives and produce artistic programming designed to positively increase the visibility of Mariposa and amplify the many diverse voices in our community. Our work welcomes all local residents and visitors to engage with art experiences and is designed to facilitate personal interpretations, expression, and growth; strengthen social connections and community dialogue; connect rural Mariposa to issues, movements, and opportunities beyond its borders; and support the healthy development of individuals of all ages by engaging them in the creation and appreciation of art. MCACI’s work includes: develop cultural policy and creative placemaking initiatives; providing technical assistance to regional artists and arts organizations; developing and delivering a variety of TK-12 grade creative youth development and arts education programming to youth across Mariposa County; targeted mentoring programming for at-promise youth; special arts programming for adults with limited or no access to the arts (particularly incarcerated and geographically isolated older adults); public programming (community theatre and summer concert series); and local, regional, state, and national advocacy work. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Miracle Makers International Film Festival | 2134 Chestnut Creek Rd , Diamond Bar, CA 91765-3115 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 235-6165 | 38th Congressional District | 56th Assembly District | 29th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Miracle Makers International Film Festival will support ongoing operations for a multi-disciplinary arts organization presenting programming across film, television, digital media, music, dance, writing, and visual arts. Funding will support year-round programming and the annual festival, including screenings, panels, showcases, and community engagement activities that expand public access to the arts and provide opportunities for emerging and independent creators. Grant funds will support staffing, outreach, program development, accessibility efforts, and production costs, increasing participation and expanding accessible cultural programming for Southern California communities. | Miracle Makers International Film Festival provides a multi-category platform for artists and creators working across film, television, digital media, podcasts, books, music, dance, and visual arts. Its core program is an annual five-day international festival featuring public screenings, red carpet events, panel discussions, Q&As, networking opportunities, and an awards program recognizing excellence across more than 80 categories. These events are open to the public and designed to create accessible entry points for audiences to engage with diverse creative work. Beyond the festival, the organization offers year-round programming focused on creator support, professional development, and community engagement. This includes educational panels, workshops, and industry conversations covering topics such as production, financing, distribution, and emerging technologies. These services are designed to support emerging and independent creators, particularly those without access to traditional industry pathways. Miracle Makers prioritizes outreach through partnerships with community organizations, schools, churches, and local groups, expanding participation and awareness across a wide range of audiences. Programming is delivered through both in-person and digital formats, increasing accessibility for geographically diverse communities. Through its combined festival and year-round initiatives, Miracle Makers delivers consistent arts programming that supports creators, engages audiences, and expands access to the arts across California and beyond. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | PAC LA | 1933 South Broadway #430 , Los Angeles, CA 90007 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 324-6011 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Photographic Arts Council Los Angeles (PACLA) will invest in operational development and new strategic initiatives. These specific near-term goals reflect a combination of building on proven organizational strengths, and development of complementary new capabilities: Reach, serve, and impact a more diverse range of audiences in Los Angeles via: Collaborative community projects and partnerships Producing compelling public events throughout Los Angeles Innovative direct programming in our exhibition space Focused marketing and outreach Solidify the future leadership team by: Compensating the new Executive Director Retaining our communications staff and project contractors Diversifying our governing Board Launch the 2026 Strategic Plan Update: Folding our strategic assessment findings into a new five-year Strategic Plan Updating our operational priorities to lay the groundwork for the plan's success | PAC LA produces a robust calendar of expertly curated public and member events throughout the city, along with online talks and guided travel, on our own and in partnership with other notable arts organizations. These include visits with artists in their studios, conversations with gallerists, panel presentations by educators, printmakers, and museum directors, and access to photographic collections in libraries, private homes, and universities. We also produce a free in-depth digital newsletter every month. In 2023 and 2024, we hosted 75 different events, attended by over 5,000 people. 69 of those events took place in person in Los Angeles, and nine of those events were public online talks with attendees from all over the world. PAC LA exists to build, educate, and engage our community, and that means we do this for all audiences, including our 180+ supporting members, 3,500 Zoom event attendees, 20,000 viewers on our YouTube channel, 2,200 followers on Instagram, 1,200 newsletter subscribers, and the growing numbers of guests (3,200 and counting) at our free in-person public events. | |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | California Karen Youth Connection | 399 UCCELLO WAY , SACRAMENTO, CA 95835-2653 | Sacramento | Capital | (510) 434-6355 | 6th | 6 | 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, California Karen Youth Connection seeks continued support to expand and deepen its Arts and Cultural Program by increasing access in underserved regions and strengthening curriculum quality. Funding will support instructor stipends, materials, facility rentals, and outreach. This investment will expand access to culturally responsive arts education, strengthen community cohesion, and advance cultural equity. CKYC has empowered youth for over 13 years through culturally rooted programs in education, leadership, and the arts. CKYC delivered free, community-based arts programming serving over 120 youth 0-25. Participants engaged in bilingual, intergenerational instruction in Karen language, traditional dance, music, storytelling, and cultural festivals. Over 80% reported increased cultural pride, stronger knowledge of Karen traditions, and improved confidence in Karen language. Youth also demonstrated growth in traditional dance, leading over 15 performances across California. | The CKYC is dedicated to empowering both Karen and non-Karen youth and communities statewide through culturally informed leadership education, the arts, advocacy, and human services. With a 13-year track record of leadership, arts education, and community service, CKYC has supported the Karen American refugee and asylum population, as well as other vulnerable and underrepresented communities. We serve over 400 individuals annually across the Bay Area, Sacramento, Manteca, Kern County, and Southern California. Additionally, we collaborate with more than 10 partners to amplify our impact. We deliver four core programs: Arts and Cultural Program, Leadership Development Program, College and Career Mentorship Program, and Civic Engagement Program. These programs and services are critical to the success of our youth and a thriving community. By engaging in cultural practices, youth and the broader community gain not only a sense of pride in their Karen identity but also a deeper connection to their heritage and each other. The preservation of Karen traditions helps break the cycle of trauma and displacement, offering individuals a space to heal, connect, and thrive, furthermore, by passing down knowledge from one generation to the next. The CKYC ensures that these traditions evolve into sources of strength, collaboration, and opportunity for future generations. As youth develop leadership skills, they become ambassadors of their culture, promoting diversity and inclusion both within the Karen community and in society at large. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Angeles Chorale | 2335-115 E COLORADO BLVD 375 , PASADENA, CA 91107-0000 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 591-1735 | This grant would allow us the opportunity to support our exciting 52nd season with the artistic and operational staffing necessary to adhere to our professional standards while allowing us to grow. We would hope to allocate funding as follows: S52 Associate Conductor $5,000 S52 Accompanist $7,245 S52 Rehearsal Space $5,100 S52 Sheet Music $1,800 S52 Storage $960 S52 Bookkeeping $4,842 Total $24,947 This year through an LA County Grant we were able to hire an amazing intern who has grown in her engagement with the organization. She has shown a passion and dedication to our organization and we would love to be able to continue her engagement beyond the completion of this season. We're working to find ways to continue our internship program as a paid opportunity requiring around $6500 for 10 hours per week. | The Angeles Chorale is a 65-voice, auditioned, professional-level, volunteer choir based in Los Angeles, CA. Established in 1975 the Chorale has brought inspiring choral music experiences to our Los Angeles community for over 50 years. They perform publicly between three and six times per years. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | GLOBAL VILLAGE FOUNDATION | PO BOX NO 689 , ESCONDIDO, CA 92033-0000 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 207-4604 | With support from the California Arts Council, GLOBAL VILLAGE FOUNDATION will, in collaboration with The Amerasian Coalition, implement a storytelling initiative addressing the "long tail" of trauma within Southern California’s Amerasian community. Moving beyond historical retelling, this project explores the psychological aftermath and intergenerational mental health challenges faced by those born during the Vietnam conflict. Grant funds will support artist fees, production, and 3–6 free public screenings featuring facilitated healing circles. These sessions provide safe spaces for 150–300 participants to process long-standing trauma, navigate fragmented identities, and build community resilience. By leveraging The Amerasian Coalition’s statewide network, the initiative creates a scalable, trauma-informed model for cultural activation. This project transforms documentary arts into a vital tool for mental wellness and social reconciliation across California. | The Global Village Foundation (GVF) focuses on sustainable development and grassroots empowerment programs that are designed to provide long-term self-sufficiency through three main pillars: education, healthcare, and humanitarian relief. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Big Idea Theatre | 1616 Del Paso Blvd , SACRAMENTO, CA 95815 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 960-3036 | With support from the California Arts Council, BIG IDEA THEATRE will use grant funds to cover 12 months of rent and utilities for our performance and rehearsal space. This crucial funding will allow us to direct program profits and donations towards three main areas we have identified. First, much-needed maintenance of and upgrades to our facilities, including a revamp of our semi-outdoor communal space. Second, compensation and wages for our management team and artists. Finally, expansion of accessibility projects like assistive listening devices, captioning services, and ASL interpretation. By securing stable operational costs, we can focus on continuing to provide high-quality programming and further invest in the artists and community we serve. | Big Idea Theatre was formed in 2003 by a small group of founding members in Roseville. In 2007, the company was transformed under new management and in a new location. Since 2008, BIT has been situated at 1616 Del Paso Boulevard in Sacramento. We produce six full-length main stage theatrical productions per year. The productions range from comedy to drama, and from classic to modern. We strive to provide our audiences with a wide-array of plays each year. Each of the productions are presented over the course of 4 weeks, on Thursday, Friday, and Saturday evenings, and 2 Sunday matinees. In a single year, BIT captivates audiences for 105 performances. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Root Access Hackerspace | 1476 N VAN NESS AVE , FRESNO, CA 93728-1939 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 412-9128 | With support from the California Arts Council, Root Access Hackerspace will expand public access to hands-on arts programming and creative technology in Fresno's Tower District. Grant funds will support core operating costs — including rent, utilities, insurance, and web infrastructure — essential to keeping our community hackerspace and makerspace running. Root Access provides affordable access to fabrication tools (including 3D printers, laser cutters, sewing machines, vinyl cutters, and more) and offers inclusive workshops, classes, and community meetups spanning visual arts, digital fabrication, textile arts, folk arts, and creative technology. With stable operating support, our all-volunteer team can focus on what matters most: expanding free and low-cost programming, deepening neighborhood partnerships, and growing Root Access's role as a permanent cultural anchor in the Central Valley. | Root Access is a nonprofit community hackerspace and makerspace in Fresno, California, offering public access to tools, education, and collaborative creative space. Our core programs focus on equitable access to fabrication tools, including 3D printers, laser cutters, CNC machines, electronics equipment, sewing machines, woodworking and metalworking tools, and more. These resources are offered through an affordable membership model, with flexibility to accommodate a range of financial situations. This helps lower traditional barriers of cost and space that often limit access to creative technology. We host regular community events and meetups that promote skill-sharing and peer learning. Topics include digital art, programming, cybersecurity, crafting, and other creative disciplines. These gatherings are free, welcoming, and open to all, helping build social infrastructure around shared creative interests. Root Access also offers a wide range of hands-on workshops and creative skill-building classes. Our ROOT series introduces members to key tools like sewing machines, vinyl cutters, and laser cutters. Additional skill classes teach foundational techniques in both craft and technology, including soldering and fiber arts. We also host short-form workshops that support artistic expression through mixed media, digital fabrication, and traditional crafts. These offerings support both technical learning and artistic exploration. We strive to create an inclusive and welcoming space where people of all backgrounds feel supported, including LGBTQIA+ individuals, people of color, and low-income community members. Our flexibility and community culture have helped foster a naturally diverse membership. By combining tool access with inclusive programming and community-driven learning, Root Access helps people turn curiosity into capability and ideas into impact. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Autism Society Inland Empire | 420 N MCKINLEY ST STE 111 # 118 , CORONA, CA 92879-6504 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 220-6922 | California's 42nd congressional district | District 60 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, Autism Society Inland Empire will implement a regional, artist-led visual arts initiative that expands public exhibition opportunities for youth and adults with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) and other intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD) across Riverside and San Bernardino counties. Through a regional Call for Art, approximately 50–75 neurodiverse artists will participate in a coordinated exhibition series during Autism Acceptance Month 2027 at the San Bernardino County Museum, Ontario Museum of History & Art, and S.C.R.A.P. Gallery (Student Creative Recycle Art Program). California Arts Council funds will support exhibition production and presentation, framing and installation, accessibility accommodations, partner stipends, community engagement activities, and production of an annual community art calendar that extends visibility of participating artists throughout the Inland Empire. | Autism Society IE provides a range of community-based programs and services designed to support individuals with Autism Spectrum Disorder and other intellectual and developmental disabilities (I/DD), as well as their families, across Riverside and San Bernardino counties. ASIE’s core programs focus on increasing access to inclusive opportunities that promote social connection, skill development, and meaningful community engagement. A key component of ASIE’s work is its inclusive arts programming, which offers accessible pathways for creative expression and public recognition. Through ongoing virtual and in-person art classes, community art events, and public exhibitions, individuals with Autism and I/DD are supported in developing and sharing their artistic work. ASIE has also produced an annual community art calendar since 2013, featuring artwork created by neurodiverse artists and serving as both a recognition tool and community outreach resource. In addition to arts programming, ASIE offers social and recreational programs that foster peer connection and reduce isolation, as well as educational workshops and resource-sharing and system navigation and other supports for individuals and families navigating Autism/I/DD across the lifespan. ASIE also partners with the Inland Regional Center to provide job training/placement opportunities and initiatives to address disparities for people of color, including early start services and a community of practice for Spanish-speaking and Native American individuals/families with ASD/I/DD. These programs are designed to be inclusive and responsive to diverse needs, incorporating flexible participation options and supportive environments. ASIE also engages in community partnerships with local organizations, schools, and cultural institutions to expand access to inclusive spaces and increase representation of neurodiverse individuals in public settings. Through these combined efforts, ASIE works to build a more inclusive, accessible, and supportive community where individuals with Autism and I/DD can thrive. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | A.B.O. Comix | 2520 Telegraph Ave. , Oakland, CA 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (619) 727-9771 | California's 13th congressional district | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Abolition Inc DBA A.B.O. Comix will sustain the general operations that make our arts, publishing, storytelling, and community-support programs possible. Building on A.B.O. Comix’s continuous arts programming since 2017, CAC funds will help cover staff labor, administration, overhead, communications, supplies, accessibility needs, and program infrastructure across A.B.O. Comix, Teleway 411, and Flying Over Walls. Through these programs, we amplify the creative work and lived experiences of system-impacted LGBTQ2S+ people, especially queer and trans people impacted by incarceration. Funds will support publishing opportunities, oral history and media projects, correspondence and solidarity networks, public education, creative development, community engagement, and reentry-related programming. General operating support will strengthen our capacity to sustain ethical long-term relationships with contributors, preserve community stories, and build public understanding through art and collective care. | Publishing and Artist Development Abolition Inc DBA A.B.O. Comix provides a publishing and artistic development platform for incarcerated and system-impacted LGBTQ2S+ artists and writers. We work with contributors to develop artwork, writing, comics, memoir, and other creative projects, provide editorial support, and help artists build skills, portfolios, and credentials. Programs include annual comic anthologies, solo publications, autobiographical works, omnibus collections, and multi-volume comic series. Artist Compensation and Material Support We fundraise for and provide financial assistance to incarcerated LGBTQ2S+ contributors and community members, especially those with little or no outside support. Revenue from publications, events, and donations is reinvested into commissary assistance, supplies, reentry needs, and material aid. Correspondence, Community Connection, and Solidarity We maintain LGBTQ2S+ community contact, friendship, and support across prison walls through correspondence, contributor relationships, referrals, and ongoing communication. We connect incarcerated artists with outside organizations, publishers, advocacy groups, and resources that support their creative, legal, personal, or reentry needs. Public Education, Exhibitions, and Community Engagement We introduce the public to the experiences, creativity, and political realities of LGBTQ2S+ people impacted by incarceration through publications, exhibitions, workshops, book/zine fairs, community events, public programs, and collaborations. Oral History and Media Through long-form interviews, podcast production, and narrative media, we document the experiences of currently and formerly incarcerated contributors, advocates, organizers, and people working in solidarity with those inside prisons. Reentry, Parole, and Homecoming Support We provide parole and reentry support for LGBTQ2S+ people preparing for release or returning home, including recommendation letters, documentation of artistic participation, referrals, resource navigation, community connection, and material support. Community Space and Organizational Infrastructure We maintain a physical space that supports programming, community gatherings, volunteer engagement, outreach, and collaboration with aligned organizations. Our space helps us reach neighbors, build local relationships, host safer community activities, and sustain long-term arts and solidarity work. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | FRIENDS OF PERALTA HACIENDA HISTORICAL PARK | 2465 34th Avenue , OAKLAND, CA 94601-0172 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 532-9142 | California's 13th congressional district | District 18 | District 9 | With CAC support, Peralta Hacienda will a) Unveil the multi-sensory “Indigenous Voices” exhibits to be completed this fall, covering the 6-acre historic site and filling the Ohlone Room inside the site's museum. Visual art, audio, video, sculpture, landscapes, gardens and poetry will bring the Ohlone presence and past to life at this former colonial site. We will market to the broad, diverse Bay Area public for a grand opening. b) Continue implementing arts and crafts-based school field trips for 3rd and 4th grade students in Title One schools, awarded the Certificate of Excellence in Museum Education by the CA State Dept of Education for their transformation to reflect Native perspectives . c) Continue youth filmmaking for opportunity youth 16-25 and integrate arts into all programs. d) Continue Teatro Jornalero's "Undocumented Heart" performances. | 1. Arts, culture and educational programs for children, teens, young adults and elders year-round. This includes the Oakland day laborers' theater group performing "Undocumented Heart". 2. Environmental education with arts integration including stewardship of the commons at Peralta Hacienda, and field trips to regional, state and federal parks, including overnights. 3. Job training and leadership development for high school age youth and young adults in the arts, culture, arts administration and environmental science. 4. Museum and site tours for the public given by diverse community docents who tell their own stories. 5. Commissioning and showing art works by local and regional artists; mounting permanent and changing exhibits of community stories; the focus this year and next is fabricating and installing exhibits that have been developed with East Bay Ohlone people about Ohlone culture and history. 6. Events, festivals, community dialogues, film screenings, food events that amplify diverse local voices, cultures and traditional arts of immigrant and refugee communities and other people of color. We have major cultural festivals annually of the Mayan Mam community, the Mexica (Mexican Indigenous), Khmer ( Cambodians) of Oakland and others, as well as smaller events featuring local arts groups such as the Bushwick Book Club that creates original songs and music, and Pride events with local rappers. 7. Arts- and crafts-based immersive, experiential school field trips tied to CA state curriculum objectives. 8. Oral history interviews; archiving and researching local history, including indigenous history and underrepresented cultures. 9. Civic participation and stewardship through candidates forums, ballot box, and monthly work parties. 10. Ethnobotanical community gardens cultivated by Southeast Asian elders and community feasts for the whole neighborhood with garden produce; reviving traditional landscapes. 11. Food for Fruitvale: Distribute free food six times per month serving 353 families, 630,000 lbs of food annually. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | ARTogether | 1200 Harrison Street , Oakland, CA 94612-3913 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 545-2787 | District 12 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTOGETHER will continue Shadow Movements, an after-school youth arts program for newcomer refugee and immigrant high school-aged youth in Oakland. Building on a successful model that annually engaged 21 youth across 16 weekly sessions and generated 441 program engagements, the 2026–27 cohort will serve 15–17 newcomer youth ages 14–18 in a single 16-week sequence at the ARTogether Center and Clinton Park Community Center. Led by artist and Program Manager Sabina Kariat, participants will blend traditional shadow puppetry with narrative writing, professional voice recording, and stop-motion animation to create and exhibit personal stories of identity, migration, and belonging; culminating in a public performance and exhibition for families and the broader community. | ARTogether serves as a resource center for refugees and immigrants throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our services center around three primary areas: (1) Bringing refugees, immigrants and the wider community together through art workshops and art-centered social gatherings, to foster wellness and community connection. (2) Supporting refugee artists by employing refugee art educators, and by connecting refugee artists to local art galleries and social venues that help them to find new markets for their art. (3) Bringing the arts to Bay Area schools, launching engaging arts programs that promote positive images of refugees and immigrants, while raising public awareness of refugee issues through educational campaigns. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | ARTogether | 1200 Harrison Street , Oakland, CA 94612-3913 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 545-2787 | District 12 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTOGETHER will sustain and strengthen the core operations that allow us to serve newcomer refugee, immigrant, and first- and second-generation communities across the Bay Area. CAC funds will support staff salaries, rent, and utilities at our Oakland Center, enabling us to maintain the infrastructure, programming space, and team capacity needed to deliver our artist residency, youth and in-school arts programs, community art workshops, and culturally relevant public art projects. In a period of funding uncertainty, this support helps us protect free, language-accessible programming that connects refugee and immigrant artists, families, and youth to creative practice, wellness, and community at a time when stable, welcoming spaces matter most. | ARTogether serves as a resource center for refugees and immigrants throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our services center around three primary areas: (1) Bringing refugees, immigrants and the wider community together through art workshops and art-centered social gatherings, to foster wellness and community connection. (2) Supporting refugee artists by employing refugee art educators, and by connecting refugee artists to local art galleries and social venues that help them to find new markets for their art. (3) Bringing the arts to Bay Area schools, launching engaging arts programs that promote positive images of refugees and immigrants, while raising public awareness of refugee issues through educational campaigns. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $12,600.00 | "" | 626 WILSHIRE BLVD , LOS ANGELES, CA 90017-3209 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 878-9808 | 34th Congressional District | 54th Assembly District | 26th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, After Life Initiative will expand Stories of Resilience, a peer-led literary arts program where people returning from incarceration transform lived experience into spoken word, short film, and visual art. Led by formerly incarcerated peer facilitators, the program uses storytelling circles and structured workshops to help participants reclaim their voices and create original works rooted in their experiences. During the grant period, 75 to 100 participants will take part in free workshops at ALi’s office at 777 S. Alameda St. and in community spaces across Los Angeles County, with a particular focus on South and East LA. CAC funds will support peer facilitator honoraria, staff coordination, journals and art supplies, printed curriculum materials, transportation assistance, and accessibility accommodations so that cost, disability, and other barriers do not prevent participation. | After Life Initiative delivers a continuum of peer-led reentry programs that center healing, dignity, and creative expression for people returning from California prisons and their families. Navigating Life is our flagship program, offering peer-led healing circles, mentorship, and monthly wellness outings. At its heart is circle-based storytelling where participants share experiences of harm, survival, and transformation in spaces grounded in trust and accountability. Within Navigating Life, Stories of Resilience lifts this practice into a literature and humanities initiative where lived experience becomes spoken word, short film, and visual art. The program treats storytelling as both art and healing practice, a way to process trauma, build confidence, and shift public narratives about what incarceration does to people and communities. In 2025, ALi held 24 peer support groups and 12 wellness outings serving 214 members. Her Testimony House provides transitional housing and workforce preparation for women returning from long prison terms, a population chronically underserved by reentry systems. Women in Her Testimony House also participate in storytelling circles that affirm identity and build community ties. Housing Assistance for Returning Citizens stabilizes participants through housing navigation, short-term rental assistance, and wraparound reentry services, grounded in the understanding that stable housing is inseparable from healing. In 2025, ALi distributed over $345,800 in rental assistance, housed 26 participants, and helped 41 members secure employment. Our in-reach programs at four California state prisons have served 826 incarcerated individuals to date, delivering restorative justice circles, reentry preparation, and leadership development. Our Train-the-Trainer program at CCWF equips incarcerated women as peer facilitators, creating a leadership pipeline inside California's largest women's prison. In 2026, ALi launched a three-year in-prison reentry program in partnership with the California Department of Corrections, bringing our curriculum and peer mentors directly inside. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Culture Kids Productions | 1201 11TH STREET UNIT A , MANHATTAN BEACH, CA 90266-6025 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (412) 657-7474 | California's 36th Congressional District | 66th Assembly District | Senate District 24 | Culture Kids Productions requests $30,000 in general operating support to sustain core infrastructure during October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. Funds will support partial Executive Director salary ($15,000) to oversee programming, partnerships, and organizational management; California public library outreach programming ($4,000) to bring live cultural education directly to children and families across the state; honorariums for cultural organization collaborators ($5,000) whose expertise, time, and community relationships make our programming authentic and meaningful; audience development and community outreach ($3,000) to expand access to California families and schools; and legal and administrative expenses ($3,000) for nonprofit governance and contract compliance. | Culture Kids Productions is an award-winning nonprofit media organization based in Manhattan Beach, California, dedicated to fostering a global mindset in children ages 4-8 through joyful, story-based audio content. Our core programs and services include:The Culture Kids Podcast - Our flagship program and primary delivery vehicle for arts learning. Each episode takes young listeners on an immersive audio adventure to a different country, city, or culture, exploring traditions, foods, languages, animals, and the real families and communities behind them. Episodes are produced in partnership with cultural organizations, educators, authors, and community members who share their authentic lived experiences. The podcast is free and accessible on all major platforms including Spotify, Apple Podcasts, and Yoto, removing financial and geographic barriers to participation.Community and Cultural Partnerships - We partner directly with Los Angeles-based cultural organizations, immigrant communities, and diverse families to co-create content that centers authentic voices. These partnerships ensure our programming reflects and honors California's extraordinary multicultural communities, while connecting young listeners to cultures near and far.Educational Outreach - Our content is developed with input from educators, cultural experts, and child development specialists to ensure each episode is age-appropriate, research-backed, and aligned with early childhood learning principles. We use proven strategies including narrative learning, music, and repetition to help children build cultural literacy from an early age.All programming is offered free of charge to families, with no paywall, making it equally accessible to children across socioeconomic backgrounds throughout California and beyond. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | Calaveras Arts Council | PO Box 250 , SAN ANDREAS, CA 95249-0250 | Calaveras | Central Valley | (209) 754-1774 | California's 4th congressional district | District | District 4 | With support from a $75,000 California Arts Council SLP grant, the Calaveras County Arts Council will strengthen its role as Calaveras County's central arts hub, a welcoming, inclusive space where diverse voices and creative expressions are celebrated. Grant funds will support staff and operational costs, sustaining the foundation from which all programming grows. CCAC will expand community outreach to populations facing the greatest barriers to arts access, including youth, seniors, and underserved communities navigating isolation, mental health challenges, and limited social services. Learning opportunities for youth and adults will be developed and expanded. CCAC will continue its successful Poetry Out Loud program, engaging high school students from across the county. Ongoing stewardship of our historic gallery will ensure it remains a vibrant, accessible, and safe space for artists and audiences across Calaveras County. | We are proud of our five core programs. 1) Ovations, a performing arts series in winter that brings a diverse range of professional performances to the performing arts center in Angels Camp, including classical and world music, theater and dance, and jazz. 2) Music in the Parks, an eclectic, admission-free, 10-week summer concert series that brings music to our remote communities throughout the county. 3) Artists Studio Tour, our fall event. We work with local artists to create and publicize a county-wide self-guided tour of their galleries and studios. 4) Arts in Education. We offer matching grants to local public schools to augment classroom art education programs. In spring we present in our gallery "Art Spirit," an art exhibition presenting the work of local high school and middle school students. The art is professionally juried, we host a closing reception and modest prizes and ribbons are presented. We offer scholarships to local high school students who are pursuing a degree in the arts. 5) Gallery programming produces 5 to 6 shows a year to highlight artists of a diverse levels of experience, as well as bring attention to topics of community interest. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SAMMAY Productions | 934 Brannan Street , San Francisco, CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (213) 373-1435 | California's 12th congressional district | With support from the California Arts Council, SAMMAY Productions will host a series of workshops, in-progress showings, panel discussions, and choreographic labs as part of their community-responsive artistic process for BROWNOUT, a new performance work currently in development at the Magic Theatre in San Francisco. BROWNOUT is a full-length experimental dance conceived by Filipino American choreographer SAMMAY Peñaflor Dizon examining the contrived relationship between ‘darkness’ and ‘light’ amidst ongoing fascism in the U.S., the Philippines, and around the globe. Programming will be free for participants and funds will support fees for the lead artist, collaborating artists, technicians, and venue rental. | SAMMAY Productions (SP) was founded in 2015 by Filipinx American choreographer, interdisciplinary artist, and cultural producer SAMMAY Peñaflor Dizon - born from a seed of embodied inquiry and personal longing to be in community with other artists who were wrestling with questions of indigeneity, home, and belonging. SP has been fortunate to call the SOMA Pilipinas Cultural Heritage District home since its inception and is just one point of access to artistic development and engagement within the constellation of Filipina/x/o small business in the cultural district. SP has received numerous awards from the California Arts Council, San Francisco Arts Commission, Center for Cultural Innovation, and Rainin Foundation among others, and has received residencies from the American Conservatory Theater, CounterPulse, and Atlantic Center for the Arts among others. Their live performance work has been featured through Dance Mission Theater, Bindlestiff Theater, and Asian Art Museum among others, and their films have been featured through CAAMFest, San Francisco Dance Film Festival, and Los Angeles Asian American Pacific Film Festival among others. Notable programs include Urban x Indigenous intercultural arts festival (2015-2021) and Daluyan: Embodied Storytelling for Ancestral Healing workshop series (2018-2021). In 2022, SP was commissioned for the inaugural State of Play Festival at ODC Theater in the Mission District of San Francisco. SP continues to create new experimental works at the intersection of ritual, memory, play, and radical futurity, while bridging diasporic communities through cultural activations and movement exchanges. Dizon was the recipient of the 2020 Isadora Duncan Dance Award for Special Achievement in Dance through their work with racial equity-centered choreographer collective Dancing Around Race. | ||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Tehachapi Symphony Orchestra | 1121 West Valley Blvd, Suite I, PMB 282 , TEHACHAPI, CA 93561 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 444-5469 | 20 | 32 | With the support of the California Arts Council, the Tehachapi Community Orchestra Foundation will use funding towards providing 3 symphonic concerts free of charge to the public in our 2026-27 season. Each concert has an operational cost of $10,000-12,000 per concert. Funds will pay the venue fees, concert day livestream fees, rehearsal hall fees, director's fees, music contractor's fees, 20-30 professional musicans fees, program printing, advertizing. The dates for these concerts will be October 25, 2026, March 7th, 2027, and May 16th, 2027. Each concert will feature diverse programming with tributes to underrepresented groups: native Americans, female composers, and composers of African heritage. | The Tehachapi Community Orchestra Foundation raises funds to provide five symphonic concerts each season, October through June, in Tehachapi, California. These concerts are free of charge to the public in order to make them accessible to diverse audiences of all ages, especially our low-income households and seniors. The Foundation covers the Orchestra's concert expenses, which include music director's salary, rehearsal and concert venue fees, contractor's fee, professional musician fees, music rental or purchase costs, advertising fees, and insurance fees. The Foundation also funds and accompanist for the Tehachapi Symphonic Chorus, which performs at least one annual concert with the Orchestra. These two musical groups provide opportunities for local adult and young musicians to perform original repertoire alongside professional musicians. The Foundation provides annual scholarship opportunities for young artists through its Tehachapi Symphony Young Artist Competition, which awards scholarships to musicians ages 25 and under and gives them a featured soloist opportunity with the orchestra. We work with our local schools--junior high school, high school, college, and university--to provide opportunities for collaborative performance and concert attendance. Our orchestra musicians provide music lessons to our local youth. We seek to engage a broad range of our community as audience members, business sponsors, volunteers, and performing artists. Our music director Concerts discusses each musical selection's historical and background. We produce free worldwide live-streaming of all concerts, making them accessible to viewers in their homes. Past concerts can be revisited on our YouTube channel. | |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | VOLTI | PO BOX 15576 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94115-0576 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 847-6010 | With support from the California Arts Council, Volti will continue its mission to champion living composers and push the boundaries of contemporary vocal music through bold, adventurous programming. CAC funds will support general operations and activities, including two concert programs; a mentoring program with student composers at San Francisco State University; a premiere by California composer Donald Crockett reflecting on the Altadena fire; the West Coast premiere of a work on our endangered climate by Nicholas Cline, co-commissioned by Volti and four other vocal ensembles from across the country; and collaborations with San Francisco Ballet and Monterey Symphony. CAC funding will help ensure fair compensation for artists, sustain educational programs like Volti’s Choral Institute, and strengthen community engagement efforts, ensuring Volti remains a vital incubator for groundbreaking vocal music in the Bay Area and beyond. | Volti's core program is presenting concerts and creating recordings of leading-edge unaccompanied music for vocal ensemble. In addition, Volti enjoys frequent collaborations and partnerships with groups including Kronos Quartet, Del Sol Quartet, ODC/Dance, Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, San Francisco Contemporary Music Players, Festival Napa Valley, and Cal Performances. Another core service is educating young singers through the Choral Institute, centered on an annual retreat gathering several high school choirs for an intensive weekend of music-making. Volti singers serve as faculty and offer coaching and voice lessons to the student singers. The Choral Institute often includes working with a composer in residence on a piece commissioned for the occasion. We offer discounted participation in the Choral Institute to the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts, serving students from low-income and marginalized communities. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Greenhouse Project | Center for Agroecology and Sustainable Food Systems , Santa Cruz, CA 95064 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (773) 339-7379 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Greenhouse Project (GHP) will fund a part-time administrative position to develop and coordinate Greenhouse programs and to help ground and grow our organization. We will also hire a website consultant to help us improve our visibility and outreach. As a small, multidisciplinary arts organization, we present a wide variety of events focusing on art, food, and climate justice, but to date we have operated through volunteer labor by the core collective with support from community members. As we intensified our focus on community resilience in the face of climate crisis, and built ambitious programming for the coming year, CAC funding will provide essential continuity for the organization as well as increasing our visibility in, and outreach to, our communities. | The Greenhouse Project initiates and supports a wide range of events, including art exhibitions, performances, workshops, poetry readings, community meals, seed exchanges, talks, and public conversations, while building relationships with diverse local practitioners. Our current programming on SEED COMMONS focuses on seeds as carriers of memory and future potentialities, both metaphor and means for a material practice of care, resilience, and cultural continuity in the long wake of colonial extraction. Our goals for the coming year include creating a Living Seed Archive (digital and physical) and a program of public Seed Storytelling Circles. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Benkadi, a project of Community Partners | 1000 N Alameda St Ste 240, Los Angeles, CA 90012-1804 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 258-9245 | With support from the California Arts Council, Benkadi, a project fo Community Partners will continue to provide its African drums, dance and culture program to under-resourced schools and underserved communities. Founded to promote academic growth and cultural diversity through culturally relevant arts programming, Benkadi prioritizes equity by removing barriers to access to arts. Benkadi delivers a complete program of expert instruction, well maintained authentic instruments in quantity, a unique curriculum and suite of teaching aides. Grant proceeds will support teaching artists’ salaries and administrative costs essential for delivering instruction including development of additional curriculum materials, instrument maintenance, art supplies and performance costumes. By providing these high-quality programs in school at no cost to families, Benkadi bridges the gap in art education and access to arts in general for historically disadvantaged youth. | Benkadi brings West African drum, dance and culture programs to schools of economic and social need in Los Angeles County and provides experiential events and learning opportunities to the wider community. Benkadi is fiscally sponsored by Community Partners. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Oakland Style Lab | 302 12th Street , Oakland, CA 94607 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 225-6673 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oakland Style Lab will provide part-time staff salaries for our small but mighty team of co-leaders to sustain and grow Oakland Style Lab's fashion justice programming, which serves hundreds of youth and adults across the Bay Area. What started 5 years ago as a one week summer camp to fill the void of affordable fashion arts programs in Oakland, has grown into a robust sustainable fashion hub. Rooted in the intersecting injustices facing our communities, we’ve built a groundbreaking program that reduces textile waste, supports designers of color and others historically excluded from fashion spaces, and cultivates a network of justice-focused fashion artists. Funding the staff that makes it all happen will ensure we can strengthen our organizational capacity and expand our programs to reach more people. | Olivia Cueva and Jeff Perlstein co-founded Oakland Style Lab in 2021 to connect existing, emerging, and aspiring fashion designers, while centering sustainable practices and racial and economic justice. We teach all aspects of fashion arts and design to boost the technical and entrepreneurial development of historically under-resourced communities for success in the growing creative workforce. We offer no/low-cost classes and workshops in sewing, mending, fashion design, patterning, sneaker repair and resoling, upcycling, biotextile production, and much more. We also produce dynamic events to inspire and educate the public about fashion waste and regenerative practices, including upcycling fashion shows, maker mixers, and gallery exhibits. We provide affordable workspace, gear, and materials to increase community access to knowledge and practices. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Benkadi, a project of Community Partners | 1000 N Alameda St Ste 240, Los Angeles, CA 90012-1804 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 258-9245 | With support from the California Arts Council, Benkadi will provide an 18-week in-school African Drum, Dance, and Culture program for 120, 5th/6th-grade students at Gil Garcetti Learning Academy in South Central Los Angeles. This project bridges barriers to arts access for youth in a historically under-resourced community by providing culturally responsive arts experiences. Our program aims to foster creative expression and cultivate life skills, such as leadership and collaboration, while enhancing cognitive development and improving mental and physical well-being. Guided by award-winning teaching artists who serve as culture bearers, students will learn traditional West African rhythms and engage with a curriculum that centers youth narratives and supports positive self-identification through the cultural assets of their community. The program will culminate in a community performance, celebrating the students' achievements and deepening their connection to the community. | Benkadi brings West African drum, dance and culture programs to schools of economic and social need in Los Angeles County and provides experiential events and learning opportunities to the wider community. Benkadi is fiscally sponsored by Community Partners. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | HOLLYWOOD ARAB FILM ASSOCIATION | 6551 STANFORD AVE , GARDEN GROVE, CA 92845-2242 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (909) 348-3924 | With support from the California Arts Council, HOLLYWOOD ARAB FILM FESTIVAL CORPORATION will sustain and expand year-round arts programming that uplifts Arab, Middle Eastern, North African, and Southwest Asian (SWANA) voices through film, media arts, and public engagement across California. Grant funds will support general operating expenses including staffing, artist support, accessibility services, outreach, marketing, and public programming. Through film screenings, educational panels, filmmaker discussions, and partnerships with cultural organizations, HOLLYWOOD ARAB FILM FESTIVAL CORPORATION advances equitable access to the arts for immigrant, diaspora, and historically underrepresented communities. Funding from the California Arts Council will strengthen the organization’s operational capacity and help provide accessible, inclusive, and affordable cultural programming that fosters artistic opportunity, cross-cultural understanding, and meaningful community connection throughout California. The organization also supports independent artists while expanding culturally responsive community-centered arts participation. | The Hollywood Arab Film Festival (HAFF) is a U.S.-based nonprofit dedicated to advancing Arab and Arab diaspora voices in global cinema through year-round programming, industry initiatives, and cultural exchange. Its core programs include an annual international film festival that showcases narrative, documentary, and experimental works; curated screenings and cultural events that foster dialogue between Arab and non-Arab audiences; and industry-facing initiatives such as project development labs, networking forums, and panels that support emerging and established filmmakers. HAFA also produces educational and professional development programs aimed at increasing access to the film industry, particularly for underrepresented creatives. Through strategic partnerships with cultural institutions, distributors, and international festivals, HAFA serves as a platform for cross-cultural storytelling, artistic excellence, and creative collaboration. Its programming emphasizes both artistic innovation and cultural diplomacy, positioning Arab cinema within a broader global and American context. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Fountain Theatre | 5060 FOUNTAIN AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90029-1422 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 663-1525 | California Assembly district 43 | District 43 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Fountain Theatre will sustain and expand its year-round artistic, educational, and community engagement programming in East Hollywood. CAC funds will support the Fountain’s 2027 season of new plays and reimagined classics addressing urgent social issues, alongside community-centered initiatives including Fountain for Youth, accessibility efforts such as our Living Ticket, and community engagement activities. Under the artistic leadership of Raymond O. Caldwell, the Fountain continues to deepen its commitment to culturally responsive programming that reflects and amplifies the diversity of Los Angeles. Funds will help provide artist compensation, accessible community programming, arts education services for underserved youth, and operational support that strengthens the organization’s capacity to serve approximately 6,000 audience members and students annually through performances, workshops, residencies, and public events. | The Fountain Theatre produces world class theatre productions with professional artists at our intimate venue in the East Hollywood neighborhood of Los Angeles, provides underserved youth with engaging, one-of-a-kind arts enrichment programming, and builds intersectional, intergenerational community through a variety of outreach offerings and events including our longstanding Flamenco program. Under the new artistic leadership of Raymond O. Caldwell, all facets of our programming are intentionally interconnected around the mainstage season bring all facets of our community into conversation around the themes and increase impact. Mainstage seasons and program delivery are carefully deliberated during the season planning process to be in alignment to our mission to produce new works that address urgent social issues while being responsive to community need. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Arts United San Pedro | 3601 S Gaffey St , Los Angeles, CA 90731-6969 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 519-0936 | California's 44th Congressional District | District 65 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts United San Pedro will provide programs and services to support an equitable and accessible arts ecosystem that truly reflects the diversity and vibrancy of the community within the San Pedro Arts and Cultural District, one of the original fourteen state-designated California Cultural Districts. We will elevate historically under-resourced artists with funding, public access and advocacy, as well as produce free and low cost community art events for traditionally underserved audiences. We will build on partnerships to support and promote diversity and cultural traditions within our artistic community. | * Community Engagement Activities – collaborative efforts between artists, organizations and the community to create shared experiences and foster connections through art * Wayfinding – using artistic and creative design within the city’s signs and visual cues to help people navigate our artistic community * Advocacy – using connections to government agencies and other arts coalitions to empower the arts community, make art accessible to everyone, appeal for public funding, address social justice issues, and more * Fund Development – raising funds to support the artists of the cultural district through donations, grants, sponsorships, special events, and more * Outreach – providing programs that bring arts and cultural experiences to underserved communities |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Paul Dresher Ensemble | 1446 Market Street , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 558-9540 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, New Performance Traditions will strengthen and expand its core programs for the Bay Area’s diverse performing arts communities. Funding will enable the organization to produce original multidisciplinary works and foster new performances that engage urgent issues of culture, history, race, gender, and identity. Programs include the Dresher Ensemble Artist Residency (six residencies with free studio access), In Studio Performances (10 events per year), the West Oakland Sound Series (40 new music and experimental sound events annually), and the 88+ Contemporary Piano Series (six concerts yearly). Additional benefits include access to affordable rehearsal and performance space, professional sound, lighting, and recording technologies, as well as fiscal sponsorships and co-producing partnerships. These services nurture bold creative visions and support both emerging and mid-career artists throughout the region. | Our programs and services are rooted in two equal, interconnected endeavors: continuing our 40-year legacy of producing contemporary music concerts and multidisciplinary collaborations, and serving the Bay Area’s performing arts communities by supporting the creation of new works. Present local innovative new music/musical theater, and opera performances Produce collaborative cross-media creations that bring together diverse artistic visions Commission and present new music and collaborative work by widely diverse creators Promote the creation of interactive installations and performances on innovative invented instruments Extend our presence nationally and internationally with exhibitions, tours, and performances To support current and future generations of creative performing artists, we provide a range of programs and services: Affordable rehearsal and performance space, available for both short- and long-term rentals, fully equipped with professional sound, lighting, projection, and recording equipment The Dresher Ensemble Artist Residency annually offers 6 residencies and performance opportunities to early and mid-career Northern California artists in theater, dance, music, sound art, and instrument invention. Residencies provide four weeks of free, 24/7 studio and shop access, use of professional equipment, mentorship, and technical support. Residents receive a stipend and the option to present on our “In Studio Performances” series. The program prioritizes BIPOC and gender non-conforming artists Fiscal sponsorship for Bay Area artists committed to risk-taking in new artwork creation. Three performance series in our West Oakland Studio: • In Studio Performances: (10/yr) multidisciplinary, contemporary, and traditional performing arts • West Oakland Sound Series: (40/yr) new music and experimental sound concerts per year, curated/co-produced with sfSound • 88+ Contemporary Piano Series: six concerts of late 20th and 21st-century solo and two-piano works Through all our activities, we nurture bold creative visions and foster a thriving, inclusive performing arts community - we serve both artists pursuing their passion and audiences seeking inspirational experience. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Movement Liberation | 1733 Broadway , Oakland, CA 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 931-7569 | District 12 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Movement Liberation will be able to continue offering unique dance workshops and retreats for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) that create greater wellbeing in the community we serve, are facilitated by trauma-informed BIPOC artists, and are accessible for adults across age and ability. This grant will go towards paying BIPOC staff and consultants (e.g., Program Manager, Assistant, Accessibility Coordinator, Marketing/Comms Support) at a fair market rate consistent with ML's mission, helping to sustain an essential community organization with a proven record of providing transformative healing experiences through the arts to the Bay Area BIPOC community. | Movement Liberation offers dance programs aligned with our 4 strategic pillars: - Offer safe & healing movement workshops & retreats for BIPOC - Uplift BIPOC facilitators by exclusively hiring BIPOC facilitators for our workshops & retreats, promoting their work in the world, and compensating them fairly for their time - Promote a culture of equity & redistribution of wealth & labor toward BIPOC-led justice initiatives as a form of reparations - Develop a blueprint and create a next culture for liberation of People of Color (and all people) thru intentional shifts away from the practice of white supremacy culture in all aspects of programming and operations Movement Liberation offers workshops & retreats held in a container for healing and growth. Here, adults with diverse movement experience, ages, genders, body types, and abilities all become dancers. They improvise & introduce their movement signatures into the room. This range of expression invites all to stretch out of their comfort zones & explore new ways of moving, resting, breathing and dreaming together. The practice of liberation inside these dance spaces transforms the life and leadership of each individual beyond these spaces - at home, at work, in the community - creating a ripple effect of inspiration and empowerment across communities. Anchored by a theme, the energy in the room, and the needs of the participants, facilitators guide dancers through an exploration of different movement patterns, relational landscapes, & embodied points-of-view. They may invite dancers to pause, pay attention to breath patterns, use peripheral vision, witness each other, be witnessed (a growth edge for some), explore boundaries, release - no two experiences are ever the same. Employing trauma-informed facilitation, they encourage participants to take up space, stand in their dignity, and move relationally. Within this space, there is immense potential for original movement, trauma release, and somatic repatterning. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Pacifico Dance Company | 4363 JASMINE AVE , CULVER CITY, CA 90232-3426 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 721-5640 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ballet Folklórico del Pacífico/Pacífico Dance Company will strengthen the 34-year cultural legacy of Pacífico as a home for Mexican folklórico dance, intergenerational learning, cultural identity, and community connection in California. Funds will support teaching artist and administrative capacity, rehearsal and program space, costume maintenance, outreach, impact documentation, and improved accessibility through affordable participation, bilingual communication, inclusive rehearsal practices, and clearer outreach for participants, families, and audiences. Building on growth supported by prior CAC Cultural Pathways funding, Pacífico will expand affordable access to folklórico education and intergenerational cultural transmission. Today’s company reflects the community it serves: college students, recent graduates, young parents, second-generation dancers, educators, health and social service professionals, and women culture bearers who use folklórico as a source of identity, leadership, belonging, and community connection. | Founded in 1992, the Los Angeles-based Pacífico Dance Company has been thrilling audiences with its unique blend of modern and traditional dance for nearly twenty years. Under the guidance of Adriana Astorga-Gainey, general and artistic director, the company has evolved and created its own unique style, costume designs, music, and choreography. Pacifico Dance Academy also provides training of the highest standards in traditional Mexican dance to children and teens. Our local programs emphasize the unique zapateado technique and music necessary to create authentic Mexican folk dance. We also provide quality ballet and yoga training to help students develop proper body alignment to adapt to all dance styles. Pacifico Dance Company is proud to serve as a 501 (C)(3) organization dedicated to the performance and preservation of traditional Mexican dance through the reconstruction of choreography and dance training. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Sacramento County | 700 H Street Suite 6750, Sacramento, CA 95814 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 874-5220 | 7th Congressional District | California State Assembly District 6 | California State Senate District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Sacramento County Office of Economic Development (OED) will develop a County Arts Workplan to advance arts and culture in Sacramento County. The plan will include recommendations from OED’s updated strategic plan, establish a structure for governance and implementation of the County art program, identify funding opportunities and resources, outline County policy objectives, and set priorities for the initial years of implementation. Particular focus will be placed on unincorporated Sacramento County, including communities within some of the County’s lowest-quartile census tracts that have historically received less city and county funding support than incorporated areas. The plan will promote the integration of public art into commercial corridor revitalization efforts in partnership with community stakeholders and support implementation of the county-wide Poetry Out Loud high school poetry competition. | 1. Public Art Program - 2% of County building construction costs are dedicated to art. 2. Grant Program - Through a collaboration with the City of Sacramento's Cultural Arts Awards Program offer operational support to nonprofit art organizations. Through County TOT Program offer project based support to nonprofit art organizations. 3. Temporary Exhibitions and Performing Arts Program - Exhibitions held at County Board of Supervisor's Chambers and holiday performing arts program at the Sacramento International Airport. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | AFRO-AMERICAN CHAMBER MUSIC SOCIETY ORCHESTRA | 634 E. Regent Street , Inglewood, CA 90301 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 431-6776 | 43rd Congressional District | District 61 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Afro-American Chamber Music Society Orchestra will present three concerts for the Black Symphonist Concert Series including the following: (1) Black Legend Composers Concert on February 7, 2027; (2) Chevalier Festival Concert on April 11, 2027 and (3) Juneteenth Celebration, June 6, 2027. | The Afro-American Chamber Music Society Orchestra presents three concerts during the Black Symphonist Concert Series including: 1) The Black Legend Composers; 2) The Saint-Georges Festival and the 3) Juneteenth Celebration Concert; and 4) four music masterclasses for Crenshaw High School teaching articulation, music literacy and Black composers' works. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | LAWTF | 11100 Emelita Street , N HOLLYWOOD, CA 91601 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 760-0408 | California's 29th congressional district | District 44 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Women's Theatre Festival will sustain and expand its year-round programming as the oldest and longest-running Annual Solo Theatre Festival for women in Los Angeles. CAC funds totaling $30,000 will offset core operational and program expenses including production, marketing, artist stipends, and educational programming. These funds will directly support LAWTF's Annual Solo Theatre Festival, Empowerment Weekend educational workshops and panels, and Hot Off the Press new works reading series — ensuring continued access to multicultural and multidisciplinary solo performance by and for the diverse communities of Los Angeles. | Los Angeles Women's Theatre Festival produces an Annual Theatre Festival that presents diverse, multi-cultural, and multi-disciplinary solo shows created and developed by women each March during Women's History Month. Each year, LAWTF also presents outreach programming that includes "Hot Off The Press" (a new works solo reading series), "Wine Down Wednesday" (our social and networking mixer), and "Empowerment Weekend" (annual symposium of workshops and panels tailored for solo artists). Our overall programming is designed with the intention of empowering women through both the presentation and development of their own work, thus making them autonomous and self-sustaining as successful, working artists. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Maya's Music Therapy Fund | PO BOX 7110 , BERKELEY, CA 94707-0110 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 704-8476 | With support from the California Arts Council, Maya’s Music Therapy Fund will provide free weekly music therapy sessions to youth with developmental disabilities at two East Bay after-school program sites. Through music therapy sessions and performing at our Spring Music Festival, participants will foster creative self-expression and gain new musical, cognitive, and social skills. | Maya’s Music Therapy Fund's board certified music therapists work with people with disabilities such as autism, cerebral palsy, Down’s syndrome, brain injury, hearing and vision impairment, ADHD, Rett syndrome, and other developmental disabilities. Experiencing the unique power of music to engage our brains and our bodies, clients gain physical and social skills while building self-esteem and confidence during individual and group music therapy sessions. MMTF also collaborates with agencies and existing programs that serve people with disabilities from Alameda, Contra Costa, and San Francisco Counties in Northern California. Our main programs are: - Individual music therapy sessions - Group music therapy sessions - Our annual Maya's Spring Music Festival where participants perform and celebrate their talents with an audience of supportive friends and family | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Unscripted Learning | 3717 INDIA ST , SAN DIEGO, CA 92103-3727 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 295-4999 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Unscripted Learning will use improvisational theatre to teach teamwork, creative expression, leadership, and problem-solving, while also bringing the theory and practice of improv to underserved communities. Our programs foster creativity and connection across generations and abilities, including seniors and youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD). At a time when demand for inclusive arts programming continues to rise, the proposed elimination of all City funding for the arts threatens access to vital community-based services for individuals with disabilities and their families. Without it, Unscripted Learning will be forced to reduce or end low-cost classes, cutting off access to a proven resource for youth with ASD and other underserved communities that thrive through creativity, connection, and the power of improv. | Developed in conjunction with the National Comedy Theatre in 2017, Unscripted Learning uses improvisational theatre to teach the concepts of teamwork, leadership, and creative problem solving as well as teaching improv skills and theory. Programs include: Connections: An improvisational theatre program for teenagers and young adults on the autism spectrum. Kids and Teens Programs: Unscripted Learning uses improv comedy to teach teamwork, sportsmanship and leadership in addition to performance skills, while providing a forum for students to have fun in a wholesome, supportive environment. Active Minds: An educational program, designed exclusively for seniors, that teaches improvisational acting techniques and skills to improve cognitive ability, foster brain health, broaden creative expression and help increase social interaction. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $5,423.00 | Rocklin Fine Arts | PO BOX 1194 , ROCKLIN, CA 95677-1194 | Placer | Upstate | (916) 521-7747 | 3rd Congressional District | District 5 | District 5 | With support from the California Arts Council, Rocklin Fine Arts will bolster the regional creative landscape by maintaining accessible community spaces. Grant funding is essential to our operations, specifically covering hourly rental fees at Johnson Springview Park for public exhibitions and monthly educational gatherings. By subsidizing these facility costs and related overhead, the grant ensures we continue hosting expert-led demonstrations and professional showcases without passing expenses to the public. This financial backing allows RFA to remove barriers, providing a stable environment where local talent gains exposure and residents engage with high-level instruction. Ultimately, these funds transform public spaces into active cultural hubs, making fine art a permanent and interactive staple of life in Placer County. | Rocklin Fine Arts serves as a vital catalyst for the regional creative economy by providing structured, accessible platforms for both emerging and established creators. Our programming offers unique benefits that extend beyond simple art appreciation: Professional Development for Local Artists: By maintaining dedicated exhibition spaces and hosting three major annual shows, RFA provides local artists with professional-grade venues to display and sell their work. This infrastructure is essential for artists to gain public recognition, build their portfolios, and sustain their creative practices within Placer County. Empowering the Next Generation: Our Student Art Show and the annual RFA-Jarrett Visual Arts Scholarship offer students more than just a showcase; they provide a first step into the professional art world. Having their work viewed by the public and judged by peers fosters immense pride and encourages long-term pursuit of the arts. Accessible Artistic Education: Seven times a year, our monthly meetings provide free art and photography demonstrations led by noted guest speakers. By removing the financial barrier to high-level technical instruction, RFA ensures that skills in composition, perspective, and various mediums are available to all community members, regardless of their income level. Community Connectivity: Through regular "SketchCrawls" and collaborative exhibits, RFA bridges the gap between the artistic community and the public, creating a "cultural infusion" that makes fine art a visible and interactive part of daily life in Rocklin. This multi-tiered approach ensures that Placer County remains a place where artists can thrive at every stage of their journey, from the classroom to the professional gallery. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Teatro Mascara Magica | 1604 DARTMOUTH ST , CHULA VISTA, CA 91913-2006 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 861-3544 | 51st | 78th | 40th | With support from the California Arts Council, Teatro Máscara Mágica (TMM) will fund its Bilingual Youth Theater Mentorship Program, a year-round initiative engaging youth ages 8–25 from San Ysidro, Logan Heights, City Heights, and neighboring underserved San Diego communities. During the October 1, 2026–September 30, 2027, grant period, CAC funds will support two mainstage productions and twelve-monthly workshops. The anchor production is TITLE FIGHT; a 2-act play by TMM President Luis M. Aragón. Its six core youth characters — a 15-year-old Barrio girl who fights to save her neighborhood gym, and five Latino and African American teenagers will be cast directly from TMM's youth mentorship participants. The second production, La Pastorela (November–December 2026), is TMM's 39-year bilingual holiday tradition providing intergenerational youth participation in performance, stagecraft, and production design. | Teatro Mascara Magica (TMM) produces 3 to 4 major theatrical productions in a season. It's signature productions its annual December Holiday presentation of La Pastorela, a holiday pageant. TMM is active in its educational outreach, by providing internships to high school and college students in all facets or theatre production including, acting, stage management, lighting, sound, music and directorial education. TMM has showcased new works by leading Latinx playwrights including Josefina Lopez and Luis Valdez. TMM provides workshops and readings of emerging plays which reflect the cultural diversity of San Diego County. TMM also works closely with the Asian Story Theatre and the San Diego Black Ensemble Theatre Company - both of which have representation on TMM's board of directors. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | San Benito County Arts Council | 35 5th St. Suite D , HOLLISTER, CA 95023 | San Benito | Central Coast | (831) 636-2787 | California's 18th congressional district | District 29 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the SAN BENITO COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL will increase arts and cultural equity, impact and accessibility for all residents in San Benito County through expanded programs, services and funding. CAC Funds will be applied to general operations and Poetry Out Loud. | The San Benito County Arts Council’s signature programs and services include: Arts in Education Exhibiting and Presenting Grantmaking Public Art Professional Development and Capacity Building Arts Advocacy |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Los Angeles Filmforum | 1465 Tamarind Ave #155 , Los Angeles, CA 90028-8412 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 377-7238 | 30 | 51 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, FILMFORUM INC will use funding from the grant for eligible expenses related to general operations for programming and presenting film and video art screenings throughout the year.. | Filmforum is currently the longest-running venue in Southern California dedicated exclusively to the ongoing, non-commercial exhibition of independent, experimental, and progressive cinema. We screen films, sponsor independent experimental films, and communicate about other screenings in the county. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Eye Zen Presents | 1446 Market Street , San Francisco, CA 94102-6004 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 786-9325 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Eye Zen Presents will complete and launch Walk With Me, a self-guided, GPS-based audio walking tour activating LGBTQ+ history in San Francisco’s Haight-Ashbury. Funds will support final production of six audio episodes featuring archival recordings from more than twenty queer elders, original sound design, and illustrated visuals, along with accessibility features including transcripts and navigation guidance. Grant support will also expand Queer History Happened Here storefront installations, placing QR-linked stories and images in neighborhood businesses. In November 2026, Eye Zen Presents will present public launch events, including facilitated community walks and site-responsive performances that invite collective engagement with the work. The project will remain accessible as an ongoing public artwork embedded in the neighborhood, preserving endangered histories and returning them to the community through place-based storytelling. | Since our founding in 2007, Eye Zen Presents has created multidisciplinary community-building events in San Francisco in traditional and alternative theater spaces, private homes, gardens and community centers. Our productions focus on LGBTQ+ history and experimentally blend performative and visual disciplines: physical theater, puppetry, contemporary dance, drag, circus, live music, and video. We work with community partners to devise and produce new performance, curate exhibitions and offer educational opportunities. Our walking tours create an immersive spectacle in real time and in public space, using sidewalks, plazas, parks, and privately owned public open spaces (POPOS). |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Sketch Odyssey East Bay | 6451 Hazel Avenue , Richmond, CA 94805 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 350-6906 | California Assembly district 14 | District CA-8 | District 7 | Support from the California Arts Council will allow the Children's Art Studio Richmond (CASR) to stabilize staffing, expand program capacity, and meet demonstrated community demand. This funding will transition CASR's successful "Pop-Up" workshops into a consistent, permanent-site model for children ages 2–12, directly addressing persistent waitlists. Specifically, resources will support the launch of the Hero Teddy pilot, a trauma-informed collaboration with the Richmond PD designed to foster emotional resilience in children during crises. Furthermore, it will facilitate the development of the "Studio for All" in-home model, removing transportation barriers for families. By funding a bilingual educator and specialized materials, CASR will strengthen its "Process-to-Process" curriculum, ensuring that over 80% of its Spanish-speaking households receive high-quality, culturally grounded arts education. This investment secures CASR's role as a vital hub for creative equity and community-led healing. | The Children's Art Studio Richmond / Taller de Arte Para Niños Richmond provides free art classes in both English and Spanish to children aged 2 - 5 in the Richmond, CA community, regardless of their background or resources. This program is designed to support each individual child to achieve their highest creative potential, while teaching children basic art-making techniques. We emphasize the importance of cooperation and self-help, self- discipline, and assuming responsibility for the use of these materials. Through this approach, we foster a sense of exploration, creativity, and self- expression in each child. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Modoc County Arts Council | 212 W. Third St. , Alturas, CA 96101 | Modoc | Upstate | (530) 708-7233 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Modoc County Arts Council will strengthen its organizational capacity through general operating support. CAC funds will be used to support a part-time Executive Director salary, facility and administrative expenses, public outreach and marketing, and contracted consultants, service providers, and teaching artists. This support will help sustain and expand arts access for residents throughout rural Modoc County, including youth, families, and community members. By maintaining these essential operations, MCAC will continue to strengthen cultural engagement, supporting local artists and educators, and deepening the role of the arts in community connection and rural vitality. Any remaining funds will be directed toward program implementation in alignment with California Arts Council guidelines and the mission of the Modoc County Arts Council. | The Modoc County Arts Council is organized into four main programs: Visual Arts, Arts Education, Performing Arts, & Culture. Under Visual Arts we have gallery shows including a student art show, and a digital art gallery (pending), Sponsorship of galleries in two Modoc towns, mural projects on buildings in Alturas and Cedarville; under Arts education we have consulting and collaborating with the Modoc High Art Classes, our Arts Instructors Program in partnership with The Art Center of Alturas, and sponsorship of local galleries in two Modoc County towns that have arts educational programs; under Performing Arts we have the Missoula Children’s Theatre one-week residency and the Poetry Out Loud programs for Modoc County, as well as partner with the Modoc Performing Arts Theater and the Modoc High School Drama Club. We have implemented the Modoc Community Concert Series and have four concerts per year – we hope to expand this to eight concerts per year with additional funding. We have a community radio station KILN 99.1 LP FM that has local content from area musicians and provides consulting and assistance with recording. Under Culture we have anticipated partnerships with the Library, Museum, local ranches, and Tribes to provide venues, events, and classes that foster the celebration and understanding, and artwork of different cultures in Modoc County. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | ESMoA | 14929 Hawthorne Blvd , Lawndale, CA 90260-1502 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 277-1020 | 43 | District 61 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTLAB21 FOUNDATION will operate the Experimentally Structured Museum of Art (ESMoA) in Lawndale, fostering creativity and greater cultural equity and access through (1) entirely free admission and programming, (2) exhibition models and civic art projects that push artistic boundaries and enliven non-traditional spaces, (3) arts education for K-12 public school students, and (4) artist residencies. | ESMoA believes that many people should contribute to the interpretation and creation of art in an atmosphere that is free – we do not charge fees for admissions or programs – and freeing to visitors and artists. Since 2023, we have been headquartered in Lawndale, where 40% percent of residents are immigrants and 63% identify as Latinx. We are its first-ever visual arts space, with a gallery and art workshop studio. At our weekly drop-in Art Maker Space, visitors create art – collages/lino prints/drawings/paintings – at long tables, family-style. A weekly session for young children (3+) combines storytelling and artmaking. Experiences – our word for exhibitions – offer curated presentations of contemporary art. One recent show was XICANA!, a cross-generational look at the Chicana Arts Movement featuring 67 artists, which travels in June to Escondido with an expanded checklist of San Diego artists. In the upcoming Experience GRIEF, our guest curator will trace stages of grief. As with each Experience, ESMoA will commission new works of art. ESMoA nurtures artists. Through the LAB Residency, local artists create new work to accompany Experiences and lead workshops. We have just initiated an international exchange program. For Experience 62: STATIONS (2025), undergraduates from El Camino College collaborated with visiting students from the University of Fine Arts Münster, Germany, on a mural. Under an initiative called EXTENSION, ESMoA organizes Experiences beyond our four walls. Our first such venture was EDGE (2024), which brought together the work of L.A. graffiti writers/muralists. To commemorate Juneteenth, we partnered with the organization Black in Mayberry on the exhibition FREEDOM. ESMoA is integrated into the community’s fabric. Our team leads a school library-based Story Artlab sessions as well as workshops at the City’s Youth Day Parade, Day of the Dead festivities, and “Chalk Away” muralmaking on City Hall Plaza. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | PiYoDa Flow | 4215 W 29th St , Los Angeles, CA 90016-3615 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 996-3569 | California Assembly district 55 | District CA-37 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Culture Flow Projects (CFP) will expand access to free and affordable dance and wellness classes for local youth and adults. Grant funding will subsidize a portion of the lease for our physical space, PiYoDa Flow in West Adams, allowing us to provide rehearsal space and workshops for artists at reduced cost. The award will also support a part-time administrative position to support our off-site programming with incarcerated youth and manage daily operations, grant writing, and marketing for our on-site cultural center Piyoda Flow and community programming across South Los Angeles. Ultimately, this funding will support BIPOC artists of South LA with continuous cultural transmission, celebration and performances of Afro Diasporic, Street and Social dance. | Organization's Core Programs and Services: We offer: - Weekly free and/or affordable dance classes and workshops with nationally and internationally recognized dance educators for youth and adults. - On and off site outreach arts education programs at various institutions in our area of South Los Angeles. - Anti-recidivism arts programming for system-impacted youth, currently incarcerated at Secure Youth Treatment Facilities (SYTF) - Developing programming to impact youth formerly incarcerated through dance and wellness offerings off-site with partner organizations AHJN, Homeboy Industries and Los Angeles Probation Department. - Space to research the history, origins and influences of Afro Diasporic Dance forms such as House, Afro Cuban, Hustle, Salsa, Timba, Capoeira, Samba, Sabar, Dances of Guinea, Togo, Benin and Contemporary dance practices, while allowing for the organic growth of the style through consistent multi-cultural influences in practice. - Bi-weekly open dance sessions 'Open House' for dancers to train, practice, and develop their craft. - Larger social dance events and forum discussions at various indoor and outdoor venues. - A residency program for street and social dance artists (often referred as Hip Hop artists) interested in dance theater/experimental choreography and performances. - Free and/or affordable wellness classes in yoga, pilates and sound bath meditation |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | "" | 660 S AVENUE 21 APT 3 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90031-2937 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 317-1069 | 34th | 54 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Art and Cake will hire emerging arts writers to produce reviews and artist spotlights for their online magazine, focused on overlooked Los Angeles exhibitions and underrepresented visual artists and strengthening a more equitable and representative contemporary arts ecosystem. The program provides paid opportunities for emerging writers to build professional portfolios and develop their voices under the guidance of experienced editors. At the same time, thoughtful critical coverage helps artists build sustainable practices by increasing visibility, documentation, and public engagement around their work. For residents and readers, the publication expands access to accessible, community-centered arts writing that connects people to the cultural activity happening across Los Angeles. | Art and Cake’s core programs and services are centered on its role as publisher of Art and Cake Magazine, an online contemporary arts publication focused on the LA art scene. Since assuming the publication in 2024 and formalizing its organizational identity as Art and Cake in early 2026, we have made a deliberate shift to concentrate resources on arts writing as its primary service to the field. This transition was driven by a clear gap in the cultural landscape. As legacy publications have reduced or eliminated arts coverage, fewer exhibitions- particularly outside major institutions-receive attention. Art and Cake addresses this need by publishing reviews, interviews, and artist features that document and contextualize a broader range of artistic activity, with a particular emphasis on emerging and underrepresented voices. The magazine serves multiple, interconnected functions. For artists, it provides visibility, validation, and critical framing that can be essential to career development. For writers, it offers a rare and increasingly vital platform for publication, mentorship, and professional growth in a contracting field. For audiences, it creates accessible entry points into contemporary art, translating complex ideas into engaging and relevant dialogue. Art and Cake’s editorial approach prioritizes inclusivity and accessibility, ensuring that both contributors and subjects reflect the diversity of the Los Angeles region. By focusing on exhibitions and practices often overlooked by mainstream press, the publication expands the cultural record and supports a more equitable distribution of attention and opportunity. While earlier iterations of the organization included professional development, artist services, and exhibitions, leadership determined that many of those offerings duplicated existing resources. In contrast, the need for independent, accessible arts writing remains acute. By refining focus, Art and Cake strengthens its impact: operating as a platform and a public resource that sustains dialogue, visibility, and critical engagement across the contemporary art ecosystem. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | Oakland Civic Orchestra | 1106 PARK AVE APT 5 , ALAMEDA, CA 94501-5200 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 217-9589 | District 12 | 18th District | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oakland Civic Orchestra Association will provide three to four orchestral performances with compelling programming that includes both traditional repertoire and works by women, lesser-known, and other under-represented composers. OCOA is made up of skilled musicians who represent the diversity of Oakland. CAC funds will support our Assistant Conductor and Composer-in-Residence programs and the performance and recording of new and unfamiliar orchestral works. We will also hire emerging guest soloists to perform with the orchestra. Grant funds will also support OCOA in continuing to provide high-quality concerts at Valley Center for the Performing Arts, an ADA-compliant venue, which will increase our impact on and accessibility to the wider San Francisco Bay Area and empower us to partner with more community organizations. | Community Orchestra providing music to the community of Oakland Perform a high percentage of underrepresented and emerging artists and composers Composer-in-Residence Program presenting world premiers of new works Associate Conductor Initiative developing new and emerging conductors Emerging Artist Support for both artists and composers |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Mercury Music Foundation | 1655 Dimas Ct , Azusa, CA 91702-6202 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 678-5967 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mercury Music Foundation will expand equitable, culturally responsive arts education across Southern California, prioritizing Title I schools, immigrant communities, and underserved populations. We will scale core programs including the Quantum Music Program, AI-enabled initiatives such as “Re-energize Your Creativity,” high-tech integrated music creation programs, and the “Re-Invent California Traditional Sound” initiative, which reimagines cultural heritage through modern music technology. Funding will support expanded school and community partnerships, improved curriculum development, and greater access through technology-enabled learning environments. We will also strengthen outreach to diverse communities, ensuring culturally relevant engagement. In addition, we will enhance program evaluation systems and data-informed decision-making to measure impact and refine programming based on community feedback. This support will strengthen organizational capacity and deepen access to innovative arts education across Southern California. | Since its inception, we have created and developed a diversity of novel music programs representing the highest standard of art practices from the music industry and the coherence by integrating emerging A.I. music technology with a new outlook on music education. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | Tuolumne County Arts Alliance Inc. | 21 N. Washington St. , SONORA, CA 95370 | Tuolumne | Central Valley | (209) 694-3198 | California's 5th congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, TUOLUMNE COUNTY ARTS ALLIANCE INC would: Hire part time office staff -- critically needed to forward our mission. Hire teaching artists to expand free community art classes. Continue to build our creative reuse store -- as an income-producing, community building, arts and artist resource space. Continue to Increase visibility at local events with BIPOC, LGBTQ, developmentally challenged adults, as well as artists and cultural workers in order to support current artists and cultural workers. Further partnership with youth, civic and other community groups to provide experiences that demonstrate the power of arts practices. Increase our service to local artists and cultural workers who seek us out to support their creativity and livelihoods. Demonstrate arts as vital to Placemaking and the Creative Economy through participation in City and County public events. | TCA is designated as Tuolumne County’s mandated Public Arts Agency. The goal of which is to provide a continuing Arts presence in order to strengthen our local economy through the arts. We have been the arts and cultural resource for Tuolumne County for over 40 years. We provide arts activities for partners and programs in schools, as well as free classes to the community at our main downtown location. Some of the activities and programs we provide range from workshops, classes and activities for all ages in visual and performing arts; music events, shows and exhibitions. We support our artist community via mini-grants as well as larger grants like the Creative Corps, Heartland Grant. Discounts are provided to members for workshops, shows and a retail store where the public can also purchase deeply discounted arts and craft materials. TCA works with fledgling groups of all persuasions, both artistic and cultural who need support in the form of marketing, website and design support, and space for meetings. TCA partners with these organizations to strengthen their visibility, while supporting them in finding grants. Our largest free community event is the Handmade Parade. This is a day for adults and children that celebrates and invites the creative repurposing spirit to thrive in our community. Participating musicians and artists are supported through stipends. We have been able to be flexible in our exhibition schedule and have added many shows that are shown at the Sonora Chamber of Commerce. We are celebrating our 38th year of the InFocus Photography Show and the 28th year of the Youth Arts Show. We are partnering with MyAct, (Youth Theater), First Friday Live, a program that serves over 30 schools in the county, and the Mother Lode Artists Association, expanding TCA's reach and capacity to serve young artists. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $8,000.00 | Resonance Collective | 412 S BENTON WAY , LOS ANGELES, CA 90057-1704 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (541) 646-0305 | 34th Congressional district of California | 54th Assembly District | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Resonance Collective (RC) will strengthen organizational sustainability and deepen community engagement through increased administrative capacity. RC requests $10,000 in general operating support to support Artistic Director, Managing Director, and Touring Manager compensation, ensuring equitable pay for core leadership roles that sustain RC’s artistic programming, partnerships, and community initiatives. Funding will help RC continue transitioning toward a diversified and sustainable funding model supported by earned revenue, grants, and individual donations. By strengthening administrative infrastructure, RC will be able to reinvest earned income and ticket revenue into accessible community engagement activities and equitable pay for artists based in Southern California. | The Resonance Collective is a creative community that looks to the arts as a vehicle for transformative and transcendental experiences. We began in 2012 and offer three programs: the Original Works program, the Golden Thread Concert Series, and the N.E.O Voice Festival. In 2019, we launched the N.E.O. Voice Festival in collaboration with VoiceScienceWorks and See-A-Dot Music Publishing. This annual, week-long celebration of new and experimental vocal music has since worked with over 200 musicians and has premiered more than 100 new works for the voice. In 2022, we introduced Golden Thread Concerts, a curation of artists and composers across time and geography who exemplify the intersection of creative and spiritual practices. The series has presented nationally and internationally acclaimed artists, including oud player and composer Yuval Ron, Jazz legend Dwight Trible, electronic artist and soprano Micaela Tobin, and pianist Vicki Ray. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Sons and Daughters of Guam Club, Inc. | 334 Willie James Jones Ave , SAN DIEGO, CA 92102 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 705-3336 | California's 50th Congressional District | California State Assembly District 78 | California State Senate District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, SONS AND DAUGHTERS OF GUAM CLUB, INC. will strengthen its capacity to sustain and expand year-round Chamorro cultural arts programming serving San Diego’s 92102 community and surrounding neighborhoods. General operating support will help provide free and low-cost, accessible cultural experiences that reduce barriers and foster cultural identity, intergenerational connection, and belonging among Chamorro youth, families, and the broader community. Funding will support program administration, community outreach, cultural practitioner coordination, event production, organizational operations, honoraria for elders and cultural knowledge bearers, culturally specific materials, and accessibility supports. Programming will center participatory and intergenerational cultural arts practices, including traditional dance, chant, storytelling, language preservation, weaving, navigation knowledge, and Chamorro foodways, strengthening cultural transmission, community visibility, and cultural continuity. | The Sons and Daughters of Guam Club, Inc. provides community-based cultural arts and heritage activities that preserve and promote Chamorro traditions through participatory engagement and intergenerational cultural sharing. Programming includes cultural gatherings, performances, storytelling, chant, language activities, weaving, traditional dance participation, and Chamorro foodways that encourage youth and families to engage directly in cultural practices and community traditions. Elders, cultural knowledge holders, community members, and volunteers support activities through demonstration, storytelling, participation, and shared cultural practice, helping preserve and transmit Chamorro traditions across generations. The organization collaborates with cultural groups, nonprofits, and community-based partners that support outreach, community engagement, and cultural events. Youth and families participate in public cultural celebrations and community events that strengthen cultural visibility, identity, belonging, and community connection. Programs are designed to reduce participation barriers and provide accessible opportunities for community cultural engagement and preservation. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,300.00 | Teatro Nagual | 15 MOSES CT , SACRAMENTO, CA 95823-6368 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 549-3341 | 6 | 10 | Sacramento | With support from the California Arts Council, Teatro Nagual will implement a culturally responsive youth visual storytelling and mentorship program serving underserved BIPOC youth ages 15–24 in Sacramento. Through weekly workshops led by community-rooted visual storytellers and mentors, participants will explore digital and analog photography, develop technical and artistic storytelling skills, and create original works reflecting their communities, identities, and lived experiences. CAC funds will support artist mentorship, participant stipends, accessibility efforts, and access to professional-grade photography equipment donated through a community photography lending initiative inspired by acclaimed photographer John Castillo. The project will culminate in a public exhibition at Casa de Español celebrating youth voices, cultural storytelling, and community connection. | Founded in 2006, our core values have expanded into three pillars of core programs and services. Pillar 1 - Creating quality bi-lingual theatrical programming. Pillar 2 - Creating mobile social justice theatrical experiences in alignment with cross sector partners and communities focusing on key issues including but not limited to, immigration, civic engagement, environmental justice, and health and well-being. Pillar 3 - Creating and fostering and empowering the next generation of Latinx arts educators. We organize artists of all disciplines and all demographics to understand their collective power in advocacy efforts ensuring sustainability of the creative economy. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Youth ARTS Alive | 2242 Fallen Leaf Drive , Santa Maria, CA 93456 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 563-0463 | 24th District | District 35 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Youth ARTS Alive will use General Operating Support funding to sustain core operations and expand access to free arts education in Santa Maria. Funds will support Executive Director leadership to maintain programs, partnerships, and organizational stability, including collaboration with the City of Santa Maria. Funding will also support teaching artists who provide year-round ukulele, guitar, and visual arts classes, and allow expansion to include dance or baile folklórico. Classes will be offered at no cost to youth. Additional funds will cover program supplies, costumes, and website maintenance to support outreach and registration. This funding ensures consistent program delivery and removes financial barriers for underserved youth. | In 2017, Santa Barbara County Action Network (SBCAN) became the fiscal sponsor for Youth ARTS Alive so we could provide Free Summer Arts Education for the Youth in under-served neighborhoods of Santa Maria. YEAR ONE: Four weeks of free classes in Theater, Visual Art, Dance, and Music for 17 youth. YEAR TWO: Five weeks of class at two sites for 60 youth. We produced our first student Performing and Visual Arts Fiesta for an audience of 125. YEAR THREE: We added third class site - Los Adobes de Maria, providing 225 class hours of class to 96 students in five weeks. First community non-profit to use the Performing Arts Center at Pioneer Valley High School for our Arts Fiesta for 200 people. YEAR FOUR: Only summer arts education program in Santa Maria to offer in-person classes. At the Maldonado Youth Center, we educated 60 students (outdoors, in masks) for 3 weeks in Dance, Theatre, Guitar, Ukulele, Drumming, Pottery and Visual Arts, ending each class with a family performance. 20 Los Adobes de Maria students received on-line art classes. YEAR FIVE: Outdoor program expanded to six weeks, educating 119 students, ending with student performances. YEAR SIX: Six weeks of classes for 250 students at four locations, including year-round music and art classes at the Santa Maria Valley Discovery Museum, and two Arts Fiestas for 450 people. YEAR SEVEN: Six weeks of free arts education for 300 students at five locations, adding six weeks of art and music at Mary Buren Elementary School in Guadalupe, plus two Arts Fiestas for 500 people. YEAR EIGHT: Six weeks of classes for 350 students at our five locations, plus two Arts Fiestas for 500 people. YEAR NINE: Five weeks of Classes for 400 students ar our five locations, plus One Grand Arts Fiesta for 300 people. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | SDYAMA | 4125 Alpha street, Suite A , San Diego, CA 92113 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 335-0176 | California's 51st congressional district | District 80 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN DIEGO YOUNG ARTISTS MUSIC ACADEMY INCORPORATED will provide year-round music education, mentorship, and performance opportunities for underserved youth ages 3–18 in southeastern San Diego. Grant funds will support instructional staff, including the Music Director, Studio Engineer, Administrative Director, and Social Media Administrator, who are essential to program implementation, student engagement, and community outreach. Funds will also support music instruction books, educational materials, and marketing resources used to expand access to low-income families and increase community participation. Through instrumental instruction, music theory, digital production, ensemble performance, and public showcases, SDYAMA will provide culturally responsive arts learning experiences that promote creativity, confidence, discipline, and positive youth development while creating safe and accessible opportunities for artistic expression in historically underserved communities. | San Diego Young Artists Music Academy's program provides a structured music program for 150 disadvantaged, low income, at-risk youth between the ages of 6 thru 12 years. This program teaches professional music (voice & instrumental) skills to youth. We provide instruction in all instruments such as piano, drums, violin, and guitar. Our step-by-step curriculum takes each student from beginning level (approximately 4 months), intermediate level (approximately 4 months) to advance level (approximately 4 months) in music. This program will help develop culturally relevant and artistic activities for our students that promote positive self-esteem. The program makes youth aware of their potential for creative self-expression and development as well as fosters a continuing interest in music and arts as a future career. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $16,800.00 | E4TT | 55 Taylor St. , San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 684-0505 | California's 12th congressional district | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ensemble for These Times (E4TT) will continue to perform and promote 20th and 21st century music that is relevant, original, engaging, and compelling, with women creators as a primary focus, continuing our commitment to amplifying traditionally underrepresented voices in contemporary classical chamber music. These funds will directly support the following mission-driven activities on behalf of our community: performing and commissioning music by women composers; performing and commissioning works by Asian, Black, Latine, and LGBTQIA artists; bringing these works to local audiences; consistently compensating our (mostly) women musicians and staff; offering our online community our podcast focusing on women, BIPOC, and and LGBTQIA composers; and keeping concerts accessible and affordable. Funds will be used to pay staff, musicians, videographers, and publicists. | Winners of The American Prize in 2021 in Chamber Music Performance, Ensemble for These Times (E4TT) is a contemporary chamber music group currently celebrating its eighteenth season. E4TT performs 4-6 hybrid concerts each season in the San Francisco Bay Area at various venues for an enthusiastic and growing audience; 1-2 of these concerts are offered free-of-charge to all attendees and ticket prices are kept deliberately low for the remaining concerts, with deeply discounted prices for students and the elderly, and a policy of no one turned away from attending self-presented concerts due to a lack of ability to pay. All self-presented concerts continue to be available online at no charge to viewers and are archived on YouTube for later viewing at no cost to all. The group regularly commissions new work for premiere on their annual season, and is committed to performing the works of women, people of color, members of the LGBTQIA community and by those historically oppressed or forgotten. In 2020, the group began an interview series focusing on women creative artists; the second season of the series in 2021 focused on BIPOC composers and musicians, and a third season, which started in January 2022, focused on California BIPOC women composers. The group began a podcast version of the interview series, entitled "For Good Measure," in June 2022, which is continuing. The group also began a pilot outreach program, "Uplift," in 2022/23. Ensemble for These Times also tours regularly, with previous engagements in New York, Boston, Southern California, Madrid, Krakow, Berlin, and Hungary, and has released five award-winning CDs, with the ensemble's sixth recording to be released in May 2026. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | CIRCUIT NETWORK | 1201 Judah St , San Francisco, CA 94122-1819 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 863-2441 | CA 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Circuit Network will use general operating funds to meet a portion of monthly staff compensation expense during the grant period. CAC funding will enable Circuit to continue providing project development and management services to our roster of artists, producing the annual San Francisco Electronic Music Festival and other work by our roster artists, and engaging in curating and programming for the 2027 edition of A Night of Ideas at the San Francisco Public Library, enhancing the visibility of our artists' work. In 2023, Circuit became part of the Night of Ideas partnership with SFPL, KQED, Villa Albertine and the French Consulate to curate performing arts programming for this free annual public gathering at the library and Asian Art Museum, which had attendance of 10,000 on April 11, 2026. | Circuit Network seeks to foster the unique and powerful voices and participation of artists who may have historically been considered outsiders in the mainstream world of performing arts presenting. In addition to providing tour booking and management services, promotional support, and a wide range of technical assistance, Circuit also has the specific goal of commissioning, producing or presenting the work of our roster artists in our home base of San Francisco. Circuit has built audiences in San Francisco for the multidisciplinary, thought-provoking work of our roster artists and affiliate artists that we've commissioned and presented locally. The current roster includes Culture Clash, Ruben Martinez, Dan Wolf and Felonious, playwright and clown actor Sara Toby Moore, and Pamela Z. Circuit also serves as fiscal sponsor and producer for several artists and projects, including the annual San Francisco Electronic Music Festival, composer Richard Marriott of Club Foot Orchestra, and multidisciplinary composer Guillermo Galindo. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | GADKS | 8100 STINE RD , BAKERSFIELD, CA 93313-9569 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 535-5555 | California Congressional District 22 | California State Assembly District 35 | California State Senate District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, GURU ANGAD DARBAR KHALSA SCHOOL will expand access to culturally responsive arts education for youth in Bakersfield through weekly Punjabi Gurmat classes and community arts programming. The project integrates Gurmukhi literacy with kirtan, poetry, storytelling, visual arts, and traditional Sikh cultural arts to strengthen artistic expression, language skills, cultural identity, and youth confidence. Serving immigrant and first-generation families with limited access to culturally relevant arts education, the program provides sustained, practice-based learning opportunities in a safe and community-centered environment. CAC funds will support teaching artists, instructional materials, program coordination, technology support, and community arts events. Through this project, GADKS will increase equitable access to arts learning, preserve cultural traditions, strengthen intergenerational engagement, and empower youth through meaningful creative experiences. | Through GADKS’s arts and cultural programming, youth develop sustained engagement in creative, culturally rooted arts learning that strengthens artistic skills, cultural identity, and expressive confidence. Participants build proficiency in Punjabi language and Gurmukhi literacy while actively engaging in artistic practices such as storytelling, poetry recitation, kirtan, and performance-based expression. Youth demonstrate increased confidence in creative expression, including public speaking, performance participation, and storytelling rooted in cultural tradition. Through these experiences, participants strengthen communication skills, artistic ability, and comfort engaging in both individual and group creative practices. Early childhood participants in Baalvardi programming develop foundational literacy, imagination, and creative thinking skills through arts-integrated learning. These early experiences support developmental readiness for continued engagement in arts education and cultural learning. Across programs, youth deepen their sense of cultural identity, belonging, and intergenerational connection through shared artistic experiences. Families and community members participate alongside youth in cultural arts events, strengthening community cohesion and reinforcing the role of the arts in cultural continuity. Overall, GADKS programming increases equitable access to culturally responsive arts education, supports creative youth development, and fosters meaningful participation in traditional and contemporary forms of artistic expression within the community. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Salmon Creek Farm Arts | 32297 Middle Ridge Rd , Albion, CA 95410 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 684-6363 | 2nd Congressional District | 2nd District | 2nd District | With support from the California Arts Council, Salmon Creek Farm Arts will sustain and expand its mission to foster experimental, collaborative arts practices through the continued operation of our 33-acre rural sanctuary on the Mendocino Coast. These funds will be used to bolster our institutional capacity by supporting essential administrative and programmatic staffing, ensuring the continued delivery of our flagship land-based artist residency. SCA will utilize general operating support to continue to dismantle economic barriers to rural coastal access, providing tuition-free educational programming, professional mentorship, and cross-disciplinary workshops in creative land-based arts practices. Furthermore, CAC support will allow us to deepen our regional impact through ongoing partnerships with California-based cultural organizations, like the Mendocino Arts Center and Cider Creek Collective, preserving Salmon Creek Farm as a resilient, queer-led site for California’s artistic and ecological future. | We run seasonal two month sessions of Schools of Salmon Creek, complemented by ongoing series of two week, skill-building workshops focused on the living arts related to land, shelter, craft, food, body, and ecological stewardship. Schools of Salmon Creek is a seasonal land-based program for artists *of all kinds* at Salmon Creek Farm. We carry on the legacy of the site's original counter-culture commune by considering abundance, care-taking, climate, community, ecology, embodiment, habitat, inter-dependence, mystery, resilience, resourcefulness, self-sufficiency, shelter, sustenance, and stewardship; getting off screens and out of doors; where the teachers are the land and each other. Our workshops offer skill-building opportunities for artists including wood-fire ceramics courses, dance workshops, community arts practices, food-arts classes, and more. Salmon Creek Farm is located on 33 acres of second and third growth redwoods two miles from California’s Mendocino Coast. Old logging roads and foot trails criss-cross south facing slopes from sunny meadows, gardens, orchards, communal outdoor kitchen, and dance deck on top, to eight original commune cabins each nestled in their own nook of the terrain, across a ravine that bisects the land to abandoned off-grid cabins, and finally down to Big Salmon Creek in the valley. It is an especially good spot to feel your small place in the big cycles of life on earth. Salmon Creek Farm has been informally offering arts programs in a similar spirit since 2014, and now as an independent self-sustaining 501(c)3 non-profit organization, SCA has taken over full operations and ownership of Salmon Creek Farm. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Institute of Inquiry | 6875 VALLEY VIEW DRIVE , Twentynine Palms, CA 92277 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (760) 666-8341 | California's 23rd District | State Assembly District 34 | State Senate District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Institute of Inquiry will invest in our local creative economy through Creative Fields, a 100-hour arts apprenticeship program for teens and transitional-aged youth, and corresponding career development pathway for Teaching Artists. For youth, Creative Fields strengthens key equity levers: resilience, self-compassion, and artistic engagement. Research shows contact with professional artists builds creative self-efficacy, widens career knowledge, and fortifies youth's sense of identity and belonging. A longitudinal NEA study found low-income youth with sustained arts education had markedly higher career aspirations and college attendance than peers with limited arts exposure. For local arts workers, Creative Fields provides employment supporting their growth as educators through training in youth-centered approaches, as well as artists-in-residence from the greater Inland Empire region through our partnership with Arts Connection's Estudio Aire program. | As we enter our ninth year as an organization, we are acutely focused on building greater interdependence into our operations. Together, our high desert region and the broader Inland Empire contribute immense creative and cultural value to the state, even as our communities have historically received far less material investment and resources than our urban counterparts. Our work is informed by our deep knowledge of these structural and economic challenges of rural desert life. We are dedicated to the long-term health of our vibrant but underserved communities through providing responsive arts education and substantive, creative employment. Our core programs and services include” Creative Fields”, a 100-hour arts apprenticeship and career mentorship program for teens and transitional-aged youth, and its corresponding career development pathway for Teaching Artists. Arts professionals who participate in Creative Fields receive over 40 hours of mentorship and training in youth-centered approaches to education. Our support of the local creative economy is expanding to the greater Inland Empire through our evolving partnership with Arts Connection, our longtime fiscal sponsor and mentor organization. Arts Connection's Estudio Aire program supports artists through one to two-month long, work-only residencies focused on professional development. Beginning in Fall 2026, the Institute of Inquiry will host two Estudio Aire artists-in-residence annually for an extended period through live-work residencies at our location adjacent to Joshua Tree National Park.For artists who reside in more densely populated and urban parts of the Inland Empire, these residencies offer the gift of extended time in the wildlands of the high desert, where our relationship to the natural world cannot be easily managed or ignored. In opening our programming to a wider geographic region, we are also enriching the lives of youth participants through mentorship with artists representing a broader spectrum of cultural and racial backgrounds. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | The Wayward Artist | 4915 Alton Parkway , IRVINE, CA 92604 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 733-0220 | District 47 | District 73 | District 37 | The Wayward Artist will use California Arts Council General Operating Support to sustain and expand its community-rooted theatre programming, with a strong focus on youth engagement and arts as a vehicle for social justice. Funds will support core operations that make possible a full season of productions, paid artist opportunities, and educational programs that empower young people to explore identity, equity, and storytelling. Through bold, inclusive work and mentorship, The Wayward Artist creates pathways for emerging and underrepresented artists while engaging diverse audiences in meaningful cultural dialogue. This support will strengthen organizational capacity, ensuring consistent programming, expanded access, and continued investment in youth and community voices. CAC funding will allow The Wayward Artist to deepen its impact as an inclusive hub for innovative theatre and socially engaged arts programming in Orange County. | Core Programs and Services – The Wayward Artist Season of Live Theatrical Performances We produce 6–8 dynamic theatrical events each year, including full-length plays, musicals, new works, staged readings, and experimental performance art. Our productions reflect a range of genres and voices, often featuring bold reimaginings and socially relevant themes that challenge audiences and amplify underrepresented perspectives. Internship and Mentorship Programs We offer hands-on internship opportunities for college, high school, and university students interested in theatre arts, design, directing, and arts administration. These programs connect emerging artists with seasoned professionals, fostering growth, confidence, and a pathway into the arts workforce. OC Theatre Guild Membership and Collaboration As an active member of the Orange County Theatre Guild, we contribute to a county-wide effort to strengthen the local arts ecosystem through shared resources, advocacy, and collaborative programming. Educational Outreach and Partnerships We engage in educational outreach by partnering with local schools, colleges, and community centers to offer workshops, masterclasses, post-show discussions, and artist talkbacks. These efforts are designed to build bridges between professional theatre and community learning. Wayward Voices: BIPOC Artist Initiative Through our Wayward Voices program, we provide a dedicated platform for BIPOC artists to create, develop, and present new work. This initiative includes artist residencies, mentorship, and curated performances that center culturally specific narratives and empower artists to tell their own stories. Community Engagement and Support We are committed to being a vital cultural hub in Santa Ana and Orange County. Our events, talkbacks, fundraisers, and partnerships with local organizations foster meaningful community connections. We prioritize accessible pricing, inclusive programming, and active listening to ensure our work serves and reflects the diverse community we call home. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Sacramento Master Singers | PO BOX 15020 , SACRAMENTO, CA 95851 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 788-7464 | California's 6th congressional district | District 7 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Sacramento Master Singers will use grant funds to help pay for general operating expenses associated with the 2026-27 season. These expenses include venue rental fees, marketing expenses, and salaries for our artistic and administrative staff. | The Sacramento Master Singers presents three unique programs of choral music each year, covering a broad spectrum of themes, styles, and genres. These concerts take place in December, March and May, including a family holiday concert for a total of 10 performances. The Sacramento Master Singers Scholarship for Young Choral Singers was established in 2003 in memory of Asya Pleskach, a former SMS singer who passed away in a car accident at the young age of 18. The purpose of this scholarship is to encourage young, dynamic singers with strong leadership skills who dedicate their talents and energies toward their school, church or community choral programs. Winners and runners-up are recognized and perform at our May concerts. Every 2-3 years we also host a collaborative concert with area high school choirs in which our director works with the choirs ahead of time, each choir performs 1-2 of its own pieces, and then all choirs and the Sacramento Master Singers perform together collaboratively at the end of the concert. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $8,000.00 | Coin & Ghost | 845 S Windsor Blvd, #2 , Los Angeles, CA 90005-3767 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (303) 517-1529 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Coin & Ghost (C&G) will produce a dynamic, imaginative, and equitable season of theatre. The season will include a World Premiere from a rising playwright, a new works incubator series, and events designed to foster a deep sense of community. 2025-26 represents a pivotal season in C&G’s growth. For the first time in our near-ten-year history, we’ve moved from paying project-based stipends to hourly wages for creative work. That decision wasn’t just an ethical one; it was rooted in financial stability and a clear roadmap, and is supported by a deeply engaged Board of directors and steady increases to several funding sources (including both earned & contributed revenue). Funding from the California Arts Council would provide stability as we navigate this rapid growth phase and ambitious season. | C&G is known for its imaginative remixing of known mythologies. We employ an expansive definition of mythology as “any set of stories that simultaneously SHAPED and WAS SHAPED BY a culture.” This allows us to explore not only traditionally understood myths – Greek, Roman, Creation Myths, etc. – but contemporary source material as well. Comic books have a mythology to them, as do the collected works of James Baldwin; the Kennedy dynasty can be viewed as American mythology. We take stories that live within our collective understanding, then collaborate with playwrights and ensemble-devising techniques to forge a new understanding. We sample, recontextualize, adapt, and transform, filtering the material through Coin & Ghost’s voice and aesthetic. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | HEMET VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION INC | 144 N Harvard Street , HEMET, CA 92543 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 652-4592 | District CA-25 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, HEMET VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION INC will be better able to build a solid financial base, supplementing rent, utilities, supplies, insurances, and online and other technology costs. It will allow us to focus on our primary goals of providing art exhibition, education, and outreach throughout the San Jacinto/Hemet Valley. In a geographic area where the average HPI percentile is 14.3 and the average income is $18,659 per capita, it is imperative that we offer free or low-cost opportunities for art enrichment. While we have parlayed what we can offer into more opportunities through collaborations and partnerships and have made great strides in developing and expanding key initiatives that uplift historically underserved artists, this grant will help to ensure that we have the operational funds to stay in business. | Workshops, classes, exhibits, fine arts and photography contests, high school achievement awards, serving primarily local area artists, you artists, and emerging artists | |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Robey Theatre Company | 514 S SPRING ST Los Angeles Theatre Center, LOS ANGELES, CA 90013-2304 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 489-7402 | District 34 | District 53 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Robey Theatre Company will be able to make significant arts and cultural investments to underserved, vulnerable and marginalised populations of Los Angeles County. The funding will support the production and world premier of a new play written by a local playwright who has been supported by their attendance at our playwright lab program. Funds will be used to pay contractors, actors, stage managers, for propos and costumes together with general operating expenses to support the viability of The Robey Theatre Company in the coming year. | In addition to producing award-winning plays, The Robey Theatre Company offers developmental programs for actors and playwrights. For three sessions each year, the organization presents its Playwrights Lab (PWL) and Advanced Scene Study Workshop (ASSW) in Spring, Summer, and Fall. Other programs include an Amazon Publishing division and a Commissioned Plays Project that selects promising playwrights to participate in a program to bring their script ideas from the page to the stage. And, biannually, the organization presents its Paul Robeson Theatre Festival, which presents new works by program participants presented. Internships are offered year-round and summer in theatre careers, including design, stage management, and production for young adults, allowing for mentorship and exploration in a paid work-based learning opportunity. The Robey Theatre Company serves as a training ground for some of the nation's most recognized actors and has been credited with launching numerous extraordinary industry-related careers. These artists continue to support the organization and serve as advisors, donors, and mentors. In 2018 by Board Resolution, The Robey Theatre Company began the critical work of developing its "2017 to 2022 Strategic Plan." During this time, the organization's vision holders revisited its mission and purpose and established goals and objectives to guide its mission-aligned work. Three overall goals were established: 1) build capacity and strengthen organizational infrastructure; 2) expand the organization’s reach through brand development, community collaboration, and arts programming; 3) establish a new home for The Robey Theatre Company in South Los Angeles. The plan is currently being updated to cover 2022 to 2025. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Mezzanine Film Inc | 2254 SILVER RIDGE AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90039-3656 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 991-2821 | CA-30 | 52nd | 26th | With support from the California Arts Council, Mezzanine Film Inc. will strengthen our organization’s year-round public programming and administrative capacity, both in support of our annual Los Angeles Festival of Movies and of Mezzanine's regular public film programs. These funds will support paying screening rights, artist honorariums and venue rentals; one part-time year-round staff position focused on organizational operations, artist and community engagement, and festival coordination; as well as 1–2 seasonal support positions during our peak festival planning and production periods. The CAC grant will help us sustain accessible cultural programming, expand organizational stability, and improve our ability to serve filmmakers, artists, and audiences throughout the year. | We organize and host 40+ screenings and talks throughout the year at a range of venues across Los Angeles, including 2220 Arts + Archives, Vidiots, Brain Dead Studios, Now Instant Image Hall and others. Our events always exhibit local premieres of restorations and new independent films. In April, we organize the Los Angeles Festival of Movies, a curated annual film festival that showcases new independent and restoration premieres to a local audience. We also produce risograph zines and printed program notes for our events. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Midtown Radio | 916 22ND ST APT 6 , SACRAMENTO, CA 95816-4721 | Sacramento | Capital | (971) 804-3081 | With support from the California Arts Council, KUTZ FM will sustain and expand community-based arts and media programming in Sacramento. Funding will support core operations, including leadership, transmission, and licensing, ensuring consistent public access to arts programming. KUTZ FM will produce up to 40 artist recording sessions annually, providing local musicians with professionally recorded performances, interviews, and stipends, supported by paid audio engineering. Content will be broadcast on KUTZ FM and distributed through free digital platforms, increasing access to local arts and culture. Additional programming will include educational media initiatives and artist interviews that support creative workforce development, community engagement, and equitable access to media production resources. | Freeform radio featuring local artists from all genres. 4 local artists played every freeform hour. Most DJ hosted shows also have some local music. Our playlists are predominantly indie, unsigned and underrepresented artists. We have a large selection of West Coast and Sacramento music plus a large indie library. We also promote local venues and events that showcase local artists and the arts. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Sacred Rok | PO BOX 148 , YOSEMITE NTPK, CA 95389-0148 | Mariposa | Central Valley | (760) 920-3403 | 5th Congressional District | District 8 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sacred Rok will facilitate a community-based, youth-led mural project in Bishop, California, engaging 15 underserved youth from both the Eastern Sierra and Southern California in a cross-regional arts mentorship exchange over six months. Led by multidisciplinary artist Arsenio Baca, whose work explores identity, place, and cultural memory through painting, drawing, and community-based practice, youth will develop visual storytelling and public art skills through a multi-phase process of place-based exploration, collaborative design, and mural execution. Baca’s approach emphasizes storytelling, cultural relevance, and the development of each participant’s unique voice. The project removes barriers by providing stipends, transportation, and materials. Youth will co-create a publicly accessible mural reflecting their identities and relationships to place, building confidence and leadership while transforming an underutilized downtown site into a lasting community asset. | Sacred Rok delivers integrated youth programming that combines arts education, outdoor experiential learning, and food systems education to support the well-being and creative development of underserved youth across Inyo, Mono, Los Angeles, Mariposa, and Merced Counties, with growing engagement along the Eastern Sierra–Southern California corridor. Arts programming is a central component of Sacred Rok’s model. Youth engage in mural-making, drawing, ceramics, storytelling, journaling, and land-based creative practices. These experiences support: +creative expression +cultural identity development +visual storytelling +reflection on lived experience and place Arts activities are designed as tools for both personal expression and community connection, with an emphasis on youth voice and authorship. Sacred Rok is committed to increasing access for all youth, including those with physical, cognitive, sensory, and mental health disabilities. Programs are designed with flexibility, allowing for adaptive participation in both outdoor and arts-based settings. We continue to develop and strengthen accessibility practices across all programming areas, including communication, participation structures, and learning environments. Across all programs, Sacred Rok prioritizes mentorship, culturally responsive practice, and long-term relationship-building with schools, probation departments, tribal communities, and grassroots partners. These partnerships ensure programming is responsive to community needs and accessible to youth facing systemic barriers to participation in both arts and outdoor education. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | TaikoMix | PO BOX 52197 , RIVERSIDE, CA 92517-3197 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 573-0187 | California's 41st congressional district | District 61 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, TaikoMix will expand its programming by strengthening organizational infrastructure and deepening community engagement. TaikoMix will continue collaborating with consultants to advance inclusive practices and improve program accessibility, ensuring that programs remain low-cost or free, open, and welcoming to all. Funding will support the continued development of multilingual programming, the creation of educational and pedagogical materials, and the recruitment and training of taiko instructors. | TaikoMix was formed in 2005 by graduating members of the collegiate taiko ensemble UC Riverside Senryu Taiko in response to a specific need for Asian and Asian American community representation of traditional and cultural arts in the Inland Empire region. TaikoMix operates a community performing ensemble, TaikoMix, that is based in Riverside and open to all who wish to study taiko. The community performing ensemble has been practicing together weekly for over fifteen years. In 2015, under the TaikoMix organization, the professional performing ensemble The Wagaku Collective was formed. The Wagaku Collective is an ensemble of musicians who are classically trained on traditional Japanese musical instruments: Okinawan sanshin, shakuhachi, shinobue, Tsugaru shamisen, and taiko. The Wagaku Collective’s purpose is to share Japanese tradition and culture through public performances and educational activities centered on Japanese minyo (folk) music. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Solano County Library Foundation | 601 KENTUCKY ST , FAIRFIELD, CA 94533-5505 | Solano | Capital | (707) 421-8075 | With support from the California Arts Council, Solano County Library Foundation will present a series of 6 free concerts for the community at Solano County Library branches in April 2027, in celebration of Jazz Appreciation Month. Concerts will feature renowned local artists and emerging youth talent from our community and will address a community defined need to provide free music for audiences of all ages in an accessible community setting, foster an environment for intergenerational learning, and uplift the Black cultural tradition of jazz and its practitioners in our Solano County community. | The Solano County Library Foundation (SCLF) is a nonprofit organization established in 1994 to support the programs of the Solano County Library and literary arts, literacy, and lifelong learning programs of the communities served by the eight Solano County Library branches. Our programs include Reach Out and Read Program, providing over 230,000 books to parents of preschoolers through their physicians' offices to foster a love of the literary arts; Solano Kids Read, offering author talks at libraries, field trips for youth, and free books for classrooms; Project LEARN, providing online tutoring and training, technical training, and job assistance for students and adults to reduce Solano County school dropout rates and improve workforce opportunities; the Adult Literacy Program, providing one-on-one training to teach illiterate adults how to read, breaking cycles of poverty and fostering a love of the literary arts; and an annual Author's Luncheon, featuring author talks from celebrated authors. Our support of Solano County Libraries has fostered a wealth of free arts programs at library branches including ukulele lessons, jam sessions, arts and craft clubs for youth and adults, coloring and photography groups for children and teens, film screenings, crochet workshops, family art nights, drumming and dance sessions, jazz workshops for children, Juneteenth rhythm celebrations, storytelling events, painting afternoons, dance classes, multilingual musical programs, and jazz, classical, gospel, and hip-hop performances. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Lake County Arts Council, Soper Reese Theatre, Main Street Gallery | 325 North Main Street , LAKEPORT, CA 95453-0247 | Lake | Upstate | (707) 263-6658 | California Assembly district 4 | District 4 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Lake County Arts Council will continue to serve as the county’s central hub for arts and culture by sustaining accessible, community-driven programming across Lake County. Through the Soper Reese Theatre, Visions Art Gallery, and Lucerne Harbor Artists’ Village, LCAC provides space for artists, organizations, and residents to create, present, and experience the arts. Funding will support core programs including Summer Youth Art Camp, Poetry Out Loud, the Spring Dance Festival, and year-round classes, workshops, and performances. These programs ensure consistent access to the arts, particularly in rural and historically under-resourced communities. LCAC will continue building partnerships to expand participation, support local artists, and strengthen a connected, inclusive arts ecosystem throughout Lake County. | The Lake County Arts Council has an expansive list of programs and services, with two main buildings we operate: the Soper Reese Theatre and Main St. Art Gallery. We have also begun managing the Lucerne Harbor Artist's Village. The Soper Reese Theatre allows LCAC to provide a professional venue for performers and artists of all types as well as collaborate with groups such as the Lake County Theatre Company and the Lake County Symphony. The Main Street Gallery allows LCAC to work with local artists to display artwork in the gallery and hand made items in the gift shop. We also provide space for local artists to give instructional classes in many different art styles including watercolors, pastels, improvisation and bead-work. In addition we also have a strong representation or poets and authors as well as monthly group meetings for local writers to share and collaborate on work. We are proud to be continually looking for new ways to introduce art to the community and improve our relationships with other artists and organizations. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Sacred Fools Theater | 1078 LILLIAN WAY , LOS ANGELES, CA 90038-2742 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 675-1072 | California's 28th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, SACRED FOOLS THEATER will provide in-school and after-school theater education for over 400 students at our partner school, Elysian Heights Elementary Arts Magnet, and will hold our 18th annual Summer Theater Camp, including scholarships for at least half of our summer camp attendees and salaries for our teaching artists. | Sacred Fools Theater Company offers a full season of professional plays, a variety of readings and community projects, a popular summer theater camp, and a rental service for our unique venue. Our plays are produced regularly throughout the year for 6-8 week runs in one of our 4 intimate theater spaces. Our community-building programming ranges from open mic evenings to guest productions, readings to workshops. Our community and workshop productions are always free or donation-based. We believe that theatre is for everyone regardless of background, race, or creed, and as part of our commitment to that ideal, and we maintain blocks of $15 tickets for all of our productions. We offer competitive rental services throughout the year to other local theater companies, producers, and teachers. Each year, we hold After-School programs, in-school classes, and a Summer Theater Camp for students aged 8-16. Our teaching artists emphasize student-led original projects that give students that chance to guide a production from an idea to a fully-realized show. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | East Wind Lion Dance | 727 North Broadway #129, LOS ANGELES, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 369-0026 | 34th Congressional | CA 54th | 26th | With support from the California Arts Council, East Wind Foundation For Youth will maintain its commitment to serving youth from low-income and immigrant families. We are dedicated to being inclusive by continuing to provide our program free of cost. The demands for our services have exceeded our capacity to provide a quality cultural art program. In order to continue serving the needs of our community, we will need additional funding for our growing programs. The funding will be used to hire instructors to assist with teaching Chinese cultural art, purchase equipment, and rent training facilities. We plan to employ two more part-time cultural art instructors that would improve the quality of the lion dance and martial arts . With this funding, we are confident that we will open enrollment for more underprivileged students. | The EAST WIND FOUNDATION FOR YOUTH, INC is a 501(c)3 registered organization based in the heart of the Los Angeles Chinatown community. Established in 1972 by Sifu Ron Quan, East Wind’s focus on working towards creating opportunities and making positive impacts on at-risk youths has made them a leader in the global community of not-for-profit institutions. This long-standing tradition has instilled confidence and self-esteem in every person invested with the organization. East Wind has grown since its modest beginnings and seeks to continue its success in three key areas: Performing Arts (lion dance, dragon dance, and martial arts demonstration), Education (college prep, individual tutorial upon request, interview prep, mentor/mentee programs, and scholarships), and Community (volunteering clean-up in Chinatown, Alpine Park clean-up, Halloween Community Carnival, annual Holiday performances, Lotus Festival, Los Angeles Marathon, and Chinatown Golden Dragon Parade). |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,890.00 | Art Forces | 2633 Telegraph Avenue, STE 405 , Oakland, CA 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 271-0576 | California Assembly district 12 | District 18 | District 7 | With California Arts Council support, Art Forces and the SUMUD Mural Community will create the 9000-square-foot SUMUD Community Building and Event Space, a series of 3 public and free events and a multi-layered interactive multimedia program, accessible by both smart and regular phones, of community storytelling and cultural expressions of hope, life, imagination and community building. The approximately 33 Oakland organizations and 50 artists, both local and incarcerated, who collaborated in 2024 to create the Oakland SUMUD mural will reunite in person and virtually as needed to participate in a series of workshops over several months. Video, poetry, music, archival photos, data visualization, maps, and more will be created and gathered in the workshops to amplify each of the mural images to make a mural tour–accessible on-site and remotely via ArcGIS technology. | Art Forces uses community public art and technology, including murals, websites, social and new media, to inspire critical thinking and action. Art Forces moves from the local to the global, from the streets of San Francisco Bay Area to Olympia Washington. to refugee camps of Palestine and Lebanon. The projects make visible histories and relationships that have been obliterated and forgotten; making connections to national and global issues of social justice, borders, precarity, migrations and decolonization. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Calaveras Arts Council | PO Box 250 , SAN ANDREAS, CA 95249-0250 | Calaveras | Central Valley | (209) 754-1774 | California's 4th congressional district | District | District 4 | With support from a $25,000 California Arts Council Arts and Youth grant, the Calaveras County Arts Council will expand arts access for youth ages 0 to 25 across Calaveras County, a rural community where virtually all ZIP codes fall in the lower quartiles of the California Healthy Places Index. CCAC will hire teaching artists to deliver workshops at the gallery and directly in communities, serving preschool through high school age youth including foster youth, LGBTQ+ youth, and homeschool students. CCAC will expand its annual Art Spirit student art show to include middle school preparation and homeschool participation. In partnership with First 5 Calaveras, CCAC will offer parent and child arts workshops for the county's youngest residents. A part-time program coordinator, overseen by the Executive Director, will manage all activities. Programming is free to all participants. | We are proud of our five core programs. 1) Ovations, a performing arts series in winter that brings a diverse range of professional performances to the performing arts center in Angels Camp, including classical and world music, theater and dance, and jazz. 2) Music in the Parks, an eclectic, admission-free, 10-week summer concert series that brings music to our remote communities throughout the county. 3) Artists Studio Tour, our fall event. We work with local artists to create and publicize a county-wide self-guided tour of their galleries and studios. 4) Arts in Education. We offer matching grants to local public schools to augment classroom art education programs. In spring we present in our gallery "Art Spirit," an art exhibition presenting the work of local high school and middle school students. The art is professionally juried, we host a closing reception and modest prizes and ribbons are presented. We offer scholarships to local high school students who are pursuing a degree in the arts. 5) Gallery programming produces 5 to 6 shows a year to highlight artists of a diverse levels of experience, as well as bring attention to topics of community interest. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Sanctuary for the Sacred Arts | 1110 N VIRGIL AVE PMB 92497 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90029-2016 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 900-3644 | 30th Congressional District | 52 | 26 | Sanctuary for the Sacred Arts (Sanct) requests $30,000 from the California Arts Council to support foundational general operating needs at a critical stage of organizational development. Funds will be directed toward three areas: establishing sustainable compensation for the Executive Director, whose leadership has driven Sanct's growth without pay to date; covering essential compliance and governance costs including organizational filings, insurance, and regulatory requirements; and building the administrative infrastructure needed to support Sanct's California-based arts and cultural stewardship work consistently over time. The structural groundwork is in place. Sustained indigenous partnerships, documented programmatic capacity, and a governance model centered on cultural stewardship are established. This grant provides the operational stability to move from foundational building into showing up consistently for the communities we serve. | 1. Sacred Cultural Infrastructure Through Arts and Science Sanct designs interactive, somatically grounded programming that bridges indigenous knowledge systems and contemporary science. This includes indigenous peacemaking and systemic constellations, youth engagement through music and storytelling, and nature-based immersive experiences. Sanct is developing artist residencies at ecologically significant sites and cultivating gallery partnerships in California as extensions of this work into public cultural space. 2. Land Stewardship Sanct learns directly from indigenous land stewards, including through an active relationship with the Ohlone people of California, and applies those relational principles to the protection of sacred lands locally and worldwide. Stewardship is understood as a living practice transmitted through relationship, not a conservation category. 3. Community Governance Sanct maintains cultural stewards as active members of its advisory board, ensuring indigenous authority shapes organizational decision-making. Supporting their work and building governance structures that distribute rather than concentrate power is how Sanct protects the integrity of its mission over time. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Black Women's Roots Festial | 3064 Richmond Blvd , Oakland, CA 94611 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 658-2016 | 12th Congressional District | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Black Women's Roots Festival will pursue our ongoing programming and operations as a small arts and cultural organization and further our mission to celebrate and promote Black women and girls in the arts through accessible performance and educational programming, centering Black cultural traditions of roots music - jazz, blues, country, gospel, R&B, hip-hop, and beyond. | Black Women's Roots Festival presents an annual festival in the San Francisco Bay Area, now in its sixth year, showcasing an intergenerational lineup of Black women in blues, gospel, jazz, country, R&B, classical, hip-hop, poetry, spoken word, and beyond. The festival includes live performances, a free video livestream, a live radio broadcast in partnership with KPFA Radio, and a mentorship program for youth performers. We offer free after school youth arts programs, engaging Black youth ages 10-16 with curriculum in vocals, dance, and instrumental music. These programs are taught by renowned Black women artist-educators in our community. We present 3-4 free youth workshops and performances annually including programs with Black-women led string quartets and Black women country, blues, and roots artists. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Coachella Valley Arts Institute | 41550 Eclectic Street , Palm Desert, CA 92260 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (760) 440-5512 | 25th | 42nd | 28th | With support from the California Arts Council, FUTURENOMIC RESOURCES INCORPORATED will implement Remix the Future: AI & Music for Underserved Youth, an 8-week, cohort-based arts and creative technology program serving youth in the Tenderloin district of San Francisco. Grant funds will support program delivery, including teaching artist fees, program coordination, outreach, materials, and accessibility accommodations. Participants will engage in weekly sessions combining music production, digital arts, and AI-assisted creative tools, culminating in a public-facing showcase or digital release of original work. The project expands access to culturally responsive arts programming for youth facing systemic barriers to participation, while supporting creative expression, skill development, and pathways to continued education and workforce opportunities in the creative economy. | Futurenomic offers a diverse array of programs tailored to enhance literacy, artistic expression, and well-being among youth and homeless populations aged 2 and above. Our commitment to inclusivity is underscored by scholarship opportunities, ensuring access to quality arts education in underserved communities. Our programs encompass: - Vocal Training: Led by professionals employing the Seth Rigg’s method, participants receive comprehensive instruction in Speech Level Singing. - Singing Performance: Explore vocal technique, music theory, and stage presence in a supportive environment. - Dance Training: Experience a unique blend of dance styles tailored for live performances. -First 5 Movement Dance Class: Fosters literacy, balance, and coordination development. - Songwriting: Delve into song structure, vocabulary use, and self-expression. - Acting & Drama: Cultivate creativity and performance skills through immersive training. - STEM Education: Engage in hands-on classes integrating science, technology, engineering, and math with music and movement exploration, guitar craftsmanship, and music production using industry-standard software. - Art Therapy: Utilize Media Arts as a healing tool, employing rhythm, mindfulness, and energy-medicine techniques to support trauma recovery. - Painting: From perspective to composition, participants explore various painting techniques and mediums under expert guidance. - Social Media Class: Gain insights into utilizing social media platforms effectively and safely. - Music Production with Logic Class: Learn the intricacies of music and sound editing using Logic Pro, guided by professional engineers. - Adobe Illustrator Class: Master the basics of graphic design for creative expression. - Tutoring: Virtual sessions offer a wide range of educational opportunities including photography, videography, music production, website design, and marketing classes. At Futurenomic, we're not just fostering artistic skills; we're nurturing holistic development, empowering individuals to unleash their potential and contribute positively to their communities. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | The Young Shakespeareans | 445 South Figueroa St. Suite 2230 , Los Angeles, CA 90071 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 644-1442 | California's 37th congressional district | District 57 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Young Shakespeareans will sustain and expand free, on-site, after-school theatre arts residencies for 100 to 170 Title 1 LAUSD students in 2nd through 12th grade, reaching an additional 1,500 to 2,500 youth audience members through full-production student performances. Programming will be delivered across Title 1 partner schools in South Los Angeles and the San Fernando Valley through TYS' four core programs: Performing Arts: Untold Stories (culturally relevant Shakespeare adaptations including a new production of "MACBETH" set in 1500's Mesoamerica) created in sync with TYS' CAREER PATHWAYS and WORKFORCE EARN+LEARN programs that place students and alumni in paid Teaching and Production roles. Funds will support Teaching Artist & Student Employee compensation, production costs, and program coordination. All programming is offered at no cost to students or families. | SHAKESPEAREAN SHORTIES (Grades 2+3; 24 hrs; 4 wks): Introduction to Focused Movement, Emotional Awareness/Expression, Shakespearean Poetry. 1 performance for classmates/families PERFORMING ARTS - ONSTAGE/BACKSTAGE (Grades 4-12; 66 hrs; 8-12 wks): Instruction in Basic Elizabethan history; contemporary English translation of selected Play; breakdown of characters/plots/themes; culturally relevant abridged, age-appropriate, adapted script in Elizabethan text (reseting classical text to reflect TYS students' heritage/lived experience); Poetic forms+devices; Elizabethan vocabulary/syntax/colloquialisms. Exploration/expression of human instincts/emotions/behaviors. Basic stagecraft; text/blocking memorization; practice of public presentation demands (vocal/physical/mental); backstage crew support. 3 public performances. SHAKESPEAREAN SPORTS (Grades 4-12; 30 hrs; 12 wks): Certified Trainers focus on action scenes using swordplay & hand-to-hand techniques to develop self-control/concentration/athleticism; explore safety/spatial perception/respect, how/when/why/physical conflicts develop. 3 public performances. PRODUCTION DESIGN & TECHNICAL ARTS (Grades 6-12; 60 hrs over 8 wks): Instruction in theatrical equipment design/history/evolution; Exploration and execution of backstage roles in Scenics/Costuming+Props;, Lighting/Sound; Music/Special Effects; Operation/maintenance of theatrical equipment/assets; Stage Management. Concrete/non-abstract math/organization skills. WORKFORCE/EARN+LEARN (Grades 9-12; 60-120 hrs; 8 wks): Students receive stipends to participate in TYS Performing Arts/Production Design/Technical Arts Programs. Joint Community Collaborations. CAREER PATHWAYS - PARTICIPANT to PRACTITIONER (Grades 9+; 40-60 hrs; 8 wks): Alumni work as paid Assistant Teaching Artists/Crew, mentoring younger students in their communities while building theatrical assets/portfolios/industry networks/professional credentials. All TYS Curricula: include full California State Curriculum Standards alignment; specify/integrate applied social-emotional/academic/artistic learning; taught by experienced professionals in their discipline + Childhood Development. INITIATIVES: NEIGHBORHOOD EMPOWERMENT PIPELINES: Deep, multi-year partnerships with Title 1 partner schools where TYS returns season after season from elementary to middle to high school within the same neighborhood, building institutional memory and longitudinal relationships with students. BRIDGING SILOS: Summer intensives designed to introduce/connect High School & TYS College-aged Alumni from across LA County's diverse socioeconomic/racial/cultural backgrounds (Summer 2025's cohort included students from six different cultural backgrounds, four different high schools, four different colleges.) |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | CENTER FOR MUSIC AND WELLNESS INC | 26895 ALISO CREEK RD STE B PMB 598 , ALISO VIEJO, CA 92656-5302 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 362-9279 | With support from the California Arts Council, CENTER FOR MUSIC AND WELLNESS INC will strengthen its organizational capacity to sustain and expand access to free, accessible, live music and wellness experiences for historically underserved Californians. The organization serves children, youth, adults, and older adults living with disabilities, neurodevelopmental disorders, autism, Alzheimer’s and related dementias, and other health-related or socioeconomic barriers that limit participation in traditional arts settings. As a growing nonprofit currently led by a part-time volunteer leadership team, this project will support a critical transition to our first full-time paid position for the Executive Director role. This position will provide dedicated leadership to advance fundraising, build strategic partnerships, oversee program implementation, and develop the organizational infrastructure necessary to sustain and expand program access across community-based settings in Los Angeles, Orange, and San Bernardino counties. | HEALING HARMONIES Population Served: Hospitalized children and their caregivers in pediatric medical settings. Healing Harmonies helps children maintain a sense of normalcy, comfort, and connection during hospitalization while reducing stress and creating moments of joy and engagement for both patients and caregivers. Professional musicians deliver child-centered experiences through two complementary formats: interactive virtual bedside performances via Zoom and live hallway performances in hospital units, MINDFUL MELODIES Population Served: Children, adults, and families navigating autism, sensory-processing sensitivities, and other neurodevelopmental disorders Mindful Melodies creates accessible, interactive musical experiences for participants. Programs are delivered in schools, behavioral health clinics, community centers, and other family-serving settings, and may include sensory-friendly adaptations, movement-based activities, instrument exploration, singing, and other interactive elements that support participation, comfort, and self-expression. MUSIC AND MEMORIES Population Served: Older adults and community members living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, as well as their caregivers and care communities Music and Memories provides customized live musical experiences featuring familiar and nostalgic repertoire to stimulate memory recall, emotional connection, movement, and engagement, while also creating meaningful shared moments for caregivers and staff. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Ravi & Shashi Bellare Arts Foundation | 14865 SUMMIT TRAIL RD , CHINO HILLS, CA 91709-6212 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (909) 636-6092 | To produce a festival of this caliber, our budget covers a vast array of operational necessities. This includes not only the artist honorariums, flights within California, transportation, accomodation for our performers but also the 'unseen' costs that ensure a professional and safe environment: liability insurance, technical production staff, and venue logistics and an array of other expenses. Grant support allows us to maintain our subsidized ticket model, ensuring that financial barriers do not prevent the community from experiencing this unique cultural event. | The Ravi & Shashi Bellare Arts Foundation (RSBAF) is dedicated to the preservation and evolution of Indian Classical Music (ICM) through its flagship program, the Festival of Tabla (FOT). Based in Southern California, RSBAF serves as a vital bridge between ancient oral traditions and the modern American arts landscape. Core Programming The Festival of Tabla: A premier international showcase held at the Soka Performing Arts Center. It spotlights the "Solo Tabla" tradition, presenting 16th-century repertoire with 21st-century production value for 50+ artists annually. Black Box Workshops: Since 2024, the expansion into Soka’s Black Box Theater has allowed for integral, high-impact lecture-demonstrations. These sessions provide an intimate, deep-dive into musical logic and theory, demystifying the complexities of ICM for students, scholars, and diverse new audiences. Youth & "Rising Star" Platforms: RSBAF provides a professional launchpad for the next generation. Through curated solo slots and youth ensembles, the foundation offers high-visibility stage time to emerging artists, facilitating future professional bookings and recordings. Community Services Gender Equity Initiative: A cornerstone mission is the active promotion of female instrumentalists/artists, providing a rare, unbiased platform in a historically male-dominated field. The Living Archive: The foundation professionally documents every performance, creating a digital repository of rare Gharana (lineage) compositions to ensure this intangible heritage is preserved for future generations. Our YouTube channel features 90+ videos of past performances, ensuring this artform is accessible globally to all for free. Artist Advocacy: With a waitlist of over 400 musicians, RSBAF serves as a professional anchor, providing opportunities and treating emerging talent with the same respect as the headliners. Through our initiatives and community engagement, RSBAF ensures that Indian Classical Music remains a sustainable, inclusive, and vibrant ecosystem in the United States. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,150.00 | CENTER FOR MUSIC AND WELLNESS INC | 26895 ALISO CREEK RD STE B PMB 598 , ALISO VIEJO, CA 92656-5302 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 362-9279 | With support from the California Arts Council, CENTER FOR MUSIC AND WELLNESS INC will provide 28 free, accessible, live music and wellness experiences for underserved Californians facing barriers to participating in traditional arts settings, including children, youth, adults, and older adults living with disabilities, neurodevelopmental disorders, autism, Alzheimer’s and related dementias, and other health-related or socioeconomic barriers. In partnership with community-based organizations, schools, and healthcare settings across Los Angeles, Orange, and San Bernardino counties, trained professional musicians will deliver inclusive, trauma-informed, and sensory-responsive programming designed to reduce isolation, expand equitable access to the arts, and support emotional well-being, connection, and meaningful engagement. CAC funds will directly support artist fees, musician training, site-based coordination, accessibility materials, and project evaluation, enabling the delivery of high-quality, accessible arts experiences for communities with limited access to traditional cultural participation. | HEALING HARMONIES Population Served: Hospitalized children and their caregivers in pediatric medical settings. Healing Harmonies helps children maintain a sense of normalcy, comfort, and connection during hospitalization while reducing stress and creating moments of joy and engagement for both patients and caregivers. Professional musicians deliver child-centered experiences through two complementary formats: interactive virtual bedside performances via Zoom and live hallway performances in hospital units, MINDFUL MELODIES Population Served: Children, adults, and families navigating autism, sensory-processing sensitivities, and other neurodevelopmental disorders Mindful Melodies creates accessible, interactive musical experiences for participants. Programs are delivered in schools, behavioral health clinics, community centers, and other family-serving settings, and may include sensory-friendly adaptations, movement-based activities, instrument exploration, singing, and other interactive elements that support participation, comfort, and self-expression. MUSIC AND MEMORIES Population Served: Older adults and community members living with Alzheimer’s disease and related dementias, as well as their caregivers and care communities Music and Memories provides customized live musical experiences featuring familiar and nostalgic repertoire to stimulate memory recall, emotional connection, movement, and engagement, while also creating meaningful shared moments for caregivers and staff. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | San Diego Creative Youth Development Network | 1100 Market St Ste 326, San Diego, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (816) 853-7466 | California's 50th Congressional District | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Diego Creative Youth Development Network will deliver a Restorative Practices Training Program for Creative Youth Development organizations and practitioners, led by Macedonio Arteaga, Jr., Lead Artist & Restorative Practitioner/Trainer. This training program is specifically designed to strengthen the relational and cultural foundations of organizations serving young people through the arts, especially those navigating systemic inequities, trauma, and structural harm. | Creative Youth Development (CYD) is a holistic approach to deeply engaging young people through the arts and creativity to promote personal well-being and support them in reaching their full potential. SDCYD Network is a coalition of providers, partners, and young people dedicated to harnessing their collective strength to build the field of creative youth development to maximize impact for youth. We achieve this by: Building public awareness of the impact of youth arts programs as drivers of personal and community change. • Initiate and conduct field research & evaluation • Create content, communications, and campaigns • Produce youth-focused and data-driven storytelling Sharing expertise and best practices with youth arts programs. • Provide leadership & professional development • Provide networking & peer learning opportunities • Offer technical assistance Cultivating new pathways of support that benefit all local youth arts programs. • Advocate for policy & systems change • Grow diversity in funding • Pursue collective funding opportunities |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | San Diego Creative Youth Development Network | 1100 Market St Ste 326, San Diego, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (816) 853-7466 | California's 50th Congressional District | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Diego Creative Youth Development Network will provide direct programming and services, including but not limited to, convening & networking opportunities, arts advocacy, information and research, professional development opportunities, and marketing, promotion, audience development services to our Network of community-based artists, creators, tradition bearers, educators, and arts/culture organizations who are direct providers of creative youth development programming. These include the organizations and the people who lead, support and provide artistic (e.g., in dance, music, theatre, playwriting, photography/film) and cultural programming. | Creative Youth Development (CYD) is a holistic approach to deeply engaging young people through the arts and creativity to promote personal well-being and support them in reaching their full potential. SDCYD Network is a coalition of providers, partners, and young people dedicated to harnessing their collective strength to build the field of creative youth development to maximize impact for youth. We achieve this by: Building public awareness of the impact of youth arts programs as drivers of personal and community change. • Initiate and conduct field research & evaluation • Create content, communications, and campaigns • Produce youth-focused and data-driven storytelling Sharing expertise and best practices with youth arts programs. • Provide leadership & professional development • Provide networking & peer learning opportunities • Offer technical assistance Cultivating new pathways of support that benefit all local youth arts programs. • Advocate for policy & systems change • Grow diversity in funding • Pursue collective funding opportunities |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | EST/LA | 137 N LARCHMONT BLVD , LOS ANGELES, CA 90004-3704 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 839-1197 | 28 | 43 | 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, EST/LA will sustain and strengthen its core operations as an artist-led new play development organization. Grant funds will be used to provide stipends for company leadership and program facilitators in recognition of their year-round artistic and administrative work, support essential operating expenses including theatre space rental, and expand accessibility services for artists and audiences. This funding will ensure the continuity of EST/LA’s writing, development, and performance programs while increasing equitable access to participation and presentation opportunities across our community. | EST/LA is committed to providing an inclusive environment for developing and producing new work by established and emerging theatre artists, providing a lifelong artistic and professional home to our membership. As storytellers, we are keenly aware that narratives (and who controls them) are powerful forces in shaping human perception and experience. We seek out stories that challenge the status quo, and dedicate ourselves to serving the often silenced members of both our surrounding communities and the artistic communities of Los Angeles. Ensemble Studio Theatre - The L. A. Project began in 1979 as the west coast off-shoot of Ensemble Studio Theatre in New York. Formalized as a separate company in 2000, EST/LA’s membership includes over 200 accomplished diverse theater professionals, and our critically acclaimed works have been recognized with Backstage Garland awards, Stage Raw awards, LA Weekly Awards, Ovation Awards and Recommendations, a GLAAD Media Award, Los Angeles Drama Critics Award and other accolades. Currently in residence at Atwater Village Theater, the company has a strong portfolio of developmental programs, produces multiple projects every season and presents online digital programming for the wider audience. Our core programming includes: Regularly scheduled writing groups throughout the year that include both established and marginalized voices; Storytelling events featuring artists from a wide array of lived experiences; Developmental festivals and workshops with audience discussion and participation; and seasonal productions of works fully developed by our company. We are also a community partner of the University of Southern California, for which we work with the Warrior Bards Program supporting U.S. Veterans living with PTSD, and through our work with the Theatre Workers Project Artists we sponsor workshop programs for men who are transitioning from incarceration into society. All community-based programs include readings, performances, and online digital content. Member of the Artistic Directors of Color Alliance (ADCA). |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Whacking Los Angeles | 4758 W 165TH ST , LAWNDALE, CA 90260-2825 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 237-5294 | With support from the California Arts Council, Whacking Los Angeles (WLA) will use Punking and Whacking to expand access to dance education, programming, and cultural events for BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities. Through the Colors Whacking Festival and the year-round “Colors Continuum” engagement series, WLA creates cultural exchanges that celebrate Black and Brown queer dance forms in their birthplace, Los Angeles. Colors addresses community needs by creating affirming arts spaces, promoting equitable access, and preserving culture through workshops, performances, panels, social dance spaces, and entry-level opportunities for dancers. WLA implements equity through scholarships and affordable programming while supporting mentorship and professional development. The grant supports year-round festival planning, outreach, artist development, partnerships, and public programming leading into the December 2026 Colors Festival and continuing through September 2027, strengthening community relationships and supporting future festival cycles. | Whacking Los Angeles (WLA) delivers a range of culturally responsive programs designed to educate, empower, and uplift queer and BIPOC artists. Core offerings include structured dance training programs in Punking and Whacking that support artistic skill-building and cultural preservation; monthly dance mixers and social events that foster community connection and creative exchange; and large-scale productions such as Colors Festival, a multi-day celebration of street dance culture, and Liminality, a queer arts showcase highlighting interdisciplinary performance and storytelling. Through these programs, WLA creates accessible pathways for artistic development, public performance, and community engagement. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Art + Climate Action | 2830 20th St , San Francisco, CA 94110-2825 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 990-7377 | With support from the California Arts Council, Art + Climate Action will launch Floating Forest / Bosque Flotante, a public art and design-build initiative developing a small fleet of hand-built boats in the Canal District, a waterfront neighborhood in San Rafael. Working from a former boatyard and future pedestrian bridge site, artist Amy Franceschini / Futurefarmers and a team rooted in the Canal will lead workshops where residents and students design, build, and test prototypes on the water. Developed with Canal Alliance, the City of San Rafael, and the Marin Museum of Contemporary Art, the project centers the leadership of one of the Bay Area's most climate-vulnerable communities, connecting artistic practice to climate adaptation, mobility, and shoreline stewardship. CAC funds support artist fees, participant stipends, materials, and accessibility—laying the groundwork for community-designed vessels moored in the Canal. | Art + Climate Action (A+CA) produces artist-led projects, public programs, and collaborative initiatives that connect cultural practice to ecological systems and civic life. Our core services include commissioning and supporting artists to develop research-driven, design-build, and socially engaged work; facilitating community-based workshops and public programs that center collective making and local knowledge; and advising cultural institutions on climate-conscious strategies across programming, materials, and operations. Through partnerships with municipalities, community organizations, and cultural networks, we create platforms for shared authorship and sustained engagement, while building pathways for artists and institutions to actively participate in climate response at both local and regional scales. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | YouthBeat | P.O. Box 30071 , OAKLAND, CA 94604 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 922-0060 | California's 12th congressional district | District 18 | District 7 | YouthBeat will use California Arts Council funding to provide free, culturally responsive media arts education to 400+ Oakland youth across 14 Title 1 school sites. Through filmmaking, animation, photography, and digital storytelling, students ages 10–24 will engage in hands-on arts learning that develops creative voice, technical skills, leadership, and career pathways in California’s growing creative economy. YouthBeat provides a long-term artistic pipeline beginning as early as elementary school and progressing into high school media training, portfolio development, paid internships, pre-apprenticeship pathways, and apprenticeship opportunities. Led by professional Teaching Artists, youth create original work rooted in their lived experiences and communities while gaining exposure to industry partners including NBC, Pixar, and local media leaders. CAC funds will support Teaching Artist salaries, transportation access, and public student showcases. | YouthBeat serves elementary, middle, high school and transitional aged youth, and all of our programs are provided completely free of charge for participants. Programs for school age youth take place as part of the school day, after school, and during the summer. Our Apprenticeship Programs provide paid training for high school graduates who do not have 4-year college plans. All participants develop their creative talents and learn cutting-edge media arts skills using professional, industry-standard gear provided for FREE by KDOL-TV, the Oakland Unified School District's Education Access TV Station. Courses cover animation, photography, design, and videography and all are taught by accomplished media artists who focus not only on building students’ arts talents and skills but also on building a safe, nurturing learning community that encourages creative risk taking, builds lasting friendships within a culturally diverse group of students, and develops leadership and teamwork skills. Many of our students also “find a passion.” Mason, for example, explains that he started with Youth Beat just to get his Arts requirement out of the way. He enrolled for a 2nd and 3rd year, he says, because he found something that makes him “feel alive.” |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Audiopharmacy Prescriptions | 1550 5th St , Oakland, CA 94607-1250 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 728-7149 | With support from CAC, Audiopharmacy Prescriptions will sustain and strengthen the operational infrastructure that powers BAMBU Pharm and the Solutions to Artist Sustainability Initiative (STASI). CAC funds will support the core team responsible for building, organizing and producing our STASI programming, including the Cultural Community Teaching Artist Residency (CCTAR), BAMBU Sessions, and Affordable Artist Housing. This team ensures artists are recruited, compensated, supported and platformed; that community members have consistent access to free and sliding-scale culturally rooted arts and wellness programming, and BAMBU Pharm continues to serve as a thriving cultural hub in West Oakland. | Audiopharmacy Prescriptions delivers interdisciplinary arts, culture, wellness, and healing-centered programs rooted in community, cultural connection, sustainability, and intergenerational impact. BAMBU Sessions is an H.I. (Human Intelligence)–driven live studio experience where artists co-create original music in real time. Fully improvised and recorded in a single take before an intimate audience, each session amplifies artistic expression while highlighting a community cause to raise awareness and support grassroots efforts. Culturally-Rooted Arts Education includes workshops and multi-week classes centering Indigenous and diasporic traditions. Programs such as Shangó Beats introduce Afro-Brazilian percussion and Candomblé-rooted practices, fostering musical skill, cultural awareness, and collective expression. Wellness & Healing Arts Programming integrates mindfulness, movement, and somatic practices. Offerings include InnerG Sessions, Bayanihan Boxing, and Divine Sound, Tea & Color—supporting physical health, emotional resilience, and community connection through culturally-rooted practices. Affordable Housing & Artist Support at BAMBU Pharm provides artists with an affordable creative sanctuary that integrates living space, programming, and community engagement—supporting sustained artistic practice. Multimedia & Creative Production offers recording, filming, and in-house production, enabling artists to create and share content that amplifies community-based cultural work or creative content. Community Partnerships & Socio-Ecological Programming connect arts with environmental and social justice through collaborations with partners such as Remagination Farm and Reclaim Our Power, integrating land-based practices, food sovereignty, and energy justice. Community Events & Gatherings bring people together through radical joy, activism and entertainment. BAMBU Sessions anchor this work, hosting both cultural celebrations like Lunar New Year and campaigns such as “Free Leo, Free Them All.” Artist Sustainability & Development includes the Cultural Community Artist Teaching Residency (CCATR), providing paid teaching opportunities, mentorship, and resources to support artists in building sustainable, community-centered livelihoods. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Bay Philharmonic | 3375 Country Drive , FREMONT, CA 94536 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (341) 201-4205 | District 14 | District 24 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bay Philharmonic (Bay Phil) will unite communities and improve residents’ quality of life through dynamic performances during the 26/27 season. Funding will support our core operations, especially increased salaries for 35-45 professional musicians who deliver each show. Bay Phil creates high-quality, accessible, and inclusive performances that serve Bay Area residents and engage diverse audiences. Programs embrace many cultures, traditions and musical genres. Every show features collaborations with guest performers, including soloists, dancers and choruses, inspiring over 3,000 guests per season. Without musicians, we cannot make an impact on residents and add beauty and joy to lives through performing arts. CAC support helps us continue hiring and fairly compensating top-notch talent, and maintain artistic excellence to make sure live music remains a vibrant, unifying force in the Bay Area. | Founded in 1964, the Bay Philharmonic (formerly Fremont Symphony) fills a non-traditional-symphony niche in the Bay Area. Our performances at Chabot College Performing Arts Center are the most innovative musical experiences around. Three to four times a year, Bay Philharmonic (Bay Phil) presents themed, culturally-inclusive performances that have broad appeal—-from traditional symphony lovers to families, and young adults. Our shows help educate, inspire, and bring joy to all our guests. Bay Phil Youth Orchestra, launched in 2016, provides an encouraging and motivating environment for 35-50 young musicians aged 7 -18 to pursue musical excellence and gain performance experience. The students receive high-quality instruction from Bay Phil’s professional musicians. Through a variety of performance opportunities, BPYO empowers young musicians to actively engage in preserving and promoting the performing arts in our community. Our Bay Phil Guild consists of volunteers who support and promote the Bay Philharmonic and BPYO. They organize and host youth competitions and recitals throughout the year. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Noah Purifoy Foundation | PO BOX 962 , CULVER CITY, CA 90232-0962 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (607) 382-5561 | California's 37th congressional district | District 54 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, NOAH PURIFOY FOUNDATION will fund one web designer specialized in accessibility upgrades, one on-site museum caretaker and utility costs (water, electricity, waste disposal, security, internet) | The primary activities of the Noah Purifoy Foundation are to: -Preserve and maintain Noah Purifoy's (1917-2004) existing works of art -Maintain the 10-acre Noah Purifoy Desert Art Museum of Assemblage Sculpture for public engagement, tours and educational programs -Provide curatorial assistance giving visitors a coherent explanation of the desert museum project, its development, its relationship to the story of America during Noah's lifetime and the recognition of Noah Purifoy as a world leader in the genre of assemblage art -Organize Purifoy’s papers and develop of research opportunities for national and international artists and scholars to review his lifetime oeuvre -Provide in-person arts educational experiences and online curriculum about Noah Purifoy to urban middle school students through its Urban Arts Initiative program. -Conducted local presentations about the importance of sculptural art, impermanence and ephemerality of art in the desert. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | The Arts Council of Kern | 1020 18th Street , BAKERSFIELD, CA 93301 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 324-9000 | California's 20 Congressional District | District 35 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, the ARTS COUNCIL OF KERN (ACK) will continue to advance arts access, advocacy, and education, a bridge connecting people, cultures, and possibilities. ACK expands access to creative expression, nurtures local talent, and delivers transformative arts experiences across our 8,100-square-mile county. We direct funding and training to visual, performing, literary, and media arts, including regranting to local organizations, outreach that supports the creative economy, and marketing to reach all districts. CAC support also sustains Poetry Out Loud, led by our Creative Director in partnership with the Kern County Poet Laureate. Additionally, funding assists us to provide free festivals, such as Latination, exhibitions, and workshops, as well as First Friday and Makers Market—ensuring consistent, inclusive access to the arts and creative economy opportunity for artisans in Kern. | Community Grants and Partnerships: Provides grant funding, technical assistance, and free monthly Cultivate Kern workshops (sponsored by The Wonderful Company) to support artists, nonprofits, schools, libraries, and museums, expanding participation and organizational capacity. Includes marketing, social media, and storytelling support to increase visibility and engagement. ACK Gallery: A central hub for community engagement, hosting eight annual exhibits, workshops, and performances. Signature events like Latination engage up to 5,000 participants through cultural arts, music, dance, and hands-on activities. Artist Promotion: Art Walk & Makers Markets: Dynamic monthly public event in downtown Bakersfield for original visual and performing artists to showcase their work. Makers Market showcases local arts/crafts for sale, rotating artists every quarter and is open when ACK is open. Arts Education/Creative Economy Training: ACK offers arts integration classes for teachers, artists in residency (classroom/after-school), community schools CTE, and a new workforce development program for junior high students. Summer camps and Artist Catalog also key features. Prison Arts Initiative: Provides multidisciplinary arts programming for incarcerated individuals, building self-awareness, communication skills, and workforce readiness. Art4Rehabilitation (A4R): Award-winning program serving justice-involved youth most vulnerable to recidivism, reducing behavioral incidents while building creative and career skills through mentorship and internships. Common Ground: Indigenous arts program offering workshops, storytelling, murals, and exhibitions that strengthen cultural identity and expand access in underserved communities. Public Art Programs: Partnerships with Caltrans and public parks to engage communities in mural projects that increase cultural storytelling and neighborhood pride. Literary Arts: Poet Laureate, Poetry Out Loud, Stories on the Sidewalk, and open mic events promote literacy, storytelling, and community dialogue. 2026-27 Pilot Programs: Creative Pathways for Healthy Futures, a Kaiser-funded initiative and Creative Recovery for Women, another grant funded program, using the arts to support individuals facing barriers to employment to find work in the creative economy. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Life On Art | 133 Copeland Street Suite C1A , PETALUMA, CA 94952 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 780-5440 | CA2 | District #10 | District #3 | With support from the California Arts Council (CAC), Life On Art will sustain and grow our community-based healing arts programs across Northern California, reaching communities that traditional arts access leaves out. CAC funds will support planning, program delivery, and partnership development across our four program areas: - Large-scale community-made public art installations that fuse community artmaking, creative arts therapies, and public exhibition; - Programming inside psychiatric, correctional, transitional-housing, education, and mental-health facilities; - Youth and community arts education, including our annual Arts and Social Activism community service weeks for Petaluma teens; and - Our Copeland Street community art space in Petaluma — a gallery, exhibition space, and artist collective open to the public. Our participants include people experiencing incarceration, psychiatric patients, at-promise youth, LGBTQIA+ community members, care partners, low-income residents, those in transitional housing, and anyone seeking mental well-being. | Life On Art’s work takes shape across studios, public installations, and institutional partnerships, with each program below extending the healing power of art to a different community. Large-scale collaborative installations. Sites have included the Museum of Sonoma County (Santa Rosa, 2018, 2019, 2021, 2022, 2023); the Marin County Civic Center; the County of Monterey Administration Building (Salinas); the Soledad Post Office; our studio in Petaluma; and San Quentin State Prison. In-institution programming. Community artmaking inside psychiatric facilities (California Department of State Hospitals, Napa); correctional institutions (San Quentin Rehabilitation Center; Central California Women's Facility, Chowchilla; Correctional Training Facility, Soledad); and the LifeMoves transitional housing facility in Palo Alto. Heart Stories. Our flagship community-artmaking model, scalable and deployable to institutions and communities nationwide. Designed for people navigating hardship: participants build, paint, and story a winged heart over multiple weeks, with their winged hearts exhibited publicly. Feather Journeys. For frontline staff who carry other people's pain. In connective multiple short art sessions, participants create a hand-crafted feather that becomes part of a permanent winged heart sculpture at their workplace. Community Hub. Studio artmaking and workshops, resident artists, community builds, volunteer artmaking, and hosted events at our 10,000 sq. ft. Copeland Street space. Custom educational program. For schools, organizations, other nonprofits, and corporations on the transformational and rehabilitative power of art. The ‘Free People Project’. A partnership with Sonoma County Library launching in Summer 2026 — a multi-year community art initiative that builds twelve winged hearts, one for each of Sonoma County's library branches, with hundreds of community members. The twelve hearts will tour libraries, county agencies, hospitals, and the Museum of Sonoma County before joining the library's permanent special collection. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | RX BALLROOM DANCE | 28 AGAVE CT , LADERA RANCH, CA 92694-0877 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 938-1620 | California's 49th Congressional District | California's 71st State Assembly District | California's 38th State Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, RX Ballroom Dance will launch a culturally responsive Latin dance therapy program for Spanish-speaking individuals with Parkinson's disease in Orange County and South San Diego County. Grant funds will support instructor costs for a pilot project addressing a critical gap: Spanish-speaking community members with Parkinson's are increasingly isolated due to immigration fears, language barriers, and lack of culturally relevant health resources. Many are foregoing participation in free movement therapy programs despite evidence that rhythmic movement improves motor function, balance, and emotional well-being. We will serve at least 60 Spanish-speaking individuals by highlighting Latin dance forms with authentic regional music, taught by bilingual instructors who reflect the communities we serve. This is not simply dance instruction – it is artistic practice as intervention to rebuild trust and address health disparities. | Rx Ballroom Dance provides free, adaptive ballroom dance programs designed for individuals living with Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, and other neurological or age-related conditions. Our core programs blend the artistic beauty of ballroom dance with evidence-based therapeutic strategies to improve quality of life, mobility, and emotional well-being. All programs are culturally inclusive, community-centered, and accessible to people with disabilities. 1. Free Weekly Therapeutic Dance Classes • Offered in-person at community centers and virtually for homebound or rural participants. • Led by certified instructors trained in both ballroom dance and working with neurological conditions. • Classes include standing, seated, and wheelchair-based options to meet all ability levels. • Focus areas include balance, posture, rotational movement, strength, and confidence. 2. Care Partner Involvement • Caregivers, spouses, and family members are encouraged to participate in class alongside their loved ones (free of charge). • Dancing together fosters emotional connection, mutual joy, and shared progress. • Care partners also become part of a broader support network, building ties to the community. 3. Participant Performances & Showcases • Participants have opportunities to perform at events like annual galas and local showcases. • Scholarships help cover costume, travel, and coaching costs so participants can proudly represent their diagnosis and cultural identity through dance. 4. Community Engagement & Education • Outreach at senior expos, support groups, and health fairs. • Collaborations with organizations fostering cognitive, physical and emotional well-being as well as local care networks. 5. Instructor Training & Evaluation Partnerships • Ongoing instructor training in adaptive dance practices. • Program impact is measured through partnerships with Concordia University, tracking progress in balance, posture, and strength. Together, these services create a joyful, empowering space for healing and artistic expression. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | The Young Shakespeareans | 445 South Figueroa St. Suite 2230 , Los Angeles, CA 90071 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 644-1442 | California's 37th congressional district | District 57 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Young Shakespeareans will sustain core operating capacity to deliver free, on-site, after-school theatre arts programming to 2nd through 12th grade students at Title 1 LAUSD partner schools in South Los Angeles and North Hollywood, communities in the lower quartiles of the Healthy Places Index. Funds will support staff compensation, program delivery, and organizational infrastructure across the 2026-2027 production season, including the Spring 2027 launch of a NEW ADAPTATION OF "MACBETH" SET IN 1500'S MESOAMERICA; the BRIDGING SILOS summer intensive; and continued multi-year programming at established partner schools. Funds will also expand paid Teaching Artist and production roles for TYS alumni through the organization's CAREER PATHWAYS model, advancing a participant-to-practitioner pipeline that builds workforce credentials, professional networks, and economic opportunity for youth from underserved communities. | SHAKESPEAREAN SHORTIES (Grades 2+3; 24 hrs; 4 wks): Introduction to Focused Movement, Emotional Awareness/Expression, Shakespearean Poetry. 1 performance for classmates/families PERFORMING ARTS - ONSTAGE/BACKSTAGE (Grades 4-12; 66 hrs; 8-12 wks): Instruction in Basic Elizabethan history; contemporary English translation of selected Play; breakdown of characters/plots/themes; culturally relevant abridged, age-appropriate, adapted script in Elizabethan text (reseting classical text to reflect TYS students' heritage/lived experience); Poetic forms+devices; Elizabethan vocabulary/syntax/colloquialisms. Exploration/expression of human instincts/emotions/behaviors. Basic stagecraft; text/blocking memorization; practice of public presentation demands (vocal/physical/mental); backstage crew support. 3 public performances. SHAKESPEAREAN SPORTS (Grades 4-12; 30 hrs; 12 wks): Certified Trainers focus on action scenes using swordplay & hand-to-hand techniques to develop self-control/concentration/athleticism; explore safety/spatial perception/respect, how/when/why/physical conflicts develop. 3 public performances. PRODUCTION DESIGN & TECHNICAL ARTS (Grades 6-12; 60 hrs over 8 wks): Instruction in theatrical equipment design/history/evolution; Exploration and execution of backstage roles in Scenics/Costuming+Props;, Lighting/Sound; Music/Special Effects; Operation/maintenance of theatrical equipment/assets; Stage Management. Concrete/non-abstract math/organization skills. WORKFORCE/EARN+LEARN (Grades 9-12; 60-120 hrs; 8 wks): Students receive stipends to participate in TYS Performing Arts/Production Design/Technical Arts Programs. Joint Community Collaborations. CAREER PATHWAYS - PARTICIPANT to PRACTITIONER (Grades 9+; 40-60 hrs; 8 wks): Alumni work as paid Assistant Teaching Artists/Crew, mentoring younger students in their communities while building theatrical assets/portfolios/industry networks/professional credentials. All TYS Curricula: include full California State Curriculum Standards alignment; specify/integrate applied social-emotional/academic/artistic learning; taught by experienced professionals in their discipline + Childhood Development. INITIATIVES: NEIGHBORHOOD EMPOWERMENT PIPELINES: Deep, multi-year partnerships with Title 1 partner schools where TYS returns season after season from elementary to middle to high school within the same neighborhood, building institutional memory and longitudinal relationships with students. BRIDGING SILOS: Summer intensives designed to introduce/connect High School & TYS College-aged Alumni from across LA County's diverse socioeconomic/racial/cultural backgrounds (Summer 2025's cohort included students from six different cultural backgrounds, four different high schools, four different colleges.) |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Claudia Biezunski | 2113 Logan Avenue B, San Diego, CA 92113 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 693-4964 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sew Loka will produce Slow Fashion Day 2026, a free, large-scale public festival at Liberty Station in San Diego’s Point Loma neighborhood celebrating sustainable fashion and textile arts. Building on the success of our inaugural 2025 event, which drew over 1,000 attendees and upcycled 500+ garments, Slow Fashion Day 2026 will expand to serve 2,500+ community members through hands-on garment upcycling workshops, a sustainable fashion runway show, live sewing demonstrations, music performances, and educational programming about the environmental impact of fast fashion. Grant funds will support artist compensation, workshop materials, venue costs, accessibility accommodations, and event production, ensuring this community-driven celebration remains completely free and accessible to all San Diegans. | Sew Loka delivers year-round arts programming through several interconnected program areas: Community Sewing Workshops: Our core offering includes hands-on workshops in sewing fundamentals, garment construction, and textile upcycling. Classes range from beginner-friendly tote bag and t-shirt workshops to advanced projects like lounge pants, denim jackets, and custom garments. We offer both paid workshops that sustain our operations and free community workshops funded through grants and sponsorships, ensuring accessibility for participants who face financial barriers. Slow Fashion Day: Our flagship annual public event brings together 1,000+ attendees, local designers, makers, and community members for a day-long celebration of sustainable fashion. The inaugural 2025 event, held in partnership with The Homegrown Project and sponsored by the Conrad Prebys Foundation, featured garment upcycling stations, live sewing demonstrations, fashion showcases, and educational programming about the environmental impact of fast fashion. The event received a San Diego City Council proclamation and extensive media coverage. We partner with visual artists, ceramic artists, muralists, and other creatives to produce interdisciplinary projects that expand the reach and impact of textile arts. Recent collaborations include projects with ceramic artist Gabriela Ponce Curlango, visual artist Selena Idioma, and sketch artist Juan Pacheko. Through our upcoming KPBS Slow Fashion Studio pilot series, we plan to produce documentary-style content that tells the stories of artisans and the slow fashion movement, bringing visibility to sustainable practices through broadcast media. We partner with schools, libraries, museums (including Mingei International Museum and Fleet Science Center), and community organizations to deliver free sewing and sustainability workshops to youth and underserved populations. These programs introduce textile arts as a vehicle for creative expression, environmental awareness, and workforce development. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Claudia Biezunski | 2113 Logan Avenue B, San Diego, CA 92113 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 693-4964 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sew Loka will sustain and expand its year-round community arts programming in San Diego’s Barrio Logan neighborhood. General operating funds will support the studio infrastructure, staffing, and administrative capacity that enable Sew Loka to deliver accessible sewing and textile arts education, free community workshops, artist collaborations, and public events including our annual Slow Fashion Day celebration. These funds will strengthen our organizational foundation as we scale our impact, reaching more community members through hands-on creative programming that promotes sustainable fashion practices, cultural expression, and economic empowerment in a historically underserved neighborhood. | Sew Loka delivers year-round arts programming through several interconnected program areas: Community Sewing Workshops: Our core offering includes hands-on workshops in sewing fundamentals, garment construction, and textile upcycling. Classes range from beginner-friendly tote bag and t-shirt workshops to advanced projects like lounge pants, denim jackets, and custom garments. We offer both paid workshops that sustain our operations and free community workshops funded through grants and sponsorships, ensuring accessibility for participants who face financial barriers. Slow Fashion Day: Our flagship annual public event brings together 1,000+ attendees, local designers, makers, and community members for a day-long celebration of sustainable fashion. The inaugural 2025 event, held in partnership with The Homegrown Project and sponsored by the Conrad Prebys Foundation, featured garment upcycling stations, live sewing demonstrations, fashion showcases, and educational programming about the environmental impact of fast fashion. The event received a San Diego City Council proclamation and extensive media coverage. We partner with visual artists, ceramic artists, muralists, and other creatives to produce interdisciplinary projects that expand the reach and impact of textile arts. Recent collaborations include projects with ceramic artist Gabriela Ponce Curlango, visual artist Selena Idioma, and sketch artist Juan Pacheko. Through our upcoming KPBS Slow Fashion Studio pilot series, we plan to produce documentary-style content that tells the stories of artisans and the slow fashion movement, bringing visibility to sustainable practices through broadcast media. We partner with schools, libraries, museums (including Mingei International Museum and Fleet Science Center), and community organizations to deliver free sewing and sustainability workshops to youth and underserved populations. These programs introduce textile arts as a vehicle for creative expression, environmental awareness, and workforce development. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,297.00 | E4TT | 55 Taylor St. , San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 684-0505 | California's 12th congressional district | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ensemble for These Times (E4TT) will create "Inspiración: The Latina Composers Project" a new initiative celebrating the work of contemporary Latina composers with the goal of inspiring, uplifting, and bringing increased recognition to BIPOC women composers and their work in the field of contemporary classical music. E4TT will achieve this goal by: performing music by five living Latina composers on two free concerts during our 2026/27 Home Season; interviewing three Latina composers for the next season of "For Good Measure," our highly successful podcast of interviews with women, BIPOC, and LGBTQIA creatives; and creating a free, public-facing, and searchable online database of all the works by Latina composers that E4TT has performed in its 18-year history. | Winners of The American Prize in 2021 in Chamber Music Performance, Ensemble for These Times (E4TT) is a contemporary chamber music group currently celebrating its eighteenth season. E4TT performs 4-6 hybrid concerts each season in the San Francisco Bay Area at various venues for an enthusiastic and growing audience; 1-2 of these concerts are offered free-of-charge to all attendees and ticket prices are kept deliberately low for the remaining concerts, with deeply discounted prices for students and the elderly, and a policy of no one turned away from attending self-presented concerts due to a lack of ability to pay. All self-presented concerts continue to be available online at no charge to viewers and are archived on YouTube for later viewing at no cost to all. The group regularly commissions new work for premiere on their annual season, and is committed to performing the works of women, people of color, members of the LGBTQIA community and by those historically oppressed or forgotten. In 2020, the group began an interview series focusing on women creative artists; the second season of the series in 2021 focused on BIPOC composers and musicians, and a third season, which started in January 2022, focused on California BIPOC women composers. The group began a podcast version of the interview series, entitled "For Good Measure," in June 2022, which is continuing. The group also began a pilot outreach program, "Uplift," in 2022/23. Ensemble for These Times also tours regularly, with previous engagements in New York, Boston, Southern California, Madrid, Krakow, Berlin, and Hungary, and has released five award-winning CDs, with the ensemble's sixth recording to be released in May 2026. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | OLD TOWN ARTISAN STUDIOS | 78046 CALLE BARCELONA , LA QUINTA, CA 92253-3932 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (760) 777-1444 | 41 | 41 | 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Old Town Artisan Studios will directly advance its mission to make art accessible, attainable, and inclusive for underserved populations across the Coachella Valley. Funds will support teaching artists, program staffing, art supplies, and essential operations that allow us to deliver low- and no-cost programming, and fuel our Young Artists Studio Scholarship Program. This flexible support will expand scholarships and sustain our Mobile Mission Art Program, which brings art experiences directly to individuals who face financial and transportation barriers, including Veterans, seniors, youth, and individuals with disabilities. By investing in core operations, this grant ensures that those who would otherwise lack access can experience the healing, connection, and personal growth that the arts provide. | The heart of our organization is our Mobile Outreach Art Programs (Community Outreach) which brings art experiences all over the Coachella Valley to those who do not have the means for transportation to come to us for art classes. The majority of our art instruction and supplies are offered on a no-fee-basis to the students we serve. We have programs for elderly, youth, Veterans, people living with Alzheimer's and people with a variety of behavioral challenges. We also serve many schools, senior centers, Boys & Girls Clubs and YMCA's. Additionally, We offer a Digital Arts class that is free to young adults. At our beautiful, tranquil studio campus in Old Town La Quinta, we offer a wide variety of fee-based classes ranging from Pottery Wheel, clay hand-building, water color painting, acrylic/oil painting, fused glass, blowing, glass mosaic, paint your own pottery (PYOP) and summer art camp for children. The fees collected from our paid classes help to fuel the funding for our Outreach Programs. In addition to visual art classes and programs, we provide community events such as outdoor "Art of Music" concerts and free community family-friendly events such as "Open Mic Night" and "Gingerbread Lane" - a festive family activity-filled day of ornament and cookie decorating, all-day live local entertainment and treats drawing over 2,600 attendees in the month of December. We believe that OTAS art experiences are transformational for people of all ages, and everyone should be able to enjoy the healing benefits of creating art, regardless of their ability and financial means. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Cunamacué | 13823 Velarde Dr , San Leandro, CA 94578-1631 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (408) 334-8838 | 12th Congressional District | District 20 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Cunamacué will sustain and strengthen its core operations to support the creation, presentation, and teaching of Afro-Peruvian dance and music in the San Francisco Bay Area. Grant funds will support artist and educator compensation, administrative capacity, marketing and outreach, and accessibility services. Cunamacué will continue offering free and low-cost community-based programs, including dance and music classes, school assemblies, workshops, and public performances in libraries, schools, and community spaces, with a focus on Title I schools and communities of color. Funding will also support improvements to organizational infrastructure, including evaluation practices, communications, and accessibility planning, ensuring that programs remain responsive to community needs and inclusive of people with disabilities. | Cunamacué’s work centers on the creation and presentation of original Afro-Peruvian dance and music, alongside free and low-cost community-based education. Performance Creation and Presentation: Cunamacué produces original dance theater works such as “Huellas” and “Altares”, integrating Afro-Peruvian rhythms, rituals, and contemporary choreography. We regularly present work at festivals, theaters, libraries, and community spaces across the Bay Area. Festivals and Community Gatherings: Cunamacué produces Afro-Peruvian Fest, the only Afro-Peruvian cultural festival in the Bay Area, as well as Cajón-centered concerts, workshops, and community celebrations that highlight Afro-Peruvian music as a living tradition. Education and Intergenerational Programs: We offer free Family Shows, Family Dance Classes, Cajón Circles, and school residencies in Title 1 schools, introducing youth and families to Afro-Peruvian history, instruments, and dance through assemblies, workshops, and study guides. Film and Cultural Documentation: Cunamacué produces dance documentaries such as “Herencia de un Pueblo”, “Barrer”, and “Son de los Diablos”, and publishes research-based articles that contribute to Afro-Peruvian dance scholarship and cultural preservation. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | YG2D | 375 Elsie St Lower Unit, San Francisco, CA 94110-5519 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (310) 948-8900 | With CAC support, YG2D will strengthen organizational capacity to deliver transformative grief-processing arts programming across California's most systemically under-resourced communities. Grant funds will support general operating expenses, including artist compensation, staff salaries, and travel, enabling sustainable organizational growth while ensuring equitable compensation for our diverse arts workforce. This operational support enables San Quentin's monthly ALIVE INSIDE programming, Songs for Life hospice expansion in the East Bay, reentry workshops, community grief processing events, writing workshop scholarships, podcast production, and equitable artist compensation statewide, ensuring sustainable workforce development and accessible programming across all initiatives. | "Songs for Life" is a heartfelt program connecting professional musicians with hospice patients to provide musical comfort and companionship. Adding meaning to life’s final chapter, musicians create original music inspired by and in honor of each patient's life. "ALIVE INSIDE" is a transformative program that establishes a symbiotic relationship between local artists and the incarcerated community through music and poetry. Facilitated by YG2D trained personnel, led by local artists, and in collaboration with prison health and wellness programs, YG2D offers this marginalized community the uncommon opportunity to express grief and honor loss through creative mediums in the context of a safe and powerful communal listening space. The shared experiences within these sessions foster large-scale communion as both artists and inmates connect through their vulnerability and sharing of personal experiences of grief, ultimately amplifying the voices of the incarcerated population both within and beyond prison walls. "Weekly Community Grief Release": YG2D facilitates a weekly online gathering space where individuals share and witness grief within a supportive community. The event features music and poetry from local artists and time for communal sharing in a safe virtual space. "You're Going to Die" Podcast: YG2D’s weekly podcast navigates conversations on grief, loss, and mortality through personal stories, insights, and reflections shared by a variety of guests, including activists, authors, musicians, and individuals who have experienced profound loss. "You're Going to Die" Open Mics: Poetry, Prose, and Everything Goes; Mourning Our Mothers/Fathers; All The Feels, and more! YG2D’s beloved open mic events have been the main attraction of YG2D since its inception. Now held live monthly in the Lost Church in San Francisco and virtually every quarter, YG2D continues to provide communal space to explore and embrace mortality through live music and poetry performed by local artists while celebrating the joy of being ALIVE together. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | VELASLAVASAY PANORAMA | 1122 W 24TH ST , LOS ANGELES, CA 90007-1724 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 746-2166 | 37th Congressional District of California | District 57 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Velaslavasay Panorama (VP) will use general operating funds to offer immersive exhibits, storytelling programs, and panorama-based artmaking, to support collaborative multidisciplinary arts for underserved culture bearers, and to preserve rare pre-cinematic art forms. VP is an artist-run nonprofit dedicated to preserving and reimagining 360-degree painted panoramas—handcrafted environments combining landscape, sculpture, and sound into shared spatial experiences. Housed in Los Angeles’ oldest purpose-built movie theatre, VP operates as a museum, exhibition space, and community hub, offering public programs, resources for underprivileged artists, and curatorial apprenticeships. As the only U.S. site performing historic immersive techniques using contemporary practices, grant support will sustain artist-led workshops, free public events, and collaborative projects centering emerging artists, providing experiences with narrative installations while developing spatial, material, and collective storytelling skills. | Immersive panoramic installations are the philosophical center of the VP and are presented on a semi-permanent basis. Former works included: “Panorama of the Valley of the Smokes” (2000-2004), a surreal scene of the LA basin 200 years ago and “Effulgence of the North” (2007-2017), a hypnotic depiction of the Arctic landscape by night. “Shengjing Panorama,” (2019-present), our current panorama on view, is a visionary experience of daily life in Shenyang, China circa 1910-1930 and the first ever US-China collaborative panorama. Beyond the panorama, the VP curates highly collaborative performances, film screenings and illustrated lectures on visual art, arcane culture and experimental media. Programs include: “Union Square Florist Shop,” a living installation and performance of a bygone flower store circa 1969; an archo-historical illustrated lecture by the Shenyang Visual Archive; an evening of magic lantern performances by Charlotte Pryce; a 16mm film screen series with Jesse Lerner exploring themes of tourism, documentary, surrealism and archaeology in Mexican cinema; theatrical performances of "The Grand Moving Mirror of California," a moving panorama tradition dating back to 1853. Our blossoming garden is an extension of immersive landscape art offering an oasis of lush, tropical foliage. We are open to the public weekly on a by-donation basis and serve an annual visitorship of over 15,000 people. Our performances, exhibits and programs are primarily focused on serving the Los Angeles community at our headquarters in West Adams/University Park but we reach additional audiences nationally and internationally by sharing our work at festivals, universities, conferences and other presenting opportunities including via postal mail. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | MarinArts | 5800 Northgate Drive #250, San Rafael, CA 94903 5800 Northgate Drive Suite 250, San Rafael, CA 94903 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 472-0211 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 10 | District 2 | MarinArts is requesting $30,000 in General Operating funds to support our services that ensure all Marin County residents can discover, access, and participate in the arts. Currently connecting 365 arts organizations and reaching over 683,000 website sessions annually through our free online platform, this funding would allow MarinArts to reach additional artists and art enthusiasts from communities that have the least access to arts programming and services. These communities include Spanish-speakers, children from low-income families, people with disabilities, seniors, and members of the rural West Marin communities. This investment from CAC would allow MarinArts to expand our Online Arts Platform, Arts Alive! Community Event Series, and our Artes Latino Marin and Diverse Voices initiatives to additional communities. By doing so we will strengthen the arts, culture, and creative expression in Marin County. | • In October 2016, we launched the online arts portal and calendar, offering free event listings, a powerful network of directories, and advertising and sponsorship opportunities for artists, arts organizations, and businesses. Our Mission is to "bring audiences to the arts in Marin". • In December 2016, we formulated strategies to: • Build portal traffic (visits and click throughs to art event venues) through aggressive marketing and outreach. • Ensure sustainable revenue from grants and donations. • Increased portal traffic (visits and click throughs to art event venues) through aggressive marketing and outreach. . In 2025 we launched out Arts Alive! Program |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $10,000.00 | HILLCREST WIND ENSEMBLE | PO BOX 633134 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92163-3134 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 723-0243 | With support from the California Arts Council, HILLCREST WIND ENSEMBLE will use general Operating Support funds for artistic fees, administrative staffing, music purchase and commission, and rental for rehearsal and performance spaces. | Hillcrest Wind Ensemble's core program consists of weekly rehearsals in preparation for four community performances. When fiscally feasible, we sponsor an annual composition contest supporting new composers of wind ensemble music. Future plans include interacting with schools and band youth in the area, and increasing the number of concert performances | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Friends of the Arts | 527 Flume St, Unit 2 , Chico, CA 95928-5608 | Butte | Upstate | (530) 228-2860 | California's 1st congressional district | District 3 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Upstate Community Enhancement Foundation (UCEF), in partnership with North Valley Catholic Social Services, proposes the Oleander & Prospect View Arts & Entrepreneurial Lab, a year-long, artist-led initiative serving residents of two supportive housing communities in Chico and Oroville. UCEF will provide free, on-site arts programming and creative entrepreneurship training for residents experiencing housing instability, poverty, and social isolation. Led by California-based artist Tatiana Allen, the program will include weekly workshops, open studio sessions, and entrepreneurial labs at both locations. The project responds directly to resident-identified needs for creative expression, community connection, and meaningful activity, as evidenced by participant feedback. Art classes, crafts, and hands-on engagement was requested. The program culminates in public exhibitions and participation in local markets. CAC funds will support artist compensation, resident stipends, resident assistant stipends. | UCEF’s core programs and services for the 2026–2028 strategic cycle reflect the organization’s continued transition from an event-focused arts presenter to a regional backbone organization centered on technical assistance, economic development, and services for highly under-resourced communities throughout Butte County. Following the conclusion of its long-standing public access television contract with the City of Chico and post-pandemic community reassessment, UCEF intentionally shifted toward systems-building, collaboration, and direct support for artists, nonprofits, continuation and alternative schools, and emerging community initiatives. Historically, UCEF operated Butte County’s public access television station, BCAC.tv, where it provided digital media arts training, equipment access, youth programming, and community broadcasting services. UCEF also maintained a free lending library of media equipment for filmmakers, students, artists, and grassroots organizations. During its transition, UCEF redistributed equipment to local nonprofits and expanded its role as a facilitator and capacity-building organization. Over the next two years, UCEF will focus on grant-writing assistance, fiscal sponsorship, organizational coaching, and one-on-one technical assistance for artists, cultural organizations, and startup community projects. UCEF will continue to support Poetry Out Loud, underserved schools, affordable housing initiatives, tribal and rural communities, and arts education programs through partnerships with social service agencies, continuation and alternative schools, and local governments. UCEF also advances economic development through arts and culture by supporting cultural district exploration, artist housing research, regional tourism partnerships, and creative workforce initiatives. Community visibility remains central through UCEF’s weekly arts newsletter, reaching nearly 10,000 residents, and its monthly KZFR radio program, “Butte Views & Beyond,” which highlights local artists, cultural organizations, economic development, and community issues. UCEF’s work is grounded in collaboration, equity, cultural awareness, and strengthening long-term community resilience through arts and culture. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Neococo Collective | 3540 S Sycamore Ave , LOS ANGELES, CA 90016 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (316) 737-7585 | With support from the California Arts Council, NEOCOCO COLLECTIVE will support the Neococo Empowerment Program — a collaborative initiative uniting California-based immigrant and refugee women artisans with their broader Los Angeles community through the traditions of hand embroidery, weaving, and textile craft. Rooted in the cultural heritage of historically under-resourced immigrant and refugee communities, the program engages women ages 30–55 many of them survivors of displacement and persecution — as both artists and community members. Grant funds will support artist stipends, workforce development programming, artisan skill-building, and public exhibitions that invite community dialogue around immigrant identity, belonging, and resilience. Collaborative artistic practice serves as the vehicle for addressing economic disparity, cultural erasure, and social marginalization experienced by immigrant and refugee women in California, transforming lived experience into dignified, market-connected creative livelihoods. | Neococo Collective’s core programs and services center on empowering forcibly displaced women and nonbinary individuals through art, economic opportunity, and community building. Our primary initiatives include: Arts-Based Workforce Development – Participants engage in textile arts training, storytelling, and design, gaining both creative and technical skills applicable to the workforce. Paid Apprenticeships – Participants receive stipends while contributing to the production of ethically made goods, fostering financial independence and hands-on experience. Wraparound Support Services – We offer trauma-informed care, multilingual education, childcare, transportation assistance, and a culturally responsive environment that ensures accessibility and safety. Community Engagement – Public exhibitions, pop-ups, and storytelling events create space for cross-cultural exchange and visibility for immigrant voices. These programs are designed to foster dignity, healing, and self-reliance through creativity and community. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Marin Cultural Association | 10 Avenue of the Flags 10 Avenue of the Flags, San Rafael, CA 94903 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (510) 504-5506 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 10 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, MARIN CULTURAL ASSOCIATION will ensure the arts are by and for all Marin residents by expanding access to arts funding, participation, and cultural experiences across the county. At the center of this work, MCA will expand its regranting program, increase equitable access to funding for artists and arts organizations and broaden access to arts experiences for diverse communities across Marin. MCA will continue to implement Poetry Out Loud, engaging students in the literary arts and elevating youth voice. CAC support will also expand professional development and convenings that build capacity and reduce barriers to participation, and strengthen public programming, including free exhibitions and Marin County Fair programming, expanding access for communities across Marin. | Marin Cultural Association supports a thriving arts community by offering a cultural hub and gathering space at the Marin Center and providing leadership in building support for the arts throughout the County. Programming and initiatives include: Arts Advocacy, Convenings, Field Wide Trainings on Equity, Diversity, Inclusion and Belonging, Oversight of three Visual Art Galleries, Arts Education programming in Title 1 schools, Marin County Fair, Poetry Outloud, general support for artists and arts organizations in Marin County. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | CALIFORNIA DANCE INSTITUTE | 1171 S. Robertson Blvd. #602 , Los Angeles, CA 90035 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 301-8900 | California Assembly district 53 | District 53 | District 24 | With support of $30,000 from the California Arts Council, California Dance Institute (CDI) will provide 24 weeks of in-school and after-school dance and music instruction to 800 students at 4 priority population public school sites in Los Angeles. Students learn rhythm, musicality, passion, perseverance, teamwork, and self-expression, culminating in both school shows and a professionally produced end-of-year performance that highlights student growth and achievement. | California Dance Institute's (CDI) programs use dance and music to teach children to strive for excellence. The in-school programs teach an athletic style of dance for one hour each week for 25-28 weeks. The after-school programs teach children more advanced choreography for 1.5 to 2 hours each week for 30-34 weeks and culminate with professional-level performances at the end of the year. CDI is currently serving over 1,200 children in public schools in underserved neighborhoods throughout Los Angeles County. During its twenty-two year history, CDI has served over 24,000 Los Angeles-area students with direct programming. CDI programs have been cited by noted neuroscientists and educators as providing activities in its teaching that aid in children's cognitive development, bringing teaching artists in to work directly with students who otherwise would have little access to the arts. As we have for twenty-two years, CDI continues to reach students through our in-school program that emphasizes rigorous yet accessible dance, rhythm and musicality, along with building skills that aid in developing strong executive function skills. Our specialized after-school program provides greater learning opportunities for those students who want to reach a little higher. The demonstrated integrity of our program and the substantial results attested to by our students and their teachers and families further the CAC’s commitment to nurturing cultural programs supporting the arts and education. During the pandemic, CDI developed online programming and new teaching techniques and received accolades from parents, students, teachers and principals who credited CDI for keeping students engaged, focused and connected. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Tenderloin Museum | 398 EDDY ST , San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 351-1912 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Tenderloin Museum will sustain community-centered programming during a period of significant growth. As the museum triples its footprint to over 10,000 square feet, CAC funding provides critical stability to sustain momentum and deepen community impact. Grant funds will support core operations—staff, facilities, and program delivery—across the museum's Eddy Street location and Larkin Street performance venue, including ongoing productions such as The Compton's Cafeteria Riot, which has generated over $222,000 in wages for transgender and LGBTQ+ artists alone while bringing thousands of visitors into the Tenderloin. CAC support will ensure continued free and sliding-scale programming, collaboration with more than 50 community partners, and accessibility for disabled artists and audiences—allowing the museum to deepen its commitment to equity, community co-creation, and cultural preservation while building long-term sustainability. | The Tenderloin Museum opened in 2015 with the intersecting goals of promoting a deeper understanding of the history of the Tenderloin neighborhood, re-imagining our collective future, and supporting our current community. To accomplish these goals, the museum enacts a three-pronged approach: a critically acclaimed permanent history exhibition, community-driven programs and tours, and economic support in the form of local partnerships and hiring practices. Each year, TLM produces more than 150 public programs, including 5–7 gallery exhibitions, approximately 50 resident-led walking tours, and 90–100 theatrical performances through its dedicated performance venue. All told, these programs reach approximately 7,000 people each year. We invest in deeply collaborative relationships with more than 50 organizations in the arts, humanities, and social sectors, and our success on a relatively small budget is directly linked to those efforts. Together, these programs serve Tenderloin residents—including LGBTQ+, immigrant, low-income, and disabled communities—while also engaging visitors in meaningful, place-based cultural experiences. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | SLOMA | PO BOX 813 1010 Broad Street, San Luis Obispo, CA 93406-0813 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 543-8562 | California's 24th congressional district | District 30 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, SLOMA will expand free countywide community arts programming during a critical institutional transition. As we complete renovations on our new downtown museum and convert our Broad Street facility into a dedicated Arts Education Center, we will ensure uninterrupted arts access through offsite programming leading up to and throughout our temporary facility closure. As San Luis Obispo County’s only art museum, we serve students, families, working adults, emerging artists, and historically underserved communities through no-cost, culturally-responsive programming. CAC funds will provide vital support for bilingual family artmaking events, pop-up creative workshops, Downtown Farmers’ Market activations, after-hours arts programming, and collaborative community events with local partners. These programs will remove barriers to participation, sustain continuity of service, and keep the arts visible, inclusive, and accessible during SLOMA’s Winter–Summer 2027 hiatus. | The San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (SLOMA) is located in downtown San Luis Obispo on the west end of Mission Plaza, at the heart of the city’s cultural corridor. SLOMA is committed to an exhibition program that brings together visual artists from around the world with renowned artists from California and the US. With free admission and monthly events, SLOMA is the heart of the Central Coast’s visual arts community, serving as both a gathering place for the community and an essential stop for visitors. Programs and services include a robust exhibitions program, public art, and youth and adult arts education. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | SAN FERNANDO VALLEY YOUTH CHORUS | 23838 Kittridge St. , West Hills, CA 91307 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 895-7071 | California's 30th congressional district | District 45 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Fernando Valley Youth Chorus (SFVYC) will provide choral music education programming to young people, ages 3-18, helping young singers to flourish through high-quality choral training, mentorship, and community performance opportunities that build musical skills, self-confidence, and creative expression. SFVYC is an inclusive and vital community institution that serves 500+ children and teens yearly across the greater North Los Angeles region, bringing rigorous musicianship and inclusive access to young people from diverse cultural and socioeconomic backgrounds. | Providing Affordable, Quality Music Education Since 1992 Parents know that a well-rounded education includes music. In addition to the cognitive benefits of studying music, children also learn cooperation, study skills, self-confidence and poise. For less than the cost of a single instrument or just a few private lessons, singers in the Valley Youth Chorus enjoy an entire year of musical training and performance opportunities. The SFVYC presents an educational and enriching experience for the young singers as well as their audiences. Our music education includes singing, moving, listening, creating and performing. Additionally, community outreach is a component of our curriculum, bringing choral music to schools, senior citizen centers, non-profit agency partners and civic events. The SFVYC also offers two Summer programs: Summer Jam – a safe, fun place for children to discover and create, and REALarts – artistic tools to use in real life. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | THE CITY | 235 S. Occidental Blvd Apt 308 , Los Angeles, CA 90057 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 284-4111 | 34th District | 54th District | 26th District | With support from the California Arts Council, KWANG MYUNG MISSION will sustain and enhance its core administrative and artistic operations to foster community healing and cultural resilience through multidisciplinary arts. These funds will be utilized to support essential operating expenses, including studio and office lease costs, professional staffing, and the production of high-resolution cinematic music and visual narratives. Specifically, the grant will enable us to maintain our specialized digital media infrastructure to produce 16K/IMAX-quality healing melodies and expand our research in sustainable architectural design and urban farming labs. By securing these foundational resources, KWANG MYUNG MISSION will continue to provide accessible, high-caliber artistic experiences that promote spiritual well-being and environmental stewardship for diverse populations across the Los Angeles region. | KMM [KWANG MYUNG MISSION] provides a unique and diverse portfolio of artistic and professional services designed to uplift the community: Cinematic Music & Digital Media: We produce world-class, high-resolution digital media and immersive cinematic music experiences (supporting up to 16K and IMAX quality) that focus on mental healing and cultural storytelling. Sustainable Architectural Design: Our team develops modular, solar-integrated architectural models and community-focused spatial designs that prioritize environmental harmony and innovative urban living. Urban Farming & Educational Research: We operate integrated laboratories for botanical and nutritional studies, providing agricultural education to promote sustainable lifestyles and food security. Creative Arts Consulting: Through our professional platforms, we offer mentorship and workshops in digital arts, media production, and domain management to support the next generation of creative leaders and nonprofit professionals. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Elsie May Goodwin Gallery | 1902 PACIFIC AVE , STOCKTON, CA 95204-5326 | San Joaquin | Central Valley | (209) 466-6604 | California's 9th congressional district | District 13 | District 5 | With support from the California Arts Council, STOCKTON ART LEAGUE will serve as the State-Local Partner for San Joaquin County by increasing awareness, access, and engagement with California Arts Council resources. The organization will provide technical assistance, including grant guidance, workshops, and individual support to help artists and organizations navigate funding opportunities. Stockton Art League will conduct outreach across urban and rural communities, focusing on historically under-resourced populations. The organization will connect communities to state programs and strengthen participation in initiatives such as Poetry Out Loud. Stockton Art League will establish an advisory network of artists, educators, and community partners to identify needs and inform priorities. Through partnerships and engagement, Stockton Art League will build a coordinated arts ecosystem that reduces barriers, increases participation in funding opportunities, and strengthens the creative economy across the county | Founded in 1936 and incorporated as a nonprofit in 1963, the Stockton Art League has been a pillar of San Joaquin County’s arts community for nearly 90 years. In 2001, it established the Elsie May Goodwin Gallery, a venue for exhibitions, events, and arts education. As a non-juried membership organization, the League hosts monthly exhibitions showcasing local and regional artists, offering affordable display space and community connection. Core Programs and Community Impact Youth Art Program (YAP) Offers low-cost art education for students ages 6–17, led by local teaching artists. Classes explore diverse media and nurture creativity, confidence, and engagement. Adult & Visiting Artist Workshops Regional artists lead hands-on workshops accessible to beginners and advanced artists. These workshops build skills and foster mentorship. Artist Demonstrations Free and open to the public, this series highlights artists sharing tools, techniques, and ideas, deepening public understanding of artistic practice. Performances & Special Events The League hosts interdisciplinary events, including performance art, film screenings, and music-based art nights. National Juried Exhibition at the Haggin Museum Co-sponsored with the Haggin Museum, this biennial exhibition features artists from across the U.S. The 61st was held in 2020, with the 62nd in 2024. Advocacy, Collaboration, and Regional Leadership The Stockton Art League is an active cultural advocate and State-Local Partner mentee with the California Arts Council, working to expand arts access and infrastructure in San Joaquin County through a three-year mentorship with Amador Arts Council. A 2020 strategic plan, funded by an Organizational Development grant, renewed its focus on advocacy and equity. In 2021, the League co-produced a community arts symposium with the Stockton Arts Commission, NEA, and regional partners to explore equity, economic development, and the role of the arts in public life. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,441.00 | Inland Empire Harm Reduction | 4121 10TH ST , RIVERSIDE, CA 92501-3109 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 364-5311 | 39th Congressional district of California | 58 | 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, INLAND EMPIRE HARM REDUCTION will produce a collectively authored anthology-style biographical comic volume that tells a people’s history of liberatory harm reduction in Riverside, California. The volume will contain a series of short comics written and illustrated by key contributors to the only community-run liberatory harm reduction in our area: Inland Empire Harm Reduction. Over the course of this project, the lead artists will host a workshop series teaching community members basic artistic practices and the fundamentals of sequential art. Through the workshops, participants will develop the skills and confidence to create short-form comics documenting their experiences of liberatory harm reduction as they live it. The project also supports peer artists to assist in comics-creating and integrating the comics into a collective volume that uplifts our community’s stories. | IEHR is a grassroots, community-based harm reduction organization, and we were the first state-authorized syringe services program (SSP) in Riverside County dedicated to supporting the health and wellbeing of people who use drugs. IEHR provides harm reduction education, overdose prevention and naloxone distribution, safer use supplies, drug checking services, and linkages to a growing array of services, including housing, healthcare, and treatment. IEHR helps participants navigate and access health resources while collaborating with county health departments to advocate for inclusive policies and the removal of barriers to care. Since 2022, IEHR has engaged in community anti-stigma campaigns grounded in creative activities. This includes art workshops with IEHR participants, volunteers, and staff, and activities with participant (peer) artists associated with IEHR, including the creation of artwork, banners, zines and coloring books, and other educational materials. These activities have empowered participants to contend with topics of stigma around drug use and treatment and begin conversations with other peers and community members to reduce stigma. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Lab | 2948 16th Street , San Francisco, CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 864-8855 | California Assembly District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Lab will present at least 75 singular music, dance, theater, film, literary, and multidisciplinary art events, through performances, publications, exhibitions, installations, and other programs. Additionally, The Lab will engage 4 local artists and/or artist collectives to create large-scale public programs through its artist commissioning and residency program. The Lab’s programs will reach over 12,000 audience members in-person, and support over 200 working artists with living wages, both as a part of its own curation and through sustained partnerships with LGBTQ, BIPOC, and/or disabled individual-led organizations. | True to our name, we want to give artists complete license to take risks and push the boundaries of their practice, allowing them to transform and change The Lab with each new project. To this end, we seek out artists who challenge conventional value systems and whose work is often underfunded as a result. This is part of an ongoing effort to empower artists to realize ambitious ideas and to invite the public in on that process. There are two arts programs and services The Lab provides for our communities: 1) a living-wage-based artist commissioning program, and 2) over 80 singular music, dance, literary, film, and/or multidisciplinary performances annually. The Lab made a commitment in 2014 to model and implement new funding and distribution strategies for under-recognized artists and their work. Along with year-round multidisciplinary programs, The Lab commissions three ambitious art projects per year. Artists receive $15,000 - $150,000 each (as a stipend, or as a salary with health benefits) and the ability to revise every aspect of The Lab’s operations. We want to know how far they can take that inquiry and how much we can bend to make the project of art possible on every level. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | YOUR BIG VOICE FOUNDATION | 220 MOUNTAIN VIEW ST , OAK VIEW, CA 93022-9414 | Ventura | Central Coast | (646) 469-1994 | With support from the California Arts Council, Your Big Voice Foundation will utilize General Operating Support to stabilize Creative Direction and Production roles essential to statewide trauma-informed arts programming. Funds provide competitive wages for Creative Directors and Production staff who develop specialized somatic curricula and manage the Embodied Voice Portal (EVP) digital infrastructure. By transitioning key leadership to grant-supported salaries, Your Big Voice ensures methodology continuity and moves toward a sustainable professional workforce. This stability allows the organization to focus on scaling Train-the-Trainer modules for California school districts. Ultimately, this support anchors personnel responsible for artist-led interventions for systemic silencing. Your Big Voice will continue as a sanctuary for Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC), Lesbian, Gay, Bisexual, Transgender, Queer, Intersex, and Asexual (LGBTQIA+), and educator communities. | Your Big Voice provides a comprehensive, voice-driven healing journey through a suite of somatic and creative interventions designed to move participants from "silence to impact." • Embodied Voice Portal (EVP): Our primary digital sanctuary and service hub. The EVP hosts live, expert-led weekly practice sessions and 1-1 coaching, providing a "witnessed space" for participants to engage in ongoing vocal reclamation and somatic regulation. • Deep Dive Sessions: Intensive workshops that integrate singing and speaking to help individuals process trauma stored in the body. These sessions focus on the physical restoration of the voice for the 5-10% of the population suffering from trauma-induced voice disorders. • Targeted Outreach for Educators: Specialized wellness modules and "Train-the-Trainer" resources designed to mitigate the 30% rate of chronic vocal strain among teachers, ensuring they can sustain their leadership and vocal health in the classroom. • Partnerships & Cohorts: Collaborative programs with community organizations that offer identity-focused support for BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities, creating safe environments to dismantle the effects of systemic silencing. • Scholarships & Access: A commitment to economic justice that provides full financial support for marginalized individuals to access the EVP and our "Vocal Trauma Support" modules. • Documentation & Scaling: An evidence-based initiative that utilizes the Vocal Agency Scale (VAS) to track somatic symptoms and confidence, ensuring our methodology can be scaled as a proven model for public health and social equity. Through these integrated services, YBV transforms vocal expression into a scalable tool for personal agency and community resilience. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Asociación Nacional de Grupos Folklóricos (ANGF) | 9202 North Jade Avenue , Fresno, CA 93720 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 970-6105 | With support from the California Arts Council, Asociación Nacional de Grupos Folklóricos (ANGF) will present our 2027 Conference and Festival in Los Angeles, California -- a week-long gathering of hundreds of practitioners and students exploring the traditional indigenous and mestizo music, dance, and culture of Mexico and Latin America. The conference will feature a new roster of esteemed Folklorico culture bearers, with three class sessions per day, nightly showcase performances, and talks and panel discussions. Year-round California programming includes Los Danzantes de Aztlan at Fresno State University and Danzantes del Valle Coalition events in the Central Valley, including the High School Showoffs, CSU Folklorico Show, and High School Folklorico Summit. Programming uses folkloric dance and music as vehicles for cultural preservation, youth empowerment, higher education access, and community health and wellbeing in historically underserved Latinx communities. | The Asociación Nacional de Grupos Folklóricos (ANGF) is an organization dedicated to the research, preservation, presentation, and education of indigenous and mestizo culture as well as other related folklore within the realm of dance, music, and the visual arts. We formed 53 years ago as an international association to serve as a voice for the promotion and preservation of Mexican folklore traditions. We aim to actively pursue the research, education, and artistic representation of the rich dance, music, and folk art traditions of Mexico. We are here to serve our communities through our distinct culture, educational goals, and outreach endeavors. Our core programs and services include: Our annual conference, where hundreds of participants from all over the world gather to learn and exchange ideas about the rich cultural forms of Mexico and Central America; The 2026 ANGF conference will be held in Los Angeles, bringing thousands of attendees from across the US and Mexico to LA and generating significant revenue and cultural activity. Supporting numerous dance companies, including Los Danzantes de Aztlán, an acclaimed undergraduate dance company based at Fresno State University led by ANGF Vice-President Victor Torres Research, scholarship, advocacy around the cultural and health issues most important to our community. ANGF serves the regional, national, and international community of artists and scholars dedicated to the practice and preservation of the rich dance, music, and folk art traditions of Mexico. Our core audiences, participants, and collaborators come from the historically marginalized Latinx community in California and beyond, with a focus on Fresno/Central Valley, where our dance company Los Danzantes de Aztlán is based. This is a region characterized by high poverty levels, unemployment, and low educational achievement. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Canal Arts | 55 Elizabeth Circle , Greenbrae, CA 94904 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 388-3030 | 2 | 12 | 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, THE CANAL ARTS, will develop a strategic development plan, recruit and train staff and secure operating space. We will expand all five of our program areas: Canal Family Arts Events, Mural Art Workshop courses, Canal-Marin Art Bridge, Mural Creation and Art Activism. We will strengthen our partnerships with Canal community organizations, San Rafael schools and neighborhood and arts organizations. We maintain affiliations with numerous organizations committed to our public art initiatives: Canal Alliance Dominican University San Rafael Chamber of Commerce East San Rafael Working Group Parent Services Project Marin Museum of Contemporary Art Marin School for Environmental Leadership Marin Open Studios Marin Society of Artists Artworks Downtown Storek Studio/Architecture Team Works Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria Our affiliation with supporting organizations, enhances our effectiveness and visibility. | The Canal Arts operates five complemenary public arts initiatives: 1. Canal Family Art The Canal Arts convenes Saturday morning family art events for Canal parents and kids, attended by over 4,000 to date, led by our teaching artists who also conduct a related program—our Mural Art Workshop. 2. Mural Art Workshop The Canal Arts offers a course on art and design, mural history, technique and practice, for those interested in participating in our public art projects, for pay. 3. Canal-Marin Art Bridge Program The most segregated place in the Bay Area, the Canal is unknown to most people in Marin, but they depend daily on its lively, at-risk, endangered community. Community engagement and collaboration are at the heart of our projects, especially in our Canal-Marin Art Bridge Program, introducing interested people in Marin County to the Canal community, to meet, to learn, to create art together, bridging cultures for an enjoyable time, with food, music, paint and fun. 4. Mural Creation In 8 years, we have completed 13 mural projects with Canal community participation, with more to come. Our largest project, Peoples of the Canal, a Story of 20,000 Years, told on 20 interpretive exhibits over 2 miles of the S.F. Bay shoreline path, designed as an educational destination, will further increase awareness of this place, its history and its peoples, and The Canal’s importance to Marin. 5. Art Activism The Canal Arts is active in promoting public art and effecting legislation for the city of San Rafael, beginning with the elimination of public art permit fees, the establishment of a public art review board to better process public projects and public policy that acknowledges the right of private property owners to create public art without city approval. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Ammunition Theatre Company | P.O. Box 461905 , Los Angeles, CA 90046 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (917) 856-3814 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ammunition Theatre Company will sustain and expand our mission to champion diverse voices through bold, inclusive storytelling. CAC funds will support core programming—including a mainstage production, our Writers’ LAB, and free community-driven readings—while strengthening internal infrastructure and leadership. This support will help AMMO compensate artists and administrators equitably and deepen partnerships with community organizations. As we continue developing I Am an American (via Los Angeles)—a devised production rooted in civic dialogue—we aim to foster meaningful engagement across Los Angeles through story circles, public showings, and post-performance conversations. CAC funding will allow AMMO to remain artist-led, equity-centered, and advance our ability to serve as a creative home for underrepresented artists and a cultural beacon for the communities we reflect and uplift. | From its inception, AMMO has been inclusive by design, with a membership that mirrors the diversity of our community. We believe theatre thrives when it sparks conversation, inspires action, and embraces a wide spectrum of lived experiences. To that end, we prioritize developing new works by underrepresented artists — amplifying voices that defy convention and expand cultural understanding. By centering fresh perspectives, we aim to foster dialogue, deepen empathy, and build stronger, healthier communities. At the heart of AMMO is our company: a collective of designers, actors, writers, directors, and producers. We are not only artists — we are advocates, collaborators, and active participants in civic life. Beyond the stage, we partner with philanthropic organizations to expand the reach of our work, bringing theatre and arts education to communities too often left behind — including under-served youth and elders. By combining creative expression with hands-on engagement — we break down barriers between art and everyday life and use theatre to spark dialogue, build relationships, and strengthen the world we share. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | "" | 2781 24TH ST , San Francisco, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 672-6550 | Congressional 11 | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Cuicacalli will provide free and sliding-scale access to culturally rooted dance education weekly for K-12 youth in San Francisco's Mission District from October 2026 through September 2027, with summer addition of latin music/dance/arts classes. CAC funds will support teaching artists, accessibility accommodations, costumes, bilingual family outreach, and student performance opportunities at BRAVA Theater and community sites. Youth ages 5 to 18 will train in Ballet Folklorico, Indigenous dance, Contemporary Dance, Hip Hop Dance, and related Latinx and Afro-Latinx cultural forms while building confidence, discipline, teamwork, leadership, cultural pride, and belonging. The project will culminate in community sharings and performances that bring families, elders, artists, and neighbors together to celebrate living traditions and strengthen intergenerational community connection. | Cuicacalli Escuela de Danza (classes): Offered weekly from August to May and take place at Brava Theater. Ballet Folklórico, led by Jesus Cortes. Three levels (beginning, intermediate, advanced). This class explores dance styles evolved in Mexico resulting from the diaspora of music, rhythm and dance from Pre-Hispanic Indian, European, African and Asian cultures. Students perform dances characteristic of varying regions focusing on group, couple and individual choreographies. Classes include warm-up and stretching leading to lifelong habits of physical health. Contemporary dance, led by Artistic Director, Jesus Cortes. One group of mixed level: A diverse contemporary class beginning with stretching, body awareness, and moving through warm up combinations that accumulate into full dance choreographies. Classes emphasize technical strength building, floor work, and contemporary and ballet concepts and vocabulary. Cuicacalli Dance Company, led by Artistic Director, Jesus Cortes. One group of mixed level, who meet on commission. Cuicacalli Dance Company fuses dance styles inspired by cultural traditions and modern day themes. These choreographies revive traditions and reflect social and environmental situations. By including dance styles such as Indigenous, Folkloric, and Contemporary, Cortes expands traditional and modern dancing with a new lens. Cuicacalli Mariachi Program “Mariachi La Misión,” led by Ariane Cortes. One mixed level group meets weekly. Students learn to make Mariachi music through individual coaching and ensemble work. Students explore Mariachi music forms and hone their skills in voice and unique Mariachi instruments Mariachi La Misión connects music, history and culture of Mexico through the art form that brings together all generations. Cuicacalli Summer Arts Camp and Young Adult Summer Internship meets in June. A Spanish bilingual and culturally rich program for children ages 6 to 12, with young adult internship possibilities. Classes are intertwined with weekly field trips and focus on music, dance, and visual art. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | MoFundamentals | 1360 South Figueroa Street Ste D #365 , Los Angeles, CA 90015 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 448-9253 | With support from the California Arts Council, MoFundamentals will showcase perspectives on resilience through art from former foster youth and adoptee voices in partnership WITH prominent foster-adoptee voices. Building on our RESILIENCE model, MoFundamentals will produce “Stringing RESILIENCE” with former foster youth and adult adoptee, Gabriel Gutierrez. This program centers the talents and creativity of artists impacted by foster care and adoption systems, providing them with mentorship, a creative outlet, professional art opportunities, and support through a foster-adoptee centered approach to healing through dance. Artists working in dance, music, film will be subsidized through comprehensive support and given a platform to share their work and expand their community. MoFundamentals’ RESILIENCE programs are produced by the communities they serve. MoFundamentals RESILIENCE community education programming considers foster-adoptee resilience through the lens of empathy, memory, and demystifying self-preservation. | 1. RESILIENCE Model Programs — What began as a hybrid documentary-artist showcase in pandemic has grown into a community education program. We’ve hired 50+ foster-adoptee emergent artists across disciplines - videographers, photographers, dancers, and more - prioritizing economic sustainability by paying $100/hr for artistic work and $20/hr for admin tasks. Our RESILIENCE festival-style events serve as our training programming for emergent artists and build public understanding of foster-adoptees (former foster youth, adult adoptees, unofficial adoptees, aged out, and kinship/biological adoptees). 2. New Original Performance Works — We devise multidisciplinary performances that center the memories, stories, and voices of foster-adoptee generations. In an effort to kickstart or sustain the careers of our artists, we find opportunities for these works to either tour locally, virtually, or be developed into evening length works. 3. Annual Dance Festivals — Our 10 Year Dance Festival and Juchéti Uarháni (Our Dance) Festival connect emergent and established artists through performances, dance classes and battles celebrating foster-adoptee, street dance, and P’urhépecha culture. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Skid Row Brigade, Inc. | 1701 SOUTH FIGUEROA STREET 1397 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90015-3419 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (805) 699-6529 | District 34 | California Assembly District 57. | 24th State Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Skid Row Brigade, Inc. will expand its community-based arts programming for youth ages 0-25, in high-need and underserved communities. The grant funds will be used to provide structured arts workshops, hands-on instruction, and mentorship in visual arts, music, and performing arts. Participants will engage in creative expression through painting, drawing, collaborative murals, and performance activities that build confidence, cultural awareness, and self-efficacy. The program will also support neighborhood beautification projects, allowing participants to contribute to public art that reflects community identity and pride. By integrating arts education with mentorship, the program creates safe spaces where youth can explore their creativity, develop artistic skills, and strengthen their connection to culture, community, and personal expression. | Skid Row Brigade, Inc. provides year-round community engagement services that support the social-emotional well-being and development of children and families in underserved communities. Our programs are designed to create safe, welcoming environments where youth can learn, grow, and build positive relationships through consistent and meaningful engagement. A key focus of our work is arts programming, which includes structured art workshops and hands-on art lessons that encourage creativity, self-expression, and confidence. Through painting, drawing, and collaborative art projects, youth are given the opportunity to explore their ideas, process emotions, and develop a sense of identity and accomplishment. These activities are intentionally designed to support social-emotional learning, helping participants build self-awareness, resilience, and communication skills. In addition to arts programming, we offer basketball skill clinics and mentorship opportunities that promote teamwork, discipline, and leadership. Mentors provide guidance and encouragement, helping youth develop positive decision-making skills and a stronger sense of self-efficacy. Our community engagement events also address immediate needs by providing hot meals, groceries, clothing, shoes, hygiene products, and school supplies to families experiencing economic hardship. By combining enrichment activities with direct resource distribution, we create a holistic program that supports both short-term stability and long-term growth. Through our integrated approach centered on art, mentorship, and community support, we empower youth and families, strengthen community connections, and ensure equitable access to resources and opportunities in underserved communities. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association (VAALA) | 9574 MOSS GLEN AVE , Fountain Valley, CA 92708 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 914-2260 | California Assembly district 72 | District 72 | District 34 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Vietnamese American Arts and Letters Association (VAALA) will use General Operating Support funds to strengthen its capacity to connect and enrich communities through Vietnamese art and culture. Funding will support core operating expenses, including staff and artist compensation, rent and utilities for our community arts space, and essential administrative and outreach costs directly tied to our exhibitions, our annual Viet Film Fest and Viet Book Fest, and community-based cultural events. This support will enable VAALA to provide consistent, high-quality, culturally relevant programming; expand access to the arts for Vietnamese, immigrant, refugee, and other underrepresented communities in Orange County and beyond; and invest in infrastructure, evaluation, and partnerships that ensure long-term stability and more equitable service to our community. | VAALA organizes cultural events such as art exhibitions, book signings, concerts, plays, workshops for the youth, and the annual Viet Book Fest and Viet Film Fest, at little to no cost, for the community. Currently, our programming consists of four pillars: Gallery Beyond Walls: Visual arts program focused on engaging the community in the arts, facilitating dialogue, revitalizing marginalized communities, and highlighting freedom of expression. Youth Programs: Year-round art workshops in a variety of art forms for local underserved youth in Southern California. Our objectives are to enhance creativity and self-expression, build confidence and self-esteem, develop a sense of community-orientation. Viet Film Fest: The largest and only film festival in the world that celebrates Vietnamese stories and voices in cinema. Viet Film Fest draws an annual, onsite audience of over 5,000 people. The festival features films by persons of Vietnamese descent or productions that focus on the Vietnamese experience. Viet Book Fest: an annual book festival that promotes Vietnamese voices in literature. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Arts Council Santa Cruz County | 1070 River Street , Santa Cruz, CA 95060 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 475-9600 | California's 20th congressional district | District 28 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTS COUNCIL SANTA CRUZ COUNTY will invest in the local creative economy by awarding $220,000 in annual grants to artists and nonprofits. We will produce the annual Open Studios Art Tour, which generates $1M in local art sales, and provide arts education to over 11,000 students, prioritizing neighborhoods with the least access to resources to improve community connectedness and opportunity. Through the Watsonville Center for the Arts and the Tannery Arts Center, we’ll provide essential spaces for creators to teach, work, and thrive. By offering professional support and public advocacy, we help artists build sustainable careers. Our work fuels a sector that contributes $68M to the local economy each year, proving that a vibrant arts scene is essential to a healthy, connected Santa Cruz County. | Guided by its 2022-27 Strategic Plan, Arts Council Santa Cruz County will build, support, and sustain a dynamic, responsive, and inclusive arts culture in Santa Cruz County as characterized by: -Culturally rich and historically neglected communities are elevated, celebrated, and have a position of power in the arts ecosystem that reflects their cultural assets -Art and artists drive the County's cultural and economic success and well being -Santa Cruz County residents of all backgrounds are engaged in a continuum of meaningful and relevant arts engagement activities that provoke a greater sense of belonging -BIPOC artists and arts organizations that serve the County’s BIPOC community are well-resourced and well-positioned for their important work To do so, the Council will pursue five strategic priorities: -Promote an inclusive vision of arts in the County and the importance of vibrant and thriving arts ecosystems -Increase investment in BIPOC communities and organizations in Watsonville and throughout the County -Partner with a diverse set of actors to develop the County’s cultural economy -Elevate the importance of high-quality, culturally relevant arts learning and support capacity and programming to foster the future generation of artists and art lovers -Strengthen the Council’s culture and operations to enable its intended impact in the community Through grants to artists and arts organizations, arts education programs that serve more than 18,000 youth across Santa Cruz County, and community initiatives such as Open Studios, the Tannery Arts Center, and the Watsonville Center for the Arts, we help Santa Cruz County thrive. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | RX BALLROOM DANCE | 28 AGAVE CT , LADERA RANCH, CA 92694-0877 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 938-1620 | California's 49th Congressional District | California's 71st State Assembly District | California's 38th State Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Rx Ballroom Dance (RxBD) will provide evidence-based dance therapy programming to individuals with Parkinson's and Alzheimer's disease across underserved communities in Southern California, including recent expansion to Temecula and the Inland Empire. CAC grant funds will support core organizational functions including bilingual instructor compensation, program materials, community partnership development, research collaboration with Concordia University, and administrative infrastructure necessary to sustain and expand services. RxBD addresses health disparities and social isolation through ballroom and Latin dance forms that improve motor function, balance, cognitive health, and emotional well-being. Our programming serves historically under-resourced populations including Spanish-speaking communities in Garden Grove/Santa Ana and Chula Vista/El Cajon, as well as rural and inland areas such as Fallbrook, Oceanside, and the Inland Empire, regions with limited access to specialized therapeutic arts resources. | Rx Ballroom Dance provides free, adaptive ballroom dance programs designed for individuals living with Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, and other neurological or age-related conditions. Our core programs blend the artistic beauty of ballroom dance with evidence-based therapeutic strategies to improve quality of life, mobility, and emotional well-being. All programs are culturally inclusive, community-centered, and accessible to people with disabilities. 1. Free Weekly Therapeutic Dance Classes • Offered in-person at community centers and virtually for homebound or rural participants. • Led by certified instructors trained in both ballroom dance and working with neurological conditions. • Classes include standing, seated, and wheelchair-based options to meet all ability levels. • Focus areas include balance, posture, rotational movement, strength, and confidence. 2. Care Partner Involvement • Caregivers, spouses, and family members are encouraged to participate in class alongside their loved ones (free of charge). • Dancing together fosters emotional connection, mutual joy, and shared progress. • Care partners also become part of a broader support network, building ties to the community. 3. Participant Performances & Showcases • Participants have opportunities to perform at events like annual galas and local showcases. • Scholarships help cover costume, travel, and coaching costs so participants can proudly represent their diagnosis and cultural identity through dance. 4. Community Engagement & Education • Outreach at senior expos, support groups, and health fairs. • Collaborations with organizations fostering cognitive, physical and emotional well-being as well as local care networks. 5. Instructor Training & Evaluation Partnerships • Ongoing instructor training in adaptive dance practices. • Program impact is measured through partnerships with Concordia University, tracking progress in balance, posture, and strength. Together, these services create a joyful, empowering space for healing and artistic expression. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | CITY OF CALEXICO - RECREATION DEPARTMENT | 608 HEBER AVENUE , Calexico, CA 92231 | Imperial | Far South | (760) 768-7487 | 25th Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 36 | State Senate District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, the City of Calexico's Cultural Arts Division will continue sustaining operating expenses in the form of key essential supporting staff and funding of general operating expenses, while providing arts and culture exposure and opportunities to the community, especially those who are underserved. | The City of Calexico Cultural Arts Division (CCAC) operates under the City’s Recreation Department, serving as a vital hub for artistic and cultural expression. Since its inauguration in February 2008, the CCAC has been committed to providing accessible and enriching artistic opportunities for the community. Our core programs and services include: Art Exhibits – CCAC hosts diverse art exhibitions, inviting children, youth, and adult artists from various backgrounds to showcase their work. These exhibits foster creativity, encourage artistic expression, and provide the community with exposure to different artistic styles and perspectives. Workshops & Classes – We offer meaningful and affordable arts education, including papel picado workshops, inclusive art programs for developmentally challenged individuals, dance and music courses, poetry circles, photography, acrylic painting, and themed painting nights among others. Community & Cultural Events – CCAC plays a central role in celebrating cultural heritage through festivals, themed exhibits, and heritage events. Our programs highlight Mexican American and Latino traditions, featuring mariachis, rondallas, and handicrafts, as well as featuring other cultures and traditions. Concert Series – The arts center hosts live music performances, including concert nights that provide cultural enrichment and entertainment for the community. Youth & Senior Arts Engagement – We design specialized programs to foster artistic expression among youth and senior citizens, ensuring accessibility and engagement across all age groups. Mural Projects – CCAC coordinates public art initiatives, issuing calls for artists to install murals at key locations throughout the city. These murals serve as visual narratives reflecting the city’s values, history, and cultural identity, instilling community pride. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | Shasta County Arts Council | 1313 Market St. , Redding, CA 96001 | Shasta | Upstate | (530) 241-7320 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Shasta County Arts Council-county-designated State-Local Partner for Shasta County, will use grant funds for general operating support and expand services that foster cultural development. As the official local arts agency, the organization serves individuals, artists, and arts organizations through funding, programs, and technical assistance that increase access to the arts for diverse-rural community. Funds will support core operations, including staffing, program delivery, and administrative infrastructure necessary to sustain arts services countywide. Funding support grant making to local artists, organizations, professional development opportunities, and community programming that at reflects the cultural diversity of Shasta County. The Shasta County Arts Council will continue to provide leadership, coordination, and advocacy for the arts, strengthening the local creative ecosystem and ensuring residents have opportunities to create, present, and engage with the arts. | Shasta County Arts Council (SCAC) is housed in the City of Redding's National Registry 1907 City Hall - 8,000 sq. feet that includes a classroom, ballroom, television studio, administrative offices and a pocket park next door. Our gallery features 13 exhibits annually including High School & Middle School Juried Art Competitions where 20+ schools participate. SCAC was the first arts council in the state to manage a public access television station (SCAC.tv) and we now teach digital media arts skills to at-risk youth and interested public members. Our ballroom is host to classical music monthly (we own a Yamaha Grand piano), ballroom, ballet & modern dance classes weekly, concerts, performances as well as theater throughout the year. We also host community meetings & rentals, using our space 300+ days per yr. SCAC is the lead agency for the newly formed Redding Cultural District which is one of 14 districts throughout the State of California. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Theatre | 2613 BECHELLI LN , Redding, CA 96002 | Shasta | Upstate | (530) 605-0500 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, AXIOM REPERTORY THEATRE will restore and sustain accessible, high-quality theatre programming, arts education, and community engagement opportunities for Shasta County and surrounding Northern California communities. Grant funds will support essential general operating expenses, including staffing, facility recovery and operational costs, production expenses, educational programming, audience outreach, and community partnerships. This support will help Axiom continue rebuilding after the 2024 fire, resume live performances, and expand inclusive arts access for youth, families, and underserved populations. Funding will strengthen the organization’s ability to deliver innovative productions, workshops, and cultural programming that foster creativity, connection, and community resilience while ensuring long-term organizational stability and continued public access to the performing arts. | Axiom Repertory Theatre at it's core are as both an educational and producing community theatre. Our productions, classes, workshops and camps include community members from 5 years of age and up. We create all types of theatre from the traditional chestnuts, current shows that can be seen in regional repertory theatre to Broadway to experimental and original works. Axiom has 2 main focuses-Performing Art's education and performance. Our youth program-Axiom Children's Theatre (ACT)is part of our educational focuses. Act started 4 years ago with a summer children's camp. We have had huge success with this program, even during Covid 19. We extended the program to Performing Arts classes in the fall of 2020 and are continuing with monthly workshops this spring(2021). Axiom also offers workshops for our adult community as well as technical arts training. Axiom has created a great venue that is used for all of our programs/services. We support other arts programs in the community with the opportunity to rent the facility. We are currently the only mid size venue, seating 300 audience members. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $75,000.00 | Santa Barbara County Office of Arts and Culture | 1100 Anacapa St , Santa Barbara, CA 93101 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 568-3990 | California's 24th congressional district | District 37 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, SBCOAC will leverage SLP funds to support operational expenses including 3 full-time and 5 part-time staff serving Santa Barbara County through public offices in both North and South County. Funds will support countywide arts services including grant administration, public art and gallery programs, professional development workshops, public meetings, technical assistance, and community engagement activities serving artists, culture bearers, nonprofit organizations, and residents. SBCOAC will promote CAC opportunities through technical assistance for applicants and grantees, administration of Poetry Out Loud, and ongoing coordination between the CAC and local communities. SBCOAC will continue prioritizing historically under-resourced communities, including those in the lowest quartiles of the California Healthy Places Index, through equitable funding practices, accessible programming, multilingual outreach, and partnerships that expand access to arts and cultural opportunities. | SBCOAC administers a range of programs and services that directly support artists, nonprofits, cultural organizations, and the broader community. - Grants & Funding: SBCOAC manages 4+ annual grant programs that provide direct financial support to artists, nonprofits, and cultural initiatives—promoting innovation, community engagement, and access. - Public Art Production: The Office produces temporary and permanent public art installations that activate public spaces and reflect local identity. SBCOAC also manages the City and County public art collections. - Gallery Exhibitions: SBCOAC curates three public gallery spaces with rotating exhibitions that showcase local artists elevates the region’s creative talent. - Civic Arts Leadership: SBCOAC staffs three publicly appointed advisory bodies, including the County Arts Commission which help guide arts policy and public investment. - Creative Economy: SBCOAC collaborates with chambers of commerce, educational institutions, foundations, and the Economic Development Collaborative on an ongoing, data-informed effort to understand and amplify the impact of the creative sector—building on a countywide study and continually applying new insights to support the strategic growth of the creative economy. - Professional Development: SBCOAC offers technical assistance, workshops, and resources to build artist capacity and sustain creative careers. - Artist Recognition: Programs like the Poet Laureate and Individual Artist Fellowships elevate local talent, recognizing artists as vital civic contributors. - Community Engagement: Through events like the Sunken Garden Film Series and tools like the Central Coast Artist Directory, SBCOAC connects residents and visitors with the region’s creative assets. SBCOAC continues to expand its reach and impact through regional collaboration and cross-sector partnerships that foster a more vibrant, inclusive, and resilient arts and culture ecosystem in Santa Barbara County. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Coachella Valley Arts Institute | 41550 Eclectic Street , Palm Desert, CA 92260 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (760) 440-5512 | 25th | 42nd | 28th | With support from the California Arts Council, Futurenomic Resources, Inc. will sustain and expand free, culturally responsive arts programming for low-income, justice-involved, and unhoused youth and adults in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood and the Coachella Valley. CAC funds will support core operations including staff salaries, program materials, equipment rentals, and administrative costs necessary to deliver Explore AI — an arts integration program combining music production, AI technology, and art therapy — alongside community healing events, drum circles, and digital creative expression workshops. Programming centers BIPOC communities, individuals with lived experience of incarceration, and residents facing housing insecurity, offering accessible, no-cost pathways to creative expression, healing, and cultural identity. | Futurenomic offers a diverse array of programs tailored to enhance literacy, artistic expression, and well-being among youth and homeless populations aged 2 and above. Our commitment to inclusivity is underscored by scholarship opportunities, ensuring access to quality arts education in underserved communities. Our programs encompass: - Vocal Training: Led by professionals employing the Seth Rigg’s method, participants receive comprehensive instruction in Speech Level Singing. - Singing Performance: Explore vocal technique, music theory, and stage presence in a supportive environment. - Dance Training: Experience a unique blend of dance styles tailored for live performances. -First 5 Movement Dance Class: Fosters literacy, balance, and coordination development. - Songwriting: Delve into song structure, vocabulary use, and self-expression. - Acting & Drama: Cultivate creativity and performance skills through immersive training. - STEM Education: Engage in hands-on classes integrating science, technology, engineering, and math with music and movement exploration, guitar craftsmanship, and music production using industry-standard software. - Art Therapy: Utilize Media Arts as a healing tool, employing rhythm, mindfulness, and energy-medicine techniques to support trauma recovery. - Painting: From perspective to composition, participants explore various painting techniques and mediums under expert guidance. - Social Media Class: Gain insights into utilizing social media platforms effectively and safely. - Music Production with Logic Class: Learn the intricacies of music and sound editing using Logic Pro, guided by professional engineers. - Adobe Illustrator Class: Master the basics of graphic design for creative expression. - Tutoring: Virtual sessions offer a wide range of educational opportunities including photography, videography, music production, website design, and marketing classes. At Futurenomic, we're not just fostering artistic skills; we're nurturing holistic development, empowering individuals to unleash their potential and contribute positively to their communities. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Urban Jazz Dance Company | 1446 Market Street , San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 575-9711 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Urban Jazz Dance Company will sustain and expand our year-round operations as a Deaf-led dance organization serving Deaf, Disabled, and BIPOC communities across California. CAC funds will support core programming including the 2026 Bay Area International Deaf Dance Festival, 2026 Bay Area International Deaf Dance Film Festival, school-based workshops, and our #DeafWoke virtual series. Funding will also strengthen organizational infrastructure through artist compensation, administrative staffing, and essential access services such as ASL interpretation, captioning, and audio description. Through these efforts, UJDC will provide equitable opportunities for Deaf and Disabled artists, increase access to culturally responsive arts experiences, and deepen community engagement. This support ensures the continuity of accessible, high-quality programming that uplifts historically excluded voices and advances equity within the arts ecosystem. | UJDC educates audiences about current events, empowering minorities, lack of early access to language for Deaf children and social justice. We provide educational workshops/performances at Deaf schools, mainstream programs, Universities, state colleges and seniors homes in the process, creating a healing space for many who have experienced domestic abuse. UJDC passionately visits over 70 schools per year, local to International, working with both hearing and Deaf people of all ages and abilities. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Classical Crossroads, Inc. | 5609 Andrus Ave , Torrance, CA 90503 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 316-5574 | 36th Congressional district of California | District 66 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, CLASSICAL CROSSROADS INC will provide free, exceptionally high-quality chamber music performances for diverse communities across Los Angeles County and beyond. Through two ongoing concert series, free livestreamed performances, and youth outreach concerts in underserved communities, Classical Crossroads expands access to world-class classical music for older adults, people with disabilities, low-income audiences, and young people with limited access to arts education. Grant funds will support sixteen admission-free chamber music concerts in two series, “Classical Interludes” and “Second Sundays at Two”; three youth outreach performances; artist honoraria; and accessible livestream programming that serves homebound audiences. Classical Crossroads believes that access to high-quality live music strengthens community connection, emotional well-being, intergenerational engagement, and lifelong cultural participation. | Since its founding in 1993, Classical Crossroads, Inc. has evolved into a multifaceted, mission-driven nonprofit (incorporated in 2013) that promotes the great art of classical music through the following: * “Classical Interludes” — free monthly Saturday-afternoon chamber music concerts, followed by complimentary receptions featuring coffee, freshly baked treats, and a seasonal fruit selection, held at First Lutheran Church & School in Torrance, California. * “Second Sundays at Two” — free monthly Sunday-afternoon chamber music concerts in Rolling Hills Estates, California. * Outreach concerts for youth, including those in underserved areas. The concerts are presented in partnership with three nonprofits: 1) First Lutheran School in Torrance, 2) The Santa Cecilia Arts & Learning Center, and 3) Chamber Music | Orange County. * Annual well-paid concert opportunities for up-and-coming performing artists: 1) winners of the Peninsula Symphony’s Concerto Competition and 2) top ensembles from the USC Thornton School of Music and The Colburn School. * Hosting the award-winning, free Clickable Chamber Music Newsletter, founded in 1999 and delivered every two weeks via Mailchimp, Substack, and Facebook to about 4,000 subscribers. It focuses on livestreamed chamber music and recitals, both local and worldwide. Classical Crossroads is committed to diversity, equity, inclusion, and accessibility, with a focus on the constituency explicitly mentioned in the previous White House’s Executive Orders: “Support the independence and lifelong inclusion of people with disabilities.” For those unable to attend concerts in person due to physical or mental challenges, illness, or advanced age, Classical Crossroads livestreams its concerts. The concerts are held in the afternoon to provide access for the older segment of the audience who do not drive at night. Classical Crossroads is run entirely by the volunteer efforts of its sixteen board members. There are no paid staff; the key to ensuring that more than 80% of the money it raises goes to the performing artists. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,389.00 | Poetic Justice | PO Box 3997 , San Diego, CA 92163 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 881-7334 | 53 | San Diego 78th | San Diego 39th | With support from CAC, Poetic Justice Incorporated will use Impact funds to support the Children's Literature Project at the California Institution for Women, the first program in any California prison in which incarcerated parents write, illustrate, and professionally publish original children's books about family separation, love, and connection. Impact funds will support the teaching artists who are responsible for delivering four annual workshop cycles and guiding approximately 15 incarcerated Impact Artists through a three-stage "restorying" process: studying children's literature, developing original manuscripts and illustrations, and producing professionally published picture books. Grant funds will also support project costs that make it possible for Poetic Justice to design and publish CLP member picture books and the annual parent-child interactive journal. The CLP is a bridge between incarcerated parents and their children and Impact funding provides the foundation. | Poetic Justice offers poetry classes and workshops in the following California carceral settings: - CIW: 2 RAC classes/wk for a 1-year cohort, Distance Learning 1-year cohort, and ongoing annual projects - The Children's Literature Project and Voices on the Inside - CCWF: Distance Learning and Voices on the Inside - Reentry Journal Project (former participants on parole) - Las Colinas (SD Jail): 3 classes/wk (mainline, high security, and psychiatric units) / 7 sessions per year - SD Youth Transitional Center: 1 weekly class / 7 sessions per year - East Mesa Rehabilitation Program - English and Spanish language week-long workshops twice a year Programs Launching in 2026 - CDCR Puerta La Cruz Conservation Camp - Federal Pre-Trial Holding Facility Other PJ Work in California - UCSD 8th College - Transitional Programming Works (TPW) - Poet Laureateship A typical weekly class provides gender-diverse and sensitive access by incorporating mindful breathing, trauma-responsive programming, community support, creative writing, and therapeutic visual arts. For example, participants might explore aspects of anxiety, worthlessness, shame, etc. through poetry’s grapho-motor process within a trusted community engaged in evidence-based healing because putting language to the unspeakable supports healing from root causes of trauma and PTSD, and provides pathways forward. Whereas abuse, depression, and addiction damage language centers, poetry reactivates them. In fact research indicates that poetry (rhythm, metaphor, rhyme) activates the right hemisphere. The left brain is responsible for acquisition and expression, but the right brain’s ability to integrate unrelated concepts into comprehensible metaphor with repetition and syncopation can access language pathways damaged by trauma. Research, including JW Pennebaker’s work, shows “writing about upsetting events improves physical and mental health,” but only by creating safe communities for interoception and embodied agency. The traumatized brain doesn’t remember in logical sequences; trauma memory returns in sensory experiences rooted in the limbic system rather than language centers - this is why poetry is consequential for healing. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Foglifter Press | 1200 CLAY ST APT 4 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94108-1428 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 710-6537 | California's 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, FOGLIFTER PRESS will produce the 2026-27 Start A Riot! Chapbook Prize for San Francisco Bay Area 2SLGBTQIA+ BIPOC (QTBIPOC) literary artists, including a $3,000 prize, publication, promotion, and a free, accessible public launch reading. Designed in response to the displacement and erasure of QTBIPOC+ writers in the Bay Area, this artist-led program uplifts historically excluded voices, supports community connection, and advances equity in the literary arts. CAC funds will support artist compensations, chapbook publication, ASL interpretation, venue and event production, and promotion. | Foglifter operates four core programs: 1) Annually publishes two issues of our Foglifter literary journal featuring the original work of 60–80 2SLGBTQIA+ literary artists who receive honorariums for publication; 2) Annually publishes one Start a Riot! chapbook with prize winning authors receiving honorariums/royalties); 3) Annually produces at least four free literary events each featuring at last six 2SLGBTQIA+ writers who receive honorariums; 4) Invests in the professional development of 2SLGBTQIA+ literary artists through our programming, workshops, social media outreach and guest editorships featuring paid honorariums. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Heartizens | 444 MOORE LN , HEALDSBURG, CA 95448-4815 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (369) 213-5872 | With support from the California Arts Council, Heartizens will launch Healing Strings — an arts-integrated social-emotional learning program serving 50 at-risk youth ages 10–18 in Northern Sonoma County across two cohorts. Led by Jorge Flores, a Healdsburg native with a proven track record delivering guitar instruction and healing circles for at-risk youth, this combines weekly guitar lessons with facilitated healing to build musical skill alongside resilience, self-expression, and connection. Each cohort serves 25 youth referred by schools and trusted community partners, prioritizing low-income, BIPOC, and underserved students. Grant funds cover instructor fees, guitars gifted to each participant, and meals at every session — ensuring no barrier to participation. This program directly advances CAC goal of creative youth development in community-based settings and responds to the deepening mental health crisis among Sonoma County's most vulnerable young people. | Heartizens is a community arts organization based in Healdsburg, California, providing inclusive, hands-on programming in the arts, creativity, and mental wellness for youth, teens, and adults across Sonoma County. We believe that creativity is a fundamental human need — one that builds resilience, fosters self-expression, and strengthens the connections between people and communities. Our core programming spans five areas: Performing Arts — including afterschool theater in partnership with Redwood Theater Company, hip hop street dance led by award-winning dancer Ben Donner, and Brazilian-inspired percussion and dance through Bloco Sol. Visual & Literary Arts — including painting studio, ceramics for youth and adults in partnership with Sonoma Arts School, and community poetry and storytelling through our Artsburgh Art/Word series. Cultural & Practical Arts — including sewing classes, upcycling workshops (Thrift to Thread), and large-scale community art through our Street Puppet Brigade and Healdsburg Scarecrow Festival. STEM & Maker Programs — including our competitive Healdsburg Robotics Team and summer robotics intensive for middle and high school students. Arts-Integrated Mental Wellness — including Healing Strings, our flagship program in partnership with Corazón Healdsburg's From Ashes We Rise, which combines guitar instruction with facilitated healing circles for at-risk youth ages 10–18. Heartizens serves participants across the full arc of the year through classes, multi-week series, summer camps, community events, and one-time workshops — many offered at no cost to participants. We actively remove financial barriers, provide meals where needed, and partner with schools, counselors, and community organizations to reach Sonoma County's most underserved youth and families. Our studio space also serves as a welcoming community hub, hosting partner organizations whose work aligns with our mission of creativity, connection, and belonging for all. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $6,000.00 | KOL SEPHARDIC CHOIR ROSE INC | 7095 HOLLYWOOD BLVD 2015 , HOLLYWOOD, CA 90028-8903 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (888) 767-3572 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kol Sephardic Choir (KSC) will commission three new choral arrangements of historic Ladino songs and make them freely available through our website, which serves as an online library, which will expand access to this endangered cultural tradition. KSC will also present at least one concert, reaching 200+ community members, featuring collaborations with flamenco artists that celebrate the shared roots of Hispanic and Jewish heritage. Dedicated to preserving Ladino, the language of Sephardic Jews expelled from Spain during the Inquisition, KSC brings songs once passed down orally and in secret to new audiences. Recognized by the Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture and the City of West Hollywood, KSC plays a vital role in safeguarding and revitalizing this unique artistic legacy for future generations. | The Kol Sephardic Choir (ROSE) is a diverse and multicultural musical ensemble that performs concerts for the community throughout the year that highlight the fascinating intersection of Latino and Jewish culture. Kol Sephardic Choir also preserves this musical tradition by publishing tradition melodies that have traditionally been passed down orally, ensuring that there is a library of Ladino music available for the community and for future generations. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Geoffrey's Inner Circle | 410 14th St , Oakland, CA 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 839-4644 | 13th Congressional District of California | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Geoffrey's Inner Circle will pursue our ongoing programming and operations as a small arts and cultural organization and further our mission as a multidisciplinary arts venue and Black cultural center to uplift and promote Black culture and diverse Black art forms in Oakland through accessible educational and performance initiatives, engaging youth, seniors, and low-income individuals. | Geoffrey's Inner Circle is a multidisciplinary arts venue and Black cultural center, operating as a hub of Black life in Oakland since the late 1970s and in its current downtown location since 1993. Geoffrey’s has for over 40 years consistently produced arts & culture programming including music and comedy shows, jam sessions, festivals, community events, vocal and instrumental masterclasses with resident and visiting artists, an annual 10-week youth arts intensive, free summer camp programs for youth, livestreams and lecture/performances for youth, and political events. Geoffrey's centers Black musical forms including jazz, blues, gospel, hip-hop, R&B; Black spoken word and rap traditions; and Black traditions of dance including lindy hop, swing, turf, hip-hop, and West African dance; and features programming celebrating Black History Month, Black Music Month, and Kwanzaa. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Songwriter Sanctuary San Diego | 3528 37TH ST , SAN DIEGO, CA 92105-2405 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 813-8245 | With support from the California Arts Council, Songwriter Sanctuary San Diego will expand access to live music through a multi-layered initiative that centers disability inclusion. Funding will provide fully supported ASL interpretation across the 2027 concert season, ensuring consistent, proactive access and inclusion rather than accommodation by request. The project also includes targeted outreach to Deaf and Hard of Hearing communities, and two accessibility-focused workshops for participating artists to learn and champion best practices wherever their journeys take them. In parallel we will research, develop, and pilot an accessible livestream ticketing and/or public broadcast model to extend access beyond our physical space. Together, these efforts move beyond compliance to embed accessibility into the artistic experience, creating a pathway for small, community-based venues seeking to expand equitable participation in the arts. | -Original local music series -Artist resources -Community outreach and education | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $14,960.00 | SMILE-ING BOYS INC | 1027 WILSHIRE BLVD APT 813 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90017-3125 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 303-0506 | With support from the California Arts Council, S.M.I.L.E.-ING Boys Inc will sustain and strengthen its semester-based arts and wellbeing program for underserved boys across South Los Angeles and LA County experiencing school and community disengagement. Rooted in photography, poetry, storytelling, and dialogue, the program gives boys a structured space to explore identity, belonging, emotional literacy, and healthy expressions of masculinity. Through weekly cohorts led by teaching artists and trained facilitators, participants build confidence, creative voice, peer connection, leadership, and tools for navigating conflict and self-expression. Each cohort culminates in a youth-led public showcase or exhibition, open to the broader community, that activates art in public spaces and affirms boys as artists, thinkers, and community leaders. CAC support will strengthen core capacity, deepen school and community partnerships, and expand access to transformative creative experiences. | S.M.I.L.E-ing Boys Inc. delivers creative, research-informed arts programming that supports the wellbeing, identity development, and social engagement of young people, particularly Black boys and girls aged 13–19. Our core programmes include 16-week, school-based creative arts workshop series integrating photography, poetry, and film with a happiness research framework. Participants explore themes such as identity, belonging, mental health, and gender while developing emotional literacy, self-expression, and critical thinking skills. A key component of the programme is portraiture and visual storytelling. Participants are provided with cameras to document their lived experiences, producing original work that challenges dominant narratives and stereotypes. The organisation produces public exhibitions and humanities-centred programming, including panel discussions, roundtables, artist talks, and wellness events, creating space for community dialogue and elevating youth voice. We also deliver educator engagement and professional development to support more inclusive, restorative school environments. Across all activities, S.M.I.L.E-ing programmes centre arts and humanities as tools for reflection, storytelling, and cultural dialogue. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | pateldanceworks | 5720 Dover Street , Oakland, CA 94609 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (407) 276-0686 | 12th Congressional district of California | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, pateldanceworks (pdw) will use CAC grant funds to cover the costs of our upcoming staged performance of move to the moon, with a particular focus on rehearsal hours for collaborators during the December 2026-September 2027 window. This funding will help pdw continue our upward trajectory as an emerging Bay Area performance organization with committed payroll for our creative collaborators as we begin work on the next artistic project. | pateldanceworks presents innovative and immersive performance centering practices of decolonizing the body through: public performances, teaching in the community, writing for publications such as InDance, the San Francisco Chronicle, and Life as a Modern Dancer, collaborating with Dancing Around Race to interrogate racial equity in the dance ecosystem, and holding open creative processes to all through open rehearsals and workshops. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Rogue Artists Ensemble | 4211 Laurel Canyon Blvd apt 102 , Los Angeles, CA 91604-4706 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 259-3738 | District 29 | District 43 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, ROGUE ARTISTS ENSEMBLE will provide fair wages for its part-time staff, with special emphasis on sustaining the company’s Managing Director and newly appointed Artistic Director. Staff support will underwrite the fortifying the company’s updated administrative structure as well as its new play development events and at least one world premiere production over the next year. | Rogue creates original works of theater incorporating mask, puppetry and modern technology. We believe in collaboration as an approach for creating work and frequently partner and work closely with guest artists, diverse communities and other arts organizations to realize projects. We have a strong commitment to community outreach and educational programs including school workshops and classes for adults, many of which are provided for free. Our all-ages shows have toured throughout California to small community events and schools, in addition to larger venues including The Geffen Playhouse, The Pasadena Playhouse, Segerstrom Performing Arts Center, Rio Hondo College, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and the National Puppetry Festival in Minneapolis. Rogue has received accolades from critics in LA and a UNIMA Citation of Excellence, the highest honor within the puppetry community. We have also received Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle and LA Stage Alliance Awards. We believe that storytelling is a powerful platform for social inclusion and cultural exchange. All Rogue projects are built in collaboration and conversation with our audiences across the greater community of L.A. These interactions inspire us to create responsively, with inclusion at the core of our work. We strive to include a multitude of voices and perspectives in the planning and implementation of each project's development, as well as through the company’s administrative operations. Theater is a living art form that requires inherent intellectual and emotional exchange between audience and performers, and our values are put into practice through listening, responding, and refining. The art we create emerges in dialogue with audience feedback. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Olive Branch Theatricals | 25505 VIA DESCA , VALENCIA, CA 91355-2825 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 714-9869 | California'Congressional District 27 | State Assembly District 40 | State Senate District 23 | With support from the California Arts Council, Olive Branch Theatricals Inc. will strengthen its ongoing operations and capacity to serve the community year-round. General Operating Support funds will be used to produce high-quality live theatrical productions, including securing performance rights and purchasing necessary props and scenic materials. Funds will also support rent payments for OBT’s rehearsal space, scene shop, costume storage at the Valencia Town Center, and The Olive Branch community performance venue. This support ensures that local artists continue to have access to an affordable, professional live performance space for creation, collaboration, and presentation. CAC funding will further advance OBT’s mission of providing equitable, accessible, and inclusive arts experiences for artists, audiences, and community members throughout the Santa Clarita Valley and surrounding areas. | Olive Branch Theatricals is a California‑based performing arts organization committed to advancing equity, access, and community connection through artist‑centered theatrical programming. Guided by the belief that the arts are a public good, the organization prioritizes historically underserved artists and audiences, including BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, low‑income, and emerging creative communities. The core of Olive Branch Theatricals’ work is its inclusive performance and engagement programs, which create meaningful opportunities for artists to produce work and for audiences to experience theater that reflects diverse perspectives and lived experiences. Through the development and presentation of plays, staged readings, workshops, and new works, the organization supports artistic experimentation, cultural expression, and professional growth. All programming emphasizes fair artist compensation, collaborative creative processes, and audience accessibility. Community engagement is integrated across programs through post‑performance discussions, participatory events, and partnerships with local organizations. These activities use theater as a tool for dialogue, empathy‑building, and civic participation, encouraging connection across cultures, generations, and communities. Educational offerings—including workshops and skill‑building experiences—are designed for learners at all stages, with a focus on confidence, creative voice, and relationship‑building in welcoming and affirming environments. In support of this programmatic work, Olive Branch Theatricals also stewards The Olive Branch, a shared performance space that enables the organization’s activities and is made available to other companies and independent artists. This stewardship strengthens the broader arts ecosystem by reducing barriers to production, but serves the larger goal of expanding access to impactful programming. Support from the California Arts Council for operating expenses is essential to sustaining core programs, administrative capacity, and artist compensation. This investment allows Olive Branch Theatricals to advance CAC goals by delivering equitable, community‑centered arts programming that enriches California’s diverse cultural landscape. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | LA Swing Dance Posse | 609 CALIFORNIA AVE APT 211 , VENICE, CA 90291-3458 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 367-7008 | 36th District | District 61 | District 24 | With support from California Arts Council, LASDP Foundation Inc will preserve, promote, perform and teach African-American vernacular jazz dances. We will offer dance classes to underserved communities for little or no cost. By teaching the backgrounds of erased dancers, our students become future culture bearers. We will produce one show for a large audience in underserved community showcasing historical vernacular jazz and swing dance forms such as Lindy Hop. Additionally, we will perform at community events. Funding gives talent support needed to do their artistic work. We need studio time to develop new routines/choreography. We need to rent facilities, equipment, and personnel to teach classes and perform (e.g., audio/lighting equipment and technicians, dance floor). Funding is needed for teachers, choreographers, dancers, videographers and archivists to capture and preserve this traditional art form for future generations. | Programs and services of Los Angeles Swing Dance Posse Foundation (Posse) consist of performances, classes and workshops. Posse's artistic director, Chester A. Whitmore, teaches the original swing dance moves and their roots in African-American jazz music and dance culture. Mr. Whitmore was a student of and collaborator with various swing dance originators, many of whom are not acknowledged today. Note that “vernacular jazz dance” is a technical term used to describe dancing to jazz music (originating in African-American communities) where people learned socially from each other. As jazz music evolved, the dancing also changed, from Charleston (ragtime) to Lindy Hop (swing big bands). “Swing dance” is the colloquial umbrella term that describes different dancing to jazz music such as Charleston, Shag, Lindy Hop, etc. In this grant application “swing dance” and “vernacular jazz dance” are used interchangeably. Since 2018, Posse shares the history and joy of swing dance by performing in over 75 events at a variety of sites, adapting performances to each setting and audience - whether the location is a senior citizen center, an elementary school, an open air market or a historical site such as Colonel Allensworth State Historic Park. Posse has offered swing dance classes in Leimert Park and Crenshaw district, locations in the two lowest quartiles of California Healthy Places Index. We offer classes in Mid-City Los Angeles. Posse plans to expand our classes / workshops to systemically underserved communities in Watts and Pasadena where we hope to subsidize participants. Today, many African-Americans do not know that many jazz dance steps originated in Africa and Lindy Hop was created in Harlem. Our vision includes developing a youth dance program; dance improves academic performance, self-esteem and social skills. As we expand we hope to spread appreciation and enthusiasm for swing dance to a wider audience. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | SAN DIEGO WOMENS CHORUS | PO Box 632794 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92163 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 291-3366 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Diego Women's Chorus will help finance the production of three major concerts, two cabaret-style performances, as well as numerous community events in support of other organizations in the LGBTQIA space who also celebrate equality and diversity. The first concert in the fall of 2026 will be two performances of a choral work celebrating the life of Pauli Murray, a civil rights activist, lawyer, poet and ordained priest, who likely would have identified as nonbinary in current times. The funds will also support SDWC's robust community outreach program which allows us to participate in multiple free events in local cities during Pride season. | The San Diego Women's Chorus (SDWC) is a lesbian-identified, feminist sisterhood of musicians that welcomes members from the vastly diverse LGBTQIA+ and straight-ally communities. We are a non-profit community chorus that strives to entertain and inspire audiences with music that speaks to issues such as human rights, inclusion, cultural diversity, love, world peace, religious freedom and environmental harmony. Our organization started in 1987 with a handful of lesbian-identified women singing around a piano in our founder's living room. We have grown considerably over the years, and now have 140 active singers who share and support our mission. In addition to our concerts and cabarets, SDWC supports other local organizations by providing meaningful music and song at their events. Our partners include San Diego Pride, the San Diego LGBTQ Center, and GALA Choruses. We also perform at Light Up the Cathedral, an interfaith event that kicks off San Diego's Pride Weekend, as well as the Pride annual event at University of California, San Diego. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Act Out Theatre Company | 3710 N WESTON PL , LONG BEACH, CA 90807-3314 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 920-5069 | 44th Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 69 | State Senate District 33 | With support from the CAC, Act Out Theatre Company will sustain and expand its tuition-free performing arts and youth development programs serving youth and families in Long Beach. Funding will support core expenses, facility and production costs, program supplies, and essential administrative infrastructure. Act Out will produce four annual mainstage productions, provide year-round arts education workshops, and operate its youth leadership program. These programs serve over 400 participants annually, primarily youth from low-to-moderate income communities, with expanded access through partnerships with the Long Beach Unified School District and emerging collaboration with Long Beach City College. CAC funding will ensure programs remain tuition-free, removing financial barriers while supporting social-emotional development, creative expression, and college and career readiness. General Operating Support will strengthen organizational capacity to meet increasing community demand and deepen impact across Long Beach. | Act Out Theatre Company provides tuition-free, high-quality performing arts education and youth development programming designed to remove barriers to access while fostering creativity, confidence, and community connection. Our programs create a safe, inclusive environment where participants build collaboration skills, strengthen academic engagement, and develop lifelong social and leadership abilities. We deliver our mission through three core program areas: 1. Mainstage Productions We produce four fully staged theatrical productions annually: a Spring musical, Summer play, Fall play for elementary-aged youth (grades 2–5), and a Fall musical. These productions offer participants hands-on, pre-professional training in acting, music, and technical theater while working collaboratively toward a shared goal. Each production culminates in multi-day public performances, providing participants with meaningful opportunities for artistic expression and community engagement. All productions are tuition-free and open to youth and adults, with a primary focus on serving students in grades 2–12. 2. Arts Education Workshops We offer year-round, arts-based workshops through after-school and summer programming for youth ages 7–17. These multidisciplinary workshops include acting, music, movement, etc. and are designed to build foundational artistic skills while supporting social-emotional learning, teamwork, and self-confidence. Recent expansion of school-based partnerships has significantly increased access to these programs for underserved youth. 3. Youth Leadership Development (Jr. Board of Directors) Our Jr. Board of Directors is a structured leadership development program for high school students. Participants complete over 100 hours of community service annually while gaining hands-on experience in leadership, program support, and organizational operations. The program emphasizes both practical career skills and essential soft skills such as communication, responsibility, and teamwork, helping students strengthen college and career readiness while serving as role models within the organization. Through these programs, Act Out Theatre Company equips young people with the creative, social, and professional skills needed to succeed in school, careers, and their communities. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SMP RISE 501(c)(3) | 21 MILLER ALY , PASADENA, CA 91103-3643 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 281-9048 | With support from the California Arts Council, SMP Rise will deliver a 22-week Learn and Earn workforce development cohort for underserved and system-impacted adults in Los Angeles, culminating in the S.M.P. Rise Cohort Short Film Production. Now in its third year, SMP Rise has a proven model and is poised to scale, serving more participants including foster-impacted youth through a growing partnership with Kids in the Spotlight. CAC funds will support apprentice wages, mentor stipends, production costs, and program materials. Participants, predominantly people of color, low-income individuals, and formerly incarcerated persons, will receive life skills training including financial responsibility and mental health wellness, hands-on production instruction across all film departments, and paid on-set experience earning verified screen credits. High-performing apprentices will be connected to union permit pathways, building sustainable entertainment industry careers. | Life Skills and Industry Jobs Preparation - Five Stages of Productions- Behind the Scenes (BTS) training - Podcast Producing, Hosting and audio editing- Post-Production Assistant Training - Workshops: Physical Production Skills ( Camera, Grip, Electric, Production Office, Costume, Hair/Makeup, Sound and AI tools) | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | KALADHAARA ARTS ACADEMY | 4831 White Pine Dr , Folsom, CA 95630-6022 | Sacramento | Capital | (405) 334-6861 | 7th Congressional district of California. | District 8 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, KALADHAARA ARTS ACADEMY will create/present of two multidisciplinary Bharatanatyam productions - Elemental Continuum, Meera. Through multilingual storytelling, music and dance, these works explore themes of nature, philosophical identity and cultural continuity through Indian classical dance. Funds will support artist and instructor stipends, multidisciplinary collaborators, musicians, technical personnel, research consultants in poetry, musicology, architecture, and production expenses including lighting, costumes, props, and venue costs. The project prioritizes youth engagement and equitable access and funds will support free or subsidized workshops, lecture-demonstrations, and performances for students and underserved communities. In partnership with schools and community organizations, youth ages 0–25 will participate as learners and performers, building creative skills, cultural literacy, and self-expression. CAC support will enable accessible, culturally responsive arts experiences that foster social-emotional development and expand youth participation in arts. | The organization provides year-round training in Bharatanatyam dance, Carnatic music, and devotional Bhajans through a standards-based curriculum that includes level placement, structured syllabi, and a biannual assessment cycle. Students receive ongoing individualized feedback, ensuring that instruction is responsive to different learning needs and that all participants—regardless of experience level—have clear pathways for artistic growth. One-on-one training on a need-be basis is provided to address the student’s weak areas. Additionally, Yoga, meditations are included as mandatory topics to sharpen the student’s capabilities at a holistic level. Kaladhaara invites esteemed performing artists of various classical art forms from India and around the world, and hosts frequent performances, lectures, demonstrations and workshops. Our values: 1. Personalized dance instruction customized based on age and needs of the student 2. Performances for local organizations for fundraisers and charities 3. Yearly workshops with esteemed artists from India 4. Yearly Adavuthon to revisit basics from time to time. 5. Original thematic productions, dance ensembles and recitals performed by students 6. One-on-one preparation for Salangai pooja and Arangetram |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | CHORAL ARTS INITIATIVE | 2160 Barranca Parkway #1262 , IRVINE, CA 92606 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 581-0700 | California's 47th congressional district | District 73 | District 37 | With support from the California Arts Council, Choral Arts Initiative will sustain and expand its year-round operations that remove barriers to participation in new choral music and advance equitable career pathways for living composers and professional singers. Funds will support core operational expenses, including artist compensation, rehearsal and performance costs, and administrative infrastructure that enables accessible, high-quality programming. CAI commissions and performs new works, provides paid professional opportunities for artists, and operates the PREMIERE|Project Festival, a national incubator addressing the gap between training and sustainable artistic careers. Through these integrated activities, CAI serves diverse artists and audiences locally and nationally, increasing access to participation, elevating underrepresented creative voices, and strengthening California’s arts workforce and cultural ecosystem. | Collaboration with Composers & Community: Working with community stakeholders such as K-12 school districts, churches, community centers, and other arts organizations to generate opportunities for young people to create using music as a catalyst. With a focus on Orange County community, we have still welcomed schools from as far north as Seattle, WA and as far east as Orlando, FL. Creating Opportunities: We know that the first barrier for recent college graduate students in music/composition is initial opportunity. We spend extensive time and resources discovering and identifying these individuals to provide opportunity through workshops, professional development, commissions, or premieres. Live Performances: This is where our audience can see and hear our Mission come to life--bringing world-class performances of new music created by a diverse spectrum of living composers who are craving opportunity. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | JAZZLINE INSTITUTE | 5924 ALLEN AVE , SAN JOSE, CA 95123-2620 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (415) 860-9866 | 19th Congressional District | District 28 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, JaZzLine INSTITUTE will pursue our ongoing programming and operations as a small arts and cultural organization and further our mission to preserve, celebrate, and educate the historical and cultural significance of music out of the African-American diaspora, presenting performance and educational programming that engages youth, seniors, and low-income individuals. | JaZzLine INSTITUTE is dedicated to the preservation, celebration, and education of the historical and cultural significance of music out of the African-American diaspora through performance and educational programs. We produce masterclasses and workshops with visiting artists, educational programming in public schools, music scholarship fundraisers for local youth, memorial programs for departed local musicians, radio programming including live in-studio concert broadcasts, jam sessions for youth, educational events in local juvenile detention centers, and concert programming celebrating Black History and centering women in music. We recognize musical pioneers in our community, both living and departed, through our BAJABA awards. JaZzLine INSTITUTE celebrates diverse forms of music from the African-American diaspora including Negro spirituals, jazz, blues, R&B, soul, gospel, and hip-hop. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Nopal | 125 E PINE STO , STOCKTON, CA 95204-0000 | San Joaquin | Central Valley | (916) 718-0205 | With support from the California Arts Council, NOPAL STOCKTON will bring JOTA, a solo performance by Katherine Bahena-Benitez, back to Stockton as a community-centered arts experience. Katherine is a queer Mexican Indigenous artist born and raised in Stockton. JOTA follows a young queer Mexican Indigenous woman reflecting on identity, family, migration, and queerness as she prepares to leave home. CAC grant funds would support two free performances of JOTA in Stockton-one during LGBTQ+ History Month at the University of the Pacific and a spring performance at San Joaquin Delta College. Funding would also support artist-led workshops with local youth, stage crew, production costs, artist fees, outreach, and accessibility efforts. This project strengthens Stockton’s arts ecosystem by investing in a homegrown artist and providing performances that reflect queer, immigrant, and working-class communities in the Central Valley. | Our work centers four interconnected areas: Cultural Programming & Storytelling Through programs like Telling is Political, Noches de Cultura, public storytelling events, and community showcases, we create spaces for youth and community members to share personal and collective stories, honor local histories, and strengthen cultural identity. We use testimonios, oral histories, and artistic expression as tools for healing, visibility, and community connection. Arts-Based Youth Leadership Development Through Liberation School, youth internships, and creative workshops, young people engage in storytelling, visual art, public dialogue, and cultural production while developing leadership skills rooted in community responsibility and social awareness. Community Wellness & Healing Practices We partner with local artists, healers, herbalists, and cultural practitioners to offer workshops, retreats, and wellness-centered gatherings that reconnect people to ancestral practices, creative expression, and collective care. Community Sustainability & Cultural Space Building Through grassroots organizing, mutual support, and social enterprise efforts like Raíz Café y Cultura, we invest in sustainable cultural spaces where community members can gather, create, and build long-term local power. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $10,000.00 | Art Time Presents | 2970 4th Ave , Los Angeles, CA 90018 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 986-9987 | California's 28th congressional district | District 43 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Art Time Presents will sustain and strengthen our decade long effort of championing gender expansive Trans artists. This critical assistance would allow us to continue to address the marginalization of Trans artists by providing consistent community engagement, accessible collective care, and tailored art programming by and for the gender expansive Trans and non-binary community. Grant funds will be used for essential operational costs such as renting accessible venues for our in-person workshops and performances, hiring additional staff for our growing administrative needs, increasing data tracking, bolstering member engagement, supporting the mental health of at-risk members of the art community, and nurturing the creation of new artworks. | Peer Support Groups Our free online peer support groups meet bi-weekly and are moderated by professional facilitators. Discussions range from gender feels, intersectionality for Trans, non-binary and gender expansive BIPOC artists, where to find inspiration, how to survive as a creator under capitalism, developing chosen family, current art challenges, mental health resources, and more. We support each other through project guidance, feedback, accountability, and compassion. It is a thriving group that makes a meaningful impact on the daily lives of member artists. Workshops Through our workshops we foster safe creative social space. By engaging in artistic efforts together, both online and in-person, we combat isolation, encourage imagination, and allow artists to try different mediums. Past workshops have included screen printing, jewelry making, ceramic marbling, string painting, collaging, greeting card making, cooking workshops, tie dye, cross-stitch and zine production. Newsletters & Publications Our monthly newsletter, Substack and Instagram provides a platform to highlight community member art and maintain connection with the greater community. Literary magazines and mini zines allow us to consolidate and disseminate artwork to the public, fueling pride and a sense of belonging. Art Galleries In-person galleries allow us to showcase the work of our members and larger community, highlighting marginalized, disenfranchised and vulnerable artists. Online galleries connect our community throughout California, decreasing barriers for disabled, chronically ill and economically disadvantaged artists who are often excluded and unrepresented in the art world. Live Performances With our live performances, we highlight the artwork of writers and performing artists in our community through staged readings, improvisational dance nights, stand-up comedy shows, and full stage productions. Live performances provide much needed social connection as well as incubating and producing new artworks. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | JAZZLINE INSTITUTE | 5924 ALLEN AVE , SAN JOSE, CA 95123-2620 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (415) 860-9866 | 19th Congressional District | District 28 | District 15 | WIth support from the California Arts Council, JaZzLine INSTITUTE, a small arts organization, will present 'Blues Explosion,' a week-long, intergenerational celebration of the Black cultural tradition of the blues, including four blues concerts featuring a 7-piece ensemble of Black vocalists and instrumentalists, a live radio broadcast, two free blues masterclasses, a free jam session, and an awards program honoring Black musical pioneers and emerging talent in our community. 'Blues Explosion' is collaboratively developed with community members and addresses a community need to uplift the Black cultural tradition of the blues in the Bay Area, create opportunities for accessible intergenerational learning, and center under-resourced Black Bay Area communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification. | JaZzLine INSTITUTE is dedicated to the preservation, celebration, and education of the historical and cultural significance of music out of the African-American diaspora through performance and educational programs. We produce masterclasses and workshops with visiting artists, educational programming in public schools, music scholarship fundraisers for local youth, memorial programs for departed local musicians, radio programming including live in-studio concert broadcasts, jam sessions for youth, educational events in local juvenile detention centers, and concert programming celebrating Black History and centering women in music. We recognize musical pioneers in our community, both living and departed, through our BAJABA awards. JaZzLine INSTITUTE celebrates diverse forms of music from the African-American diaspora including Negro spirituals, jazz, blues, R&B, soul, gospel, and hip-hop. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Non Profit Organization | 8676 GOLD COAST DRIVE , SAN DIEGO, CA 92126 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 337-4961 | San Diego | San Diego | San Diego | This proposal seeks CAC support for Saikat, a multidisciplinary cultural initiative presenting South Asian arts through inclusive, community-centered programming. Funds will support three flagship events: Fall Festival (Oct 17–18, 2026), Spring Festival (Feb 13, 2027), and Summer Cultural Night (July 10, 2027), along with smaller activities. Programming includes classical, folk, fusion, and Bollywood music and dance; performances by renowned Indian artists; and youth showcases in dance, music, and drama. Grant funds will cover artist stipends, rehearsal space, costumes, production, outreach, and documentation. Events will be low-cost and accessible, engaging diverse and underserved audiences while fostering cross-cultural dialogue. With expected attendance of 1,000–1,200 people from across Southern California, the initiative promotes cultural equity, supports emerging artists, and builds sustainable partnerships, creating a replicable model for community-driven arts programming statewide. | AIKAT has demonstrated impact through: Cultural workshops and performances Educational programs (STEM, coding, arts) Environmental and community service initiatives Partnerships with nonprofit organizations These initiatives collectively strengthen community engagement, cultural awareness, and neighborhood vitality. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Activities4all | 534 CEREZE ST , WATSONVILLE, CA 95076-1082 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 750-8405 | 18th Congressional District | 29th | District 17 | With the support of the California Arts Council, Activities4All will keep its music and folklorico programs funded. Funds will be used to cover students lessons, office supplies and staff salaries. | Music Academy: We offer instruction in singing, guitar, violin, trumpet, accordion, and more and perform at community events Folklórico: Our children's Mexican folklorico dance group teaches traditional dance forms, with accompanying outfits and music. Soccer Our spring, summer, and fall leagues offer fun, exercise, and skill development for youth. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Scarab Creative Arts | 729 East Divisadero , Fresno, CA 93721 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 285-2878 | 21st Congressional district of California | State Assembly District #31 | State Senate District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, Scarab Creative Arts will deliver hands-on visual arts workshops for historically underserved communities with limited access to arts programming. California-based teaching artists will lead structured, hands-on sessions with demonstrations and guided practice that support active learning in a range of visual arts media, including ceramics (wheel and hand-building), collage, painting, special effects makeup, and journaling. Programs will be developed in collaboration with community members, shaping themes that reflect local interests and lived experiences. Activities will emphasize skill-building, creative exploration, and self-expression for participants of all ages. To reduce barriers to participation, programming will be offered within neighborhoods through community events and shared public spaces, as well as at our facility. Participants will receive information about studio workshop scholarship opportunities. | Scarab Creative Arts operates through an integrated model that supports artists, engages the public, and advances our mission of expanding access to the arts. Shared Studio Space Our shared studio provides working artists with access to equipment, facilities, and a collaborative environment. Member artists develop their practices in a community setting, with many operating their primary creative businesses from the Scarab studio while contributing to a self-sustaining artistic community. Gallery Exhibitions Our gallery hosts monthly rotating exhibitions featuring diverse artistic voices, including emerging and established artists, community groups, and themed shows. Programming includes exhibitions highlighting regional diversity, outreach exhibitions with local partners, and exhibitions featuring artwork by incarcerated artists. Classes & Workshops We offer arts education for all ages and skill levels, taught by studio members, community artists, and visiting instructors. Instruction spans a wide range of mediums and is designed to reduce barriers to participation through our accessible community setting, inclusive programming, and equitable artist compensation. Located in a community with limited access to arts education, our site increases local accessibility. Instruction emphasizes hands-on skill-building and opportunities for personal and cultural expression through creative practice. Creative Retail Space Our on-site shop provides commission-free sales opportunities for artists, supporting artist income and visibility while fostering direct engagement between artists and the community. In addition, our spaces are regularly used for community activities, including school field trips, private events, and public gatherings that incorporate artistic experiences led by teaching artists. Community Impact Initiatives (as a nonprofit) As a newly designated 501(c)(3), Scarab Creative Arts has expanded programming to further our mission of accessible arts engagement. Current initiatives include: • Supporting scholarships for youth from underserved communities to participate in arts education • Hosting artist gatherings to support mentorship and professional development • Delivering arts programming in partnership with local nonprofit organizations at community events |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | YG2D | 375 Elsie St Lower Unit, San Francisco, CA 94110-5519 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (310) 948-8900 | YG2D will use CAC Impact Projects funds to sustain and expand Songs for Life, a hospice musical companionship program serving terminally ill patients in San Francisco Bay Area, Los Angeles, and East Bay communities. CAC funding supports program management in both regions, plus live bedside musician visits distributed across these areas. Professional musicians provide personalized, culturally responsive musical experiences at the end of life, addressing documented social isolation, emotional distress, and lack of arts access among hospice patients. This project serves an inherently underserved population facing systemic barriers to cultural participation due to terminal illness, mobility limitations, and economic constraints. | "Songs for Life" is a heartfelt program connecting professional musicians with hospice patients to provide musical comfort and companionship. Adding meaning to life’s final chapter, musicians create original music inspired by and in honor of each patient's life. "ALIVE INSIDE" is a transformative program that establishes a symbiotic relationship between local artists and the incarcerated community through music and poetry. Facilitated by YG2D trained personnel, led by local artists, and in collaboration with prison health and wellness programs, YG2D offers this marginalized community the uncommon opportunity to express grief and honor loss through creative mediums in the context of a safe and powerful communal listening space. The shared experiences within these sessions foster large-scale communion as both artists and inmates connect through their vulnerability and sharing of personal experiences of grief, ultimately amplifying the voices of the incarcerated population both within and beyond prison walls. "Weekly Community Grief Release": YG2D facilitates a weekly online gathering space where individuals share and witness grief within a supportive community. The event features music and poetry from local artists and time for communal sharing in a safe virtual space. "You're Going to Die" Podcast: YG2D’s weekly podcast navigates conversations on grief, loss, and mortality through personal stories, insights, and reflections shared by a variety of guests, including activists, authors, musicians, and individuals who have experienced profound loss. "You're Going to Die" Open Mics: Poetry, Prose, and Everything Goes; Mourning Our Mothers/Fathers; All The Feels, and more! YG2D’s beloved open mic events have been the main attraction of YG2D since its inception. Now held live monthly in the Lost Church in San Francisco and virtually every quarter, YG2D continues to provide communal space to explore and embrace mortality through live music and poetry performed by local artists while celebrating the joy of being ALIVE together. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Mariachi Juvenil | 2426 PLAZA EVA , CHULA VISTA, CA 91914-4427 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 507-8218 | Congressional District 52 | 79th Assembly District | Senate District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, MARIACHI JUVENIL DE SAN DIEGO will sustain and expand its year-round, tuition-free mariachi education program serving 75 youth at Logan Memorial Educational Campus. Funds will support core operating costs—teaching artist compensation, mariachi instruments, and program coordination—and will also sustain the organization's year-round planning required for its 21st Annual Mariachi Conference, to be held at the University of San Diego, which draws over 400 registered student mariachis from across California and dozens more from the Southwest and Mexico. Conference instructors are among the most famous mariachi musicians in the world and include former Mariachi Vargas soloists. The organization will also advance its five-year capacity plan to formalize operations, expand governance, and ensure leadership continuity for this vital institution serving San Diego's low-income and immigrant youth. | Mariachi Juvenil de San Diego delivers its mission through two primary program areas: year-round mariachi instruction and its flagship Annual Mariachi Conference. The year-round program provides mariachi instruction and youth development classes at in-school and out-of-school sites across San Diego County, including after-school, weekend, school break, and summer programming. Classes are led by professional instructors and include access to instruments at no cost to participants. The program also connects youth and families to health, education, and college preparation resources through a Health, Education, and Crime Prevention Awareness Fair, featuring partners such as La Maestra Community Health Centers, UC San Diego's PATH Program, the San Diego County District Attorney's Office, and performing arts organizations including La Jolla Music Society and San Diego Opera. The Annual Mariachi Conference — now in its 13th year — is a three-day event held at the University of San Diego that brings together master mariachi musicians from beginning to professional levels. The conference features world-class instruction, three public evening concerts attended by an estimated 1,000 community members per night, and culminating performances by instructors and students. Equitable access is ensured through free parking, discounted and free tuition, loaner instruments, and transportation support. For many youth, the conference represents their first visit to a university campus, making it a powerful bridge to higher education. The conference is a celebrated annual milestone for the entire San Diego mariachi community — a space to learn, perform, and celebrate cultural identity together. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Rich & Successful Film Community | 201 N Toluca St apt 16 , Los Angeles, CA 90026-5672 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (203) 536-1099 | With support from the California Arts Council, Rich & Successful Film Community will strengthen the infrastructure needed to sustain and expand its year-round programming, empowering, celebrating, and connecting emerging filmmakers and diverse audiences across Los Angeles. Through this work, RSFC fosters an inclusive independent filmmaking community while creating tangible pathways for career development and encouraging dialogue, reflection, and shared understanding through storytelling. Over four sold-out festivals—alongside the expansion into auxiliary events and the establishment of its annual FixItInPost Fund—the organization has demonstrated strong demand for accessible, community-driven exhibition, education opportunities, and resources. To date, this work has been supported through significant in-kind contributions and under-resourced staffing, creating a need for a more sustainable operational model. General operating support will fund core needs, including staffing, administrative capacity, and marketing, while supporting festival production and expanded year-round programming. | Rich & Successful Film Community fosters programs that support emerging filmmakers and engage the public in independent film, anchored by its largest offering to date: an annual multi-day film festival in Los Angeles entering it's fifth year. The festival features curated screenings of short and feature films, filmmaker Q&As, panel discussions, workshops, and community events designed to foster dialogue, connection, and cultural exchange. Building on the success of the festival, RSFC is expanding into year-round programming that provides ongoing support, including additional workshops, screenings and panel conversations, focused on creative development and industry access, and additional community events that foster collaboration and sustained engagement. Programs are designed to be accessible, with a combination of free and low-cost public events, and emphasize meaningful engagement and dialogue through film. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Moving Arts | 3191 Casitas Ave , LOS ANGELES, CA 90039 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 472-5646 | California's 30th congressional district | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, ACME Performance Group Inc, DBA Moving Arts, will continue and grow all of our artistic programs: 1. Producing world premiere plays by Los Angeles-based playwrights on our mainstage. 2. Continuing MADLab, our award-winning, free new play development program, now in its 13th season. MADLab has fostered new works by numerous LA playwrights, including Marlowe Wyatt, Sarah Cho, and Matthew Paul Olmos. 3. Expanding our award-winning new program, Moving Arts Presents. This program debuted in 2025, and enables us to partner with other organizations and artists we love, to present their most exciting current work to our audience, and create opportunities for dialogue with our community. All of these programs will provide paid employment for artists, and connection for audiences seeking artistic engagement with their community. | We are a small nonprofit theatre in Los Angeles, focusing on the premiere of new plays by Los Angeles-based playwrights. We produce 2 - 3 mainstage productions per year, oftentimes in non-traditional spaces, such as our critically acclaimed and audience hit, The Car Plays. Our award-winning new play development program, MADLab, is another key component of our programming. In MADLab, playwrights are mentored as they develop their concepts into plays over the course of 9 months. Our readings are presented to the public free of charge. Many plays developed in MADLab have gone on to have world premieres at Moving Arts or other noteworthy theatres throughout the country, including Steppenwolf Theatre in Chicago, and the Fountain Theatre in Los Angeles. In 2025, we added a new program, Moving Arts Presents. This is a curated slate of programming that brings artists we love to perform works that will generate discussion with our community. Recently, we were honored to receive multiple awards for our last season, including Best Play and Best Solo Performance from the LA Drama Critics Circle, and Best Ensemble and Distinguished Artistic Direction for Artistic Director Darin Anthony from STAGERAW. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $75,000.00 | Arts4MC | 24600 Silver Cloud Ct suite 202 , Monterey, CA 93940-6555 | Monterey | Central Coast | (831) 622-9060 | California's 20th congressional district | District 30 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Arts Council for Monterey County will expand accessible, creative opportunities for underserved communities, particularly in Salinas and South Monterey County. Funding will support workshops and classes across visual arts, music, dance, and theater led by local artists, as well as public events and exhibitions. Resources will strengthen First Friday Salinas, activating downtown through inclusive arts experiences that support artists, engage the community, and boost local businesses. Support will also advance development of a Cultural Center and Arts District in Downtown Salinas, creating a hub for arts education, exhibitions, and creative enterprise. Outreach efforts will ensure broad participation, especially among youth and underserved populations. Together, these efforts will foster creativity, community connection, and economic vitality across Monterey County. | There is no organization in our county that connects more artists, students, cultural nonprofits and partners to the arts. Each year we expand our capacity to ensure that everyone benefits from high quality arts programs, including developing strategic partnerships in every supervisorial district in our large and diverse county. Our guiding strategy is to support artists, teaching artists and arts organizations wherever there are substantial gaps – whether by demographics, location or by circumstances, we provide direct services. Today, we strengthen the ability of hundreds of artists, cultural groups and arts organizations to effectively serve our residents, as we present award-winning programs that address our communities’ greatest needs through the arts, serving our residents in English and Spanish. Arts Education - Our Professional Artists in the Schools is a cornerstone program providing professional artists in partner schools, reaching thousands of students. Our Arts4Healing program provides specialized classes for at-risk youth, the homeless, people with disabilities, survivors of trafficking, seniors and veterans, weaving creative mastery with social and emotional learning to develop their truest potential. Capacity Building – We stimulate the creative economy through the development of artists and arts organizations. Since 1985, artists, nonprofits, and cultural groups maximize their reach and deepen impact through our grant funding, training and consultations. Further support includes professional development workshops on grant writing, marketing and advocacy. We also provide affordable art studios to local emerging artists through our ArtWorks program. Community Partnerships – We are often approached to strengthen and connect arts programming to crucial community needs. We have provided services such as a hands-on arts education programs for at-risk youth at Rancho Cielo Youth Center and Sun Street Centers, visual arts and mural beautification projects at the Veterans Transition Center and dance and visual arts programs with senior citizens at Alliance on Aging and CHISPA Senior Housing. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Indigenous Regeneration | 19823 SANTEE LN , VALLEY CENTER, CA 92082-6919 | San Diego | Far South | (360) 720-0827 | California’s 48th Congressional District (CA-48) | California State Assembly District 75 (AD-75) | California State Senate District 40 (SD-40) | Indigenous Regeneration will use California Arts Council General Operating Support funds to sustain and expand year-round Indigenous arts programming serving Kumeyaay and regional tribal communities in San Diego County. Funds will support artist and culture bearer honoraria, staff coordination, materials, and operational infrastructure required to deliver intergenerational arts education across traditional and contemporary forms, including music, storytelling, visual arts, fiber arts, and media. Programming is delivered through ongoing workshops, artist residencies, cultural gatherings, and public presentations that provide consistent access to artistic practice and cultural learning. General operating support will also sustain community outreach, documentation, and access to land-based creative spaces where artistic expression and cultural knowledge are practiced together. This investment ensures continuity, accessibility, and long-term sustainability of Indigenous-led arts programming in underserved and tribal communities. | ndigenous Regeneration advances the continuity of Kumeyaay cultural knowledge through community-rooted artistic practice, intergenerational learning, and land-based education. Our core programs sustain living Indigenous arts traditions by centering culture bearers and teaching artists as leaders in the transmission of knowledge across generations. At the heart of our work is a multi-session cultural arts model grounded in Kumeyaay seasonal cycles and relationships to land. Through hands-on instruction, participants engage in traditional art forms including bird songs (musical arts), basketry, fiber arts, tool-making, regalia and adornment, and traditional medicine preparation. These practices are taught through direct observation, making, and repetition, maintaining standards of artistic excellence passed down within families and community. Programs are delivered at the Richard Bugbee Land Relationship Center and in partnership with community sites, providing consistent access to land for harvesting, material preparation, and creative practice. Land functions as a cultural classroom where artistic expression, ecological knowledge, and community responsibility are inseparable. Indigenous Regeneration also leads Cultural and Digital Storytelling initiatives that extend traditional arts into media and narrative forms. Through video documentation, language-based content, and community storytelling, participants engage in media arts that support cultural continuity and expand access for tribal members, including those living off-reservation. Across all programs, engagement is intergenerational, supporting youth, adults, and elders in shared creative practice. Indigenous Regeneration also supports artists and culture bearers through residencies, stipends, and ongoing opportunities to lead, create, and share work, while public gatherings, demonstrations, and digital platforms extend access to these artistic practices across community and broader audiences. By sustaining artist-led instruction, land-based learning, and community access, Indigenous Regeneration operates as a critical cultural infrastructure organization, ensuring that Kumeyaay artistic traditions remain active, evolving, and accessible for future generations. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | THE AJA PROJECT | 4504 51st Street , San Diego, CA 92115 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 230-5556 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from California Arts Council, The AjA Project will urgently advance our mission of collective empowerment through participatory storytelling, focusing on underrepresented youth, emerging artists, and cultural bearers from refugee and immigrant backgrounds in historically disinvested areas of San Diego. Funding will allow The AjA Project to continue delivering accessible media arts workshops, fellowships, and public exhibitions that center and uplift first-person narratives from these communities through core programs such as Civil Liberties, Back Alley Poetry Club, INTER+Regeneration, and Journey, AjA’s work fosters much-needed civic dialogue to counter rising anti-immigrant rhetoric and policies while developing local youth as engaged artists and community leaders. | The AjA Project has a strong reputation of delivering high-quality, high-impact programs to young people from diverse cultural, ethnic, and socio-economic backgrounds. This includes in-school and after-school programs as well as participatory workshops in collaboration with cross-sector partner organizations. AjA's programs support young people to process experiences, understand their social and political landscapes and use the arts as a tool for creative self expression and social change. This year we have provided programming to newly arrived refugees, teen mothers, youth in detention, young people in military families, and youth across San Diego. The work at AjA remains grounded in the power of photography and visual arts as a tool for all youth, regardless of background, to see themselves as agents of change. AjA remains committed to igniting individual and social change from a grassroots, creative approach. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $10,816.00 | Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern California | 3933 Mission Inn Ave. Ste. 103 , RIVERSIDE, CA 92501 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 682-5307 | 39 | 58 | 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern California will plan and execute “Gathering in Good Relation,” a pop‑up gallery and series of community‑centered healing arts clinics. Funds will directly support exhibition curation and fabrication, accessibility services, and the facilitation of three hands‑on cultural clinics in beading, weaving, and moccasin making led by Indigenous artists and culture bearers. Curated by Native artist Keri-Leigh Henderson, the gallery will feature works by local Indigenous artists from multiple tribal nations, centering cultural care and artist control. The clinics prioritize relational learning, storytelling, and intergenerational knowledge‑sharing to address isolation and cultural disconnection among Native people in Inland Southern California. The act of beading together is healing and is essential to cultural resilience in the face of displacement, isolation, and generational trauma. | The Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern California (CRIISC) utilizes arts and cultural programming to advance lifelong learning, creative civic engagement, and social justice awareness. We serve diverse, intergenerational audiences by presenting free, rotating art and social history exhibitions and by producing and hosting public programs. Our work intentionally connects the arts and humanities with civic participation, helping community members better understand their rights and shared histories while expressing their creativity. Exhibitions are the foundation of CRIISC’s programming model. Each year, we present two major exhibitions that center Inland Southern California‑based artists and culture bearers whose work reflects civil rights struggles and lived experiences. These exhibitions serve as platforms for dialogue, education, and creative expression. For example, “Working Coachella: Images of the Farmworker Community of the Coachella Valley” featured the photography of David Bacon to make visible the labor and dignity of farmworkers in the region. “San Bernardino Photography Now: I’m Grateful Thorns Have Roses,” developed in collaboration with the Garcia Center for the Arts, showcased the work of 23 emerging local photographers. “Out in the IE” highlighted LGBTQ+ artists working across spoken word, zines, installation, muralism, and textile arts. CRIISC has recently expanded our exhibition offerings by hosting pop-up exhibitions in our Altura Credit Union Media Center. These one to two month long exhibitions allow us to center the local artists and creatives who do not have other venues to showcase their work. CRIISC produces year-round public programming including artist talks, panel discussions, hands-on arts workshops, youth photography programs, film screenings, performances, and community celebrations. These programs invite audiences to engage directly with artists, explore creative practice, and reflect collectively on contemporary social issues. By centering the arts, we create welcoming spaces where creativity builds empathy, critical thinking, and community connection in Inland Southern California. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | THE AJA PROJECT | 4504 51st Street , San Diego, CA 92115 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 230-5556 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, The AjA Project will deliver Civil Liberties, a visual and media arts-based creative youth development program that centers and amplifies the voices of youth from San Diego’s refugee and immigrant communities, the majority of whom live in historically underinvested neighborhoods. These youth, whose lives are impacted by current immigration policies and the surge in enforcement, are guided by teaching artists to explore the historical significance of Japanese American incarceration during WW2. They forge connections to their personal stories and the current struggles for civil liberties taking place today. The program culminates in a youth-led public exhibition featuring participants’ first-person narratives and perspectives, where the wider San Diego community is invited to learn, reflect on, and discuss ongoing issues. | The AjA Project has a strong reputation of delivering high-quality, high-impact programs to young people from diverse cultural, ethnic, and socio-economic backgrounds. This includes in-school and after-school programs as well as participatory workshops in collaboration with cross-sector partner organizations. AjA's programs support young people to process experiences, understand their social and political landscapes and use the arts as a tool for creative self expression and social change. This year we have provided programming to newly arrived refugees, teen mothers, youth in detention, young people in military families, and youth across San Diego. The work at AjA remains grounded in the power of photography and visual arts as a tool for all youth, regardless of background, to see themselves as agents of change. AjA remains committed to igniting individual and social change from a grassroots, creative approach. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Poetic Justice | PO Box 3997 , San Diego, CA 92163 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 881-7334 | 53 | San Diego 78th | San Diego 39th | With support from the CA Arts Council, Poetic Justice will use general operations funding to strengthen the administrative infrastructure required to sustain and grow the trauma-informed poetry and art program serving 500+ people annually across six California correctional facilities. CAC funding will provide income to justice-impacted program and teaching artist staff whose lived experiences of incarceration are inseparable from the organization's effectiveness. Funds will allow staff to oversee poetry classes, special projects (including the Children's Literature Project and Voices on the Inside), and new program launches at Puerta La Cruz Conservation Camp, the federal pre-trial facility, and East Mesa Reentry Facility. CAC investment will also support the hiring of a third justice-impacted, trauma-informed program assistant to sustain the organization's participatory and dynamic approach to poetry as a tool for healing and growth. | Poetic Justice offers poetry classes and workshops in the following California carceral settings: - CIW: 2 RAC classes/wk for a 1-year cohort, Distance Learning 1-year cohort, and ongoing annual projects - The Children's Literature Project and Voices on the Inside - CCWF: Distance Learning and Voices on the Inside - Reentry Journal Project (former participants on parole) - Las Colinas (SD Jail): 3 classes/wk (mainline, high security, and psychiatric units) / 7 sessions per year - SD Youth Transitional Center: 1 weekly class / 7 sessions per year - East Mesa Rehabilitation Program - English and Spanish language week-long workshops twice a year Programs Launching in 2026 - CDCR Puerta La Cruz Conservation Camp - Federal Pre-Trial Holding Facility Other PJ Work in California - UCSD 8th College - Transitional Programming Works (TPW) - Poet Laureateship A typical weekly class provides gender-diverse and sensitive access by incorporating mindful breathing, trauma-responsive programming, community support, creative writing, and therapeutic visual arts. For example, participants might explore aspects of anxiety, worthlessness, shame, etc. through poetry’s grapho-motor process within a trusted community engaged in evidence-based healing because putting language to the unspeakable supports healing from root causes of trauma and PTSD, and provides pathways forward. Whereas abuse, depression, and addiction damage language centers, poetry reactivates them. In fact research indicates that poetry (rhythm, metaphor, rhyme) activates the right hemisphere. The left brain is responsible for acquisition and expression, but the right brain’s ability to integrate unrelated concepts into comprehensible metaphor with repetition and syncopation can access language pathways damaged by trauma. Research, including JW Pennebaker’s work, shows “writing about upsetting events improves physical and mental health,” but only by creating safe communities for interoception and embodied agency. The traumatized brain doesn’t remember in logical sequences; trauma memory returns in sensory experiences rooted in the limbic system rather than language centers - this is why poetry is consequential for healing. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | ARTERITANO FOUNDATION | 607 ELMIRA RD PMB 364 , VACAVILLE, CA 95687-4655 | Solano | Capital | (832) 585-4823 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTERITANO FOUNDATION will expand Raices — our Cultural Arts Access Program for Schools — bringing flamenco and Hispanic cultural arts education to youth across Vacaville and the greater Solano county area. Grant funds will support artist fees, curriculum development, materials, and program coordination for multi-week school residencies culminating in live student performances. Rooted in the belief that every young person deserves to see their culture reflected with excellence and pride, Raices directly bridges barriers to cultural access for youth — particularly Latino students — who have limited exposure to their own heritage arts traditions in a city where Hispanic culture is deeply woven into the community's identity but vastly underrepresented in formal arts education. | Our programs span education, performance, cultural preservation, and community gathering. Raices is our school residency program bringing flamenco and Hispanic cultural arts directly into Vacaville classrooms. In our pilot at Markham Elementary, we served 120 students and families through a multi-week residency culminating in a school performance. Raices is expanding to additional schools in 2026, supported by Vacaville Unified School District. The Arteritano Flamenco Training Program offers EFA-accredited flamenco instruction for all ages — from Pre-Flamenco for children as young as five through adult levels — at two studio locations in Vacaville. Students train toward Spain-recognized examinations and feed into the Arteritano Flamenco Company pipeline. Carmen is our annual flagship production — a flamenco ballet adaptation of the opera presented each September-October during Hispanic Heritage Month at the Vacaville Performing Arts Theatre. Now in its third year, Carmen is the cultural anchor of Hispanic Heritage Month in our region. Tertulias are monthly community gatherings where students, families, and neighbors share food, explore a cultural theme, and deepen their connection to Hispanic traditions. Low-barrier, multilingual, and community-generated. Entretejidas is our cultural preservation and exchange program — documenting and transmitting traditional artisan practices from Latin America and Spain, beginning with Peruvian weaving traditions through our Rotary International partnership. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Escondido Arts Partnership | 262 E GRAND AVE , ESCONDIDO, CA 92025-2803 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 480-4101 | 50th District | 75th District | 40th District | With support from the California Arts Council, the Escondido Arts Partnership will provide a community art space with art exhibitions by local artists with free entry, provide the Art Connections free art education workshops for children and adults, maintain the Teens for Art internships program, the ArtStream audio/visual program and Poets I.N.C. programs. Funds would be used for operations such as general office supplies, payroll, monthly rent, and art workshops supplies and instructor stipends. | The Escondido Arts Partnership provides a destination for residents and visitors in downtown Escondido and is home to over 500 local artists who reside throughout San Diego County. We provide a free space where all ages can learn about art and community issues through creative expression and hands-on exploration. Offering free entry to monthly art exhibitions featuring 300 locally created artworks at any given time, EAP hosts free ongoing arts education through Art Connection workshops; provides space for the ARC of San Diego’s art classes, the Teens for Art mentorship program, the ArtStream audio/visual digital studio, the PhotoArts Group, performance art experiences such as the Poet’s I.N.C. spoken word poetry events, and an art library for study. We host various foundations and museums in a “Mini Museum” space where people can experience artworks from archives and museum collections such as the Niki Charitable Art Foundation, Mingei International Museum, World Beat Center and more. We operate a California State Certified Farmers' Market featuring regional farms and artisans that weekly draws 400+ shoppers. Monthly themed art exhibitions like Art & Science, Cali Stillo, Emerging Artist High School Show, “Local Color” for Veterans’ Arts, Book and Fiber Arts, Recycled Art and more, challenge artists from the region to create new work to be viewed. Funded programs support an environment of creativity and engagement, and in this way, we secure artistic excellence now and for our future. We intend to inspire our communities, nurture appreciation of the importance of the arts and increase visitation by offering culturally relevant themes for the annual exhibition calendar. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirits (BAAITS) | 415 Valencia St , San Francisco, CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (702) 481-2536 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With CAC’s support, Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirits (BAAITS) will produce a year-round slate of Two-Spirit cultural programming including the 16th Annual BAAITS Two-Spirit Powwow - an annual event bringing together more than 4,000 community members at the Fort Mason Pavilion in SF - the preceding Powwow week of events featuring six events reaching more than 500 community members, and over 24 ongoing intergenerational arts and culture workshops and activities held at BAAITS’ community center and other venues in the SF Bay Area, averaging 25-100 attendees per activity. These cultural programs work to restore and recover the roles of Two-Spirit people within communities by creating pathways for spiritual, cultural, and artistic expression. Funding from CAC will be used to support personnel and operational costs for these programs. | BAAITS largest program is our annual Two-Spirit Powwow. At this Powwow all Two-Spirit identified Native American, American Indian, and T-SLGBTQI people and their allies get a chance to come together to celebrate culture, build community, and express themselves. The BAAITS Powwow was the world’s first public Two-Spirit Powwow and we are now the world’s largest. The BAAITs Two Spirit Powwow is modeled after a traditional Oklahoma style Powwow and is an intertribal event that also invites non-Native guests to experience Native cultures. On the day of and the months leading up to the event, we have contact with thousands of people who identify as Two-Spirit, American Indian, Indigenous and allies. We reach them, spread our mission, and gather people from all over the US and Canada to celebrate and heal. Powwow participants feel “ohno cochico”, community love or the way that one feels when they are amongst their tribe. It is a place where we can truly restore and reclaim the role of Two-Spirit people. We do this through cultural expression, getting back in touch with our culture, and ceremony. Our oldest program, the BAAITS Drum is an all-gender big drum group that meets once a month. BAAITS Drum participates in drumming and community events throughout the year, and drums at our annual Powwow. BAAITS organizes social gatherings, Two Spirit Artist & Cultural Bearer’s workshops and TS Talking Circles throughout the year and marches in the annual San Francisco Pride Parade. In addition to the social gatherings, BAAITS organizes and participates in panels, cultural and artistic performances, and offers classes and workshops leading up to our annual Powwow, such as bead working, regalia making, protocol, and cultural dances for American Indian and non-Two-Spirit allies. BAAITS also participates in national and international meetings with other Two-Spirit societies and Native American organizations. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | NAKA Dance Theater | 44 Gough St. Suite 201 , San Francisco, CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (650) 759-8770 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, NAKA Dance Theater will present the 4th annual Celebración de Telares Maya Mam, a month-long exhibition, cultural celebration, and three performances of Ja weya ob'aj wij, ex weya nchemaj / Mi Historia, Mi Telar / My Story, My Weaving at EastSide Cultural Center in Oakland in July and August 2027. This narrative-based dance-theater work is created and performed by Indigenous Maya Mam immigrant women from Oakland's Mam diaspora. The project is led by Maya Mam culture bearer Maria Vicente, through Grupo Artista Telar Maya Mam. CAC funds will support year-round Circulos de Aprendizaje (collaborative learning circles) where Mam women practice traditional backstrap weaving, share first-person stories, and develop movement and performance material that culminates in the Celebración. | -Producing LIVE ARTS IN RESISTANCE, a series of performance showcases, artist residencies and community town halls that address racial inequity & white supremacy in popular culture. -Creating and touring experimental performance works; including Y Basta Ya!, a dance-theater performance and community workshop series and shines a light on the stories of Latina and Indigenous Maya Mam women and their experiences with invisibility, labor rights, domestic violence, and sexual abuse. -Research residencies in Japan and Mexico as part of NAKA’s work in community-based ritual practices. -Producing Dismantling Tactic X artist residency and multidisciplinary performance project convening a cohort of radical, social-practice artists who center their work on the topic of race and white supremacy. -Co-Facilitating ongoing Circulos de Aprendizaje (Collaborative Learning Circles) with Oakland Latina and Indigenous Maya Mam (Guatemala) immigrant women, using art for healing and addressing issues such as racism and colorism in the Latine community. We have co-presented two Mam cultural festivals in Oakland. -Ja weya ob’aj wij, ex weya nchemaj/Mi Historia, Mi Telar/My Story, My Weaving narrative-based dance-theater performance project integrating personal and collective narratives, movement, textile art, and poetry into a full-length touring dance theater performance project featuring the voices and visions of the Mam community here in Oakland. -Pro-Bono Language Justice Access Consulting, to arts and social justice organizations who want to hire in-person or online sign language interpreters. This includes: referrals for culturally appropriate interpreters who would be a good match for the situation (including trilingual Spanish-English-ASL / Chinese-English-ASL interpreters); sharing best practices about publicity and outreach (best done by Deaf-led organizations); sharing best practices about budgeting for interpreters, necessary prep information that interpreters will need prior to an assignment, interpreter placement, lighting; advocacy for the hiring of Deaf Interpreters. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | The Regents of the University of California, Santa Cruz | 1156 HIGH ST , SANTA CRUZ, CA 95064-1077 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 419-1123 | California's 19th congressional district | District 28 | District 17 | With support from the CAC, the Mary Porter Sesnon Art Gallery at UC Santa Cruz will launch year 2 of Art Hustle To Go (AHTG), a program for undergraduate and high school students, to attend high-quality exhibitions in local and regional arts venues, learn to mentor others, and expand their museum and gallery experiences. AHTG’s goal is to serve students who may not have had access to such experiences due to socio-economic status, geographic region, or other aspects of students’ life experiences that elevate the impact of having opportunities to engage with these cultural assets. AHTG experiences will also include campus events led by arts and culture practitioners. ATHG is part of Art Hustle, a career development initiative that focuses on giving students direct experiences in the art industry that complement their academic experience. | https://www.ucsc.edu/mission-and-vision/ |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Write4Art Productions | 533 E MAPLE ST , GLENDALE, CA 91205-2370 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 371-8205 | 30th District | District 52 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, WRITE4ART PRODUCTIONS will increase stipends to its current staff of 2 (artistic and executive) from $2500 to $5000 annually, hire an administrative assistant to organize the logistics of its monthly reading series of new plays and musicals, add at least one concert reading to its program (from 3 - 4 annually) paying actors according to Actors Equity guidelines, and develop its online presence to attract more diverse experienced audience, supporters and board members to further the mission to serve writers. | Monthly Developmental Urehearsed Readings of New Plays and Musicals Periodic Concert (29-hour schedule including performance) Readings of New Plays and Musicals Occasional (funds permitting) Workshop Presentations (fully staged, off-book, skeletal tech) of New Plays and Musicals |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $6,000.00 | The Girls' Jazz and Blues Society | 901 H ST STE 120 , SACRAMENTO, CA 95814-1817 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 842-8304 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Girls’ Jazz and Blues Society will expand access to free, female-centered music education for underserved youth in the Sacramento region. Funds will support general operating expenses, including teaching artist stipends, program coordination, outreach, and essential resources needed to sustain and grow programming. This support will allow TGJBS to build on its current summer camp model by increasing enrollment, expanding scholarship access, and strengthening year-round, female-rooted mentorship opportunities. By investing in organizational capacity, CAC funding will enable TGJBS to serve more girls annually while ensuring programs remain free of charge. These efforts will provide transformative, culturally responsive music experiences that foster artistic growth, confidence, and leadership among young women from historically marginalized communities. | Programs Overview We offer a free summer music camp and ongoing learning opportunities that empower girls through jazz and blues. Instrument Study: Personalized instruction for all levels, from beginner basics to advanced technique and improvisation. Jazz History Workshops: Exploring jazz’s roots, evolution, and the contributions of women in the genre. Mental Health Workshops: Sessions focused on confidence, self-expression, and emotional well-being. Performance & Marketing: Band experience, live performance, and introduction to music branding. Guest Artists & Industry Education: Performances and insights from professional female musicians. Private Lessons (Post-Camp): One-on-one, customized lessons to help students continue developing skills, refine technique, and pursue personal musical goals year-round. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | The Leela Institute | 23650 Community St. , West Hills, CA 91304 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 208-9707 | California's 30th congressional district | District 45 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, Leela Dance Collective will sustain and advance its core programs serving South Asian immigrant communities and the broader Los Angeles public. Funds will support general operating expenses including artist fees, staff salaries, production costs, and accessibility measures across Leela’s three program areas: professional performances that preserve and advance kathak dance; the Leela Youth Dance Company, which provides pre-professional training and performance opportunities for young South Asian American women ages 13–17; and arts education and community programs that bring kathak dance and Indian classical music into classrooms and community spaces serving marginalized communities across Los Angeles County. All community performances are free of charge. CAC support is essential to Leela’s ability to sustain these programs and continue building a thriving, accessible, and community-centered arts organization. | Leela’s nationally touring dance company, Leela Dance Collective (LDC), has garnered critical acclaim under the artistic direction of renowned kathak artists Rukhmani Mehta, Seibi Lee, and Rachna Nivas, and engages some of today’s leading dancers and musicians, as well as collaborative artists of other genres. LDC’s repertoire represents the breadth and depth of kathak, and amplifies the voices of a new generation of female artists. Through traditional works, cross genre collaborations, and cutting edge choreography, LDC is making kathak relevant for contemporary audiences worldwide. In addition to performances in public spaces, LDC is expanding its performances in community spaces, such as libraries and local schools. In 2019, Leela joined the roster for the Music Center Performing Artists in Schools and Neighborhoods Program, a program designed to inspire creative thinking and introduce audiences K-12 to the world’s diverse cultural traditions through school performances. Through this program, LDC serves as a model for artistic excellence, inspires creative thinking, and introduces young audiences to the joy of kathak and the rich history of India’s cultural heritage. Leela’s educational arm, the Leela Academy, provides world-class education and training in kathak and Hindustani classical music to children and youth. The Leela Academy’s cornerstone program, the Leela Youth Dance Company (LYDC), serves as our elite pre-professional performing group for girls in grades 7-12. The program champions excellence in kathak while serving as a platform for youth leadership development that empowers young South Asian American women as artists, cultural ambassadors and leaders of social change. Finally, the Leela Foundation provides the financial infrastructure critical for the viability and sustainability of classical Indian artistic traditions. Through the artists, educators and programs supported, the Foundation ultimately seeks to ensure that communities worldwide and generations to come have access to the richness and depth of India’s artistic traditions. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | Green Room Theatre Company | 74300 OLD PROSPECTOR TRL , PALM DESERT, CA 92260-5618 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (442) 215-7039 | 41st Congressional District | California's 47th State Assembly District | California's 18th State Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, GREEN ROOM THEATRE COMPANY will use grant funds to tour a youth-oriented production of Isabella Madrigal’s "Menil and Her Heart," an award-winning play that sensitively explores the issues of violence against indigenous women and girls. The play also highlights the cultural gifts and wisdom of the Cahuilla people. It will be performed (along with traditional dance, music, and ritual) at community venues in the Coachella Valley and neighboring areas, with priority to Native facilities and neighborhoods. About 25 teens will receive paid training in acting and technical theatre, plus the opportunity to help develop this play (written by a young Cahuilla enrolled member, winner of the Yale Young Native Storytellers Award and a Sundance film institute fellowship). This work is likely to achieve national stage and film acclaim. | GRTCCV provides: (1) classes for children, youth, and adults; (2) touring productions; (3) staged readings; (4) ballet folklorico training; and (5) performances of reinvented classics at pivotal Coachella Valley venues. Now in its 17th season, GRTCCV is focusing especially on serving the Central and East Coachella Valley, providing employment development training. Many alumni of our training programs have found paid theatre work in the Coachella Valley and beyond, or majored in theatre at colleges and universities. For many years, the summer conservatory’s large Broadway musical trained 60 young actors and technicians. However, responding partly to changes wrought by the pandemic, recently Green Room has focused on projects that address the needs of under-served local communities, such as bilingual theatre productions and plays that address important social justice issues. For example, we just concluded a successful Newish Shakespeare Festival. This included productions of "Como Te Gusta" (our family-friendly bilingual adaptation of "As You Like It") and "American Moor" (about a veteran African-American actor's experience taking on the role of "Othello" while working with an inexperienced White director). We also presented an immersive adaptation of George Orwell's "1984." Recently we expanded ballet folklorico classes in Indio public schools and spotlighted folklorico performances along with our theatre productions. GRTCCV is innovative in its performance venues, themes, and approaches. For example, we recently devised a play about the history of "Section 14," addressing a controversial episode when the City of Palm Springs in the 1960s forcibly evicted hundreds of mainly Black and Latine residents from a planned downtown redevelopment site. This innovative project used oral history and a community advisory committee to help develop the play. Our performances have been held in a 400-seat auditorium, a brew pub, bookstores, and even a cemetery in order to reach diverse audiences. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | California Chamber Orchestra | 43460 Ridge Park Drive, Ste. 220 , Temecula, CA 92590 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (909) 496-3030 | California's 50th congressional district | District 71 | District 32 | With support from the California Arts Council, GOLDEN VALLEY MUSIC SOCIETY INC will present "Orchestra Experience Live!" for all 4th grade students in the Murrieta Valley Unified School District featuring the California Chamber Orchestra, Conductor Dana Zimbric, and local artists in the Murrieta Mesa High School Gershwin Performing Arts Center. | The California Chamber Orchestra (CCO), operating under the umbrella of the Golden Valley Music Society, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in 2005. Led by Artistic Director and Conductor Dana Zimbric, CCO hosts nearly 20 professional concerts and recitals annually, distinguishing itself as the primary professional orchestra in the Temecula/Murrieta area. Comprised of leading professional musicians from across Southern California, CCO has maintained a collective bargaining agreement with the American Federation of Musicians Local 325 since 2023. From 2005 to 2019, CCO collaborated with the Old Town Temecula Community Theater to present an annual seven-concert Classical Series, four of which showcased the orchestra. Since July 1, 2019, the orchestra has shifted its focus to the Gershwin Performing Arts Center in Murrieta for its annual concert series. Since October 2008, CCO has hosted Classics at The Merc, a Sunday afternoon series featuring chamber recitals by professional soloists and small ensembles. Held in the intimate setting of the Old Town Temecula Community Theater, this series offers a unique musical experience for audiences. The series highlights the region's premier chamber musicians in a monthly recital format. Since 2012, CCO has been dedicated to providing music education to over 20,000 students in the Temecula and Murrieta communities. This includes live theater performances of classical works like "Peter and the Wolf" and "Carnival of the Animals," as well as interactive assemblies for elementary students. Additionally, the organization offers coaching for middle and high school orchestras, master classes, and affordable or complimentary tickets to CCO performances. Collaborations, such as the "Just Add Jazz" project with acclaimed jazz vocalist Sherry Williams, further enrich the educational experiences provided by CCO. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Hmong Culture Camp | 4925 WEBBER CT , MERCED, CA 95348-8540 | Merced | Central Valley | (209) 631-4919 | California | Merced | California | Hmong Culture Camp will use California Arts Council General Operating Support to sustain and expand community-rooted Hmong arts programming that preserves and celebrates cultural traditions through music, dance, storytelling, and visual arts. Funding will support core operations, including artist stipends, cultural practitioners, program coordination, and organizational infrastructure necessary to deliver high-quality, culturally grounded experiences for youth and families. Support will also provide essential materials, instruments, clothing, and supplies that make hands-on cultural arts participation possible, as well as technology that expands access to hybrid and community-based programming. CAC funding will strengthen organizational capacity, deepen partnerships across the Central Valley, and ensure programs remain free or low-cost. Through this investment, Hmong Culture Camp will advance the intergenerational transmission of Hmong cultural arts while fostering identity, belonging, and creative expression within historically underrepresented communities. | Hmong Culture Camp, Inc. is dedicated to preserving the Hmong language and culture while promoting cultural awareness and acceptance locally in Merced, CA, and globally. We provide language and cultural education programs for children ages 3–11 through community events and online classes to broaden our reach. Our commitment to inclusivity and diversity guides all our efforts to foster cultural pride and understanding. In addition, Hmong Culture Camp offers youth ages 16–25 career readiness opportunities, including hands-on early education experience, dual-language training, and mentorship roles with younger children. We encourage our youth to engage in civic participation and community outreach, empowering them to be cultural ambassadors in diverse spaces. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | OUTWORDS | 3108 Glendale Blvd #522 , Los Angeles, CA 90039-1806 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 261-9171 | 34th Congressional District | District 54 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Outwords Archive will continue to record, preserve, and share the stories of LGBTQ+ elders, build community, and catalyze social change. OUTWORDS’ overarching focus is using the media arts and storytelling to promote social equity of all types and to address systemic inequities in American society. As a part of our mission, The Outwords Archive has recorded approximately 160 oral histories with California’s LGBTQ+ elders over the past decade, totaling to 40% of our Archive. | OUTWORDS is the first and only national organization dedicated to recording professional-quality, on-camera interviews with LGBTQ+ elders across the US. OUTWORDS was founded to preserve the histories of LGBTQ+ elders as a priceless record of an unprecedented American social change movement. We share our full interviews on our website, which functions as an online digital archive. To date, OUTWORDS has recorded nearly 400 interviews with LGBTQ+ elders in 47 states and Washington, D.C. We serve a wide variety of people (11.7 mil in 2024) through our online archive and social media platforms, with the majority being LGBTQ+ and between the ages of 25-34 years old. We use media arts and storytelling to promote social equity, explore and illuminate queer history and address systemic inequities. The Outwords Archive is highly intentional in seeking out and recording stories from marginalized communities within the LGBTQ+ community, including communities of color, individuals with fewer financial and educational resources, transgender and gender non-conforming individuals, the bisexual population, intersex individuals, and LGBTQ+ people living with disabilities. For the past three years, we have devoted 50% of our new interviews to the TGI (transgender, gender non-conforming and intersex) community, and 60% to people of color. OUTWORDS functions simultaneously as a media production company (for the purpose of gathering new interviews), an archive (for the purpose of organizing and preserving our assets), and a distribution company (for the purpose of sharing our extraordinary elder stories with the LGBTQ+ community in LA and beyond through multiple channels). Our distribution occurs primarily through our website (www.theoutwordsarchive.org) and through an array of public events in CA and beyond, corporate DEI trainings, partnerships with LGBTQ+ organizations, and social media. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Modest Fly Art Studio Gallery Inc. | 10055 Commerce Avenue , TUJUNGA, CA 91042-2303 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (833) 663-3781 | CA-30 | CA-43 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, MODEST FLY ART STUDIO will strengthen its capacity to deliver ongoing, community-based visual arts programming serving children, youth, and adults in Los Angeles, with a focus on historically under-resourced communities. CAC funds will support core organizational functions, including teaching artist compensation, program coordination, and essential operating costs required to sustain year-round arts instruction, community workshops, and public exhibitions. Modest Fly provides culturally responsive, trauma-informed arts experiences that foster creative expression, identity development, and community connection, particularly for immigrant and diaspora populations. General operating support will enable the organization to expand access to consistent, high-quality arts engagement while maintaining inclusive, accessible programming that reflects the diverse communities it serves. | Art Classes – Modest Fly offers people of all ages the opportunity to learn the fundamentals of art, including drawing, painting, mixed media, collage, and some sculpture. These fundamental art classes are taught throughout the week and we provide a free introductory class for those who would like to try it before signing up. These classes are organized by age group for up to two sessions per week from Monday to Friday as follows: Adults begin at 12PM. Ages 6-8 begin at 2PM. Ages 8-12 begin at 3:30PM. Ages 6-8 begin at 5PM. On Saturday, we provide classes on a modified schedule so that Ages 4-6 begin at 10AM. Ages 6-8 begin at 11:30AM. Ages 8-12 begin at 1PM. Adults begin at 2:30PM. Modest Fly Fine Art Program - Serves elementary school students in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). The afterschool program works with teachers and administrators to deliver age appropriate instruction drawing, painting, mixed media, collage, and sculpture in conformity with State of California arts educational standards. The Journal – The Journal is the quarterly newsletter published by Modest Fly Art Studio Gallery. It provides readers with information on the value of arts education, scholarships for children and youth, and topics related to the use of art in promoting mental and physical healing. Curriculum - In all our work, we feel most proud of the curriculum. It is based in state standards, but adapted to meet the student's developmental needs, no matter their skill level. Each student goes through a set of assigned projects to learn or enhance their understanding of the basics and fundamentals with a Modest Fly trained instructor. When fundamental standards are achieved, we send them off to create their own projects of choice. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Modest Fly Art Studio Gallery Inc. | 10055 Commerce Avenue , TUJUNGA, CA 91042-2303 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (833) 663-3781 | CA-30 | CA-43 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Modest Fly Art Studio will deliver a sequential arts exposure program for approximately 250 elementary school students at Mountain View Elementary School in the Los Angeles Unified School District. The program includes three components: (1) in-school visual arts workshops led by teaching artists, (2) a field trip to Modest Fly’s studio for hands-on engagement with professional artists and tools, and (3) a culminating public exhibition of student artwork. Students will receive standards-based instruction in drawing, painting, and mixed media aligned with California VAPA standards. The program serves a diverse Title I student population, including youth from immigrant and diaspora communities, many of whom have experienced displacement and trauma. Funds will support teaching artist fees, program materials, transportation, and exhibition costs, ensuring equitable access to high-quality arts experiences. | Art Classes – Modest Fly offers people of all ages the opportunity to learn the fundamentals of art, including drawing, painting, mixed media, collage, and some sculpture. These fundamental art classes are taught throughout the week and we provide a free introductory class for those who would like to try it before signing up. These classes are organized by age group for up to two sessions per week from Monday to Friday as follows: Adults begin at 12PM. Ages 6-8 begin at 2PM. Ages 8-12 begin at 3:30PM. Ages 6-8 begin at 5PM. On Saturday, we provide classes on a modified schedule so that Ages 4-6 begin at 10AM. Ages 6-8 begin at 11:30AM. Ages 8-12 begin at 1PM. Adults begin at 2:30PM. Modest Fly Fine Art Program - Serves elementary school students in the Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD). The afterschool program works with teachers and administrators to deliver age appropriate instruction drawing, painting, mixed media, collage, and sculpture in conformity with State of California arts educational standards. The Journal – The Journal is the quarterly newsletter published by Modest Fly Art Studio Gallery. It provides readers with information on the value of arts education, scholarships for children and youth, and topics related to the use of art in promoting mental and physical healing. Curriculum - In all our work, we feel most proud of the curriculum. It is based in state standards, but adapted to meet the student's developmental needs, no matter their skill level. Each student goes through a set of assigned projects to learn or enhance their understanding of the basics and fundamentals with a Modest Fly trained instructor. When fundamental standards are achieved, we send them off to create their own projects of choice. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | NAKA Dance Theater | 44 Gough St. Suite 201 , San Francisco, CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (650) 759-8770 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, NAKA Dance Theater will sustain its programs, staff, and operations during its 25th anniversary year. Supported programs include our ongoing collaboration with Oakland's Indigenous Maya Mam community through Grupo Artista Telar Maya Mam and our Circulos de Aprendizaje, where Mam women practice traditional backstrap weaving, traditional folk dance, and cultural knowledge-sharing while developing as cultural leaders; the premiere of Mi Historia, Mi Telar / My Story, My Weaving, a narrative-based dance-theater work created and performed by Mam community members; our fourth annual Mam cultural festival at EastSide Cultural Center; Voces Feministas workshops and public events with Latine immigrant women; Live Arts in Resistance performance showcases for artists of color; pro-bono language justice access consulting; and the publication of NAKA's 25th Anniversary Photobook documenting our trajectory of community-engaged performance. | -Producing LIVE ARTS IN RESISTANCE, a series of performance showcases, artist residencies and community town halls that address racial inequity & white supremacy in popular culture. -Creating and touring experimental performance works; including Y Basta Ya!, a dance-theater performance and community workshop series and shines a light on the stories of Latina and Indigenous Maya Mam women and their experiences with invisibility, labor rights, domestic violence, and sexual abuse. -Research residencies in Japan and Mexico as part of NAKA’s work in community-based ritual practices. -Producing Dismantling Tactic X artist residency and multidisciplinary performance project convening a cohort of radical, social-practice artists who center their work on the topic of race and white supremacy. -Co-Facilitating ongoing Circulos de Aprendizaje (Collaborative Learning Circles) with Oakland Latina and Indigenous Maya Mam (Guatemala) immigrant women, using art for healing and addressing issues such as racism and colorism in the Latine community. We have co-presented two Mam cultural festivals in Oakland. -Ja weya ob’aj wij, ex weya nchemaj/Mi Historia, Mi Telar/My Story, My Weaving narrative-based dance-theater performance project integrating personal and collective narratives, movement, textile art, and poetry into a full-length touring dance theater performance project featuring the voices and visions of the Mam community here in Oakland. -Pro-Bono Language Justice Access Consulting, to arts and social justice organizations who want to hire in-person or online sign language interpreters. This includes: referrals for culturally appropriate interpreters who would be a good match for the situation (including trilingual Spanish-English-ASL / Chinese-English-ASL interpreters); sharing best practices about publicity and outreach (best done by Deaf-led organizations); sharing best practices about budgeting for interpreters, necessary prep information that interpreters will need prior to an assignment, interpreter placement, lighting; advocacy for the hiring of Deaf Interpreters. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Dorland Mountain Arts | 36701 Highway 79 South , TEMECULA, CA 92592 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 302-3837 | 48 | 71 | 32 | With support from the California Arts Council, DORLAND MOUNTAIN ARTS COLONY INC will build capacity in our financial assistance program for Dorland artist residencies, prioritizing diverse applicants; increase outreach to diverse arts communities; support improved staff compensation; and enhance awareness of Dorland residency opportunities and our online reach and engagement through improved media content, such as videos highlighting artist residencies at Dorland. CAC grant funds will also support our ongoing needs for site maintenance and our planned addition of a new artist residence optimized for visual artists. | Dorland’s staff provides 1- to 6-week creative residencies annually for over 150 local, regional, and world artists, established and emerging, in writing, visual arts, and music. Five independent cottages with spectacular views are available for resident artists, with formal and informal opportunities for the residents to gather and socialize as they see fit during their stay. Two of the cottages are equipped with pianos (Steinway and Kimball). Dorland's ongoing efforts to increase diversity in its artist residency program, and provide financial assistance to emerging artists in need, include our Barbara Residency Fellowship (BRF) fund. We are also collaborating with regional university graduate programs in the arts, which annually select a deserving student candidate for a two-week residency, with various cost sharing arrangements. Participating institutions include the CalArts School of Music, the MFA Writing Program at University of California Riverside, and Chapman University. Dorland manages critical groundskeeping, both for fire protection and community nature trail system maintenance. We operate and maintain our fully accessible Community Art Center, serving an average of 65 people/month with art exhibitions, free workshops, collaborative gatherings, and nature walks. The Center also provides a visual arts studio space for use by resident artists. And it increases Dorland's ability to promote and expand the Associate Artist program and its activities within the local community (530,000+ population of adjacent Temecula-Murrieta-Menifee urban area). |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Jazz Organ Fellowship | 1210 HERMOSA WAY , SAN JOSE, CA 95125-3511 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 410-8265 | District 16 | District 28 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Jazz Organ Fellowship, a small arts organization, will present "The B3 Sessions," our second annual series of 8 free masterclasses with master Bay Area Hammond B3 organists. This program will respond to a community-defined need to uplift marginalized master musicians from the Black cultural traditions of jazz, blues, gospel, and R&B and provide accessible, culturally relevant intergenerational learning opportunities. The program will be collaboratively developed with community members and use artistic practices to impact Black Bay Area communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification. | The Jazz Organ Fellowship (JOF) provides workshops at jazz camps and community venues with world class jazz organists; presents performances with organ combos at middle schools and high schools; promotes a jazz organ curriculum explaining the lineage of jazz organ music, its primary proponents, and the significance of this genre within the wider musical spectrum; donates Hammond organs and Leslie speakers to schools, museums, and venues; promotes an awards program including The JOF Award and The Jazz Organ Fellowship Hall of Fame honoring living and deceased jazz organists who have contributed significantly to the development of the music; and presents jazz organ concerts at festivals, concert halls, and clubs throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. JOF programs elevate the position of the organ in all aspects of the music world, centering Black cultural traditions of jazz, blues, gospel, R&B, and beyond. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Herencia Mariachi Academy | 420 N MCKINLEY ST , CORONA, CA 92879-8099 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (714) 345-8740 | With support from the California Arts Council, Herencia Mariachi Academy (HMA) will provide culturally responsive mariachi music instruction to youth and emerging musicians in the Inland Empire. The program will offer ongoing workshops focused on instrumental technique, vocal training, and ensemble performance rooted in traditional Mexican music. CAC grant funds will support artist and instructor stipends, facility rental, and culturally relevant instructional materials and supplies. Funds will also support outreach efforts to increase access for underserved communities. This program will preserve and promote mariachi as a vital cultural art form while fostering artistic expression, skill development, and community engagement. The program will culminate in a public performance showcasing participant growth and strengthening cultural pride. | It is our hope to provide the children of our community with a safe haven, where they can gain a deeper understanding and appreciation for mariachi music and its culture. We want to reach the youth through our heritage of mariachi music, while introducing them to its origins and evolution. Our vision is to teach them to read, play and perform mariachi music. We want to help them channel their talents and express their emotions through mariachi music. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Mending of Mothers | 7113 PAUL DO MAR WAY , ELK GROVE, CA 95757-3453 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 585-4285 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mending of Mothers Inc. (MOM) will implement Art of Opportunity: Richmond, serving 75 underserved children, youth, and young adults (ages 0–24). This community-rooted, arts-based program provides creative expression, healing, early learning, and workforce readiness through culturally responsive programming. The initiative activates the Richmond Museum of History & Culture as a community hub, addressing a key barrier: many underserved residents are unaware they have access to a local museum. Through free programming, participants will engage in hands-on art, guided tours, and career-connected learning experiences. By integrating art, wellness, and career pathways, the program strengthens confidence, increases access to the arts, and creates opportunities for long-term educational and economic success. | Mending of Mothers Inc. (MOM) delivers holistic, workforce-centered programs that empower underserved mothers, youth, and families to achieve economic stability and long-term success. MOM’s Workforce Development & Job Readiness (Strength to Succeed) program provides hands-on training in resume building, interview preparation, workplace readiness, and career exploration. Participants are connected to hiring events, employer partners, and ongoing job placement support. Financial Literacy & Economic Empowerment is embedded across all programs, equipping participants with skills in budgeting, saving, credit building, and banking. Through partnerships, participants can open checking and savings accounts, building a foundation for financial stability. MOM offers Wraparound Support Services, including childcare assistance, transportation support, meals, clothing resources, and stipends. MOM also leads Youth Career Exploration & Sacramento Youth Career Fest (SRYCF), connecting students to employers, colleges, and career pathways through hands-on workshops, internships, and financial literacy experiences. Through the partnership with Volunteer of America, MOM's Healthy Habits & Family Stability Program supports families in transitional housing with life skills training, nutrition education, financial literacy, and mental wellness resources to strengthen household stability. Through a partnership with the Crocker Art Museum, MOM offers Art Therapy & Mental Wellness programs that promote healing, creativity, and emotional well-being designed to support underserved mothers, youth, and families experiencing housing instability, trauma and economic hardship. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | PLUMAS ARTS | PO BOX 600 525 Main Street, QUINCY, CA 95971-0600 | Plumas | Upstate | (530) 283-3402 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | Critical support from the State-Local Partners Program aids Plumas Arts in sustaining and strengthening countywide access to cultural opportunities across one of California’s most rural regions. As the designated agency for Plumas County, Plumas Arts serves as a vital connector between artists, communities, schools, and cultural resources, ensuring that residents of all ages and backgrounds can participate in meaningful creative experiences regardless of geographic or economic barriers. Grant support will expand multidisciplinary programming in visual, performing, and cultural arts through workshops, classes, exhibitions and events led by local and regional artists. Funding will also support outreach, engagement, materials, and facility access to underserved communities throughout the county, including youth, seniors and rural residents with limited access to art opportunities. This investment strengthens an inclusive arts ecosystem supporting artists, community connection and quality of life countywide. | Plumas Arts serves as the local arts planning and programming agency for Plumas County and representative to the California Arts Council's State Local Partnership (since 1981). Our efforts include ARTS EDUCATION workshops in schools and for all ages, VISUAL ARTS GALLERY and art displays showcasing work by dozens of regional artists, INFORMATION SERVICES our county's most comprehensive cultural events calendar, press releases about events and opportunities, as well as an ARTIST DIRECTORY on plumasarts.org in addition to regular features in regional newspapers, PRODUCING FESTIVALS, EVENTS & PERFORMANCES that highlight local culture and celebrate a diversity of traditions, FISCAL SPONSORSHIP and TECHNICAL SERVICES for arts and community groups, serving as a COMMUNICATION LINK among these groups and we own, care for and manage two historic facilities, the PLUMAS ARTS GALLERY & TOWN HALL THEATRE the county's only movie theatre and largest performing arts venue as community resources. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Live Out L!ve Foundation | 15222 1/4 DICKENS ST , SHERMAN OAKS, CA 91403-3340 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 956-0601 | Live Out L!ve Foundation, a Los Angeles based 501(c)(3), respectfully seeks $30,000 for general operating support of our programs impacting Black, Latiné, Women, LGTQIA+, and other under-represented youth and young adults seeking entry into the live music entertainment industry. Support from the California Arts Council will be integral in scaling our reach in the L.A. area, and expanding our team of experienced staff and industry volunteers who educate, guide, and mentor our participants. | WE PARTNER WITH COMMUNITIES, CORPORATIONS, AND SKILL-BASED VOLUNTEERS TO PRODUCE PROGRAMMING AND EVENTS AND CREATE internships, workshops, AND mentorships TO PREPARE BLACK AND LATINX TEEN AND YOUNG ADULT TALENT FOR CAREERS IN THE LIVE ENTERTAINMENT INDUSTRY. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | CLARE ROSE FOUNDATION CENTER FOR CREATIVE YOUTH DEVELOPMENT | 3105 GOLDSMITH ST , SAN DIEGO, CA 92106-1418 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 995-4163 | 50th Congressional District | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Clare Rose Foundation Center for Creative Youth Development (The Center) will provide capacity building services to build arts organizations’ resilience, infrastructure for collaboration and innovation, and we will participate in field/movement building for a thriving arts ecosystem. We will do this by providing the following services, including but not limited to, grant writing/management, strategic/adaptive planning, leadership development, mentorship/coaching, staff recruitment, interim staffing, communications/storytelling, and professional development opportunities; we will conduct creative workshops to center well-being in the nonprofit workplace. We will provide fiscal sponsorships for artists and projects to uplift and engage historically excluded artists and provide backbone support for collaborative initiatives. We will participate in arts/culture/humanities advocacy efforts. Lastly, we will facilitate convenings to share information/research and to connect with peers in a community of belonging. | Capacity Building for Resilient Organizations: We provide nearly 1,000 hours of coaching, consulting, and interim strategic staffing services to creative youth development leaders and organizations in the areas of leadership development and mentorship, staff wellbeing, communities of belonging, staff recruitment, communications and storytelling, grant writing and management, nonprofit compliance, and strategic planning. We also provide referrals to professional services such as legal and financial. We also co-lead and provide programming for approximately 12 convenings for leaders to access peer learning/professional support in centering wellbeing in the workplace, scenario planning, budget forecasting, and adaptive business practices. Infrastructure for Collaboration and Innovation: We provide financial infrastructure, operational thought partnership, and administrative support to 6 fiscally-sponsored projects including the San Diego Youth Dance Festival, Creating Abundance Collaborative, Sew Loka, SocialRx, and two other community-based art offerings. We also provide backbone support services and operational leadership for the National Creative Youth Development Funders Forum. Lead educational and awareness efforts to position creative youth development as a cross-sector and intersectional solution to broad-based community challenges. Field/Movement Building for a Thriving Ecosystem: We represent creative youth development on statewide/national coalitions to advocate for diversified streams of support for nonprofit partners. We present workshops in community settings about issues such as partnership development and collaborations. We work within an ecosystem framework that includes arts and culture, youth development, and positive humanities, and that focuses on belonging, connection, mattering, and flourishing. While our roots are in creative youth development, we are broadening our work to include community-based arts, arts and health, creative aging, arts and justice, creative placemaking, creative economy, neuro arts and somatic arts to name a few areas. We are uniquely positioned to bring together creative youth development programs and others practicing in adjacent communities to exchange ideas and resources to create a thriving ecosystem. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Vanguard Culture | 703 TARENTO DR , SAN DIEGO, CA 92106 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 829-7561 | California's 50th congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, VANGUARD CULTURE will help refine and expand our arts journal coverage, including an initiative to attract cultural tourists to San Diego; our professional development programs for creatives; and our cutting-edge arts and culture events for the public. We will use any grant money awarded to us for staff salaries, artist stipends, venue rentals, insurance, and community outreach. | Vanguard Culture's core programs and services are arts journalism, professional development for creative professionals, and collaborative cultural events. Our arts journalism program endeavors to shine a spotlight on San Diego’s local talent, particularly its unique, exciting, and under-the-radar artists and arts organizations. To date, we have received 72 awards for Excellence in Journalism from the San Diego Press Club including Best Entertainment Website in San Diego. Our professional development program seeks to provide the business skills and resources that are not typically taught or provided in art schools but that creative industry professionals need to find arts jobs and establish successful careers in the arts. Our collaborative cultural events provide the public and creative communities with immersive, experiential and experimental events that confront the challenges of our contemporary world using imaginative, cutting-edge collaborations between the culinary, visual and performing arts. We were featured for our cross-industry programming on the National Geographic Channel as part of a special on San Diego. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | The LA Local | 2026 E 1ST ST , LOS ANGELES, CA 90033-3916 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 272-4530 | With support from the California Arts Council, The LA Local will provide a Youth Photojournalism Program, a community-based visual arts program serving high school students in historically underserved Los Angeles neighborhoods. Through free, after-school programming, youth will receive hands-on training in photography, video, and multimedia storytelling, guided by professional journalists and teaching artists rooted in the communities they serve. Participants will produce original photo essays and multimedia stories that reflect their lived experiences, cultural identities, and local issues, amplifying youth voices often underrepresented in media. Programming will take place in accessible community-based sites in Boyle Heights, Koreatown, and South Los Angeles in partnership with local organizations, culminating in a public exhibition, print publication, and digital showcase. Grant funds will support arts instruction and mentorship. | A core pillar of our work is our year-round youth journalism and visual storytelling program that integrates arts learning with community-based reporting. Through cohort-based programming, young people receive structured training in print, photography, video production, and multimedia storytelling, building skills in composition, lighting, interviewing, editing, and narrative development. Participants work with professional journalists, photographers and photojournalists who provide mentorship throughout the creative process. Youth produce original photography and video projects that document their communities, explore cultural identity, and highlight local issues, centering their voices and lived experiences. The program is implemented in partnership with trusted community organizations, including KYCC’s Koreatown Storytelling Program and Brotherhood Crusade, and builds on long-standing relationships with schools and community institutions established through Boyle Heights Beat. Youth work is shared through The LA Local’s editorial platforms, social channels, print publications, and community events, ensuring that participants have opportunities to present their work to public audiences. Through this model, young people develop creative confidence, critical thinking, communication and collaboration skills, and a stronger sense of belonging and connection to their communities. Our core programs include community-centered reporting, which delivers accessible coverage on issues such as housing, education, public safety, and local government, alongside dedicated arts and culture reporting that documents and celebrates local creative stories. We also host community listening sessions and events that uplift local stories and inform editorial priorities, and operate LA Documenters, which trains and compensates residents to attend and document public meetings, strengthening civic participation and transparency. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Painted Brain | 777 S ALAMEDA STREET 2ND FLOOR , LOS ANGELES, CA 90021-1657 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 474-0444 | U.S. House of Representatives - 1st District | California State Assembly District 29 | California State Senate (D-Santa Barbara) | With support from the California Arts Council, Painted Brain (PB) will sustain accessible arts-based programs, including The Painted Path, peer-led visual art, music, and writing workshops that connect individuals unreached by traditional care systems to community arts services and recovery pathways. Art is our entry point to fostering self-expression, reducing isolation, and embracing historically excluded artists and community members in programming for long-term well-being. Funding will support general operating expenses, artists and supplies, rent, utilities, and staff salaries. These resources sustain safe and welcoming spaces where creative expression builds trust and connection to mental health services, workforce development, and peer leadership. Ultimately, CAC grant funds will enable our Community Mental Health Center to serve more transitional-age youth and adults navigating mental health challenges, substance use, justice involvement, and systemic barriers through therapeutic arts programming. | Painted Brain is a peer-led behavioral health organization that integrates mental health services, workforce development, advocacy, and social support through an arts-centered model of care. All programming is developed by and for individuals with lived experience, ensuring services are culturally responsive and grounded in the communities we serve. At the core of our approach, art is not a standalone service but the primary way individuals connect, build trust, and engage in healing and care. Our Community Mental Health Center provides individual and group therapy, case management, peer support, and reentry-focused services through Project New Start. We also offer Enhanced Care Management for Medi-Cal beneficiaries with complex needs, along with supportive services and financial assistance through Department of Mental Health-funded programs. Services are delivered on-site and in community settings to meet individuals where they are. Participants are supported beyond stabilization through workforce and leadership pathways, including our 80-hour Peer Support Specialist training, peer leadership and advocacy programming, and technical training in digital health literacy and cultural competency. Participants also engage in industrial arts, contributing to the design and production of clothing and community materials. Arts-based programming is woven throughout all services. Through artist residencies, workshops, and creative workspace opportunities, participants engage in visual art, music, writing, and hands-on production. Through our social enterprise, including The Painted Path, participants build creative and professional skills, with opportunities for leadership development, stipended participation through select programs, and paid roles as available. Painted Brain serves transitional-age youth and adults navigating mental health challenges, justice involvement, housing instability, and systemic inequities. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Painted Brain | 777 S ALAMEDA STREET 2ND FLOOR , LOS ANGELES, CA 90021-1657 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 474-0444 | U.S. House of Representatives - 1st District | California State Assembly District 29 | California State Senate (D-Santa Barbara) | With support from the California Arts Council, Painted Brain will expand The Painted Path Youth Fellowship, an existing youth arts and creative social enterprise program serving TAY ages 16–25 in Los Angeles County. As an arts-based mental health organization, we will engage underserved youth through culturally responsive programming and interdisciplinary arts, including digital media, and visual and wearable art, with artist mentorship. Program expansion will increase access to field trips, participant stipends, mentorship, and workshops where youth will lead creative projects, engage in public storytelling, and exhibit their work to build leadership and develop workforce and social-emotional skills. Funds will support artist mentor salaries, fellow stipends, workshop supplies, multimedia materials, art-based field trips, and exhibition costs. A final community showcase will exhibit and celebrate youth-created projects that will strengthen healing, cultural identity, and community connection. | Painted Brain is a peer-led behavioral health organization that integrates mental health services, workforce development, advocacy, and social support through an arts-centered model of care. All programming is developed by and for individuals with lived experience, ensuring services are culturally responsive and grounded in the communities we serve. At the core of our approach, art is not a standalone service but the primary way individuals connect, build trust, and engage in healing and care. Our Community Mental Health Center provides individual and group therapy, case management, peer support, and reentry-focused services through Project New Start. We also offer Enhanced Care Management for Medi-Cal beneficiaries with complex needs, along with supportive services and financial assistance through Department of Mental Health-funded programs. Services are delivered on-site and in community settings to meet individuals where they are. Participants are supported beyond stabilization through workforce and leadership pathways, including our 80-hour Peer Support Specialist training, peer leadership and advocacy programming, and technical training in digital health literacy and cultural competency. Participants also engage in industrial arts, contributing to the design and production of clothing and community materials. Arts-based programming is woven throughout all services. Through artist residencies, workshops, and creative workspace opportunities, participants engage in visual art, music, writing, and hands-on production. Through our social enterprise, including The Painted Path, participants build creative and professional skills, with opportunities for leadership development, stipended participation through select programs, and paid roles as available. Painted Brain serves transitional-age youth and adults navigating mental health challenges, justice involvement, housing instability, and systemic inequities. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | AAACC | 762 FULTON ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-4119 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 922-2049 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, THE AFRICAN AMERICAN ART AND CULTURE COMPLEX will deliver culturally rooted programs advancing Black art community and access across San Francisco. Through its AiR Enterprising Creatives residency, it equips BIPOC artists with skills, exhibitions, and financial tools for sustainability. The center preserves and presents Black culture while offering affordable space for events, workshops, and rehearsals. Youth initiatives and Wakanda Winter Wonderland provide creative, joyful experiences and holiday gifts for families. The Black Family Reunion celebrates heritage, artistry, and liberation. Guided by trust, listening, and partnerships, AAACC uses feedback and planning to expand access, strengthen pathways and sustain resilient communities across generations while honoring history and collective power. | AAACC’S PROGRAMS ARE DESIGNED TO ADDRESS THE CURRENT STATE OF THE BLACK ARTS IN SAN FRANCISCO BY STRENGTHENING THE ABILITY OF BLACK CREATIVES TO CREATE, TEACH, PRESENT AND PROMOTE THEIR WORK. WITH THE GOAL OF CREATING A SUSTAINABLE BLACK ARTS COMMUNITY, AAACC FOCUSES ON THE CREATIVE, ECONOMIC AND HEALTH NEEDS OF BLACK CREATIVES. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | KIDSINGERS | 1440 S. State College 4K , ANAHEIM, CA 92806 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 630-3883 | CA40 | 68 | 34 | With support from the California Arts Council, KidSingers will provide partial funding for the salaries of the Artistic Director, Program Manager, and choral music instructors, all of whom dedicate 100% of their time to the program. Together, they execute 260 hours of rehearsals and seven live concert performances annually. Founded in 1997, KidSingers serves students in grades 3–12 primarily from Santa Ana, as well as neighboring communities. 95% of participating youth come from underserved communities where access to afterschool choral arts programs is limited or nonexistent. KidSingers believes every child deserves the opportunity to discover their voice—both musically and personally. Through choral music education and performances, the program endows youth with the transformative power of music, fostering creativity, confidence, discipline, teamwork, and personal growth that extends far beyond the stage. | KidSingers is a large inner city, after school multi-choir program, providing opportunities for under resourced kids (grades 3-12) to perform live choral music, building self-confidence and team work skills. KidSingers also offers a Scholarship program that advances vocational or academic betterment for students who wish to apply. In a discreet and selective way, KidSingers also refers and provides social services, not limited to immigration law referral, law enforcement support, and digital access. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | PiYoDa Flow | 4215 W 29th St , Los Angeles, CA 90016-3615 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 996-3569 | California Assembly district 55 | District CA-37 | District 28 | With support from the CAC, CULTURE FLOW PROJECTS (CFP) will produce the sixth cohort of our Emerging Artist residency: SEED, a four-month experimental dance theatre creation process engaging (6) local artists with a new initiative including (4) system-impacted youth interns in the creative process and performance of Afro-Diasporic, street, and social dance. While local artists develop work for the stage, we will provide free, inclusive space ( monthly allocation of 15 hours/artist) to create with our two directors Tsiambwom Akuchu and Vanessa Neva, and a platform to perform their culminating work at the Stomping Ground, followed by a Q&A for and by the community. Youth interns receive 15 monthly classes to engage in cultural arts mentorship in our Afro-Diasporic Lab. Both local artists and interns will participate in (8) experimental dance theater mentorship workshops. | Organization's Core Programs and Services: We offer: - Weekly free and/or affordable dance classes and workshops with nationally and internationally recognized dance educators for youth and adults. - On and off site outreach arts education programs at various institutions in our area of South Los Angeles. - Anti-recidivism arts programming for system-impacted youth, currently incarcerated at Secure Youth Treatment Facilities (SYTF) - Developing programming to impact youth formerly incarcerated through dance and wellness offerings off-site with partner organizations AHJN, Homeboy Industries and Los Angeles Probation Department. - Space to research the history, origins and influences of Afro Diasporic Dance forms such as House, Afro Cuban, Hustle, Salsa, Timba, Capoeira, Samba, Sabar, Dances of Guinea, Togo, Benin and Contemporary dance practices, while allowing for the organic growth of the style through consistent multi-cultural influences in practice. - Bi-weekly open dance sessions 'Open House' for dancers to train, practice, and develop their craft. - Larger social dance events and forum discussions at various indoor and outdoor venues. - A residency program for street and social dance artists (often referred as Hip Hop artists) interested in dance theater/experimental choreography and performances. - Free and/or affordable wellness classes in yoga, pilates and sound bath meditation |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,476.00 | Arts Education Connection San Diego | 1286 University Ave., #267 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92103-3312 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 282-7599 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts Education Connection San Diego (AECSD) will provide 12 weeks of Hip Hop/Breaking (dance instruction) to all 375 students at Edison Elementary School. Each child (9 grade levels: Special Day Classes lower, Special Day Classes upper, Tk, K, 1, 2, 3, 4, 5 - for a total of 15 classrooms) will receive 1 hour of instruction per week for 12 weeks. The program will culminate in two events: a performance at the school for parents and other family members, and a "jam" with a DJ and judges, at the City Heights Library Performance Annex, an out-door venue open to the public. | Our roster of 40 teaching artists specialize in one of five artforms - dance, music, theater, visual arts, and literary arts - making it easy for schools to have a variety of programs. We develop our programs in alignment with California Visual and Performing Arts Standards and work with school personnel towards the goals of enhancing student learning, improving test scores, and increasing parent engagement. RESIDENCIES are 8- to 32-week school partnerships. Teaching Artists (TAs) instruct students in weekly lessons focused on discrete art or arts integration. Students learn vocabulary, techniques, and concepts; cultivating imagination, critical thinking, and crucial life skills needed to succeed in today’s world. ARTS DISCOVERY introduce students to diverse world-class performers at their school site in an assembly format. We extend learning through hands-on WORKSHOPS that connect educational content to age-appropriate arts activities. ARTS INTERVENTION programs address the needs of our most vulnerable students in the Juvenile Court and Community Schools. These students may be incarcerated, pregnant and/or parenting, unhoused, or connected to the foster system. Our programs give youth tools for positive self-expression and support their social/emotional and academic growth. TEACHING ARTIST INSTITUTE OF SAN DIEGO supports the development of informed, reflective, and culturally responsive TAs through workshops with arts education experts. Topics include classroom management, trauma-informed practices and arts integration. PROFESSIONAL LEARNING opportunities such as workshops and coaching sessions help classroom teachers learn meaningful ways to use the arts to enhance lesson plans and infuse their teaching practice with innovation and creativity. FAMILY ARTS NIGHTS are multi-disciplinary events that cultivate parent-child connection, family engagement, and positive school culture. We modify FANs for families in military housing sites. AFTERSCHOOL ENRICHMENT: We are the primary provider of quality afterschool arts programming for Extended Learning Opportunities departments. Students receive 8-16 weeks of instruction in a familiar and safe environment. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Playwrights Project | 3675 Ruffin Road, Ste. #130 , San Diego, CA 92123 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 384-2970 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Playwrights Project will deliver 14 in school playwriting residencies for youth in San Diego at four middle and high schools located in, or supporting students from, low income neighborhoods and three Juvenile Court and Community Schools. These residencies use playwriting as a tool for social emotional learning, helping students build confidence, strengthen community connection, and develop empathy through creative expression. CAC funds will cover direct program expenses such as classroom materials, including script copies, templates, and instructional materials, artist preparation time, program supplies, and ensure that teaching artists and staff are compensated at rates reflective of their professional expertise. This investment enables consistent, high quality arts programming for youth who are often overlooked and underrepresented in arts education. | Playwrights Project provides playwriting workshops in schools, communities, and correctional facilities, conducts the annual California Young Playwrights Contest for writers under the age of 19, and professionally produces community readings and full productions of Plays by Young Writers and The Mosaic Festival. Playwrights Project’s programs engage underserved populations in dramatizing stories drawn from imagination and life experiences, including reflections on the impact of poverty, incarceration, addiction, foster care, and military service. Recognizing that life presents difficult situations, forces beyond our control, and challenging decisions, the programs guide individuals to reflect on past experiences with compassion, create fictional plays that examine hardships, explore positive non-violent solutions, look forward to brighter futures, and celebrate the resilience gained by triumphing over difficulties. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Womxn 2 Womxn | 710 VAN NESS AVE , FRESNO, CA 93721-2912 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 549-7212 | With support from the California Arts Council, Womxn 2 Womxn will expand its Art, Community, and Culture Project to build a sustainable, accessible creative ecosystem in Fresno,CA. CAC funds will help us deepen arts programming in underserved neighborhoods, offer free and low-cost multi-series workshops, and provide paid opportunities and professional development for local artists. We will prioritize women, gender-expansive individuals, and youth, ensuring that underrepresented voices are centered in every aspect of our work. The project will strengthen partnerships with schools, universities, and community organizations to broaden engagement and increase awareness of accessible arts. With this support, Womxn 2 Womxn will serve over 1,000 participants annually, uplift local artists, and advance a more equitable, inclusive arts landscape in Fresno’s growing downtown. | Our project provides an inclusive, multigenerational arts program that centers accessibility, cultural diversity, and community connection. At its core is a year-round calendar of free and affordable art workshops, including youth summer programs, all-ages beginner DJ classes, free Art Hop workshops, and a curated Fresno Artist’s Coloring Book. We also host a community gallery showcasing youth and adult artists, culminating in a free annual showcase with live performances, interactive art-making experiences, and exhibitions highlighting workshop participants. Through hands-on learning, public events, and creative opportunities, we create a welcoming space where people of all ages can explore, express, and share their artistic voice. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Pinecones and Portals Hiking Theater Company | 1739 Ward St , Berkeley, CA 94703 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (707) 494-3036 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pinecones and Portals will produce and present our 2027 season of immersive outdoor theater for Bay Area families. The season will include: a remount of Alice in Wander Land in Marin County; Alicia En El Camino De Las Maravillas in Watsonville; the premiere of The Friendship with UpLift Physical Theatre; six monthly Campfire Stories at Mariposa Grove Community Garden; and our bilingual in-school performance program at OUSD and BUSD. Programming will include free and subsidized tickets, ASL interpretation, sensory guides, ADA-accessible routes, and neurodivergent accommodations. Grant funds will support artist fees, staffing, and production costs, enabling expanded accessibility services including audio description, haptic tours, ASL and DeafBlind interpretation at every performance, and targeted casting outreach to diversify our artist community. | Pinecones and Portals creates immersive outdoor theater for families, rooted in accessibility, cultural relevance, and artistic excellence. As a Deaf-led company, we understand that access is economic, physical, cultural, and linguistic. We offer subsidized tickets, ADA-accessible routes, ASL interpretation, sensory guides, and Spanish-language programming. We pay our artists a living wage because dignified compensation and excellent art are inseparable. Inclusive Outdoor Theater Productions Our flagship program presents immersive, site-specific plays in East Bay parks. We work primarily in Codornices Park in Berkeley and Piedmont Park in Piedmont, where we have a partnership with Eva Phalen of the Piedmont Recreation Department. Audiences journey through the park walking alongside characters, stumbling into scenes along the trail. Sometimes the action happens up close, other times a character appears across a field or down a hill, only to reappear around the next corner. The park itself is a collaborator, always improvising. When a hawk flew alongside us during Alice in Wander Land, the audience collectively decided it was one of the Red Queen's spies. The park handed us an unexpected character and the audience ran with it. Each show includes ASL interpretation, neurodivergent accommodations, and at least one ADA-accessible performance. Bilingual program lead CoiCoi Duncan creates Spanish-language programming rooted in her experience as a Colombian immigrant and social circus artist. Campfire Stories A monthly Friday evening gathering at Mariposa Grove Community Garden in Oakland. Families gather around a live fire for original music, a participatory story, a world-building craft, and s'mores. Stories are memorized and interactive. Storytellers bring tales from their own cultural traditions, rooting ancient wisdom in the natural world around us. Chilean storyteller Paz Hidalgo brought a story from Tierra del Fuego about the origins of autumn. Families connected the story to this place by collecting fallen leaves for the craft. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Red Hen Press | 1540 LINCOLN AVE , PASADENA, CA 91103 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 406-1205 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Red Hen Press Inc will continue its core mission, publishing works of literary excellence, fostering diversity, and promoting literacy in local schools. CAC funds will advance equitable access to literary arts programming, strengthen California’s creative workforce, and expand community-centered cultural engagement throughout Southern California. Red Hen Press will deepen its investment in historically underserved communities, expanding free and low-cost literary workshops, public readings, youth writing programs, multilingual engagement efforts, and mentorship opportunities for writers whose stories and perspectives are typically underrepresented in mainstream publishing. Operating support will sustain publication of 25-30 books and deliver free writing instruction to at least 300 students. Together, we will ensure that literary arts remain an essential public resource that strengthens communities, supports artists, and contributes meaningfully to California’s cultural and economic future. | Since its founding in 1994, Red Hen Press has maintained five unique programs: •Publishing: The annual release of approximately 24 books of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, with over 400 books released to date and distributed internationally. •Literary Events: Nearly 30 free or low-cost readings held annually, at a variety of venues in the Greater Los Angeles Area and New York City, featuring both acclaimed and emerging writers from throughout the U.S. •Writing in the Schools (WITS): Founded in 2003, this literary education program places published authors into underserved 4th -12th grade classrooms to conduct weekly writing workshops and provide free books to students from low-income families. •The Los Angeles Review: An online literary journal publishing emerging authors and excellent works of poetry, short fiction, and nonfiction from throughout the country. •Literary Awards: Red Hen proudly presents nine awards (totaling $12,000) each year to emerging writers. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Red Hen Press | 1540 LINCOLN AVE , PASADENA, CA 91103 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 406-1205 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Red Hen Press Inc will deliver free, six-week poetry writing workshops to 14 Los Angeles County classrooms and publish participating students’ work in a professionally bound anthology distributed at no cost. California Arts Council funds will provide instructor stipends, partial support for the full-time project coordinator, and partial support for the production and printing of student textbooks and anthologies. The program will serve at least 300 students, strengthening writing skills and cultivating sustained interest in the arts, reading, and writing through direct engagement with published poets and the publishing process. Funding would also strengthen California’s broader creative economy by supporting writers, teaching artists, editors, translators, and literary professionals whose work contributes to the state’s vibrant cultural infrastructure. | Since its founding in 1994, Red Hen Press has maintained five unique programs: •Publishing: The annual release of approximately 24 books of poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction, with over 400 books released to date and distributed internationally. •Literary Events: Nearly 30 free or low-cost readings held annually, at a variety of venues in the Greater Los Angeles Area and New York City, featuring both acclaimed and emerging writers from throughout the U.S. •Writing in the Schools (WITS): Founded in 2003, this literary education program places published authors into underserved 4th -12th grade classrooms to conduct weekly writing workshops and provide free books to students from low-income families. •The Los Angeles Review: An online literary journal publishing emerging authors and excellent works of poetry, short fiction, and nonfiction from throughout the country. •Literary Awards: Red Hen proudly presents nine awards (totaling $12,000) each year to emerging writers. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Unearth and Empower Communities | 1317 N Pearl Ave , Compton, CA 90221 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 242-8383 | 43rd | 65th | 35th | With support from the California Arts Council, UNEARTH and EMPOWER COMMUNITIES will expand arts programming for underserved youth in Compton and South Los Angeles. From middle and high school students creating community murals with master artists, to teens writing and directing Art Camp skits, to young children discovering printmaking for the first time, creativity is central to UEC’s mission. We believe arts and culture are essential to community vitality and youth development. Research shows students involved in the arts achieve stronger educational outcomes, which is why UEC begins arts engagement early, connecting youth to culturally rooted creative experiences that encourage lifelong participation in the arts. We anticipate providing arts programs to 500+ youth in 2026/2027. | Community Art Camp (Ages 3 – 9th Grade) A free, five-day summer experience where Compton youth dance, sing, draw, paint, and create together. Through the arts, students build confidence, critical thinking, collaboration, and creative problem-solving skills in a joyful, community-centered environment. Little Creators (Ages 0–4 + Caregivers) Free monthly sensory play meet-ups and parent connection classes designed for our youngest learners and their guardians. We support early motor skill development, creativity, and meaningful caregiver bonding through hands-on exploration. Compton Mural Project (7th–12th Grade) A three-month civic arts cohort guiding 25 youth through Compton history, social justice conversations, leadership development, and mural design. Students use art as a tool for voice, confidence, and community impact. Houses of STEAM (K–6 + Families) Hands-on STEAM learning for youth and their families through building projects, field trips, and mentorship from BIPOC professionals. We strengthen academic confidence and expand career exposure in science, technology, engineering, arts, and math. DiscoverU Enrichment Center (2nd–8th Grade) A safe afterschool space (Mon–Thurs, 3–6:30pm) focused on discovery, connection, and STEAM enrichment. DiscoverU supports academic growth, mentorship, and belonging for Compton youth. Pathways Program (Post-High School) Supporting graduates as they pursue college, career training, or entrepreneurship through scholarships, grants, and mentorship. We prepare students for long-term success and leadership. Compton Youth Career Pathways (Ages 14–24) A workforce development program offering job shadowing, community service, career exposure, and paid internships to prepare youth for sustainable employment and economic mobility. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Media Arts Center San Diego | 1100 Market Street Suite 326, San Diego, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 230-1938 | California's 53rd congressional district | California's 80th District | 78th District | With support from the California Arts Council, MEDIA ARTS CENTER SAN DIEGO (MACSD) will engage underrepresented youth (ages 6–25) across San Diego County through the Young Producers Project (YPP), a visual storytelling and media literacy initiative. YPP includes the Teen Producers Project, Emerging Makers, City Heights IdeaLab, Young Creators Media Camp, student outreach screenings, Teen Filmmaking Bootcamps, in-school and library workshops, and a Workforce Development Initiative. For over 33 years, these programs have expanded in response to growing community demand, including in neighborhoods in the lower quartiles of the Healthy Places Index (HPI). CAC funds will strengthen MACSD’s capacity to serve youth facing systemic barriers to culturally relevant media/digital tools. Through hands-on filmmaking, mentorship, screenings, and free field trips, participants amplify their voices and transform their communities through media arts. | MACSD programs, events, and film festivals are inclusionary—designed with audiences, participants, and community collaboration in mind. A summary of core organizational programs and services can be broken down into three categories: WATCH— We produce the San Diego Latino Film Festival (SDLFF), including the iVIE Awards and Student Film Festival, as well as screen films at our independent cinema the Digital Gym CINEMA. We also exhibit the artworks produced through our educational programming during family screenings. LEARN—Media education programs for youth fall under the umbrella of Young Producers Project (YPP) and include Young Creators Media Camps, Teen Producers Project, and the Workforce Development Initiative. CREATE—Tools for community-based media production and collaboration include: production training courses for independent filmmakers in San Diego; and Video Production Services, helping community groups make digital media presence available and affordable. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Sacramento Ballet | 2420 N Street Suite 100, SACRAMENTO, CA 95816 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 552-5800 | California 007 | District 6 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sacramento Ballet Association will expand access to professional ballet performances by providing up to 3,000 free tickets to the final dress rehearsals of NUTCRACKER and GISELLE. In partnership with local schools and community-based organizations serving youth across Sacramento, Sacramento Ballet invites youth and their families to attend these community rehearsals, removing financial barriers while creating a welcoming and inclusive entry point for the performing arts. | Sacramento Ballet celebrates its 70 years in 2024 as a highly regarded cultural asset renowned for artistic and production quality. We serve the entire Sacramento metropolitan region at the center of The Northern California Megaregion with a population of over 12 million, accounting for over 32% of California’s population. Sacramento Ballet is a cultural cornerstone and integral member of the Sacramento Arts community. More than 1 million people have enjoyed our performances, and many more participate in our School of Ballet, stage productions, and neighborhood, community, and scholastic outreach and engagement programs. Our international company of 22-classically trained dancers and second company of 13 aspiring Second Company pre-professionals call Sacramento home. Approximately 80,000 people attend performances annually; many more participate and train in our School of Sacramento Ballet, our programming for older adults, dance in schools, and outreach programs. Our mission is to enrich lives through the power of dance. The only professional ballet company in the region, we present classical ballets, contemporary works, and beloved holiday productions, captivating audiences with their artistry and athleticism. Our vision is to deliver transformational professional performances and programs in new and evolving delivery mediums; excellence in dance training and education; Second Company free community performances and premieres, and outreach to underserved populations, activating our community engagement for all. Sacramento Ballet’s programs for the community help make dance should be accessible to everyone. We provide free or low-cost dance classes in underserved neighborhoods, offer scholarships to talented students from diverse backgrounds, and bring the joy of dance to schools and community groups through special performances and workshops. Sacramento Ballet is a vital cultural asset in the Sacramento region, inspiring and enriching the lives of countless individuals through its dedication to artistic excellence, dance education, and community engagement. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $13,300.00 | Coronado Philharmonia Orchestra | PO BOX 180821 , CORONADO, CA 92178-0821 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 804-3627 | 50th Congressoinal District | 78th Assembly District | District 39 | The Coronado Philharmonia Orchestra’s Sound Equity program will deliver six free educational chamber music recitals and interactive workshops at public schools in Barrio Logan, San Diego. Building on a pilot at Perkins School in May 2026, the program will expand to additional campuses, including Monarch School, Logan Memorial Education Campus, and King-Chavez Academy of Excellence. Professional teaching artists, paid at fair market rates, will lead each session. CAC funds will support artist fees, transportation, and culturally responsive program materials. Designed as a sustainable, high-impact model, the series fosters meaningful engagement across multiple sites and encourages repeat interactions to deepen learning. Sound Equity expands equitable access to live classical music, supports youth creativity and self-expression, and removes financial, geographic, and cultural barriers to arts participation, serving approximately 1,000–1,200 students annually. | The Coronado Philharmonia Orchestra delivers a range of high-quality musical programs that serve the community through performance, education, and artistic development. Our core programs include: Mainstage Concert Series: A season of orchestral concerts featuring a diverse repertoire of classical masterworks, contemporary compositions, and guest soloists. These performances aim to engage a broad audience and elevate the cultural landscape of Coronado and the greater San Diego region. Young Soloist Competition and Concert: An annual program that identifies and showcases outstanding young musicians. Finalists are selected through a formal audition process and awarded the unique opportunity to perform as soloists with the Coronado Philharmonia Orchestra. This program fosters youth development, confidence, and excellence in performance. Community and Educational Outreach: The orchestra offers educational presentations, open rehearsals, and workshops for students and families. These initiatives are designed to build appreciation for orchestral music and to make live classical performance accessible to underserved communities and young audiences. Collaborative Projects and Local Partnerships: We actively collaborate with local arts organizations, schools, and cultural institutions to bring music into diverse settings and to support a vibrant artistic community. These efforts may include joint concerts, special events, or multidisciplinary performances. Through these programs, the Coronado Philharmonia Orchestra fulfills its mission to promote musical excellence, provide educational opportunities, and build meaningful connections between the arts and the community. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Blue Plum Productions, Inc. | 10432 RUSSELL RD , LA MESA, CA 91941-4391 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 647-9177 | With support from the California Arts Council, Blue Plum Productions, Inc. will produce the film Dear Sister. Dear Sister, follows Renee, a young woman, and Black Panther, grieving the violent murder of her mother. Renee will summon the courage to make her mark on the Black Panthers, and advocate for herself, and the women in the organization. Dear Sister has historical, and cultural significance not only to Oakland, California, the birthplace of the Black Panthers, but to our artistic team. Our lead artist, Taja Dominique, is an Oakland born filmmaker, who will tell this story with the sensitivity and care it demands. Grant funding will go towards the film’s production, and a film premiere in Oakland, California. Our goal is to honor and impact the Oakland community, and inspire artists and activists worldwide. | Since 2022, Blue Plum has run film and art programs with kids ages 10-18, and produced six films which were written, filmed, directed, and acted in by kids for kids. Our programs prioritize working with young Black and Brown creatives who do not have access to filmmaking tools like screenwriting and editing software, professional cameras, gimbals, and lighting equipment. In 2023, Blue Plum hosted a movie-making film club where 6th – 8th graders wrote, acted in, and filmed a fictional horror film called The Old Neighbor (2023). In 2024, we created a thriller film with middle and high schoolers called Entity (2024). They also created a documentary about their neighborhood and the impact that the “War on Drugs” had on its Black residents and the fabric of their community. In 2024, we worked with a supporting pregnant and parenting teen program, where we taught teen parents about filmmaking, storytelling, and screenwriting. The teens produced their own cooking show where they learned how to make their own baby food for their infants and toddlers. In 2025, we worked with high school student-athletes to create a documentary about their experience being both students and athletes. In the program, student-athletes gained experience in filmmaking, and experienced the therapeutic value of artistic creation. Our program activities grant participants access to all facets of the filmmaking process. Students learn about filmmaking, editing, costume and set design, and music production. We also provide them with specialized art materials: professional film cameras, digital art supplies, and editing, and screenwriting software, so students may gain experience handling industry-standard equipment. Near the conclusion of our programs, we teach participants how to copyright their creative work, and host resume writing and career readiness sessions so students can further their artistic goals in a professional capacity. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,369.00 | South Yuba River Citizens League | 313 RAILROAD AVE SUITE 101, NEVADA CITY, CA 95959-2851 | Nevada | Upstate | (530) 265-5961 | District 3 | AD01 | SD01 | With support from the California Arts Council, SOUTH YUBA RIVER CITIZENS LEAGUE 's WSFF PROGRAM will partner with the Nevada County Arts Council to expand arts and film access for youth across our region. Grant funds will support curated film programming for over 4,000 students from Nevada County and neighboring communities, bringing environmental and adventure storytelling directly to students. Funds will also extend WSFF's Art Exhibition into participating schools, inviting students to create and submit their own work for recognition at the Artists Opening Reception and Awards Ceremony during the flagship festival, where young artists will be celebrated with certificates of achievement. In honor of the Festival's 25th anniversary, a featured artist will visit classrooms ahead of the Festival to lead students in a hands-on mixed media art lesson. | WSFF builds stewardship through year-round programming and community events in partnership with schools and local agencies. During Wild & Scenic Film Festival, Nevada City and Grass Valley come alive as the heart of the environmental film and art world, screening over 100 films and workshops. SYRCL, in collaboration with the Nevada County Arts Council, invites artists each year to submit work for inclusion in the Wild & Scenic festival's signature joint Art exhibition. Nevada County is home to a vibrant and robust artistic community that understands the power of art to communicate, educate, and uplift others. This exhibition is a celebration of that community, offering artists passionate about the environment a meaningful platform to share their work and their message. Our school programs are designed to spark intellectual curiosity, empower, and engage local students, using film and art as entry points into deeper conversations about our shared responsibility to the planet. Through carefully shaped learning experiences, young people explore creativity in all its forms, using critical thinking skills and discovering their own voice as storytellers and advocates. Our WSFF Education Director, curates age-appropriate film programming and a standard-based curriculum across four grade bands (TK-2nd, 3rd-5th, 6th-8th, and 9th-12th) and provides educators with ready-to-use materials for the classroom. Arts programming is woven throughout the flagship festival, giving students and youth the opportunity to engage with professional filmmakers and artists and see firsthand how creative expression can strengthen their community. Each year, the festival screens 30+ films to schools, presents programming for over 3,500 students and teachers, and leads youth workshops and excursions suitable for the whole family. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | LA Choreographers & Dancers/ Louise Reichlin & Dancers | 351 S VIRGIL AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90020-1315 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 458-3066 | California Assembly district 34 | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, LOS ANGELES CHOREOGRAPHERS AND DANCERS INC will fulfill our mission’s core programs: Educational Projects, Live & Streamed Concert Performances, and our special projects, the San Pedro Festival of the Arts which will be its 20th year, and the Southern California Dance Directory. Funds will be used for operational costs and personnel pay. | Our organization's Core Programs and Services include arts education, concert performances, and special projects: the San Pedro Festival of the Arts, the online Southern California Dance Directory, and the Alfred Desio Tap Dance Project. Dance offers a unique opportunity to engage the diversity of those we serve, regardless of background or ability. 1- Our EDUCATIONAL PROJECTS enhance students' dance skills by sequential learning the CA VAPA Standards. Our Teaching Artists are our professional performers, with degrees and trained with our Director Louise Reichlin. Dance offers students an anchor of personal expression, a source of motivation, and a model to deal with life. Our multicultural/multi-disciplinary residencies allow students to develop creative ideas and problem-solving across subject areas and into their adult lives. Our projects take us throughout the city, serving mostly low-income youths in racially diverse communities located in the lower two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index. 2- We have consistently PRODUCED CONCERT PERFORMANCES since 1979, creating new works and performing in festivals. Concert performances are low-cost, often with students’ classes invited free. Artistic Director/Choreographer Reichlin created 105+ works on the company, with collaboration and input from our diverse dancers and our audiences. . 3- We regularly produce festivals, including The New Works Dance Festival in major theaters (‘80-’88) and Dance at Brand for the City of Glendale, increasing community access to dance. Our free SAN PEDRO FESTIVAL OF THE ARTS (SPFA) is in its 19th year. The last two inclusive SPFA's showcased dance forms from four East Indian traditions, African, Brazilian, Puerto Rican, Peruvian, Greek, Middle Eastern and Folklorico with modern, ballet, jazz, and hip-hop. SPFA attracts attendees from across the area. San Pedro is in the lower half of the HPI. 4- Free from its inception in 1995, our online SOCAL DANCE DIRECTORY has contact/information for 699 companies. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Young Audiences of Northern California | 57 Post Street #511 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94104-5028 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 974-5554 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Young Audiences of Northern California (YANC) will partner with two underperforming elementary schools to provide school-wide, culturally responsive arts programs that support student learning in the arts and the building of 21st century skills and Studio Habits of Mind while also providing California teaching artists with meaningful employment. | Young Audiences of Northern California (YANC) partners with our network of teaching artists to deliver arts education to schools and community centers through our Signature Core Programs: assembly performances, artist residencies, artist workshops, and professional development for classroom teachers. We work in four arts disciplines: visual art, music, theater, and dance. We provide maximum impact on student learning by ensuring that all of our programs are arts-focused, child-centered, outcomes-driven, and measurably effective. To achieve these qualities, all programs offer students the opportunity to: experience the art form demonstrated by a professional artist; understand the art form and its history and culture; create the art form; and connect their learning to other areas of study, and to their lives and world. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Muralism | 4804 LAUREL CANYON BLVD 104 , VALLEY VILLAGE, CA 91607-3717 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 590-2127 | 29th | 44th | 27th | With support from the California Arts Council, Muralism will cement the operational foundation needed to deepen our impact and build long-term sustainability as we move into our new Community Arts Space headquarters. Organizational growth has been powered by a small core team and highly skilled volunteers who routinely carry multiple roles. While this dedication has fueled strong program delivery, it limits our capacity for program development, evaluation, and expansion. A grant for general operating support will allow Muralism to support operational staff and focus on growth in the new location—empowering more artists with disabilities through training and employment, providing more predominantly Latino students at low-income Title I schools with free arts education, and serving more residents of disadvantaged neighborhoods where 2/3 of people identify as non-Caucasian with consistent, high-quality visual arts programming. | Muralism serves young adult artists with disabilities through arts instruction/employment services, low-income students with arts education, and members of economically disadvantaged neighborhoods with collaborative public mural making. The organization’s core program is the creation of public and school murals led by artists with disabilities. Mural designs are created in partnership between our artists and students or residents of local neighborhoods Upon student body/community approval, Muralism artists lead multiple mural painting workshops teaching surface preparation, transference onto the wall of the design laid out in a grid, and the specific artistic practices unique to mural painting. During Community or School Paint Days, artists with special needs and students/local residents work side-by-side on a project that beautifies, and strengthens, a local neighborhood or campus—getting to know and appreciate each other in the process. Completed murals are celebrated by all contributors in a public "Ribbon-Cutting Ceremony" that acknowledges the artwork, the special needs artists, and the contributions of students, families, and members of the neighborhood, as well as partner agencies (whether public, corporate, or nonprofit). Our primary activity is conducting experiential, participatory arts education out-of-school programming at Los Angeles Title 1 schools, where low-income students represent 47–94% of learners, determined by qualifying through California’s Free/Reduced lunch program guidelines. All artistic activities are free to students, teachers, families, and community residents. In parallel services, Muralism trains artists with disabilities in artistic and vocational skills such as form, line, color and professional conduct, workplace safety, and social interaction. Artists then receive paid on-the-job training and follow a professional progression leading to employment at Muralism or in the larger community. We also provide general art classes for those with special needs interested in moving forward with vocational services and to those for whom art is a personally enriching experience. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | MoBand | PO BOX 577937 , MODESTO, CA 95357-7937 | Stanislaus | Central Valley | (209) 480-0409 | With support from the California Arts Council, MODESTO BAND OF STANISLAUS COUNTY (MoBand) will strengthen and sustain its operations while expanding access to musical performances for musicians from 8th-grade graduates to senior citizens and increasing community engagement during the summer season and during the year. Grant funds will support essential personnel and operational costs for quality performances, broaden outreach and promotional efforts to connect with musicians, the community and audiences, as well as enhance programming that fosters learning and appreciate of music. Funding will also improve the accessibility of printed and digital materials and build organizational capacity to ensure greater operational efficiency, stronger fundraising efforts, and long-term sustainability. | The primary program is a six-concert summer series held at Mancini Bowl in Modesto’s Graceada Park, which is free and open to the public. These concerts attract thousands of community members each season and provide a fun outdoor space for families, friends, and neighbors to experience live music in a relaxed and welcoming environment. The Modesto Band of Stanislaus County (MoBand) boasts a 106-year-old history of commitment to the cultural life of Modesto and Stanislaus County. MoBand is truly a community band. There are no fees, no auditions and no attendance requirements. Any person who plays a band instrument and has graduated the eighth grade can participate, attend rehearsals, and play in one or all six summer concerts. Outside of the summer, there are also opportunities to play in MoBand “On The Go” and in concert ensembles at events such as The Salvation Army Kettle Kick Off luncheon or at the Modesto Nuts baseball games. In preparation for each summer concert, MoBand holds two weekly rehearsals. The season’s rehearsals function as an informal, tuition-free “band camp.” These rehearsals offer valuable educational and mentorship opportunities, particularly for younger or less experienced musicians. By playing alongside seasoned performers, emerging musicians gain firsthand experience in musical preparation, ensemble collaboration, and the discipline required to perform a full concert. This intergenerational exchange of skills and knowledge strengthens the local music community and fosters personal growth and confidence among youth participants as well as the more experienced participants. MoBand also offers scholarships to promising student musicians. These scholarships help recipients pursue their studies in music and support the next generation of artists and reinforcing MoBand’s commitment to community enrichment through music. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Nova Community Arts | 3421 GLENDALE BLVD , LOS ANGELES, CA 90039-1814 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 261-3837 | CA 30 | 52 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, NOVA COMMUNITY ARTS will increase the amount of program scholarships awarded to low-to-moderate-income artists in underserved Los Angeles communities, providing high quality arts education and access to materials, equipment, and studio space for artists to produce new work. We will also develop new educational programming based on demonstrated community interest, supply free art materials to student artists, and create a new paid role of Program Management Assistant to build the foundations of a young professional's career in the field of arts program management. This will be a part time position, building upon a previous internship that was offered in 2025, and will focus on assisting with the development of NOVA's public programs, including workshops, gallery shows and art fairs, as well as overseeing day-to-day operations in the studio. | We are dedicated to serving underfunded and underserved populations and creating inclusive and accessible spaces for our community. The need for accessible, community-based arts education remains significant in Los Angeles, where many adults face barriers to creative opportunities due to financial limitations and lack of inclusive spaces. NCA addresses this gap by providing affordable and affirming programs that empower individuals to express themselves, develop new skills, and connect through art. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Glenn County Arts & Culture | 715 5TH ST , ORLAND, CA 95963-1706 | Glenn | Upstate | (530) 321-3972 | 1st | 3rd | 1st | With support from the California Arts Council, Glenn County Arts & Culture (GCAC) will establish a new dedicated county arts agency for Glenn County, strengthening countywide access to arts and cultural participation. California Arts Council funds will support core organizational capacity, including leadership development, administration, community outreach, communications, and program coordination. Funds will help GCAC build from its first year of formation into a sustainable public resource for artists, youth, educators, families, and community partners. Informed by listening sessions in Willows, Hamilton City, Elk Creek and Orland, GCAC will prioritize bilingual outreach, youth engagement, family-friendly programming, public art, artist visibility, partnerships with schools and civic organizations, and creative opportunities for historically under-resourced rural communities. This support will enable GCAC to move from mentorship into full State-Local Partner service—rooted in Glenn County leadership, relationships, and community priorities. | Glenn County Arts & Culture provides emerging countywide arts leadership, coordination, networking, communications, and direct community engagement for Glenn County. Its core service is to build the infrastructure through which artists, youth, educators, families, civic partners, and cultural leaders can connect, share resources, and develop programs that reflect local priorities. Regular listening sessions inform programs and services and identify high priority services for youth, public art, bilingual outreach, family-friendly festivals, adult creative learning, artist visibility, school partnerships, and arts as a tool for healing, pride, and community connection. GCAC shares information, invites participation, collects community input, and promotes membership and artist engagement as the organization develops. It connects local creatives to its Upstate California Artist Directory, providing an immediate visibility tool for artists who might otherwise lack access to professional networks. GCAC implements Poetry Out Loud as a countywide youth arts program and is exploring school-based and community-based arts activities connected to murals, music, dance, storytelling, cultural celebrations, and creative leadership. As a new agency, GCAC does not seek to own all programming. Its role is to convene, promote, connect, advocate, document, and help partners open doors to arts participation across Glenn County. Over time, these services will expand to include professional development, a community arts calendar, public art partnerships, and small-scale artist support as funding allows. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Loco Bloco | 2781 24th St , San Francisco, CA 94110-4235 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 672-9798 | California's 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the CAC, Loco Bloco will strengthen its organizational capacity to sustain culturally rooted arts programming by supporting three key leadership positions — Managing Director, Artistic Director, and Percussion Instructor — who collectively oversee organizational management, artistic direction, performer training, and arts education programming. These positions support three annual productions, a year-round performing ensemble, arts education partnerships in two schools, community classes, and summer youth arts programming, and are integral to the success of the organization. As an Afro-Latinx cultural arts legacy organization based in San Francisco, that has served thousands of community members over the past 30 years, Loco Bloco is beginning a new era of intergenerational leadership while continuing to uplift Afro-Latinx cultural traditions, community wellness, artistic excellence, and equitable access to the arts. We request funding to support this change. | Our programs reflect the richness of the Afro-Latino diaspora, which celebrates both ancestral traditions and contemporary expressions. Our core programs and services involve approximately 400 community participants and professional performing artists and artistic groups annually. The majority of these participants are rooted in San Francisco's Latinx and African-American neighborhood communities. Our current programs and productions include: • Year round Open Community Classes for all ages at Brava Theater • Intergenerational Performing Ensemble • Arts Education in SFUSD schools (dance, percussion, stilt dancing) • Annual Productions ( Celebrate the Power of Women; SF Carnaval; Dia de los Muertos) • Cultural Exchanges (domestic and international) |
| General Operating Support | $12,000.00 | Original Scraper Bike Team | PO BOX 5367 , OAKLAND, CA 94605-0367 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 571-1721 | California's 12th Congressional District | 18th California Assembly District | 7th California Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, the Original Scraper Bike Team will expand its youth-led arts programming, merging bicycle customization with community-based creative expression. CAC grant funds will support hands-on workshops where participants transform bicycles into kinetic sculptures using signature techniques of vibrant duct tape and paint. These funds will cover artist-mentor stipends, high-quality decorative supplies, and the coordination of public "Ride-In" exhibitions that showcase East Oakland’s unique cultural heritage. By blending technical skill-building with artistic design, this project provides a creative platform for historically underserved youth to beautify their neighborhoods. These activities will culminate in a series of community showcases, fostering civic pride and increasing local engagement in the arts. This funding ensures the continued preservation and evolution of Scraper Bike culture as a recognized and impactful California art form. | The Original Scraper Bike Team operates at the intersection of cultural arts, workforce development, and public health. Our core programs are designed to provide East Oakland youth with a pathway from creative curiosity to professional mastery and personal wellness. 1. The Scraper BART Wellness Center & "The Shed" Our flagship program transforms retired transit infrastructure and park-based facilities into community "Safe Havens." Operating 30 hours per week, these sites serve as the physical anchors for all services. Residents access a free bicycle repair shop, nutrition workshops, and a sanctuary for social connection, bridging the gap in local resources. 2. Scraper Bike Workforce Lab (Workforce Development) This 350-hour vocational apprenticeship program professionalizes Oakland’s homegrown bicycle artistry. Participants ages 16–25 receive a "High Road" training experience, earning a living-wage stipend of $23/hr while mastering: Mechanical Engineering: Advanced bicycle assembly and maintenance. Artistic Design: Custom painting, frame modification, and "Scraper" aesthetic techniques. Business Operations: Shop management, inventory, and customer service. 3. "Rest & Repair" Somatic Healing (Public Health) Led by a Certified Community Health Worker, we integrate trauma-informed wellness practices directly into our mechanical workspace. This service provides: Somatic Grounding: Weekly sound healing and yoga sessions to regulate the nervous system. Healing Circles: Safe, facilitated dialogues that address community trauma and foster relational safety. Crisis Referral: Connecting participants to specialized mental health and social services. 4. "Members Only" Youth Empowerment A structured six-month engagement program for younger youth, focusing on civic engagement, environmental stewardship, and leadership. Through group rides and community service, members develop a deep sense of neighborhood pride and cultural literacy, ensuring the "Scraper" legacy remains a vehicle for positive community transformation. | |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Wonder Center | 421 Broadway #5026 , San Diego, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 398-5748 | California's 52nd Congressional District | California's 79th State Assembly District | California State Senate District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Wonder Center will expand its art and wellness programming to provide youth, especially those navigating adversity, with meaningful access to creative experiences that support mental health, healing, growth, and self-expression. Funding will support in-school and community-based programming where youth engage in visual arts, storytelling, and other creative practices to explore identity, process life experiences, and build confidence. Youth will play an active role in shaping programming, ensuring their voices, ideas, and perspectives are reflected in the work. Local artists will serve as mentors and guides, leading culturally grounded experiences that reflect the community and uplift diverse narratives. Through this work, youth will strengthen critical life skills, build connections, and develop confidence to express themselves and navigate their future. | Wonder Center core programs and services are designed to meet individuals where they are, responding to pressing realities while supporting long-term healing and growth. A central part of this work is our art and wellness programming; through which we create safe, supportive spaces where youth can process mental health challenges and build emotional resilience through creative expression. Grounded in the belief that art it both powerful and accessible, this program not only fosters healing, connection and self-discovery, but also intentionally supports local artist development. We uplift artists as leaders, mentors, and guides, equipping them to shape creative spaces and nurture emerging voices. This is especially impactful for youth, as it helps both artists and participants explore identity, strengthen confidence, and find their voce through meaningful artistic practice. At the same time, Wonder Center operates though a broader set of programs that address the full scope of participants' lived experiences. Our care package program provides essential items to individuals facing hardship, serving as both immediate support and an entry point to additional resources and opportunities. Community beautification projects bring residents together to revitalize shared spaces through art and service, fostering pride, connection and a sense of ownership within the community. We also offer faith-based guidance as an optional source of encouragement and reflection, providing a welcoming space for spiritual support and peace. Together, these programs reflect a holistic approach, where arts, wellness and community-based supports work in tandem to ensure people are not only creatively engaged, but also empowered, stable, and positioned for long-term growth. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Cantilever Collective | 3773 Crenshaw Blvd , Los Angeles, CA 90016 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (202) 253-8916 | The CAC General Operating Support grant will provide Cantilever Collective with the resources to build systems and stabilize our administrative operations through: consistent compensation for our admin team composed of our four co-founders, formalizing our advisory board, attending professional development opportunities, and hiring an arts consultant to provide guidance on best practices in non-profit management and development. The funding will also support marketing and communications costs (website upgrades, social media development, accessibility tools), and the costs associated with our collective’s ongoing creative practice (space rentals, production fees, materials/supplies). | Cantilever Collective's core programming consists of (1) professional performances and (2) intergenerational improvisation-based movement and music classes/workshops. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | INCA, the Peruvian Ensemble | 2261 KENILWORTH AVE P.O. Box 39813, LOS ANGELES, CA 90039-3009 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 806-1059 | 28th Congressional District of California | District 43 | State Senate District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council INCA, the Peruvian Music & Dance Ensemble will produce INCA's 45th Anniversary concert at the Colony Theater in Burbank, pay rent for the Flamenco Dance Studio, in Alhambra, CA, where the dancers of INCA rehearse and hold community Peruvian dance lessons, The Remo facilities in Santa Clarita, where INCA holds the International Cajon Festival, and the expenses connected with these events, plus to compensate the dance instructors, musicians, dancers, and staff for all these various events, as well as rehearsals involved to develop and practice the repertoire. These funds will also be used by INCA to compensate administrative staff responsible for coordination and supervision, accounting, promotion, and technical personnel responsible for live sound and documenting the Colony Theater concert, as well as costume storage and transportation. | INCA provides performances at schools, libraries, theaters, colleges, universities, Senior citizen centers, festivals, museums, and private events, as well as workshops and master classes featuring, as mentioned above, the multi-cultural music and dance forms from Peru. Since 1982 "INCA" has gained steadily in artistic excellence and in reputation as one of the west coast's leading ethnic performing companies. Concerts at the Hollywood Bowl, the Redlands Bowl, The Fresno Civic Auditorium, Zion National Park, El Paso's El Chamizal Amphitheater, Santa Fe's Greer Garson Theater, Albuquerque's S.B.C.C., Colorado State University, Colorado College, etc., are true indicators that the company has a feisty following throughout California and the western states. In '93-'94 "INCA" performed at Mingus Auditorium in Cottonwood, AZ; at the Luther Burbank Ctr. for the Performing Arts in Santa Rosa, CA; Saddleback Community College in Mission Viejo, CA; in ‘95 at the Detroit Institute of Art. Throughout the years INCA toured throughout California aided with touring grants from the California Arts Council. INCA also produced and presented "Fiesta Peru", a festival of Peruvian music and dance, in 2005, 2006, 2007, and 2008, “Fiesta Argentina”, Argentine Tango and Folklore music and dance, at the Ford Amphitheatre. In 2007 INCA produced the “40th Anniversary Concert Tour” presentation in Los Angeles of the emblematic group from Chile “Inti-Illimani” at the Ford. In 2008 INCA participated again at the Summer Sounds program at the Hollywood Bowl for a two week engagement, and at the Paul Getty Museum in connection with their Peruvian exhibit. INCA does shows at parks/schools and libraries through the Music Center of L.A. County. Every year INCA holds the International Cajon Festival at the Remo facilities in Santa Clarita (simultaneously held in Peru, Japan and other countries), and the dancers offer community Peruvian dance lessons at the Flamenco Dance Studio in Alhambra. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Lightning Rod Theater | 3536 DUNN DR , LOS ANGELES, CA 90034-4909 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 204-4883 | With support from the California Arts Council, LIGHTNING ROD THEATER will discover, develop and nurture US veteran, BIPOC and LGBTQ stories through our interaction and interviews with marginalized Los Angeles communities and bring their narratives to the stage in wildly inventive theatrical performances. | Our continuing core programs and services include: WE GOT YOUR SIX - a veteran-initiated storytelling series where veterans learn how to write a dramatic monologue or short scene from their experience and craft it for a live online or theatrical performance. LIGHTNING IN A BOTTLE - Our play development series where we read and workshop new works, with an emphasis on those written by LGBTQ and BIPOC playwrights of the Los Angeles intimate theatre community. Mounting theatrical productions where we tell stories never heard from voices often ignored and supporting Los Angeles' intimate theatre infrastructure through theater and rehearsal space rentals and artist salaries. Immediately after incorporating as a 501(c)3 nonprofit, Lightning Rod Theater: Began an engagement with the Los Angeles Unified School District and McBride Special Education Center to bring in dozens of actors from across LA's 99-seat theatre community to perform children's books for READ ACROSS AMERICA. We've given hundreds of differently abled students their first theatrical experience. Mounted theatrical productions about, by and for veterans of the US military, beginning with WOOF-WOOF (2014, Encore Award; Spirit of the Fringe Award) through most recently, WE GOT YOUR SIX (Encore Producers Award). Produced theatre shows on LGBTQ and BIPOC themes: CRAFTSMAN (2016 Encore Award; Best Play and Best Comic Performance); THIS SIDE OF SWEETWATER (2017) and SWIMMER'S EAR (2021). Began our Lightning in a Bottle play development program, giving many plays their first readings or workshops, including early versions of the US veteran penned WE GOT YOUR SIX and our 2024 production MEDEA COMES TO OUR TOWN. Used Lightning in a Bottle to pivot into producing online content during the Covid-19 pandemic: SWIMMER'S EAR and other plays. Mounted theatrical productions that pushed the art form into brave, innovative thematic and artistic territory. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | monca | 900 ESPLANADE , CHICO, CA 95926-3909 | Butte | Upstate | (530) 487-7272 | 1st | 3rd | 4th | With support from the California Arts Council, The Museum of Northern California Art (monca) will continue to pursue our mission: “To make art accessible and promote awareness of Northern California artists through collections, exhibitions and educational programs.” Funding will allow monca to deepen our commitment to equitable access, expanding outreach to rural and historically underrepresented communities within the North State, as well as increasing accessibility. We will continue to serve as a welcoming, inclusive space where diverse audiences can experience high-quality exhibitions, participate in meaningful arts education, and engage with the cultural narratives that shape our region. $30,000 in General Operating Support ensures our organizational stability as we focus more intently on these pursuits. | monca provides rotating art exhibitions, field trips, educational programs and events. The vision of the Museum of Northern California Art (monca) is to be a vehicle for communities in the region to experience and create art for the sake of enjoyment, expression, social cohesion, innovation and communication. The museum will improve public perception of art by creating vital educational programs that inspire enthusiasm and increase the quality of life for artists, art enthusiasts and the public at large. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | A PLACE OF HER OWN | 1890 Bryant St., 302 1890 Bryant St., 302, SF, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 722-4296 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, A PLACE OF HER OWN (PLACE) will pilot accessible public engagement approaches that adapt selected PLACE-informed practices into flexible entry points for reflection, dialogue, transformation, and community participation. Building on over 15 years of community-rooted arts-based practice, PLACE will work with SF Bay Area, Central Valley alumni and community partners to gather feedback, mentor alumni collaborators, and collaboratively adapt creative prompts and participatory engagement activities based on accessibility, cultural relevance, and Central Valley community needs. Alumni gatherings and cross-regional exchange will support ongoing relationship-building while helping CV alumni integrate selected PLACE-informed practices into their own family, cultural, and community contexts. | We offer both hybrid, online and in-person lectures, workshops, art exhibitions, lectures and artists' talks sharing intuitive art making processes for self-reflection, and group discussions that help explore and release generational family trauma. Participants learn to recognize and release family patterns, including links to cultural and societal dysfunction. To claim aspirations, and grow self-agency, the art workshops, artists' talks and exhibitions provide platforms to artistically answer the question: “If you had a place of your own, what would it be?” This is an artistic exercise in "self-agency". Below is our foundational hybrid, virtual and in-person workshop series with the goal of providing a printed book and an online e-learning engagement tools. Foundational WORKSHOP Residency series in 4 PHASES (These are customized to suit the community or organization we are serving.) Preparation: Turning on Your Intuition: Intuitive Collage. Experience accessing your intuition and turning off your analytic brain. Phase 1: Exploring Hungry Ghosts– Identifying family patterns and beliefs holding you back. Phase 2: Releasing Hungry Ghosts– Art projects to release beliefs and patterns no longer serving you. Practicing self-acceptance and forgiveness. Phase 3: Claiming My PLACE– Intentional Art creation in answer to, "If you had a place of your own, what would it be?" as practice embodying new beliefs. Phase 4: Proclaiming My PLACE– The Exhibition/Artists’ Talk. A public statement of what you want for your life. Practice overcoming fear of judgement. Leadership Development: PLACE works to provide alumni with opportunities for deeper healing and to practice new felt self-agency into leadership. Alumnae are invited to participate as exhibition artists, workshop facilitators, speakers, event coordinators and community workshop collaborators. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | A PLACE OF HER OWN | 1890 Bryant St., 302 1890 Bryant St., 302, SF, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 722-4296 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, A PLACE OF HER OWN (PLACE), an arts-based healing practice serving women of color, gender-expansive people, immigrants and their descendants, and historically marginalized communities across Northern California, will maintain PLACE headquarters at 1890 Bryant, where staff coordinate programming and partnerships and alumni gather for trauma-informed community arts workshops, mentorship, and leadership development. Funding will sustain core organizational functions including facilitation, outreach, administration, alumni leadership development, and culturally responsive community engagement while expanding community access to PLACE practices through alumni mentorship and shared creative learning. Through intuitive artmaking, storytelling, dialogue, and exhibiting artwork in community, PLACE participants and alumni heal intergenerational trauma, cultural silencing, grief, and inherited survival patterns while building leadership, visibility, connection, and self-agency. | We offer both hybrid, online and in-person lectures, workshops, art exhibitions, lectures and artists' talks sharing intuitive art making processes for self-reflection, and group discussions that help explore and release generational family trauma. Participants learn to recognize and release family patterns, including links to cultural and societal dysfunction. To claim aspirations, and grow self-agency, the art workshops, artists' talks and exhibitions provide platforms to artistically answer the question: “If you had a place of your own, what would it be?” This is an artistic exercise in "self-agency". Below is our foundational hybrid, virtual and in-person workshop series with the goal of providing a printed book and an online e-learning engagement tools. Foundational WORKSHOP Residency series in 4 PHASES (These are customized to suit the community or organization we are serving.) Preparation: Turning on Your Intuition: Intuitive Collage. Experience accessing your intuition and turning off your analytic brain. Phase 1: Exploring Hungry Ghosts– Identifying family patterns and beliefs holding you back. Phase 2: Releasing Hungry Ghosts– Art projects to release beliefs and patterns no longer serving you. Practicing self-acceptance and forgiveness. Phase 3: Claiming My PLACE– Intentional Art creation in answer to, "If you had a place of your own, what would it be?" as practice embodying new beliefs. Phase 4: Proclaiming My PLACE– The Exhibition/Artists’ Talk. A public statement of what you want for your life. Practice overcoming fear of judgement. Leadership Development: PLACE works to provide alumni with opportunities for deeper healing and to practice new felt self-agency into leadership. Alumnae are invited to participate as exhibition artists, workshop facilitators, speakers, event coordinators and community workshop collaborators. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | GAPA FUND | 2155 Ocean Ave , San Francisco, CA 94127-2707 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (323) 376-8898 | 11th District of California | State Assembly District 19 | State Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, GAPA Fund will co-produce the Bay Area premiere of Thursdays Come at Morning, a new play by Native Hawaiian playwright Lee Cataluna based on an original story by Les J.N. Mau, with director Jeff Liu. The production centers two older queer Asian American men navigating grief, estrangement, and the possibility of love—a story rarely seen in professional stages. Performances will be held in San Francisco, and include an opening night artist talkback with the cast and creative team. CAC funds will support artist fees for the Queer & Transgender Asian & Pacific Islander (QTAPI) cast, crew, and creative team; venue and equipment rental; accessibility accommodations including ASL interpretation and a relaxed performance; and community outreach. All grant activities take place October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027. | GAPA Fund supports four ongoing cultural programs. GAPA Theatre is an intergenerational collective of QTAPI writers, performers, and storytellers who develop original work through skills development workshops, public readings and full productions. Workshops are facilitated by established and practicing QTAPI artists and cover writing, acting, and directing. Recent productions have been presented in collaboration with the Asian Art Museum, Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center, Legion of Honor Museum, Bindlestiff Studio, Z Space, and Brava Theater. GAPA Theatre regularly partners with API and LGBTQ+ artists and organizations, fostering creative exchange and expanding opportunities for community-based storytelling and performance across the Bay Area. GAPA Men's Chorus, established in 1989, is an ensemble of 40+ QTAPI performers presenting multilingual repertoire spanning cultural traditions and musical styles at community events and cultural festivals locally, nationally and internationally. One of the longest-running ethnically based queer choral ensembles in the country, the Chorus has performed continuously for over three decades, offering a safe and affirming space for queer and trans API men to find fellowship and build community through song. GAPA Dance provides movement-based performance opportunities for QTAPI artists to explore identity and resilience through choreography and collaboration. The program frequently participates in multidisciplinary showcases and collaborative productions across the Bay Area, supporting artists at all levels of experience and from a wide range of creative and cultural backgrounds. GAPA Runway is a long-running cultural showcase celebrating QTAPI identity through performance, fashion, and community gathering. As one of San Francisco's most enduring and beloved QTAPI cultural events, Runway highlights both emerging and established artists and regularly features collaborations with API designers, performers, and creatives from across the region. All four programs are free or low-cost to participants and together engage dozens of artists and present original work to a diversity of Bay Area audiences each year. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Justice for My Sister | 1000 North Alameda Street, Ste. 240 , Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 533-3706 | California's 34th congressional district | 52 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Justice for My Sister will implement a Short Film Launchpad Writers Room and Masterclasses, building on prior success of this program where emerging filmmakers of color develop short films through workshops, mentorship, and industry engagement. Participants will collaborate in a structured writers room and refine their scripts for presentation in a public Pitch Forum. Participants interested in production receive mentorship from professional filmmakers in their respective departments during the masterclasses. Select scripts will be greenlit for production (funded separately). The program strengthens storytelling craft, builds pathways into the film and television industry, and supports early-career screenwriters in producing finished scripts and early-career filmmakers in preparing for production of portfolio-ready films. Funds will support artist stipends, mentor fees, guest speakers and venue rentals for Pitch Forum. | Our programs aim to elevate the voices of emerging filmmakers of color who don't see themselves represented in the TV and film industry due to nepotism, unpaid internships and exclusionary hiring practices. We also give access to arts to youth and families in communities of color where an arts education is sorely lacking. Our programs serve over 2000 individuals annually through three focus areas: Youth Leadership: - Nuevas Novelas: A storytelling, environmental justice and community engagement intensive for teens of color creating documentaries. - Teen Dating & Healthy Relationships: Socio-emotional and media-literacy workshops to equip students with knowledge about the cycle of violence, its normalization in the media, and how to recognize signs to prevent it. Workforce Development: - BIPOC Sci-Fi Screenwriting Lab: Selected fellows author original sci-fi and fantasy TV pilot scripts through a lecture series and one-on-one mentorships. Fellows exhibit excerpts of their scripts in a table read. - Production Assistant Certification: A job-training initiative that provides 30 participants annually with their first paid industry job. Participants receive on-the-job training and subsequent paid job placements on BIPOC-led film productions. - Video Diaries: First-time filmmakers create autobiographical documentaries. - Short Film Launchpad: A career-bridging initiative where graduates pitch, produce, and screen original short films, taking on key creative roles. Systems Change: - Trauma-informed Storytelling: Designed to provide arts organizations' staff with new strategies to provide their program participants experiencing trauma with tools to reframe their stories. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Art in the Park | 5568 Via Marisol , Los Angeles, CA 90042 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 379-5718 | California's 34th congressional district | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, ART-IN-THE-PARK COMMUNITY CULTURAL PROGRAMS artist Teresa Flores will engage youth though Exploring Southern California's unique food history and its connection to racial solidarity and accessibility through a series of food tastings, cooking demonstrations and art workshops. Project funds will provide art materials, food supplies and materials for 8 workshops, 100 take-home kits to support food and art accessibilty, as well as the packaging and design of each kit. Guest speakers and chefs, a project advisor, artist assistant and project documentor will round out the team and be paid for their contributions. The project will culminate with a community cook-off and the publication of a zine authored by participants. | For more than 20 years, our artist-run, multi-generational community space has provided access to the arts in Northeast LA, serving as an incubator for diverse, grassroots public programming. Some of our core programs include Community Arts—an ongoing series of artist-led projects; our Artist-in-Residency program; Community Band; and Community Arts—a weekly all-ages band and arts workshop that happens on Saturdays outside in the park. We have ongoing music, art, and movement classes during the week and ongoing art exhibitions. We build opportunities alongside the people we serve, fostering the development of the artists, musicians, dancers, and cultural workers who drive our programs. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Nevada County Arts & Culture | PO BOX 1833 , NEVADA CITY, CA 95959-1833 | Nevada | Upstate | (530) 718-0727 | California's 3rd congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council’s State-Local Partner program, Nevada County Arts & Culture will sustain its role as the county-designated local arts agency serving Nevada County and the surrounding Sierra region. Funds will support core staffing that enables equitable public programming, technical assistance for artists and organizations, youth arts education through Poetry Out Loud, and implementation of Culture Forward 2026–2032. State-Local Partner support ensures access to the arts across a deeply rural county with significant economic disparity. Funding will help maintain services for historically under-resourced residents, particularly those living in lower-quartile California Healthy Places Index census tracts, through Artist Accelerator, Art in Public Spaces, Sierra Poetry Festival, Business of Art professional development, and partnerships with schools, libraries, Tribal representatives, and community-based organizations. | Nevada County Arts & Culture’s Core Programs and Services can be understood across six interconnected areas. CORE PROGRAMS ARTS & CULTURE PLANNING / CULTURAL INFRASTRUCTURE —Culture Forward 2026–2032 implementation —Administration of the Grass Valley–Nevada City and Truckee California Cultural Districts —Cultural asset mapping and regional cultural planning —Arts & Economic Prosperity research participation —Civic partnerships and public-sector collaboration ARTIST SERVICES & CREATIVE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT —Business of Art Symposium —Artist Accelerator —Technical assistance and grant guidance —Artist networking and convenings —Fiscal sponsorship / Arts Incubator —Artist directories and Calls to Artists listings ARTS EDUCATION & YOUTH DEVELOPMENT —Artists in Schools —Poetry Out Loud —Bass Dojo —Sierra Poetry Festival youth programming —Teaching artist residencies and workshops LITERARY ARTS & PUBLIC PROGRAMMING —Sierra Poetry Festival —SPF Fringe —Nevada County Poet Laureate Program —Youth Poet Laureate Program —Public readings, workshops, and civic dialogue programs PUBLIC ART, EXHIBITIONS & PLACEKEEPING —Art in Public Spaces —Cultural District activations —Art at the Airport —MUSE magazine and cultural storytelling initiatives —Creative placemaking and community exhibitions REGIONAL LEADERSHIP, ADVOCACY ®GRANTING —State-Local Partner leadership —Regional mentorship of Glenn County Arts & Culture —Upstate California Creative Corps legacy leadership —Arts advocacy training and legislative engagement —Regranting and Individual Artists Fellowship administration |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Dance Resource Center / DRC | 3773 Crenshaw Blvd , Los Angeles, CA 90016 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 425-3463 | 37 | 55 | 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Dance Resource Center of Greater Los Angeles (DRC) reimagines residencies to sustain local dance via DRC's HomeGrown Community Residency and Studio Support Program, bolstering Greater LA and Southern California creative economies. HomeGrown is a multi-site collaboration with local artists, dance studios, small businesses and community driven organizations across the County to provide free, accessible, well-furnished studio space to multi-discipline, multicultural and all ability individual artists and dance companies from predominantly marginalized groups at varying stages of career. Through HomeGrown, with support from CAC, DRC will respond to direct and vital needs via strategic partnerships and shared resources, strengthening art programming and delivering on the organization's mission as the effective centralized service organization, resource hub, network and advocacy center for arts, culture, and the local professional dance community. | DRC serves a varied constituency consisting of small to mid-sized dance companies, choreographers, independent artists, presenting venues, educators, agents and administrators, and regularly engages with the substantial and diverse population of Los Angeles. DRC is the central source, voice, and advocate for dance in a variety of community spaces. DRC is the only discipline specific dance service organization in LA County that offers specialized and creative options to meet the significant and vast infrastructural needs of its constituents. DRC’s events and programs expand opportunities for growth that foster leadership within dance, performing and cultural arts. DRC’s resources provide infrastructure in communities to not only evolve dance, but allow dance to be self-sustaining within communities. DRC believes in providing a platform for dance throughout Los Angeles so that communities have the creative control to formulate relative programming and art making, in order to best serve and represent their respective communities. Via nuanced, reliable, high quality and trusted services and programs, DRC actively supports leaders and stakeholders in Los Angeles so that there may be a comprehensive representation in arts leadership. DRC has a considerable membership program that offers discounts on dance events, conferences, showcases, one-on-one meetings with mentors, the ability to reach dance audiences through marketing services, and priority access to resources and opportunities. DRC advocates for LA dance on local, regional, and national levels through research and advocacy addressing the unique aspects that effect the LA-area dance and movement sector. Importantly, DRC collaborates with organizations across various sectors. DRC’s current programming has three areas of focus: Community (online calendar; convenings; weekly LA Moves newsletter; Day of Dancer Health; comprehensive Dance Directory; Marketplace); Administrative Support (consultations; fiscal sponsorship; marketing services; staffing; technical assistance) and Artistic Development (supported performances, HomeGrown residencies, and showcases). Additionally and as needed, DRC offers Emergency Relief Microgrants. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Dance Resource Center / DRC | 3773 Crenshaw Blvd , Los Angeles, CA 90016 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 425-3463 | 37 | 55 | 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Dance Resource Center of Greater Los Angeles (DRC) will continue to empower and bolster Greater Los Angeles and Southern California dance by providing timely, efficient, specialized, quality, and trusted dance and creative infrastructure support, resources and programming, including DRC’s renowned Lester Horton Awards. Through advocacy efforts on local, state and national levels, DRC will deliver on its mission of being the centralized, accessible dance resource service organization, network and advocacy center, reflective of the organization's diverse membership, constituents and local communities served. DRC's thoughtful, productive, flexible and nuanced approach to provide resources, services and program deliverables, in addition to the organization's impactful and transparent strategic partnerships, will further strengthen Southern California's professional creative community, and enhance the arts and culture sector's sustainability and growth as a whole. | DRC serves a varied constituency consisting of small to mid-sized dance companies, choreographers, independent artists, presenting venues, educators, agents and administrators, and regularly engages with the substantial and diverse population of Los Angeles. DRC is the central source, voice, and advocate for dance in a variety of community spaces. DRC is the only discipline specific dance service organization in LA County that offers specialized and creative options to meet the significant and vast infrastructural needs of its constituents. DRC’s events and programs expand opportunities for growth that foster leadership within dance, performing and cultural arts. DRC’s resources provide infrastructure in communities to not only evolve dance, but allow dance to be self-sustaining within communities. DRC believes in providing a platform for dance throughout Los Angeles so that communities have the creative control to formulate relative programming and art making, in order to best serve and represent their respective communities. Via nuanced, reliable, high quality and trusted services and programs, DRC actively supports leaders and stakeholders in Los Angeles so that there may be a comprehensive representation in arts leadership. DRC has a considerable membership program that offers discounts on dance events, conferences, showcases, one-on-one meetings with mentors, the ability to reach dance audiences through marketing services, and priority access to resources and opportunities. DRC advocates for LA dance on local, regional, and national levels through research and advocacy addressing the unique aspects that effect the LA-area dance and movement sector. Importantly, DRC collaborates with organizations across various sectors. DRC’s current programming has three areas of focus: Community (online calendar; convenings; weekly LA Moves newsletter; Day of Dancer Health; comprehensive Dance Directory; Marketplace); Administrative Support (consultations; fiscal sponsorship; marketing services; staffing; technical assistance) and Artistic Development (supported performances, HomeGrown residencies, and showcases). Additionally and as needed, DRC offers Emergency Relief Microgrants. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | SODE SCHOOL OF PERFORMING ARTS AND SOPHIE OLSON DANCE EXPLOSION INC | 4566 CLELAND AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90065-4131 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 913-5863 | With support from the California Arts Council, SODE School of Performing Arts (Sophie Olson Dance Explosion Inc.) will use General Operating Support funds to strengthen organizational infrastructure by hiring a part-time administrative/human resources professional for 37 weeks. This role will support the Executive Director, who currently oversees all departments, enabling a shift of focus toward creative leadership, curriculum development, and community engagement and outreach. Based on current California mid-level administrative rates, the position will be compensated at $24.34 per hour for approximately 25 hours per week, totaling $608.50 weekly for 37 weeks, or $22,514.50 in wages. The remaining funds of $2,485.50 will cover employer payroll taxes and administrative processing fees through our payroll provider, NetPay. This investment will increase organizational capacity, improve efficiency, and strengthen long-term sustainability of programs and community partnerships overall impact growth. | SODE School of Performing Arts provides high-quality, arts-integrated programming designed to meet the academic and social-emotional needs of diverse student populations. Our core services include multicultural dance and assembly programs that expose students to global cultures; in-school residencies that support standards-based learning; the Happy Dancing Brain program, (letting the brain dance before the body does), after-school STEAM workshops that blend science and the arts through hands-on, project-based learning; multicultural after-school programming that reflects and celebrates the communities we serve; and bilingual musical theater programs that enhance both performance skills and language development. SODE’s programs are designed with measurable impact in mind. Participating students demonstrate increased classroom engagement, improved confidence in self-expression, and strengthened collaboration skills. Schools report higher levels of student participation in arts programming and positive feedback from families, particularly in under served and multilingual communities. By partnering closely with educators, administrators, and parents, SODE ensures that programming is responsive, accessible, and aligned with community needs—creating lasting educational and cultural impact. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | ACMA | 3505 Camino Del Rio S STE 305, SAN DIEGO, CA 92108-4090 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 789-1811 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, ASIAN CULTURE AND MEDIA ALLIANCE INC will advance Youth Arts Action goals by removing financial, cultural, and digital barriers to arts access. During the grant period, we will serve approximately 600 youth ages 13–26 in the San Diego region through free, culturally responsive media arts training delivered across 50 workshops. Participants will explore identity, community, and advocacy through filmmaking, podcasting, and digital storytelling, producing 30 creative projects, including 5–6 short films, 12 public service announcements, and 20 podcast episodes reflecting their lived experiences. Media literacy workshops further equip youth to critically analyze the impacts of social media on mental health and well-being. Through a structured pathway of training, advanced instruction, and paid internships, ACMA empowers youth to become culturally literate storytellers, engaged citizens, and emerging media professionals. | As part of our mission to amplify diverse voices and empower immigrant and underserved communities through media arts, ACMA produces educational and cultural initiatives that promote storytelling, workforce development, and cross-cultural understanding. ACMA Media Arts Academy ACMA’s flagship program provides hands-on training, mentorship, and production experience for middle school, high school, and transitional youth from underserved communities. Through L.E.A.D. workshops and the TAKE ONE Vocational Youth Media Training & Internship Program, participants develop skills in filmmaking, podcasting, digital marketing, and media literacy while preparing for careers in the creative industries. Asian Pacific Voices ACMA’s multimedia storytelling platform features a documentary television series and weekly podcast highlighting the stories and cultural heritage of Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander communities. Through conversations with artists, community leaders, and changemakers, the program explores cultural identity and issues affecting immigrant and underserved communities. Asian Pacific Cultural Festival Asian Pacific Cultural Festival San Diego Our annual festival celebrates AANHPI cultural heritage while welcoming participation from diverse communities through performances, food, art, and educational activities promoting cultural exchange and unity. Projects ACMA develops projects exploring community health, food systems, and cultural storytelling. Food for Life is a health and wellness initiative through the Far South Border North (FSBN) Initiative promoting nutrition education for underserved youth through culinary arts and cultural food traditions. The Shared Roots Initiative is supported by the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UCANR), highlighting farming, land access, and sustainable food systems while amplifying the voices of small farmers and immigrant growers. Community Partnerships and Services ACMA supports nonprofit, educational, and community partners by providing affordable digital media production and marketing services that amplify their programs and community impact. Supported by youth trained through ACMA’s Media Arts Academy and internship programs, these services create workforce opportunities while strengthening partner storytelling, video production, and digital outreach. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Art in the Park | 5568 Via Marisol , Los Angeles, CA 90042 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 379-5718 | California's 34th congressional district | District 52 | District 26 | With CAC General Operating Support, Art in the Park Community Cultural Programs will enable us to maintain and expand our community-centered artist-led, all-ages programs by supporting our director, administrative staff, community teaching artists, cultural practitioners, and special event staff. Support will allow us to hold consistent free and low-cost programs and events. We are focused on growing our capacity to provide accessible, equitable, and thoughtful arts programming that uplifts our community through sustaining diverse cultural and artist-led programs in the community, which is essential to maintaining a vibrant, resilient, and culturally rich environment where all individuals can access and participate in the arts. | For more than 20 years, our artist-run, multi-generational community space has provided access to the arts in Northeast LA, serving as an incubator for diverse, grassroots public programming. Some of our core programs include Community Arts—an ongoing series of artist-led projects; our Artist-in-Residency program; Community Band; and Community Arts—a weekly all-ages band and arts workshop that happens on Saturdays outside in the park. We have ongoing music, art, and movement classes during the week and ongoing art exhibitions. We build opportunities alongside the people we serve, fostering the development of the artists, musicians, dancers, and cultural workers who drive our programs. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $25,000.00 | Women's Theatre Collective | 148 TOMLINSON DR , FOLSOM, CA 95630-7402 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 960-9809 | CA-3 | 07 | 06 | With support from the California Arts Council, WOMENS THEATRE COLLECTIVE will deliver You’ve Got the Power!, a free school-based theatre program for Title I elementary students in Sacramento, combining live performance, workshops, and classroom materials to support social-emotional learning and mental well-being. CAC funds will support artist fees, program development, and touring costs, enabling high-quality, culturally responsive arts learning for underserved youth while removing financial and logistical barriers. Building on existing school partnerships and prior touring work, including Safe at Home: The Jackie Robinson Story, the program will pair a developmentally appropriate performance with pre- and post-show materials, facilitated talkbacks, and interactive workshops led by teaching artists. Through drama-based activities, creative expression, and guided dialogue, students will explore emotional regulation, communication, empathy, and self-expression while building confidence, collaboration, and critical thinking skills. | WTC/VTC annually produces professional theatre productions, including world premiers, new works, musicals, reading list classics, Shakespeare and youth-centric productions that celebrate and support women, children and girls. We provide educational youth workshops, theatre arts classes and produce high-quality, education-based shows for K to 12th-grade students in Title 1 schools that inspire and educate children and young people. We use theatre and drama to help young people make meaning of their lives and the world around them. Themes include cooperation, confidence, communication, bravery, and physical and mental health. Our goal is to reach into communities with little to no theatre arts contact with the purpose of engaging students, opening doors to creative outlets, fostering greater emotional awareness and building community. We proudly offer community partnership opportunities for local non profits whose mission resonates with one of our productions. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Fulcrum Arts | 145 North Raymond Avenue , PASADENA, CA 91103 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 793-8171 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, FULCRUM ARTS will present "Mia Imani: D.R.E.A.M. LAB," which is part of the artist’s multi-year research project in collaboration with Dr. Gina Poe, UCLA Professor & Director of Brain Research Institute. Fulcrum Arts’ presentation will focus on two D.R.E.A.M. LAB elements: Maroon Noise and the Dream Objects series. Maroon Noise is a neuroscience-informed sonicscape, named after the “Maroons,” a historical term for communities of enslaved people who escaped plantations and formed independent communities. In line with Fulcrum Arts’ ethos, the Dream Objects draw from cultural traditions that explore consciousness, dreaming, and technology beyond dominant Western frameworks. Mia Imani’s research encompasses dream and sleep traditions and technologies from across the globe, including African and Asian head rests; Tibetan dream Yoga; Aboriginal Dreamtime; and Black dream texts from the Harlem Renaissance. | We focus on the intersection of art, science, and social change across the spheres of human creative achievement and reflect on the diverse cultural groups that comprise the Pacific Rim. This geographic focus favors a multicultural dialogue, decentralizing Eurocentric historical narratives in favor of more inclusive perspectives. The Emerge program supports a broad spectrum of independent artists, collectives, and arts organizations through fiscal sponsorship, professional development, and administrative services. These projects reflect a remarkable variety of artistic practice and dedication to the community that encourage and celebrate the creative expression of groups traditionally underrepresented in mainstream arts institutions; service organizations for artists; and projects that use the arts in the service of social practice. Fulcrum Arts also offers support to artists, independent arts organizations, and non-profit cultural organizations through fiscal sponsorship, professional development, consulting, and financial services. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Access Humboldt | PO BOX 157 , EUREKA, CA 95502-0157 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 443-9352 | With support from the California Arts Council, ACCESS HUMBOLDT will be able to maintain our staff, utilities, and general operating expenses related to our artistic programs. | Our core Programs and Services include: Digital Media Arts Education and Distribution of content across 5 Cable TV Channels and LPFM at KZZH 96.7 FM. Current programs include our Short Film Incubator and Film Festival: BOLDtFEST; Our Content Creation Contests with Student sections; Digital Media Literacy Classes open to Students aged 13-100; And ongoing one-on-one training in Digital Arts projects determined by the student and community. Our robust internship programs have launched careers in Digital Media Arts and Broadcast. We enjoy a strong relationship with Cal Poly Humboldt and College of the Redwoods where we continue to design innovative programs with their students and Youth. Our programs are awards-winning and have recently been recognized with 13 WAVE Awards nominations and 7 Wins. Our Executive Director is an award winning filmmaker and Digital Media Artist instilling her experiences into our programs with a focus on building a pipeline from youth Arts education to industry employment. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Green Room Theatre Company | 74300 OLD PROSPECTOR TRL , PALM DESERT, CA 92260-5618 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (442) 215-7039 | 41st Congressional District | California's 47th State Assembly District | California's 18th State Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, GREEN ROOM THEATRE COMPANY will use grant funds to bring theatre and dance performances and training directly to under-resourced communities, enhancing literacy, job skills, and community connections. Funds will be used primarily to support the following: (1) tour play(s) on Native American topics, such as a youth production of a play on missing indigenous women and the healing power of Native wisdom, as well as an adult production of the satirical "The Thanksgiving Play" by MacArthur Genius grantee Larrisa FastHorse; (2) bring the treasures of Shakespeare to wider audiences through adaptations, such as Spanish/English bilingual stagings; (3) expand ballet folklorico and theatre training for children, youth, and seniors; (4) produce staged readings of new works; and (5) tour an LGBTQ+-oriented drama. | GRTCCV provides: (1) classes for children, youth, and adults; (2) touring productions; (3) staged readings; (4) ballet folklorico training; and (5) performances of reinvented classics at pivotal Coachella Valley venues. Now in its 17th season, GRTCCV is focusing especially on serving the Central and East Coachella Valley, providing employment development training. Many alumni of our training programs have found paid theatre work in the Coachella Valley and beyond, or majored in theatre at colleges and universities. For many years, the summer conservatory’s large Broadway musical trained 60 young actors and technicians. However, responding partly to changes wrought by the pandemic, recently Green Room has focused on projects that address the needs of under-served local communities, such as bilingual theatre productions and plays that address important social justice issues. For example, we just concluded a successful Newish Shakespeare Festival. This included productions of "Como Te Gusta" (our family-friendly bilingual adaptation of "As You Like It") and "American Moor" (about a veteran African-American actor's experience taking on the role of "Othello" while working with an inexperienced White director). We also presented an immersive adaptation of George Orwell's "1984." Recently we expanded ballet folklorico classes in Indio public schools and spotlighted folklorico performances along with our theatre productions. GRTCCV is innovative in its performance venues, themes, and approaches. For example, we recently devised a play about the history of "Section 14," addressing a controversial episode when the City of Palm Springs in the 1960s forcibly evicted hundreds of mainly Black and Latine residents from a planned downtown redevelopment site. This innovative project used oral history and a community advisory committee to help develop the play. Our performances have been held in a 400-seat auditorium, a brew pub, bookstores, and even a cemetery in order to reach diverse audiences. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Vallejo Choral Society | PO BOX 162 , VALLEJO, CA 94590-0016 | Solano | Capital | (707) 653-6827 | 8th District | District 11 | District 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, VALLEJO CHORAL SOCIETY (VCS) will strengthen its general operations and artistic capacity as a symphonic choral organization serving Solano County and the greater Bay Area. Grant funds will support fair and competitive compensation for artistic staff and contract musicians, helping retain skilled professionals and sustain high-quality performances. Funds will also offset increased music rental and licensing costs, including access to contemporary and exclusive works, and support the commissioning and presentation of original compositions by diverse contemporary composers. In addition, general operating support will allow VCS to engage additional contract musicians as needed, expanding opportunities for local artists while enhancing the artistic experience for performers and audiences. | Vallejo Choral Society (VCS) is a 501(c)(3) volunteer performing arts organization founded in 1917 and one of the Bay Area’s oldest cultural arts organizations. VCS serves Solano County and the greater Bay Area, with singers participating from Solano and neighboring counties, including Napa, Contra Costa, Alameda, and Sacramento. VCS is open to residents ages 17 and older through its non-audition symphonic choir and welcomes participants of all backgrounds and experience levels. Solano County’s 447,643 residents represent a diverse demographic (32% Hispanic, 25% White, 18% Asian, and 12% Black), and our membership reflects and serves this community. To reduce financial barriers, VCS offers sliding-scale dues and does not turn away anyone with the interest and commitment to participate. VCS’s core programs include a non-audition symphonic choir and an auditioned chamber choir. Each year, VCS presents a series of choral concerts—typically in December, March, and May, primarily in Vallejo and Benicia, featuring choral masterworks alongside contemporary repertoire. VCS also supports local partners, including the Mare Island Historical Foundation, by performing at its annual fundraiser at St. Peter’s Chapel. VCS sponsors the Campanelli Youth Chorus (ages 7–17), providing music education in singing, basic theory, and music reading. High school and college students are encouraged to participate in VCS through waived membership and music fees. VCS provides free concert admission to all students to expand access to live choral performance. Together, these programs preserve a long-standing choral tradition while expanding equitable access to participation, music education, and live performance for Solano County residents. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Museum of Us | 1350 EL PRADO BALBOA PARK , SAN DIEGO, CA 92101-0000 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 239-2001 | CA-50 | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Museum of Us will engage underserved youth in the creation of a major public artwork through artist-led workshops culminating in a community-informed exhibition. The project will present “Raised Fist: Jordan Jamal Powell Karis” centered on the artist known for creating the raised fist sculpture at George Floyd Square in Minneapolis and informed by February 2026 community listening sessions with San Diego’s Black community. CAC funds will support artist fees and three youth workshops conducted during final sculpture creation and installation at the Museum of Us in Balboa Park, serving approximately 90–105 youth participants from underserved communities, particularly southeastern San Diego County. The sculpture will then anchor an exhibition at the Museum of Us before its planned relocation to the San Diego Black Arts + Culture District. | The Museum of Us (formerly the San Diego Museum of Man) sits on the unceded homelands of the Kumeyaay Nation. Founded in 1915, it began as a traditional anthropology museum defined by ethnographic collections presented through a Western academic lens. In 2012, the Board adopted a new strategic vision encouraging visitors to challenge assumptions and explore what it means to be human through immersive, interactive experiences. Our new name, announced in August 2020, reflects a public commitment to equity, antiracism, and decolonization. Current exhibitions include "Hostile Terrain ’94," "PostSecret," "BEERology," "Cannibals: Myth & Reality," "Maya Peoples: Heart of Sky, Heart of Earth," "Kumeyaay: Native Californians/Iipai-Tipai," "Ancient Egypt," and "hapa.me: 25 Years of The Hapa Project." The Museum also offers daily guided tours of the iconic California Tower. We steward more than 75,000 ethnographic materials, 300,000 archaeological resources, and 51,000 photographic images, guided by a decolonial framework. We work in partnership with Native American and Indigenous communities worldwide to support the repatriation of ancestors, sacred objects, and other materials acquired through colonial practices. In November 2025, "Race: Power, Resistance & Change" opened to the public following a multi-year, community-driven process, replacing "Race: Are We So Different?" as our signature exhibition. Looking ahead, the Museum is launching Community Project Galleries, an initiative from our five-year visitor experience plan, to transform key spaces into platforms for community voices and storytelling. In 2023 and 2024, the Museum was named a finalist for the Institute of Museum and Library Services National Medal, the nation’s highest honor for museums. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Embodiment Project | 3316 24th St. , San Francisco, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 418-5419 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Embodiment Project (EP) will continue developing and mentoring artists through our three dance companies: EP’s professional dance company, Wishbone (for ages 18+ looking to break into the professional dance world), and SEEDS (youth development program and dance company). In addition to these professional opportunities, we also will continue to host and lead our community programming which offers dance opportunities for a range of ages and skill-levels. | Embodiment Project’s year-round activities include street dance classes for youth and adults; workshops and conversations about hip hop histories; and annual performances of new evening-length works performed in both San Francisco and Oakland in order to reach broad audiences throughout the Bay Area. Our communities served include dance audiences, Bay Area POC communities, street dance enthusiasts, and youth. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $10,000.00 | Redwood Arts Council | 14636 Jomark Lane , OCCIDENTAL, CA 95465-0449 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 874-1124 | With California Arts Council support, Redwood Arts Council will bring professional chamber musicians from our Season Concert Series into K–12 schools across western Sonoma County—prioritizing under‑resourced and multilingual campuses. Grant funds will cover artist fees, travel, housing, meals, and program materials to enable extended school visits that include interactive assemblies, instrument demonstrations, culturally responsive mini‑performances, and master classes. These free, in‑school experiences introduce students—many of whom lack access to live music—to acoustic instruments, diverse musical traditions, and pathways to continued musical engagement. | Redwood Arts provides 6 to 8 concerts a year in small venues with accessibility and excellent acoustics. Ticket prices are $35-40 for adults, $10 for students and $0 for children with parents. The concert series is sustained by ticket sales and generous donors. In contrast, school budgets are bereft of support for providing art exposure. Grants, such as this, are necessary to fund this mission. We pay all the expenses to host visiting musicians for school assemblies at elementary and middle schools introducing classical instruments and music to the students, and 'master class' tutoring of music students in schools that are fortunate to have bands or sponsor music ensembles. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | CAT Corona | 815 W. 6th St. Suite 110, CORONA, CA 92882-3289 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 279-2298 | California's 42nd congressional district | District 60 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, CAT Corona will provide performing arts instruction and performance opportunities for more than 1,500 youth during the grant performance period. | Christian Arts and Theatre (CAT) is an after-school performing arts organization that offers classes for children ages 4 - 18 in every aspect of the performing arts: Singing, dancing, acting, musical theater, set, costume and lighting design for example. Enrolled students have the opportunity to audition and perform in main stage productions in the Corona Civic Theater for the community. CAT also partners with the Corona-Norco Unified School District and the YMCA to provide scholarship opportunities to many underserved children in our community to participate in our program |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | SUNSET MUSIC AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION | 1900 S PALM CANYON DR UNIT 52 , PALM SPRINGS, CA 92264-8949 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (323) 251-4940 | With support from the California Arts Council, SUNSET MUSIC AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION will strengthen the engine that keeps our music, education, and community work moving across the Coachella Valley. General Operating Support funds will help us build the infrastructure behind the scenes—program coordination, administration, marketing, accessibility, and systems that allow us to serve our community with excellence. Support will sustain our SMARTS Initiative (Sharing Music, Accessing Resources, Transforming Students), which places instruments into the hands of underserved youth while providing mentorship, scholarships, and real-world learning opportunities alongside professional musicians. It will also help us continue producing community-centered performances that amplify underrepresented voices, celebrate culture, and bring people together across generations. With CAC support, SMEF will be better positioned to grow responsibly, meet community needs, and create pathways for students, artists, and audiences throughout our region. | The Sunset Music and Education Foundation (SMEF) delivers community-centered arts programming through live performances, music education, youth development, and intergenerational cultural engagement across the Coachella Valley. Our signature SMARTS Initiative (Sharing Music, Accessing Resources, Transforming Students) provides underserved youth with instruments, scholarships, mentorship, and hands-on learning opportunities. Students gain real-world experience through rehearsals, soundchecks, workshops, and live performances alongside professional musicians. SMEF also produces concerts, festivals, and the Sunset Music Series, presenting professional artists across genres including jazz, blues, soul, Latin, comedy, and multidisciplinary performance. These events serve as both cultural celebrations and educational platforms that expand access to the arts. In addition, we present programs connected to Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Jazz Appreciation Month, Juneteenth, and other community celebrations that honor heritage, creativity, and shared history. Our programs also create welcoming spaces where older adults remain connected, engaged, and part of the cultural life of the community, reflecting our belief that the arts should enrich every stage of life. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Temecula Valley Writers and Illustrators | 30732 DORAL CT , TEMECULA, CA 92592-5907 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (949) 689-0103 | With support from the California Arts Council, Temecula Valley Writers and Illustrators (TVWI) will deepen its reach as one of Riverside County's most active literary and visual arts communities. TVWI currently serves more than 350 members across the Inland Empire (IE), spanning Riverside and San Bernardino counties into San Diego. These funds will provide honoraria for the professional writers and artists who lead our workshops, engage experts and consultants to expand access to our free programs, and sustain virtual programming for members who cannot attend in person. This investment will build the infrastructure and equity needed to reach a large, underserved, and geographically diverse region. More novelists, artists, poets, screenwriters, and storytellers will find a home in TVWI's inclusive, community-based programming as we grow into a sustainable regional arts resource. | Temecula Valley Writers and Illustrators began in 2023 as a gathering of three writers and has grown into one of Riverside County's most active literary and arts communities. As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, TVWI brings together writers, artists, poets, screenwriters, and filmmakers with a shared mission to support one another's craft, technique, and professional growth. Our members range from debut creators taking their first steps to award winners and New York Times bestselling authors, reflecting the full spectrum of creative experience our region has to offer. TVWI runs 15 distinct monthly programs, including educational monthly meetings with professional guest speakers, small group genre meet-ups (Romance, Sci-Fi/Fantasy, Book Marketing, Children's and Young Adult, Nonfiction, Screenwriting, Poetry, Humor, and RPG & Storytelling), spoken word and quick draw art events, co-working sessions, and vibrant Zoom workshops. Our Community Anthology Program, initiated in 2024, paired local writers with local visual artists to produce an independently published collection. This two-volume series became an Amazon Best Seller and provided many contributors with their first professional publishing credit. For many, this was the first time their creative work appeared in print. In 2026, we are producing two new volumes: one for artists and one for writers. Governed by a Board of Directors and run entirely by 26 dedicated volunteers, TVWI envisions the Temecula Valley as a regional hub for arts and culture — where the creative life is not a solitary pursuit but a shared, community-based experience open to everyone. Our monthly meetings draw an average of 60 attendees, and our geographic reach extends across the Inland Empire from Temecula, Murrieta, Menifee, Wildomar, Lake Elsinore, Hemet, and Perris, into North San Diego and under-resourced, unincorporated communities throughout the region. Virtual programming via Zoom and a video library ensure that distance is never a barrier to participation. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Seen&Heard | 8601 LINCOLN BLVD STE 180 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90045-8844 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 439-9804 | 36th Congressional District | District 61 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Seen & Heard will deliver three 18-week cohorts during the grant period that use performing arts training to help system-impacted youth build social-emotional skills, strengthen self-discovery, and move toward their educational, career, and vocational goals. Through writing, storytelling, performance, and other creative practices, youth explore themes such as mindfulness, conflict resolution, communication, emotional regulation, and self-expression in a safe, structured, and supportive environment. This arts-based approach gives students the chance to practice these skills in real time, deepen confidence in their own voice, and create meaningful artistic work as they progress through the program. CAC funds will support the delivery of this core arts programming for youth. | Seen & Heard’s core program is an arts-based, earn-and-learn cohort model for system-impacted youth in Los Angeles and the Antelope Valley, ages 16-24. Across 18 weeks, youth participate in trauma-informed performing arts training that helps them build communication, emotional regulation, conflict resolution, self-expression, and confidence. The program uses writing, storytelling, performance, and other creative practices to help youth explore who they are, how they relate to others, and how they want to move through the world. Our students move through a structured cohort experience that includes arts instruction, mentorship, community-building, and individualized support. As they progress, they develop their own creative work and participate in a public culmination event where they share an artistic project. That process helps students strengthen both their artistic voice and their ability to speak about themselves with clarity and confidence. We serve young people who are often navigating foster care history, justice involvement, trafficking survival, housing instability, and other forms of systemic harm. Many are also BIPOC, LGBTQ+, and low-income. Because of that, who leads the room matters. Many of our instructors, managers, and alumni leaders come from the communities we serve or share meaningful lived experiences with participants. That helps create trust and makes the program feel grounded in real understanding. Seen & Heard also provides a supportive community around the arts training itself. Students are given space to reflect, connect, practice, and grow in a setting built on care, cultural humility, and consistency. Our core service is not just access to arts learning. It is a structured creative community where young people can build skills they carry into school, work, relationships, and everyday life. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | L.A. Dance Project | 2245 E WASHINGTON BLVD , LOS ANGELES, CA 90021-3212 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 622-5995 | California's 34th congressional district | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, L.A. Dance Project (LADP) will, in partnership with Everybody Dance LA! (EDLA!), host a two-week, tuition-free Summer Dance Intensive for 25 Los Angeles youth ages 12–17 from historically under-resourced communities. CAC funds will support teaching artist instruction, curriculum development, daily lunch, and intensive and performance supplies, ensuring full access at no cost to participants. Students receive 5.5 hours of daily training in ballet, jazz, and modern dance, along with workshops in Bharatanatyam, Korean folk dance, and krumping as well as college and career readiness workshops. Students co-create an original choreographic work guided, centering their voices and collaboration. The program culminates in performance for their families and supporters. Impact is evaluated through surveys, teaching artist feedback, and staff observation, with over 95% reporting increased confidence and stronger dance skills. | L.A. Dance Project (LADP) is more than a dance company: it’s a resolutely innovative performing arts organization. Under the direction of celebrated choreographer Benjamin Millepied, LADP is committed to the pursuit of artistic innovation and excellence in contemporary dance. Founded in 2012, LADP opened the doors to its own studio and theater in downtown Los Angeles in 2017. Yearly, LADP welcomes over 6,000 people to its space for its multi-tiered programming and reaches thousands more through global touring. LADP’s programming falls into three channels: LADP Performs is the presentation of new choreographic commissions and revivals of historic work rarely seen by today’s audiences, performed by LADP’s company of seven dancers. Since its inception, LADP has performed in more than 100 cities across six continents and danced over 57 works by Artistic Director Benjamin Millepied and other renowned choreographers such as Martha Graham, Kyle Abraham, Justin Peck, William Forsythe, Bobbi Jene Smith, Merce Cunningham, and Ohad Naharin. Cross-genre collaboration is a hallmark of LADP with past collaborators including Mark Bradford, Barbara Kruger, Njideka Akunyili, and Andy Akiho. LADP Community is dedicated to nurturing the next generation of dance artists and audiences. These community initiatives are anchored by a free annual Summer Dance Intensive for students from Everybody Dance LA!, a peer non-profit, who reside in LA’s economically low-resourced communities plus free performances, Q&As, and masterclasses for public school students. For its broader community, LADP keeps ticket prices low (at $45 or less) and hosts free open rehearsals, Q&As, and community performances. LADP Presents is LADP’s programming arm that provides a platform to present works from affiliate artists in its theater. The core of LADP Presents is LAUNCH:LA, an annual, three-week artist residency which provides LA-based emerging dancemakers historically underrepresented in the field with critical resources to create and present new work. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $7,200.00 | california lgbt arts alliance | 1632 N. Laurel Ave. 238 , los angeles, CA 90046 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 661-0388 | California Assembly district 50 | District 50 | District 26 | With the support from the California Arts Council, The California LGBT Arts Alliance will be able to partially support our contractors, (Executive Director, newsletter editor and desktop publisher/webmaster) salaries as we recover from the diminishing public funding support and programming losses. | The California LGBT Arts Alliance organizes touring exhibitions,performances,panels, screenings, and dance/music events that strengthen the members’ artistic visibility.The Alliance works closely with the California Arts Council (CAC) and with other statewide, county and local infrastructure networks to disseminate information about funding issues, artistic opportunities and meetings to LGBTQ+ artists and organizations throughout Southern California. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $6,000.00 | IGBO Union | 2468 KAISER WAY , ANTIOCH, CA 94531-9064 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (925) 238-8009 | 10th Congressional District | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, IGBO UNION will sustain and expand year-round, community-based arts programming from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, serving African diaspora communities in Northern California. Funds will support artist and instructor stipends, program coordination, venue rentals, and culturally specific materials for free and low-cost public programs. IGBO UNION will present multidisciplinary artistic programming, including traditional and contemporary Igbo music, dance, storytelling, fashion, and visual arts through its annual cultural festival, community workshops, and youth mentorship initiatives. These intergenerational programs will engage diverse audiences, strengthen cultural identity, and promote cross-cultural understanding. By increasing access to culturally relevant arts experiences, IGBO UNION will uplift underrepresented voices and foster an inclusive arts ecosystem across California. | We work to enrich, share and reflect Igbo culture through social, cultural, recreational and educational services. Our objective is to fully realize individual and collective potential through meaningful services which honor Igbo heritage and enhance the quality of life in California. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | KALADHAARA ARTS ACADEMY | 4831 White Pine Dr , Folsom, CA 95630-6022 | Sacramento | Capital | (405) 334-6861 | 7th Congressional district of California. | District 8 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council will support general operating expenses, including instructional staff compensation, studio rentals, and essential administrative infrastructure. This support will sustain year-round programming, maintain affordable access, and expand outreach and performance opportunities. Kaladhaara Arts Academy is a community-rooted organization providing culturally specific arts education, performance, and outreach across Folsom, Mather Field, and Roseville. Serving approximately 200 students annually and producing over 35 performances each year, the organization demonstrates strong capacity, consistent programming, and sustained community demand. Kaladhaara serves a growing audience of community members and arts patrons through performances that are open to the public and designed to be accessible to diverse audiences. Funding will also enhance production quality through continued investment in stage, lighting, and audio equipment, ensuring ongoing artistic excellence and broader public engagement. | The organization provides year-round training in Bharatanatyam dance, Carnatic music, and devotional Bhajans through a standards-based curriculum that includes level placement, structured syllabi, and a biannual assessment cycle. Students receive ongoing individualized feedback, ensuring that instruction is responsive to different learning needs and that all participants—regardless of experience level—have clear pathways for artistic growth. One-on-one training on a need-be basis is provided to address the student’s weak areas. Additionally, Yoga, meditations are included as mandatory topics to sharpen the student’s capabilities at a holistic level. Kaladhaara invites esteemed performing artists of various classical art forms from India and around the world, and hosts frequent performances, lectures, demonstrations and workshops. Our values: 1. Personalized dance instruction customized based on age and needs of the student 2. Performances for local organizations for fundraisers and charities 3. Yearly workshops with esteemed artists from India 4. Yearly Adavuthon to revisit basics from time to time. 5. Original thematic productions, dance ensembles and recitals performed by students 6. One-on-one preparation for Salangai pooja and Arangetram |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $6,000.00 | Asociacion Cultural Los Angeles | PO BOX 11713 , CARSON, CA 90749-1713 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 238-6772 | California's 44th congressional district | District 64 | District 35 | have the funding to expand our weekly mariachi music instruction program for youth and increase the number of students currently enrolled. Our goal is to offer classes throughout the school year, and perhaps a summer session, if funding allows. And, vocal instruction for additional students would enhance our impact and enrich the musical experience of these new mariachi voices. General Operating Support funding will enable ACLA to continue operating as an accessible cultural anchor organization that uplifts historically under-resourced communities through high-quality arts education, cultural preservation, and inclusive community engagement. The next step in our journey will be to establish a mariachi program in the City of Lynwood to enrich the lives of students and their families by celebrating their cultural heritage and traditions. | The Asociación was formed in November 1999 as a volunteer association and incorporated in March 2005 as a California corporation. The Asociacion Cultural Los Angeles's (ACLA) sole program is the Mariachi Academy. Its mission has been to foster opportunities that allow children and youth to develop a strong personal identity through music. The ACLA understands that self-esteem has a big part in how a child feels about his/herself and also how much they enjoy other things in their lives. The Mariachi Academy works to increase the students’ understanding of who they are as people by teaching them the rich history of one of the most cherished music forms in the world - Mariachi. ACLA offers Mariachi instruction for children ages 5-20. Courses are offered in violin, vihuela, guitar, and trompeta. Separate classes in Mariachi ensemble and voice are also offered. Students participate in numerous performances throughout the Los Angeles region. Performances are an important part of the children's growth and development as musicians and future leaders. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Oakland Art Murmur | 490 Lake Park Avenue PO BOX 10112, OAKLAND, CA 94610-0112 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 842-6876 | California's 13th congressional district | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oakland Art Murmur (OAM) will expand its regional arts services to sustain artists, art spaces, and creative communities across Alameda and Contra Costa counties, one of the nation’s most culturally prolific and vibrant regions. CAC funding will sustain OAM’s equitable programs like East Bay Open Studios, Artist Professional Development Series, Fee Waivers, Community Hubs, and the new Emerging Artists Program—empowering OAM to break barriers to participation and amplify diverse voices in the East Bay’s visual culture. By providing operating support for core programmatic and administrative costs, CAC funding will strengthen OAM’s capacity to connect artists with audiences, sustain creative spaces, and champion systemically marginalized artists. By centering artists and cultural equity, OAM will cultivate a more inclusive and artist-driven ecosystem where creativity thrives. | OAM is a 501c3 nonprofit organization that strengthens the East Bay’s visual arts ecosystem through artist-centered programs, free public events, and community partnerships. We serve artists, art spaces, and audiences across more than a dozen cities, working to ensure the region remains a vibrant, inclusive place for creativity and cultural exchange. East Bay Open Studios: EBOS is a free, twice-annual event that invites the public into the working spaces of over 300 visual artists across Alameda and Contra Costa counties and welcomes over 50,000 studio visits from the public. Since taking on stewardship in 2023, OAM has expanded the equity program to include Community Hubs for artists without studio space, Fee Waivers for artists with financial need, and a new Emerging Artist Program that deepens our support of diverse talent that often gets overlooked. Artist Professional Development: We offer ten free workshops each year to help artists grow their practice and careers. Topics include pricing artwork, writing artist statements, and finding exhibition opportunities. Since launching in 2023, the series has served 150+ artists annually. First Friday Art Walks: OAM organizes 12 First Friday Art Walks each year, connecting the public to galleries and art venues across Oakland. In partnership with 23 art spaces, we help amplify over 130 exhibitions annually through this monthly activation. Civic Collaborations and Cultural Programming: Through partnerships with organizations like the Oakland Museum of California and Eastside Arts Alliance, we host civic events such as City Council candidate forums focused on the arts. Our annual Oakland Style Week program, in partnership with Visit Oakland, showcases our community’s visual arts scene through curated tours and exhibitions. In 2025, OAM helped activate Oakland for NEXUS: SF/Bay Area Black Art Week, an annual celebration of Black creativity launched by San Francisco’s Museum of the African Diaspora (MoAD). |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Prison Arts Project, TeamWorks Art Mentoring | 312 LINCOLN ST STE C , SANTA CRUZ, CA 95060-4370 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 607-8952 | California's 20th congressional district | District 28 | District 17 | The William James Association (WJA) will present a series of free poetry, collage, and storytelling workshops for formerly incarcerated individuals, their families, and underserved communities impacted by the carceral system. Led by returned resident artists and community-based teaching artists, workshops will take place in partnership with Project Rebound and With Our Words in San Francisco, Humboldt, Sacramento, and Stockton. Participants will create collaborative visual and literary works exploring healing, identity, reentry, and community connection. CAC grant funds will support teaching artist fees, participant honoraria, accessibility planning, workshop materials, mural production, public events, travel, and community partner support. The project will culminate in four large-scale public vinyl murals and community events that amplify participant voices while increasing public dialogue around incarceration, healing, family connection, and belonging. | Prison Arts Project hires artists to provide in-depth, long-term arts experiences in prisons & jails. Meaningful arts experiences prepare participants to successfully return to society, reconnect w families, gain social & communication skills & opportunities to give back thru the arts. Community Youth Arts Project (in Santa Cruz County) and TeamWorks Art Mentoring Program (in Marin County) provide arts intervention for high-risk, under-served and disenfranchised youth in Juvenile Hall and Alternative schools to promote creative expression, self-discipline, and community engagement. Unlocking hearts and minds with bold, original theater, Poetic Justice Project is dedicated to presenting theater that examines crime, punishment & redemption. WJA’s Fiscal Sponsorship Program assists emerging nonprofit groups and community organizations by providing grant-related admin. support, tax-exempt status & fiscal sponsorship. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $16,880.00 | --None-- | 45200 Little Lake St. , Mendocino, CA 95460 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 734-0475 | 2nd Congressional District | 2nd Assembly District | Senate District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, MendoLatino will collaborate with the Latinx community to collect, create, and showcase the contributions of this community to Noyo Harbor, a small, vibrant commercial harbor on the Mendocino coast. In Making History/Haciendo Historia: Latinx migration, labor and resiliency in Noyo Harbor, we will record oral histories, produce audio stories; and gather archival family photos and beloved memorabilia. Artist-led participatory workshops include Story circles; Timeline creation; Community mapping; and Mixed-media portrait creation. These activities will contribute to a multimedia/arts exhibit and an illustrated map of Noyo Harbor’s Latinx sites and stories. The goal of this project is to ensure that the contributions of the Latinx community, largely absent, are publicly recognized and integrated into the historical narrative of the Mendocino Coast. | MendoLatino works in multiple media and artistic formats, including radio, video, podcasts, oral history, storytelling, and mixed-media exhibitions. Since 2019, we produce MendoLatino, a Spanish-language and Bilingual public affairs radio program on KZYX twice a month. Since 2022, our audio storytelling project Making History/Haciendo Historia: Latin@s in Mendocino has been training members of the Latinx community to record oral histories of their loved ones and other people who have helped shape the local Latinx community. These oral histories are shaped into powerful audio stories and podcasts. Our podcast series is called Our North/Nuestro Norte, based on the oral histories of community members. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Timken Museum of Art | 2550 5TH AVENUE Suite 500, SAN DIEGO, CA 92103-6612 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 239-5548 | California District 50 | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council (CAC), the Putnam Foundation (DBA Timken Museum of Art) will continue evolving Creative Choices—a trauma-informed arts program for system-engaged youth at the Youth Transition Campus (YTC)—adapting to meet participants where they are and elevate their future potential. Serving teens and young adults, the program offers weekly classes, guest artists, collaborative murals, a public exhibition, and field trips to Balboa Park. Rooted in mentorship, youth are guided by teaching artists who model creativity, resilience, and pathways forward, equipping participants with tools for success upon release. Through art making, Creative Choices nurtures voice, confidence, and healing. CAC funds will support artist stipends, materials, transportation, and exhibition costs. The program opens a space where imagination becomes possibility and young people begin to envision futures shaped by purpose, agency, and creative strength. | The following describes our core programs, all provided free of charge: Exhibitions and lecture series: 3 exhibitions annually that focus on a specific painting in our collection, positioning it in the larger context of works by a master or artistic movement. Each exhibition has a series of morning, afternoon and evening lectures, and daily docent-led tours. School programs: school tours; teacher workshops for educators to learn how art can connect to their teaching; Outreach Español (Spanish docent-guided tours for Spanish-speaking students); Creative Choices (artist-in-residency program for at-risk students in Juvenile Hall). Programs for adults, families and visitors with special needs include: tours by trained docents in 8 languages; Family Mural Making Project; Memories at the Museum (docent tours in partnership with USCD’s Shiley-Marcos Alzheimer’s Disease Center); and Creative Engagement (comprehensive art program for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder). |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | CMAC | 1555 VAN NESS AVE , FRESNO, CA 93721-1212 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 266-2622 | California's 21st congressional district | District 31 | District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, Community Media Access Collaborative (CMAC) will run EmpowHERd Voices, a 10-week documentary filmmaking program open to women of California’s Central Valley, ages 18 and older. This program addresses underrepresentation of women’s perspectives in media, reduces financial and educational barriers to mentorship and training opportunities, and provides access to production resources. The scope of this program includes a 10-week curriculum designed to guide participants through the entire filmmaking process while working to produce their own short documentary film. Participants will be provided with stipends to help mitigate key obstacles to participation, such as financial and caregiving responsibilities. Through weekly mentorship sessions, skill-building workshops, and a public screening of their final documentaries, participants will develop and share impactful stories aimed at fostering representation and equity in media. | We provide low and no-cost media production education and training to underserved communities, as well as access to professional production equipment, studios, and local television airtime at our community media center in downtown Fresno. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | WESTWIND BRASS INC | 6839 51st St , San Diego, CA 92120-1209 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 665-9125 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | Westwind Brass, will lead the Julian Community Music Series, delivering 8 free public concerts and 16 educational programs serving the rural, historically under-resourced communities of Julian and Borrego Springs in East San Diego County. Four professional chamber ensembles — Westwind Brass, Virtuosi Strings, Left Coast Woodwind Quintet, and Latin Percussion — will each present 2 concerts paired with a morning school workshop for Julian Unified School District students and an afternoon intergenerational community workshop, October 1, 2026–September 30, 2027. Venues include Julian Town Hall, Julian High School Theater, and Borrego Springs Performing Arts Center. CAC grant funds will support artist fees, educational programming, accessibility accommodations, and coordination. Partners include East County Performing Arts Association, Julian Unified School District, Supervisor Joel Anderson's office, MPTF & AFM Local 325. All programming will be free and accessible to individuals with disabilities. | Through our outreach programs, our goal is to not only help provide a well-rounded education for children and create a healthier community, but also, by offering students the chance to participate in this learning process, we help build the future arts audience. WWB strives to achieve its mission by building and satisfying a worldwide following of dedicated individual and organizational supporters, professional peers, music educators, and public audiences that: (a) organize, stage and attend concerts of outstanding classical and contemporary brass chamber music; (b) encourage instructional presentations and discussions of brass chamber music; (c) stimulate and foster creation, research and presentation- both live and recorded- of brass chamber music of the highest artistic and professional quality. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | The San Francisco Neo-Futurists | 1446 Market St , San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 709-6153 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Francisco Neo-Futurists will sustain year-round operations for our production, The Infinite Wrench, performed 50 weekends annually in San Francisco. Grant funds will support artist compensation, maintain our venue at 447 Minna, and strengthen organizational infrastructure that enables consistent, community-centered programming. This support ensures stable pay for a diverse ensemble of Bay Area artists, most of whom identify as LGBTQIA+, POC, and/or disabled or neurodivergent, and allows us to continue presenting new, artist-generated work each week. Funding will also expand access for audiences through sliding scale ticketing, free workshops, and increased accessibility services, including mask-mandated performances and integrated disability access practices. These investments allow us to sustain an ongoing platform for underrepresented artists while providing consistent, affordable access to live theater for our community. | The San Francisco Neo-Futurists were founded in 2013, when our ensemble began performing our flagship production, The Infinite Wrench, an ongoing, ever-changing attempt to perform 30 plays in 60 minutes. In the intervening years, we have been critically lauded and recognized as an integral part of the San Francisco arts scene. We’ve held more than 900 weekly performances, staging over 4,300 original plays for over 28,000 audience members. The SF Weekly Readers Poll and SF Bay Guardian’s “Best of the Bay” have both named us the best theater company in San Francisco multiple times. We have also been recognized as one of “22 San Francisco things everyone must do” by the San Francisco Chronicle. Besides the weekly show, we create several specialty productions per year that combine past work and new work in the same format as The Infinite Wrench, presented at other Bay Area venues including Shotgun Theatre and Oasis, as well as performances for Litquake, Sketchfest, the SF Fringe Festival, and Yerba Buena Night. In workshops offered throughout the year, we invite participants to create theatrical work where they may perform their lived experiences in their own voices. Past workshop partnerships with educational institutions include Oakland Technical High School, Stanford University, Notre Dame High School San Jose, and Richmond Neighborhood Center. We additionally offer free workshops for BIPOC artists, facilitated by BIPOC members of the ensemble. Our active ensemble includes a diverse group of individuals creating work that highlights experiences across spectrums and at the intersections of multiple identities including Black, Latine, Asian, Middle Eastern, white, gay, queer, straight, trans, gender non-confirming, cisgender, non-disabled, disabled, neurotypical, neurodivergent, living with chronic illness, working class, and immigrant/non-immigrant status. The multi-faceted nature of our existences informs the whole of the work that we present. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | In My Section | 217 Heron Dr , Pittsburg, CA 94565 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (925) 285-6947 | With support from the California Arts Council, In My Section will provide to their community a free, safe, after-school, multidisciplinary arts space that will serve as the headquarters for their most transformative programs. With support from the city of Pittsburg and a commitment from the property managers at the Nineten Group, In My Section will use CAC grant funds to cover a full year lease at 650 Cumberland St. located in downtown Pittsburg. This support will allow In My Section to offer consistent, revolutionary youth arts programming such as monthly youth open mics, multidisciplinary after-school arts workshops, youth curated showcases, and open studio usage for our network of youth artists 21 and under. Above all, this space will serve as an cultural and artistic sanctuary for our youth and our greater community. | Targeting Black, Brown, and Indigenous youth, of which Pittsburg High School is 95% comprised, our organization's year-long project is structured around 6 key programs. The Prodigies Workshop Series provides a twice-weekly after-school space for high school students to write and build community, with stipends offered for consistent attendance. These workshops are developed and led by program alumni through the IMS Teaching Artist Residency, a paid program that empowers alumni to mentor the next generation of youth artists in Pittsburg. This local programming is supplemented by the free IMS Monthly Cypher program that provide consistent, safe performance opportunities, culminating in two large-scale annual events: the competitive "Prodigies Grand Slam" and the celebratory "Prodigies Showcase." Serving as a final programmatic capstone, IMS has been sending youth across the country to showcase their talents and to represent our community internationally. IMS and its competitive youth poetry team the Pittsburg Prodigies have made back-to-back appearances in 2024 and 2025 at the biggest youth poetry festival in the world, Brave New Voices establishing themselves as one of the top 15 teams in the country. As the smallest and most diverse city represented, we have brought international recognition to our community through the artistry of our youth. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Give 4 Kidz | 16580 BONANZA DR , RIVERSIDE, CA 92504-5719 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 345-9726 | 42 | 59 | 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, Give4Kidz will expand its Art & Me program to increase access to free arts education for youth ages 3 to 19 in underserved communities across the Inland Empire. The project will provide a series of hands-on workshops, camps, and youth art exhibitions in neighborhoods with low Healthy Places Index scores, prioritizing communities with limited access to arts learning opportunities. Participants will engage in culturally responsive art activities including watercolor, acrylic painting, drawing, ceramics, clay sculpting, and sensory-based projects. All programs are designed for beginner and first-time participants and emphasize creative expression, confidence-building, and youth voice. CAC funds will support teaching artist fees, program staff, art materials, and accessible community-based venues. Funding will also support the expansion of art kit distributions, allowing youth to continue creative learning beyond workshop settings. | Give 4 Kidz is dedicated to empowering young creatives through two main programs: 'Art & Me' and 'Story Corner'. The 'Art & Me' program aims to nurture and support youth by offering them free art materials, workshops, events, and exhibitions. We are proud to collaborate with local artists and organizations that share our vision. The second program, 'Story Corner', caters to young individuals with a passion for creative writing. We provide a supportive environment where they can explore their creativity, acquire new skills, and connect with like-minded peers. Through this program, we offer access to writing supplies, events, and workshops led by experienced writers. Our aim is to inspire and foster a love for writing among youth. In this endeavor, we are delighted to partner with local bookstores, authors, and libraries. At Give 4 Kidz, our mission extends beyond traditional boundaries. We strive to reach all children who possess a love for the arts, regardless of their socio-economic backgrounds. To achieve this, we extend our services to family homeless shelters and underserved communities in California. Additionally, we have created remote participation opportunities to ensure inclusivity for all kids. Our goal is to overcome socio-economic challenges and provide equal access to our programs. By embracing diversity and focusing on the potential within each child, Give 4 Kidz is committed to nurturing the creative spirit and enabling young individuals to thrive in the arts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Versa-Style Dance Company | 7300 CASE AVE , SUN VALLEY, CA 91352-5034 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (831) 419-0427 | CA-29 | AD-43 | SD-20 | With support from the California Arts Council, Versa-Style Street Dance Company (VSDC) will provide culturally responsive Hip Hop and Street Dance education to the Black and Brown youth of Los Angeles County (LAC) through our flagship youth program, Versa-Style Next Generation (VSNG). Students will engage in hands-on learning in Street Dance styles emerging from Black and Brown communities such as Hip Hop, popping, locking, house dance and whacking, while building creative confidence, self-expression, and knowledge necessary to become self-realized artists. VSNG provides a safe, nurturing environment where young people can develop artistic skills and strengthen their social-emotional well-being, utilizing the cultural assets of the local LAC community to reclaim the cultural practices of Hip Hop and Street Dance culture. | VSDC supports 5,000 young, aspiring Hip Hop and Street Dance artists of color, as well as their families: Versa Style Next Generation (VSNG): Since 2009, VSNG provides personalized instruction in Street Dance technique, history and creative industry knowledge for local young artists, ages 15-22. Participants receive consistent mentorship and train twice weekly at VSDC’s public Friday Night Dance Classes and a private weekly rehearsal. VSNG reflects our commitment to cultivating local talent from within and building futures grounded in movement, community, and care. During the 2024-25 programmatic year, 38 aspiring young artists gained new skills in Hip Hop and Street Dance and a greater understanding of career development opportunities in the creative industry. Youth Education:We provide Street Dance instruction during and after school, while our collaboration with Arts for Healing and Justice Network (AHJN) brings residencies to systems impacted youth across the county. VSDC teaching artists offer instruction in Hip Hop and Street Dance technique, history and community building. During the 2024-25 school year, these programs reached nine K-12 schools and three juvenile detention facilities. Dance Companies: We operate two professional dance ensembles: the original Versa-Style Street Dance Company (VSDC) and Versa-Style Legacy, composed of VSNG graduates. While VSDC tours nationally with full-length productions, Versa-Style Legacy performs interactive educational shows across LA. In 2025, both companies presented 42 live performances to almost 10,300 audience members nationwide and reached more than 4,100 K-12 students through 11 educational school show performances. Community Programs: VSDC holds community events for skill building and visibility. Friday Night Dance Classes have been held weekly since 2005. We also host Let the Music Move You events and our Anniversary Hip Hop Dance Festival. In 2025, VSDC’s 20 Year Anniversary Hip Hop Dance Festival attracted almost 1,000 community members through workshops, battles, and performances. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Filmmakers Collaborative SF | 145 9TH ST STE 310 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103-2637 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 546-0155 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, FILMMAKERS COLLABORATIVE INC will continue to serve as a hub propelling independent filmmakers to get their films made and distributed. Through our filmmaker incubator program, community screening series, artistic development workshops, events, and support services, we help filmmakers gain the resources and tools they need to navigate the ever-changing independent film industry. In addition to production, we also help with distribution strategies and opportunities, enabling their films to reach a diversity of audiences and achieve impact. | We are a hub to help indie filmmakers get their films made. Our programs and services include: - FILMMAKER SERVICES We support filmmakers’ projects through fiscal sponsorship, sliding scale consulting, mixer events, discounted professional services, a screening room, and other resources. -ARTIST DEVELOPMENT We help filmmakers develop their filmmaking skills and strategies through workshops, education, a drop-in program, and an incubator program. - FILM PRODUCTION We produce our own original films, films for nonprofits, and consult in the distribution and outreach of films made by our members. - COMMUNITY BUILDING Once filmmakers become members of our collaborative, they join a supportive peer community that fosters empowerment and encouragement on their filmmaking journeys. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Joyful Art Center | 318 Main Street Suite C , VACAVILLE, CA 95688-0000 | Solano | Capital | (707) 718-4892 | 11 | 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, JOYFUL ART CENTER will expand youth arts programming in partnership with Solano County Probation’s Youth Achievement Center, Juvenile Hall, and the California Medical Facility Arts Program through the William James Association’s Prison Arts Project. Programming will also extend into community-based youth settings in Fairfield and Vallejo. CAC funding will support teaching artist compensation, mobile program delivery, collaborative art projects, and materials for ongoing weekly arts programming serving justice-involved and at-risk youth. Through hands-on, process-based art experiences, youth participants will build creative confidence, strengthen social-emotional skills, and engage in positive self-expression and community connection. This project increases access to meaningful arts engagement for underserved youth while strengthening community partnerships and expanding equitable access to arts education throughout Solano County. | Joyful Art Center is dedicated to inspiring individuals of all ages to explore, develop, and celebrate their creativity. We believe everyone deserves access to enriching art experiences and aim to create an inclusive environment where creativity can thrive. Art Classes & Workshops Art Shows and Gallery Events After-School & Youth Programs Community Events & Outreach Adult & Senior Programs Art Camps & Seasonal Programs Homeschool Programming Adaptive Arts Programming for Neurodiverse and Disabled individuals | |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $13,040.00 | Sacramento Women's Chorus | PO BOX 661705 , SACRAMENTO, CA 95866-1705 | Sacramento | Capital | (562) 397-3938 | District 6 | District 6 | District 8 | With the support from the California Arts Council Sacramento Women’s Chorus (SWC) will: Continue to expand chorus activities in the community started last year. 1) expand access to choral performances and instructional programs, 2) build a renewed social media presence attracting younger members and members from the under-represented community, 3) increase capacity of SWC to engage in community outreach. 4) develop SWC performance skills via a Masterclass. Have Artistic Directors attend Choral Directors conference to speak with composers/peers to learn improvement techniques, 5) organizational re-branding a new informational website enhancing the community’s knowledge of SWC and assist with recruiting new members and attracting larger audiences. 6) purchase e-readers/accessories that will resize music to be easier to read. 7) rent a bus to transport SWC members, reduce individual parking fees and gas expense to attend concerts. | SWC’s core program is choral music performance provided by women. Our performances highlight issues affecting women, such as gender equity, and domestic violence awareness. We also partner with other local community organizations focused upon women’s issues. We also fund raise with proceeds going to support women's causes, including scholarships for senior high school females, with an interest in the arts, food drives for local food distribution centers, and feminine hygiene items for high school girls. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | YOUR BIG VOICE FOUNDATION | 220 MOUNTAIN VIEW ST , OAK VIEW, CA 93022-9414 | Ventura | Central Coast | (646) 469-1994 | With support from the California Arts Council, Your Big Voice Foundation (YBV) will implement the Vocal Resilience Project to restore agency in marginalized communities and educational sectors. Using a proprietary somatic vocal methodology, the project addresses trauma-induced silencing and vocal strain. Funds will be allocated as follows: • Artistic Leadership ($15,000): Living-wage stipends for Lead Somatic Practitioners and guest artists to facilitate workshops. • Participant Support ($5,000): Full scholarships to the Embodied Voice Portal (EVP), including six months of weekly coaching by Hannah Grant in a trauma-aware, inclusive virtual practice space. • Evaluation ($3,000): Analysis of Vocal Agency Scale data and video documentation for district-level proof-of-concept. • Administration ($2,000): Essential oversight for community outreach and partnership coordination. This initiative integrates arts-based expression with health strategies to reclaim personal and professional agency. | Your Big Voice provides a comprehensive, voice-driven healing journey through a suite of somatic and creative interventions designed to move participants from "silence to impact." • Embodied Voice Portal (EVP): Our primary digital sanctuary and service hub. The EVP hosts live, expert-led weekly practice sessions and 1-1 coaching, providing a "witnessed space" for participants to engage in ongoing vocal reclamation and somatic regulation. • Deep Dive Sessions: Intensive workshops that integrate singing and speaking to help individuals process trauma stored in the body. These sessions focus on the physical restoration of the voice for the 5-10% of the population suffering from trauma-induced voice disorders. • Targeted Outreach for Educators: Specialized wellness modules and "Train-the-Trainer" resources designed to mitigate the 30% rate of chronic vocal strain among teachers, ensuring they can sustain their leadership and vocal health in the classroom. • Partnerships & Cohorts: Collaborative programs with community organizations that offer identity-focused support for BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities, creating safe environments to dismantle the effects of systemic silencing. • Scholarships & Access: A commitment to economic justice that provides full financial support for marginalized individuals to access the EVP and our "Vocal Trauma Support" modules. • Documentation & Scaling: An evidence-based initiative that utilizes the Vocal Agency Scale (VAS) to track somatic symptoms and confidence, ensuring our methodology can be scaled as a proven model for public health and social equity. Through these integrated services, YBV transforms vocal expression into a scalable tool for personal agency and community resilience. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | 82-2363154 | 2728 Sixth Avenue , SAN DIEGO, CA 92103 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 738-1232 | California's 50th congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Voices Of Our City Choir will develop and implement our Symphony of Stories program, which will leverage storytelling to promote equitable access to artistic opportunities among artists who have experienced homelessness, nurture healing through artistic expression, and improve services for housing-insecure/unsheltered Californians. Funds will support Voices in collaborating with UC San Diego’s Homelessness Hub to teach our Choir Members to use storytelling to process and heal from their experiences with homelessness and channel their lived experiences into community education/advocacy. Voices will showcase Choir Members’ stories in a public exhibition and support them in translating their storytelling pieces into tangible community education/advocacy. This program will support our unsheltered and formerly-unhoused Choir Members’ personal healing journeys and artistic practice while empowering them to foster improved services for housing-insecure/unsheltered Californians. | San Diego-based musician Steph Johnson co-founded Voices as a Performance Choir in 2017, in collaboration with local musicians and people experiencing homelessness. Our Choir has performed in more than 150 events, including San Diego Symphony Orchestra, San Diego Master Chorale, and America’s Got Talent (AGT), where Members received the Golden Buzzer award and inspired San Diego’s Board of Supervisors to declare June 2nd “Voices of Our City Day.” To build upon the success of our choir, Voices expanded our arts and creative offerings to include songwriting and music production workshops and wraparound services that link Members to housing/social supports. We offer songwriting workshops to engage Members in creating new, original productions for our Choir to perform in community events. We also provide Members access to our in-house studio to learn music recording, engineering, video, and production skills. In 2022, we formalized the structure of our case management, wraparound service referrals, and basic needs services into a Choir Member Services program. Through our musical programs, Members develop trusting, authentic relationships with our Member Services staff; these connections provide a critical avenue for staff to identify Members’ housing, food, and mental health needs and provide a symphony of resources to meet them. In this way, Voices uses the rhythm of musical programs to move Members through the hierarchy of basic needs and help them realize their full potential. In the process, Voices evolved from a performance ensemble to a nonprofit using musical programming to help unsheltered neighbors meet basic needs. Voices has received excellence awards from Mayor Todd Gloria and the San Diego Psychological Association. Voices also received the 2022 Peacemaker award from the National Conflict Resolution Center and Blue California Promise 2025 Leading the Way Award for Wellness & Empowerment. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Heidi Schwegler | 57275 Canterbury St , Yucca Valley, CA 92284 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (503) 789-8050 | California's 8th congressional district | District 42 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, Yucca Valley Material Lab (YVML) will support salaries for its Executive Director and Program Coordinator, along with instructor wages for artist-led programs in the rural Morongo Basin. CAC funds will help pay the staff and teaching artists who coordinate, lead, and sustain YVML’s residencies, workshops, exhibitions, free public events, youth partnerships, and community programs. Core programs include artist and musician residencies; workshops in specialized material practices such as glass, metal, fiber, wood, neon, sound, digital fabrication, and adobe; Yucca Alta, YVML’s music program, recording studio, and record label; Lazy Eye Gallery exhibitions; and YVML’s multi-sensory art and craft library, Tool Library, and archive resources. This support will help keep hands-on material practice accessible to artists, youth, residents, and visitors. | Established in 2019, Yucca Valley Material Lab (YVML) is an artist-founded nonprofit arts organization in the rural Morongo Basin supporting hands-on making, material exploration, artist development, accessibility, and public cultural exchange. YVML operates as a material lab, residency program, workshop space, music initiative, exhibition site, and public learning environment. YVML’s core programs include funded artist and musician residencies, public workshops, free events, youth arts learning, Lazy Eye Gallery, Yucca Alta, and a multi-sensory art and craft library with archive and tool resources. Workshops specialize in techniques often missing from traditional arts education, including glass, metal, fiber, wood, neon, sound, digital fabrication, adobe, and related material practices. In a typical year, YVML offers approximately 40 workshops, 15 free public events, 6 music performances, 2 musician residencies, 2 Yucca Alta recording projects, and youth workshops serving approximately 300 students. Adult workshops serve approximately 320 students annually, and total annual participation reaches approximately 1,120 people. YVML supports artists through funded residencies that include lodging, studio access, technical mentorship, public presentations, and opportunities to explore unfamiliar materials and practices. Yucca Alta, YVML’s music program, recording studio, and record label, supports experimental musicians through residencies, performances, and recording projects. Lazy Eye Gallery presents exhibitions in a 64-square-foot micro gallery housed in a repurposed water tower. YVML is led by Founding Director Heidi Schwegler and supported by a staff team in programs, facilities, music, and philanthropy. The Board of Directors provides financial, strategic, and governance oversight, supported by advisors with expertise in art, music, disability advocacy, Indigenous arts, education, law, accounting, accessibility, and community engagement. YVML allocates 5% of its operating budget toward accessibility and accommodations, offers scholarships and local discounts, and is developing the Sustainable Adobe Studio through its Campaign for Creative Access. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | New Krma Media | 27464 Hemlock Ranch Rd , Hayward, CA 94544 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (916) 261-4827 | District 14 | District 20 | District 10 | New Krma Media will pilot Cultural Innovators, a 5 week artist-led program serving system-impacted youth in Alameda County, presented in collaboration with SoleSpace Lab. The program centers storytelling, visual art, and sustainable design as core artistic practices. Participants will create original narrative and design works, including customized footwear and storytelling pieces, through structured workshops led by teaching artists with lived experience. CAC grant funds will support artist and facilitator fees, curriculum development, participant materials, and guest artist honoraria, as well as a culminating public showcase where participants present their work. The project harnesses the dynamism of sneaker culture to expand access to culturally grounded arts programming while strengthening participants’ creative skills, communication, and collaboration through hands-on artistic practice. | The Returning Filmmaker Fellowship, Community Connect convenings, and the Chitlin Circuit screening series—we provide structured training, mentorship, and consistent exhibition opportunities that increase professional access and career mobility. Participants gain practical skills in creative production, financial literacy, and audience development while completing projects that position them for funding, distribution, and employment. Participants retain full ownership of their work and income, supporting independent career growth. By serving system-impacted and low-income creatives and expanding access to culturally grounded arts programming, New Krma Media strengthens both individual economic outcomes and community access to storytelling rooted in lived experience. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | LRCC | 5776 LINDERO CANYON RD D289 Suite D289, WESTLAKE VILLAGE, CA 91362-6428 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 496-9616 | California's 26th district | District 42 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Robles Children’s Choir INC will be able to sustain essential program personnel, allowing more of its operating resources to be directed toward its scholarship fund and expanded community outreach. This shift will increase financial assistance for underserved families and enable Los Robles Children's Choir to offer additional free community workshops and events, ensuring that more children and their families can access and benefit from high-quality live music and choral education. | LRCC offers four levels of vocal instruction to children ages 5-18 years old on a weekly basis. We also offer choral workshops and several community concert events each season including collaborations with New West Symphony and other professional arts organizations. The choir tours both domestically and internationally every other year. We hold weekly musicianship classes where students build their theory and sight singing skills to improve their overall musicianship. LRCC has a robust outreach program providing free choir classes and singalong events to LMI families throughout the region. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $8,438.00 | JC CULTURE Foundation | PO BOX 1040 , ARTESIA, CA 90702-1040 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 293-8889 | California's 38th congressional district | District 58 | District 32 | With support from the California Arts Council, JC Culture Foundation will provide free after school educational programs on and off school sites. The programs will be provided to the students of Leal Elementary School and Gonsalves Elementary School. The programs include: (1) Lion Dance, (2) Dragon Dance, (3) Chinese Drums and (4) Chinese Folk Dance Program. We also provide an advanced training program to middle and high school students in our studio weekly year-round. In addition, the grant will help fund mentor-led programs such as our annual summer training camp, featuring instructors from the National Taiwan University of Sport and local masters who lead traditional craft and dance instruction for youth. | We provide the following programs: (A) free after school educational programs at our studio. The programs are provided to the students of all elementary, middle, high schools, and colleges. The programs include: (1) Lion Dance (2) Dragon Dance and (3) Drums Program. We also provide an advanced training program to middle, high school, and college students at our foundation’s studio weekly year-round. In the future, if the state and county allows us to return to school campuses, we will resume the afterschool training programs that we have conducted in the past. These programs offer students hands-on training in performing different cultural dances with musical instruments and allow participants to develop their leadership, teamwork, and communication skills, and (B) conduct a Lunar New Year Celebration Video and show case which is streamed on Youtube and showed to the schools; and (2) invite an artist to demonstrate one of the Asian arts, such as Chinese paper cutting or Chinese calligraphy, and teach the basics of that art. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Comic-Con Museum | 2131 Pan American Plaza , San Diego, CA 92101-1683 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 414-1020 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, Comic-Con Museum will provide critical access to the arts for underserved youth in grades 9-12 with its Youth Comics Creation program, through five high school field trips to the Museum, streamed follow-up lessons, and presentations of final comics in the Museum. Five classrooms, or 150-200 youth, and 200-250 educators will have access to popular art exhibitions that include cover art and costumes shared at Comic-Con and have access to learning from the Museum's remarkable art instructors. Youth comics will be designed in the museum, completed back in their classrooms, and presented at the Museum's Educator Night. | In 1970, a group of comics, movie, and science-fiction fans from San Diego put on Comic-Con, attended by 300 people to highlight popular art forms and promote artists’ work. Today, San Diego Comic Convention (SDCC), otherwise known as Comic-Con International, is the premier popular arts convention in the world, with 135,000 attendees annually who generate $160 million for the San Diego region over five-days. In 2017, SDCC created Comic-Con Museum (CCM) in Balboa Park, which opened to the public in late November 2021. Centrally-located and accessible via public transportation, bike lanes, walking, and vehicles, CCM is 30,000 square feet of exhibit space, 3,700 square-feet of art makerspaces for field trips and guest art activities, and a 140-seat theater with stage and screen. Exhibitions rotate every 6-12 months and share a range of styles, genres, and artists in comics and the popular arts, from Britain's Doctor Who to binational co-curations Trino, Border Blitz, and Lucha Libre to Cover Story: Six Decades of Comic-Con program covers to Masquerade costumes worn by fans and professional costume designers at Comic-Con and WonderCon conventions. The Museum has a robust volunteer program with 150 engaged individuals who serve on the museum floor and information desk, assist in the Museum Education Center, and support special and community events. Volunteers participate in on-going trainings and provide valuable feedback about the guest experience. The Museum's Education Center hosts field trips for K-12 schools in and near San Diego County, partners with higher education institutions, and hosts public makerspace hours for interactive, hands-on arts and science programming such as comics creation, programming Ozobots to follow story maps, and puppets. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra | 2300 Truxtun Avenue, Suite 200 , Bakersfield, CA 93301 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 323-7928 | California's 20th Congressional District | District 32 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra will expand BSO Next, providing free, high-quality music education and live performance experiences for students in grades 4–12 across Kern County. Delivered in close partnership with local schools, the program prioritizes rural and underserved communities, including California City, Mojave, Shafter, Delano, Wasco, Ridgecrest, Kern River Valley communities, and East Bakersfield. BSO Next removes financial and access barriers by fully sponsoring participation, including transportation, shared pre-concert dining, educational presentations, and live Symphony performances with professional musicians. Standards-aligned materials support classroom integration. The program serves thousands of students annually as part of the Symphony’s broader education initiatives reaching over 12,000 youth. CAC funds will expand school partnerships and program capacity, ensuring equitable access while fostering creativity, youth development, and community connection through culturally responsive arts experiences. | The Bakersfield Symphony Orchestra (BSO), founded in 1932, serves Kern County through professional orchestral performances and a range of music education programs designed to expand access to the arts. These programs are offered to schools throughout the county, with intentional outreach to communities and schools with limited access to arts education. BSO’s education initiatives include three core programs: BSO Next, Young People’s Concerts, and Kids Discover Music. BSO Next provides students in grades 4–12 with access to live symphony performances through field-based experiences that include transportation, meals, and exposure to professional orchestral music. The program is designed to broaden students’ understanding of the arts while fostering engagement with live performance settings. Young People’s Concerts serve elementary school students through daytime orchestral performances designed specifically for school audiences. These concerts integrate educational content aligned with music learning objectives and provide students with structured exposure to orchestral instruments and repertoire. Kids Discover Music brings professional BSO musicians directly into elementary school classrooms. Through interactive presentations and demonstrations, students are introduced to orchestral instruments, musical concepts, and the collaborative nature of ensemble performance. Across all programs, the BSO prioritizes increasing access to music education for students who may not otherwise have opportunities to experience live orchestral music or in-school arts instruction. These programs serve thousands of Kern County students annually and are designed to support music exposure, cultural enrichment, and early arts engagement. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $25,000.00 | KARMIC ACTION RETRIBUTION MANAGEMENT AGENCY | 3547 HILLVIEW PL , LOS ANGELES, CA 90032-1404 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 326-3226 | 34 | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, KARMIC ACTION RETRIBUTION MANAGEMENT AGENCY will implement LA Rooted: Art, Healing & Rhythmic Resistance, a four-week summer arts program serving 15 youth ages 10–17 from Los Angeles. Using a mobile classroom model and bicycle fleet, youth will explore artist studios, cultural spaces, parks, and public art throughout Los Angeles from our Rio De Los Angeles State Park Youth Bike Hub. Participants will engage in Healing in Nature workshops with Paula Guadron, textile arts through Stitch + Ride with Abrazos Community-Based Art Studio, rhythmic movement and hip hop dance with Yoda Jones, and collaborative silkscreening workshops with Hit+Run. The program concludes with a public community showcase featuring youth artwork and performances. Grant funds will support teaching artists, art supplies, accessibility accommodations, transportation, program coordination, and community showcase costs. | Projects of KARMA: Roots in Motion (RIM) cultivates intergenerational health and resilience in low-income communities of color through outdoor adventures and movement-based activities. As part of Karmic Action Retribution Management Agency, RIM celebrates diverse identities and ancestral heritages, creating empowering programs that foster wellness, creativity, and community connection. Since 2013, we’ve offered year-round initiatives like youth camps, bike trips, and backpacking journeys, providing spaces for self-growth and nature-led connections. Bicilibre Community Bicycle Shop stands in solidarity with day laborers, the unhoused, and local organizations by providing vital bike repair services and support. Our mission is to empower these communities through accessible transportation, fostering mental wellness and economic resilience. By challenging health disparities and systemic inequality, we use the bicycle as a tool for community strength, mobility, and justice. KARMA’s fiscal sponsorship program- A grantor-grantee structure, sponsored projects remain independent from KARMA and manage their own tax reporting and liabilities, while KARMA facilitates the receipt and distribution of grants and tax-exempt donations to help realize the project’s purpose. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $3,960.00 | Citric Acid | 29051 Hill Top Dr , Silverado, CA 92676-9729 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 235-8193 | 40 | 71 | 37 | With support from the California Arts Council, Citric Acid: An Online Orange County Literary Arts Quarterly will fund for one year basic production costs related to publication and distribution of our quarterly free subscription journal: its managing editor’s part-time salary; stipends for ~30 contributors over four issues; and web hosting, content management, and web-based text-to-speech software for readers with disabilities. In our effort to sustain a free online journal, we address the discrepancy between significant readership (views, opens, clicks, shares, likes) and actual enrollments and donations. General operating support will not only ensure continued publication but also free up funds for publicity and outreach to build community engagement and subscriptions, develop our donor base, and secure reliable reader funding, expanding both our readership and existing affiliations with community arts groups and institutions in Orange County. | 1. Production and publication of a free quarterly online journal. 2. Outreach to local colleges and universities. 3. Host interns including formally through UC Irvine. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Jail Guitar Doors - USA | 842 N FAIRFAX 2ND FLOOR , LOS ANGELES, CA 90046-7208 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 852-0457 | California's 28th congressional district | District 50 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, JAIL GUITAR DOORS will offer a 12-week music and filmmaking program to youth ages 16-24 who otherwise would not have access to arts activities and a supportive creative community. Participants will come from diverse neighborhoods in Mid-City, South, East, and Central Los Angeles. Over the course of the program, participants will write, compose, record an original group song and create a music video to accompany their project. The culmination will be an opening sharing for friends, family, and the community at our CAPO Center in Hollywood, CA. | JGD provides music education programs for current and potential system-involved youth. The two main programs include Songs and Beats Workshops and Community Arts Programming & Outreach (CAPO) Project. Songs and Beats is a 12-week songwriting workshop for incarcerated youth that Weekly prompts are focused on age-appropriate themes that are designed to help youth heal past traumas, learn to positively experience their emotions, and improve their relationships with others as well as themselves. CAPO was created as an extension of JGD’s Songs and Beats Workshop to support youths’ successful return to their community. Not solely for formerly justice-involved youth, CAPO is an originative reentry and diversion program that is also open to marginalized and at-risk youth ages 12-22. CAPO delves beyond the 12-week workshop to gain a comprehensive working knowledge of the many facets of the music and entertainment industry. Classes and workshops include music production, engineering, composition and arranging, recording and editing, licensing, marketing and promotions, and digital design. At CAPO, each participant will have a mentor who will help them develop a Personal Program Log (PPL) with an Individual Service Plan (ISP) and Individual Program Plan (IPP). Together, these tools create a holistic approach that include well-being, probation, life-skills, emotional support, transportation plan, and any plans for therapy/sobriety to support youth in successful completion of their probation and reaching their individual goals. Taught by music industry professionals, youth have the opportunity to develop mastery in their chosen fields of interest. JGD also fosters relationships within its extensive network to create an advisory board of music and entertainment industry professionals to serve as mentors to assist in CAPO participants in entering the field through internships that provide hands-on working experience. Prior musical training is not required. Programs are open to all races, denominations, genders, and sexual orientation. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Matriarchy Theatre | 7393 Durfee Way , Sacramento, CA 95831 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 719-1940 | With support from the California Arts Council, Matriarchy Theatre will create and present JUST A PAUSE: A HORMONE PLAY, a new devised theater project in Sacramento. Funds will support artist stipends for the women+ ensemble and lead artistic personnel, facilitation and rehearsal expenses, partnerships with community-informed consultants (including medical and health justice professionals), production costs, venue expenses, accessibility measures, and community engagement activities. Through this support, Matriarchy Theatre will create and share an original, community-centered work exploring women+ access to, and denial of, healthcare while experiencing perimenopause/menopause, addressing: weight-, age- and gender- bias, and the mental, emotional and physical impacts of these hormonal changes, through an intersectional, culturally responsive, trauma-informed lens. | Matriarchy Theatre achieves its mission by centering decolonial practices, integrating equity, diversity, accessibility, and belonging in all work, and maintaining constant communication with members of the community. Currently, Matriarchy Theatre programs a full season of programming, typically consisting of two projects a year, one co-produced with a strategic/community partner. Past co-production partnerships have included Teatro Espejo (Sacramento’s Latine/Chicano theatre), Sinag-tala Filipino Theater and Performing Arts Association, The Crocker Art Museum, The MacBeth Project, and Sacramento State University. Past programming has included staged readings, fully realized theatre productions, and culturally specific festivals. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Chrysalis Studio/Queer Ancestors Project | 934 Brannan Street , San Francisco , CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 826-9697 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Chrysalis Studio will conduct Queer Ancestors Project PRINTS!, a free 19-week series of printmaking and LGBTQ2S+ history workshops taking place October 2026 - Sept 2027 at San Francisco’s SOMArts Cultural Center for 10 Queer and Transgender emerging artists age 18-26. Artists will create and disseminate prints exploring Queer and Trans ancestors and the roots of their own individual experiences of Queerness. The workshop series will culminate in a Group Exhibition, Artist Reception, and Artist Panel at STRUT San Francisco. CAC funds will support personnel, including the Project Director, BIPOC Q/T alum interns, and guest artists; materials for print production; accessibility services including ASL interpretation; and exhibition costs. | Please use Version 3 from GENOP: Chrysalis Studio’s core programs center the Queer Ancestors Project (QAP), a year-round set of free printmaking and literary workshops, exhibitions, public events, and artist development opportunities for LGBTQ2S+ emerging artists. Across all QAP programs, participants move through a shared arc: they study queer and trans ancestors, build artistic skills, create new work, share that work publicly, and become part of an intergenerational creative community that continues beyond the workshop. Chrysalis offers four QAP programs. QAP PRINTS! is an annual 19-week printmaking workshop in visual storytelling and queer ancestry which culminates in an exhibition and artist panel at STRUT that drew 440+ attendees in 2026. QAP Kaleidoscope, developed with Still Here San Francisco, is a literary workshop that deepens intergenerational connection through writing, mentorship, and public sharing. In 2025, a showcase at San Francisco Public Library’s Hormel Center featured young writers reflecting on ancestors such as Audre Lorde and Gloria Anzaldúa, welcoming 175+ attendees. QAP RESISTS! supports emerging artists in creating political posters on issues including prison abolition, transgender rights, climate justice, and immigrant justice. In 2025, our Under Pressure community print party at SOMArts welcomed 225+ attendees, distributing posters and apparel carrying artist-designed messages into the world. Attendees chose art to be printed on their shirts, for free. QAP Comix expands storytelling through comics and visual narrative. Together, these programs support artistic growth, public presentation, intergenerational learning, leadership development, and community building for emerging LGBTQ2S+ artists. One participant reflected, “This workshop helped me find community when I was struggling, provided me with a space to grow my art skills and connect with my ancestors. This is a space where I feel at peace.” |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Lake Almanor Basin Performing Arts Association | 158 Aspen St , Chester, CA 96020 | Plumas | Upstate | (530) 259-5691 | California's 3rd District | District 01 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Lake Almanor Basin Performing Arts Association will be able to provide music and art related programs and services for the community of Lake Almanor and surrounding areas. This small rural community of less than 3,000 people has almost no access to music and the arts. Bringing people together for musical offerings creates community and connection across all ages and diverse backgrounds. Grant funding will be used to pay for contract stipends for: Musical Director, Assistant Director, Bell Ensemble Director, Pianist and Sound Engineer. In addition, funds will be utilized for printing, mailings and advertising (fliers, programs, banners, etc) We would also like to rent some needed sound equipment for annual performances. Contract Stipends -$23,000 Marketing - $5,000 Equipment Rentals - $2,000 | We offer performing arts enrichment, including music, theater, and dance for the Lake Almanor Basin and an avenue for individual and group performance expression, education, and for social and performance growth and emotional support. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | 11:11 Projects | 12950 Willard St , Los Angeles, CA 91605-1063 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 689-1778 | California Assembly district 43 | District CA-29 | District California | 11:11 Projects is a San Fernando Valley–based arts organization building long-term cultural infrastructure through public art, workforce development, and our community studio, Third House. General Operating Support from the California Arts Council will sustain staff, studio operations, and artist-led programming while expanding paid opportunities for emerging artists. Funds will support affordable studio access, public art commissions, youth programs, and community-based cultural events in a region that has historically received limited arts investment. This support will strengthen an artist-centered ecosystem that prioritizes equity, accessibility, and long-term sustainability for artists and communities across the San Fernando Valley. | 11:11 PROJECTS is a woman-led arts and culture non-profit organization that partners with artists and the community to develop and execute integrated and accessible public art, arts-related programming, and community engagement opportunities. 11:11 PROJECTS is dedicated to empowering communities through advocacy, public art production, and justice-centered programming. Through professional development for emerging artists, public art programs, events and exhibitions, and youth arts education, we place the justice-centered art in forefront, ensuring the stories of our collective culture are embraced, amplified, and celebrated. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | SANTA BARBARA REVELS | 1330 State Street, Suite 203 , SANTA BARBARA, CA 93101 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 364-4630 | 24th District | District 37 | District 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, Santa Barbara Revels INC will continue to entertain, educate, and enlighten audiences with our performances and activities that bring to life the traditions of many countries and in different times, creating an awareness and appreciation of these diverse cultures as well as building bridges in the community by celebrating the various cultures that exist within our area. We bring different traditions to life making them relevant and accessible, and create new traditions involving our audiences in a meaningful and dynamic way. As Santa Barbara Revels transitions from a Founder-driven entity to a deeply involved Board, employee and volunteer-supported organization, CAC support will allow us to be guided by our history and honor our traditions while embracing modernization and technology allowing us to grow and thrive into the future. | SBRevels engages residents of our Central Coast in celebrations of seasonal change; we entertain, educate, and enlighten audiences by creating events and activities that involve traditional music, dance, and story-telling from diverse cultures during different time periods. We both honor the traditions of our own community members and introduce them to the cultural traditions of various other countries and regions. We build bridges within our community by our inclusive programming, our extensive use of local talent in all performances, and our practice of audience participation. We present rituals and traditions associated with significant times during the year: for Spring Equinox,/St Patrick's Day we host a sing-along in a local pub; for May Day, we teach everyone how to dance special dances and weave ribbons ‘round the maypole. We mark the Summer Solstice with a festival musical offering, and we honor Fall Equinox with an instrumental and vocal concert. Our major effort every year is a fully staged musical and dramatic production in celebration of the Winter Solstice, set in a different country and period each year and featuring traditions in the context of celebrating the shortest day of the year. Past shows have been set in Scotland, Appalachian America, Venice, Ireland, and Almohad Spain. A recent "Early California" production highlighted a historical event that took place in Santa Barbara during the Rancho period of the mid-1830s. Another recent show was set on Ellis Island, where Jewish, Mexican, and Irish immigrants needed to spend the night together and then learned of each other’s seasonal traditions. Each production involves over 60 cast members, including a children’s/teen chorus and an adult chorus – all talented volunteers from the community – along with specialty dancers, professional actors, vocal soloists, instrumentalists, and "tradition bearers" who are skilled performers in the particular tradition being highlighted that year. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | "" | 1206 Maple Ave Ste 1100B , Los Angeles, CA 90015 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 599-6216 | California's 34th congressional district | District 53 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Heidi Duckler Dance implements a 12-week movement-based residency at the Jacqueline Avant Children and Family Center in Willowbrook. HDD Teaching Artists lead weekly, trauma-informed, inclusive workshops for youth ages 3–18, families, residents, and staff, including participants from the Autism Wellness Center. Sessions are adaptable for diverse physical, cognitive, and sensory needs, emphasizing accessibility and neurodiversity-affirming practice. Workshops explore resilience, identity, and emotional wellbeing through creative movement, forming the basis for a collaboratively developed, site-specific performance. The residency culminates in two performances, one for Center participants and one public presentation and a community discussion with mental health professionals. CAC funds support teaching artist fees, program delivery, accessibility services, and a community publication documenting the process and sharing mental health resources. | Over the past 38 years, HDD has produced over 500 original works locally, nationally and internationally, creating interdisciplinary performances in many iconic locations, including: the Ambassador Hotel, Herald Examiner Building, LA City Hall, Van Nuys Flyaway Bus Terminal, Dunbar Hotel, and on the Tall Ships at the Port of LA. Its programs reach more than 7,500 individuals each year. Led by Heidi Duckler, HDD is a company of 12 resident artists and 5 staff committed to upholding inclusiveness, consciousness, vulnerability, and connectivity through their craft. From its inception, HDD has made accessibility and inclusion core components of its mission. HDD works to promote access and cultural equity by focusing on engagement and building public/private partnerships with the capacity to strengthen neighborhoods. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | David Herrera Performance Company | 447 Minna St , San Francisco, CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (310) 528-2040 | California Assembly district 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, David Herrera Performance Company (DHPCo.) will strengthen its full range of Latinx-centered dance programming. CAC grant funds will be invested to expand organizational capacity, support leadership and staff, increase the reach and quality of public performances, and deepen our community engagement through impactful offerings and partnerships. These resources will also allow us to pilot innovative initiatives and ensure operational sustainability. Through this holistic approach, DHPCo. empowers Bay Area and California Latinx dance artists and communities by fostering cultural connections, generating creative opportunities, and delivering essential resources, amplifying our collective impact within and beyond the dance field. | David Herrera Performance Company’s core programs are multi-fold consisting of 1) performances, 2) community impact programming 3) collaborations and partnerships, and 4) and new programs. Performances: DHPCo. serves a multicultural audience through yearly performances, including a home season, tours, commissioned performances, and festival participations. Including “El Galán” (slated 2027), Colorized Point (2025), ÓRALE! (2023), The Tip of My Tongue (2022), new works for Yerba Buena Gardens Festival's Choreofest (2023-2026) in San Francisco. The company earned an 2026 Isadora Duncan Awards nomination for costume design. Community Impact: LatinXtensions is our 12-month mentorship program for emerging dance makers. LatinXtensions offers culturally-centered capacity building in the areas of non-profit management, grant writing, equity practice, budgeting, artistic creation, and community building. Since 2019, has awarded 51 mentorships. Celebrating its 7th year in 2026. Latinx Hispanic Dancers United (LHDU) is a network in which dance artists, scholars, and administrators come together to build regional and national community and support systems. LHDU is also a pipeline through which resources and ideas are exchanged, creating discourse and collaboration, building community, and developing cultural power. Signature events include yearly panels and virtual roundtables, LHDU Summit & Retreat, Dance USA Conference meet-up (2026). LHDU has a 600+ artist reach nationally. Collaborations: DHPCo. joins forces with artistic and community organizations to create performances and community programming that showcases diversity in the dance field both within and outside of Latinx communities. Some collaborations include the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts, Bridge Live Arts, ODC Theater, Shawl Anderson Dance Center (SADC), Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, and more. This also includes creating events featuring Latinx dance makers such as “El Salóncito” (w/ SADC) in Oakland and “Noche de Baile” presented at the Western Arts Alliance Conference in San Diego. New Programs include ProDanza Collaboration Commissions and the Latinx Dance Archive. | ||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | City of San Fernando | 117 Macneil Street , San Fernando, CA 91340 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 898-1290 | California's 29th congressional district | District 43 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, the City of San Fernando will connect Grammy winning artists with underserved youth in after school learning experiences emphasizing beginning through advanced mariachi folk instrument instruction, arrangement and performance skills. Targeting youth and young adults, our program embodies artistic and historical concepts preserving mariachi music. | The Department offers year round beginning, intermediate, and advanced classes in dance, music, and the performing arts. A sampling of programs includes: Mexican Folk Dance, Mariachi Master Apprentice Program, Line Dance, Danza Azteca & Cultura, Senior Music/Voice, Art for all abilities, and Zumba/Jazz classes. In addition, the Department is responsible for seasonal sports, summer and winter youth camps, exercise classes, health and wellness, and senior programs. The City has a long history of sponsoring and administering numerous annual cultural arts performances and special events such as: Cesar Chavez March & Arts Festival, Spring Jamboree, Open Streets, 4th of July Celebration, El Grito-Mexican Independence Day, Chile Festival, Outdoor Summer Concert Series, JAM Sessions, Dia de Los Muertos, 5k, Movie Nights, Halloween, and various Holiday Celebrations. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Silicon Valley Shakespeare | 775 E. Brokaw Road , SAN JOSE, CA 95112-1014 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 289-1901 | California's 17th congressional district | District 25 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, Silicon Valley Shakespeare will provide free in-school residencies to Title 1 Schools through the program “Shakespeare Is Us,” bringing culturally, financially, and geographically accessible theatre residency programs and student matinee assemblies to middle- and elementary-schoolers. Through the original curriculum “Shakespeare Through Your Eyes,” this identity-centered approach invites students to explore and reinterpret Shakespeare’s stories through their own cultures, languages, and lived experiences. Using movement, ensemble-building, and personal storytelling, students build confidence, communication skills, and a sense of creative ownership, connecting them to and giving them agency over a 400-year-old artistic legacy and language shared across the globe. The program culminates in student matinee assemblies and public performances of ROMEO & JULIET abridged, reimagined entirely through their own voices. | OUR CORE PROGRAMS *Summer Repertory – produce two affordably ticketed Shakespeare, classics, or classics-inspired plays in Sanborn Park in Saratoga each summer (22 performances). *Free Shakespeare in the Park – produce one Shakespeare play, free to the public, at Willow Street Park in San José each spring (9 performances). *Winter Production – produce one classic, winter-themed production in the South Bay (11+ performances). *Education – provide a summer Shakespeare Camp for kids, in-school workshops, assemblies, and after-school programs to over 2,000 students in local schools, and an immersive trainee/mentorship program for local high-school and college students to develop professional skills. *Special events including an annual 48-hour Play Festival of locally developed new works, in partnership with a local college or university. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $5,000.00 | Anna H. Wang Concert Series West | 3950 PIERCE ST STE D 2000 , RIVERSIDE, CA 92505-8511 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (585) 208-7667 | The Anna H. Wang Concert Series (AHWCS) requests $5,000 in California Arts Council General Operating Grant support to strengthen the organizational infrastructure that makes its California programming possible. CAC funds will support core operations: staff coordination, audience development and outreach, community engagement infrastructure, and administrative capacity. These operational investments enable AHWCS to sustain and grow its presence in Riverside — including a solo recital by Van Cliburn Gold Medal laureate Aristo Sham (January 30, 2027) and Cliburn in the Classroom educational programming in partnership with Riverside Unified School District (RUSD) and The Cliburn — while building the long-term organizational capacity to serve Inland Empire communities with world-class classical music year after year. | Classical Music presentations | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Opera Parallele | 44 PAGE ST STE 400 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-5975 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 626-6279 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Opera Parallèle (OP) and partners will produce the sixth annual iteration of Expansive, a collaboration between OP and San Francisco’s Transgender District (TGD or “the District'') that celebrates the breadth of transgender and gender nonbinary performing artists by showcasing such artists working in classical music and opera. Our partnership furthers TGD’s strategic initiatives to celebrate the culture, resilience, and resistance of transgender individuals in the city’s Tenderloin neighborhood through arts and culture programming led by and for transgender people, while offering a career-enhancing performance opportunity and compensation for transgender artists, and a boost to the local economy for LGBTQ+-friendly business owners, cultural workers, and more. | Opera Parallèle develops and performs contemporary opera, commissions new works, and re-orchestrates existing contemporary grand opera, breathing new life into underperformed masterworks of the 20th and 21st centuries. Embracing rituals of old while bravely finding space for the new, this tension sparks creativity—colorful collisions that inspire new ways of experiencing opera. Born in San Francisco, a city built on both old and new, between art and technology, Opera Parallèle merges tradition with innovation to reimagine the power of opera for our modern world, highlighting stories of social relevance that explore the depth of the human condition. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Media Arts Center San Diego | 1100 Market Street Suite 326, San Diego, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 230-1938 | California's 53rd congressional district | California's 80th District | 78th District | With support from the California Arts Council, Media Arts Center San Diego will advance its mission of changing lives, expanding perspectives, and strengthening community through media arts education, exhibition, and production. MACSD will use grant funds to support its core film exhibitions, youth media education, and community-based media production programs, with a focus on serving historically under-resourced communities, including those located in the lower two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index across San Diego County. This work aligns with MACSD’s vision of a just and connected Border Region where media arts and creative spaces are accessible to all and utilized for learning, advancement, and collective liberation. Our programs support media artists’ professional development and a diverse creative workforce. Funds will support general operating costs, including staff salaries, program delivery, facility rentals, and administrative expenses. | MACSD programs, events, and film festivals are inclusionary—designed with audiences, participants, and community collaboration in mind. A summary of core organizational programs and services can be broken down into three categories: WATCH— We produce the San Diego Latino Film Festival (SDLFF), including the iVIE Awards and Student Film Festival, as well as screen films at our independent cinema the Digital Gym CINEMA. We also exhibit the artworks produced through our educational programming during family screenings. LEARN—Media education programs for youth fall under the umbrella of Young Producers Project (YPP) and include Young Creators Media Camps, Teen Producers Project, and the Workforce Development Initiative. CREATE—Tools for community-based media production and collaboration include: production training courses for independent filmmakers in San Diego; and Video Production Services, helping community groups make digital media presence available and affordable. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Sojourner Truth African Heritage Museum | 2251 FLORIN RD STE #126, SACRAMENTO, CA 95822-4490 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 320-9573 | California's 6th congressional district | District 9 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Sojourner Truth African Heritage Museum will | SOJO has been working towards expanding and promoting the arts and artists from diverse cultures since its inception. Our goal is to remove barriers and improve representation in the arts. We support race and cultural equity in various ways, such as: - Utilizing multiple methods, such as our website, print and social media outlets, and outreach to cross-sector partners, businesses, and libraries, to ensure our museum's information reaches a diverse audience.- Collaborating with community resource providers and local business partners to provide accessible and inclusive art experiences to all since we are housed in an incubator of non-profits, resource agencies, and small businesses, which allows us to capitalize on engagement opportunities and public programming.- Building youth development practices through volunteering and internships that help with personal growth, skill building, and increasing self-esteem.- Reflecting our audience's diversity in our staff, volunteers, and Board leadership who advocate for equitable and inclusive resources for our community.- Providing transparency in program development and delivering services while committing to ongoing assessment of outcomes and evaluation.- Reaching out to BIPOC artists who often do not receive support from mainstream galleries and are not included in other museum collections to support opportunities for these artists to exhibit and perform so that more diverse voices are heard.- Offering family-friendly workshops and events to encourage the exploration of history and cultural context.- Making free and low-cost programs available and not turning youth away due to families' inability to pay. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,064.00 | WisdoMania Foundation | 3201 OVERLAND AVE APT 7152 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90034-4534 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 536-7051 | WisdoMania Foundation will partner with the Los Angeles LGBT Center to deliver a year-long series of wellness-centered arts workshops for LGBTQ+ youth ages 18–25. CAC funds will support the design and facilitation of multidisciplinary creative programming, including Songwriting for Wellness, visual arts, poetry, movement, and sound-based experiences. These workshops integrate self-expression with mental health tools to support emotional processing, identity development, and community connection in an affirming space. Participants will engage in collaborative and individual creative practices that build confidence, resilience, and creative voice. Funds will support artist facilitators, materials, program coordination, and participant support, ensuring accessible, high-quality programming throughout the grant period. | WisdoMania Foundation offers a range of arts and wellness programs designed to support mental health, emotional expression, and resilience. Our core services include custom wellness and arts activations for schools, nonprofits, and community organizations. These experiences integrate multiple modalities such as music, visual arts, movement, journaling, somatic practices, and sound healing, allowing participants to explore different pathways for self-expression and self-regulation. We also provide free community programming (1–3 events per month), primarily hosted on Venice Beach. These gatherings are open to the public and integrate the arts and self-care, through experiences such as yoga, painting, poetry, and somatic healing. Designed to be accessible and welcoming, they offer consistent, low-barrier opportunities for community connection, reflection, and emotional support. A signature program is our Songwriting for Wellness workshops, where participants use guided prompts and collaborative songwriting to process emotions and share their stories. Through our extended offering, songs created in these sessions can be professionally recorded, mixed, mastered, and released on digital streaming platforms (or privately on SoundCloud), with all participants credited as songwriters. This provides a tangible outcome that reinforces creative ownership, confidence, and a sense of being seen and heard. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Songwriter Sanctuary San Diego | 3528 37TH ST , SAN DIEGO, CA 92105-2405 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 813-8245 | With support from the California Arts Council, Songwriter Sanctuary San Diego will use General Operating Support funds to strengthen organizational capacity and sustain its community-centered, artist-compensating concert series. Currently, much of the organization’s administrative and programmatic work is coordinated through a single leadership role led by a disabled, queer mother, creating a capacity bottleneck. Funds will support the transition to a more distributed and sustainable structure through the establishment of a formal payroll system, including modest compensation for key personnel in administrative, production, and program support roles. Support will also allow for contracted bookkeeping services to further strengthen administrative capacity and organizational compliance. These investments will improve operational efficiency, reduce strain on leadership, and build a stronger foundation for continued public programming while maintaining equitable artist compensation and community access. | -Original local music series -Artist resources -Community outreach and education | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Cerritos Chinese School | 18908 NORWALK BLVD , ARTESIA, CA 90701-5960 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 865-8272 | 45th Congressional District | District 67 | District 36 | With support from CAC, Chinese Culture Association of Southern California (Cerritos Chinese School) will (1) further promote community interest in Chinese cultural arts and language, (2) celebrate the Chinese culture with community members through a Fall Festival (free to the community) (3) continue to offer Lion Dance classes free of charge to diverse community members and free performances at various community events to share this art (4) provide scholarships to underserved families in the community for language and culture classes to increase accessibility to learning cultural arts and (5) improve our administrative systems by implementing an employee handbook that contains all the important information employees need, provide staff development and training and increase staff salaries to recruit, retain and train qualified educational staff and culture bearers. | Our Saturday morning program has been teaching the Chinese language in the Cerritos community for 50 years. CCASC currently offers 18 language courses that cater to a full spectrum of language skills. Our student body spans from preschool children to adults, from non-speakers to the more advanced students preparing for the AP or SAT II (accredited class). Complementing our language curriculum, activity classes are also offered to introduce students to various aspects of the Chinese culture. Some of our classes include Chinese knotting, Chinese calligraphy, Chinese beading, Chinese folk dance, Chinese yo-yo, and kung-fu. All students are also encouraged to participate in a variety of community events (Cerritos Festival of Friendship, Artesia International Day, Chinese New Year Celebration) as well as compete in track and field, art, and academic contests with other Chinese language schools. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | ACPC | P.O. Box 1267 , Rocklin, CA 95677 | Placer | Upstate | (530) 277-7541 | California Assembly district 6 | District 6 | District 1 | With support from the CAC, the ACPC will continue operationalizing its 2026–2028 Strategic Plan, transitioning from passive arts support to a proactive, equity-driven backbone model. Funding will catalyze five key areas: Reparative Grantmaking - Directing competitive capital into funding deserts identified via the Healthy Places Index (HPI). Economic Justice and Advocacy - Expanding the Spark Advocacy sessions and "Artrepreneur" series to professionalize the creative workforce. Inclusive Governance - Funding the Arts Coalition to unify regional voices and ensure rural representation in civic policy. Visibility Capital - Producing the Arts & Culture Magazine and a countywide digital directory to provide free, high-level promotion for BIPOC, tribal, and rural artists. Strategic Synergies - Deepening landmark partnerships, including the Indigenous Film Festival with the United Auburn Indian Community, arts-based mental health interventions with The Gathering Inn and implementation of the Poetry Out Loud Program. | As the designated State-Local partner of the California Arts Council and Placer County, the Arts Council of Placer County (ACPC) administers the “Community Arts Grants.” These grants support and supplement a broad array of arts and cultural programs throughout Placer County, allowing more people to connect and benefit from more art. Priority for grant awards is placed on programs that serve historically underserved populations, and those who will most greatly benefit from art experiences. ACPC provides artists and art lovers with many different resources for staying connected. Our Art Events Calendar provides a comprehensive list of upcoming events. Our Arts Directory includes listings of Placer County artists, venues, and organizations in all mediums. We actively promote the arts and the ACPC through our outreach program, which includes onsite participation with an interactive booth at concerts, festivals, and events that provide direct contact and engagement with the public. We support arts in our county by helping all creative events and programs be successful. The ACPC provides hands on assistance, promotes arts programs, and connects audiences and participants. Additionally, we provide information, tools, and resources to assist in all things artistic, including partnering with arts organizations within the county and beyond. We work to leverage grant funding, and promote arts and culture to residents and visitors. View our Placer County Arts & Culture Guide: placerarts.org/arts-guide/ |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Kid City Hope Place | 1021 S Hope St , Los Angeles, CA 90015 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 749-7371 | California District 37 | Assembly District 57 | Senate District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kid City will provide free music education and enrichment to low-income, first-generation teens and young adults living in South and Central Los Angeles. Kid City provides high school and college students with individual and group music instruction, performance training and guidance, performances, workshops, and field trips with a modern band approach – which is highly engaging to young people who are fans of Spanish rock, punk, pop, and jazz. | Kid City's robust year-round youth development programs in arts, college access, and career readiness for high school and college students includes: individual and band music lessons, band rehearsals, community performances, mentoring, tutoring, personal statement and FAFSA workshops, college admissions guidance, college and career workshops and support, advocacy training, and leadership retreats. 100% of graduating seniors involved with the music program are attending college. In its 17-year history, Kid City has helped 1000+ high school students apply and attend a 2- or 4- year college. Each year, Kid City music students perform in bands they create for 3000+ audience members in South and Central Los Angeles. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $6,600.00 | Institute for Traditional Studies | 21512 ORR SPRINGS RD , UKIAH, CA 95482-9002 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 937-2133 | 2 | 2 | 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Institute for Traditional Studies, can keep our lights on, support our small but dedicated staff, and cover essential costs like utilities and internet. This support also helps us keep our website current and gives us the breathing room to pursue new funding that strengthens the cultural work we do for our community. | To share and preserve traditional arts, the Institute for Traditional Studies offers theatrical presentations, lectures, seminars, workshops, and exhibitions. We also create and catalog digital archives of music, dance, artwork, and video performances to ensure these cultural materials remain accessible for future generations. Our board members and teaching artists serve as artistic and technical consultants for schools, community institutions, and other groups, providing instruction in the music, dance, and arts that reflect the diverse cultural heritage of California. The Institute also administers the Senior Artists In Need (SAIN) Fund, which supports elder artists in our community by helping preserve their musical and written collections, visiting those in nursing homes, providing small comforts, and assisting with funerary expenses when needed. One of our ongoing programs brings world music and cultural history directly to schools, senior centers, museums, and community spaces. Through live performances and engaging historical content, participants experience global traditions in a way that is personal, educational, and inspiring. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Los Angeles Poverty Department | 250 S Broadway , Los Angeles, CA 90012-3605 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 259-1038 | 28 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Poverty Department (LAPD) will promote cultural and racial equity through the arts for downtown Los Angeles’ Skid Row. This predominantly Black and Brown creative community lives at the extremity of political determinants of health. LAPD and its Skid Row History Museum & Archive (SRHMA) provide a bulwark against displacement and erasure. Our participant-driven programs, designed for collective joy and community voice, include: 1.) Original multi-disciplinary artworks collaboratively created and presented with Skid Row artists, including Walk the Talk, a biennial procession performed since 2012 that celebrates local individuals making positive contributions to the neighborhood; and, 2.) Hundreds of cultural events and artmaking workshops led by artists and grassroots groups and hosted by SRHMA – an entity that makes the Skid Row community archive its own cognitive authority. | Founded by director, performer and activist John Malpede, LAPD was the first performance group in the country made up of homeless and formerly homeless people and the first sustained arts initiative in Skid Row. For 40 years, LAPD has been one of the foremost cultural and artistic resources of the community. LAPD presents live theatrical productions, organizes public discussions and presentations, public art programs, parades and festivals, curates and creates installations and exhibitions, all addressing the lives of the neighborhood residents and the issues they face. LAPD’s performances and theater pieces are developed and realized through an extensive and inclusive process that employs research and engagement strategies and activities designed to enlist and disseminate community wisdom, and which typically take place over the course of more than a year. LAPD makes work to change the narrative about people living in poverty. LAPD's actively maintained (by professional archive staff) Skid Row History Archive documents the history of the Skid Row neighborhood and its achievements and is utilized by scholars, journalists, filmmakers, and community members. The archive is a bulwark against community displacement. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $16,671.00 | SO SAY WE ALL | 2768 B St Unit 219 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92102 | San Diego | Far South | (702) 419-3260 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, So Say We All will produce VAMP: Stories Without Barriers, a quarterly disability-led storytelling showcase launching in October 2026. This project creates accessible pathways for disabled artists to develop, perform, archive, and publicly share lived experiences while increasing cultural visibility, empathy, and community connection across San Diego. Grant funds will support project operating expenses necessary to deliver the initiative, including staff salaries, program coordination, contracted disabled teaching artists, and technical production personnel. Funds will also support venue rentals and accessibility accommodations, including ASL interpretation, closed captioning, recording, livestreaming, and expanded digital access for individuals unable to attend in person. These investments will reduce barriers to participation, strengthen accessibility and representation in the arts, and ensure the ongoing delivery of inclusive, high-quality storytelling programs for historically underserved communities. | So Say We All (SSWA) delivers a comprehensive storytelling pipeline that supports participants from first draft to public presentation and publication. Core programs include creative writing workshops; live storytelling events and performances; one-on-one coaching in writing, performance, and public speaking; and publication opportunities in print and digital formats. Signature programs such as VAMP (curated storytelling showcase) and Long Story Short (open-mic storytelling series) provide accessible platforms for community members to share their stories. Through education programs and partnerships with San Diego storytelling community partners, SSWA supports both youth and adult emerging writers and performers in developing communication skills, creative confidence, and pathways into storytelling, media, and the arts. Targeted initiatives serve veterans, LGBTQIA+ communities, and individuals from immigrant backgrounds. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $11,958.00 | SBAA-(SAN BERNARDINO ART ASSOCIATION) | PO BOX 1441 , COLTON, CA 92324-0834 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (909) 402-5957 | California’s 23rd Congressional District | 45th Assembly District | 19th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, THE SAN BERNARDINO ART ASSOCIATION will stabilize and grow its operations following the loss of its former exhibition space. Funds will support rent and operations for a new home in Arts Alley in downtown San Bernardino, a revamp of our website to strengthen our public presence, and essential organizational expenses including insurance and communications. Programming will include our annual member exhibition and several pop-up exhibitions throughout the year including a partnership with the San Bernardino Symphony. We will also deepen collaborations with arts organizations across the Inland Empire to expand our reach and build a more connected regional arts community. This investment will allow SBAA to reestablish a stable foundation and continue serving artists and residents throughout San Bernardino. | To stimulate and develop creative expressions to serve a multicultural art community. To promote the appreciation of the fine arts and culture by the public in general. To encourage artists and members who are achieving recognition to hold frequent exhibits, and to sponsor and support artistic functions. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | GALLERY ROUTE ONE | 11101 Highway One, Ste 1101, PO Box 937 , PT REYES STA, CA 94956-0937 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 663-1347 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Gallery Route One (GRO) will hire its first Development and Communications Manager, an essential milestone in advancing our 43-year mission and ensuring long-term financial sustainability. Serving rural West Marin, a 550-square-mile area of Marin County, GRO is the region’s only community-based visual arts gallery dedicated to presenting emerging and underrepresented Bay Area artists and offering inclusive, participatory programs in these isolated, under-resourced communities. This position will build indispensable development capacity by strengthening fundraising systems, deepening community outreach and donor engagement, and expanding institutional support. As a creative lifeline serving people of all ages and abilities, with a focus on BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities, this investment will increase GRO’s ability to deliver culturally relevant exhibitions, artist support, and ongoing arts education that fosters representation, access, and meaningful cultural exchange. | Artist Member Exhibition Program, Visiting Artist Program, Fellowship for Young Artists, Artists In the Schools Program, Latino Photography Project, and the Artists' Exchange. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | CubaCaribe | 60 29th st suite 315 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-4929 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 279-1034 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, CubaCaribe will provide Moving Juntos, a culturally responsive series of Afro-Caribbean dance and music classes for youth ages 6–13 in the Bay Area. Led by master artists and culture bearers, classes integrate movement, percussion, storytelling, and cultural history to strengthen identity, belonging, and intergenerational connection. The program prioritizes youth from immigrant, low-income, and historically under-resourced communities who face barriers to arts access. Funding will support teaching artist fees, project coordination, studio rental, and any accessibility needs including accessibility for youth with disabilities. Moving Juntos culminates in community public performances that celebrate cultural knowledge, creative expression, and youth voice while deepening connections between participants, families, and the broader Afro-Caribbean diaspora community. | Community is at the heart of all of CubaCaribe's programming. Our unwavering focus is on building a thriving community of Caribbean artists in the Bay Area. CubaCaribe’s services include offering ongoing education and performance opportunities for artists and audiences, as well as a fiscal sponsorship to help artists raise money for their work. We also maintain an online archive of professionally shot video of festival programming from 2003 onward. This open access archive is an historical documentation of the region’s artists, provides artists with high quality samples of their performances and is readily available to producers, scholars and general public. The CubaCaribe Honoree is awarded annually to an elder artist who has made a major contribution to the region’s community of Cuban and Caribbean Diaspora artists over a sustained period of time. CubaCaribe’s programs are as follows: The Annual CubaCaribe Festival of Dance and Music, which includes performances, lectures, demos, workshops, film screenings, celebrations and more (2005-present); Alayo Dance Company, CubaCaribe's resident company featuring the artistic director's innovative fusion of Afro-Cuban modern, folkloric and popular Cuban dance (2004-present); Moving Juntos, a series of Afro-Cuban Dance & Music classes for ages 4-12 (2021-present); CubaCaribe’s San Francisco Carnaval Contingent, which features original choreography taught in a series of classes and performed to live music at Carnaval (2006, 2008 & 2019-present); Maestros y Raíces, a series of master classes by visiting teachers (debuted in 2024); and Cuba Camp, which offers adult campers an intensive two-four days of Caribbean dance and music classes (2004-2006, 2014, 2021). |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | CubaCaribe | 60 29th st suite 315 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-4929 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 279-1034 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, CubaCaribe will use grant funds to pay a production manager to help with ongoing programming; the artistic director for oversight of and to maintain close connections with and do outreach to the artistic community; and for a new executive director, who will receive mentoring and training as they assume the position and responsibility for administrative operations, managing finances (excluding fundraising activities), working with the Board, and establishing new and maintaining existing partnerships and communications with the organization’s community and the general public through outreach, marketing and the website. Funds will also support implementation of a new strategic plan, adopted in 2026. | Community is at the heart of all of CubaCaribe's programming. Our unwavering focus is on building a thriving community of Caribbean artists in the Bay Area. CubaCaribe’s services include offering ongoing education and performance opportunities for artists and audiences, as well as a fiscal sponsorship to help artists raise money for their work. We also maintain an online archive of professionally shot video of festival programming from 2003 onward. This open access archive is an historical documentation of the region’s artists, provides artists with high quality samples of their performances and is readily available to producers, scholars and general public. The CubaCaribe Honoree is awarded annually to an elder artist who has made a major contribution to the region’s community of Cuban and Caribbean Diaspora artists over a sustained period of time. CubaCaribe’s programs are as follows: The Annual CubaCaribe Festival of Dance and Music, which includes performances, lectures, demos, workshops, film screenings, celebrations and more (2005-present); Alayo Dance Company, CubaCaribe's resident company featuring the artistic director's innovative fusion of Afro-Cuban modern, folkloric and popular Cuban dance (2004-present); Moving Juntos, a series of Afro-Cuban Dance & Music classes for ages 4-12 (2021-present); CubaCaribe’s San Francisco Carnaval Contingent, which features original choreography taught in a series of classes and performed to live music at Carnaval (2006, 2008 & 2019-present); Maestros y Raíces, a series of master classes by visiting teachers (debuted in 2024); and Cuba Camp, which offers adult campers an intensive two-four days of Caribbean dance and music classes (2004-2006, 2014, 2021). |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Long Beach Symphony Orchestra | 249 E OCEAN BLVD STE 200 , LONG BEACH, CA 90802-4892 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 436-3203 | California's 42nd U.S. Congressional district | District 69 | District 33 | With support from the California Arts Council, Long Beach Symphony will present 76 2nd and 3rd grade interactive Instrumental Ensemble performances at the 54 Elementary schools sites of the Long Beach Unified School District as well as the 6 Los Angeles USD school sites located in neighboring Wilmington. Ensembles assemblies comprise the gateway music education programs that prepare students to attend Symphony Youth Concerts in 4th and 5th Grades. Together, the Elementary Ensembles and Youth Concerts constitute sequential, standards-based music education for 27,000 enrolled public school elementary students. Two annual (fall and spring) Family Concerts are the third component of the Symphony’s Elementary-focused experiential music education programs. Students admission is free to attend the concert and participate in the companion Arts Festival that takes place at the Terrace Theater and Plaza. | The Symphony produces five Classical concerts and five Pops concerts annually that include time-honored masterworks, as well as new works that broaden the horizons of our audience. We also provide four free symphonic concert fieldtrips for 12,000 students and two matinee family concerts. Our 45+ year partnership with the Long Beach Unified School District allows us to deliver more than 150 education events each year, as well as comprehensive classroom lesson plans that incorporate common core curriculum standards. These lesson plans can be accessed online. Our Elementary Ensembles and Youth Concerts programs meet the California Standards for Visual and Performing Arts. These free programs serve 27,000 K-12 students and teachers annually. In 2018, the Symphony launched a Sunday matinee Family Concert Series to address audience development and diversity. This concert is free for children under 18, with subsidized tickets available for adults from low-income households. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | ICC | 3585 5TH AVENUE, SUITE 102 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92103 | San Diego | Far South | (213) 352-2684 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Italian Cultural Center of San Diego will strengthen its existing arts and culture programming by bringing Italian, Italian-American, and Italy-focused artists, musicians, and cultural practitioners to San Diego. Additionally, we plan to bring Italian language and culture directly into San Diego elementary school classrooms — during the critical years when young minds are most receptive to new languages. | Language programming Event programming | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | San Pedro Waterfront Arts District | 880 West 18th Street , SAN PEDRO, CA 90731-5626 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 732-0010 | CA-044 | District 66 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts District San Pedro Waterfront will provide hands-on instruction and training for high school students from underserved communities in the use of AI powered industry technology to create augmented reality installations for public art murals, while building practical skills in digital media, creative storytelling, animation, and 3D rendering preparing them for careers in design, animation, game development, emerging entertainment, and media industries. CAC funds will support lead artist fees and program expenses. | Since becoming a non-profit in 2014, the Arts District’s focus has evolved to include public art, community education and advocacy for all types of arts endeavors, reflecting the diverse cultural backgrounds of the people who live in San Pedro, along with the gritty glamor of our distinctive, varied neighborhoods. We seek projects and programming reflecting the authentic character of our vibrant portside community and will establish a legacy for the arts in San Pedro, one that expresses the absolute best of human creativity. The goals of the Arts District are to: • Cultivate new sustaining partnerships; • Build upon past accomplishments and use the infrastructure created under the CRA to advance future projects; • Generate new opportunities to support local arts, culture and entertainment; • Fulfill our mission to nurture the cultural roots of San Pedro through arts advocacy, education and promotion. We actualize our mission through our arts appreciation series (Culture TALKS!), we provide promotional and event planning of the 28 year old FirstThursday ArtWalk, leading Guided ArtWalk Tours, monthly arts and culture columns in San Pedro Today Magazine, public art commissions, and as a collaborating partner in the recently recertified San Pedro Arts&Cultural District, as well as email news letters touting arts happenings in the district and maintaining an active social media presence. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | San Pedro Waterfront Arts District | 880 West 18th Street , SAN PEDRO, CA 90731-5626 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 732-0010 | CA-044 | District 66 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts District San Pedro Waterfront will bring engaging arts experiences to San Pedro residents and visitors through the 29th year of our monthly FirstThursday Artwalk, the CultureTalks! Arts Appreciation Series, and the Adventures in Public Art program, enliving San Pedro public art murals to life with augmented reality animations, designed and created by local high school students. Funding will support the Executive Director salary. | Since becoming a non-profit in 2014, the Arts District’s focus has evolved to include public art, community education and advocacy for all types of arts endeavors, reflecting the diverse cultural backgrounds of the people who live in San Pedro, along with the gritty glamor of our distinctive, varied neighborhoods. We seek projects and programming reflecting the authentic character of our vibrant portside community and will establish a legacy for the arts in San Pedro, one that expresses the absolute best of human creativity. The goals of the Arts District are to: • Cultivate new sustaining partnerships; • Build upon past accomplishments and use the infrastructure created under the CRA to advance future projects; • Generate new opportunities to support local arts, culture and entertainment; • Fulfill our mission to nurture the cultural roots of San Pedro through arts advocacy, education and promotion. We actualize our mission through our arts appreciation series (Culture TALKS!), we provide promotional and event planning of the 28 year old FirstThursday ArtWalk, leading Guided ArtWalk Tours, monthly arts and culture columns in San Pedro Today Magazine, public art commissions, and as a collaborating partner in the recently recertified San Pedro Arts&Cultural District, as well as email news letters touting arts happenings in the district and maintaining an active social media presence. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | 943153475 | 2273 TELEGRAPH AVE , OAKLAND, CA 94612-2330 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 465-2797 | With support from the California Arts Council, BODY WISDOM INC will strengthen the sustainability and ongoing operations of our organization that began as a small grassroots community arts effort. We have grown into an internationally recognized leader in embodied arts, creativity, and community connection. Grant funds will support core operating expenses, including artist and staff support, accessible programming, community outreach, facilities, and communications, that make our year-round arts and cultural programming possible. Through InterPlay, an active and inclusive approach integrating movement, storytelling, voice, and creative play, Body Wisdom, Inc. serves diverse communities across California, fostering wellbeing, resilience, belonging, and meaningful human connection through the arts. Funding will help ensure continued access to culturally responsive, intergenerational programming that uplifts community voices, supports healing and creativity, and expands participation for historically underserved and systemically marginalized communities. | Life Practice Program – Provides a 4-8-month InterPlay immersion for small groups of 5-15 people, focused on integrating the practices and principles of InterPlay into everyday life. Approximately 1,000 people have completed this program since the organization’s founding. Leader Training Program – Provides continued training and mentoring for graduates of the Life Practice Program who want to become certified InterPlay leaders. We currently have over 200 Certified InterPlay leaders in over 60 cities and 6 continents. Art and Social Change Program – An annual summer immersion for artist-activists ages 18-40. Participants learn InterPlay’s “sneaky deep” way of building artistic skill, leadership ability and strong community. They are supported both during and after the experience in how they might apply InterPlay to help people play with difficult issues, listen and share the wisdom of their body, and tell stories in ways that are direct, personal, and transformational. “Untensive” workshops and retreats through the year – Multiple-day retreats immersing participants in the easy and accessible practices of InterPlay. Current examples of Untensive and special events include: Annual InterPlay Leaders Gathering Black, Indigenous, People of Color Retreats Waking Up White | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | SO SAY WE ALL | 2768 B St Unit 219 , SAN DIEGO, CA 92102 | San Diego | Far South | (702) 419-3260 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, So Say We All will sustain and strengthen its core storytelling programs, VAMP Storytelling Showcase and Long Story Short, while championing equitable access for LBGTQIA+ and disabled artist participation across San Diego County. Grant funds will support general operating expenses, including staff and contractor salaries, program coordination, and recording and live streaming capabilities. Funds will also support potential venue rental costs, accessibility accommodations, and miscellaneous production and marketing expenses. These investments will enhance our program quality, remove barriers to participation for underserved artist communities, and ensure the continued delivery of life affirming, equitable and high-quality live storytelling programs. | So Say We All (SSWA) delivers a comprehensive storytelling pipeline that supports participants from first draft to public presentation and publication. Core programs include creative writing workshops; live storytelling events and performances; one-on-one coaching in writing, performance, and public speaking; and publication opportunities in print and digital formats. Signature programs such as VAMP (curated storytelling showcase) and Long Story Short (open-mic storytelling series) provide accessible platforms for community members to share their stories. Through education programs and partnerships with San Diego storytelling community partners, SSWA supports both youth and adult emerging writers and performers in developing communication skills, creative confidence, and pathways into storytelling, media, and the arts. Targeted initiatives serve veterans, LGBTQIA+ communities, and individuals from immigrant backgrounds. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Give 4 Kidz | 16580 BONANZA DR , RIVERSIDE, CA 92504-5719 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 345-9726 | 42 | 59 | 31 | With support from the California Art Council, GIVE 4 KIDZ will provide art workshops, art supplies, and art events for children in under-served communities that fall within the lowest quartile of the California Healthy Places Index(HPI) in the Southern California region. This grant money would enable GIVE 4 KIDZ to continue its vital mission of using art as a powerful tool for healing, self-expression, and empowerment among vulnerable children. By offering these programs and services, GIVE 4 KIDZ not only fosters creativity and artistic skills but also promotes emotional well-being and a sense of belonging. Art has the ability to transform lives, and with this grant, GIVE 4 KIDZ can make a lasting impact on the lives of children who are often overlooked or underserved. | Give 4 Kidz is dedicated to empowering young creatives through two main programs: 'Art & Me' and 'Story Corner'. The 'Art & Me' program aims to nurture and support youth by offering them free art materials, workshops, events, and exhibitions. We are proud to collaborate with local artists and organizations that share our vision. The second program, 'Story Corner', caters to young individuals with a passion for creative writing. We provide a supportive environment where they can explore their creativity, acquire new skills, and connect with like-minded peers. Through this program, we offer access to writing supplies, events, and workshops led by experienced writers. Our aim is to inspire and foster a love for writing among youth. In this endeavor, we are delighted to partner with local bookstores, authors, and libraries. At Give 4 Kidz, our mission extends beyond traditional boundaries. We strive to reach all children who possess a love for the arts, regardless of their socio-economic backgrounds. To achieve this, we extend our services to family homeless shelters and underserved communities in California. Additionally, we have created remote participation opportunities to ensure inclusivity for all kids. Our goal is to overcome socio-economic challenges and provide equal access to our programs. By embracing diversity and focusing on the potential within each child, Give 4 Kidz is committed to nurturing the creative spirit and enabling young individuals to thrive in the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $4,000.00 | 95-2265589 | 2932 Wilshire Blvd Ste. 203 , Santa Monica, CA 90404 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 395-6330 | California's 36th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Santa Monica Symphony will continue our decades-long practice of delivering professional classical music concerts to the community and providing music education and connection programs to both youth and seniors in Southern California. Funding will aid in our continued operations, which include targeted outreach to new audiences, on-site music therapy with Watermark Retirement Community, and competitive compensation for working California musicians, including 21 members of the American Federation of Musicians Local 47, AFL-CIO/CLC. | Each season, the SMS presents five, full-length orchestral concerts, free and open to the public. In addition to mainstage performances, the SMS introduces young people to classical music at local schools, presents chamber music performances at community locations, and provides music learning opportunities via community partnerships. Outreach initiatives include Chair-to-Chair open rehearsals, where local school children are invited to attend rehearsals, try out instruments, and interact with the musicians; chamber music performances at local Title I elementary schools and rotating public settings; and a developing partnership serving older adults at the Watermark at Beverly Hill retirement community. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Chrysalis Studio/Queer Ancestors Project | 934 Brannan Street , San Francisco , CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 826-9697 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Chrysalis/Queer Ancestors Project will sustain free, year-round arts programming for transitional age LGBTQ2S+ artists, centering QTBIPOC. Funds will support teaching artists, participant materials and stipends, accessibility, exhibitions, readings, artist panels, and community print events. During the grant period, Chrysalis will offer four workshop series: 18-week visual storytelling and queer printmaking program; 17-week Kaleidoscope literary workshop with Still Here San Francisco exploring identity and memory; 18-week printmaking series focused on interdisciplinary art and activism; and 4-week Comix workshop in the spirit and tradition of resistance. QAP programs culminate in public exhibitions, artist panels, literary readings, and community print events that bring emerging artists’ work into wider public view. Our exhibitions and readings provide a window on the past through which the larger community can glimpse our collective future. | Please use Version 3 from GENOP: Chrysalis Studio’s core programs center the Queer Ancestors Project (QAP), a year-round set of free printmaking and literary workshops, exhibitions, public events, and artist development opportunities for LGBTQ2S+ emerging artists. Across all QAP programs, participants move through a shared arc: they study queer and trans ancestors, build artistic skills, create new work, share that work publicly, and become part of an intergenerational creative community that continues beyond the workshop. Chrysalis offers four QAP programs. QAP PRINTS! is an annual 19-week printmaking workshop in visual storytelling and queer ancestry which culminates in an exhibition and artist panel at STRUT that drew 440+ attendees in 2026. QAP Kaleidoscope, developed with Still Here San Francisco, is a literary workshop that deepens intergenerational connection through writing, mentorship, and public sharing. In 2025, a showcase at San Francisco Public Library’s Hormel Center featured young writers reflecting on ancestors such as Audre Lorde and Gloria Anzaldúa, welcoming 175+ attendees. QAP RESISTS! supports emerging artists in creating political posters on issues including prison abolition, transgender rights, climate justice, and immigrant justice. In 2025, our Under Pressure community print party at SOMArts welcomed 225+ attendees, distributing posters and apparel carrying artist-designed messages into the world. Attendees chose art to be printed on their shirts, for free. QAP Comix expands storytelling through comics and visual narrative. Together, these programs support artistic growth, public presentation, intergenerational learning, leadership development, and community building for emerging LGBTQ2S+ artists. One participant reflected, “This workshop helped me find community when I was struggling, provided me with a space to grow my art skills and connect with my ancestors. This is a space where I feel at peace.” |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | San Francisco Youth Theatre | 1446 Market Street , San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 571-1234 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Francisco Youth Theatre will sustain and support its organizational growth through implementation of its 2025-28 Strategic Plan. The plan outlines a scaffolded approach to: building an effective organizational staffing structure, developing a comprehensive marketing plan, achieving financial stability, increasing Board effectiveness, and focusing on key program initiatives. CAC funds will specifically support 2026-27 goals by: –Increasing support to senior Administrative Staff to implement key organizational functions. –Hiring a Marketing Consultant to create targeted messaging to the communities we serve. –Increasing the Outreach Coordinator’s role to expand outreach to our focal populations. These new and expanded roles will effectively strengthen SFYT’s organizational capacity, enabling it to achieve its programmatic goals of delivering high-quality, inclusive arts experiences to our diverse community. | Founded in 2014, SFYT provides fully-accessible arts training and performance opportunities for youth ages 3-24 onsite at its Mission District location and in partnership with SFUSD schools and Community-Based Organizations. Primary beneficiaries are grades PreK–College low-income youth with limited access to theatre arts, including youth who are low income, LGBTQ+, youth with disabilities, newcomers, and English language learners. Transitional-aged youth (18-24) participate in SFYT's Emerging Theatre Professional Program, which provides a pathway to arts careers through internships and employment opportunities. SFYT serves ≈1200 students in year-round school day, after-school, and summer programs. - SFYT offers a broad array of activities that include skill-building classes in acting, music, dance, movement, visual art, playwriting, and production. Fall skill-building classes evolve into spring performance ensembles for elementary through college-aged students. All onsite classes and ensembles are on a sliding scale, with no one turned away for lack of funds. School programs are offered at no fee to students. SFYT’s ongoing creative programs include: –Story Theatre (PreK-1): Creative exploration through literature for young children. –Theatre and movement classes for children with disabilities. –"Teatro en español": Spanish bilingual programming for students PreK-12 –Madcap Players (Elementary): Theatre skill-building and performance using stories from around the world. –415 Teen Ensemble (Middle & High School): Theatre skill-building classes leading to full-scale productions of plays with social justice themes. –Queer Drama: A space for Queer youth to develop their creative voices. –SFYT DREAM Ensemble: A professional touring ensemble for transitional-aged youth that performs original social justice theatre in Bay Area schools and throughout California, such as Gary Soto's "The Afterlife" about teen violence and suicide, Alma Flor Ada's "Dancing Home" about child immigration, and Bruce R. Coleman's "Andi Boi" about a trans teen's first day at high school. DREAM Ensemble members also work as teaching assistants in younger theatre classes. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | cultural programming | 2145 W Pan American Road # B , SAN DIEGO, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 742-9150 | 50th Congressional District | 78th Assembly District | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, HOUSE OF CHAMORROS will strengthen its volunteer‑run organization by improving internal systems, supporting cultural practitioners, and expanding equitable access to Chamorro arts and heritage. As a 100% volunteer‑led nonprofit applying for General Operating Support for the first time, funds will enhance volunteer coordination; provide stipends for weaving, language, and cultural arts instructors; and modernize communication, record‑keeping, and administrative processes to better serve a diverse public. Funding will also upgrade our website and social media outreach to reach more families and share accessible cultural content. These investments will improve free public programs, increase accessibility for people of all ages and abilities, and ensure Chamorro culture remains visible, vibrant, and welcoming to the San Diego community. | The House of Chamorros offers year‑round cultural programs at Balboa Park that share Chamorro heritage with families, visitors, and the broader San Diego community. Our signature Håfa Adai Festival brings together cultural practitioners, musicians, dancers, and artisans for a full day of celebration and hands‑on learning. We also participate in major park events such as December Nights and the Ethnic Food Faire, where thousands of visitors experience Chamorro food, music, and cultural displays. Beyond public events, we support families through our Children’s Health Program, which assists individual families from Guam and the Mariana Islands who travel to the mainland for medical care. Our volunteers help them connect with medical staff, navigate housing options, and receive guidance during their stay. We also uplift youth through our Queens Program, which provides leadership development and cultural education for young women representing the Chamorro community. Together, these programs create a welcoming, intergenerational space where Chamorro culture is celebrated, taught, and shared with people of all backgrounds. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,715.00 | D.I.Y. ART | c/o INK PEOPLE 627 3rd Street , Eureka, CA 95501 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 969-7490 | 2nd | Second | 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, D.I.Y. ART will enhance K-12+ arts education by equipping teachers with “plug-and-play” multi-media, interactive classroom lab kits to accompany open-access science and mathematics Native American Studies Model Curriculum (NASMC) written by, and centering on, Native Californian Tribes for students located in historically and systemically under-resourced, primarily rural communities in Humboldt and Del Norte counties. Designed to meet challenging educational situations, Art Lab Kits + Native Curricula is an exciting, engaging, and replicable addition to a K-12 educator’s toolbox. By combining pre-packaged bins of curated arts materials with meticulously designed NASMC open-access units lesson plans featuring creation stories, contemporary art, poetry, and traditional crafts, we give overstretched instructors a smorgasbord of plug-and-play classroom curricula while helping foster respect, cross-cultural understanding, and more accurate representations of Native peoples. | D.I.Y. Arts provides fun, inclusive, hands-on, open-access (and low cost) events for the public to engage creatively with mixed media and one another, enjoy refreshments, and take home personal artistic creations. Our project is a socially-engaged, community-centric innovation that partners with local, small, LGBTQIA+, and minority-owned businesses, community-based organizations, nonprofits, and Tribal/government agencies. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Street Poets | 2116 Arlington Ave. Suite 310 , Los Angeles, CA 90018 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 737-8545 | District 37 | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the CAC, Street Poets will facilitate weekly Beats and Rhymes music/poetry sessions . Youth will record tracks for our annual album and perform at the Open Mic. Funds also support our music fellowship program that engages our standout youth and provides lessons/mentorship/workforce development around music production, music business and more. | Street Poets programming consists of transformational poetry/music workshops designed specifically for system-impacted youth. These include those in LA County's juvenile detention facilities, community centers, and underserved public school, and at our Street Poets office and via our Poetry in Motion Van. Weekly workshops are supplemented by workforce development and leadership training, and mentoring, open-mic events, poetry performances and poetry reading series, as well as youth-driven books, CD and DVD projects that amplify/illustrate the kind of fearless creative work that inspires young people. Annually, we reach approximately 750 system-impacted youth, ages 11-18 directly through our long and short-term workshops, and over hundreds more via one-time Street Poets performances at schools and in the community. After 30 years of facilitating healing, transformational poetry, writing, and music production workshops; hosting inspirational community open mic events; and providing mentoring support and leadership retreats for youth and young adults in Los Angeles, Street Poets has put down permanent roots in the city it has served so well. Street Poets’ future arts/cultural center sits directly across the street from John Adams Middle School just south of downtown Los Angeles. Slated to open in the summer of 2026, the future Street Poets' permanent home, Street Poets Center for Community, Culture and Wellness, begins an exciting new chapter in our evolution as a culture-shaping, system-changing community-based organization. This new space will anchor our arts-based outreach and community-building work here in LA. It will serve as a welcoming collaborative hub and convening space for the many arts and youth-serving organizations with whom we work, and as a multi-generational destination for poets of all ages. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $10,000.00 | Jazz Hands for Autism | 10220 Culver Blvd ste 101 , Culver City, CA 90232-3450 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 209-7190 | 37 | 54 | 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Jazz Hands For Autism will sustain general operations of its neurodiversity-affirming music education and workforce development programs serving 42 neurodivergent students in Culver City, California. Funds will support staff salaries, facilities, and programming costs across three interconnected programs: the Jazz Hands Musicians Academy, which delivers conservatory-level music instruction to adults; the Junior Academy, which builds foundational performance skills in youth ages 8-17; and the Jazz Hands Jobs Program, which places trained musicians in paid performance, teaching, and music technology careers. Training culminates biannually in the Jazz Hands Concert Series, a professional showcase connecting neurodivergent musicians with music industry leaders. JHFA's student body is 77% BIPOC, 78% adults ages 18-64, drawn from 7 of 8 LA County Service Planning Areas and Orange County. | Jazz Hands For Autism (JHFA) is an award-winning 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to transforming the lives of youth and adults on the autism spectrum through music education, vocational training, and employment. We use music as a tool and a pathway—bridging the gap between artistic passion and sustainable careers in the creative economy. Our innovative, tech-enabled programs are designed to foster inclusion, build confidence, and equip participants with the social, emotional, and professional skills needed to thrive in music-related fields. Our Programs Include: Jazz Hands Concert Series: A semiannual, public performance series that showcases the talents of neurodivergent musicians of all ages and abilities. These high-impact events offer artists exposure to industry professionals and potential clients, while also shifting public perceptions around disability and talent. Jazz Hands Junior Academy: A music education program for children ages 8–17 on the autism spectrum, combining one-on-one instrument instruction (guitar or piano) with music-based social skills training, all delivered in a neurodiversity-affirming environments. Jazz Hands Musicians Academy Conservatory: A post-secondary, individualized music and job training program serving adults with autism. Students receive 14–19 hours of instruction weekly, with curriculum tracks in performance, music technology, music teaching and more. Our holistic model builds both artistic excellence and workplace readiness. Jazz Hands Jobs Program: This workforce development initiative offers job placement support, resume and interview prep, career mentorship, and on-the-job coaching. Our dedicated job developers work with students to secure paid roles—including teaching, live performance, sync licensing, and music tech—while partnering with inclusive employers across the region. Since its founding in 2014, JHFA has served over 200 neurodivergent musicians, facilitated 200+ job opportunities, and helped participants earn over $50,000. With growing demand and global reach, JHFA is poised to scale its impact towards our vision of a world where individuals of all abilities can pursue fulfilling, creative careers. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Project READ-Redwood City (RCFOL) | 1044 MIDDLEFIELD RD , REDWOOD CITY, CA 94063-1815 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 780-7077 | With support from the California Arts Council, Project READ (Redwood City Friends of Literacy) will expand its Arts and Youth Enrichment Program providing culturally responsive, trauma-informed, arts-integrated learning for underserved youth and families in Redwood City. Funds will support teaching artists, program staff, and materials to deliver year-round programming. These programs integrate visual and narrative arts with literacy and social-emotional learning to strengthen reading and writing skills, creative expression, and emotional regulation. Youth and caregivers will engage in shared creative experiences that build confidence, collaboration, and belonging. Project READ will prioritize equitable access for low-income, multilingual, and system-impacted families through free programming, bilingual support, hybrid formats, and take-home learning kits. CAC funding will expand access to high-quality arts education, while supporting academic growth, family engagement, and long-term creative and personal development. | As community needs have grown, so has Project READ. Originally focused on adult literacy, our programs now include early intervention, youth tutoring, family literacy workshops, dual-intervention programs, and enrichment activities. We recently transitioned to hybrid learning platforms to increase accessibility and remove barriers to participation. Youth Programs: Project READ serves low-income and learning-challenged K–12 students through one-on-one tutoring with trained community volunteers and teen tutors. These programs strengthen reading and writing while building confidence, leadership, and resilience. Our early intervention programs engage entire families in literacy learning, fostering a culture of reading at home. We also offer enrichment programs, including STEAM and integrated arts that provide creative, hands-on opportunities for exploration and self-expression. In the past year, over 300 youth participated in our programs, with an average reading growth of two full levels. Intergenerational Impact: Our unique model engages youth, teens, adults, and families together in literacy learning. Teen and preteen tutors gain leadership, mentoring, and professional skills while serving as role models for younger learners. Adults contribute as volunteer tutors, mentors, and advocates, while also benefiting from their own literacy instruction. This intergenerational approach strengthens our community, building confidence, civic engagement, and a shared sense of purpose. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Izcalli | 4219 E. Overlook Drive , SAN DIEGO, CA 92115 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 857-1148 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 79 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, IZCALLI ESCUELA DE LA RAZA will empower youth to create and perform original live theater centered on the theme of freedom at the Chicano Park Museum and Cultural Center in the heart of San Diego’s Barrio Logan Cultural District. The Museum and Chicano Park—home to an Izcalli organization mural and a site with a powerful history of successful resistance—will serve as meaningful venues for amplifying youth voices and demonstrating effective strategies for community empowerment. For the first time, Izcalli will systematically document how theater develops artistic voice and freedom—capturing responses across youth, families, teaching artists, and audience members. Culminating performances at Barrio Station and Chicano Park Day 2027 will reveal what the program produces: young people who claim the stage and speak their truth. | Izcalli delivers its mission through four interconnected arts-centered programs rooted in Indigenous creative practice and cultural expression. Restorative Theater for Youth brings theater-based healing to young people at school sites and community centers across San Diego County. Drawing on Indigenous storytelling traditions and the philosophy of La Cultura Cura, youth use dramatic performance, creative writing, and ceremonial arts to process intergenerational trauma, explore cultural identity, and develop voice and confidence. Theater becomes both a healing practice and an act of resistance — a way for young people to reclaim their narratives and build community belonging. The program prioritizes access for the most historically marginalized youth in the region. Teatro Izcalli is the organization's professional Chicano theater troupe and one of Izcalli's founding expressions. Teatro Izcalli creates and performs original works that examine social justice issues, celebrate Indigenous heritage, and challenge dehumanizing narratives with humor and artistic rigor. Productions have engaged diverse audiences across San Diego and modeled for youth what it looks like to be a working artist rooted in cultural purpose. Indigenous Restorative Circles integrate spoken word, song, ceremony, and creative expression as core tools within weekly talking circles facilitated by trained mentors at 18 school sites and 6 community centers. Since 1998, over 2,500 individuals have participated in this program, which follows a 33-module curriculum grounded in the Seven Rs framework. A 2020 doctoral study confirmed 94% of participants experienced personal transformation, with an average member tenure of 16.7 years. Tlahtolli Trainings — named for the Nahuatl concept of The Word, representing honor, truth, and commitment — transmit Indigenous arts-based pedagogies to educators, nonprofit professionals, and community members, extending Izcalli's reach and building the capacity of others to use culturally grounded creative practice with youth and families. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Izcalli | 4219 E. Overlook Drive , SAN DIEGO, CA 92115 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 857-1148 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 79 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, IZCALLI ESCUELA DE LA RAZA—a nationally recognized Chicana/o and Indigenous arts organization serving San Diego since 1993—will use general operating funds to support staffing and formal program documentation, professional performances by Teatro Izcalli (Izcalli's Chicana/o comedy troupe performing original actos), restorative arts trainings, Indigenous Restorative Circles, the development of Cihua Ollin – Circulo de Mujeres, and expansion of Izcalli's youth theater programs to new school and community sites across San Diego. Izcalli will formally document its Circle practices as a living cultural tradition—capturing how they inform youth arts education—and disseminate findings to practitioners, policymakers, and arts funders across California. These investments will strengthen 30 years of culturally rooted artistic production and education and advance the cultural vitality of Chicana/o, Indigenous, and diverse marginalized communities. | Izcalli delivers its mission through four interconnected arts-centered programs rooted in Indigenous creative practice and cultural expression. Restorative Theater for Youth brings theater-based healing to young people at school sites and community centers across San Diego County. Drawing on Indigenous storytelling traditions and the philosophy of La Cultura Cura, youth use dramatic performance, creative writing, and ceremonial arts to process intergenerational trauma, explore cultural identity, and develop voice and confidence. Theater becomes both a healing practice and an act of resistance — a way for young people to reclaim their narratives and build community belonging. The program prioritizes access for the most historically marginalized youth in the region. Teatro Izcalli is the organization's professional Chicano theater troupe and one of Izcalli's founding expressions. Teatro Izcalli creates and performs original works that examine social justice issues, celebrate Indigenous heritage, and challenge dehumanizing narratives with humor and artistic rigor. Productions have engaged diverse audiences across San Diego and modeled for youth what it looks like to be a working artist rooted in cultural purpose. Indigenous Restorative Circles integrate spoken word, song, ceremony, and creative expression as core tools within weekly talking circles facilitated by trained mentors at 18 school sites and 6 community centers. Since 1998, over 2,500 individuals have participated in this program, which follows a 33-module curriculum grounded in the Seven Rs framework. A 2020 doctoral study confirmed 94% of participants experienced personal transformation, with an average member tenure of 16.7 years. Tlahtolli Trainings — named for the Nahuatl concept of The Word, representing honor, truth, and commitment — transmit Indigenous arts-based pedagogies to educators, nonprofit professionals, and community members, extending Izcalli's reach and building the capacity of others to use culturally grounded creative practice with youth and families. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Bridge Live Arts | 1446 Market St , San Francisco, CA 94102-6004 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (920) 851-6661 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bridge Live Arts (B.L.A.) will collaborate with movement-based artists B Dean (QUEER THE AIR), Swetha Prabakaran (MODERN NATYA), and Amber Julian (HEARTSPACE RISING) through the organization’s year-long Community Engagement Residency program. The artists will receive funding and infrastructure-building support for projects that respectively expand artistic development opportunities for LGBTQIA+/QTBIPOC in vertical dance (B), bring together Disabled Desi & South Asian artists to center access and disability justice in the evolution of hybrid South Asian dance lineages (SWETHA), and produce a new healing-centered dance and music festival by and for Bay Area artists rooted in Afro-diasporic lineages of improvisation and freestyle (AMBER). | Bridge Live Arts (B.L.A.) creates and supports equity-driven live art that centers artists as agents of change. We are based on the unceded, ancestral lands of the Ramaytush Ohlone peoples who have stewarded this land for generations and are still here. Our arts and culture programming features an array of live performances, public dialogues, workshops, classes, and residencies that reflect the organization’s deep commitments to cultural equity, racial equity, and artist power. This programming includes a Community Engagement Residency offering year-long funding and capacity building support to movement artist-activists working in community. In 2020, B.L.A. transitioned from a founder-led, hierarchical nonprofit to a model of distributed leadership. In alignment with B.L.A.’s core values, our way of working currently embraces shared leadership across all aspects of the organization, pay equality across artistic & administrative staff, and a re-imagined Board comprised of 100% working artists. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | FOOLS FURY THEATER | 1446 Market St , San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 595-4207 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Aviva Arts will strengthen organizational capacity by increasing executive leadership positions to full-time wages and adding part-time Artistic Producer and Marketing Director roles. These positions will support sustainable programming, communications, fundraising, and healthier working conditions for staff and collaborators. Aviva Arts will produce SWITCH, an immersive new ensemble work using oral histories from California-based SWANA, (Southwest Asian/North African) Americans to explore code-switching, cultural belonging, and survival. Integrating live performance, original music, projections, and audio installation, the project is created in partnership with Meem Collective, California State University East Bay, Golden Thread Productions, and Red Poppy Art House. Aviva Arts will also launch the SWITCH Audio Series, featuring community interviews and music exploring SWANA immigrant and first-generation experiences. | Aviva Arts Guiding Principles We cultivate belonging. We see collaborators as whole beings, recognizing that the ecosystem of the whole is dependent on the well-being of the individuals. We recognize and embrace differences. We work to center and lift up underrepresented voices, narratives, and bodies. We are committed to deepening and growing our relationship with Disabled, Indigenous, Latine, MENA, LGBTQ+, Asian American, and African American communities. We value longterm collaboration by cultivating authentic relationships that change and grow over time. We believe that working in groups creates more dynamic and compelling outcomes than those of any one individual. We work to create revolutionary models for theater-making within the structure of an inherently oppressive system. We foster systemic change through iterative education for ourselves and our constituents. We are committed to transformation with grace. We work towards creating better hiring equity, system transparency, and wage reform practices. We embrace the speed of innovation while making sure no one is left behind. We invest in processes that nurture and build trust among collaborators and repair relationships. *For more information about adrienne maree brown's concepts of Emergent Strategy, check out her book here: https://www.akpress.org/emergentstrategy.html |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,746.00 | Mongolian Arts & Education Center | 1910 Santa Clara Ave , Alameda, CA 94501 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 871-4500 | 12th Congressional District of California | District 18 | District 7 | Expand Mongolian language and traditional music education across Alameda and neighboring Bay Area counties via blended in‑person and online instruction. Grant funds will pay teaching artists, a program manager, bookkeeper, and admin support; purchase and adapt instruments and materials (including left‑handed and low‑motor‑skill equipment); provide Mongolian–English translation, targeted outreach, and transportation stipends; subsidize sliding‑scale tuition and family events; and cover venue, technology, and evaluation costs. MAEC will deliver weekly morin khuur and heritage language classes, calligraphy workshops, pop‑up performances, school assemblies, and accessible public recitals (including sensory‑friendly and ASL‑interpreted events). We collect accommodation requests at enrollment, provide adaptive instruments, ADA venues, captions/recordings, flexible scheduling, and staff trained in inclusive pedagogy. The project will serve ~200 participants, deliver 150–200 instructional hours, host family events, place interns, and evaluate outcomes via pre/post surveys, attendance tracking, and interviews. | MAEC, a non-profit organization, seeks to promote and preserve the rich cultural heritage of Mongolia in the US. We aim to provide a space where Mongolian Americans and others can come together to learn, share, and appreciate the unique traditions, customs, and history of Mongolia. We offer Mongolian Heritage Language classes, Mongolian Calligraphy workshops, and Morin khuur (Horse-head fiddle) music classes. Also we promote and perform at the greater bay-area schools and Asian American cultural events. We welcome and support newcomers to the Bay Area and host career planning, job seeking, student intern, language assistance, and networking workshops. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Eritrean Community Center (ECC) of the Bay Area | 955 W GRAND AVE , OAKLAND, CA 94607-3459 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 652-1991 | 18 | This proposal supports the hiring of a part-time administrative staff member to strengthen ECC’s day-to-day operations and program delivery. Currently, these responsibilities are managed by a team of volunteers, limiting capacity and consistency. Grant funds will enable us to compensate for this role and formalize essential operational functions, including coordinating Saturday programming (preparing materials, supporting teaching staff, and ensuring smooth class execution), managing registration and attendance systems, organizing events, and maintaining financial tracking and documentation. This position is critical to building the infrastructure needed for sustainable growth. By ensuring reliable, behind-the-scenes operations, administrative support will allow leadership to focus on program expansion, partnerships, and long-term impact, while improving the quality and consistency of services delivered to youth and families. | In response to the evolving and extremely diverse needs of the Eritrean community, our various programs focus on physical, mental, social, cultural, and economic well-being. Current programs include community health and wellbeing, cultural literacy, immigration assistance, music and dance, cooking and workforce development. | ||
| State Local Partner Mentorship | 2026-27 | $50,000.00 | The Arts Council of Kern | 1020 18th Street , BAKERSFIELD, CA 93301 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 324-9000 | California's 20 Congressional District | District 35 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTS COUNCIL OF KERN (ACK) will provide mentorship, technical assistance, and organizational development support to the emerging Arts Council of Kings County as it works toward becoming a sustainable and locally governed arts agency. A primary goal of this assistance is to support completion of the organization’s 501(c)(3) nonprofit status already in progress and to help position the new organization to become a State-Local Partner (SLP) with Kings County and the California Arts Council. This partnership builds upon the important foundation established during Years One and Two of regional arts leadership and technical assistance led by the Fresno Arts Council. ACK will help bring this work to completion by supporting the coordinator and founding board through the final stages of organizational development and nonprofit formation. | Community Grants and Partnerships: Provides grant funding, technical assistance, and free monthly Cultivate Kern workshops (sponsored by The Wonderful Company) to support artists, nonprofits, schools, libraries, and museums, expanding participation and organizational capacity. Includes marketing, social media, and storytelling support to increase visibility and engagement. ACK Gallery: A central hub for community engagement, hosting eight annual exhibits, workshops, and performances. Signature events like Latination engage up to 5,000 participants through cultural arts, music, dance, and hands-on activities. Artist Promotion: Art Walk & Makers Markets: Dynamic monthly public event in downtown Bakersfield for original visual and performing artists to showcase their work. Makers Market showcases local arts/crafts for sale, rotating artists every quarter and is open when ACK is open. Arts Education/Creative Economy Training: ACK offers arts integration classes for teachers, artists in residency (classroom/after-school), community schools CTE, and a new workforce development program for junior high students. Summer camps and Artist Catalog also key features. Prison Arts Initiative: Provides multidisciplinary arts programming for incarcerated individuals, building self-awareness, communication skills, and workforce readiness. Art4Rehabilitation (A4R): Award-winning program serving justice-involved youth most vulnerable to recidivism, reducing behavioral incidents while building creative and career skills through mentorship and internships. Common Ground: Indigenous arts program offering workshops, storytelling, murals, and exhibitions that strengthen cultural identity and expand access in underserved communities. Public Art Programs: Partnerships with Caltrans and public parks to engage communities in mural projects that increase cultural storytelling and neighborhood pride. Literary Arts: Poet Laureate, Poetry Out Loud, Stories on the Sidewalk, and open mic events promote literacy, storytelling, and community dialogue. 2026-27 Pilot Programs: Creative Pathways for Healthy Futures, a Kaiser-funded initiative and Creative Recovery for Women, another grant funded program, using the arts to support individuals facing barriers to employment to find work in the creative economy. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | artEquity Community | 556 S FAIR OAKS AVE STE 101 # 464 , PASADENA, CA 91105-2657 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 986-5792 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTEQUITY COMMUNITY will host the 2027 Black Playwrights Gathering (BPG) — an intergenerational convening of 100 Black playwrights in Los Angeles. Black playwrights are the griots of our time—storytellers who humanize, preserve, and transgress—and their voices have never been more necessary. Building on the historic success of our 2024 and 2026 gatherings, the BPG is a replenishing space where Black playwrights from different generations, geographies, and career stages can connect, rest, and celebrate — free from the pressures of production or performance. CAC funds will support core program expenses including venue, travel and housing stipends for participants, somatic and wellness practitioners, and event coordination. Stipends meaningfully reduce financial barriers and ensure playwrights can attend regardless of economic status. | After eleven years of work in Los Angeles at the intersection of art and social change, artEquity pursues its vision through varied programmatic approaches: LEADERSHIP DEVELOPMENT THROUGH COHORTS OF ARTS LEADERS exemplified by our BIPOC Leadership Circle — a six-month program culminating in a weeklong in-person retreat in Los Angeles. Four cohorts have served 172 arts leaders of color. Los Angeles partners have included Inner-City Arts, Great Leap, Latino Theatre Company, Plaza de la Raza, The Geffen Playhouse, Center Theatre Group, Leimert Park Village, WACO Theatre Center, and St. Elmo Village. SHARE RESOURCES AND TOOLS FOR SOCIAL CHANGE through BIPOC Surviving Predominantly White Institutions and Talking Back. The first is a five-part virtual training series developed with BIPOC mental health leaders that has served over 6,300 participants. Talking Back features candid conversations among BIPOC arts leaders reaching thousands of viewers. We also share resources across social media and our newsletter. SUPPORT VISIONARY BLACK ARTS LEADERS facing systemic barriers. One example: artEquity is actively supporting Tarell Alvin McCraney, the first Black Artistic Director of The Geffen Playhouse, to bolster his vision and address an alarming pattern of Black arts leaders leaving executive positions prematurely. STRATEGICALLY CONVENE ARTISTS AND ARTS LEADERS OF COLOR in cross-generational celebration and solidarity. Our Black Playwrights Gathering — first held on Juneteenth 2024 in Los Angeles in partnership with Dominique Morisseau and Aleshea Harris — brought together nearly 100 Black playwrights for community building. The next gathering is planned for Juneteenth 2026. Our biennial Alumni Gathering brings together alumni from all artEquity programs for community and coalition building while centering wellness. PROVIDE DIRECT FINANCIAL SUPPORT through our Artist + Activist Community Fund, which has supported 246 individuals and organizations with over $900,000 in unrestricted micro-grants — including a focus on BIPOC Elders and Cultural Bearers. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Sausalito Center for the Arts | 750 BRIDGEWAY , SAUSALITO, CA 94965-0000 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 810-6089 | 2nd district | 12th California Assembly district | CA Senate District 02 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sausalito Center for the Arts will present "IRAN: Reframed — Between Tradition and Tomorrow," a multi-disciplinary cultural festival showcasing the creative work of Iranian American artists. The festival will be presented in downtown Sausalito in March 2027 during the Persian New Year. This festival is designed to showcase the enduring humanity of a country increasingly under siege, providing a critical platform for creative expression by Iranian artists whose voices have historically been silenced in Iran and marginalized in America. By celebrating often-overlooked Iranian art and culture, this Festival will promote greater understanding and unity across the Bay Area’s multicultural communities. Grant funds from the California Arts Council will support activities related to the curation of the festival’s programming as well as stipends paid to participating Iranian American performance artists. | As a community-centered venue for visual and performing arts, civic dialogue, and cultural celebration, SCA works to shift the dominant narrative in local communities by promoting understanding, inclusion, and acceptance. Our venue has quickly become a vibrant cultural hub that serves Marin County and the greater Bay Area through year-round programming designed to uplift and celebrate diverse artistic perspectives. Our programming spans multiple disciplines, including curated visual arts exhibitions, film screenings, live music, spoken word, comedy, dance, and literary events. We showcase both emerging and established artists, providing platforms that support both artistic development and community engagement. Our annual exhibitions include Marin Open Studios, which features over 200 working artists from across Marin County, and SCA Open, which invites more than 700 Bay Area artists to showcase their work in our space. We also curate special exhibitions featuring art that reflects distinct social and cultural identities. This includes: “Pride Not Prejudice,” celebrating local LGBTQI+ communities; “Milagros and Memories,” uplifting Latinx arts and culture; and “Breaking Barriers,” presenting Traditional and Contemporary Iranian art. Recently, we also partnered with three University of California MFA programs to present “Open Inquiry: UC Arts,” showcasing the visual art of 36 graduate students. To enrich these artistic experiences, we also present artist talks, lectures, and arts education programming. In addition, we offer the use of our venue at affordable rental rates to nonprofit organizations and cultural groups for their own special events, such as fundraisers and intergenerational arts programs. By centering community voice and cultural relevance, our programs build shared identity, foster civic engagement, and advance opportunities for diverse artists, creating an impact that ripples beyond Sausalito. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | PIECE BY PIECE | 6417 S. Main St , Los Angeles, CA 90003-1525 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 459-1420 | California Assembly district 53 | District 53 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Piece by Piece will offer free therapeutic art workshops for underserved women from Skid Row and South Los Angeles who have experienced domestic violence, homelessness, or other traumatic life events. Often suffering low self-worth as a result of domestic violence these women (mostly 50+/Women of Color) face financial insecurity, unstable housing, limited work experience, and few opportunities to improve their socio-emotional or financial status or opportunities for personal growth. Scientific research demonstrates that participating in the arts can lead to improved cognitive abilities, reduced stress hormones, and promote measurable progress in healing from trauma. The project will focus on an accessible fused glass technique that enables participant artists to achieve nearly immediate artistic success, resulting in the creation of fulfilling works of art and improved sense of wellbeing. | Programs include: - Artisan Certification Program: Progressive skill-building course guiding participants through four certification levels in mosaic. - Directed Studies: Multi-week sessions focusing on advanced techniques led by Piece by Piece instructors and professional Visiting Artists. - Open Studio: Open session for active participants to create personal projects, refine skills, and receive support from instructors. - Community Outreach: Group projects with community members in an inviting, low-commitment setting. - Social Enterprise: Artisans complete orders and commissioned projects, receiving an hourly wage for their work. - Studio Prep Associates Program: The organization employs individuals who have experienced homelessness to provide program support sorting, preparing, and managing donated mosaic materials. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $7,500.00 | Sisters of Nia, Inc. | 9630 BRUCEVILLE RD , ELK GROVE, CA 95757-5512 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 538-1470 | 7th Congressional District | District 10 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sisters of Nia will utilize a $10,000 grant to strengthen and sustain our performing arts programming for girls ages 11–14. Funding will directly support staff stipends to ensure experienced instructors lead high-quality classes in vocals, dance, drama, and stage production. Grant funds will also cover facility rental costs, providing a safe and consistent space for rehearsals and workshops, as well as copies and printing of scripts and materials essential for student learning and final performances. This investment will enhance program delivery, deepen artistic engagement, and ensure participants have the resources needed to build confidence, creativity, and self-expression through the arts. | 1. Sisterhood Development Program (Academic Year Program) - A long-term mentorship and enrichment program for girls beginning in 6th grade. Incorporates the performing arts and focuses on self-esteem, leadership development, cultural identity, academic success, and building strong peer relationships. 2. Camp Nia (Summer Performing Arts Camp) - A two-week, full-day summer camp for girls ages 11–14 that uses performing arts (dance, drama, vocals, and stage production) to build confidence, creativity, and self-expression. Culminates in a live showcase performance. 3. Rites of Passage - A culturally grounded experience designed to support girls in their transition from childhood to adolescence. Includes life skills, performances by participants, cultural education, identity development, and milestone experiences such as HBCU and Black history tours. 4. HBCU & Cultural Enrichment Tours - Educational travel experiences that expose participants to Historically Black Colleges and Universities, museums, and culturally significant landmarks. Designed to expand college awareness, cultural pride, and future aspirations. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | PIECE BY PIECE | 6417 S. Main St , Los Angeles, CA 90003-1525 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 459-1420 | California Assembly district 53 | District 53 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council Piece by Piece will fund general operating costs to provide free therapeutic mosaic arts workshops for under-resourced Angelinos (in-studio / in community) who have experienced homelessness, economic hardship, traumatic life events (including military service) or chronic emotional and/or physical disabilities who have little to no access to the arts. Participants come primarily from communities like Skid Row and the Figueroa Corridor, are predominantly People of Color (Black 24%, Latinx 67%), rely on supportive housing, and live on social benefits with very limited incomes. Workshops enable participants to experience healing through art while acquiring marketable skills and a pathway to earned income to help rebuild their lives. As participants advance their skills they may sell their creations through our online store and/or earn hourly wages working in our Social Enterprise. | Programs include: - Artisan Certification Program: Progressive skill-building course guiding participants through four certification levels in mosaic. - Directed Studies: Multi-week sessions focusing on advanced techniques led by Piece by Piece instructors and professional Visiting Artists. - Open Studio: Open session for active participants to create personal projects, refine skills, and receive support from instructors. - Community Outreach: Group projects with community members in an inviting, low-commitment setting. - Social Enterprise: Artisans complete orders and commissioned projects, receiving an hourly wage for their work. - Studio Prep Associates Program: The organization employs individuals who have experienced homelessness to provide program support sorting, preparing, and managing donated mosaic materials. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Burbank Community Band | P.O. Box 1005 , BURBANK, CA 91507-1055 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 645-5105 | 30 | 44 | 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, BURBANK COMMUNITY BAND, INC will strengthen its general operations so it can continue providing free, accessible performances and music education opportunities for Burbank and neighboring communities. Grant funds will support core operating needs, including performance venue costs, compensation for contracted artistic and operations personnel, expanded marketing, and hiring guest artists who enhance performances. This support will help sustain a welcoming space where volunteer musicians of varied backgrounds, ages, abilities, and skill levels can rehearse and perform together. Funds will also help the Band respond to recent growth in musician participation and audience attendance, securing larger, accessible venues and expand outreach to new audiences. Investment will preserve a long-standing community tradition and expand free access to music for families, older adults, students, and community members throughout the Burbank region. | The Burbank Community Band is a traditional concert band that originally formed in 1940 as the Lockheed Employees Recreation Concert Band. Today the Band is made up of between 50 and 75 volunteer musicians. The Band provides a place for musicians of all talent levels, and backgrounds to come together to rehearse and perform together. The Band puts on between 5 and 11 free performances annually for the residents of Burbank and neighboring communities. These performances include community concerts, school assemblies, concerts at senior recreation centers and senior living facilities, and performances in connection with annual City of Burbank Veterans Day and Memorial Day ceremonies. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | In The Band | 2118 WILSHIRE BLVD STE 1170 , SANTA MONICA, CA 90403-5704 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 320-8585 | California's 36th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from California Arts Council, In The Band (formerly Sound Art) will use general operating relief to sustain our infrastructure and overhead costs of supporting our music education and career readiness programs for vulnerable youth in underserved L.A. neighborhoods. With professional musicians as teaching artists, our mobile Music Education program uses contemporary music to teach the fundamentals of musicianship to 200 underserved, low-income and foster youth in grades K-12. Utilizing teaching teams of professional composers and audio engineers, our School to Career Readiness program provides music education and mentorship in songwriting, recording and production using the latest industry-standard Digital Audio Workstation technology, to 50 homeless young adults, aged-out-of-system foster youth and survivors of trafficking in transitional housing, ages 17-24. | Our core programming provides on-site mobile music education to underserved students from K through 12th grade and at-risk, homeless and foster youth, ages 17 - 24, using contemporary music to teach the fundamentals of musicianship. Through one-on-one interaction, demonstrations and instruction from professional musicians, composers and audio engineers, we offer age-appropriate instruction in alignment with VAPA standards for school aged students. In The Band also offers songwriting, recording and production for homeless and foster youth, ages 17-24. School aged students will learn to play a minimum of four quality pieces of music and will master an instrument within one year, while our older youth will write, produce and record music. In addition, students will have opportunities to release music on the internet and perform at events throughout the city. In The Band curriculum includes the following topics: Tempo; Dynamics; Techniques specific to each instrument; Techniques for audio production and recording; Rhythmic concepts; Understanding and Reading musical notation; Writing musical notation; Understanding ‘beat’ and measures in 4/4 and other time signatures; Introduction to the music of world cultures; Introduction to rhythmic concepts (reading and writing); and Introduction to ensemble playing; and Introduction to performance. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Sausalito Center for the Arts | 750 BRIDGEWAY , SAUSALITO, CA 94965-0000 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 810-6089 | 2nd district | 12th California Assembly district | CA Senate District 02 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sausalito Center for the Arts will develop and implement strategic marketing initiatives to increase and expand its audience; foster high-impact partnerships with community-based organizations across the region; and promote diverse revenue streams. These initiatives will be led by a new Deputy Director, hired in April 2026 as the organization’s second paid employee. CAC Grant funds will be used to support the salary for this position, which will significantly increase the organization’s capacity to expand its reach. Since its founding in 2021, Sausalito Center for the Arts (SCA) has been almost entirely volunteer-run, previously employing only an Executive Director. This staffing model does not support an operational capacity that matches SCA’s programmatic ambitions. Investing in personnel to drive marketing strategies is critical to the organization’s mission and long-term sustainability. | As a community-centered venue for visual and performing arts, civic dialogue, and cultural celebration, SCA works to shift the dominant narrative in local communities by promoting understanding, inclusion, and acceptance. Our venue has quickly become a vibrant cultural hub that serves Marin County and the greater Bay Area through year-round programming designed to uplift and celebrate diverse artistic perspectives. Our programming spans multiple disciplines, including curated visual arts exhibitions, film screenings, live music, spoken word, comedy, dance, and literary events. We showcase both emerging and established artists, providing platforms that support both artistic development and community engagement. Our annual exhibitions include Marin Open Studios, which features over 200 working artists from across Marin County, and SCA Open, which invites more than 700 Bay Area artists to showcase their work in our space. We also curate special exhibitions featuring art that reflects distinct social and cultural identities. This includes: “Pride Not Prejudice,” celebrating local LGBTQI+ communities; “Milagros and Memories,” uplifting Latinx arts and culture; and “Breaking Barriers,” presenting Traditional and Contemporary Iranian art. Recently, we also partnered with three University of California MFA programs to present “Open Inquiry: UC Arts,” showcasing the visual art of 36 graduate students. To enrich these artistic experiences, we also present artist talks, lectures, and arts education programming. In addition, we offer the use of our venue at affordable rental rates to nonprofit organizations and cultural groups for their own special events, such as fundraisers and intergenerational arts programs. By centering community voice and cultural relevance, our programs build shared identity, foster civic engagement, and advance opportunities for diverse artists, creating an impact that ripples beyond Sausalito. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | In The Band | 2118 WILSHIRE BLVD STE 1170 , SANTA MONICA, CA 90403-5704 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 320-8585 | California's 36th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, In The Band (formerly Sound Art) will sustain its Mobile Music Education program, bringing after-school music instruction directly to six sites in underinvested Los Angeles neighborhoods, including schools, community centers, and shelters. CAC funds will support professional teaching artists, including musicians, composers, and audio engineers, in providing instruction in rhythm section, songwriting, recording, and music production. The program will serve 200 underserved, low-income and foster youth in grades K-12. Additionally, In The Band will provide intensive songwriting, recording and production education using the latest industry-standard Digital Audio Workstation technology for 50 homeless young adults, ages 17-24, through Covenant House and My Friend’s Place in Hollywood. These programs will expand equitable access to high-quality music education and creative workforce pathways in underserved communities throughout Los Angeles County. | Our core programming provides on-site mobile music education to underserved students from K through 12th grade and at-risk, homeless and foster youth, ages 17 - 24, using contemporary music to teach the fundamentals of musicianship. Through one-on-one interaction, demonstrations and instruction from professional musicians, composers and audio engineers, we offer age-appropriate instruction in alignment with VAPA standards for school aged students. In The Band also offers songwriting, recording and production for homeless and foster youth, ages 17-24. School aged students will learn to play a minimum of four quality pieces of music and will master an instrument within one year, while our older youth will write, produce and record music. In addition, students will have opportunities to release music on the internet and perform at events throughout the city. In The Band curriculum includes the following topics: Tempo; Dynamics; Techniques specific to each instrument; Techniques for audio production and recording; Rhythmic concepts; Understanding and Reading musical notation; Writing musical notation; Understanding ‘beat’ and measures in 4/4 and other time signatures; Introduction to the music of world cultures; Introduction to rhythmic concepts (reading and writing); and Introduction to ensemble playing; and Introduction to performance. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Theatre Flamenco of San Francisco Inc | 670 S VAN NESS AVE 2ND FL , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-1306 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 531-1141 | With support from the California Arts Council, Theatre Flamenco will sustain our Mission District studio, a vital shared resource for artists across disciplines. On October is our second rent increase this year. It is increasingly difficult for classes and programs to cover operating costs. Funding will preserve a space offering 8 weekly flamenco classes to 50+ students, rehearsal access for 40+ artists, storage for historical costumes and archives, and our quarterly community presentations, "El Rincon," presenting internationally recognized artists at affordable rates. The studio also serves 50+ non-flamenco artists for classes, rehearsals, and programming. Our children's class are growing which represents a deliberate investment in flamenco's future, growing the next generation of practitioners and audiences. Relocation is not a viable option: flamenco demands specialized flooring and acoustic accommodations that are rare and costly to build. | Our core programs and services are to perform and promote flamenco arts throughout the Bay Area, reaching audiences in a wide range of venues—from major professional theaters to intimate restaurants and vibrant street fairs. We are deeply committed to educating and nurturing the next generation of flamenco artists, welcoming students of all ages, genders and embracing all forms of flamenco expression. Our organization fosters a supportive community and provides dedicated space for practice for our students, and for artists across disciplines. We also use our platform to engage with and respond to the urgent socio-political issues impacting our Mission District community, including the lived experiences of the LGBTQIA+ artists we collaborate with. By promoting connection and collaboration to counter patterns of isolation, we aim to expand cultural engagement and contribute to local economic vitality through partnerships with diverse artists and businesses, while creating opportunities for visibility, dialogue, and collective exchange. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Muslim DEIN | 1118 DECATUR CT , DAVIS, CA 95618-4813 | Yolo | Capital | (530) 574-1278 | With support from the California Arts Council, MUSLIM DAVIS ENGAGEMENT AND INTERFAITH NETWORK will support the creation and display of Shared Prophets: A Visual Journey Across Traditions, a traveling exhibition of 20 original, non-figurative artworks exploring shared stories across cultures and faith traditions. The project will be hosted in public spaces such as libraries, universities, and community venues in Northern California. | We come together to pray, work on community projects, plan events, educational forums, and participated in community outreach.We love partnering with community members who share our values to work in the space of interfaith and dialogue across diverse communities. We hold community-wide events, often with children's art projects, that invite the public to get to know our Muslim culture and religion. We participate in community efforts such as art exhibits and interfaith groups and discussions. For example we donated $1,000 in 2024 to the International House in Davis for an event called Beitna that highlighted Arab culture, we hosted Erguvan Art Academy at an iftar to demonstrate Turkish calligraphy. We actively build and support community through providing meals and clothes to local homeless shelters. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Women's Audio Mission | 542-544 NATOMA ST #C-1, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103-2817 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (800) 926-1338 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Women’s Audio Mission (WAM) will continue our award-winning statewide music production training, artist recording residencies, songwriting camps, mentorship, and performance programs at our San Francisco and new Los Angeles locations to meet ever-growing demand. Serving 3,000+ California women/gender-expansive artists from under-resourced communities (96% low-income, 93% Black, Indigenous People of Color) annually, WAM addresses the staggering gender inequity in the music and media industries, where fewer than 5% of the people creating the sounds, music, and media in the soundtrack of our lives are women. WAM aims to strengthen support for our LA location (established 2025) and serve 500+ additional artists. Having thriving programs in LA creates a needed power center for women/gender-expansive artists to build community and advance careers in the country's largest music & media hub. | WAM has consistently engaged thousands of women, girls, and gender-expansive individuals every year from historically marginalized communities over the last 23 years. ● WAM’s Artist Residency programs provide free recording studio services ($10K value) and artist mentorship/development in WAM’s professional recording studios to 10-15 local female/gender-expansive artists each year, as well as digital distribution and promotion to expand their audience. ● Girls on the Mic (GOTM) annually provides 2,000+ girls/gender-expansive youth from the most under-resourced communities (96% low-income/93% BIPOC/ages 11-18) with free music production and media arts training that inspires them to amplify their voices and creativity. ● WAM Academy provides music production and recording arts training to 500+ women/gender-expansive students every year in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Curriculum includes everything from songwriting, electronic music composition in Ableton Live to industry certifications in Pro Tools recording software Dolby Atmos/Spatial Audio. ● Paid Internship & Job Placement program: WAM’s paid internship program serves 60 college-age women/gender-expansive young adults (94% low-income; 84% BIPOC)/year with hands-on Music production training,, career counseling, mentorship and job placement in creative careers at companies like Dolby, Pixar, NPR, Sony, Disney, ESPN, etc. WAM hosts 6 cohorts/year (3 in SF, 3 in LA). ● Local Sirens Concert Series serves 30-40+ under-represented women artists every year (majority low-income; 100% BIPOC) with performance opportunities at premier venues like Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, SF Jazz, Brava, Dolby, The Independent, Rickshaw Stop, etc to audiences of 2,000+. ● WAMCon is a national recording arts conference series for women/gender-expansive aspiring music producers, songwriters and recording engineers. WAM has hosted dozens of conferences in Los Angeles, Nashville, New York, Boston, and virtually reaching 2,000+ women/gender-expansive people from 30+ countries and featuring music producers, songwriters and recording engineers who have worked with everyone from Selena Gomez to Cardi B to P!nk and Rihanna. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Rhodessa Jones Productions - The Medea Project: Theatre for Incarcerated Women/HIV Circle | 741 Elizabeth St , San Francisco, CA 94114-3102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 271-5310 | District 11 | District 17 | Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Rhodessa Jones Productions-The Medea Project: Theatre for Incarcerated Women/HIV Circle will fund the base for The Medea Project’s healing performance work, which centers on autobiographical theater workshops for women who currently or have previously experienced significant trauma, such as HIV, incarceration, addiction, and mental illness. Funding will 1) pay core members who are teacher-workshop facilitators, 2) support the artistic guidance and direction of founder/director Rhodessa Jones; 3) support technical production (lighting and set) of the company's next main stage offering: "MAZE: Where We Be Now?" to be to be presented at Brava Theater in May of 2027, and 4) support marketing and promotion of "MAZE: Where We Be Now?" as a main stage play and a touring production. | As a laboratory for multi-disciplinary theater as a tool for personal transformation, The Medea Project: Theatre for Incarcerated Women/HIV Circle's classes, workshops and productions bring visibility to social issues and to people who are often historically excluded, in particular BIPOC women. In its nearly 40 years of practice, The Medea Project continues to conduct its classes, workshops and productions for women who have been justice impacted, in recovery, and surviving trauma and stigma including particularly women from communities of color, and LGBTQ communities. The Medea Project’s future lies in sustaining and further developing its position as an arts organization whose primary focus is theater as medicine. The Medea Project's core workshops prioritize women in recovery to find their voice on the page and in practice on the stage. The Medea Project works collaboratively health institutions such as UCSF Women’s HIV Program, to provide a platform particularly for Black women to address and heal from the trauma of living with HIV. In 2022, the company contracted with the California Arts Council to train other artists and arts organizations in the "Medea Methodology" teaching the Medea technique working with justice-impacted and health-impacted communities. In 2016-2018 with funding from the California Arts Council Re-Entry Arts program, The Medea Project (as a project under Cultural Odyssey) conducted workshops in SF County Jail, including women from the Transgender Pod. Within the company there are consistent training and teaching opportunities for members that center the BIPOC women, as well as those living with HIV, and those formerly incarcerated, in their development as workshop facilitators. For The Medea Project a commitment to racial equity is a core value, and is exemplified by the leadership roles within the company, the content of the performance work itself , and the communities that are served. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Justice for My Sister | 1000 North Alameda Street, Ste. 240 , Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 533-3706 | California's 34th congressional district | 52 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Justice For My Sister will hire and onboard a Managing Director to strengthen organizational infrastructure and internal systems and expand our capacity for arts programming. The Managing Director will oversee operations, staff management, and financial systems, ensuring alignment between programmatic vision and execution. This role is critical to advancing our strategic plan, which prioritizes sustainable growth, increased artist support, and expanded access to our culturally rooted programs. By strengthening internal coordination across programs, development, and communications, CAC funding will enable Justice for My Sister to more effectively serve historically underrepresented artists and communities while maintaining high-quality, trauma-informed arts programming. | Our programs aim to elevate the voices of emerging filmmakers of color who don't see themselves represented in the TV and film industry due to nepotism, unpaid internships and exclusionary hiring practices. We also give access to arts to youth and families in communities of color where an arts education is sorely lacking. Our programs serve over 2000 individuals annually through three focus areas: Youth Leadership: - Nuevas Novelas: A storytelling, environmental justice and community engagement intensive for teens of color creating documentaries. - Teen Dating & Healthy Relationships: Socio-emotional and media-literacy workshops to equip students with knowledge about the cycle of violence, its normalization in the media, and how to recognize signs to prevent it. Workforce Development: - BIPOC Sci-Fi Screenwriting Lab: Selected fellows author original sci-fi and fantasy TV pilot scripts through a lecture series and one-on-one mentorships. Fellows exhibit excerpts of their scripts in a table read. - Production Assistant Certification: A job-training initiative that provides 30 participants annually with their first paid industry job. Participants receive on-the-job training and subsequent paid job placements on BIPOC-led film productions. - Video Diaries: First-time filmmakers create autobiographical documentaries. - Short Film Launchpad: A career-bridging initiative where graduates pitch, produce, and screen original short films, taking on key creative roles. Systems Change: - Trauma-informed Storytelling: Designed to provide arts organizations' staff with new strategies to provide their program participants experiencing trauma with tools to reframe their stories. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | June Lake Arts | PO BOX 405 , JUNE LAKE, CA 93529-0405 | Mono | Central Valley | (760) 920-3976 | CA 3rd Congressional District | CA Assembly District 8 | CA Senate District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, June Lake Loop Performing Arts Association—doing business as June Lake Arts (JLA)—will expand equitable access to music and performing arts for residents of California’s Eastern Sierra, a region geographically isolated from major cultural districts and with limited local arts opportunities. Funding will support essential general operating costs—including personnel and program development—enabling JLA to strengthen and grow its arts opportunities for young people and its community-based performances. These investments will particularly benefit low-income youth and residents of small, remote communities. By bringing high-quality arts programming directly to California’s often-overlooked high desert and alpine regions, June Lake Arts is working to remove barriers to access and to cultivate vibrant, locally rooted cultural experiences. | June Lake Jam Fest is our annual music festival that brings top-tier performances into an isolated region where access to cultural events is limited. Beyond the stage, the festival serves as a vehicle to bring professional musicians into school assemblies—connecting youth directly with the arts—and as our primary fundraiser, supporting year-round programming for underserved communities. This programming includes theater festivals, free concerts in rural communities, free musical instruments for children, and scholarships and grants to assist children from low-income families to access supplies, instruction, and summer camps for artistic exploration and skill development. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Santa Clara Chorale Inc | 2314 Park Avenue , SANTA CLARA, CA 95051 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 596-3767 | With support from the California Arts Council, Santa Clara Chorale Inc will include other performing artists in the production of its concert season at the historic Mission Santa Clara de Asis in Santa Clara, California. The Chorale will hire and feature local ensemble instrumentalists and individual soloists to enhance our musical presentations during the season, and commission a graphic designer to create artistic materials for concert marketing and program information. Supporting these artists provides an opportunity for them to further develop their craft, and to reach an audience to whom they may not otherwise have been exposed. Including these artists requires funding beyond what our current development efforts can support. | Choral Music skill development and public performances: The Santa Clara Chorale unites passionate amateur singers of all ages and backgrounds to develop vocal skills, learn and rehearse a wide variety of music -- from timeless choral classics to music from various genres as well as brand new works -- for artistic performance available to the broader community. Community collaboration: The Chorale serves as a catalyst for artistic collaboration and excellence with many events: Festival of Choirs provides other choral groups opportunities for learning clinics, public performance, and socializing; partnerships with The Music School in Sunnyvale and the Concert Choir and Chamber Singers of Santa Clara University provides students of all ages enhanced musical opportunities; concert performances feature instrumentalists from around the area; inclusion of community members as narrators and concert guests, such as featuring military veteran speakers in a concert performance highlighting the historic "Christmas Truce" between fighting soldiers during World War I. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | DrawBridge | P.O. Box 2698 , San Rafael, CA 94912 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 444-0930 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 10 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, DRAWBRIDGE ARTS will sustain and strengthen its free, weekly trauma-informed expressive arts programs for children ages 5 to 18 experiencing housing instability across 14 active sites in seven San Francisco Bay Area counties. Now in its 37th year, DrawBridge delivers programming directly inside shelters, transitional housing, and affordable housing facilities, eliminating every barrier between a child and a consistent, high-quality creative experience. CAC funds will support core operations including site facilitation, the third year of our Community Artist Program, and deepening evaluation infrastructure through formal partnerships with Dominican University and UC Berkeley. With over 15 community partners on our waitlist, this investment strengthens DrawBridge's capacity to serve the children who need us most, where they already are. | DrawBridge provides free expressive arts programs for children in domestic violence and homeless shelters, affordable housing facilities, and community centers throughout seven San Francisco Bay Area counties. Children ages five and up are given the opportunity to connect with their community and explore playful creativity that is essential to healthy development. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | ORCHESTRA NOVA LA | 10736 JEFFERSON BLVD UNIT 766 , CULVER CITY, CA 90230-4933 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 259-9604 | 37 | 55 | 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, ORCHESTRA NOVA LA (DBA for Los Angeles Doctors Symphony Orchestra) will, as its central goal, make free concerts fiscally sustainable. We initiated these in 2025, and audience size is up 50-100%, so free concerts serve many who otherwise wouldn’t experience the healing power of music. Ticket sales previously provided 20-25% of ONLA revenue so a substantial budget hole must be filled on an ongoing basis, through increased fundraising from both public and private sources. A second goal is performing more non-public-domain works, which broaden our audience but require significant fees. Potential works include Valerie Coleman’s “Seven O’Clock Shout,” Nina Shekhar’s “Lumina,” John Adams' "The Chairman Dances," Jennifer Higdon’s “Blue Cathedral,” “Huapango” by Jose Moncayo, and “The Oak" by Florence Price. | Founded in 1953, Orchestra Nova LA (ONLA), originally known as the Los Angeles Doctors Symphony Orchestra, is one of the oldest community orchestras in the United States. ONLA provides symphonic music in a variety of venues for audiences from broad economic and social spectra, particularly those with limited opportunities and means to experience a live orchestra. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Cheza Nami Foundation | 5424 Sunol Blvd. Ste. 10-153 , Pleasanton, CA 94566 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 398-3827 | California's 15th congressional district | District 16 | District 7 | CAC General Operating Support funds will support Cheza Nami Foundation's core operating expenses as we enter our 15th year of service. Funds will cover general administrative costs, communications, financial management, and organizational systems that sustain day-to-day operations and enable consistent, quality programming for the communities we serve. For over 14 years, we have delivered cultural arts education, community engagement, and African and Diaspora cultural programming across Alameda, Contra Costa, Santa Cruz, and Monterey counties, reaching 10,000+ community members annually. This operational foundation ensures that work built over more than a decade remains sustainable, responsive, and community-centered, directly advancing our mission to promote African and Diaspora cultural education, equity, and access for learning institutions, community organizations, and the general public | We offer activities to community organizations, schools and corporations while addressing educational and social needs that help foster community building, global citizenship and personal enrichment through our core programs: Cultural Arts and Learning (CAL) school assemblies for K-12, Drumming & Dancing Workshops - in-school and in-community workshops, Community engagement Drum Circles, Summer Camps for k-12 youth, Community arts programs for hand on engagement in center of learning on public community spaces, Taste of Africa Festival - Cheza Nami's signature annual extravaganza and community celebration of African art, food music and dance, Essence Production: Cheza Nami's music and dance production that celebrates the oneness of humankind through music and dance that brings together local master artists to collaborate on fresh works for public presentation annually. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Harmony Project Bay Area | 791 Myra Way , San Francisco, CA 94127 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 200-8094 | California's 13th congressional district | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Harmony Project Bay Area Inc. will sustain and expand tuition-free, sequential music education programs for youth from historically marginalized communities in Daly City and Oakland. Grant funds will support teacher salaries, instruments, and program coordination to provide consistent, high-quality instruction in strings and emerging band programs. Students in grades 3–12 receive small-group instruction two to three times per week, participate in ensemble rehearsals and public performances, and engage in peer mentorship opportunities. HPBA prioritizes access for low-income, multilingual families attending schools with limited or no arts education, currently serving approximately 200 students and reaching thoursands of community members through performances and community events. By adding new beginner cohorts while sustaining long-term instruction for continuing students, HPBA will strengthen pathways for musical growth, leadership development, and sustained cultural engagement. | Harmony Project Bay Area (HPBA) is a research-informed after-school program that empowers youth from low-income communities through access to high-quality, tuition-free music education. We offer multi-year instrumental music training, mentorship, and performance opportunities beginning in second or third grade and continuing through high school graduation. Our comprehensive curriculum includes creative composition, improvisation, and culturally relevant repertoire, ensuring that students see their identities reflected in their music education. Students receive a minimum of 90 minutes of instruction twice per week, with some attending up to five hours weekly. We provide hands-on training in violin, viola, cello, guitar, chamber ensemble, mariachi, string orchestra, and improvisation, all taught by professional teaching artists. HPBA fosters community-driven solutions through a robust peer-to-peer mentorship program. Middle and high school students take on leadership roles by tutoring younger peers, leading warm-ups, and assisting in rehearsals. This model builds musical skills, confidence, and a deeper investment in learning, while cultivating future leaders within and beyond the program. Social-emotional learning is embedded throughout our curriculum, using music as a tool for self-expression, identity development, and resilience. Annual performances reach over 1,000 audience members and serve as celebrations of student growth while strengthening connections among families, schools, and the broader community. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $16,240.00 | The Creartive Freedom Family | 108 E 5th Street , Oxnard, CA 93030 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 421-8560 | Through the innovative integration of visual art and dance education, the Nappy Soul Dance project trains and develops participants beyond the confined scope of conventional dance training and recital, establishing capacity for the broad arena of creative production; cultivating creative autonomy and personalized authorship of diverse generational voices in original moving artistry for the Ventura County performing arts. | Our core programs are: The Nappy Soul Performing Arts Development Program (This innovative creative dance training program includes folk dance workshops, visual arts workshops, Pilates & Tai Chi, all for well-rounded development.) Artist Career Development Program Our Space Program (A shared space program for local, low-income artists) Beat the Soul (Freestyle dance sessions) Open Floor Night (Monthly, Friday evening community gathering for various forms of artistic and soulful expressions. Includes dancers, poets, spoken word, singers, musicians, speakers, etc. Each month, 1-2 visual artists are featured through an exhibition of their work during Open Floor. Summer & Winter performing arts events (Two full performances per year) | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Spectrum Stage | 2424 Castro Way , Sacramento, CA 95818 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 243-5445 | California Assembly district 7 | District 7 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, EMPIRE ARTS COLLECTIVE will support the third year of Experimental Quickies, a co-produced queer and trans short play festival featuring original works written, directed, designed, and performed by trans and queer artists in the Sacramento region. Building on a successful 2025 festival with sold out performances and an expanded 2026 production currently in development, the 2027 project will invite artists to create short works exploring trans history, historical erasure, community memory, and contemporary queer and trans experience. CAC funds would support artist compensation, production expenses, and reduced-cost audience access while expanding equitable access to artistic leadership and participation. The project will culminate in at least four public performances at Spectrum Stage showcasing new queer and trans-led performance work created by local artists. | Mainstage Our primary program for developing performing artists through full-scale productions. Mainstage projects bring together performers, directors, designers, and crew in a structured, collaborative process that builds skill, expands range, and deepens artistic voice. Each project culminates in a public run, but the focus is on the growth of the artists involved and the stories they are equipped to tell, with an emphasis on LGBTQ+, QTBIPOC, disabled, and neurodivergent perspectives. Education Classes, workshops, and hands-on training for designers and technical artists, including lighting, scenic design, costumes, makeup, stage combat, and special effects. Education programs are built to expand access, build practical skills, and support artists at different stages of experience. Original Works Artist-driven projects focused on the creation and development of new, original material. This program supports playwrights, directors, and interdisciplinary artists in building work outside traditional production structures, with space to experiment, collaborate, and refine ideas. Projects may take many forms, from devised theatre and solo work to cross-disciplinary performances and one-off presentations. Community Events Low-pressure gatherings that keep artists connected between productions and training programs. These events create space for relationship-building, creative exchange, and community support without the demands of a formal production process. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Afsaneh Arts | PO BOX 1104 , WOODACRE, CA 94973-1104 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 488-0944 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 10 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ballet Afsaneh Art & Culture Society (Afsaneh Arts) will strengthen its organizational capacity to better serve our artists presenting public performances and educational programming. This vital support enables us to continue responding to the profound challenges faced by our California Afghan and Iranian communities during these times of spectacular uncertainty. | Ballet Afsaneh Art & Culture Society - Afsaneh Arts, founded in 1986, established nonprofit 501(c)3 status in 1991. The organization focuses on expressive arts of the historic Silk Road regions of Eurasia. The Afsaneh Arts flagship program is Ballet Afsaneh, the professional performance ensemble, annually produces 15 - 20 public performances for festivals, theaters, diaspora community events, schools, museums and cultural institutions in the SF Bay Area and beyond. Strong ties in the diaspora communities, both in the Bay Area and abroad, are maintained through a solid online presence. Staff and board reflect the organization's mission fostering appreciation of diverse and enduring regional cultures of Central Asia and beyond. Ballet Afsaneh is the only professional, dance focused, performing group on the west coast serving Persian-Iranian, Afghan, and other related Central Asian communities. Afsaneh Dance Academy offers a year round curriculum of classes and workshops in world dance, music, costuming, and cultural studies. A comprehensive online teaching platform, PomegranateGardensDance.com has found a world wide audience, featuring instructors local to the Bay Area, as well as international traditionkeepers. Afsaneh Arts offers community education programs, international exchange projects, collaborations, and fiscal sponsorship for projects of associated Central Asian arts groups. The organization also serves as a creative incubator for emerging world dance and music artists, ensuring continuance of traditional expressive arts of Silk Road cultures in the vibrant diaspora communities of the Bay Area. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | SF Recovery Theatre | 16 Progress , San Francisco, CA 94124 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (650) 438-3964 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Francisco Recovery Theatre (SFRT) will produce a landmark New Work entitled, “FentAnalysis." Playwright Geoffrey Grier and his brother, world-renowned actor David Alan Grier, co-developed the project to reflect the voices of artists and families affected by the Fentanyl Crisis, providing: (1) One creative community workshop in the Tenderloin neighborhood; (2) Two artist workshops on “self-survival" while giving voice to community; and, (3) One live performance. “FentAnalysis" stages the complex social challenges based on the work of the brothers' father (Psychiatrist William H. Grier), who shook the halls of Congress with his historic 1968 book, "Black Rage." By integrating the stories of artists and community alike, Geoffrey Grier aims to demonstrate the methods of African American theater as a restorative healing tool for all Americans. | SFRT programs include: * Nationally acclaimed, multi-disciplinary performances in California, such as SFRT’s series entitled, “Tales from the Fentanyloin” a riveting portrayal of SF’s complex social dynamics related to Fentanyl. * Community Engagement events (workshops/shows) in under resourced and diverse neighborhoods. Collaborative partners include: Tenderloin Recreation Center, Tenderloin Museum, Idris Ackamoor & Cultural Odyssey, SF BATCO, North of Market Community Benefits District, AfroSolo Theatre, George Davis Senior Center, Bayview Opera House, Playground Theater, Both Sides of The Conversation, African American Art & Culture Ctr. * Professional Development workshops for artists covering a range of skills, including Creative Writing focused on new works related to social issues in California. SFRT’s approach integrates various methodologies (such as PsychoDrama) utilizing theatrical tools to bring voice and community empowerment to those impacted by substance abuse or trauma. * Preservation of cultural heritage in the Tenderloin neighborhood through public education and a series of ongoing events, such as the annual “Night at the Black Hawk” at the San Francisco Jazz Center). |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | BRITE | 9707 CHAMBERLAIN ST , VENTURA, CA 93004-3081 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 647-4622 | California Assembly district 37 | District 37 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, REALITY IMPROV CONNECTION INC will implement four BRITE Creative Labs cohorts serving middle and high school youth in Santa Paula, Fillmore, and Piru. Creative Labs increases access to arts learning for youth in communities where economic, geographic, and language barriers limit participation. Participants engage in structured multidisciplinary arts workshops led by professional teaching artists in improvisation, performance, visual arts, music, and media production while developing creative skills, confidence, self-expression, and connection to their communities. The program is culturally responsive and inclusive, with bilingual support and accessible practices. Each cohort culminates in a community showcase event where youth share performances, artwork, and media projects. CAC funding will support teaching artist fees, program coordination, materials, workshop implementation, and showcase events. | Our program name BRITE stands for Building Resilience and Inclusion Through Engagement. BRITE is an arts-based youth development program that promotes mental health and social emotional learning through applied improvisation, social change theatre, and multidisciplinary creative programming. We work in partnership with middle schools, high schools, colleges, after-school programs, and other youth-serving organizations to deliver workshops, performances, and creative projects that build skills, confidence, and connection. As part of this work, BRITE also provides prevention education related to drug, alcohol, and tobacco use, integrating these topics into engaging, youth-centered programming. BRITE engages youth and young adults ages 12–25 in creative expression, advocacy, and action around issues they care about through applied improvisation, media production, spokesperson training, and leadership development opportunities. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Petaluma Arts Center | 230 Lakeville St. , PETALUMA, CA 94952-3129 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 762-5600 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 10 | District 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, PETALUMA ARTS COUNCIL will use grant funds to support personnel. The Executive Director was hired in the fall 2025 due to a successful year-long fundraising campaign. The position had been vacant for two years due to financial constraints. PAC needs to continue its fundraising efforts to fortify the 4 current part-time positions: Executive Director, Gallery Manager, Program Manager; Volunteer and Membership Manager. | In its eighteen years as the predominant arts institution of southwestern Sonoma County, Petaluma Arts Center has evolved into a venue focused on high quality art exhibitions and events to an arts advocacy organization that builds on community resources to expand our creative capacity. As a result, PAC has become more relevant and integrated into the community it serves. Our goal is to strengthen the cohesiveness and legitimacy of our community through inclusive collaborations with artists and residents that strengthen the local economy. We set to accomplish this by engaging in thought-provoking exhibits, programming and events. We consider ourselves 'a third place,' beyond home and work and a destination that brings community together. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Arose from concrete | 25690 FRAMPTON AVE UNIT 13 , HARBOR CITY, CA 90710-5500 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 719-4002 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arose from Concrete will be able to expand its youth arts and vocational enrichment programming for inner city youth. We will be able to provide underserved young people access to structured, hands on training in creative and beauty based art , while integrating mentorship, coaching and counseling to support personal development. Grant funds will be used to implement a series of workshops and trainings led by experienced artist and industry professionals, focusing on cosmetology, visual arts , and creative expression. Funds will also assist the program in providing career exploration opportunities, metal wellness support and life skill development. Arose from Concrete aims to empower youth to discover their talents, build marketable skills and pursue meaningful career opportunities all while prioritizing and providing a safe and inclusive environment. | Some of the Core Programs and services will be introduction classes to makeup artistry, hair artistry, as well as intro to fashion/ sewing. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | School of The Getdown | 1804 Russell St , Berkeley, CA 94703 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 658-2016 | 13th Congressional District of California | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, School of The Getdown will pursue our ongoing programming and operations as a small arts and cultural organization and further our mission to celebrate and promote Black arts traditions and to share these cultural traditions with diverse Bay Area communities through performance and educational programs, centering youth and the Black community. | School of The Getdown offers a weekly vocal workshop series; private lessons in singing, instrumental music, performance, and music history; an annual multidisciplinary youth arts summer camp; vocal and instrumental masterclasses with resident and visiting artists; and masterclasses and lecture performances in schools, prisons, and educational programs worldwide. We produce multicultural and intergenerational concert series, free community programming, commissioned artistic works, festivals, and lecture performances, and thematic programming celebrating Black history and Black culture, primarily in the San Francisco Bay Area. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Equal Means Equal | 1036 South Hudson Ave , LOS ANGELES, CA 90019 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 592-5277 | With support from the California Arts Council, HEROICA FOUNDATION will produce a short narrative film captured in real time exploring the lived experience of a Latina mother navigating systemic barriers in Los Angeles. The project uses an innovative, real-time storytelling approach to create immediacy and emotional truth, bringing audiences into direct contact with circumstances often unseen. The film will serve as the centerpiece of a broader community engagement effort, including public screenings and facilitated discussions designed to reach diverse audiences, particularly communities whose stories are often underrepresented. By combining cinematic storytelling with community-based engagement, the project expands access to the arts while fostering deeper understanding of the social conditions shaping women’s lives. The work creates space for reflection and increased visibility, using film as an artistic medium and a tool for connection and public engagement. | Heroica Foundation’s core programs and services center on storytelling, education, and community engagement that amplify the voices and lived experiences of women and girls. The organization produces narrative and documentary films, short-form digital media, and educational video content designed to illuminate systemic inequities and expand public understanding of gender-based issues. These media projects are paired with impact campaigns that bring the work into communities through screenings, discussions, and partnerships with advocacy and civic organizations. Heroica Foundation also develops public programming, including panels, workshops, and live events that create space for dialogue between artists, activists, and audiences. These programs are designed to increase civic engagement, encourage critical thinking, and connect creative expression with real-world social impact. In addition, the organization provides educational resources and curriculum-based materials that support schools, community groups, and institutions in using media as a tool for learning and conversation. This includes facilitated discussions, toolkits, and outreach initiatives that make complex social issues accessible and actionable. Across all programs, Heroica Foundation prioritizes collaboration with diverse communities, ensuring that participants are not only audiences but active contributors to the storytelling process. The organization’s work is grounded in the belief that media, when paired with engagement and education, can shift narratives, influence policy conversations, and expand access to opportunity in the arts. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Feminist Center for Creative Work | 3053 Rosslyn St , Los Angeles, CA 90065-1408 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (909) 616-5492 | California's 28th congressional district | District 52 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, FCCW will increase programming capacity through crucial expansion of staff hours and positions. | FCCW produces and platforms the work of women and other gender-marginalized creatives. Our core services include: 1) Artists-in-Residence, a multidisciplinary program that provides emerging and mid-career artists with material, professional, and creative support, and culminates in an exhibition; 2) wide-ranging community programs, such as workshops, performances, screenings, panels, and professional development skillshares; and 3) our publishing arm, Co-Conspirator Press. Since launching in 2013 and opening our first physical space in 2015, To date, we have presented more than 1,500 programs; distributed 15,000 publications; and served 40,000+ visitors on site and online. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Street of Dreams, MFE | 4215 MENLO AVE , SAN DIEGO, CA 92115-4845 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 282-3355 | California's 51st congressional district | District 79 | District 40 | "With support from the California Arts Council, MUSICIANS FOR EDUCATION INC will..."With support from the California Arts Council, MUSICIANS FOR EDUCATION INC will sustain and expand our general operations to provide standards-based arts education to system-impacted teen mothers in San Diego. Funds will be used to support teaching artist fees, program administration, and production costs for the development and delivery of a poetry-and-photography book, a music video, and a live concert. These resources will directly support our arts education as a primary prevention model for ‘generation poverty,’ ensuring that teen mothers at Lindsay School for Pregnant and Parenting Teens continue to achieve a 100% high school graduation and college enrollment rate. | Musicians for Education is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization of artists, educators, and community members dedicated to providing creative, emotional, and educational support to teen mothers in urban San Diego who are at the highest risk of homelessness and incarceration due to generational effects of poverty. Our young mothers come to us from shelters, group homes, foster care, and juvenile justice facilities. Young mothers come to us from shelters, group homes, foster care, and juvenile justice facilities. Our signature program, Street of Dreams (SOD), serves 100 teen mothers (ages 12-18) per year. SOD is an arts education college-bridge program for teen mothers who lack the credits needed to graduate from high school and qualify for college enrollment. SOD provides 1) quality arts programming, 2) academic elective credits needed to graduate high school and enroll in college, 3) a comprehensive introduction to college life, and 4) a peer mentor teaching staff of former students who are now college graduates. 100% of our students complete the program, graduate from high school, and enroll in college. They are the first college attendees in their families. SOD uses the creative process as a healing mechanism for young mothers who have been abandoned, abused, and nearly destroyed. Students are guided to view their complicated past as their greatest artistic asset. They become “artists of their own lives “and turn trauma to art through the creation of three original artworks, a book of photography and poetry, a music video, and a public spoken word concert that expresses their experience, strength, and hope as young mothers growing up in the juvenile justice system. This process is essential for the healthy development of our students who have been socially, economically, and educationally isolated. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Ri-Nu Imagination | 9719 Lincoln Village Dr Suite 504, Sacramento, CA 95827-3303 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 524-0762 | 6th Congressional | 6th Assembly District | 6th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Ri-Nu Imagination will strengthen organizational sustainability and expand accessible multidisciplinary arts programming serving Rancho Cordova and the greater Sacramento region. General Operating Support funding will sustain core operational infrastructure, including facility expenses, staffing, accessibility efforts, exhibitions, artist support, and community-based arts programming. Funding will support free and low-cost workshops, multicultural exhibitions, Healing Through the Arts programming, artist development opportunities, and public creative engagement activities serving historically under-resourced communities, including neurodiverse individuals, veterans, older adults, emerging artists, multicultural communities, individuals in recovery, and those navigating grief, trauma, isolation, and life transitions. Through partnerships, exhibitions, workforce development opportunities, and inclusive community programming, Ri-Nu Imagination expands equitable access to the arts while fostering creative expression, cultural participation, wellness, and community connection. | Ri-Nu Imagination is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit arts organization based at 9719 Lincoln Village Drive in Sacramento. Through Ri-Nu Studios, we offer inclusive, affordable, and community-rooted arts programming that empowers underrepresented creatives and fosters healing through the arts. Studio Rentals & Exhibitions We provide seven private and semi-private artist studios for local creators to explore their practices in a supportive environment. Our curated exhibitions--including shows like Echoes of Her and American Dreamers--highlight emerging and established artists, often in connection with cultural celebrations or community themes. Pop-up galleries and rotating installations invite ongoing public engagement. Workshops & Healing Arts Ri-Nu offers free and low-cost workshops in painting, mixed media, wearable art, and upcycled fashion. Our Healing Through the Arts program addresses grief, trauma, and recovery through peer-led, expressive arts sessions. Musicians will soon be able to join dedicated workshops exploring composition, collaboration, and recording techniques as part of our growing curriculum. Community Events & Creative Exchange Our monthly Open Mic Night welcomes comedians, dancers, writers, and musicians of all experience levels to share original work in a safe, affirming space. Seasonal benefit concerts--featuring regional performers--are currently in development and will support scholarships, supplies, and artist stipends. Additional creative mixers, artist talks, and cultural showcases round out our annual programming. Collaboration & Professional Development We collaborate with nonprofit arts partners, individual creatives, and local small businesses to build a vibrant and economically inclusive creative ecosystem. Starting Fall 2025, we will launch an internship for credit in partnership with Sacramento State's College of Arts & Letters, offering students experience in nonprofit studio operations, event production, and arts leadership. Ri-Nu Imagination is committed to building equity, access, and creative opportunity for all. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Mi Gente CA | 5019 IRONWOOD DR , SOQUEL, CA 95073-3032 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (209) 879-2100 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mi Gente CA will implement a multi-city, artist-led Public Community Event Series of seven free cultural festivals across San Diego, San Jose, and Santa Cruz, including MexiPino Fest, Hispanic/Latine Heritage Month programming, and community Block Parties. CAC funds will support artist fees, community partnerships, accessibility accommodations, youth arts programming, and production costs to deliver culturally rooted public arts events. The project responds to limited access to culturally reflective public arts spaces for underrepresented communities and supports collaboration with local artists and community partners to co-create programming rooted in community needs. Each festival includes performances, storytelling, youth showcases, and participatory arts activities highlighting cultural traditions and shared histories. This work expands access to public cultural spaces, increases artist visibility, and strengthens community connection through cross-cultural arts experiences across California. | Mi Gente CA’s core programs center on culturally rooted arts experiences that build community, support artists, and expand access to the arts for underrepresented communities across California. Our festivals include culturally specific and identity-centered gatherings such as the MexiPino Festival, which celebrates the shared and distinct histories of Mexican and Filipino communities. We have also produced AfroLatine and Hispanic/Latine Heritage Month festivals, alongside year-round festival programming that prioritizes underrepresented creatives. While cultural celebrations are an important part of our work—supporting storytelling, history-sharing, and deeper understanding across cultures—our festivals also provide ongoing opportunities for artists to showcase their work outside of traditional heritage observances. Our Brown Babes programming is a community-building initiative grounded in connection, mentorship, and the communal act of breaking bread. These gatherings intentionally bring people together over shared meals to foster authentic relationship-building among creatives, particularly women and nonbinary people of color. This space centers belonging, dialogue, and mutual support as essential components of creative and personal sustainability. In addition to these core programs, Mi Gente CA also produces workshops, gallery exhibitions, dance socials, and panel discussions. These are established program areas that extend our mission by creating additional spaces for community engagement with cultural identity, creative practice, and cross-cultural dialogue, while supporting both emerging and established artists. Across all programming, Mi Gente CA prioritizes access to the arts by offering low-cost or free experiences, compensating artists for their labor, and intentionally creating inclusive, multigenerational spaces. Our work ensures that cultural programming is both reflective of and accessible to the communities we serve. Together, these programs strengthen local creative ecosystems, advance cultural equity, and foster deeper understanding, connection, and shared histories across communities. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Mi Gente CA | 5019 IRONWOOD DR , SOQUEL, CA 95073-3032 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (209) 879-2100 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mi Gente CA will expand and sustain year-round arts and cultural programming that uplifts underrepresented creatives while building intentional, multigenerational spaces for cross-cultural connection, learning, and understanding. Grant funds will support artist stipends, program production costs, and essential operational infrastructure needed to scale our impact. Through free and low-cost, family-friendly events—including festivals, markets, workshops, and community gatherings—we provide accessible platforms for historically underrepresented artists to share their work, build networks, and explore cultural identity across generations. In parallel, we are deepening our programming to include facilitated conversations and educational experiences that promote understanding across cultures and lived experiences. Funding will also strengthen administrative capacity, enabling consistent program delivery, equitable compensation, and long-term sustainability while expanding access to inclusive, community-rooted creative spaces. | Mi Gente CA’s core programs center on culturally rooted arts experiences that build community, support artists, and expand access to the arts for underrepresented communities across California. Our festivals include culturally specific and identity-centered gatherings such as the MexiPino Festival, which celebrates the shared and distinct histories of Mexican and Filipino communities. We have also produced AfroLatine and Hispanic/Latine Heritage Month festivals, alongside year-round festival programming that prioritizes underrepresented creatives. While cultural celebrations are an important part of our work—supporting storytelling, history-sharing, and deeper understanding across cultures—our festivals also provide ongoing opportunities for artists to showcase their work outside of traditional heritage observances. Our Brown Babes programming is a community-building initiative grounded in connection, mentorship, and the communal act of breaking bread. These gatherings intentionally bring people together over shared meals to foster authentic relationship-building among creatives, particularly women and nonbinary people of color. This space centers belonging, dialogue, and mutual support as essential components of creative and personal sustainability. In addition to these core programs, Mi Gente CA also produces workshops, gallery exhibitions, dance socials, and panel discussions. These are established program areas that extend our mission by creating additional spaces for community engagement with cultural identity, creative practice, and cross-cultural dialogue, while supporting both emerging and established artists. Across all programming, Mi Gente CA prioritizes access to the arts by offering low-cost or free experiences, compensating artists for their labor, and intentionally creating inclusive, multigenerational spaces. Our work ensures that cultural programming is both reflective of and accessible to the communities we serve. Together, these programs strengthen local creative ecosystems, advance cultural equity, and foster deeper understanding, connection, and shared histories across communities. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Healing Heels | 3053 Freeport Blvd suite 402 , Sacramento, CA 95818 | Sacramento | Capital | (510) 423-1041 | 7th congressional District | District 06 | District 08 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Healing Heels will be able to strengthen the organization’s administrative, operational, and technical infrastructure in support of its year-round community arts programming throughout Sacramento County. Grant funds will support administrative staffing, program coordination, marketing and outreach, bookkeeping and financial management, insurance, technology and software, website and communications management, contractor support, technical equipment, and other organizational expenses necessary to sustain and expand Healing Heels’ arts education and community engagement efforts. Funding will increase the organization’s operational capacity, improve long-term sustainability, and support the continued development of accessible, culturally responsive arts programming serving youth, families, schools, and underserved communities. We will also support workforce development opportunities for arts administrators, teaching artists, and technical support staff while strengthening our ability to deliver consistent, high-quality programming. | Say hello to healing through the arts, because the arts saves lives. Art forms we are provide: Dance Music Production Songwriting/ poetry Videography Disc Jockeying Through the arts we provide assemblies, residences, summer camps, and pre/professional productions to ages 4 & up all over Sacramento region, next is the Bay Area and Los Angeles. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Chico Art Center | 450 Orange St., Ste. 6 , Chico, CA 95928 | Butte | Upstate | (530) 895-8726 | California Assembly district 3 | District 3 | District California | With support from the California Arts Council, Chico Art Center will expand our impact through the development of a newly acquired adjacent property. Our organization is currently operating at a generally stable capacity, though not without ongoing challenges to long-term sustainability. This expansion will allow us to significantly broaden access to more inclusive community programming by introducing dedicated space for spoken word arts, musical events, a community gallery designed to support emerging artists, and a digital arts lab and classroom. New programs and expanded facilities will allow us to cultivate an accessible and diverse arts ecosystem in Chico, and add new revenue streams to support our goals for long-term sustainability. Operational support through this grant will strengthen the foundation needed to thoughtfully scale this next phase of growth. | CHICO ART CENTER: The Chico Art Center provides a diverse range of programs and services that foster creativity, support local artists, and expand equitable access to the arts for the community, including underserved and underrepresented populations. Our integrated programming advances community engagement, arts education, and artist support while strengthening the local creative economy. Core programs include: • Gallery Exhibitions: Nine to twelve rotating gallery exhibitions annually, featuring emerging and established artists from diverse cultural backgrounds. Inclusive curatorial practices elevate underrepresented voices and encourage dialogue around community issues, engaging local and regional art lovers throughout the year. • Annual Open Studios Art Tour: Butte County’s only Open Studios Art Tour, featuring over 70 artists. This accessible program invites the public to interact with artists in their studios, increasing visibility and generating income opportunities to participating artists. • Arts Education: Affordable classes and workshops for youth and adults, taught by local artists. Scholarships, sliding-scale fees, and inclusive teaching practices ensure access for individuals across ability levels and economic backgrounds. Launching in 2026, the public will have access to our new digital arts classroom. • Community Engagement: Ongoing events including open mic nights, spoken word, live art demonstrations, and Maker Space programming. Free art-making activities and partnerships with schools and community organizations extend access to new and underserved audiences. • Artist Support: Opportunities to exhibit, teach, and sell work through exhibitions, the Open Studios tour, and a year-round gift shop featuring unique wares by member artists. Additional support includes promotional exposure and access to studio and classroom space. • Volunteer Program: A robust volunteer base, including students, seniors, and individuals with disabilities contributes hundreds of service hours annually, supporting operations and deepening community connection. • Together, these programs ensure broad, inclusive access to the arts while sustaining artists and enriching the cultural life of Butte County. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | California Music Center | 2261 Market Street STE 46174 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94114 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 252-1122 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the California Music Center will present the 41st annual Irving M. Klein International String Competition (the Klein) in June 2027 at the San Francisco Conservatory of Music in San Francisco, CA. Presented as a free, in-person and livestreamed event, the Klein expands access to classical music for California audiences while elevating young string musicians from diverse backgrounds. Over two days, Bay Area audiences will experience nine hours of performance by 8–9 semifinalists, including the world premiere of four newly commissioned works alongside Bach, concerti, and sonatas. Performances will also be broadcast globally. The Klein serves as a vital cultural asset for California—partnering with Northern California orchestras and presenters to provide paid opportunities for laureates, engaging audiences through free programming, and contributing to a more inclusive classical music field. | One of the most prestigious classical music competitions in the world, The Klein is recognized for the high caliber of the contestants, its unique, nurturing environment, and a commitment to the commissioning of new works. CMC features its laureates in a Bay Area chamber concert season and guest appearances with regional orchestras. We serve the next generation of classical string players through the gateway of the Klein: itis the entry point for a sustained relationship with the artists, who largely go on to distinguished careers. Participation in competitions can be considered an essential part of a musician’s training, and a source of support for artists, honing goal-setting, networking, audition and performance skills, and encouraging focus and resiliency. Previous prizewinners have returned to the Klein to serve on the board, perform, mentor, and to serve on the competition panel, awarding prizes to the next generation of up-and-coming young artists. Our outreach activities feature our laureates, who introduce often underserved young people to the joy of making and enjoying live music. These programs are taken directly to young audiences in schools and community centers. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Bay Area Music Project | 740 SANTA CLARA AVE , ALAMEDA, CA 94501-3334 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 917-6050 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bay Area Music Project (BAMP) will advance the growth of our independent facility, BAMP Studio, a new community music education center, expanding access to youth beyond our partner school sites. The center will create new employment opportunities for teaching artists and house industry-standard music production technology to support our growing music production programs. CAC funds will also support BAMP’s TK-8 partner school programs that serve under-resourced students from diverse socioeconomic and cultural backgrounds. BAMP serves over 200 Bay Area students and is launching a new partnership with the Sausalito Marin City School District in 2026, with a projected enrollment of 150 students. BAMP empowers future leaders through a student-centered, socio-emotional learning model. This expansion marks a transformative step toward broader access to an inclusive creative future. | Bay Area Music Project (BAMP) serves over 300 young people ages 4–25 from under-resourced communities in Alameda and Marin County, where access to high-quality music education is limited. More than half of our students identify as low-income, and BAMP is committed to removing barriers to participation through sliding-scale and full-tuition scholarships, free instruments and inclusive, culturally responsive programming. In 2026, BAMP will expand its regional impact through a new partnership with the Sausalito Marin City School District, bringing equitable music education opportunities to youth in Southern Marin. BAMP currently operates across multiple program sites during the academic year. Our immersive after-school programming operates 3–6 hours daily, five days per week. Beginning in second grade, students choose from a range of music-making pathways, including choir, strings, winds, brass, percussion, ukulele, and music composition and production. Our instructional model emphasizes small-group learning, leveled ensembles, mentorship, and repertoire that reflects the cultures and identities of the communities we serve. Students regularly perform throughout the Bay Area through collaborations with organizations including West End Arts District, Radium Presents, Young People's Symphony Orchestra, and the Recording Academy San Francisco Chapter. In 2025, BAMP launched BAMP Creative Studio, a music education center for students ages 12–25, offering intensive instruction in music production, recording technology and a chamber music and orchestral program. In year two, BAMP will expand programming, reduce barriers to access, and develop credentials that strengthen students' college and career pathways. BAMP's community impact has earned widespread recognition, including the 2024 Alameda County Arts Leadership Award, the 2023 Jefferson Award for Public Service, and the 2021 Spotlight on Quality Award from the California Department of Education. At our core, we believe every child deserves the transformative power of music and the confidence to thrive. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Riverside Community Arts Association | 3860 Lemon St , Riverside, CA 92501 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 682-6737 | 41 | 58 | 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, Riverside Community Arts Association will stabilize its Executive Director position and move the role toward a regular salaried structure. The organization currently has no full-time or part-time payroll employees. The Executive Director is presently compensated as a consultant because Riverside Community Arts Association lacks sufficient unrestricted operating funds. This leadership role is essential to strategic planning, grant development, gallery operations, exhibition coordination, artist services, volunteer support, public engagement, and partnership building. CAC support would strengthen organizational continuity and help expand culturally responsive programming, student exhibition opportunities, collaborative events, and educational outreach in schools, libraries, civic spaces, and community venues. Riverside Community Arts Association serves Riverside and Inland Empire communities, including low-income residents, BIPOC communities, people with disabilities, LGBTQ+ individuals, older adults, students, emerging artists, and linguistically diverse households. | RCAA defines art as what artists make and intend to be art, and affirms the powerful role that local artists play in strengthening communities. We believe art can inspire, challenge, heal, and connect, creating space for both personal reflection and collective dialogue. Our membership includes artists from diverse cultural backgrounds, disciplines, and lived experiences that reflect the Inland Empire’s vibrant communities. This diversity is foundational to our work, shaping the stories we tell and the communities we serve. Our board of directors, made up entirely of local artists, ensures our programs stay grounded, relevant, and responsive. RCAA is guided by two core goals: to promote and exhibit the work of local artists through rotating shows, installations, and sales opportunities; and to foster connection through artist networking, public dialogue, and civic engagement. You’ll find our work not only in our Riverside gallery, but also in libraries, schools, city buildings, and neighborhood centers. We organize exhibitions, performances, workshops, and collaborative projects in accessible community spaces, intentionally reaching audiences often excluded from traditional arts institutions. Our approach is rooted in inclusion, access, and cultural relevance. We also partner with regional nonprofits and cultural institutions to deepen impact, particularly in historically underserved communities. Fundraising events help sustain this mission. Programs include Mind the Gender Gap in the Arts, a panel and exhibit on equity in creative fields; Pages of Pride with The Black Deaf Project, highlighting Deaf and Black identity; and exhibitions like Down the Rabbit Hole and Members Autumn Exhibit, exploring themes from surrealism to social justice. In all we do, RCAA upholds the arts as a transformative public good. Organization primarily serves: Inland Empire communities, particularly historically underserved neighborhoods and underrepresented artists. Organization provides the following services: Visual arts exhibitions, public programming, educational workshops, artist networking, and culturally relevant community engagement. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Actors' Reading Collective | 507 Moraga Avenue , Piedmont, CA 94611 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 595-3023 | With support from the California Arts Council, Actors’ Reading Collective (ARC), an artist-led Bay Area theatre company committed to open casting and emerging playwright development, can expand our programming and our reach at a crucial moment for the region’s artistic community. Since the pandemic, many local theatre companies have closed, creating a loss of shared artistic spaces. In a region increasingly shaped by technology, isolation, and algorithms, people yearn for genuine human connection. ARC’s collective ensemble approach brings strangers together to feel, question, laugh, cry, and experience stories side by side without screens or filters. ARC is committed to ensemble-based storytelling that fosters imagination, vulnerability, and conversation. At a time when society feels fractured and disconnected, ARC aims to create meaningful live experiences that let audiences experience our shared humanity and sense of community. | Core Programs and Services: T@7 was ARC’s initial program. During the pandemic, ARC’s founding actors gathered weekly on Zoom to cold-read plays aloud together. ARC soon offered rehearsed versions of these performances streamed to wider audiences. Today, T@7 readings remain a chance for the Collective to expand its craft, expand casting ranges, and test-run a wide range of scripts for consideration in other ARC programs. Full Productions: To date, ARC has presented two full productions: the West Coast premiere of Pulitzer Prize winner Annie Baker’s The Antipodes in 2024 at Marin Shakespeare’s indoor space, and the Bay Area premiere of Amy Herzog’s Mary Jane in 2025 at the Magic Theatre in San Francisco. In early 2027, we will present our third full production, Abe Koogler’s Deep Blue Sound. Outside the Box (OTB): Each summer, ARC presents four staged readings, including one large-ensemble play, amplifying different playwriting voices, employing dozens of actors, and exploring different directorial visions. OTB is a concentrated theatrical experience in which our audiences are invited to think like designers, directors, and dramaturgs while experiencing a wide range of stories—some familiar, others foreign—all of which matter now. Stone-Cold Readings (SCRs) are entirely unrehearsed live reading events which take place in non-traditional theater spaces. The play, as well as the casting of all characters, is drawn from the “casting hat”, ARC and audience members read parts, and there is no cost to participate. Salons offer the services of ARC’s seasoned actors to playwrights, literary managers, and/or artistic directors who need to hear works read aloud, allowing listeners to clearly identify the script’s merits and limitations. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Santa Cecilia Arts & Learning Center | 2751 West Broadway , Los Angeles, CA 90041-1038 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 839-3804 | District 34 | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Santa Cecilia Arts & Learning Center will implement its Youth Music Mentorship Program, providing free, year-round music instruction and mentorship to underserved youth in Northeast Los Angeles. The program offers weekly classes in strings, woodwinds, brass, guitar, and piano across three 8-week sessions during the academic year, complemented by a 5-week summer intensive with expanded instruction and performance opportunities. Grant funds will support teaching artist fees, program coordination, instructional materials, and facility costs necessary to deliver consistent, high-quality arts education. By removing financial barriers and providing sustained access to arts learning, the program will expand participation among youth who may not otherwise have access to music education, fostering long-term engagement in the arts and supporting positive youth development. | The Santa Cecilia Arts & Learning Center is located in the Eagle Rock area of Los Angeles. It is a beautiful original mid-century architectural gem that consists of two buildings with a courtyard, a backyard, a carport and a parking lot. The buildings include a small concert hall for chamber music concerts and other programs; a full kitchen; dining room, two large program areas; five smaller program areas, thirteen flexible office/art/music spaces; a large gated outdoor garden in the back and a treed courtyard between the two buildings that function as program space and as a protected place for respite and play that has been described as an oasis in Northeast Los Angeles. Center programs include • A Summer Art Camp that provides a well-rounded full time summer camp over 10 weeks for children ages 6 -12, reaching more than 400 participants each summer • A Teddy Bear concert series that introduces toddlers to music • A music mentorship program for high school students to study specific instruments • A music mentorship program for seniors • A visual arts class taught to children at summer camp and also through our Discovering Art series where children and adults paint together led by professional • A chamber music series performed by Santa Cecilia Orchestra Many of our activities are provided free of charge or at special rates and through scholarships to allow everyone in the community to participate. The Center also provides rehearsal, performance and activity space for community arts groups that do not have their own venues. These include an improv/theater group; the Los Angeles Virtuosi; mixers for the Uptown Gay & Lesbian Alliance and for the Eagle Rock Chamber of Commerce; youth music recitals for music teachers in the community; yoga classes; and a movie series with guest lecturers for college youth. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Santa Cecilia Arts & Learning Center | 2751 West Broadway , Los Angeles, CA 90041-1038 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 839-3804 | District 34 | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Santa Cecilia Arts & Learning Center will sustain and expand its year-round arts education and cultural programming serving underserved communities in Northeast Los Angeles. Grant funds will support core operating expenses, including facility costs, utilities, and staff salaries, ensuring the continued delivery of accessible, culturally responsive programs in music education and performances. This support will strengthen the Center’s capacity to provide free and low-cost classes, workshops, and community-based arts experiences for youth, families, and adults. By maintaining a dedicated, community-rooted space for creative expression and learning, the Center will continue to foster cultural pride, artistic development, and community connection. | The Santa Cecilia Arts & Learning Center is located in the Eagle Rock area of Los Angeles. It is a beautiful original mid-century architectural gem that consists of two buildings with a courtyard, a backyard, a carport and a parking lot. The buildings include a small concert hall for chamber music concerts and other programs; a full kitchen; dining room, two large program areas; five smaller program areas, thirteen flexible office/art/music spaces; a large gated outdoor garden in the back and a treed courtyard between the two buildings that function as program space and as a protected place for respite and play that has been described as an oasis in Northeast Los Angeles. Center programs include • A Summer Art Camp that provides a well-rounded full time summer camp over 10 weeks for children ages 6 -12, reaching more than 400 participants each summer • A Teddy Bear concert series that introduces toddlers to music • A music mentorship program for high school students to study specific instruments • A music mentorship program for seniors • A visual arts class taught to children at summer camp and also through our Discovering Art series where children and adults paint together led by professional • A chamber music series performed by Santa Cecilia Orchestra Many of our activities are provided free of charge or at special rates and through scholarships to allow everyone in the community to participate. The Center also provides rehearsal, performance and activity space for community arts groups that do not have their own venues. These include an improv/theater group; the Los Angeles Virtuosi; mixers for the Uptown Gay & Lesbian Alliance and for the Eagle Rock Chamber of Commerce; youth music recitals for music teachers in the community; yoga classes; and a movie series with guest lecturers for college youth. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | Friends of the Arts | 527 Flume St, Unit 2 , Chico, CA 95928-5608 | Butte | Upstate | (530) 228-2860 | California's 1st congressional district | District 3 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Upstate Community Enhancement Foundation, (UCEF) - Friends of the Arts will continue to administrate Poetry Out Loud, in partnership with Butte County Office of Education; provide individual artists and organizations with grant-writing technical assistance; convene an arts summit biennially; facilitate and write grant projects for underserved communities; explore Cultural Arts District designations (our ED was instrumental in obtaining downtown Redding's designation in 2017); explore low-cost artist housing; provide hundreds of artists and arts and culture organizations with publicity through our no-cost weekly newsletter - reaching 10,000 Butte residents and a radio program, "Butte Views & Beyond" - in partnership with our local community station, KZFR 90.1FM; provide fiscal sponsorship to Bonfire, a generational storytelling project; and to Oroville's Feather River Nature Center, while assisting Oroville Docents Association to incorporate as a 501c3. | UCEF’s core programs and services for the 2026–2028 strategic cycle reflect the organization’s continued transition from an event-focused arts presenter to a regional backbone organization centered on technical assistance, economic development, and services for highly under-resourced communities throughout Butte County. Following the conclusion of its long-standing public access television contract with the City of Chico and post-pandemic community reassessment, UCEF intentionally shifted toward systems-building, collaboration, and direct support for artists, nonprofits, continuation and alternative schools, and emerging community initiatives. Historically, UCEF operated Butte County’s public access television station, BCAC.tv, where it provided digital media arts training, equipment access, youth programming, and community broadcasting services. UCEF also maintained a free lending library of media equipment for filmmakers, students, artists, and grassroots organizations. During its transition, UCEF redistributed equipment to local nonprofits and expanded its role as a facilitator and capacity-building organization. Over the next two years, UCEF will focus on grant-writing assistance, fiscal sponsorship, organizational coaching, and one-on-one technical assistance for artists, cultural organizations, and startup community projects. UCEF will continue to support Poetry Out Loud, underserved schools, affordable housing initiatives, tribal and rural communities, and arts education programs through partnerships with social service agencies, continuation and alternative schools, and local governments. UCEF also advances economic development through arts and culture by supporting cultural district exploration, artist housing research, regional tourism partnerships, and creative workforce initiatives. Community visibility remains central through UCEF’s weekly arts newsletter, reaching nearly 10,000 residents, and its monthly KZFR radio program, “Butte Views & Beyond,” which highlights local artists, cultural organizations, economic development, and community issues. UCEF’s work is grounded in collaboration, equity, cultural awareness, and strengthening long-term community resilience through arts and culture. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Conundrum Theatre Company | 414 E Cedar Ave Unit 9, Burbank, CA 91501-2584 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (719) 291-7063 | 30th | 44th | 20th | With support from the California Arts Council, Conundrum Theatre Company will sustain Conundrum’s mission to build a collaborative, diverse community in Los Angeles County by providing high-quality performance opportunities for actors with traditional day jobs as well as marginalized youth. Funds will be applied toward core operational expenses, including staff salaries for production teams, facility rentals for rehearsals and performances, and essential administrative costs. Crucially, a portion of these funds will be dedicated to building organizational capacity by investing in infrastructure and development. This will streamline our internal operations and enhance long-term resilience. Stabilizing our foundation allows us to maintain the quality and accessibility of year-round programming—including our mainstage musicals, New Works Festival, and youth programs—while advancing equity and artistic excellence within the California arts community. | Conundrum Theatre Company operates as a community-based performing arts organization focused on high-quality production, accessibility, and youth development. Its mission is centered on providing a collaborative environment for both seasoned performers and newcomers, defined by three primary pillars: 1. Mainstage Productions: The cornerstone of Conundrum's programming is its season of contemporary and classic musical theatre. These productions are designed to be "pro-am" in nature, blending professional-level standards with community inclusivity. Recent and upcoming repertoire includes challenging works such as Hair, Ragtime, and Falsettos. These shows often prioritize innovative staging and are staged in various local venues to engage the immediate community. 2. Conundrum Kids & Youth Education: Conundrum places a heavy emphasis on fostering the next generation of artists. The Conundrum Kids program includes summer camps and after-school intensives where students receive training in acting, vocals, and dance. A key feature is the youth production series, such as James and the Giant Peach Jr. and Into the Woods Jr., which allows youth performers to experience a full production cycle with professional mentorship. 3. New Work Development & Civic Engagement: Beyond standard licensing, the company actively supports the creation of new theatrical pieces, such as their annual New Works Festival. This service extends into the community through: Strategic Partnerships: Collaborating with local venues like the Victory Theatre Center to stabilize the regional arts ecosystem. Community Aid: Leveraging theatrical events for fundraising and social impact, often in alignment with local civic organizations. Accessibility Initiatives: Implementing equity-focused goals to ensure that theatre remains an accessible medium for diverse audiences and participants regardless of socioeconomic status. By balancing robust educational tracks with professional-caliber mainstage seasons, Conundrum serves as a vital hub for arts participation and community building. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Italian American Museum of Los Angeles | 125 PASEO DE LA PLAZA 200 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90012-2932 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 485-8432 | District 34 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the HISTORIC ITALIAN HALL FOUNDATION, doing business as the Italian American Museum of Los Angeles (IAMLA), will strengthen organizational capacity and expand its arts, cultural, and creative programming to better serve historically underserved communities across Southern California. Funding will support essential operations, including the addition of a part-time staff member dedicated to delivering direct public services, the development of a new exhibition, and public programs that explore and celebrate the diversity of American history and culture. This investment will enable IAMLA to more effectively advance its mission by increasing accessibility, amplifying underrepresented voices, engaging broader audiences, and fostering meaningful cross-cultural understanding. | The Italian American Museum of Los Angeles (IAMLA) presents two new exhibitions annually, free arts and educational programs, and ethnohistoric and arts-focused California Content Standards-based curricula. The free programming includes activities for K–12 students and their families, tours, art workshops, and live performances. The museum also offers internships and job training opportunities for college students, the majority of whom are first-generation college students and members of underrepresented groups. The IAMLA’s core arts programs and services are designed to prioritize community needs including: • Providing families with welcoming, accessible, and meaningful arts and culture experiences and experiential learning opportunities that encourage lifelong learning, facilitate a relationship with the arts, and foster historical and cultural literacy skills. • Promoting cultural equity and inclusion in the art community. • Creating avenues for empowerment and engagement and nurturing lasting relationships with the public. • Connecting diverse communities and offering a vehicle for constructive social discussions. • Providing internship and job training opportunities for underserved youth. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | FAF | PO BOX 90217 , SANTA BARBARA, CA 93190-0217 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 453-5949 | District 24 | District 37 | District 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Flamenco Arts Festival (FAF) will advance its strategic plan to increase visibility, expand community reach, and strengthen public engagement through a comprehensive marketing initiative. Key components include expanded advertising, outreach to industry media at the local, national, and international levels, and hiring a marketing consultant. The FAF continues to face significant impacts from inflation, creating ongoing operational challenges. These pressures have made it increasingly difficult to sustain mission-critical programming, strategic initiatives, and effective operations. In a crowded media landscape led by larger organizations, it must amplify its presence to remain viable. Increased marketing investment will help to reach diverse audiences, expand cultural access, and strengthen public engagement to support long-term growth. Meaningful community connection begins with visibility. | The FAF is a cultural arts experience for the entire community and is devoted to the ancient art of flamenco. Year-round events include live dance and music concerts, lectures, films and documentaries, tributes, and dance and music workshops. The FAF brings world-renowned artists from Spain and the U.S. to Santa Barbara where they perform, teach, lecture during their residency, and act as cultural ambassadors. The FAF attracts local, national, and international attendees. Programs are designed create a change in the understanding and interest in the art form; celebrate Hispanics in the arts and promote an appreciation for the uniqueness of others; reflect the community we live in; promote participation by people from diverse cultures and backgrounds; celebrate and honor the long tradition of flamenco in Santa Barbara; promote and preserve the art form as designated by UNESCO; build bridges of positive experiences between people and opportunities for mutual sharing and conversation; provide affordable and accessible arts programming through free programming for those of all ages and underserved. Most events are fee based but the FAF also provides, through its Access to the Arts Initiative, free programming, scholarships, fiscal sponsorships, and is committed to partnerships and collaborations. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | RENAISSANCE INSTITUTE OF MUSIC, INC. | 1933 S DITMAR ST , OCEANSIDE, CA 92054-6428 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 997-5821 | 49th Congressional district of California | State Assembly (District 74) | State Senate (District 38) | With support from the California Arts Council, RENAISSANCE INSTITUTE OF MUSIC will provide instruments and music instruction to students ages 7 to adult, so they can perform together in cooperative musical ensembles and share their music with the wider community in local performance venues. RIOM will provide Teaching Artist Certification Course students with paid internships to empower them to become teachers and leaders in the ensembles and their communities. | Our programs provide free instrumental music instruction, music books and instruments loaned to students aged 5 through adult. We encourage adult family members to join and share the experience with their children. We teach through private lessons, small group instruction and in large ensembles. Our focus is on orchestral performance, at beginning, intermediate and advanced levels. Students participate in offering free concerts to the community several times a year at several different venues, and learn and perform a wide variety of musical genres. Our focus is on making music together with mutual support in the shared pursuit of excellence. We value radical inclusion and the strong connections that making music together creates among us as musicians, with our families and with our surrounding communities. Our tuition-free Teaching Artist Certification Course provides young dedicated musicians with teacher training, conducting, advanced musicianship, high level training on their primary instrument, and builds leadership skills that empower them to become teachers, mentors, and leaders in their communities. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | LACP | 252 S. Los Angeles St. , LOS ANGELES, CA 90012-3705 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 464-0909 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Los Angeles Center of Photography (LACP) will nurture the next generation of visual storytellers and remove barriers from entry into creative expression. CAC funding will help LACP in the next year of general operating funds as it develops and presents vital community programming that will uplift the visibility of community members whose voices have been rendered silent and invisible, including women, BIPOC, LGBTQ+ and immigrant communities. In the coming year, LACP’s programming will include the creation of artwork and community to heal the epidemic of loneliness, the celebration of the 20th anniversary of lenscratch, a women-run photography magazine and an exhibition about the Japanese American experience of Manzanar. | LACP’s core programming and services include educational offerings, exhibitions, professional development opportunities and events. Each year, LACP offers hundreds of workshops and classes of all levels and genres, exhibits over 300 photographers in virtual and in person gallery exhibitions which are free and open to the public, and creates over $100,000 in jobs for working artists. LACP serves thousands of recreational and professional photographic artists from diverse backgrounds. For LACP’s 1,300 members LACP offers special events, exhibition opportunities, and discounts. LACP hosts over 50 lectures, artist talks, panels, and networking events most of which are free to LACP membership and the general public. For professional artists in particular, LACP provides the following support: 1) A work-study program where artists are professionally trained in different areas of pedagogy and programming, serving as course assistants, gallery attendants, event producers, marketing assistants, etc. This provides artists with invaluable experience in the day-to-day operations of an arts organization, the photographic world and the classroom. In return, work-study students are given credits which can be used to take classes at no additional cost; 2) Classes, workshops and webinars on professional development for emerging photographers. Topics include: portfolio development, how to approach galleries and museums, and how to write grants. LACP also hosts classes on creating and publishing photo books, as well as on business and marketing; 3) An annual portfolio review week where emerging photographers meet with curators, gallery owners, and publishers in order to receive guidance, critical feedback, as well as important career opportunities such as having their work published or included in exhibitions. 4) Scholarships designed to offset costs for participating in classes, professional development opportunities and open calls through The Sugarshack Fund. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | LA Commons | 4343 Leimert Blvd. , Los Angeles, CA 90008 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 792-0366 | 37th Congressional District of California | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, LA Commons will leverage the power of our Day of the Ancestors: Festival of Masks to celebrate Blackness and promote healing in Leimert Park as community members across the generations engage with cultural traditions from across the African diaspora. | LA Commons programs engage residents of neighborhoods where most live below the poverty line and are new immigrants struggling to find their place in Los Angeles. Target audiences are artists and culture bearers, youth ages 15–25, and residents of all ages. Participating neighborhoods include MacArthur Park, Leimert Park, and greater South Los Angeles. By engaging community members in our core "Neighborhood Story Connection" program, we create a space where stories & voices are heard and then transformed into dynamic public art that reflects local hopes, dreams & identities. Relationships developed through these public art projects are leveraged to engage people of all ages in the stories of our Los Angeles, through resident led neighborhood tours, public art campaigns, and other culturally informed experiences that support local businesses and artists, and share opportunities to experience authentic food, music, festivals and rich cultural histories across Los Angeles. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | The Chimaera Project | 2219 W Olive Avenue, #344 , Burbank, CA 91506 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 364-4810 | California Assembly district 43 | District 44 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Chimaera Project will support the general operating expenses incurred with our organization’s mission to provide women creatives with free and/or low-cost accessible mentoring, programming and workshops in the artistic fields of media arts and filmmaking. | 1. Mentorship Program: Provides youth and adults mentoring opportunities in front of and behind the camera to ignite and inspire career opportunities in the media arts and film industries. 2. Film and Media Arts Program: Supports artists/filmmakers to see their projects to completion by providing in-kind services, funding and mentorship. 3. Outreach Program: Provides public conversations, workshops and presentations in alignment with our mission to empower artists and filmmakers with the overarching gaol of creating accessible, diverse and equitable projects using film as the artistic vehicle. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Dare to Dance in Public Film Festival | 262 Old Topanga Canyon Rd , Topanga, CA 90290-3810 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 403-9408 | District 32 | District 42 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Dare to Dance in Public Film Festival will sustain our core infrastructure by funding essential leadership in compliance with state and local labor laws. These funds will be allocated toward the salary of a full-time Artistic/Executive Director and a part-time Assistant Director. As D2D operates out of Topanga, we comply with the unincorporated Los Angeles County minimum wage, which increases to $18.47 per hour on July 1, 2026. The requested funds will contribute toward the Assistant Director’s salary for 15 hours per week (approx. $14,406 annually) and the Artistic/Executive Director’s salary, which must meet the California exempt threshold of $70,304. This investment stabilizes our core team, ensuring D2D continues its mission of democratizing dance while providing sustainable, equitable employment for the professionals driving our global community. | DARE TO DANCE IN PUBLIC FILM FESTIVAL (D2D) serves as a vital cultural bridge in Los Angeles, dedicated to the presentation and elevation of Dance Film as a recognized international art form. Our core services remove geographic and economic barriers to world-class artistic expression via: Public Presentation & Discourse: D2D focuses on dance films that are created in the public quotidian realm and/or films that explore sites/spaces in boundary pushing ways. Additionally, we produce screenings that transform passive viewing into active engagement, with events featuring live site-specific performances with LA based artists and moderated panel discussions with the filmmakers. These foster deep dialogue between creators and local audiences, which explore the intersection of movement, culture, and social narrative. Accessible Artistic Education: D2D provides affordable and “Pay-What-You-Can” specialized classes, equipping emerging and established artists with the technical knowledge to create their own films. Community-Centered Performance: D2D presents free, live, site-specific performances by emerging LA-based choreographers. These works reclaim public space, inviting the general public to experience professional dance in accessible, non-traditional settings. (Note: 2024 Exceptions - D2D was not able to hold in person Los Angeles programming in 2024 due to the Executive Director’s temporary work obligations in Europe and a subsequent health recovery. However, D2D’s LUCID digital platform continued to support dance film artists, ensuring continued programming and financial support for the artists. In 2025, D2D resumed full operations, culminating with an in-person film festival and performance.) Equity & Global Solidarity: We actively dismantle barriers for artists in under-resourced or embattled regions through FilmFreeway fee-waivers and a vital partnership with a Chinese arts organization to bypass internet restrictions. Furthermore, our partnership with the streaming platform LUCID ensures a sustainable digital archive that provides royalty-based income for our filmmakers. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | pateldanceworks | 5720 Dover Street , Oakland, CA 94609 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (407) 276-0686 | 12th Congressional district of California | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, pateldanceworks (pdw) will use CAC grant funds to directly support paying our administrative manager, paying our artistic director, paying 3 guest speakers' honoraria for our annual mentorship program, and offsetting our fiscal sponsor fees. This funding will help pdw continue our upward trajectory as an emerging Bay Area performance organization with committed payroll for our core personnel while beginning work on the next artistic project. | pateldanceworks presents innovative and immersive performance centering practices of decolonizing the body through: public performances, teaching in the community, writing for publications such as InDance, the San Francisco Chronicle, and Life as a Modern Dancer, collaborating with Dancing Around Race to interrogate racial equity in the dance ecosystem, and holding open creative processes to all through open rehearsals and workshops. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | City of Westminster | 8200 Westminster Blvd. , Westminster, CA 92683-3366 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 548-3172 | CD-45 | 70 | 36 | The City of Westminster is requesting CAC Arts and Youth Funding to develop a collaborative Utility Signal Box Art Program in partnership with the Orange County Department of Education (OCDE). The program will connect high school students from districts across the City to design and paint 23 traffic signal cabinets/utility boxes throughout Westminster. Students will submit original designs for selection and, once selected, will participate in painting the utility boxes, which will then be covered in a protective laminate. Participating students will receive stipends for their work, while OCDE coordinators will assist in program management alongside the City. The program will provide youth with opportunities to showcase their art, participate in the public art process from design through implementation, beautify their community, and reduce visual blight throughout Westminster. | The City of Westminster provides a variety of municipal services to our residents, including community development, community services, fiscal management, police, and public works. We provide artistic programming as part of our community services efforts. The Department of Community Services is dedicated to improving and enhancing the lives of its residents by providing quality programs, supportive services and a safe environment. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Meztli Projects | 6615 Easton Street , Los Angeles, CA 90022 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 637-4375 | California's 40th congressional district | District 52 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Meztli Projects will provide IndigenARTS & Wellness, a project blending art, art making & Indigenous practices, with mental health & wellness support. Using a variety of contemporary and traditional art forms, we generate dialogue around intergenerational trauma & resiliency, sexual & gendered violence, systemic violence, and art as medicine and a tool for healing to process, reflect, and work towards individual & collective wellness. Guided by artists, culture bearers, and Elders, IndigenARTS & Wellness offers culturally relevant and competent free arts programming centering collaborative art making, connectivity, and creative & spiritual growth to increase wellness. This project prioritizes the hiring of arts practitioners rooted in Indigenous practices that emerged through community conversations facilitated during Meztli Projects' CAC's Innovations + Intersections pilot grant program. | Meztli Projects provides culturally relevant and competent arts programming to Native/Indigenous populations as well as the general public. Workshops range from printmaking such as screen printing and lino block printing to beading, drum making, mural painting, and zine making. Youth Development: Meztli Projects’ (Ready 2 Rise Project) is a unique set of interlocking programs between youth, artists and cultural workers from East Los Angeles who have been impacted by street violence and incarceration, developed to specifically center impacted youth by building a framework for participation, decision-making, apprenticeship, and entrepreneurship. The suite of programs include a Cultural Worker Apprenticeship program, a Youth Arts & Action Workshop Series and a 10-month program focusing on Arts-Based Healing Practices. Each program folds into the next creating a pathway for employment and wellness through art making, opportunities to assist program facilitators, and mentorship. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | UpStage Napa Valley | 1007 Cedar Street , CALISTOGA, CA 94515 | Napa | Bay Area – Other | (707) 341-3278 | With support from the California Arts Council, Calistoga Theater Company (UpStage Napa Valley) will bring high-quality theater to the rural communities of northern Napa Valley. Our season includes onstage productions, an annual festival showcasing short plays by local authors, free library readings, and actors' workshops, and is complemented by engagement with local high school and college students. Grant funds will be used to support our season, including expenses for royalties, technical equipment, props, performance and rehearsal space rental; to hire additional technical staff and stagehands; and to support and expand outreach, educational and evaluation activities. | UpStage Napa Valley is a small but successful community theater company bringing high-quality productions to the small towns of northern Napa County. Primarily run and operated by volunteers, our core programs include our annual playwright festival, winter acting workshops for adults and high school youth, and spring productions. Held annually in the fall, the PlayFest offers a unique opportunity for local authors to bring their work to the stage in their own community, while our winter acting workshops offer important community engagement opportunities to Napa teens and adults. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $13,650.00 | Mil-Tree | P.O. Box 1762 , Joshua Tree, CA 92252 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (323) 791-2986 | District 23rd | District 47 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mil-Tree Veteran Project will offer an immersive 5 day singer-songwriter workshop, bringing veterans, community members, and professional musicians together to collaborate, create, and connect. Participants will write and compose original songs drawn from their lived experiences, then learn sound engineering techniques to professionally record their newly created work. The process fosters open dialogue, mutual understanding, skill-building, and teamwork, while providing veterans a meaningful outlet for expression and healing. By bridging the gap between veterans and civilians, the program actively combats veteran isolation, builds empathy, and creates lasting opportunities for professional development, portfolio building, and the cultivation of strong, supportive networks. The workshop will be documented through a short video capturing both the creative process and the songs created. | Mil-Tree's core programs are creative and art-based workshops and retreats that support our vision to provide safe spaces for veterans returning to civilian life to gather, express themselves and tell their stories in a non-judgmental environment. We do this through ongoing creative programs that engage veterans and their families, active military and the greater community. Mil-Tree is a grassroots nonprofit organization based in the High Desert community of Joshua Tree, California serving San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. The organization is inclusive and offers creative outlets in the arts and held spaces for dialogue and discussion for veterans, active military and civilians. Mil-Tree was created to welcome our veterans home not only with words by providing various opportunities of engagement with the community at large. Recognizing the loss incurred by leaving the close-knit unit formed in the military, this organization strives to help build new relationships within the community. We include active military, family members and civilians to accomplish this goal, and provide different types of art workshops and projects, including movement, writing, art, music, theater, building and rock climbing. We also provide dialogue circles and retreats to help support the ongoing transition from military service into civilian life. Our programs have a strong track record of positive impact on program participants. Those who participate feeling alone or isolated find a fun, safe and creative environment where collaboration and expression lead easily to new friendships. We have found that arts and dialogue are the best way to bridge different parts of community, building on trust and the things we have in common. Often our programs lead to personal transformation and growth, and the synergy created between our participants is recognizable and profound. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Meztli Projects | 6615 Easton Street , Los Angeles, CA 90022 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 637-4375 | California's 40th congressional district | District 52 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Meztli Projects, an Indigenous-led organization, will use the General Operating Relief funds to support staff salaries, staff professional & creative development, and sustain programming at the only studio space dedicated to Native and Indigenous artists in Los Angeles. | Meztli Projects provides culturally relevant and competent arts programming to Native/Indigenous populations as well as the general public. Workshops range from printmaking such as screen printing and lino block printing to beading, drum making, mural painting, and zine making. Youth Development: Meztli Projects’ (Ready 2 Rise Project) is a unique set of interlocking programs between youth, artists and cultural workers from East Los Angeles who have been impacted by street violence and incarceration, developed to specifically center impacted youth by building a framework for participation, decision-making, apprenticeship, and entrepreneurship. The suite of programs include a Cultural Worker Apprenticeship program, a Youth Arts & Action Workshop Series and a 10-month program focusing on Arts-Based Healing Practices. Each program folds into the next creating a pathway for employment and wellness through art making, opportunities to assist program facilitators, and mentorship. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Muses & Melanin Fellowship | 180 Steuart Street Box 190206, San Francisco, CA 94119 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 420-3886 | 11 | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Lyzette Wanzer Projects, dba Muses & Melanin Fellowship for BIPOC California Creative Writers, will expand its operational, personnel, and capacity sectors during our 2026-2027 year. We will be able to: 1) increase our Publicity & Administrative Assistant's hours from 8 to 20 per week 2) expand our BIPOC writer enrollment by 30% 3) due to our Assistant's increased hours, be able to take advantage of publicity and presentation opportunities that we've had to bypass due to budget constraints. 4) be able to increase the size of incoming cohorts to our flagship program by 10%. Years 2026 and 2027 will be crucial for solidifying and evangelizing our brand via our three P’s: personnel, publicity, and programming. | We provide professional development via our 8-month career-accelerator practicum that helps talented creative writers of color establish sustainable literary careers in a #PublishingSoWhite industry. Our program launches participants into the literary profession with a series of professional development workshops, writing workshops, guest speakers, and co-working sessions, culminating in a public graduation and readings ceremony and reception. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Diamond Wave, a fiscally sponsored project of Independent Arts & Media | 2830 20th St , San Francisco, CA 94110-2825 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 236-2289 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Diamond Wave will maintain and expand nonbinary-centered cultural programming. Funds will support the 2026 THEYFRIEND Nonbinary Performance Festival, as well as in-person gatherings, digital events, and digital media designed to strengthen belonging and visibility for gender-expansive communities in the Bay Area and across CA. | Diamond Wave’s core and flagship program is THEYFRIEND, the first and only nonbinary performance festival in the world, dedicated to uplifting, centering, and celebrating nonbinary performers. In a cultural landscape where few organizations focus specifically on the needs of gender-expansive communities, THEYFRIEND provides a vital platform for nonbinary artists to share their work and a rare space for audiences to gather in recognition, visibility, and belonging. Beyond the festival, Diamond Wave partners with queer and trans-led organizations to produce ad hoc performances, community events, and interdisciplinary artistic programming. These collaborations expand access to nonbinary-led cultural experiences while strengthening connections across LGBTQ+ communities. Through all of our work, we promote nonbinary, trans, and queer identities by fostering spaces where artists and audiences can be seen, heard, and engaged in meaningful cultural exchange. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | SF Recovery Theatre | 16 Progress , San Francisco, CA 94124 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (650) 438-3964 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN FRANCISCO RECOVERY THEATRE (SFRT) will build its organizational infrastructure by implementing three (3) strategic goals: * Produce critically-acclaimed performances that improve racial equity in the arts; * Provide Professional Development resources that contribute to artist survival in the California economy; and, * Increase earned income from online audiences. SF Recovery Theatre is a pioneer in racial equity and has been addressing the social impacts of the Fentanyl crises through scripts and multi-disciplinary methodologies, over the past four years. As a result, SFRT will implement a groundbreaking Home Season 2026-27 of performances and community events, advancing its organizational sustainability through audience development, presenting riveting scripts. Implementing these goals assures SFRT’s long-term continuation, by contributing effectual resources to the next generation of working artists in the communities it serves. | SFRT programs include: * Nationally acclaimed, multi-disciplinary performances in California, such as SFRT’s series entitled, “Tales from the Fentanyloin” a riveting portrayal of SF’s complex social dynamics related to Fentanyl. * Community Engagement events (workshops/shows) in under resourced and diverse neighborhoods. Collaborative partners include: Tenderloin Recreation Center, Tenderloin Museum, Idris Ackamoor & Cultural Odyssey, SF BATCO, North of Market Community Benefits District, AfroSolo Theatre, George Davis Senior Center, Bayview Opera House, Playground Theater, Both Sides of The Conversation, African American Art & Culture Ctr. * Professional Development workshops for artists covering a range of skills, including Creative Writing focused on new works related to social issues in California. SFRT’s approach integrates various methodologies (such as PsychoDrama) utilizing theatrical tools to bring voice and community empowerment to those impacted by substance abuse or trauma. * Preservation of cultural heritage in the Tenderloin neighborhood through public education and a series of ongoing events, such as the annual “Night at the Black Hawk” at the San Francisco Jazz Center). |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Borrego Art Institute | 665 PALM CANYON DR , BORREGO SPRINGS, CA 92004-0000 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 767-5152 | California's 48th congressional district | District 75 | District 32 | With support from the California Arts Council, BORREGO ART INSTITUTE will offer over 300 under-prioritized students in rural Borrego Springs with free high-quality and hands-on arts instruction through our education program, KidsArt. In partnership with the Borrego Springs Unified School District, the program curriculum is aligned with California Arts Standards. It works in tandem with The Borrego Art Institute’s rotating gallery exhibitions and unique outdoor ArtPark Gardens to provide one-of-a-kind learning opportunities in art forms ranging from painting and pottery to gardening and landscaping. Funding would be used to implement two arts classes per month and produce supplementary educational materials, including Arts Activity Books and Take-Home Arts Kits. KidsArt unlocks youth’s creativity and passion for the arts, reignites a love for learning, and develops critical cognitive and social skills that improve each student’s overall development. | The Borrego Art Institute (The BAI) offers year-round visual arts programming and educational opportunities. Our core programs and services include: CURATED EXHIBITIONS AND SPECIAL EVENTS: The BAI invites artists from Borrego Springs, the Southwest California desert, and Baja Mexico to create and display art that brings critical contemporary and regional issues to light, giving artists a platform to facilitate dialogue about issues that deeply affect our shared community. Our Gallery Opening Events showcase the work of these local and visiting artists and offer a welcoming environment for the community to connect and engage with the arts. PLEIN AIR FESTIVAL: Through this annual invitational and week-long residency, we invite 16 established plein air artists to capture the unique landscapes of the Anza-Borrego Desert. This prestigious juried event draws in over 17,000 art enthusiasts and professionals each year, and elevates the careers of participating artists. WORKSHOPS AND CLASSES: We offer a diverse range of artist-led workshops and classes across multiple artistic disciplines, including the visual arts (pottery, painting, and photography), the industrial arts (stone carving and woodworking), and nature-based arts (horticulture, landscaping, and floral arrangement). We also provide eco-friendly and health-focused classes on growing produce, nutrition, conservation, and maintaining environmental balance. ARTPARK: Our outdoor ArtPark is a creative blend of community gardens, orchard, and stunning desertscape. Spanning 3-acres, the ArtPark features outdoor art installations, 65 orchard trees, 25 community garden beds where people can grow their own desert-healthy foods and plants, and a free compost community drop-off program that reduces food waste and provides organic compost for people to use at their homes. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Kearny Street Workshop | 1246 Folsom Street, Suite 1 , San Francisco, CA 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 789-5966 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kearny Street Workshop will launch year 4 of a community-responsive arts fellowship for Asian Pacific American (APA) visual artists (AVA Lab) providing workshops with award-winning faculty and facilitators, community-based education and wellness practices, a healing retreat in Mendocino, and a culminating exhibition launched by the cohort. | KSW makes artists out of community members and community members out of artists. For the past 54 years, KSW has nurtured the creative spirit, offered an important platform for new voices to be heard, and built artistic communities grounded in the San Francisco Bay Area. We prioritize racial justice and healing, prioritizing art that expands liberation for all people. We act as an incubator for emerging AAPI artists, placemaking in the Soma neighborhood of San Francisco where we are based, and connecting arts & culture to broader solidarity movements for societal change. KSW’s core programs include: Programming includes: APAture: multidisciplinary arts festival showcasing 50+ emerging AAPI artists to an audience of 1,000+ throughout SF. APAture has helped launch the careers of notable luminaries like Ali Wong, Hasan Minhaj, and Barbara Jane Reyes. Interdisciplinary Writers Lab (IWL): A 3-month, multi-genre master class for local BIPOC writers. Emerging writers are challenged to develop their skills. Participants build community and have their work published in an anthology. We also host other educational programs throughout the year. AVA (Asian American & Pacific Islander Visual Artists) Lab: A cohort-based program of 10+ visual artists led by Brava Executive Director, artist and community healer Kim Acebo Arteche. Driven by needs assessments, showcasing art, and mentorship, artists also learn about financial planning and how to prioritize wellness/community care. The experience culminates in a cohort-led exhibition and a retreat. * Visual Arts Exhibitions: KSW presents 4+ exhibitions each year at the Arc Gallery, where we are co-located and responsible for co-managing. KSW Presents: A cross-genre reading series showcasing writers such as Jenny Odell, Cathy Linh Che, CA Poet Laureate Lee Herrick and many more. Highlights intersectional topics re: diaspora, queerness, and belonging. Alongside these established writers we feature community writers who have had little stage time or few publications. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $9,000.00 | Zawaya | 2 Plaza St , San Francisco, CA 94116-1421 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (408) 718-8482 | Congressional District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Zawaya will sustain its programs and operations from October 2026 to September 2027. This general operating funding will allow us to present our annual fall and spring Aswat Ensemble concerts for underserved communities, partially underwrite the fees of the Artistic Director, upgrade our website to support evolving marketing and assistive technologies, and cover administrative costs for redesigning and disseminating audience surveys and compiling data. This support ensures Zawaya can continue to contribute to the multicultural discourse of the Bay Area through its mission to educate about, promote, produce, and preserve Arab arts and culture, representing countries such as Algeria, Egypt, Iraq, Jordan, Lebanon, Libya, Morocco, Palestine, Syria, Tunisia, and Yemen. | Zawaya’s core programs are (1) Aswat Ensemble, a multi-ethnic, multicultural, and multi-generational music ensemble and choir that reaches out to the diverse Bay Area community with folkloric, classical, and contemporary Arabic music; educates members on the Arabic music scale, specific Arabic music genres, repertoires, and instruments; and compensates any participating professional instrumentalists and vocalists who perform at Zawaya’s productions and guest performances for local community events. 2) Aswat Youth, a space for Arab/SWANA (Southwest AsianandNorthAfrican) kids to explore their identity and connect to their culture in a community of like-cultured peers through learning Arabic singing, dance, and instruments; helping to bridge the gap between Arab cultural heritage and life in America while developing Arabic musical and aural skills. 3) Aswat Women's Ensemble, a group for women, in the male-dominated field of Arabic music, to have a space to connect, collaborate, and expand their music knowledge and skill among other women including presenting what they have learned through concerts and community performances. Zawaya’s core services are to educate about, promote, produce, and preserve Arab arts and culture by (1) representing Arabic music and culture in the Bay Area; (2) providing ArabAmericans a space to connect with their culture and identity; (3) preserving and producing music from a wide variety of Arab countries,especially those endangered by war; (4) empowering women within Arab arts, historically excluded from public instrumental performance; (5) Collaborating with artists from local Arab communities enduring hardship, whether from the Muslim ban, (which prompted concerts on the music of the seven Arab countries banned from the USA, 2017-2019), or upheaval in their countries of origin; (6) Collaborating with communities of color (Black,Indigenous,Latinx,andAsian) in musical and artistic expressions of resistance and solidarity in the face of injustice; (6) involving youth (ages 5-13) in arts and cultural education and performance through AswatYouth. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Poetic Research Bureau | 2220 Beverly Blvd , Los Angeles, CA 90057-2208 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 487-9326 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Poetic Research Bureau will sustain free, artist-compensated literary programming across Los Angeles from October 2026 through September 2027. Grant funds will partially support our two staff members at $750/month each ($18,000), artist honorariums for an estimated 120 writers and artists across 40 events and four workshops ($50 per performer, $100 per workshop instructor, totaling $6,400), and $5,600 in operating expenses including software, marketing, printing, chapbook production, archival materials, and administrative supplies. As a resident member of 2220 Arts + Archives, PRB benefits from in-kind venue support, allowing grant funds to be directed toward programming, artist compensation, and organizational infrastructure. PRB will continue to host readings, talks, screenings, book launches, and collaborative presentations centering BIPOC, LGBTQ+, working-class, and immigrant voices, fostering literary community across LA neighborhoods. | PRB's core programs include year-round readings, book launches, performances, and talks at our headquarters at 2220 Arts + Archives in Historic Filipinotown. Our programming includes our Communicator Series—a monthly showcase for LGBTQ+ and gender-diverse writers—and our Language Garden Reading Series, which brings outdoor programming to David Horvitz's 7th Ave. Garden in Arlington Heights, merging poetry with visual art, installation, and community gathering. Both venues are free and open to the public, with honorariums provided to all performing artists. Regular workshops and study groups foster sustained engagement with poetic practice and theory, serving approximately 15 participants each and led by local writers, educators, and artists. Workshop offerings are expanding as PRB grows its programming capacity. Our publishing initiatives have included PRB Editions, Make Now Books, the Language Garden Newsletter, poetry journal The Germ, and art-lit magazine Area Sneaks—100% poetry or poetry-adjacent experimental writing, with an emphasis on under-resourced and marginalized voices. PRB also maintains a physical archive of poetry, journals, and ephemera accessible to researchers, students, and the public, preserving experimental literary work that might otherwise go undocumented. Collaborative programming is central to our model. Ongoing partnerships with Clockshop, Los Angeles Filmforum, The Public School LA, Active Cultures, LACMA, MOCA, the Hammer Museum, and independent presses including Nightboat Books, Ugly Duckling Presse, and Semiotext(e) cross-pollinate audiences and deepen PRB's roots in Los Angeles's broader arts ecosystem. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | BoxoPROJECTS | 62732 Sullivan Road , Joshua Tree, CA 92252 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (917) 669-6098 | California's 8th congressional district | District 42 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, BoxoPROJECTS will strengthen its artist residency program and expand public programming in the Morongo Basin. Grant funds will be used to provide stipends to resident artists, reducing financial barriers to participation and enabling a more diverse group of artists to engage with the region. Funds will also support the development of public programs—including open studios, performances, and talks—that connect artists with local and regional audiences. Additional support will cover artist accommodations, increased program manager hours, and professional documentation to increase visibility and long-term impact. These activities will advance BoxoPROJECTS’ mission to facilitate cultural exchange, support artists, and provide accessible, high-quality arts programming in a rural community with limited cultural resources. | Artist residencies Arts programming Community dialog |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Genryu Arts | 2345 Bush Street APT 12, San Francisco, CA 94115-3142 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 420-3151 | California's 12th congressional district | California State Assembly District 19 | California State Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, GenRyu Arts will serve a vital need in San Francisco Japantown, offering opportunities for cultural participation and retention in the face of cultural erosion and gentrification. In this context, assets such as its traditional cultural arts like GenRyu Arts assume greater importance as providers of social, cultural, emotional and psychological continuity. We have created and sustained opportunities for citywide communities to participate in the artistic and creative expressions of Japanese heritage. Taking part in and producing festivals and events, we support and feature performance and social practice work from cohorts of artists serving multigenerational communities that see Japantown as the hub of their identity. We are unique in our ability to nurture artists in classical, folk, or contemporary lineages. | Serving the community since 1995, GenRyu Arts has served over 1,500,000 people from the Asian American and multiracial community of the San Francisco Bay Area through: -Performances at public events, festivals, and parades by its professional ensemble featuring traditional works and contemporary interdisciplinary collaborations - A Japantown-based Taiko drumming and Odori dance school. -Hosting Japanese Holiday celebrations to preserve cultural heritage. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Genryu Arts | 2345 Bush Street APT 12, San Francisco, CA 94115-3142 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 420-3151 | California's 12th congressional district | California State Assembly District 19 | California State Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, GenRyu Arts will offer free music and dance classes to senior citizens and preschool children within San Francisco who are constituents of the Mission YMCA and Chinatown YMCA. We will partner with Dholrhythms Dance Company to offer traditional music and dance classes and share our respective traditional Indian and Japanese culture with constituents who have little or no exposure to our cultures. Through the Let’s Dance project, we hope to create unifying moments for residents of different communities and ethnicities, embracing our diversity. | Serving the community since 1995, GenRyu Arts has served over 1,500,000 people from the Asian American and multiracial community of the San Francisco Bay Area through: -Performances at public events, festivals, and parades by its professional ensemble featuring traditional works and contemporary interdisciplinary collaborations - A Japantown-based Taiko drumming and Odori dance school. -Hosting Japanese Holiday celebrations to preserve cultural heritage. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Fort Mason Artists | 301 HOLLY PARK CIR , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-5904 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (650) 868-6336 | With support from the California Arts Council, FORT MASON ARTISTS would like to support artists access to training in general, but especially those with financial needs. A particularly underserved group close to our hearts, is the older adults. We seek to restore the equivalency of CCSF's former older adults program in the arts, which they eliminated in 2019. This Grant would allow more older adults with limited income to participate in our classes. It would allow us to lower tuition and strengthen our scholarship program, boost general access and lower the price-point for our students. We are noticing a trend in working adults who have been recently laid off, who no longer participate in classes. We will expand our scholarship program to those individuals as well, and create a qualifying criteria for those financial hardships. | As a self-sufficient non-profit, we channel all of our energy and resources into art, art making, retaining and expanding our art community, with a focus on our wider social interactions and cultural contributions. With engaging classes, guest lecturers, member exhibits in shows and a vibrant workspace for individuals, we provide customizable services to Artists and Art-lovers of all walks of life. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Tahoe Truckee School of Music | 10038 Meadow Way, Suite E Suite E, Truckee, CA 96161 | Nevada | Upstate | (530) 587-3274 | California's 3rd Congressional district | District 1 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Tahoe Truckee School of Music will strengthen the general operations that make high-quality music education universally accessible across the Truckee-Tahoe region, from early childhood through older adulthood, regardless of background, ability, or financial resources. As the only nonprofit music school serving this region, this has been TTSM's founding commitment since 2009. CAC funds will sustain the staffing, scheduling, outreach, and systems infrastructure that supports TTSM's full continuum of music education. Free and reduced-cost programming includes group lessons in-school and out of school, community concerts, open mic nights, and a free instrument lending library that removes equipment as a barrier to participation. In 2025, TTSM reached 58,000 community members through 160+ free events, a 62% increase over 2024, with 85% of students reporting a sense of belonging through music. | Our services follow a four-stage Musical Growth Continuum: Discover & Connect, Develop Skills, Perform, and Advance & Create. This framework reflects how people actually move through music, from a first curious moment to a lifetime of participation, and ensures everyone has a welcoming place to begin and a clear path forward. DISCOVER & CONNECT is where the journey starts. With no experience or instrument required, programs like Rock Band, group lessons, Adult Song Group, family-friendly music events, and weekly Open Mic Nights open the door to music and community for participants of all ages. DEVELOP SKILLS builds the foundation. Individual lessons in guitar, piano, voice, drums, violin, and more meet students exactly where they are, whether they are five years old picking up an instrument for the first time or an adult returning to music after years away. Group lessons, Music Theory, and ensemble programs deepen skills at every level. A free music library and instrument lending program remove barriers. PERFORM brings music to life. Every student, at every level, has real opportunities to take the stage and grow through the experience of performing. From Spring and Fall Recitals to Music in the Park across ten regional outdoor stages, Tahoe Joy Festival, weekly Open Mic Nights, senior apartment outreach, and community concert series, students and community members share their music with the world all year long. These are not one-time events. They are a deliberate performance progression that builds confidence, stage presence, and the joy of sharing music with an audience. ADVANCE & CREATE supports those ready to take the next step, with professional mentorship, studio space, gig booking support, and an active paid performance pipeline at local venues. Through this continuum, TTSM fulfills its founding mission: cultivating life skills and community through music for all ages, regardless of experience, ability, or financial resources. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Zaccho Dance Theatre | 1777 YOSEMITE AVENUE ST 330 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124-2653 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 822-6744 | 11th District of California | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, ZACCHO S F will deliver award-winning arts and culture programs that support local artists through residencies and employment opportunities; provide a free, year-round arts education program to school-age youth in the San Francisco Bayview Hunters' Point district; and elevate the cultural capital of California and the Bay Area through live performances and aerial dance festivals. Co-founded by Joanna Haigood 46 years ago, Zaccho S F is San Francisco's longest-running African American-led dance company, and the only professional dance organization in Bayview-Hunters Point. CAC General Operating funds will support essential operational expenses, including staff salaries and related fringe benefits for the Artistic Director and three Program Managers who are responsible for designing and implementing Zaccho’s community-based programs. | In 1989, Haigood opened Zaccho Studio, a 4,200 sq. ft. cultural hub in Bayview-Hunters Point (BVHP). One of San Francisco’s largest dance studios, Zaccho Studio is a year-round space for rehearsals, performances, educational programs, and community events and gatherings. The studio provides discounted rentals for BVHP neighbors, Bay Area nonprofits, and dance/performing arts organizations. For 45 years, ZDT has specialized in an innovative body of work recognized worldwide. Zaccho Dance Theatre (ZDT) is a professional company that creates and presents performance work that investigates dance as it relates to place. Artistic Director Joanna Haigood collaborates with an extraordinary group of diverse artists to create unique and innovative performances, elevating the work to international acclaim. Haigood's work pursues unique and challenging visions of dance, including spectacular aerial choreography, evocative site-specific performances, and culturally significant subject matter. Since 1990, Zaccho has partnered with local organizations and SFUSD to offer our Youth Performing Arts Program (YPAP), a free, world-class, arts education program for Bayview youth. YPAP has served approximately 6,800 youth, ages 9-17. Zaccho Youth Company, founded in 2002 as an extension of YPAP, was developed for students interested in training more seriously, performing more frequently, and considering dance and the arts as a potential career path. Since 2010, the Artist-in-Residency Program provided artists with stipends, rehearsal space, mentorship, production and marketing support, and community engagement opportunities. We expanded the AiR Program with support from the Dream Keeper Initiative (2021-2026), to include The Black Futures AiR Fellowship and the Hip Hop Artist Residency & Training Program, the latter in partnership with PUSH Dance Company. Launched in 2014, the SF Aerial Arts Festival presents world-class aerial performances, talkbacks, and community engagement events. Since 2016, SFAAF has been co-presented by the Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture. SFAAF has served 330 artists to date. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | American Canyon Arts Foundation | 101 W AMERICAN CANYON RD 508-163 , AMERICAN CYN, CA 94503-1163 | Napa | Bay Area – Other | (707) 645-8840 | With support from the California Arts Council, AMERICAN CANYON ARTS FOUNDATION will use the funds to support and promote our Arts and Cultural Programing efforts, as well as to strengthen our administrative and fiscal capacity. Specifically, funds would be used to cover insurance and administrative overhead and to use contractors for our event planning and social media promotions. We will use grant funds to enhance our fundraising abilities and sponsorship development. Proceeds will also help us ensure access for all artists and participants, regardless of physical or mental disabilities. | We support a variety of arts-related programs and services, including public art installations, art shows, musical performances, classes, and cultural arts programs. We also raise funds for student scholarships and school grants. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Zaccho Dance Theatre | 1777 YOSEMITE AVENUE ST 330 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94124-2653 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 822-6744 | 11th District of California | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Zaccho SF will continue to provide the award-winning Youth Performing Arts Program (YPAP) to youth ages 7-17 in the San Francisco Bayview Hunters' Point and Mission districts. Zaccho launched YPAP in 1990, in collaboration with the neighborhood schools, to integrate our nationally renowned performance work into local schools. Each year, Zaccho works with 4-6 schools to provide 250 hours of instruction to 120-160 youth annually. The rigorous 8-month program culminates in a professionally produced, free performance showcase for families. The majority of our school partners do not have dance education programs outside of YPAP. YPAP enhances social-emotional skills, physical health, and academic engagement by offering structured classes in technique, choreography, and integrated curricula. Since 1990, YPAP has served nearly 7,000 youth. | In 1989, Haigood opened Zaccho Studio, a 4,200 sq. ft. cultural hub in Bayview-Hunters Point (BVHP). One of San Francisco’s largest dance studios, Zaccho Studio is a year-round space for rehearsals, performances, educational programs, and community events and gatherings. The studio provides discounted rentals for BVHP neighbors, Bay Area nonprofits, and dance/performing arts organizations. For 45 years, ZDT has specialized in an innovative body of work recognized worldwide. Zaccho Dance Theatre (ZDT) is a professional company that creates and presents performance work that investigates dance as it relates to place. Artistic Director Joanna Haigood collaborates with an extraordinary group of diverse artists to create unique and innovative performances, elevating the work to international acclaim. Haigood's work pursues unique and challenging visions of dance, including spectacular aerial choreography, evocative site-specific performances, and culturally significant subject matter. Since 1990, Zaccho has partnered with local organizations and SFUSD to offer our Youth Performing Arts Program (YPAP), a free, world-class, arts education program for Bayview youth. YPAP has served approximately 6,800 youth, ages 9-17. Zaccho Youth Company, founded in 2002 as an extension of YPAP, was developed for students interested in training more seriously, performing more frequently, and considering dance and the arts as a potential career path. Since 2010, the Artist-in-Residency Program provided artists with stipends, rehearsal space, mentorship, production and marketing support, and community engagement opportunities. We expanded the AiR Program with support from the Dream Keeper Initiative (2021-2026), to include The Black Futures AiR Fellowship and the Hip Hop Artist Residency & Training Program, the latter in partnership with PUSH Dance Company. Launched in 2014, the SF Aerial Arts Festival presents world-class aerial performances, talkbacks, and community engagement events. Since 2016, SFAAF has been co-presented by the Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture. SFAAF has served 330 artists to date. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SoCal Arts | 415 W Chestnut Ave , Monrovia, CA 91016-3207 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 739-8455 | 31st Congressional district of California | State Assembly 48 | District 22 | In-Step Project expands equitable access to dance arts training for youth ages 2–18, including youth from disinvested communities and youth w/disabilities and diverse learning needs. Funds will support teaching artists and program staff to deliver dance arts training, mentorship, rehearsal, and performance opportunities across ballet, contemporary, jazz, and culturally rooted Korean and Latino folk dance. Teaching artists use inclusive, individualized adaptive accommodations. Ongoing communication with families and partners identifies access needs early and inform real-time adjustments to instruction, accommodations, and event design. In-Step will provide scholarships/other cost-offset supports and will strengthen accessibility: all youth can fully participate. Support also covers production for community-facing activities, including open houses, school assemblies, and multiple performances in accessible community settings; covers space/venue needs, costumes/supplies, production coordination, outreach, and transportation for staff and equipment to reach schools and community sites. | SoCal Arts Dance Theatre’s provides a year-round dance education and creative youth development experiences that increase access to dance arts, strengthen youth development, and build community connection. We combine high-quality instruction, mentorship, and performance opportunities for young people ages 2–18 from disinvested communities and youth with disabilities or diverse learning needs. We use dance as a tool for self-expression, belonging, and leadership development, building confidence, discipline, teamwork, communication skills, and a positive sense of identity. Our comprehensive curriculum includes classical ballet alongside complementary forms such as contemporary, jazz, Pilates Mat, and acting for theatre and film, as well as culturally rooted Latino traditional dance (this year, we have added Korean). We incorporate youth-relevant contemporary styles (including K-pop–inspired movement) and culturally meaningful themes connected to community celebrations (such as Día de Muertos) into choreography, the creative process, and community performances so youth see themselves reflected and feel connected to place and culture. Instruction is delivered by experienced teaching artists who support a range of learning styles and abilities through inclusive practices and individualized accommodations as needed. A cornerstone of our work is the In-Step Project, which provides sequenced training, coaching, and mentorship that support both artistic growth and social-emotional development. Youth participate in rehearsals and performances throughout the year, including in-studio showcases, school assemblies, and community outreach events, gaining meaningful opportunities to share work publicly, strengthen community ties, and practice leadership and collaboration. We create a welcoming entry point for boys and gender-expansive youth to participate in dance through tailored instruction, mentorship, and peer community, reducing stigma and strengthening sustained engagement in arts learning and youth development. We provide a safe, welcoming space for young and professional artists to collaborate on new dance and art expression projects, including community-based performances and partnerships that expand local access to the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Luna Dance and Creativity | 931 Ashby Avenue , Berkeley, CA 94710 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 883-1118 | California's 12th congressional district | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, LUNA KIDS DANCE INC will offer culturally responsive, anti-biased dance education programs for children, families, educators, artists, and agencies from underserved communities across California. PROFESSIONAL LEARNING provides intensive, holistic training to teachers, fostering leadership, creative self-efficacy, and equity. FIELD MOVING advances justice through practice-to-policy strategies, research dissemination, and advocacy rooted in community collaboration. Through PARTNERSHIPS, Luna works with schools, districts, and organizations to build sustainable, equity-focused dance programs. Luna’s EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION program promotes developmentally informed, intercultural learning grounded in neuroscience and play theory. STUDIO LAB offers dance-making classes for children and adults, free family dance classes, panels, and works-in-process showcases. As a 34-year-old anchor organization, Luna serves individual artists and dance organizations who are especially at risk during the current economic uncertainty and diminished federal support. | Our ADA-accessible STUDIO LAB children’s program offers a progression of dance learning designed to nurture the choreographer in every child in a studio class structure at Luna’s studios in Berkeley. The STUDIO LAB adult program offers opportunities for and presentations on dance research, the choreographic process, and topics that expand ideas about what dance is and who can dance. PROFESSIONAL LEARNING fulfills Luna’s mission to bring all children to dance as we deepen the knowledge and practice of dance learning through workshops, courses, panel conversations, and resources designed so that creative practitioners manifest creative self-efficacy, investigate teaching practice, establish collegial communities, cultivate dance leadership, and become change agents. Luna helps the field of dance education arc toward justice through FIELD MOVING, our practice-to-policy approach that includes sharing the findings of our inquiries and research; joining with others to create impact; and relentlessly advocating for inclusion, creativity, and self-determination. Recognizing that our work is situated within systems of oppression and racial injustice, we seek change by working together in community, paying attention, staying true to our values, and placing children as the future at the center of our work. Through PARTNERS FOR CHANGE, Luna collaborates with organizations (social service and human welfare agencies, schools and school districts) throughout the region, state and nation to build capacity for enduring dance programs that support the values of each community. Luna, an expert in EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION in dance, has refined, over more than three decades, its pedagogy and curriculum to align with discoveries in neuroscience, play research, child psychology, and cultural responsiveness. As we envision a future with today’s toddlers becoming tomorrow’s leaders, early learning demands our crucial attention and focus. Luna faculty continue our research, theory-building, and practice to better understand how dance is at the convergence of all processes of learning. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $10,800.00 | Viva Downtown | 1725 MARKET ST , REDDING, CA 96001-1933 | Shasta | Upstate | (530) 243-7773 | With support from the California Arts Council, Viva Downtown Redding, Inc. will sustain and expand a coordinated, year-round system of arts and cultural programming that provides consistent access to participation for over 36,000 residents annually in a rural region with limited arts infrastructure. Programming includes visual arts, performance, literary arts, film, workshops, and community-led activities centered in the IOOF Hall and throughout the downtown district in Redding. Support will fund core operations, artist stipends, coordination, facility operations, accessibility improvements, and outreach, ensuring programs remain free or low-cost and accessible. Funds will also support operation of the IOOF Hall as an accessible cultural hub for artist-led programming. Viva Downtown is an artist-led system that makes consistent, year-round arts participation possible for an entire rural region in Upstate California. | Viva Downtown Redding, Inc. operates a coordinated, district-wide system of arts and cultural programming that expands access to creative participation across Redding and the broader Upstate region. Viva Downtown is an accredited Main Street America and California Main Street organization and a founding partner of the Redding Cultural District. Core arts and culture programs and services include year-round visual arts, performance, literary arts, and film programming delivered through public spaces, partner venues, and the historic IOOF Hall. Signature activities include monthly First Friday activations, exhibitions and classes through The Art Hunger artist collaborative, film screenings and festivals, spoken word and literary arts forums, and partner-led cultural events. These programs provide accessible platforms for artists and community groups and create consistent opportunities for public participation. Viva Downtown actively collaborates with community-based organizations, culturally specific groups, and artists to develop and deliver programming that reflects diverse cultural practices and lived experiences. This approach ensures that underrepresented communities have meaningful opportunities to participate, contribute, and be visible within the district’s cultural life. Viva Downtown operates and stewards the IOOF Hall as a free, accessible cultural hub that houses gallery space, classrooms, performance and event spaces, along with community meeting areas. The facility supports exhibitions, workshops, performances, and community-led programming, serving as critical cultural infrastructure in a region with limited arts venues. Viva Downtown also leads key coordination efforts, including the Downtown Collaborative, Cultural District partnerships, and the Downtown Business Group, aligning nonprofit organizations, artists, businesses, and public agencies. This network supports shared outreach, resource coordination, and community-informed programming. Programs and services are designed to be free or low-cost and accessible, with outreach conducted through partner networks and bilingual engagement in English and Spanish. Through this integrated approach, Viva supports artists, engages diverse audiences, and sustains a community-based cultural ecosystem. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Project Commotion | 2095 HARRISON ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-1387 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 252-8050 | With support from the California Arts Council, Project Commotion will provide a semester-long culturally-relevant, bilingual English/Spanish performing arts residency to 5 classrooms in underfunded schools in the Mission District of San Francisco. | > After-school performing arts classes/summer camp - Our relationship-based performing arts programming combines creative movement (tumbling, music, dance, yoga and martial arts), sensory-rich experiences, and play as a means to foster healthy development, self-awareness and self-expression. > Schools on the Move - Through our school partnership program we bring our signature relationship-based performing arts classes directly to students. Our partnership model also incorporates professional development training for teachers and parents. > Community Move - Community Move offers interactive workshops for adults that discuss the science behind the brain-body connection and demonstrate how creative movement can support whole child development. > Las Luciérnagas preschool - A play-based early childhood education program with an emphasis on creative movement and gross motor development. This Spanish-English bilingual program uses a multi-sensory approach to facilitate individualized learning. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $8,000.00 | URBAN VOICES PROJECT | 420 S SAN PEDRO ST #423, LOS ANGELES, CA 90013-2192 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 741-1887 | CA-34 | District 57 | Distract 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Urban Voices Project will strengthen its organizational operations as it continues to provide music engagement programs to Skid Row and Los Angeles County residents marginalized by homelessness, mental health struggles, and unemployment, using music as a bridge to community, health, and social services. During the grant period, we anticipate our programs (inclusive of singing workshops, Music Labs, events, and more) will directly engage more than 2,000 individuals—more than 90% of whom will have current or former experience with homelessness—and reach approximately 22,000 audience members. | To place music & singing community spaces in every medical and social service site across Los Angeles, to create community and a more comprehensive, holistic system for engaging individuals coping with the conditions of homelessness. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Mendocino Dance Project | 305 East Redwood Ave , Fort Bragg, CA 95437 | Mendocino | Upstate | (408) 313-5868 | California Assembly district 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mendocino Dance Project will increase administrative capacity to coordinate programming across rural communities, manage partnerships with schools and cultural organizations, expand outreach and accessibility efforts, and strengthen fundraising and operational systems that keep our core programs affordable and accessible. Mendocino Dance Project’s core programs include: Creative movement in local school districts serving rural youth ages 5 and up Free ongoing Dance for People with Parkinson’s classes for individuals, caregivers, and family members Live immersive dance performances in theaters and outdoor community spaces Vertical Dance in the Redwoods programs, including performances, workshops, and summer camps connecting residents and visitors to the natural environment This support will strengthen Mendocino Dance Project’s ability to build healthy, connected communities through movement, performance, and connection to place. | Mendocino Dance Project is a dynamic and athletic dance organization that is making dances inside theaters and in outside spaces, on and off the ground. It is committed to helping art thrive in small communities, bringing inspired and original work to rural areas throughout Northern California and creating opportunities for people to participate and engage in the arts. In addition to performing and creating original shows, Mendocino Dance Project teaches creative movement in local schools, vertical dance in the redwood trees, dance for people living with Parkinson's Disease, and offers a variety of workshops, classes and summer camps in the community aimed at connecting people to their bodies and to nature. Mendocino Dance Project values artistic collaborations and forms partnerships with other organizations contributing to the arts and culture in Northern California. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | MEXICAN HERITAGE CENTER | 267 N FULTON ST , FRESNO, CA 93701-1610 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 790-5575 | 21st Congressional district | District 31 | District 14 | With CAC support the Mexican Heritage Center will create its first exhibition highlighting central San Joaquin Valley history by focusing on West Fresno in the 1940s and 1950s, a period we define as “Seeds of Change.” We chose this current effort because we have collected past interviews and can obtain more from those still living, along with memorabilia donated to our center. Mexican West Fresno was a multicultural, segregated, dynamic area and the seat of an emerging generation’s social, political, economic and cultural awakening. We call this mid-century phenomenon Seeds of Change because the Mexican generation became the Mexican American generation, moving beyond West Fresno and launching the Chicano generation. We will reveal a community of organizations and leaders who straddled cultures and became many of our early leaders, advancing communities even beyond West Fresno. | 1. To gather and archive material relevant to the experience of the Mexican origin community of the Central San Joaquin Valley [primarily the counties of Merced, Madera, Fresno, Tulare and Kings] 2. To develop a professionally curated collection of interviews, photos, documents, publications and diverse media productions of the Central Valley’s community of Mexican descent that is accessible to researchers, scholars, students, and the public For example, filmed/recorded music, dance, artistic exhibits, interviews, performances, parades, etc. 3. To foster relationships and collaborative efforts with educational institutions, public libraries, museums, historical societies, civic organizations and related entities. 4. To provide opportunities for high school and college students as well as community members to develop research skills related to the mission of the Center. 5. To disseminate the Center’s work to the public through events, exhibits, publications, public lectures, diverse media outlets, and traveling/touring presentations. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Playwrights Foundation | 1616 16TH ST STE 350 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94103-5164 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 626-2176 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With funding from the California Arts Council, Playwrights Foundation (PF) will support a diverse cohort of 8 early- and mid-career playwrights in our two core programs, the Bay Area Playwrights Festival and Resident Playwrights Program—with a particular focus on under-resourced and historically excluded writers—by providing them with the tools they need to advance their playwriting careers, including: material resources, promotion, classes and seminars, networking opportunities, new play development processes, public readings, career planning, artistic retreats, advocacy, and other professional support activities. | Since its founding in 1978, Playwrights Foundation has sustained a commitment to supporting and nurturing the work of exceptional emerging local and national playwrights and is today widely recognized as the most comprehensive such organization in California. Our primary role is to provide early and mid-career playwrights the resources they need to develop new work, as well as career development and connection to producers. Our key programs are the Bay Area Playwrights Festival, which offers five writers the resources to advance and showcase new plays during a 12-month immersive experience; the Resident Playwrights Initiative, which provides support for four Bay Area playwrights over a two-year period as they pursue professional careers; the Producing Partnership Initiative, which allows PF to leverage partnerships with other organizations for resources and premiere productions of the playwrights’ works. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Red Poppy Art House | 2698 Folsom St , San Francisco, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 512-0022 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Red Poppy Art House (RPAH) will celebrate 23 years of community-rooted arts programming through year-round multidisciplinary programming featuring over 150 performances, workshops, exhibitions, literary events, lectures, & community programs serving more than 5,000 Bay Area audience members and featuring over 400 local & international artists. RPAH will continue presenting its free bi-monthly Mission Arts & Performance Project (MAPP) and free Family Art Program while expanding accessible, culturally responsive programming in San Francisco’s Mission District. 2026 marks RPAH’s first year operating independently as a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization after years under fiscal sponsorship. CAC support is critical to sustaining operations, strengthening organizational infrastructure, supporting artists, & deepening RPAH’s long-standing cultural impact within the Mission District community during this monumental transition into independent nonprofit status. | Red Poppy Art House produces more than 150 multi-disciplinary events each year including music, poetry, dance, literary events, art exhibitions, workshops and lectures that showcase the talent of local and far-flung artists. The Poppy is known locally, nationally and internationally as a venue that welcomes artists from all backgrounds to share the music of their culture, allowing the changes and fusion that naturally comes from performing in the diversity of San Francisco. Operating from a neighborhood storefront, The Poppy's intimate performing space is ideal for listening and creating diverse art forms. In addition to its performing program, The Poppy serves emerging arts professionals through its Professional Development Track, which provides training in community arts presentation through workshops and internships. Finally, the Poppy serves neighborhood youth through its monthly free Family Art afternoons. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Cafe Puente | 610 E Washington St Suite C, PETALUMA, CA 94952 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 303-0441 | California's 2nd Congressional District | District 12 | District 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, CAFÉ PUENTE will sustain essential operations of our Spanish-language multicultural community center, ensuring Latinx families in Sonoma County, including immigrant, Spanish-dominant, and mixed-status households, continue to access free, culturally grounded arts programming that reflects and celebrates their identities. We offer arts and cultural programs including Latidos (dance and performing arts classes for children, youth, and adults), Puentistas (youth cultural identity and leadership programming), Raíces (creative wellness and cultural gatherings for older adults), and Puentecitos (early childhood storytelling, music, and literacy activities for families with young children). These programs center Latinx cultural traditions while creating opportunities for artistic expression, cultural pride, and community belonging. General operating support will help cover staff time, facility costs, and program coordination so Café Puente can provide accessible arts experiences for historically under-resourced communities. | Café Puente is a Spanish-language multicultural community center that provides educational, cultural, and wellness programming for Latinx families in Sonoma County. Our core programs include early childhood playgroups and literacy activities for children ages 0–5 and their caregivers (Puentecitos); youth leadership and cultural identity programming for teens (Puentistas); arts and dance programming for children, youth, and adults (Latidos); and wellness and social connection gatherings for older adults (Raíces). Across all programs, Café Puente creates a welcoming space where Latinx families can build community, celebrate culture, access resources, and strengthen family wellbeing. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Red Poppy Art House | 2698 Folsom St , San Francisco, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 512-0022 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Red Poppy Art House (RPAH) will present the 23rd Anniversary Season of the Mission Arts Performance Project (MAPP), a free bi-monthly multidisciplinary arts series featuring music, performance, exhibitions, site-specific installations, a small exterior-mural, and family art programs. Grant funds will support artist fees, production expenses, and administrative costs related to MAPP programming at RPAH. Founded in 2003 by Red Poppy Art House artists, MAPP is a neighborhood-based arts initiative rooted in San Francisco’s Mission-District. Taking place on the first Saturday of every even-numbered month, MAPP activates intimate venues and public-spaces throughout the neighborhood for artistic exchange, community participation, and accessible cultural-experiences that bring together artists and audiences across disciplines and traditions. MAPP creates space for artistic engagement with timely cultural and social themes affecting communities locally and globally. | Red Poppy Art House produces more than 150 multi-disciplinary events each year including music, poetry, dance, literary events, art exhibitions, workshops and lectures that showcase the talent of local and far-flung artists. The Poppy is known locally, nationally and internationally as a venue that welcomes artists from all backgrounds to share the music of their culture, allowing the changes and fusion that naturally comes from performing in the diversity of San Francisco. Operating from a neighborhood storefront, The Poppy's intimate performing space is ideal for listening and creating diverse art forms. In addition to its performing program, The Poppy serves emerging arts professionals through its Professional Development Track, which provides training in community arts presentation through workshops and internships. Finally, the Poppy serves neighborhood youth through its monthly free Family Art afternoons. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $2,696.00 | Morro Bay Art Association | 835 MAIN ST , MORRO BAY, CA 93442-2117 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 772-2504 | 24th Congressional District | San Luis Obispo County | 17th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, MORRO BAY ART ASSOCIATION will increase the opportunity for community members (kids) to participate in Summer Arts Camp. Morro Bay Art Center has been offering summer art camps for kids ages 6-12, at our Gallery since 2021. Our educators encourage students to explore materials and techniques that build confidence and inspire imagination. While these camps have been popular, in 2025 we saw participation decrease by 40% from 2021. This drop can be attributed to less “discretionary funds” of community members; inflation has affected all. Monies will be used to lower cost of the sessions by 25% (from $120 to $90 for a 3-day session) allowing for more participation, particularly with kids from lower income homes. We will actively cultivate lower income groups for inclusion, at no charge. (scholarships) | Exhibitions, workshops, children's art classes, free demonstrations |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Sheed | 14247 RIVERSIDE DR APT 201 , SHERMAN OAKS, CA 91423-2368 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (203) 747-2708 | 32nd Congressional District | 46th Assembly District | 20th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Sheed Entertainment will produce Fountain of Eternity, a multidisciplinary cultural project exploring migration, identity, and cultural connection through Iranian and Mongolian traditions. The project includes a public performance with community-centered activities such as workshops, artist talks, and interactive sessions engaging diverse audiences. Led by composer and santoor player Ehsan Matoori, the project brings together live music, Sufi-inspired movement and contemporary dance, and storytelling, featuring Persian classical music and Mongolian throat singing. These programs provide access to underrepresented traditions and foster cross-cultural exchange. CAC funding supports artist fees, production, workshops, and public programming, ensuring accessibility and meaningful community engagement across California. | Sheed Entertainment produces and presents multidisciplinary performances that combine live music, storytelling, and visual elements, often rooted in Persian and world music traditions. Core programs include original touring productions such as “Fountain of Eternity,” which integrates music, dance, and narrative to explore themes of migration and cultural exchange, as well as concert series featuring international artists and collaborations across genres. The organization also develops recording projects, music videos, and community-based performances that bring diverse audiences together. In addition, Sheed Entertainment engages in educational and outreach activities, including workshops, artist talks, and culturally focused programming designed to increase access to global artistic traditions. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | homeLA | 3760 MAYFAIR DR , LOS ANGELES, CA 90065-3209 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 709-2691 | 34th Congressional district of California | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, homeLA will stabilize its organizational capacity as a curatorial platform supporting independent dance and performance art, sustaining core programs that foreground underrepresented narratives and prioritize accessibility, creative risk-taking, and spatial justice. Grant funds will support staff salaries, administrative systems, and accessibility infrastructure essential to effective program delivery and equitable operations. Funding will enable homeLA to maintain a sustainable scale of activity while supporting partnership-based initiatives with the Getty Research Institute and the Thomas Mann House in FY26–27, alongside its ongoing public-facing and field-building efforts. CAC support will ensure continuity of operations and enable homeLA to steward its resources with intention, maintaining a sustainable pace of work while deepening its impact and partnerships across Los Angeles. | homeLA is a nomadic, site-specific performance platform that supports experimental artists in dance, performance, and media through three core programs: public performance, learning and engagement, and advocacy, serving diverse audiences across Southern California. Public Performance: We produce two performance events annually that support the development and presentation of experimental work while fostering community connection and amplifying underrepresented histories. Projects engage dance, performance, film, video, intermedia, and sound artists through a three-month residency and rehearsal structure embedded within domestic, historic, or public architecture. Artists create original work in dialogue with overlooked site-specific histories and community narratives. Since our founding, we have made a significant investment in professional artists of Southern California, employing 240 artists and 566 collaborators, and reaching over 5,481 attendees through intimate, immersive programs. Accompanying discursive programming fosters deeper connections between artists’ work and audiences. Learning and Engagement: inSITE (est. 2020) provides free after-school classes in site-specific dance and film for students enrolled in Title I public high school dance programs. Led by California artists, students engage in critical thinking about public space, land, and belonging through collaborative choreography and site activation. inSITE has served 90 youth across multiple campuses and remains central to our commitment to educational equity. The We in Me (est. 2021) is a creative platform that addresses homelessness through arts programming that fosters awareness, learning, and civic engagement while amplifying voices and livelihoods of those with lived experiences of housing insecurity and system-impacted youth, reaching over 1,800 community members in-person and online. Advocacy: homeLA leads field-building efforts to advance equitable working conditions for performance in visual art contexts, organizing working groups and convenings with artists, curators, and institutions, and extending this work into public-facing tools, publications, and regional presentations that support transparency, sustainability, and equity across the field. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Mariposa Arts Council | 5009 CA-140 , Mariposa, CA 95338 | Mariposa | Central Valley | (209) 966-3155 | California's 4th congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | With CAC support, Mariposa County Arts Council (MCACI) will leverage the arts for constructive community engagement; support historically underrepresented communities; build and grow partnerships; and, served the creative interests of residents and visitors through a range of public cultural and arts education programming, creative placemaking initiatives, local/regional/statewide advocacy, network developments at the local, regional and state level, cultural policy leadership and provide granting and technical assistance to local artists and grassroots arts organizations. | The Mariposa County Arts Council (MCACI) opened its doors in 1981 and is dedicated to enriching Mariposa through the arts. Serving the county at large and working closely with our local government leaders as well as individuals, regional organizations and businesses, we develop and implement cultural policies, creative placemaking projects, arts educations initiatives and produce artistic programming designed to positively increase the visibility of Mariposa and amplify the many diverse voices in our community. Our work welcomes all local residents and visitors to engage with art experiences and is designed to facilitate personal interpretations, expression, and growth; strengthen social connections and community dialogue; connect rural Mariposa to issues, movements, and opportunities beyond its borders; and support the healthy development of individuals of all ages by engaging them in the creation and appreciation of art. MCACI’s work includes: develop cultural policy and creative placemaking initiatives; providing technical assistance to regional artists and arts organizations; developing and delivering a variety of TK-12 grade creative youth development and arts education programming to youth across Mariposa County; targeted mentoring programming for at-promise youth; special arts programming for adults with limited or no access to the arts (particularly incarcerated and geographically isolated older adults); public programming (community theatre and summer concert series); and local, regional, state, and national advocacy work. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Office of Economic Development and Government Affairs | 1600 Pacific Hwy room 152 , San Diego, CA 92101-2429 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 531-5198 | California's 50th congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the County of San Diego Office of Economic Development and Government Affairs, and its Arts, Film and Creative Industries division, will advance an equitable, inclusive creative economy through strategic marketing, engagement, and outreach. CAC funds will support: Poetry Out Loud. The regional Poetry Out Loud program, produced with Write Out Loud, aims to ignite a passion for poetry and strengthen youth engagement in the arts. Marketing and Outreach. This initiative will expand marketing and outreach capacity to increase public awareness of the arts and better connect with artists across the region. Efforts include strengthening marketing infrastructure, enhancing brand presence, and developing effective collateral. Countywide outreach, especially to artists in unincorporated, rural, under-resourced, and lower quartile CHPI areas, will broaden access to networks and opportunities. | Through its Arts, Film, and Creative Industries division, EDGA strengthens the County's creative sector by supporting creative businesses, artists, creators, and cultural producers, as well as community initiatives that position creative industries as essential to civic engagement, economic prosperity, and community wellbeing. Guided by the principles of people, place, and storytelling, EDGA's work spans creative economy policy and research, screen production, public art, business development and investments, and regional and global collaboration. Policy, Strategy, and Research EDGA develops and informs policies that enhance the sustainability, diversity, and economic impact of the creative sector. Work includes advocating for arts and creative industries in regional planning and advancing strategies and global initiatives that elevate the region's creative identity. Screen Industries Production EDGA leads efforts to attract and expand film and media production. This includes supporting filmmakers/producers with location scouting, permitting coordination, regulatory guidance, and access to County properties. EDGA also offers on-the-ground assistance and expertise on industry economic trends, working with partners to grow and retain production in the region. Public Art Development EDGA oversees the integration of public art into County facilities and public spaces, coordinating with other departments on policies, planning, and implementation to enhance community places and local storytelling. Collaboration EDGA represents the County in regional, state, national, and international partnerships, with emphasis on unincorporated areas and cross-border collaboration with Baja California Norte. EDGA connects artists, cultural producers, and creative businesses to networks and opportunities. Creative Industry Support and Growth EDGA supports artists, creative entrepreneurs, and creative businesses through technical assistance, business training, and workforce pathways. Creative Sector Investments EDGA administers the Board of Supervisors' community and neighborhood grant funds, supporting countywide nonprofits, including arts organizations. And in FY27, EDGA, through its Art, Film and Creative Industries division, will launch new grant categories for artists and creative spaces. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | GRAND PERFORMANCES | 350 S GRAND AVE STE A4 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90071-3461 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 687-2190 | Support from California Arts Council will go toward launching “Higher Ground”, a performing arts and cultural program for underserved youth from communities that surround Downtown Los Angeles. “Higher Ground” explores the joy of music, movement, and storytelling while showing how performance can be a tool for social awareness and change. Kahlil Cummings of Extra Ancestral, an LA-based collective celebrating the African and Afro-Latin diaspora, will lead the program including workshops and rehearsals built around identity, belonging, and self-expression. The workshop series will culminate in a performance showcase that further participants’ pathways in the performing arts. The purpose of “Higher Ground” is to create a space where young people, ages 13-18, can strengthen their sense of community, build confidence, and deepen their understanding of themselves and the world around them through traditional and contemporary performing arts. | Launched in 1986 during a time of redevelopment in downtown Los Angeles, Grand Performances (GP) is SoCal’s longest-running presenter of free performing arts. The organization is a national leader in its field, renowned for its eclectic programming and its dedication to serving the arts, artists, and the community. Historically, events have been hosted every summer at our beautiful outdoor venue, California Plaza, managed by a three-member association of corporate property owners. In recent years, GP has explored programming initiatives off-site and online, expanding our commitment to free access to global performing arts in local communities. All programs are free to the public, providing access for all regardless of financial ability. For four decades, Grand Performances has nurtured artists from L.A.’s neighborhoods, often providing early career opportunities. Artists such as Ozomatli, La Santa Cecilia, Kamasi Washington, and, more recently, Sonia Marie de Leon de Vega’s La Sinfonica, Garrett Saracho, and the Neighborhood Orchestra all received breakthrough presentations on our stage. A longstanding commitment to presenting contemporary artists with roots in Latin America, Africa, and Asia has ensured that our stage reflects the many cultures of Los Angeles. Thoughtful curation remains a hallmark of GP’s programming, distinguishing it from other free presenters. In 2022, Rafael González became President and CEO, bringing a renewed emphasis on GP’s civic role and its place in LA’s cultural and social fabric. In 2023, GP introduced a poetry series as part of its summer season, further diversifying offerings through spoken word and storytelling. GP is celebrating its 40th anniversary in 2026 with expanded programming, community partnerships, and artistic initiatives that celebrate four decades of connecting Angelenos through free, world-class performances. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Altadena Music Theatre | 2363 El Moreno St , La Crescenta-Montrose, CA 91214-3160 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (760) 208-3254 | District 28 | District 44 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Altadena Music Theatre will produce and present a series of professional musical theatre productions and educational programs. Funding will support artist fees, production costs, marketing/public relations, accessibility, and administrative staff. | Altadena Music Theatre's core programs and services are its professional season of live musical theatre productions and its children's musical theatre education programs and camps. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | homeLA | 3760 MAYFAIR DR , LOS ANGELES, CA 90065-3209 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 709-2691 | 34th Congressional district of California | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, homeLA will provide–through its education program, inSITE–one season of free site-specific dance mentorship to students studying dance at the Los Angeles Unified School District’s Title 1 Ramón C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts. inSITE is taught by California artists to uplift historically underrepresented youth voices through site-specific dance. All facets of learning and support will happen on campus and at partnering art and cultural site, the Los Angeles State Historic Park–where students will develop, rehearse, and present their final performance to the public. | homeLA is a nomadic, site-specific performance platform that supports experimental artists in dance, performance, and media through three core programs: public performance, learning and engagement, and advocacy, serving diverse audiences across Southern California. Public Performance: We produce two performance events annually that support the development and presentation of experimental work while fostering community connection and amplifying underrepresented histories. Projects engage dance, performance, film, video, intermedia, and sound artists through a three-month residency and rehearsal structure embedded within domestic, historic, or public architecture. Artists create original work in dialogue with overlooked site-specific histories and community narratives. Since our founding, we have made a significant investment in professional artists of Southern California, employing 240 artists and 566 collaborators, and reaching over 5,481 attendees through intimate, immersive programs. Accompanying discursive programming fosters deeper connections between artists’ work and audiences. Learning and Engagement: inSITE (est. 2020) provides free after-school classes in site-specific dance and film for students enrolled in Title I public high school dance programs. Led by California artists, students engage in critical thinking about public space, land, and belonging through collaborative choreography and site activation. inSITE has served 90 youth across multiple campuses and remains central to our commitment to educational equity. The We in Me (est. 2021) is a creative platform that addresses homelessness through arts programming that fosters awareness, learning, and civic engagement while amplifying voices and livelihoods of those with lived experiences of housing insecurity and system-impacted youth, reaching over 1,800 community members in-person and online. Advocacy: homeLA leads field-building efforts to advance equitable working conditions for performance in visual art contexts, organizing working groups and convenings with artists, curators, and institutions, and extending this work into public-facing tools, publications, and regional presentations that support transparency, sustainability, and equity across the field. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | California Institute for Community, Art & Nature | 2150 Allston Way, Suite 460 , Berkeley, CA 94704 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 859-9180 | California's 12th congressional district | District 15 | District 9 | With the support from the California Arts Council, the California Institute for Community, Art & Nature will produce our 8th Annual California Native Ways Festival - a California Indian led and designed Arts & Culture Festival - tentative date - Saturday, June 19¬, 2027. The Festival will include performances by traditional Californian Indian dancers and storytellers, California traditional cultural arts and lifeways demonstrators — including basketweavers, boat builders, bead jewelry and traditional regalia makers, clapperstick carvers, traditional acorn preparers, arts vendors, and panel presentations on various aspects of California Indian culture, including preserving cultural sites and the meaning of and restoration of California Indian traditional place names. | Our three core program areas are: Re-Indigenizing California, Arts & the Environment, and the Center for Berkeley Studies. Activities include: Producing the Annual California Native Ways Festival - a California Indian Arts & Culture Festival; Saving Our Stories: an ongoing project to restore and preserve California Indian Artists' Archives, the development and publication of a book on the Historic West Berkeley Ohlone Shellmound and Village Site; inaugurating and producing the (now) annual Berkeley Bird Festival, with an emphasis on experiencing birds through the arts including song, painting and drawing, origami, narrative writing, poetry, spoken word and dance; the "Remapping California" project working with California Indian culture bearers across the state to create public education about and understanding of indigenous cultural stories and sites; creating public events focusing on the intersection of art and the environment featuring artists whose work is informed by and interacts with the natural world; and, finally, creating projects focused on the artistic and cultural legacy and creative future of Berkeley, California including collaborating to create a 60s Museum, Historical Society, and Cultural Center and the publication of The Berkeley Anthology — a collection of fiction and nonfiction writings and ephemera from Berkeley’s past and present. The Anthology will examine what makes Berkeley so remarkable, why the city has long nurtured world-class creativity and diversity in the arts and daring innovation in the way its residents lead their personal lives and conduct their civic affairs, and how this spirit can be preserved in our changing times and incorporate Berkeley's long standing tradition of fighting for equity and justice, both through and for artists individual and collective expression and cultural arts events. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Act Out Theatre Company | 3710 N WESTON PL , LONG BEACH, CA 90807-3314 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 920-5069 | 44th Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 69 | State Senate District 33 | Act Out Theatre Company will use CAC funds to sustain and expand its tuition-free performing arts and youth development programs serving youth and families in Long Beach. Funding will support core expenses, facility and production costs, program supplies, and essential administrative infrastructure. Act Out will produce four annual mainstage productions, provide year-round arts education workshops, and operate its youth leadership program. These programs serve over 400 participants annually, primarily youth from low-to-moderate income communities, with expanded access through partnerships with the Long Beach Unified School District and emerging collaboration with Long Beach City College. CAC funding will ensure programs remain tuition-free, removing financial barriers while supporting social-emotional development, creative expression, and college and career readiness. General Operating Support will strengthen organizational capacity to meet increasing community demand and deepen impact across Long Beach. | Act Out Theatre Company provides tuition-free, high-quality performing arts education and youth development programming designed to remove barriers to access while fostering creativity, confidence, and community connection. Our programs create a safe, inclusive environment where participants build collaboration skills, strengthen academic engagement, and develop lifelong social and leadership abilities. We deliver our mission through three core program areas: 1. Mainstage Productions We produce four fully staged theatrical productions annually: a Spring musical, Summer play, Fall play for elementary-aged youth (grades 2–5), and a Fall musical. These productions offer participants hands-on, pre-professional training in acting, music, and technical theater while working collaboratively toward a shared goal. Each production culminates in multi-day public performances, providing participants with meaningful opportunities for artistic expression and community engagement. All productions are tuition-free and open to youth and adults, with a primary focus on serving students in grades 2–12. 2. Arts Education Workshops We offer year-round, arts-based workshops through after-school and summer programming for youth ages 7–17. These multidisciplinary workshops include acting, music, movement, etc. and are designed to build foundational artistic skills while supporting social-emotional learning, teamwork, and self-confidence. Recent expansion of school-based partnerships has significantly increased access to these programs for underserved youth. 3. Youth Leadership Development (Jr. Board of Directors) Our Jr. Board of Directors is a structured leadership development program for high school students. Participants complete over 100 hours of community service annually while gaining hands-on experience in leadership, program support, and organizational operations. The program emphasizes both practical career skills and essential soft skills such as communication, responsibility, and teamwork, helping students strengthen college and career readiness while serving as role models within the organization. Through these programs, Act Out Theatre Company equips young people with the creative, social, and professional skills needed to succeed in school, careers, and their communities. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Flyaway Productions | 1068 Bowdoin St. , San Francisco, CA 94134 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 672-4111 | U.S. House of Representatives district 15 | District 17 | District 11 | HOPE IN FIVE STORIES is a site-specific public art project premiering on the grand, five-story balconies of the immigrant-owned hotel at Larkin and Eddy Streets in San Francisco's Tenderloin neighborhood. Co-choreographed by Preethi Ramaprasad and Jo Kreiter, with original music by Prasant Radhakrishnan, the project uses apparatus-based aerial dance to celebrate the resilience, cultural richness, and humanity of immigrant communities. Eight free public performances will feature South and Southeast Asian dancers performing intimate vignettes drawn from lived immigrant experience, blending Bharatanatyam storytelling with aerial choreography and original music. Community Partner the Tenderloin Museum will support the project’s development. California Arts Council funds will support the development of Hope in Five Stories, funding artist fees for choreographers, performers, and composer, resulting in eight free evening performances accessible to Tenderloin families, youth, and the broader public. | PERFORM: We make dances that are site-specific, off the ground, and justice-driven. We perform in unlikely places, activating the sides of buildings above bleak city streets. Discarded needles; unhoused bodies lining sidewalks. This is where we create. Our site-specific dances impact neighborhoods because they unfold at the very place where conflict lives. For us, a building is a witness. It holds the complexity of a neighborhood’s history in its “hands,” I-beams, or concrete walls. Our tools include coalition building, an intersectional feminist lens, and a body-based push against the constraints of gravity. From 2017-2023, Flyaway created The Decarceration Trilogy: Dismantling the Prison Industrial Complex One Dance at a Time. We continue to create new work centering incarcerated artists and exploring prison systems change. TEACH: We offer year-round classes to adults, teens, and youth. Each summer, we offer GIRLFLY, a Youth Art & Activism Program, integrating dance-making and activism. Our training with youth offers some remedy for the ways women and girls/GNC youth remain underserved in public culture as a whole. We also offer teaching residencies that link social justice content, school curriculum, and movement innovation, where your young artists are our collaborators. ADVOCATE: We provide a bridge between the arts, gender justice, racial justice, and everyday life. We are constantly developing new forms for community engagement and coalition building with activists and non-arts partners. COLLABORATE: We have worked with Bay Area Dance Artists Bianca Cabrera, Quinn Dior, Clarissa Dyas, Laura Elaine Ellis, Sonsherée Giles, MaryStarr Hope, B Dean, Megan Lowe, Jhia Jackson, Saharla Vetch and natalya shoaf. We also work in collaboration with designer Sean Riley, rigger Dave Freitag, and over a dozen women/nonbinary composers, including Pamela Z, Madlines, Jewlia Eisenberg, Carla Kihlstedt, Van Anh Vo, Melanie DeMore, and Theresa Wong. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Burbank Philharmonic Orchestra | PO BOX 6345 , Burbank, CA 91510 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 446-6566 | California's 30th congressional district | District 44 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, BURBANK PHILHARMONIC ORCHESTRA will present free professional-quality concerts making symphony music accessible to a local audience. This grant will allow us to cover the payment of salaries and benefits to performing artists and general production costs, as well as help to retain and perhaps expand our staff so that we can continue the orchestra’s education initiatives, community outreach, and marketing in order to increase our visibility and presence in the community. We hope to stage two concerts this grant cycle: A concerto concert featuring recent winners of our annual Young Artists Competition, and a full orchestra concert featuring the winner of our Discovery Conductor Project which mentors local high school students in the art of conducting, providing them with a rare opportunity to conduct a professional orchestra. | Free and low cost live orchestra performances available to all. Educational programs include a yearly Young Artist Competition with winner performing as a solo artist with the Burbank Philharmonic Orchestra and the Discovery Conductor Project, a unique program for high school conductors that provides mentorship and the opportunity to rehearse and perform with the Burbank Philharmonic. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Write Out Loud | 3640 Alabama Street , SAN DIEGO, CA 92104-2720 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 944-8953 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, WRITE OUT LOUD will offer FREE literature-based programs to San Diego residents/visitors. READ IMAGINE CREATE, providing middle/high school students with a specific book and offering writing/art workshops, inspiring their personal expression of the book and sharing their creations with the community; AMERICAN LITERARY HEROES, celebrating the country’s 250th birthday with four one-actor plays featuring American authors – Whitman, Dickinson, Twain, Thoreau - performed in schools and the community; STORIES FOR SENIORS, reading stories & poetry at senior residences/assisted living facilities; SENIOR READERS THEATRE, providing opportunities for seniors to serve as readers; KAMISHIBAI, bringing this Japanese storytelling form to classrooms, libraries, and community venues; DEAR DOC, a staged reading of 35 letters written by students serving in World War II to their San Diego State University Geography professor. | Write Out Loud offers nine core programs throughout San Diego County: 1)Story Concerts - actors read literature aloud in a variety of venues; 2) Stories for Seniors – short story presentations in independent and assisted living facilities and senior centers; 3) Kamishibai - introduces elementary students to a Japanese teaching tradition that combines storytelling with pictures and written words; 4) Read Imagine Create - challenges students in grades 6-12 to read a particular book, respond to the book’s themes, and create a personal expression (e.g. story, poem, visual art, film); 5) Poetry Out Loud - Regional coordinator for national poetry recitation competition for High School students; 6) Let Your Voice Be Heard - K-12 poetry initiative providing poetry writing workshops and public displays of student poems; 7)Ripples From Walden Pond - a one-man play about Henry David Thoreau; 8) PoeFest - a series of performances of literature of the macabre; 9) World Kamishibai Forum - Monthly on-line workshops for educators and Kamishibai (Japanese storytelling form) artists from across the globe. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Long Beach Camerata Singers | PO BOX 90511 , LONG BEACH, CA 90809-0511 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 900-2863 | California's 47th congressional district | District 69 | District 33 | With support from the California Arts Council, Camerata Singers of Long Beach (CSLB) will build upon the momentum of its 2026–2027 60th Anniversary Season while celebrating the 10th anniversary of Grammy-winning Artistic Director Dr. James K. Bass’s leadership | Camerata Singers of Long Beach (CSLB) is a 90-voice classical music chorus completing its 58th season. The organization is led by Grammy-winning Artistic Director, Dr. James K. Bass, Director of Choral Studies at UCLA. It produces 4 concerts per year, including the annual Peace Project, examining social justice topics, an annual performance of Handel's Messiah, ChoralFest Long Beach in the Spring, and Evening of Song to finish the season. CSLB is the artistic partner of the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra. In the summer months, LBCS presents its free, community based outdoor concert series, The Front Porch Concerts. LBCS also runs two education programs. The Camerata Children's Music Academy provides three weekly workshops teaching music fundamentals to pre-K children at the Long Beach YMCA Early Education Program, which runs state-funded child development centers for low-income families. Peace4Youth is presented in partnership with the Long Beach Unified School District, and brings the Peace Project into Middle and High Schools. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | "" | 11112 LA MAIDA ST UNIT 7 , N HOLLYWOOD, CA 91601-4575 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 628-3507 | 29th District | District 46 | 20th District | With support from the California Arts Council, RETURNING SOLDIERS SPEAK will strengthen organizational sustainability through expanded staffing, accessibility efforts, and digital engagement infrastructure. Funding will support increased paid hours for key personnel, including the Executive Director, Operations Manager, Accessibility Coordinator, Web Designer, and Content & Social Media Manager. Grant funds will also support website hosting, expansion of the organization’s YouTube content, and continued growth across social media platforms to increase accessibility, audience engagement, and long-term capacity for serving Veteran communities through the arts. | Our programs and services address the pressing need for veterans, first responders, and their families to have supportive and safe platforms to tell their stories through the written word, readings, and performances for the community. Veterans often face isolation and a lack of community engagement post-service. Evidence suggests that many struggle to find avenues to express themselves creatively. By providing structured developmental programs for veterans, first responders, and their families to write and workshop their stories and original writings, we offer them a pathway to healing and community. Through dialogue, storytelling, poetry, prose, creative non-fiction, and playwriting veterans overcome isolation, connect with peers, and break through barriers to sharing their talents and their life experiences. We offer readings and performances opportunities for veterans to share their stories with the community, through this cohesive and holistic process and programs; they learn that coming home is possible and deserved. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $8,320.00 | Acme Theatre Company | PO BOX 159 , DAVIS, CA 95617-0159 | Yolo | Capital | (530) 401-6688 | 4 | 4 | 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, ACME THEATRE COMPANY, a will engage 50-100 high school-aged youth in creating our 2026-27 season of three fully produced Main Stage plays - our Winter Show addressing a current/socially relevant topic and incorporating community collaboration and panel discussion, our Spring Show which is a free Comedy in the Park, and our Summer Show which is a larger-cast play incorporating adventure and interesting technical theatrical challenges. Acme is a youth-driven company and members perform in and are responsible for planning and creating all production aspects of these shows (e.g,. sets, costumes, props, front-of-house). Funds will be used to cover the costs of facility rentals for rehearsals and performances, for all production materials, and for promoting the productions and other operational costs directly related to our season of shows. | Acme is a youth development organization that produces theatre. Each year we produce a drama in January, a free Comedy-in-the-Park in the spring, and a large summer production in which everyone who wants to participate is cast. We also produce a summer theatre program for youth in grades K-8 and a variety of small workshops and performances. Education, community engagement, personal growth, and skill development are key aspects of the Acme experience. Acme is led by a team of youth - the Acme Council of Executives (ACE) - who are elected by fellow members each year to manage our company’s theatrical operations, including creating the sets, costumes, props, sound, lights, publicity, and website. All company members are encouraged to participate in both acting and technical production. The split is often equal between participants interested in technical production and performance. Adults direct Acme's shows and serve on our non-profit board - the Invisible Council of Elders. The board is composed of alumni, parents, community members, and current company members. The board sets policy and assumes legal and financial responsibility for the company. Acme employs one part-time staff member as Artistic Director who sometimes directs Acme productions and is responsible for mentoring all technical, artistic, and financial components of Acme productions. Acme also hires additional directors and artists to bring their special talents and expertise to the company. During the pandemic, Acme pivoted to virtual theatre programming, continuing its core mission of youth development and community engagement, while adapting and innovating new technology to theatre-making. Since that time, Acme has returned to producing live plays, staged readings and workshops. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Yeah, Art! | 8414 Holly Street , Oakland, CA 94621 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 938-9096 | 12th Congressional district | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Yeah, Art! will expand and deepen two of our most in-demand, tech-forward curricula — Sky’s The Limit and It Was All A Dream — bringing digital illustration, animation, and storytelling into under-resourced Bay Area classrooms. This project extends our standard 8–12 week programs into longer-term, immersive residencies, allowing students to develop more advanced technical and creative skills. Students in Sky’s The Limit design artwork for large-scale public display, culminating in their work being featured on the Salesforce Tower, while It Was All A Dream empowers students to write, illustrate, and animate their own stories in 3D and augmented reality. CAC funds will support Teaching Artists, materials, and program expansion — enabling us to hire industry professionals at radically ethical wages and create high-visibility, real-world opportunities that transform students into confident creators. | Arts Education for a New Generation™. Yeah, Art! seeks to empower Bay Area youth with premium arts education that emphasizes technology, creativity and equitable access. The problem: With school budget cuts, arts programs are often the first thing to get dropped, leading the most vulnerable students to miss out on essential creative skills. The solution: Yeah, Art! provides accessible, innovative arts programs to underserved communities, equipping students with skills in Music Production, Animation, 3D Modeling and more. Yeah, Art! offers technology-driven arts education programs tailored for underserved schools, with a focus on students of color in low-income Bay Area districts. Services are delivered by professional, local artists of color who bring their expertise directly to classrooms, creating an engaging and culturally relevant learning environment. Yeah, Art! equips students with in-demand creative skills, fostering both artistic growth and future career opportunities in the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Yeah, Art! | 8414 Holly Street , Oakland, CA 94621 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 938-9096 | 12th Congressional district | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Yeah, Art! will continue bringing free, tech-forward arts programming to underfunded schools. Founded and led by Black artists, we prioritize students of color by hiring Teaching Artists of Color to teach in their own communities. Since initial CAC funding in 2022, we've grown from 1 school partnership to over 15 schools by 2026. We’ve launched a digital illustration program with Best Buy Teen Tech Centers, and expanded our curriculum across music, animation, and design. Our students’ original artwork will be featured at the top of the Salesforce Tower — making them the youngest artists ever exhibited in the San Francisco skyline. This funding will support staff, Teaching Artists, and continued growth, ensuring students gain in-demand creative skills and access to the career pathways of the future. | Arts Education for a New Generation™. Yeah, Art! seeks to empower Bay Area youth with premium arts education that emphasizes technology, creativity and equitable access. The problem: With school budget cuts, arts programs are often the first thing to get dropped, leading the most vulnerable students to miss out on essential creative skills. The solution: Yeah, Art! provides accessible, innovative arts programs to underserved communities, equipping students with skills in Music Production, Animation, 3D Modeling and more. Yeah, Art! offers technology-driven arts education programs tailored for underserved schools, with a focus on students of color in low-income Bay Area districts. Services are delivered by professional, local artists of color who bring their expertise directly to classrooms, creating an engaging and culturally relevant learning environment. Yeah, Art! equips students with in-demand creative skills, fostering both artistic growth and future career opportunities in the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $7,200.00 | Desert Community Orchestra Association | PO BOX 1988 , RIDGECREST, CA 93556-1988 | Kern | Central Valley | (760) 608-2253 | 20 | 32 | 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, DESERT COMMUNITY ORCHESTRA ASSOCATION will support the Desert Community Orchestra's operations and performances throughout the season. This includes music purchase and rental, performance venue rental, equipment purchase and maintenance, conductor and guest soloist costs, and local advertisement. The Association will also use funds to provide college scholarships to local young musicians for continuing education in music, and funding assistance for middle and high school students to participate in summer music camps and further musical educational opportunities. | The Desert Community Orchestra Association provides administrative and financial support to the Desert Community Orchestra, a local performing group. The Association provides payment for conductors, guest soloists, and professional musicians that perform with the orchestra. The Association works with the incoming conductors to choose appropriate music for performance by the orchestra and soloists. Performance spaces and materials necessary for performances are provided by the Association. In addition, the Association administers the annual Peter Pinto Scholarship Program, a program that provides students from elementary school to graduating high school seniors funds to attend music camps or funds for college education majoring in music. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Healing Music Seeds | 4898 KOKOMO DR , SACRAMENTO, CA 95835-1870 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 419-9511 | With support from the California Arts Council, Healing Music Seeds will implement the "Harmonies of Hope" program, providing music mentorship and instrument access to underserved youth ages 12–18 in Sacramento. Grant funds will support professional teaching artist fees to lead weekly, culturally responsive lessons integrating Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) to foster resilience. Additionally, funds will purchase "Seed Kits"—high-quality instruments provided to students at no cost—to eliminate financial barriers to arts participation. The project culminates in community performances, allowing youth to showcase artistic mastery and develop a sense of belonging. This initiative aligns with the CAC mission by bridging socio-economic gaps and supporting the creative development of California’s youth through equitable arts engagement. | Founded in 2020, Healing Music Seeds (HMS) is dedicated to advancing access to equitable music education for all young people across North Sacramento. The organization is equipping children and their families with musical instruments and tailored lessons so that children can benefit from the inclusion of music in their development. The HMS team is a highly skilled group of professionals devoted to teaching children how to play an instrument and experience the positive impact of a music-filled life. HMS has developed exceptionally strong programs that: (1) provide tailored music lessons for a variety of instruments; (2) equip low-income children with their own instrument; and (3) introduce children and their families to the positive impact learning music has on development. To achieve its mission, HMS is actively establishing funding sources, building a strong team of staff and board members, building partnerships and outreach opportunities with local music and/or youth development organizations. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | Free Thought Revolution | 6050 Engineers Rd , Julian, CA 92036 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 268-2848 | District 75 | District 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, FREE THOUGHT REVOLUTION will deliver Afterschool Growth, a year-round arts education program serving up to 45 youth ages 12 to 25 from California Designated Severely Disadvantaged Communities in rural East San Diego County. Grant funds will support artist compensation for lead artists Bree Harris and rameses setekh and local teaching artists delivering free workshops in digital art, lyrical arts, music, video production, podcasting, upcycled art, and sculpture through after-school programs and Mamma's Earth Seed Sanctuary. Funds will also support transportation for youth from Shelter Valley, art materials, accessibility accommodations, and facilitation of Phoenix Rising, a monthly LGBTQ+ arts and healing group. Programming prioritizes BIPOC, LGBTQ+, neurodiverse, and low-income youth who face significant geographic and economic barriers to arts access. | Free Thought Revolution has a strong track record of transforming underutilized and nontraditional spaces into vibrant, inclusive environments for arts and cultural engagement—particularly in communities with limited access to such opportunities. Building on our experience creating identity-affirming, youth-centered arts spaces, we now steward an eight-acre outdoor site that serves as a creative and healing hub for rural youth. Through our Grown Lyfe Lessons and Roots & Remnants programs, we offer culturally responsive, arts-based learning experiences that integrate visual arts, design, movement, entrepreunership, and environmental art practices. Youth engage in hands-on workshops using natural and upcycled materials, developing both artistic skills and creative confidence while exploring identity, storytelling, and community connection. Our programs prioritize access for youth from California Designated Severely Disadvantaged Communities (SDACs), including Shelter Valley and surrounding rural areas. We address barriers such as transportation, cost, and geographic isolation by providing free programming, transportation support, and, when needed, transitional housing opportunities. In addition to arts education, we provide structured internships and leadership development opportunities focused on creative entrepreneurship, sustainable practices, and community-based project design. Youth gain real-world experience through mentorship, collaborative art projects, and public showcases, building pathways toward creative careers and long-term self-sufficiency. By centering youth voice, representation, and culturally relevant instruction, Free Thought Revolution creates safe, empowering spaces where young people can develop artistic skills, strengthen social-emotional well-being, and imagine expanded futures rooted in creativity, leadership, and community impact. | |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Artists of the High Desert | 9648 9TH AVE Ste 8 , HESPERIA, CA 92345-3457 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (442) 353-4258 | With support from the California Arts Council, Hesperia Art Club, Inc will be able to increase our youth programs by offering more classes and have more instructors. We believe art helps in the education and communication among our youth. We want to create a welcoming place for all members of our community to be able to create whatever type of art that inspires them. It's important for our youth to have a safe place to attend an after school art program in our art studio. We will need more supplies, instructors and a larger facility and your grant could help this become a reality. By providing a safe, inclusive environment and professional-grade supplies, we aim to bridge the gap in arts education, fostering improved communication and academic engagement for local youth through diverse creative expression. | The purpose of this corporation is to bring together and increase the discovery, understanding, appreciation and enjoyment of the art and artists in our community through classes, programs and events. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Son of Semele | 4009 West Avenue 43 , Los Angeles, CA 90041 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 841-9151 | California's 34th Congressional District | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Son of Semele will pay artist salaries, production costs, and a PT-salary for our Producing Artistic Director. All work on production and staff/artist hiring is done by our Producing Artistic Director, the primary administrator and creative leader for our company. Our creative projects will take place in the multi-million dollar Valley Academic & Cultural Center at Los Angeles Valley College through a new partnership that enhances student education with professional opportunities. We will present productions, a youth theatre camp, a new work festival, and more in 2027/2028. | Son of Semele has served thousands of Angelenos annually through our creative work. To date, we estimate that SoS has been the producer of 200 different events, which have been attended by over 23,000 people. We are currently in residence at Los Angeles Valley College (LAVC), a community college in Valley Glen. The artistic opportunities offered to LAVC students from this partnership will deepen SoS’s impact and expand our creative reach. For example, we are currently hiring three summer interns from LAVC’s Theatre Arts program to assist us with a summer theatre arts enrichment camp, and we anticipate that this camp will become part of our annual programming. PRODUCTIONS & EDUCATION Our productions are developed and produced through a collaborative approach and are selected by the Artistic Director based on their artistic potential. Typically, our productions receive 8-15 ticketed public performances over 2-4 weeks. They have served many thousands of Angelenos. Additionally, this year we are producing our first summer theatre camp for high school students, an extension of a new and exciting direction for the company. NEW WORK SUPPORT Our annual Creation Festivals for new work supported solo work, devised work, and short-form plays. For 10 years, they’ve fostered community and exposure for like-minded artists and their networks. Artists receive administrative, marketing, and artistic support to create their work, which is presented for 1-4 weeks. As many as 1,200 Angelenos have annually attended Creation Festivals. Additionally, our Commissions and Workshops have supported new work, either directly to playwrights in the form of a commission, or through funded workshops exploring a more collaborative process to new play development. In the last two years, we have commissioned “This is the Subtext,” a new play by Brian James Polak, and “Independent,” a verbatim theatre piece exploring democracy in Ukraine. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Son of Semele | 4009 West Avenue 43 , Los Angeles, CA 90041 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 841-9151 | California's 34th Congressional District | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Son of Semele will produce “Out Loud,” a summer theatre enrichment program that gives high school students an opportunity to write and perform a play with guidance and support from a team of professional Teaching Artists. The program and presentation will take place within the brand new multi-million dollar Valley Academic & Cultural Center on the campus of Los Angeles Valley College. “Out Loud” celebrates the diverse experiences of young people, amplifying their voices through an enriching experience that exposes them to many aspects of theatre arts, and presents their stories, dreams, and aspirations as a world premiere play of their own making. | Son of Semele has served thousands of Angelenos annually through our creative work. To date, we estimate that SoS has been the producer of 200 different events, which have been attended by over 23,000 people. We are currently in residence at Los Angeles Valley College (LAVC), a community college in Valley Glen. The artistic opportunities offered to LAVC students from this partnership will deepen SoS’s impact and expand our creative reach. For example, we are currently hiring three summer interns from LAVC’s Theatre Arts program to assist us with a summer theatre arts enrichment camp, and we anticipate that this camp will become part of our annual programming. PRODUCTIONS & EDUCATION Our productions are developed and produced through a collaborative approach and are selected by the Artistic Director based on their artistic potential. Typically, our productions receive 8-15 ticketed public performances over 2-4 weeks. They have served many thousands of Angelenos. Additionally, this year we are producing our first summer theatre camp for high school students, an extension of a new and exciting direction for the company. NEW WORK SUPPORT Our annual Creation Festivals for new work supported solo work, devised work, and short-form plays. For 10 years, they’ve fostered community and exposure for like-minded artists and their networks. Artists receive administrative, marketing, and artistic support to create their work, which is presented for 1-4 weeks. As many as 1,200 Angelenos have annually attended Creation Festivals. Additionally, our Commissions and Workshops have supported new work, either directly to playwrights in the form of a commission, or through funded workshops exploring a more collaborative process to new play development. In the last two years, we have commissioned “This is the Subtext,” a new play by Brian James Polak, and “Independent,” a verbatim theatre piece exploring democracy in Ukraine. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Hi-Desert Artists | 55635 29 Palms Hwy. , YUCCA VALLEY, CA 92284 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (760) 285-5523 | Dist. 23 | Dist. 47 | Dist. 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, Hi-Desert Artists (HDA) will fund two part time staff members, a Gallery Director and an Administrative Assistant, who are both critical to running our Art Center in Yucca Valley, CA. The HDA Art Center offers gallery exhibitions, a shop, classes and workshops, as well as events. These staff members will help HDA to serve the large number of artists in the Morongo Basin that do not have access to economic opportunities or community connections. The part-time roles will help HDA achieve greater sustainability by building on our operations and organizational infrastructure. | Hi-Desert Artists (HDA) provides inclusive, community-based arts programming that expands access to creative expression and arts education in the Morongo Basin. HDA operates a year-round gallery featuring rotating exhibitions by local and regional artists. These exhibitions support both emerging and established artists while providing the public with free access to diverse artistic experiences. HDA offers classes and workshops across a range of disciplines, including painting, drawing, photography, and mixed media. Programs are designed for all skill levels and emphasize hands-on learning, creative exploration, and personal expression. Select offerings incorporate mindfulness-based approaches that support well-being through art. Community engagement is central to HDA’s mission. The organization presents artist talks, demonstrations, performances, and collaborative events that foster dialogue and connection. Signature programs and community events encourage participation from a broad and diverse audience. HDA is committed to accessibility and inclusion by offering low-cost or free programming and working to remove barriers to participation for underserved populations. The organization strives to create a welcoming environment for individuals of all backgrounds and abilities. In addition, HDA supports artists through exhibition opportunities, networking, and skill-building experiences that contribute to their professional development. Through these core programs and services, HDA serves as a vital cultural hub, promoting creativity, lifelong learning, and inclusive community engagement through the arts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | Reel Start | 8383 Wilshire Blvd #400, Beverly Hills, CA 90211 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 890-0203 | With support from the California Arts Council, Reel Start will provide a free yearlong animation and creative workforce program for 13 public high school students at Grover Cleveland Charter High School in Reseda. Students will collaborate with California teaching artists, mentors, and production partners to write, develop, and premiere an original animated short film while building storytelling, technical, and workplace skills. CAC Arts and Youth funds will support direct project personnel, including the Program Lead/Teaching Artist and Program Coordinator, who make the cohort possible through instruction, student support, school-site coordination, accessibility planning, and project management. The project culminates in a public premiere in June or July 2027 and connects students to Reel Steps, Reel Start’s alumni pathway to internships, college, and paid creative work. | Reel Start is a free, work-based filmmaking program for Los Angeles youth from underserved communities. Students team up with industry pros to create short films and build skills, credits, and connections. We’re opening the door, and creating pathways to lasting careers. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Reel Start | 8383 Wilshire Blvd #400, Beverly Hills, CA 90211 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 890-0203 | With support from the CAC, Reel Start will sustain and strengthen its Los Angeles Creative Workforce Pipeline, a no‑cost yearlong filmmaking and workforce‑readiness program serving 13 public high school students and 7 emerging creatives from historically under-resourced communities in the San Fernando Valley. This grant will underwrite core staff, operating and accessibility costs that make this pipeline possible, including program coordination, artist‑educator compensation, rent, utilities, insurance, and access services. During the grant period, students will participate in an after-school filmmaking lab at a Title I LAUSD high school in Reseda, collaborating with professional filmmakers to write, produce, and premiere an original short film while earning IMDb credits and portfolio assets. Alumni will continue into Reel Steps, receiving structured career‑readiness training, mentorship, and support securing internships, entry‑level roles, or postsecondary opportunities in film and television. | Reel Start is a free, work-based filmmaking program for Los Angeles youth from underserved communities. Students team up with industry pros to create short films and build skills, credits, and connections. We’re opening the door, and creating pathways to lasting careers. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Hidden GEM Creative Studios | 5621 Lowell St. Suite G, Oakland, CA 94608 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (206) 214-7496 | California Assembly district 15 | Funds requested will allow us to hire part-time instructors and youth interns to lead our 9-month Hidden GEM Career Pathways Program, and pay rent for our creative studio so we can continue operating our social enterprise which hires up to 100 alumni from our talent pool to work on films. This program recruits and professionally trains a cohort of up to 45 young BIPOC filmmakers (ages 18-28) in an intensive film training and mentorship program where they create content that leads to employment or enrollment in post-secondary education. Funds support filmmakers develop portfolios/resumes and pipelines them into internships, apprenticeships and entry-level jobs, while improving employment, housing, education and mental health outcomes. Students are provided a stipend for their creative work and they make content in collaboration with local community leaders, non-profits, and social justice initiatives. | CAREER PATHWAYS PROGRAM BIPOC filmmakers ages 18-28 are eligible for 1 year of free career training in film production, screenwriting/directing and animation/production . They are trained over the course of 9 months and are pipelined into externships, apprenticeships, post-secondary education programs and entry-level jobs. Apprentices receive structured support in growing business, special access to production space, equipment, events, and a large network of clients/colleagues to grow their own business. SCREENWRITERS WORKSHOP Free screenwriting workshop to learn everything about feature length film pre-production workflow. Free coffee & private time with screenwriting professionals to receive feedback. SOCIAL ENTERPRISE WORK PROGRAM Graduates of our career pathways program are eligible for paid work as a freelance filmmaker. They are referred to work with our client base and work with our instructors and professional filmmakers on paid contracts. | ||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Larry Spring Museum | 225 E REDWOOD AVE , FORT BRAGG, CA 95437-3521 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 962-3131 | California Assembly district 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the CAC, the Larry Spring Museum will develop a group exhibition as the culmination of Redwood Time, a multi-year community-made response to the redwood round and its affixed timeline that dominates downtown Fort Bragg. Committed to a radical localism, the project reinterprets time, memory, and place through participatory art-making. Phase 3 (2026): The exhibition of the completed fabric round will take place in the dry shed on the old mill site — a historically potent location where the original tree was milled. The fabric round will anchor the exhibition, accompanied by works from local visual and performance artists. Fort Bragg has historically taken a traditional approach to public programming, and the transformation of the mill site by artists will model a contemporary way to engage with the community and its contested legacies. | Inspired by Larry Spring's collection and practices, the Larry Spring Museum fosters his quirky spirit of inquiry through exhibitions, workshops, events, and arts-based community-centered collaborations. We support emerging, mid-career, and self-taught artists, makers, and other curious beings by providing a platform to develop and share their practice through hyper-local, analog, and intuitive modes of knowledge production. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,465.00 | Radio Bilingüe | 5005 E BELMONT AVE , FRESNO, CA 93727-2441 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 455-5757 | California’s 21st Congressional District | California State Assembly District 31 | California State Senate District 14 | Radio Bilingüe Latino Public Radio (RB) will launch the inaugural Salinas Youth Media Arts Fellowship at KHDC 90.9FM, offering six Latinx/a/o young people from East Salinas/Monterey County training in media arts: interviewing, radio theater scriptwriting, on-air voice training, and production/engineering. Fellows will create arts-focused live interview programs and pre-produced short-form audio vignettes, through hands-on sessions mentored by RB arts producers, and three workshops by teaching artist Luis “Xago” Juárez designed to inspire Fellows to blend theater and radio to shape narratives that resonate with their peers and reflect their cultures. Stipends and loaner laptops will help ensure access for young people from low-income families. All productions will air on KHDC, serving CA’s central coast. Select productions will air across RB’s entire CA network and stream online. | Radio Bilingüe (RB) delivers a 24/7 schedule of music, cultural content, and community-rooted journalism and educational programming that connects underserved audiences throughout California to artistic expression and trusted information across broadcast, digital platforms, and social media. Flagship programs include Línea Abierta, the only national Spanish-language news call-in show in U.S. public media; Edición Semanaria, a weekly news magazine; Comunidad Alerta, a live public affairs forum; and La Hora Mixteca, which sustains Indigenous language, music, and community dialogue. Youth-centered programs such as Rockin’ da House and Alza tu Voz create space for young people to engage in broadcast production on topics they choose. RB’s music programming spans mariachi, norteño, Tejano, son jarocho, rock en español, salsa, Latin jazz, and global sounds, alongside artist interviews and cultural features that highlight both emerging and established voices. RB programming has been archived by the Library of Congress and has documented artists across Latino, Indigenous, Hmong, Asian, and African-rooted communities. Community Calendar segments connect listeners with local performances, exhibitions, and cultural events. Programs have featured legendary international artists through the decades, such as Juan Felipe Herrera, Lydia Mendoza, Valerio Longoria, Los Alacranes Mojados, Nati Cano, Lila Downs, Flaco Jiménez, Viola Canales, Sandra Cisneros, and Lalo Guerrero. RB supports arts participation through live events, artist collaborations, and youth-centered training based in its Salinas studio. Youth produce original audio content, including interviews, spoken word, and short-form storytelling and radio-theater pieces aired throughout regular programming. Public service messaging is integrated throughout programming, delivering timely information on health, safety, and civic engagement in formats that are culturally resonant and accessible. Produced from Fresno and Salinas and distributed across RB’s network of 30 owned stations and 75 national affiliates, as well as partner outlets in Mexico, RB’s programming extends the reach of artists across regions and borders. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | TuYo Theatre | 2971 Greyling Dr , San Diego, CA 92123 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 944-2719 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | TuYo Theatre will use CAC Impact Projects funds to support a community-centered production of Real Women Have Curves in partnership with Sew Loka, a San Diego-based Chicana textile artist and designer. This project responds to community-identified needs around body acceptance, immigrant and working-class visibility, environmental sustainability, and access to culturally rooted arts experiences. CAC funds will support artist fees, community workshops, costume design using reclaimed materials, accessibility services, and free public performances in under-resourced San Diego communities. In addition to the production, TuYo and Sew Loka will offer intergenerational workshops in sewing, playwriting, and material reclamation that invite participants to reflect on labor, identity, self-worth, and collective care. Through theatre and textile arts, the project will celebrate cultural knowledge, foster dialogue, and expand equitable access to meaningful artistic participation. | The core programming of TuYo Theatre is a community and professional theatre company. TuYo Theatre produces plays, staged-readings, theatrical developmental workshops, and educational theatre programs. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Active Cultures | 1370 N St Andrews Pl , LOS ANGELES, CA 90028 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (917) 916-5432 | District 30 | District 51 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Active Cultures will sustain core operations and artist-led public programs exploring the intersection of art, food, and ecologies across Los Angeles. Funds will support AC's staffing and communications capacity to produce free public programming countywide, including contributions toward our first Programs Manager hire and expanded website development in advance of the 2027 Art and Food Biennial. AC uses food and ecologies as entry points to illuminate cultural expression, equity, and climate futures through artist commissions, public gatherings, and site-responsive projects developed in parks, gardens, cultural centers, and community kitchens in partnership with cultural practitioners whose work reflects the communities we serve. | Active Cultures offers programming in three concentric tiers: Member and Community Programs, Public Projects, and Large-Scale Community Events. Our year-round projects provide opportunities for deep collaborations with artists over time, building public programming that centers broad and diverse artistic practice and prioritizes direct engagement with Los Angeles audiences. We embrace the concept of radical hospitality to inspire curiosity and feed empathy, while gathering communities to experience art accessibly with intention and conviviality. We operate in the public sphere to deepen our relationships to land and food, and we uplift Los Angeles as a vital hub of the international art and food movement. Food is the essential lens through which we examine fundamental questions about power, cultural expression, history, equity, climate futures, and ourselves. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | Hidden GEM Creative Studios | 5621 Lowell St. Suite G, Oakland, CA 94608 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (206) 214-7496 | California Assembly district 15 | Funds requested will allow us to hire part-time instructors and youth interns to lead our 9-month Hidden GEM Career Pathways Program, and pay rent for our creative studio so we can continue operating our employment program which connects up to 100 alumni from our talent pool to job opportunities. This program recruits and professionally trains a cohort of up to 45 young BIPOC filmmakers (ages 18-28) in an intensive film training and mentorship program where they create content that leads to their employment or enrollment in post-secondary education. Funds support filmmakers develop portfolios/resumes and pipelines them into internships, apprenticeships and entry-level jobs, while improving outcomes as it relates to employment, housing, education and mental health. All content students produce is stipended and made in collaboration with local community leaders, non-profits, and local social justice initiatives. | CAREER PATHWAYS PROGRAM BIPOC filmmakers ages 18-28 are eligible for 1 year of free career training in film production, screenwriting/directing and animation/production . They are trained over the course of 9 months and are pipelined into externships, apprenticeships, post-secondary education programs and entry-level jobs. Apprentices receive structured support in growing business, special access to production space, equipment, events, and a large network of clients/colleagues to grow their own business. SCREENWRITERS WORKSHOP Free screenwriting workshop to learn everything about feature length film pre-production workflow. Free coffee & private time with screenwriting professionals to receive feedback. SOCIAL ENTERPRISE WORK PROGRAM Graduates of our career pathways program are eligible for paid work as a freelance filmmaker. They are referred to work with our client base and work with our instructors and professional filmmakers on paid contracts. | ||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Casa de Brazilian Folkloric Arts of Sacramento | 3425 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd , Sacramento, CA 95817-3648 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 588-5463 | California's 7th congressional district | District 7 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, Casa de Brazilian Folkloric Arts of Sacramento will provide a series of free Brazilian folkloric arts classes, workshops, and performances to underserved communities in Sacramento. The project will include a free Brazilian and cultural arts street festival, "The Brazilian Day Sacramento Street Festival." The project will occur from July 2027-Dec 2027. | The Brazilian Folkloric Capoeira Program is one of the organization's central programs. The program provides the history, culture, music and movement of Brazilian Folkloric Capoeira. The program is taught by Sacramento based Brazilian Folkloric Capoeira Master-Mestre Caboclinho. Capoeira is a game of movements, music, acrobatics and theater. The Brazilian Rhythms and Drum Project allows the community to experience the heartbeat of Brazilian Rhythms here in Sacramento. Participants learn rhythms of various Brazilian Drums from the Surdo to the timbale. The program is for youth, adults, seniors and no prior experience in rhythms is necessary. Brazilian Day Sacramento Street Festival Project aims to increase widespread exposure of diverse Brazilian Arts. Launched in 2013, the idea of the free festival was to involve a greater number of the Sacramento community in Brazilian folkloric arts. Each year the festival is themed to demonstrate a unique aspect of Brazilian folkloric arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Casa de Brazilian Folkloric Arts of Sacramento | 3425 Martin Luther King Jr Blvd , Sacramento, CA 95817-3648 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 588-5463 | California's 7th congressional district | District 7 | District 6 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Casa de Brazilian Folkloric Arts of Sacramento will provide Brazilian folkloric arts classes, workshops and performances to communities across the Sacramento region. Majority of these programs will be provided in underserved communities and focus on increasing accessibility and equity, especially in Oak Park. The programs will be led by Master Brazilian folkloric artist, Mestre Caboclinho as well as other diverse cultural folkloric professional artists. Funding will support programming, marketing, and studio rental space for organization programs. The support will help the organization also expand its program offerings and reach. | The Brazilian Folkloric Capoeira Program is one of the organization's central programs. The program provides the history, culture, music and movement of Brazilian Folkloric Capoeira. The program is taught by Sacramento based Brazilian Folkloric Capoeira Master-Mestre Caboclinho. Capoeira is a game of movements, music, acrobatics and theater. The Brazilian Rhythms and Drum Project allows the community to experience the heartbeat of Brazilian Rhythms here in Sacramento. Participants learn rhythms of various Brazilian Drums from the Surdo to the timbale. The program is for youth, adults, seniors and no prior experience in rhythms is necessary. Brazilian Day Sacramento Street Festival Project aims to increase widespread exposure of diverse Brazilian Arts. Launched in 2013, the idea of the free festival was to involve a greater number of the Sacramento community in Brazilian folkloric arts. Each year the festival is themed to demonstrate a unique aspect of Brazilian folkloric arts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | The Arts and Enrichment Academy | 4518 OCANA AVE , LAKEWOOD, CA 90713-2532 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 544-4287 | 62 | 33 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Arts & Enrichment Academy (A&E Academy) will fund the staffing for the Songwriters Workshop. The Songwriters Workshop is a performing arts program designed for students with intellectual and developmental disabilities in adult transition programs in Los Angeles and Orange Counties. This program helps students process their emotions, cope with challenges, and build resilience through writing songs in a safe and supportive environment. In the early workshop sessions, students play instruments, sing, and engage in creative music construction. In the later sessions, they write, record, and perform their original musical compositions. The A&E Academy's priority is to provide immersive performing arts programming that intertwines personal growth with educational exploration. | Songwriters Workshop - In our most popular program, Songwriters Workshop, we explore basic principles of music to build a foundation of understanding through experience. These students play instruments, sing, and engage in creative and analytical construction of their own music. Utilizing the tools obtained, the students write, record, and perform their own musical collaborations! •Theater Performers - In Theater Performers, we write, produce, and perform a complete theatrical performance. Children are engaged in the fundamentals of stage performance using and analyzing all types of theater, such as musical, comedic, dramatic, etc. This program takes students from story creation and developing characters, to making the props and preparing the set, and ultimately performing and recording the performance for the students to own! •Film Making Magic - In Film Making Magic, we present ideas for new and original stories and content. We analyze how great stories are told through the art of film. After an exploration into all areas of how film is made, we write, develop a crew, and shoot an actual film of our own creation that we screen & the participants get to own! The Arts & Enrichment Academy also offers curricula in: Computer Coding, Science Arts, Reading Clubs, and more. With future funding, it is the hope that many more programs surrounding art and education can be developed. All programs are experiential and immersive for the participants. There is no lecture as all instruction is interactive and hands-on. | |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Inclusive Kids Network | 1125 NATIONAL CITY BLVD APT 511 , NATIONAL CITY, CA 91950-3276 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 995-3430 | California’s 51st Congressional District | David Alvarez | 18th Senate District | Inclusive Kids Network will use Cal Arts Council grant funds to deliver inclusive, sensory-friendly arts programming for neurodiverse youth and their families in underserved communities in South San Diego. Funding will support a series of structured, multi-week Sensory Art & Play sessions, as well as community-based events that provide accessible opportunities for creative expression, social connection, and arts learning. Grant funds will be used for facilitator stipends, accessible supplies, outreach, and space-related costs to ensure programs remain low-cost or free to participants. Activities will include hands-on visual arts experiences and sensory-informed practices designed to support emotional regulation, communication, and peer engagement. Through this project, Inclusive Kids Network will increase access to the arts for children of all abilities, foster inclusive community spaces, and promote equity by removing barriers to participation for neurodiverse youth and their families. | Inclusive Kids Network provides inclusive, sensory-friendly programs designed to support neurodiverse children and their families through art, play, and community connection. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | Riverside Arts Council | 3700 6TH ST STE 203 , RIVERSIDE, CA 92501-2885 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 377-2852 | California's 41st congressional district | District 61 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Riverside Arts Council (RAC) will continue serving as the SLP for Riverside County—supporting artists, strengthening organizations, and expanding access to the arts. SLP funding will support RAC’s core programs, including Riverside Artswalk, Arts in Public Places exhibitions, Riverside Art & Music Festival, and the Professional Development Workshop Series. These programs create consistent opportunities for artists to earn income, build skills, and connect with the community, while keeping arts experiences accessible to the public. RAC is also expanding its Creative Workforce Development Pipeline through a Creative Communications Internship Program. This program provides emerging creatives with hands-on experience in marketing, design, and digital storytelling, while directly supporting the visibility of the arts in the county. Together, this work supports a more connected, equitable, and sustainable arts ecosystem in the Region. | Programs include: Information Services, Capacity Building Technical Assistance, Exhibitions, Advocacy, Arts Education, Art as Therapy for developmentally disabled adults, youth in foster care, and Alzheimer's / dementia patients, Veterans in the Arts, Fiscal Sponsorships, arts and accessibility through events that are free to attend/experience. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | Madera County Arts Council & Circle Gallery | 424 North Gateway Drive , Madera, CA 93637 | Madera | Central Valley | (559) 661-7005 | California's 13th congressional district | District 27 | District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, Madera County Arts Council & Circle Gallery will continue to promote the arts and support artists throughout our communities. SLP funds provide vital operational support toward salaries and facilities including our 5,000 square foot gallery and classroom space where we host art competitions and exhibits, classes and workshops, performances, meetings, and special events. | Our core programs and services include: educational programs in partnership with school districts, community programs in partnership with public and private entities, in-house cultural enrichment programs in our classroom, exhibits at our Circle Gallery, theatrical productions through the Madera Theater Project, and Poetry Out Loud. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Santa Clarita History Center | 24107 Newhall Avenue , Santa Clarita, CA 91321 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 254-1275 | With support from the California Arts Council, the SANTA CLARITA VALLEY HISTORICAL SOCIETY will continue its forward progress by opening new museum spaces, caring for our collection, growing our outreach efforts and enhancing our programming for elementary grade students. Managing ongoing restoration projects, we will enhance visitor experiences; expand exhibit space in our railroad museum and initiate the design and buildout of a new museum space on our campus that includes both static and rotating exhibits as well as targeted storytelling of previously unexplored community experiences. We will be able to build partnerships and attract more supporters and donations by enhancing our volunteer program as well as attracting filming and event production into our area to provide additional revenue. We look forward to partnering with CAC and working on our continued growth and success. | The Santa Clarita Valley Historical Society is the region’s most trusted historical resource. The Society is the honest chronicler of its stories, protector of its cultural materials, and advocate for local landmarks. The Society’s Santa Clarita History Center bridges generations and inspires diverse populations through accessible and inclusive exhibitions and activities. The Society employs best practices in collections care and preservation to ensure that the rich historical legacy of our people will be available to current and future generations. Within the decade, the Society’s outreach programs in schools, tours of historic sites, digitized archive, and electronic communications will engage evolving audiences as the Santa Clarita History Center becomes the springboard for historic tourism throughout the region. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | International Orange Chorale of San Francisco | 77 VAN NESS AVE STE 101 PMB 2222 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-6042 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 378-9365 | With support from the California Arts Council, INTERNATIONAL ORANGE CHORALE OF SAN FRANCISCO will sustain and expand its role as a leading incubator for new choral music, advancing California’s statewide cultural ecosystem through the commissioning and premiere of works by living composers, particularly those historically excluded from the choral canon. CAC funding will support general operations that power IOCSF’s integrated model of performance, creation, and community engagement, including new commissions, our Freshly Squeezed program, and community-based initiatives such as The Ride, which brings choral performance into public transit spaces. All performances are free and presented in accessible venues, removing financial barriers while expanding reach beyond traditional audiences. IOCSF will expand geographically and deepen engagement with communities historically underrepresented in contemporary choral music. | The International Orange Chorale of San Francisco has performed world premieres of dozens of choral works and has also presented regional premieres of multiple works, including Milton Babbitt's Music for the Mass, Jake Heggie's Faith Disquiet, Fredrik Sixten's Missa Brevis, Sarah Kirkland Snider's Unremembered, Nico Muhly's Lorde Heare My Prayer Instantly, and Pulitzer Prize-winner Caroline Shaw's Fly Away I. To date, IOCSF has: - Premiered over 150 world and regional premieres - Worked with over 120 new composers - Commissioned dozens of new works - Premiered and performed works in 7 counties in California for thousands of audience members over 20 years - Headlined the 2023 Chorus America Conference in San Francisco with Chanticleer - Awarded Chorus America's ASCAP "Adventurous Programming" award | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Support Black Theatre | 4718 W. Washington Blvd. , Los Angeles, CA 90016 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 619-6322 | 37 | 55 | 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Support Black Theatre will strengthen a developing Black theatre ecosystem in South Los Angeles by sustaining the artists, leaders, and infrastructure working to advance the field. In a landscape where few Black theatres have consistent access to space, capital, or production resources, our continuum of programs – from early training to professional employment, leadership development, new work creation, cross-level convenings, and expanded access to capital – creates sustained pathways for Black artists to build lasting careers. General operating support will fund core organizational capacity, including board development, strategic planning, and financial systems, ensuring long-term sustainability. These investments will expand creative and economic opportunities for Black artists and increase access to funding across a regional network of theatres, ultimately strengthening the visibility and viability of Black theatre across the region. | Support Black Theatre’s four core initiatives – New Works Pipeline, Talk Forward™, Equip, and GroundED – follow the principle of “See, Create, and Invest.” Our New Works Pipeline retains the power of decision making for Black artists and theatre by developing new Black plays and securing funding for Black theatres to mount full productions of new work by Black artists. Talk Forward cultivates and nurtures Black audiences, flipping the model of the traditional post-show talkback by inviting audiences into the process of theatre making through reflective feedback long before a full production is mounted. The Equip initiative builds theatres’ executive leadership capacity through leadership courses and nonprofit management training and direct services including introductions to funders, grant writing seminars, writing letters of support. The initiative raised over $1.3 million in grant awards for Black theatres between 2021 and 2025. Equip also offers technical training and paid internships in dramaturgy, playwriting, directing, stage management, producing, and technical design. The GroundED initiative provides year-round arts workforce development and artistic opportunities, building career pathways in the arts and related fields for 300+ youth ages 15-25 each year. GroundED introduces young people to careers in Black theatre through the work of August Wilson, among other playwrights. Our annual August Wilson monologue competition for high school students includes complementary in-school education throughout the school year, culminating with late-spring performances and judging at partner Ebony Repertory Theatre. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | BFF.fm | 180 Capp St 180 Capp St., San Francisco, CA 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (978) 417-9017 | 12 | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, BFF.fm: Best Frequencies Inc., a community radio station in the Mission District dedicated to highlighting underground music in San Francisco and the Bay Area. will be able to cover essential operating costs, allowing us to continue mentoring and showcasing Bay Area DJs and musicians, particularly BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists who are most impacted by displacement. This support ensures equitable access to radio airtime, creative opportunities, and community connection through local music, including strengthen initiatives that support the local underground music scene, such as Locals ONLY, our automated playlist featuring exclusively Bay Area bands, and our local music concert series, which will ensure that more local underground artists gain visibility and connect with audiences who value their work. | BFF.fm is: a community radio station made up of of 150 volunteer DJs, who produce 115 weekly radio programs focusing on local and underground music, creating opportunities to learn radio and DJ skills a podcast network that highlights independent and emerging podcast creators whose content uplifts Bay Area music, community, arts, and culture, and matches them with experienced mentors who guide them as they improve their skills We create paid opportunities for local musicians in a no strings attached environment. Prior to the pandemic we've also promoted and curated concerts featuring local acts from marginalized communities around the Bay Area. In 2020 we moved our flagship concert series, the Besties Bash, online. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Personal Space Projects | 1505 Tennessee Street , Vallejo, CA 94590 | Solano | Capital | (415) 846-7188 | California Assembly district 11 | District 11 | District California | With support from the California Arts Council, Personal Space Projects will expand our existing Youth Arts Internship Program, currently serving Bay Area artists ages 20-24 year olds, to include student participants ages 16-20, doubling our youth engagement efforts in Solano County. Funds awarded in this grant cycle will be used to support our youngest community members' evolution as arts leaders and facilitators while directly compensating them for contributions organization-wide. As we connect both ages groups in a mentored internship system, we will concurrently employ new Vallejo-based teaching artists and guest artist lecturers. Arts administration education is chronically absent from institutional programming at younger age junctures, particularly the transition from high school to college; but also college into career. We are determined to bring this youth-centered and intergenerational programming to Vallejo, Solano County and the Bay. | Personal Space Projects Inc has engaged in arts programming in the Bay Area since 2003. As co-founder of Hayes Valley Market, our Director Lisa Rybovich Cralle collaborated with Matt Gonzalez and the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in transforming a vacant corner-store into a vibrant hub for free cultural public programming. Between 2003-04 HVM served as a platform for emerging local artists, writers and musicians through readings, concerts, and monthly exhibitions. Personal Space Projects Inc continues to organize free workshops/events for artists and their communities, previously in San Francisco and Oakland and now in Vallejo. We also produce arts workshops for adults with developmental disabilities in collaboration with Creativity Explored and NIAD. Cralle has provided guest curatorial services to Bay Area galleries and institutions for 18+ years, and curates Berkeley City College’s Visiting Artist Lecture Series. The ongoing PSP project, Heavy Breathing, is a series of experimental artist workshops exploring the possibilities of “critical somatics” or thinking with and as bodies. Established in 2015, Heavy Breathing is supported by Southern Exposure’s Alternative Exposure Award and has partnered with SFMOMA, the Berkeley Art Museum, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, the San Francisco Arts Commission, and the Bangkok Biennial in the presentation of workshops by over 40 Bay Area artists, including: Brontez Purnell, Stephanie Syjuco, Xandra Ibarra, Sofía Córdova, Leila Weefur, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Jr, Claudia LaRocco, and Jacqueline Kiyomi Gork. Personal Space Gallery, our organization's hub, is the permanent brick and mortar extension of Cralle's decades-long involvement in Bay Area arts. Our exhibitions and programs present work by emerging, under-recognized, and mid-career artists. The gallery’s back room offers works on paper, artist books, zines, t-shirts, sculptures, and artist editions. Our opening events serve upwards of 2000 visitors annually. Our artist interview podcast, The Spinning Wheel, debuts in 2025. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Personal Space Projects | 1505 Tennessee Street , Vallejo, CA 94590 | Solano | Capital | (415) 846-7188 | California Assembly district 11 | District 11 | District California | With support from the California Arts Council, Personal Space Projects will fund the operational costs of our community art center and inclusive contemporary gallery space located in Vallejo, CA. We exist in order to collaborate with local artists and organizations, presenting free workshops, exhibitions, performances, readings, and youth programs. Our exhibitions feature artists from Vallejo, the Bay Area, and abroad, centering BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists, and artists with disabilities. Operational costs at Personal Space include annual rent and utilities, as well as specialized insurance. Personal Space is committed to equitably compensating the people we work with. Personnel costs include compensation for our team as well as a growing population of youth interns. In 2026/27 we are doubling our hours of operation including exhibition correlating public programs and gallery hours. Funding is critical as we grow. | Personal Space Projects Inc has engaged in arts programming in the Bay Area since 2003. As co-founder of Hayes Valley Market, our Director Lisa Rybovich Cralle collaborated with Matt Gonzalez and the San Francisco Board of Supervisors in transforming a vacant corner-store into a vibrant hub for free cultural public programming. Between 2003-04 HVM served as a platform for emerging local artists, writers and musicians through readings, concerts, and monthly exhibitions. Personal Space Projects Inc continues to organize free workshops/events for artists and their communities, previously in San Francisco and Oakland and now in Vallejo. We also produce arts workshops for adults with developmental disabilities in collaboration with Creativity Explored and NIAD. Cralle has provided guest curatorial services to Bay Area galleries and institutions for 18+ years, and curates Berkeley City College’s Visiting Artist Lecture Series. The ongoing PSP project, Heavy Breathing, is a series of experimental artist workshops exploring the possibilities of “critical somatics” or thinking with and as bodies. Established in 2015, Heavy Breathing is supported by Southern Exposure’s Alternative Exposure Award and has partnered with SFMOMA, the Berkeley Art Museum, Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, the San Francisco Arts Commission, and the Bangkok Biennial in the presentation of workshops by over 40 Bay Area artists, including: Brontez Purnell, Stephanie Syjuco, Xandra Ibarra, Sofía Córdova, Leila Weefur, Zulfikar Ali Bhutto Jr, Claudia LaRocco, and Jacqueline Kiyomi Gork. Personal Space Gallery, our organization's hub, is the permanent brick and mortar extension of Cralle's decades-long involvement in Bay Area arts. Our exhibitions and programs present work by emerging, under-recognized, and mid-career artists. The gallery’s back room offers works on paper, artist books, zines, t-shirts, sculptures, and artist editions. Our opening events serve upwards of 2000 visitors annually. Our artist interview podcast, The Spinning Wheel, debuts in 2025. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Long Beach Camerata Singers | PO BOX 90511 , LONG BEACH, CA 90809-0511 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 900-2863 | California's 47th congressional district | District 69 | District 33 | With support from the California Arts Council, CAMERATA SINGERS OF LONG BEACH INC will present the Peace4Youth program, centering environmental and/or social justice themes, to students in three Long Beach or adjacent areas School District Middle Schools and High Schools. | Camerata Singers of Long Beach (CSLB) is a 90-voice classical music chorus completing its 58th season. The organization is led by Grammy-winning Artistic Director, Dr. James K. Bass, Director of Choral Studies at UCLA. It produces 4 concerts per year, including the annual Peace Project, examining social justice topics, an annual performance of Handel's Messiah, ChoralFest Long Beach in the Spring, and Evening of Song to finish the season. CSLB is the artistic partner of the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra. In the summer months, LBCS presents its free, community based outdoor concert series, The Front Porch Concerts. LBCS also runs two education programs. The Camerata Children's Music Academy provides three weekly workshops teaching music fundamentals to pre-K children at the Long Beach YMCA Early Education Program, which runs state-funded child development centers for low-income families. Peace4Youth is presented in partnership with the Long Beach Unified School District, and brings the Peace Project into Middle and High Schools. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Holding Space | 7205 ELVORA WAY , ELK GROVE, CA 95757-5904 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 607-8706 | 10 | 08 | With support from the California Arts Council, Holding Space will present three community-based Folk and Traditional Arts healing retreats each serving up to 50 participants of African descent in Sacramento. Led by Dr. Shacunda Rodgers, a licensed clinical psychologist, these offerings integrate live music, West African drumming, movement, and vocal ritual as culturally rooted pathways to emotional wellbeing. Featured artists include harpist Destiny Muhammad, African dance instructor Dr. Uzo Nwankpa, vocalist and sound healer Brittany Tanner, and Native American flutist Chelsea Benham-Callender, alongside master drummers Charles Frost and Charlene Gumbs. Participants will engage in cultural traditions that support healing from grief, trauma, and systemic stress. Funds will support artist fees, venue rental, and program delivery. This project affirms Folk and Traditional Arts as essential, community-defined healing practices that strengthen cultural identity, connection, and collective resilience. | Holding Space remains deeply relevant in Sacramento’s evolving arts and cultural landscape by offering innovative, culturally responsive pathways for healing and connection. Central to our work is the belief that compassion, community, and culture are powerful medicines that create the conditions for repair and restoration. As a newer organization, our primary mode of serving the Black community is through daylong healing retreats that integrate African-centered wisdom traditions and modern mind-body-spirit practices. These retreats include cultural practices like pouring libations, djembe drumming, African dance, community storytelling, and sharing African psychology principles. Alongside these traditions, we offer mindfulness meditation, yoga, and sound healing to address the overworked nervous systems of participants. By addressing trauma at its roots and offering pathways to renewal, we are not just healingindividuals but creating generational pathways for peace and freedom. In reclaiming culture and centering humanity, Holding Space is actively carving a path toward a future where art, culture, and community are at the forefront of healing and transformation in Sacramento. | |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $17,600.00 | Kern River Valley Art Association | 6709 Wofford Blvd , Wofford Heights, CA 93285 | Kern | Central Valley | (760) 478-0077 | 20th | District 32 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kern River Valley Arts Association will expand year-round arts programming by increasing workshops, youth programs and community events by 20-30%, growing from 12-15 programs to 18-20 annually and increasing participation from 120-150 to 160-200 individuals. This expansion will prioritize California Indigenous communities, including Tubatulabal, Kawaiisu, Yokuts and Chumash ancestry and individuals with disabilities, including neurodiverse youth and those who are deaf or hard of hearing through targeted outreach, accessible programming and reduced cost participation in a rural region identified in the lowest decile of California's Healthy Places Index. Progress will be measured through participation registration, voluntary demographic tracking, attendance logs and post-program surveys, guided by "Art for all and all for Art." | Kern River Valley Arts Association delivers four core programs designed to expand access to arts education, creative expression, and community engagement throughout the Kern River Valley. Arts and Education Center The emphasis of this program is to teach art through hands-on-arts such as painting, sculpting, various crafts, photography, filmmaking and performance art. Art Gallery The emphasis of this program is to produce regular themed and juried art shows, displaying the work of a variety of artists in the Kern River Valley communities. Public Art “Murals of the Valley” The emphasis of this program is to produce and display murals on buildings throughout the Kern River Valley communities, such as hospitals, businesses and other public settings. Arts and Crafts Festivals The emphasis of this program is to produce at regular intervals, festivals which give local and visiting artists and crafters the opportunity to display and sell their work to a wide audience of local community members and visitors from other communities. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Cornerstone | 145 N Raymond Ave , Pasadena, CA 91103-3921 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 613-1700 | District 28 | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Cornerstone Theater Company will sustain its core operations to advance a year-round, community-engaged theater practice rooted in equity, collaboration, and access. Funds will support staff salaries, administrative infrastructure, and essential organizational expenses that enable Cornerstone to develop and produce free, culturally responsive programming with systemically marginalized communities across Los Angeles and California. This includes ongoing initiatives such as the Living Newspaper, Tomorrow Is Now, and community-based projects responding to urgent local issues, including recovery from the 2025 wildfires. General operating support will ensure organizational stability during a period of economic uncertainty, maintaining Cornerstone’s capacity to build long-term community partnerships, support artists and collaborators, and create inclusive spaces for collective storytelling, civic dialogue, and artistic expression. | Community engagement is at the heart of what we do; we collaborate with non-professionals in a specific context to create vivid, living theater. The process – sharing story, experience, and expertise across lines of difference – is as vital as the performance. The notion of community itself is a creative question defined anew in each Cornerstone project. Recent collaborating communities include: public housing residents; Indigenous peoples in Los Angeles; veterans and military families; people impacted by the prison system; the LGBTQ+ student community and residents of LA’s port community San Pedro. Upcoming projects engage communities whose neighborhoods have been impacted by the LA fires; the Los Angeles theater community; and citizens, historians, activists and grassroots organizers in LA County. We reach communities and establish authentic engagement by building relationships across time, and rooting those relationships in solidarity, resource sharing, deep listening, collaboration and presence. It takes time to earn just one person’s trust; it takes time to map a creative container for vulnerable collaboration – and we invest the time it takes. We believe in building community power and centering community voices, with and for low-income and systemically excluded and disinvested communities. Our audiences and co-creators are first-time theatergoers, speakers of non-English languages, elders, children, families, people impacted by the prison system, current and formerly unhoused people. We conceive and develop community collaborations together with a broad range of partners from community service, advocacy and action organizations like Homeboy Industries, Westside Food Bank, MEND, My Tribe Rise, Side Street Projects, Gabrieliño/Tongva Springs Foundation, to public agencies like HACLA (Housing Authority of the City of Los Angeles) and Metro. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | Support Black Theatre | 4718 W. Washington Blvd. , Los Angeles, CA 90016 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 619-6322 | 37 | 55 | 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Support Black Theatre will equip 1,000+ youth ages 14-25 with the skills, networks, and paid opportunities needed to pursue viable careers in the creative economy. Through year-round arts education, workforce development, and Black theatre programming, participants gain technical training, professional exposure, and direct pathways into creative industries. Grounded in Black history and cultural production, our model strengthens identity, builds industry-relevant skills, and connects young people to real employment and leadership opportunities. By integrating artistic practice with career pipelines, Support Black Theatre addresses gaps in access and advancement, positioning young people – particularly those historically excluded from the arts – as creators, workers, and leaders in a growing sector. | Support Black Theatre’s four core initiatives – New Works Pipeline, Talk Forward™, Equip, and GroundED – follow the principle of “See, Create, and Invest.” Our New Works Pipeline retains the power of decision making for Black artists and theatre by developing new Black plays and securing funding for Black theatres to mount full productions of new work by Black artists. Talk Forward cultivates and nurtures Black audiences, flipping the model of the traditional post-show talkback by inviting audiences into the process of theatre making through reflective feedback long before a full production is mounted. The Equip initiative builds theatres’ executive leadership capacity through leadership courses and nonprofit management training and direct services including introductions to funders, grant writing seminars, writing letters of support. The initiative raised over $1.3 million in grant awards for Black theatres between 2021 and 2025. Equip also offers technical training and paid internships in dramaturgy, playwriting, directing, stage management, producing, and technical design. The GroundED initiative provides year-round arts workforce development and artistic opportunities, building career pathways in the arts and related fields for 300+ youth ages 15-25 each year. GroundED introduces young people to careers in Black theatre through the work of August Wilson, among other playwrights. Our annual August Wilson monologue competition for high school students includes complementary in-school education throughout the school year, culminating with late-spring performances and judging at partner Ebony Repertory Theatre. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Micaya Presents | 5800 Tehama Ave , Richmond, CA 94804 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (415) 297-9740 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, The San Francisco International Hip Hop DanceFest (SFIHHDF), a project of Micaya Presents, will produce its 28th annual festival at the Palace of Fine Arts, featuring world-class hip hop dance companies from across California, the U.S., and internationally. CAC funds will provide general operating support across all Micaya Presents programs, including artist fees, staffing, production, accessibility services, and community engagement. This support sustains the annual festival and year-round initiatives such as Mission in the Mix, the RESPECT! podcast, the Angel Program, and Know Yourself, expanding equitable access to culturally relevant arts. The festival includes performances, a youth freestyle circle, audience engagement activities, and ASL interpretation, reaching 3,000 - 4,000 attendees annually. Year-round programs serve over 250 participants, including 100+ youth, advancing meaningful engagement/public benefit. | Micaya Presents creates dynamic events where historically marginalized communities feel seen, respected, and celebrated. Our commitment to first-rate production values and community-building strategies invites artists into a professional, inclusive atmosphere that celebrates their talent and achievements. Micaya Presents realizes its mission through four programs: 1. The San Francisco International Hip Hop DanceFest (SFIHHDF) was founded by Micaya in 1999 with a mission to encourage the evolution of hip hop dance culture while preserving its legacy. The SFIHHDF is the first global festival to honor the artistry of hip hop dance in a non-competitive, professionally curated theatre setting. Every November, 8-10 dance companies from around the world perform at the iconic Palace of Fine Arts Theatre. 2. Mission in the Mix was founded in 1992 to highlight the talents of local emerging and established Bay Area performing artists representing different genres of performing arts. Presented every June at San Francisco’s Dance Mission Theatre in the historic Mission district, Mission in the Mix features a diverse array of performing artists, such as: hip hop, modern, ballet, bellydance, tap, and salsa dancers, youth dance companies, singers, and rappers in curated showcases. 3.The RESPECT podcast, founded in 2020, is a 6-week series that gives artists a platform for in-depth analysis of their work and the multidimensional nature of hip hop dance. The episodes are focused on education of the origins, history, and cultural impact of these dance forms. 4. Know Yourself was created in 2022 with partner AnyxMeans to introduce underserved youth and their caretakers to creative methodologies that build self-confidence and reinforce a sense of belonging. This free all-day camp includes classes in dance, music and mindfulness, along with meals, t-shirts, workbooks and artistic giveaways . 5. Angel Program subsidizes tickets annually for youth, families and communities who would not otherwise afford to attend. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Kingsmen Shakespeare Company | PO BOX 1772 , THOUSAND OAKS, CA 91358-0772 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 493-3184 | 26th Congressional District of California | 42nd Assembly District | 27th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, KINGSMEN SHAKESPEARE COMPANY will strengthen its new leadership infrastructure and implement fresh board governance strategies to ensure long-term organizational sustainability. These efforts will support the development and vision for a strategic framework that will guide and sustain the presentation of Shakespeare and classical theatre programming for the community over the next 30 years. | Kingsmen Shakespeare Festival serves the greater Conejo Valley and Los Angeles and Ventura Counties through a blend of live performance, youth programs, and community outreach. Our cornerstone is the Kingsmen Shakespeare Festival, a family-friendly outdoor summer event now in its 30th season. With professional artists and engaging performances held on the CLU campus, the festival brings thousands together each year in celebration of classical theater. We also offer robust educational programming, including: • The Shakespeare Educational Tour, which brings interactive workshops and abridged productions directly into schools, exposing students to live theater and Shakespeare’s texts. • The Apprentice and Junior Apprentice Programs, providing young artists with hands-on experience in performance and stagecraft. • Summer camps that use Shakespeare to build acting and collaboration skills while nurturing each student's unique strengths and talents. Through these programs, young people gain practical experience in a professional environment, often inspiring further study in the arts or related fields. Kingsmen actively participates in community events with local organizations to extend our reach and deepen impact. We also host special events such as talkbacks, workshops, and fundraisers to build stronger ties with audiences and supporters. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Children's Musical Theater San Jose | 1545 Parkmoor Avenue , San Jose, CA 95128-2407 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 288-5437 | California's 19th congressional district | District 28 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN JOSE CHILDREN'S MUSICAL THEATER will deepen its existing partnership with Alum Rock Unified School District into a yearlong arts access pathway for underrepresented youth who lack access to high-quality arts learning. The project connects two proven CMT programs: Student Audience Matinees, and CMT’s/ARUSD Spring Break Camp offering hands-on acting, voice, movement, and performance. CAC funding will create a pathway from exposure to participation. During the grant period, CMT will host up to 440 ARUSD students at a matinee; deliver three Teaching Artist workshops; provide bilingual family materials; support Teaching Artist compensation; and offer a free Spring Break camp culminating in a family performance at CMT’s Creative Arts Center. The goal is to build the access infrastructure that allows East San José students to participate as young artists. | CMT mounts 11 core productions at the Montgomery Theater in downtown San Jose: six Rising Stars productions (cast members between the ages of 8-14), three Mainstage productions (cast members between the ages of 14-20), and two Marquee shows that showcase the talents of top emerging Bay Area performing artists, including many CMT alumni. Our education and outreach programming incorporates curriculum-based performing arts as a teaching tool and develops young audiences for musical theater. Our Production Workshops are a unique eight-week preparation process based on a clear artistic vision and the belief that each performer, at every skill level, can accomplish something remarkable. Our Audition Master Classes, Guest Artist Series Studio Classes and Summer Camp provide exceptional musical theater training in voice, acting and dance, culminating in performances designed to showcase the young performers’ talent and hard work. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Xela Institute of Art | 1525 AVIATION BLVD SUITE 358 , REDONDO BEACH, CA 90278-2805 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 985-1090 | 36th Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 66 | State Senate District 24 | Xela Institute of Art will expand its operations and arts programming by establishing a series of lectures and arts classes open to the public, led by professionals in the art field; increasing outreach through the funding of a part-time social media coordinator position; and maintaining its online presence through the museum website and exhibition catalog production. | Since our founding, The Xela Institute of Art has supported the career development of 30 underrepresented artists across different stages of their practice—including 8 senior artists, 10 mid-career artists, and 12 emerging artists—through exhibitions, mentorship, and professional services. Each year, The Xela Institute of Art presents four to six free public exhibitions that engage with urgent social themes–from cultural identity and collective memory to ecological crisis and creative healing. Recent solo shows have featured veteran-family and African American artist Carla Jay Harris, Dominican American artist Nara Winston, and internationally practicing emerging artist Yezi Lou. Mid-career to senior spotlights have included fourth-generation Japanese American artist Parker Ito, Watts House Project co-founder Edgar Arceneaux, internationally practicing French artist Christophe Leroux, and disability rights-focused artist Katherine Sherwood. All exhibitions are co-curated through a transparent, dialogic process centering artists’ needs, care practices, and evolving site-specific investigations. Building on our mission to advance underrepresented emerging, mid-career, and senior artists, The Xela offers art skills development and technical training; arts advocacy, information, and research; career services, mentorships, and professional development; grants administration support and re-granting opportunities; arts professional convening and networking forums. These services foster the cultural capital, institutional relationships, and administrative infrastructure essential for sustaining long-term studio practices. To guide our growth, we are forming a larger, dynamic Board of Directors contributing via annual fees. In tandem, we are establishing an Artists’ Council of 4-6 creatives, led by two rotating co-chairs (two-year terms) who both hold full board seats. This structure ensures that artist perspectives directly inform strategic decisions and exemplifies our ongoing commitment to career development within the global visual arts ecosystem. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | Everyday Arts | 12046 Peoria Street , Sun Valley, CA 91352 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 669-9049 | California's 34th congressional district | District 53 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Everyday Arts will implement “Everyday Arts in El Sereno,” a multi-disciplinary arts initiative aimed at giving students at Huntington Drive Elementary School (a free public school in LAUSD, 24.3% Healthy Places Index) the chance to develop their social-emotional competencies through inclusive arts integration, primarily serving Students with Disabilities. Our holistic, multi-tiered approach includes: Class Visits, where we facilitate weekly visual and performing arts integration activities with students; Professional Learning, where we train classroom teachers in our methodology; and Bilingual Family Events, where students and caregivers create art together to increase family resilience. We use the CASEL “core competencies” (self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making) as our framework, and utilize Universal Design for Learning to ensure accessibility for all students. | Our core program offerings are: 1. Educator Workshops - Learn how to infuse arts-based strategies into your everyday teaching practice. Help improve students’ social-emotional and academic growth through music, visual arts, movement, and theater activities! These workshops are open to classroom teachers, arts specialists, administrators, and related service providers. 2. Lesson Planning Support - Receive post-workshop support via a one-on-one session with an Arts Integration Specialist. We’ll work with you to identify and adapt arts activities most suited to your classroom goals and Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). These coaching sessions are available for classroom teachers and arts specialists. 3. Class Visits - Receive in-class support to implement arts integration lessons with your students. Our Arts Integration Specialist will co-facilitate with the classroom teacher and support staff. 4. Family Workshops Learn new ways to engage your children at home through easy-to-implement music, visual arts, movement, and theater activities! Parents and caregivers are invited to attend these workshops with their children, where they will participate in fun and accessible artmaking together. Everyday Arts prides itself on delivering fun, hands-on workshops that include collaborative art-making, group discussion, reflective practice, and lesson-planning. Participants learn inclusive teaching strategies, utilizing music, visual arts, drama, and movement activities aligned to the California Arts Standards. Our curriculum is adaptable for a wide range of populations, including students with autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disabilities, multiple disabilities, emotional disturbance, and learning disabilities, and has been shown to have a positive effect on reaching Individualized Educational Plan goals in self-contained classrooms as well as inclusion settings. We utilize the principles of Universal Design for Learning as well as the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning “Core SEL Competencies" to help students with diverse learning needs reach their goals. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Non Stop Bhangra | 1336 16th Ave. #1, San Francisco, CA 94122 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 613-6106 | With support from the California Arts Council, Non Stop Bhangra will sustain and strengthen its core community-based cultural programming, including weekly Bhangra dance classes, ongoing cultural events, and large-scale productions such as Bhangra & Beats Night Market. Grant funds will support artist and collaborator compensation, production costs, and administrative capacity needed to maintain consistent, accessible programming. These efforts will allow us to continue creating inclusive spaces that bring people together through music, movement, and shared cultural experience, fostering connection, cultural exchange, and community well-being. Funding will also help ensure that our programs remain financially accessible to diverse communities while supporting the long-term sustainability of our organization and the artists who make this work possible. | Non Stop Bhangra offers a range of community-centered cultural programs that bring people together through music, movement, and shared experience. Our core programs include weekly Bhangra dance classes through Dholrhythms Dance Company, providing consistent and accessible opportunities for people of all levels to engage with Punjabi folk dance in a welcoming, non-judgmental environment. We also produce immersive cultural events and gatherings, including our long-running Non Stop Bhangra dance parties, which combine DJs, live drummers, dance lessons, and performances to create participatory spaces centered on joy and community. In addition, we produce large-scale cultural productions such as Bhangra & Beats Night Market and Colors of India—multidisciplinary experiences that bring together music, dance, food, and local small businesses to celebrate culture in vibrant, accessible ways. Across all of our programs, we focus on creating inclusive spaces that foster connection, cultural exchange, and well-being for diverse communities. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area | 1446 Market Street Intersection for the Arts, San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (619) 993-5147 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | The Arts Education Alliance (AEA) will connect and catalyze arts education communities for a more just and creative Bay Area through the following programs and offerings: - Local and Regional Advocacy for individual teaching artists and community based arts organizations. Hosting coalition meetings throughout the Bay Area including Alameda, San Francisco, and West Contra Costa County cohorts. - Offering professional development, practice sharing, professional support and community building opportunities for educators and teaching artists. Providing accessible tools and resources to share arts education news, resources and opportunities with over 2,100 teachers, artists, and arts professionals via our monthly newsletter, listservs, social media, and website. - Centering equity and access at all levels of our work and programming to ensure all young people, CA’s future artists and audiences, have equitable access to culturally responsive, creative practices. | The Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area CONNECTS and CATALYZES local arts education coalitions for a more just and creative San Francisco Bay Area. We serve as a regional hub and unifying voice for local coalitions of teaching artists, school districts, student and their families, community arts organizations, cultural institutions, city and county agencies, funders, business leaders, and arts education advocates throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our regional work aligns with Create CA's state arts education efforts as well as the national efforts of the National Guild for Community Art Education and Arts Education Partnership. The Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area supports our members to cultivate responsive leadership and advocate for arts education through ongoing convening events, professional learning workshops, monthly newsletters, and advocacy resources. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $4,000.00 | Left Coast Music | 1927 MONROE AVE , SAN DIEGO, CA 92116-4031 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 365-5844 | With support from the California Arts Council, Left Coast Music will host a concert series consisting of six live performances presented within San Diego County. Performed by a wind quintet (flute, oboe, clarinet, French horn, and bassoon), concerts will explore music from around the world, highlighting cultural connections through engaging live music. Repertoire will be accessible to broad audiences while maintaining a high level of artistic excellence, and will introduce the audiences to a wind quintet, which they may have not experienced. A key component of the project is audience engagement and education. Each performance will include brief spoken program notes, providing context for the music in an approachable and engaging way. This format encourages understanding and appreciation of the music represented, while remaining welcoming to audiences of all levels of musical familiarity. | Left Coast Music is a professional music ensemble, primarily a wind quintet (flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, and bassoon) dedicated to providing high-quality, community-focused musical experiences. Our core programs and services include: Community Concert Series LCQ performs regularly at libraries, senior living communities, and public spaces, bringing accessible live classical and thematic music to diverse audiences. These concerts often include educational commentary, highlighting composers, musical styles, and cultural context to enhance audience engagement. Educational Outreach The ensemble offers interactive music education programs for schools, youth ensembles, and community organizations. These programs introduce participants to classical music, wind instruments, and the art of chamber music performance, fostering both appreciation and inspiration in learners of all ages. Specialty and Thematic Concerts LCQ develops programs around specific themes, historical events, or cultural traditions. These thematic performances combine music, storytelling, and cultural insights to create a rich, immersive audience experience. Arts Advocacy and Community Partnerships As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, LCQ collaborates with local arts organizations, museums, and community groups to promote live music and cultural engagement, helping strengthen San Diego’s artistic ecosystem. Through these programs, LCQ blends professional artistry with community connection, making live wind quintet music accessible, engaging, and meaningful for all audiences. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Sierra Repertory Theatre | 13891 Mono Way , SONORA, CA 95370-3030 | Tuolumne | Central Valley | (209) 532-0502 | California's 4th congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | Sierra Repertory Theatre seeks to strengthen and expand its "SRT in Schools" program for the coming year. This popular program, delivered at no cost to schools, brings students a high-quality introduction to the magic of live theater directly to dozens of elementary campuses, reaching more than 3,000 students per year in our rural, underserved region of the Sierra foothills and Central Valley. A troupe of 3-5 professional actors and a stage manager travel to school sites throughout the region each Fall and Spring semester to present 50-minute live theater productions adapted from titles selected from the California School Reading List. CAC grant funds will offset direct costs and allow us to reach a wider range of schools, fulfilling core goals of the CAC. | Sierra Repertory Theatre (SRT) is a professional non-profit theatre in Tuolumne County, California. Nestled in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, Tuolumne County is home to just over 54,000 residents. SRT offers the local community 10 top-quality mainstage productions from its East Sonora Theatre and Fallon House Theatre in Columbia State Historic Park. The Theatre sees over 45,000 visitors every season consisting of residents primarily from Tuolumne, Calaveras, San Joaquin, and Stanislaus Counties. Sierra Rep is the only regional theatre in the area that maintains a contract with the Actor's Equity Association, ensuring the local community can enjoy talent from across the country. With the same enthusiasm and vision, SRT is equally committed to supporting local school-age children and fostering a rich arts culture within the Tuolumne County area through its Youth Education and Outreach Program which includes SRT Jr. and SRT in Schools. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Oceanica Ballet | 400 SAN JUAN AVE 2556 , EL GRANADA, CA 94018-0000 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 303-4544 | District 14 | State Assembly District 23 | State Senate District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oceánica Ballet will produce “Alicia in the Land of Wonders,” an original story ballet choreographed by Edgar Lepe and Robert Burns Lowman that centers the lived experiences of a first-generation American child of immigrant parents. CAC funds will support choreographers’ and dancers’ compensation for rehearsals and a public performance, music licensing, rehearsal and performance space rental, production documentation, marketing, and community engagement activities. Performances will be held at the College of San Mateo Theatre, a venue with an established relationship with Oceánica Ballet and the Latinx/é community. This work responds directly to the urgent need for Bay Area immigrant communities to see their stories reflected and honored through art. | Production and presentation of ballet-based dance works. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $16,955.00 | Tea & Verse Poetry Salon | 544 N Fair Oaks Ave , Pasadena, CA 91103-3304 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 340-9779 | With Support from the California Arts Council, the Tea & Verse Poetry Salon will produce a four-episode docuseries featuring Black, BIPOC, and Older Adult literary, visual, and performing artists from the cities of Pasadena and Altadena area who have been impacted by the Eaton Canyon fire of January 2025. Each episode will highlight a guest artist, the story of their development as an artist, their artistic practice, and their ties to the Pasadena-Altadena area. The episode will culminate with a presentation of the featured artist’s selected works. | 1. To present poetry, literary, and performing arts events to foster connection between artists and their local communities. 2. To develop poetry-centered interdisciplinary works and programs that spotlight the contributions of and challenges faced by current and unsung writers and artists from underrepresented communities. 3. To provide resources and support to developing and experienced writers and performers. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Colusa County Arts Council | 151 Fifth Street , COLUSA, CA 95932 | Colusa | Upstate | (530) 458-2222 | California's 1st Congressional District | District 4 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Colusa County Arts Council will launch the Find the Flock: Migratory Bird Public Art Initiative, an immersive public art program designed to engage with artists and celebrate our rural county’s location along the Pacific Flyway, one of the Western Hemisphere’s premier migratory bird corridors. The Colusa County Arts Council will commission 3-5 professionally fabricated bird sculptures placed throughout downtown with each sculpture celebrating a different species present on the Pacific Flyway. Each sculpture will be paired with interpretive content including bilingual plaques and QR-linked audio. The role of art in rural communities is limited. This project addresses social isolation, economic disinvestment, and barriers to arts access in a rural, historically underserved community by embedding professional public art into everyday spaces at no cost to residents or visitors. | General programming includes monthly art exhibitions in our gallery, "Live Lit" literary reading series featuring local writers, collaborative community events, and fundraising events that feature live music or local artists. General programming also encompasses our Public Arts Advisory Committee, which commissions public artworks throughout the county. Special programming includes Creative Youth Development and Levitt AMP Colusa programs. Creative Youth Development providesfree arts education after school for area youth. This programming includes monthly art lessons at five of the rural branches of the Colusa County Free Library, monthly Family Day workshops held in our gallery space, beginner music workshops, multi-generational craft classes, and four-day arts camp for 5-13 year olds. Levitt AMP Colusa provides 10 free live concerts featuring original music by professionally touring musicians from all over the United States. We partner with local non-profits and community groups to make these events a place where our community resources and values can surface. Booking emphasizes artists and genres who appeal to diverse audiences in our county. Beyond programming, the Colusa County Arts Council uses its resources for community collaboration, mentoring, and advocacy. These services include classroom visits at local schools to promote our programs and share opportunities with art students, hosting middle and high school arts instructors in our gallery to share resources and collaborate, partnering with local non-profits like the Rotary Club and Lion's Club, providing resources to Upstate California Creative Corps grantees and other artists, advocating with local school districts around arts education measures like Prop 28, and participating in programming and professional development offered by other California public arts organizations. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $5,625.00 | Anna H. Wang Concert Series West | 3950 PIERCE ST STE D 2000 , RIVERSIDE, CA 92505-8511 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (585) 208-7667 | The Anna H. Wang Concert Series is requesting $5,000 from the California Arts Council to support the delivery of Cliburn in the Classroom: Rhythms and Roots at La Sierra University, January 27–29, 2027. The total program budget for Cliburn in the Classroom is $15,000, covering artist fees, bilingual teaching-artist compensation, travel, and administrative costs associated with nine free performances for approximately 2,000 Riverside Unified School District elementary students. CAC funds will be applied directly to artist and teaching-artist fees — the core cost that makes professional-level performance possible for students who could not otherwise access it. All nine performances are offered at no cost to students, families, or schools. Additional support from private foundations and individual donors will fund the remaining program costs. No portion of this grant will support administrative overhead unrelated to program delivery. | Classical Music presentations | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | 7545 Hampton Ave., # 207 , W HOLLYWOOD, CA 90046-5542 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 814-8597 | California's 28th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | CAC grant funds will be used to support a series of educational concerts featuring the Click Clack Moosic! program set to the second book in Click Clack Moo series, Giggle, Giggle, Quack, for children ages 3 - 7. The performances will take place in East L.A. and reach up to 1,500 L.A. Unified School District elementary school students. This high-quality music programming for young children is a live musical-story time event. Students learn about musical instruments through the pre-concert curriculum and the pre-concert instrument petting zoo. This updated version of the classic programs like Peter and the Wolf covers more diverse styles of music including salsa, a ho down, waltz, and blues. Through the story, children learn about working together, collective action, and how one small voice can make a big difference. | Helix Collective formed in 2009, as a chamber music ensemble with the objective of bringing classical music to new and diverse audiences. A feature of a "helix" is the ability to recombine into many different yet related forms. Thus, Helix Collective evolves and recombines for every program. The original group included flute, oboe and piano. With this trio, we toured and recorded the critically-acclaimed album, All In. In 2012, we became a non-profit 501(c)3. We added percussion and created the World Dance Club program, an album featuring newly-commissioned international dance music. Our current core programs are the Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival, additional live score-to-screen concerts of media music, and music and storytelling concerts. We’ve developed new partnerships with the L.A. Film School for our annual festival and the Film Music Connect workshop with SAGindie, providing original, recorded scores for participating SAGindie filmmakers. The Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival pairs directors of short films with film composers. The composers write original scores for Helix Collective to perform live-to-picture at the festival. After the festival, the scores are recorded for inclusion in the final version of the films. Films for the most recent festivals were curated by SAGindie and the L.A. Film School. We also partner with the Composers Diversity Collective, an organization dedicated to increasing the visibility of composers from diverse backgrounds throughout the music industry and to mentoring emerging composers from underserved communities. Helix Collective recorded and produced "Shoutout!" a visual album of music by 12 composers from the collective, "Spotlight" a live concert featuring Composers Diversity Collective composers and Level Up game music concert featuring women and BIPOC composers. In 2024 Helix Collective made the West coast premiere of Click Clack Moosic, a children's musical story time program at Boston Court Pasadena. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Canyon Cinema Foundation | 1777 Yosemite Avenue, Suite 210 Suite 210, San Francisco, CA 94124 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 626-2255 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | Located in San Francisco’s Bayview–Hunters Point neighborhood, Canyon Cinema Foundation (CCF) seeks General Operating Support from the California Arts Council to sustain its core operations and continue its mission-driven work of providing artist-centered media infrastructure and public cultural access within a community historically impacted by environmental and economic inequities. CAC funds will support personnel costs and essential administrative expenses required to maintain our distribution and preservation work, artist services, and public programs, including our Canyon Cinema Discovered curatorial fellowship, Print Generations film commissioning project, and year-round screening initiatives that reflect the breadth and diversity of Bay Area experimental film and media culture. | CCF is a non-exclusive distributor; all rights for the works we represent are retained by the artists. We distribute worldwide; our core clients and markets include educational institutions, film/video and new media festivals, art galleries and museums, microcinemas, and community organizations. CCF’s artist services include: - Circulation of Super 8, 16mm, and 35mm prints and digital media for screenings, exhibitions, and classroom use; - Management of bookings, licensing agreements, payments; - Invoicing of clients and collection of distribution fees; - Detailed accounting of title activity and payout of royalties annually; - Media sales to educational institutions, museums, archives, and individuals; - Oversight of print and digital media traffic; - Print inspection and repair; - Quality control of digital media; - Care, proper handling, and storage of prints/digital files/DVD materials; - Inclusion in a complete online catalog of works in distribution; - Marketing and promotion of artists’ work via email, social media, and our website. In addition, we also manage the following programs: - Canyon Cinema Salons: Since 2014, our Salon series has provided a free, informal platform for dialogue and engagement with moving image artists. - Canyon at The Roxie: Bringing into focus Bay Area film artists of past and present, this monographic screening series blends classic, overlooked, new, and restored films from Canyon’s collection; presented in collaboration with The Roxie Theater. - Canyon-on-Demand: Our quarterly online series, presenting limited-run programs of new additions to Canyon’s collection, new digitizations, and work by new artist members. - Canyon Cinemazine: Canyon’s annual print publication. - Canyon Cinema Discovered: Our curatorial fellowship program, which aims to bring fresh perspectives to experimental media curation by supporting the creation of new screening programs composed of works from both inside and outside of Canyon’s holdings. - Print Generations: Our film commissioning project, supporting the production of new 16mm work by Bay Area artists. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | 333 Arts | 712 BANCROFT RD 278 , WALNUT CREEK, CA 94598-1531 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (714) 822-8470 | With support from the California Arts Council, Three Thirty-Three Arts will strengthen the infrastructure of our community arts programs in Alameda, Contra Costa, and Solano Counties. Within those counties, we will focus on East Oakland, unincorporated areas in East Contra County and the Northern Waterfront, and Vallejo and Mare Island, respectively. CAC funds will support core operating expenses including administration (bookkeeping, grant reporting, donor management), art materials, office supplies, lead artist stipends, event and liability insurance, multilingual outreach and communications, and organizational communications. These operational costs enable Three Thirty-Three Arts to provide accessible, inclusive, and engaging creative opportunities and experiences for thousands of residents in the Bay Area, most of whom reside in areas with less resources for artists and arts education. | Three Thirty -Three Arts reimagines the neighborhood as a creative space for forging and fortifying civic ties and cultural memory through collaborative arts experiences. The arts have long served as a powerful vehicle for amplifying marginalized voices, challenging societal norms, and initiating dialogue on critical issues. Inspired by these possibilities, we embrace the arts as an essential tool in our mission to drive meaningful and sustainable cultural change. We provide a proven platform for emerging and underrepresented artists to create public-facing projects, receive mentorship, engage in strategic networking, and access paid opportunities. Through inclusive, participatory experiences (e.g., mural sessions, art and music jams, poetry sessions, workshops) both artists and community volunteers co-create their local identity and beautify their neighborhoods. Our murals are often integrated into larger revitalization initiatives that include building repair, illegal dumping removal, and greenery planting. This synergistic healthy community approach is an essential component of Three Thirty-Three Arts’ mission to champion the arts as a catalyst for social connection, civic engagement, and cultural enrichment. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Broad Room | 1409 DEL PASO BLVD , SACRAMENTO, CA 95815-3611 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 307-9495 | California's 6th congressional district | District 6 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, Broad Room Creative Collective Sacramento will expand organizational capacity to sustain our core arts and cultural programs serving a bottom-tier (14th percentile) California HPI community. CAC funds will right-size the Executive Director’s salary, covering 0.5 FTE to allow strategic focus on capacity building, staff training and management, and partnership development. Funds will also support contract staff for studio management, volunteer coordination, and facility scheduling which are tasks that are outside the ED’s role. This investment transforms a volunteer-dependent model into a resilient, staff-supported infrastructure for free art supplies, affordable studios, public murals, and career-building workshops. | Broad Room's primary programs are the Free Art Supply Closet, the California Art Supply Mutual Aid Training Program, and affordable artist studio space. We serve about 1,500 people per year through the Free Art Supply Closet, which provides free new and gently-used art supplies to the public. We are a founding member of the California Art Supply Mutual Aid Network. We provide affordable studio space to 18+ local artists in our Sacramento-based warehouse. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $148,500.00 | Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture | 624 E Street , Marysville, CA 95901 | Yuba | Upstate | (530) 742-2787 | California's 1st Congressional District | District 3 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture, as a two-county SLP, (requesting $75,000 x 2) will assign funds towards the salary of its Executive Director, Managing Director, and Arts in Education coordinator. Funds will also support our Artists in Residence program representing four artistic disciplines plus our two-county Poet Laureate. It will also help offset the costs for teaching artists, equipment and supplies needed to provide for a continuing series of multi-disciplinary classes, teaching grants as well as our Center Stage Productions youth performing arts program, our new youth mariachi orchestra, our Stage 754 Theater Company, and our Yuba Sutter Big Band Orchestra. The funds will also help with the design, printing, and distribution of our annual report and ongoing marketing support including Constant Contact, Survey Monkey & various grant search subscriptions. | Arts in Education, Arts in Correction, Murals of Live Oak, Veterans Art Projects, Center Stage Productions youth performing arts program, Yuba Sutter Big Band, Stage 754 Company, World Music and Culture Series, Cover It! Utility Box Mini Mural Project, Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Regional Affiliate, Poetry Out Loud, Art Fix & Mix, Youth Mariachi Orchestra, and many, many more. We also own and operate the Sutter Theater Center for the Arts and the Burrows Center for the Arts in Marysville which includes our offices. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Fostering Dreams Project | 5440 TUJUNGA AVE APT 1109 , N HOLLYWOOD, CA 91601-4978 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 284-3506 | California Assembly district 39 | District 39 | District 18 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Fostering Dreams Project will provide a 12-week culturally responsive dance and music program at the Children’s Center of Antelope Valley serving up to 25 foster, unhoused, and system-impacted youth ages 8–18. This program will use healing-centered arts education to foster self-expression, cultural identity, and social-emotional growth. Youth will engage in diverse dance styles, storytelling, and music therapy while building confidence, leadership, and connection to community. | At Fostering Dreams Project our mission is to transform the lives of youth in foster care through the healing art of dance and performing arts. We provide exclusive opportunities to learn dance as a way of being more expressive, socially, and academically engaged to help youth build confidence, become leaders, and create brighter futures. By providing a structured curriculum aligned with the California VAPA Standards that produces positive outcomes for youth, our purpose is to ensure foster and at-risk youth make measurable progress in the areas of: - education and psychosocial development - strengthen their skills in dance, choreography, and historical cultural context - acquire new dance skills and knowledge - develop self-awareness, and discipline - improve problem solving and decision making skills - develop a love and understanding for the art of dance Through the combination of dance instruction, history, and meditative and self-reflective practices, “soft skills,” such as leadership, teamwork, motivation, self- expression, emotional wellbeing, and self-discipline are developed throughout the program. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | MUSEUM OF VENTURA COUNTY | 100 E MAIN ST , VENTURA, CA 93001-2607 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 653-0323 | 24 | 38 | 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Museum of Ventura County (MVC) will provide a year of free, arts- and culture-based Chumash school tour programming for K-12 students across Ventura County, prioritizing low-income and Title I schools. Through facilitated gallery tours, interactive discussion, and arts-integrated activities aligned with California education standards, students will engage with Chumash culture and California Native history while strengthening critical thinking and cultural understanding. | Recognized as the preeminent historical and cultural institution of Ventura County, MVC has been a mainstay of the County for more than 100 years, making significant contributions to residents’ and visitors' engagement and understanding of the regions’ art, history, and industry. Through its collections, exhibits, educational programs, and publications, MVC strives to promote interest in the region by collecting and preserving archives, artifacts, art, and ephemera bearing on the history of the region; documenting current regional events; and creating exhibits and programs that enlighten, educate, and engage the past, present, and future. MVC serves over 40,000 Ventura County residents and visitors annually. Its education department serves more than 100 teachers and their classes annually, including dozens of Title I schools, where at least 80% of children/youth are eligible for the Federal Free and Reduced Lunch Program and are considered underserved. In calendar year 2024, MVC saw a significant increase in online engagement, attracting 76,013 visitors to its website. The organization is committed to providing the highest quality Museum experience and uninterrupted educational programs. MVC is home to Ventura County’s archive collection and it also cares for a vast collection of 180,000 historical artifacts, art works, and agricultural machinery at two separate facilities (Main Street Museum in Ventura, CA and Agriculture Museum in Santa Paula, CA), as well as at MVC's Research Library. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Arose from concrete | 25690 FRAMPTON AVE UNIT 13 , HARBOR CITY, CA 90710-5500 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 719-4002 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arose from Concrete will be able to expand its youth arts and vocational enrichment programming for inner city youth. We will be able to provide underserved young people access to structured, hands on training in creative and beauty based art , while integrating mentorship, coaching and counseling to support personal development. Grant funds will be used to implement a series of workshops and trainings led by experienced artist and industry professionals, focusing on cosmetology, visual arts , and creative expression. Funds will also assist the program in providing career exploration opportunities, metal wellness support and life skill development. Arose from Concrete aims to empower youth to discover their talents, build marketable skills and pursue meaningful career opportunities all while prioritizing and providing a safe and inclusive environment. | Some of the Core Programs and services will be introduction classes to makeup artistry, hair artistry, as well as intro to fashion/ sewing. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Highways Performance Space & Gallery | 1651 18TH ST , SANTA MONICA, CA 90404-3807 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 453-1755 | CD36 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Highways Performance Space will produce the Behold! LGBTQIA+ Performance Series, a multidisciplinary project developed in collaboration with LGBTQIA+ artists and community participants in Los Angeles. Responding to community-identified needs for visibility, artistic development, and intergenerational exchange, the series will consist of multiple performance residencies, each including a week of rehearsal, technical development, and public presentation. Workshops and community dialogues will take place throughout the series, creating opportunities for direct engagement between artists and audiences. CAC funds will support fair compensation for California-based artists, production costs, and accessibility services, with free or low-cost admission and a “no one turned away” policy. Behold! advances Highways’ commitment to under-resourced communities by creating inclusive, artist-led spaces that amplify lived experience and foster sustained cultural dialogue through the arts. | Highways presents over 100 annual performances by culturally diverse dramatic soloists, small theater groups, dance companies and spoken word artists. We also curate an average of 10 annual contemporary exhibitions exploring the boundaries between the performing and visual arts and sponsor residencies that provide emerging artists access to professionally directed training in the performing arts. Our presentations and promotional campaigns financially support hundreds of culturally diverse and cutting-edge artists and nurture their artistic development. To date, Highways has presented over 1000 original works, and has produced over 2400 different arts programs that have attracted over 285,000 people. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | RuckusRoots | 2630 Crestmoore Place , Los Angeles, CA 90065 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 967-2766 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, RuckusRoots Inc will strengthen our capacity to deliver inclusive, community-centered, and environmentally-focused arts programming across Los Angeles. Funds will be used to support our core operations, including staff salaries, teaching artist fees, and administrative infrastructure such as our studio rental space, insurance and essential supplies. With this crucial funding, RuckusRoots can continue to build long-term sustainability, better supporting both our team of teaching artists and small core staff, and amplify the voices of youth and community members through our intersectional approach to climate resilience through art-making. | RuckusRoots' programs fall into three categories: In-School, Apprenticeship and Public, all working to achieve the following goals: 1. Co-create arts programming in communities where it is needed and wanted. 2. Offer programming that inspires a shift in knowledge, values and/or behavior with regards to environmental challenges like climate change, utilizing the arts as a tool for engagement. 3. Amplify the artistic voices of marginalized groups. 4. Share resources with local artists and activists from the communities where we work. 5. Utilize found, recycled or natural materials in artworks whenever possible Main programs: -In-School: Wild Art, TRASHformation and A.L.I.V.E.: Art Living in Vibrant Environments are offered as enrichment or expanded learning opportunities to elementary and middle school-students. Our multi-week programs last 1-6 months, with students aged 5-13 led by professional local artists. Programs aim to build age-appropriate visual arts skills in the areas of painting, drawing, sculpture, design and/or creative reuse, and social-emotional skills of collaboration, creative confidence and change-making. Each program results in a collaboratively-built, large-scale final artwork, ie: a mural, creative-reuse collage, or sculpture, and culminates with a public showcase i.e.: open house, community event or art walk. Teen / Young Adult: For high-school and transition-aged youth, these programs (The Rebel Garden Project and Public ARTivism Apprenticeship) offer smaller groups of students (10-40) deeper learning and mentoring experiences with practicing artists. Themes of art as activism and as a profession are explored; students gain experience creating artworks as well as in professional development and entrepreneurship (artist statements, documentation, branding, design and project management). Public Workshops: We offer free, youth or multigenerational, multi-series or one-time workshops (Garden Magic, From Earth to Art) in which the public is invited to learn techniques and sustainability-uses of specific mediums (fabric, ceramics, non-toxic paint, biodegradable and natural materials) from local artists and experts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | RuckusRoots | 2630 Crestmoore Place , Los Angeles, CA 90065 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 967-2766 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, RuckusRoots will offer Wild Art to 120 5th-6th grade students at Isana Octavia Charter School in 2027. We are excited to expand this offering to a new group of students after launching a successful partnership with the school in 2025 and continuing for a second year in 2026. As one of RuckusRoots' flagship programs, Wild Art employs a professional teaching artist to lead scholars in fundamentals of design, color theory, drawing and painting, with integrated lessons on local Los Angeles wildlife, creative reuse and conservation, resulting in a collaboratively-made art piece. Funds will be utilized to support the teaching artist, program-specific staff hours and to purchase supplies, ensuring that students engage in high-quality arts programming that they otherwise do not receive as part of their regular school day. | RuckusRoots' programs fall into three categories: In-School, Apprenticeship and Public, all working to achieve the following goals: 1. Co-create arts programming in communities where it is needed and wanted. 2. Offer programming that inspires a shift in knowledge, values and/or behavior with regards to environmental challenges like climate change, utilizing the arts as a tool for engagement. 3. Amplify the artistic voices of marginalized groups. 4. Share resources with local artists and activists from the communities where we work. 5. Utilize found, recycled or natural materials in artworks whenever possible Main programs: -In-School: Wild Art, TRASHformation and A.L.I.V.E.: Art Living in Vibrant Environments are offered as enrichment or expanded learning opportunities to elementary and middle school-students. Our multi-week programs last 1-6 months, with students aged 5-13 led by professional local artists. Programs aim to build age-appropriate visual arts skills in the areas of painting, drawing, sculpture, design and/or creative reuse, and social-emotional skills of collaboration, creative confidence and change-making. Each program results in a collaboratively-built, large-scale final artwork, ie: a mural, creative-reuse collage, or sculpture, and culminates with a public showcase i.e.: open house, community event or art walk. Teen / Young Adult: For high-school and transition-aged youth, these programs (The Rebel Garden Project and Public ARTivism Apprenticeship) offer smaller groups of students (10-40) deeper learning and mentoring experiences with practicing artists. Themes of art as activism and as a profession are explored; students gain experience creating artworks as well as in professional development and entrepreneurship (artist statements, documentation, branding, design and project management). Public Workshops: We offer free, youth or multigenerational, multi-series or one-time workshops (Garden Magic, From Earth to Art) in which the public is invited to learn techniques and sustainability-uses of specific mediums (fabric, ceramics, non-toxic paint, biodegradable and natural materials) from local artists and experts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $8,000.00 | Kultur Mercado | 6014 WHITWORTH DR APT 5 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90019-6537 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (760) 485-0163 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kultur Mercado will expand its year-round public programming dedicated to preserving and advancing minoritized Jewish language, music, and culture as a living part of California’s diverse artistic landscape. General Operating Support funds will help sustain free and low-cost community lectures, performances, dances, readings, workshops, and cultural gatherings that welcome broad public participation across generations and backgrounds. Funding will also support the continued growth of LA Yiddish Day, our flagship annual event celebrating Yiddish arts and culture through music, literature, theater, scholarship, and community engagement. By centering historically minoritized Jewish language and cultural tradition, Kultur Mercado fosters accessible spaces for artistic expression, intercultural dialogue, and community-building throughout Southern California. | Our current and planned programs or services include: In Their Words | A program focused on poetry, writing, and translation. In Their Words runs poetry salons that emphasize new or past work produced in other languages with and without a translated accompaniment. Through this program we run classes on the art of translation, largely from Yiddish and Ladino, to train a new generation to support endangered languages and keep the continuity of both cultural and personal histories among participants. Der Zunenshtral (The Sunbeam) | A program to promote Yiddish language and culture across Southern California through traditional arts events, lectures, and a monthly newsletter that acts as a clearinghouse for Yiddish organizations in the region, along with news, updates, translations, and new works being produced in Yiddish. Kultur Series | Essays, past and present, bringing important context and nuance to contemporary discussions. These essays focus on cultural preservation and community flourishing in a multicultural and multiethnic democracy. Kultur Mercado | Our signature program creates a festival atmosphere focused on specific regions of the world. This program brings together culture bearers, artists, and food vendors for a day market while providing lectures and music related to our specific geographic focus area to introduce the general public to specific cultures, cuisines, and the challenges and opportunities within those communities. Community Art Activations | Through a partnership with Motor LA, a gallery without walls, we bring art pop-ups to communities around Los Angeles, focusing on underserved communities and those with park inequity, through a mobile art gallery trailer and work with artists engaged in socially engaged practice. These events both show artist's works and often provide resources and materials for engaging the community in art, offering art and other educational resources, and encouraging ephemeral reclamation of spaces that empower communities to come together. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Larry Spring Museum | 225 E REDWOOD AVE , FORT BRAGG, CA 95437-3521 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 962-3131 | California Assembly district 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Larry Spring Museum will build our capacity to continue to produce sustainable programming that is accessible and meaningful to the communities we serve. Funding will allow us to pay a part-time contract-based program manager and a contract-based consultant to guide our operations. In addition, funding will also help to offset rent and rising utility costs. | Inspired by Larry Spring's collection and practices, the Larry Spring Museum fosters his quirky spirit of inquiry through exhibitions, workshops, events, and arts-based community-centered collaborations. We support emerging, mid-career, and self-taught artists, makers, and other curious beings by providing a platform to develop and share their practice through hyper-local, analog, and intuitive modes of knowledge production. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Legacy LA Youth Development Corporation | 1350 SAN PABLO ST , LOS ANGELES, CA 90033-1027 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 847-2600 | California's 34th congressional district | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, LEGACY LA YOUTH DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION will implement “Murals of Healing,” a 10-week mural arts program engaging 15 youth ages 10-25 from Ramona Gardens Public Housing Development and surrounding communities. Through “Murals of Healing,” youth will learn the process of muralism, painting techniques, and visual storytelling while collaboratively designing and painting a public mural that preserves and reflects community culture. The project will provide culturally responsive arts learning opportunities that promote healing, creative expression, social-emotional well-being, leadership, and community pride. California Arts Council funds will support teaching artist fees, art supplies/materials, youth stipends, and mural implementation. The program will culminate in a public mural unveiling, celebrating youth voices, creativity, and the transformative power of public art in historically underserved communities. | 1. Student Success Program: After-school mentoring and academic support to youth from middle school through college completion (ages 10-24). Legacy LA also engages at-risk and justice-impacted youth in Live Your Legacy career readiness services. 2. Gang Reduction & Youth Development: City-funded, evidence-based, gang prevention services with an emphasis on family case management. 3. FamilySource Center: City-funded family services to increase academic achievement for youth and increase income for parents/guardians. 4. Mindfulness & Wellness: Culturally relevant, on-site therapy, indigenous healing practices, mindfulness courses (to reduce stress), life skills sessions, parent groups, a father’s group, and Rainbow Alliance for LGBTQ youth and allies. 6. Arts & Culture: Legacy LA provides visual arts, comedy and improvisation, spoken word, poetry, theater, storytelling, graffiti art, murals, and hip hop music. Company of Angels, whose performance home is Legacy LA’s black box theater, uses the space to provide arts & culture in collaboration with Legacy LA and to develop emerging artists and produce theater that reflects the richness, diversity, and complexity of LA. 7. Leadership Development: The Youth Council engages youth in 3 years of leadership training. Mujeres Poderosas is a women’s leadership skill-building group that empowers women of Ramona Gardens; it was launched after Company of Angels worked with the women on a theater project. Comunidad Unida is a group of trained leaders (adults) improving the community. 8. Youth Organizing: Legacy LA builds youth power to improve community conditions. Legacy LA youth have been leading the “Invest In Youth Coalition”, which resulted in the creation of a City of LA Youth Development Department in 2021. Youth leaders are also engaged in a campaign to build a Ramona Gardens Natural Park to mitigate air pollution from the adjacent I-10 freeway; youth helped win a $950,000 federal grant award in 2022 to advance the park. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Alliance for California Traditional Arts | 985 N Van Ness Ave , Fresno, CA 93728 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 248-1563 | California, District 21 | Assembly District 31 | Senate District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, ACTA will continue to serve California’s diverse traditional arts ecosystem through statewide programs and services that center historically underrepresented artists and cultural communities. As a hybrid arts service organization and direct program provider, ACTA invests in cultural transmission and community well-being through initiatives like the Apprenticeship Program, Traditional Arts Roundtable Series, and Reentry Through the Arts. General operating support will sustain ACTA’s work in rural and urban regions, prioritizing communities in the lowest quartiles of the California Healthy Places Index. Funding will bolster ACTA’s ability to provide direct support to traditional artists, technical assistance, and field-building efforts statewide that affirm culture bearers as essential contributors to community health, racial equity, and collective resilience across California’s cultural landscape. | ACTA is a unique hybrid organization, serving as both a trusted statewide intermediary and a producer of programs, allowing us to distribute resources across the field while developing and implementing initiatives shaped by deep community relationships and cultural knowledge. As an intermediary, our work is grounded in long-standing relationships, cultural knowledge, and a commitment to reaching artists who have historically been excluded from funding systems. Our Apprenticeship Program offers $5,000 contracts to mentor artists for one-on-one training with apprentices, and Living Cultures Grants Program distributes $7,500 to individual artists and $10,000 to nonprofits, fiscal sponsors, and Tribal Nations. Since our inception, ACTA has partnered with the CAC to support California’s folk & traditional artists, first as the CAC’s designated partner to receive the NEA Folk & Traditional Arts State Partnership grants through 2020, and since 2022 as the CAC’s Administering Organization for Folk & Traditional Arts. Through the Taproot Artists & Community Trust, ACTA has expanded its reach nationally, supporting accomplished traditional artists and culture bearers across the United States and Territories. Public program engagement is central to our work. ACTA’s Traditional Arts Roundtable Series convenes artists for peer learning and exchange, while Sounds of California brings communities together through field research, storytelling, live performances, and media production. In Fall 2026, ACTA will launch its first annual festival in Fresno, “The Great Valley Gathering: Celebrating our Living Traditions,” a large-scale, place-based celebration of the region’s cultural life. Our work also extends into spaces shaped by structural inequities. Through Building Healthy Communities and La Cultura Cura, traditional arts are integrated into community health and well-being efforts. Through Art Breaks In, we bring traditional arts to incarcerated individuals in 17 state prisons and to recently incarcerated participants in Los Angeles and the Antelope Valley—supporting cultural restoration in some of California’s most vulnerable communities. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Boxtales Theatre Company | 1330 State St. Suite 203 , SANTA BARBARA, CA 93101 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 962-1142 | California's 24th congressional district | District 37 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Boxtales Theatre Company (“Boxtales”) will expand access to high-quality, culturally responsive arts programming for students and families, especially those historically excluded from live theatre. Through in-school assemblies, a Youth Summer Theatre Camp, digital learning, and our newest 2026 initiative, the Youth and Family Theatre Public Performance Series, Boxtales brings global myths and folktales to life through masks, movement, music, and storytelling. These vibrant performances spark imagination, foster creativity, and celebrate diverse cultural traditions while promoting empathy and inclusion. CAC support will broaden and deepen these programs, increasing equitable access to the arts. By removing barriers and amplifying underrepresented voices, Boxtales delivers transformative live theater experiences that strengthen cultural pride, inspire connection, and engage communities through the power of storytelling. | Since 1994, Boxtales has filled gaps to ensure that populations who are typically excluded from the arts can participate and reap the benefits of performing arts education. Boxtales’ mission is to bring myths and folktales from around the world to young audiences using masks, movement, music, and storytelling. We believe that the deep collective wisdom represented in old stories, particularly multicultural myths and folktales, is an important tool to honor diversity while showing youth that at the core, we have more in common than differences. Our performances help young children (5 - 12 years) inspire creativity, strengthen cultural pride, encourage tolerance, and engage young people in the excitement and immediacy of live performance. We hear from students that stories honoring diverse cultural traditions gives them a greater sense of self-worth, greater empathy for their peers, and helps them find their voice/place in the community. Boxtales programming offers live in-person assemblies, a teen summer camp, virtual assemblies, and arts exposure opportunities with partner organizations. As a company, Boxtales has created over 20 original theater works based on world mythology and folklore. These original works were devised by Boxtales members trained by master teachers in performance traditions in the cultures from which the stories came and designed and developed to meet California State Arts Standards. Currently, we have 4 original, award-winning, multicultural performances in repertory, one of which is bilingual. Boxtales is Santa Barbara’s only professional touring theatre company, and it averages 90 performances a year throughout Santa Barbara County and the western states. Shirlie Ririe, former head of Young Audiences of America, endorsed Boxtales as “The best youth program in America.” We are honored and humbled to have served 600,000+ children and their families, inspiring imaginations, creativity, compassion, and a love for the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Kern Valley Museum | PO BOX 651 , KERNVILLE, CA 93238-0651 | Kern | Central Valley | (760) 376-6683 | 20th District | District 32 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, KERN RIVER VALLEY HISTORICAL SOCIETY will continue to supply and expand many of the services that we've developed over the last 59 years. We continue to work on preserving art works, historic documents, historic photographs, and artifacts in our collection. We are also obtaining new items that must be scanned, catalogued and preserved on a regular basis. Materials and equipment for this ongoing project are expensive. Another ongoing project is our disaster preparedness plan. We are working towards protecting our collection from fires and floods. We also need funds to continue various programs that we put on during the year--like History Day, Tales on the Trail, art displays and receptions for local artists, education classes, and field trips. | We offer a wide variety of programs and services: 1. The Kern Valley Museum 2. Our art gallery that features artwork by the local Art Association and artwork from the extensive Western Art collection of Ardis Walker. Shows rotate monthly. 3. Our archive which houses books, documents, photos, maps, art, etc. from the local area 4. Educational Classes 5. Field Trips to sites of local interest 6. Partnerships with other history arts and cultural entities 7. Partnerships with our local Indian tribes 8. Events like History Day and Tales on the Trail. History Day features demonstrations of old time skills practiced by area pioneers (like mule packing, using hit-and-miss engines, Native basket weaving, blacksmithing, gold panning, etc.). Tales on the Trail is a dramatic interpretation of 8-10 early pioneers with vignettes written and acted out by local people. The audience moves from station to station to watch the individual plays. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Middletown Art Center | 21456 State Hwy 175 , MIDDLETOWN, CA 95461-1616 | Lake | Upstate | (707) 809-8118 | California's 5th congressional district | District 4 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, EcoArts of Lake County DBA Middletown Art Center (MAC) will continue to provide free, affordable, and equitable access to the arts for diverse communities in underserved Lake County, ranked in the lowest quartile of California's Healthy Places Index (HPI). Funds will support arts education and culturally responsive outreach, including community-engaged artmaking at public events county-wide, youth career development in the arts, accessibility and cultural sensitivity training, partnership building, workshops, classes, cultural events, monthly First Fridays, and the organization’s indoor/outdoor art and cultural space. Critically, funds will support bilingual digital and printed materials, program promotion, distribution, and assessment, ongoing website updates, and the curation, installation, promotion, and documentation of at least four annual exhibitions showcasing local and regional contemporary and cultural artists in a region with limited arts resources. | Community-focused, MAC serves a geographically dispersed region where arts resources are very limited, working to reach, connect, and uplift people of diverse backgrounds and abilities, with an emphasis on service to Lake County’s underrepresented communities. At the core of MAC’s programming are rotating curated exhibitions showcasing local and regional contemporary artists with emphasis on historically excluded voices including culturally diverse artists and artists with disabilities. Exhibitions serve as a platform for public dialogue, learning, and connection within the gallery, studio, and outdoor spaces. MAC delivers free and low-cost programming onsite and in communities throughout Lake County. Activities include musical performances, DJ dances, cultural celebrations, open mics, readings, arts education, and community-engaged art-making at festivals, schools, Tribal and other community spaces. Cultural arts projects centered around exhibitions, with workshops and field trips, are collaboratively designed and led by BIPOC artists, culture bearers, and community advocates, ensuring authentic representation and culturally appropriate outreach within their communities, fostering engagement. Public art projects, such as murals and sculpture, invite community participation. Education is central to MAC programming and designed to engage diverse learners. School field trips and artist-in-schools introduce students to contemporary and culturally rooted artistic practices through inquiry-based learning. Summer camp, homeschool, and after-school programs are low-cost, with subsidies available. In partnership with Woodland Community College, MAC hosts accredited college art classes. Also a creative workforce development hub, MAC supports artists’ professional growth through exhibitions, public art and teaching opportunities, promotion, and documentation. Youth are mentored in studio, gallery, and curatorial assistance, teaching, community activation, mural-making, project coordination, promotion, and operations—building skills, leadership, and pathways to higher education and employment in the arts, nonprofit, and other sectors. All programs are free, by donation, or low-cost, ensuring equitable access, elevating underrepresented voices, and cultivating a resilient arts ecosystem that strengthens community connection and well-being. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Tehama Arts Council | PO BOX 1201 , RED BLUFF, CA 96080-1201 | Tehama | Upstate | (530) 278-5691 | California's 1st congressional district | District 3 | STATE SENATE DISTRICT 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Tehama County Arts Council will strengthen and expand arts and cultural opportunities throughout rural Tehama County. We will provide free and low-cost programs that support artists of all ages and backgrounds, including ArtWalk, Missoula Children’s Theatre, the Student Art Contest, Poetry Out Loud, Cowboy Poetry, community art grants, monthly exhibitions, and classes. Through partnerships with schools, tribal communities, cultural organizations, and local businesses, we will present exhibitions, performances, workshops, and culturally specific events that celebrate the diverse traditions of our region. Our programs preserve and promote visual, literary, performing, and folk arts while ensuring accessibility for historically under-resourced communities. By fostering creativity, cultural expression, and community connection, we will help make the arts a vibrant and inclusive part of everyday life in Tehama County. | The Tehama County Arts Council (TCAC) was established in 1982 by the Tehama County Board of Supervisors to promote visual and performing arts as well as other cultural endeavors in Tehama County. Since incorporating as a 501(c) (3) nonprofit public benefit corporation in September 1985, the TCAC has coordinated, sponsored, funded, produced, and participated in hundreds of local arts events. The TCAC functions as an umbrella organization, encouraging and supporting the visual arts, dance, theater, music, design, and more. In recent years the impact of the TCAC on the community has been greatly enhanced by an art gallery and increasing activity in our community art studio. We bring art to our citizens and honor local artists with support through inclusion in community activities we sponsor and grant support. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Arrowhead Arts Association | PO BOX 1925 , LK ARROWHEAD, CA 92352-1925 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (909) 337-4296 | 23rd Congressional District | District 34 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARROWHEAD ARTS ASSOCIATION will continue to bring musical arts to the residents, youth and visitors of the San Bernardino mountain communities through our general operations. All of the areas we serve have HPI tracts in the lowest two quartiles: 108.03 (36.0%), 108.04 (33.7%), 108.05 (21.2%) and 108.06 (21.2%). | AAA provides vital arts programming to our mountain communities through our signature Youth Enrichment Program, and through Community Concerts. YOUTH ENRICHMENT PROGRAM Our Youth Enrichment Program is our most impactful program. It operates in partnership with the Rim of the World Unified School District. We provide direct support to our local public school students, home schooled students, and students attending our local charter schools through: Private Music Instruction – Scholarships are paid quarterly to teachers to subsidize the cost of student lessons. Instrument Rental Scholarships – Affordable instrument rentals are available to all string students. Music Camp Scholarships – We provide scholarships for local students to attend the acclaimed Arrowbear Music Camp and other regional music camps. Musical Performances in the Schools – We present annual musical performances to three elementary schools, reaching over 1,700 children grades K through 6, without cost to the school district. Early Childhood Programs - Our local schools have been able to provide arts programming to K through 3rd grade classrooms due to funds from Proposition 28. We do, however, provide additional financial support to enhance programming. String Program and Youth Orchestras – Our string programs include the Elementary, Elementary Advanced, Intermediate Orchestra, Intermediate Chamber Players, and Young Artists’ Ensemble at three elementary schools in the Rim of the World School District. Frosty Fiddles, Stringtacular – These youth recitals provide all music students, grades 4-12, with an opportunity to perform. COMMUNITY CONCERTS Fall Music Festival – We present a yearly concert by the Riverside County Philharmonic. Youth Symphony Concerts – We present free concerts by regional youth symphonies. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | ARTSCCC | PO BOX 70799 , Richmond, CA 94807 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 426-6454 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTSCCC (Arts Contra Costa County) will secure general operations and staff for signature arts programs, technical and research assistance for artist and art organization databases, arts regranting program development, grant writing services, and arts advocacy engagement to promote equity. ARTSCCC and its fiscal sponsor, the nonprofit Independent Arts & Media, were recently recognized by the Board of Supervisors as Contra Costa County’s local arts agency and State-Local Partner. Our mission is to foster communities through free expression and cross-cultural appreciation. Our grassroots work is built on compassion, joy, and respect to build a sustainable art organization. Signature programs include a “Poetry Series Program” at Juvenile Hall, “Youth Arts Connection” library workshops, “District Arts Partner” regranting program, and “Danza Azteca Teokalli (Teokalli Aztec Dance)” indigenous performance project. | ARTSCCC (Arts Contra Costa County) is a coalition of cultural leaders whose top priority is an equitable and sustainable arts organization. We facilitate connections and collaborations to build strong communities. ARTSCCC manages projects, provides arts services, and advocates policy to support the creative community. On February 6, 2024, the Board of Supervisors designated ARTSCCC, a fiscally-sponsored project of the nonprofit Independent Arts & Media, to serve as the county’s official local arts agency. For over twenty years, the nonprofit specializes in fiscal arts sponsorships that serve as a transformative “free speech platform” for independent voices and public-interest work. ARTSCCC and their fiscal sponsor, Independent Arts & Media, were officially recognized by the Board of Supervisors as Contra Costa County’s local arts agency and State-Local Partner. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | East Wind Lion Dance | 727 North Broadway #129, LOS ANGELES, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 369-0026 | 34th Congressional | CA 54th | 26th | With support from the California Arts Council, East Wind Foundation For Youth will be proud to launch a one-year class dedicated to teaching young females how to lion dance. This cultural lion dance class offers a comprehensive program designed to preserve the traditional art of Chinese lion dance while fostering personal growth and community connection. Participants will engage in a structured, weekly curriculum that bridges physical conditioning with cultural heritage. Beyond technical skills, the program fosters a deep appreciation for Chinese cultural arts and heritage. By centering young female in this traditionally male-dominated practice, we aim to create space for representation, leadership, and cultural continuity. Participants will have opportunities to engage with their community through performances and cultural events, ensuring that this vibrant cultural art dance form continues to thrive for future generations. | The EAST WIND FOUNDATION FOR YOUTH, INC is a 501(c)3 registered organization based in the heart of the Los Angeles Chinatown community. Established in 1972 by Sifu Ron Quan, East Wind’s focus on working towards creating opportunities and making positive impacts on at-risk youths has made them a leader in the global community of not-for-profit institutions. This long-standing tradition has instilled confidence and self-esteem in every person invested with the organization. East Wind has grown since its modest beginnings and seeks to continue its success in three key areas: Performing Arts (lion dance, dragon dance, and martial arts demonstration), Education (college prep, individual tutorial upon request, interview prep, mentor/mentee programs, and scholarships), and Community (volunteering clean-up in Chinatown, Alpine Park clean-up, Halloween Community Carnival, annual Holiday performances, Lotus Festival, Los Angeles Marathon, and Chinatown Golden Dragon Parade). |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | LA Artcore | 120 Judge John Aiso Street, Suite A A, Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 617-3274 | California's 34th (District 34) | State Assembly (District 54) | State Senate (District 26) | With support from the California Arts Council, LA Artcore will provide coverage for critical operational overhead obligations, including full-time staff support, rent, insurance, professional fees, and utilities. | LA Artcore produces year-round community-centered curated visual art exhibits, community arts programs |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | American Museum of Ceramic Art | 399 N Garey Ave , POMONA, CA 91767 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (909) 865-3146 | California's 35th congressional district | District 53 | District 22 | With support from the California Arts Council, the American Museum of Ceramic Art (AMOCA) will partner with 7 local library branches to provide each location with a slate of 3 free after-school MudMobile visits, including culturally relevant, hands-on arts education programs paired with a literary storytime component led by the library. With a total of 21 MudMobile visits across the partner libraries, the program will culminate in a free Family Day and exhibition opportunity at AMOCA. Selected library partners serve historically under-resourced communities and include Chino Branch Library, Covina Public Library, La Puente Library, Montclair Branch Library, Ovitt Family Community Library (Ontario), Pomona Public Library, and Upland Public Library. Across the 22 programs, this AMOCA/Public Libraries partnership will serve approximately 1,150 youth ages 4-25. | The American Museum of Ceramic Art (AMOCA) champions the art, history, creation, and technology of ceramics through exhibitions, collections, outreach, and studio programming. The Museum is a cultural institution of national and international significance, a vanguard for recognizing the place of ceramics in the visual arts community, an organization dedicated to the promotion of equitable access to the arts, and an important and early participant in the economic revival of the Pomona Valley. Housed in a 51,000-square-foot facility, AMOCA includes four exhibition galleries, a 12,000-square-foot ceramic studio, a resource library, Mudmobile, and a 13,000-object permanent collection. In 2026, we will open a new education hall, Kids Makerspace, accessible gender-neutral bathrooms, two new accessibility ramps, a curatorial preparation room, a Collection Study Room, and a Reading Lounge. AMOCA’s primary activities celebrate ceramic art, artists, and movements through exhibitions, accessible age-appropriate tours, lectures, artist talks, curator presentations, family days, Artist-in-Residence program, studio classes and workshops, and education and outreach programs. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | WHIPPOORWILL ARTS INC | 201 Martina Ave. , Richmond, CA 94801 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 708-3147 | Whippoorwill Arts appreciates the CAC’s consideration of a $30,000 general operating support grant for your continued support of two critical staff positions: Tiara Amar, Team Co-Director of Advocacy and Fellows, and Gabriel Block, Team Co-Director of Music aLIVE. Tiara leads our Advocacy programming, and builds a diverse, artist-led coalition advancing fair pay, professional protections, and equitable hiring practices for musicians. They also manage our Fellows Program, which provides $25,000 fellowships to a talented and diverse cohort of artists. Gabriel directs artist engagement and production for Music aLIVE, which brings free live music to underserved schools, elder care centers, and community partners. With CAC’s renewed partnership, Whippoorwill Arts will continue to support an outstanding cohort of musicians, foster more inclusive audiences, and bring the joy of live music directly to communities where it is needed most. | In response to the needs identified by roots musicians through our national survey, Whippoorwill Arts developed four interconnected program areas that support them and advance a more equitable music ecosystem in local communities: Advocacy: Through Advocacy and our Fair Play Initiative (FPI), we collaborate with municipalities, arts organizations, businesses, and philanthropists to better support local musicians. FPI priorities are identified collectively by a diverse coalition of musicians across ages, cultures, musical genres, and union membership statuses. Current priorities include establishing local wage standards, expanding job opportunities, and advancing equitable hiring practices. Music aLIVE: Through Music aLIVE, we organize free community concerts and create guaranteed paid performance opportunities for musicians. Concerts are curated for underserved communities in non-traditional settings through partner agencies such as senior centers, prisons, rehabilitation centers, veterans’ homes, and K–12 public schools. We intentionally uplift musicians of color, LGBTQIA+ musicians, and disabled musicians, and provide ethical pay of $200/hour for performances that are free to partner agencies and communities. To date, Music aLIVE has produced 965 concerts, created opportunities for 485 musicians, and brought live music to 48,000 audience members. Fellowships: We recognize and support under-the-radar musicians who have demonstrated sustained accomplishment, commitment, and artistic excellence. Fellows receive $25,000 over two years, undertake a professional music project, and join the Whippoorwill Fellows community for professional development, retreats, and performance opportunities. Since 2021, 17 fellows have been supported across four cohorts. Festival Partnerships: Each year, Whippoorwill Arts collaborates with festival organizations such as the Freshgrass Foundation and Northwest Folklife to present live music featuring regional and national roots musicians while promoting equitable pay, community-centered booking practices, and broader visibility for roots artists. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | HaGomel | 4321 Waterside Lane , OXNARD, CA 93035 | Ventura | Central Coast | (424) 256-5515 | HaGomel seeks operating support to sustain and expand expressive arts programming serving women impacted by sexual and other trauma. Facilitated in-person or virtually, to the public or through community partnerships, HaGomel delivers multi-modal workshops, integrating visual art, movement, meditation, writing, music, and theater. Funding will support capacity building to expand program design, facilitation, outreach, evaluation, and accessibility. HaGomel prioritizes partnerships with community-based organizations to reach underserved populations, including survivors of domestic and gender-based violence, as well as the front-line staff and healers of organizations serving those populations. CAC support will strengthen HaGomel's organizational infrastructure, deepen program quality, and increase the number of partnerships and workshops facilitated annually. This investment ensures that participants have free and consistent access to creative healing spaces, fostering connection, resilience, and self-expression while advancing equity in arts access across diverse communities. | HaGomel offers four types of expressive arts programs: In-Person Public Workshops In-person expressive arts workshops and retreats to attendees throughout Los Angeles and Ventura counties. These workshops and retreats are designed for women who want to heal from past trauma and build community. We provide a safe, creative space to explore personal expression and connect with others through art, writing, movement, and reflection. Participants are guided by skilled facilitators who specialize in expressive arts practices through a trauma-informed lens, ensuring each session fosters empowerment, self-discovery, and restoration. Virtual Public Workshops Virtual workshops expand access to the healing arts by bringing expressive arts practices directly into participants’ homes. These online sessions explore a variety of themes—such as mindfulness, resilience, storytelling, and self-care—through the lens of the arts. Women from diverse locations can engage in interactive and supportive experiences that encourage healing, growth, and community, regardless of geographic barriers. Community Partner Workshops HaGomel collaborates with mission-driven organizations providing services to individuals healing from sexual and other trauma. Our community partners invite us to design multi-modal workshops tailored to the needs of their participants, constituents, or staff. Whether serving survivors of trauma, youth violence prevention programs, or their staff on the front lines of service, these workshops integrate creative tools for wellness, connection, and resilience. Each session is customized, ensuring it aligns with our partner’s mission and supports the specific needs and culture of their community. Public Events Beyond long-form workshops, HaGomel engages the wider community through participatory resource and advocacy events. At public gatherings—such as Denim Day—HaGomel leads collaborative arts activities that invite individuals to contribute their voices and creativity to collective works of art and personal take-home projects. Activating space at these events raises awareness around healing arts, community resilience, and justice, while fostering connection and empowerment for all who participate. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | ANGELS GATE CULTURAL CENTER | 3601 S GAFFEY ST BOX 1/Building A , San Pedro, CA 90731 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 519-0936 | California's 44th congressional district | 65 | 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Angels Gate Cultural Center (AGCC) will provide equitable, youth-centered arts education for students across the Los Angeles Harbor Region through an integrated offering of in-and-out-of-school programs, including: Artists-in-Classrooms, Arts Exploration Field Trips, Teen Mural Club, and free, family-focused community workshops. Funding will support Artist-Teacher and education leadership staff salaries, transportation costs for students to access on-site arts experiences, and art supplies, all ensuring that participation is at no cost to youth and families. These programs primarily serve students from Title I schools, many of whom have limited access to arts education and cultural institutions. By combining in-school instruction, exposure to professional art spaces, and opportunities for creative expression rooted in identity and community, AGCC fosters artistic development, academic success, and pathways for continued engagement in the arts. | Angels Gate Cultural Center (AGCC) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide space for artists to work and to engage the community through arts education, exhibitions of contemporary art, and cultural events in the Los Angeles Harbor Region. AGCC emerged in the 1970s when a group of artists gathered to create artist studios and exhibition space in the 1940s-era Army barracks of Angels Gate Park in San Pedro, California. The site became a facility of the City of Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Department in 1977, with the requirement that a cultural center be developed to benefit the community. In 1982, AGCC was established as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) to provide a variety of arts engagement opportunities for the San Pedro community. Today, AGCC provides greater access to the arts—and to artists themselves—for Harbor Region families. In recent years, we have seen how the arts have the ability to uniquely strengthen communities and foster a renewed sense of belonging. At AGCC, we deliver high-quality arts programs while seeking to create safe spaces for gathering, to help break down social barriers, and to encourage community collaboration and wellbeing. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | ANGELS GATE CULTURAL CENTER | 3601 S GAFFEY ST BOX 1/Building A , San Pedro, CA 90731 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 519-0936 | California's 44th congressional district | 65 | 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Angels Gate Cultural Center (AGCC) will sustain and expand equitable access to high-quality, community-based arts programming in the Los Angeles Harbor Region. General Operating Support will fund key staff, including Arts Education, Gallery, and leadership teams, as well as direct program costs, enabling AGCC to offer free and low-cost arts education, exhibitions, public programs, and cultural events year-round. Funds will also support ongoing ADA accessibility improvements across our historic campus, ensuring that AGCC’s facilities and programming are welcoming and accessible to all. With CAC support, AGCC will serve over 19,000 artists, students, and community members next fiscal year— prioritizing communities with limited access to the arts—while strengthening organizational capacity, advancing equity-centered practices, and sustaining its role as a vital cultural resource for the region. | Angels Gate Cultural Center (AGCC) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide space for artists to work and to engage the community through arts education, exhibitions of contemporary art, and cultural events in the Los Angeles Harbor Region. AGCC emerged in the 1970s when a group of artists gathered to create artist studios and exhibition space in the 1940s-era Army barracks of Angels Gate Park in San Pedro, California. The site became a facility of the City of Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Department in 1977, with the requirement that a cultural center be developed to benefit the community. In 1982, AGCC was established as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) to provide a variety of arts engagement opportunities for the San Pedro community. Today, AGCC provides greater access to the arts—and to artists themselves—for Harbor Region families. In recent years, we have seen how the arts have the ability to uniquely strengthen communities and foster a renewed sense of belonging. At AGCC, we deliver high-quality arts programs while seeking to create safe spaces for gathering, to help break down social barriers, and to encourage community collaboration and wellbeing. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Fresh Meat Productions | PO BOX 460670 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94146-0670 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (707) 563-1117 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Fresh Meat Productions (FMP) will organize and produce our 26th annual FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL of transgender and queer performance June 18-20, 2027 (Z Space, SF). All performances will feature ASL interpretation. Our FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL is a beloved community gathering with artists creating and performing new work at the intersections of transgender, racial and disability justice. CAC funds will support Artist Fees of the festival’s 10 performing artists and ensembles, and will also support our Festival’s annual commissioning program, FRESH WORKS! — FMP will award FRESH WORKS! commissions of $5,000 each to 4 BIPOC transgender, gender-nonconforming and queer artists, to support the creation of new work. FMP will present the world premiere of these 4 commissioned works at our 2027 FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL. | Since 2002, Fresh Meat Productions (FMP) has presented over 750 Transgender, gender nonconforming (GNC) and queer artists, paying them more than $7.5 million. We are now celebrating our 25th Anniversary Season! FMP’s year-round programs are intentionally and authentically reflective of – and deeply relevant to – diverse transgender, GNC and queer communities, and are open to everyone: THE CREATION AND PERFORMANCE OF NEW WORK: 1) FRESH WORKS! Commissions: Awards grants to support the creation of new work by trans, non-binary, Two-Spirit and queer Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) artists. We present these new works at our annual FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL. 2) Sean Dorsey Dance (SDD): Our resident dance company, performs FMP founder and Artistic Director Sean Dorsey’s award-winning original dance-theater, centering trans and queer bodies and stories. SDD teaches across California, and has toured to over 35 cities across the globe. 3) TRANSfutures Commissions: Community-nominated, unrestricted grants to BIPOC Trans/GNC artists each year. PERFORMING ARTS PROGRAMS & EVENTS: 1) FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL of transgender and queer dance and performance: Our annual, multidisciplinary performance festival centering trans, GNC and queer BIPOC artists. 2) Co-sponsorship and financial support of community-based trans arts events. ENGAGEMENT AND EDUCATION: 1) Trans-supportive dance classes and workshops 2) Guest teaching and in-school residencies 3) LGBTQ2SI+ community conversations 4) Trans-supportive Cultural Competency Training for dance venues, studios, and service organizations. ADVOCACY: - Speaking engagements, panels, lectures, and other field-wide advocacy for trans equity in Dance. Disability Justice and Access are the FIRST things we consider in all of our programming, communications and events. We consider front-of-house access for audiences AND backstage/onstage access for artists, staff and crew. Based on our commitment to trans/racial/disability justice, FMP’s year-round programs and events are all FREE or $0+ sliding-scale with no one turned away for lack of funds. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | ACMA | 3505 Camino Del Rio S STE 305, SAN DIEGO, CA 92108-4090 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 789-1811 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, ASIAN CULTURE AND MEDIA ALLIANCE (ACMA) will sustain operations of its year-round Media Arts Academy, expanding equitable access to media arts education, cultural storytelling, and community arts opportunities for underserved communities across San Diego County. CAC funds will partially support a full-time Program Coordinator, professional studio and facility operations, and community outreach efforts that provide year-round arts education, storytelling initiatives, and culturally responsive programming. Through ACMA’s Media Arts Academy, including the TAKE ONE Vocational Media Arts Training & Internship Program and L.E.A.D. initiative, youth and emerging artists develop technical and creative skills, build confidence, and prepare for careers in the arts and creative industries while producing films, podcasts, and community storytelling projects that amplify underrepresented voices. | As part of our mission to amplify diverse voices and empower immigrant and underserved communities through media arts, ACMA produces educational and cultural initiatives that promote storytelling, workforce development, and cross-cultural understanding. ACMA Media Arts Academy ACMA’s flagship program provides hands-on training, mentorship, and production experience for middle school, high school, and transitional youth from underserved communities. Through L.E.A.D. workshops and the TAKE ONE Vocational Youth Media Training & Internship Program, participants develop skills in filmmaking, podcasting, digital marketing, and media literacy while preparing for careers in the creative industries. Asian Pacific Voices ACMA’s multimedia storytelling platform features a documentary television series and weekly podcast highlighting the stories and cultural heritage of Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander communities. Through conversations with artists, community leaders, and changemakers, the program explores cultural identity and issues affecting immigrant and underserved communities. Asian Pacific Cultural Festival Asian Pacific Cultural Festival San Diego Our annual festival celebrates AANHPI cultural heritage while welcoming participation from diverse communities through performances, food, art, and educational activities promoting cultural exchange and unity. Projects ACMA develops projects exploring community health, food systems, and cultural storytelling. Food for Life is a health and wellness initiative through the Far South Border North (FSBN) Initiative promoting nutrition education for underserved youth through culinary arts and cultural food traditions. The Shared Roots Initiative is supported by the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UCANR), highlighting farming, land access, and sustainable food systems while amplifying the voices of small farmers and immigrant growers. Community Partnerships and Services ACMA supports nonprofit, educational, and community partners by providing affordable digital media production and marketing services that amplify their programs and community impact. Supported by youth trained through ACMA’s Media Arts Academy and internship programs, these services create workforce opportunities while strengthening partner storytelling, video production, and digital outreach. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Hacienda Happy Tails Corporation | 31503 ROAD 204 , EXETER, CA 93221-9758 | Tulare | Central Valley | (559) 838-6151 | With support from the California Arts Council, Hacienda Happy Tails Corporation will launch 'Art on the Farm' an interdisciplinary arts program for Central Valley youth and individuals with disabilities. In partnership with the Boys and Girls Club, students will receive bi-monthly lessons in sketching, painting, and watercolor. These are supplemented by quarterly field trips to Hacienda de las Rosas for interactive farm-art sessions led by local artist Danny Diaz. By documenting rescue animals and our healing garden through fine art, this program fosters emotional resilience and artistic discovery. CAC funds will support artist stipends and professional-grade art supplies, ensuring this restorative 'living classroom' remains accessible to our region’s underserved populations. | Hacienda Happy Tails Corporation provides a unique intersection of animal welfare, artistic expression, and culinary engagement through three primary pillars: Nature-Integrated Arts & Observation: We utilize our sanctuary as a "living studio" for plein air painting, photography, and sketching. These programs encourage youth and individuals with disabilities to translate the resilient spirits of our rescued residents into visual media, fostering fine motor skills and creative confidence. Trauma-Informed Storytelling & Expressive Arts: Designed for artists navigating significant life barriers, this program pairs creative writing with animal interaction. By connecting with the healing journeys of our rescued farm animals, participants explore themes of recovery and empathy through symbolic art-making and narrative sharing. Culinary Arts & Sustainable Living: This program focuses on "The Art of the Table," teaching farm-to-fork culinary skills, food presentation, and sustainable gardening. Participants contribute to the sanctuary’s aesthetic and community health by designing functional garden spaces and learning nutritional arts, framing stewardship as a creative, vocational process.Strategic Partnerships & Impact:In collaboration with the Department of Rehabilitation (DOR), the Central Valley Regional Center (CVRC), and the Boys & Girls Club, we provide specialized mentorship. Our programs ensure that high-quality creative and vocational resources remain accessible to those navigating socio-economic and personal challenges. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Arts Council of Mendocino County | 309 East Perkins Street , Ukiah, CA 95482 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 463-2727 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, the ARTS COUNCIL OF MENDOCINO COUNTY will maintain programs and services the communities of Mendocino County rely upon to foster cultural development and support individuals, organizations, and communities in the creation, presentation, and preservations of the arts of all cultures. $5,000 of the total award amount will support implementation of Poetry Out Loud. | The ACMC expands opportunities for artists and arts organizations, supports arts education, promotes the role of the arts in the local economy, and increases public awareness of the value of the arts. With many residents of the county identifying as artists the services that best serve them have to do with providing opportunities to connect with buyers, other artists, and funders; providing crucial technical assistance at periods of career growth or in response to opportunity, providing publicity support for events; and being a strong voice for arts advocacy on topics ranging from public art to art in the schools. In the same way that the ACMC serves as a kind of cohesive grout between the multiple and diverse tiles that make up the cultural landscape of Mendocino County, we also connect this landscape and bind its interests and offerings to broader community needs around economic development and quality of life. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | AAWAA | 1890 BRYANT ST STE 302 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-1497 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 251-7433 | 11th Congressional district of California | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Asian American Women Artists Association (AAWAA) will strengthen the organization’s capacity to serve Asian American women in the arts, inclusive of artists, curators, and arts administrators. Funding will support key personnel in sustaining operations and improving programs that advance the visibility and recognition of our creative communities in California. | Established as a 501(c)3 nonprofit in 2007, AAWAA has blossomed from a close-knit community organization into an established producer of consistent high-quality multidisciplinary art exhibitions, short films, publications, and programming reaching local, national and international audiences. Major accomplishments include the film, The Worlds of Bernice Bing (2013), chronicling the life and work of pioneering queer artist and activist Bernice Bing; publication of literary and visual art anthology Cheers to Muses (2007); arts-based healing program A Place of Her Own; the Emerging Curators Program which offers mentoring and training for emerging curators of color to create community-based visual art exhibitions; and biennial large-scale exhibitions such as underCurrents and the Quest for Space (2013), Eating Cultures (2014), Hungry Ghosts (2015), Shifting Movements: Art Inspired by the Life & Activism of Yuri Kochiyama (1921-2014) in 2017, Agrarianaa: Art Inspired by APA Agricultural Roots (2019), Sowing Agency (2021) and Jade Wave Rising (2023). |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Tuleburg Press/The Write Place | 343 E. Main St., #101 , Stockton, CA 95202 | San Joaquin | Central Valley | (209) 949-2233 | California's 9th congressional district | District 13 | District 5 | With support from the California Arts Council, Tuleburg Press will sustain and strengthen its core operations by funding essential staff positions that drive its literary mission. During 2026-2027, a $30,000 award will help offset payroll costs for staff who deliver free and low-cost programming in Stockton, mostly to low-income residents. Tuleburg Press will continue to provide free classes, hands-on art activations at public events where staff bring papermaking and printing press demonstrations into neighborhoods across the region. The organization will partner with Title 1 schools to provide free and low-cost field trips for students who might not otherwise access arts education or engage with the written and book arts. This California Arts Council investment will help Tuleburg Press continue building an equitable and sustainable literary arts presence in the Central Valley. | Tuleburg Press publishes local authors and mentors emerging writers at The Write Place, the organization's creative writing and book arts center. We publish 1-3 books a year. Classes and field trips for people of all ages, with specific attention to low-income and marginalized groups, are held in papermaking, bookbinding, letterpress printing, and writing in fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. We currently serve between 30-40 participants a month. Tuleburg Press collaborates with other organizations to provide these same services to specific groups: the San Joaquin County Office of Education, Community Medical Centers, and San Joaquin County Housing Authority communities are priority partners. We also work with justice-impacted individuals through memoir writing and journal-making workshops in partnership with Friends Outside and the Community Medical Centers Respite Center, supporting healing and self-expression through the literary arts. Tuleburg Press is a stakeholder in the revitalization of the downtown Stockton core and a lead organization on arts advocacy and access in Stockton. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Stapleton School of the Performing Arts | 70 GREENFIELD AVE , SAN ANSELMO, CA 94960-2415 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 454-5759 | Congressional District 2 | Marin and Sonoma | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, Stapleton School of the Performing Arts will expand the reach of the Citizen Artist/Opening Night program, serving more schools and students throughout Marin County. This school-based outreach initiative brings California Arts Standards–aligned theatre and dance education directly into public school classrooms, providing hands-on instruction for underserved youth led by professional teaching artists. For many students, this is their first exposure to the performing arts. Those inspired are invited to participate in Opening Night, a free on-campus access program offering introductory classes and a welcoming entry point into continued training. CAC grant funds will directly support teaching artist salaries, scholarships, transportation, and supplies, ensuring equitable access and creating a sustained pathway from initial exposure to ongoing artistic development for underserved youth. | Values in Action Access & Inclusion Citizen Artist Program • Opening Night • Scholarships → Removing barriers and welcoming every student—no audition required Artistic Excellence Conservatory Training • Workshops & Guest Artists • Summer Intensives → Rigorous, sequential training led by professional artists Collaboration & Community Performance & Productions • Community Engagement • Multi-generational programming → Building connection through shared creative experiences Wellness & Empowerment Wellness Program • Inclusive classroom culture → Supporting the whole student—mind, body, and artistic voice Pathways & Opportunity Opening Night • Scholarships • Conservatory progression → Creating a clear journey from first exposure to advanced trainin Mission in Action Creating pathways from first exposure to advanced training—developing confident, creative Citizen Artists through access, excellence, and community. Conservatory Training Dance & Theatre Education (Ages 3–Adult) Ballet, contemporary, jazz, musical theatre, acting Pre-professional and advanced divisions Technique, artistry, and ensemble collaboration Performance & Productions Full-scale productions (Danse Printemps, Oliver! Jr., The Nutcracker) Multi-generational casts (ages 8–99) Professional-style performance experience Citizen Artist Program In-School Arts Outreach California Arts Standards–aligned instruction Public school partnerships Focus on underserved youth Opening Night Free Access Program Trial classes for ages 3–10 Entry point into arts training Gateway to scholarships Scholarships & Financial Aid Need-based support Multi-year training pathways Expands access regardless of income Wellness Program Community lectures & guest speakers Mental & physical wellness focus Free family and community events Workshops & Guest Artists Master classes with professional artists Acting, dance, choreography, and more Career exposure and mentorship Summer Intensives & Camps Technique and performance-focused training Multi-level programs Accelerated skill development Community Engagement Fundraisers (A Noble Benefit) Public events & performances Family and volunteer involvement |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture | 624 E Street , Marysville, CA 95901 | Yuba | Upstate | (530) 742-2787 | California's 1st Congressional District | District 3 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Yuba County Sutter County Regional Arts Council will implement the Yuba-Sutter Street Art Initiative, a youth-centered public art and placemaking project engaging local high school students, teaching artists, and community partners to design and install large-scale asphalt murals on school campuses and key intersections along Plumas Street in Yuba City. CAC grant funds will support artist stipends, in-school workshops, community design sessions, materials, and mural installation costs, ensuring equitable access for youth who face geographic and economic barriers to arts participation. Students will explore identity, culture, and local history while developing original designs that reflect their lived experiences. The project enhances public safety through traffic-calming artwork while building creative skills, civic engagement, and community pride. | Arts in Education, Arts in Correction, Murals of Live Oak, Veterans Art Projects, Center Stage Productions youth performing arts program, Yuba Sutter Big Band, Stage 754 Company, World Music and Culture Series, Cover It! Utility Box Mini Mural Project, Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Regional Affiliate, Poetry Out Loud, Art Fix & Mix, Youth Mariachi Orchestra, and many, many more. We also own and operate the Sutter Theater Center for the Arts and the Burrows Center for the Arts in Marysville which includes our offices. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | HALALYWOOD FOUNDATION INC | 1351 E 41ST ST APT 235 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90011-6294 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 244-0662 | With support from the California Arts Council, HALALYWOOD FOUNDATION INC will deliver writing and voice-over acting workshops for youth and underserved young people ages 5 to 25 in Los Angeles, California. The grant will support program delivery costs, including teaching artist fees, workshop materials, and recording equipment that enable participants to complete original written stories and produce voice-over audio narrations of their own work. Rooted in South Los Angeles communities facing significant socioeconomic barriers to arts access, HALALYWOOD FOUNDATION INC will guide participants through a structured creative process – from initial story concept through drafting, revision, performance, and final recorded production – that builds literacy, creative confidence, self-expression, and social-emotional skills. All programming supported by this grant will be offered free of charge to participants, ensuring that cost is never a barrier to access. | Halalywood Foundation’s core work centers on two interconnected disciplines for kids, youth, and underserved teens in Los Angeles: writing workshops and voice-over acting workshops. Our writing program guides participants from initial ideas through concept, character, structure, revision, and final draft. Young people are not passive recipients; they are treated as authors who leave with an original piece rooted in their own imagination, culture, and experience. The act of taking a story from beginning to end strengthens literacy, sequential thinking, and creative confidence that carries into school, relationships, and future goals. The voice-over acting program builds on that written foundation by training youth to bring their stories to life through performance. Voice-over acting requires clarity, emotional intelligence, breath control, and presence – skills that are both artistic and highly practical in classrooms, interviews, and community settings. Participants work toward recording their own animated or audio story narrations, creating a tangible, shareable record of their creative labor. Together, these programs are designed to serve the whole young person. A participant who writes and then voices their story has exercised imagination, strengthened literacy, practiced performance, and produced something of lasting value. For communities that are often told their stories do not matter, this work becomes a powerful corrective and an entry point to leadership and self-advocacy. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | SAN FRANCISCO BOYS CHORUS | 333 HAYES ST STE 116 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-4455 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 861-7464 | Congressional District 12 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN FRANCISCO BOYS CHORUS (SFBC) will engage up to 200 Bay Area students (grades K-12; majority BIPOC; one third low-income) in afterschool choral arts instruction and performances during the grant period (10/1/26-9/30/27). Under the direction of SFBC’s Teaching Artists, choristers at four rehearsal sites (San Francisco, Marin, East Bay, San Mateo) will strengthen vocal skills and musical knowledge and participate in 35+ performances, working with guest artists and partner organizations to bring choral music to diverse communities and regional audiences. SFBC will also continue to provide tuition assistance and scholarships for choristers from economically vulnerable families, reflecting the Chorus’s mission to make high caliber choral arts training and performance opportunities accessible for young people of all economic backgrounds. CAC funds will help underwrite artist fees related to instruction. | CORE PROGRAMS AND SERVICES: SFBC’s choral arts training program provides afterschool instruction to young people (ages 5-18) at four rehearsal sites in the Bay Area, including San Francisco, the East Bay, Marin, and San Mateo. Students from all sites gather in concerts and performances throughout the Bay Area. SFBC provides up to 32 weeks of instruction at each site during the academic year. SFBC also requires choristers to participate in Summer Music Camp, which entails a week-long overnight camp for older choristers and day camp for younger choristers. SFBC’s choral arts training program has four components: 1) Instruction; 2) Performance; 3) Recording; and 4) Touring. Training is sequential, divided into five tiers based on age and skill. SFBC also offers a Handbell Program. SFBC is committed to the preservation and revitalization of the boys choral tradition, and to providing a safe and nurturing space for boys to explore and develop their artistic capabilities. SFBC maintains an open-door policy, welcoming students across the gender spectrum to participate in and benefit from the Chorus experience. The Chorus is headed by Artistic Director Ian Robertson, a veteran conductor who served as the Chorus Director for the San Francisco Opera and the Scottish Opera. Robertson oversees SFBC’s artistic staff, which consists of 12 experienced music educators and music professionals who serve as instructors, accompanists, and vocal coaches for the program. The artistic staff is supported by a Program Administrator, who handles logistics and coordinates parent volunteers and school outreach. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Synchromy | 1390 North Arroyo Blvd , Pasadena, CA 91103 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 255-5718 | California Assembly district 43 | District 43 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Synchromy will produce a season of new music by Los Angeles-based composers, presenting a range of artistic voices to communities across Los Angeles County in accessible, welcoming, non-traditional venues and formats. In addition to concerts, we will provide professional development opportunities for composers and foster community engagement through ongoing partnerships. The General Operating Support grant will be used to support artist fees, production and exhibition costs, and marketing and administrative expenses. We will also use these funds to develop and implement accessibility strategies that improve access for audiences and participants. As an organization in a steady growth phase, this support will enable us to hire a production manager, strengthening our capacity to expand programming and deepen audience engagement. | LIVE MUSIC PROGRAMMING Synchromy produces 6-8 live music programs annually. Our 2025-26 season features six world premieres by LA composers. Tickets are free or low-cost. For paid events, we distribute free tickets through partner organizations. A number of our events take place outdoors, including our annual Urban Birds event. We also produce projects for digital spaces. SUPPORT FOR COMPOSERS Synchromy supports composers’ creative process from inception through production. We provide composers with high-quality documentation and press kits, which are crucial in obtaining further funding and performance opportunities. In 2022, we increased our commissioning fee to a minimum of $1500, which means that all of our artists are compensated at or above regional living wage standards. In 2025, we launched Composer Dream Projects, our flagship commissioning initiative which invites composers to propose the work they most want to create. Over the past several seasons, CDP has enabled ambitious, deeply personal projects that would not otherwise exist, while also generating essential visibility and career advancement for participating artists. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Synchromy believes that collaboration is essential for diversifying our audiences and ensuring that new music remains a vital and impactful part of the cultural and community life of our city. We began our Community Partnerships initiative in 2018, and have since collaborated with 16 non-arts organizations and 6 external arts organizations. Our goal over the next two years is to create five new partnerships, including collaborations with outreach nonprofits, educational bodies, and to offer childcare for audience members through collaborations with church nursery facilitators. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Southland Sings | 1320 Calle Galante , San Dimas, CA 91773 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 235-2596 | California Assembly district 48 | District 48 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, SOUTHLAND SINGS will present “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song” to two groups of underserved youth: students attending elementary schools in the Rim of the World Unified School District in the San Bernardino Mountain Communities, and system-engaged students in the Orange County Department of Education’s ACCESS program. | Southland Sings offers two programs: “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song” and “From the Page to the Stage.” In both programs, children and youth write and perform an original musical or play in a series of 10-14 consecutive 60-minute weekly sessions. “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song” teaches children to become writers, composers, singers, and performers of their own original musicals. Working together, the students improvise and write melodies with original accompaniment, and then merge their musical creation with their own lyrics. The finished piece contains 5-8 original short songs and poems, dialogue, movement, and narration. There is also an optional component that allows students to create original animations of their work. “From the Page to the Stage” uses the same methodology as “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song,” but the students create a play instead of a work of musical theater. The primary purpose of these programs is to deeply involve students in the subject of their play or musical. For example, students learning about Harriet Tubman would have the chance to speak her words, walk in her shoes, and write and sing songs about what she felt and experienced. In both programs, students determine the theme and plot of their work, create characters, dialogue, and narration based on their life experiences or on a common classroom subject. Students work both individually and in small groups, and the project culminates with a student-performed show for a live audience. Both programs serve general education students, students with disabilities, and students in a variety of settings including incarcerated youth facilities, and both integrated and isolated special education sites. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | KeyNote/SDYS | 1650 El Prado 207A , San Diego, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 233-3232 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Diego Youth Symphony (SDYS) will provide music education programs for over 760 students in the Chula Vista Elementary School District (CVESD). SDYS teaching artists will lead interactive music classes at 14 preschools and through the district’s Early Childhood School Readiness program. For students in 3rd-8th grade, SDYS will provide after-school music instruction at six CVESD schools through the Opus Project, and offer full youth orchestra tuition waivers to Opus students. These programs embed music-centered learning in trusted community settings, reduce barriers to access, and establish clear pathways for sustained participation in music education. | Celebrating 80 years in 2024-25, SDYS is San Diego’s comprehensive provider of cradle-to-college music education opportunities through: Our flagship ensemble program, housed in San Diego’s historic Balboa Park, features thirteen to fifteen orchestras and bands for musicians of all levels and provides additional depth through chamber music, theory, composition, second instrument camps, and summer opportunities. SDYS' Community Opus Project has partnered with Chula Vista Elementary School District for 15 years to restore music education programs to more than forty schools and is a national model for community engagement through music education. Lastly, SDYS' early childhood program, Chimes, works with infants, toddlers, and their families to promote creative youth development, pre-literacy, and school readiness through music education and pre-ensemble training. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Everyday Arts | 12046 Peoria Street , Sun Valley, CA 91352 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 669-9049 | California's 34th congressional district | District 53 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Everyday Arts will strengthen its ability to provide inclusive arts experiences for students with disabilities while creating sustainable employment for its core programming staff. Funding will allow us to provide free programming for public school students and their families, as well as free professional development opportunities for classroom teachers and arts specialists. Additionally, we will use funds to create an updated 5-year Strategic Plan, ensuring that our organization grows and thrives in the Los Angeles arts education community in the years ahead. | Our core program offerings are: 1. Educator Workshops - Learn how to infuse arts-based strategies into your everyday teaching practice. Help improve students’ social-emotional and academic growth through music, visual arts, movement, and theater activities! These workshops are open to classroom teachers, arts specialists, administrators, and related service providers. 2. Lesson Planning Support - Receive post-workshop support via a one-on-one session with an Arts Integration Specialist. We’ll work with you to identify and adapt arts activities most suited to your classroom goals and Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). These coaching sessions are available for classroom teachers and arts specialists. 3. Class Visits - Receive in-class support to implement arts integration lessons with your students. Our Arts Integration Specialist will co-facilitate with the classroom teacher and support staff. 4. Family Workshops Learn new ways to engage your children at home through easy-to-implement music, visual arts, movement, and theater activities! Parents and caregivers are invited to attend these workshops with their children, where they will participate in fun and accessible artmaking together. Everyday Arts prides itself on delivering fun, hands-on workshops that include collaborative art-making, group discussion, reflective practice, and lesson-planning. Participants learn inclusive teaching strategies, utilizing music, visual arts, drama, and movement activities aligned to the California Arts Standards. Our curriculum is adaptable for a wide range of populations, including students with autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disabilities, multiple disabilities, emotional disturbance, and learning disabilities, and has been shown to have a positive effect on reaching Individualized Educational Plan goals in self-contained classrooms as well as inclusion settings. We utilize the principles of Universal Design for Learning as well as the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning “Core SEL Competencies" to help students with diverse learning needs reach their goals. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Bethesda Repertory Theatre Inc. | 1731 Huntington Drive Apt H, South Pasadena, CA 91030 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 425-2741 | 28 | 49 | 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bethesda Repertory Theatre Inc. will stabilize our operations and deepen our commitment to equitable artist compensation. Grant support will provide stipends for our leadership, guest artists, stage management, and musicians, directly reducing our organization’s historical reliance on volunteer labor. We will also engage independent contractors for specialized design and marketing roles to ensure fair pay for professional expertise. To maintain community accessibility, funds will subsidize free and reduced-price tickets and cover costs for ASL interpretation and website accessibility upgrades. Additionally, support will offset essential overhead, including venue rentals, production materials, and insurance. By covering these fundamental costs, the CAC enables Bethesda to focus on our primary mission: producing high-quality, affordable theatre and providing paid career pathways for emerging artists from underrepresented backgrounds. | Main Stage Productions: Producing and presenting a season of plays, musicals, or other theatrical works. We primarily serve underrepresented communities on the Healthy Places index 1 and 2 and underrepresented artists (LGBTQ, BIPOC, AAPI) Special Events: Hosting one-time performances, workshops, or festivals. Providing monthly classes and workshops for aspiring artists at free and/or reduced prices. Community Workshops: Providing training and skill-building opportunities for adults interested in theatre. Free or Reduced-Price Performances: Making theatre accessible to diverse audiences through discounted tickets or free events. Outreach Performances: Bringing theatrical productions to community centers. Collaborations: Partnering with other arts organizations, schools, community groups and businesses. Volunteer Opportunities: Providing opportunities for community members to get involved behind the scenes. New Play Development: Supporting underrepresented playwrights in the creation of new plays. Fundraising Events: Organizing events to support the organization's mission and programs. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | The Table Art Society | 8917 LA MESA BLVD , LA MESA, CA 91942-9051 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 472-0578 | California Congressional District 51 | California State Assembly District 79 | California State Senate District 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, TABLE ART SOCIETY will launch Bridge Work, a 12-month project that places six working artists from City Heights and Southeastern San Diego at the center of paid public art in their own neighborhoods — communities in the bottom two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index, long under-invested by traditional arts institutions, and now hit hardest as San Diego's municipal arts funding collapses from $13.8 million to $2 million. Led by founding artist Haley Montgomery (DALL), Bridge Work pays artists professional rates for six community-rooted public engagements, convenes four free Artist Livelihood Roundtables that bring artists and neighbors to the same table, and culminates in a free community showcase and public report — modeling what neighborhood-rooted arts investment looks like when institutional support fails. | The Table Art Society provides artist-centered programs that support creative development, community connection, and access to public-facing opportunities. Our work equips artists with the resources, relationships, and platforms needed to sustain their creative practice. Artist Development Cohorts TAS facilitates structured cohorts offering mentorship, peer support, and practical tools for artistic and professional growth. These cohorts emphasize creative discipline, collaboration, and long-term sustainability for working artists. Public Showcases and Performances We produce live events and showcases that create opportunities for artists to present their work publicly. These programs increase artist visibility while providing accessible and meaningful arts experiences for the community. Community Gatherings and Creative Events TAS hosts community-centered gatherings that bring artists and audiences together in participatory and relational settings, fostering connection and cultural exchange. Artist Support and Resource Navigation We provide ongoing support through connections to opportunities, professional guidance, and access to networks that extend beyond individual programs, including pathways to paid and public-facing work. Through these programs, The Table Art Society serves a growing network of artists and contributes to a more connected and sustainable creative ecosystem in San Diego. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Sunday Jump | 153 Glendale Blvd , Los Angeles, CA 90026 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 250-4353 | 34th Congressional district of California | State Assembly District 54 | State Senate District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sunday Jump (SJ) will compensate their team of twenty volunteers who organize the free-to-attend open mics. Now in their fourteenth year, SJ’s core values are express, not impress; and free speech, not hate speech. Based in Los Angeles’ Historic Filipinotown, SJ annually hosts seven monthly open mics per season catering to over five hundred attendees. SJ will support special programming: film screenings, art workshops, concerts, and the annual Katipunan (poetry slam), highlighting Filipino-American diaspora. SJ will also provide honorariums to their twenty-five featured performers, primarily indie BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists. Featured performers range in mediums, coming with a prepared ten to fifteen minute set, differentiating them from open mic-ers. | Sunday Jump provides a variety of programs rooted in creating a sense of belonging and community ties to Historic Filipinotown. The backbone of Sunday Jump’s programming is the Open Mic, which occurs monthly from May to November at Pilipino Workers Center. Each event features a lottery-based sign-up, a featured artist, a food vendor, merch or art vendor, and a community spotlight, all chosen intentionally to uplift artists of color. The venue is fully accessible, with wheelchair access, gender-neutral bathrooms, ASL interpreters available upon request, and scent-free guidelines to accommodate all attendees. Monthly workshops offer a more intimate setting for participants to explore monthly themes through hands-on learning. Past topics have ranged from DIY paper making to storytelling through dance. Through our Publishing program, we produce physical and digital chapbooks that showcase art across multiple disciplines, offering community voices a sense of permanence beyond the live event space. Finally, we produce a number of special events, highlighting Sunday Jump's collaborative spirit. Since 2014, we have produced the Katipunan Poetry Slam, an annual event for Filipino and Filipino-American voices rooted in the tradition of the balagtasan, or poetic debate. Most recently, in partnership with KmB Pro-People Youth and LA Neighborhood Land Trust, we launched Kanto Corner, a quarterly festival that brings the community together at Unidad Park through vendors, performances, and mutual aid/service organizations, celebrating the Historic Filipinotown neighborhood as a living, vibrant home. Other partnerships have included a special showcase with KPCC's Unheard LA series and a Filipino mental health panel co-hosted with the LA Times. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | ARTS VISALIA | P.O. BOX 251 214 E OAK AVE, Visalia, CA 93279 | Tulare | Central Valley | (559) 739-0905 | California's 21st congressional district | District 32 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts Visalia intends to continue our mission of educating and promoting the visual arts with a focus of providing visual art opportunities to our entire community located in the center of the San Joaquin Valley. We will strive to involve our entire diverse youth and adult population by providing both a variety of classes, monthly exhibitions, special art events to the public, and in our Marketplace where local artists can sell their work. | Arts Visalia Visual Art Center offers a space for local, regional, and national artists to show and sell their work and the public to interact with their work through monthly art exhibitions. The gallery is open to the public, free of charge, Wednesdays through Saturdays, from Noon to 5:30 p.m. Artist talks, lectures, and demonstrations promote interaction between the community and artists. We offer art classes for youth and adults taught by qualified artist instructors, with scholarships available for youth who might otherwise miss out on the opportunity to explore their creative talents. Youth who participate in our classes are given the option to show and sell their work in our Young Imaginations Gallery space. In addition, we provide open-studio space where artists can work while visiting with cohorts. Our gift shop features unique items crafted by local artisans who sell their art on consignment. Arts Visalia participates in community events such as the Tulare County Arts Consortium's Taste the Arts Festival. The Board of Directors is committed to making the gallery a welcoming place for everyone in the community and has focused our energies on making this commitment a reality by showing a diverse array of art and artists. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | International Eye LA | 7381 LA TIJERA BLVD UNIT 451034 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90045-7046 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 656-3663 | California Assembly district 36 | District 61 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, INTERNATIONAL EYE LOS ANGELES will produce and present the 4th annual Los Angeles Carnival on the Shaw, a multicultural community development initiative using the structure and energy of a Caribbean carnival to revitalize the Crenshaw Corridor in South Los Angeles. Artists will work with businesses along the parade route to activate their establishments with ‘Vibe Spots’, ‘Chill Zones’ and other activations along the parade route. | Our core programs are built around five pillars: Healing Our Spirits: Supporting spiritual wellness to maintain inner peace in the midst of chaos and despair. Healing Our Minds: Supporting educational growth, mental wellness and mindful living. Healing Our Bodies: Encouraging physical movement, healthy nutrition, attire, sleep, safety and comfort. Healing Our Selves: Supporting self care as a critical part of sustaining a healthy community and a content life. Healing Our Community: Creating and facilitating opportunities for economic growth and social equity. Under our ‘Healing Minds’ pillar, IELA launched LA Creative Industries Academy (LACIA) and Carnival Arts in Education programs. Between 2020 and 2023 we graduated 15 LACIA fellows from underserved communities, some of whom have started their own creative practices or are pursuing opportunities in the creative industry. Under our ‘Healing Spirits’ and ‘Healing Selves’ pillars, we have helped to preserve the endangered Jamaica Jonkonnu tradition, a practice that is rooted in the connected histories of Jamaica and Ghana. This work garnered us an invitation to present our work in Ghana in 2023, where we made spiritual connections and new skills in mask-making and costume design, which we are passing on through our youth and creative development programs. Our Los Angeles & Festival of Arts embodies our ‘Healing Community’ and ‘Healing Bodies’ pillars. Following a very successful inaugural presentation of the LA Carnival on Crenshaw Boulevard in 2023, we rebranded it as ‘LA Carnival on the Shaw’ to activate businesses and infuse economic revitalization along this economically depressed section of Crenshaw Boulevard. We are collaborating with other community developers to revitalize and market this area as ‘The Crenshaw Strip’ and create a global tourism destination for the Crenshaw/Leimert Park area. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Four Seasons Arts Inc | 2700 Belrose Ave , Berkeley, CA 94705-1406 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 845-4444 | With support from the California Arts Council, FOUR SEASONS ARTS INC will continue the annual Distinguished Artists Concert Series, the Music in the Schools program providing seminars in public schools featuring major classical music artists, and will increase current outreach efforts to organizations and individuals in underserved communities. | Four Seasons Arts presents an annual series of classical music recital and chamber concerts in Berkeley, California. Other services include: seminars at local public schools presented by professional classical music artists, transportation to concerts for senior subscribers, and coordination of volunteers. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | 7545 Hampton Ave., # 207 , W HOLLYWOOD, CA 90046-5542 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 814-8597 | California's 28th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council Helix Collective will invest in live workshops and artistic programs, and strengthen our marketing to better reach a wider audience. This support will allow us to pay contractors to achieve these aims including artists, videographers, and for marketing, administrative support, and online tools. | Helix Collective formed in 2009, as a chamber music ensemble with the objective of bringing classical music to new and diverse audiences. A feature of a "helix" is the ability to recombine into many different yet related forms. Thus, Helix Collective evolves and recombines for every program. The original group included flute, oboe and piano. With this trio, we toured and recorded the critically-acclaimed album, All In. In 2012, we became a non-profit 501(c)3. We added percussion and created the World Dance Club program, an album featuring newly-commissioned international dance music. Our current core programs are the Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival, additional live score-to-screen concerts of media music, and music and storytelling concerts. We’ve developed new partnerships with the L.A. Film School for our annual festival and the Film Music Connect workshop with SAGindie, providing original, recorded scores for participating SAGindie filmmakers. The Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival pairs directors of short films with film composers. The composers write original scores for Helix Collective to perform live-to-picture at the festival. After the festival, the scores are recorded for inclusion in the final version of the films. Films for the most recent festivals were curated by SAGindie and the L.A. Film School. We also partner with the Composers Diversity Collective, an organization dedicated to increasing the visibility of composers from diverse backgrounds throughout the music industry and to mentoring emerging composers from underserved communities. Helix Collective recorded and produced "Shoutout!" a visual album of music by 12 composers from the collective, "Spotlight" a live concert featuring Composers Diversity Collective composers and Level Up game music concert featuring women and BIPOC composers. In 2024 Helix Collective made the West coast premiere of Click Clack Moosic, a children's musical story time program at Boston Court Pasadena. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | The Compton Arts Project | 4252 Crenshaw Blvd., Unit 115 , Los Angeles, CA 90008 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (315) 514-2253 | 43 | 64 | 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, CAKECUTTER INSTITUTE DBA The Compton Arts Project will implement an artist-led public art, storytelling, and cultural preservation initiative connected to the proposed Compton Cultural Arts District. Funding will support public art installations and artist-led cultural activations along proposed district boundaries, including storytelling workshops, oral history collection, bilingual outreach, accessibility support, and development of a publicly accessible digital archive preserving community cultural memory. The project will engage youth, elders, artists, educators, and residents through intergenerational storytelling activities, artist talks, cultural gatherings, and creative placemaking efforts designed to strengthen cultural visibility, neighborhood identity, equitable arts access, and community connection in historically under-resourced communities. The digital archive will preserve oral histories, artist contributions, public art, and neighborhood cultural narratives while supporting long-term community cultural preservation and development. | Cakecutter Institute DBA The Compton Arts Project activates creative placemaking, public art, storytelling, and community cultural engagement projects across Compton and surrounding communities. Powered by Sēpia Artist Collective (Sēpia LLC), our work is organized through four core program areas: Arts Advocacy & Policy Development We provide pro bono consulting support to the City of Compton to help advance civic arts initiatives, strengthen long-term cultural planning efforts, and support implementation of the City’s first Arts Commission. We also coordinate development of a Public Art Registry and long-range Creative Placemaking Plan connected to the proposed Compton Cultural Arts District. Creative Placemaking & Public Art We lead artist-led and community-centered initiatives such as the Traffic Lightbox Project, Elliott Pinkney mural restoration, and The Compton Memory Map. These efforts combine public art, storytelling, digital engagement, and sustainable design strategies to reflect Compton’s cultural identity, activate public space, strengthen neighborhood pride, and support community visibility and healing. Cultural Programs & Storytelling Signature programs include Reading the City, Compton Cipher, and the Bi-Annual Community Arts & Culture Summit hosted at Compton College. These initiatives convene artists, residents, educators, youth, and civic stakeholders through artist talks, storytelling workshops, cultural gatherings, creative labs, and digital storytelling activities that support cultural preservation, intergenerational dialogue, and community engagement. Healing Arts & Environmental Justice We integrate wellness, environmental awareness, and collective care into our programming through artist-led initiatives and partnerships connecting arts and culture with climate justice, healing-centered engagement, public safety, and neighborhood wellness. Our programs are supported through a collaborative network of artists, curators, educators, youth leaders, community partners, and advisory board members. Through Sēpia Artist Collective, participating artists and curators are contracted to support project-based public art, exhibitions, storytelling initiatives, workshops, and cultural programming activities. We prioritize fair artist compensation, accessibility, equitable participation, and long-term community-rooted cultural development. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | The Compton Arts Project | 4252 Crenshaw Blvd., Unit 115 , Los Angeles, CA 90008 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (315) 514-2253 | 43 | 64 | 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Cakecutter Institute DBA The Compton Arts Project will strengthen organizational capacity through community outreach, bilingual engagement, artist support, culturally responsive programming, and communications infrastructure that advances equitable arts participation and creative placemaking in Compton. General Operating Support funding will support community outreach coordinators, including bilingual Spanish-speaking outreach staff, public engagement activities, printed outreach materials, social media communications, artist-led programming, storytelling initiatives, accessibility efforts, and public art activation connected to the proposed Compton Cultural Arts District. As municipal leadership transitions have delayed implementation of local arts initiatives, Cakecutter Institute DBA The Compton Arts Project continues serving as a stable, community-rooted arts partner advancing long-term cultural development, artist leadership, and community-driven creative placemaking in Compton while building sustainable civic arts infrastructure and expanding inclusive participation in local cultural planning efforts. | Cakecutter Institute DBA The Compton Arts Project activates creative placemaking, public art, storytelling, and community cultural engagement projects across Compton and surrounding communities. Powered by Sēpia Artist Collective (Sēpia LLC), our work is organized through four core program areas: Arts Advocacy & Policy Development We provide pro bono consulting support to the City of Compton to help advance civic arts initiatives, strengthen long-term cultural planning efforts, and support implementation of the City’s first Arts Commission. We also coordinate development of a Public Art Registry and long-range Creative Placemaking Plan connected to the proposed Compton Cultural Arts District. Creative Placemaking & Public Art We lead artist-led and community-centered initiatives such as the Traffic Lightbox Project, Elliott Pinkney mural restoration, and The Compton Memory Map. These efforts combine public art, storytelling, digital engagement, and sustainable design strategies to reflect Compton’s cultural identity, activate public space, strengthen neighborhood pride, and support community visibility and healing. Cultural Programs & Storytelling Signature programs include Reading the City, Compton Cipher, and the Bi-Annual Community Arts & Culture Summit hosted at Compton College. These initiatives convene artists, residents, educators, youth, and civic stakeholders through artist talks, storytelling workshops, cultural gatherings, creative labs, and digital storytelling activities that support cultural preservation, intergenerational dialogue, and community engagement. Healing Arts & Environmental Justice We integrate wellness, environmental awareness, and collective care into our programming through artist-led initiatives and partnerships connecting arts and culture with climate justice, healing-centered engagement, public safety, and neighborhood wellness. Our programs are supported through a collaborative network of artists, curators, educators, youth leaders, community partners, and advisory board members. Through Sēpia Artist Collective, participating artists and curators are contracted to support project-based public art, exhibitions, storytelling initiatives, workshops, and cultural programming activities. We prioritize fair artist compensation, accessibility, equitable participation, and long-term community-rooted cultural development. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | 2332 W 4TH ST 2332 W 4th ST, LOS ANGELES, CA 90057-2702 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 382-8133 | 34 | District 53 | District 24 | SINERGIA is seeking funds to provide artist honorariums (playwrights, actors, and directors) for 3 month-long iterations of our 2027 10-Minute Theater Festival. The annual 10-Minute Festival was established in 2012 with the goal of providing work opportunities for emerging Latinx theater artists. Our venue provides them with the space to stage original works and receive valuable feedback from the artistic director, their peers and the community at large. These 3 iterations will result in 30 new 10-Minute plays, and provide employment for 135 artists. All other production expenses will be provided by other funders. | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA (Synergy Theater Group) is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit arts organization operating out of the William Reagh Los Angeles Photography Center, located at 2332 W 4th St., in the heart of the Westlake District, one of the most densely populated and economically challenged areas of Los Angeles on the outskirts of Downtown. We organize arts programs representing the major ethnic groups residing within a five-mile radius of the Center, primarily Latino immigrant groups from Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Mexico. Throughout the years, SINERGIA has worked diligently to establish a working relationship with the surrounding community in order to integrate them as welcomed members of the company. Our focus continues to be on works and arts education programming relevant to our underserved community. We presently serve a highly transient, zero to low-income population, comprised mostly of first-generation immigrants. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The World Stage | 4321 Degnan Blvd , LOS ANGELES, CA 90008-0694 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 934-6313 | District 37 | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, WORLD STAGE PERFORMANCE GALLERY will continue to provide annually, more than 200 free and low cost Arts workshops, for ages 10 to 80+, residing in the underserved South Los Angeles (SLA) Leimert Park community. Programming features African American and African Diaspora Arts enrichment including Jazz Instrument and Vocal Jam Sessions/Open Mikes, African Drumming, Poetry, Big Band Ensemble (Music Theory/Performance) and live weekly Concerts. | Organization program and services include Wednesdays: Anansi Writer’s Workshop, Thursdays: Billy Higgins Instrumental Jazz Jam Session, Friday: Concert Series, Saturdays: Trap Drum Workshop, Jazz Vocal Workshop, S.H.I.N.E. MAWUSI Women’s African Drum Circle; Jazz Instrumental Musician Master Class-Reed's Creeds; Sundays: World Stage Big Band and Rose Gales Vocal Jazz Jam Session. Performances at The World Stage generally occur on Friday and Saturday evenings. Please view our calendar for upcoming events. The World Stage fosters exchange and interaction between artists of all ages and levels, and provides a place for self-discovery, experimentation and critical feedback in a nourishing environment. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $16,293.00 | TeamWorks Art Mentoring Program | P.O.Box 151066 , San Rafael, CA 94915 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 299-9467 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 12 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, TeamWorks Art Mentoring Program will strengthen school communities through visual arts education and collaborative, site-specific murals and installations. Our mission is to expand access to culturally responsive arts experiences for historically marginalized and/or justice-system-engaged young people seeking an alternative path to graduation by supporting creative expression, skill development, and meaningful participation in community-based artmaking. We reduce barriers to arts access by placing teaching artists at no-cost in under-resourced Title I schools. Through long-term residencies, public art exhibits, and representative staffing, we foster inclusive learning environments, strengthen student connectedness, and advance racial equity. By centering youth voices, sense of belonging, and leadership opportunities, TeamWorks helps participants build confidence, contribute to a dynamic and diverse campus culture, and create art that reflects their identities, values, and communities. | TeamWorks Art Mentoring Program’s curriculum provides a platform for system-engaged and prioritized youth to express themselves and experience culture-affirming co-creation of personal artworks and public murals. Our program offers arts and culture-affirming collaboration on campus during and after school hours, in community settings, and in our county-operated correctional facility. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Yosemite Sierra Artists | PO BOX 838 , OAKHURST, CA 93644-0838 | Madera | Central Valley | (559) 683-1112 | California's 4th congressional district | District 5 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council,Yosemite Sierra Artists will expand and strengthen current arts and cultural programming in the Tri County Area of Madera, Mariposa, and Fresno Counties. Programming includes monthly plein air outings, portrait group with models, photo group meetings, demonstrations, and community events, such as Mariposa Paint Out, Au Naturale Exhibit, Oakhurst Art & Wine Hop, and Up Close with Wildlife at the Nature of Wildworks wildlife rescue and sanctuary. Also highlighted is our new gallery space with the work of 32 local artists who also staff the gallery twice a month and interact with visitors, walking them through exhibits, answering questions, and celebrating our interactive gallery space. All events, outings, and exhibits are welcoming and accessible and accommodate visitors with mobility and other issues. | Activities include: • Plein Air Outings Outings are scheduled for the 4th Wednesday of each month. Currently, these are free to all YSA members. Guests may attend but after the first visit we request they join YSA. To stay informed of YSA meetings, outings, exhibits, and special events follow YSA on Facebook. • Photography Group Monthly theme is suggested via our Facebook Group. Meetings are held once a month. • Live Model Sessions All are welcome to paint/draw/photograph/sculpt from hired models. Meets in at the Oakhurst Community College. Check the CALENDAR for upcoming dates. Cost is $10.00 for YSA members, and $15.00 for guests. • Quarterly Art Demonstrations 10:00 am General Meeting 10:30 Art Demonstration Yosemite Sierra Artists currently gather monthly via ZOOM and/or in person at the Community College in Oakhurst. • YSA Anniversary Competition and Exhibit • Au Natural Exhibit of the Human Form • As a member of the Fresno Arts Council YSA will share artist opportunities with the Fresno area and share FAC info in our newsletter • Visions of Self, an international exhibit of works by women artists, now in its sixth year. • YSA Gallery targets: • Local community members • People who enjoy visiting galleries, learning about art, and discussing creative works as well as those who enjoy being part of the cultural scene. • Individuals aged 20-40 who are starting their careers and may have disposable income for buying art or attending art-related events. • Tourists and visitors traveling to the Yosemite National Park area and may want to buy souvenirs or art pieces from their trip. • Artists and creatives who are looking for exposure, opportunities for networking, and a chance to gain recognition. • Businesses looking for art to decorate their offices Currently, YSA has 157 paying members ($40 per year) and serves another 1500 visitors each year across all program areas. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Electric Company Theatre | 1133 BERENICE DR , BREA, CA 92821-2206 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 393-1256 | 45th | 59 | 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, THE ELECTRIC COMPANY THEATRE will present a season of plays each year by a collective of artists dedicated to nurturing the exploration, development and presentation of classic, contemporary, and original texts for children and adults, providing a forum for community connection, and creating a platform for change through the unique experience of live theatre. ECT provides a show for children each year with free or discounted tickets to elementary students, and opportunities for free tickets for high schoolers at full length productions. ECT presents shows for all ages that provide intimate performer-audience experiences, often setting the plays in unconventional performance spaces. Casting a diverse company of actors, ECT tells beautiful stories to communities that may not otherwise be exposed to the art of theatre. | The Electric Company Theatre produces beautiful full-length plays, immersive experiences, and an intimate storytelling and concert series on the grounds of the Muckenthaler Cultural Center in Fullerton. Each season contains one show specifically for children: Thousands of Fullerton school children attend annually for original theatrical experiences written specifically for the students. The rest of the theatrical season includes shows for community members and residents of all ages, providing live theatre for the North Orange County area. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | 82-2363154 | 2728 Sixth Avenue , SAN DIEGO, CA 92103 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 738-1232 | California's 50th congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Voices of Our City Choir will advance our mission to amplify the voices of people impacted by homelessness through music and the arts. Funds will enhance/expand our service model, which integrates welcoming, healing music/artistic programs into culturally-responsive outreach and case management to foster empowerment and respect, help unsheltered artists meet basic needs, and transform cultural narratives about homelessness. A grant from CAC will 1) increase the number of unsheltered San Diego artists we engage in musical programming that is incorporated into case management/wraparound support; 2) increase the visibility of San Diego artists experiencing homelessness to public audiences; 3) elevate lived experiences of our Choir Members during performances to reframe public perceptions/stigmas around homelessness and catalyze change; and 4) increase access to the arts among under-resourced audiences. | San Diego-based musician Steph Johnson co-founded Voices as a Performance Choir in 2017, in collaboration with local musicians and people experiencing homelessness. Our Choir has performed in more than 150 events, including San Diego Symphony Orchestra, San Diego Master Chorale, and America’s Got Talent (AGT), where Members received the Golden Buzzer award and inspired San Diego’s Board of Supervisors to declare June 2nd “Voices of Our City Day.” To build upon the success of our choir, Voices expanded our arts and creative offerings to include songwriting and music production workshops and wraparound services that link Members to housing/social supports. We offer songwriting workshops to engage Members in creating new, original productions for our Choir to perform in community events. We also provide Members access to our in-house studio to learn music recording, engineering, video, and production skills. In 2022, we formalized the structure of our case management, wraparound service referrals, and basic needs services into a Choir Member Services program. Through our musical programs, Members develop trusting, authentic relationships with our Member Services staff; these connections provide a critical avenue for staff to identify Members’ housing, food, and mental health needs and provide a symphony of resources to meet them. In this way, Voices uses the rhythm of musical programs to move Members through the hierarchy of basic needs and help them realize their full potential. In the process, Voices evolved from a performance ensemble to a nonprofit using musical programming to help unsheltered neighbors meet basic needs. Voices has received excellence awards from Mayor Todd Gloria and the San Diego Psychological Association. Voices also received the 2022 Peacemaker award from the National Conflict Resolution Center and Blue California Promise 2025 Leading the Way Award for Wellness & Empowerment. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Artists of the High Desert | 9648 9TH AVE Ste 8 , HESPERIA, CA 92345-3457 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (442) 353-4258 | With support from the California Arts Council, Hesperia Art Club, Inc will execute a facility expansion to establish the first permanent, community-owned art gallery and multi-disciplinary studio in the High Desert. This project will help us transition to a sustainable owner-operated cultural hub, ensuring long-term institutional stability and expanded public access to the arts in the High Desert region. If funded, our organization will utilize grant funds to support the following. Secure a permanent facility with sufficient square footage to house a public exhibition gallery and a multi-medium classroom. Increase the frequency of youth educational workshops and launch a dedicated curriculum in Spanish to serve the local Hispanic population. Improve physical infrastructure including adaptive workstations to ensure full participation for seniors and individuals with mobility disabilities. Host a year-round calendar of public gallery openings. | The purpose of this corporation is to bring together and increase the discovery, understanding, appreciation and enjoyment of the art and artists in our community through classes, programs and events. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | OnStage Playhouse | 291 THIRD AVE , CHULA VISTA, CA 91910-2721 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 422-7787 | California's 52nd Congressional District | District 80 | District 18 | With the generous support from the California Arts Council, OnStage Playhouse Inc. (OSP) will allocate funds to cover vital operating expenses. This includes the recently doubled monthly rent, facility maintenance, utilities, and the purchase of production equipment to enhance the quality of our performances. The grant will also be used to compensate our dedicated staff, invest in marketing and outreach efforts, and provide professional development opportunities for artists and staff. Additionally, funds will support initiatives to improve accessibility, making our theater more inclusive for individuals with disabilities. This grant will ensure financial stability, enhance production quality, expand our audience reach, and promote professional growth and accessibility. With these investments, OSP can continue to enrich the community through our vibrant arts and cultural programs at an accessible ticket cost to patrons from all socio-economic backgrounds. | OnStage Playhouse (OSP) is the only live theatre in San Diego’s South Bay, producing a season of six full-length plays annually in our 70-seat venue. Each show runs 4–6 weeks and features contemporary, diverse stories reflective of our region. We are committed to accessibility, offering discounted tickets to seniors, students, low-income individuals, and active military. We also provide free admission to all high school and college students in San Diego County, ensuring young people have access to thought-provoking theatre that fosters empathy and deeper community awareness. Education & Workforce Development OSP’s Student Intern Program gives high school and college students a 9-month immersive experience in all areas of theatre. Participants culminate their training with a student-led production, and selected interns receive modest scholarships. The Student Apprenticeship Program pairs college students with professionals for hands-on experience in production roles, with two scholarships awarded annually. Through our High School Mentorship Program, we collaborate with educators to bring professional artists into classrooms across the county. These workshops are supplemented with free tickets to current shows, extending the learning beyond the classroom. New Works Development Our Page to Stage program supports emerging and underrepresented local playwrights by providing space and resources for script development to culminate in a full production in our season. OSP has historically supported BIPOC, immigrant, and senior citizen writers who develop original plays that resonate with our diverse audiences. This comprehensive support provides playwrights with the tools and platform to bring bold, relevant stories from the page to a live audience. Community Engagement Through Quarterly Community Drives, OSP partners with local nonprofits to collect and distribute essential items, such as food, clothing, and toys, to economically impacted families. These events strengthen our role as a cultural and civic hub and reinforce our mission to serve the broader needs of our community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | SUNSET MUSIC AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION | 1900 S PALM CANYON DR UNIT 52 , PALM SPRINGS, CA 92264-8949 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (323) 251-4940 | The Sunset Music and Education Foundation (SMEF) will use CAC funding to expand its SMARTS Initiative (Sharing Music, Accessing Resources, Transforming Students), providing underserved youth in the Coachella Valley with instruments, mentorship, scholarships, and hands-on learning opportunities through live music programming. Funds will support artist-led workshops, student participation in rehearsals and soundchecks, and performance opportunities alongside professional musicians within SMEF’s concert programming. Students will gain real-world experience in both artistic and production environments, strengthening their musical skills, confidence, and career pathways. CAC support will also help underwrite community-based performances that serve as educational platforms, increasing access to high-quality arts experiences for students and their families. These activities expand equitable access to the arts while fostering the next generation of artists and cultural leaders. | The Sunset Music and Education Foundation (SMEF) delivers community-centered arts programming through live performances, music education, youth development, and intergenerational cultural engagement across the Coachella Valley. Our signature SMARTS Initiative (Sharing Music, Accessing Resources, Transforming Students) provides underserved youth with instruments, scholarships, mentorship, and hands-on learning opportunities. Students gain real-world experience through rehearsals, soundchecks, workshops, and live performances alongside professional musicians. SMEF also produces concerts, festivals, and the Sunset Music Series, presenting professional artists across genres including jazz, blues, soul, Latin, comedy, and multidisciplinary performance. These events serve as both cultural celebrations and educational platforms that expand access to the arts. In addition, we present programs connected to Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Jazz Appreciation Month, Juneteenth, and other community celebrations that honor heritage, creativity, and shared history. Our programs also create welcoming spaces where older adults remain connected, engaged, and part of the cultural life of the community, reflecting our belief that the arts should enrich every stage of life. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | "" | 11112 LA MAIDA ST UNIT 7 , N HOLLYWOOD, CA 91601-4575 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 628-3507 | 29th District | District 46 | 20th District | With support from the California Arts Council, RETURNING SOLDIERS SPEAK will produce a Veteran-led community-centered theatrical project featuring a play written by a Veteran, performed by Veterans, and artistically and technically supported by Veterans. Following a developmental and rehearsal process, the full-length production will be presented through public performances for the community, with facilitator-led dialogue sessions following each performance. Meaningful engagement among Veteran participants during rehearsals and performances, together with post-show dialogue involving audiences and community partners, will empower, uplift, and reduce the isolation many Veterans experience while supporting reintegration into civilian life. In addition, this Veteran-led arts and healing project will help community members gain deeper insight into the realities of military service, while breaking down barriers of misunderstanding, stigma, and prejudice through shared artistic experience. | Our programs and services address the pressing need for veterans, first responders, and their families to have supportive and safe platforms to tell their stories through the written word, readings, and performances for the community. Veterans often face isolation and a lack of community engagement post-service. Evidence suggests that many struggle to find avenues to express themselves creatively. By providing structured developmental programs for veterans, first responders, and their families to write and workshop their stories and original writings, we offer them a pathway to healing and community. Through dialogue, storytelling, poetry, prose, creative non-fiction, and playwriting veterans overcome isolation, connect with peers, and break through barriers to sharing their talents and their life experiences. We offer readings and performances opportunities for veterans to share their stories with the community, through this cohesive and holistic process and programs; they learn that coming home is possible and deserved. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Medical Clown Project | 5716 Skyview Pl. , El Sobrante, CA 94803 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 337-1564 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council MEDICAL CLOWN PROJECT will >Provide access to our programming to audiences who need it most - those isolated in health care settings and their caregivers - bringing the joys of theatrical play to assisted living, memory care, hospital wards, and pediatric units. >Promote the well-being of the whole person, by sharing activities bringing joy, warmth, connection, and comfort. We lighten an atmosphere from tension and worry to one of relief. >Provide ongoing networking, performance opportunities and payroll support for the professionally-trained clown ensemble and staff to engage with heath care patients and community care residents, as well as their families and facility partner staff. | We bring our artists to several facilities on multiple days weekly. Each clown service is between 1-4 hours. Over 80% of the populations we serve are elder and memory care units, and/or communities. Other populations include patients and staff from pediatrics, ICU's, emergency departments, and disaster relief zones. The Medical Clown Project's annual impact is built from 12,000 direct interactions and interventions reaching patients, residents, family members, medical staff, and disaster victims. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $15,750.00 | Inspire SD | 3921 BOSTON AVE , SAN DIEGO, CA 92113-3318 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 451-9714 | California Congressional District 51 | California State Assembly District 79 | California State Senate District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, INSPIRESD will deliver structured, year round arts programming for youth ages 6-18 and young adult ambassadors ages 18-24 in San Diego County, with a focus on Southeast San Diego, Valencia Park, Skyline, and surrounding communities. Funds will support facilitator guided music, digital media, and performance training, including songwriting, recording, and content creation. Participants will develop original work and present through community performances and school based engagements. Programming will be delivered in accessible community settings, ensuring consistent participation without financial barriers. This project will serve approximately 120-150 youth annually and reach over 500 community members through public presentations, expanding access to arts participation and culturally relevant creative expression. | Inspire SD delivers structured, year-round arts programming through a multi phase model that includes outreach, skill development, creative production, and public presentation. Core programs focus on music, digital media, and performance arts, with instruction provided by teaching artists and program facilitators. Youth participants engage in music development activities such as songwriting, vocal coaching, and studio recording, while also receiving training in digital media and cultural storytelling, including video production and content creation. These experiences build both creative and technical skills through interactive learning. Participants have opportunities to present their work through community performances, showcases, and school-based engagements. These presentations take place in community settings, providing real world experience and audience interaction. Inspire SD also introduces elements of creative entrepreneurship, including branding, distribution, and audience development, connecting artistic practice to opportunities within the creative economy. All programming is delivered in accessible, community environments, ensuring consistent participation without financial barriers. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | PLAY Theatre Company | 230 PANORAMIC HWY , MILL VALLEY, CA 94941-2631 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 579-3173 | California’s 2nd Congressional District | California State Assembly District 12 | California State Senate District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, PLAY Theatre Company will sustain core operations for it's 2026-2027 season. The funds will support organizational infrastructure, including key new staff positions in production and education, production costs, and community access programming. This investment will allow our full season of professional TYA productions, youth education classes, school field trip performances, and our Arts Access Ticket Program for low-income families and foster youth to thrive. | We are a nonprofit performing arts organization focused on bringing the joy of theater to life for children and families. We believe theater kids really do run the world, and the life skills that theater provides have a resounding impact for future generations. Igniting imaginations can change the world! We accomplish this through play in the classroom, in the rehearsal room, and on the stage. PLAY On Stage! offers a season of engaging, theatrical performances by professional actors, bringing children’s books to life on stage. We also offer exceptional educational programming, with performance based classes that build theater skills while also teaching essential life skills like teamwork, confidence, and empathy for others. We believe learning should be fun, and everyone is a theater person. Whether you enjoy being on the stage, behind the scenes, running the show, writing the stories we tell, or enjoying them from the audience, all are welcome at PLAY theater company. Founded in October of 2023, this company was born out of a love for the arts and a commitment to investing in the future of performing arts by cultivating the audiences of tomorrow. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | UMEKE INC | 3809 Plaza Dr STE 108, Oceanside, CA 92056-4625 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 525-1488 | ʻUmeke is a Native Hawaiian-led cultural nonprofit based in North County San Diego dedicated to preserving and sharing Native Hawaiian arts and cultural traditions through intergenerational learning, storytelling, and accessible community programming. Through programs such as cultural arts workshops, and community partnerships focused on wellness and cultural education, ʻUmeke strengthens cultural identity and connection to Hawaiʻi for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities living in diaspora while welcoming broader community participation. General Operating Support from the California Arts Council will strengthen ʻUmeke’s organizational capacity by supporting core operational expenses such as personnel for administrative/ operation support, facility costs for cultural programming, and essential infrastructure. This investment allows ʻUmeke to sustain and expand culturally rooted arts education, deepen partnerships with community organizations, and increase access to Native Hawaiian cultural traditions for diverse communities throughout the region. | ʻUmeke’s core programs and services preserve and share Native Hawaiian culture while strengthening identity and connection for communities living in the diaspora. Our core offerings include hula, ʻukulele, and other cultural arts workshops that foster intergenerational learning, cultural knowledge, and creative expression. In partnership with organizations focused on wellness and healing, ʻUmeke also develops culturally grounded programs that integrate arts, storytelling, and community engagement to support identity, resilience, and community wellbeing. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Cultural Odyssey | 762 FULTON ST 3RD FLOOR 301 P.O. Box 156620, San Francisco, CA 94115, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-4119 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 292-5589 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, IDRIS ACKAMOOR AND CULTURAL ODYSSEY (IACO) will produce an innovative music project, “50 YEARS AND COUNTING”, providing creative opportunities for historically underrepresented African American and multicultural musicians to perform in non-traditional venues (Tenderloin Museum, United Nation’s Plaza, and Bookstore). Performances by the world renowned Idris Ackamoor and The Pyramids, and the Ankhestra Big Band, will be the main outreach and production vehicles. Contracting 15 musicians, “50 YEARS AND COUNTING” will counteract the displacement of jazz musicians by integrating mentorship and workshops into the production process. IACO’s larger mission to "pass the torch" of field knowledge, helps artists survive via its mentorship/education curriculum, “Don't Drop Dead on Stage.” Therefore, “50 YEARS AND COUNTING” aims to empower artists by addressing income equity through employment, mentoring/education, and hands-on experience in production. | As the oldest, continuously operating African American performing arts organization in San Francisco, IACO has employed 1000s of arts professionals, contributing to the vitalization and diversity of the local arts industry. (1) Founded in 1972, Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids Ankhestra (IAPA) implements innovative arts experimentation through live productions and international publications. For example, Black History Month 2024, IAPA performed the UNDERGROUND JAZZ CABARET residency featuring movie star DANNY GLOVER and legendary actress/activist RHODESSA JONES. Sold-out audiences witnessed multidisciplinary arts, woven into historic, imminent social issues as part of SF FOUNDATION'S BAY AREA CREATIVE CHANGE program (Strut Records/iK7 April 2025 release). (2) Committed to dismantling biases and stereotypes, AFRICAN AMERICAN THEATER ALLIANCE FOR INDEPENDENCE (AATAIN) is IACO’s consortium of SF fiscal sponsorees that work together to increase inclusion of underrepresented artists in the City. In 1998, AATAIN! became a landmark project, pioneering the regranting business model to save Black theater (inspired by August Wilson). This includes Fiscal Sponsorship, Technical Assistance, development resources, and mentoring. Since 2021, AATAIN! collectively activated 17 Cultural Spaces by producing 85 public events, 28 workshops, 51 artworks, 4 exhibitions, and compensating over 100 arts professionals. Distributing $2.4 million, IACO’s highlighted regrantees have included African American Shakespeare, AfroSolo Theatre, Bay Area Theater Company, African American Art & Culture Center, and Medea Project: Theater For Incarcerated Women (an IACO founded company). (3) “Don’t Drop Dead on Stage” is a new curriculum/workshop series designed to educate artists and arts administrators to establish economic security and long-term sustainability in San Francisco. (4) Film Production: Based on its historic role in pioneering the Performance Art Theatrical Method, IACO’s tradition of ”Arts as Social Activism” continues in its public awareness films. Examples include: ”This Ain’t Your Mamas Theater Company” (women’s health/incarceration), ”Artistic Being” (imminent politics), and “We Just Telling Stories“ (theater recovery in prisons). |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Longshadr Productions | 1102 Warren Creek Road , Arcata, CA 95521 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 223-0265 | With support from the California Arts Council, Longshadr Productions will develop and present a new, community-devised work of “Theatre of Place” in rural Humboldt County, created in collaboration with residents of Blue Lake and Arcata. The play, LOGGER LADIES WHO LUNCH, OR SEVEN KARENS, will culminate in a series of site-specific performances staged in a local community gathering space and will feature a diverse creative team of community members. | Longshadr's programs and productions are all community-developed. We start by identifying a community and their stakeholders. We then engage in a series of interviews and group dialogues that influence the themes, characters, and conflicts within each show. These shows are then produced for the public and contain engagement programs such as talk-backs, "Bar Chats", dramaturgical resource sharing, and site-specific trips. Programs that have been successfully developed through this project include: + RADIOMAN, a monologue-play documenting a local craftsman's journey as a Vietnam soldier to running a millworks for other veterans and displaced communities. Developed from firsthand interviews with veterans from every major American war and their family members, this show illustrated the community-specific themes of PTSD, depression, patriotism, and the family commitments behind every soldier. This piece was co-produced with Dell'Arte Inc. and Blue Ox Millworks and ran with several extensions due to popular demand. + MADSUMMER, a raucous musical comedy that highlights the often forgotten elderly community in Humboldt County through a loose adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, taking place in a senior center. This show derived from aging community members' stories in Humboldt County (ages 55 to 90) and centers the themes of finding love later in life, solitude, government's role in "other-ing", and capitalistic ventures targeted at taking advantage of this community. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Ventura County Arts Council | 646 County Square Drive Suite #154, Ventura, CA 93003 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 658-2213 | California's 26th congressional district | District 38 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Ventura County Arts Council will expand our partnership with the county government, a relationship that recently provided several re-granting opportunities. With the Arts & Culture Manager, we'll work together to increase VCAC’s operating capital. With an expanded and consistent donor base, VCAC will become less dependent on grant revenue and on programming for earned income. We will continue prioritizing areas of the county that represent the lowest quartiles on the HPI with our arts programming. We will keep advocating for additional county money to re-grant to individual artists. To ensure the county continues matching re-granting dollars we raise to assist smaller arts non-profits and community arts organizations, we will keep applying for those funds and working closely with the recipient groups to help them build capacity. | VCAC runs several programs and looks for opportunities to offer grants to smaller arts organizations and individual artists. We prioritize partnering with arts organizations and artists serving marginalized and underrepresented people and working in the communities where they reside. Our Arts & Youth Justice program brings arts instruction to youth at the court school in the Juvenile Justice Center. We teach fine art, poetry and podcasting. The Atrium Gallery is a public art program. We curate three floors in the Government Center in collaboration with the county Arts & Culture Manager, focusing on exhibitions that highlight artwork by people outside of the mainstream along with several juried shows open to the public that offer cash prizes. We established a county Poet Laureate and Youth Poet Laureate program. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $22,000.00 | VHM | 14642 BIRCH ST , WESTMINSTER, CA 92683-5485 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 846-8438 | California Congressional District 45 | California State Assembly District 70 | California State Senate District 36 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Vietnamese Heritage Museum (VHM) will stabilize the operational infrastructure required to preserve endangered first-generation Vietnamese refugee testimony and sustain free bilingual public access to historically underrepresented California histories during the October 2026–September 2027 grant period. The Vietnamese refugee generation who survived 1975, "re-education" camps, and Southeast Asian displacement is irreplaceable — and VHM is one of the few institutions in California dedicated entirely to preserving their testimony before it is permanently lost. CAC funds will partially support a part-time Program and Operations Coordinator centralizing volunteer scheduling, accessibility coordination, bilingual communications, and quarterly reporting. VHM will serve 1,200–1,500 visitors, deliver 8–10 bilingual public programs, serve 150–200 students, and archive approximately 15 oral histories. | The Vietnamese Heritage Museum delivers interdisciplinary programs that integrate public humanities, arts, and community engagement to serve diverse audiences across California. 1. Exhibitions and Collections Stewardship VHM curates exhibitions focused on Vietnamese refugee journeys, reeducation camp experiences, and diasporic identity. The museum actively collects, preserves, and interprets artifacts, photographs, and personal narratives, ensuring long-term stewardship of culturally significant materials. Rotating exhibitions provide ongoing opportunities to highlight underrepresented stories. 2. Oral History and Storytelling Programs Through initiatives such as Lịch Sử Qua Chuyện Kể (History Through Storytelling), VHM documents first-person refugee narratives. These oral histories are preserved and shared through digital and in-person platforms, expanding public access to primary source materials and fostering intergenerational knowledge transfer. 3. Educational Programming and Public Engagement VHM provides curriculum-informed programming for students, educators, and the public, including workshops, lectures, and guided experiences. Programs emphasize critical thinking, cultural literacy, and historical awareness, aligning with California’s educational priorities. 4. Community-Based Cultural Programming The museum partners with community members to co-create programs, including commemorative events, cultural workshops, and public dialogues. These programs strengthen community cohesion and ensure programming reflects lived experiences. 5. Digital Access and Emerging Initiatives VHM is expanding digital archives and online access to collections, enabling global engagement with Vietnamese diasporic history. Planned initiatives include enhanced digital storytelling and research access through the Viet Heritage Center. Collectively, these programs position VHM as a vital cultural and educational resource advancing equity, access, and representation in California’s arts and humanities ecosystem. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,430.00 | HOUSE OF PALESTINE INC | 2155 W PAN AMERICAN RD A , SAN DIEGO, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 354-5077 | With support from the California Arts Council, House of Palestine will provide a youth-centered cultural arts education program serving San Diego youth through hands-on workshops, performances, and interactive learning experiences. The program will engage participants ages 8–18 in traditional Palestinian dance (dabke), visual arts, storytelling, and cultural crafts, led by experienced teaching artists and cultural practitioners. Funds will support teaching artist fees, program coordination, and workshop materials necessary to deliver consistent, high-quality arts instruction. Youth participants will develop creative skills, cultural awareness, and confidence through participatory learning and performance opportunities. This program expands access to culturally relevant arts education for underserved youth and fosters cross-cultural understanding while strengthening San Diego’s diverse arts ecosystem. | The House of Palestine promotes the culture and history of Palestine and its people, by hosting various social activities featuring Palestinian traditional dress, dance, poetry, music, arts and crafts, and foods. These activities serve as instruments to help us educate visitors and further acceptance and tolerance among our fellow human beings. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | San Francisco Women Artists | 647 IRVING ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122-2401 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 566-8550 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN FRANCISCO WOMEN ARTISTS (SFWA) will continue its year-round programming of monthly juried exhibitions of a diversity of Bay Area artists and artisans, as we'll as hosting exhibits by local community art organizations and special events in our adjoining Artist Salon focusing on equity and access. The CAC funding will support SFWA as a welcoming and inclusive arts community, providing an accessible gallery space that celebrates cultural diversity while actively promoting broad participation in its programs and activities. | San Francisco Women Artists provides exhibition opportunities, and offers an inviting space for the community to experience art. Our core values remain focused on seeking creative paths to increase the access, diversity, and impact of art in our community, expanding and promoting the representation of women in the arts. PROGRAMS INCLUDE:: • Presenting monthly juried all-media exhibitions and events in a professional gallery setting that foster a shared, cultural relationship between our artists and the public and in addition promoting monthly exhibits in the Artist Salon. SFWA strives to present dynamic themes that resonate with artists and our audiences. Each exhibit is juried by a prominent local art consultant, curator, or gallery owner, which ensures both diversity and expertise to each show. • Showcasing hand-crafted jewelry, ceramics, and sculpture by local artists • Artist-in-Action demonstrations • The Gallery’s Artist Salon hosts special events, nonprofit fundraisers, group exhibitions, and invites arts organizations to exhibit in our gallery at no cost. • Student Intern Program– SFWA partners with the Mayor’s Youth Education & Employment Program (MYEEP) to provide job readiness training, work experience and personal growth opportunities for San Francisco youth |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Megan Lowe Dances | 1446 Market St , San Francisco, CA 94102-6004 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (909) 859-9069 | State Assembly District 17 | State Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Megan Lowe Dances will create and perform Gateway to Chinatown, a site-specific outdoor dance project that connects the history of Bay Area immigration with the reclaiming of public space. This is the second work in a three-part series about the legacy of Bay Area Chinatowns and the living history of Chinese and Asian Americans. This project weaves oral histories from Asian American elders and artists with immersive dance performances, workshops, and gatherings to honor the past and present. Community partners are Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center, Oakland Asian Cultural Center, Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco, and oral historian Roy Chan from the Chinatown Oral History Project. Gateway to Chinatown will premiere at the opening ceremony of the reclaimed and renamed Oakland Chinatown BART Station. | Through thoughtfully crafted dance-theater productions, free site-specific performances, donation-based workshops, and community outreach programs, Megan Lowe Dances encourages individuals to engage their creativity and express their unique cultural experiences. As an organization under the artistic direction of a mixed Asian dance artist, MLD creates work in solidarity with Asian American and BIPOC communities. We’re also rooted in a community of women and LGBTQIA+ creatives making site-specific, contemporary, and aerial dance. MLD is immersed in a collective of improvisational dancers and movement researchers, who practice contact improv and other forms of dance experimentation. We play with the unorthodox and somatic edges of dance, where new values, methods, and nonhierarchical organizing are developed. Megan contributes her voice and leadership as a dancer of the global majority in a white-dominated field. MLD is a winner of two prestigious Isadora Duncan Dance Awards in Outstanding Achievement in Performance. Recent choreographies have been seen at ODC, Fort Mason, de Young Museum, Legion of Honor Museum, and 500 Capp Street, as well as in KQED Live, SF Aerial Arts Festival, SF Trolley Dances, United States of Asian America Festival, and CAAMFest. In 2023-2025, MLD offered over 30 free performances, 25 open rehearsals, and 15 donation-based workshops/classes, reaching thousands who don’t normally experience dance. MLD emboldens individual inquiry and idea-sharing through highly collaborative processes, harnessing each artist’s skills and interests to their fullest potential. We create forums for communal connection by practicing horizontal leadership that nurtures inclusive, egalitarian artistic processes. MLD also facilitates invigorating dance classes and workshops for organizations, schools, universities, and dance festivals, which inspire movers of all ages, experience levels, body types, races, cultures, and socio-economic backgrounds. MLD motivates dancers to build stronger creative ecosystems through acts of connection and creation. | |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | 2332 W 4TH ST 2332 W 4th ST, LOS ANGELES, CA 90057-2702 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 382-8133 | 34 | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA will fund a 2 person, part-time Development team to seek donors as well as funding for projects and capital improvements. | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA (Synergy Theater Group) is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit arts organization operating out of the William Reagh Los Angeles Photography Center, located at 2332 W 4th St., in the heart of the Westlake District, one of the most densely populated and economically challenged areas of Los Angeles on the outskirts of Downtown. We organize arts programs representing the major ethnic groups residing within a five-mile radius of the Center, primarily Latino immigrant groups from Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Mexico. Throughout the years, SINERGIA has worked diligently to establish a working relationship with the surrounding community in order to integrate them as welcomed members of the company. Our focus continues to be on works and arts education programming relevant to our underserved community. We presently serve a highly transient, zero to low-income population, comprised mostly of first-generation immigrants. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Megan Lowe Dances | 1446 Market St , San Francisco, CA 94102-6004 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (909) 859-9069 | State Assembly District 17 | State Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Megan Lowe Dances will continue our mission of creating perspective-shifting dance that highlights Asian American artists and builds connections with diverse BIPOC communities. Funds will support MLD in hiring administrative staff and investing in access services for blind/visually impaired (BVI) and Deaf/hard-of-hearing communities. Currently, Megan is the sole staff member. Expanding staff to handle scheduling, and marketing to grow BIPOC, Deaf, and BVI audiences will improve inclusivity and long-term sustainability. MLD integrates accessibility by including ASL interpretation in our productions, and by partnering with Gravity Access Services to provide audio description. With CAC support, we will also increase our free public arts offerings in the SF Bay Area—including performances, workshops, and gatherings—while continuing to set a standard of paying collaborators hourly rates reflective of San Francisco living wages. | Through thoughtfully crafted dance-theater productions, free site-specific performances, donation-based workshops, and community outreach programs, Megan Lowe Dances encourages individuals to engage their creativity and express their unique cultural experiences. As an organization under the artistic direction of a mixed Asian dance artist, MLD creates work in solidarity with Asian American and BIPOC communities. We’re also rooted in a community of women and LGBTQIA+ creatives making site-specific, contemporary, and aerial dance. MLD is immersed in a collective of improvisational dancers and movement researchers, who practice contact improv and other forms of dance experimentation. We play with the unorthodox and somatic edges of dance, where new values, methods, and nonhierarchical organizing are developed. Megan contributes her voice and leadership as a dancer of the global majority in a white-dominated field. MLD is a winner of two prestigious Isadora Duncan Dance Awards in Outstanding Achievement in Performance. Recent choreographies have been seen at ODC, Fort Mason, de Young Museum, Legion of Honor Museum, and 500 Capp Street, as well as in KQED Live, SF Aerial Arts Festival, SF Trolley Dances, United States of Asian America Festival, and CAAMFest. In 2023-2025, MLD offered over 30 free performances, 25 open rehearsals, and 15 donation-based workshops/classes, reaching thousands who don’t normally experience dance. MLD emboldens individual inquiry and idea-sharing through highly collaborative processes, harnessing each artist’s skills and interests to their fullest potential. We create forums for communal connection by practicing horizontal leadership that nurtures inclusive, egalitarian artistic processes. MLD also facilitates invigorating dance classes and workshops for organizations, schools, universities, and dance festivals, which inspire movers of all ages, experience levels, body types, races, cultures, and socio-economic backgrounds. MLD motivates dancers to build stronger creative ecosystems through acts of connection and creation. | |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Loiter Galleries | 2181 EUCALYPTUS AVE , LONG BEACH, CA 90806-4518 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 968-1693 | 42nd Congressional District | 69th District | Senate District 33 | With support from the California Arts Council, Loiter Galleries will host a year-round program featuring exhibitions, public art activations, and professional development services for marginalized artists in Long Beach. The funding will cover artist stipends, marketing expenses, and production costs for monthly gallery exhibitions and pop-up installations in vacant downtown storefronts. Additionally, this support will facilitate artist mentorship in areas such as exhibition preparation, digital archiving, and creative business practices. Loiter Galleries will also enhance culturally responsive outreach through community partnerships and grassroots engagement to ensure equitable access and participation for all. | Loiter Galleries fills a void. Mainly, serving the various needs of the underserved artists and business districts hit hard during and before the pandemic. The programs we develop assist both these communities directly. For the artists, we supply affordable gallery showcases, marketing, supplies, meeting space, art business advice, and emotional support. And we aid local property owners by converting dark, empty spaces with art and positive activity. Artists finally have a venue to display their art and receive the support they need to learn how to be successful. The property owners sell/lease their spaces more quickly via the brightness, activity, and popularity of our projects. Another core audience naturally, are art lovers and supporters. We serve them by presenting them with artists we discover and who are out of the mainstream. Although some of our artists are established, the shows they create tend to be more adventurous and push the boundaries. This occurs through our direction and collaboration. Many of our visitors have never been in a gallery previously. We decide which artists to feature and support through various criteria. One, is need. As mentioned, we support underserved artists, so we start by interviewing local artist whose art speaks to us and the Loiter brand. We review all the artist’s needs, CVs and work and then make a decision on who to feature in the gallery. But our support moves beyond just a showing at the gallery. Even those who for whatever reason do not show at the gallery still receive support from the gallery. This includes marketing, supplies, meeting space, art business advice, and emotional support. Artists are paid though in-kind support mentioned above, sales and in some instances stipends. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF THE SAN GORGONIO PASS | PO BOX 655 , BEAUMONT, CA 92223-0655 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 922-3259 | 25th Congressional District | 47th Assembly District | 19th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, the Boys & Girls Clubs of the San Gorgonio Pass will implement the Arts in Action program, an innovative initiative designed for 100 teens in Banning and Beaumont, Riverside, CA. Grant funds will support our talented staff artists in delivering a ten-month program that includes media, performing, and visual arts, as well as enriching field trips to local art venues. Our program offers an engaging curriculum for underserved teens, primarily from Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities, providing them with opportunities to explore the magical world of art, filling a crucial gap in access to the arts. Participants will create their own art in a supportive environment that emphasizes youth voice and cultural relevance, showcasing their talents through performances and art exhibits within the community. | Boys & Girls Clubs of the San Gorgonio Pass (BGCSGP) has been serving youth for over 20 years and is the only youth development agency in our area. Our comprehensive after-school and out-of-school time programs serve over 2,300 youth ages 5 to 18 annually. We provide research-based, outcome-driven programs in education, wellness, character and leadership, art, sports, and recreation at 14 Club locations in Cabazon, Banning, Beaumont, and Yucaipa in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. A significant majority of our youth come from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds, so to ensure all youth can participate, we provide our services at little or no cost. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Mounarath Powell Dance | 8674 LA MESA BLVD , LA MESA, CA 91942-9504 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 758-8112 | California's 51st congressional district | District CA-51 | District California | With support from the California Arts Council, Mounarath Powell Dance (DBA Visionary Dance Theatre) will strengthen its general operating capacity in order to continue providing accessible, community-centered dance education and performance opportunities throughout San Diego County. Grant funds will support artist and instructor compensation, adaptive and youth programming, scholarships and reduced tuition for underserved students, production and rehearsal expenses, outreach efforts, and accessibility improvements for participants and audiences. Funding will also help sustain culturally responsive performances and arts education programs that serve Black, Latino, immigrant, working-class, and differently-abled communities. This support will allow Mounarath Powell Dance to expand equitable access to the arts while continuing to create inclusive spaces for artistic expression, cultural representation, and community engagement. | Dance Concert Productions and Employment of Dance Artists |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | WEAD | 23 Maine Avenue , Richmond, CA 94804 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 847-4916 | With support from the California Arts Council, Women Eco Artists Dialog (WEAD) will improve our capacity to meet the needs of our growing network of women-identified artists (especially those who are marginalized by low income, race, gender, disability, or other barriers), who focus their creative practice on ecological art and social-justice art. WEAD will address these issues intersectionally with a grass-roots networking and mentorship strategy, low-to-no cost professional development programs, and educational programming. Our new community partnerships will allow us to provide more arts opportunities to historically-underserved populations. We will maintain and improve support for our staff who manages day-to-day operations, including improved technical support. We will invest in fundraising to broaden our financial stability, and support adequate stipends for our socially-engaged artists in the professional opportunities we already provide. | WEAD programs and services include: - Web-based Portfolio Directory, allowing all members the opportunity to have a web-based portfolio, which is especially important for marginalized women - This searchable database facilitates networking between artists, curators, researchers and others. - Annual juried membership exhibition, and occasional special exhibits - Curatorial development program, through which members are mentored to create a WEAD members exhibit in their home region nationally or internationally - Lecture series "Art And ..." , featuring women artists on topics such as "Art and Science" or "Art and Education" or "Art and Healing", etc. - Annual Magazine on critical topics in ecoart and social justice art, featuring artists and writers who work on the chosen annual topic. - Other various networking opportunities, workshops, and events. Membership fees can be subsidized for women who cannot afford them. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Driftseed | 4920 YORK BLVD , LOS ANGELES, CA 90042-1610 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (734) 904-3538 | 34th Congressional district of California | Los Angeles District 52 | Los Angeles District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, DRIFTSEED will produce, edit and release a short documentary called "to my body:" about a professional dancer and trained doula recovering physically and emotionally from a traumatic childbirth. The film will be accompanied by a community engagement Impact Toolkit, also created with support from the California Arts Council. The film and toolkit aim to create awareness, empathy, and solutions to lowering the black maternal mortality rate in California, and improving outcomes for black birthing mothers and babies. The film and impact materials will be created with support from practitioners in the UCLA School of Medicine and Kindred Spaces LA, where the materials will also be piloted for use in training medical and nursing students, midwives and doulas nationwide. | Founded by Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker Sophia Kruz and Sundance Award-winning cinematographer Meena Singh, Driftseed produces documentary feature films and shorts as well as outreach and impact campaigns. Our award-winning feature documentary, "Little Stones," told the story of four women from around the world who are using music, street art, dance and fashion to combat violence against women. The film was screened at over 100 events and festivals globally, including at the United Nations and U.S. Congress. Driftseed also partnered with the University of Michigan School of Education to create robust educational materials to accompany the film, including 10 high school lesson plans and discussion guides, and two arts-based workshops to ignite social change. In addition to producing film and impact campaigns, Driftseed also mentors and supports emerging female storytellers, and provides fiscal sponsorship for select projects aligned with our mission to advance the rights of women and girls globally. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $6,800.00 | Morro Bay Art Association | 835 MAIN ST , MORRO BAY, CA 93442-2117 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 772-2504 | 24th Congressional District | San Luis Obispo County | 17th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, MORRO BAY ART ASSOCIATION will continue & expand our scholarship program. Morro Bay Art Association began awarding scholarships to local high school & college students in 2021; these unrestricted funds are intended to advance the students’ artistic pursuits. Scholarship amounts have traditionally been $500; decreased outside funding resulted in 2026 scholarships being reduced to $250. This program has been widely embraced, with more applicants than funds. MBAA would like to return the scholarship amount to $500, along with increasing the number of scholarships offered. Currently we serve three local high schools, and one Community College. We seek to expand scholarships to four additional high schools as well as including home schoolers in this opportunity. 100% of funding would go directly into the scholarships; 34 scholarships @ $500 each. | Exhibitions, workshops, children's art classes, free demonstrations |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Museum of Social Justice | 115 PASEO DE LA PLZ , LOS ANGELES, CA 90012-2922 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 224-8759 | California's 34th congressional district | District 54 | District 26 | The Museum of Social Justice will use California Arts Council grant funds to retain key staff, provide leadership training integrated into operations, exhibitions, research, and education, both in person and online. About 50% of funds will go to staff retention and leadership development, starting in the first quarter and continuing throughout the year. Approximately 25% will upgrade exhibition media equipment for two major exhibitions in the second quarter. About 15% will establish or strengthen at least 5 partnerships with local artists, organizations, and activists, starting in the first quarter and ongoing. The remaining 10% will support outreach and evaluation activities. These efforts will help mount two exhibitions showcasing Los Angeles' diverse communities, expected to reach 5,000-8,000 visitors each, with improved engagement and visibility. Clear resource allocation and timeline will foster positive change and expand impact. | As part of its permanent collection, the Museum showcases the work of women missionaries who established schools, medical clinics, and other services for refugees of the Mexican revolution in the early 1900's, including the first integrated drinking fountain in Los Angeles from circa 1917. Through a collaboration with the Bradley Center at Cal State University, Northridge the museum was able to digitize over 2,000 photographs documenting life in Los Angeles for poor Latinos beginning in 1899. The museum has worked with a variety of curators to plan exhibitions on diverse social justice themes, including the Civil Rights Movement, immigration, and East L.A. student activism. In 2017, the Museum began partnering with artists from under-served communities to produce artistic responses to our major exhibitions. The museum invests in young adult leadership to act as docents, support our media needs, research our archives, develop educational components for upcoming exhibitions, etc. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Art Explorers, Inc. | 333 N. Franklin St. , FORT BRAGG, CA 95437 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 961-6156 | 2nd | 2nd | 2nd | With support from the California Arts Council, Art Explorers will fund general operating costs for our progressive art studio serving adults with developmental disabilities and neurodiversity. Our mission is to provide a fun, nurturing, artistically stimulating, non-judgmental environment for creativity to thrive. This grant will contribute to purchasing art materials, paying staff and independent contractors, producing marketing and publicity materials, and rental costs. | Inspired by the work of Creative Growth (Oakland, CA), Kristin Otwell and Joan Burleigh founded Art Explorers in 1992 with four participants at a group home for developmentally disabled adults. Currently, 44 artists are part of the program. We are a progressive art studio operating five days a week, 9am-3pm, with dedicated staff who work with the artists in our studio space as they create drawings, paintings, prints, sculpture, ceramics fabric, and media art. We provide working space, art supplies, staff support, and a place to sell and promote artwork. We facilitate connections between the studio artists and the greater Mendocino County arts community through a guest artist program, field trips, and the exhibition and sale of artwork in the studio gallery, online, and at local galleries and businesses. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Pointeworks | 13273 Norcroft Rd , San Diego, CA 92130-1286 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 342-6365 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pointeworks will create and present mixed repertory productions of classic, contemporary, and new ballets for our home base of San Diego, CA. We will also commission new ballet works by female choreographers and composers, providing Southern California residencies for these new pieces to develop. Through this artistic creation, Pointeworks will provide employment for professional ballet dancers at times of year they would otherwise be unemployed. We will also emphasize community access and engagement, with free tickets to performances and a range of events to learn more about the processes of ballet, music, and the performing arts. | Pointeworks has three interrelated core programs and services: Mainstage Productions: Pointeworks creates and presents mixed repertory productions of classic, contemporary, and new ballets for our home base of San Diego. Our productions are scheduled during periods that are otherwise off-season for professional ballet dancers working at premier companies around the country and world, providing additional employment opportunities when there would otherwise be none. We are also committed to paying our dancers on the high-end of the established pay scale, and paying our female dancers at the same rate as our male dancers (not the typical approach of U.S.-based companies). Pointeworks also focuses on showcasing work of female-identifying choreographers and composers, with live music performance. We are also committed to providing at least 20% of seats free-of-charge to underserved communities through our organizational partners, serving K-12/college public school students, U.S. military veterans, and dance schools. Residencies: Pointeworks develops new ballet works by commissioning choreographers and composers to create together via iterative processes. Our one- and two-week residencies provide creators (with an emphasis on female-identifying artists) with studio space, dancers, and live musicians. They take place in San Diego, Los Angeles, and New York City, with community events and digital content to engage and educate the public. Community Engagement: Pointeworks is dedicated to providing access and insight into ballet’s creation and production processes. Our in-person programming, scheduled in alignment with our mainstage productions and residencies, includes open rehearsals, master classes (to learn our repertory), “meet the artists” panels, salons, pre-performance lectures from our commissioned creators, and more. All of these events are either a pay-what-you-can model or with extremely low ticket prices in order to eliminate financial barriers for participant/audience engagement. Pointeworks also operates a high-touch mentorship program for young, pre-professional Southern California ballet dancers, free-of-charge. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $7,500.00 | POMONA VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION INC | PO BOX 932 , CLAREMONT, CA 91711-0932 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (909) 624-4900 | 28 | 41 | 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pomona Valley Art Association INC will introduce, inspire, and involve our local youth in art and the art community. We want to provide accessible, hands on opportunities for creative expression and mentorship. Through our programs we want to connect out youth to working artists and exhibitions that celebrate diverse artistic voices. We seek to nurture talent, build confidence, and strengthen cultural engagement. Our program would offer resources to underserved youth giving access to resources, materials, and mentorship. This program desires to cultivate a new generation of artists and art advocates, fostering personal growth, community pride, and life long appreciation of the arts. | PVAA offers community art experience: through exhibitions, monthly online exhibits, community art walks, young artist exhibits, gallery representation, and artists giving back to the community through workshops, demonstrations and talks that enhance artistic knowledge, skill, and learning. We intend to continue community involvement with Claremont Chamber of Commerce's activities as well as being active members of the Claremont Village, participating in key area activations such as the Village Venture, Art- and Wine-Walks, and seasonal events. Our teams are already collaborating with our neighborhood merchants to share ideas, space, create a vibrant area for locals, and draw visitors. PVAA continues to work with at-risk and under serviced: including the youth in the area by providing non-profit community service documentation, gallery experience, and communication skills. PVAA has worked with a number of schools and non-profits to raise funding through art festivals and events. PVAA worked in conjunction with senior care facilities and dementia patients utilizing art as therapy to improve cognitive and sensorimotor functions as well as fostering self-esteem and self-awareness. PVAA currently supports Wings Women's Shelter and volunteers with Rising Stars Equestrian Therapy which works with physically and mentally challenged children. PVAA gives voice to the marginalized and under-represented: PVAA desires to enhance our understanding of diversity in creative fields. Efforts to make creative fields more diverse, equitable, and inclusive through representing various cultures in gallery shows. PVAA has been involved in cultural celebrations through Hispanic Heritage Month, Black History Month, Chinese New Year. We have representation for Women's History Month, Breast Cancer Awareness, LGBTQ+, and the incarcerated. PVAA desires to give a voice to all in our community. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | ARTHATCH | 317 E GRAND AVE SUITE B , ESCONDIDO, CA 92025-3301 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 781-5779 | District 50 | District 76 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, ArtHatch will empower at-risk youth, 85% of whom are on probation, by providing 47 free, skill-building workshops and open studio hours over the next year. Funding will supply essential art materials chosen by participants, ensuring youth have the tools they need to explore their creativity in a supportive, dedicated space. In 2026, the teen space will be moved downstairs and expanded. The project will also include our third annual all-teen art exhibition and a private reception for the teens, their mentors, families, and probation officers. If fully funded, we will hire at least six youth for paid internships, providing hands-on experience alongside professional artists and building skills that foster confidence, belonging, and brighter futures. | ArtHatch provides free opening receptions for new exhibitions, Q and A artist sessions and talks, open studios, and live music free for the public 12 times per year. We also provide 24/7 studio space for 20 local artists and exhibition space for an additional 21 artists. Additionally, we host regular monthly field trips for Escondido high schools and colleges. Lastly, we have a free in depth teen arts program for at risk teens with a focus on teens from single parent households, low income families, teens in the foster care system, and teens performing court ordered after school program hours. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture | 500 County Center , Redwood City, CA 94063 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 387-0160 | California's 15th Congressional District | District 21 | District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture (OAC) will strengthen and broaden current programming, with a focus on our annual Arts and Culture Grants and sponsorships for small/under-resourced nonprofits. Nonprofits with a budget of $1M or less are eligible for general operating grants annually. The CAC grant enables us to continue this annual program regardless of fluctuating County funding. The SLP grant also allows us to participate in Poetry Out Loud and support our youth participants with individual coaches who are professional poets. As needs shift, and funding for artists and arts/culture nonprofits continue to be difficult to secure, support from the CAC will allow us to focus on ensuring equitable representation countywide, especially in unincorporated/rural areas of the County with less access to the arts. | he San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture (OAC) is a leader in regional arts advocacy efforts, working to further access to arts and cultural resources throughout the County. The OAC administers the Youth Arts Fellowship Program, public art program, the Poet Laureate, Arts and Culture grants, Poetry Out Loud, County art exhibitions, public performances, and collaborations with arts organizations, public schools, culture bearers, County departments and other local resources. We are a strong partner of the Arts Commission, who works to advise the Board of Supervisors on arts and cultural matters. The OAC acts as a bridge between arts and culture nonprofits, local communities, artists, and County agencies to integrate the arts into our everyday lives. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Cultural Odyssey | 762 FULTON ST 3RD FLOOR 301 P.O. Box 156620, San Francisco, CA 94115, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-4119 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 292-5589 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, IDRIS ACKAMOOR AND CULTURAL ODYSSEY(IACO) will make a vibrant contribution to California's arts landscape by providing three (3) innovative resources: 1. Production of critically-acclaimed musical and theatrical arts season that improves equity and access through inclusion and employment of under resourced local artists; 2. Provision of Professional Development resources that contribute to artist sustainability in the California economy; and, 3. Archiving and commercialization of 50 years of production intellectual property to establish IACO’s long range sustainability over the next generation. This will increase and diversify revenue for IACO’s long-term economic strength and make many arts resources (films, scripts, curriculum, methodologies) available to future generations. Providing these resources assures IACO’s long-term continuation, by contributing effectual resources to the next generation of working artists thereby advancing outstanding arts for California. | As the oldest, continuously operating African American performing arts organization in San Francisco, IACO has employed 1000s of arts professionals, contributing to the vitalization and diversity of the local arts industry. (1) Founded in 1972, Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids Ankhestra (IAPA) implements innovative arts experimentation through live productions and international publications. For example, Black History Month 2024, IAPA performed the UNDERGROUND JAZZ CABARET residency featuring movie star DANNY GLOVER and legendary actress/activist RHODESSA JONES. Sold-out audiences witnessed multidisciplinary arts, woven into historic, imminent social issues as part of SF FOUNDATION'S BAY AREA CREATIVE CHANGE program (Strut Records/iK7 April 2025 release). (2) Committed to dismantling biases and stereotypes, AFRICAN AMERICAN THEATER ALLIANCE FOR INDEPENDENCE (AATAIN) is IACO’s consortium of SF fiscal sponsorees that work together to increase inclusion of underrepresented artists in the City. In 1998, AATAIN! became a landmark project, pioneering the regranting business model to save Black theater (inspired by August Wilson). This includes Fiscal Sponsorship, Technical Assistance, development resources, and mentoring. Since 2021, AATAIN! collectively activated 17 Cultural Spaces by producing 85 public events, 28 workshops, 51 artworks, 4 exhibitions, and compensating over 100 arts professionals. Distributing $2.4 million, IACO’s highlighted regrantees have included African American Shakespeare, AfroSolo Theatre, Bay Area Theater Company, African American Art & Culture Center, and Medea Project: Theater For Incarcerated Women (an IACO founded company). (3) “Don’t Drop Dead on Stage” is a new curriculum/workshop series designed to educate artists and arts administrators to establish economic security and long-term sustainability in San Francisco. (4) Film Production: Based on its historic role in pioneering the Performance Art Theatrical Method, IACO’s tradition of ”Arts as Social Activism” continues in its public awareness films. Examples include: ”This Ain’t Your Mamas Theater Company” (women’s health/incarceration), ”Artistic Being” (imminent politics), and “We Just Telling Stories“ (theater recovery in prisons). |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Audium Theater | 1616 BUSH ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109-5308 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 771-1616 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Audium will expand its work as a hub for immersive sound art by deepening its residency program. This program provides paid opportunities for artists from marginalized communities to create and perform new spatial sound works. Audium will also grow its community offerings, including free and low-cost workshops to guests from underserved parts of the Bay Area that explore sound, perception, and the senses. | Audium is the first theater of its kind, pioneering the exploration of space in music for over 50 years. The theater is constructed specifically for live sound movement and utilizing the entire environment as a compositional tool. The building consists of a foyer, sound labyrinth and main performance space with over 176 speakers in total. Listeners sitting in concentric circles are enveloped by speakers in sloping walls, a floating floor and a suspended ceiling. Compositions are performed live at each program by a performer who distributes sounds through a custom-designed console. Sounds are “sculpted” through their movement, direction, speed and intensity on multiple planes in space. Live performance of composed works gives a human, interactive element to Audium’s spatial electronic orchestra. Audium has been exploring the ideas of aural immersion and live sound spatialization for decades. Its idea was born out of experimentation by Stan Shaff and Doug McEachern in the late 1950s with Anna Halprin’s dance troup and the now-historic San Francisco Tape Music Center. Audium went through multiple incarnations in its early years, from performances at the SF Museum of Art and SF State University to a fixed installation in San Francisco's Richmond District for 3.5 years. It found a home at its current site, thanks to a series of grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, in 1975. The theater has held weekly performances ever since (totaling over 4,300 performances and counting). |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Deborah Slater Dance Theater | 3435 Cesar Chavez #210, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-2423 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 308-1612 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Art of the Matter Performance Foundation will: continue development of new artistic work and pay our performing company members and artistic collaborators; continue our residency program with two residency cycles in the grant period with four lead resident artists, provide stipends, free rehearsal space, and mentorship to the lead artists and present their work in fully underwritten performances, and pay the rent for our studio/small theater space. | Deborah Slater Dance Theater live performances Young Audiences teaching Studio 210 Summer Residency Program Another Way of Looking, program providing professional video recording and live streaming from Studio 210 Studio 210 offering rehearsal, class and performance space in the Mission District of San Francisco Ways Not to Drown Workshops |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | The Strindberg Laboratory | PO Box 29824 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90029 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 265-6313 | California's 28th congressional district | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Strindberg Laboratory will create a new community-driven theater production with our Vaudeville Valley Troupe that also features puppetry, music, and multi-media elements. Open to all, our Vaudeville Valley Troupe focuses on providing opportunities for young adults with autism spectrum disorder and other neurodivergence. Engagement activities are a five-week theater-building workshop curriculum followed by four weeks of rehearsals that results in the new production devised by participants and speaking to social issues and themes of their choosing. The production is presented to a diverse audience in Los Angeles, free of charge. | Central to TSL’s core programming is our community-driven productions, which we currently create through our Vaudeville Valley Troupe (VVT). Originally established by TSL in 2020 as a workshop for young adults on the autism spectrum, it is now the creative force driving TSL’s annual original productions generated by range of theater, puppetry, and multi-media artists with individuals on the autism spectrum joined by individuals with other neurodivergence and disabilities, individuals experiencing housing insecurity, returning citizens post-incarceration, and others. TSL is committed to providing all of our community artists with stipends for their work and presenting all of our performances free-of-charge. Our most recent production, “Step Forward for All The Poor People!” was performed in 2025, addressing poverty through a satirical take on conquering it once-and-for-all. TSL provides theater arts workshops and presents special performances to communities that cannot typically participate in or attend our productions. Since 2021, we have provided in-service engagement at St. Barnabas Senior Services, Fairfax Senior Center, West Los Angeles Veterans Home, Central City Community Center, and Los Angeles Mission, among others, engaging senior citizens, U.S. military veterans, individuals experiencing homelessness, and individuals challenged with addition. Critically linked to our productions and workshops, we have also developed our own unique theater games rooted in Forum Theatre, an approach explicitly devised to engage audiences as co-performers with a focus on developing open, creative, solution-oriented dialogues around social justice. This approach also informs TSL’s community festivals (such as Together in September in 2022) and ongoing pop-up events and activations in public spaces throughout the Los Angeles area. In 2024, TSL also co-created Citizen Network News, a print-only international newspaper that addresses community-driven issues through an artist-activist lens. TSL believes this type of awareness and public conversation are key, fundamental building blocks for creating bold, innovative theater-makers and artists. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Hanford Multicultural Theater Company | 119 1/2 North Douty Street , Hanford, CA 93230 | Kings | Central Valley | (559) 997-3838 | California Assembly district 33 | District 33 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, Hanford Multicultural Theater Company will launch VOICES RISING: Youth Arts for Expression, Equity, and Community—a powerful program created for the youth of Kings County, where 73% of the population is diverse but access to the arts remains limited. Through hands-on experiences in acting, improv, puppetry, spoken word, poetry, and playwriting, young people will find their voice, tell their stories, and take the stage. This program is about more than performance—it’s about empowerment, representation, and building a stronger, more connected community. | Our organization plays a vital role in our community by inspiring participants to take risks, have fun, and discover how the arts can be both freeing and essential to overall wellbeing. Recognizing that our area lacked accessible artistic opportunities, we founded the Hanford Multicultural Theater Company on February 1, 2017, with the guiding principle: “Theater for all people.” From the beginning, we offered free acting classes and staged performances in unconventional spaces such as parks, malls, parking lots, a museum, a historical church, and courtyards—bringing theater directly to the community. Three years ago, we established a permanent home in a repurposed building, now known as Lil’ Brick Theater. Designed to reflect the intimacy of small theaters in major arts cities, this space provides a unique and welcoming environment that feels both professional and accessible. We have since expanded our programming to include improv, puppetry, Shakespeare, playwriting, and community events like Monologue Slams, Story Slams, Jam Labs, and open-mic nights. Our community faces significant economic challenges, with many residents living below the federal poverty line. These barriers often limit access to the arts, making our free classes and pay-what-you-can events essential. By removing financial obstacles, we create an inclusive space that fosters creativity, connection, and personal growth. We are deeply committed to equity and representation. Our programs serve individuals of all ages, cultures, and abilities, reflecting our region’s rich diversity. We also extend our outreach by teaching theater to youth at the Santa Rosa Rancheria. With most participants new to the stage, our work builds confidence, skills, and opportunity. Through volunteer-driven efforts, we continue to ensure that the arts remain accessible, transformative, and a natural part of life in our community. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Dan Griffiths | 523 CAMPBELL AVE , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134-2203 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 990-6336 | California's 11 Congressional District | California State Assembly District 17 | California State Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, CHURCH OF CLOWN will sustain core operations and deliver community-centered arts programming from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, from our home in Visitacion Valley, a historically underserved San Francisco neighborhood. Gentrification and rising costs have shuttered 15 San Francisco theatres since 2020. CoC remains a venue, school, laboratory, and community space striving to keep Bay Area artists learning, working, and rooted here. We present clown, mime, dance, circus arts, and theatre through two annual festivals, weekly classes, workshops, year-round original productions, a Circus program for Seniors, and free community events. CAC funds of $30,000 will support partial salaries for our Executive Director and Technical Director, our Programs Coordinator, and paid performance stipends for BIPOC artists and producer for the Only Skin Deep Festival, and facility costs. | Education: Weekly classes in Clown Basics, Physical Comedy, and Ensemble Dynamics; intensives and workshops in physical theatre, mime, buffoon, mask work, improvisation, and humanitarian clowning, etc. Weekly Senior Circus program; Clown Jam monthly peer review sessions. Artist Development: Teaching Apprenticeship Program; Teacher Assistant Program; Student to Professional Work-Trade Program. Productions & Festivals: Annual festivals including Flop Fest and Only Skin Deep; year-round original productions and co-productions, one annual company show. Community Programming: Free community events including the Holy Fools Parade, Clothing Swap, Clown Karaoke, Clown Open Mic, and Movie Night. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $15,375.00 | Guitars Antiqua Music Program | 1402 W. 180th Street , Gardena, CA 90248 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 880-6613 | 43rd congressional district | District CA-66 | District California | With the support from the California Arts Council, GUITARS ANTIQUA MUSIC PROGRAM will broaden and enrich its free classical guitar youth program through a variety of workshops, lectures, a field trip, concert attendance, and outreach performances. These initiatives are crafted to deepen the musical understanding of our young participants, especially for those in middle to high school grade level, offering them a closer look into the field of music. The project seeks to provide music-focused activities that will not only educate our participants beyond the scope of our standard guitar lessons but also ignite their passion for further education and create opportunities for potential career paths. Youth participants from the Lawndale, Gardena and Hawthorne communities will acquire enhanced knowledge in the arts. | Guitars Antiqua Music Program was established in 2017 as a parent and community initiative with the sole intent to provide a 100 % tuition-free, after-school music program for youths living in the underserved communities of Gardena, Lawndale, and Hawthorne, all part of the greater Los Angeles County. We offer group guitar lessons to youth ages 9 yrs old to 17 yrs old. The program aims to engage students with fewer resources for music education and offer a quality experience and opportunity regardless of their families’ economic status. We offer two main programs: (1) Group lessons at our local park, where we have classes for beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels. All participants are provided a guitar package (on a loaner basis) to extend their music education at home. We offer 32 weeks of instruction during the school calendar year and an addition six-week summer session. (2) Thanks to our partnership with the Lawndale Elementary School District, we provide guitar lessons at all six elementary school sites in the district and are currently serving over 100 students every school year. During our program sessions, we offer many opportunities for students to explore their music curiosity and enhance their artistic development. Our work has been recognized and supported by private and public arts organizations such as the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Department of Arts and Culture, D’Addario Foundation, Guitar Center Music Foundation, and Find Your Light Foundation. Our after school classes conducted at Bodger Park in Hawthorne, California are made possible through our Core Community Partnership with the Los Angeles Department of Parks and Recreation. While guitar education is our top priority, Guitars Antiqua allows and encourages students to experience the highest expression of themselves creating the true transformative impacts in their lives. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | San Diego Civic Youth Orchestra | 2975 WAHUPA RANCH RD , ESCONDIDO, CA 92029-5800 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 728-1977 | California 25th Congressional District | California State Assembly District 75 | California State Senate District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, Civic Youth Orchestra will implement Healing Through Harmony: Youth Orchestra as a Pathway to Wellness and Belonging, a community centered initiative that uses ensemble music to support healing, stability, and personal growth for underserved youth across North San Diego County. CAC funds will support professional teaching artists, trauma informed training, and accessible program delivery that integrates music instruction with social emotional learning and creative expression. Youth participants will engage in consistent rehearsals, small group sessions, and community performances that foster connection, confidence, and belonging. Prioritizing low income and BIPOC youth, this project creates safe, culturally responsive spaces where young people can express themselves, build resilience, and develop pathways to continued participation in the arts and their communities. | Since 1956 the Civic Youth Orchestra has enriched the lives of aspiring musicians, from those who are just beginning their musical experience to the most advanced, through a stair-step program designed to inspire and cultivate excellence through music and an appreciation for the arts. Our program offers both small and large ensemble training for musicians aged 5 to 22, led by professional staff, as well as master classes, workshops, intensive orchestral retreats and tours. Our students have gone on to pursue successful careers as solo performers, symphony orchestra members, composers, music educators and members of the music entertainment industry. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Stanislaus Arts Council | 1315 J St , Modesto, CA 95354-0924 | Stanislaus | Central Valley | (209) 529-3369 | California's 5th congressional district | District 22 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, CENTRAL CALIFORNIA ART LEAGUE INC dba Stanislaus Arts Council (SAC) will strengthen and advance arts, culture, and creative expression throughout Stanislaus County by expanding equitable access to arts experiences, supporting artists and cultural organizations, and fostering meaningful community engagement. As the State-Local Partner, grant funds will support operational capacity, community-centered programming, cultural advocacy, community exhibitions, professional development opportunities, and collaborative partnerships that strengthen the regional arts ecosystem. Funding will also support outreach and accessibility efforts that remove barriers to participation and ensure inclusive arts opportunities for residents of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities. Through this work, the organization advances a vision of a vibrant Stanislaus County where the arts enrich everyday life, celebrate diverse cultures and voices, and contribute to community well-being, civic connection, and economic vitality. | Central California Art League, dba Stanislaus Arts Council operates a small gallery in downtown Modesto, provides classes for youth and adults at the gallery, and throughout the community by collaborating with other arts and cultural organizations, organizes a monthly Art Walk for the community of artists, local businesses and residents, and administers a teaching artist program (CLASS) that provides art instruction in elementary schools throughout Stanislaus County. Our Values: The Stanislaus Arts Council is organized for the planning, coordination, support, and promotion of local arts programs and local artists. We are committed to championing policies and practices of racial and cultural equity that empower a just, inclusive, and equitable community. We shall seek to increase private and public sector support for existing and proposed cultural and educational activity within Stanislaus County. We shall develop and promote arts programs throughout all communities within our operational sphere. We shall serve as the State/Local Partner of the California Arts Council as a regional voice representing artistic issues and advocacy. We shall promote cooperative relations among artistic groups and aid their activities and projects. We shall serve as a clearinghouse and coordinating body for information on the arts to broaden, deepen and diversify public participation. We shall work in partnership with artists, arts organizations, community groups, businesses, governmental agencies, and educational institutions to strengthen the accessibility and impact of the arts as aesthetic, personal, economic and social resources. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Friends of Sacramento Arts | 1766 Pebblewood Dr , Sacramento, CA 95833-2631 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 802-2770 | California's 6th congressional district | District 7 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, FRIENDS OF SACRAMENTO ARTS will - 1. Create and facilitate 2 virtual statewide workshops with California PTA focused on educating parents and school leaders to ensure successful implementation of Proposition 28, the Arts and Music in Schools Initiative. 2. Create and facilitate 4 virtual workshops in partnership with Create CA for arts education leaders and arts organizations to expand their work in schools using Proposition 28 funds. 3. Coordinate the annual Heroes of Arts Education Awards Gala in March 2027 to honor outstanding arts educators from public schools in Sacramento, Yolo, Placer and El Dorado counties including providing them honorariums to further their work in the classroom. 4. Identify, recruit and mentor arts education leaders from 6 counties in partnership with Create (Sacramento, Placer, El Dorado, Yolo, Yuba, Amador) | In response to the reality that only one in five K-12 public school students receive arts education, Friends of Sacramento Arts (FOSA) works to engage, advocate and invest in the goal of arts every day, for every child, in every school. FOSA engages with the Sacramento County Office of Education, the county’s 14 school districts and the school districts in Placer, El Dorado and Yolo counties to increase awareness of the academic and social-emotional benefits of arts education. FOSA advocates for permanent financial investment at the state, county, district and school level. FOSA invests time and resources to provide professional development opportunities for arts educators to build an adequate labor force for schools to hire and create consistent, equitable and comprehensive arts education at all grade levels. FOSA uses a cultural equity lens to guide all our actions and priorities. FOSA is a member of a statewide policy council to further the work of Proposition 28, the Arts and Music in Schools funding initiative. FOSA provides workshops, convenings, resources and an annual arts educator awards event for the region. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | SAN FRANCISCO CHILDRENS ART CENTER | 2 Marina Boulevard Fort Mason Center, Building C, San Francisco, CA 94123 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 771-0292 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Francisco Children’s Art Center’s (SFCAC) will strengthen our work and expand our mission providing process-oriented artmaking experiences that nurture creative self-expression to honor and amplify the voices of 1200+ children in San Francisco. Our work will include visual arts residencies in 50+ classrooms in San Francisco Unified School District and in Head Start preschool classrooms located in historically-excluded neighborhoods of our city. CAC funds will support SFCAC’s strategic initiatives to increase community outreach and expand community-centered decision-making for our programming. CAC funding will provide the support needed to expand our organizational capacity through building our administrative infrastructure, to enhance teaching artist professional development, and to create new paths to organizational leadership for our staff and Board of Directors. | Annually, SFCAC serves more than 1200 San Francisco children, ages 2-10 years old, and their teachers and families. Our students are predominantly from economically vulnerable families (70%) and students of color (90%). SCHOOL PROGRAMS: The majority of our students participate through SFCAC school residency programs in San Francisco preschools and elementary schools. Our primary focus is providing visual arts residencies to PreK classrooms in San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) and HeadStart preschools. This focus grew from an identified need for developmentally-appropriate creative exploration in Early Education settings in under-resourced communities which have historically lacked equitable access to arts engagement. OUT-OF-SCHOOL ART CLASSES & CAMPS: At SFCAC’s art studio in San Francisco’s Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture, we provide out-of-school time classes and summer art camps for young artists. While our studio programs are fee-based, we reserve 50% of all spots for scholarship students. Earned income from enrollment fees is re-invested directly in our community programs. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: SFCAC provides professional development for education partners including classroom teachers and SFUSD visual arts teachers. Our workshops are designed to build understanding of the benefits of process-oriented artmaking and how this approach supports individual student agency while fostering a classroom culture of collaboration and collective learning. In the 2025-26 school year, we provided more than 20 hours of professional development engagement to SFUSD educators. COMMUNITY OUTREACH: SFCAC engages directly with the San Francisco community with free family art workshops at our studio and at public events across the city, including at public library branches, farmers' markets pop-ups, and other community partner venues. These inter-generational, hands-on artmaking workshops provide opportunities for families to engage together in creative play, enhance parent/caregiver confidence in supporting their children’s creative development, nurture families’ sense of belonging, and increase visibility of families in San Francisco’s cultural spaces. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture | 560 W. Main St. STE C – PMB #335, Alhambra, CA 91801 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 202-5858 | California's 34th congressional district | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture will provide year-round professional development services for over 600 grantee nonprofit arts organizations as well as non-arts organizations with arts programming in support of their missions to advance cultural equity and inclusion to the field. These professional development services include scholarships for trainings, certificate programs and conference registration, as well as regional convenings addressing topics specific to the arts and culture sector. Efforts continue to provide diverse opportunities for BIPOC leaders as well as emerging leaders at nonprofit organizations. | We provide leadership, services, and support in areas including grants and technical assistance for nonprofit organizations, countywide arts education initiatives, commissioning and care for civic art collections, research and evaluation, access to creative pathways, professional development, free community programs, and cross sector creative strategies that address civic issues. All of this work is framed by our longstanding commitment to fostering access to the arts, and the County’s Cultural Equity and Inclusion Initiative. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $9,000.00 | Best Practice | 1955 Julian Ave , San Diego, CA 92113-1125 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 813-5063 | With support from the California Arts Council, Best Practice will be better situated to increase staff salaries and provide artists with payment for exhibiting their work. Since its inception, Best Practice has presented 71 exhibitions and events, supporting more than 150 artists from San Diego, Baja California, across the United States, and internationally relying heavily on volunteer labor, including both staff and participating artists. Securing funding for salaries and artist fees will allow us to build organizational capacity, expand our audience, and establish a more sustainable financial foundation for continued growth and impact. | Best Practice presents 5 to 6 exhibitions of visual art per calendar year. The range of materials and process in the works that we exhibit is vast and includes painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, film, video, performance, research-based works, and participatory experiences. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SAN FRANCISCO CHILDRENS ART CENTER | 2 Marina Boulevard Fort Mason Center, Building C, San Francisco, CA 94123 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 771-0292 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Francisco Children’s Art Center (SFCAC) will provide in-school programming with 12-week visual arts residencies in 15 San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) Early Education classrooms, increasing equitable access to creative experiences for 300 children in under-resourced communities. Classrooms served will include Special Education, Inclusion, and Dual Language classrooms for Cantonese and Spanish-speaking students. Funding will also support expanded community outreach programs that will enhance SFCAC’s connections with San Francisco families via family artmaking workshops hosted at San Francisco Public Library neighborhood branches, serving an additional 300 participants in the same neighborhood communities where we are providing in-school programming. | Annually, SFCAC serves more than 1200 San Francisco children, ages 2-10 years old, and their teachers and families. Our students are predominantly from economically vulnerable families (70%) and students of color (90%). SCHOOL PROGRAMS: The majority of our students participate through SFCAC school residency programs in San Francisco preschools and elementary schools. Our primary focus is providing visual arts residencies to PreK classrooms in San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) and HeadStart preschools. This focus grew from an identified need for developmentally-appropriate creative exploration in Early Education settings in under-resourced communities which have historically lacked equitable access to arts engagement. OUT-OF-SCHOOL ART CLASSES & CAMPS: At SFCAC’s art studio in San Francisco’s Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture, we provide out-of-school time classes and summer art camps for young artists. While our studio programs are fee-based, we reserve 50% of all spots for scholarship students. Earned income from enrollment fees is re-invested directly in our community programs. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: SFCAC provides professional development for education partners including classroom teachers and SFUSD visual arts teachers. Our workshops are designed to build understanding of the benefits of process-oriented artmaking and how this approach supports individual student agency while fostering a classroom culture of collaboration and collective learning. In the 2025-26 school year, we provided more than 20 hours of professional development engagement to SFUSD educators. COMMUNITY OUTREACH: SFCAC engages directly with the San Francisco community with free family art workshops at our studio and at public events across the city, including at public library branches, farmers' markets pop-ups, and other community partner venues. These inter-generational, hands-on artmaking workshops provide opportunities for families to engage together in creative play, enhance parent/caregiver confidence in supporting their children’s creative development, nurture families’ sense of belonging, and increase visibility of families in San Francisco’s cultural spaces. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | SAPPA | 475 S. Oakland Ave., Suite 2 , Pasadena, CA 91101 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 641-3262 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAPPA will increase its organizational and staff capacity in order to expand and improve our instrumental music education and performance programs for children, youth, and seniors in low-income and under-resourced Los Angeles neighborhoods. With more resources for staff training and compensation, we will be able to expand community outreach, engage more participants, and deepen the impact of our programs. | -The Watts Willowbrook Music Academy is a collaboration with multiple organizations in South LA. In sequential group classes taught by professional musicians at each site, students ages 7-18 learn to playing violin, viola, cello and bass. Instruction is offered at the beginning, continuing and advanced levels. -The Watts Willowbrook Youth Orchestra is an ensemble of 50+ young musicians drawn from the group classes of the Watts Willowbrook Music Academy, alumni of the program, and students from music instruction programs at nearby elementary, middle and high schools. Students learn, rehearse and perform classical music, music from film and theater, folk and world music, and popular and jazz standards, every Saturday for 47 weeks a year. Twice a year, the Orchestra performs at the Salvation Army Siemon Community Center in South Los Angeles for an audience of more than150 family members, peers, and members of the community. -Weekly Music Workshops bring general musical education to students ages 7-18 after school at community sites. The goal is to develop the children's understanding and appreciation of music by learning to read music, playing instruments and singing. -In the Senior Musical Arts program, adults ages 55 and older learn to play piano, sing, and read and interpret music in free, weekly, year-round classes provided at senior centers located in very low income communities in South Los Angeles. The program is taught by a professional musician and certified music therapist. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SAPPA | 475 S. Oakland Ave., Suite 2 , Pasadena, CA 91101 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 641-3262 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAPPA will provide free music instruction and performance opportunities for 100 low-income children and youth ages 7 to 18 in South Los Angeles and Watts. In the program, called the Watts Willowbrook Music Academy and Watts Willowbrook Youth Orchestra, participants will learn to play violin, viola, cello, bass, guitar and keyboards, develop their musical skills and knowledge, and perform for the public. The programs will take place after school and in the summer at schools, social service organizations, and churches. | -The Watts Willowbrook Music Academy is a collaboration with multiple organizations in South LA. In sequential group classes taught by professional musicians at each site, students ages 7-18 learn to playing violin, viola, cello and bass. Instruction is offered at the beginning, continuing and advanced levels. -The Watts Willowbrook Youth Orchestra is an ensemble of 50+ young musicians drawn from the group classes of the Watts Willowbrook Music Academy, alumni of the program, and students from music instruction programs at nearby elementary, middle and high schools. Students learn, rehearse and perform classical music, music from film and theater, folk and world music, and popular and jazz standards, every Saturday for 47 weeks a year. Twice a year, the Orchestra performs at the Salvation Army Siemon Community Center in South Los Angeles for an audience of more than150 family members, peers, and members of the community. -Weekly Music Workshops bring general musical education to students ages 7-18 after school at community sites. The goal is to develop the children's understanding and appreciation of music by learning to read music, playing instruments and singing. -In the Senior Musical Arts program, adults ages 55 and older learn to play piano, sing, and read and interpret music in free, weekly, year-round classes provided at senior centers located in very low income communities in South Los Angeles. The program is taught by a professional musician and certified music therapist. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | OTHER MINDS | 55 TAYLOR ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-3916 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 934-8134 | With support from the California Arts Council, OTHER MINDS will sustain its core operations through a landmark season that includes the 30th Other Minds Festival at Brava Theater in San Francisco, the world premiere of Theresa Wong's Vox Lumina, and the PastForward series at Mills College at Northeastern University in Oakland. General operating support will enable Other Minds to maintain sliding-scale ticketing across all public events and continue free public access to broadcasts, podcasts, and archival recordings. | Founded in 1993, Other Minds in San Francisco is a leading organization for new and experimental music, devoted to championing the most original, eccentric, and underrepresented creative voices in contemporary music, with an emphasis on composers of the American Experimental Tradition. From festival concerts, film screenings, radio broadcasts, and the commissioning of new works, to producing and releasing CDs, preserving thousands of interviews and concerts and distributing them free on the Internet, Other Minds has become one of the world’s major conservators of new music’s ecology. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | DTLA Proud | 700 W 7TH ST , LOS ANGELES, CA 90017-3768 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 620-2792 | With support from the California Arts Council, DTLA Proud will invest in Building the Next Decade. This is our first time applying for this support as we move into a consistent year round programming timeline. These funds will cover core costs including staff salaries, rent, and utilities that keep our operations moving. This investment supports the production of monthly markets, 24 annual art exhibits, and the Proud Festival. Demand is high, with over 200 people applying annually for 100 exhibition slots. By securing physical space and resources, we provide essential economic platforms for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC artists. This project ensures marginalized creators have a home to thrive through public art and professional development, strengthening the local creative economy. | DTLA Proud provides a comprehensive suite of services centered on economic recovery, public safety, and community representation. The flagship program is the annual Proud Festival, which serves as a massive platform for Queer talent, art installations, and activist resources in the heart of Los Angeles. To foster long term growth, the organization operates a Business Incubator and monthly market at the Courtyard DTLA, which functions as a direct pipeline for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC owned businesses to secure permanent storefronts. Physical infrastructure is a key service, including working with the A+R+T Center which acts as a gallery for artists and a professional hub for entrepreneurs. Beyond these large initiatives, the organization facilitates essential community advocacy through town halls and specialized programming for sober curious, neurodivergent, and differently abled individuals. Their public safety services focus on community led solutions like BID Safe Teams and Metro Safety Ambassadors to ensure culturally competent security for all residents and visitors. Additionally, they host consistent year round events such as ArtNight, Gaymers meetups, and Sapphic Sundays to maintain engagement. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | SACRA/PROFANA | 4271 Clairemont Mesa Blvd , SAN DIEGO, CA 92117 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 432-2920 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, SACRA/PROFANA will present its 18th season of year-round artistic and educational programming serving San Diego County. As the region’s only professional choral ensemble with ongoing education initiatives, SACRA/PROFANA presents six concerts annually, provides in-school workshops and its Summer Choral Intensive, collectively serving hundreds of students and community members each year. Funds will directly support artist compensation, including professional singers, teaching artists, and artistic leadership, ensuring equitable pay and the continued employment of a diverse arts workforce. Funding will also support expanded access to high-quality choral experiences for students in Title I schools and audiences across geographically and economically diverse communities. Through these efforts, SACRA/PROFANA will advance cultural equity by elevating underrepresented voices in choral music, increasing access to arts education, and strengthening community connections through shared artistic experiences. | Founded in 2009, SACRA/PROFANA is San Diego’s only year-round professional chorus and has been described as “one of San Diego’s prominent vocal groups. Under Artistic Director Juan Carlos Acosta, it has a gift for combining high-level technical singing with community consciousness.” As part of its focus on community service, SACRA/PROFANA provides dynamic Education Outreach Programs that support and enhance music education in the San Diego Unified School District. These include: • Seminars for high school music students coupled with concerts side-by-side with SACRA/PROFANA’s core professional choir; • Demonstrations led by SACRA/PROFANA personnel to middle and high school students that include musicianship and vocal technique, and • A summer program, The Summer Choral Intensive, one of San Diego’s most sought after vocal programs for high school and middle school singers. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Riot Productions | 6476 LAKE MERE CT , SAN DIEGO, CA 92119-2820 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 752-7548 | 51 | 75 | 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, Riot Productions will continue our work within the San Diego historically underserved communities of poverty to make arts accessible, while focusing specifically on our stated mission of amplifying the voices of womxn at the intersection of the BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities in our plays and musicals. We will continue to tell womxn's stories that are by femxle playwrights and composers featuring femxle characters with arc and agency, and continue to create opportunity for femxle actors, especially across the diverse LGBTQIA+ spectrum and within our BIPOC community. | Theatrical production company with an emphasis on creating fully staged productions of local female writers, as well as creating more performance and directing opportunities for women especially at the intersection of BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Launch LA | 170 S La Brea Ave ste 202 , Los Angeles, CA 90036-2910 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 899-1363 | US House District 30 | District 51 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, LAUNCH will support the people who make our work possible. Our programs are only as strong as the staff behind them; this funding will help us plan, produce, and present year-round consistent, responsive, and accessible programming. Our full-time Executive Director leads all aspects of the organization—fundraising, partnerships, curatorial direction, and day-to-day operations—with the support of a part-time gallery assistant who helps manage communications, installation, and on-site coordination. We also bring in additional contract staff as needed for exhibition production, event support, marketing, and administrative tasks. This small but dedicated team is responsible for everything we do, from mounting exhibitions to producing public programs and TARFEST, our free annual music and arts festival. Staff time directly translates into opportunities for artists and meaningful experiences for audiences. | LAUNCH’s core programs are designed to create meaningful, accessible opportunities for artists and audiences to connect, reflecting our mission to strengthen community through shared creative experience. At our La Brea Avenue gallery, we present 10–12 exhibitions annually, (generally 2-4 artists each) focused primarily on emerging and early-career artists. These exhibitions are supported by an open proposal policy and a rotating guest curator program, expanding who has a voice in shaping what is presented and ensuring a broad range of perspectives. Our annual open call offers one artist a fully realized exhibition in the following year—an opportunity that provides critical visibility, professional development, and career momentum, often with impact that extends far beyond a cash award. We complement exhibitions with artist talks, portfolio reviews, and informal networking opportunities that help artists build relationships with curators, peers, and audiences. These moments of exchange are essential to sustaining creative practice and fostering long-term growth. Beyond the gallery, LAUNCH produces pop-up exhibitions and collaborative events across Los Angeles County, bringing arts programming into different neighborhoods and reaching audiences who may not typically engage with traditional arts spaces. TARFEST, our annual free music and arts festival, extends this work on a larger scale. Featuring local musicians, visual artists, cultural partners, and family-friendly artmaking activities, TARFEST creates an open, welcoming environment where thousands of Angelenos can experience live art together. It reflects our commitment to keeping the arts accessible, relevant, and rooted in community. Together, these programs support artists at pivotal stages in their careers while offering the public opportunities to engage with work that is immediate, diverse, and reflective of life in Los Angeles. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Tierra Caliente Academy of Arts | 207 VISTA GLEN LN APT A , VISTA, CA 92084-5602 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 509-5591 | California's 49th congressional district | District CA-49 | District California | With support from the California Arts Council, TIERRA CALIENTE ACADEMY OF ARTS will expand its role as a vital cultural anchor by strengthening organizational capacity to deliver equitable, community-driven arts programming for underserved Latinx communities across North San Diego County. Grant funds will support core operations, including fair compensation for teaching artists, program coordination, and essential administrative infrastructure that sustain year-round arts education and public performances in folklórico dance, music, and bilingual theater. Funding will ensure programs remain free or low-cost, collectively reaching over 22,000 community members annually, while strengthening bilingual outreach and partnerships with Title 1 schools and community organizations. This investment will deepen community engagement, expand participation, and preserve culturally significant traditions while advancing inclusion, youth development, and long-term access to the arts. | TCAA has established ongoing projects such as Day of the Dead festival, Ticitozaa Folklorico Festival, Mexihco Performing Arts Production, De Colores Youth Dance Production, Puppet Shows in Spanish for children, and other meaningful arts and cultural offerings. Two TCAA's most impactful programs are its Ticitozaa Folklorico Dance Festival and its De Colores Youth Development Program. TCAA's Ticitozaa Folklorico Dance Festival is a cultural production that features two performances at The California Center for the Arts, Escondido. The Festival is comprised of a youth show with performing youth groups (ages 8-15 years old) and a second show that features Adults (ages 16+). The productions are separated purposely so that the adults can appreciate and support the next generation and the youth can see the adults as role models in the performing arts. TCAA's "De Colores Youth Development Program" is teaching K-12 children about the importance of identity, both as individuals and as a community. With each generation, cultural knowledge and appreciation is harder for children to grasp and understand if not exposed to it during their formative years. In today's diverse Southern California community, the notion of identity is essential for understanding matters concerning the integration and socialization of children with Latinx roots. Annually, the program provides 50 Latinx youth with a stronger awareness of where they come from and who they are through the visual and performing arts. TCAA's "De Colores Youth Development Program" consists of five months of weekly youth cultural education and training including visual and performing arts classes culminating in a community production performed by the youth participants. This program equips underserved Latinx children with the training and confidence to perform a visual and performing arts event that tells the history of Mexico on stage through music and dance while adding the magical component of the theater. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Art Spread | 3843 S Bristol St #270 , Santa Ana, CA 92704-7426 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (951) 973-1064 | 69 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Art Spread will educate and transform California communities through art. We bring meaningful art and impactful stories from all over the world directly to Southern California including Orange County, San Diego, Riverside, and Los Angeles. Our free public art events invite Californians to create expressive art at hands-on workshops, experience cultural art fairs, and view story-telling art at curated exhibitions. The Art Spread offers free career services so that artists can create work that improves their communities. With free mentorship, editing assistance, online platforms, event opportunities, and practical tools, we transform artists who experience adversity into impactful community leaders. Our artists use these services to educate and raise awareness on mental, physical, and societal challenges to underserved and disadvantaged California communities. | The Art Spread creates a platform for artists to tell their stories. We market artistry, mentor artists personally and professionally, and create financial opportunities for artists. We also invite everyone to paint with us at our art-and-adversity awareness workshops. Our events are accessible through in-person and virtual attendance. | ||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Longshadr Productions | 1102 Warren Creek Road , Arcata, CA 95521 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 223-0265 | With support from the California Arts Council, Longshadr Productions will grow its organizational infrastructure to continue serving Humboldt County and Northern California through new community-based arts programming that uplifts and celebrates historically marginalized communities through a form of "Theatre of Place". Specifically, Longshadr will invest in artist fees, rehearsal space rentals, website maintenance, accessibility services, marketing and development services, and bookkeeping services. | Longshadr's programs and productions are all community-developed. We start by identifying a community and their stakeholders. We then engage in a series of interviews and group dialogues that influence the themes, characters, and conflicts within each show. These shows are then produced for the public and contain engagement programs such as talk-backs, "Bar Chats", dramaturgical resource sharing, and site-specific trips. Programs that have been successfully developed through this project include: + RADIOMAN, a monologue-play documenting a local craftsman's journey as a Vietnam soldier to running a millworks for other veterans and displaced communities. Developed from firsthand interviews with veterans from every major American war and their family members, this show illustrated the community-specific themes of PTSD, depression, patriotism, and the family commitments behind every soldier. This piece was co-produced with Dell'Arte Inc. and Blue Ox Millworks and ran with several extensions due to popular demand. + MADSUMMER, a raucous musical comedy that highlights the often forgotten elderly community in Humboldt County through a loose adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, taking place in a senior center. This show derived from aging community members' stories in Humboldt County (ages 55 to 90) and centers the themes of finding love later in life, solitude, government's role in "other-ing", and capitalistic ventures targeted at taking advantage of this community. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | The Stockton Chorale | 7510 Shoreline Dr, Ste B7 , Stockton, CA 95219-5495 | San Joaquin | Central Valley | (209) 951-6494 | California's 9th congressional district | District 13 | District 5 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Stockton Chorale will use $23,000 of the funding to support instrumentalists and vocal soloists for the four performances during the season including an orchestra performance of the Missa Pastoril with four guest vocal soloists in March 2027. The balance of the funds, $7,000 will be used to provide music purchases for the concerts during the season. | We have three adult singing groups and two youth singing groups. We perform 6-8 large choral concerts per year with a variety of musical styles, languages, and guest soloists and/or instrumentalists. We provide smaller outreach concerts to various retirement communities throughout the county. We perform for community groups, both profit and non-profit, as well as local sports teams. We participate in collaborations with the Stockton Symphony and San Joaquin Delta College, providing one or more choral group for selected concerts. All the choral groups require tuition/dues, but those adult/youth singers can receive a complete or partial scholarship. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Detour Productions | 1280 Pine Street #102 , San Francisco, CA 94109 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (408) 772-9227 | California Assembly district 17 | District CA-11 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Detour Productions will produce works that blur the boundaries of contemporary dance, theater, and drag, centering the prismatic experiences of San Francisco’s BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists and community members. In addition, Detour will continue to invest in the future of queer performance by offering professional development workshops, intensives, and a monthly salon series for emerging artists, while strengthening organizational capacity and sustainability through coaching, professional services, and salaries for our co-directors. | Detour Productions is a grassroots collective that creates immersive, site-responsive performances rooted in queer, trans, disabled, and BIPOC experiences. Founded in 2009 by Eric Garcia and Kat Gorospe Cole, Detour blends dance, theater, and drag to push the boundaries of performance and expand whose stories get told—and how. Our flagship program is the creation and presentation of evening-length immersive works. Recent productions include The Twilight Aristocracy (2024), which transformed Fort Mason Center’s General’s Residence into a queer maximalist secret society, and We Build Houses Here (2023), which turned Oasis Nightclub into a post-shipwreck world of survival, connection, and communal rebuilding. Earlier works such as Quake (2022), Up On High (2022), Fugue (2017), and Beckon, (2015) explore themes of gentrification, racialized desire, mental health, legacy, and queer ancestry. Across all projects, we emphasize collaborative devising, deep research, and performances rooted in place. Detour also runs Clutch The Pearls, a monthly cabaret uplifting experimental new work by queer and trans dancers and drag artists. Now in its sixth year, Clutch has become a staple in San Francisco’s queer performance scene, providing mentorship and consistent stage opportunities for emerging artists. Our Workshop Series and Seasonal Intensives support artist development through training in devising, ensemble practices, drag performance, makeup, self-producing, budgeting, and grant writing. These programs are open to all, with a focus on creating intergenerational spaces that reflect our community’s full spectrum of experience and access needs. Other key accomplishments include producing the Tiny Dance Film Festival (2010–2020), participating in CHIME with Margaret Jenkins Dance Company, and receiving multiple Izzie nominations. In 2024, Detour became a 501(c)(3), marking a new chapter in our long-standing commitment to queer-centered artmaking, community, and sanctuary. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Table Art Society | 8917 LA MESA BLVD , LA MESA, CA 91942-9051 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 472-0578 | California Congressional District 51 | California State Assembly District 79 | California State Senate District 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, TABLE ART SOCIETY will sustain general operations and strengthen arts and creative expression infrastructure at a critical moment for San Diego's arts ecosystem. As the city's arts budget contracts sharply, independent, community-rooted organizations are essential to sustaining a robust and diverse arts workforce. We support over 90 working artists annually from historically under-resourced communities through cohort-based development, and we actively build community bridges that connect artists to paid work and sustainable pathways. Over 90% of cohort artists present their work publicly. As a first-time CAC applicant and small organization, this funding will support core operating expenses, executive leadership salary, stipend program leadership, and the relational infrastructure that sustains working artists and strengthens cultural vitality across San Diego. | The Table Art Society provides artist-centered programs that support creative development, community connection, and access to public-facing opportunities. Our work equips artists with the resources, relationships, and platforms needed to sustain their creative practice. Artist Development Cohorts TAS facilitates structured cohorts offering mentorship, peer support, and practical tools for artistic and professional growth. These cohorts emphasize creative discipline, collaboration, and long-term sustainability for working artists. Public Showcases and Performances We produce live events and showcases that create opportunities for artists to present their work publicly. These programs increase artist visibility while providing accessible and meaningful arts experiences for the community. Community Gatherings and Creative Events TAS hosts community-centered gatherings that bring artists and audiences together in participatory and relational settings, fostering connection and cultural exchange. Artist Support and Resource Navigation We provide ongoing support through connections to opportunities, professional guidance, and access to networks that extend beyond individual programs, including pathways to paid and public-facing work. Through these programs, The Table Art Society serves a growing network of artists and contributes to a more connected and sustainable creative ecosystem in San Diego. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | Colusa County Arts Council | 151 Fifth Street , COLUSA, CA 95932 | Colusa | Upstate | (530) 458-2222 | California's 1st Congressional District | District 4 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Colusa County Arts Council will continue to strengthen its organizational and operational infrastructure in response to the growing demand for art services across the county. Since 2022, CCAC has experienced an exponential increase in programming and community engagement, positioning itself as a driving force behind the county’s arts and cultural landscape. It is a goal to build on this momentum and continue to develop a more sustainable and future-focused structure, enabling Colusa County Arts Council to enhance public programming, maintain program quality, deepen connections with underserved communities, expand its efforts in fostering creative placemaking and public art projects, strengthen professional development opportunities for local artists, grow youth arts education, and foster new partnerships with community organizations. | General programming includes monthly art exhibitions in our gallery, "Live Lit" literary reading series featuring local writers, collaborative community events, and fundraising events that feature live music or local artists. General programming also encompasses our Public Arts Advisory Committee, which commissions public artworks throughout the county. Special programming includes Creative Youth Development and Levitt AMP Colusa programs. Creative Youth Development providesfree arts education after school for area youth. This programming includes monthly art lessons at five of the rural branches of the Colusa County Free Library, monthly Family Day workshops held in our gallery space, beginner music workshops, multi-generational craft classes, and four-day arts camp for 5-13 year olds. Levitt AMP Colusa provides 10 free live concerts featuring original music by professionally touring musicians from all over the United States. We partner with local non-profits and community groups to make these events a place where our community resources and values can surface. Booking emphasizes artists and genres who appeal to diverse audiences in our county. Beyond programming, the Colusa County Arts Council uses its resources for community collaboration, mentoring, and advocacy. These services include classroom visits at local schools to promote our programs and share opportunities with art students, hosting middle and high school arts instructors in our gallery to share resources and collaborate, partnering with local non-profits like the Rotary Club and Lion's Club, providing resources to Upstate California Creative Corps grantees and other artists, advocating with local school districts around arts education measures like Prop 28, and participating in programming and professional development offered by other California public arts organizations. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Bay Area Creative | 1389 Jefferson St Apt C505 , Oakland, CA 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (949) 285-9086 | California Assembly district 20 | District 20 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, BAY AREA CREATIVE BAC will deliver transformative arts programs that ignite self-expression, healing, and social change. Founded by nationally ranked spoken word poets, BAC provides steady work for over 40 artists each year and reaches over 16,000 low-income youth and adults through free workshops and events in spoken word poetry, urban dance, and visual arts. Led by professional artists from the same communities they serve, these programs offer vital spaces for participants to process their experiences, build resilience, amplify their voices and share their creative works for the betterment of society. Through school-day residencies, after-school programs, summer workshops, and weekly community performances, BAC fosters a new generation of artists and leaders, strengthening the Bay Area’s arts ecosystem and cultural fabric. | SPARC Creativity offers spoken word poetry, dance, filmmaking workshops and performances tailored for underserved youth aged 5-18. Our comprehensive services encompass weekly arts workshops conducted during the school day, after school, and throughout the summer. Additionally, SPARC teaching artists lead impactful school day performances that showcase the creative expressions of our participants. Revisions stands as a beacon of therapeutic arts for youth and families, providing essential services such as facilitating writing groups in Juvenile Hall, facilitating creative support groups for social workers, leading conferences focused on substance abuse prevention, and performing at mental health symposiums. Educators for Empathy is dedicated to professional development for both classroom teachers and teaching artists. Our impactful sessions take the form of in-service school district-wide half and full-day training sessions. We extend our reach by collaborating with other nonprofits, offering monthly one-on-one coaching sessions to empower educators with transformative teaching practices. Spoken works delivers local creative professionals to provide team building sessions that connect members of the workforce to a culturally diverse panel of published authors and nationally ranked spoken word artists. Activities are insightful, productive and high energy designed to leverage lateral thinking towards new solutions and bonding. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Bay Area Creative | 1389 Jefferson St Apt C505 , Oakland, CA 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (949) 285-9086 | California Assembly district 20 | District 20 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, BAY AREA CREATIVE BAC will strengthen its SPARC Creativity program, delivering year-round arts education to over 7,000 K-12 underserved youth across the Bay Area. Grants funds sustain culturally responsive, trauma-informed workshops in spoken word poetry, hip hop dance, and visual arts led by professional artists rooted in the communities they serve. This support allows BAC to deepen its impact in underserved neighborhoods, maintain fair compensation for teaching artists paid as employees, expand accessible and bilingual programming, and invest in the organizational infrastructure. Transformative youth arts experiences affirm identity, foster resilience and build community pride. Additionally, BAC will enhance evaluation systems to track outcomes, support youth leadership pathways, and cultivate partnerships with schools and community organizations to ensure long-term program sustainability and equitable access for all participants. | SPARC Creativity offers spoken word poetry, dance, filmmaking workshops and performances tailored for underserved youth aged 5-18. Our comprehensive services encompass weekly arts workshops conducted during the school day, after school, and throughout the summer. Additionally, SPARC teaching artists lead impactful school day performances that showcase the creative expressions of our participants. Revisions stands as a beacon of therapeutic arts for youth and families, providing essential services such as facilitating writing groups in Juvenile Hall, facilitating creative support groups for social workers, leading conferences focused on substance abuse prevention, and performing at mental health symposiums. Educators for Empathy is dedicated to professional development for both classroom teachers and teaching artists. Our impactful sessions take the form of in-service school district-wide half and full-day training sessions. We extend our reach by collaborating with other nonprofits, offering monthly one-on-one coaching sessions to empower educators with transformative teaching practices. Spoken works delivers local creative professionals to provide team building sessions that connect members of the workforce to a culturally diverse panel of published authors and nationally ranked spoken word artists. Activities are insightful, productive and high energy designed to leverage lateral thinking towards new solutions and bonding. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Sam First | 6171 W CENTURY BLVD STE 355 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90045-5300 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 399-4564 | 43rd Congressional District | District 61 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sam First - Los Angeles’ leading nonprofit live jazz venue - will be able to provide over 250 live jazz shows, hire more than 300 individual musicians, provide weekly community jazz jam sessions, and engage over 15,000 audience members in live jazz performance - in-person and via livestream. The funds will support general operating expenses, helping Sam First to continue to grow as a vital part of Los Angeles’ live jazz infrastructure and economy. | Sam First presents live jazz five nights a week at our main location, in addition to partnerships throughout our region to bring jazz programming to as many audiences as possible. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Pajaro Valley Arts | 280 Main Street , WATSONVILLE, CA 96076 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 722-3062 | California's 18th congressional district | District 30 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pajaro Valley Arts will continue its 40+ year legacy of presenting diverse, culturally relevant visual-art exhibitions and year-round educational programs serving Watsonville and the broader Monterey Bay region. In 2025 the CAC designated Downtown Watsonville a state-recognized Cultural District (2026–2030), strengthening our role as a regional arts anchor. These operating funds will sustain a safe, accessible, and equitable community arts space, enhance staffing, board development, and volunteer capacity, and expand essential resources and infrastructure. We will maintain free public access to exhibitions, artist talks, readings, music performances, guided tours, and hands-on arts activities for youth and adults. Funds will also support curatorial and exhibition opportunities for emerging and professional artists of all backgrounds, strengthening creative careers and fostering community engagement. | Pajaro Valley Arts Council (PVA) has been fulfilling its mission “to bring the community together through the arts” for over 40 years. With a goal of promoting and fostering the arts, PVA presents rotating visual art exhibits, public projects, and cultural events in partnership with guest curators, schools, city government, and local organizations. PVA believes that every person deserves to have access to the arts, and conducts programming year-round at no cost to the public to fulfill this vision. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $7,200.00 | MTG | 13333 VENTURA BLVD STE 201 , SHERMAN OAKS, CA 91423-6252 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 308-4004 | California's 32nd congressional district | District 46 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Musical Theatre Guild will continue its mission to preserve and celebrate the original American art form of Musical Theatre through performances, outreach, and educational programs that engage and inspire the greater Southern California community. Funding will be used to support artists' salaries. | In 1995, a small group of working professional singers and actors met to create a guild for musical theatre artists; a forum where members could showcase their creative talents and present seldom produced musicals as a preservation for this unique American art form. Now in its 30th season, and based on the high quality of its work, MTG has earned the first producing rights to present the works of many musical theatre masters, including Stephen Sondheim, Adam Guettel, Andrew Lippa, Jason Robert Brown, and Ahrens and Flaherty. Their tandem mission of exposing new audiences to this original American art form has led them to a partnership with the Music Center of Los Angeles Education Division with three in-school assemblies that uses musical theatre as a teaching tool, and an outreach program that affords local high school students free tickets to their main stage concerts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | WRIGHTWOOD ARTS CENTER | 6045 Park Dr , Wrightwood, CA 92397 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (562) 292-1781 | 28 district | District 41 | District 23 | With support from the California Arts Council, Wrightwood Arts Center will be able to keep the doors open. Plain and simple. Located in a rural town in the San Bernardino Mountains, we have created an organization that fills a gap the town didn’t know it had. A storefront. A place to convene. A space for artists’ work. A place to create. Events, classes, workshops, artist consignment and gallery. Small but mighty, we make a difference. We provide much needed artist support. We have survived thus far through community engagement, membership campaigns, generosity from a few, a local grant that got us to this point, and a hard-working board. What we need is assistance with rent, a paid position for a general operations manager and staffing for our open hours to continue this work and grow. | The organization works to support and showcase the work of local artists from Wrightwood and the surrounding Tri-community area that includes the high desert communities of Phelan and Pinon Hills. Our work includes monthly rotating exhibitions, art classes and workshops taught by local artists, art sales, and annual, quarterly arts events The Wrightwood Arts Center is a community hub, providing a place to meet, convene, and supports the arts, both for artists and non-artists. We promote arts appreciation to the larger community by creating as many free and accessible events throughout the year. On Saturdays we have open studio hours and on Sundays we hold children craft sessions. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Healing Thru Rhythm | 17528 SAGEBRUSH WAY , CARSON, CA 90746-7468 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 271-2238 | With support from the California Arts Council, HEALING THRU RHYTHM will strengthen its capacity to deliver culturally relevant, community‑centered dance and movement arts programs for Black, Brown, and systemically marginalized communities across Southern California. CAC funds will support essential operating needs, including staffing, program coordination, space rentals, insurance, and administrative infrastructure, ensuring consistent and accessible arts programming. Funding will also enhance outreach, volunteer coordination, and program evaluation efforts, allowing the organization to expand its reach, deepen community engagement, and maintain a sustainable structure that supports high‑quality, culturally grounded arts experiences. This investment will help Healing Thru Rhythm continue providing joyful, inclusive, and culturally inspired movement programs that promote wellness, connection, and creative expression. | Our core programs are built on accessibility, cultural pride, and the belief that movement is a powerful tool for healing. Dance Fitness Classes: We offer free and low‑cost weekly dance fitness sessions that blend rhythmic movement, cardio exercise, and cultural music traditions. Classes include Afrobeats, Dancehall, Soca, Line Dancing, and heritage‑based movement styles that celebrate identity while promoting physical activity and stress reduction. These sessions serve participants of all ages and fitness levels, creating inclusive spaces where community members can build confidence and improve their health. Monthly Line Dance Events: Our signature “Line It Up, Wine It Down” series brings the community together for themed line dance classes led by local and guest instructors. These events promote cultural expression, social connection, and intergenerational engagement while providing a joyful, safe environment for movement and community bonding. Community Workshops and Pop‑Up Sessions: We partner with schools, community centers, faith‑based organizations, and health agencies to deliver pop‑up classes and wellness workshops focused on mental health, nutrition, self‑care, and confidence‑building. These programs expand access to wellness resources in neighborhoods that often lack affordable options. Culturally Rooted Wellness Experiences: Throughout the year, we host special events and awareness‑based classes that honor cultural heritage months, celebrate community identity, and uplift underserved populations through movement, music, and shared experience. Across all programs, Healing Thru Rhythm centers accessibility, cultural relevance, and community connection, ensuring that wellness is not a luxury but a resource available to everyone. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | The Strindberg Laboratory | PO Box 29824 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90029 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 265-6313 | California's 28th congressional district | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Strindberg Laboratory (TSL) will activate theater engagement programming that meaningfully and intentionally includes participants and audiences from diverse walks of life to help build bridges between individuals and communities that are normally separated. TSL does this by creating community-driven workshops, pop-up events, and productions for otherwise underserved participants and audiences, with all of our programming and performances provided free-of-charge. Through the lens of our mission, TSL’s work is inspired by what we believe is everyone’s right to arts equity: The right for everyone and anyone, regardless of race, cultural background, socio-economic status, life experience, or citizenship status to create their own paths to self-discovery through theater storytelling, and to connect too-often under-heard voices and stories with a diverse audience. | Central to TSL’s core programming is our community-driven productions, which we currently create through our Vaudeville Valley Troupe (VVT). Originally established by TSL in 2020 as a workshop for young adults on the autism spectrum, it is now the creative force driving TSL’s annual original productions generated by range of theater, puppetry, and multi-media artists with individuals on the autism spectrum joined by individuals with other neurodivergence and disabilities, individuals experiencing housing insecurity, returning citizens post-incarceration, and others. TSL is committed to providing all of our community artists with stipends for their work and presenting all of our performances free-of-charge. Our most recent production, “Step Forward for All The Poor People!” was performed in 2025, addressing poverty through a satirical take on conquering it once-and-for-all. TSL provides theater arts workshops and presents special performances to communities that cannot typically participate in or attend our productions. Since 2021, we have provided in-service engagement at St. Barnabas Senior Services, Fairfax Senior Center, West Los Angeles Veterans Home, Central City Community Center, and Los Angeles Mission, among others, engaging senior citizens, U.S. military veterans, individuals experiencing homelessness, and individuals challenged with addition. Critically linked to our productions and workshops, we have also developed our own unique theater games rooted in Forum Theatre, an approach explicitly devised to engage audiences as co-performers with a focus on developing open, creative, solution-oriented dialogues around social justice. This approach also informs TSL’s community festivals (such as Together in September in 2022) and ongoing pop-up events and activations in public spaces throughout the Los Angeles area. In 2024, TSL also co-created Citizen Network News, a print-only international newspaper that addresses community-driven issues through an artist-activist lens. TSL believes this type of awareness and public conversation are key, fundamental building blocks for creating bold, innovative theater-makers and artists. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Tierra Caliente Academy of Arts | 207 VISTA GLEN LN APT A , VISTA, CA 92084-5602 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 509-5591 | California's 49th congressional district | District CA-49 | District California | Support from the California Arts Council will enable Tierra Caliente Academy of Arts, in partnership with the California Center for the Arts, Escondido and community collaborators, to implement Raíces en Confianza, a one-year Folklórico initiative advancing arts access, cultural equity, and social cohesion in North San Diego County. CAC funds will support culturally responsive workshops, artist fees, youth stipends, and scholarships to ensure equitable participation. The program will culminate in a two-day festival featuring embodied trust-building workshops, intergenerational dialogue labs, and a collective performance engaging 100+ youth and 700 community members. Youth will also participate in leadership development and earn a “Trust Badge” micro-credential. Funds will support evaluation and the creation of a Community Trust Blueprint, strengthening belonging, youth voice, and community resilience. | TCAA has established ongoing projects such as Day of the Dead festival, Ticitozaa Folklorico Festival, Mexihco Performing Arts Production, De Colores Youth Dance Production, Puppet Shows in Spanish for children, and other meaningful arts and cultural offerings. Two TCAA's most impactful programs are its Ticitozaa Folklorico Dance Festival and its De Colores Youth Development Program. TCAA's Ticitozaa Folklorico Dance Festival is a cultural production that features two performances at The California Center for the Arts, Escondido. The Festival is comprised of a youth show with performing youth groups (ages 8-15 years old) and a second show that features Adults (ages 16+). The productions are separated purposely so that the adults can appreciate and support the next generation and the youth can see the adults as role models in the performing arts. TCAA's "De Colores Youth Development Program" is teaching K-12 children about the importance of identity, both as individuals and as a community. With each generation, cultural knowledge and appreciation is harder for children to grasp and understand if not exposed to it during their formative years. In today's diverse Southern California community, the notion of identity is essential for understanding matters concerning the integration and socialization of children with Latinx roots. Annually, the program provides 50 Latinx youth with a stronger awareness of where they come from and who they are through the visual and performing arts. TCAA's "De Colores Youth Development Program" consists of five months of weekly youth cultural education and training including visual and performing arts classes culminating in a community production performed by the youth participants. This program equips underserved Latinx children with the training and confidence to perform a visual and performing arts event that tells the history of Mexico on stage through music and dance while adding the magical component of the theater. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Positive Action Community Theatre (PACT) | 2061 VILLAGE PARK WAY APT 227 , Encinitas, CA 92024 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 815-8512 | District 49 | District 77 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, POSITIVE ACTION COMMUNITY THEATRE will provide improvisational theatre workshops, performance opportunities, employment, and training to teens and young adults with autism. We will teach them social and communication skills that will help them reach their goals, and give them a much-needed community. They will also master an art, which will be their lifelong ally, and open many doors for them. We will videotape our workshops and create episodes of the “Joy of Improv TV Series”, which we will provide to organizations that serve teens and young adults with disabilities in the blue areas of the California Healthy Places Index. We will use CAC funds to assist in funding the salaries of our project director, teachers, and artists, and for liability insurance, workshop room rental, telephone, and internet costs. | “Improv to a Musical” - Fall16-session program: the group creates and performs a musical they develop from improv. Wil Fisher directs the musical, with troupe members assisting. The group weaves their improvs together into the plot of the musical, which they rehearse and then perform for our community. They learn cooperation, creative expression, and gain confidence through the process. “Joy of Improv” - Winter/Spring 16-session workshop series: We utilize improv theatre to teach social and communication skills, and have fun! Wil Fisher uses his masters in applied theatre to effectively engage the group. They begin in a circle, sharing about their lives since the last workshop. Then, they enjoy improvs like the “gift game” where they hand each other ‘gifts’, and the recipient describes the gift, based on how the gift-giver delivered the gift. This promotes creative thinking and flexibility, and gets them relating to each other. After that they participate in more involved improv skits where they perform for each other (See “New Choice” video clip for another example). “Joy of Improv” - Summer 6-session workshop series: led by 3 young adults with autism. They use the same curricula as is used in the winter/spring program led by Wil Fisher, and master their teaching skills while being the best possible role models for their students. We will record our workshops, edit them into episodes of the “Joy of Improv TV Series”, and make them available to new teens and young adults with disabilities living in the blue areas of the California Healthy Places Index. We will provide weekly virtual “Joy of Improv” workshops. In addition to modified curriculum from our in-person workshops, the group reads in character from popular scripts, like ‘Star Wars’. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $6,000.00 | 3RD I South Asian Independent Film | 992 VALENCIA ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-2322 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 573-7577 | 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, 3RD I SOUTH ASIAN INDEPENDENT FILM will sustain its core programs, staff, and operations from October 2026 to September 2027. The funding will allow us to produce our 24th annual San Francisco International South Asian Film Festival October 9–11, 2026 and year-round programs serving over 5,000 Bay Area residents. 3rd i is committed to promoting diverse images of South Asians by showcasing independent films from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and the global South Asian Diaspora. CAC funds will partially underwrite the fees of participating California artists, a part-time website developer, and essential Festival production costs. This support ensures we can continue to provide people of South Asian descent access to artistically excellent films and events that reflect their lives and experiences. | In addition to the annually presented San Francisco International South Asian Film Festival, 3rd i conducts year-round programs. These include: • On-going screenings, performances, focus on Women Behind the Lens, Queer Eye and filmmaker workshops • Co-presentations with other Bay Area cultural organizations and film festivals, and • Educational programs (3rd i’s Speaker Series) on various issues related to South Asian cinema. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | DNACA | 224 F St. , CRESCENT CITY, CA 95531 | Del Norte | Upstate | (707) 464-1336 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | In our cohesive Del Norte County community, CAC grant funds will primarily support the salary of our Executive Director and administrative assistance. These essential roles handle the extensive work required to deliver high-quality community engagement activities, plan exhibitions, collaborate with artists, and promote events. With California Arts Council support, the Del Norte Association for Cultural Awareness (DNACA) will continue offering our Performance Series, Art in Public Places, Poetry Out Loud, and Arts in Education programs. For 45 years, DNACA has been a vital arts cornerstone in this low-income, underserved region with limited cultural access. Funding will sustain staff and programs that serve Indigenous, Hmong, Hispanic, elderly, and at-risk youth populations, ensuring continued arts opportunities where they are most needed. | 1. Performance Series, with engagement activities and Courtesy Seats. These are live performances from national and international performers in a variety of forms, such as dance, music, storytelling etc. Performers often hold an engagement activity (class or workshop) with local students or community members in their area of expertise. Courtesy Seats are tickets that are provided by local businesses via donation, and offered to foster youth, shelter residents, and other "at risk" community members; 2. Arts in Education - arts workshops for k-12th grades in music, storytelling, fiber arts, visual arts, poetry, etc. provided by local teaching artists, and free tickets for students to our Performance Series concerts; 3. Art in Public Places, with agreements with Del Norte County Courthouse and our regional airport (annual Juried Art Exhibition, rotating art exhibits from local artists, and annual Veterans Art Show); 4. Offering financial support, performance and/or exhibit platforms for BIPOC and underrepresented artists. 5. Poetry Out Loud - poetry memorization and recitation program for High School students, including providing teaching artists to coach students in the classroom, culminating in a countywide poetry contest and advancment to the state championship; 6. Arts Calendars and Event Listings in local newspapers, on local radio stations, and on social media (networking with local arts organizations and galleries to promote arts-related events to the public); 7. Technical support and advice for local artists and arts organizations; 8. Community involvement (including Chamber of Commerce, the Nonprofit Alliance, and community projects such as Partnership for the Performing Arts a grassroots effort to build a performing arts center in collaboration with the Del Norte Unified School District). |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | FUSION PERFORMING DANCE ACADEMY | 1260 Goodrich Blvd, Commerce, CA 90022 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90032-3643 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 386-4315 | 34 | 54 | 32 | With support from the California Arts Council, Fusion Performing Dance Academy, through its project, Dance 2 Make A Difference, will offer free and/or affordable dance classes, performance opportunities, and professional development for youth between the ages of 7-18 and LGBTQ+ adults from the East LA area. This program will encourage students to take ownership of arts programming that is truly representative of their community. Funding will proudly support emerging choreographers and dance companies by offering affordable space to rehearse, collaborate, and bring new ideas to life. | Currently, Fusion offers classes that focus on Ballet, Jazz, Modern, Flamenco, Hip-Hop, and Latin Social Dance technique and choreography. There are at least two classes offered per day and all classes are of low cost to all participants. Executive/Artistic Director Albertossy Espinoza, founded Fusion because he saw the lack of affordable, language accessible, and centrally located dance spaces for communities of color and low income in East Los Angeles. Fusion began as a dream and a vision and with hard work and community participation has grown into an organization that supports dance education for youth of color from throughout the East Los Angeles area. Additionally, students have access to performance opportunities around Los Angeles county. Fusion students have performed in various community settings, cultural festivals, theatres, and in our very own space. Two times a year, Fusion hosts shows for students where they have the opportunity to showcase new work. These shows are open to the community and families of students and a celebration of the incredible community of East Los Angeles. The opportunity to perform builds confidence and gives students insight into the professional experience needed to be a dancer. Performance opportunities allow Fusion students to connect with their communities in meaningful ways. Fusion’s programming takes into account that the East LA community has been affected by a history of racism and oppression. Fusion strives to create programming that is affordable and that provides a healing and empowering space for aspiring young dancers of color. Staff create long lasting and nurturing relationships with students that increase the support and mentorship they have within their lives. When students walk through the doors of Fusion they feel accepted, supported, and seen. Fusion is a home away from home for many. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | MORONGO BASIN CULTURAL ARTS COUNCIL, Inc. | P.O Box 643 , JOSHUA TREE, CA 92252-0643 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (310) 877-7933 | California's 8th congressional district | District 47 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Morongo Basin Cultural Arts Council (MBCAC) will strengthen organizational capacity by stabilizing two essential leadership roles—Art Tours Director and Communications/Marketing Director—critical to sustaining the Hwy 62 Open Studio Art Tours (OSAT) as a key piece of cultural and economic infrastructure in the region, now celebrating its 25th year and the largest open studio event in Southern California. These roles have been volunteer-or stipend-supported for two decades and are vital to maintaining program quality and equitable participation. Serving a geographically vast, rural region historically under-resourced in arts funding, the MBCAC expands income-generating opportunities for over 200 artists while connecting more than 20,000 residents and visitors to free, culturally diverse programs. Funding will deepen support for first-time and historically-excluded artists by strengthening outreach and accessibility measures. | The Hwy 62 Open Studio Art Tours (OSAT): since 2001, OSAT is a one-of-a-kind experience for residents and visitors to create a customized self-guided tour of over one hundred artist studios in the Morongo Basin, featuring a total of 225 local artists. The Art Tour is a free to attend annual event spanning three weekends in October, which builds community between artists and residents, and generates over $500,000 in combined sales for local artists. To date, it is the largest open studio event in Southern California and is a huge economic driver for the rural region of the Morongo Basin. The program is organized and directed by a combination of paid and volunteer support, all being local to the area served. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $75,000.00 | Humboldt Arts Council | 636 F Street 636 F Street, Eureka, CA 95501 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 442-0278 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Humboldt Arts Council will continue to serve as the designated State-Local Partner for Humboldt County, providing the essential infrastructure, advocacy, and programming necessary to sustain the region’s creative ecosystem. If awarded, California Arts Council funds will be utilized to provide a professional hub for the visual, performing, and literary arts, ensuring the organization remains a central, accessible resource for the North Coast. By investing in the HAC’s core operations and professional staff, these funds will allow the HAC to continue its vital role as a catalyst for cultural equity and a primary driver of the local creative economy. | A private, nonprofit arts agency, the Humboldt Arts Council was formed in 1966 to serve in a rural county with a vibrant arts community. HAC incorporated as a private, California 501©3 in 1971, became the state/local partner of the California Arts Council in 1987, and became owners and operators of the Morris Graves Museum of Art in 2000. HAC is also the owner of the Romano Gabriel Sculpture Garden in Eureka, acquired in 2012. As a lead participant in community arts planning for over five decades, HAC has contributed significantly to the current level of maturity and vitality of Humboldt arts and culture. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | YoloArts | 508 Gibson Road , WOODLAND, CA 95776-8250 | Yolo | Capital | (530) 309-6464 | California's 4th District | District 4 | District 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, YOLO COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL INC will provide services to local arts organizations, individual artists, and the community; while continuing to prioritize historically under-resourced communities with arts engagement and support; administer the Poetry Out Loud competition county-wide; and support grant opportunities for artists and arts organizations in Yolo County. We will accomplish these larger goals through direct programming including two free art galleries, arts education programming and resources for artists. We stand ready to assist and support the arts community throughout Yolo County. | Our support and dedication to the arts in Yolo County has its foundation in projects reflecting the cultural make-up of the county as we work to connect artists, young people, students, art supporters, the community at large, and political and business stakeholders to our developing arts culture. YoloArts promotes access to arts through our arts education programs in public schools around Yolo County, by operating two public art gallery, Gallery 625 and The Barn Gallery, sponsoring arts events and celebrations, working with local jurisdictions on community engagement and economic development through the arts, and providing professional development activities and opportunities for artists and the county-wide art community. The Art & Ag Project remains a signature creative placemaking effort for us as it connects artists with Yolo County farms, and results in an arts showcase at our annual Art Farm Gala. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Los Angeles Contemporary Archive (LACA) | 709 N Hill Street , Los Angeles, CA 90065 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (805) 479-2939 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Contemporary Archive (LACA) will fund two archivist positions to catalogue collections from a range of Los Angeles–based arts organizations and cultural workers. These collections include materials from the Feminist Center for Creative Work (FCCW), Museum Educators of Southern California (MESC), Stripper Strike organizing efforts, curator Irene Georgia Tsatsos, and gallerist Irit Krieger. Through this work, LACA will make these archives accessible via exhibitions, educational workshops, onsite research, and through our online database. In addition to processing these focused archival collections, LACA will continue its ongoing programming that shares materials from artists to support a better understanding of Los Angeles’s underrepresented art-making communities. | It is LACA’s goal to counter processes that create hegemonic archives and narratives of art happening in LA. Instead, LACA provides a platform for multiple and complex histories to take shape and interact. LACA does this through its core program of maintaining and activating its collection. This includes inviting Archivists coming from various backgrounds to bring insight and speak to a variety of subjectivities, such as being undocumented, being an immigrant or immigrant adjacent, understanding cultural assimilation, and being a BIPOC in the arts. Activating the collection includes free public programming of performances, independent press book releases and pedagogical group workshops, screenings, solo and group exhibitions that focus on ideas around a shared cultural memory. The Archive houses and catalogues art-related objects, with a special focus on underexposed artistic modes of expression and ephemeral materials. The Archive includes studio and performance ephemera, artists’ writings, audio-visual recordings, digital media files and institutional archives of artist-run spaces. Our Library includes local and international limited edition artist books that are important to the Los Angeles and global contemporary art landscapes. A comprehensive online database of the Archive and Library is fully searchable through the LACA website. The archive currently has 6,0090 art publishers, 5,000 artist books, 2,700 artists in the directory, and over 15,000 processed items in its repository. LACA's has a significant amount of unprocessed items that can be accessed in person. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | MUSYCA Children's Choir | 21019 Gresham St #18 , Canoga Park, CA 91304 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 554-9937 | California's 32nd congressional district | District 40 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, MUSYCA will expand equitable access to high-quality choral music education and culturally responsive arts programming for youth ages 4–25 across Los Angeles County. Grant funds will support inclusive music instruction, performance opportunities, and creative workshops designed to empower youth from underserved communities. The program will engage participants in active music-making, foster cross-cultural understanding, and promote personal and artistic growth. | MUSYCA Children's Choir is a multiracial, multicultural choral music education organization, shaping the future by making a difference in the lives of children and youth through musical excellence. MUSYCA rehearsals, music classes, and performances take place during after-school hours and on weekends in a community setting. The children study and perform a varied musical repertoire, consisting of high-quality, age-appropriate choral music for young people, varied in style, time period, and character. MUSYCA In-School program serves children in partnership with local schools, providing instruction in choral singing, musicianship, and recorders. The choir provides many performance and recording opportunities for the students throughout each year and participates in outreach and collaborations with community organizations, performing arts groups, composers, and artists. MUSYCA's student-led outreach initiative, Nurturing Association of Young Artists (NAYA) provides senior citizens in nursing homes with intergenerational activities and performances. MUSYCA serves children and youth ages 3-21 in Los Angeles County and neighboring communities. Most of the students come from financially disadvantaged families and attend Title 1 public schools. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Grand Vision Foundation | 434 W. 6th Street , San Pedro, CA 90731 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 833-4813 | California's 44th congressional district | District 65 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, GRAND VISION FOUNDATION will sustain its Roots of Music Program (RoMP), which empowers students with foundational music learning and cultural understanding through live music concerts with professional, community-based artists, in-school lessons, and student recital performances. RoMP is part of Grand Vision’s Meet the Music (MTM) education program, which provides standards-based, culturally-relevant weekly music instruction in underserved elementary schools in the LA Harbor area and beyond, as well as arts integration training to classroom educators. | Grand Vision Foundation (GVF) is a music-focused community arts organization, founded in 1996 to save and restore the historic Warner Grand Theatre, a 1,500 seat art deco movie palace. Today, the City of LA owns and operates the Theatre, hosting 100+ events annually, GVF serves as Theatre’s Friends' Group, partnering with the City on ongoing events and promotion. Since 2008, we’ve seen our vision come to life at the Grand Annex Music Hall, our 150-seat cabaret style storefront theatre, where we present an ongoing concert series of innovative global, Latin, jazz, and American roots music artists. The Annex has become a hub for the L.A. Harbor and South Bay communities, where residents and visitors can find a range of high quality and accessible cultural experiences. In addition to the indoor stage, GVF regularly collaborates with other community organizations to co-produce free outdoor music and arts festivals. GVF engages the next generation through Meet the Music (MTM), a robust in-school youth education program, serving approximately 2,500 elementary school students annually with innovative musical skill building and engagement curricula. Founded in 2009, MTM provides equitable access to music education through sequential standards-based instruction and participatory live music experiences. MTM helps to close the arts education opportunity gap (compared to students in affluent districts) while deepening student capacity for creative learning. We serve under-resourced LA Unified School District schools with a focus on the LA Harbor area, providing innovative musical skill-building and engagement curricula. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | SACRAMENTO FINE ARTS CENTER | 5330 GIBBONS DR, STE B , CARMICHAEL, CA 95608-1671 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 971-3713 | California's 7th congressional district | District 6 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sacramento Fine Arts Center will be able to fully sustain its operations in 2026/ 2027 with enough personnel to continue meeting its community goals and expand programs in an effective and efficient manner. | The Sacramento Fine Art Center (Sac Arts), established in 1986, is a nonprofit organization located in Carmichael and is one of the largest community art centers in the unincorporated area of Sacramento County. With a membership of over nearly 400 artists, 50% percent in the over 60 age group, Sac Arts provides over 7000 square feet of exhibit, classroom, and studio space. Sac Arts provides exhibits, classes, workshops, art opportunities, and events as a major art facility serving Sacramento and surrounding counties. Sac Arts is home to a collaboration of art groups, including Northern California Arts (NCA), representing artists of all media and styles, and Watercolor Artists of Sacramento Horizons (WASH), supporting water media artists. Our members come from nearly every Sacramento county zip code as well as thirteen other California counties. The Galleries are open 32 hours per week, at no cost to visitors. Sac Arts is run by volunteers, with a very small staff, and is self-supporting through show and class revenue as well as several annual fundraising activities. Our programs include juried exhibitions, group exhibitions, and solo shows. The organization also offers a variety of classes and demonstrations. Sac Arts hosts 36 juried exhibits were held in the larger galleries with 26 separate artist-led courses and workshops presented for 215 sessions in the studio. Artist receptions are held on the second Saturday of every month with live music and food provided. Approximately 10,000 people visit Sac Arts annually. Monthly club meetings for (WASH) and (NCA) provide free art demonstrations by noted artists. Members are apprised of activities through a bimonthly newsletter and social media announcing shows, classes, and special projects. Sac Arts offers free quarterly lectures on business development for artists and low-cost bimonthly tech assistance for artists. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Palm Springs Gay Men's Chorus | PO BOX 4082 , PALM SPRINGS, CA 92263-4082 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (760) 219-2077 | California's 41st congressional district | District CA-41 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, CABALLEROS-THE GAY MENS CHORUS OF PALM SPRINGS will sustain vital operations during our FY 26/27 season as the 'Official Gay Men’s Chorus of Palm Springs.' Funds will provide essential general operating support, covering personnel costs for our Artistic Director, the addition of a part-time AD Assistant and more hours for our Administrator. As we outgrow our current facilities, these funds will offset rising rental costs and support our transition to a larger rehearsal space required for our 100+ members. Funding will stabilize production expenses, including professional musicians and escalating sheet music costs, for our residency at the restored Plaza Theatre. By securing these foundational needs, the Chorus continues its mission to entertain, inspire, and educate the diverse Coachella Valley community through musical excellence and meaningful civic outreach. | The Chorus presents high-quality choral music performances, featuring diverse repertoire from various cultures and genres, including music by BIPOC, women and LGBTQ+ composers/arrangers, the goal of building bridges of understanding through the universal language of music.The Chorus uses its collective voice to sing for social change, and supports a variety of community organizations and causes in their work to make the Coachella Valley a better place for all. Part of that work includes supporting local Gay-Straight Alliance Clubs in all of the local school districts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $8,000.00 | JUNTOS COLLECTIVE INC | 1220 STANNAGE AVE , BERKELEY, CA 94706-2224 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (315) 534-4261 | With support from the California Arts Council, JUNTOS Collective will sustain and grow our history of dance outreach for underserved communities, with a specific focus on Latine/x Bay Area dance artists. Founded in Berkeley in 2008, JUNTOS Collective bridges art, outreach, and intercultural exchange across the U.S. and abroad, with the mission of cultivating international community through shared dance experiences. This year we will reengage our Bay Area community through JUNTOSxChange - a program that brings free and inclusive movement workshops and performances to underserved communities, and provides free professional development and mentorship for emerging dance artists of underrepresented backgrounds. This initiative will advance JUNTOS’ programmatic equity and accessibility, strengthen its global community, and uplift the Bay Area dance landscape. CAC grant funds would critically support the salaries of U.S-based staff leading these programs. | JUNTOS aims to provide dance exposure primarily to Latinx underserved communities, local and international, such as women’s safe homes, migrant and immigrant centers, foster homes, retirement centers, hospitals, and youth programs. Through movement workshops, we hope participants discover new creative expressions that invite and encourage confidence, self-esteem, and self-expression. We seek to foster an international community by developing and sustaining ongoing relations, and by building a network of people from different backgrounds who will become creative leaders. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $3,200.00 | PASADENA PRO MUSICA | 301 N ORANGE GROVE BLVD , PASADENA, CA 91103-3540 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 533-3483 | District 30 | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council PASADENA PRO MUSICA will create an uplifting concert series for the communities of the San Gabriel Valley and the Los Angeles area. The four-concert series will include classical masterworks with orchestral accompaniment, exciting contemporary compositions by current composers and cultural presentations honoring the diversity of our local communities. Outstanding vocal soloists and instrumentalists from our area will be hired to accompany the chorus. The concert series will provide entertainment and enrichment for concert-goers and will offer performance opportunities and training in musicianship for members of the chorus. Concerts will be offered at a minimal cost at an easily accessible venue with free parking. All audience members will be invited to mingle with performers at a free wine and hors d'oeuvres reception following each program. | Throughout its six-decade history, Pasadena Pro Musica has performed a four-concert season each year for the Los Angeles community, featuring a wide range of repertoire, from classical masterworks with orchestra, to contemporary and multi-cultural music selections. PPM presents programs in which concert-goers not only see themselves reflected in the music presented, but can also learn about other cultural traditions. In addition to selecting a diverse array of choral compositions, Artistic Director, Scott Lehmkuhl, takes care to provide interesting commentary and program notes for each concert to educate and enrich the attendees. His connections in the music community help to provide top quality guest artists to share with Pasadena Pro Musica’s audiences. Where possible, PPM takes the music out of the concert hall and into the community, at collaborative concerts, festivals, and other public events. Many seniors are regular participants in Pasadena Pro Musica’s concerts, so to help more older adults have the opportunity to hear choral music, the singers have recently presented a free concert at the Pasadena Senior Center. While there are many musical opportunities in the Los Angeles area, ticket prices can be out of reach for many concert goers. Pasadena Pro Musica has kept our ticket prices reasonable, at $5 for students, $25 for general admission and free for children under 12, even though costs to present each concert run between $14,000 and $15,000. Parking at Pasadena Pro Musica’s venue is free. Recent PPM concerts have featured a salute to South American music, “Encantador,” and “Considering Matthew Shepard,” an oratorio by composer Craig Hella Johnson, which poignantly remembers the tragic murder of Matthew Shepard, a member of the LGBTQ community. Other recent performances include "The Light of Hope Returning" by Los Angeles composer, Shawn Kirchner, and "A Celebration of Gospel Music." |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $10,500.00 | Guitars and Ukes in the Classroom | 1286 University Ave. #389, SAN DIEGO, CA 92103-3312 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 840-1010 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Guitars in the Classroom will provide weekly adaptive music instruction for medically isolated, physically fragile, and disabled students learning in hospitals or at home. Working with each student’s Home Hospital teacher, and their primary caregiver, GITC teaching artists will use sensory-friendly techniques, adaptive tools, music technology, accessible instruments, and hand-over-hand supports as needed to empower team members to reduce the student’s stress, relieve discomfort, and to motivate and improve learning through music. Participants will build music skills through activities tailored to students’ physical, educational, and behavioral goals. Ten week residencies include ongoing assessment and outcome reporting. The program’s long-term goal is to empower teachers, students, and caregivers to incorporate music as a shared language to support daily routines, learning, and play through joyful musical connection and expression. | GITC provides professional development training and classroom capacity-building residencies for educators, in person and online. Participants receive instruction in ukulele, guitar, singing, and music integration. Our services include: • Music Leadership for Early Childhood Education. GITC trains daycare providers, caregivers, and early childhood educators in rhythm, movement, chanting, singing, songleading, percussion, ukulele, and music activities that build self-regulation, speech and language, numeracy, life skills, and wellness. • GITC Capacity-Building Co-Teaching Artist Residencies support GITC-trained teachers Prek-8 though our “I Do, We Do, You Do” model to become competent, capable, and creative songleaders and songwriting facilitators for engaged learning across the curriculum. • Adaptive Music Training for Music Educators addresses bias about differences, imparts asset-based thinking, and teachers learn to utilize IEP and 504 recommendations, build low-floor/high ceiling lessons, create sensory-friendly learning environments with optimal seating, lighting, and mobility pathways, adopt multi-modal instruction for neurodivergent and diverse learners, utilize physical supports, tools, tech solutions, and individualize musical parts, adapt instruments, and include peer-to-peer learning strategies. • Adaptive Music Training for Special Educators helps classroom teachers learn to lead and strategically integrate music throughout the school day to increase student focus, engagement, wellness. and physical, cognitive, social-emotional, behavioral, and academic learning through the power of hands-on music, songs, adaptive tech, and collaborative songwriting. • Adaptive Music Residencies for Home Hospital (HH) Teacher and Students GITC teaching artists lead and impart musical learning to homebound and hospitalized children, while training their caregivers and teachers to make and lead individualized and group music to enhance wellness, engagement, and learning. • GITC Music Enrichment Programs for students (a.k.a. Strummers Clubs) provide uplifting, culturally inclusive, direct music instruction in foundational music based on principals of Orff Schulwerk and our own SmartStart Ukulele, and SmartStart Guitar methods. Our approach cultivates student voices, creativity, musicality, singing, playing, songwriting, collaboration, and performance skills. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $25,000.00 | Electric Moon Foundation | 14925 Sherman Way, Unit 206 , Los Angeles, CA 91405 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (517) 881-0340 | 29th Congressional District | District 46 | District 20 | With support from CAC, ELECTRIC MOON FOUNDATION will implement four editions of its 12-week music program serving approximately 25 youths experiencing homelessness. Classes are held at temporary housing facilities in Los Angeles, historically Homelight Family Living or Alexandria House. Two professional music instructors provide four hours of instruction per week, delivering structured, hands-on learning in foundational music skills, songwriting, collaboration, and performance. Based on their interests, students learn guitar, drums, piano, ukulele, bass, and more. Over 90% of students are provided with an instrument which they get to keep. (Often courtesy of Guitar Center and Gibson Gives.) Participants develop creative expression, teamwork skills, discipline, and confidence. The programs culminate in public performances for peers and family members, giving students the opportunity to showcase their growth and experience the accomplishment of performing live. | Our Music & Arts Program serves youth ages 4–18 living in transitional housing in Los Angeles and Inglewood. All are experiencing homelessness and housing instability. Many of these kids have endured trauma, abuse, and chronic stress, placing them at higher risk for academic disruption, social isolation, and long-term disengagement from school and community. Research demonstrates that structured arts participation increases resilience, self-esteem, emotional regulation, and peer connection among marginalized youth. Yet for young people experiencing homelessness, access to consistent, high-quality arts education is often out of reach due to cost, transportation, and instability. EMF addresses this gap by bringing free, structured music education directly into partner housing facilities—removing barriers and meeting youth where they are. Through songwriting, instrumental instruction, creative collaboration, and live performance, participants build discipline, confidence, and healthy outlets for self-expression. More than learning to play an instrument, students learn that their voices matter—and that they are capable of creating something powerful in the middle of uncertainty. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Arts and Culture El Dorado | 525 Main Street , Placerville, CA 95667-2400 | El Dorado | Capital | (530) 295-3496 | California's 4th congressional district | District 5 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts and Culture El Dorado will continue to serve as the principal entity providing arts services and access to arts experiences to rural El Dorado County, including programs for veterans, young people, artists and arts organizations, and the general public. We will administer the Arts Incubator, vitally important to 17 emerging cultural groups; offer programs like Veterans Voices Writing Workshop and Poet Laureate/Laureate Trail; keep Switchboard Gallery open as an exhibition and gathering space; assist with countywide projects such as public art and strategic planning with the County Office of Education; serve as the local Arts Lead for ArtsNow/Create California as well as for the California County Superintendents Arts Initiative; continue the renovation of historic buildings; and promote, connect, and empower culture and the arts throughout the region. | Switchboard Gallery Exhibition Series El Dorado County Lead for ArtsNow/Create California El Dorado County Lead for California County Superintendents Arts Initiative Veterans Voices Writing Workshop Historic Building Renovation Project Arts Incubator Poet Laureate and Laureate Trail Poetry Out Loud Young Artist Awards Other targeted programs and services as identified to serve arts and culture in El Dorado County |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Inyo Council for the Arts | 150 Willow Street , Bishop, CA 93514 | Inyo | Central Valley | (760) 873-8014 | California's 3rd congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, IINYO COUNCIL FOR THE ARTS (ICA) will continue providing accessible, community-centered arts programming in one of California’s most rural and geographically isolated regions. ICA serves Inyo County through arts education programs for local students, the 34th annual Millpond Music Festival, gallery/artist market exhibitions showcasing regional artists, workshops, and ongoing outreach through print, social media, and a monthly e-newsletter reaching more than 1,500 subscribers. Operating with a staff of only three (one full-time employee), ICA prioritizes free and low-cost programming to ensure equitable access to the arts for underserved rural communities. California Arts Council funding is essential to sustaining cultural opportunities for artists, students, families, and visitors throughout the region. Without continued support, access to free/affordable arts programming and cultural experiences in Inyo County would be significantly reduced. | Gallery Concerts Email Newsletter School Arts For All days (SAFAs) Art Docent Program (School Program) Brummitt-Taylor Classical Music Listening Program (School Program) Poetry Out Loud (School Program) School Music Assemblies (School Program) After School Art Classes (School Program) Millpond Music Festival Memorial Day and Labor Day Arts and Crafts Festivals Community Art Days Artist support and education |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Arms Wide Open | 237 East Main Street , El Cajon, CA 92020 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 579-6197 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 71 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arms Wide Open will pay expenses that include rent, instructors’ salaries, and production expenses, including productions by Rising Stars (exclusively for people with disabilities) and the Inspire program that offers individuals who are especially talented more challenging performance experiences. While the majority of AWO's programs are designed solely for people with disabilities, INSPIRE is designed for people both with/without disabilities, giving each participant the chance to learn from others who share the same love of performance and who can offer valuable life lessons. Grant funding will also support classes at AWO's first satellite in North San Diego County and its second satellite in City Heights (opening Spring 2026), expanding its geographic reach by making it possible for people from other parts of the region to participate! | Arms Wide Open provides a wide range of classes (e.g. Hip-Hop; Jazz; Health & Fitness; Tap; Voice; Percussion) designed specifically for individuals with disabilities to provide them opportunities for engagement in activities that improve their health and can lead to a positive and busy social life. AWO serves 200+ individuals with autism, Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, brittle bone disease, and other developmental delays and physical challenges. They are from many cultural/socio-economic backgrounds and live in a variety of settings (e.g. group/foster homes, with families). They come to East County from throughout San Diego, and now North County residents can take classes at AWO’s new site at the California Center for the Arts. A team of master teaching professional artist/choreographer, musician/vocal coach director/drama instructors teach classes six days a week at the main studio and one day a week at the new North County site.. For many years, a highlight of AWO's programming was its annual theatrical productions at the Lyceum Theatre. Due to Covid-19, performances at a professional theatre could not take place, but AWO transformed a dance studio into a theatre seating 80 people. Over the past several years, AWO presented four musicals – most recently, Wizard of Oz (Fall 2023). AWO now offers two large scale production programs: Rising Stars serves people with special needs or disabilities by producing and creating annual musicals. Most productions feature a cast of 80+ actors. Because these productions are so popular there are several casts so that everyone who is interested can participate. Unlike Rising Stars, INSPIRE is designed for people with and without disabilities, giving each participant the chance to learn from others who share the same love of performance and who can offer valuable life lessons. In May 2024 AWO returned to a large stage with performances of Newsies: The Musical. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | ConAmor Building Bridges | PO BOX 1573 , TWAIN HARTE, CA 95383-1573 | Tuolumne | Central Valley | (209) 768-3615 | District 5 | District 8 | District 4 | With a $20,000 investment, ConAmor Building Bridges will scale core services to deepen impact across Tuolumne County, promoting an inclusive culture and contributing to the local economy: ~7K Cultural Festival: Support the Cinco de Mayo: An American Tradition festival. Securing bilingual performers, storytellers, ensuring accessibility for 3,000+ attendees. ~5K Public Humanities: Launch a second iteration of historical series, deepening strategic partnership with Columbia College, Historical Society, and California State Historic Parks. Includes archival research, co-curation of physical and digital exhibits that restore the narratives of underrepresented communities heritage. ~4K Community Dialogues: Host quarterly Building Bridges gatherings, with inclusive, dialogue-driven settings of community interest. ~4K Digital Storytelling: Establish a strategic partnership with community radio to produce and broadcast bilingual cultural content, to ensure that our collective history is heard and celebrated by all, regardless of location. | Our programs aim to transform community relationships by honoring multicultural art and history, amplifying underrepresented voices, and fostering meaningful dialogue across differences. One of the placemaking strategies chosen by ConAmor is the use of a multicultural festival framework. Festivals create ongoing opportunities for dialogue and negotiation within communities, as individuals and groups explore meaningful concepts of identity, belonging and dynamics of exclusion. Celebrations like these offer a sense of joy, and shared pride while opening space to embrace art, collective histories, and a diversity of cultural expressions that challenge discriminatory values. Multicultural festivals also provide powerful opportunities to educate younger generations about artistic and cultural traditions, beliefs, and practices They help strengthen protective factors -connection, cultural pride, intergenerational learning, and community cohesion- that benefit everyone in our region. Our approach: Civic Engagement: Programs that elevate marginalized voices and expand participation in local decision making. Cultural Celebrations: Events that honor immigrant contributions and strengthen community pride. Educational Initiatives: Articles, publications, and public facing materials that bring overlooked art and history into mainstream. Bridge Building Dialogues: Spaces that invite exchange and reflection, moving us toward stronger community connection. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Hero Theatre | PO BOX 26275 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90026-0275 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 206-6415 | 30 | 52 | 26 | With support from California Arts Council, HERO Theatre will continue to develop and produce Elisa Bocanegra's NUESTRO PLANETA: PUERTO RICO, a multimedia environmental theatre work featuring large-scale ocean puppetry, projection design, and community storytelling. Created with marine scientists and conservation groups, the performance explores coral reef ecosystems, hurricane resilience, and relationships between coastal communities and the reefs that protect them. This commission is part of NUESTRO PLANETA, our multimedia commissioning, development, and theatre and film production initiative that explores how systemic racism and climate change are interconnected, bringing vital climate crisis messages to vulnerable BIMPOC communities, particularly L.A. residents from the Latine diaspora, to share self-care tools and lessen human environmental impact. During the grant period, we’ll also continue our deep community outreach and engagement with partner community organizations in L.A. | HERO’s goal is to create programming that has a lasting impact on audiences and helps shape a better society. We produce elaborately staged readings, full productions of plays, and special events like FESTIVAL IRENE: a 2-week festival honoring the life and legacy of Cuban playwright Maria Irene Fornés. We commission bold, innovative new work. In 2019, HERO launched OUR AMERICA new play commissioning series, in which BIPOC playwrights explore real stories of cities in America undergoing vast socio-economic change. Under this, HERO produced Amina Henry’s TROY, inspired by THE TROJAN WOMEN and based on true stories of unhoused women in L.A. HERO partnered with local shelters to invite more than 300 unhoused women to attend and provided free tickets, round-trip transportation, concessions, and a post-show talkback with artists. HERO’s 2023 production of Henry’s NOTHING, NOTHING continues these partnerships and responds to audience desire to celebrate Black women and joy. In 2021, HERO launched NUESTRO PLANETA (NP), a multimedia new works initiative rooted in research around ecological concerns in Latine countries and the U.S. and how Latine American families are directly affected. In September 2021, HERO presented an elaborately staged reading of FLEX by Candrice Jones about a Black high school girls’ basketball team that explores such themes as teen pregnancy and abortion. In 2022, we produced Velina Hasu Houston’s TEA and also RISE: An Immersive Exploration of Gun Violence in Schools which received critical acclaim. HERO’s education programming serves elementary through high school students in the L.A. school district, specifically through Inner-City Arts and solo writing and performance classes at Homeboy Industries for formerly incarcerated youth. HERO’s Dukakis Mentorship Program, provides early career artists and administrators one-on-one mentorship; 50+ artists served. HERO frequently invites communities represented in the work on our stages to attend our programming for no cost. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | ART LEAGUE OF LINCOLN | 580 Sixth ST , LINCOLN, CA 95648-1823 | Placer | Upstate | (916) 209-3499 | U.S. House of Representatives District 4 | State Assembly (District 6) | State Senate (District 1) | With support from the California Arts Council, ART LEAGUE OF LINCOLN will be able to cover its fixed and variable operating expenses as we grow our capacity to meet the needs of the community. Covered operating expenses will include rent, utilities, internet expenses, two part time staff members, building maintenance, business insurance (Property, Officers, General Liability), and the development and implementation of a strategic marketing plan to increase awareness of our programs and services. These funds will also help us promote our art education program expansion into local schools and charter schools, attract visitors, and more fully meet the economic needs of our artists and patrons. | Vision: Thrive as a vital cultural center for the Greater Lincoln Area by fostering educational and innovative events in visual arts, music, and poetry through local partnerships. These partnerships include alliances with the City of Lincoln, Chamber of Commerce, Western Placer School District, Downtown Lincoln Association, other non-profit groups and various constituencies within the community. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Hero Theatre | PO BOX 26275 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90026-0275 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 206-6415 | 30 | 52 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, HERO Theatre will use grant funds for staff salaries, artist fees, rent for office and storage space, overhead, and programming costs to support our commissioning, development, and production work. | HERO’s goal is to create programming that has a lasting impact on audiences and helps shape a better society. We produce elaborately staged readings, full productions of plays, and special events like FESTIVAL IRENE: a 2-week festival honoring the life and legacy of Cuban playwright Maria Irene Fornés. We commission bold, innovative new work. In 2019, HERO launched OUR AMERICA new play commissioning series, in which BIPOC playwrights explore real stories of cities in America undergoing vast socio-economic change. Under this, HERO produced Amina Henry’s TROY, inspired by THE TROJAN WOMEN and based on true stories of unhoused women in L.A. HERO partnered with local shelters to invite more than 300 unhoused women to attend and provided free tickets, round-trip transportation, concessions, and a post-show talkback with artists. HERO’s 2023 production of Henry’s NOTHING, NOTHING continues these partnerships and responds to audience desire to celebrate Black women and joy. In 2021, HERO launched NUESTRO PLANETA (NP), a multimedia new works initiative rooted in research around ecological concerns in Latine countries and the U.S. and how Latine American families are directly affected. In September 2021, HERO presented an elaborately staged reading of FLEX by Candrice Jones about a Black high school girls’ basketball team that explores such themes as teen pregnancy and abortion. In 2022, we produced Velina Hasu Houston’s TEA and also RISE: An Immersive Exploration of Gun Violence in Schools which received critical acclaim. HERO’s education programming serves elementary through high school students in the L.A. school district, specifically through Inner-City Arts and solo writing and performance classes at Homeboy Industries for formerly incarcerated youth. HERO’s Dukakis Mentorship Program, provides early career artists and administrators one-on-one mentorship; 50+ artists served. HERO frequently invites communities represented in the work on our stages to attend our programming for no cost. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | ARTS AND CULTURE ALPINE COUNTY | 760 Hot Springs Rd #31, Markleeville, CA 96120 | Alpine | Central Valley | (619) 993-2606 | District 5 | District 1 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts and Culture Alpine County (ACAC) will offer arts and culture opportunities to the residents and visitors of Alpine County. Library Arts Shows featuring local area artists, workshops and classes taught by local area artists, Alpine County school student events, and an arts and culture walk at Hot Springs State Park are planned. Upcoming ACAC sponsored Diamond Valley School events include a poster contest and a Haiku-writing unit for grades 7 & 8. At least one local crafts fair will be offered this coming year. In addition, ACAC needs technical, graphic, and accounting services, as well as communication services for our planned office. CAC financial support will provide those, as well as insurance, rent and utilities. | Arts and Culture Alpine County (ACAC) offers art shows, crafts fairs, workshops and classes in music, painting, sketching, and other arts media for the citizens and visitors of Alpine County. ACAC also cooperates with Diamond Valley School to offer special arts programs to its students and with the Alpine County Historical Museum to present an art show focusing on artists of Alpine County's past decades. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | TURBINE ARTS COLLECTIVE INC | 11601 WILSHIRE BLVD STE 1960 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90025-1755 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 209-1625 | With California Arts Council support, TURBINE ARTS COLLECTIVE INC will advance our volunteer-run model to meet our creative community's growing needs. By doubling our free workshops, adding more low-cost offerings, expanding our performance calendar, and fostering new collaborators, this grant will ensure that our exploration of creative practice remains a stable, permanent resource for L.A. artists. In California, entertainment remains a vital part of our economy, and theater is at its very core. But the shuttering of countless small theaters since the pandemic has restricted access to this vital part of our California culture. By prioritizing foundational space costs, we can maintain our low-and-no-cost baseline for workshops and performances, while increasing our support to the performing artists and collaborators who bring our programming to life. | We provide low-cost workshops for those who want to develop a creative practice. In the past, these have included improvisational theatre, writing, storytelling, art/drawing, group singing, songwriting, puppetry, and developing a creative practice. We also present evenings of artists-in-performance including theatre, comedy, variety arts, music, storytelling, theatre, and dance. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Hanford Multicultural Theater Company | 119 1/2 North Douty Street , Hanford, CA 93230 | Kings | Central Valley | (559) 997-3838 | California Assembly district 33 | District 33 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Hanford Multicultural Theater Company will serve a diverse, rural community facing economic challenges that limit access to arts and culture. HMTC removes financial barriers and fosters inclusive, creative experiences to strengthen community bonds, support personal growth, and enhance quality of life. | Our organization plays a vital role in our community by inspiring participants to take risks, have fun, and discover how the arts can be both freeing and essential to overall wellbeing. Recognizing that our area lacked accessible artistic opportunities, we founded the Hanford Multicultural Theater Company on February 1, 2017, with the guiding principle: “Theater for all people.” From the beginning, we offered free acting classes and staged performances in unconventional spaces such as parks, malls, parking lots, a museum, a historical church, and courtyards—bringing theater directly to the community. Three years ago, we established a permanent home in a repurposed building, now known as Lil’ Brick Theater. Designed to reflect the intimacy of small theaters in major arts cities, this space provides a unique and welcoming environment that feels both professional and accessible. We have since expanded our programming to include improv, puppetry, Shakespeare, playwriting, and community events like Monologue Slams, Story Slams, Jam Labs, and open-mic nights. Our community faces significant economic challenges, with many residents living below the federal poverty line. These barriers often limit access to the arts, making our free classes and pay-what-you-can events essential. By removing financial obstacles, we create an inclusive space that fosters creativity, connection, and personal growth. We are deeply committed to equity and representation. Our programs serve individuals of all ages, cultures, and abilities, reflecting our region’s rich diversity. We also extend our outreach by teaching theater to youth at the Santa Rosa Rancheria. With most participants new to the stage, our work builds confidence, skills, and opportunity. Through volunteer-driven efforts, we continue to ensure that the arts remain accessible, transformative, and a natural part of life in our community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project | 5700 El Cajon Blvd , San Diego, CA 92115-3737 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 310-5330 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 79 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, TRANSCENDANCE YOUTH ARTS PROJECT will engage up to 70 youth from underserved communities in our CREATE Performance Group program from October 2026 – September 2027. In accordance with our ongoing, successful program model, students ages 9-19 years will experience a holistic and culturally affirming creative process with professional Teaching Artists through a robust Creative Youth Development program. The students and artists will co-create an original dance theatre production that will be presented at a culminating performance on a professional San Diego Stage in Spring 2027, and we will offer additional community outreach performances during Summer 2027. Through this programming we will address community-identified needs including youth mentorship, access to youth-tailored creative spaces, making art with an equity lens, and providing a platform to amplify youth voice and vision. | transcenDANCE programs provide youth development opportunities through a unique three-tiered program model: CONNECT, CREATE, CONTRIBUTE. transcenDANCE CONNECTS to youth and communities through in-school and out-of-school time dance classes, artist-in-residency programs, outreach performances, and summer camps. CREATE is the heart of the transcenDANCE programs. Youth explore dance and the performing arts through rigorous dance training and immersion in a social change and social emotional learning curriculum over 7-9 months, which culminates in an annual performance on a professional San Diego stage. transcenDANCE alumni CONTRIBUTE to transcenDANCE through performances, teaching and choreography assistantships and paid roles, and mentoring of incoming students. All students have access to mental health services, mentorship, and leadership development opportunties. Our students’ transformative experience develops their leadership skills, social and emotional resilience, and confidence to change the trajectories of their lives and positively impact the communities they live in. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project | 5700 El Cajon Blvd , San Diego, CA 92115-3737 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 310-5330 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 79 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, TRANSCENDANCE YOUTH ARTS PROJECT will fund general operational expenses including space costs (rent) for our studio site on El Cajon Boulevard in San Diego, and a portion of the salaries for our Managing Director, our Program Director, and other core staff. This key support for our organization will help us continue to sustain our dance-based Creative Youth Development work through which we serve youth from San Diego’s most marginalized and under-resourced communities. | transcenDANCE programs provide youth development opportunities through a unique three-tiered program model: CONNECT, CREATE, CONTRIBUTE. transcenDANCE CONNECTS to youth and communities through in-school and out-of-school time dance classes, artist-in-residency programs, outreach performances, and summer camps. CREATE is the heart of the transcenDANCE programs. Youth explore dance and the performing arts through rigorous dance training and immersion in a social change and social emotional learning curriculum over 7-9 months, which culminates in an annual performance on a professional San Diego stage. transcenDANCE alumni CONTRIBUTE to transcenDANCE through performances, teaching and choreography assistantships and paid roles, and mentoring of incoming students. All students have access to mental health services, mentorship, and leadership development opportunties. Our students’ transformative experience develops their leadership skills, social and emotional resilience, and confidence to change the trajectories of their lives and positively impact the communities they live in. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Artes Vocales | 457 South Marengo Avenue, Unit 16 , Pasadena, CA 91101 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 278-0818 | California Assembly district 28 | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTES VOCALES will sustain general operations, including compensation for artistic and administrative personnel; facility rentals; and community outreach. This funding will enable us to present innovative choral programming that reflects the diversity of our Los Angeles community audiences, and offer career-enhancing opportunities to emerging music professionals, including from communities historically marginalized and underrepresented in classical music. | Artes Vocales serves the diverse communities of greater Los Angeles as both audiences and participants, providing high-caliber, engaging vocal performances of varied musical repertoire; accessible opportunities for creative practice as an ensemble member; and, for emerging musical professionals, robust, supportive pathways for career advancement that help diversify the historically white, exclusive classical music world. Our work includes: - Multicultural choral programming that is virtuosic, wide-ranging, and reflects audience diversity. Performances range from major choral masterworks to works by contemporary local composers. Recent programs include “Network of Mutuality,” celebrating the power of music to connect across cultures (March 2026); “Sharing Light,” collaborating with Mostly Kosher ensemble to illuminate the human spirit through song (November 2025); "Reflections," featuring Faure's Requiem (May 2025); “Let’s Tango,” a choral/dance performance celebrating tango’s vibrant cultural roots and engaging artists/audiences from LA’s underserved Latinx communities (March 2025); and "Hollywood Sings!,” a collaboration with Angeles Chorale and Los Angeles Children’s Chorus (March 2024). - Collaboration with local musicians and composers, including Artes Vocales Festival Orchestra; Los Angeles Children’s Chorus; Angeles Chorale; Grammy-winning bandoneonist Hector Del Curto; female composer Maria Newman; organist Scott VanOrnum; renowned opera singers, including Eduardo Villa and Vladimir Chernov; and talented soloists from our choir and Mentorship Program. AV is committed to paying union rates, at minimum, for all artistic collaborators. - Offering local early career singing teachers a unique opportunity to act as paid mentors to the choir in our Professional Mentorship Program for Teachers of Singing, which provides a professional core to support our community ensemble. Our model of an all-levels, full-access choir, where brand-new singers can train alongside professionals, fills an important niche by removing barriers to access for beginner-level adult singers, and offers a venue for early-career musicians looking for performance opportunities, a professional foothold, and musical community. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | School of The Getdown | 1804 Russell St , Berkeley, CA 94703 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 658-2016 | 13th Congressional District of California | District 15 | District 9 | With support from California Arts Council, School of The Getdown, a small arts organization, will celebrate Black Music Month in June 2027 by presenting our sixth annual 'Black Music Month Festival: A Cultural Mosaic.' Presented free for the community, the program this festival will feature an intergenerational, cross-genre array of Black Oakland-based musical acts. The program is collaboratively developed with community members and addresses a community defined need to uplift under recognized Black artists and cultural traditions and foster an environment for intergenerational collaboration in the arts, centering Black Bay Area communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification. | School of The Getdown offers a weekly vocal workshop series; private lessons in singing, instrumental music, performance, and music history; an annual multidisciplinary youth arts summer camp; vocal and instrumental masterclasses with resident and visiting artists; and masterclasses and lecture performances in schools, prisons, and educational programs worldwide. We produce multicultural and intergenerational concert series, free community programming, commissioned artistic works, festivals, and lecture performances, and thematic programming celebrating Black history and Black culture, primarily in the San Francisco Bay Area. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $75,000.00 | Creative Sonoma | 141 Stony Circle Suite 110, Santa Rosa, CA 95401 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 565-6121 | District 4, District 2 | Districts 2, 4, 12 | Districts 2 and 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, Creative Sonoma will serve Sonoma County’s arts economy, creative community, residents, and visitors through grants, professional development, public art, arts education initiatives, and cross-sector partnerships that strengthen the Arts & Culture Sector. As the County’s designated local arts agency, Creative Sonoma connects artists, organizations, schools, and businesses through programs that support cultural vitality, economic development, and equitable access to arts participation across Sonoma County. | Creative Sonoma provides services in six key areas: 1. Grants to artists and culture workers as well as nonprofit organizations and creative enterprises 2. Professional Development (workshops, networking, online resources) 3. Communications and Marketing (online creative profiles, marketplace, promotional activities) 4. Arts Education 5. Public Art 6. Special Initiatives (cross-sector partnerships, business/arts facilitation, etc.) |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Teatro Espejo | 2282 West La Loma Drive , Rancho Cordova, CA 95670 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 212-9315 | California Assembly district 7 | District 7 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, Teatro Espejo will advance its mission of empowering Chicano/Latinx stories that center equity, dignity, and health within our communidad. Funds will directly support mainstage programming that fairly compensates artists and creative workers for Teatro’s upcoming season and increase accessibility services. | Teatro Espejo is a cultural cornerstone in Sacramento, producing work that is of, by, and for the Latine and Chicano communities. As the second longest running teatro in California, we recognize the grassroots responsibility we have to serve our communidad with resonant programming and services. ONE-ACT FESTIVAL Now in its eighth iteration, the One-Act Festival invites open submissions from playwrights seeking an opportunity to workshop new work. Three plays are selected, each paired with a team of collaborators for a development process. The festival culminates in public staged readings followed by artist talkbacks, offering audiences direct engagement with new voices and stories. INTERCULTURAL FESTIVAL With three successful iterations, the Intercultural Reflections Festival was created by Teatro to celebrate Sacramento’s cultural diversity. In partnership with organizations such as Matriarchy Theatre, Sinag-tala Filipino Theater, Ma Series Arts, and PNDA Lahiarts, the festival presents a week of performances and cultural events led by BIPOC-centered companies. Each partner produces an evening of work, culminating in a weekend-long community celebration featuring live performances, a block party, and a BIPOC artist market. MAINSTAGE PROGRAMMING Teatro Espejo also produces two to three full productions annually as part of its Mainstage Season that reflect a range of styles and themes, often grounded in social relevance and cultural pride. Community favorites have included Zoot Suit, Real Women Have Curves, and countless world premieres by Sacramento-native playwrights. In recent years, Teatro has deepened relationships with fellow theaters of color, co-producing works with Matriarchy Theatre and Los Escritores del Nuevo Sol. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Shakespeare Youth Festival | 1210 S SYCAMORE AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90019-1533 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 334-0105 | California Assembly district 54 | District 54 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, LOS ANGELES DRAMA CLUB INC will expand equitable access to high-quality afterschool theatre programming by bringing free and low-cost classes, performances, and community engagement opportunities to underserved populations and neighborhoods across Los Angeles, empowering youth as both artists and audiences. | Since 2010, Los Angeles Drama Club/Shakespeare Youth Festival has successfully built an ongoing artistic community of youth who, through the creative process of “putting on a play,” have found a passion, a purpose, and a safe place to express themselves and gain self-worth from their collective accomplishments. Our programs include our annual Spring Shakespeare Festival, which brings together youth from all over Los Angeles to rehearse and perform three to four Shakespeare plays in rotating repertory, Summer Institute (our summer theater and play-writing camps), and our in-school/after-school workshops and residencies, called Shakespeare in the City. Additionally, we travel to Botswana, Kenya, and Guanajuato, Mexico annually to conduct workshops for youth. While our nonprofit is registered as Los Angeles Drama Club, in 2019, we began using Shakespeare Youth Festival as our public name, to better reflect our mission. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Sacramento Educational Cable Consortium | 4630 NORTHGATE BLVD STE 160 , SACRAMENTO, CA 95834-1142 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 920-1006 | 06 | 06 | 08 | We will use this money to make up for a budget shortfall resulting from a 50% reduction in this quarter's budget of nearly $90,000 from our primary funding source - the Sacramento Metro Cable Television Commission. The money we are requesting will be used to update current production equipment used to produce content for area schools and school districts, and create a pool of equipment to use for after school programs and summer/winter vacation media production camps we plan to launch this summer and during winter break. | We provide visual arts equipment, training and services to K-12 educators and their students in Sacramento County. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | SAINT REMY ARTS AND CULTURE | 1242 Monte Vista Ave STE 1 , Upland, CA 91786 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (562) 551-2590 | State Assembly District 38 | State Assembly District 56 | State Assembly District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Saint Remy Arts will sustain and expand its free, trauma informed and culturally rooted arts programming for individuals living with mental illness, PTSD, and systemic exclusion across Los Angeles County and the Inland Empire. As a Latinx and disability led nonprofit, Saint Remy serves BIPOC, LGBTQ+, unhoused, migrant, at-promise youth and low-income communities through weekly workshops in visual/performing arts. CAC funds will support teaching artist wages, staff capacity, artist residencies, and program materials, ensuring all classes remain free and accessible. Funding will also support Saint Remy’s new community space in Upland and its expanded programming, including a Latinx Artist in Residence and Intern in Residence program from a HSI. This investment will strengthen organizational capacity, deepen community partnerships, and increase access to consistent, healing centered arts experiences. | Saint Remy Arts & Culture is a Latinx and disability-led nonprofit committed to advancing equity at the intersection of arts and mental health. We provide free, trauma-informed, and culturally rooted art programing for individuals living with mental illness, PTSD, and systemic exclusion. We believe art is a human right that fosters emotional, physical, spiritual, and communal wellbeing. Through workshops, classes, artist residencies, and exhibitions, we create restorative spaces where BIPOC, LGBTQ, veterans, disabled, and unhoused communities can heal, connect, and reclaim their voices. Guided by empathy, equity, and transparency, we uplift marginalized artists, sustain living-wage teaching opportunities, and model a nontraditional community-centered approach that integrates creativity, social justice, intercultural leadership, and mental health advocacy. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Venice Arts | 13445 Beach Avenue , VENICE, CA 90292-5623 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 392-0846 | California's 36th congressional district | District 55 | District 28 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Venice Arts will offer our Media Arts Education (MAE) program after-school and on Saturdays during an academic year cycle and daily at our summer Media Arts Camp. MAE, our longest-lasting core program, offers free sequential (beginning to advanced) workshops in photography, filmmaking, animation, and comic art & narrative illustration to under-resourced youth ages 9-18. The curriculum also includes college and creative career pathways services, including College Day, 1:1 college mentoring, field trips, guest panels, and more. | Media Arts Education Our longest-lasting program offers free sequential (beginning to advanced) workshops in photography, filmmaking, animation, and comic art and narrative illustration to youth age 9-18 during an academic year cycle and a summer Media Arts Camp. It includes Creative Pathways, providing directed support for college and creative careers aspirations. Center for Creative Workforce Equity (CCWE) Our new Center supports our creative career development programs for young people through the age of 24. They range from exposure to creative career pathways to education and training in visual storytelling including paid internship, apprenticeships, and job placements. Programs develop creative industry-recognized knowledge, skills, and certifications required for entry into economically viable job pathways into a wide range of jobs and apprenticeships ultimately leading to high-road employment. Gallery & Public Programs Free public exhibition programs of high-caliber work by young artists, professional photographers, and filmmakers; with public programs, panels and screenings. Participatory Documentary Programs We train, consult, design, and deliver projects for nonprofit organizations, foundations, and academic institutions interested in our unique creative youth development model, or in our participant-produced documentary practices. We have worked with diverse organizations across California & the US, and in Hong Kong, Senegal, South Africa, Mozambique, and Southeast Asia. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Institute of Arts Music & Science | 16415 Clark Avenue , Bellflower, CA 90706 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 920-7119 | California's 38th congressional district | District 58 | District 32 | California Arts Council grant funds for the General Operating Support will be used to provide overhead expenses, which include: rent, electricity, water, gas, phone, internet, gardening, professional fee (CPA), advertising, and insurance. This will help to keep our organization running smoothly to continue to serve our community of disadvantaged youth and discover talented students. | We have 14 highly qualified instructors and staff, many with advanced degrees from USC; 5 have earned their PhD. We have 2 buildings on site. We also have Python coding classes to educate the youth on coding languages. We have Art for all ages, instructed in a wide range of media. Our teacher has a Master’s in Fine Arts from CSU, Fullerton. We offer small group lessons, 3 to 5 students, in a weekly one-hour program. Our music lessons are private, once a week. We have an annual student recital to showcase for our community, and our faculty has an annual public recital. We teach classical music and follow the Visual and Performing Arts Content Standards for California Public Schools. Every year, most of our students participate in the Certificate of Merit Program held by the Music Teachers Association of California. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Viver Brasil Dance Company | 2141 N Gower Street , Los Angeles, CA 90068 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 804-1466 | 28th Congressional District | State Assembly District 43 | State Senate District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Viver Brasil Dance Company will build on its long-standing tradition of offering master-level Afro-Brazilian dance classes with live music at a low-cost for our intergenerational communities. Since our founding in 1997, Viver Brasil has been committed to sharing Afro-Brazilian expressive culture, along with its ancestral and contemporary wisdom, in Los Angeles while maintaining strong connections with our spiritual and cultural elders and contemporaries in our sister city, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. With support from the California Arts Council, we will sustain and expand access to this rich cultural experience, serving over 1,000 Los Angeles area community members during the grant period. | Samba in the Streets, VB’s free community engagement program teaches Afro-Brazilian traditional dances modeled on Blocos Afro, Afro-Brazilian parading organizations that introduce communities to Afro-Brazilian history through traditional and contemporary dance and music. Cooking Samba, VB’s signature family program is a narrated 45-minute show that include the royal orixa dances, riveting capoeira, joyful samba and Bahian carnaval with live music and an interactive dance workshop. Community Class, is a weekly Afro-Brazilian technique dance class led by founding artistic directors Linda Yudin and Luiz Badaro accompanied by live music. Dancing at the Source is a 16-day cultural immersion program to Salvador, Bahia, Brazil where participants experience: daily Afro-Brazilian dance, music, and culture classes taught by experienced faculty who are master cultural workers, that reflects VB’s role as a bridge between the U.S. and Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Mono Arts Council | 501 Old Mammoth Rd Suite 5, Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546-6098 | Mono | Central Valley | (760) 923-8984 | California's 3rd congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | California Arts Council grant funds will support Mono Art Council’s arts education, community programming, artist support, and regional partnerships efforts across Mono County. Funding will expand equitable access to arts and cultural opportunities in rural and geographically isolated communities through in-school arts education, artist-led workshops, exhibitions, cultural events, advocacy, and youth engagement initiatives. Supported activities include the Crescendo Music Program, Poetry Out Loud, Create with the Greats discrete art lessons, Family Art Nights, Open Studio, Student Art exhibitions, and culturally responsive community events such as Numu Social Dance. Grant funds will support program coordination, outreach, materials, and partnerships with school districts, Tribal partners, local government, and community organizations to ensure arts programming remains accessible, inclusive, and responsive to community needs across Mono County. | Mono Arts Council offers arts programs to all residents and visitors of Mono County. We continue to create awareness of MAC activities through public outreach, our Gallery & Art Center, and our Art Festivals.Through the MAC Community Arts Center & Gallery we create a space for local, regional and emerging artists to exhibit their work. MAC offers art education in all Mono County schools. We provide free in school art instruction, free after school art and Kids Summer Art Camps. MAC reaches all students through in-school programs such as the Create With the Greats and Crescendo Music program. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | SVCREATES | 255 N Market St suite 210 , San Jose, CA 95110-2445 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 998-2787 | California's 19th congressional district | District 27 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, SILICON VALLEY CREATES will strengthen the capacity of over 85 small multi-cultural arts organizations, raise the visibility of local artists, and provide access to the arts for high need populations, through grant-making, capacity building programs, and special initiatives intended to increase equity and inclusion in our arts ecosystem. | SVCreates provides annual grant opportunities to support small local arts organizations and individual artists, particularly focused on BIPOC/ALAANA centered work. We offer a year-round program of workshops and peer roundtables designed to strengthen networks, leadership capacity, and business skills for artists and local arts organizations. SVCreates provides customized support and coaching for a portfolio of roughly 100 small and mid-sized multi-cultural nonprofit organizations, artists, and creative professionals. We profile and amplify the voices of local artists and creatives through our Content Magazine, in quarterly print publications, weekly e-newsletters, regular podcasts and events. Additionally, we deliver a variety of programs that serve Santa Clara County’s at-risk youth and Title 1 schools. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | TheatreWorkers Project | 1795 La Loma Rd , Pasadena, CA 91105 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 319-1020 | California's 28th congressional district | 41 | 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, TheatreWorkers Project (TWP) will partner with The Prism Way reentry community to create “Life Without…..”, a filmed performance piece that will uplift the voices of people impacted by Life Without the Possibility of Parole (LWOP) sentences. TWP artists will engage intergenerational community participants in an incentivized creative process that will enable them to explore their stories through theatre, writing, and movement exercises, culminating in a filmed theatrical collage performed by people with lived experience. | Using theatre to illuminate social and political issues has been our goal since 1983 when founder Susan Franklin Tanner was awarded a CAC Artist in Communities grant to create theatre with unemployed steelworkers in southeast LA. With that grant, Tanner founded TheatreWokers Project (TWP) and pioneered a form of documentary theatre where the participants, supported by professional artists, provided the content and became the storyteller/actors. TWP went on the create theatre projects with and/or about shipbuilders, meat packers, longshoremen, critical nurses and Latinx immigrant workers. Over time, our focus expanded to include collaborating with community-based re-entry programs serving the formerly incarcerated and prison programs serving incarcerated youth and adults, workshops for community and university medical centers, and providing classical and contemporary theatre experiences for youth through ongoing school residencies and performances. COVID-related restrictions have prompted us to embrace and incorporate filmed performance collages, virtual program delivery and correspondence courses as centerpieces of our programming. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | WESTWIND BRASS INC | 6839 51st St , San Diego, CA 92120-1209 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 665-9125 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | Westwind Brass requests General Operating Support to sustain its mission during San Diego’s FY26 fiscal crisis. Funds will support professional artist fees, administrative staffing, and travel to deliver 50+ free annual programs for historically under-resourced communities. Key initiatives include the Public Commons: Parks Series and Library Sound Discovery Initiative, which restore cultural access to neighborhoods facing city-funded service cuts. We will provide 20 Youth Empowerment assemblies for Title I schools to bridge the $47M district music-funding gap, and a Senior Center Series utilizing "Reminiscence Therapy" for isolated elders. Additionally, specialized VA Medical Center performances provide therapeutic support for San Diego’s Veterans. By centering equity and accessibility, Westwind Brass removes economic barriers to the arts, fostering community resilience and well-being through professional brass performances for those most impacted by current regional budget deficits. | Through our outreach programs, our goal is to not only help provide a well-rounded education for children and create a healthier community, but also, by offering students the chance to participate in this learning process, we help build the future arts audience. WWB strives to achieve its mission by building and satisfying a worldwide following of dedicated individual and organizational supporters, professional peers, music educators, and public audiences that: (a) organize, stage and attend concerts of outstanding classical and contemporary brass chamber music; (b) encourage instructional presentations and discussions of brass chamber music; (c) stimulate and foster creation, research and presentation- both live and recorded- of brass chamber music of the highest artistic and professional quality. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | TheatreWorkers Project | 1795 La Loma Rd , Pasadena, CA 91105 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 319-1020 | California's 28th congressional district | 41 | 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, TheatreWorkers Project (TWP) will be able to offset payroll processing and employee payroll expenses incurred as per AB5 regulations, and pay for organizational line items, including (but not limited to) insurance and operating expenses. Grant funds will also be used to support TWP's Director as she transitions, for the first time, from an hourly employee to a full-time salaried position. | Using theatre to illuminate social and political issues has been our goal since 1983 when founder Susan Franklin Tanner was awarded a CAC Artist in Communities grant to create theatre with unemployed steelworkers in southeast LA. With that grant, Tanner founded TheatreWokers Project (TWP) and pioneered a form of documentary theatre where the participants, supported by professional artists, provided the content and became the storyteller/actors. TWP went on the create theatre projects with and/or about shipbuilders, meat packers, longshoremen, critical nurses and Latinx immigrant workers. Over time, our focus expanded to include collaborating with community-based re-entry programs serving the formerly incarcerated and prison programs serving incarcerated youth and adults, workshops for community and university medical centers, and providing classical and contemporary theatre experiences for youth through ongoing school residencies and performances. COVID-related restrictions have prompted us to embrace and incorporate filmed performance collages, virtual program delivery and correspondence courses as centerpieces of our programming. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Amador Arts | 1324 Jackson Gate Rd , Jackson, CA 95642-9539 | Amador | Central Valley | (209) 256-8166 | District 5 | District 1 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, AMADOR COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL ("Amador Arts") will catalyze broad arts, cultural, and creative engagement for all people throughout our rural region, especially those who are under served and in the bottom quartile of Healthy Places Index. Amador Arts will direct funds and services toward our most historically under-resourced communities by leveraging longtime partnerships, public data sources, community surveys/input, and the collective, inter-cultural vision of the Amador creative ecosystem. This work will include: (1)free outdoor concerts in remote venues across the county (since 1998), (2) Amador Poetry Out Loud (since 2016), (3) free Technical Assistance for artists and organizations applying for California Arts Council grants, (4) free Business resources for emerging artists, and (5) the launching of an Arts Camp for inspired emerging artists in grades 4-6. | The Amador County Arts Council (Amador Arts) keeps the arts central to Amador's life through programs, services, and initiatives. (1) PUBLIC OFFICE: Our accessible public office is open to the public and is located in a historic building on Jackson Gate Road in Jackson, CA. Open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 to 4 PM and staffed by volunteers and employees from the Mother Lode Land Trust, our partner. (2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE: Our team provides free Technical Assistance on California Arts Council grants. (3) PRODUCING PERFORMANCES: Since its establishment, Amador Arts has played a central role in performing arts throughout Amador County. Most notably, since 1998, our "TGIF Free Summer Concerts" have brought live music to thousands of people in outdoor venues where it would otherwise not be available. Producing Poetry Out Loud since 2016, with multi-generational poetry engagement opportunities in addition to the traditional competition. (4) ARTS EDUCATION ADVOCACY: Amador Arts has been a trusted consultant to Amador County Unified School District, providing support and administration for the district's Arts Plan and the rollout of Prop 28. Additionally, since 2012, Amador Arts has been an Arts Now community, surveying the state of arts education annually and teaching advocacy tools and skills to youth so they can impact their own arts education. (5) PROMOTING THE ARTS: Weekly newspaper article "Heart of Art" in the Ledger Dispatch, which covers all types of impacts of the arts and leans heavily on the research from Americans for the Arts and their Arts Impact Explorer. The articles are also published on our blog. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | ARTHATCH | 317 E GRAND AVE SUITE B , ESCONDIDO, CA 92025-3301 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 781-5779 | District 50 | District 76 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, ArtHatch will continue to foster creativity and community connection through our 7,000 sq. ft. complex—home to multiple galleries, 17 artist studios, and Last Spot, our vibrant gathering space. Funding will make 27 free annual events possible, including monthly 2nd Saturday receptions with open studios and live music, and monthly sketch nights with a DJ, all run by our all-artist staff. Our free teen art program supports youth—85% of whom are on probation—through weekly workshops led by professional artists, access to our fully stocked teen studio, and the opportunity to exhibit their work in our 3rd annual all-teen show. Our ADA-compliant facility ensures that everyone, regardless of ability, can participate fully. Funding will help sustain an inclusive hub where artists and community members can create, connect, and thrive. | ArtHatch provides free opening receptions for new exhibitions, Q and A artist sessions and talks, open studios, and live music free for the public 12 times per year. We also provide 24/7 studio space for 20 local artists and exhibition space for an additional 21 artists. Additionally, we host regular monthly field trips for Escondido high schools and colleges. Lastly, we have a free in depth teen arts program for at risk teens with a focus on teens from single parent households, low income families, teens in the foster care system, and teens performing court ordered after school program hours. |
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| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Kingsmen Shakespeare Company | PO BOX 1772 , THOUSAND OAKS, CA 91358-0772 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 493-3184 | 26th Congressional District of California | 42nd Assembly District | 27th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, KINGSMEN SHAKESPEARE COMPANY will strengthen its new leadership infrastructure and implement fresh board governance strategies to ensure long-term organizational sustainability. These efforts will support the development and vision for a strategic framework that will guide and sustain the presentation of Shakespeare and classical theatre programming for the community over the next 30 years. | Kingsmen Shakespeare Festival serves the greater Conejo Valley and Los Angeles and Ventura Counties through a blend of live performance, youth programs, and community outreach. Our cornerstone is the Kingsmen Shakespeare Festival, a family-friendly outdoor summer event now in its 30th season. With professional artists and engaging performances held on the CLU campus, the festival brings thousands together each year in celebration of classical theater. We also offer robust educational programming, including: • The Shakespeare Educational Tour, which brings interactive workshops and abridged productions directly into schools, exposing students to live theater and Shakespeare’s texts. • The Apprentice and Junior Apprentice Programs, providing young artists with hands-on experience in performance and stagecraft. • Summer camps that use Shakespeare to build acting and collaboration skills while nurturing each student's unique strengths and talents. Through these programs, young people gain practical experience in a professional environment, often inspiring further study in the arts or related fields. Kingsmen actively participates in community events with local organizations to extend our reach and deepen impact. We also host special events such as talkbacks, workshops, and fundraisers to build stronger ties with audiences and supporters. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Children's Musical Theater San Jose | 1545 Parkmoor Avenue , San Jose, CA 95128-2407 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 288-5437 | California's 19th congressional district | District 28 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN JOSE CHILDREN'S MUSICAL THEATER will deepen its existing partnership with Alum Rock Unified School District into a yearlong arts access pathway for underrepresented youth who lack access to high-quality arts learning. The project connects two proven CMT programs: Student Audience Matinees, and CMT’s/ARUSD Spring Break Camp offering hands-on acting, voice, movement, and performance. CAC funding will create a pathway from exposure to participation. During the grant period, CMT will host up to 440 ARUSD students at a matinee; deliver three Teaching Artist workshops; provide bilingual family materials; support Teaching Artist compensation; and offer a free Spring Break camp culminating in a family performance at CMT’s Creative Arts Center. The goal is to build the access infrastructure that allows East San José students to participate as young artists. | CMT mounts 11 core productions at the Montgomery Theater in downtown San Jose: six Rising Stars productions (cast members between the ages of 8-14), three Mainstage productions (cast members between the ages of 14-20), and two Marquee shows that showcase the talents of top emerging Bay Area performing artists, including many CMT alumni. Our education and outreach programming incorporates curriculum-based performing arts as a teaching tool and develops young audiences for musical theater. Our Production Workshops are a unique eight-week preparation process based on a clear artistic vision and the belief that each performer, at every skill level, can accomplish something remarkable. Our Audition Master Classes, Guest Artist Series Studio Classes and Summer Camp provide exceptional musical theater training in voice, acting and dance, culminating in performances designed to showcase the young performers’ talent and hard work. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Xela Institute of Art | 1525 AVIATION BLVD SUITE 358 , REDONDO BEACH, CA 90278-2805 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 985-1090 | 36th Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 66 | State Senate District 24 | Xela Institute of Art will expand its operations and arts programming by establishing a series of lectures and arts classes open to the public, led by professionals in the art field; increasing outreach through the funding of a part-time social media coordinator position; and maintaining its online presence through the museum website and exhibition catalog production. | Since our founding, The Xela Institute of Art has supported the career development of 30 underrepresented artists across different stages of their practice—including 8 senior artists, 10 mid-career artists, and 12 emerging artists—through exhibitions, mentorship, and professional services. Each year, The Xela Institute of Art presents four to six free public exhibitions that engage with urgent social themes–from cultural identity and collective memory to ecological crisis and creative healing. Recent solo shows have featured veteran-family and African American artist Carla Jay Harris, Dominican American artist Nara Winston, and internationally practicing emerging artist Yezi Lou. Mid-career to senior spotlights have included fourth-generation Japanese American artist Parker Ito, Watts House Project co-founder Edgar Arceneaux, internationally practicing French artist Christophe Leroux, and disability rights-focused artist Katherine Sherwood. All exhibitions are co-curated through a transparent, dialogic process centering artists’ needs, care practices, and evolving site-specific investigations. Building on our mission to advance underrepresented emerging, mid-career, and senior artists, The Xela offers art skills development and technical training; arts advocacy, information, and research; career services, mentorships, and professional development; grants administration support and re-granting opportunities; arts professional convening and networking forums. These services foster the cultural capital, institutional relationships, and administrative infrastructure essential for sustaining long-term studio practices. To guide our growth, we are forming a larger, dynamic Board of Directors contributing via annual fees. In tandem, we are establishing an Artists’ Council of 4-6 creatives, led by two rotating co-chairs (two-year terms) who both hold full board seats. This structure ensures that artist perspectives directly inform strategic decisions and exemplifies our ongoing commitment to career development within the global visual arts ecosystem. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $21,250.00 | Everyday Arts | 12046 Peoria Street , Sun Valley, CA 91352 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 669-9049 | California's 34th congressional district | District 53 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Everyday Arts will implement “Everyday Arts in El Sereno,” a multi-disciplinary arts initiative aimed at giving students at Huntington Drive Elementary School (a free public school in LAUSD, 24.3% Healthy Places Index) the chance to develop their social-emotional competencies through inclusive arts integration, primarily serving Students with Disabilities. Our holistic, multi-tiered approach includes: Class Visits, where we facilitate weekly visual and performing arts integration activities with students; Professional Learning, where we train classroom teachers in our methodology; and Bilingual Family Events, where students and caregivers create art together to increase family resilience. We use the CASEL “core competencies” (self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making) as our framework, and utilize Universal Design for Learning to ensure accessibility for all students. | Our core program offerings are: 1. Educator Workshops - Learn how to infuse arts-based strategies into your everyday teaching practice. Help improve students’ social-emotional and academic growth through music, visual arts, movement, and theater activities! These workshops are open to classroom teachers, arts specialists, administrators, and related service providers. 2. Lesson Planning Support - Receive post-workshop support via a one-on-one session with an Arts Integration Specialist. We’ll work with you to identify and adapt arts activities most suited to your classroom goals and Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). These coaching sessions are available for classroom teachers and arts specialists. 3. Class Visits - Receive in-class support to implement arts integration lessons with your students. Our Arts Integration Specialist will co-facilitate with the classroom teacher and support staff. 4. Family Workshops Learn new ways to engage your children at home through easy-to-implement music, visual arts, movement, and theater activities! Parents and caregivers are invited to attend these workshops with their children, where they will participate in fun and accessible artmaking together. Everyday Arts prides itself on delivering fun, hands-on workshops that include collaborative art-making, group discussion, reflective practice, and lesson-planning. Participants learn inclusive teaching strategies, utilizing music, visual arts, drama, and movement activities aligned to the California Arts Standards. Our curriculum is adaptable for a wide range of populations, including students with autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disabilities, multiple disabilities, emotional disturbance, and learning disabilities, and has been shown to have a positive effect on reaching Individualized Educational Plan goals in self-contained classrooms as well as inclusion settings. We utilize the principles of Universal Design for Learning as well as the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning “Core SEL Competencies" to help students with diverse learning needs reach their goals. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Non Stop Bhangra | 1336 16th Ave. #1, San Francisco, CA 94122 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 613-6106 | With support from the California Arts Council, Non Stop Bhangra will sustain and strengthen its core community-based cultural programming, including weekly Bhangra dance classes, ongoing cultural events, and large-scale productions such as Bhangra & Beats Night Market. Grant funds will support artist and collaborator compensation, production costs, and administrative capacity needed to maintain consistent, accessible programming. These efforts will allow us to continue creating inclusive spaces that bring people together through music, movement, and shared cultural experience, fostering connection, cultural exchange, and community well-being. Funding will also help ensure that our programs remain financially accessible to diverse communities while supporting the long-term sustainability of our organization and the artists who make this work possible. | Non Stop Bhangra offers a range of community-centered cultural programs that bring people together through music, movement, and shared experience. Our core programs include weekly Bhangra dance classes through Dholrhythms Dance Company, providing consistent and accessible opportunities for people of all levels to engage with Punjabi folk dance in a welcoming, non-judgmental environment. We also produce immersive cultural events and gatherings, including our long-running Non Stop Bhangra dance parties, which combine DJs, live drummers, dance lessons, and performances to create participatory spaces centered on joy and community. In addition, we produce large-scale cultural productions such as Bhangra & Beats Night Market and Colors of India—multidisciplinary experiences that bring together music, dance, food, and local small businesses to celebrate culture in vibrant, accessible ways. Across all of our programs, we focus on creating inclusive spaces that foster connection, cultural exchange, and well-being for diverse communities. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area | 1446 Market Street Intersection for the Arts, San Francisco, CA 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (619) 993-5147 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | The Arts Education Alliance (AEA) will connect and catalyze arts education communities for a more just and creative Bay Area through the following programs and offerings: - Local and Regional Advocacy for individual teaching artists and community based arts organizations. Hosting coalition meetings throughout the Bay Area including Alameda, San Francisco, and West Contra Costa County cohorts. - Offering professional development, practice sharing, professional support and community building opportunities for educators and teaching artists. Providing accessible tools and resources to share arts education news, resources and opportunities with over 2,100 teachers, artists, and arts professionals via our monthly newsletter, listservs, social media, and website. - Centering equity and access at all levels of our work and programming to ensure all young people, CA’s future artists and audiences, have equitable access to culturally responsive, creative practices. | The Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area CONNECTS and CATALYZES local arts education coalitions for a more just and creative San Francisco Bay Area. We serve as a regional hub and unifying voice for local coalitions of teaching artists, school districts, student and their families, community arts organizations, cultural institutions, city and county agencies, funders, business leaders, and arts education advocates throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our regional work aligns with Create CA's state arts education efforts as well as the national efforts of the National Guild for Community Art Education and Arts Education Partnership. The Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area supports our members to cultivate responsive leadership and advocate for arts education through ongoing convening events, professional learning workshops, monthly newsletters, and advocacy resources. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $4,000.00 | Left Coast Music | 1927 MONROE AVE , SAN DIEGO, CA 92116-4031 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 365-5844 | With support from the California Arts Council, Left Coast Music will host a concert series consisting of six live performances presented within San Diego County. Performed by a wind quintet (flute, oboe, clarinet, French horn, and bassoon), concerts will explore music from around the world, highlighting cultural connections through engaging live music. Repertoire will be accessible to broad audiences while maintaining a high level of artistic excellence, and will introduce the audiences to a wind quintet, which they may have not experienced. A key component of the project is audience engagement and education. Each performance will include brief spoken program notes, providing context for the music in an approachable and engaging way. This format encourages understanding and appreciation of the music represented, while remaining welcoming to audiences of all levels of musical familiarity. | Left Coast Music is a professional music ensemble, primarily a wind quintet (flute, oboe, clarinet, horn, and bassoon) dedicated to providing high-quality, community-focused musical experiences. Our core programs and services include: Community Concert Series LCQ performs regularly at libraries, senior living communities, and public spaces, bringing accessible live classical and thematic music to diverse audiences. These concerts often include educational commentary, highlighting composers, musical styles, and cultural context to enhance audience engagement. Educational Outreach The ensemble offers interactive music education programs for schools, youth ensembles, and community organizations. These programs introduce participants to classical music, wind instruments, and the art of chamber music performance, fostering both appreciation and inspiration in learners of all ages. Specialty and Thematic Concerts LCQ develops programs around specific themes, historical events, or cultural traditions. These thematic performances combine music, storytelling, and cultural insights to create a rich, immersive audience experience. Arts Advocacy and Community Partnerships As a 501(c)(3) nonprofit, LCQ collaborates with local arts organizations, museums, and community groups to promote live music and cultural engagement, helping strengthen San Diego’s artistic ecosystem. Through these programs, LCQ blends professional artistry with community connection, making live wind quintet music accessible, engaging, and meaningful for all audiences. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Sierra Repertory Theatre | 13891 Mono Way , SONORA, CA 95370-3030 | Tuolumne | Central Valley | (209) 532-0502 | California's 4th congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | Sierra Repertory Theatre seeks to strengthen and expand its "SRT in Schools" program for the coming year. This popular program, delivered at no cost to schools, brings students a high-quality introduction to the magic of live theater directly to dozens of elementary campuses, reaching more than 3,000 students per year in our rural, underserved region of the Sierra foothills and Central Valley. A troupe of 3-5 professional actors and a stage manager travel to school sites throughout the region each Fall and Spring semester to present 50-minute live theater productions adapted from titles selected from the California School Reading List. CAC grant funds will offset direct costs and allow us to reach a wider range of schools, fulfilling core goals of the CAC. | Sierra Repertory Theatre (SRT) is a professional non-profit theatre in Tuolumne County, California. Nestled in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, Tuolumne County is home to just over 54,000 residents. SRT offers the local community 10 top-quality mainstage productions from its East Sonora Theatre and Fallon House Theatre in Columbia State Historic Park. The Theatre sees over 45,000 visitors every season consisting of residents primarily from Tuolumne, Calaveras, San Joaquin, and Stanislaus Counties. Sierra Rep is the only regional theatre in the area that maintains a contract with the Actor's Equity Association, ensuring the local community can enjoy talent from across the country. With the same enthusiasm and vision, SRT is equally committed to supporting local school-age children and fostering a rich arts culture within the Tuolumne County area through its Youth Education and Outreach Program which includes SRT Jr. and SRT in Schools. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Oceanica Ballet | 400 SAN JUAN AVE 2556 , EL GRANADA, CA 94018-0000 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 303-4544 | District 14 | State Assembly District 23 | State Senate District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oceánica Ballet will produce “Alicia in the Land of Wonders,” an original story ballet choreographed by Edgar Lepe and Robert Burns Lowman that centers the lived experiences of a first-generation American child of immigrant parents. CAC funds will support choreographers’ and dancers’ compensation for rehearsals and a public performance, music licensing, rehearsal and performance space rental, production documentation, marketing, and community engagement activities. Performances will be held at the College of San Mateo Theatre, a venue with an established relationship with Oceánica Ballet and the Latinx/é community. This work responds directly to the urgent need for Bay Area immigrant communities to see their stories reflected and honored through art. | Production and presentation of ballet-based dance works. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $16,955.00 | Tea & Verse Poetry Salon | 544 N Fair Oaks Ave , Pasadena, CA 91103-3304 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 340-9779 | With Support from the California Arts Council, the Tea & Verse Poetry Salon will produce a four-episode docuseries featuring Black, BIPOC, and Older Adult literary, visual, and performing artists from the cities of Pasadena and Altadena area who have been impacted by the Eaton Canyon fire of January 2025. Each episode will highlight a guest artist, the story of their development as an artist, their artistic practice, and their ties to the Pasadena-Altadena area. The episode will culminate with a presentation of the featured artist’s selected works. | 1. To present poetry, literary, and performing arts events to foster connection between artists and their local communities. 2. To develop poetry-centered interdisciplinary works and programs that spotlight the contributions of and challenges faced by current and unsung writers and artists from underrepresented communities. 3. To provide resources and support to developing and experienced writers and performers. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Colusa County Arts Council | 151 Fifth Street , COLUSA, CA 95932 | Colusa | Upstate | (530) 458-2222 | California's 1st Congressional District | District 4 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Colusa County Arts Council will launch the Find the Flock: Migratory Bird Public Art Initiative, an immersive public art program designed to engage with artists and celebrate our rural county’s location along the Pacific Flyway, one of the Western Hemisphere’s premier migratory bird corridors. The Colusa County Arts Council will commission 3-5 professionally fabricated bird sculptures placed throughout downtown with each sculpture celebrating a different species present on the Pacific Flyway. Each sculpture will be paired with interpretive content including bilingual plaques and QR-linked audio. The role of art in rural communities is limited. This project addresses social isolation, economic disinvestment, and barriers to arts access in a rural, historically underserved community by embedding professional public art into everyday spaces at no cost to residents or visitors. | General programming includes monthly art exhibitions in our gallery, "Live Lit" literary reading series featuring local writers, collaborative community events, and fundraising events that feature live music or local artists. General programming also encompasses our Public Arts Advisory Committee, which commissions public artworks throughout the county. Special programming includes Creative Youth Development and Levitt AMP Colusa programs. Creative Youth Development providesfree arts education after school for area youth. This programming includes monthly art lessons at five of the rural branches of the Colusa County Free Library, monthly Family Day workshops held in our gallery space, beginner music workshops, multi-generational craft classes, and four-day arts camp for 5-13 year olds. Levitt AMP Colusa provides 10 free live concerts featuring original music by professionally touring musicians from all over the United States. We partner with local non-profits and community groups to make these events a place where our community resources and values can surface. Booking emphasizes artists and genres who appeal to diverse audiences in our county. Beyond programming, the Colusa County Arts Council uses its resources for community collaboration, mentoring, and advocacy. These services include classroom visits at local schools to promote our programs and share opportunities with art students, hosting middle and high school arts instructors in our gallery to share resources and collaborate, partnering with local non-profits like the Rotary Club and Lion's Club, providing resources to Upstate California Creative Corps grantees and other artists, advocating with local school districts around arts education measures like Prop 28, and participating in programming and professional development offered by other California public arts organizations. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $5,625.00 | Anna H. Wang Concert Series West | 3950 PIERCE ST STE D 2000 , RIVERSIDE, CA 92505-8511 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (585) 208-7667 | The Anna H. Wang Concert Series is requesting $5,000 from the California Arts Council to support the delivery of Cliburn in the Classroom: Rhythms and Roots at La Sierra University, January 27–29, 2027. The total program budget for Cliburn in the Classroom is $15,000, covering artist fees, bilingual teaching-artist compensation, travel, and administrative costs associated with nine free performances for approximately 2,000 Riverside Unified School District elementary students. CAC funds will be applied directly to artist and teaching-artist fees — the core cost that makes professional-level performance possible for students who could not otherwise access it. All nine performances are offered at no cost to students, families, or schools. Additional support from private foundations and individual donors will fund the remaining program costs. No portion of this grant will support administrative overhead unrelated to program delivery. | Classical Music presentations | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | 7545 Hampton Ave., # 207 , W HOLLYWOOD, CA 90046-5542 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 814-8597 | California's 28th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | CAC grant funds will be used to support a series of educational concerts featuring the Click Clack Moosic! program set to the second book in Click Clack Moo series, Giggle, Giggle, Quack, for children ages 3 - 7. The performances will take place in East L.A. and reach up to 1,500 L.A. Unified School District elementary school students. This high-quality music programming for young children is a live musical-story time event. Students learn about musical instruments through the pre-concert curriculum and the pre-concert instrument petting zoo. This updated version of the classic programs like Peter and the Wolf covers more diverse styles of music including salsa, a ho down, waltz, and blues. Through the story, children learn about working together, collective action, and how one small voice can make a big difference. | Helix Collective formed in 2009, as a chamber music ensemble with the objective of bringing classical music to new and diverse audiences. A feature of a "helix" is the ability to recombine into many different yet related forms. Thus, Helix Collective evolves and recombines for every program. The original group included flute, oboe and piano. With this trio, we toured and recorded the critically-acclaimed album, All In. In 2012, we became a non-profit 501(c)3. We added percussion and created the World Dance Club program, an album featuring newly-commissioned international dance music. Our current core programs are the Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival, additional live score-to-screen concerts of media music, and music and storytelling concerts. We’ve developed new partnerships with the L.A. Film School for our annual festival and the Film Music Connect workshop with SAGindie, providing original, recorded scores for participating SAGindie filmmakers. The Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival pairs directors of short films with film composers. The composers write original scores for Helix Collective to perform live-to-picture at the festival. After the festival, the scores are recorded for inclusion in the final version of the films. Films for the most recent festivals were curated by SAGindie and the L.A. Film School. We also partner with the Composers Diversity Collective, an organization dedicated to increasing the visibility of composers from diverse backgrounds throughout the music industry and to mentoring emerging composers from underserved communities. Helix Collective recorded and produced "Shoutout!" a visual album of music by 12 composers from the collective, "Spotlight" a live concert featuring Composers Diversity Collective composers and Level Up game music concert featuring women and BIPOC composers. In 2024 Helix Collective made the West coast premiere of Click Clack Moosic, a children's musical story time program at Boston Court Pasadena. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Canyon Cinema Foundation | 1777 Yosemite Avenue, Suite 210 Suite 210, San Francisco, CA 94124 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 626-2255 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | Located in San Francisco’s Bayview–Hunters Point neighborhood, Canyon Cinema Foundation (CCF) seeks General Operating Support from the California Arts Council to sustain its core operations and continue its mission-driven work of providing artist-centered media infrastructure and public cultural access within a community historically impacted by environmental and economic inequities. CAC funds will support personnel costs and essential administrative expenses required to maintain our distribution and preservation work, artist services, and public programs, including our Canyon Cinema Discovered curatorial fellowship, Print Generations film commissioning project, and year-round screening initiatives that reflect the breadth and diversity of Bay Area experimental film and media culture. | CCF is a non-exclusive distributor; all rights for the works we represent are retained by the artists. We distribute worldwide; our core clients and markets include educational institutions, film/video and new media festivals, art galleries and museums, microcinemas, and community organizations. CCF’s artist services include: - Circulation of Super 8, 16mm, and 35mm prints and digital media for screenings, exhibitions, and classroom use; - Management of bookings, licensing agreements, payments; - Invoicing of clients and collection of distribution fees; - Detailed accounting of title activity and payout of royalties annually; - Media sales to educational institutions, museums, archives, and individuals; - Oversight of print and digital media traffic; - Print inspection and repair; - Quality control of digital media; - Care, proper handling, and storage of prints/digital files/DVD materials; - Inclusion in a complete online catalog of works in distribution; - Marketing and promotion of artists’ work via email, social media, and our website. In addition, we also manage the following programs: - Canyon Cinema Salons: Since 2014, our Salon series has provided a free, informal platform for dialogue and engagement with moving image artists. - Canyon at The Roxie: Bringing into focus Bay Area film artists of past and present, this monographic screening series blends classic, overlooked, new, and restored films from Canyon’s collection; presented in collaboration with The Roxie Theater. - Canyon-on-Demand: Our quarterly online series, presenting limited-run programs of new additions to Canyon’s collection, new digitizations, and work by new artist members. - Canyon Cinemazine: Canyon’s annual print publication. - Canyon Cinema Discovered: Our curatorial fellowship program, which aims to bring fresh perspectives to experimental media curation by supporting the creation of new screening programs composed of works from both inside and outside of Canyon’s holdings. - Print Generations: Our film commissioning project, supporting the production of new 16mm work by Bay Area artists. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | 333 Arts | 712 BANCROFT RD 278 , WALNUT CREEK, CA 94598-1531 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (714) 822-8470 | With support from the California Arts Council, Three Thirty-Three Arts will strengthen the infrastructure of our community arts programs in Alameda, Contra Costa, and Solano Counties. Within those counties, we will focus on East Oakland, unincorporated areas in East Contra County and the Northern Waterfront, and Vallejo and Mare Island, respectively. CAC funds will support core operating expenses including administration (bookkeeping, grant reporting, donor management), art materials, office supplies, lead artist stipends, event and liability insurance, multilingual outreach and communications, and organizational communications. These operational costs enable Three Thirty-Three Arts to provide accessible, inclusive, and engaging creative opportunities and experiences for thousands of residents in the Bay Area, most of whom reside in areas with less resources for artists and arts education. | Three Thirty -Three Arts reimagines the neighborhood as a creative space for forging and fortifying civic ties and cultural memory through collaborative arts experiences. The arts have long served as a powerful vehicle for amplifying marginalized voices, challenging societal norms, and initiating dialogue on critical issues. Inspired by these possibilities, we embrace the arts as an essential tool in our mission to drive meaningful and sustainable cultural change. We provide a proven platform for emerging and underrepresented artists to create public-facing projects, receive mentorship, engage in strategic networking, and access paid opportunities. Through inclusive, participatory experiences (e.g., mural sessions, art and music jams, poetry sessions, workshops) both artists and community volunteers co-create their local identity and beautify their neighborhoods. Our murals are often integrated into larger revitalization initiatives that include building repair, illegal dumping removal, and greenery planting. This synergistic healthy community approach is an essential component of Three Thirty-Three Arts’ mission to champion the arts as a catalyst for social connection, civic engagement, and cultural enrichment. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Broad Room | 1409 DEL PASO BLVD , SACRAMENTO, CA 95815-3611 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 307-9495 | California's 6th congressional district | District 6 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, Broad Room Creative Collective Sacramento will expand organizational capacity to sustain our core arts and cultural programs serving a bottom-tier (14th percentile) California HPI community. CAC funds will right-size the Executive Director’s salary, covering 0.5 FTE to allow strategic focus on capacity building, staff training and management, and partnership development. Funds will also support contract staff for studio management, volunteer coordination, and facility scheduling which are tasks that are outside the ED’s role. This investment transforms a volunteer-dependent model into a resilient, staff-supported infrastructure for free art supplies, affordable studios, public murals, and career-building workshops. | Broad Room's primary programs are the Free Art Supply Closet, the California Art Supply Mutual Aid Training Program, and affordable artist studio space. We serve about 1,500 people per year through the Free Art Supply Closet, which provides free new and gently-used art supplies to the public. We are a founding member of the California Art Supply Mutual Aid Network. We provide affordable studio space to 18+ local artists in our Sacramento-based warehouse. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $148,500.00 | Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture | 624 E Street , Marysville, CA 95901 | Yuba | Upstate | (530) 742-2787 | California's 1st Congressional District | District 3 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture, as a two-county SLP, (requesting $75,000 x 2) will assign funds towards the salary of its Executive Director, Managing Director, and Arts in Education coordinator. Funds will also support our Artists in Residence program representing four artistic disciplines plus our two-county Poet Laureate. It will also help offset the costs for teaching artists, equipment and supplies needed to provide for a continuing series of multi-disciplinary classes, teaching grants as well as our Center Stage Productions youth performing arts program, our new youth mariachi orchestra, our Stage 754 Theater Company, and our Yuba Sutter Big Band Orchestra. The funds will also help with the design, printing, and distribution of our annual report and ongoing marketing support including Constant Contact, Survey Monkey & various grant search subscriptions. | Arts in Education, Arts in Correction, Murals of Live Oak, Veterans Art Projects, Center Stage Productions youth performing arts program, Yuba Sutter Big Band, Stage 754 Company, World Music and Culture Series, Cover It! Utility Box Mini Mural Project, Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Regional Affiliate, Poetry Out Loud, Art Fix & Mix, Youth Mariachi Orchestra, and many, many more. We also own and operate the Sutter Theater Center for the Arts and the Burrows Center for the Arts in Marysville which includes our offices. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Fostering Dreams Project | 5440 TUJUNGA AVE APT 1109 , N HOLLYWOOD, CA 91601-4978 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 284-3506 | California Assembly district 39 | District 39 | District 18 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Fostering Dreams Project will provide a 12-week culturally responsive dance and music program at the Children’s Center of Antelope Valley serving up to 25 foster, unhoused, and system-impacted youth ages 8–18. This program will use healing-centered arts education to foster self-expression, cultural identity, and social-emotional growth. Youth will engage in diverse dance styles, storytelling, and music therapy while building confidence, leadership, and connection to community. | At Fostering Dreams Project our mission is to transform the lives of youth in foster care through the healing art of dance and performing arts. We provide exclusive opportunities to learn dance as a way of being more expressive, socially, and academically engaged to help youth build confidence, become leaders, and create brighter futures. By providing a structured curriculum aligned with the California VAPA Standards that produces positive outcomes for youth, our purpose is to ensure foster and at-risk youth make measurable progress in the areas of: - education and psychosocial development - strengthen their skills in dance, choreography, and historical cultural context - acquire new dance skills and knowledge - develop self-awareness, and discipline - improve problem solving and decision making skills - develop a love and understanding for the art of dance Through the combination of dance instruction, history, and meditative and self-reflective practices, “soft skills,” such as leadership, teamwork, motivation, self- expression, emotional wellbeing, and self-discipline are developed throughout the program. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | MUSEUM OF VENTURA COUNTY | 100 E MAIN ST , VENTURA, CA 93001-2607 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 653-0323 | 24 | 38 | 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Museum of Ventura County (MVC) will provide a year of free, arts- and culture-based Chumash school tour programming for K-12 students across Ventura County, prioritizing low-income and Title I schools. Through facilitated gallery tours, interactive discussion, and arts-integrated activities aligned with California education standards, students will engage with Chumash culture and California Native history while strengthening critical thinking and cultural understanding. | Recognized as the preeminent historical and cultural institution of Ventura County, MVC has been a mainstay of the County for more than 100 years, making significant contributions to residents’ and visitors' engagement and understanding of the regions’ art, history, and industry. Through its collections, exhibits, educational programs, and publications, MVC strives to promote interest in the region by collecting and preserving archives, artifacts, art, and ephemera bearing on the history of the region; documenting current regional events; and creating exhibits and programs that enlighten, educate, and engage the past, present, and future. MVC serves over 40,000 Ventura County residents and visitors annually. Its education department serves more than 100 teachers and their classes annually, including dozens of Title I schools, where at least 80% of children/youth are eligible for the Federal Free and Reduced Lunch Program and are considered underserved. In calendar year 2024, MVC saw a significant increase in online engagement, attracting 76,013 visitors to its website. The organization is committed to providing the highest quality Museum experience and uninterrupted educational programs. MVC is home to Ventura County’s archive collection and it also cares for a vast collection of 180,000 historical artifacts, art works, and agricultural machinery at two separate facilities (Main Street Museum in Ventura, CA and Agriculture Museum in Santa Paula, CA), as well as at MVC's Research Library. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Arose from concrete | 25690 FRAMPTON AVE UNIT 13 , HARBOR CITY, CA 90710-5500 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 719-4002 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arose from Concrete will be able to expand its youth arts and vocational enrichment programming for inner city youth. We will be able to provide underserved young people access to structured, hands on training in creative and beauty based art , while integrating mentorship, coaching and counseling to support personal development. Grant funds will be used to implement a series of workshops and trainings led by experienced artist and industry professionals, focusing on cosmetology, visual arts , and creative expression. Funds will also assist the program in providing career exploration opportunities, metal wellness support and life skill development. Arose from Concrete aims to empower youth to discover their talents, build marketable skills and pursue meaningful career opportunities all while prioritizing and providing a safe and inclusive environment. | Some of the Core Programs and services will be introduction classes to makeup artistry, hair artistry, as well as intro to fashion/ sewing. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Highways Performance Space & Gallery | 1651 18TH ST , SANTA MONICA, CA 90404-3807 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 453-1755 | CD36 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Highways Performance Space will produce the Behold! LGBTQIA+ Performance Series, a multidisciplinary project developed in collaboration with LGBTQIA+ artists and community participants in Los Angeles. Responding to community-identified needs for visibility, artistic development, and intergenerational exchange, the series will consist of multiple performance residencies, each including a week of rehearsal, technical development, and public presentation. Workshops and community dialogues will take place throughout the series, creating opportunities for direct engagement between artists and audiences. CAC funds will support fair compensation for California-based artists, production costs, and accessibility services, with free or low-cost admission and a “no one turned away” policy. Behold! advances Highways’ commitment to under-resourced communities by creating inclusive, artist-led spaces that amplify lived experience and foster sustained cultural dialogue through the arts. | Highways presents over 100 annual performances by culturally diverse dramatic soloists, small theater groups, dance companies and spoken word artists. We also curate an average of 10 annual contemporary exhibitions exploring the boundaries between the performing and visual arts and sponsor residencies that provide emerging artists access to professionally directed training in the performing arts. Our presentations and promotional campaigns financially support hundreds of culturally diverse and cutting-edge artists and nurture their artistic development. To date, Highways has presented over 1000 original works, and has produced over 2400 different arts programs that have attracted over 285,000 people. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | RuckusRoots | 2630 Crestmoore Place , Los Angeles, CA 90065 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 967-2766 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, RuckusRoots Inc will strengthen our capacity to deliver inclusive, community-centered, and environmentally-focused arts programming across Los Angeles. Funds will be used to support our core operations, including staff salaries, teaching artist fees, and administrative infrastructure such as our studio rental space, insurance and essential supplies. With this crucial funding, RuckusRoots can continue to build long-term sustainability, better supporting both our team of teaching artists and small core staff, and amplify the voices of youth and community members through our intersectional approach to climate resilience through art-making. | RuckusRoots' programs fall into three categories: In-School, Apprenticeship and Public, all working to achieve the following goals: 1. Co-create arts programming in communities where it is needed and wanted. 2. Offer programming that inspires a shift in knowledge, values and/or behavior with regards to environmental challenges like climate change, utilizing the arts as a tool for engagement. 3. Amplify the artistic voices of marginalized groups. 4. Share resources with local artists and activists from the communities where we work. 5. Utilize found, recycled or natural materials in artworks whenever possible Main programs: -In-School: Wild Art, TRASHformation and A.L.I.V.E.: Art Living in Vibrant Environments are offered as enrichment or expanded learning opportunities to elementary and middle school-students. Our multi-week programs last 1-6 months, with students aged 5-13 led by professional local artists. Programs aim to build age-appropriate visual arts skills in the areas of painting, drawing, sculpture, design and/or creative reuse, and social-emotional skills of collaboration, creative confidence and change-making. Each program results in a collaboratively-built, large-scale final artwork, ie: a mural, creative-reuse collage, or sculpture, and culminates with a public showcase i.e.: open house, community event or art walk. Teen / Young Adult: For high-school and transition-aged youth, these programs (The Rebel Garden Project and Public ARTivism Apprenticeship) offer smaller groups of students (10-40) deeper learning and mentoring experiences with practicing artists. Themes of art as activism and as a profession are explored; students gain experience creating artworks as well as in professional development and entrepreneurship (artist statements, documentation, branding, design and project management). Public Workshops: We offer free, youth or multigenerational, multi-series or one-time workshops (Garden Magic, From Earth to Art) in which the public is invited to learn techniques and sustainability-uses of specific mediums (fabric, ceramics, non-toxic paint, biodegradable and natural materials) from local artists and experts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | RuckusRoots | 2630 Crestmoore Place , Los Angeles, CA 90065 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 967-2766 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, RuckusRoots will offer Wild Art to 120 5th-6th grade students at Isana Octavia Charter School in 2027. We are excited to expand this offering to a new group of students after launching a successful partnership with the school in 2025 and continuing for a second year in 2026. As one of RuckusRoots' flagship programs, Wild Art employs a professional teaching artist to lead scholars in fundamentals of design, color theory, drawing and painting, with integrated lessons on local Los Angeles wildlife, creative reuse and conservation, resulting in a collaboratively-made art piece. Funds will be utilized to support the teaching artist, program-specific staff hours and to purchase supplies, ensuring that students engage in high-quality arts programming that they otherwise do not receive as part of their regular school day. | RuckusRoots' programs fall into three categories: In-School, Apprenticeship and Public, all working to achieve the following goals: 1. Co-create arts programming in communities where it is needed and wanted. 2. Offer programming that inspires a shift in knowledge, values and/or behavior with regards to environmental challenges like climate change, utilizing the arts as a tool for engagement. 3. Amplify the artistic voices of marginalized groups. 4. Share resources with local artists and activists from the communities where we work. 5. Utilize found, recycled or natural materials in artworks whenever possible Main programs: -In-School: Wild Art, TRASHformation and A.L.I.V.E.: Art Living in Vibrant Environments are offered as enrichment or expanded learning opportunities to elementary and middle school-students. Our multi-week programs last 1-6 months, with students aged 5-13 led by professional local artists. Programs aim to build age-appropriate visual arts skills in the areas of painting, drawing, sculpture, design and/or creative reuse, and social-emotional skills of collaboration, creative confidence and change-making. Each program results in a collaboratively-built, large-scale final artwork, ie: a mural, creative-reuse collage, or sculpture, and culminates with a public showcase i.e.: open house, community event or art walk. Teen / Young Adult: For high-school and transition-aged youth, these programs (The Rebel Garden Project and Public ARTivism Apprenticeship) offer smaller groups of students (10-40) deeper learning and mentoring experiences with practicing artists. Themes of art as activism and as a profession are explored; students gain experience creating artworks as well as in professional development and entrepreneurship (artist statements, documentation, branding, design and project management). Public Workshops: We offer free, youth or multigenerational, multi-series or one-time workshops (Garden Magic, From Earth to Art) in which the public is invited to learn techniques and sustainability-uses of specific mediums (fabric, ceramics, non-toxic paint, biodegradable and natural materials) from local artists and experts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $8,000.00 | Kultur Mercado | 6014 WHITWORTH DR APT 5 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90019-6537 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (760) 485-0163 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kultur Mercado will expand its year-round public programming dedicated to preserving and advancing minoritized Jewish language, music, and culture as a living part of California’s diverse artistic landscape. General Operating Support funds will help sustain free and low-cost community lectures, performances, dances, readings, workshops, and cultural gatherings that welcome broad public participation across generations and backgrounds. Funding will also support the continued growth of LA Yiddish Day, our flagship annual event celebrating Yiddish arts and culture through music, literature, theater, scholarship, and community engagement. By centering historically minoritized Jewish language and cultural tradition, Kultur Mercado fosters accessible spaces for artistic expression, intercultural dialogue, and community-building throughout Southern California. | Our current and planned programs or services include: In Their Words | A program focused on poetry, writing, and translation. In Their Words runs poetry salons that emphasize new or past work produced in other languages with and without a translated accompaniment. Through this program we run classes on the art of translation, largely from Yiddish and Ladino, to train a new generation to support endangered languages and keep the continuity of both cultural and personal histories among participants. Der Zunenshtral (The Sunbeam) | A program to promote Yiddish language and culture across Southern California through traditional arts events, lectures, and a monthly newsletter that acts as a clearinghouse for Yiddish organizations in the region, along with news, updates, translations, and new works being produced in Yiddish. Kultur Series | Essays, past and present, bringing important context and nuance to contemporary discussions. These essays focus on cultural preservation and community flourishing in a multicultural and multiethnic democracy. Kultur Mercado | Our signature program creates a festival atmosphere focused on specific regions of the world. This program brings together culture bearers, artists, and food vendors for a day market while providing lectures and music related to our specific geographic focus area to introduce the general public to specific cultures, cuisines, and the challenges and opportunities within those communities. Community Art Activations | Through a partnership with Motor LA, a gallery without walls, we bring art pop-ups to communities around Los Angeles, focusing on underserved communities and those with park inequity, through a mobile art gallery trailer and work with artists engaged in socially engaged practice. These events both show artist's works and often provide resources and materials for engaging the community in art, offering art and other educational resources, and encouraging ephemeral reclamation of spaces that empower communities to come together. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Larry Spring Museum | 225 E REDWOOD AVE , FORT BRAGG, CA 95437-3521 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 962-3131 | California Assembly district 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Larry Spring Museum will build our capacity to continue to produce sustainable programming that is accessible and meaningful to the communities we serve. Funding will allow us to pay a part-time contract-based program manager and a contract-based consultant to guide our operations. In addition, funding will also help to offset rent and rising utility costs. | Inspired by Larry Spring's collection and practices, the Larry Spring Museum fosters his quirky spirit of inquiry through exhibitions, workshops, events, and arts-based community-centered collaborations. We support emerging, mid-career, and self-taught artists, makers, and other curious beings by providing a platform to develop and share their practice through hyper-local, analog, and intuitive modes of knowledge production. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Legacy LA Youth Development Corporation | 1350 SAN PABLO ST , LOS ANGELES, CA 90033-1027 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 847-2600 | California's 34th congressional district | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, LEGACY LA YOUTH DEVELOPMENT CORPORATION will implement “Murals of Healing,” a 10-week mural arts program engaging 15 youth ages 10-25 from Ramona Gardens Public Housing Development and surrounding communities. Through “Murals of Healing,” youth will learn the process of muralism, painting techniques, and visual storytelling while collaboratively designing and painting a public mural that preserves and reflects community culture. The project will provide culturally responsive arts learning opportunities that promote healing, creative expression, social-emotional well-being, leadership, and community pride. California Arts Council funds will support teaching artist fees, art supplies/materials, youth stipends, and mural implementation. The program will culminate in a public mural unveiling, celebrating youth voices, creativity, and the transformative power of public art in historically underserved communities. | 1. Student Success Program: After-school mentoring and academic support to youth from middle school through college completion (ages 10-24). Legacy LA also engages at-risk and justice-impacted youth in Live Your Legacy career readiness services. 2. Gang Reduction & Youth Development: City-funded, evidence-based, gang prevention services with an emphasis on family case management. 3. FamilySource Center: City-funded family services to increase academic achievement for youth and increase income for parents/guardians. 4. Mindfulness & Wellness: Culturally relevant, on-site therapy, indigenous healing practices, mindfulness courses (to reduce stress), life skills sessions, parent groups, a father’s group, and Rainbow Alliance for LGBTQ youth and allies. 6. Arts & Culture: Legacy LA provides visual arts, comedy and improvisation, spoken word, poetry, theater, storytelling, graffiti art, murals, and hip hop music. Company of Angels, whose performance home is Legacy LA’s black box theater, uses the space to provide arts & culture in collaboration with Legacy LA and to develop emerging artists and produce theater that reflects the richness, diversity, and complexity of LA. 7. Leadership Development: The Youth Council engages youth in 3 years of leadership training. Mujeres Poderosas is a women’s leadership skill-building group that empowers women of Ramona Gardens; it was launched after Company of Angels worked with the women on a theater project. Comunidad Unida is a group of trained leaders (adults) improving the community. 8. Youth Organizing: Legacy LA builds youth power to improve community conditions. Legacy LA youth have been leading the “Invest In Youth Coalition”, which resulted in the creation of a City of LA Youth Development Department in 2021. Youth leaders are also engaged in a campaign to build a Ramona Gardens Natural Park to mitigate air pollution from the adjacent I-10 freeway; youth helped win a $950,000 federal grant award in 2022 to advance the park. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Alliance for California Traditional Arts | 985 N Van Ness Ave , Fresno, CA 93728 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 248-1563 | California, District 21 | Assembly District 31 | Senate District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, ACTA will continue to serve California’s diverse traditional arts ecosystem through statewide programs and services that center historically underrepresented artists and cultural communities. As a hybrid arts service organization and direct program provider, ACTA invests in cultural transmission and community well-being through initiatives like the Apprenticeship Program, Traditional Arts Roundtable Series, and Reentry Through the Arts. General operating support will sustain ACTA’s work in rural and urban regions, prioritizing communities in the lowest quartiles of the California Healthy Places Index. Funding will bolster ACTA’s ability to provide direct support to traditional artists, technical assistance, and field-building efforts statewide that affirm culture bearers as essential contributors to community health, racial equity, and collective resilience across California’s cultural landscape. | ACTA is a unique hybrid organization, serving as both a trusted statewide intermediary and a producer of programs, allowing us to distribute resources across the field while developing and implementing initiatives shaped by deep community relationships and cultural knowledge. As an intermediary, our work is grounded in long-standing relationships, cultural knowledge, and a commitment to reaching artists who have historically been excluded from funding systems. Our Apprenticeship Program offers $5,000 contracts to mentor artists for one-on-one training with apprentices, and Living Cultures Grants Program distributes $7,500 to individual artists and $10,000 to nonprofits, fiscal sponsors, and Tribal Nations. Since our inception, ACTA has partnered with the CAC to support California’s folk & traditional artists, first as the CAC’s designated partner to receive the NEA Folk & Traditional Arts State Partnership grants through 2020, and since 2022 as the CAC’s Administering Organization for Folk & Traditional Arts. Through the Taproot Artists & Community Trust, ACTA has expanded its reach nationally, supporting accomplished traditional artists and culture bearers across the United States and Territories. Public program engagement is central to our work. ACTA’s Traditional Arts Roundtable Series convenes artists for peer learning and exchange, while Sounds of California brings communities together through field research, storytelling, live performances, and media production. In Fall 2026, ACTA will launch its first annual festival in Fresno, “The Great Valley Gathering: Celebrating our Living Traditions,” a large-scale, place-based celebration of the region’s cultural life. Our work also extends into spaces shaped by structural inequities. Through Building Healthy Communities and La Cultura Cura, traditional arts are integrated into community health and well-being efforts. Through Art Breaks In, we bring traditional arts to incarcerated individuals in 17 state prisons and to recently incarcerated participants in Los Angeles and the Antelope Valley—supporting cultural restoration in some of California’s most vulnerable communities. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Boxtales Theatre Company | 1330 State St. Suite 203 , SANTA BARBARA, CA 93101 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 962-1142 | California's 24th congressional district | District 37 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Boxtales Theatre Company (“Boxtales”) will expand access to high-quality, culturally responsive arts programming for students and families, especially those historically excluded from live theatre. Through in-school assemblies, a Youth Summer Theatre Camp, digital learning, and our newest 2026 initiative, the Youth and Family Theatre Public Performance Series, Boxtales brings global myths and folktales to life through masks, movement, music, and storytelling. These vibrant performances spark imagination, foster creativity, and celebrate diverse cultural traditions while promoting empathy and inclusion. CAC support will broaden and deepen these programs, increasing equitable access to the arts. By removing barriers and amplifying underrepresented voices, Boxtales delivers transformative live theater experiences that strengthen cultural pride, inspire connection, and engage communities through the power of storytelling. | Since 1994, Boxtales has filled gaps to ensure that populations who are typically excluded from the arts can participate and reap the benefits of performing arts education. Boxtales’ mission is to bring myths and folktales from around the world to young audiences using masks, movement, music, and storytelling. We believe that the deep collective wisdom represented in old stories, particularly multicultural myths and folktales, is an important tool to honor diversity while showing youth that at the core, we have more in common than differences. Our performances help young children (5 - 12 years) inspire creativity, strengthen cultural pride, encourage tolerance, and engage young people in the excitement and immediacy of live performance. We hear from students that stories honoring diverse cultural traditions gives them a greater sense of self-worth, greater empathy for their peers, and helps them find their voice/place in the community. Boxtales programming offers live in-person assemblies, a teen summer camp, virtual assemblies, and arts exposure opportunities with partner organizations. As a company, Boxtales has created over 20 original theater works based on world mythology and folklore. These original works were devised by Boxtales members trained by master teachers in performance traditions in the cultures from which the stories came and designed and developed to meet California State Arts Standards. Currently, we have 4 original, award-winning, multicultural performances in repertory, one of which is bilingual. Boxtales is Santa Barbara’s only professional touring theatre company, and it averages 90 performances a year throughout Santa Barbara County and the western states. Shirlie Ririe, former head of Young Audiences of America, endorsed Boxtales as “The best youth program in America.” We are honored and humbled to have served 600,000+ children and their families, inspiring imaginations, creativity, compassion, and a love for the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Kern Valley Museum | PO BOX 651 , KERNVILLE, CA 93238-0651 | Kern | Central Valley | (760) 376-6683 | 20th District | District 32 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, KERN RIVER VALLEY HISTORICAL SOCIETY will continue to supply and expand many of the services that we've developed over the last 59 years. We continue to work on preserving art works, historic documents, historic photographs, and artifacts in our collection. We are also obtaining new items that must be scanned, catalogued and preserved on a regular basis. Materials and equipment for this ongoing project are expensive. Another ongoing project is our disaster preparedness plan. We are working towards protecting our collection from fires and floods. We also need funds to continue various programs that we put on during the year--like History Day, Tales on the Trail, art displays and receptions for local artists, education classes, and field trips. | We offer a wide variety of programs and services: 1. The Kern Valley Museum 2. Our art gallery that features artwork by the local Art Association and artwork from the extensive Western Art collection of Ardis Walker. Shows rotate monthly. 3. Our archive which houses books, documents, photos, maps, art, etc. from the local area 4. Educational Classes 5. Field Trips to sites of local interest 6. Partnerships with other history arts and cultural entities 7. Partnerships with our local Indian tribes 8. Events like History Day and Tales on the Trail. History Day features demonstrations of old time skills practiced by area pioneers (like mule packing, using hit-and-miss engines, Native basket weaving, blacksmithing, gold panning, etc.). Tales on the Trail is a dramatic interpretation of 8-10 early pioneers with vignettes written and acted out by local people. The audience moves from station to station to watch the individual plays. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Middletown Art Center | 21456 State Hwy 175 , MIDDLETOWN, CA 95461-1616 | Lake | Upstate | (707) 809-8118 | California's 5th congressional district | District 4 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, EcoArts of Lake County DBA Middletown Art Center (MAC) will continue to provide free, affordable, and equitable access to the arts for diverse communities in underserved Lake County, ranked in the lowest quartile of California's Healthy Places Index (HPI). Funds will support arts education and culturally responsive outreach, including community-engaged artmaking at public events county-wide, youth career development in the arts, accessibility and cultural sensitivity training, partnership building, workshops, classes, cultural events, monthly First Fridays, and the organization’s indoor/outdoor art and cultural space. Critically, funds will support bilingual digital and printed materials, program promotion, distribution, and assessment, ongoing website updates, and the curation, installation, promotion, and documentation of at least four annual exhibitions showcasing local and regional contemporary and cultural artists in a region with limited arts resources. | Community-focused, MAC serves a geographically dispersed region where arts resources are very limited, working to reach, connect, and uplift people of diverse backgrounds and abilities, with an emphasis on service to Lake County’s underrepresented communities. At the core of MAC’s programming are rotating curated exhibitions showcasing local and regional contemporary artists with emphasis on historically excluded voices including culturally diverse artists and artists with disabilities. Exhibitions serve as a platform for public dialogue, learning, and connection within the gallery, studio, and outdoor spaces. MAC delivers free and low-cost programming onsite and in communities throughout Lake County. Activities include musical performances, DJ dances, cultural celebrations, open mics, readings, arts education, and community-engaged art-making at festivals, schools, Tribal and other community spaces. Cultural arts projects centered around exhibitions, with workshops and field trips, are collaboratively designed and led by BIPOC artists, culture bearers, and community advocates, ensuring authentic representation and culturally appropriate outreach within their communities, fostering engagement. Public art projects, such as murals and sculpture, invite community participation. Education is central to MAC programming and designed to engage diverse learners. School field trips and artist-in-schools introduce students to contemporary and culturally rooted artistic practices through inquiry-based learning. Summer camp, homeschool, and after-school programs are low-cost, with subsidies available. In partnership with Woodland Community College, MAC hosts accredited college art classes. Also a creative workforce development hub, MAC supports artists’ professional growth through exhibitions, public art and teaching opportunities, promotion, and documentation. Youth are mentored in studio, gallery, and curatorial assistance, teaching, community activation, mural-making, project coordination, promotion, and operations—building skills, leadership, and pathways to higher education and employment in the arts, nonprofit, and other sectors. All programs are free, by donation, or low-cost, ensuring equitable access, elevating underrepresented voices, and cultivating a resilient arts ecosystem that strengthens community connection and well-being. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Tehama Arts Council | PO BOX 1201 , RED BLUFF, CA 96080-1201 | Tehama | Upstate | (530) 278-5691 | California's 1st congressional district | District 3 | STATE SENATE DISTRICT 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Tehama County Arts Council will strengthen and expand arts and cultural opportunities throughout rural Tehama County. We will provide free and low-cost programs that support artists of all ages and backgrounds, including ArtWalk, Missoula Children’s Theatre, the Student Art Contest, Poetry Out Loud, Cowboy Poetry, community art grants, monthly exhibitions, and classes. Through partnerships with schools, tribal communities, cultural organizations, and local businesses, we will present exhibitions, performances, workshops, and culturally specific events that celebrate the diverse traditions of our region. Our programs preserve and promote visual, literary, performing, and folk arts while ensuring accessibility for historically under-resourced communities. By fostering creativity, cultural expression, and community connection, we will help make the arts a vibrant and inclusive part of everyday life in Tehama County. | The Tehama County Arts Council (TCAC) was established in 1982 by the Tehama County Board of Supervisors to promote visual and performing arts as well as other cultural endeavors in Tehama County. Since incorporating as a 501(c) (3) nonprofit public benefit corporation in September 1985, the TCAC has coordinated, sponsored, funded, produced, and participated in hundreds of local arts events. The TCAC functions as an umbrella organization, encouraging and supporting the visual arts, dance, theater, music, design, and more. In recent years the impact of the TCAC on the community has been greatly enhanced by an art gallery and increasing activity in our community art studio. We bring art to our citizens and honor local artists with support through inclusion in community activities we sponsor and grant support. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Arrowhead Arts Association | PO BOX 1925 , LK ARROWHEAD, CA 92352-1925 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (909) 337-4296 | 23rd Congressional District | District 34 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARROWHEAD ARTS ASSOCIATION will continue to bring musical arts to the residents, youth and visitors of the San Bernardino mountain communities through our general operations. All of the areas we serve have HPI tracts in the lowest two quartiles: 108.03 (36.0%), 108.04 (33.7%), 108.05 (21.2%) and 108.06 (21.2%). | AAA provides vital arts programming to our mountain communities through our signature Youth Enrichment Program, and through Community Concerts. YOUTH ENRICHMENT PROGRAM Our Youth Enrichment Program is our most impactful program. It operates in partnership with the Rim of the World Unified School District. We provide direct support to our local public school students, home schooled students, and students attending our local charter schools through: Private Music Instruction – Scholarships are paid quarterly to teachers to subsidize the cost of student lessons. Instrument Rental Scholarships – Affordable instrument rentals are available to all string students. Music Camp Scholarships – We provide scholarships for local students to attend the acclaimed Arrowbear Music Camp and other regional music camps. Musical Performances in the Schools – We present annual musical performances to three elementary schools, reaching over 1,700 children grades K through 6, without cost to the school district. Early Childhood Programs - Our local schools have been able to provide arts programming to K through 3rd grade classrooms due to funds from Proposition 28. We do, however, provide additional financial support to enhance programming. String Program and Youth Orchestras – Our string programs include the Elementary, Elementary Advanced, Intermediate Orchestra, Intermediate Chamber Players, and Young Artists’ Ensemble at three elementary schools in the Rim of the World School District. Frosty Fiddles, Stringtacular – These youth recitals provide all music students, grades 4-12, with an opportunity to perform. COMMUNITY CONCERTS Fall Music Festival – We present a yearly concert by the Riverside County Philharmonic. Youth Symphony Concerts – We present free concerts by regional youth symphonies. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | ARTSCCC | PO BOX 70799 , Richmond, CA 94807 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 426-6454 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTSCCC (Arts Contra Costa County) will secure general operations and staff for signature arts programs, technical and research assistance for artist and art organization databases, arts regranting program development, grant writing services, and arts advocacy engagement to promote equity. ARTSCCC and its fiscal sponsor, the nonprofit Independent Arts & Media, were recently recognized by the Board of Supervisors as Contra Costa County’s local arts agency and State-Local Partner. Our mission is to foster communities through free expression and cross-cultural appreciation. Our grassroots work is built on compassion, joy, and respect to build a sustainable art organization. Signature programs include a “Poetry Series Program” at Juvenile Hall, “Youth Arts Connection” library workshops, “District Arts Partner” regranting program, and “Danza Azteca Teokalli (Teokalli Aztec Dance)” indigenous performance project. | ARTSCCC (Arts Contra Costa County) is a coalition of cultural leaders whose top priority is an equitable and sustainable arts organization. We facilitate connections and collaborations to build strong communities. ARTSCCC manages projects, provides arts services, and advocates policy to support the creative community. On February 6, 2024, the Board of Supervisors designated ARTSCCC, a fiscally-sponsored project of the nonprofit Independent Arts & Media, to serve as the county’s official local arts agency. For over twenty years, the nonprofit specializes in fiscal arts sponsorships that serve as a transformative “free speech platform” for independent voices and public-interest work. ARTSCCC and their fiscal sponsor, Independent Arts & Media, were officially recognized by the Board of Supervisors as Contra Costa County’s local arts agency and State-Local Partner. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | East Wind Lion Dance | 727 North Broadway #129, LOS ANGELES, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 369-0026 | 34th Congressional | CA 54th | 26th | With support from the California Arts Council, East Wind Foundation For Youth will be proud to launch a one-year class dedicated to teaching young females how to lion dance. This cultural lion dance class offers a comprehensive program designed to preserve the traditional art of Chinese lion dance while fostering personal growth and community connection. Participants will engage in a structured, weekly curriculum that bridges physical conditioning with cultural heritage. Beyond technical skills, the program fosters a deep appreciation for Chinese cultural arts and heritage. By centering young female in this traditionally male-dominated practice, we aim to create space for representation, leadership, and cultural continuity. Participants will have opportunities to engage with their community through performances and cultural events, ensuring that this vibrant cultural art dance form continues to thrive for future generations. | The EAST WIND FOUNDATION FOR YOUTH, INC is a 501(c)3 registered organization based in the heart of the Los Angeles Chinatown community. Established in 1972 by Sifu Ron Quan, East Wind’s focus on working towards creating opportunities and making positive impacts on at-risk youths has made them a leader in the global community of not-for-profit institutions. This long-standing tradition has instilled confidence and self-esteem in every person invested with the organization. East Wind has grown since its modest beginnings and seeks to continue its success in three key areas: Performing Arts (lion dance, dragon dance, and martial arts demonstration), Education (college prep, individual tutorial upon request, interview prep, mentor/mentee programs, and scholarships), and Community (volunteering clean-up in Chinatown, Alpine Park clean-up, Halloween Community Carnival, annual Holiday performances, Lotus Festival, Los Angeles Marathon, and Chinatown Golden Dragon Parade). |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | LA Artcore | 120 Judge John Aiso Street, Suite A A, Los Angeles, CA 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 617-3274 | California's 34th (District 34) | State Assembly (District 54) | State Senate (District 26) | With support from the California Arts Council, LA Artcore will provide coverage for critical operational overhead obligations, including full-time staff support, rent, insurance, professional fees, and utilities. | LA Artcore produces year-round community-centered curated visual art exhibits, community arts programs |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | American Museum of Ceramic Art | 399 N Garey Ave , POMONA, CA 91767 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (909) 865-3146 | California's 35th congressional district | District 53 | District 22 | With support from the California Arts Council, the American Museum of Ceramic Art (AMOCA) will partner with 7 local library branches to provide each location with a slate of 3 free after-school MudMobile visits, including culturally relevant, hands-on arts education programs paired with a literary storytime component led by the library. With a total of 21 MudMobile visits across the partner libraries, the program will culminate in a free Family Day and exhibition opportunity at AMOCA. Selected library partners serve historically under-resourced communities and include Chino Branch Library, Covina Public Library, La Puente Library, Montclair Branch Library, Ovitt Family Community Library (Ontario), Pomona Public Library, and Upland Public Library. Across the 22 programs, this AMOCA/Public Libraries partnership will serve approximately 1,150 youth ages 4-25. | The American Museum of Ceramic Art (AMOCA) champions the art, history, creation, and technology of ceramics through exhibitions, collections, outreach, and studio programming. The Museum is a cultural institution of national and international significance, a vanguard for recognizing the place of ceramics in the visual arts community, an organization dedicated to the promotion of equitable access to the arts, and an important and early participant in the economic revival of the Pomona Valley. Housed in a 51,000-square-foot facility, AMOCA includes four exhibition galleries, a 12,000-square-foot ceramic studio, a resource library, Mudmobile, and a 13,000-object permanent collection. In 2026, we will open a new education hall, Kids Makerspace, accessible gender-neutral bathrooms, two new accessibility ramps, a curatorial preparation room, a Collection Study Room, and a Reading Lounge. AMOCA’s primary activities celebrate ceramic art, artists, and movements through exhibitions, accessible age-appropriate tours, lectures, artist talks, curator presentations, family days, Artist-in-Residence program, studio classes and workshops, and education and outreach programs. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | WHIPPOORWILL ARTS INC | 201 Martina Ave. , Richmond, CA 94801 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 708-3147 | Whippoorwill Arts appreciates the CAC’s consideration of a $30,000 general operating support grant for your continued support of two critical staff positions: Tiara Amar, Team Co-Director of Advocacy and Fellows, and Gabriel Block, Team Co-Director of Music aLIVE. Tiara leads our Advocacy programming, and builds a diverse, artist-led coalition advancing fair pay, professional protections, and equitable hiring practices for musicians. They also manage our Fellows Program, which provides $25,000 fellowships to a talented and diverse cohort of artists. Gabriel directs artist engagement and production for Music aLIVE, which brings free live music to underserved schools, elder care centers, and community partners. With CAC’s renewed partnership, Whippoorwill Arts will continue to support an outstanding cohort of musicians, foster more inclusive audiences, and bring the joy of live music directly to communities where it is needed most. | In response to the needs identified by roots musicians through our national survey, Whippoorwill Arts developed four interconnected program areas that support them and advance a more equitable music ecosystem in local communities: Advocacy: Through Advocacy and our Fair Play Initiative (FPI), we collaborate with municipalities, arts organizations, businesses, and philanthropists to better support local musicians. FPI priorities are identified collectively by a diverse coalition of musicians across ages, cultures, musical genres, and union membership statuses. Current priorities include establishing local wage standards, expanding job opportunities, and advancing equitable hiring practices. Music aLIVE: Through Music aLIVE, we organize free community concerts and create guaranteed paid performance opportunities for musicians. Concerts are curated for underserved communities in non-traditional settings through partner agencies such as senior centers, prisons, rehabilitation centers, veterans’ homes, and K–12 public schools. We intentionally uplift musicians of color, LGBTQIA+ musicians, and disabled musicians, and provide ethical pay of $200/hour for performances that are free to partner agencies and communities. To date, Music aLIVE has produced 965 concerts, created opportunities for 485 musicians, and brought live music to 48,000 audience members. Fellowships: We recognize and support under-the-radar musicians who have demonstrated sustained accomplishment, commitment, and artistic excellence. Fellows receive $25,000 over two years, undertake a professional music project, and join the Whippoorwill Fellows community for professional development, retreats, and performance opportunities. Since 2021, 17 fellows have been supported across four cohorts. Festival Partnerships: Each year, Whippoorwill Arts collaborates with festival organizations such as the Freshgrass Foundation and Northwest Folklife to present live music featuring regional and national roots musicians while promoting equitable pay, community-centered booking practices, and broader visibility for roots artists. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | HaGomel | 4321 Waterside Lane , OXNARD, CA 93035 | Ventura | Central Coast | (424) 256-5515 | HaGomel seeks operating support to sustain and expand expressive arts programming serving women impacted by sexual and other trauma. Facilitated in-person or virtually, to the public or through community partnerships, HaGomel delivers multi-modal workshops, integrating visual art, movement, meditation, writing, music, and theater. Funding will support capacity building to expand program design, facilitation, outreach, evaluation, and accessibility. HaGomel prioritizes partnerships with community-based organizations to reach underserved populations, including survivors of domestic and gender-based violence, as well as the front-line staff and healers of organizations serving those populations. CAC support will strengthen HaGomel's organizational infrastructure, deepen program quality, and increase the number of partnerships and workshops facilitated annually. This investment ensures that participants have free and consistent access to creative healing spaces, fostering connection, resilience, and self-expression while advancing equity in arts access across diverse communities. | HaGomel offers four types of expressive arts programs: In-Person Public Workshops In-person expressive arts workshops and retreats to attendees throughout Los Angeles and Ventura counties. These workshops and retreats are designed for women who want to heal from past trauma and build community. We provide a safe, creative space to explore personal expression and connect with others through art, writing, movement, and reflection. Participants are guided by skilled facilitators who specialize in expressive arts practices through a trauma-informed lens, ensuring each session fosters empowerment, self-discovery, and restoration. Virtual Public Workshops Virtual workshops expand access to the healing arts by bringing expressive arts practices directly into participants’ homes. These online sessions explore a variety of themes—such as mindfulness, resilience, storytelling, and self-care—through the lens of the arts. Women from diverse locations can engage in interactive and supportive experiences that encourage healing, growth, and community, regardless of geographic barriers. Community Partner Workshops HaGomel collaborates with mission-driven organizations providing services to individuals healing from sexual and other trauma. Our community partners invite us to design multi-modal workshops tailored to the needs of their participants, constituents, or staff. Whether serving survivors of trauma, youth violence prevention programs, or their staff on the front lines of service, these workshops integrate creative tools for wellness, connection, and resilience. Each session is customized, ensuring it aligns with our partner’s mission and supports the specific needs and culture of their community. Public Events Beyond long-form workshops, HaGomel engages the wider community through participatory resource and advocacy events. At public gatherings—such as Denim Day—HaGomel leads collaborative arts activities that invite individuals to contribute their voices and creativity to collective works of art and personal take-home projects. Activating space at these events raises awareness around healing arts, community resilience, and justice, while fostering connection and empowerment for all who participate. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | ANGELS GATE CULTURAL CENTER | 3601 S GAFFEY ST BOX 1/Building A , San Pedro, CA 90731 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 519-0936 | California's 44th congressional district | 65 | 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Angels Gate Cultural Center (AGCC) will provide equitable, youth-centered arts education for students across the Los Angeles Harbor Region through an integrated offering of in-and-out-of-school programs, including: Artists-in-Classrooms, Arts Exploration Field Trips, Teen Mural Club, and free, family-focused community workshops. Funding will support Artist-Teacher and education leadership staff salaries, transportation costs for students to access on-site arts experiences, and art supplies, all ensuring that participation is at no cost to youth and families. These programs primarily serve students from Title I schools, many of whom have limited access to arts education and cultural institutions. By combining in-school instruction, exposure to professional art spaces, and opportunities for creative expression rooted in identity and community, AGCC fosters artistic development, academic success, and pathways for continued engagement in the arts. | Angels Gate Cultural Center (AGCC) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide space for artists to work and to engage the community through arts education, exhibitions of contemporary art, and cultural events in the Los Angeles Harbor Region. AGCC emerged in the 1970s when a group of artists gathered to create artist studios and exhibition space in the 1940s-era Army barracks of Angels Gate Park in San Pedro, California. The site became a facility of the City of Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Department in 1977, with the requirement that a cultural center be developed to benefit the community. In 1982, AGCC was established as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) to provide a variety of arts engagement opportunities for the San Pedro community. Today, AGCC provides greater access to the arts—and to artists themselves—for Harbor Region families. In recent years, we have seen how the arts have the ability to uniquely strengthen communities and foster a renewed sense of belonging. At AGCC, we deliver high-quality arts programs while seeking to create safe spaces for gathering, to help break down social barriers, and to encourage community collaboration and wellbeing. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | ANGELS GATE CULTURAL CENTER | 3601 S GAFFEY ST BOX 1/Building A , San Pedro, CA 90731 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 519-0936 | California's 44th congressional district | 65 | 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Angels Gate Cultural Center (AGCC) will sustain and expand equitable access to high-quality, community-based arts programming in the Los Angeles Harbor Region. General Operating Support will fund key staff, including Arts Education, Gallery, and leadership teams, as well as direct program costs, enabling AGCC to offer free and low-cost arts education, exhibitions, public programs, and cultural events year-round. Funds will also support ongoing ADA accessibility improvements across our historic campus, ensuring that AGCC’s facilities and programming are welcoming and accessible to all. With CAC support, AGCC will serve over 19,000 artists, students, and community members next fiscal year— prioritizing communities with limited access to the arts—while strengthening organizational capacity, advancing equity-centered practices, and sustaining its role as a vital cultural resource for the region. | Angels Gate Cultural Center (AGCC) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide space for artists to work and to engage the community through arts education, exhibitions of contemporary art, and cultural events in the Los Angeles Harbor Region. AGCC emerged in the 1970s when a group of artists gathered to create artist studios and exhibition space in the 1940s-era Army barracks of Angels Gate Park in San Pedro, California. The site became a facility of the City of Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Department in 1977, with the requirement that a cultural center be developed to benefit the community. In 1982, AGCC was established as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) to provide a variety of arts engagement opportunities for the San Pedro community. Today, AGCC provides greater access to the arts—and to artists themselves—for Harbor Region families. In recent years, we have seen how the arts have the ability to uniquely strengthen communities and foster a renewed sense of belonging. At AGCC, we deliver high-quality arts programs while seeking to create safe spaces for gathering, to help break down social barriers, and to encourage community collaboration and wellbeing. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Fresh Meat Productions | PO BOX 460670 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94146-0670 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (707) 563-1117 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Fresh Meat Productions (FMP) will organize and produce our 26th annual FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL of transgender and queer performance June 18-20, 2027 (Z Space, SF). All performances will feature ASL interpretation. Our FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL is a beloved community gathering with artists creating and performing new work at the intersections of transgender, racial and disability justice. CAC funds will support Artist Fees of the festival’s 10 performing artists and ensembles, and will also support our Festival’s annual commissioning program, FRESH WORKS! — FMP will award FRESH WORKS! commissions of $5,000 each to 4 BIPOC transgender, gender-nonconforming and queer artists, to support the creation of new work. FMP will present the world premiere of these 4 commissioned works at our 2027 FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL. | Since 2002, Fresh Meat Productions (FMP) has presented over 750 Transgender, gender nonconforming (GNC) and queer artists, paying them more than $7.5 million. We are now celebrating our 25th Anniversary Season! FMP’s year-round programs are intentionally and authentically reflective of – and deeply relevant to – diverse transgender, GNC and queer communities, and are open to everyone: THE CREATION AND PERFORMANCE OF NEW WORK: 1) FRESH WORKS! Commissions: Awards grants to support the creation of new work by trans, non-binary, Two-Spirit and queer Black, Indigenous, and people of color (BIPOC) artists. We present these new works at our annual FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL. 2) Sean Dorsey Dance (SDD): Our resident dance company, performs FMP founder and Artistic Director Sean Dorsey’s award-winning original dance-theater, centering trans and queer bodies and stories. SDD teaches across California, and has toured to over 35 cities across the globe. 3) TRANSfutures Commissions: Community-nominated, unrestricted grants to BIPOC Trans/GNC artists each year. PERFORMING ARTS PROGRAMS & EVENTS: 1) FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL of transgender and queer dance and performance: Our annual, multidisciplinary performance festival centering trans, GNC and queer BIPOC artists. 2) Co-sponsorship and financial support of community-based trans arts events. ENGAGEMENT AND EDUCATION: 1) Trans-supportive dance classes and workshops 2) Guest teaching and in-school residencies 3) LGBTQ2SI+ community conversations 4) Trans-supportive Cultural Competency Training for dance venues, studios, and service organizations. ADVOCACY: - Speaking engagements, panels, lectures, and other field-wide advocacy for trans equity in Dance. Disability Justice and Access are the FIRST things we consider in all of our programming, communications and events. We consider front-of-house access for audiences AND backstage/onstage access for artists, staff and crew. Based on our commitment to trans/racial/disability justice, FMP’s year-round programs and events are all FREE or $0+ sliding-scale with no one turned away for lack of funds. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | ACMA | 3505 Camino Del Rio S STE 305, SAN DIEGO, CA 92108-4090 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 789-1811 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, ASIAN CULTURE AND MEDIA ALLIANCE (ACMA) will sustain operations of its year-round Media Arts Academy, expanding equitable access to media arts education, cultural storytelling, and community arts opportunities for underserved communities across San Diego County. CAC funds will partially support a full-time Program Coordinator, professional studio and facility operations, and community outreach efforts that provide year-round arts education, storytelling initiatives, and culturally responsive programming. Through ACMA’s Media Arts Academy, including the TAKE ONE Vocational Media Arts Training & Internship Program and L.E.A.D. initiative, youth and emerging artists develop technical and creative skills, build confidence, and prepare for careers in the arts and creative industries while producing films, podcasts, and community storytelling projects that amplify underrepresented voices. | As part of our mission to amplify diverse voices and empower immigrant and underserved communities through media arts, ACMA produces educational and cultural initiatives that promote storytelling, workforce development, and cross-cultural understanding. ACMA Media Arts Academy ACMA’s flagship program provides hands-on training, mentorship, and production experience for middle school, high school, and transitional youth from underserved communities. Through L.E.A.D. workshops and the TAKE ONE Vocational Youth Media Training & Internship Program, participants develop skills in filmmaking, podcasting, digital marketing, and media literacy while preparing for careers in the creative industries. Asian Pacific Voices ACMA’s multimedia storytelling platform features a documentary television series and weekly podcast highlighting the stories and cultural heritage of Asian American and Native Hawaiian/Pacific Islander communities. Through conversations with artists, community leaders, and changemakers, the program explores cultural identity and issues affecting immigrant and underserved communities. Asian Pacific Cultural Festival Asian Pacific Cultural Festival San Diego Our annual festival celebrates AANHPI cultural heritage while welcoming participation from diverse communities through performances, food, art, and educational activities promoting cultural exchange and unity. Projects ACMA develops projects exploring community health, food systems, and cultural storytelling. Food for Life is a health and wellness initiative through the Far South Border North (FSBN) Initiative promoting nutrition education for underserved youth through culinary arts and cultural food traditions. The Shared Roots Initiative is supported by the UC Agriculture and Natural Resources (UCANR), highlighting farming, land access, and sustainable food systems while amplifying the voices of small farmers and immigrant growers. Community Partnerships and Services ACMA supports nonprofit, educational, and community partners by providing affordable digital media production and marketing services that amplify their programs and community impact. Supported by youth trained through ACMA’s Media Arts Academy and internship programs, these services create workforce opportunities while strengthening partner storytelling, video production, and digital outreach. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Hacienda Happy Tails Corporation | 31503 ROAD 204 , EXETER, CA 93221-9758 | Tulare | Central Valley | (559) 838-6151 | With support from the California Arts Council, Hacienda Happy Tails Corporation will launch 'Art on the Farm' an interdisciplinary arts program for Central Valley youth and individuals with disabilities. In partnership with the Boys and Girls Club, students will receive bi-monthly lessons in sketching, painting, and watercolor. These are supplemented by quarterly field trips to Hacienda de las Rosas for interactive farm-art sessions led by local artist Danny Diaz. By documenting rescue animals and our healing garden through fine art, this program fosters emotional resilience and artistic discovery. CAC funds will support artist stipends and professional-grade art supplies, ensuring this restorative 'living classroom' remains accessible to our region’s underserved populations. | Hacienda Happy Tails Corporation provides a unique intersection of animal welfare, artistic expression, and culinary engagement through three primary pillars: Nature-Integrated Arts & Observation: We utilize our sanctuary as a "living studio" for plein air painting, photography, and sketching. These programs encourage youth and individuals with disabilities to translate the resilient spirits of our rescued residents into visual media, fostering fine motor skills and creative confidence. Trauma-Informed Storytelling & Expressive Arts: Designed for artists navigating significant life barriers, this program pairs creative writing with animal interaction. By connecting with the healing journeys of our rescued farm animals, participants explore themes of recovery and empathy through symbolic art-making and narrative sharing. Culinary Arts & Sustainable Living: This program focuses on "The Art of the Table," teaching farm-to-fork culinary skills, food presentation, and sustainable gardening. Participants contribute to the sanctuary’s aesthetic and community health by designing functional garden spaces and learning nutritional arts, framing stewardship as a creative, vocational process.Strategic Partnerships & Impact:In collaboration with the Department of Rehabilitation (DOR), the Central Valley Regional Center (CVRC), and the Boys & Girls Club, we provide specialized mentorship. Our programs ensure that high-quality creative and vocational resources remain accessible to those navigating socio-economic and personal challenges. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Arts Council of Mendocino County | 309 East Perkins Street , Ukiah, CA 95482 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 463-2727 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, the ARTS COUNCIL OF MENDOCINO COUNTY will maintain programs and services the communities of Mendocino County rely upon to foster cultural development and support individuals, organizations, and communities in the creation, presentation, and preservations of the arts of all cultures. $5,000 of the total award amount will support implementation of Poetry Out Loud. | The ACMC expands opportunities for artists and arts organizations, supports arts education, promotes the role of the arts in the local economy, and increases public awareness of the value of the arts. With many residents of the county identifying as artists the services that best serve them have to do with providing opportunities to connect with buyers, other artists, and funders; providing crucial technical assistance at periods of career growth or in response to opportunity, providing publicity support for events; and being a strong voice for arts advocacy on topics ranging from public art to art in the schools. In the same way that the ACMC serves as a kind of cohesive grout between the multiple and diverse tiles that make up the cultural landscape of Mendocino County, we also connect this landscape and bind its interests and offerings to broader community needs around economic development and quality of life. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | AAWAA | 1890 BRYANT ST STE 302 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-1497 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 251-7433 | 11th Congressional district of California | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Asian American Women Artists Association (AAWAA) will strengthen the organization’s capacity to serve Asian American women in the arts, inclusive of artists, curators, and arts administrators. Funding will support key personnel in sustaining operations and improving programs that advance the visibility and recognition of our creative communities in California. | Established as a 501(c)3 nonprofit in 2007, AAWAA has blossomed from a close-knit community organization into an established producer of consistent high-quality multidisciplinary art exhibitions, short films, publications, and programming reaching local, national and international audiences. Major accomplishments include the film, The Worlds of Bernice Bing (2013), chronicling the life and work of pioneering queer artist and activist Bernice Bing; publication of literary and visual art anthology Cheers to Muses (2007); arts-based healing program A Place of Her Own; the Emerging Curators Program which offers mentoring and training for emerging curators of color to create community-based visual art exhibitions; and biennial large-scale exhibitions such as underCurrents and the Quest for Space (2013), Eating Cultures (2014), Hungry Ghosts (2015), Shifting Movements: Art Inspired by the Life & Activism of Yuri Kochiyama (1921-2014) in 2017, Agrarianaa: Art Inspired by APA Agricultural Roots (2019), Sowing Agency (2021) and Jade Wave Rising (2023). |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Tuleburg Press/The Write Place | 343 E. Main St., #101 , Stockton, CA 95202 | San Joaquin | Central Valley | (209) 949-2233 | California's 9th congressional district | District 13 | District 5 | With support from the California Arts Council, Tuleburg Press will sustain and strengthen its core operations by funding essential staff positions that drive its literary mission. During 2026-2027, a $30,000 award will help offset payroll costs for staff who deliver free and low-cost programming in Stockton, mostly to low-income residents. Tuleburg Press will continue to provide free classes, hands-on art activations at public events where staff bring papermaking and printing press demonstrations into neighborhoods across the region. The organization will partner with Title 1 schools to provide free and low-cost field trips for students who might not otherwise access arts education or engage with the written and book arts. This California Arts Council investment will help Tuleburg Press continue building an equitable and sustainable literary arts presence in the Central Valley. | Tuleburg Press publishes local authors and mentors emerging writers at The Write Place, the organization's creative writing and book arts center. We publish 1-3 books a year. Classes and field trips for people of all ages, with specific attention to low-income and marginalized groups, are held in papermaking, bookbinding, letterpress printing, and writing in fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. We currently serve between 30-40 participants a month. Tuleburg Press collaborates with other organizations to provide these same services to specific groups: the San Joaquin County Office of Education, Community Medical Centers, and San Joaquin County Housing Authority communities are priority partners. We also work with justice-impacted individuals through memoir writing and journal-making workshops in partnership with Friends Outside and the Community Medical Centers Respite Center, supporting healing and self-expression through the literary arts. Tuleburg Press is a stakeholder in the revitalization of the downtown Stockton core and a lead organization on arts advocacy and access in Stockton. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Stapleton School of the Performing Arts | 70 GREENFIELD AVE , SAN ANSELMO, CA 94960-2415 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 454-5759 | Congressional District 2 | Marin and Sonoma | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, Stapleton School of the Performing Arts will expand the reach of the Citizen Artist/Opening Night program, serving more schools and students throughout Marin County. This school-based outreach initiative brings California Arts Standards–aligned theatre and dance education directly into public school classrooms, providing hands-on instruction for underserved youth led by professional teaching artists. For many students, this is their first exposure to the performing arts. Those inspired are invited to participate in Opening Night, a free on-campus access program offering introductory classes and a welcoming entry point into continued training. CAC grant funds will directly support teaching artist salaries, scholarships, transportation, and supplies, ensuring equitable access and creating a sustained pathway from initial exposure to ongoing artistic development for underserved youth. | Values in Action Access & Inclusion Citizen Artist Program • Opening Night • Scholarships → Removing barriers and welcoming every student—no audition required Artistic Excellence Conservatory Training • Workshops & Guest Artists • Summer Intensives → Rigorous, sequential training led by professional artists Collaboration & Community Performance & Productions • Community Engagement • Multi-generational programming → Building connection through shared creative experiences Wellness & Empowerment Wellness Program • Inclusive classroom culture → Supporting the whole student—mind, body, and artistic voice Pathways & Opportunity Opening Night • Scholarships • Conservatory progression → Creating a clear journey from first exposure to advanced trainin Mission in Action Creating pathways from first exposure to advanced training—developing confident, creative Citizen Artists through access, excellence, and community. Conservatory Training Dance & Theatre Education (Ages 3–Adult) Ballet, contemporary, jazz, musical theatre, acting Pre-professional and advanced divisions Technique, artistry, and ensemble collaboration Performance & Productions Full-scale productions (Danse Printemps, Oliver! Jr., The Nutcracker) Multi-generational casts (ages 8–99) Professional-style performance experience Citizen Artist Program In-School Arts Outreach California Arts Standards–aligned instruction Public school partnerships Focus on underserved youth Opening Night Free Access Program Trial classes for ages 3–10 Entry point into arts training Gateway to scholarships Scholarships & Financial Aid Need-based support Multi-year training pathways Expands access regardless of income Wellness Program Community lectures & guest speakers Mental & physical wellness focus Free family and community events Workshops & Guest Artists Master classes with professional artists Acting, dance, choreography, and more Career exposure and mentorship Summer Intensives & Camps Technique and performance-focused training Multi-level programs Accelerated skill development Community Engagement Fundraisers (A Noble Benefit) Public events & performances Family and volunteer involvement |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Yuba Sutter Arts & Culture | 624 E Street , Marysville, CA 95901 | Yuba | Upstate | (530) 742-2787 | California's 1st Congressional District | District 3 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Yuba County Sutter County Regional Arts Council will implement the Yuba-Sutter Street Art Initiative, a youth-centered public art and placemaking project engaging local high school students, teaching artists, and community partners to design and install large-scale asphalt murals on school campuses and key intersections along Plumas Street in Yuba City. CAC grant funds will support artist stipends, in-school workshops, community design sessions, materials, and mural installation costs, ensuring equitable access for youth who face geographic and economic barriers to arts participation. Students will explore identity, culture, and local history while developing original designs that reflect their lived experiences. The project enhances public safety through traffic-calming artwork while building creative skills, civic engagement, and community pride. | Arts in Education, Arts in Correction, Murals of Live Oak, Veterans Art Projects, Center Stage Productions youth performing arts program, Yuba Sutter Big Band, Stage 754 Company, World Music and Culture Series, Cover It! Utility Box Mini Mural Project, Scholastic Art & Writing Awards Regional Affiliate, Poetry Out Loud, Art Fix & Mix, Youth Mariachi Orchestra, and many, many more. We also own and operate the Sutter Theater Center for the Arts and the Burrows Center for the Arts in Marysville which includes our offices. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | HALALYWOOD FOUNDATION INC | 1351 E 41ST ST APT 235 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90011-6294 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 244-0662 | With support from the California Arts Council, HALALYWOOD FOUNDATION INC will deliver writing and voice-over acting workshops for youth and underserved young people ages 5 to 25 in Los Angeles, California. The grant will support program delivery costs, including teaching artist fees, workshop materials, and recording equipment that enable participants to complete original written stories and produce voice-over audio narrations of their own work. Rooted in South Los Angeles communities facing significant socioeconomic barriers to arts access, HALALYWOOD FOUNDATION INC will guide participants through a structured creative process – from initial story concept through drafting, revision, performance, and final recorded production – that builds literacy, creative confidence, self-expression, and social-emotional skills. All programming supported by this grant will be offered free of charge to participants, ensuring that cost is never a barrier to access. | Halalywood Foundation’s core work centers on two interconnected disciplines for kids, youth, and underserved teens in Los Angeles: writing workshops and voice-over acting workshops. Our writing program guides participants from initial ideas through concept, character, structure, revision, and final draft. Young people are not passive recipients; they are treated as authors who leave with an original piece rooted in their own imagination, culture, and experience. The act of taking a story from beginning to end strengthens literacy, sequential thinking, and creative confidence that carries into school, relationships, and future goals. The voice-over acting program builds on that written foundation by training youth to bring their stories to life through performance. Voice-over acting requires clarity, emotional intelligence, breath control, and presence – skills that are both artistic and highly practical in classrooms, interviews, and community settings. Participants work toward recording their own animated or audio story narrations, creating a tangible, shareable record of their creative labor. Together, these programs are designed to serve the whole young person. A participant who writes and then voices their story has exercised imagination, strengthened literacy, practiced performance, and produced something of lasting value. For communities that are often told their stories do not matter, this work becomes a powerful corrective and an entry point to leadership and self-advocacy. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | SAN FRANCISCO BOYS CHORUS | 333 HAYES ST STE 116 , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-4455 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 861-7464 | Congressional District 12 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN FRANCISCO BOYS CHORUS (SFBC) will engage up to 200 Bay Area students (grades K-12; majority BIPOC; one third low-income) in afterschool choral arts instruction and performances during the grant period (10/1/26-9/30/27). Under the direction of SFBC’s Teaching Artists, choristers at four rehearsal sites (San Francisco, Marin, East Bay, San Mateo) will strengthen vocal skills and musical knowledge and participate in 35+ performances, working with guest artists and partner organizations to bring choral music to diverse communities and regional audiences. SFBC will also continue to provide tuition assistance and scholarships for choristers from economically vulnerable families, reflecting the Chorus’s mission to make high caliber choral arts training and performance opportunities accessible for young people of all economic backgrounds. CAC funds will help underwrite artist fees related to instruction. | CORE PROGRAMS AND SERVICES: SFBC’s choral arts training program provides afterschool instruction to young people (ages 5-18) at four rehearsal sites in the Bay Area, including San Francisco, the East Bay, Marin, and San Mateo. Students from all sites gather in concerts and performances throughout the Bay Area. SFBC provides up to 32 weeks of instruction at each site during the academic year. SFBC also requires choristers to participate in Summer Music Camp, which entails a week-long overnight camp for older choristers and day camp for younger choristers. SFBC’s choral arts training program has four components: 1) Instruction; 2) Performance; 3) Recording; and 4) Touring. Training is sequential, divided into five tiers based on age and skill. SFBC also offers a Handbell Program. SFBC is committed to the preservation and revitalization of the boys choral tradition, and to providing a safe and nurturing space for boys to explore and develop their artistic capabilities. SFBC maintains an open-door policy, welcoming students across the gender spectrum to participate in and benefit from the Chorus experience. The Chorus is headed by Artistic Director Ian Robertson, a veteran conductor who served as the Chorus Director for the San Francisco Opera and the Scottish Opera. Robertson oversees SFBC’s artistic staff, which consists of 12 experienced music educators and music professionals who serve as instructors, accompanists, and vocal coaches for the program. The artistic staff is supported by a Program Administrator, who handles logistics and coordinates parent volunteers and school outreach. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Synchromy | 1390 North Arroyo Blvd , Pasadena, CA 91103 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 255-5718 | California Assembly district 43 | District 43 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Synchromy will produce a season of new music by Los Angeles-based composers, presenting a range of artistic voices to communities across Los Angeles County in accessible, welcoming, non-traditional venues and formats. In addition to concerts, we will provide professional development opportunities for composers and foster community engagement through ongoing partnerships. The General Operating Support grant will be used to support artist fees, production and exhibition costs, and marketing and administrative expenses. We will also use these funds to develop and implement accessibility strategies that improve access for audiences and participants. As an organization in a steady growth phase, this support will enable us to hire a production manager, strengthening our capacity to expand programming and deepen audience engagement. | LIVE MUSIC PROGRAMMING Synchromy produces 6-8 live music programs annually. Our 2025-26 season features six world premieres by LA composers. Tickets are free or low-cost. For paid events, we distribute free tickets through partner organizations. A number of our events take place outdoors, including our annual Urban Birds event. We also produce projects for digital spaces. SUPPORT FOR COMPOSERS Synchromy supports composers’ creative process from inception through production. We provide composers with high-quality documentation and press kits, which are crucial in obtaining further funding and performance opportunities. In 2022, we increased our commissioning fee to a minimum of $1500, which means that all of our artists are compensated at or above regional living wage standards. In 2025, we launched Composer Dream Projects, our flagship commissioning initiative which invites composers to propose the work they most want to create. Over the past several seasons, CDP has enabled ambitious, deeply personal projects that would not otherwise exist, while also generating essential visibility and career advancement for participating artists. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT Synchromy believes that collaboration is essential for diversifying our audiences and ensuring that new music remains a vital and impactful part of the cultural and community life of our city. We began our Community Partnerships initiative in 2018, and have since collaborated with 16 non-arts organizations and 6 external arts organizations. Our goal over the next two years is to create five new partnerships, including collaborations with outreach nonprofits, educational bodies, and to offer childcare for audience members through collaborations with church nursery facilitators. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Southland Sings | 1320 Calle Galante , San Dimas, CA 91773 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 235-2596 | California Assembly district 48 | District 48 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, SOUTHLAND SINGS will present “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song” to two groups of underserved youth: students attending elementary schools in the Rim of the World Unified School District in the San Bernardino Mountain Communities, and system-engaged students in the Orange County Department of Education’s ACCESS program. | Southland Sings offers two programs: “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song” and “From the Page to the Stage.” In both programs, children and youth write and perform an original musical or play in a series of 10-14 consecutive 60-minute weekly sessions. “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song” teaches children to become writers, composers, singers, and performers of their own original musicals. Working together, the students improvise and write melodies with original accompaniment, and then merge their musical creation with their own lyrics. The finished piece contains 5-8 original short songs and poems, dialogue, movement, and narration. There is also an optional component that allows students to create original animations of their work. “From the Page to the Stage” uses the same methodology as “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song,” but the students create a play instead of a work of musical theater. The primary purpose of these programs is to deeply involve students in the subject of their play or musical. For example, students learning about Harriet Tubman would have the chance to speak her words, walk in her shoes, and write and sing songs about what she felt and experienced. In both programs, students determine the theme and plot of their work, create characters, dialogue, and narration based on their life experiences or on a common classroom subject. Students work both individually and in small groups, and the project culminates with a student-performed show for a live audience. Both programs serve general education students, students with disabilities, and students in a variety of settings including incarcerated youth facilities, and both integrated and isolated special education sites. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | KeyNote/SDYS | 1650 El Prado 207A , San Diego, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 233-3232 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Diego Youth Symphony (SDYS) will provide music education programs for over 760 students in the Chula Vista Elementary School District (CVESD). SDYS teaching artists will lead interactive music classes at 14 preschools and through the district’s Early Childhood School Readiness program. For students in 3rd-8th grade, SDYS will provide after-school music instruction at six CVESD schools through the Opus Project, and offer full youth orchestra tuition waivers to Opus students. These programs embed music-centered learning in trusted community settings, reduce barriers to access, and establish clear pathways for sustained participation in music education. | Celebrating 80 years in 2024-25, SDYS is San Diego’s comprehensive provider of cradle-to-college music education opportunities through: Our flagship ensemble program, housed in San Diego’s historic Balboa Park, features thirteen to fifteen orchestras and bands for musicians of all levels and provides additional depth through chamber music, theory, composition, second instrument camps, and summer opportunities. SDYS' Community Opus Project has partnered with Chula Vista Elementary School District for 15 years to restore music education programs to more than forty schools and is a national model for community engagement through music education. Lastly, SDYS' early childhood program, Chimes, works with infants, toddlers, and their families to promote creative youth development, pre-literacy, and school readiness through music education and pre-ensemble training. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Everyday Arts | 12046 Peoria Street , Sun Valley, CA 91352 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 669-9049 | California's 34th congressional district | District 53 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Everyday Arts will strengthen its ability to provide inclusive arts experiences for students with disabilities while creating sustainable employment for its core programming staff. Funding will allow us to provide free programming for public school students and their families, as well as free professional development opportunities for classroom teachers and arts specialists. Additionally, we will use funds to create an updated 5-year Strategic Plan, ensuring that our organization grows and thrives in the Los Angeles arts education community in the years ahead. | Our core program offerings are: 1. Educator Workshops - Learn how to infuse arts-based strategies into your everyday teaching practice. Help improve students’ social-emotional and academic growth through music, visual arts, movement, and theater activities! These workshops are open to classroom teachers, arts specialists, administrators, and related service providers. 2. Lesson Planning Support - Receive post-workshop support via a one-on-one session with an Arts Integration Specialist. We’ll work with you to identify and adapt arts activities most suited to your classroom goals and Individualized Education Plans (IEPs). These coaching sessions are available for classroom teachers and arts specialists. 3. Class Visits - Receive in-class support to implement arts integration lessons with your students. Our Arts Integration Specialist will co-facilitate with the classroom teacher and support staff. 4. Family Workshops Learn new ways to engage your children at home through easy-to-implement music, visual arts, movement, and theater activities! Parents and caregivers are invited to attend these workshops with their children, where they will participate in fun and accessible artmaking together. Everyday Arts prides itself on delivering fun, hands-on workshops that include collaborative art-making, group discussion, reflective practice, and lesson-planning. Participants learn inclusive teaching strategies, utilizing music, visual arts, drama, and movement activities aligned to the California Arts Standards. Our curriculum is adaptable for a wide range of populations, including students with autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disabilities, multiple disabilities, emotional disturbance, and learning disabilities, and has been shown to have a positive effect on reaching Individualized Educational Plan goals in self-contained classrooms as well as inclusion settings. We utilize the principles of Universal Design for Learning as well as the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning “Core SEL Competencies" to help students with diverse learning needs reach their goals. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Bethesda Repertory Theatre Inc. | 1731 Huntington Drive Apt H, South Pasadena, CA 91030 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 425-2741 | 28 | 49 | 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bethesda Repertory Theatre Inc. will stabilize our operations and deepen our commitment to equitable artist compensation. Grant support will provide stipends for our leadership, guest artists, stage management, and musicians, directly reducing our organization’s historical reliance on volunteer labor. We will also engage independent contractors for specialized design and marketing roles to ensure fair pay for professional expertise. To maintain community accessibility, funds will subsidize free and reduced-price tickets and cover costs for ASL interpretation and website accessibility upgrades. Additionally, support will offset essential overhead, including venue rentals, production materials, and insurance. By covering these fundamental costs, the CAC enables Bethesda to focus on our primary mission: producing high-quality, affordable theatre and providing paid career pathways for emerging artists from underrepresented backgrounds. | Main Stage Productions: Producing and presenting a season of plays, musicals, or other theatrical works. We primarily serve underrepresented communities on the Healthy Places index 1 and 2 and underrepresented artists (LGBTQ, BIPOC, AAPI) Special Events: Hosting one-time performances, workshops, or festivals. Providing monthly classes and workshops for aspiring artists at free and/or reduced prices. Community Workshops: Providing training and skill-building opportunities for adults interested in theatre. Free or Reduced-Price Performances: Making theatre accessible to diverse audiences through discounted tickets or free events. Outreach Performances: Bringing theatrical productions to community centers. Collaborations: Partnering with other arts organizations, schools, community groups and businesses. Volunteer Opportunities: Providing opportunities for community members to get involved behind the scenes. New Play Development: Supporting underrepresented playwrights in the creation of new plays. Fundraising Events: Organizing events to support the organization's mission and programs. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | The Table Art Society | 8917 LA MESA BLVD , LA MESA, CA 91942-9051 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 472-0578 | California Congressional District 51 | California State Assembly District 79 | California State Senate District 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, TABLE ART SOCIETY will launch Bridge Work, a 12-month project that places six working artists from City Heights and Southeastern San Diego at the center of paid public art in their own neighborhoods — communities in the bottom two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index, long under-invested by traditional arts institutions, and now hit hardest as San Diego's municipal arts funding collapses from $13.8 million to $2 million. Led by founding artist Haley Montgomery (DALL), Bridge Work pays artists professional rates for six community-rooted public engagements, convenes four free Artist Livelihood Roundtables that bring artists and neighbors to the same table, and culminates in a free community showcase and public report — modeling what neighborhood-rooted arts investment looks like when institutional support fails. | The Table Art Society provides artist-centered programs that support creative development, community connection, and access to public-facing opportunities. Our work equips artists with the resources, relationships, and platforms needed to sustain their creative practice. Artist Development Cohorts TAS facilitates structured cohorts offering mentorship, peer support, and practical tools for artistic and professional growth. These cohorts emphasize creative discipline, collaboration, and long-term sustainability for working artists. Public Showcases and Performances We produce live events and showcases that create opportunities for artists to present their work publicly. These programs increase artist visibility while providing accessible and meaningful arts experiences for the community. Community Gatherings and Creative Events TAS hosts community-centered gatherings that bring artists and audiences together in participatory and relational settings, fostering connection and cultural exchange. Artist Support and Resource Navigation We provide ongoing support through connections to opportunities, professional guidance, and access to networks that extend beyond individual programs, including pathways to paid and public-facing work. Through these programs, The Table Art Society serves a growing network of artists and contributes to a more connected and sustainable creative ecosystem in San Diego. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Sunday Jump | 153 Glendale Blvd , Los Angeles, CA 90026 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 250-4353 | 34th Congressional district of California | State Assembly District 54 | State Senate District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sunday Jump (SJ) will compensate their team of twenty volunteers who organize the free-to-attend open mics. Now in their fourteenth year, SJ’s core values are express, not impress; and free speech, not hate speech. Based in Los Angeles’ Historic Filipinotown, SJ annually hosts seven monthly open mics per season catering to over five hundred attendees. SJ will support special programming: film screenings, art workshops, concerts, and the annual Katipunan (poetry slam), highlighting Filipino-American diaspora. SJ will also provide honorariums to their twenty-five featured performers, primarily indie BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists. Featured performers range in mediums, coming with a prepared ten to fifteen minute set, differentiating them from open mic-ers. | Sunday Jump provides a variety of programs rooted in creating a sense of belonging and community ties to Historic Filipinotown. The backbone of Sunday Jump’s programming is the Open Mic, which occurs monthly from May to November at Pilipino Workers Center. Each event features a lottery-based sign-up, a featured artist, a food vendor, merch or art vendor, and a community spotlight, all chosen intentionally to uplift artists of color. The venue is fully accessible, with wheelchair access, gender-neutral bathrooms, ASL interpreters available upon request, and scent-free guidelines to accommodate all attendees. Monthly workshops offer a more intimate setting for participants to explore monthly themes through hands-on learning. Past topics have ranged from DIY paper making to storytelling through dance. Through our Publishing program, we produce physical and digital chapbooks that showcase art across multiple disciplines, offering community voices a sense of permanence beyond the live event space. Finally, we produce a number of special events, highlighting Sunday Jump's collaborative spirit. Since 2014, we have produced the Katipunan Poetry Slam, an annual event for Filipino and Filipino-American voices rooted in the tradition of the balagtasan, or poetic debate. Most recently, in partnership with KmB Pro-People Youth and LA Neighborhood Land Trust, we launched Kanto Corner, a quarterly festival that brings the community together at Unidad Park through vendors, performances, and mutual aid/service organizations, celebrating the Historic Filipinotown neighborhood as a living, vibrant home. Other partnerships have included a special showcase with KPCC's Unheard LA series and a Filipino mental health panel co-hosted with the LA Times. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | ARTS VISALIA | P.O. BOX 251 214 E OAK AVE, Visalia, CA 93279 | Tulare | Central Valley | (559) 739-0905 | California's 21st congressional district | District 32 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts Visalia intends to continue our mission of educating and promoting the visual arts with a focus of providing visual art opportunities to our entire community located in the center of the San Joaquin Valley. We will strive to involve our entire diverse youth and adult population by providing both a variety of classes, monthly exhibitions, special art events to the public, and in our Marketplace where local artists can sell their work. | Arts Visalia Visual Art Center offers a space for local, regional, and national artists to show and sell their work and the public to interact with their work through monthly art exhibitions. The gallery is open to the public, free of charge, Wednesdays through Saturdays, from Noon to 5:30 p.m. Artist talks, lectures, and demonstrations promote interaction between the community and artists. We offer art classes for youth and adults taught by qualified artist instructors, with scholarships available for youth who might otherwise miss out on the opportunity to explore their creative talents. Youth who participate in our classes are given the option to show and sell their work in our Young Imaginations Gallery space. In addition, we provide open-studio space where artists can work while visiting with cohorts. Our gift shop features unique items crafted by local artisans who sell their art on consignment. Arts Visalia participates in community events such as the Tulare County Arts Consortium's Taste the Arts Festival. The Board of Directors is committed to making the gallery a welcoming place for everyone in the community and has focused our energies on making this commitment a reality by showing a diverse array of art and artists. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | International Eye LA | 7381 LA TIJERA BLVD UNIT 451034 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90045-7046 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 656-3663 | California Assembly district 36 | District 61 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, INTERNATIONAL EYE LOS ANGELES will produce and present the 4th annual Los Angeles Carnival on the Shaw, a multicultural community development initiative using the structure and energy of a Caribbean carnival to revitalize the Crenshaw Corridor in South Los Angeles. Artists will work with businesses along the parade route to activate their establishments with ‘Vibe Spots’, ‘Chill Zones’ and other activations along the parade route. | Our core programs are built around five pillars: Healing Our Spirits: Supporting spiritual wellness to maintain inner peace in the midst of chaos and despair. Healing Our Minds: Supporting educational growth, mental wellness and mindful living. Healing Our Bodies: Encouraging physical movement, healthy nutrition, attire, sleep, safety and comfort. Healing Our Selves: Supporting self care as a critical part of sustaining a healthy community and a content life. Healing Our Community: Creating and facilitating opportunities for economic growth and social equity. Under our ‘Healing Minds’ pillar, IELA launched LA Creative Industries Academy (LACIA) and Carnival Arts in Education programs. Between 2020 and 2023 we graduated 15 LACIA fellows from underserved communities, some of whom have started their own creative practices or are pursuing opportunities in the creative industry. Under our ‘Healing Spirits’ and ‘Healing Selves’ pillars, we have helped to preserve the endangered Jamaica Jonkonnu tradition, a practice that is rooted in the connected histories of Jamaica and Ghana. This work garnered us an invitation to present our work in Ghana in 2023, where we made spiritual connections and new skills in mask-making and costume design, which we are passing on through our youth and creative development programs. Our Los Angeles & Festival of Arts embodies our ‘Healing Community’ and ‘Healing Bodies’ pillars. Following a very successful inaugural presentation of the LA Carnival on Crenshaw Boulevard in 2023, we rebranded it as ‘LA Carnival on the Shaw’ to activate businesses and infuse economic revitalization along this economically depressed section of Crenshaw Boulevard. We are collaborating with other community developers to revitalize and market this area as ‘The Crenshaw Strip’ and create a global tourism destination for the Crenshaw/Leimert Park area. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Four Seasons Arts Inc | 2700 Belrose Ave , Berkeley, CA 94705-1406 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 845-4444 | With support from the California Arts Council, FOUR SEASONS ARTS INC will continue the annual Distinguished Artists Concert Series, the Music in the Schools program providing seminars in public schools featuring major classical music artists, and will increase current outreach efforts to organizations and individuals in underserved communities. | Four Seasons Arts presents an annual series of classical music recital and chamber concerts in Berkeley, California. Other services include: seminars at local public schools presented by professional classical music artists, transportation to concerts for senior subscribers, and coordination of volunteers. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | 7545 Hampton Ave., # 207 , W HOLLYWOOD, CA 90046-5542 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 814-8597 | California's 28th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council Helix Collective will invest in live workshops and artistic programs, and strengthen our marketing to better reach a wider audience. This support will allow us to pay contractors to achieve these aims including artists, videographers, and for marketing, administrative support, and online tools. | Helix Collective formed in 2009, as a chamber music ensemble with the objective of bringing classical music to new and diverse audiences. A feature of a "helix" is the ability to recombine into many different yet related forms. Thus, Helix Collective evolves and recombines for every program. The original group included flute, oboe and piano. With this trio, we toured and recorded the critically-acclaimed album, All In. In 2012, we became a non-profit 501(c)3. We added percussion and created the World Dance Club program, an album featuring newly-commissioned international dance music. Our current core programs are the Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival, additional live score-to-screen concerts of media music, and music and storytelling concerts. We’ve developed new partnerships with the L.A. Film School for our annual festival and the Film Music Connect workshop with SAGindie, providing original, recorded scores for participating SAGindie filmmakers. The Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival pairs directors of short films with film composers. The composers write original scores for Helix Collective to perform live-to-picture at the festival. After the festival, the scores are recorded for inclusion in the final version of the films. Films for the most recent festivals were curated by SAGindie and the L.A. Film School. We also partner with the Composers Diversity Collective, an organization dedicated to increasing the visibility of composers from diverse backgrounds throughout the music industry and to mentoring emerging composers from underserved communities. Helix Collective recorded and produced "Shoutout!" a visual album of music by 12 composers from the collective, "Spotlight" a live concert featuring Composers Diversity Collective composers and Level Up game music concert featuring women and BIPOC composers. In 2024 Helix Collective made the West coast premiere of Click Clack Moosic, a children's musical story time program at Boston Court Pasadena. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | The Compton Arts Project | 4252 Crenshaw Blvd., Unit 115 , Los Angeles, CA 90008 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (315) 514-2253 | 43 | 64 | 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, CAKECUTTER INSTITUTE DBA The Compton Arts Project will implement an artist-led public art, storytelling, and cultural preservation initiative connected to the proposed Compton Cultural Arts District. Funding will support public art installations and artist-led cultural activations along proposed district boundaries, including storytelling workshops, oral history collection, bilingual outreach, accessibility support, and development of a publicly accessible digital archive preserving community cultural memory. The project will engage youth, elders, artists, educators, and residents through intergenerational storytelling activities, artist talks, cultural gatherings, and creative placemaking efforts designed to strengthen cultural visibility, neighborhood identity, equitable arts access, and community connection in historically under-resourced communities. The digital archive will preserve oral histories, artist contributions, public art, and neighborhood cultural narratives while supporting long-term community cultural preservation and development. | Cakecutter Institute DBA The Compton Arts Project activates creative placemaking, public art, storytelling, and community cultural engagement projects across Compton and surrounding communities. Powered by Sēpia Artist Collective (Sēpia LLC), our work is organized through four core program areas: Arts Advocacy & Policy Development We provide pro bono consulting support to the City of Compton to help advance civic arts initiatives, strengthen long-term cultural planning efforts, and support implementation of the City’s first Arts Commission. We also coordinate development of a Public Art Registry and long-range Creative Placemaking Plan connected to the proposed Compton Cultural Arts District. Creative Placemaking & Public Art We lead artist-led and community-centered initiatives such as the Traffic Lightbox Project, Elliott Pinkney mural restoration, and The Compton Memory Map. These efforts combine public art, storytelling, digital engagement, and sustainable design strategies to reflect Compton’s cultural identity, activate public space, strengthen neighborhood pride, and support community visibility and healing. Cultural Programs & Storytelling Signature programs include Reading the City, Compton Cipher, and the Bi-Annual Community Arts & Culture Summit hosted at Compton College. These initiatives convene artists, residents, educators, youth, and civic stakeholders through artist talks, storytelling workshops, cultural gatherings, creative labs, and digital storytelling activities that support cultural preservation, intergenerational dialogue, and community engagement. Healing Arts & Environmental Justice We integrate wellness, environmental awareness, and collective care into our programming through artist-led initiatives and partnerships connecting arts and culture with climate justice, healing-centered engagement, public safety, and neighborhood wellness. Our programs are supported through a collaborative network of artists, curators, educators, youth leaders, community partners, and advisory board members. Through Sēpia Artist Collective, participating artists and curators are contracted to support project-based public art, exhibitions, storytelling initiatives, workshops, and cultural programming activities. We prioritize fair artist compensation, accessibility, equitable participation, and long-term community-rooted cultural development. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | The Compton Arts Project | 4252 Crenshaw Blvd., Unit 115 , Los Angeles, CA 90008 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (315) 514-2253 | 43 | 64 | 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Cakecutter Institute DBA The Compton Arts Project will strengthen organizational capacity through community outreach, bilingual engagement, artist support, culturally responsive programming, and communications infrastructure that advances equitable arts participation and creative placemaking in Compton. General Operating Support funding will support community outreach coordinators, including bilingual Spanish-speaking outreach staff, public engagement activities, printed outreach materials, social media communications, artist-led programming, storytelling initiatives, accessibility efforts, and public art activation connected to the proposed Compton Cultural Arts District. As municipal leadership transitions have delayed implementation of local arts initiatives, Cakecutter Institute DBA The Compton Arts Project continues serving as a stable, community-rooted arts partner advancing long-term cultural development, artist leadership, and community-driven creative placemaking in Compton while building sustainable civic arts infrastructure and expanding inclusive participation in local cultural planning efforts. | Cakecutter Institute DBA The Compton Arts Project activates creative placemaking, public art, storytelling, and community cultural engagement projects across Compton and surrounding communities. Powered by Sēpia Artist Collective (Sēpia LLC), our work is organized through four core program areas: Arts Advocacy & Policy Development We provide pro bono consulting support to the City of Compton to help advance civic arts initiatives, strengthen long-term cultural planning efforts, and support implementation of the City’s first Arts Commission. We also coordinate development of a Public Art Registry and long-range Creative Placemaking Plan connected to the proposed Compton Cultural Arts District. Creative Placemaking & Public Art We lead artist-led and community-centered initiatives such as the Traffic Lightbox Project, Elliott Pinkney mural restoration, and The Compton Memory Map. These efforts combine public art, storytelling, digital engagement, and sustainable design strategies to reflect Compton’s cultural identity, activate public space, strengthen neighborhood pride, and support community visibility and healing. Cultural Programs & Storytelling Signature programs include Reading the City, Compton Cipher, and the Bi-Annual Community Arts & Culture Summit hosted at Compton College. These initiatives convene artists, residents, educators, youth, and civic stakeholders through artist talks, storytelling workshops, cultural gatherings, creative labs, and digital storytelling activities that support cultural preservation, intergenerational dialogue, and community engagement. Healing Arts & Environmental Justice We integrate wellness, environmental awareness, and collective care into our programming through artist-led initiatives and partnerships connecting arts and culture with climate justice, healing-centered engagement, public safety, and neighborhood wellness. Our programs are supported through a collaborative network of artists, curators, educators, youth leaders, community partners, and advisory board members. Through Sēpia Artist Collective, participating artists and curators are contracted to support project-based public art, exhibitions, storytelling initiatives, workshops, and cultural programming activities. We prioritize fair artist compensation, accessibility, equitable participation, and long-term community-rooted cultural development. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | 2332 W 4TH ST 2332 W 4th ST, LOS ANGELES, CA 90057-2702 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 382-8133 | 34 | District 53 | District 24 | SINERGIA is seeking funds to provide artist honorariums (playwrights, actors, and directors) for 3 month-long iterations of our 2027 10-Minute Theater Festival. The annual 10-Minute Festival was established in 2012 with the goal of providing work opportunities for emerging Latinx theater artists. Our venue provides them with the space to stage original works and receive valuable feedback from the artistic director, their peers and the community at large. These 3 iterations will result in 30 new 10-Minute plays, and provide employment for 135 artists. All other production expenses will be provided by other funders. | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA (Synergy Theater Group) is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit arts organization operating out of the William Reagh Los Angeles Photography Center, located at 2332 W 4th St., in the heart of the Westlake District, one of the most densely populated and economically challenged areas of Los Angeles on the outskirts of Downtown. We organize arts programs representing the major ethnic groups residing within a five-mile radius of the Center, primarily Latino immigrant groups from Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Mexico. Throughout the years, SINERGIA has worked diligently to establish a working relationship with the surrounding community in order to integrate them as welcomed members of the company. Our focus continues to be on works and arts education programming relevant to our underserved community. We presently serve a highly transient, zero to low-income population, comprised mostly of first-generation immigrants. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The World Stage | 4321 Degnan Blvd , LOS ANGELES, CA 90008-0694 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 934-6313 | District 37 | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, WORLD STAGE PERFORMANCE GALLERY will continue to provide annually, more than 200 free and low cost Arts workshops, for ages 10 to 80+, residing in the underserved South Los Angeles (SLA) Leimert Park community. Programming features African American and African Diaspora Arts enrichment including Jazz Instrument and Vocal Jam Sessions/Open Mikes, African Drumming, Poetry, Big Band Ensemble (Music Theory/Performance) and live weekly Concerts. | Organization program and services include Wednesdays: Anansi Writer’s Workshop, Thursdays: Billy Higgins Instrumental Jazz Jam Session, Friday: Concert Series, Saturdays: Trap Drum Workshop, Jazz Vocal Workshop, S.H.I.N.E. MAWUSI Women’s African Drum Circle; Jazz Instrumental Musician Master Class-Reed's Creeds; Sundays: World Stage Big Band and Rose Gales Vocal Jazz Jam Session. Performances at The World Stage generally occur on Friday and Saturday evenings. Please view our calendar for upcoming events. The World Stage fosters exchange and interaction between artists of all ages and levels, and provides a place for self-discovery, experimentation and critical feedback in a nourishing environment. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $16,293.00 | TeamWorks Art Mentoring Program | P.O.Box 151066 , San Rafael, CA 94915 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 299-9467 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 12 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, TeamWorks Art Mentoring Program will strengthen school communities through visual arts education and collaborative, site-specific murals and installations. Our mission is to expand access to culturally responsive arts experiences for historically marginalized and/or justice-system-engaged young people seeking an alternative path to graduation by supporting creative expression, skill development, and meaningful participation in community-based artmaking. We reduce barriers to arts access by placing teaching artists at no-cost in under-resourced Title I schools. Through long-term residencies, public art exhibits, and representative staffing, we foster inclusive learning environments, strengthen student connectedness, and advance racial equity. By centering youth voices, sense of belonging, and leadership opportunities, TeamWorks helps participants build confidence, contribute to a dynamic and diverse campus culture, and create art that reflects their identities, values, and communities. | TeamWorks Art Mentoring Program’s curriculum provides a platform for system-engaged and prioritized youth to express themselves and experience culture-affirming co-creation of personal artworks and public murals. Our program offers arts and culture-affirming collaboration on campus during and after school hours, in community settings, and in our county-operated correctional facility. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Yosemite Sierra Artists | PO BOX 838 , OAKHURST, CA 93644-0838 | Madera | Central Valley | (559) 683-1112 | California's 4th congressional district | District 5 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council,Yosemite Sierra Artists will expand and strengthen current arts and cultural programming in the Tri County Area of Madera, Mariposa, and Fresno Counties. Programming includes monthly plein air outings, portrait group with models, photo group meetings, demonstrations, and community events, such as Mariposa Paint Out, Au Naturale Exhibit, Oakhurst Art & Wine Hop, and Up Close with Wildlife at the Nature of Wildworks wildlife rescue and sanctuary. Also highlighted is our new gallery space with the work of 32 local artists who also staff the gallery twice a month and interact with visitors, walking them through exhibits, answering questions, and celebrating our interactive gallery space. All events, outings, and exhibits are welcoming and accessible and accommodate visitors with mobility and other issues. | Activities include: • Plein Air Outings Outings are scheduled for the 4th Wednesday of each month. Currently, these are free to all YSA members. Guests may attend but after the first visit we request they join YSA. To stay informed of YSA meetings, outings, exhibits, and special events follow YSA on Facebook. • Photography Group Monthly theme is suggested via our Facebook Group. Meetings are held once a month. • Live Model Sessions All are welcome to paint/draw/photograph/sculpt from hired models. Meets in at the Oakhurst Community College. Check the CALENDAR for upcoming dates. Cost is $10.00 for YSA members, and $15.00 for guests. • Quarterly Art Demonstrations 10:00 am General Meeting 10:30 Art Demonstration Yosemite Sierra Artists currently gather monthly via ZOOM and/or in person at the Community College in Oakhurst. • YSA Anniversary Competition and Exhibit • Au Natural Exhibit of the Human Form • As a member of the Fresno Arts Council YSA will share artist opportunities with the Fresno area and share FAC info in our newsletter • Visions of Self, an international exhibit of works by women artists, now in its sixth year. • YSA Gallery targets: • Local community members • People who enjoy visiting galleries, learning about art, and discussing creative works as well as those who enjoy being part of the cultural scene. • Individuals aged 20-40 who are starting their careers and may have disposable income for buying art or attending art-related events. • Tourists and visitors traveling to the Yosemite National Park area and may want to buy souvenirs or art pieces from their trip. • Artists and creatives who are looking for exposure, opportunities for networking, and a chance to gain recognition. • Businesses looking for art to decorate their offices Currently, YSA has 157 paying members ($40 per year) and serves another 1500 visitors each year across all program areas. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Electric Company Theatre | 1133 BERENICE DR , BREA, CA 92821-2206 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 393-1256 | 45th | 59 | 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, THE ELECTRIC COMPANY THEATRE will present a season of plays each year by a collective of artists dedicated to nurturing the exploration, development and presentation of classic, contemporary, and original texts for children and adults, providing a forum for community connection, and creating a platform for change through the unique experience of live theatre. ECT provides a show for children each year with free or discounted tickets to elementary students, and opportunities for free tickets for high schoolers at full length productions. ECT presents shows for all ages that provide intimate performer-audience experiences, often setting the plays in unconventional performance spaces. Casting a diverse company of actors, ECT tells beautiful stories to communities that may not otherwise be exposed to the art of theatre. | The Electric Company Theatre produces beautiful full-length plays, immersive experiences, and an intimate storytelling and concert series on the grounds of the Muckenthaler Cultural Center in Fullerton. Each season contains one show specifically for children: Thousands of Fullerton school children attend annually for original theatrical experiences written specifically for the students. The rest of the theatrical season includes shows for community members and residents of all ages, providing live theatre for the North Orange County area. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | 82-2363154 | 2728 Sixth Avenue , SAN DIEGO, CA 92103 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 738-1232 | California's 50th congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Voices of Our City Choir will advance our mission to amplify the voices of people impacted by homelessness through music and the arts. Funds will enhance/expand our service model, which integrates welcoming, healing music/artistic programs into culturally-responsive outreach and case management to foster empowerment and respect, help unsheltered artists meet basic needs, and transform cultural narratives about homelessness. A grant from CAC will 1) increase the number of unsheltered San Diego artists we engage in musical programming that is incorporated into case management/wraparound support; 2) increase the visibility of San Diego artists experiencing homelessness to public audiences; 3) elevate lived experiences of our Choir Members during performances to reframe public perceptions/stigmas around homelessness and catalyze change; and 4) increase access to the arts among under-resourced audiences. | San Diego-based musician Steph Johnson co-founded Voices as a Performance Choir in 2017, in collaboration with local musicians and people experiencing homelessness. Our Choir has performed in more than 150 events, including San Diego Symphony Orchestra, San Diego Master Chorale, and America’s Got Talent (AGT), where Members received the Golden Buzzer award and inspired San Diego’s Board of Supervisors to declare June 2nd “Voices of Our City Day.” To build upon the success of our choir, Voices expanded our arts and creative offerings to include songwriting and music production workshops and wraparound services that link Members to housing/social supports. We offer songwriting workshops to engage Members in creating new, original productions for our Choir to perform in community events. We also provide Members access to our in-house studio to learn music recording, engineering, video, and production skills. In 2022, we formalized the structure of our case management, wraparound service referrals, and basic needs services into a Choir Member Services program. Through our musical programs, Members develop trusting, authentic relationships with our Member Services staff; these connections provide a critical avenue for staff to identify Members’ housing, food, and mental health needs and provide a symphony of resources to meet them. In this way, Voices uses the rhythm of musical programs to move Members through the hierarchy of basic needs and help them realize their full potential. In the process, Voices evolved from a performance ensemble to a nonprofit using musical programming to help unsheltered neighbors meet basic needs. Voices has received excellence awards from Mayor Todd Gloria and the San Diego Psychological Association. Voices also received the 2022 Peacemaker award from the National Conflict Resolution Center and Blue California Promise 2025 Leading the Way Award for Wellness & Empowerment. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Artists of the High Desert | 9648 9TH AVE Ste 8 , HESPERIA, CA 92345-3457 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (442) 353-4258 | With support from the California Arts Council, Hesperia Art Club, Inc will execute a facility expansion to establish the first permanent, community-owned art gallery and multi-disciplinary studio in the High Desert. This project will help us transition to a sustainable owner-operated cultural hub, ensuring long-term institutional stability and expanded public access to the arts in the High Desert region. If funded, our organization will utilize grant funds to support the following. Secure a permanent facility with sufficient square footage to house a public exhibition gallery and a multi-medium classroom. Increase the frequency of youth educational workshops and launch a dedicated curriculum in Spanish to serve the local Hispanic population. Improve physical infrastructure including adaptive workstations to ensure full participation for seniors and individuals with mobility disabilities. Host a year-round calendar of public gallery openings. | The purpose of this corporation is to bring together and increase the discovery, understanding, appreciation and enjoyment of the art and artists in our community through classes, programs and events. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | OnStage Playhouse | 291 THIRD AVE , CHULA VISTA, CA 91910-2721 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 422-7787 | California's 52nd Congressional District | District 80 | District 18 | With the generous support from the California Arts Council, OnStage Playhouse Inc. (OSP) will allocate funds to cover vital operating expenses. This includes the recently doubled monthly rent, facility maintenance, utilities, and the purchase of production equipment to enhance the quality of our performances. The grant will also be used to compensate our dedicated staff, invest in marketing and outreach efforts, and provide professional development opportunities for artists and staff. Additionally, funds will support initiatives to improve accessibility, making our theater more inclusive for individuals with disabilities. This grant will ensure financial stability, enhance production quality, expand our audience reach, and promote professional growth and accessibility. With these investments, OSP can continue to enrich the community through our vibrant arts and cultural programs at an accessible ticket cost to patrons from all socio-economic backgrounds. | OnStage Playhouse (OSP) is the only live theatre in San Diego’s South Bay, producing a season of six full-length plays annually in our 70-seat venue. Each show runs 4–6 weeks and features contemporary, diverse stories reflective of our region. We are committed to accessibility, offering discounted tickets to seniors, students, low-income individuals, and active military. We also provide free admission to all high school and college students in San Diego County, ensuring young people have access to thought-provoking theatre that fosters empathy and deeper community awareness. Education & Workforce Development OSP’s Student Intern Program gives high school and college students a 9-month immersive experience in all areas of theatre. Participants culminate their training with a student-led production, and selected interns receive modest scholarships. The Student Apprenticeship Program pairs college students with professionals for hands-on experience in production roles, with two scholarships awarded annually. Through our High School Mentorship Program, we collaborate with educators to bring professional artists into classrooms across the county. These workshops are supplemented with free tickets to current shows, extending the learning beyond the classroom. New Works Development Our Page to Stage program supports emerging and underrepresented local playwrights by providing space and resources for script development to culminate in a full production in our season. OSP has historically supported BIPOC, immigrant, and senior citizen writers who develop original plays that resonate with our diverse audiences. This comprehensive support provides playwrights with the tools and platform to bring bold, relevant stories from the page to a live audience. Community Engagement Through Quarterly Community Drives, OSP partners with local nonprofits to collect and distribute essential items, such as food, clothing, and toys, to economically impacted families. These events strengthen our role as a cultural and civic hub and reinforce our mission to serve the broader needs of our community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | SUNSET MUSIC AND EDUCATION FOUNDATION | 1900 S PALM CANYON DR UNIT 52 , PALM SPRINGS, CA 92264-8949 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (323) 251-4940 | The Sunset Music and Education Foundation (SMEF) will use CAC funding to expand its SMARTS Initiative (Sharing Music, Accessing Resources, Transforming Students), providing underserved youth in the Coachella Valley with instruments, mentorship, scholarships, and hands-on learning opportunities through live music programming. Funds will support artist-led workshops, student participation in rehearsals and soundchecks, and performance opportunities alongside professional musicians within SMEF’s concert programming. Students will gain real-world experience in both artistic and production environments, strengthening their musical skills, confidence, and career pathways. CAC support will also help underwrite community-based performances that serve as educational platforms, increasing access to high-quality arts experiences for students and their families. These activities expand equitable access to the arts while fostering the next generation of artists and cultural leaders. | The Sunset Music and Education Foundation (SMEF) delivers community-centered arts programming through live performances, music education, youth development, and intergenerational cultural engagement across the Coachella Valley. Our signature SMARTS Initiative (Sharing Music, Accessing Resources, Transforming Students) provides underserved youth with instruments, scholarships, mentorship, and hands-on learning opportunities. Students gain real-world experience through rehearsals, soundchecks, workshops, and live performances alongside professional musicians. SMEF also produces concerts, festivals, and the Sunset Music Series, presenting professional artists across genres including jazz, blues, soul, Latin, comedy, and multidisciplinary performance. These events serve as both cultural celebrations and educational platforms that expand access to the arts. In addition, we present programs connected to Black History Month, Women’s History Month, Jazz Appreciation Month, Juneteenth, and other community celebrations that honor heritage, creativity, and shared history. Our programs also create welcoming spaces where older adults remain connected, engaged, and part of the cultural life of the community, reflecting our belief that the arts should enrich every stage of life. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | "" | 11112 LA MAIDA ST UNIT 7 , N HOLLYWOOD, CA 91601-4575 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 628-3507 | 29th District | District 46 | 20th District | With support from the California Arts Council, RETURNING SOLDIERS SPEAK will produce a Veteran-led community-centered theatrical project featuring a play written by a Veteran, performed by Veterans, and artistically and technically supported by Veterans. Following a developmental and rehearsal process, the full-length production will be presented through public performances for the community, with facilitator-led dialogue sessions following each performance. Meaningful engagement among Veteran participants during rehearsals and performances, together with post-show dialogue involving audiences and community partners, will empower, uplift, and reduce the isolation many Veterans experience while supporting reintegration into civilian life. In addition, this Veteran-led arts and healing project will help community members gain deeper insight into the realities of military service, while breaking down barriers of misunderstanding, stigma, and prejudice through shared artistic experience. | Our programs and services address the pressing need for veterans, first responders, and their families to have supportive and safe platforms to tell their stories through the written word, readings, and performances for the community. Veterans often face isolation and a lack of community engagement post-service. Evidence suggests that many struggle to find avenues to express themselves creatively. By providing structured developmental programs for veterans, first responders, and their families to write and workshop their stories and original writings, we offer them a pathway to healing and community. Through dialogue, storytelling, poetry, prose, creative non-fiction, and playwriting veterans overcome isolation, connect with peers, and break through barriers to sharing their talents and their life experiences. We offer readings and performances opportunities for veterans to share their stories with the community, through this cohesive and holistic process and programs; they learn that coming home is possible and deserved. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Medical Clown Project | 5716 Skyview Pl. , El Sobrante, CA 94803 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 337-1564 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council MEDICAL CLOWN PROJECT will >Provide access to our programming to audiences who need it most - those isolated in health care settings and their caregivers - bringing the joys of theatrical play to assisted living, memory care, hospital wards, and pediatric units. >Promote the well-being of the whole person, by sharing activities bringing joy, warmth, connection, and comfort. We lighten an atmosphere from tension and worry to one of relief. >Provide ongoing networking, performance opportunities and payroll support for the professionally-trained clown ensemble and staff to engage with heath care patients and community care residents, as well as their families and facility partner staff. | We bring our artists to several facilities on multiple days weekly. Each clown service is between 1-4 hours. Over 80% of the populations we serve are elder and memory care units, and/or communities. Other populations include patients and staff from pediatrics, ICU's, emergency departments, and disaster relief zones. The Medical Clown Project's annual impact is built from 12,000 direct interactions and interventions reaching patients, residents, family members, medical staff, and disaster victims. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $15,750.00 | Inspire SD | 3921 BOSTON AVE , SAN DIEGO, CA 92113-3318 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 451-9714 | California Congressional District 51 | California State Assembly District 79 | California State Senate District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, INSPIRESD will deliver structured, year round arts programming for youth ages 6-18 and young adult ambassadors ages 18-24 in San Diego County, with a focus on Southeast San Diego, Valencia Park, Skyline, and surrounding communities. Funds will support facilitator guided music, digital media, and performance training, including songwriting, recording, and content creation. Participants will develop original work and present through community performances and school based engagements. Programming will be delivered in accessible community settings, ensuring consistent participation without financial barriers. This project will serve approximately 120-150 youth annually and reach over 500 community members through public presentations, expanding access to arts participation and culturally relevant creative expression. | Inspire SD delivers structured, year-round arts programming through a multi phase model that includes outreach, skill development, creative production, and public presentation. Core programs focus on music, digital media, and performance arts, with instruction provided by teaching artists and program facilitators. Youth participants engage in music development activities such as songwriting, vocal coaching, and studio recording, while also receiving training in digital media and cultural storytelling, including video production and content creation. These experiences build both creative and technical skills through interactive learning. Participants have opportunities to present their work through community performances, showcases, and school-based engagements. These presentations take place in community settings, providing real world experience and audience interaction. Inspire SD also introduces elements of creative entrepreneurship, including branding, distribution, and audience development, connecting artistic practice to opportunities within the creative economy. All programming is delivered in accessible, community environments, ensuring consistent participation without financial barriers. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | PLAY Theatre Company | 230 PANORAMIC HWY , MILL VALLEY, CA 94941-2631 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 579-3173 | California’s 2nd Congressional District | California State Assembly District 12 | California State Senate District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, PLAY Theatre Company will sustain core operations for it's 2026-2027 season. The funds will support organizational infrastructure, including key new staff positions in production and education, production costs, and community access programming. This investment will allow our full season of professional TYA productions, youth education classes, school field trip performances, and our Arts Access Ticket Program for low-income families and foster youth to thrive. | We are a nonprofit performing arts organization focused on bringing the joy of theater to life for children and families. We believe theater kids really do run the world, and the life skills that theater provides have a resounding impact for future generations. Igniting imaginations can change the world! We accomplish this through play in the classroom, in the rehearsal room, and on the stage. PLAY On Stage! offers a season of engaging, theatrical performances by professional actors, bringing children’s books to life on stage. We also offer exceptional educational programming, with performance based classes that build theater skills while also teaching essential life skills like teamwork, confidence, and empathy for others. We believe learning should be fun, and everyone is a theater person. Whether you enjoy being on the stage, behind the scenes, running the show, writing the stories we tell, or enjoying them from the audience, all are welcome at PLAY theater company. Founded in October of 2023, this company was born out of a love for the arts and a commitment to investing in the future of performing arts by cultivating the audiences of tomorrow. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | UMEKE INC | 3809 Plaza Dr STE 108, Oceanside, CA 92056-4625 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 525-1488 | ʻUmeke is a Native Hawaiian-led cultural nonprofit based in North County San Diego dedicated to preserving and sharing Native Hawaiian arts and cultural traditions through intergenerational learning, storytelling, and accessible community programming. Through programs such as cultural arts workshops, and community partnerships focused on wellness and cultural education, ʻUmeke strengthens cultural identity and connection to Hawaiʻi for Native Hawaiian and Pacific Islander communities living in diaspora while welcoming broader community participation. General Operating Support from the California Arts Council will strengthen ʻUmeke’s organizational capacity by supporting core operational expenses such as personnel for administrative/ operation support, facility costs for cultural programming, and essential infrastructure. This investment allows ʻUmeke to sustain and expand culturally rooted arts education, deepen partnerships with community organizations, and increase access to Native Hawaiian cultural traditions for diverse communities throughout the region. | ʻUmeke’s core programs and services preserve and share Native Hawaiian culture while strengthening identity and connection for communities living in the diaspora. Our core offerings include hula, ʻukulele, and other cultural arts workshops that foster intergenerational learning, cultural knowledge, and creative expression. In partnership with organizations focused on wellness and healing, ʻUmeke also develops culturally grounded programs that integrate arts, storytelling, and community engagement to support identity, resilience, and community wellbeing. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Cultural Odyssey | 762 FULTON ST 3RD FLOOR 301 P.O. Box 156620, San Francisco, CA 94115, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-4119 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 292-5589 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, IDRIS ACKAMOOR AND CULTURAL ODYSSEY (IACO) will produce an innovative music project, “50 YEARS AND COUNTING”, providing creative opportunities for historically underrepresented African American and multicultural musicians to perform in non-traditional venues (Tenderloin Museum, United Nation’s Plaza, and Bookstore). Performances by the world renowned Idris Ackamoor and The Pyramids, and the Ankhestra Big Band, will be the main outreach and production vehicles. Contracting 15 musicians, “50 YEARS AND COUNTING” will counteract the displacement of jazz musicians by integrating mentorship and workshops into the production process. IACO’s larger mission to "pass the torch" of field knowledge, helps artists survive via its mentorship/education curriculum, “Don't Drop Dead on Stage.” Therefore, “50 YEARS AND COUNTING” aims to empower artists by addressing income equity through employment, mentoring/education, and hands-on experience in production. | As the oldest, continuously operating African American performing arts organization in San Francisco, IACO has employed 1000s of arts professionals, contributing to the vitalization and diversity of the local arts industry. (1) Founded in 1972, Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids Ankhestra (IAPA) implements innovative arts experimentation through live productions and international publications. For example, Black History Month 2024, IAPA performed the UNDERGROUND JAZZ CABARET residency featuring movie star DANNY GLOVER and legendary actress/activist RHODESSA JONES. Sold-out audiences witnessed multidisciplinary arts, woven into historic, imminent social issues as part of SF FOUNDATION'S BAY AREA CREATIVE CHANGE program (Strut Records/iK7 April 2025 release). (2) Committed to dismantling biases and stereotypes, AFRICAN AMERICAN THEATER ALLIANCE FOR INDEPENDENCE (AATAIN) is IACO’s consortium of SF fiscal sponsorees that work together to increase inclusion of underrepresented artists in the City. In 1998, AATAIN! became a landmark project, pioneering the regranting business model to save Black theater (inspired by August Wilson). This includes Fiscal Sponsorship, Technical Assistance, development resources, and mentoring. Since 2021, AATAIN! collectively activated 17 Cultural Spaces by producing 85 public events, 28 workshops, 51 artworks, 4 exhibitions, and compensating over 100 arts professionals. Distributing $2.4 million, IACO’s highlighted regrantees have included African American Shakespeare, AfroSolo Theatre, Bay Area Theater Company, African American Art & Culture Center, and Medea Project: Theater For Incarcerated Women (an IACO founded company). (3) “Don’t Drop Dead on Stage” is a new curriculum/workshop series designed to educate artists and arts administrators to establish economic security and long-term sustainability in San Francisco. (4) Film Production: Based on its historic role in pioneering the Performance Art Theatrical Method, IACO’s tradition of ”Arts as Social Activism” continues in its public awareness films. Examples include: ”This Ain’t Your Mamas Theater Company” (women’s health/incarceration), ”Artistic Being” (imminent politics), and “We Just Telling Stories“ (theater recovery in prisons). |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Longshadr Productions | 1102 Warren Creek Road , Arcata, CA 95521 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 223-0265 | With support from the California Arts Council, Longshadr Productions will develop and present a new, community-devised work of “Theatre of Place” in rural Humboldt County, created in collaboration with residents of Blue Lake and Arcata. The play, LOGGER LADIES WHO LUNCH, OR SEVEN KARENS, will culminate in a series of site-specific performances staged in a local community gathering space and will feature a diverse creative team of community members. | Longshadr's programs and productions are all community-developed. We start by identifying a community and their stakeholders. We then engage in a series of interviews and group dialogues that influence the themes, characters, and conflicts within each show. These shows are then produced for the public and contain engagement programs such as talk-backs, "Bar Chats", dramaturgical resource sharing, and site-specific trips. Programs that have been successfully developed through this project include: + RADIOMAN, a monologue-play documenting a local craftsman's journey as a Vietnam soldier to running a millworks for other veterans and displaced communities. Developed from firsthand interviews with veterans from every major American war and their family members, this show illustrated the community-specific themes of PTSD, depression, patriotism, and the family commitments behind every soldier. This piece was co-produced with Dell'Arte Inc. and Blue Ox Millworks and ran with several extensions due to popular demand. + MADSUMMER, a raucous musical comedy that highlights the often forgotten elderly community in Humboldt County through a loose adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, taking place in a senior center. This show derived from aging community members' stories in Humboldt County (ages 55 to 90) and centers the themes of finding love later in life, solitude, government's role in "other-ing", and capitalistic ventures targeted at taking advantage of this community. | |||
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Ventura County Arts Council | 646 County Square Drive Suite #154, Ventura, CA 93003 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 658-2213 | California's 26th congressional district | District 38 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Ventura County Arts Council will expand our partnership with the county government, a relationship that recently provided several re-granting opportunities. With the Arts & Culture Manager, we'll work together to increase VCAC’s operating capital. With an expanded and consistent donor base, VCAC will become less dependent on grant revenue and on programming for earned income. We will continue prioritizing areas of the county that represent the lowest quartiles on the HPI with our arts programming. We will keep advocating for additional county money to re-grant to individual artists. To ensure the county continues matching re-granting dollars we raise to assist smaller arts non-profits and community arts organizations, we will keep applying for those funds and working closely with the recipient groups to help them build capacity. | VCAC runs several programs and looks for opportunities to offer grants to smaller arts organizations and individual artists. We prioritize partnering with arts organizations and artists serving marginalized and underrepresented people and working in the communities where they reside. Our Arts & Youth Justice program brings arts instruction to youth at the court school in the Juvenile Justice Center. We teach fine art, poetry and podcasting. The Atrium Gallery is a public art program. We curate three floors in the Government Center in collaboration with the county Arts & Culture Manager, focusing on exhibitions that highlight artwork by people outside of the mainstream along with several juried shows open to the public that offer cash prizes. We established a county Poet Laureate and Youth Poet Laureate program. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $22,000.00 | VHM | 14642 BIRCH ST , WESTMINSTER, CA 92683-5485 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 846-8438 | California Congressional District 45 | California State Assembly District 70 | California State Senate District 36 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Vietnamese Heritage Museum (VHM) will stabilize the operational infrastructure required to preserve endangered first-generation Vietnamese refugee testimony and sustain free bilingual public access to historically underrepresented California histories during the October 2026–September 2027 grant period. The Vietnamese refugee generation who survived 1975, "re-education" camps, and Southeast Asian displacement is irreplaceable — and VHM is one of the few institutions in California dedicated entirely to preserving their testimony before it is permanently lost. CAC funds will partially support a part-time Program and Operations Coordinator centralizing volunteer scheduling, accessibility coordination, bilingual communications, and quarterly reporting. VHM will serve 1,200–1,500 visitors, deliver 8–10 bilingual public programs, serve 150–200 students, and archive approximately 15 oral histories. | The Vietnamese Heritage Museum delivers interdisciplinary programs that integrate public humanities, arts, and community engagement to serve diverse audiences across California. 1. Exhibitions and Collections Stewardship VHM curates exhibitions focused on Vietnamese refugee journeys, reeducation camp experiences, and diasporic identity. The museum actively collects, preserves, and interprets artifacts, photographs, and personal narratives, ensuring long-term stewardship of culturally significant materials. Rotating exhibitions provide ongoing opportunities to highlight underrepresented stories. 2. Oral History and Storytelling Programs Through initiatives such as Lịch Sử Qua Chuyện Kể (History Through Storytelling), VHM documents first-person refugee narratives. These oral histories are preserved and shared through digital and in-person platforms, expanding public access to primary source materials and fostering intergenerational knowledge transfer. 3. Educational Programming and Public Engagement VHM provides curriculum-informed programming for students, educators, and the public, including workshops, lectures, and guided experiences. Programs emphasize critical thinking, cultural literacy, and historical awareness, aligning with California’s educational priorities. 4. Community-Based Cultural Programming The museum partners with community members to co-create programs, including commemorative events, cultural workshops, and public dialogues. These programs strengthen community cohesion and ensure programming reflects lived experiences. 5. Digital Access and Emerging Initiatives VHM is expanding digital archives and online access to collections, enabling global engagement with Vietnamese diasporic history. Planned initiatives include enhanced digital storytelling and research access through the Viet Heritage Center. Collectively, these programs position VHM as a vital cultural and educational resource advancing equity, access, and representation in California’s arts and humanities ecosystem. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,430.00 | HOUSE OF PALESTINE INC | 2155 W PAN AMERICAN RD A , SAN DIEGO, CA 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 354-5077 | With support from the California Arts Council, House of Palestine will provide a youth-centered cultural arts education program serving San Diego youth through hands-on workshops, performances, and interactive learning experiences. The program will engage participants ages 8–18 in traditional Palestinian dance (dabke), visual arts, storytelling, and cultural crafts, led by experienced teaching artists and cultural practitioners. Funds will support teaching artist fees, program coordination, and workshop materials necessary to deliver consistent, high-quality arts instruction. Youth participants will develop creative skills, cultural awareness, and confidence through participatory learning and performance opportunities. This program expands access to culturally relevant arts education for underserved youth and fosters cross-cultural understanding while strengthening San Diego’s diverse arts ecosystem. | The House of Palestine promotes the culture and history of Palestine and its people, by hosting various social activities featuring Palestinian traditional dress, dance, poetry, music, arts and crafts, and foods. These activities serve as instruments to help us educate visitors and further acceptance and tolerance among our fellow human beings. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | San Francisco Women Artists | 647 IRVING ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94122-2401 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 566-8550 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN FRANCISCO WOMEN ARTISTS (SFWA) will continue its year-round programming of monthly juried exhibitions of a diversity of Bay Area artists and artisans, as we'll as hosting exhibits by local community art organizations and special events in our adjoining Artist Salon focusing on equity and access. The CAC funding will support SFWA as a welcoming and inclusive arts community, providing an accessible gallery space that celebrates cultural diversity while actively promoting broad participation in its programs and activities. | San Francisco Women Artists provides exhibition opportunities, and offers an inviting space for the community to experience art. Our core values remain focused on seeking creative paths to increase the access, diversity, and impact of art in our community, expanding and promoting the representation of women in the arts. PROGRAMS INCLUDE:: • Presenting monthly juried all-media exhibitions and events in a professional gallery setting that foster a shared, cultural relationship between our artists and the public and in addition promoting monthly exhibits in the Artist Salon. SFWA strives to present dynamic themes that resonate with artists and our audiences. Each exhibit is juried by a prominent local art consultant, curator, or gallery owner, which ensures both diversity and expertise to each show. • Showcasing hand-crafted jewelry, ceramics, and sculpture by local artists • Artist-in-Action demonstrations • The Gallery’s Artist Salon hosts special events, nonprofit fundraisers, group exhibitions, and invites arts organizations to exhibit in our gallery at no cost. • Student Intern Program– SFWA partners with the Mayor’s Youth Education & Employment Program (MYEEP) to provide job readiness training, work experience and personal growth opportunities for San Francisco youth |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | Megan Lowe Dances | 1446 Market St , San Francisco, CA 94102-6004 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (909) 859-9069 | State Assembly District 17 | State Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Megan Lowe Dances will create and perform Gateway to Chinatown, a site-specific outdoor dance project that connects the history of Bay Area immigration with the reclaiming of public space. This is the second work in a three-part series about the legacy of Bay Area Chinatowns and the living history of Chinese and Asian Americans. This project weaves oral histories from Asian American elders and artists with immersive dance performances, workshops, and gatherings to honor the past and present. Community partners are Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center, Oakland Asian Cultural Center, Chinese Culture Center of San Francisco, and oral historian Roy Chan from the Chinatown Oral History Project. Gateway to Chinatown will premiere at the opening ceremony of the reclaimed and renamed Oakland Chinatown BART Station. | Through thoughtfully crafted dance-theater productions, free site-specific performances, donation-based workshops, and community outreach programs, Megan Lowe Dances encourages individuals to engage their creativity and express their unique cultural experiences. As an organization under the artistic direction of a mixed Asian dance artist, MLD creates work in solidarity with Asian American and BIPOC communities. We’re also rooted in a community of women and LGBTQIA+ creatives making site-specific, contemporary, and aerial dance. MLD is immersed in a collective of improvisational dancers and movement researchers, who practice contact improv and other forms of dance experimentation. We play with the unorthodox and somatic edges of dance, where new values, methods, and nonhierarchical organizing are developed. Megan contributes her voice and leadership as a dancer of the global majority in a white-dominated field. MLD is a winner of two prestigious Isadora Duncan Dance Awards in Outstanding Achievement in Performance. Recent choreographies have been seen at ODC, Fort Mason, de Young Museum, Legion of Honor Museum, and 500 Capp Street, as well as in KQED Live, SF Aerial Arts Festival, SF Trolley Dances, United States of Asian America Festival, and CAAMFest. In 2023-2025, MLD offered over 30 free performances, 25 open rehearsals, and 15 donation-based workshops/classes, reaching thousands who don’t normally experience dance. MLD emboldens individual inquiry and idea-sharing through highly collaborative processes, harnessing each artist’s skills and interests to their fullest potential. We create forums for communal connection by practicing horizontal leadership that nurtures inclusive, egalitarian artistic processes. MLD also facilitates invigorating dance classes and workshops for organizations, schools, universities, and dance festivals, which inspire movers of all ages, experience levels, body types, races, cultures, and socio-economic backgrounds. MLD motivates dancers to build stronger creative ecosystems through acts of connection and creation. | |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | 2332 W 4TH ST 2332 W 4th ST, LOS ANGELES, CA 90057-2702 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 382-8133 | 34 | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA will fund a 2 person, part-time Development team to seek donors as well as funding for projects and capital improvements. | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA (Synergy Theater Group) is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit arts organization operating out of the William Reagh Los Angeles Photography Center, located at 2332 W 4th St., in the heart of the Westlake District, one of the most densely populated and economically challenged areas of Los Angeles on the outskirts of Downtown. We organize arts programs representing the major ethnic groups residing within a five-mile radius of the Center, primarily Latino immigrant groups from Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Mexico. Throughout the years, SINERGIA has worked diligently to establish a working relationship with the surrounding community in order to integrate them as welcomed members of the company. Our focus continues to be on works and arts education programming relevant to our underserved community. We presently serve a highly transient, zero to low-income population, comprised mostly of first-generation immigrants. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Megan Lowe Dances | 1446 Market St , San Francisco, CA 94102-6004 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (909) 859-9069 | State Assembly District 17 | State Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Megan Lowe Dances will continue our mission of creating perspective-shifting dance that highlights Asian American artists and builds connections with diverse BIPOC communities. Funds will support MLD in hiring administrative staff and investing in access services for blind/visually impaired (BVI) and Deaf/hard-of-hearing communities. Currently, Megan is the sole staff member. Expanding staff to handle scheduling, and marketing to grow BIPOC, Deaf, and BVI audiences will improve inclusivity and long-term sustainability. MLD integrates accessibility by including ASL interpretation in our productions, and by partnering with Gravity Access Services to provide audio description. With CAC support, we will also increase our free public arts offerings in the SF Bay Area—including performances, workshops, and gatherings—while continuing to set a standard of paying collaborators hourly rates reflective of San Francisco living wages. | Through thoughtfully crafted dance-theater productions, free site-specific performances, donation-based workshops, and community outreach programs, Megan Lowe Dances encourages individuals to engage their creativity and express their unique cultural experiences. As an organization under the artistic direction of a mixed Asian dance artist, MLD creates work in solidarity with Asian American and BIPOC communities. We’re also rooted in a community of women and LGBTQIA+ creatives making site-specific, contemporary, and aerial dance. MLD is immersed in a collective of improvisational dancers and movement researchers, who practice contact improv and other forms of dance experimentation. We play with the unorthodox and somatic edges of dance, where new values, methods, and nonhierarchical organizing are developed. Megan contributes her voice and leadership as a dancer of the global majority in a white-dominated field. MLD is a winner of two prestigious Isadora Duncan Dance Awards in Outstanding Achievement in Performance. Recent choreographies have been seen at ODC, Fort Mason, de Young Museum, Legion of Honor Museum, and 500 Capp Street, as well as in KQED Live, SF Aerial Arts Festival, SF Trolley Dances, United States of Asian America Festival, and CAAMFest. In 2023-2025, MLD offered over 30 free performances, 25 open rehearsals, and 15 donation-based workshops/classes, reaching thousands who don’t normally experience dance. MLD emboldens individual inquiry and idea-sharing through highly collaborative processes, harnessing each artist’s skills and interests to their fullest potential. We create forums for communal connection by practicing horizontal leadership that nurtures inclusive, egalitarian artistic processes. MLD also facilitates invigorating dance classes and workshops for organizations, schools, universities, and dance festivals, which inspire movers of all ages, experience levels, body types, races, cultures, and socio-economic backgrounds. MLD motivates dancers to build stronger creative ecosystems through acts of connection and creation. | |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Loiter Galleries | 2181 EUCALYPTUS AVE , LONG BEACH, CA 90806-4518 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 968-1693 | 42nd Congressional District | 69th District | Senate District 33 | With support from the California Arts Council, Loiter Galleries will host a year-round program featuring exhibitions, public art activations, and professional development services for marginalized artists in Long Beach. The funding will cover artist stipends, marketing expenses, and production costs for monthly gallery exhibitions and pop-up installations in vacant downtown storefronts. Additionally, this support will facilitate artist mentorship in areas such as exhibition preparation, digital archiving, and creative business practices. Loiter Galleries will also enhance culturally responsive outreach through community partnerships and grassroots engagement to ensure equitable access and participation for all. | Loiter Galleries fills a void. Mainly, serving the various needs of the underserved artists and business districts hit hard during and before the pandemic. The programs we develop assist both these communities directly. For the artists, we supply affordable gallery showcases, marketing, supplies, meeting space, art business advice, and emotional support. And we aid local property owners by converting dark, empty spaces with art and positive activity. Artists finally have a venue to display their art and receive the support they need to learn how to be successful. The property owners sell/lease their spaces more quickly via the brightness, activity, and popularity of our projects. Another core audience naturally, are art lovers and supporters. We serve them by presenting them with artists we discover and who are out of the mainstream. Although some of our artists are established, the shows they create tend to be more adventurous and push the boundaries. This occurs through our direction and collaboration. Many of our visitors have never been in a gallery previously. We decide which artists to feature and support through various criteria. One, is need. As mentioned, we support underserved artists, so we start by interviewing local artist whose art speaks to us and the Loiter brand. We review all the artist’s needs, CVs and work and then make a decision on who to feature in the gallery. But our support moves beyond just a showing at the gallery. Even those who for whatever reason do not show at the gallery still receive support from the gallery. This includes marketing, supplies, meeting space, art business advice, and emotional support. Artists are paid though in-kind support mentioned above, sales and in some instances stipends. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | BOYS & GIRLS CLUBS OF THE SAN GORGONIO PASS | PO BOX 655 , BEAUMONT, CA 92223-0655 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 922-3259 | 25th Congressional District | 47th Assembly District | 19th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, the Boys & Girls Clubs of the San Gorgonio Pass will implement the Arts in Action program, an innovative initiative designed for 100 teens in Banning and Beaumont, Riverside, CA. Grant funds will support our talented staff artists in delivering a ten-month program that includes media, performing, and visual arts, as well as enriching field trips to local art venues. Our program offers an engaging curriculum for underserved teens, primarily from Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) communities, providing them with opportunities to explore the magical world of art, filling a crucial gap in access to the arts. Participants will create their own art in a supportive environment that emphasizes youth voice and cultural relevance, showcasing their talents through performances and art exhibits within the community. | Boys & Girls Clubs of the San Gorgonio Pass (BGCSGP) has been serving youth for over 20 years and is the only youth development agency in our area. Our comprehensive after-school and out-of-school time programs serve over 2,300 youth ages 5 to 18 annually. We provide research-based, outcome-driven programs in education, wellness, character and leadership, art, sports, and recreation at 14 Club locations in Cabazon, Banning, Beaumont, and Yucaipa in Riverside and San Bernardino Counties. A significant majority of our youth come from socio-economically disadvantaged backgrounds, so to ensure all youth can participate, we provide our services at little or no cost. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Mounarath Powell Dance | 8674 LA MESA BLVD , LA MESA, CA 91942-9504 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 758-8112 | California's 51st congressional district | District CA-51 | District California | With support from the California Arts Council, Mounarath Powell Dance (DBA Visionary Dance Theatre) will strengthen its general operating capacity in order to continue providing accessible, community-centered dance education and performance opportunities throughout San Diego County. Grant funds will support artist and instructor compensation, adaptive and youth programming, scholarships and reduced tuition for underserved students, production and rehearsal expenses, outreach efforts, and accessibility improvements for participants and audiences. Funding will also help sustain culturally responsive performances and arts education programs that serve Black, Latino, immigrant, working-class, and differently-abled communities. This support will allow Mounarath Powell Dance to expand equitable access to the arts while continuing to create inclusive spaces for artistic expression, cultural representation, and community engagement. | Dance Concert Productions and Employment of Dance Artists |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | WEAD | 23 Maine Avenue , Richmond, CA 94804 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 847-4916 | With support from the California Arts Council, Women Eco Artists Dialog (WEAD) will improve our capacity to meet the needs of our growing network of women-identified artists (especially those who are marginalized by low income, race, gender, disability, or other barriers), who focus their creative practice on ecological art and social-justice art. WEAD will address these issues intersectionally with a grass-roots networking and mentorship strategy, low-to-no cost professional development programs, and educational programming. Our new community partnerships will allow us to provide more arts opportunities to historically-underserved populations. We will maintain and improve support for our staff who manages day-to-day operations, including improved technical support. We will invest in fundraising to broaden our financial stability, and support adequate stipends for our socially-engaged artists in the professional opportunities we already provide. | WEAD programs and services include: - Web-based Portfolio Directory, allowing all members the opportunity to have a web-based portfolio, which is especially important for marginalized women - This searchable database facilitates networking between artists, curators, researchers and others. - Annual juried membership exhibition, and occasional special exhibits - Curatorial development program, through which members are mentored to create a WEAD members exhibit in their home region nationally or internationally - Lecture series "Art And ..." , featuring women artists on topics such as "Art and Science" or "Art and Education" or "Art and Healing", etc. - Annual Magazine on critical topics in ecoart and social justice art, featuring artists and writers who work on the chosen annual topic. - Other various networking opportunities, workshops, and events. Membership fees can be subsidized for women who cannot afford them. | |||
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Driftseed | 4920 YORK BLVD , LOS ANGELES, CA 90042-1610 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (734) 904-3538 | 34th Congressional district of California | Los Angeles District 52 | Los Angeles District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, DRIFTSEED will produce, edit and release a short documentary called "to my body:" about a professional dancer and trained doula recovering physically and emotionally from a traumatic childbirth. The film will be accompanied by a community engagement Impact Toolkit, also created with support from the California Arts Council. The film and toolkit aim to create awareness, empathy, and solutions to lowering the black maternal mortality rate in California, and improving outcomes for black birthing mothers and babies. The film and impact materials will be created with support from practitioners in the UCLA School of Medicine and Kindred Spaces LA, where the materials will also be piloted for use in training medical and nursing students, midwives and doulas nationwide. | Founded by Emmy Award-winning documentary filmmaker Sophia Kruz and Sundance Award-winning cinematographer Meena Singh, Driftseed produces documentary feature films and shorts as well as outreach and impact campaigns. Our award-winning feature documentary, "Little Stones," told the story of four women from around the world who are using music, street art, dance and fashion to combat violence against women. The film was screened at over 100 events and festivals globally, including at the United Nations and U.S. Congress. Driftseed also partnered with the University of Michigan School of Education to create robust educational materials to accompany the film, including 10 high school lesson plans and discussion guides, and two arts-based workshops to ignite social change. In addition to producing film and impact campaigns, Driftseed also mentors and supports emerging female storytellers, and provides fiscal sponsorship for select projects aligned with our mission to advance the rights of women and girls globally. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $6,800.00 | Morro Bay Art Association | 835 MAIN ST , MORRO BAY, CA 93442-2117 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 772-2504 | 24th Congressional District | San Luis Obispo County | 17th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, MORRO BAY ART ASSOCIATION will continue & expand our scholarship program. Morro Bay Art Association began awarding scholarships to local high school & college students in 2021; these unrestricted funds are intended to advance the students’ artistic pursuits. Scholarship amounts have traditionally been $500; decreased outside funding resulted in 2026 scholarships being reduced to $250. This program has been widely embraced, with more applicants than funds. MBAA would like to return the scholarship amount to $500, along with increasing the number of scholarships offered. Currently we serve three local high schools, and one Community College. We seek to expand scholarships to four additional high schools as well as including home schoolers in this opportunity. 100% of funding would go directly into the scholarships; 34 scholarships @ $500 each. | Exhibitions, workshops, children's art classes, free demonstrations |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Museum of Social Justice | 115 PASEO DE LA PLZ , LOS ANGELES, CA 90012-2922 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 224-8759 | California's 34th congressional district | District 54 | District 26 | The Museum of Social Justice will use California Arts Council grant funds to retain key staff, provide leadership training integrated into operations, exhibitions, research, and education, both in person and online. About 50% of funds will go to staff retention and leadership development, starting in the first quarter and continuing throughout the year. Approximately 25% will upgrade exhibition media equipment for two major exhibitions in the second quarter. About 15% will establish or strengthen at least 5 partnerships with local artists, organizations, and activists, starting in the first quarter and ongoing. The remaining 10% will support outreach and evaluation activities. These efforts will help mount two exhibitions showcasing Los Angeles' diverse communities, expected to reach 5,000-8,000 visitors each, with improved engagement and visibility. Clear resource allocation and timeline will foster positive change and expand impact. | As part of its permanent collection, the Museum showcases the work of women missionaries who established schools, medical clinics, and other services for refugees of the Mexican revolution in the early 1900's, including the first integrated drinking fountain in Los Angeles from circa 1917. Through a collaboration with the Bradley Center at Cal State University, Northridge the museum was able to digitize over 2,000 photographs documenting life in Los Angeles for poor Latinos beginning in 1899. The museum has worked with a variety of curators to plan exhibitions on diverse social justice themes, including the Civil Rights Movement, immigration, and East L.A. student activism. In 2017, the Museum began partnering with artists from under-served communities to produce artistic responses to our major exhibitions. The museum invests in young adult leadership to act as docents, support our media needs, research our archives, develop educational components for upcoming exhibitions, etc. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Art Explorers, Inc. | 333 N. Franklin St. , FORT BRAGG, CA 95437 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 961-6156 | 2nd | 2nd | 2nd | With support from the California Arts Council, Art Explorers will fund general operating costs for our progressive art studio serving adults with developmental disabilities and neurodiversity. Our mission is to provide a fun, nurturing, artistically stimulating, non-judgmental environment for creativity to thrive. This grant will contribute to purchasing art materials, paying staff and independent contractors, producing marketing and publicity materials, and rental costs. | Inspired by the work of Creative Growth (Oakland, CA), Kristin Otwell and Joan Burleigh founded Art Explorers in 1992 with four participants at a group home for developmentally disabled adults. Currently, 44 artists are part of the program. We are a progressive art studio operating five days a week, 9am-3pm, with dedicated staff who work with the artists in our studio space as they create drawings, paintings, prints, sculpture, ceramics fabric, and media art. We provide working space, art supplies, staff support, and a place to sell and promote artwork. We facilitate connections between the studio artists and the greater Mendocino County arts community through a guest artist program, field trips, and the exhibition and sale of artwork in the studio gallery, online, and at local galleries and businesses. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Pointeworks | 13273 Norcroft Rd , San Diego, CA 92130-1286 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 342-6365 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pointeworks will create and present mixed repertory productions of classic, contemporary, and new ballets for our home base of San Diego, CA. We will also commission new ballet works by female choreographers and composers, providing Southern California residencies for these new pieces to develop. Through this artistic creation, Pointeworks will provide employment for professional ballet dancers at times of year they would otherwise be unemployed. We will also emphasize community access and engagement, with free tickets to performances and a range of events to learn more about the processes of ballet, music, and the performing arts. | Pointeworks has three interrelated core programs and services: Mainstage Productions: Pointeworks creates and presents mixed repertory productions of classic, contemporary, and new ballets for our home base of San Diego. Our productions are scheduled during periods that are otherwise off-season for professional ballet dancers working at premier companies around the country and world, providing additional employment opportunities when there would otherwise be none. We are also committed to paying our dancers on the high-end of the established pay scale, and paying our female dancers at the same rate as our male dancers (not the typical approach of U.S.-based companies). Pointeworks also focuses on showcasing work of female-identifying choreographers and composers, with live music performance. We are also committed to providing at least 20% of seats free-of-charge to underserved communities through our organizational partners, serving K-12/college public school students, U.S. military veterans, and dance schools. Residencies: Pointeworks develops new ballet works by commissioning choreographers and composers to create together via iterative processes. Our one- and two-week residencies provide creators (with an emphasis on female-identifying artists) with studio space, dancers, and live musicians. They take place in San Diego, Los Angeles, and New York City, with community events and digital content to engage and educate the public. Community Engagement: Pointeworks is dedicated to providing access and insight into ballet’s creation and production processes. Our in-person programming, scheduled in alignment with our mainstage productions and residencies, includes open rehearsals, master classes (to learn our repertory), “meet the artists” panels, salons, pre-performance lectures from our commissioned creators, and more. All of these events are either a pay-what-you-can model or with extremely low ticket prices in order to eliminate financial barriers for participant/audience engagement. Pointeworks also operates a high-touch mentorship program for young, pre-professional Southern California ballet dancers, free-of-charge. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $7,500.00 | POMONA VALLEY ART ASSOCIATION INC | PO BOX 932 , CLAREMONT, CA 91711-0932 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (909) 624-4900 | 28 | 41 | 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pomona Valley Art Association INC will introduce, inspire, and involve our local youth in art and the art community. We want to provide accessible, hands on opportunities for creative expression and mentorship. Through our programs we want to connect out youth to working artists and exhibitions that celebrate diverse artistic voices. We seek to nurture talent, build confidence, and strengthen cultural engagement. Our program would offer resources to underserved youth giving access to resources, materials, and mentorship. This program desires to cultivate a new generation of artists and art advocates, fostering personal growth, community pride, and life long appreciation of the arts. | PVAA offers community art experience: through exhibitions, monthly online exhibits, community art walks, young artist exhibits, gallery representation, and artists giving back to the community through workshops, demonstrations and talks that enhance artistic knowledge, skill, and learning. We intend to continue community involvement with Claremont Chamber of Commerce's activities as well as being active members of the Claremont Village, participating in key area activations such as the Village Venture, Art- and Wine-Walks, and seasonal events. Our teams are already collaborating with our neighborhood merchants to share ideas, space, create a vibrant area for locals, and draw visitors. PVAA continues to work with at-risk and under serviced: including the youth in the area by providing non-profit community service documentation, gallery experience, and communication skills. PVAA has worked with a number of schools and non-profits to raise funding through art festivals and events. PVAA worked in conjunction with senior care facilities and dementia patients utilizing art as therapy to improve cognitive and sensorimotor functions as well as fostering self-esteem and self-awareness. PVAA currently supports Wings Women's Shelter and volunteers with Rising Stars Equestrian Therapy which works with physically and mentally challenged children. PVAA gives voice to the marginalized and under-represented: PVAA desires to enhance our understanding of diversity in creative fields. Efforts to make creative fields more diverse, equitable, and inclusive through representing various cultures in gallery shows. PVAA has been involved in cultural celebrations through Hispanic Heritage Month, Black History Month, Chinese New Year. We have representation for Women's History Month, Breast Cancer Awareness, LGBTQ+, and the incarcerated. PVAA desires to give a voice to all in our community. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | ARTHATCH | 317 E GRAND AVE SUITE B , ESCONDIDO, CA 92025-3301 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 781-5779 | District 50 | District 76 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, ArtHatch will empower at-risk youth, 85% of whom are on probation, by providing 47 free, skill-building workshops and open studio hours over the next year. Funding will supply essential art materials chosen by participants, ensuring youth have the tools they need to explore their creativity in a supportive, dedicated space. In 2026, the teen space will be moved downstairs and expanded. The project will also include our third annual all-teen art exhibition and a private reception for the teens, their mentors, families, and probation officers. If fully funded, we will hire at least six youth for paid internships, providing hands-on experience alongside professional artists and building skills that foster confidence, belonging, and brighter futures. | ArtHatch provides free opening receptions for new exhibitions, Q and A artist sessions and talks, open studios, and live music free for the public 12 times per year. We also provide 24/7 studio space for 20 local artists and exhibition space for an additional 21 artists. Additionally, we host regular monthly field trips for Escondido high schools and colleges. Lastly, we have a free in depth teen arts program for at risk teens with a focus on teens from single parent households, low income families, teens in the foster care system, and teens performing court ordered after school program hours. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture | 500 County Center , Redwood City, CA 94063 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 387-0160 | California's 15th Congressional District | District 21 | District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture (OAC) will strengthen and broaden current programming, with a focus on our annual Arts and Culture Grants and sponsorships for small/under-resourced nonprofits. Nonprofits with a budget of $1M or less are eligible for general operating grants annually. The CAC grant enables us to continue this annual program regardless of fluctuating County funding. The SLP grant also allows us to participate in Poetry Out Loud and support our youth participants with individual coaches who are professional poets. As needs shift, and funding for artists and arts/culture nonprofits continue to be difficult to secure, support from the CAC will allow us to focus on ensuring equitable representation countywide, especially in unincorporated/rural areas of the County with less access to the arts. | he San Mateo County Office of Arts and Culture (OAC) is a leader in regional arts advocacy efforts, working to further access to arts and cultural resources throughout the County. The OAC administers the Youth Arts Fellowship Program, public art program, the Poet Laureate, Arts and Culture grants, Poetry Out Loud, County art exhibitions, public performances, and collaborations with arts organizations, public schools, culture bearers, County departments and other local resources. We are a strong partner of the Arts Commission, who works to advise the Board of Supervisors on arts and cultural matters. The OAC acts as a bridge between arts and culture nonprofits, local communities, artists, and County agencies to integrate the arts into our everyday lives. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Cultural Odyssey | 762 FULTON ST 3RD FLOOR 301 P.O. Box 156620, San Francisco, CA 94115, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-4119 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 292-5589 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, IDRIS ACKAMOOR AND CULTURAL ODYSSEY(IACO) will make a vibrant contribution to California's arts landscape by providing three (3) innovative resources: 1. Production of critically-acclaimed musical and theatrical arts season that improves equity and access through inclusion and employment of under resourced local artists; 2. Provision of Professional Development resources that contribute to artist sustainability in the California economy; and, 3. Archiving and commercialization of 50 years of production intellectual property to establish IACO’s long range sustainability over the next generation. This will increase and diversify revenue for IACO’s long-term economic strength and make many arts resources (films, scripts, curriculum, methodologies) available to future generations. Providing these resources assures IACO’s long-term continuation, by contributing effectual resources to the next generation of working artists thereby advancing outstanding arts for California. | As the oldest, continuously operating African American performing arts organization in San Francisco, IACO has employed 1000s of arts professionals, contributing to the vitalization and diversity of the local arts industry. (1) Founded in 1972, Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids Ankhestra (IAPA) implements innovative arts experimentation through live productions and international publications. For example, Black History Month 2024, IAPA performed the UNDERGROUND JAZZ CABARET residency featuring movie star DANNY GLOVER and legendary actress/activist RHODESSA JONES. Sold-out audiences witnessed multidisciplinary arts, woven into historic, imminent social issues as part of SF FOUNDATION'S BAY AREA CREATIVE CHANGE program (Strut Records/iK7 April 2025 release). (2) Committed to dismantling biases and stereotypes, AFRICAN AMERICAN THEATER ALLIANCE FOR INDEPENDENCE (AATAIN) is IACO’s consortium of SF fiscal sponsorees that work together to increase inclusion of underrepresented artists in the City. In 1998, AATAIN! became a landmark project, pioneering the regranting business model to save Black theater (inspired by August Wilson). This includes Fiscal Sponsorship, Technical Assistance, development resources, and mentoring. Since 2021, AATAIN! collectively activated 17 Cultural Spaces by producing 85 public events, 28 workshops, 51 artworks, 4 exhibitions, and compensating over 100 arts professionals. Distributing $2.4 million, IACO’s highlighted regrantees have included African American Shakespeare, AfroSolo Theatre, Bay Area Theater Company, African American Art & Culture Center, and Medea Project: Theater For Incarcerated Women (an IACO founded company). (3) “Don’t Drop Dead on Stage” is a new curriculum/workshop series designed to educate artists and arts administrators to establish economic security and long-term sustainability in San Francisco. (4) Film Production: Based on its historic role in pioneering the Performance Art Theatrical Method, IACO’s tradition of ”Arts as Social Activism” continues in its public awareness films. Examples include: ”This Ain’t Your Mamas Theater Company” (women’s health/incarceration), ”Artistic Being” (imminent politics), and “We Just Telling Stories“ (theater recovery in prisons). |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Audium Theater | 1616 BUSH ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94109-5308 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 771-1616 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Audium will expand its work as a hub for immersive sound art by deepening its residency program. This program provides paid opportunities for artists from marginalized communities to create and perform new spatial sound works. Audium will also grow its community offerings, including free and low-cost workshops to guests from underserved parts of the Bay Area that explore sound, perception, and the senses. | Audium is the first theater of its kind, pioneering the exploration of space in music for over 50 years. The theater is constructed specifically for live sound movement and utilizing the entire environment as a compositional tool. The building consists of a foyer, sound labyrinth and main performance space with over 176 speakers in total. Listeners sitting in concentric circles are enveloped by speakers in sloping walls, a floating floor and a suspended ceiling. Compositions are performed live at each program by a performer who distributes sounds through a custom-designed console. Sounds are “sculpted” through their movement, direction, speed and intensity on multiple planes in space. Live performance of composed works gives a human, interactive element to Audium’s spatial electronic orchestra. Audium has been exploring the ideas of aural immersion and live sound spatialization for decades. Its idea was born out of experimentation by Stan Shaff and Doug McEachern in the late 1950s with Anna Halprin’s dance troup and the now-historic San Francisco Tape Music Center. Audium went through multiple incarnations in its early years, from performances at the SF Museum of Art and SF State University to a fixed installation in San Francisco's Richmond District for 3.5 years. It found a home at its current site, thanks to a series of grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, in 1975. The theater has held weekly performances ever since (totaling over 4,300 performances and counting). |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Deborah Slater Dance Theater | 3435 Cesar Chavez #210, SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-2423 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 308-1612 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Art of the Matter Performance Foundation will: continue development of new artistic work and pay our performing company members and artistic collaborators; continue our residency program with two residency cycles in the grant period with four lead resident artists, provide stipends, free rehearsal space, and mentorship to the lead artists and present their work in fully underwritten performances, and pay the rent for our studio/small theater space. | Deborah Slater Dance Theater live performances Young Audiences teaching Studio 210 Summer Residency Program Another Way of Looking, program providing professional video recording and live streaming from Studio 210 Studio 210 offering rehearsal, class and performance space in the Mission District of San Francisco Ways Not to Drown Workshops |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $15,000.00 | The Strindberg Laboratory | PO Box 29824 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90029 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 265-6313 | California's 28th congressional district | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Strindberg Laboratory will create a new community-driven theater production with our Vaudeville Valley Troupe that also features puppetry, music, and multi-media elements. Open to all, our Vaudeville Valley Troupe focuses on providing opportunities for young adults with autism spectrum disorder and other neurodivergence. Engagement activities are a five-week theater-building workshop curriculum followed by four weeks of rehearsals that results in the new production devised by participants and speaking to social issues and themes of their choosing. The production is presented to a diverse audience in Los Angeles, free of charge. | Central to TSL’s core programming is our community-driven productions, which we currently create through our Vaudeville Valley Troupe (VVT). Originally established by TSL in 2020 as a workshop for young adults on the autism spectrum, it is now the creative force driving TSL’s annual original productions generated by range of theater, puppetry, and multi-media artists with individuals on the autism spectrum joined by individuals with other neurodivergence and disabilities, individuals experiencing housing insecurity, returning citizens post-incarceration, and others. TSL is committed to providing all of our community artists with stipends for their work and presenting all of our performances free-of-charge. Our most recent production, “Step Forward for All The Poor People!” was performed in 2025, addressing poverty through a satirical take on conquering it once-and-for-all. TSL provides theater arts workshops and presents special performances to communities that cannot typically participate in or attend our productions. Since 2021, we have provided in-service engagement at St. Barnabas Senior Services, Fairfax Senior Center, West Los Angeles Veterans Home, Central City Community Center, and Los Angeles Mission, among others, engaging senior citizens, U.S. military veterans, individuals experiencing homelessness, and individuals challenged with addition. Critically linked to our productions and workshops, we have also developed our own unique theater games rooted in Forum Theatre, an approach explicitly devised to engage audiences as co-performers with a focus on developing open, creative, solution-oriented dialogues around social justice. This approach also informs TSL’s community festivals (such as Together in September in 2022) and ongoing pop-up events and activations in public spaces throughout the Los Angeles area. In 2024, TSL also co-created Citizen Network News, a print-only international newspaper that addresses community-driven issues through an artist-activist lens. TSL believes this type of awareness and public conversation are key, fundamental building blocks for creating bold, innovative theater-makers and artists. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Hanford Multicultural Theater Company | 119 1/2 North Douty Street , Hanford, CA 93230 | Kings | Central Valley | (559) 997-3838 | California Assembly district 33 | District 33 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, Hanford Multicultural Theater Company will launch VOICES RISING: Youth Arts for Expression, Equity, and Community—a powerful program created for the youth of Kings County, where 73% of the population is diverse but access to the arts remains limited. Through hands-on experiences in acting, improv, puppetry, spoken word, poetry, and playwriting, young people will find their voice, tell their stories, and take the stage. This program is about more than performance—it’s about empowerment, representation, and building a stronger, more connected community. | Our organization plays a vital role in our community by inspiring participants to take risks, have fun, and discover how the arts can be both freeing and essential to overall wellbeing. Recognizing that our area lacked accessible artistic opportunities, we founded the Hanford Multicultural Theater Company on February 1, 2017, with the guiding principle: “Theater for all people.” From the beginning, we offered free acting classes and staged performances in unconventional spaces such as parks, malls, parking lots, a museum, a historical church, and courtyards—bringing theater directly to the community. Three years ago, we established a permanent home in a repurposed building, now known as Lil’ Brick Theater. Designed to reflect the intimacy of small theaters in major arts cities, this space provides a unique and welcoming environment that feels both professional and accessible. We have since expanded our programming to include improv, puppetry, Shakespeare, playwriting, and community events like Monologue Slams, Story Slams, Jam Labs, and open-mic nights. Our community faces significant economic challenges, with many residents living below the federal poverty line. These barriers often limit access to the arts, making our free classes and pay-what-you-can events essential. By removing financial obstacles, we create an inclusive space that fosters creativity, connection, and personal growth. We are deeply committed to equity and representation. Our programs serve individuals of all ages, cultures, and abilities, reflecting our region’s rich diversity. We also extend our outreach by teaching theater to youth at the Santa Rosa Rancheria. With most participants new to the stage, our work builds confidence, skills, and opportunity. Through volunteer-driven efforts, we continue to ensure that the arts remain accessible, transformative, and a natural part of life in our community. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Dan Griffiths | 523 CAMPBELL AVE , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94134-2203 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 990-6336 | California's 11 Congressional District | California State Assembly District 17 | California State Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, CHURCH OF CLOWN will sustain core operations and deliver community-centered arts programming from October 1, 2026 through September 30, 2027, from our home in Visitacion Valley, a historically underserved San Francisco neighborhood. Gentrification and rising costs have shuttered 15 San Francisco theatres since 2020. CoC remains a venue, school, laboratory, and community space striving to keep Bay Area artists learning, working, and rooted here. We present clown, mime, dance, circus arts, and theatre through two annual festivals, weekly classes, workshops, year-round original productions, a Circus program for Seniors, and free community events. CAC funds of $30,000 will support partial salaries for our Executive Director and Technical Director, our Programs Coordinator, and paid performance stipends for BIPOC artists and producer for the Only Skin Deep Festival, and facility costs. | Education: Weekly classes in Clown Basics, Physical Comedy, and Ensemble Dynamics; intensives and workshops in physical theatre, mime, buffoon, mask work, improvisation, and humanitarian clowning, etc. Weekly Senior Circus program; Clown Jam monthly peer review sessions. Artist Development: Teaching Apprenticeship Program; Teacher Assistant Program; Student to Professional Work-Trade Program. Productions & Festivals: Annual festivals including Flop Fest and Only Skin Deep; year-round original productions and co-productions, one annual company show. Community Programming: Free community events including the Holy Fools Parade, Clothing Swap, Clown Karaoke, Clown Open Mic, and Movie Night. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $15,375.00 | Guitars Antiqua Music Program | 1402 W. 180th Street , Gardena, CA 90248 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 880-6613 | 43rd congressional district | District CA-66 | District California | With the support from the California Arts Council, GUITARS ANTIQUA MUSIC PROGRAM will broaden and enrich its free classical guitar youth program through a variety of workshops, lectures, a field trip, concert attendance, and outreach performances. These initiatives are crafted to deepen the musical understanding of our young participants, especially for those in middle to high school grade level, offering them a closer look into the field of music. The project seeks to provide music-focused activities that will not only educate our participants beyond the scope of our standard guitar lessons but also ignite their passion for further education and create opportunities for potential career paths. Youth participants from the Lawndale, Gardena and Hawthorne communities will acquire enhanced knowledge in the arts. | Guitars Antiqua Music Program was established in 2017 as a parent and community initiative with the sole intent to provide a 100 % tuition-free, after-school music program for youths living in the underserved communities of Gardena, Lawndale, and Hawthorne, all part of the greater Los Angeles County. We offer group guitar lessons to youth ages 9 yrs old to 17 yrs old. The program aims to engage students with fewer resources for music education and offer a quality experience and opportunity regardless of their families’ economic status. We offer two main programs: (1) Group lessons at our local park, where we have classes for beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels. All participants are provided a guitar package (on a loaner basis) to extend their music education at home. We offer 32 weeks of instruction during the school calendar year and an addition six-week summer session. (2) Thanks to our partnership with the Lawndale Elementary School District, we provide guitar lessons at all six elementary school sites in the district and are currently serving over 100 students every school year. During our program sessions, we offer many opportunities for students to explore their music curiosity and enhance their artistic development. Our work has been recognized and supported by private and public arts organizations such as the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Department of Arts and Culture, D’Addario Foundation, Guitar Center Music Foundation, and Find Your Light Foundation. Our after school classes conducted at Bodger Park in Hawthorne, California are made possible through our Core Community Partnership with the Los Angeles Department of Parks and Recreation. While guitar education is our top priority, Guitars Antiqua allows and encourages students to experience the highest expression of themselves creating the true transformative impacts in their lives. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | San Diego Civic Youth Orchestra | 2975 WAHUPA RANCH RD , ESCONDIDO, CA 92029-5800 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 728-1977 | California 25th Congressional District | California State Assembly District 75 | California State Senate District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, Civic Youth Orchestra will implement Healing Through Harmony: Youth Orchestra as a Pathway to Wellness and Belonging, a community centered initiative that uses ensemble music to support healing, stability, and personal growth for underserved youth across North San Diego County. CAC funds will support professional teaching artists, trauma informed training, and accessible program delivery that integrates music instruction with social emotional learning and creative expression. Youth participants will engage in consistent rehearsals, small group sessions, and community performances that foster connection, confidence, and belonging. Prioritizing low income and BIPOC youth, this project creates safe, culturally responsive spaces where young people can express themselves, build resilience, and develop pathways to continued participation in the arts and their communities. | Since 1956 the Civic Youth Orchestra has enriched the lives of aspiring musicians, from those who are just beginning their musical experience to the most advanced, through a stair-step program designed to inspire and cultivate excellence through music and an appreciation for the arts. Our program offers both small and large ensemble training for musicians aged 5 to 22, led by professional staff, as well as master classes, workshops, intensive orchestral retreats and tours. Our students have gone on to pursue successful careers as solo performers, symphony orchestra members, composers, music educators and members of the music entertainment industry. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Stanislaus Arts Council | 1315 J St , Modesto, CA 95354-0924 | Stanislaus | Central Valley | (209) 529-3369 | California's 5th congressional district | District 22 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, CENTRAL CALIFORNIA ART LEAGUE INC dba Stanislaus Arts Council (SAC) will strengthen and advance arts, culture, and creative expression throughout Stanislaus County by expanding equitable access to arts experiences, supporting artists and cultural organizations, and fostering meaningful community engagement. As the State-Local Partner, grant funds will support operational capacity, community-centered programming, cultural advocacy, community exhibitions, professional development opportunities, and collaborative partnerships that strengthen the regional arts ecosystem. Funding will also support outreach and accessibility efforts that remove barriers to participation and ensure inclusive arts opportunities for residents of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities. Through this work, the organization advances a vision of a vibrant Stanislaus County where the arts enrich everyday life, celebrate diverse cultures and voices, and contribute to community well-being, civic connection, and economic vitality. | Central California Art League, dba Stanislaus Arts Council operates a small gallery in downtown Modesto, provides classes for youth and adults at the gallery, and throughout the community by collaborating with other arts and cultural organizations, organizes a monthly Art Walk for the community of artists, local businesses and residents, and administers a teaching artist program (CLASS) that provides art instruction in elementary schools throughout Stanislaus County. Our Values: The Stanislaus Arts Council is organized for the planning, coordination, support, and promotion of local arts programs and local artists. We are committed to championing policies and practices of racial and cultural equity that empower a just, inclusive, and equitable community. We shall seek to increase private and public sector support for existing and proposed cultural and educational activity within Stanislaus County. We shall develop and promote arts programs throughout all communities within our operational sphere. We shall serve as the State/Local Partner of the California Arts Council as a regional voice representing artistic issues and advocacy. We shall promote cooperative relations among artistic groups and aid their activities and projects. We shall serve as a clearinghouse and coordinating body for information on the arts to broaden, deepen and diversify public participation. We shall work in partnership with artists, arts organizations, community groups, businesses, governmental agencies, and educational institutions to strengthen the accessibility and impact of the arts as aesthetic, personal, economic and social resources. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Friends of Sacramento Arts | 1766 Pebblewood Dr , Sacramento, CA 95833-2631 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 802-2770 | California's 6th congressional district | District 7 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, FRIENDS OF SACRAMENTO ARTS will - 1. Create and facilitate 2 virtual statewide workshops with California PTA focused on educating parents and school leaders to ensure successful implementation of Proposition 28, the Arts and Music in Schools Initiative. 2. Create and facilitate 4 virtual workshops in partnership with Create CA for arts education leaders and arts organizations to expand their work in schools using Proposition 28 funds. 3. Coordinate the annual Heroes of Arts Education Awards Gala in March 2027 to honor outstanding arts educators from public schools in Sacramento, Yolo, Placer and El Dorado counties including providing them honorariums to further their work in the classroom. 4. Identify, recruit and mentor arts education leaders from 6 counties in partnership with Create (Sacramento, Placer, El Dorado, Yolo, Yuba, Amador) | In response to the reality that only one in five K-12 public school students receive arts education, Friends of Sacramento Arts (FOSA) works to engage, advocate and invest in the goal of arts every day, for every child, in every school. FOSA engages with the Sacramento County Office of Education, the county’s 14 school districts and the school districts in Placer, El Dorado and Yolo counties to increase awareness of the academic and social-emotional benefits of arts education. FOSA advocates for permanent financial investment at the state, county, district and school level. FOSA invests time and resources to provide professional development opportunities for arts educators to build an adequate labor force for schools to hire and create consistent, equitable and comprehensive arts education at all grade levels. FOSA uses a cultural equity lens to guide all our actions and priorities. FOSA is a member of a statewide policy council to further the work of Proposition 28, the Arts and Music in Schools funding initiative. FOSA provides workshops, convenings, resources and an annual arts educator awards event for the region. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | SAN FRANCISCO CHILDRENS ART CENTER | 2 Marina Boulevard Fort Mason Center, Building C, San Francisco, CA 94123 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 771-0292 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Francisco Children’s Art Center’s (SFCAC) will strengthen our work and expand our mission providing process-oriented artmaking experiences that nurture creative self-expression to honor and amplify the voices of 1200+ children in San Francisco. Our work will include visual arts residencies in 50+ classrooms in San Francisco Unified School District and in Head Start preschool classrooms located in historically-excluded neighborhoods of our city. CAC funds will support SFCAC’s strategic initiatives to increase community outreach and expand community-centered decision-making for our programming. CAC funding will provide the support needed to expand our organizational capacity through building our administrative infrastructure, to enhance teaching artist professional development, and to create new paths to organizational leadership for our staff and Board of Directors. | Annually, SFCAC serves more than 1200 San Francisco children, ages 2-10 years old, and their teachers and families. Our students are predominantly from economically vulnerable families (70%) and students of color (90%). SCHOOL PROGRAMS: The majority of our students participate through SFCAC school residency programs in San Francisco preschools and elementary schools. Our primary focus is providing visual arts residencies to PreK classrooms in San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) and HeadStart preschools. This focus grew from an identified need for developmentally-appropriate creative exploration in Early Education settings in under-resourced communities which have historically lacked equitable access to arts engagement. OUT-OF-SCHOOL ART CLASSES & CAMPS: At SFCAC’s art studio in San Francisco’s Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture, we provide out-of-school time classes and summer art camps for young artists. While our studio programs are fee-based, we reserve 50% of all spots for scholarship students. Earned income from enrollment fees is re-invested directly in our community programs. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: SFCAC provides professional development for education partners including classroom teachers and SFUSD visual arts teachers. Our workshops are designed to build understanding of the benefits of process-oriented artmaking and how this approach supports individual student agency while fostering a classroom culture of collaboration and collective learning. In the 2025-26 school year, we provided more than 20 hours of professional development engagement to SFUSD educators. COMMUNITY OUTREACH: SFCAC engages directly with the San Francisco community with free family art workshops at our studio and at public events across the city, including at public library branches, farmers' markets pop-ups, and other community partner venues. These inter-generational, hands-on artmaking workshops provide opportunities for families to engage together in creative play, enhance parent/caregiver confidence in supporting their children’s creative development, nurture families’ sense of belonging, and increase visibility of families in San Francisco’s cultural spaces. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture | 560 W. Main St. STE C – PMB #335, Alhambra, CA 91801 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 202-5858 | California's 34th congressional district | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles County Department of Arts and Culture will provide year-round professional development services for over 600 grantee nonprofit arts organizations as well as non-arts organizations with arts programming in support of their missions to advance cultural equity and inclusion to the field. These professional development services include scholarships for trainings, certificate programs and conference registration, as well as regional convenings addressing topics specific to the arts and culture sector. Efforts continue to provide diverse opportunities for BIPOC leaders as well as emerging leaders at nonprofit organizations. | We provide leadership, services, and support in areas including grants and technical assistance for nonprofit organizations, countywide arts education initiatives, commissioning and care for civic art collections, research and evaluation, access to creative pathways, professional development, free community programs, and cross sector creative strategies that address civic issues. All of this work is framed by our longstanding commitment to fostering access to the arts, and the County’s Cultural Equity and Inclusion Initiative. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $9,000.00 | Best Practice | 1955 Julian Ave , San Diego, CA 92113-1125 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 813-5063 | With support from the California Arts Council, Best Practice will be better situated to increase staff salaries and provide artists with payment for exhibiting their work. Since its inception, Best Practice has presented 71 exhibitions and events, supporting more than 150 artists from San Diego, Baja California, across the United States, and internationally relying heavily on volunteer labor, including both staff and participating artists. Securing funding for salaries and artist fees will allow us to build organizational capacity, expand our audience, and establish a more sustainable financial foundation for continued growth and impact. | Best Practice presents 5 to 6 exhibitions of visual art per calendar year. The range of materials and process in the works that we exhibit is vast and includes painting, drawing, printmaking, sculpture, ceramics, film, video, performance, research-based works, and participatory experiences. | |||
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SAN FRANCISCO CHILDRENS ART CENTER | 2 Marina Boulevard Fort Mason Center, Building C, San Francisco, CA 94123 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 771-0292 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Francisco Children’s Art Center (SFCAC) will provide in-school programming with 12-week visual arts residencies in 15 San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) Early Education classrooms, increasing equitable access to creative experiences for 300 children in under-resourced communities. Classrooms served will include Special Education, Inclusion, and Dual Language classrooms for Cantonese and Spanish-speaking students. Funding will also support expanded community outreach programs that will enhance SFCAC’s connections with San Francisco families via family artmaking workshops hosted at San Francisco Public Library neighborhood branches, serving an additional 300 participants in the same neighborhood communities where we are providing in-school programming. | Annually, SFCAC serves more than 1200 San Francisco children, ages 2-10 years old, and their teachers and families. Our students are predominantly from economically vulnerable families (70%) and students of color (90%). SCHOOL PROGRAMS: The majority of our students participate through SFCAC school residency programs in San Francisco preschools and elementary schools. Our primary focus is providing visual arts residencies to PreK classrooms in San Francisco Unified School District (SFUSD) and HeadStart preschools. This focus grew from an identified need for developmentally-appropriate creative exploration in Early Education settings in under-resourced communities which have historically lacked equitable access to arts engagement. OUT-OF-SCHOOL ART CLASSES & CAMPS: At SFCAC’s art studio in San Francisco’s Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture, we provide out-of-school time classes and summer art camps for young artists. While our studio programs are fee-based, we reserve 50% of all spots for scholarship students. Earned income from enrollment fees is re-invested directly in our community programs. PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: SFCAC provides professional development for education partners including classroom teachers and SFUSD visual arts teachers. Our workshops are designed to build understanding of the benefits of process-oriented artmaking and how this approach supports individual student agency while fostering a classroom culture of collaboration and collective learning. In the 2025-26 school year, we provided more than 20 hours of professional development engagement to SFUSD educators. COMMUNITY OUTREACH: SFCAC engages directly with the San Francisco community with free family art workshops at our studio and at public events across the city, including at public library branches, farmers' markets pop-ups, and other community partner venues. These inter-generational, hands-on artmaking workshops provide opportunities for families to engage together in creative play, enhance parent/caregiver confidence in supporting their children’s creative development, nurture families’ sense of belonging, and increase visibility of families in San Francisco’s cultural spaces. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | SAPPA | 475 S. Oakland Ave., Suite 2 , Pasadena, CA 91101 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 641-3262 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAPPA will increase its organizational and staff capacity in order to expand and improve our instrumental music education and performance programs for children, youth, and seniors in low-income and under-resourced Los Angeles neighborhoods. With more resources for staff training and compensation, we will be able to expand community outreach, engage more participants, and deepen the impact of our programs. | -The Watts Willowbrook Music Academy is a collaboration with multiple organizations in South LA. In sequential group classes taught by professional musicians at each site, students ages 7-18 learn to playing violin, viola, cello and bass. Instruction is offered at the beginning, continuing and advanced levels. -The Watts Willowbrook Youth Orchestra is an ensemble of 50+ young musicians drawn from the group classes of the Watts Willowbrook Music Academy, alumni of the program, and students from music instruction programs at nearby elementary, middle and high schools. Students learn, rehearse and perform classical music, music from film and theater, folk and world music, and popular and jazz standards, every Saturday for 47 weeks a year. Twice a year, the Orchestra performs at the Salvation Army Siemon Community Center in South Los Angeles for an audience of more than150 family members, peers, and members of the community. -Weekly Music Workshops bring general musical education to students ages 7-18 after school at community sites. The goal is to develop the children's understanding and appreciation of music by learning to read music, playing instruments and singing. -In the Senior Musical Arts program, adults ages 55 and older learn to play piano, sing, and read and interpret music in free, weekly, year-round classes provided at senior centers located in very low income communities in South Los Angeles. The program is taught by a professional musician and certified music therapist. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | SAPPA | 475 S. Oakland Ave., Suite 2 , Pasadena, CA 91101 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 641-3262 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAPPA will provide free music instruction and performance opportunities for 100 low-income children and youth ages 7 to 18 in South Los Angeles and Watts. In the program, called the Watts Willowbrook Music Academy and Watts Willowbrook Youth Orchestra, participants will learn to play violin, viola, cello, bass, guitar and keyboards, develop their musical skills and knowledge, and perform for the public. The programs will take place after school and in the summer at schools, social service organizations, and churches. | -The Watts Willowbrook Music Academy is a collaboration with multiple organizations in South LA. In sequential group classes taught by professional musicians at each site, students ages 7-18 learn to playing violin, viola, cello and bass. Instruction is offered at the beginning, continuing and advanced levels. -The Watts Willowbrook Youth Orchestra is an ensemble of 50+ young musicians drawn from the group classes of the Watts Willowbrook Music Academy, alumni of the program, and students from music instruction programs at nearby elementary, middle and high schools. Students learn, rehearse and perform classical music, music from film and theater, folk and world music, and popular and jazz standards, every Saturday for 47 weeks a year. Twice a year, the Orchestra performs at the Salvation Army Siemon Community Center in South Los Angeles for an audience of more than150 family members, peers, and members of the community. -Weekly Music Workshops bring general musical education to students ages 7-18 after school at community sites. The goal is to develop the children's understanding and appreciation of music by learning to read music, playing instruments and singing. -In the Senior Musical Arts program, adults ages 55 and older learn to play piano, sing, and read and interpret music in free, weekly, year-round classes provided at senior centers located in very low income communities in South Los Angeles. The program is taught by a professional musician and certified music therapist. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | OTHER MINDS | 55 TAYLOR ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94102-3916 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 934-8134 | With support from the California Arts Council, OTHER MINDS will sustain its core operations through a landmark season that includes the 30th Other Minds Festival at Brava Theater in San Francisco, the world premiere of Theresa Wong's Vox Lumina, and the PastForward series at Mills College at Northeastern University in Oakland. General operating support will enable Other Minds to maintain sliding-scale ticketing across all public events and continue free public access to broadcasts, podcasts, and archival recordings. | Founded in 1993, Other Minds in San Francisco is a leading organization for new and experimental music, devoted to championing the most original, eccentric, and underrepresented creative voices in contemporary music, with an emphasis on composers of the American Experimental Tradition. From festival concerts, film screenings, radio broadcasts, and the commissioning of new works, to producing and releasing CDs, preserving thousands of interviews and concerts and distributing them free on the Internet, Other Minds has become one of the world’s major conservators of new music’s ecology. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | DTLA Proud | 700 W 7TH ST , LOS ANGELES, CA 90017-3768 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 620-2792 | With support from the California Arts Council, DTLA Proud will invest in Building the Next Decade. This is our first time applying for this support as we move into a consistent year round programming timeline. These funds will cover core costs including staff salaries, rent, and utilities that keep our operations moving. This investment supports the production of monthly markets, 24 annual art exhibits, and the Proud Festival. Demand is high, with over 200 people applying annually for 100 exhibition slots. By securing physical space and resources, we provide essential economic platforms for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC artists. This project ensures marginalized creators have a home to thrive through public art and professional development, strengthening the local creative economy. | DTLA Proud provides a comprehensive suite of services centered on economic recovery, public safety, and community representation. The flagship program is the annual Proud Festival, which serves as a massive platform for Queer talent, art installations, and activist resources in the heart of Los Angeles. To foster long term growth, the organization operates a Business Incubator and monthly market at the Courtyard DTLA, which functions as a direct pipeline for LGBTQ+ and BIPOC owned businesses to secure permanent storefronts. Physical infrastructure is a key service, including working with the A+R+T Center which acts as a gallery for artists and a professional hub for entrepreneurs. Beyond these large initiatives, the organization facilitates essential community advocacy through town halls and specialized programming for sober curious, neurodivergent, and differently abled individuals. Their public safety services focus on community led solutions like BID Safe Teams and Metro Safety Ambassadors to ensure culturally competent security for all residents and visitors. Additionally, they host consistent year round events such as ArtNight, Gaymers meetups, and Sapphic Sundays to maintain engagement. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | SACRA/PROFANA | 4271 Clairemont Mesa Blvd , SAN DIEGO, CA 92117 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 432-2920 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, SACRA/PROFANA will present its 18th season of year-round artistic and educational programming serving San Diego County. As the region’s only professional choral ensemble with ongoing education initiatives, SACRA/PROFANA presents six concerts annually, provides in-school workshops and its Summer Choral Intensive, collectively serving hundreds of students and community members each year. Funds will directly support artist compensation, including professional singers, teaching artists, and artistic leadership, ensuring equitable pay and the continued employment of a diverse arts workforce. Funding will also support expanded access to high-quality choral experiences for students in Title I schools and audiences across geographically and economically diverse communities. Through these efforts, SACRA/PROFANA will advance cultural equity by elevating underrepresented voices in choral music, increasing access to arts education, and strengthening community connections through shared artistic experiences. | Founded in 2009, SACRA/PROFANA is San Diego’s only year-round professional chorus and has been described as “one of San Diego’s prominent vocal groups. Under Artistic Director Juan Carlos Acosta, it has a gift for combining high-level technical singing with community consciousness.” As part of its focus on community service, SACRA/PROFANA provides dynamic Education Outreach Programs that support and enhance music education in the San Diego Unified School District. These include: • Seminars for high school music students coupled with concerts side-by-side with SACRA/PROFANA’s core professional choir; • Demonstrations led by SACRA/PROFANA personnel to middle and high school students that include musicianship and vocal technique, and • A summer program, The Summer Choral Intensive, one of San Diego’s most sought after vocal programs for high school and middle school singers. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Riot Productions | 6476 LAKE MERE CT , SAN DIEGO, CA 92119-2820 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 752-7548 | 51 | 75 | 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, Riot Productions will continue our work within the San Diego historically underserved communities of poverty to make arts accessible, while focusing specifically on our stated mission of amplifying the voices of womxn at the intersection of the BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities in our plays and musicals. We will continue to tell womxn's stories that are by femxle playwrights and composers featuring femxle characters with arc and agency, and continue to create opportunity for femxle actors, especially across the diverse LGBTQIA+ spectrum and within our BIPOC community. | Theatrical production company with an emphasis on creating fully staged productions of local female writers, as well as creating more performance and directing opportunities for women especially at the intersection of BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ communities. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Launch LA | 170 S La Brea Ave ste 202 , Los Angeles, CA 90036-2910 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 899-1363 | US House District 30 | District 51 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, LAUNCH will support the people who make our work possible. Our programs are only as strong as the staff behind them; this funding will help us plan, produce, and present year-round consistent, responsive, and accessible programming. Our full-time Executive Director leads all aspects of the organization—fundraising, partnerships, curatorial direction, and day-to-day operations—with the support of a part-time gallery assistant who helps manage communications, installation, and on-site coordination. We also bring in additional contract staff as needed for exhibition production, event support, marketing, and administrative tasks. This small but dedicated team is responsible for everything we do, from mounting exhibitions to producing public programs and TARFEST, our free annual music and arts festival. Staff time directly translates into opportunities for artists and meaningful experiences for audiences. | LAUNCH’s core programs are designed to create meaningful, accessible opportunities for artists and audiences to connect, reflecting our mission to strengthen community through shared creative experience. At our La Brea Avenue gallery, we present 10–12 exhibitions annually, (generally 2-4 artists each) focused primarily on emerging and early-career artists. These exhibitions are supported by an open proposal policy and a rotating guest curator program, expanding who has a voice in shaping what is presented and ensuring a broad range of perspectives. Our annual open call offers one artist a fully realized exhibition in the following year—an opportunity that provides critical visibility, professional development, and career momentum, often with impact that extends far beyond a cash award. We complement exhibitions with artist talks, portfolio reviews, and informal networking opportunities that help artists build relationships with curators, peers, and audiences. These moments of exchange are essential to sustaining creative practice and fostering long-term growth. Beyond the gallery, LAUNCH produces pop-up exhibitions and collaborative events across Los Angeles County, bringing arts programming into different neighborhoods and reaching audiences who may not typically engage with traditional arts spaces. TARFEST, our annual free music and arts festival, extends this work on a larger scale. Featuring local musicians, visual artists, cultural partners, and family-friendly artmaking activities, TARFEST creates an open, welcoming environment where thousands of Angelenos can experience live art together. It reflects our commitment to keeping the arts accessible, relevant, and rooted in community. Together, these programs support artists at pivotal stages in their careers while offering the public opportunities to engage with work that is immediate, diverse, and reflective of life in Los Angeles. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Tierra Caliente Academy of Arts | 207 VISTA GLEN LN APT A , VISTA, CA 92084-5602 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 509-5591 | California's 49th congressional district | District CA-49 | District California | With support from the California Arts Council, TIERRA CALIENTE ACADEMY OF ARTS will expand its role as a vital cultural anchor by strengthening organizational capacity to deliver equitable, community-driven arts programming for underserved Latinx communities across North San Diego County. Grant funds will support core operations, including fair compensation for teaching artists, program coordination, and essential administrative infrastructure that sustain year-round arts education and public performances in folklórico dance, music, and bilingual theater. Funding will ensure programs remain free or low-cost, collectively reaching over 22,000 community members annually, while strengthening bilingual outreach and partnerships with Title 1 schools and community organizations. This investment will deepen community engagement, expand participation, and preserve culturally significant traditions while advancing inclusion, youth development, and long-term access to the arts. | TCAA has established ongoing projects such as Day of the Dead festival, Ticitozaa Folklorico Festival, Mexihco Performing Arts Production, De Colores Youth Dance Production, Puppet Shows in Spanish for children, and other meaningful arts and cultural offerings. Two TCAA's most impactful programs are its Ticitozaa Folklorico Dance Festival and its De Colores Youth Development Program. TCAA's Ticitozaa Folklorico Dance Festival is a cultural production that features two performances at The California Center for the Arts, Escondido. The Festival is comprised of a youth show with performing youth groups (ages 8-15 years old) and a second show that features Adults (ages 16+). The productions are separated purposely so that the adults can appreciate and support the next generation and the youth can see the adults as role models in the performing arts. TCAA's "De Colores Youth Development Program" is teaching K-12 children about the importance of identity, both as individuals and as a community. With each generation, cultural knowledge and appreciation is harder for children to grasp and understand if not exposed to it during their formative years. In today's diverse Southern California community, the notion of identity is essential for understanding matters concerning the integration and socialization of children with Latinx roots. Annually, the program provides 50 Latinx youth with a stronger awareness of where they come from and who they are through the visual and performing arts. TCAA's "De Colores Youth Development Program" consists of five months of weekly youth cultural education and training including visual and performing arts classes culminating in a community production performed by the youth participants. This program equips underserved Latinx children with the training and confidence to perform a visual and performing arts event that tells the history of Mexico on stage through music and dance while adding the magical component of the theater. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Art Spread | 3843 S Bristol St #270 , Santa Ana, CA 92704-7426 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (951) 973-1064 | 69 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Art Spread will educate and transform California communities through art. We bring meaningful art and impactful stories from all over the world directly to Southern California including Orange County, San Diego, Riverside, and Los Angeles. Our free public art events invite Californians to create expressive art at hands-on workshops, experience cultural art fairs, and view story-telling art at curated exhibitions. The Art Spread offers free career services so that artists can create work that improves their communities. With free mentorship, editing assistance, online platforms, event opportunities, and practical tools, we transform artists who experience adversity into impactful community leaders. Our artists use these services to educate and raise awareness on mental, physical, and societal challenges to underserved and disadvantaged California communities. | The Art Spread creates a platform for artists to tell their stories. We market artistry, mentor artists personally and professionally, and create financial opportunities for artists. We also invite everyone to paint with us at our art-and-adversity awareness workshops. Our events are accessible through in-person and virtual attendance. | ||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Longshadr Productions | 1102 Warren Creek Road , Arcata, CA 95521 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 223-0265 | With support from the California Arts Council, Longshadr Productions will grow its organizational infrastructure to continue serving Humboldt County and Northern California through new community-based arts programming that uplifts and celebrates historically marginalized communities through a form of "Theatre of Place". Specifically, Longshadr will invest in artist fees, rehearsal space rentals, website maintenance, accessibility services, marketing and development services, and bookkeeping services. | Longshadr's programs and productions are all community-developed. We start by identifying a community and their stakeholders. We then engage in a series of interviews and group dialogues that influence the themes, characters, and conflicts within each show. These shows are then produced for the public and contain engagement programs such as talk-backs, "Bar Chats", dramaturgical resource sharing, and site-specific trips. Programs that have been successfully developed through this project include: + RADIOMAN, a monologue-play documenting a local craftsman's journey as a Vietnam soldier to running a millworks for other veterans and displaced communities. Developed from firsthand interviews with veterans from every major American war and their family members, this show illustrated the community-specific themes of PTSD, depression, patriotism, and the family commitments behind every soldier. This piece was co-produced with Dell'Arte Inc. and Blue Ox Millworks and ran with several extensions due to popular demand. + MADSUMMER, a raucous musical comedy that highlights the often forgotten elderly community in Humboldt County through a loose adaptation of Shakespeare's A Midsummer Night's Dream, taking place in a senior center. This show derived from aging community members' stories in Humboldt County (ages 55 to 90) and centers the themes of finding love later in life, solitude, government's role in "other-ing", and capitalistic ventures targeted at taking advantage of this community. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | The Stockton Chorale | 7510 Shoreline Dr, Ste B7 , Stockton, CA 95219-5495 | San Joaquin | Central Valley | (209) 951-6494 | California's 9th congressional district | District 13 | District 5 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Stockton Chorale will use $23,000 of the funding to support instrumentalists and vocal soloists for the four performances during the season including an orchestra performance of the Missa Pastoril with four guest vocal soloists in March 2027. The balance of the funds, $7,000 will be used to provide music purchases for the concerts during the season. | We have three adult singing groups and two youth singing groups. We perform 6-8 large choral concerts per year with a variety of musical styles, languages, and guest soloists and/or instrumentalists. We provide smaller outreach concerts to various retirement communities throughout the county. We perform for community groups, both profit and non-profit, as well as local sports teams. We participate in collaborations with the Stockton Symphony and San Joaquin Delta College, providing one or more choral group for selected concerts. All the choral groups require tuition/dues, but those adult/youth singers can receive a complete or partial scholarship. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Detour Productions | 1280 Pine Street #102 , San Francisco, CA 94109 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (408) 772-9227 | California Assembly district 17 | District CA-11 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Detour Productions will produce works that blur the boundaries of contemporary dance, theater, and drag, centering the prismatic experiences of San Francisco’s BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists and community members. In addition, Detour will continue to invest in the future of queer performance by offering professional development workshops, intensives, and a monthly salon series for emerging artists, while strengthening organizational capacity and sustainability through coaching, professional services, and salaries for our co-directors. | Detour Productions is a grassroots collective that creates immersive, site-responsive performances rooted in queer, trans, disabled, and BIPOC experiences. Founded in 2009 by Eric Garcia and Kat Gorospe Cole, Detour blends dance, theater, and drag to push the boundaries of performance and expand whose stories get told—and how. Our flagship program is the creation and presentation of evening-length immersive works. Recent productions include The Twilight Aristocracy (2024), which transformed Fort Mason Center’s General’s Residence into a queer maximalist secret society, and We Build Houses Here (2023), which turned Oasis Nightclub into a post-shipwreck world of survival, connection, and communal rebuilding. Earlier works such as Quake (2022), Up On High (2022), Fugue (2017), and Beckon, (2015) explore themes of gentrification, racialized desire, mental health, legacy, and queer ancestry. Across all projects, we emphasize collaborative devising, deep research, and performances rooted in place. Detour also runs Clutch The Pearls, a monthly cabaret uplifting experimental new work by queer and trans dancers and drag artists. Now in its sixth year, Clutch has become a staple in San Francisco’s queer performance scene, providing mentorship and consistent stage opportunities for emerging artists. Our Workshop Series and Seasonal Intensives support artist development through training in devising, ensemble practices, drag performance, makeup, self-producing, budgeting, and grant writing. These programs are open to all, with a focus on creating intergenerational spaces that reflect our community’s full spectrum of experience and access needs. Other key accomplishments include producing the Tiny Dance Film Festival (2010–2020), participating in CHIME with Margaret Jenkins Dance Company, and receiving multiple Izzie nominations. In 2024, Detour became a 501(c)(3), marking a new chapter in our long-standing commitment to queer-centered artmaking, community, and sanctuary. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | The Table Art Society | 8917 LA MESA BLVD , LA MESA, CA 91942-9051 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 472-0578 | California Congressional District 51 | California State Assembly District 79 | California State Senate District 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, TABLE ART SOCIETY will sustain general operations and strengthen arts and creative expression infrastructure at a critical moment for San Diego's arts ecosystem. As the city's arts budget contracts sharply, independent, community-rooted organizations are essential to sustaining a robust and diverse arts workforce. We support over 90 working artists annually from historically under-resourced communities through cohort-based development, and we actively build community bridges that connect artists to paid work and sustainable pathways. Over 90% of cohort artists present their work publicly. As a first-time CAC applicant and small organization, this funding will support core operating expenses, executive leadership salary, stipend program leadership, and the relational infrastructure that sustains working artists and strengthens cultural vitality across San Diego. | The Table Art Society provides artist-centered programs that support creative development, community connection, and access to public-facing opportunities. Our work equips artists with the resources, relationships, and platforms needed to sustain their creative practice. Artist Development Cohorts TAS facilitates structured cohorts offering mentorship, peer support, and practical tools for artistic and professional growth. These cohorts emphasize creative discipline, collaboration, and long-term sustainability for working artists. Public Showcases and Performances We produce live events and showcases that create opportunities for artists to present their work publicly. These programs increase artist visibility while providing accessible and meaningful arts experiences for the community. Community Gatherings and Creative Events TAS hosts community-centered gatherings that bring artists and audiences together in participatory and relational settings, fostering connection and cultural exchange. Artist Support and Resource Navigation We provide ongoing support through connections to opportunities, professional guidance, and access to networks that extend beyond individual programs, including pathways to paid and public-facing work. Through these programs, The Table Art Society serves a growing network of artists and contributes to a more connected and sustainable creative ecosystem in San Diego. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | Colusa County Arts Council | 151 Fifth Street , COLUSA, CA 95932 | Colusa | Upstate | (530) 458-2222 | California's 1st Congressional District | District 4 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Colusa County Arts Council will continue to strengthen its organizational and operational infrastructure in response to the growing demand for art services across the county. Since 2022, CCAC has experienced an exponential increase in programming and community engagement, positioning itself as a driving force behind the county’s arts and cultural landscape. It is a goal to build on this momentum and continue to develop a more sustainable and future-focused structure, enabling Colusa County Arts Council to enhance public programming, maintain program quality, deepen connections with underserved communities, expand its efforts in fostering creative placemaking and public art projects, strengthen professional development opportunities for local artists, grow youth arts education, and foster new partnerships with community organizations. | General programming includes monthly art exhibitions in our gallery, "Live Lit" literary reading series featuring local writers, collaborative community events, and fundraising events that feature live music or local artists. General programming also encompasses our Public Arts Advisory Committee, which commissions public artworks throughout the county. Special programming includes Creative Youth Development and Levitt AMP Colusa programs. Creative Youth Development providesfree arts education after school for area youth. This programming includes monthly art lessons at five of the rural branches of the Colusa County Free Library, monthly Family Day workshops held in our gallery space, beginner music workshops, multi-generational craft classes, and four-day arts camp for 5-13 year olds. Levitt AMP Colusa provides 10 free live concerts featuring original music by professionally touring musicians from all over the United States. We partner with local non-profits and community groups to make these events a place where our community resources and values can surface. Booking emphasizes artists and genres who appeal to diverse audiences in our county. Beyond programming, the Colusa County Arts Council uses its resources for community collaboration, mentoring, and advocacy. These services include classroom visits at local schools to promote our programs and share opportunities with art students, hosting middle and high school arts instructors in our gallery to share resources and collaborate, partnering with local non-profits like the Rotary Club and Lion's Club, providing resources to Upstate California Creative Corps grantees and other artists, advocating with local school districts around arts education measures like Prop 28, and participating in programming and professional development offered by other California public arts organizations. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Bay Area Creative | 1389 Jefferson St Apt C505 , Oakland, CA 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (949) 285-9086 | California Assembly district 20 | District 20 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, BAY AREA CREATIVE BAC will deliver transformative arts programs that ignite self-expression, healing, and social change. Founded by nationally ranked spoken word poets, BAC provides steady work for over 40 artists each year and reaches over 16,000 low-income youth and adults through free workshops and events in spoken word poetry, urban dance, and visual arts. Led by professional artists from the same communities they serve, these programs offer vital spaces for participants to process their experiences, build resilience, amplify their voices and share their creative works for the betterment of society. Through school-day residencies, after-school programs, summer workshops, and weekly community performances, BAC fosters a new generation of artists and leaders, strengthening the Bay Area’s arts ecosystem and cultural fabric. | SPARC Creativity offers spoken word poetry, dance, filmmaking workshops and performances tailored for underserved youth aged 5-18. Our comprehensive services encompass weekly arts workshops conducted during the school day, after school, and throughout the summer. Additionally, SPARC teaching artists lead impactful school day performances that showcase the creative expressions of our participants. Revisions stands as a beacon of therapeutic arts for youth and families, providing essential services such as facilitating writing groups in Juvenile Hall, facilitating creative support groups for social workers, leading conferences focused on substance abuse prevention, and performing at mental health symposiums. Educators for Empathy is dedicated to professional development for both classroom teachers and teaching artists. Our impactful sessions take the form of in-service school district-wide half and full-day training sessions. We extend our reach by collaborating with other nonprofits, offering monthly one-on-one coaching sessions to empower educators with transformative teaching practices. Spoken works delivers local creative professionals to provide team building sessions that connect members of the workforce to a culturally diverse panel of published authors and nationally ranked spoken word artists. Activities are insightful, productive and high energy designed to leverage lateral thinking towards new solutions and bonding. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Bay Area Creative | 1389 Jefferson St Apt C505 , Oakland, CA 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (949) 285-9086 | California Assembly district 20 | District 20 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, BAY AREA CREATIVE BAC will strengthen its SPARC Creativity program, delivering year-round arts education to over 7,000 K-12 underserved youth across the Bay Area. Grants funds sustain culturally responsive, trauma-informed workshops in spoken word poetry, hip hop dance, and visual arts led by professional artists rooted in the communities they serve. This support allows BAC to deepen its impact in underserved neighborhoods, maintain fair compensation for teaching artists paid as employees, expand accessible and bilingual programming, and invest in the organizational infrastructure. Transformative youth arts experiences affirm identity, foster resilience and build community pride. Additionally, BAC will enhance evaluation systems to track outcomes, support youth leadership pathways, and cultivate partnerships with schools and community organizations to ensure long-term program sustainability and equitable access for all participants. | SPARC Creativity offers spoken word poetry, dance, filmmaking workshops and performances tailored for underserved youth aged 5-18. Our comprehensive services encompass weekly arts workshops conducted during the school day, after school, and throughout the summer. Additionally, SPARC teaching artists lead impactful school day performances that showcase the creative expressions of our participants. Revisions stands as a beacon of therapeutic arts for youth and families, providing essential services such as facilitating writing groups in Juvenile Hall, facilitating creative support groups for social workers, leading conferences focused on substance abuse prevention, and performing at mental health symposiums. Educators for Empathy is dedicated to professional development for both classroom teachers and teaching artists. Our impactful sessions take the form of in-service school district-wide half and full-day training sessions. We extend our reach by collaborating with other nonprofits, offering monthly one-on-one coaching sessions to empower educators with transformative teaching practices. Spoken works delivers local creative professionals to provide team building sessions that connect members of the workforce to a culturally diverse panel of published authors and nationally ranked spoken word artists. Activities are insightful, productive and high energy designed to leverage lateral thinking towards new solutions and bonding. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Sam First | 6171 W CENTURY BLVD STE 355 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90045-5300 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 399-4564 | 43rd Congressional District | District 61 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sam First - Los Angeles’ leading nonprofit live jazz venue - will be able to provide over 250 live jazz shows, hire more than 300 individual musicians, provide weekly community jazz jam sessions, and engage over 15,000 audience members in live jazz performance - in-person and via livestream. The funds will support general operating expenses, helping Sam First to continue to grow as a vital part of Los Angeles’ live jazz infrastructure and economy. | Sam First presents live jazz five nights a week at our main location, in addition to partnerships throughout our region to bring jazz programming to as many audiences as possible. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Pajaro Valley Arts | 280 Main Street , WATSONVILLE, CA 96076 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 722-3062 | California's 18th congressional district | District 30 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pajaro Valley Arts will continue its 40+ year legacy of presenting diverse, culturally relevant visual-art exhibitions and year-round educational programs serving Watsonville and the broader Monterey Bay region. In 2025 the CAC designated Downtown Watsonville a state-recognized Cultural District (2026–2030), strengthening our role as a regional arts anchor. These operating funds will sustain a safe, accessible, and equitable community arts space, enhance staffing, board development, and volunteer capacity, and expand essential resources and infrastructure. We will maintain free public access to exhibitions, artist talks, readings, music performances, guided tours, and hands-on arts activities for youth and adults. Funds will also support curatorial and exhibition opportunities for emerging and professional artists of all backgrounds, strengthening creative careers and fostering community engagement. | Pajaro Valley Arts Council (PVA) has been fulfilling its mission “to bring the community together through the arts” for over 40 years. With a goal of promoting and fostering the arts, PVA presents rotating visual art exhibits, public projects, and cultural events in partnership with guest curators, schools, city government, and local organizations. PVA believes that every person deserves to have access to the arts, and conducts programming year-round at no cost to the public to fulfill this vision. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $7,200.00 | MTG | 13333 VENTURA BLVD STE 201 , SHERMAN OAKS, CA 91423-6252 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 308-4004 | California's 32nd congressional district | District 46 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Musical Theatre Guild will continue its mission to preserve and celebrate the original American art form of Musical Theatre through performances, outreach, and educational programs that engage and inspire the greater Southern California community. Funding will be used to support artists' salaries. | In 1995, a small group of working professional singers and actors met to create a guild for musical theatre artists; a forum where members could showcase their creative talents and present seldom produced musicals as a preservation for this unique American art form. Now in its 30th season, and based on the high quality of its work, MTG has earned the first producing rights to present the works of many musical theatre masters, including Stephen Sondheim, Adam Guettel, Andrew Lippa, Jason Robert Brown, and Ahrens and Flaherty. Their tandem mission of exposing new audiences to this original American art form has led them to a partnership with the Music Center of Los Angeles Education Division with three in-school assemblies that uses musical theatre as a teaching tool, and an outreach program that affords local high school students free tickets to their main stage concerts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | WRIGHTWOOD ARTS CENTER | 6045 Park Dr , Wrightwood, CA 92397 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (562) 292-1781 | 28 district | District 41 | District 23 | With support from the California Arts Council, Wrightwood Arts Center will be able to keep the doors open. Plain and simple. Located in a rural town in the San Bernardino Mountains, we have created an organization that fills a gap the town didn’t know it had. A storefront. A place to convene. A space for artists’ work. A place to create. Events, classes, workshops, artist consignment and gallery. Small but mighty, we make a difference. We provide much needed artist support. We have survived thus far through community engagement, membership campaigns, generosity from a few, a local grant that got us to this point, and a hard-working board. What we need is assistance with rent, a paid position for a general operations manager and staffing for our open hours to continue this work and grow. | The organization works to support and showcase the work of local artists from Wrightwood and the surrounding Tri-community area that includes the high desert communities of Phelan and Pinon Hills. Our work includes monthly rotating exhibitions, art classes and workshops taught by local artists, art sales, and annual, quarterly arts events The Wrightwood Arts Center is a community hub, providing a place to meet, convene, and supports the arts, both for artists and non-artists. We promote arts appreciation to the larger community by creating as many free and accessible events throughout the year. On Saturdays we have open studio hours and on Sundays we hold children craft sessions. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Healing Thru Rhythm | 17528 SAGEBRUSH WAY , CARSON, CA 90746-7468 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 271-2238 | With support from the California Arts Council, HEALING THRU RHYTHM will strengthen its capacity to deliver culturally relevant, community‑centered dance and movement arts programs for Black, Brown, and systemically marginalized communities across Southern California. CAC funds will support essential operating needs, including staffing, program coordination, space rentals, insurance, and administrative infrastructure, ensuring consistent and accessible arts programming. Funding will also enhance outreach, volunteer coordination, and program evaluation efforts, allowing the organization to expand its reach, deepen community engagement, and maintain a sustainable structure that supports high‑quality, culturally grounded arts experiences. This investment will help Healing Thru Rhythm continue providing joyful, inclusive, and culturally inspired movement programs that promote wellness, connection, and creative expression. | Our core programs are built on accessibility, cultural pride, and the belief that movement is a powerful tool for healing. Dance Fitness Classes: We offer free and low‑cost weekly dance fitness sessions that blend rhythmic movement, cardio exercise, and cultural music traditions. Classes include Afrobeats, Dancehall, Soca, Line Dancing, and heritage‑based movement styles that celebrate identity while promoting physical activity and stress reduction. These sessions serve participants of all ages and fitness levels, creating inclusive spaces where community members can build confidence and improve their health. Monthly Line Dance Events: Our signature “Line It Up, Wine It Down” series brings the community together for themed line dance classes led by local and guest instructors. These events promote cultural expression, social connection, and intergenerational engagement while providing a joyful, safe environment for movement and community bonding. Community Workshops and Pop‑Up Sessions: We partner with schools, community centers, faith‑based organizations, and health agencies to deliver pop‑up classes and wellness workshops focused on mental health, nutrition, self‑care, and confidence‑building. These programs expand access to wellness resources in neighborhoods that often lack affordable options. Culturally Rooted Wellness Experiences: Throughout the year, we host special events and awareness‑based classes that honor cultural heritage months, celebrate community identity, and uplift underserved populations through movement, music, and shared experience. Across all programs, Healing Thru Rhythm centers accessibility, cultural relevance, and community connection, ensuring that wellness is not a luxury but a resource available to everyone. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | The Strindberg Laboratory | PO Box 29824 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90029 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 265-6313 | California's 28th congressional district | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Strindberg Laboratory (TSL) will activate theater engagement programming that meaningfully and intentionally includes participants and audiences from diverse walks of life to help build bridges between individuals and communities that are normally separated. TSL does this by creating community-driven workshops, pop-up events, and productions for otherwise underserved participants and audiences, with all of our programming and performances provided free-of-charge. Through the lens of our mission, TSL’s work is inspired by what we believe is everyone’s right to arts equity: The right for everyone and anyone, regardless of race, cultural background, socio-economic status, life experience, or citizenship status to create their own paths to self-discovery through theater storytelling, and to connect too-often under-heard voices and stories with a diverse audience. | Central to TSL’s core programming is our community-driven productions, which we currently create through our Vaudeville Valley Troupe (VVT). Originally established by TSL in 2020 as a workshop for young adults on the autism spectrum, it is now the creative force driving TSL’s annual original productions generated by range of theater, puppetry, and multi-media artists with individuals on the autism spectrum joined by individuals with other neurodivergence and disabilities, individuals experiencing housing insecurity, returning citizens post-incarceration, and others. TSL is committed to providing all of our community artists with stipends for their work and presenting all of our performances free-of-charge. Our most recent production, “Step Forward for All The Poor People!” was performed in 2025, addressing poverty through a satirical take on conquering it once-and-for-all. TSL provides theater arts workshops and presents special performances to communities that cannot typically participate in or attend our productions. Since 2021, we have provided in-service engagement at St. Barnabas Senior Services, Fairfax Senior Center, West Los Angeles Veterans Home, Central City Community Center, and Los Angeles Mission, among others, engaging senior citizens, U.S. military veterans, individuals experiencing homelessness, and individuals challenged with addition. Critically linked to our productions and workshops, we have also developed our own unique theater games rooted in Forum Theatre, an approach explicitly devised to engage audiences as co-performers with a focus on developing open, creative, solution-oriented dialogues around social justice. This approach also informs TSL’s community festivals (such as Together in September in 2022) and ongoing pop-up events and activations in public spaces throughout the Los Angeles area. In 2024, TSL also co-created Citizen Network News, a print-only international newspaper that addresses community-driven issues through an artist-activist lens. TSL believes this type of awareness and public conversation are key, fundamental building blocks for creating bold, innovative theater-makers and artists. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Tierra Caliente Academy of Arts | 207 VISTA GLEN LN APT A , VISTA, CA 92084-5602 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 509-5591 | California's 49th congressional district | District CA-49 | District California | Support from the California Arts Council will enable Tierra Caliente Academy of Arts, in partnership with the California Center for the Arts, Escondido and community collaborators, to implement Raíces en Confianza, a one-year Folklórico initiative advancing arts access, cultural equity, and social cohesion in North San Diego County. CAC funds will support culturally responsive workshops, artist fees, youth stipends, and scholarships to ensure equitable participation. The program will culminate in a two-day festival featuring embodied trust-building workshops, intergenerational dialogue labs, and a collective performance engaging 100+ youth and 700 community members. Youth will also participate in leadership development and earn a “Trust Badge” micro-credential. Funds will support evaluation and the creation of a Community Trust Blueprint, strengthening belonging, youth voice, and community resilience. | TCAA has established ongoing projects such as Day of the Dead festival, Ticitozaa Folklorico Festival, Mexihco Performing Arts Production, De Colores Youth Dance Production, Puppet Shows in Spanish for children, and other meaningful arts and cultural offerings. Two TCAA's most impactful programs are its Ticitozaa Folklorico Dance Festival and its De Colores Youth Development Program. TCAA's Ticitozaa Folklorico Dance Festival is a cultural production that features two performances at The California Center for the Arts, Escondido. The Festival is comprised of a youth show with performing youth groups (ages 8-15 years old) and a second show that features Adults (ages 16+). The productions are separated purposely so that the adults can appreciate and support the next generation and the youth can see the adults as role models in the performing arts. TCAA's "De Colores Youth Development Program" is teaching K-12 children about the importance of identity, both as individuals and as a community. With each generation, cultural knowledge and appreciation is harder for children to grasp and understand if not exposed to it during their formative years. In today's diverse Southern California community, the notion of identity is essential for understanding matters concerning the integration and socialization of children with Latinx roots. Annually, the program provides 50 Latinx youth with a stronger awareness of where they come from and who they are through the visual and performing arts. TCAA's "De Colores Youth Development Program" consists of five months of weekly youth cultural education and training including visual and performing arts classes culminating in a community production performed by the youth participants. This program equips underserved Latinx children with the training and confidence to perform a visual and performing arts event that tells the history of Mexico on stage through music and dance while adding the magical component of the theater. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Positive Action Community Theatre (PACT) | 2061 VILLAGE PARK WAY APT 227 , Encinitas, CA 92024 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 815-8512 | District 49 | District 77 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, POSITIVE ACTION COMMUNITY THEATRE will provide improvisational theatre workshops, performance opportunities, employment, and training to teens and young adults with autism. We will teach them social and communication skills that will help them reach their goals, and give them a much-needed community. They will also master an art, which will be their lifelong ally, and open many doors for them. We will videotape our workshops and create episodes of the “Joy of Improv TV Series”, which we will provide to organizations that serve teens and young adults with disabilities in the blue areas of the California Healthy Places Index. We will use CAC funds to assist in funding the salaries of our project director, teachers, and artists, and for liability insurance, workshop room rental, telephone, and internet costs. | “Improv to a Musical” - Fall16-session program: the group creates and performs a musical they develop from improv. Wil Fisher directs the musical, with troupe members assisting. The group weaves their improvs together into the plot of the musical, which they rehearse and then perform for our community. They learn cooperation, creative expression, and gain confidence through the process. “Joy of Improv” - Winter/Spring 16-session workshop series: We utilize improv theatre to teach social and communication skills, and have fun! Wil Fisher uses his masters in applied theatre to effectively engage the group. They begin in a circle, sharing about their lives since the last workshop. Then, they enjoy improvs like the “gift game” where they hand each other ‘gifts’, and the recipient describes the gift, based on how the gift-giver delivered the gift. This promotes creative thinking and flexibility, and gets them relating to each other. After that they participate in more involved improv skits where they perform for each other (See “New Choice” video clip for another example). “Joy of Improv” - Summer 6-session workshop series: led by 3 young adults with autism. They use the same curricula as is used in the winter/spring program led by Wil Fisher, and master their teaching skills while being the best possible role models for their students. We will record our workshops, edit them into episodes of the “Joy of Improv TV Series”, and make them available to new teens and young adults with disabilities living in the blue areas of the California Healthy Places Index. We will provide weekly virtual “Joy of Improv” workshops. In addition to modified curriculum from our in-person workshops, the group reads in character from popular scripts, like ‘Star Wars’. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $6,000.00 | 3RD I South Asian Independent Film | 992 VALENCIA ST , SAN FRANCISCO, CA 94110-2322 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 573-7577 | 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, 3RD I SOUTH ASIAN INDEPENDENT FILM will sustain its core programs, staff, and operations from October 2026 to September 2027. The funding will allow us to produce our 24th annual San Francisco International South Asian Film Festival October 9–11, 2026 and year-round programs serving over 5,000 Bay Area residents. 3rd i is committed to promoting diverse images of South Asians by showcasing independent films from India, Pakistan, Bangladesh, Sri Lanka, Nepal, and the global South Asian Diaspora. CAC funds will partially underwrite the fees of participating California artists, a part-time website developer, and essential Festival production costs. This support ensures we can continue to provide people of South Asian descent access to artistically excellent films and events that reflect their lives and experiences. | In addition to the annually presented San Francisco International South Asian Film Festival, 3rd i conducts year-round programs. These include: • On-going screenings, performances, focus on Women Behind the Lens, Queer Eye and filmmaker workshops • Co-presentations with other Bay Area cultural organizations and film festivals, and • Educational programs (3rd i’s Speaker Series) on various issues related to South Asian cinema. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | DNACA | 224 F St. , CRESCENT CITY, CA 95531 | Del Norte | Upstate | (707) 464-1336 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | In our cohesive Del Norte County community, CAC grant funds will primarily support the salary of our Executive Director and administrative assistance. These essential roles handle the extensive work required to deliver high-quality community engagement activities, plan exhibitions, collaborate with artists, and promote events. With California Arts Council support, the Del Norte Association for Cultural Awareness (DNACA) will continue offering our Performance Series, Art in Public Places, Poetry Out Loud, and Arts in Education programs. For 45 years, DNACA has been a vital arts cornerstone in this low-income, underserved region with limited cultural access. Funding will sustain staff and programs that serve Indigenous, Hmong, Hispanic, elderly, and at-risk youth populations, ensuring continued arts opportunities where they are most needed. | 1. Performance Series, with engagement activities and Courtesy Seats. These are live performances from national and international performers in a variety of forms, such as dance, music, storytelling etc. Performers often hold an engagement activity (class or workshop) with local students or community members in their area of expertise. Courtesy Seats are tickets that are provided by local businesses via donation, and offered to foster youth, shelter residents, and other "at risk" community members; 2. Arts in Education - arts workshops for k-12th grades in music, storytelling, fiber arts, visual arts, poetry, etc. provided by local teaching artists, and free tickets for students to our Performance Series concerts; 3. Art in Public Places, with agreements with Del Norte County Courthouse and our regional airport (annual Juried Art Exhibition, rotating art exhibits from local artists, and annual Veterans Art Show); 4. Offering financial support, performance and/or exhibit platforms for BIPOC and underrepresented artists. 5. Poetry Out Loud - poetry memorization and recitation program for High School students, including providing teaching artists to coach students in the classroom, culminating in a countywide poetry contest and advancment to the state championship; 6. Arts Calendars and Event Listings in local newspapers, on local radio stations, and on social media (networking with local arts organizations and galleries to promote arts-related events to the public); 7. Technical support and advice for local artists and arts organizations; 8. Community involvement (including Chamber of Commerce, the Nonprofit Alliance, and community projects such as Partnership for the Performing Arts a grassroots effort to build a performing arts center in collaboration with the Del Norte Unified School District). |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | FUSION PERFORMING DANCE ACADEMY | 1260 Goodrich Blvd, Commerce, CA 90022 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90032-3643 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 386-4315 | 34 | 54 | 32 | With support from the California Arts Council, Fusion Performing Dance Academy, through its project, Dance 2 Make A Difference, will offer free and/or affordable dance classes, performance opportunities, and professional development for youth between the ages of 7-18 and LGBTQ+ adults from the East LA area. This program will encourage students to take ownership of arts programming that is truly representative of their community. Funding will proudly support emerging choreographers and dance companies by offering affordable space to rehearse, collaborate, and bring new ideas to life. | Currently, Fusion offers classes that focus on Ballet, Jazz, Modern, Flamenco, Hip-Hop, and Latin Social Dance technique and choreography. There are at least two classes offered per day and all classes are of low cost to all participants. Executive/Artistic Director Albertossy Espinoza, founded Fusion because he saw the lack of affordable, language accessible, and centrally located dance spaces for communities of color and low income in East Los Angeles. Fusion began as a dream and a vision and with hard work and community participation has grown into an organization that supports dance education for youth of color from throughout the East Los Angeles area. Additionally, students have access to performance opportunities around Los Angeles county. Fusion students have performed in various community settings, cultural festivals, theatres, and in our very own space. Two times a year, Fusion hosts shows for students where they have the opportunity to showcase new work. These shows are open to the community and families of students and a celebration of the incredible community of East Los Angeles. The opportunity to perform builds confidence and gives students insight into the professional experience needed to be a dancer. Performance opportunities allow Fusion students to connect with their communities in meaningful ways. Fusion’s programming takes into account that the East LA community has been affected by a history of racism and oppression. Fusion strives to create programming that is affordable and that provides a healing and empowering space for aspiring young dancers of color. Staff create long lasting and nurturing relationships with students that increase the support and mentorship they have within their lives. When students walk through the doors of Fusion they feel accepted, supported, and seen. Fusion is a home away from home for many. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | MORONGO BASIN CULTURAL ARTS COUNCIL, Inc. | P.O Box 643 , JOSHUA TREE, CA 92252-0643 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (310) 877-7933 | California's 8th congressional district | District 47 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Morongo Basin Cultural Arts Council (MBCAC) will strengthen organizational capacity by stabilizing two essential leadership roles—Art Tours Director and Communications/Marketing Director—critical to sustaining the Hwy 62 Open Studio Art Tours (OSAT) as a key piece of cultural and economic infrastructure in the region, now celebrating its 25th year and the largest open studio event in Southern California. These roles have been volunteer-or stipend-supported for two decades and are vital to maintaining program quality and equitable participation. Serving a geographically vast, rural region historically under-resourced in arts funding, the MBCAC expands income-generating opportunities for over 200 artists while connecting more than 20,000 residents and visitors to free, culturally diverse programs. Funding will deepen support for first-time and historically-excluded artists by strengthening outreach and accessibility measures. | The Hwy 62 Open Studio Art Tours (OSAT): since 2001, OSAT is a one-of-a-kind experience for residents and visitors to create a customized self-guided tour of over one hundred artist studios in the Morongo Basin, featuring a total of 225 local artists. The Art Tour is a free to attend annual event spanning three weekends in October, which builds community between artists and residents, and generates over $500,000 in combined sales for local artists. To date, it is the largest open studio event in Southern California and is a huge economic driver for the rural region of the Morongo Basin. The program is organized and directed by a combination of paid and volunteer support, all being local to the area served. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $75,000.00 | Humboldt Arts Council | 636 F Street 636 F Street, Eureka, CA 95501 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 442-0278 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Humboldt Arts Council will continue to serve as the designated State-Local Partner for Humboldt County, providing the essential infrastructure, advocacy, and programming necessary to sustain the region’s creative ecosystem. If awarded, California Arts Council funds will be utilized to provide a professional hub for the visual, performing, and literary arts, ensuring the organization remains a central, accessible resource for the North Coast. By investing in the HAC’s core operations and professional staff, these funds will allow the HAC to continue its vital role as a catalyst for cultural equity and a primary driver of the local creative economy. | A private, nonprofit arts agency, the Humboldt Arts Council was formed in 1966 to serve in a rural county with a vibrant arts community. HAC incorporated as a private, California 501©3 in 1971, became the state/local partner of the California Arts Council in 1987, and became owners and operators of the Morris Graves Museum of Art in 2000. HAC is also the owner of the Romano Gabriel Sculpture Garden in Eureka, acquired in 2012. As a lead participant in community arts planning for over five decades, HAC has contributed significantly to the current level of maturity and vitality of Humboldt arts and culture. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | YoloArts | 508 Gibson Road , WOODLAND, CA 95776-8250 | Yolo | Capital | (530) 309-6464 | California's 4th District | District 4 | District 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, YOLO COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL INC will provide services to local arts organizations, individual artists, and the community; while continuing to prioritize historically under-resourced communities with arts engagement and support; administer the Poetry Out Loud competition county-wide; and support grant opportunities for artists and arts organizations in Yolo County. We will accomplish these larger goals through direct programming including two free art galleries, arts education programming and resources for artists. We stand ready to assist and support the arts community throughout Yolo County. | Our support and dedication to the arts in Yolo County has its foundation in projects reflecting the cultural make-up of the county as we work to connect artists, young people, students, art supporters, the community at large, and political and business stakeholders to our developing arts culture. YoloArts promotes access to arts through our arts education programs in public schools around Yolo County, by operating two public art gallery, Gallery 625 and The Barn Gallery, sponsoring arts events and celebrations, working with local jurisdictions on community engagement and economic development through the arts, and providing professional development activities and opportunities for artists and the county-wide art community. The Art & Ag Project remains a signature creative placemaking effort for us as it connects artists with Yolo County farms, and results in an arts showcase at our annual Art Farm Gala. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | Los Angeles Contemporary Archive (LACA) | 709 N Hill Street , Los Angeles, CA 90065 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (805) 479-2939 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Contemporary Archive (LACA) will fund two archivist positions to catalogue collections from a range of Los Angeles–based arts organizations and cultural workers. These collections include materials from the Feminist Center for Creative Work (FCCW), Museum Educators of Southern California (MESC), Stripper Strike organizing efforts, curator Irene Georgia Tsatsos, and gallerist Irit Krieger. Through this work, LACA will make these archives accessible via exhibitions, educational workshops, onsite research, and through our online database. In addition to processing these focused archival collections, LACA will continue its ongoing programming that shares materials from artists to support a better understanding of Los Angeles’s underrepresented art-making communities. | It is LACA’s goal to counter processes that create hegemonic archives and narratives of art happening in LA. Instead, LACA provides a platform for multiple and complex histories to take shape and interact. LACA does this through its core program of maintaining and activating its collection. This includes inviting Archivists coming from various backgrounds to bring insight and speak to a variety of subjectivities, such as being undocumented, being an immigrant or immigrant adjacent, understanding cultural assimilation, and being a BIPOC in the arts. Activating the collection includes free public programming of performances, independent press book releases and pedagogical group workshops, screenings, solo and group exhibitions that focus on ideas around a shared cultural memory. The Archive houses and catalogues art-related objects, with a special focus on underexposed artistic modes of expression and ephemeral materials. The Archive includes studio and performance ephemera, artists’ writings, audio-visual recordings, digital media files and institutional archives of artist-run spaces. Our Library includes local and international limited edition artist books that are important to the Los Angeles and global contemporary art landscapes. A comprehensive online database of the Archive and Library is fully searchable through the LACA website. The archive currently has 6,0090 art publishers, 5,000 artist books, 2,700 artists in the directory, and over 15,000 processed items in its repository. LACA's has a significant amount of unprocessed items that can be accessed in person. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | MUSYCA Children's Choir | 21019 Gresham St #18 , Canoga Park, CA 91304 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 554-9937 | California's 32nd congressional district | District 40 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, MUSYCA will expand equitable access to high-quality choral music education and culturally responsive arts programming for youth ages 4–25 across Los Angeles County. Grant funds will support inclusive music instruction, performance opportunities, and creative workshops designed to empower youth from underserved communities. The program will engage participants in active music-making, foster cross-cultural understanding, and promote personal and artistic growth. | MUSYCA Children's Choir is a multiracial, multicultural choral music education organization, shaping the future by making a difference in the lives of children and youth through musical excellence. MUSYCA rehearsals, music classes, and performances take place during after-school hours and on weekends in a community setting. The children study and perform a varied musical repertoire, consisting of high-quality, age-appropriate choral music for young people, varied in style, time period, and character. MUSYCA In-School program serves children in partnership with local schools, providing instruction in choral singing, musicianship, and recorders. The choir provides many performance and recording opportunities for the students throughout each year and participates in outreach and collaborations with community organizations, performing arts groups, composers, and artists. MUSYCA's student-led outreach initiative, Nurturing Association of Young Artists (NAYA) provides senior citizens in nursing homes with intergenerational activities and performances. MUSYCA serves children and youth ages 3-21 in Los Angeles County and neighboring communities. Most of the students come from financially disadvantaged families and attend Title 1 public schools. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Grand Vision Foundation | 434 W. 6th Street , San Pedro, CA 90731 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 833-4813 | California's 44th congressional district | District 65 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, GRAND VISION FOUNDATION will sustain its Roots of Music Program (RoMP), which empowers students with foundational music learning and cultural understanding through live music concerts with professional, community-based artists, in-school lessons, and student recital performances. RoMP is part of Grand Vision’s Meet the Music (MTM) education program, which provides standards-based, culturally-relevant weekly music instruction in underserved elementary schools in the LA Harbor area and beyond, as well as arts integration training to classroom educators. | Grand Vision Foundation (GVF) is a music-focused community arts organization, founded in 1996 to save and restore the historic Warner Grand Theatre, a 1,500 seat art deco movie palace. Today, the City of LA owns and operates the Theatre, hosting 100+ events annually, GVF serves as Theatre’s Friends' Group, partnering with the City on ongoing events and promotion. Since 2008, we’ve seen our vision come to life at the Grand Annex Music Hall, our 150-seat cabaret style storefront theatre, where we present an ongoing concert series of innovative global, Latin, jazz, and American roots music artists. The Annex has become a hub for the L.A. Harbor and South Bay communities, where residents and visitors can find a range of high quality and accessible cultural experiences. In addition to the indoor stage, GVF regularly collaborates with other community organizations to co-produce free outdoor music and arts festivals. GVF engages the next generation through Meet the Music (MTM), a robust in-school youth education program, serving approximately 2,500 elementary school students annually with innovative musical skill building and engagement curricula. Founded in 2009, MTM provides equitable access to music education through sequential standards-based instruction and participatory live music experiences. MTM helps to close the arts education opportunity gap (compared to students in affluent districts) while deepening student capacity for creative learning. We serve under-resourced LA Unified School District schools with a focus on the LA Harbor area, providing innovative musical skill-building and engagement curricula. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | SACRAMENTO FINE ARTS CENTER | 5330 GIBBONS DR, STE B , CARMICHAEL, CA 95608-1671 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 971-3713 | California's 7th congressional district | District 6 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sacramento Fine Arts Center will be able to fully sustain its operations in 2026/ 2027 with enough personnel to continue meeting its community goals and expand programs in an effective and efficient manner. | The Sacramento Fine Art Center (Sac Arts), established in 1986, is a nonprofit organization located in Carmichael and is one of the largest community art centers in the unincorporated area of Sacramento County. With a membership of over nearly 400 artists, 50% percent in the over 60 age group, Sac Arts provides over 7000 square feet of exhibit, classroom, and studio space. Sac Arts provides exhibits, classes, workshops, art opportunities, and events as a major art facility serving Sacramento and surrounding counties. Sac Arts is home to a collaboration of art groups, including Northern California Arts (NCA), representing artists of all media and styles, and Watercolor Artists of Sacramento Horizons (WASH), supporting water media artists. Our members come from nearly every Sacramento county zip code as well as thirteen other California counties. The Galleries are open 32 hours per week, at no cost to visitors. Sac Arts is run by volunteers, with a very small staff, and is self-supporting through show and class revenue as well as several annual fundraising activities. Our programs include juried exhibitions, group exhibitions, and solo shows. The organization also offers a variety of classes and demonstrations. Sac Arts hosts 36 juried exhibits were held in the larger galleries with 26 separate artist-led courses and workshops presented for 215 sessions in the studio. Artist receptions are held on the second Saturday of every month with live music and food provided. Approximately 10,000 people visit Sac Arts annually. Monthly club meetings for (WASH) and (NCA) provide free art demonstrations by noted artists. Members are apprised of activities through a bimonthly newsletter and social media announcing shows, classes, and special projects. Sac Arts offers free quarterly lectures on business development for artists and low-cost bimonthly tech assistance for artists. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Palm Springs Gay Men's Chorus | PO BOX 4082 , PALM SPRINGS, CA 92263-4082 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (760) 219-2077 | California's 41st congressional district | District CA-41 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, CABALLEROS-THE GAY MENS CHORUS OF PALM SPRINGS will sustain vital operations during our FY 26/27 season as the 'Official Gay Men’s Chorus of Palm Springs.' Funds will provide essential general operating support, covering personnel costs for our Artistic Director, the addition of a part-time AD Assistant and more hours for our Administrator. As we outgrow our current facilities, these funds will offset rising rental costs and support our transition to a larger rehearsal space required for our 100+ members. Funding will stabilize production expenses, including professional musicians and escalating sheet music costs, for our residency at the restored Plaza Theatre. By securing these foundational needs, the Chorus continues its mission to entertain, inspire, and educate the diverse Coachella Valley community through musical excellence and meaningful civic outreach. | The Chorus presents high-quality choral music performances, featuring diverse repertoire from various cultures and genres, including music by BIPOC, women and LGBTQ+ composers/arrangers, the goal of building bridges of understanding through the universal language of music.The Chorus uses its collective voice to sing for social change, and supports a variety of community organizations and causes in their work to make the Coachella Valley a better place for all. Part of that work includes supporting local Gay-Straight Alliance Clubs in all of the local school districts. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $8,000.00 | JUNTOS COLLECTIVE INC | 1220 STANNAGE AVE , BERKELEY, CA 94706-2224 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (315) 534-4261 | With support from the California Arts Council, JUNTOS Collective will sustain and grow our history of dance outreach for underserved communities, with a specific focus on Latine/x Bay Area dance artists. Founded in Berkeley in 2008, JUNTOS Collective bridges art, outreach, and intercultural exchange across the U.S. and abroad, with the mission of cultivating international community through shared dance experiences. This year we will reengage our Bay Area community through JUNTOSxChange - a program that brings free and inclusive movement workshops and performances to underserved communities, and provides free professional development and mentorship for emerging dance artists of underrepresented backgrounds. This initiative will advance JUNTOS’ programmatic equity and accessibility, strengthen its global community, and uplift the Bay Area dance landscape. CAC grant funds would critically support the salaries of U.S-based staff leading these programs. | JUNTOS aims to provide dance exposure primarily to Latinx underserved communities, local and international, such as women’s safe homes, migrant and immigrant centers, foster homes, retirement centers, hospitals, and youth programs. Through movement workshops, we hope participants discover new creative expressions that invite and encourage confidence, self-esteem, and self-expression. We seek to foster an international community by developing and sustaining ongoing relations, and by building a network of people from different backgrounds who will become creative leaders. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $3,200.00 | PASADENA PRO MUSICA | 301 N ORANGE GROVE BLVD , PASADENA, CA 91103-3540 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 533-3483 | District 30 | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council PASADENA PRO MUSICA will create an uplifting concert series for the communities of the San Gabriel Valley and the Los Angeles area. The four-concert series will include classical masterworks with orchestral accompaniment, exciting contemporary compositions by current composers and cultural presentations honoring the diversity of our local communities. Outstanding vocal soloists and instrumentalists from our area will be hired to accompany the chorus. The concert series will provide entertainment and enrichment for concert-goers and will offer performance opportunities and training in musicianship for members of the chorus. Concerts will be offered at a minimal cost at an easily accessible venue with free parking. All audience members will be invited to mingle with performers at a free wine and hors d'oeuvres reception following each program. | Throughout its six-decade history, Pasadena Pro Musica has performed a four-concert season each year for the Los Angeles community, featuring a wide range of repertoire, from classical masterworks with orchestra, to contemporary and multi-cultural music selections. PPM presents programs in which concert-goers not only see themselves reflected in the music presented, but can also learn about other cultural traditions. In addition to selecting a diverse array of choral compositions, Artistic Director, Scott Lehmkuhl, takes care to provide interesting commentary and program notes for each concert to educate and enrich the attendees. His connections in the music community help to provide top quality guest artists to share with Pasadena Pro Musica’s audiences. Where possible, PPM takes the music out of the concert hall and into the community, at collaborative concerts, festivals, and other public events. Many seniors are regular participants in Pasadena Pro Musica’s concerts, so to help more older adults have the opportunity to hear choral music, the singers have recently presented a free concert at the Pasadena Senior Center. While there are many musical opportunities in the Los Angeles area, ticket prices can be out of reach for many concert goers. Pasadena Pro Musica has kept our ticket prices reasonable, at $5 for students, $25 for general admission and free for children under 12, even though costs to present each concert run between $14,000 and $15,000. Parking at Pasadena Pro Musica’s venue is free. Recent PPM concerts have featured a salute to South American music, “Encantador,” and “Considering Matthew Shepard,” an oratorio by composer Craig Hella Johnson, which poignantly remembers the tragic murder of Matthew Shepard, a member of the LGBTQ community. Other recent performances include "The Light of Hope Returning" by Los Angeles composer, Shawn Kirchner, and "A Celebration of Gospel Music." |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $10,500.00 | Guitars and Ukes in the Classroom | 1286 University Ave. #389, SAN DIEGO, CA 92103-3312 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 840-1010 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Guitars in the Classroom will provide weekly adaptive music instruction for medically isolated, physically fragile, and disabled students learning in hospitals or at home. Working with each student’s Home Hospital teacher, and their primary caregiver, GITC teaching artists will use sensory-friendly techniques, adaptive tools, music technology, accessible instruments, and hand-over-hand supports as needed to empower team members to reduce the student’s stress, relieve discomfort, and to motivate and improve learning through music. Participants will build music skills through activities tailored to students’ physical, educational, and behavioral goals. Ten week residencies include ongoing assessment and outcome reporting. The program’s long-term goal is to empower teachers, students, and caregivers to incorporate music as a shared language to support daily routines, learning, and play through joyful musical connection and expression. | GITC provides professional development training and classroom capacity-building residencies for educators, in person and online. Participants receive instruction in ukulele, guitar, singing, and music integration. Our services include: • Music Leadership for Early Childhood Education. GITC trains daycare providers, caregivers, and early childhood educators in rhythm, movement, chanting, singing, songleading, percussion, ukulele, and music activities that build self-regulation, speech and language, numeracy, life skills, and wellness. • GITC Capacity-Building Co-Teaching Artist Residencies support GITC-trained teachers Prek-8 though our “I Do, We Do, You Do” model to become competent, capable, and creative songleaders and songwriting facilitators for engaged learning across the curriculum. • Adaptive Music Training for Music Educators addresses bias about differences, imparts asset-based thinking, and teachers learn to utilize IEP and 504 recommendations, build low-floor/high ceiling lessons, create sensory-friendly learning environments with optimal seating, lighting, and mobility pathways, adopt multi-modal instruction for neurodivergent and diverse learners, utilize physical supports, tools, tech solutions, and individualize musical parts, adapt instruments, and include peer-to-peer learning strategies. • Adaptive Music Training for Special Educators helps classroom teachers learn to lead and strategically integrate music throughout the school day to increase student focus, engagement, wellness. and physical, cognitive, social-emotional, behavioral, and academic learning through the power of hands-on music, songs, adaptive tech, and collaborative songwriting. • Adaptive Music Residencies for Home Hospital (HH) Teacher and Students GITC teaching artists lead and impart musical learning to homebound and hospitalized children, while training their caregivers and teachers to make and lead individualized and group music to enhance wellness, engagement, and learning. • GITC Music Enrichment Programs for students (a.k.a. Strummers Clubs) provide uplifting, culturally inclusive, direct music instruction in foundational music based on principals of Orff Schulwerk and our own SmartStart Ukulele, and SmartStart Guitar methods. Our approach cultivates student voices, creativity, musicality, singing, playing, songwriting, collaboration, and performance skills. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $25,000.00 | Electric Moon Foundation | 14925 Sherman Way, Unit 206 , Los Angeles, CA 91405 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (517) 881-0340 | 29th Congressional District | District 46 | District 20 | With support from CAC, ELECTRIC MOON FOUNDATION will implement four editions of its 12-week music program serving approximately 25 youths experiencing homelessness. Classes are held at temporary housing facilities in Los Angeles, historically Homelight Family Living or Alexandria House. Two professional music instructors provide four hours of instruction per week, delivering structured, hands-on learning in foundational music skills, songwriting, collaboration, and performance. Based on their interests, students learn guitar, drums, piano, ukulele, bass, and more. Over 90% of students are provided with an instrument which they get to keep. (Often courtesy of Guitar Center and Gibson Gives.) Participants develop creative expression, teamwork skills, discipline, and confidence. The programs culminate in public performances for peers and family members, giving students the opportunity to showcase their growth and experience the accomplishment of performing live. | Our Music & Arts Program serves youth ages 4–18 living in transitional housing in Los Angeles and Inglewood. All are experiencing homelessness and housing instability. Many of these kids have endured trauma, abuse, and chronic stress, placing them at higher risk for academic disruption, social isolation, and long-term disengagement from school and community. Research demonstrates that structured arts participation increases resilience, self-esteem, emotional regulation, and peer connection among marginalized youth. Yet for young people experiencing homelessness, access to consistent, high-quality arts education is often out of reach due to cost, transportation, and instability. EMF addresses this gap by bringing free, structured music education directly into partner housing facilities—removing barriers and meeting youth where they are. Through songwriting, instrumental instruction, creative collaboration, and live performance, participants build discipline, confidence, and healthy outlets for self-expression. More than learning to play an instrument, students learn that their voices matter—and that they are capable of creating something powerful in the middle of uncertainty. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Arts and Culture El Dorado | 525 Main Street , Placerville, CA 95667-2400 | El Dorado | Capital | (530) 295-3496 | California's 4th congressional district | District 5 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts and Culture El Dorado will continue to serve as the principal entity providing arts services and access to arts experiences to rural El Dorado County, including programs for veterans, young people, artists and arts organizations, and the general public. We will administer the Arts Incubator, vitally important to 17 emerging cultural groups; offer programs like Veterans Voices Writing Workshop and Poet Laureate/Laureate Trail; keep Switchboard Gallery open as an exhibition and gathering space; assist with countywide projects such as public art and strategic planning with the County Office of Education; serve as the local Arts Lead for ArtsNow/Create California as well as for the California County Superintendents Arts Initiative; continue the renovation of historic buildings; and promote, connect, and empower culture and the arts throughout the region. | Switchboard Gallery Exhibition Series El Dorado County Lead for ArtsNow/Create California El Dorado County Lead for California County Superintendents Arts Initiative Veterans Voices Writing Workshop Historic Building Renovation Project Arts Incubator Poet Laureate and Laureate Trail Poetry Out Loud Young Artist Awards Other targeted programs and services as identified to serve arts and culture in El Dorado County |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Inyo Council for the Arts | 150 Willow Street , Bishop, CA 93514 | Inyo | Central Valley | (760) 873-8014 | California's 3rd congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, IINYO COUNCIL FOR THE ARTS (ICA) will continue providing accessible, community-centered arts programming in one of California’s most rural and geographically isolated regions. ICA serves Inyo County through arts education programs for local students, the 34th annual Millpond Music Festival, gallery/artist market exhibitions showcasing regional artists, workshops, and ongoing outreach through print, social media, and a monthly e-newsletter reaching more than 1,500 subscribers. Operating with a staff of only three (one full-time employee), ICA prioritizes free and low-cost programming to ensure equitable access to the arts for underserved rural communities. California Arts Council funding is essential to sustaining cultural opportunities for artists, students, families, and visitors throughout the region. Without continued support, access to free/affordable arts programming and cultural experiences in Inyo County would be significantly reduced. | Gallery Concerts Email Newsletter School Arts For All days (SAFAs) Art Docent Program (School Program) Brummitt-Taylor Classical Music Listening Program (School Program) Poetry Out Loud (School Program) School Music Assemblies (School Program) After School Art Classes (School Program) Millpond Music Festival Memorial Day and Labor Day Arts and Crafts Festivals Community Art Days Artist support and education |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Arms Wide Open | 237 East Main Street , El Cajon, CA 92020 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 579-6197 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 71 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arms Wide Open will pay expenses that include rent, instructors’ salaries, and production expenses, including productions by Rising Stars (exclusively for people with disabilities) and the Inspire program that offers individuals who are especially talented more challenging performance experiences. While the majority of AWO's programs are designed solely for people with disabilities, INSPIRE is designed for people both with/without disabilities, giving each participant the chance to learn from others who share the same love of performance and who can offer valuable life lessons. Grant funding will also support classes at AWO's first satellite in North San Diego County and its second satellite in City Heights (opening Spring 2026), expanding its geographic reach by making it possible for people from other parts of the region to participate! | Arms Wide Open provides a wide range of classes (e.g. Hip-Hop; Jazz; Health & Fitness; Tap; Voice; Percussion) designed specifically for individuals with disabilities to provide them opportunities for engagement in activities that improve their health and can lead to a positive and busy social life. AWO serves 200+ individuals with autism, Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, brittle bone disease, and other developmental delays and physical challenges. They are from many cultural/socio-economic backgrounds and live in a variety of settings (e.g. group/foster homes, with families). They come to East County from throughout San Diego, and now North County residents can take classes at AWO’s new site at the California Center for the Arts. A team of master teaching professional artist/choreographer, musician/vocal coach director/drama instructors teach classes six days a week at the main studio and one day a week at the new North County site.. For many years, a highlight of AWO's programming was its annual theatrical productions at the Lyceum Theatre. Due to Covid-19, performances at a professional theatre could not take place, but AWO transformed a dance studio into a theatre seating 80 people. Over the past several years, AWO presented four musicals – most recently, Wizard of Oz (Fall 2023). AWO now offers two large scale production programs: Rising Stars serves people with special needs or disabilities by producing and creating annual musicals. Most productions feature a cast of 80+ actors. Because these productions are so popular there are several casts so that everyone who is interested can participate. Unlike Rising Stars, INSPIRE is designed for people with and without disabilities, giving each participant the chance to learn from others who share the same love of performance and who can offer valuable life lessons. In May 2024 AWO returned to a large stage with performances of Newsies: The Musical. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | ConAmor Building Bridges | PO BOX 1573 , TWAIN HARTE, CA 95383-1573 | Tuolumne | Central Valley | (209) 768-3615 | District 5 | District 8 | District 4 | With a $20,000 investment, ConAmor Building Bridges will scale core services to deepen impact across Tuolumne County, promoting an inclusive culture and contributing to the local economy: ~7K Cultural Festival: Support the Cinco de Mayo: An American Tradition festival. Securing bilingual performers, storytellers, ensuring accessibility for 3,000+ attendees. ~5K Public Humanities: Launch a second iteration of historical series, deepening strategic partnership with Columbia College, Historical Society, and California State Historic Parks. Includes archival research, co-curation of physical and digital exhibits that restore the narratives of underrepresented communities heritage. ~4K Community Dialogues: Host quarterly Building Bridges gatherings, with inclusive, dialogue-driven settings of community interest. ~4K Digital Storytelling: Establish a strategic partnership with community radio to produce and broadcast bilingual cultural content, to ensure that our collective history is heard and celebrated by all, regardless of location. | Our programs aim to transform community relationships by honoring multicultural art and history, amplifying underrepresented voices, and fostering meaningful dialogue across differences. One of the placemaking strategies chosen by ConAmor is the use of a multicultural festival framework. Festivals create ongoing opportunities for dialogue and negotiation within communities, as individuals and groups explore meaningful concepts of identity, belonging and dynamics of exclusion. Celebrations like these offer a sense of joy, and shared pride while opening space to embrace art, collective histories, and a diversity of cultural expressions that challenge discriminatory values. Multicultural festivals also provide powerful opportunities to educate younger generations about artistic and cultural traditions, beliefs, and practices They help strengthen protective factors -connection, cultural pride, intergenerational learning, and community cohesion- that benefit everyone in our region. Our approach: Civic Engagement: Programs that elevate marginalized voices and expand participation in local decision making. Cultural Celebrations: Events that honor immigrant contributions and strengthen community pride. Educational Initiatives: Articles, publications, and public facing materials that bring overlooked art and history into mainstream. Bridge Building Dialogues: Spaces that invite exchange and reflection, moving us toward stronger community connection. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Hero Theatre | PO BOX 26275 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90026-0275 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 206-6415 | 30 | 52 | 26 | With support from California Arts Council, HERO Theatre will continue to develop and produce Elisa Bocanegra's NUESTRO PLANETA: PUERTO RICO, a multimedia environmental theatre work featuring large-scale ocean puppetry, projection design, and community storytelling. Created with marine scientists and conservation groups, the performance explores coral reef ecosystems, hurricane resilience, and relationships between coastal communities and the reefs that protect them. This commission is part of NUESTRO PLANETA, our multimedia commissioning, development, and theatre and film production initiative that explores how systemic racism and climate change are interconnected, bringing vital climate crisis messages to vulnerable BIMPOC communities, particularly L.A. residents from the Latine diaspora, to share self-care tools and lessen human environmental impact. During the grant period, we’ll also continue our deep community outreach and engagement with partner community organizations in L.A. | HERO’s goal is to create programming that has a lasting impact on audiences and helps shape a better society. We produce elaborately staged readings, full productions of plays, and special events like FESTIVAL IRENE: a 2-week festival honoring the life and legacy of Cuban playwright Maria Irene Fornés. We commission bold, innovative new work. In 2019, HERO launched OUR AMERICA new play commissioning series, in which BIPOC playwrights explore real stories of cities in America undergoing vast socio-economic change. Under this, HERO produced Amina Henry’s TROY, inspired by THE TROJAN WOMEN and based on true stories of unhoused women in L.A. HERO partnered with local shelters to invite more than 300 unhoused women to attend and provided free tickets, round-trip transportation, concessions, and a post-show talkback with artists. HERO’s 2023 production of Henry’s NOTHING, NOTHING continues these partnerships and responds to audience desire to celebrate Black women and joy. In 2021, HERO launched NUESTRO PLANETA (NP), a multimedia new works initiative rooted in research around ecological concerns in Latine countries and the U.S. and how Latine American families are directly affected. In September 2021, HERO presented an elaborately staged reading of FLEX by Candrice Jones about a Black high school girls’ basketball team that explores such themes as teen pregnancy and abortion. In 2022, we produced Velina Hasu Houston’s TEA and also RISE: An Immersive Exploration of Gun Violence in Schools which received critical acclaim. HERO’s education programming serves elementary through high school students in the L.A. school district, specifically through Inner-City Arts and solo writing and performance classes at Homeboy Industries for formerly incarcerated youth. HERO’s Dukakis Mentorship Program, provides early career artists and administrators one-on-one mentorship; 50+ artists served. HERO frequently invites communities represented in the work on our stages to attend our programming for no cost. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | ART LEAGUE OF LINCOLN | 580 Sixth ST , LINCOLN, CA 95648-1823 | Placer | Upstate | (916) 209-3499 | U.S. House of Representatives District 4 | State Assembly (District 6) | State Senate (District 1) | With support from the California Arts Council, ART LEAGUE OF LINCOLN will be able to cover its fixed and variable operating expenses as we grow our capacity to meet the needs of the community. Covered operating expenses will include rent, utilities, internet expenses, two part time staff members, building maintenance, business insurance (Property, Officers, General Liability), and the development and implementation of a strategic marketing plan to increase awareness of our programs and services. These funds will also help us promote our art education program expansion into local schools and charter schools, attract visitors, and more fully meet the economic needs of our artists and patrons. | Vision: Thrive as a vital cultural center for the Greater Lincoln Area by fostering educational and innovative events in visual arts, music, and poetry through local partnerships. These partnerships include alliances with the City of Lincoln, Chamber of Commerce, Western Placer School District, Downtown Lincoln Association, other non-profit groups and various constituencies within the community. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Hero Theatre | PO BOX 26275 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90026-0275 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 206-6415 | 30 | 52 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, HERO Theatre will use grant funds for staff salaries, artist fees, rent for office and storage space, overhead, and programming costs to support our commissioning, development, and production work. | HERO’s goal is to create programming that has a lasting impact on audiences and helps shape a better society. We produce elaborately staged readings, full productions of plays, and special events like FESTIVAL IRENE: a 2-week festival honoring the life and legacy of Cuban playwright Maria Irene Fornés. We commission bold, innovative new work. In 2019, HERO launched OUR AMERICA new play commissioning series, in which BIPOC playwrights explore real stories of cities in America undergoing vast socio-economic change. Under this, HERO produced Amina Henry’s TROY, inspired by THE TROJAN WOMEN and based on true stories of unhoused women in L.A. HERO partnered with local shelters to invite more than 300 unhoused women to attend and provided free tickets, round-trip transportation, concessions, and a post-show talkback with artists. HERO’s 2023 production of Henry’s NOTHING, NOTHING continues these partnerships and responds to audience desire to celebrate Black women and joy. In 2021, HERO launched NUESTRO PLANETA (NP), a multimedia new works initiative rooted in research around ecological concerns in Latine countries and the U.S. and how Latine American families are directly affected. In September 2021, HERO presented an elaborately staged reading of FLEX by Candrice Jones about a Black high school girls’ basketball team that explores such themes as teen pregnancy and abortion. In 2022, we produced Velina Hasu Houston’s TEA and also RISE: An Immersive Exploration of Gun Violence in Schools which received critical acclaim. HERO’s education programming serves elementary through high school students in the L.A. school district, specifically through Inner-City Arts and solo writing and performance classes at Homeboy Industries for formerly incarcerated youth. HERO’s Dukakis Mentorship Program, provides early career artists and administrators one-on-one mentorship; 50+ artists served. HERO frequently invites communities represented in the work on our stages to attend our programming for no cost. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $72,750.00 | ARTS AND CULTURE ALPINE COUNTY | 760 Hot Springs Rd #31, Markleeville, CA 96120 | Alpine | Central Valley | (619) 993-2606 | District 5 | District 1 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts and Culture Alpine County (ACAC) will offer arts and culture opportunities to the residents and visitors of Alpine County. Library Arts Shows featuring local area artists, workshops and classes taught by local area artists, Alpine County school student events, and an arts and culture walk at Hot Springs State Park are planned. Upcoming ACAC sponsored Diamond Valley School events include a poster contest and a Haiku-writing unit for grades 7 & 8. At least one local crafts fair will be offered this coming year. In addition, ACAC needs technical, graphic, and accounting services, as well as communication services for our planned office. CAC financial support will provide those, as well as insurance, rent and utilities. | Arts and Culture Alpine County (ACAC) offers art shows, crafts fairs, workshops and classes in music, painting, sketching, and other arts media for the citizens and visitors of Alpine County. ACAC also cooperates with Diamond Valley School to offer special arts programs to its students and with the Alpine County Historical Museum to present an art show focusing on artists of Alpine County's past decades. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | TURBINE ARTS COLLECTIVE INC | 11601 WILSHIRE BLVD STE 1960 , LOS ANGELES, CA 90025-1755 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 209-1625 | With California Arts Council support, TURBINE ARTS COLLECTIVE INC will advance our volunteer-run model to meet our creative community's growing needs. By doubling our free workshops, adding more low-cost offerings, expanding our performance calendar, and fostering new collaborators, this grant will ensure that our exploration of creative practice remains a stable, permanent resource for L.A. artists. In California, entertainment remains a vital part of our economy, and theater is at its very core. But the shuttering of countless small theaters since the pandemic has restricted access to this vital part of our California culture. By prioritizing foundational space costs, we can maintain our low-and-no-cost baseline for workshops and performances, while increasing our support to the performing artists and collaborators who bring our programming to life. | We provide low-cost workshops for those who want to develop a creative practice. In the past, these have included improvisational theatre, writing, storytelling, art/drawing, group singing, songwriting, puppetry, and developing a creative practice. We also present evenings of artists-in-performance including theatre, comedy, variety arts, music, storytelling, theatre, and dance. | |||
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Hanford Multicultural Theater Company | 119 1/2 North Douty Street , Hanford, CA 93230 | Kings | Central Valley | (559) 997-3838 | California Assembly district 33 | District 33 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Hanford Multicultural Theater Company will serve a diverse, rural community facing economic challenges that limit access to arts and culture. HMTC removes financial barriers and fosters inclusive, creative experiences to strengthen community bonds, support personal growth, and enhance quality of life. | Our organization plays a vital role in our community by inspiring participants to take risks, have fun, and discover how the arts can be both freeing and essential to overall wellbeing. Recognizing that our area lacked accessible artistic opportunities, we founded the Hanford Multicultural Theater Company on February 1, 2017, with the guiding principle: “Theater for all people.” From the beginning, we offered free acting classes and staged performances in unconventional spaces such as parks, malls, parking lots, a museum, a historical church, and courtyards—bringing theater directly to the community. Three years ago, we established a permanent home in a repurposed building, now known as Lil’ Brick Theater. Designed to reflect the intimacy of small theaters in major arts cities, this space provides a unique and welcoming environment that feels both professional and accessible. We have since expanded our programming to include improv, puppetry, Shakespeare, playwriting, and community events like Monologue Slams, Story Slams, Jam Labs, and open-mic nights. Our community faces significant economic challenges, with many residents living below the federal poverty line. These barriers often limit access to the arts, making our free classes and pay-what-you-can events essential. By removing financial obstacles, we create an inclusive space that fosters creativity, connection, and personal growth. We are deeply committed to equity and representation. Our programs serve individuals of all ages, cultures, and abilities, reflecting our region’s rich diversity. We also extend our outreach by teaching theater to youth at the Santa Rosa Rancheria. With most participants new to the stage, our work builds confidence, skills, and opportunity. Through volunteer-driven efforts, we continue to ensure that the arts remain accessible, transformative, and a natural part of life in our community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project | 5700 El Cajon Blvd , San Diego, CA 92115-3737 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 310-5330 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 79 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, TRANSCENDANCE YOUTH ARTS PROJECT will engage up to 70 youth from underserved communities in our CREATE Performance Group program from October 2026 – September 2027. In accordance with our ongoing, successful program model, students ages 9-19 years will experience a holistic and culturally affirming creative process with professional Teaching Artists through a robust Creative Youth Development program. The students and artists will co-create an original dance theatre production that will be presented at a culminating performance on a professional San Diego Stage in Spring 2027, and we will offer additional community outreach performances during Summer 2027. Through this programming we will address community-identified needs including youth mentorship, access to youth-tailored creative spaces, making art with an equity lens, and providing a platform to amplify youth voice and vision. | transcenDANCE programs provide youth development opportunities through a unique three-tiered program model: CONNECT, CREATE, CONTRIBUTE. transcenDANCE CONNECTS to youth and communities through in-school and out-of-school time dance classes, artist-in-residency programs, outreach performances, and summer camps. CREATE is the heart of the transcenDANCE programs. Youth explore dance and the performing arts through rigorous dance training and immersion in a social change and social emotional learning curriculum over 7-9 months, which culminates in an annual performance on a professional San Diego stage. transcenDANCE alumni CONTRIBUTE to transcenDANCE through performances, teaching and choreography assistantships and paid roles, and mentoring of incoming students. All students have access to mental health services, mentorship, and leadership development opportunties. Our students’ transformative experience develops their leadership skills, social and emotional resilience, and confidence to change the trajectories of their lives and positively impact the communities they live in. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project | 5700 El Cajon Blvd , San Diego, CA 92115-3737 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 310-5330 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 79 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, TRANSCENDANCE YOUTH ARTS PROJECT will fund general operational expenses including space costs (rent) for our studio site on El Cajon Boulevard in San Diego, and a portion of the salaries for our Managing Director, our Program Director, and other core staff. This key support for our organization will help us continue to sustain our dance-based Creative Youth Development work through which we serve youth from San Diego’s most marginalized and under-resourced communities. | transcenDANCE programs provide youth development opportunities through a unique three-tiered program model: CONNECT, CREATE, CONTRIBUTE. transcenDANCE CONNECTS to youth and communities through in-school and out-of-school time dance classes, artist-in-residency programs, outreach performances, and summer camps. CREATE is the heart of the transcenDANCE programs. Youth explore dance and the performing arts through rigorous dance training and immersion in a social change and social emotional learning curriculum over 7-9 months, which culminates in an annual performance on a professional San Diego stage. transcenDANCE alumni CONTRIBUTE to transcenDANCE through performances, teaching and choreography assistantships and paid roles, and mentoring of incoming students. All students have access to mental health services, mentorship, and leadership development opportunties. Our students’ transformative experience develops their leadership skills, social and emotional resilience, and confidence to change the trajectories of their lives and positively impact the communities they live in. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Artes Vocales | 457 South Marengo Avenue, Unit 16 , Pasadena, CA 91101 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 278-0818 | California Assembly district 28 | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTES VOCALES will sustain general operations, including compensation for artistic and administrative personnel; facility rentals; and community outreach. This funding will enable us to present innovative choral programming that reflects the diversity of our Los Angeles community audiences, and offer career-enhancing opportunities to emerging music professionals, including from communities historically marginalized and underrepresented in classical music. | Artes Vocales serves the diverse communities of greater Los Angeles as both audiences and participants, providing high-caliber, engaging vocal performances of varied musical repertoire; accessible opportunities for creative practice as an ensemble member; and, for emerging musical professionals, robust, supportive pathways for career advancement that help diversify the historically white, exclusive classical music world. Our work includes: - Multicultural choral programming that is virtuosic, wide-ranging, and reflects audience diversity. Performances range from major choral masterworks to works by contemporary local composers. Recent programs include “Network of Mutuality,” celebrating the power of music to connect across cultures (March 2026); “Sharing Light,” collaborating with Mostly Kosher ensemble to illuminate the human spirit through song (November 2025); "Reflections," featuring Faure's Requiem (May 2025); “Let’s Tango,” a choral/dance performance celebrating tango’s vibrant cultural roots and engaging artists/audiences from LA’s underserved Latinx communities (March 2025); and "Hollywood Sings!,” a collaboration with Angeles Chorale and Los Angeles Children’s Chorus (March 2024). - Collaboration with local musicians and composers, including Artes Vocales Festival Orchestra; Los Angeles Children’s Chorus; Angeles Chorale; Grammy-winning bandoneonist Hector Del Curto; female composer Maria Newman; organist Scott VanOrnum; renowned opera singers, including Eduardo Villa and Vladimir Chernov; and talented soloists from our choir and Mentorship Program. AV is committed to paying union rates, at minimum, for all artistic collaborators. - Offering local early career singing teachers a unique opportunity to act as paid mentors to the choir in our Professional Mentorship Program for Teachers of Singing, which provides a professional core to support our community ensemble. Our model of an all-levels, full-access choir, where brand-new singers can train alongside professionals, fills an important niche by removing barriers to access for beginner-level adult singers, and offers a venue for early-career musicians looking for performance opportunities, a professional foothold, and musical community. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | School of The Getdown | 1804 Russell St , Berkeley, CA 94703 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 658-2016 | 13th Congressional District of California | District 15 | District 9 | With support from California Arts Council, School of The Getdown, a small arts organization, will celebrate Black Music Month in June 2027 by presenting our sixth annual 'Black Music Month Festival: A Cultural Mosaic.' Presented free for the community, the program this festival will feature an intergenerational, cross-genre array of Black Oakland-based musical acts. The program is collaboratively developed with community members and addresses a community defined need to uplift under recognized Black artists and cultural traditions and foster an environment for intergenerational collaboration in the arts, centering Black Bay Area communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification. | School of The Getdown offers a weekly vocal workshop series; private lessons in singing, instrumental music, performance, and music history; an annual multidisciplinary youth arts summer camp; vocal and instrumental masterclasses with resident and visiting artists; and masterclasses and lecture performances in schools, prisons, and educational programs worldwide. We produce multicultural and intergenerational concert series, free community programming, commissioned artistic works, festivals, and lecture performances, and thematic programming celebrating Black history and Black culture, primarily in the San Francisco Bay Area. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $75,000.00 | Creative Sonoma | 141 Stony Circle Suite 110, Santa Rosa, CA 95401 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 565-6121 | District 4, District 2 | Districts 2, 4, 12 | Districts 2 and 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, Creative Sonoma will serve Sonoma County’s arts economy, creative community, residents, and visitors through grants, professional development, public art, arts education initiatives, and cross-sector partnerships that strengthen the Arts & Culture Sector. As the County’s designated local arts agency, Creative Sonoma connects artists, organizations, schools, and businesses through programs that support cultural vitality, economic development, and equitable access to arts participation across Sonoma County. | Creative Sonoma provides services in six key areas: 1. Grants to artists and culture workers as well as nonprofit organizations and creative enterprises 2. Professional Development (workshops, networking, online resources) 3. Communications and Marketing (online creative profiles, marketplace, promotional activities) 4. Arts Education 5. Public Art 6. Special Initiatives (cross-sector partnerships, business/arts facilitation, etc.) |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Teatro Espejo | 2282 West La Loma Drive , Rancho Cordova, CA 95670 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 212-9315 | California Assembly district 7 | District 7 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, Teatro Espejo will advance its mission of empowering Chicano/Latinx stories that center equity, dignity, and health within our communidad. Funds will directly support mainstage programming that fairly compensates artists and creative workers for Teatro’s upcoming season and increase accessibility services. | Teatro Espejo is a cultural cornerstone in Sacramento, producing work that is of, by, and for the Latine and Chicano communities. As the second longest running teatro in California, we recognize the grassroots responsibility we have to serve our communidad with resonant programming and services. ONE-ACT FESTIVAL Now in its eighth iteration, the One-Act Festival invites open submissions from playwrights seeking an opportunity to workshop new work. Three plays are selected, each paired with a team of collaborators for a development process. The festival culminates in public staged readings followed by artist talkbacks, offering audiences direct engagement with new voices and stories. INTERCULTURAL FESTIVAL With three successful iterations, the Intercultural Reflections Festival was created by Teatro to celebrate Sacramento’s cultural diversity. In partnership with organizations such as Matriarchy Theatre, Sinag-tala Filipino Theater, Ma Series Arts, and PNDA Lahiarts, the festival presents a week of performances and cultural events led by BIPOC-centered companies. Each partner produces an evening of work, culminating in a weekend-long community celebration featuring live performances, a block party, and a BIPOC artist market. MAINSTAGE PROGRAMMING Teatro Espejo also produces two to three full productions annually as part of its Mainstage Season that reflect a range of styles and themes, often grounded in social relevance and cultural pride. Community favorites have included Zoot Suit, Real Women Have Curves, and countless world premieres by Sacramento-native playwrights. In recent years, Teatro has deepened relationships with fellow theaters of color, co-producing works with Matriarchy Theatre and Los Escritores del Nuevo Sol. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | Shakespeare Youth Festival | 1210 S SYCAMORE AVE , LOS ANGELES, CA 90019-1533 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 334-0105 | California Assembly district 54 | District 54 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, LOS ANGELES DRAMA CLUB INC will expand equitable access to high-quality afterschool theatre programming by bringing free and low-cost classes, performances, and community engagement opportunities to underserved populations and neighborhoods across Los Angeles, empowering youth as both artists and audiences. | Since 2010, Los Angeles Drama Club/Shakespeare Youth Festival has successfully built an ongoing artistic community of youth who, through the creative process of “putting on a play,” have found a passion, a purpose, and a safe place to express themselves and gain self-worth from their collective accomplishments. Our programs include our annual Spring Shakespeare Festival, which brings together youth from all over Los Angeles to rehearse and perform three to four Shakespeare plays in rotating repertory, Summer Institute (our summer theater and play-writing camps), and our in-school/after-school workshops and residencies, called Shakespeare in the City. Additionally, we travel to Botswana, Kenya, and Guanajuato, Mexico annually to conduct workshops for youth. While our nonprofit is registered as Los Angeles Drama Club, in 2019, we began using Shakespeare Youth Festival as our public name, to better reflect our mission. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | Sacramento Educational Cable Consortium | 4630 NORTHGATE BLVD STE 160 , SACRAMENTO, CA 95834-1142 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 920-1006 | 06 | 06 | 08 | We will use this money to make up for a budget shortfall resulting from a 50% reduction in this quarter's budget of nearly $90,000 from our primary funding source - the Sacramento Metro Cable Television Commission. The money we are requesting will be used to update current production equipment used to produce content for area schools and school districts, and create a pool of equipment to use for after school programs and summer/winter vacation media production camps we plan to launch this summer and during winter break. | We provide visual arts equipment, training and services to K-12 educators and their students in Sacramento County. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $24,000.00 | SAINT REMY ARTS AND CULTURE | 1242 Monte Vista Ave STE 1 , Upland, CA 91786 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (562) 551-2590 | State Assembly District 38 | State Assembly District 56 | State Assembly District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Saint Remy Arts will sustain and expand its free, trauma informed and culturally rooted arts programming for individuals living with mental illness, PTSD, and systemic exclusion across Los Angeles County and the Inland Empire. As a Latinx and disability led nonprofit, Saint Remy serves BIPOC, LGBTQ+, unhoused, migrant, at-promise youth and low-income communities through weekly workshops in visual/performing arts. CAC funds will support teaching artist wages, staff capacity, artist residencies, and program materials, ensuring all classes remain free and accessible. Funding will also support Saint Remy’s new community space in Upland and its expanded programming, including a Latinx Artist in Residence and Intern in Residence program from a HSI. This investment will strengthen organizational capacity, deepen community partnerships, and increase access to consistent, healing centered arts experiences. | Saint Remy Arts & Culture is a Latinx and disability-led nonprofit committed to advancing equity at the intersection of arts and mental health. We provide free, trauma-informed, and culturally rooted art programing for individuals living with mental illness, PTSD, and systemic exclusion. We believe art is a human right that fosters emotional, physical, spiritual, and communal wellbeing. Through workshops, classes, artist residencies, and exhibitions, we create restorative spaces where BIPOC, LGBTQ, veterans, disabled, and unhoused communities can heal, connect, and reclaim their voices. Guided by empathy, equity, and transparency, we uplift marginalized artists, sustain living-wage teaching opportunities, and model a nontraditional community-centered approach that integrates creativity, social justice, intercultural leadership, and mental health advocacy. |
| Arts and Youth | 2026-27 | $18,750.00 | Venice Arts | 13445 Beach Avenue , VENICE, CA 90292-5623 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 392-0846 | California's 36th congressional district | District 55 | District 28 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Venice Arts will offer our Media Arts Education (MAE) program after-school and on Saturdays during an academic year cycle and daily at our summer Media Arts Camp. MAE, our longest-lasting core program, offers free sequential (beginning to advanced) workshops in photography, filmmaking, animation, and comic art & narrative illustration to under-resourced youth ages 9-18. The curriculum also includes college and creative career pathways services, including College Day, 1:1 college mentoring, field trips, guest panels, and more. | Media Arts Education Our longest-lasting program offers free sequential (beginning to advanced) workshops in photography, filmmaking, animation, and comic art and narrative illustration to youth age 9-18 during an academic year cycle and a summer Media Arts Camp. It includes Creative Pathways, providing directed support for college and creative careers aspirations. Center for Creative Workforce Equity (CCWE) Our new Center supports our creative career development programs for young people through the age of 24. They range from exposure to creative career pathways to education and training in visual storytelling including paid internship, apprenticeships, and job placements. Programs develop creative industry-recognized knowledge, skills, and certifications required for entry into economically viable job pathways into a wide range of jobs and apprenticeships ultimately leading to high-road employment. Gallery & Public Programs Free public exhibition programs of high-caliber work by young artists, professional photographers, and filmmakers; with public programs, panels and screenings. Participatory Documentary Programs We train, consult, design, and deliver projects for nonprofit organizations, foundations, and academic institutions interested in our unique creative youth development model, or in our participant-produced documentary practices. We have worked with diverse organizations across California & the US, and in Hong Kong, Senegal, South Africa, Mozambique, and Southeast Asia. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | Institute of Arts Music & Science | 16415 Clark Avenue , Bellflower, CA 90706 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 920-7119 | California's 38th congressional district | District 58 | District 32 | California Arts Council grant funds for the General Operating Support will be used to provide overhead expenses, which include: rent, electricity, water, gas, phone, internet, gardening, professional fee (CPA), advertising, and insurance. This will help to keep our organization running smoothly to continue to serve our community of disadvantaged youth and discover talented students. | We have 14 highly qualified instructors and staff, many with advanced degrees from USC; 5 have earned their PhD. We have 2 buildings on site. We also have Python coding classes to educate the youth on coding languages. We have Art for all ages, instructed in a wide range of media. Our teacher has a Master’s in Fine Arts from CSU, Fullerton. We offer small group lessons, 3 to 5 students, in a weekly one-hour program. Our music lessons are private, once a week. We have an annual student recital to showcase for our community, and our faculty has an annual public recital. We teach classical music and follow the Visual and Performing Arts Content Standards for California Public Schools. Every year, most of our students participate in the Certificate of Merit Program held by the Music Teachers Association of California. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $17,500.00 | Viver Brasil Dance Company | 2141 N Gower Street , Los Angeles, CA 90068 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 804-1466 | 28th Congressional District | State Assembly District 43 | State Senate District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Viver Brasil Dance Company will build on its long-standing tradition of offering master-level Afro-Brazilian dance classes with live music at a low-cost for our intergenerational communities. Since our founding in 1997, Viver Brasil has been committed to sharing Afro-Brazilian expressive culture, along with its ancestral and contemporary wisdom, in Los Angeles while maintaining strong connections with our spiritual and cultural elders and contemporaries in our sister city, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. With support from the California Arts Council, we will sustain and expand access to this rich cultural experience, serving over 1,000 Los Angeles area community members during the grant period. | Samba in the Streets, VB’s free community engagement program teaches Afro-Brazilian traditional dances modeled on Blocos Afro, Afro-Brazilian parading organizations that introduce communities to Afro-Brazilian history through traditional and contemporary dance and music. Cooking Samba, VB’s signature family program is a narrated 45-minute show that include the royal orixa dances, riveting capoeira, joyful samba and Bahian carnaval with live music and an interactive dance workshop. Community Class, is a weekly Afro-Brazilian technique dance class led by founding artistic directors Linda Yudin and Luiz Badaro accompanied by live music. Dancing at the Source is a 16-day cultural immersion program to Salvador, Bahia, Brazil where participants experience: daily Afro-Brazilian dance, music, and culture classes taught by experienced faculty who are master cultural workers, that reflects VB’s role as a bridge between the U.S. and Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Mono Arts Council | 501 Old Mammoth Rd Suite 5, Mammoth Lakes, CA 93546-6098 | Mono | Central Valley | (760) 923-8984 | California's 3rd congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | California Arts Council grant funds will support Mono Art Council’s arts education, community programming, artist support, and regional partnerships efforts across Mono County. Funding will expand equitable access to arts and cultural opportunities in rural and geographically isolated communities through in-school arts education, artist-led workshops, exhibitions, cultural events, advocacy, and youth engagement initiatives. Supported activities include the Crescendo Music Program, Poetry Out Loud, Create with the Greats discrete art lessons, Family Art Nights, Open Studio, Student Art exhibitions, and culturally responsive community events such as Numu Social Dance. Grant funds will support program coordination, outreach, materials, and partnerships with school districts, Tribal partners, local government, and community organizations to ensure arts programming remains accessible, inclusive, and responsive to community needs across Mono County. | Mono Arts Council offers arts programs to all residents and visitors of Mono County. We continue to create awareness of MAC activities through public outreach, our Gallery & Art Center, and our Art Festivals.Through the MAC Community Arts Center & Gallery we create a space for local, regional and emerging artists to exhibit their work. MAC offers art education in all Mono County schools. We provide free in school art instruction, free after school art and Kids Summer Art Camps. MAC reaches all students through in-school programs such as the Create With the Greats and Crescendo Music program. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | SVCREATES | 255 N Market St suite 210 , San Jose, CA 95110-2445 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 998-2787 | California's 19th congressional district | District 27 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, SILICON VALLEY CREATES will strengthen the capacity of over 85 small multi-cultural arts organizations, raise the visibility of local artists, and provide access to the arts for high need populations, through grant-making, capacity building programs, and special initiatives intended to increase equity and inclusion in our arts ecosystem. | SVCreates provides annual grant opportunities to support small local arts organizations and individual artists, particularly focused on BIPOC/ALAANA centered work. We offer a year-round program of workshops and peer roundtables designed to strengthen networks, leadership capacity, and business skills for artists and local arts organizations. SVCreates provides customized support and coaching for a portfolio of roughly 100 small and mid-sized multi-cultural nonprofit organizations, artists, and creative professionals. We profile and amplify the voices of local artists and creatives through our Content Magazine, in quarterly print publications, weekly e-newsletters, regular podcasts and events. Additionally, we deliver a variety of programs that serve Santa Clara County’s at-risk youth and Title 1 schools. |
| Impact Projects | 2026-27 | $20,000.00 | TheatreWorkers Project | 1795 La Loma Rd , Pasadena, CA 91105 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 319-1020 | California's 28th congressional district | 41 | 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, TheatreWorkers Project (TWP) will partner with The Prism Way reentry community to create “Life Without…..”, a filmed performance piece that will uplift the voices of people impacted by Life Without the Possibility of Parole (LWOP) sentences. TWP artists will engage intergenerational community participants in an incentivized creative process that will enable them to explore their stories through theatre, writing, and movement exercises, culminating in a filmed theatrical collage performed by people with lived experience. | Using theatre to illuminate social and political issues has been our goal since 1983 when founder Susan Franklin Tanner was awarded a CAC Artist in Communities grant to create theatre with unemployed steelworkers in southeast LA. With that grant, Tanner founded TheatreWokers Project (TWP) and pioneered a form of documentary theatre where the participants, supported by professional artists, provided the content and became the storyteller/actors. TWP went on the create theatre projects with and/or about shipbuilders, meat packers, longshoremen, critical nurses and Latinx immigrant workers. Over time, our focus expanded to include collaborating with community-based re-entry programs serving the formerly incarcerated and prison programs serving incarcerated youth and adults, workshops for community and university medical centers, and providing classical and contemporary theatre experiences for youth through ongoing school residencies and performances. COVID-related restrictions have prompted us to embrace and incorporate filmed performance collages, virtual program delivery and correspondence courses as centerpieces of our programming. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $12,000.00 | WESTWIND BRASS INC | 6839 51st St , San Diego, CA 92120-1209 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 665-9125 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | Westwind Brass requests General Operating Support to sustain its mission during San Diego’s FY26 fiscal crisis. Funds will support professional artist fees, administrative staffing, and travel to deliver 50+ free annual programs for historically under-resourced communities. Key initiatives include the Public Commons: Parks Series and Library Sound Discovery Initiative, which restore cultural access to neighborhoods facing city-funded service cuts. We will provide 20 Youth Empowerment assemblies for Title I schools to bridge the $47M district music-funding gap, and a Senior Center Series utilizing "Reminiscence Therapy" for isolated elders. Additionally, specialized VA Medical Center performances provide therapeutic support for San Diego’s Veterans. By centering equity and accessibility, Westwind Brass removes economic barriers to the arts, fostering community resilience and well-being through professional brass performances for those most impacted by current regional budget deficits. | Through our outreach programs, our goal is to not only help provide a well-rounded education for children and create a healthier community, but also, by offering students the chance to participate in this learning process, we help build the future arts audience. WWB strives to achieve its mission by building and satisfying a worldwide following of dedicated individual and organizational supporters, professional peers, music educators, and public audiences that: (a) organize, stage and attend concerts of outstanding classical and contemporary brass chamber music; (b) encourage instructional presentations and discussions of brass chamber music; (c) stimulate and foster creation, research and presentation- both live and recorded- of brass chamber music of the highest artistic and professional quality. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $18,000.00 | TheatreWorkers Project | 1795 La Loma Rd , Pasadena, CA 91105 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 319-1020 | California's 28th congressional district | 41 | 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, TheatreWorkers Project (TWP) will be able to offset payroll processing and employee payroll expenses incurred as per AB5 regulations, and pay for organizational line items, including (but not limited to) insurance and operating expenses. Grant funds will also be used to support TWP's Director as she transitions, for the first time, from an hourly employee to a full-time salaried position. | Using theatre to illuminate social and political issues has been our goal since 1983 when founder Susan Franklin Tanner was awarded a CAC Artist in Communities grant to create theatre with unemployed steelworkers in southeast LA. With that grant, Tanner founded TheatreWokers Project (TWP) and pioneered a form of documentary theatre where the participants, supported by professional artists, provided the content and became the storyteller/actors. TWP went on the create theatre projects with and/or about shipbuilders, meat packers, longshoremen, critical nurses and Latinx immigrant workers. Over time, our focus expanded to include collaborating with community-based re-entry programs serving the formerly incarcerated and prison programs serving incarcerated youth and adults, workshops for community and university medical centers, and providing classical and contemporary theatre experiences for youth through ongoing school residencies and performances. COVID-related restrictions have prompted us to embrace and incorporate filmed performance collages, virtual program delivery and correspondence courses as centerpieces of our programming. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2026-27 | $74,250.00 | Amador Arts | 1324 Jackson Gate Rd , Jackson, CA 95642-9539 | Amador | Central Valley | (209) 256-8166 | District 5 | District 1 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, AMADOR COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL ("Amador Arts") will catalyze broad arts, cultural, and creative engagement for all people throughout our rural region, especially those who are under served and in the bottom quartile of Healthy Places Index. Amador Arts will direct funds and services toward our most historically under-resourced communities by leveraging longtime partnerships, public data sources, community surveys/input, and the collective, inter-cultural vision of the Amador creative ecosystem. This work will include: (1)free outdoor concerts in remote venues across the county (since 1998), (2) Amador Poetry Out Loud (since 2016), (3) free Technical Assistance for artists and organizations applying for California Arts Council grants, (4) free Business resources for emerging artists, and (5) the launching of an Arts Camp for inspired emerging artists in grades 4-6. | The Amador County Arts Council (Amador Arts) keeps the arts central to Amador's life through programs, services, and initiatives. (1) PUBLIC OFFICE: Our accessible public office is open to the public and is located in a historic building on Jackson Gate Road in Jackson, CA. Open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 to 4 PM and staffed by volunteers and employees from the Mother Lode Land Trust, our partner. (2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE: Our team provides free Technical Assistance on California Arts Council grants. (3) PRODUCING PERFORMANCES: Since its establishment, Amador Arts has played a central role in performing arts throughout Amador County. Most notably, since 1998, our "TGIF Free Summer Concerts" have brought live music to thousands of people in outdoor venues where it would otherwise not be available. Producing Poetry Out Loud since 2016, with multi-generational poetry engagement opportunities in addition to the traditional competition. (4) ARTS EDUCATION ADVOCACY: Amador Arts has been a trusted consultant to Amador County Unified School District, providing support and administration for the district's Arts Plan and the rollout of Prop 28. Additionally, since 2012, Amador Arts has been an Arts Now community, surveying the state of arts education annually and teaching advocacy tools and skills to youth so they can impact their own arts education. (5) PROMOTING THE ARTS: Weekly newspaper article "Heart of Art" in the Ledger Dispatch, which covers all types of impacts of the arts and leans heavily on the research from Americans for the Arts and their Arts Impact Explorer. The articles are also published on our blog. |
| General Operating Support | 2026-27 | $30,000.00 | ARTHATCH | 317 E GRAND AVE SUITE B , ESCONDIDO, CA 92025-3301 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 781-5779 | District 50 | District 76 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, ArtHatch will continue to foster creativity and community connection through our 7,000 sq. ft. complex—home to multiple galleries, 17 artist studios, and Last Spot, our vibrant gathering space. Funding will make 27 free annual events possible, including monthly 2nd Saturday receptions with open studios and live music, and monthly sketch nights with a DJ, all run by our all-artist staff. Our free teen art program supports youth—85% of whom are on probation—through weekly workshops led by professional artists, access to our fully stocked teen studio, and the opportunity to exhibit their work in our 3rd annual all-teen show. Our ADA-compliant facility ensures that everyone, regardless of ability, can participate fully. Funding will help sustain an inclusive hub where artists and community members can create, connect, and thrive. | ArtHatch provides free opening receptions for new exhibitions, Q and A artist sessions and talks, open studios, and live music free for the public 12 times per year. We also provide 24/7 studio space for 20 local artists and exhibition space for an additional 21 artists. Additionally, we host regular monthly field trips for Escondido high schools and colleges. Lastly, we have a free in depth teen arts program for at risk teens with a focus on teens from single parent households, low income families, teens in the foster care system, and teens performing court ordered after school program hours. |
| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | LA Commons | 4343 Leimert Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90008 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 792-0366 | 37th Congressional District of California | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the CAC, LA Commons will establish the Historic South Los Angeles Black Cultural District (BCD) in partnership with Coalition for Responsible Community Development, Los Angeles Department of City Planning, and South LA’s artists and community members. The BCD represents an opportunity to celebrate the resilience, joy, and exceptional accomplishments of a community that has been subjected to numerous exclusionary policies of the past. Funding will further the BCD’s sustainability as we develop a cohesive visual branding toolkit—with CAC support— to support fundraising, advocacy, and educational programming to uplift local narratives. Artist stipends, youth programming, and events in collaboration with community partners to further development of local leadership and deepen trust—ensuring that cultural stewardship is authentic and community-driven. Additionally, the development of reusable tools, including cultural asset maps and public digital archives. |
LA Commons programs engage residents of neighborhoods where most live below the poverty line and are new immigrants struggling to find their place in Los Angeles. Target audiences are artists and culture bearers, youth ages 15–25, and residents of all ages. Participating neighborhoods include MacArthur Park, Leimert Park, and greater South Los Angeles. By engaging community members in our core “Neighborhood Story Connection” program, we create a space where stories & voices are heard and then transformed into dynamic public art that reflects local hopes, dreams & identities. Relationships developed through these public art projects are leveraged to engage people of all ages in the stories of our Los Angeles, through resident led neighborhood tours, public art campaigns, and other culturally informed experiences that support local businesses and artists, and share opportunities to experience authentic food, music, festivals and rich cultural histories across Los Angeles. |
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| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | EVOAK! | 490 LAKE PARK AVE UNIT 16242 , OAKLAND, 94610-8047 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 333-9175 | With support from the California Arts Council, SOA VILLAGE HOUSING INC (dba EVOAK!) will advance our strategic partnership between grassroots community and government to build cultural infrastructure in the Black Arts Movement Business District. This project is designed to preserve culture, prevent displacement, and uphold belonging. CAC funds will be used to: 1) Support a part-time Cultural District Coordinator to manage outreach and program logistics; 2) Provide stipends to local artists and culture bearers to design public art and lead cultural workshops; 3) Launch a pilot cultural event series that showcases the district’s unique identity and talent; and 4) Develop a community-informed cultural asset map and promotional materials. These interconnected activities will strengthen community cohesion, provide economic opportunities for local creatives, and build a sustainable foundation for the district. |
Policy, Research, and Advocacy Capacity-building for Cultural and Community Development Cultural Programming and Exhibitions |
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| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | OPAC | 800 Hobson Way , Oxnard, 93030 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 385-8147 | California's 26th congressional district | 38 | 19 | Downtown Oxnard’s Cultural District is shaped by Indigenous roots, agricultural labor, and generations of immigration that make it the largest, most diverse, and most fragile city on the Central Coast (85% BIPOC). Anchored by the Oxnard Transit Center, Botanical Gardens (forthcoming), Carnegie Library/Museum, historic Pagoda (where César Chávez frequently spoke), Heritage Square, Teatro de las Americas, and Oxnard Performing Arts Center, the district reflects a rare cross-border fusion of Mexican, Japanese, Indigenous, African-American, Filipino, and Californian creative expression. Beloved traditions- from Juneteenth (34th annual), Guelaguetza, and Fiestas Patrias to Nardcore punk shows, lowrider cruises, fandangos, and Ballet Folklórico- showcase deep cultural pride and resilience despite chronic underinvestment. Funds will support logo/brand development, brochure (inserted in Visit Oxnard magazines), wayfinding signage, website, social media, a marketing campaign, and launch celebration to boost awareness and activation. |
OPAC, the Oxnard Performing Arts Center Corporation, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to providing dynamic cultural and community programming at the Oxnard Performing Arts & Convention Center and beyond. As a creative hub in Ventura County, we present a diverse array of events, performances, and educational opportunities that bring people together through the power of the arts. Our programming spans from large-scale mainstage productions and campus-wide festivals to intimate workshops and lectures, ensuring there is something for everyone. We proudly showcase both emerging and established local and international artists, fostering a vibrant cultural scene that enhances Oxnard’s creative landscape. Through our initiatives, we provide vital arts education, engagement, and entertainment for residents and visitors alike. Signature Events Signature Programs (All Free!) Through these programs and events, OPAC strengthens community connections, nurtures artistic expression, and ensures the arts remain accessible to all. |
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| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | Stanislaus Arts Council | 1315 J St , Modesto, 95354-0924 | Stanislaus | Central Valley | (209) 529-3369 | California's 5th congressional district | District 22 | District 4 | The Stanislaus Arts Council seeks $10,000 from the California Arts Council’s Cultural District Program to support the development of a vibrant, inclusive cultural district in Downtown Modesto. Grant funds will be used to promote strategic arts programming, build cross-sector partnerships, and increase public access to arts and culture. Activities include cultural asset mapping, artist-led pop-up events, community engagement initiatives, and the creation of district branding and outreach materials. Led by the Executive Director and supported by local partners, this initiative reflects our commitment to equity, creative placemaking, and community connection. The initial $5,000 grant per year for two years will be matched with contributions from corporate and community partners over the remaining three years. This effort aligns with our mission to support, promote, and advocate for the arts in Stanislaus County. |
Central California Art League, dba Stanislaus Arts Council operates a small gallery in downtown Modesto, provides classes for youth and adults at the gallery, and throughout the community by collaborating with other arts and cultural organizations, organizes a monthly Art Walk for the community of artists, local businesses and residents, and administers a teaching artist program (CLASS) that provides art instruction in elementary schools throughout Stanislaus County. |
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| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | Arts District Liberty Station | 2820 Roosevelt Road, Suite 201 , SAN DIEGO, 92106-6147 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 573-9300 | California's 50th congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, NTC FOUNDATION will produce Summer Arts Fest 2026, a free, three-event series on the second Saturday of July, August, and September at Arts District Liberty Station in San Diego. This day-long festival will feature performances, exhibitions, art markets, culinary experiences, and participatory workshops led by professional artists, cultural organizations, and community partners. CAC funds will support artist fees, production costs, marketing, accessibility services, and community engagement to ensure inclusive participation across diverse audiences. Activating our historic campus and 100+ resident arts tenants, the Fest will be a signature public event during our first year as a California Cultural District. Widely marketed citywide, it showcases artistic excellence, strengthens San Diego’s cultural identity, and creates meaningful economic and creative opportunities for local artists. |
Programs to achieve objectives: 1) RENT SUBSIDY PROGRAM for nonprofit arts groups to assure their long-term stability in the ARTS DISTRICT; 2) LIBERTY SCHOOL Arts Education Program helps underserved students develop academic skills through the arts and improve their ability to succeed; 3) ARTS COLLABORATIVES provides funds to encourage collaboration among artists and arts groups to create programs that engage the public in the work they do; (4) Art in Public Places |
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| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | American Indian Cultural District | 2 Marina Blvd. Building D, Suite 230 , San Francisco, 94123 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 287-2820 | 11th Congressional District | State Assembly District 17 | State Senate District 11 | The purpose of this funding is to create and update a printed annual cultural district report that highlights the intangible and tangible cultural assets within our district. Each year we will use the funding to update the report and build out different asset areas. The first phase will map out the public art, cultural facilities, and cultural organizations within our district. |
We serve the greater American Indian community, people, and service organizations within our cultural district through a series of long standing programs, activations, and policy advocacy that brings people together across issues, identities, and communities to build solidarity, foster healing, and stimulate the local economy. Indigenize Project – Branching out from AICD, the citywide Indigenize Project is a placemaking and placekeeping initiative focusing on honoring and celebrating American Indian culture, history, people, and contributions through art, pole banners, street signs, and QR digital walking tours. Art activations provide graffiti abatement to local merchants and landmarks while providing an interactive experience to attract tourism and increase public awareness and elevating the visibility through an Indigenous lens. Community Visions Planning Series – Participation from 12 Native American organizations, the Mission Merchants Association, and over 50+ local service based organizations within AICD. With gatherings between 50-150 participants and is aimed at empowering and strengthening the local economy through activation planning, resource advocacy, and the development of community led priorities to shape local policy in areas such as housing, arts & culture, MMIP, health, wellness, and cultural and historic preservation. American Indian Historic Context Statement & Oral History Film Series – Elevates and protects our cultural assets and history through the context statement, creates a cultural and historic resource database, and creates film. The first phase resulted in a local site nomination to protect the American Indian Historical Society. Intergenerational Community Land Stewardship Program – Monthly Native led series open to all since 202 is aimed at increasing cultural knowledge, traditional practices (Ie. basket weaving, beading, gourd making, and land stewardship opportunities for youth, elders, and families. Other initiatives include: |
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| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | City of Riverside | 3900 Main Street 3900 Main Street, Riverside, 92522 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 826-2391 | 58 | 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, City of Riverside will strengthen its marketing efforts, focusing on the creation and promotion of the Cultural District. An Arts District was identified a few years ago, and, most recently, that footprint has been tightened up in keeping with best practices of other communities. The timing is ideal, as the City of Riverside is just beginning to structure a new General Plan. Previously, the City’s Arts and Culture initiatives have stood alone. With this new, multi-year effort, arts and culture will integrate with the General Plan. This grant funding will help highlight both the historic and more recently-embraced assets that continually shape this City, intentionally cultivating the artistic and cultural soul of Riverside and introducing it to other communities regionally, nationally, and globally. |
The City of Riverside offers a wide array of core programs and services, including public safety, public works, recreation, and economic development, as well as supporting services for residents and businesses. These services are designed to enhance the quality of life for residents and support the city’s growth and prosperity. Public Safety: Public Works: Recreation: Economic Development: Supporting Services: Additional City Initiatives: |
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| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | San Jose Taiko | 565 N. 5th St. , San Jose, 95112 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 293-9344 | 19 | District 27 | District 15 | San Jose Japantown seeks state designation as a Cultural District. As one of only three remaining in the US, San Jose Japantown is a cultural jewel of the region with vibrant annual events, historic sites predating the WWII Incarceration, and a thriving community of artists and culture bearers. These cultural assets weave together to anchor this unique neighborhood with its long history of multiculturalism and inclusion. Cultural District designation and the related funding would support and accelerate sustainability efforts through the convening of community partners, increased branding/visibility, and the investment in staff to coordinate these initiatives. This support will strengthen cultural preservation and production and further uplift the Japanese and Asian experience here in San Jose and beyond. |
CORE PERFORMANCES – broad reach of ~31,000+ audience members EDUCATIONAL PERFORMANCES – deeper impact for ~23,000+ students CORE CLASSES/TRAINING – deepest impact for ~1,100 students/trainees |
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| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | City of Watsonville | 275 Main St , Watsonville, 95076-5133 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 768-3240 | Grant funds to bring our community’s vision for a designated California Cultural District to life. The funds will support a series of community forums, an annual Arts Summit, and the creation of an advisory committee. These initiatives are crucial to ensuring local residents, artists, businesses, and arts organizations guide the district’s growth, keeping it community owned and fresh long after the grant is gone. This project will build on the momentum from our arts planning, public art, and community events that celebrate Watsonville’s rich agricultural and multicultural heritage, creating a downtown that is authentic, engaging, and truly driven by the community. |
The City of Watsonville is a full service city, with 12 Departments including Fire, Police, Public Works, Parks and Community Services, Library, Airport, Finance, Human Resources, and Information Technology,. |
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| Cultural Districts | 2025-26 | Merced County Arts Council Inc | 645 W MAIN ST , MERCED, 95340-4717 | Merced | Central Valley | (209) 388-1090 | 13th District of California | District 27 | District 14 | The Merced County Arts Council, in partnership with the City of Merced and the Downtown Merced Partnership, proposes the establishment of the Merced Downtown Arts District. CAC grant funds will support community-led planning, programming, and increased visibility of the district through branding, outreach, and public arts projects. This initiative will strategically highlight and expand Merced’s diverse cultural assets, including its vibrant arts organizations, multicultural festivals, historic venues, and developing artistic hubs. Specifically, funds will help create equitable opportunities for historically underrepresented artists, preserve cultural traditions, foster collaboration among arts organizations, and establish Merced as a regional destination for arts and cultural innovation. The district will strengthen engagement among residents, visitors, and businesses and support a sustainable and inclusive creative ecosystem for years to come. |
Incorporated in 1978, the Merced County Arts Council was operated originally from a small office space on Main Street. In 1996, the City of Merced entrusted the Arts Council to manage the Merced Multicultural Arts Center. In addition to operating this 28,000 sq. foot, multipurpose arts center, the Arts Council manages an arts-in-education program; an arts facility for adults with developmental disabilities; performances and visual/performing arts classes for children and adults; professional support for artists through fiscal sponsorship; exhibits of about 20 professional artists each year; and newfound coalitions for visual and performing artists. The Multicultural Arts Center, lovingly known as the MAC, has been the arts and cultural hub of Merced since its opening in 1997. Managed by the Merced County Arts Council, the MAC is home to: The Enrichment Center, a day program for artists with disabilities The MAC offers a wide variety of classroom, conference, and general meeting spaces to meet all of your creative, personal, and professional facility needs as well as four art galleries, a black box theater, and a serving kitchen. The Multicultural Arts Center is truly a multi-use facility that can handle almost any event. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $15,975.00 | Latino Center of Art and Culture | 2700 FRONT STREET , SACRAMENTO, 95818-1118 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 446-5133 | California's 6th congressional district | District 6 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, LATINO CENTER OF ART AND CULTURE will debut a multi-month programming series that links elders in the community with youth for sessions of storytelling, artistic expression, and community-building. Funds from the CAC will cover the facilitation and artistic direction of the series, the supplies and rental fees for the space, and translation services (a critical component given the primarily Latinx recently immigrated and first-generation service population of LCAC) |
LCAC produces El Arte del Pueblo, a multidisciplinary series of events that engage community in art creation, and strengthens identity through the interpretation of significant Latino cultural traditions including El Panteón de Sacramento/Dia de los Muertos, Dia del Niño, and Fiesta de Frida. Our Visual Arts Program uses our gallery space to support and amplify local and emerging artists. Artists are supported with a stipend and provided with mentorship. Our Community Service Program offers our space to organizations in need of exhibitions, events, or performance space. Our Volunteer Engagement Program offers community service and leadership opportunities to youth and adults. Our program supports academic and court-mandated community service. Our Individual Artist Program provides low cost studio space to artists. Our Youth Program teaches youth traditional dances from Mexico and leadership skills to strengthen positive and community identity. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,800.00 | Institute of Inquiry | 6875 VALLEY VIEW DRIVE , Twentynine Palms, 92277 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (760) 666-8341 | California's 23rd District | State Assembly District 34 | State Senate District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Institute of Inquiry will sustain and grow our community-rooted arts education programs in the Morongo Basin. CAC funds will support areas of need within our core operations staffing, teaching artist compensation, program materials, and essential administrative help—to ensure the continuity of our responsive education programming. Our offerings include Creative Fields, a 28-week arts apprenticeship for transitional-aged youth; early childhood education rooted in artistic exploration and nature-based learning; and creative workforce development opportunities for artists. In a region with limited access to creative pathways and educational services, our work affirms that art is not only a means of expression—but a route to healing, skill-building, and belonging. With this support, we will deepen our impact, grow sustainable arts programming, and invest in the creative potential of our rural desert communities. |
As we enter our ninth year as an organization, we are acutely focused on building greater interdependence into our operations. Together, our high desert region and the broader Inland Empire contribute immense creative and cultural value to the state, even as our communities have historically received far less material investment and resources than our urban counterparts. Our work is informed by our deep knowledge of these structural and economic challenges of rural desert life. We are dedicated to the long-term health of our vibrant but underserved communities through providing responsive arts education and substantive, creative employment. Our core programs and services include” Creative Fields”, a 100-hour arts apprenticeship and career mentorship program for teens and transitional-aged youth, and its corresponding career development pathway for Teaching Artists. Arts professionals who participate in Creative Fields receive over 40 hours of mentorship and training in youth-centered approaches to education. Our support of the local creative economy is expanding to the greater Inland Empire through our evolving partnership with Arts Connection, our longtime fiscal sponsor and mentor organization. Arts Connection’s Estudio Aire program supports artists through one to two-month long, work-only residencies focused on professional development. Beginning in Fall 2026, the Institute of Inquiry will host two Estudio Aire artists-in-residence annually for an extended period through live-work residencies at our location adjacent to Joshua Tree National Park.For artists who reside in more densely populated and urban parts of the Inland Empire, these residencies offer the gift of extended time in the wildlands of the high desert, where our relationship to the natural world cannot be easily managed or ignored. In opening our programming to a wider geographic region, we are also enriching the lives of youth participants through mentorship with artists representing a broader spectrum of cultural and racial backgrounds. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,900.00 | Au Co Vietnamese Cultural Center | PO BOX 347042 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94134-7042 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 298-3705 | California Congressional | State Assemblymember | State Senate | With support from the California Arts Council, Au Co will continue to serve the Vietnamese and Southeast Asian communities of San Francisco through its: Annual arts and cultural programming serving intergenerational and multicultural audiences – Mid-Autumn Harvest Festival, Multicultural Spring Festival co-produced with the Southeast Asian Arts Coalition along with Tet Celebration, Thi Ca Su Viet, and Cultural Heritage Day which cater to the Vietnamese community. Funds will: Sustain our core administrative staff for the above |
Au Co realizes its mission and purpose through a multifaceted suite of programs and services that foster intercultural bonds, cultural preservation, and artistic innovation to uplift the community. Our core programs and services include: – The Vietnamese Language Program offering classes for students, ranging from young children to young adults, to learn the Vietnamese language while engaging with culture and the arts |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,271.00 | Celebration Theatre | 3141 Hollyridge Dr , Los Angeles, 90068 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 957-1884 | District 30 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, CELEBRATION PRODUCTIONS CORPORATION d/b/a “Celebration Theatre” will fund the production phase for Trans Lineage, an annual program dedicated to uplifting original stories by transgender, nonbinary, and gender-expansive artists. Now entering its fourth year, Trans Lineage commissions new short plays, pairs playwrights with professional directors and dramaturgs, and culminates in a fully produced showcase that centers TGNC narratives and people. Funding will support artist salaries, production costs, accessibility services, and community engagement efforts. This program provides vital creative opportunities for a community disproportionately underrepresented and underemployed in the arts, while fostering cultural visibility, healing, and joy through live performance. |
Celebration Theatre is Southern California’s longest-running LGBTQIA+ theatre. Founded in December 1982 in a Silver Lake storefront by Mattachine Society co-founding member Chuck Rowland, the nonprofit was organized as a community theatre “of, by, and for gay and lesbian people and their friends.” Expanding over the decades, the Los Angeles-based company has mounted theatrical productions representative and in support of the queer community: with a sharp focus on inclusion, visibility, and pride. In addition to its main stage productions from the queer literary canon and reimagined “queerings” from the theatre canon, Celebration Theatre has developed new works for the community for decades through readings, workshops, and world premiere productions. Since 2021, the theatre has committed itself through its Trans Lineage program to the development of new stories for the stage that illuminate transgender and gender-expansive narratives across time and cultures. GLAAD, NAACP, Los Angeles theatre awards, and many other benchmarks for excellence have recognized the theatre and its artists—performers, writers, directors, designers, musicians, and producers. Scores of LGBTQIA+ luminaries have graced Celebration’s stages over the years as it continues to provide an inspiring and empowering forum for professional and emerging artists, giving voice to the evolving experience of queer culture. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $22,800.00 | Ben Free Project | 5255 55th Street , San Diego, 92115 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 770-8526 | Ben Free Project respectfully requests General Operating Support funding to strengthen our core infrastructure, sustain the growth of our programming, and empower system-impacted individuals through education, storytelling, and the arts. CAC funds will support key personnel—including administrative assistants, art providers, and the executive director—as well as essential operational tools such as QuickBooks, cloud storage, and insurance. This grant will allow us to continue offering initiatives such as the Comic Creation program inside Lancaster State Prison, the Barz Behind Bars poetry contest, distance learning mentorship and writing contests through the Ben Free Project at UCLA, and our collaboration with UCLA, Harvard, Yale, and others to elevate the voices of incarcerated writers. The requested funds will ensure our programming remains consistent, professional, and accessible as we scale to meet growing demand across California’s carceral and academic landscapes. |
The Ben Free Project is a justice-centered arts and education nonprofit committed to transforming lives through creative expression, literacy, and personal development. Our core programming engages incarcerated and system-impacted individuals with high-quality, culturally relevant, and trauma-informed curricula designed to promote rehabilitation, reentry success, and community reintegration. At the heart of our work is art as intervention—programming that leverages storytelling, writing, visual arts, and media production to foster self-awareness, emotional growth, and social connection. Our flagship offerings include Comic Creation, Graphic Memoir Writing, Carceral Journalism Workshops, and Rites of Passage programs adapted for adult correctional settings. These courses are not only educational but therapeutic, equipping participants with tools to understand their own narratives and reclaim authorship over their futures. In 2024, the California Arts Council awarded us a program grant to deliver Comic Creation at Lancaster State Prison, a first-of-its-kind course co-facilitated by a formerly incarcerated author and a Hollywood screenwriter. This partnership exemplifies our model: pairing lived experience with professional expertise to create access, credibility, and impact. Our services also include reentry support through creative entrepreneurship training, public-facing art exhibits, and policy advocacy that centers the voices of currently and formerly incarcerated artists. We work in collaboration with correctional institutions, community colleges, and academic partners to ensure alignment with both rehabilitative goals and industry standards. Every program we offer is guided by the belief that redemption is a creative act. Whether inside or outside prison walls, we empower participants to imagine new possibilities—and build them, one story at a time. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | City of Twentynine Palms Parks & Recreation | 6136 Adobe Road , Twentynine Palms, 92277 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (760) 367-7562 | California's 23rd Congressional District | District 34 | District 19 | This project will fund the design and installation of a large-scale tile mural at Freedom Plaza in Twentynine Palms, a rural desert city with significant economic, geographic, and cultural access challenges. Led by artist Rhonda Lane Coleman, the mural will be created through a deeply inclusive, intergenerational process involving hundreds of handmade tiles crafted by local students and residents. Building on the success of Signs of Courage, a youth-driven public art initiative, this project offers free workshops, fair artist pay, and broad community engagement over a ten-month period. Installed at Freedom Plaza–the city’s civic heart, the mural will reflect not just who Twentynine Palms has been—but who it is becoming. |
The City of Twentynine Palms Parks and Recreation Department offers a broad spectrum of community programs, with a growing emphasis on arts, culture, and youth development. Through seasonal and year-round initiatives, the department aims to enhance community well-being and connection by providing accessible recreational and educational opportunities for all ages. In recent years, the department has expanded its focus on arts and culture, incorporating music, visual arts, and performance-based activities into community events and youth programs. Seasonal events such as Paint Night, the International Festival, the Holiday Festival, and Pioneer Days regularly feature local performers, student showcases, and interactive art components. Other core programming youth and adult sports leagues, swim lessons, summer camps, and fitness classes. The department actively partners with artists, schools, and nonprofit organizations to introduce youth to creative expression, including special projects during citywide celebrations. The Parks and Recreation Department is committed to expanding its arts programming as a tool for inclusion, enrichment, and youth empowerment, aligning with its mission to create community through people, parks, and programs. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | ArtReach | 1065 University Avenue , San Diego, 92103 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 940-7278 | California's 53rd Congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | ArtReach will lead a youth-driven mural project at Palomar Elementary School in Chula Vista, a community identified as high-priority on the California Healthy Places Index. Through after-school workshops, ArtReach Teaching Artists will guide students in exploring identity, culture, and community through visual storytelling and collaborative design. Youth will work alongside a lead mural artist and teen mural artist apprentices to co-create a large-scale mural that reflects their shared vision. The project will include a community paint day and culminate in a public dedication event. CAC funds will support artist wages, stipends for teen mural artist apprentices, mural and workshop supplies, and event materials. This project will provide equitable access to high-quality arts learning while fostering transformation of space, collaboration, pride, self-expression, and creative leadership for youth who have historically lacked access to the arts. |
ArtReach San Diego is a nonprofit organization committed to increasing access to visual arts education for youth, especially those from under-resourced schools and communities. ArtReach offers the following programs: In-School Programs: These programs utilize an inquiry-based, standards-aligned, and sequential curriculum designed to foster creativity, critical thinking, and self-expression. With a strong focus on supporting social-emotional learning goals, the lessons help students build confidence, resilience, and emotional awareness through artistic exploration. Mural Programs: ArtReach engages youth in collaborative public art projects, where they design and create large-scale murals that promote teamwork, community pride, and artistic achievement. Additionally, ArtReach offers commercial mural projects that provide youth apprentices with real-world work experience, helping to support reduced-cost murals for Title I schools. Community Programs: ArtReach hosts accessible art workshops and classes for families and individuals in a variety of settings, including our two in-house art studios, libraries, and community centers. These workshops focus on process-based techniques led by local artists, creating opportunities for authentic connection through the arts. ArtReach employs local artists as teaching artists, ensuring that its programs not only deliver valuable arts education but also support the local creative economy. These programs are offered county-wide, providing free or low-cost services to Title I schools and underserved communities across San Diego County. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Advocates for Indigenous California Language Survival | 1713 E Los Altos Ave , Fresno, 93710-4348 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 779-4681 | District 42 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, ADVOCATES FOR INDIGENOUS CALIFORNIA LANGUAGE SURVIVAL will invest in our general operations and our team. It will allow us to continue our purpose of supporting language and cultures throughout the State and facilitate intergenerational transmission of invaluable cultural knowledge to sustain these traditions for future generations. Our vision of success for communities is their languages are spoken in all community spaces. This funding will support our goals to help communities create new speakers of their Indigenous languages. |
The Advocates provide several programs. 1) The Master Apprentice Language Learning Program pairs a fluent speaker with an apprentice who is committed to learning the language and cultural teachings; they work together for 300 hours a year for up to three years. 2) Language is Life Gathering: we host this gathering in odd years to bring together 200-300 California Indians for a weekend of sharing successes, challenges and new strategies. The next one is in October 22019. 3) In even years, we host the Breath of Life Archival Institute for Indigenous California Languages, pairing linguists with California Indian community researchers whose languages have no fluent speakers, for a week-long workshop at UC Berkeley to explore the language archives and develop a project. In between Institutes, we host extended services for Breath of Life former attendees to support them in their language reclamation efforts. 4) Seeds of Language mini-grant provides up to $500 in support for resources such as equipment and workshops. 5) The Family Language Program focuses on families working in their heritage language with Advocates’ mentorship and funding. 6) Young Leadership Development Conference, a program started in 2021 to support the empowerment of the next generation of young language leaders. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | KALEIDOSCOPE | 1818 Thayer Ave. #301 , LOS ANGELES, 90025-4142 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 795-9051 | California Assembly district 50 | District 50 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra will use this grant to support our musicians and staff, offering masterclasses and side-by-side performance opportunities for high school and middle students in Santa Monica and surrounding areas as part of the 2026 Santa Monica Music Festival. |
Founded in 2014, Kaleidoscope has performed over 400 concerts throughout Southern California from venues ranging from Walt Disney Concert Hall to homeless shelters on Skid Row. Kaleidoscope has been especially known for their commitment to diversity and new music, with premieres of over 100 works, substantial programming of music by women and people of color, performances of large orchestral works like Mahler and Shostakovich Symphonies without a conductor, and frequent performances at schools, hospitals, homeless shelters, and other community organizations. To address income inequality and help build new audiences for classical music, most of Kaleidoscope’s public concerts are free admission with a suggested donation. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Unscripted Learning | 3717 INDIA ST , SAN DIEGO, 92103-3727 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 295-4999 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Unscripted Learning will sustain and expand our Connections Program, an improvisational theatre initiative for youth with Autism Spectrum Disorder (ASD) across San Diego County. Serving individuals up to age 24, the program fosters communication, teamwork, leadership, and creative expression in an inclusive, strengths-based setting. Each year, thousands of teens with ASD age out of school-based services, losing vital support. Connections fills this gap, currently serving 30 participants weekly—and demand is growing. Grant funding will sustain three weekly classes and help launch a fourth, reaching more youth on our waiting list. As arts funding faces cuts at all levels, CAC support is more critical than ever. Without it, Unscripted Learning may be forced to reduce services, limiting access to this proven, transformative program. |
Developed in conjunction with the National Comedy Theatre in 2017, Unscripted Learning uses improvisational theatre to teach the concepts of teamwork, leadership, and creative problem solving as well as teaching improv skills and theory. Programs include: Connections: An improvisational theatre program for teenagers and young adults on the autism spectrum. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Stay Studio | 11140 DOWNEY AVE , DOWNEY, 90241-3713 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 774-2056 | 42nd Congressional District | District 64 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Stay Arts will expand access to our Stay Young! Youth Art Classes by launching a financial aid and scholarship program during the Spring and Summer 2026 seasons. This initiative will reduce cost-related barriers for families and ensure more students can participate in our high-quality, community-based classes. Offered weekly for K–8 youth, the program provides consistent, culturally relevant arts education in a region where creative opportunities remain limited. Our curriculum integrates social-emotional learning and supports skill-building, self-expression, and connection. Classes are led by professional teaching artists from Southeast Los Angeles and held in our safe, welcoming studio in Downtown Downey. CAC funding will make it possible for us to offer a combination of full and partial tuition support, reaching approximately 80 students who might otherwise be unable to participate. |
We create welcoming spaces and meaningful opportunities for people of all ages to engage with the arts. Each year, our programs reach thousands of students, families, and artists at Stay Studio and across Southeast Los Angeles. Through exhibitions, commissions, and teaching opportunities, we support local artists while connecting the voices of our region with communities across Los Angeles and beyond. Arts Education – We provide high-quality visual and performing arts education through school partnerships across the region, youth classes at Stay Studio, and mentorship opportunities for young artists. Grounded in social-emotional learning, cultural relevance, and process-based artmaking, our programs build confidence, support mental and emotional wellbeing, and nurture a lifelong relationship with the arts. Art Projects – We work with organizations on commissioned murals, art installations, and custom creative projects that enrich and transform public spaces. As a bridge between artists and large-scale opportunities, we prioritize representation and fair compensation that ensures artists are valued and reflected in the cultural landscape. Community Arts – Our community offerings inspire creativity and connection at Stay Studio and throughout the region. Rooted in the grassroots spirit that shaped Stay Arts, they reflect our deep responsiveness to community needs. Through exhibitions, art markets, public events, and interactive experiences, we create accessible ways for people of all ages to engage with the arts and celebrate local creativity. Stay Studio – Stay Studio is a creative space in Downtown Downey operated by Stay Arts. We host weekly art classes for youth and adults, public programs like Paint & Sip and Family Paint Day, and select exhibitions and workshops throughout the year. The studio is a welcoming place for hands-on learning, artistic exploration, and meaningful community connection. Since 2012, it has been a cultural anchor in Southeast LA and a creative home for artists, students, and families alike. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | "" | 1501 Martin Luther King Jr Way , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 646-1126 | District 12 | District 18 | District 7 | Oakland Theater Project (OTP) is the only year-round programming theater in Oakland, California. Founded in 2012, we are inspired by our city, its rich cultural heritage and its unique perspective. In a survey on “belonging” conducted by the City of Oakland, 91% of residents responded that arts activities were essential or very important to their life. Our growth as an organization is a direct result of our attempt to meet this uniquely high demand for artistic programming. We create exquisite theatrical experiences to inspire compassion across socio-economic and racial barriers. We tell underrepresented stories that matter and create theatrical performances and trainings that intentionally bring disparate communities together and dismantle unconscious bias. We seek support from the California Arts Council to continue our work with artists, audiences and marginalized communities in our beloved city. |
The Oakland Theater Project was founded in 2012 by Michael Socrates Moran, William Hodgson, and Colin Mandlin in Oakland, CA. Formerly named Ubuntu Theater Project, we were founded on the value of Ubuntu, which means “I am because we are” and therein “my humanity is tied to yours.” We seek to explore the ways in which theater can act as a vehicle to reveal and invigorate the latent interconnectedness in humanity and society. To achieve this, our organization roots itself in radical inclusivity by empowering diverse artists and staff and offering every professional production at pay-what-you-can pricing. Oakland Theater Project began with 3 annual summer theater festivals featuring 14 plays in site-specific locations across the Bay Area. In 2016, Oakland Theater Project launched its first full mainstage season and has produced over 75 unique productions and is the only year-round professional theater company in Oakland, CA. On top of our bold theatrical productions, we produce workshops and readings, an independent artist series, and offer educational programs serving both adults and youth. Our workshops and readings provide opportunities to develop new plays and help to give vital advancement to new and emerging playwrights of color who have additional barriers to producing work. Lastly, when we offer training and development to low-income artists of color we also build professional pipeline opportunities by partnering with external organizations like Laney College and Oakland School for the Arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | WOMEN IN FILM | 4601 Wilshire Blvd Suite 305 , Los Angeles, 90010 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 935-2211 | 34th Congressional District of California | State Assembly (District 53) | State Senate (District 24) | With support from the California Arts Council, Women In Film will produce pipeline, advocacy, and public programs to advance the careers of women working in screen industries across all levels of experience. |
In 1973, Tichi Wilkerson Kassel of the Hollywood Reporter founded Women In Film in Los Angeles to create a powerful, creative community for women, forging a path where none had existed before. Today, when women make up only 22% of roles in production, WIF serves over 5,000 individuals annually through its fellowship programs, public arts and culture initiatives, and membership network. The WIF community are women artists across race, ability, financial status, and other socio-economic factors. Through its work, WIF supports artists, the creation of art, and contributes to a thriving diverse creative landscape in Los Angeles. WIF believes achieving equal cultural representation within our media narratives requires a representative number of skilled storytellers. To that end, WIF programming aims to address the gender disparity by amplifying the voices of talented underrepresented artists, while highlighting the obstacles they face in the field – ultimately, developing the emerging and mid-career creative workforce. Public and membership programming is an anchor to WIF’s mission, and centers around the brilliant work of legacy WIF collaborators, as well as its career programs alum and current fellows, through curated screening series, panel discussions, and craft developing workshops. The WIF Fellowships, the organization’s anchor career program, supports all creative and below-the-line positions in entertainment, providing specialized year-round mentorship for a new class of 54 fellows in eight different cohorts of artistic discipline annually. Program staff members program 8-12 bespoke events on artistic process and the business of art with over 15 professional mentors. With hundreds of fellowship program alumni securing positions in writers’ rooms or creating award-winning films, WIF has yielded a deep network of creativity that drives its mission forward. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | ICYOLA | 6820 S La Tijera Blvd Suite 106 , Los Angeles, 90045 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 788-4260 | California's 43rd congressional district | District 61 | District 35 | The Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles requests funding to sustain our mission of transforming young lives through music education. As the largest majority Black orchestra in the country, ICYOLA serves 150 inner-city youth through orchestra and education programs. CAC grant funds will support operational expenses including instructor salaries, instrument maintenance, venue rental, transportation, and administrative support. Founded in 2009, ICYOLA teaches orchestral literature while developing critical life skills including problem-solving, self-discipline, and academic excellence. Our programs prepare predominantly Black and Latino youth for advanced study and professional auditions, addressing diversity gaps in classical music.This funding enables ICYOLA to maintain programming, retain faculty, and provide barrier-free access to music education. Students perform in prestigious Los Angeles venues while developing skills and confidence for higher education and music careers, cultivating musical expression as personal development. |
ICYOLA offers five programs: the ICYOLA Orchestra Program; the ICYOLA Academy; the South Los Angeles Music Project; the Los Angeles Orchestra Fellowship; and the ICYOLA Drum Corps. Through the ICYOLA Orchestra Program, we present an annual Concert Season that features both the standard orchestral repertoire and contemporary music that resounds within the community that ICYOLA serves. Through the South Los Angeles Music Project, we offer introductory and diversionary music programs to young people who are at risk of entry into the juvenile justice system. Through the Los Angeles Orchestra Fellowship, we train emerging professionals to take and win auditions with American orchestras. The ICYOLA Drum Corps trains young musicians how to play drums and march in step. All ICYOLA programs instill the ancillary values of music into their members. Those values include self-respect, respect for others and property, chain of command, and the pursuit of excellence in all things. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | PLUS ME Project | 2519 W AVENUE 30 , LOS ANGELES, 90065-2148 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 441-6700 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | The PLUS ME Project will help youth affected by 2025 fires process their experiences by writing their stories, compile those stories, and publish a book that champions these students and adds their voices to the record of these historic events. |
Guest Speakers PLUS ME – bringing relatable role models into schools to share their stories with students |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,750.00 | Pony Box Dance | 3687 Hackett Avenue , Long Beach, 90808 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 256-0198 | California's 47th congressional district | District 70 | District 33 | With support from CAC, PBDT will provide therapeutic dance classes, at the Downtown Women’s Center, a shelter for unhoused, and GEMS Uncovered, a nonprofit serving individuals that have experienced trafficking. Choreographer/Childhood Abuse Survivor Jamie Carabetta will lead “my/story” workshops, reframing traumatic events through dance. |
1. Pony Box Dance Theatre, Professional Repertory Company 2. Best Foot Forward, Cultural Enrichment Program 3.The Dance Renewal Project |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Art in the Park | 5568 Via Marisol , Los Angeles, 90042 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 379-5718 | California's 34th congressional district | District 52 | District 26 | With CAC General Operating Support, Art in the Park Community Cultural Programs will invest in the labor of artists and teachers working directly with the public. We are focused on growing our capacity to provide accessible, equitable, and thoughtful arts programming that uplifts our community. By sustaining artist-led initiatives, increasing our hourly wages for community teachers, and raising artists’ project stipends, we will build a more sustainable practice that both deepens meaningful artistic engagement, and better serves the diverse populations we serve in North East Los Angeles. This investment in artists and community engagement is essential to maintaining a vibrant, resilient, and culturally rich environment where all individuals can access and participate in the arts. |
For more than 20 years, our artist-run, multi-generational community space has provided access to the arts in Northeast LA, serving as an incubator for diverse, grassroots public programming. Some of our core programs include Community Arts—an ongoing series of artist-led projects; our Artist-in-Residency program; Community Band; and Community Arts—a weekly all-ages band and arts workshop that happens on Saturdays outside in the park. We have ongoing music, art, and movement classes during the week and ongoing art exhibitions. We build opportunities alongside the people we serve, fostering the development of the artists, musicians, dancers, and cultural workers who drive our programs. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Berkeley Art Center | 1275 WALNUT ST , BERKELEY, 94709-1406 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 644-6893 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Berkeley Art Center will continue its three core programs: |
Berkeley Art Center is a hub for contemporary art and community building. By virtue of its location in an urban park, BAC emphasizes an approach to art and artists that values their work as an important part of daily life and a vital contribution to the good of the community. Its serene setting invites visitors to approach the gallery as a space of reflection and contemplation, while also forging a more intimate connection between artist and viewer. BAC is committed to making contemporary art by local artists approachable and accessible. It produces visual art exhibitions, artist talks, art-making workshops, performance and social practice projects, film and video screenings, symposia and other social gatherings throughout the year. Educational programs for teens connect art with activism, while professional development workshops for artists provide opportunities to build skills and networks to sustain their careers. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $11,100.00 | Valerie Troutt Projects | 1721 Broadway ste 200 , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 395-4842 | Because of Black Music IAM (BOBM) is a summer-long cultural sanctuary from Valerie Troutt Projects that responds to urgent community needs in Oakland’s Black music scene. Black musicians in the East Bay—especially womyn and non-binary artists—face systemic displacement, economic exclusion, and misogyny within the music industry. BOBM meets this need by creating free, intergenerational spaces where Black artists are celebrated, paid, and protected. From June to September 2026, four monthly events at Wyldflowr Arts will feature jam sessions, game nights, and a culminating poetry slam—spotlighting local Black artists and creating opportunities for young artists to be inspired and receive mentorship. CAC funds will support artist pay, event production, and community outreach. BOBM builds healing and belonging through music, offering cultural visibility and economic justice where it’s needed most. |
VTP’s events and productions are spaces where queer, transgender, and non-binary Black folks can have their authentic selves be seen and celebrated. By using the art of SongCare, VTP celebrates the connective power of music, live performance, and musical education – their ability to create intergenerational, cross-cultural connections and shared empathy and joy. The philosophy of SongCare is woven through all our programs including Because of Black Music, Find Your Light, MoonCandy Live House Music Ensemble, and the Valerie Troutt JazzSoul Project & Trio. VTP’s greatest recent accomplishments are the 2023 Because of Black Music IAM festival and our Find Your Light series. The Find Your Light series is a free musical program centering Black Womyn Artists and the need for an oasis where Black Womyn are centered and valued in real time. VTP leads groups of Black Womyn through Soulful uplifting songs, dance, and yoga movements encouraging Unity, Wholeness, Freedom, Justice and Love. Find Your Light encourages Black Womyn ourselves to create our own futures of Black Womyn-hood by developing new systems and frameworks to better support a healthier tomorrow. VTP has now hosted seven Find Your Light arts and cultural wellness events serving Black Womyn, ranging from an in person event held at Zoo Labs called Black Girl Church to a community SongCare gathering at Oakland’s Regina’s Door that took place before the pandemic. All seven of these events created intergenerational conversation and showcased a number of Black Womyn artists, craft persons, and community members. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | MOXIE Theatre | 6663 El Cajon Blvd Suite N , San Diego, 92115-2852 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 598-7620 | California's 51st Congressional District | District 79 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, MOXIE Theatre will present a Season of three fully staged productions and a New Works Festival, all featuring work written by women+ playwrights, at least 50% of which being people of color, that tell stories that defy stereotypes and amplify the voices of historically under-represented communities. MOXIE will also launch a new Heritage Month Series of one-day engagement events celebrating different cultural heritages through a variety of formats; and offer educational workshops in playwriting and devised theatre to middle and high-school students, with priority given to schools who serve marginalized populations, such as immigrant and justice-impacted youth. |
MOXIE Theatre presents to San Diego audiences a season of mainstage productions every year. Each show runs for approx. 5 weeks in their 99-seat theatre space located in the College Area of the city. All works produced by MOXIE are written by women+ identifying playwrights and directed by women+ directors. MOXIE Theatre is committed to providing career-launching professional opportunities to women+ artists. At least 50% of playwrights produced every year are people of color, as well as 50% of the artists hired each season on stage and behind the scenes. For every show, experts on the themes of the plays and community partners representative of the populations seen on stage are invited for pre or post-show conversations with the audience to offer additional insight. In addition to the mainstage season, MOXIE hosts a New Works Festival featuring the works of emerging women+ playwrights from around the country. MOXIE also partners with education organizations to offer classes/workshops, career development opportunities, and student matinees, particularly to students who are non-traditional, low income, and/or under-resourced. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Balboa Art Conservation Center | 1649 El Prado , SAN DIEGO, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 236-9702 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | The Balboa Art Conservation Center (BACC), California’s only publicly accessible nonprofit art conservation organization, submits this proposal in support of its mission to advance the study and preservation of cultural heritage for all communities. Funding will support BACC’s youth arts education programming. BACC is the only regional conservation center introducing art conservation as a field of study and career path to California youth. At the intersection of science, art, and technology, BACC engages youth through hands-on activities, lab tours, art imaging demos, and interactive learning experiences at schools, community fairs, and onsite visits. This proposal connects California-based indigenous artist collaborative, Meztli Project, with BACC conservators to enhance an existing science-based approach to youth arts education, highlighting indigenous knowledge and artistic practice with BACC’s work to democratize cultural heritage preservation practices. |
The Balboa Art Conservation Center works closely with museums, libraries, cultural centers, and historical societies to provide collections surveys, conservation treatment, and educational programs. While there are more than 36,000 museums and historic houses in the nation, only 1% have a conservator on site. The rest of these institutions must rely on outside sources, like BACC, for their conservation. We offer programs for museums and culture centers focused on collections care including Emergency Preparedness Workshops, Art and Cultural Heritage Object Clinics, and lectures on conservation and preservation at community colleges, universities, and museums. We also provide education and outreach programs about conservation to the community. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | San Francisco Mime Troupe | 855 TREAT AVE , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110-2723 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 285-1717 | CA-12 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from CAC, the San Francisco Mime Troupe (SFMT) will strengthen its organizational capacity to continue delivering bold, justice-driven theater and community engagement. Funds will support core staffing, collective artist stipends, and the delivery of our 2025–2026 programming, including our free summer touring shows, the winter production Red Carol, and the Youth Theater Project (YTP), a paid, after-school program for BIPOC youth in San Francisco public schools. Founded in 1959, SFMT is a democratically run collective that creates accessible, high-impact performances exploring working-class struggles and systemic injustice. CAC funding will help sustain our equity-focused operations, deepen community partnerships, and expand outreach to underserved audiences across the Bay Area. This support ensures we continue to reach thousands annually through free, inclusive, and transformative arts experiences rooted in cultural relevance and social change. |
Our core programs and services include our legendary live musical production, presented annually in Northern California public parks from Independence Day to Labor Day; the eight-week intensive Youth Theater Program, challenging hundreds of young people with playwriting and performance workshops; the Young California Writers Project, our partnership with Balboa High School that support writing and presentation skills. We also work in our community on projects like the restoration of Juana Alicia’s powerful mural Para Las Rosas. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirits (BAAITS) | 415 Valencia St , San Francisco, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (702) 481-2536 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | CAC Impact Project funds will support the 2026 Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirit (BAAITS) Powwow—the world’s largest public Two-Spirit Powwow and a cornerstone cultural event for Indigenous LGBTQIA+ communities. Held annually at the Fort Mason Pavilion in San Francisco, this free intertribal gathering brings together over 5,000 people for a day of traditional dance, music, ceremony, and celebration led by Two-Spirit and IndigeQueer artists and culture bearers. The Powwow honors ancestral traditions while creating space for contemporary cultural expression, community connection, and intergenerational healing. CAC support will help fund Powwow production, accessibility, and artist participation, ensuring this sacred space remains free and community-led. The event is the culmination of a week of arts and cultural programming produced by BAAITS that gathers and uplifts Two-Spirit people from across Turtle Island. |
BAAITS largest program is our annual Two-Spirit Powwow. At this Powwow all Two-Spirit identified Native American, American Indian, and T-SLGBTQI people and their allies get a chance to come together to celebrate culture, build community, and express themselves. The BAAITS Powwow was the world’s first public Two-Spirit Powwow and we are now the world’s largest. The BAAITs Two Spirit Powwow is modeled after a traditional Oklahoma style Powwow and is an intertribal event that also invites non-Native guests to experience Native cultures. On the day of and the months leading up to the event, we have contact with thousands of people who identify as Two-Spirit, American Indian, Indigenous and allies. We reach them, spread our mission, and gather people from all over the US and Canada to celebrate and heal. Powwow participants feel “ohno cochico”, community love or the way that one feels when they are amongst their tribe. It is a place where we can truly restore and reclaim the role of Two-Spirit people. We do this through cultural expression, getting back in touch with our culture, and ceremony. Our oldest program, the BAAITS Drum is an all-gender big drum group that meets once a month. BAAITS Drum participates in drumming and community events throughout the year, and drums at our annual Powwow. BAAITS organizes social gatherings, Two Spirit Artist & Cultural Bearer’s workshops and TS Talking Circles throughout the year and marches in the annual San Francisco Pride Parade. In addition to the social gatherings, BAAITS organizes and participates in panels, cultural and artistic performances, and offers classes and workshops leading up to our annual Powwow, such as bead working, regalia making, protocol, and cultural dances for American Indian and non-Two-Spirit allies. BAAITS also participates in national and international meetings with other Two-Spirit societies and Native American organizations. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | Invertigo Dance Theatre | 12405 Venice Blvd #316 , Los Angeles, 90066 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 229-2141 | California Assembly district 54 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, INVERTIGO DANCE THEATRE will produce The Shape of Us, a public dance and spoken word performance co-created with its Dancing Through Parkinson’s (DTP) community. DTP provides storytelling through movement classes to people with Parkinson’s and other neurodegenerative, mobility, or age-related conditions, with a focus on increasing flexibility, balance, stability, creativity and joy. The Shape of Us will uplift and center the experiences and artistic expression of people with Parkinson’s and will feature an intergenerational cast, with participation from local school-aged students as well as children and grandchildren of the performers. |
Invertigo’s core programming is focused on offering dance theatre as a catalyst for racial equity and public engagement with and between communities that are systemically marginalized and less resourced. All programs activate dance as a transformational mode of storytelling and community-building as part of a movement practice. Invertigo pursues its mission through its professional dance repertory and production company, and a series of community engagement programs, including Dancing Through Parkinson’s. In 2018, Invertigo was awarded the National Dance Project Production Award – one of the highest national honors in dance – for its new dance production, FORMULAE & FAIRY TALES, hailed as “dance theatre at its finest” by the LA Dance Chronicle and declared “a breakthrough show” by the LA Times. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | Unscripted Learning | 3717 INDIA ST , SAN DIEGO, 92103-3727 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 295-4999 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Unscripted Learning will use improvisational theatre to teach teamwork, creative expression, leadership, and problem-solving, while also bringing the theory and practice of improv to underserved communities. Our programs foster creativity and connection across generations and abilities, including seniors and youth on the autism spectrum. At a time when funding for the arts is being cut at local, state, and national levels, support from the CAC is more critical than ever. Without it, Unscripted Learning will be forced to reduce or end low-cost classes, cutting off access to a proven resource for youth with ASD and other underserved communities that thrive through creativity, connection, and the power of improv. |
Developed in conjunction with the National Comedy Theatre in 2017, Unscripted Learning uses improvisational theatre to teach the concepts of teamwork, leadership, and creative problem solving as well as teaching improv skills and theory. Programs include: Connections: An improvisational theatre program for teenagers and young adults on the autism spectrum. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,868.00 | Dell'Arte International | PO BOX 816 , BLUE LAKE, 95525-0816 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 668-5663 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council DELL-ARTE INC will continue a Healthcare Clowning Program piloted last year in Humboldt County, California. Dell’Arte’s goal is to return to the assisted living/memory care facilities at Timber Ridge (McKinleyville and Eureka) as well as grow its programming to St. Joe’s Hospital (Eureka), including pediatrics. Dell’Arte aims to begin collaborating with residents at Bayview Heights (Eureka), a veteran and formerly unhoused residence. This funding would cover initial meetings with service providers and a trial run of engagements in order to discover how best to serve the Bayview Heights community. Healthcare Clowning is not just entertainment, it offers connection, support and uplifts its participants. By listening, responding and following the lead of the participant, Healthcare Clowns support physical and mental wellbeing through play, humor and care. |
Dell’Arte sustains and produces a series of community based arts engagement programs through partnerships with local agencies and non-profit organizations. These engagements include our Healthcare Clowning program that partners with Timber Ridge retirement community and we partner with Blue Lake Elementary School to provide theatre space for their performances. Dell’Arte’s Arts in Corrections program at Pelican Bay continues working with the incarcerated and is in its 10th year. Participants at PBSP work in ensemble to explore the creative act of generating theatre through the study of storytelling, character, improvisation, and original play development. It is through this healing-centered facilitation that participants focus on self-awareness through a creative lens and body-based artistic exploration in writing, movement, performance, and collaboration. Dell’Arte continues to offer professional training in physical theatre and clowning to enhance the artists ability to relate to themselves and the world around them. The basis of the work is in daily training emphasizing the development of awareness through movement. We seek to develop an embodied actor who regards the space of the stage as a dynamic, poetic realm. We continue our advisory partnerships with the Wiyot, Yurok, and Hoopa Tribes to advance learning and cultural exchange programs and projects which aim to amplify and uplift Native and Indigenous stories, experiences, language, and knowledges of the land. Since 1990, we have produced the annual Mad River Festival, now named Baduwa’t Festival, in rural Blue Lake. Situated on the ancestral lands of the Wiyot Tribe, this five week festival offers a multitude of performances including an original Dell’Arte Company work in our amphitheater inspired by our region—which we call “theatre of place.” It also includes alumni performances, an experimental theatrical laboratory, a week of local music with the Humboldt Folklife Festival and more. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,750.00 | Nava Dance Theatre | 80 Turk Street , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (925) 457-1140 | 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Nava Dance Theatre will produce our fifth iteration of Unrehearsed: Artist Residency and Commissioning Program (URP) which uplifts and supports critical dialogue across South Asian traditional, contemporary, and experimental dance genres, while also confronting systemic structural prejudices in the Indian performing arts community. Through this program, we curate art-centered interactive work in progress showings, performances, and discussions to make dialogue around these issues more accessible. Unrehearsed will center in-person presentations in San Francisco, along with public workshops by the residents for community members/dancers and non-dancers. CAC funds will support three California based resident artists and their production expenses, project personnel and project venue costs for presenting their work in San Francisco. |
Nava Dance Theatre (NDT), led by Artistic Director Nadhi Thekkek, is a Bharatanatyam company using South Indian dance as a medium for reflection and discovery. We focus on two main programs: original dance works and our Unrehearsed: Artist Residency and Commissioning program. We also offer subsidized workshops, co-produce the Varnam Salon, and organize classes as part of our community engagement. Highlights include residencies at CounterPulse and A.C.T., two commissions from Oakland Ballet, and support from the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project. Our work has also been funded by the MAP Fund, National Endowment for the Arts, California Arts Council, San Francisco Arts Commission, and more. Since 2013, we’ve performed nationally at venues such as La Mama (NYC), National Steinbeck Center, SF Ethnic Dance Festival, Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, UC Davis Mondavi Center, and UMass Amherst Fine Arts Center. NDT creates immersive, community-centered performances rooted in South Asian storytelling through Bharatanatyam and experimental movement. Our blend of dance, music, and narrative reflects the lived experiences of Indian and South Asian communities. Drawing from oral histories and interviews, we explore themes like migration, identity, and justice. Through responsible, culturally responsive storytelling, we center underrepresented voices and invite audiences to reflect, connect, and take pride in our shared histories. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Nava Dance Theatre | 80 Turk Street , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (925) 457-1140 | 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Nava Dance Theatre will create and present new works exploring identity, labor, and healing in South Asian and diasporic communities—ensuring all participating artists are fairly compensated. |
Nava Dance Theatre (NDT), led by Artistic Director Nadhi Thekkek, is a Bharatanatyam company using South Indian dance as a medium for reflection and discovery. We focus on two main programs: original dance works and our Unrehearsed: Artist Residency and Commissioning program. We also offer subsidized workshops, co-produce the Varnam Salon, and organize classes as part of our community engagement. Highlights include residencies at CounterPulse and A.C.T., two commissions from Oakland Ballet, and support from the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project. Our work has also been funded by the MAP Fund, National Endowment for the Arts, California Arts Council, San Francisco Arts Commission, and more. Since 2013, we’ve performed nationally at venues such as La Mama (NYC), National Steinbeck Center, SF Ethnic Dance Festival, Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, UC Davis Mondavi Center, and UMass Amherst Fine Arts Center. NDT creates immersive, community-centered performances rooted in South Asian storytelling through Bharatanatyam and experimental movement. Our blend of dance, music, and narrative reflects the lived experiences of Indian and South Asian communities. Drawing from oral histories and interviews, we explore themes like migration, identity, and justice. Through responsible, culturally responsive storytelling, we center underrepresented voices and invite audiences to reflect, connect, and take pride in our shared histories. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,800.00 | GLAM INC | 3134 Madera Ave , LOS ANGELES, 90039 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 963-9418 | 37 | 54 | 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, GEORGIA LASTER ASSOCIATION OF MUSICIANS INC will enhance its core programs to promote, preserve, and support African American music and musicians in Southern California. Grant funds will expand our marketing program to raise money for our scholarship program, financial aid to youth for music education, including lessons and instruments. Performance opportunities through recitals, showcasing emerging and established artists while fostering cultural appreciation will increase. Additionally, funds will support community engagement by strengthening membership initiatives. These efforts will ensure access to high-quality music instruction and platforms for artistic expression, empowering young musicians and preserving African American musical heritage. G.L.A.M., Inc. will continue its 61-year legacy of impactful music education and cultural preservation. |
The Georgia Laster Association of Musicians, Inc. (G.L.A.M., Inc.), founded in 1961 in Los Angeles, California, is a chapter of the National Association of Negro Musicians, Inc. (NANM). Its core mission is to promote, preserve, and support African American music and musicians while fostering music education and performance opportunities, particularly for youth in Southern California. Core Programs and Services: Music Education and Scholarships: G.L.A.M., Inc. provides financial support and scholarships to thousands of students, enabling access to high-quality music instruction. These initiatives target young musicians, emphasizing the importance of music education to nurture talent and cultural appreciation. Performance Opportunities: The organization offers platforms for both emerging and established musicians to showcase their talents. Through concerts, recitals, and community events, G.L.A.M., Inc. creates spaces for members to perform, fostering artistic growth and public engagement with African American musical traditions. Community Engagement and Membership: G.L.A.M., Inc. welcomes musicians and music enthusiasts as members, offering voting rights at local, regional, and national levels within NANM. This inclusive membership model supports a community dedicated to music advocacy and cultural preservation. Cultural Preservation: Rooted in its affiliation with NANM, founded in 1919, G.L.A.M., Inc. upholds the legacy of African American music through events and programs that celebrate its historical and contemporary significance. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | Flockworks | 208 Dana St , Fort Bragg, 95437 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 813-4053 | California's 2nd congressional district | California State Assembly District 2 | California State Senate District 2 | Flockworks seeks support from the California Arts Council’s Impact Projects grant to expand inclusive, community-centered programming at the Cobalt Gallery in Fort Bragg, which Flockworks began managing in March 2025. The gallery is being transformed into a hub for creative engagement, cultural inclusion, and artistic visibility for underserved populations. Grant funds will support project costs including staffing, artist stipends, rent, workshop supplies, and utilities to carry out a year of exhibitions, hands-on workshops, and public events. Programming will prioritize Mendocino County’s rural population, where poverty rates exceed 20% and access to arts and enrichment opportunities is limited. Bilingual outreach, intergenerational classes, and a pay-what-you-can model ensure broad access regardless of income or background. By supporting local artists and fostering participation across ages and abilities, this project builds inclusion and cultural resilience along California’s North Coast. |
Flockworks delivers arts based programs that promote creativity, community engagement, and equitable access to the arts in underserved rural areas. In School Art Education: We partner with local school districts to provide hands on visual arts instruction during the school day, expanding arts access for all students. Kudos and ASSETs After School Programs: Through after school programs across Fort Bragg Unified School District, Flockworks has regular contact with more than 1,700 students and families. Programs operate across elementary, middle, and high school campuses, providing academic support and enrichment in arts, STEM, music, and wellness. Flockworks manages state and federal grants for these programs, and this reach gives the Cobalt Creativity Center a direct line to families when promoting workshops and open studio hours. Camp Flockworks: A full day summer program combining art, nature, and project based learning. Tuition is income based on a sliding scale tied to Federal Poverty Level guidelines, and roughly seventy five percent of campers receive tuition support through Flockworks fundraising. No family is turned away for inability to pay. Cobalt Creativity Center: Our downtown Fort Bragg hub houses a community gallery and a hands on makerspace. The gallery hosts monthly exhibitions and a two month no cost residency for Noyo High School student curated shows. The makerspace offers free open studio hours with dedicated blocks for teens, seniors, and the public. Programming includes Free Art @ the Cobalt (twenty free bilingual sessions a year), pay what you can workshops, teen peer led sessions, and inclusive work with MATCH Disability Services. Community Arts & Public Projects: Murals, community events, and bilingual programming tied to the Whale Festival, Kelp Fest, Fiesta Latina, and Día de Muertos. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Viet Voices | 3732 ARNOLD AVE APT C , SAN DIEGO, 92104-3689 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 519-5700 | 51 | 79 | 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Viet Voices will continue to strengthen our ongoing art program by curating and showcasing the work of Southeast Asian artists through quarterly exhibitions. CAC grant funds will be used to provide stipends to participating artists, cover exhibition costs (including venue rental, installation, and marketing), and support community engagement efforts. The program will offer a platform for artists to explore and express cultural narratives, amplify underrepresented voices, and foster meaningful dialogue between artists and the community. Funds will also be allocated for accessible programming, including language services and accommodations, ensuring that the exhibitions are inclusive to all community members. This support will allow Viet Voices to maintain and expand this vital program, further enriching the cultural landscape of our community. |
We center our work on arts and culture as a way to bring attention to multiple issues in our community. We provide public education to the community on various issues such as affordable housing access, tenant protections, economic stability and support for small businesses, education on environmental alternatives, food justice, LGBTQ+ issues, and health equity. We center our work on arts and culture as a way to bring attention to multiple issues in our community. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | Queer Cultural Center | 934 Brannan St , San Francisco, 94103-4906 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 821-8254 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | The Queer Cultural Center (QCC) will use CAC Impact Project funds to expand its LGBTQ+ Artist Development Pipeline—a community-rooted program designed to equip BIPOC LGBTQ+ artists with the skills, funding, and visibility needed to build sustainable cultural careers. This pipeline has two halves: Creating Queer Communities (CQC), which provides technical, creative, and vocational training plus financial support to 10–20 artists annually, and the National Queer Arts Festival (NQAF), a high-profile annual festival that showcases dozens of LGBTQ+ artists and projects each year. Accessible professional pathways for queer and trans artists (especially those who are BIPOC or otherwise additionally marginalized) are severely lacking, and this pipeline fills a critical gap. CAC funds will support artist stipends, training expenses, and production costs, ensuring California LGBTQ+ artists are well trained and deeply resourced to create vibrant arts careers. |
Since 1998, QCC has curated and produced 26 month-long National Queer Arts Festivals that have featured over 2500 LGBTQ2S+ artists in 1150+ different arts events. QCC’s arts services comprise artistic program planning, fiscal sponsorship, free/low-cost grant-proposal and report writing, marketing strategies, capacity-building workshops, and free/low-cost strategic/development planning services to emerging queer and trans arts organizations with a focus on organizations led by BIPOC, trans and gender non-conforming people, and lesbians, who are all marginalized in LGBTQ2S+ arts funding. To date, our arts services program has enabled over 46+ Bay Area LGBTQ2S+ arts organizations to raise over $8,600,000. QCC’s arts services support the next generation of emerging Queer and Trans artists to acquire the skills to develop, finance, and stage work addressing LGBTQ2S+ Civil rights and social justice issues. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,500.00 | Urban Jazz Dance Company | 1446 Market Street , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 575-9711 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Urban Jazz Dance Company will produce the 14th Annual Bay Area International Deaf Dance Festival (BAIDDF) in August 2026. BAIDDF is the first and only festival of its kind in the Bay Area, celebrating Deaf and Hard of Hearing (HoH) artists through dance, music, poetry, and education. The 2026 Festival will feature three performances, three workshops, and an Artist Q&A panel, reaching over 500 audience members and 300 students. CAC funds will support artist fees, access services including ASL interpretation and audio description, and administrative staffing. By centering Deaf leadership, artistry, and community, BAIDDF uplifts historically excluded artists and provides accessible, inclusive experiences that bridge Deaf, Disabled, and hearing communities through the power of performance and cultural connection. |
UJDC educates audiences about current events, empowering minorities, lack of early access to language for Deaf children and social justice. We provide educational workshops/performances at Deaf schools, mainstream programs, Universities, state colleges and seniors homes in the process, creating a healing space for many who have experienced domestic abuse. UJDC passionately visits over 70 schools per year, local to International, working with both hearing and Deaf people of all ages and abilities. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | Architecture + Advocacy | PO BOX 18205 , LOS ANGELES, 90018-0205 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (919) 937-0041 | With the support of the California Arts Council, Architecture + Advocacy will offer hands-on arts and design programming that empowers youth (aged 14-24) and their families in South LA to shape their neighborhoods through creative expression and civic action. By going beyond traditional in-class STEAM models, our work bridges the gap between art, architecture, and civic engagement, using the built environment as a canvas for cultural storytelling and community visioning. 200+ youth (ages 14-24) in South LA and their families will co-create in architecture workshops and community-led design-builds, held after school and on the weekends. |
Architecture Workshops: Hands-on educational workshops that equip residents (aged 8-19 in our youth workshops, and 20+ in our adult workshops) with fundamental architectural skills |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | Medical Clown Project | 5716 Skyview Pl. , El Sobrante, 94803 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 337-1564 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Medical Clown Project will hire specially-trained performers |
We bring our artists to several facilities on multiple days weekly. Each clown service is between 1-4 hours. Over 80% of the populations we serve are elder and memory care units, and/or communities. Other populations include patients and staff from pediatrics, ICU’s, emergency departments, and disaster relief zones. The Medical Clown Project’s annual impact is built from 12,000 direct interactions and interventions reaching patients, residents, family members, medical staff, and disaster victims. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | San Francisco Transgender Film Festival | P.O. Box 460670 , San Francisco, 94146 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (707) 563-1689 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF) will respond to this TIME OF EMERGENCY FOR TRANS COMMUNITIES by producing our 28th annual transgender film festival at the Roxie Theater in San Francisco. Our annual Festival will run November 13-16, 2025 with 5 in-person and 5 online programs. We will offer ASL interpretation at all of our in-person screenings, and all films (in-person AND online) will be open/close-captioned for Deaf and Hard-of-hearing audiences. All our programs and events will be offered at $0+ sliding scale, to maximize access since our communities experience economic marginalization, employment discrimination, and continued Bay Area gentrification and displacement. We build community by providing opportunities for TGNC artists and audiences, fighting for intersectional justice in media arts, and supporting trans filmmakers. |
As attacks on trans people’s very existence escalate, The San Francisco Transgender Film Festival (SFTFF) uplifts films celebrating trans ancestors, honoring contemporary leaders, and imagining our liberated futures. SFTFF programming and events are open to everyone. Access is central to our values: all programs are offered on a $0+ sliding scale with no one turned away for lack of funds; all in-person screenings feature ASL interpretation, and all content is captioned; we require/provide KN95 masks; and only choose mobility-accessible venues; Our annual film festival, panels and talkbacks take place in-person at the historic Roxie Theater, and online through on-demand, closed-captioned programs. Our DREAMCommission Program annually awards creation funds to Bay Area BIPOC Trans/GNC filmmakers to support the creation of their new work. We stay connected with these filmmakers, to support and screen their new works in the months and years that follow. SFTFF screens films that offer empowered visions for movement building and social justice, and prioritizes films by and about our community’s most underrepresented and marginalized people: BIPOC folks; trans immigrants; disabled and Deaf trans people; youth and elders. We support both emerging and established artists and prioritize grassroots, experimental, or DIY films, since these are the films often made by our community’s most under-resourced people. Unlike most film festivals, SFTFF only screen works directed by Trans/GNC filmmakers, and where Trans/GNC actors portray Trans/GNC characters, undermining the stereotypes that reinforce the dominant cisgender culture’s transphobia, racism, sexism, and homophobia. Throughout the year, SFTFF provides curatorial support and guest curation for Trans/GNC film programs across the US. SFTFF and its staff also mentor and support emerging Trans/GNC film festivals in cities across the US and countries all over the world. SFTFF also supports and co-presents other local Trans/GNC arts programming. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Fua Dia Kongo | 1428 Alice Street , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 629-9382 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | Fua Dia Kongo seeks General Operating Support to sustain year-round programming dedicated to the preservation and transmission of traditional Kongo dance, music, and song. CAC funds will support core operational costs, including artist compensation, cultural arts education for youth and families, community workshops, and the continuation of multigenerational programming that centers Black communities in Oakland and beyond. Funding will also help strengthen the organization’s capacity to host international artist residencies and cultural exchange initiatives that deepen ties between the Bay Area, the state of California and the Republic of Congo. |
MalongaFest, Community Dance & Drum Classes at the Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts, Embrace Kongo, Ballet Kizingu Youth Ensemble |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | "" | 1501 Martin Luther King Jr Way , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 646-1126 | District 12 | District 18 | District 7 | The Next Generation Program is a professional development program for fifteen disadvantaged young people in Oakland, aged 18-25. Through a constellation of learning experiences, the program is designed to foster practical life skills while increasing participants’ access to the arts, both as audience members and practitioners. The goal of NextGen is to: amplify young people’s belonging in the arts, stimulate personal creativity, develop an understanding of theater craft, and provide hands-on professional experience to bolster personal and career development. |
The Oakland Theater Project was founded in 2012 by Michael Socrates Moran, William Hodgson, and Colin Mandlin in Oakland, CA. Formerly named Ubuntu Theater Project, we were founded on the value of Ubuntu, which means “I am because we are” and therein “my humanity is tied to yours.” We seek to explore the ways in which theater can act as a vehicle to reveal and invigorate the latent interconnectedness in humanity and society. To achieve this, our organization roots itself in radical inclusivity by empowering diverse artists and staff and offering every professional production at pay-what-you-can pricing. Oakland Theater Project began with 3 annual summer theater festivals featuring 14 plays in site-specific locations across the Bay Area. In 2016, Oakland Theater Project launched its first full mainstage season and has produced over 75 unique productions and is the only year-round professional theater company in Oakland, CA. On top of our bold theatrical productions, we produce workshops and readings, an independent artist series, and offer educational programs serving both adults and youth. Our workshops and readings provide opportunities to develop new plays and help to give vital advancement to new and emerging playwrights of color who have additional barriers to producing work. Lastly, when we offer training and development to low-income artists of color we also build professional pipeline opportunities by partnering with external organizations like Laney College and Oakland School for the Arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $7,840.00 | SNS Choirs | 42473 Biscay St , Lancaster, 93536 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 974-6929 | With support from the California Arts Council, SNS Choirs will present a free choral concert series in 2025, serving audiences across the Antelope Valley. The series will include three unique performances, each curated to highlight a range of choral repertoire. All concerts will be performed by SNS Choirs’ intergenerational ensembles: The Sunday Night Singers and SNS Chorale, which include trained vocalists, high school students, and adult community members. CAC funds will support administrative costs, venue rentals, sheet music, newly commissioned choral work, marketing, and production expenses to ensure the events remain free and accessible. Concerts will be held in local venues, with outreach to schools, senior centers, and families. The series is expected to reach over 1,000 attendees, most from low to moderate-income households, increasing access to high-quality choral performance in an underserved region. |
Our flagship program is an ensemble, The Sunday Night Singers (SNS), which features 28-32 trained singers performing a wide range of music, from classical to contemporary. The Sunday Night Singers a smaller group, focuses on more intricate pieces, providing a high-quality musical experience. They also nationally and abroad. Our second ensemble is SNS Chorale, with 70 singers of all ages and musical backgrounds, from high school students to senior citizens. This diverse intergeneration ensemble reflects LA County’s vibrant musical community, bonded by a shared love for music and a commitment to inclusivity. Our educational programs include the High School Choral Scholars, which integrates high school students into SNS Chorale, allowing them to sing alongside experienced musicians. This program promotes skill development, community building, and musical understanding. The SNS Educator Network brings together public school choral and band directors, as well as music college professors, to share resources and ideas. They connect through two annual networking events. Our newest program, SNS Desert Youth Voices (DYV), addresses the shortage of choir opportunities in local middle schools. DYV offers free after-school choir sessions, integrating community-building activities and social-emotional learning. These sessions culminate in performances that showcase the students’ progress called The Music Exchange. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | Art With Elders | 375 Laguna Honda Blvd. P1162, San Francisco, 94116 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 215-3659 | California's 14th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | Art With Elders will: |
History: Fighting elder isolation since 1991, AWE has brought community to 12,500 older adults in 84 senior centers across every Bay Area county through free/low-cost fine arts classes. A dozen exhibits a year, seen by as many as 100,000 people, engage elder artists and audiences through the power of creativity, deepening connection between cultures and generations. AWE programs provide older adults from all walks of life with a vehicle for self-expression, social connection, and a presence in the community. Our Programs For trained, experienced artists, AWE workshops provide access to free work space and materials, and mentorship. For those with little visual art experience, classes provide a life-long learning opportunity and assist artistic development. Those with severe disabilities receive physical and cognitive benefits as well as the opportunity to create in adaptive ways, and every student gains a key opportunity for social interaction and connection. For in-person classes, Artist Instructors bring all materials to class, replenishing the stock as needed. For Zoom, AWE staff sends materials via mail and via home drop offs. Exhibitions – Each year, AWE produces a dozen exhibitions featuring 400-1000 elder artworks for up to 100,000+ viewers. Exhibitions are hosted by major Bay Area venues such as the De Young Museum, San Francisco City Hall, the San Francisco War Memorial, the UC San Francisco, and San Francisco International Airport. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | Art With Elders | 375 Laguna Honda Blvd. P1162, San Francisco, 94116 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 215-3659 | California's 14th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | Each year of the grant period, Art With Elders will: |
History: Fighting elder isolation since 1991, AWE has brought community to 12,500 older adults in 84 senior centers across every Bay Area county through free/low-cost fine arts classes. A dozen exhibits a year, seen by as many as 100,000 people, engage elder artists and audiences through the power of creativity, deepening connection between cultures and generations. AWE programs provide older adults from all walks of life with a vehicle for self-expression, social connection, and a presence in the community. Our Programs For trained, experienced artists, AWE workshops provide access to free work space and materials, and mentorship. For those with little visual art experience, classes provide a life-long learning opportunity and assist artistic development. Those with severe disabilities receive physical and cognitive benefits as well as the opportunity to create in adaptive ways, and every student gains a key opportunity for social interaction and connection. For in-person classes, Artist Instructors bring all materials to class, replenishing the stock as needed. For Zoom, AWE staff sends materials via mail and via home drop offs. Exhibitions – Each year, AWE produces a dozen exhibitions featuring 400-1000 elder artworks for up to 100,000+ viewers. Exhibitions are hosted by major Bay Area venues such as the De Young Museum, San Francisco City Hall, the San Francisco War Memorial, the UC San Francisco, and San Francisco International Airport. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,320.00 | Riverside Art Museum (RAM) | 3425 MISSION INN AVE , RIVERSIDE, 92501-3304 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 684-7111 | California's 39th congressional district | District 58 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, Riverside Art Museum will expand youth access and exposure to the work of local artists – keepers of our cultural heritage – who tell the stories, traditions and histories of the people and places of our region. In collaboration with local artists, RAM staff will develop hands-on art making lessons that will be piloted with high school students as part of their visit / tour of the museum. |
RAM’s two sites complement one another, often hosting exhibitions or events that create synergy between the spaces. Since opening The Cheech, RAM has welcomed over 300,000 guests to our dual sites, received well over 600 media mentions, mounted diverse and significant exhibitions, introduced over 90,000 students to Chicano art and artists via RAM’s school-based Art-to-Go programming, and engaged 22,000 K-12 and college students via Walk & Wonder museum tours. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | Highways Performance Space & Gallery | 1651 18TH ST , SANTA MONICA, 90404-3807 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 453-1755 | CD36 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Highways Performance Space will showcase the voices and visions of LGBTQIA+ artists at the 20th Behold! LGBTQIA+ Performance Festival, a two-week multidisciplinary series. The 2026 Festival will feature 12 events (performances, workshops, residencies, and community dialogues) that explore intersectional social justice issues through dance, theater, spoken word, and media art. Curated by a diverse team of LGBTQIA+ artists, the project will highlight a broad range of identities, disciplines, and lived experiences. Free components include master classes, artist talks, and a “no one turned away” ticket policy. CAC funds will support artist and curator compensation, production costs, and accessibility services. Behold! reflects Highways’ mission to support new work from underrepresented communities and foster cultural dialogue through art that challenges stereotypes, engages the public, and celebrates LGBTQIA+ life across generations. |
Highways presents over 100 annual performances by culturally diverse dramatic soloists, small theater groups, dance companies and spoken word artists. We also curate an average of 10 annual contemporary exhibitions exploring the boundaries between the performing and visual arts and sponsor residencies that provide emerging artists access to professionally directed training in the performing arts. Our presentations and promotional campaigns financially support hundreds of culturally diverse and cutting-edge artists and nurture their artistic development. To date, Highways has presented over 1000 original works, and has produced over 2400 different arts programs that have attracted over 285,000 people. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Highways Performance Space & Gallery | 1651 18TH ST , SANTA MONICA, 90404-3807 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 453-1755 | CD36 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Highways Performance Space will present innovative performance and visual artists, promote interaction among people of diverse cultural backgrounds, and engage artists and the communities they serve in cross-cultural dialogues about social, cultural and artistic issues. Highways presents compelling performing, media and visual arts programs that explore social justice, broaden public understanding of equity and diversity, and engage artists in critical dialogues with underrepresented communities of color and the LGBTQIA+ community. Funding will be used for salaries and health insurance for full-time staff positions including Executive Director, Artistic Director and Technical Director to ensure continuity of programs. |
Highways presents over 100 annual performances by culturally diverse dramatic soloists, small theater groups, dance companies and spoken word artists. We also curate an average of 10 annual contemporary exhibitions exploring the boundaries between the performing and visual arts and sponsor residencies that provide emerging artists access to professionally directed training in the performing arts. Our presentations and promotional campaigns financially support hundreds of culturally diverse and cutting-edge artists and nurture their artistic development. To date, Highways has presented over 1000 original works, and has produced over 2400 different arts programs that have attracted over 285,000 people. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Plaza de la Raza | 3540 N MISSION RD , LOS ANGELES, 90031-3135 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 223-2475 | 34th congressional district | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, PLAZA DE LA RAZA will present the Mariachi Juvenil Ensemble, a music education program serving approximately 50 local youth ages 13–21. Through rigorous training in Mariachi music and cultural education, students will develop academic, physical and cognitive skills while preparing for public performances. Participation requires discipline and dedicated practice, fostering leadership, community engagement and civic pride. As the jewel of Plaza’s School of Performing and Visual Arts, the ensemble provides a pathway for youth to engage their community through performance and artmaking, fostering leadership through the arts. |
Plaza de la Raza plays a vital role in the larger arts ecosystem of Los Angeles County and Southern California. The organization serves as a hub for artists, educators, and community members seeking to collaborate and develop innovative arts and cultural programming. With the center’s impressive collection of classes, workshops, performances and exhibitions, Plaza de la Raza is a unique experience that combines education and tradition. Plaza’s School of Performing and Visual Arts (SPVA) offers weekly after-school classes on a quarterly schedule to local children and youth in a variety of traditional and folk disciplines, at low or no cost. The center’s primary constituency is comprised of low-income families residing in the surrounding community of Lincoln Heights, East Los Angeles and welcomes 50,000 guests annually from throughout the region. Plaza’s student ensemble groups include a Student Folklorico and Youth Mariachi Ensemble led by local cultural bearers, masters in their field. Plaza’s student companies regularly perform at community-based venues and events throughout LA County as ambassadors of the arts and edify the success of SPVA training. Plaza’s presenting programs include past guests such as Los Lobos, Bela Lewitzki, Ozomatli and Culture Clash, art exhibitions including the first major Frida Kahlo show in 1987, and the highly popular Chicano Collection, presented by Cheech Marin. Plaza also hosts an energetic list of year-round programs anchored by four annual public festivals marking Mexica New Year, Día del Niño, Día de los Muertos and a year-end Holiday Celebration and Toy Drive. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Mariachi Women’s Foundation | 5280 E. Beverly Blvd. Unit C , LOS ANGELES, 90022 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (858) 847-5419 | 34th Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 52 | State Senate District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Mariachi Women’s Foundation will partner with LAUSD’s Beyond the Bell program to expand access to culturally relevant arts education for youth in seven East Los Angeles middle and high schools. Students will attend out-of-school mariachi workshops at Garfield High School, led by professional mariachi musicians. These workshops will offer youth meaningful opportunities to connect with their cultural heritage, build artistic skills, and develop confidence and creative voice. Participants will form a positive social network of like-minded peers and establish mentoring relationships with professional musicians. This program promotes lifelong engagement in the arts and fosters a deeper understanding of identity, history, and community through mariachi music. Youth will emerge as culturally literate, creative citizens with the tools to participate in and contribute to the arts. |
Core Programs and Services include: 1. MARIACHI MUSIC PERFORMANCE 2. MARIACHI MUSIC EDUCATION 3. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Napa Valley Youth Symphony | PO Box 6594 , Napa, 94581 | Napa | Bay Area – Other | (707) 320-7225 | 4th Congressional District | 4th District | 3rd District | With support from the California Arts Council, Napa Valley Youth Symphony will use general operating support to retain key administrative and artistic staff and expand program services for youth across Napa County. Grant funds will enable NVYS to strengthen its capacity to deliver high-quality music education, orchestral training, and performance experiences for students from diverse backgrounds. By investing in staff and core infrastructure, NVYS can enhance the consistency, impact, and reach of its programs, including its student coaching, mentorship, and community engagement initiatives. This support will also help sustain recent programmatic growth, such as the addition of the NOTES beginner program and expanded artistic leadership. CAC funding will play a critical role in helping NVYS fulfill its mission of empowering young musicians and building a more inclusive, connected, and culturally enriched community through music. |
The Napa Valley Youth Symphony (NVYS) offers a comprehensive music education program that supports student musicians from beginning to collegiate level. Serving over 100+ students ages 8–18 from 23 schools across the Napa Valley and nearby communities, NVYS provides a structured pathway through ensemble participation, professional coaching, and enrichment activities designed to foster musical and personal growth. Our programming begins with NOTES, an introductory group coaching program for beginner strings, brass, and woodwind players, focusing on basic technique and ensemble readiness. Students then progress to our Preparatory Strings & Woodwinds Ensembles, which support the development of musical literacy and group performance skills in a nurturing environment. Sinfonia, our entry-level full orchestra, offers an engaging opportunity for advanced beginners and intermediate players to refine their technical and ensemble skills through age-appropriate repertoire and guided collaboration. The Bridge ensemble helps intermediate students transition to the demands of advanced orchestral performance through focused coaching and challenging repertoire. At the highest level, the Youth Symphony performs collegiate-level works that cultivate advanced musicianship, leadership, and artistic expression. Advanced students also have the opportunity to participate in Chamber Ensembles for strings, brass, and woodwinds, where they explore intricate repertoire in small groups with individualized chamber coaching. From August through May, ensembles meet weekly for 2–3 hours of rehearsal, supplemented by twice-weekly group coaching sessions. Students benefit from sectional instruction with professional Bay Area musicians, a fall retreat at Camp Cazadero, and specialized summer chamber music camps. NVYS is committed to access and equity through robust tuition and private lesson scholarships, as well as mentorship programs that foster peer support. These programs work together to create a vibrant, inclusive community that empowers young musicians—regardless of background—to reach their full potential through music. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | LOCAL COLOR | 111 Timber Cove Dr , Campbell, 95008 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (760) 646-3181 | 19th Congressional district of California | District 27 | District 15 | With $25,000 support from the California Arts Council, Local Color will provide our free Color Me Rad program during spring and summer breaks for three cohorts of ten historically underserved 11-17-year-old students (30 total) who are considering professional careers in the arts. Led by professional teaching artists, students learn one medium (i.e. murals, screen printing, lithograph, etc.); create a completed artwork; learn how to market, showcase and price their artwork; receive professional development such as how to build a portfolio, write an artist statement, and create an online presence; practice being in the public eye by doing interviews, talking in front of a camera, and talking about themselves as artists and their artwork; receive a stipend to honor their artistic labor; and have opportunities to sell their artwork to the public. |
Public Art & Creative Services engages with artists for innovative projects with creative freedom and equitable pay to produce vibrant works representative of the unique perspectives in San José. The Creative Spaces program provides gallery and affordable workspaces for creatives, organizers, and groups. Local Commons (Fiscal Sponsorship) fosters sustainability for local artists & organizers by leveraging our 501.c.3. status to expand access to grant funding and other resources for self-directed creative projects. Arts Educations provides custom-designed art-making opportunities built to empower next-generation creative advocates on an off the campus. Creative Experiences connects Artists & Creatives to meaningful opportunities, contracting them to facilitate workshop activities for the local community. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | ART OF ÉLAN | 6165 Radcliffe Drive , San Diego, 92122 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 678-1709 | California's 51st congressional district | District 79 | District 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, Art of Elan will strengthen its organizational capacity to deliver inclusive, high-impact programming that builds community through music. Funding will support year-round operations, including staff compensation, program development, artist fees, and strategic partnerships that expand access to classical music across San Diego County. Art of Elan presents adventurous concerts in traditional and non-traditional spaces, commissions new works by diverse composers, and provides transformative education residencies, such as Young Artists in Harmony, for underrepresented youth. General operating funds will ensure the sustainability of these efforts, enabling Art of Elan to deepen relationships, amplify the voices of marginalized individuals, and model a more equitable and community-rooted vision of the arts. CAC support is essential to growing the organization’s reach and resilience in a rapidly changing cultural and funding landscape. |
Known for its collaborative spirit, Art of Elan has been pioneering unique events and bringing exciting classical music to diverse audiences for over 17 years through innovative partnerships and bi-national initiatives that have cultivated curious audiences on both sides of the border. Its consistent track record of sold-out performances stems from its commitment to commissioning new work, collaborating with world-class artists and composers, programming engaging and thought-provoking concerts, and expanding its impact in the region through thoughtful community engagement programs. By drawing inspiration from the word élan, which represents momentum, style, and spirit, Art of Elan continues to engage and energize audiences in new ways. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | TCAL | 36523 25TH ST E APT R48 , PALMDALE, 93550-5910 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 888-3856 | California’s 27th Congressional District | California State Assembly District 39 | California State Senate District 21 | The Community Action League (TCAL) seeks CAC General Operating Support to sustain and expand its Music & Youth Empowerment: Peer Advocacy & Substance Use Prevention program—an arts-based initiative serving low-income, justice-involved, and system-impacted youth in the Antelope Valley. This dynamic program blends music production, digital arts, and performance with peer advocacy, healing-centered engagement, and leadership development. CAC funding will support staffing, program delivery, and operational capacity to ensure consistent, culturally relevant access to creative expression and mentorship. Youth participants engage in DJing, songwriting, recording, and video production while building life skills and forming positive peer networks. This funding will help TCAL deepen its impact, retain experienced teaching artists, and expand outreach to underserved youth populations through the power of arts, culture, and community voice. |
The Community Action League (TCAL) empowers underrepresented individuals and families in the Antelope Valley through a comprehensive suite of programs that promote healing, self-sufficiency, and leadership development. Our core programs include the Music & Youth Empowerment initiative, which uses music, digital arts, and peer advocacy to help youth build resilience, leadership skills, and substance use awareness. We also offer Violence Prevention and Survivor Support services for victims of domestic violence, sex trafficking, and community violence, providing hardship assistance, trauma-informed support, and community education. Our Seniors First program reduces isolation among older adults by offering volunteer-based companionship, household assistance, and transportation services. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | PUSH | 447 Minna St, 3rd floor , San Francisco, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 547-9492 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, PUSH Dance Company intends to offer its wellness and health initiatives with a residency for teaching artists and culture bearers in the San Francisco Bay Area, fostering engagement with local dance community and broader audiences. This project will integrate physical and mental wellness practices with the expertise of cultural practitioners to benefit the surrounding community. The outcomes will include complimentary performance workshops culminating in outdoor public performances. |
COMPANY Founded in 2005 by Artistic Director Raissa Simpson, PUSH maintains a philosophy that bold movement and intellect can coexist. PUSH is best known for integrating cross-cultural issues and exploring dances that contextualize the African diaspora. FESTIVAL Since its inception, PUSHfestfest has presented works by distinct choreographers representing diverse genres of dance. PUSHfest is a cross-genre dance festival launched in 2014 by PUSH Dance Company. The Festival grew out of a critical need to provide a platform for dance to be appreciated as a diverse and culturally relevant entity within the San Francisco Bay Area. EDUCATION The Youth Company is a pre-professional training program for students pursuing advance technique and performance opportunities. The Youth Company provides added structure in the form of cultivating responsible and civic-minded individuals. The Company also hosts annual PUSHLab Performance Workshops, and educational component of PUSHfest. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Rainbow Labs | 1037 N GARDNER ST APT 1 , W HOLLYWOOD, 90046-6451 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 302-8293 | District 30 | District 51 | District 24 | Rainbow Labs seeks funding from the California Arts Council to support its 12-week Storytelling Lab, a visual arts and mentorship program for LGBTQIA+ youth in South Los Angeles. Youth ages 12–18 explore visual arts while developing self-expression and cultural identity through guided workshops led by LGBTQIA+ artist mentors. The program includes foundational visual arts training, individualized project development, two arts-based field trips, and culminates in a public youth-led art show at the DTLA Proud Art Gallery. CAC funds will directly support artist stipends, mentor compensation, art supplies, and field trip costs. All programming is free and accessible, with meals, materials, and transportation provided. |
Rainbow Labs empowers LGBTQIA+ youth across Los Angeles County through mentorship, creative programming, and community-based initiatives that center joy, identity, and leadership. Serving youth ages 12–18, the organization offers five core programs that foster personal growth, connection, and future success. The Storytelling Lab provides a safe, creative space for youth to explore identity and self-expression through arts, narrative, and mentorship, often enhanced by cultural field trips. The Innovation Lab connects youth with LGBTQIA+ mentors in STEM, offering hands-on experiences in areas like coding, robotics, and virtual reality, while showing how innovation and identity intersect. Sports Lab promotes wellness, teamwork, and resilience through inclusive, affirming athletic activities, including seasonal programs like Run Club and a Youth Softball League. Leadership Lab empowers youth to advise organizational programming, engage in service learning, and build leadership and advocacy skills, guided by regular mentorship and community engagement. Finally, One Bold Summer is a four-week immersive experience where youth rotate through the Labs, deepening their skills in creativity, leadership, and self-confidence, culminating in a youth-led celebration. Through all of these programs, Rainbow Labs cultivates the next generation of queer and trans leaders in a space where they are seen, supported, and celebrated. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | Community Roots Garden | 1801 JOLIET PL , OXNARD, 93030-3142 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 616-2326 | With the support from the California Arts Council, North Oxnard United Methodist Church’s ministry, Community Roots Garden will provide a community mural and cultural workshops. The mural will reflect the strong heritage the Oxnard community has and it will foster a stronger sense of belonging and identity. Along with our mural we will provide an accessible space, to celebrate diverse traditions, intergenerational learning, and skill building. The workshops will will range from storytelling to traditional practices. These workshops are valuable to community to preserve, retain, and remember cultural traditions and also raise awareness. Our mural and workshops will address vital needs for the community and will allow community members, including marginalized groups, to express their creativity, tell their stories, and highlight important social issues. |
We are an organic community garden located in Oxnard, Ca. We are deeply rooted in learning, knowledge sharing, growing and providing fresh wholesome foods in efforts to help co-create a healthier and ecologically sustainable food system in relation to the land and all its living creations. The harvest from this garden goes to volunteers, local food pantries, shelters and other outlets to help those in need. The garden also serves as an educational site where volunteers and visiting groups learn how to grow food sustainably through experiential learning. We are a BIPOC focused space that is constantly learning to create more inclusivity and ability in and within the garden/farm. Our Programs include: Educational programs for 2 and 3 hour visits include educational field trips for children and youth with hands on learning. Seasonal workshops lead by garden volunteers or local ”master gardeners”, gardeners, artists, chefs that are free and open to the community. Our volunteer chef program uses fresh produce from the garden to feed 10- 20 people every Saturday. Collaborating with Cal State Channel Islands, we facilitate service learning projects for more than 30 college students every semester. We also host week long summer camps with YMCA and the Abundant Table in the summer time amongst other community groups. |
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| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | $700,000.00 | Kala Art Institute | 1060 HEINZ AVE Kala Institute, BERKELEY, 94710-2719 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 841-7000 | California's 13th congressional district | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kala Institute will plan and implement the Individual Artist Fellowship program (Region 3). The scope of work includes developing grant guidelines, managing a competitive application, putting together panels and review process, and selecting Fellows, providing direct grant payments through an online grants management system to selected artists and cultural practitioners. In addition, Kala Institute will provide outreach, marketing, and info sessions and technical assistance to applications both in person and online throughout region 3 (Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, Napa, San Francisco, San Mateo, Santa Clara and Sonoma counties). Throughout the process, Kala will support for artists and culture bearers, engaging in outreach for geographic reach, convening fellows for networking and co-learning, and providing exhibition, performance and public program opportunities to raise visibility and highlight the work of Fellows. |
The heart of Kala’s mission is supporting artists and engaging the community. Kala’s artist residency program offers professional facilities to those working in and across printmaking and digital media, new media, public art, sculpture, installation, and performance. Kala’s artist residency program is known for the support it offers to artists, specialized resources spanning printmaking, photography, sculpture and media arts, points of contact with accessible staff, and the caliber of work artists are able to produce and share with the community while in residence. Kala’s artist residencies provide time, space, equipment, and a knowledgeable network of artists (175+ artists a year) to foster dialogue, risk-taking, creation of new work, and community building. Kala’s exhibitions and gallery, free and open to the public Tuesday-Saturday, provide a platform for innovative presentations of contemporary art and a forum for artists and the public – sparking conversations across views and timely topics. This complex web of timely topics includes racial and social justice, displacement, the environment, community wellness, and more. Kala hosts community events, film screenings, artist talks, and performances in the gallery too. Kala fosters a fresh approach to experimentation, as artists investigate the interface of digital work, work made by hand, and everything in between. A spirit of exchange and education is nurtured through all Kala’s programs. Kala offers quality arts education to the general public and local youth through its on-site art classes – after school studio art, teen studio workshops, family and community art-making sessions, summer art programs, field trips, and a robust Artists-in-Schools program, established in 1991, providing artist-led instruction to students in neighboring East Bay public schools. Providing multiple points of access to space and resources through artist residencies, exhibitions, and arts education is more important than ever as we fight for equitable engagement in the midst of these challenging times. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,500.00 | T3 TRIPLE THREAT | 3783 VILLA TER , SAN DIEGO, 92104-5923 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 892-6748 | 50TH CONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT | DISTRICT 78 | DISTRICT 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, T3 TRIPLE THREAT YOUTH MENTORS will expand access to free and low-cost performing arts programs for youth from historically marginalized communities across San Diego. Founded by a Black LGBTQ artist who grew up in poverty and foster care, T3 creates inclusive, trauma-informed spaces where young people can express themselves through voice, dance, and acting—regardless of income, identity, or ability. CAC funding will help T3 strengthen its teaching artist pipeline, deepen community partnerships, and build capacity around social-emotional learning, accessibility, and equity evaluation. Programs will be delivered in trusted public venues, including North Park Recreation Center, ALBA Community Day School, and local Title I schools. Through culturally relevant instruction, mentorship, and performance, T3 transforms the stage into a platform for healing, growth, and future opportunity. |
Our core programs and services include: Summer Camp: Year-round Camps: Adult Classes: Youth and Adult Cooking Classes: Our camps and classes contribute to building healthy, vital neighborhoods by removing barriers to accessing the arts, education, and mentoring opportunities. Enabling every child to participate regardless of ability to pay serves to benefit historically oppressed communities and the entire community as a whole. We use creative and performing arts to empower young people through performance. This has an ongoing and often transformative positive impact by aiding students in developing a valuable skill set that enables them to become successful community members. This then serves to uplift and empower their families and communities over time. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,800.00 | California Karen Youth Connection | 399 UCCELLO WAY , SACRAMENTO, 95835-2653 | Sacramento | Capital | (510) 434-6355 | 6th | 6 | 8 | California Karen Youth Connection respectfully seeks support from the California Arts Council to sustain general operations—including staff salaries, rent, and program materials—for our statewide Arts and Cultural Program. This program offers free, community-based instruction in Karen language, traditional dance, music, storytelling, and crafts. All offerings are bilingual (Karen and English), intergenerational, and led by community instructors and youth leaders. Funding from the California Arts Council will directly support salaries for staff and instructors, purchase of program materials, venue rentals, and community outreach. This investment will expand access to high-quality, culturally relevant arts experiences; strengthen intergenerational ties; and promote cultural equity and visibility for the Karen community within California’s vibrant arts ecosystem. It will also support healing, empowerment, and cultural preservation through youth-driven creative expression. |
The CKYC is dedicated to empowering both Karen and non-Karen youth and communities statewide through culturally informed leadership education, the arts, advocacy, and human services. With a 13-year track record of leadership, arts education, and community service, CKYC has supported the Karen American refugee and asylum population, as well as other vulnerable and underrepresented communities. We serve over 400 individuals annually across the Bay Area, Sacramento, Manteca, Kern County, and Southern California. Additionally, we collaborate with more than 10 partners to amplify our impact. We deliver four core programs: Arts and Cultural Program, Leadership Development Program, College and Career Mentorship Program, and Civic Engagement Program. These programs and services are critical to the success of our youth and a thriving community. By engaging in cultural practices, youth and the broader community gain not only a sense of pride in their Karen identity but also a deeper connection to their heritage and each other. The preservation of Karen traditions helps break the cycle of trauma and displacement, offering individuals a space to heal, connect, and thrive, furthermore, by passing down knowledge from one generation to the next. The CKYC ensures that these traditions evolve into sources of strength, collaboration, and opportunity for future generations. As youth develop leadership skills, they become ambassadors of their culture, promoting diversity and inclusion both within the Karen community and in society at large. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | ALAS | PO Box 961 , El Granada, 94018 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 243-1725 | 16th district | District 23 | 13 | Ayudando Latinos a Sonar proposes to develop a two-week cultural arts summer camp that offers children a comprehensive introduction to Mexican folk traditions through dance, music, and crafts. The camp will provide classes in Mexican folk dance, Mariachi music, and traditional Mexican crafts, giving participants a holistic and engaging cultural experience. CAC grant funds will be used to support teaching artist compensation, curriculum development, program coordination, and the purchase of necessary materials and instruments. This project will create an inclusive, culturally relevant learning environment that builds self-confidence, cultural pride, and artistic skills in youth. Through this summer camp, Ayudando Latinos a Sonar will celebrate the vibrant traditions of Mexican culture, foster artistic development, and strengthen community connections, ensuring that every child has the opportunity to engage with their heritage in meaningful and joyful ways. |
ALAS is a cultural arts program that is built on foundations of community, social justice, social work, education and the arts. We are the only Latino non profit and cultural arts program on the Coast. Ayudando Latinos A Soñar was born out of the need to create opportunities for our youth to engage in identity development, embrace cultural traditions, dance, sing and have opportunities to learn music and dream forward. ALAS’ work is centered on using the cultural arts as a foundation of entry point for our community. Our program focuses on but is not limited to working with Latino youth and their families living in our rural community.Teaching the rich traditions of Mexican Ballet Folklorico and the music of Mariachi to our youth, ALAS host weekly classes to engage the youth in the arts. With a commitment to growth and leadership of our youth in the arts, we perform regularly around the Bay Area at community events, schools, Universities and yearly performance events |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | non-profit | 2370 MARKET ST STE 103 #437 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94114-1697 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 651-2736 | District 12 | District 17 | District 11 | The American Indian Cultural Center of San Francisco (AICC) respectfully requests general operational support to fund staffing and programming that serve the Native American community in San Francisco and the greater Bay Area. AICC is dedicated to preserving and promoting Native American heritage through cultural arts programming, educational workshops, and community events. Support will ensure the continuation of vital services, including youth mentorship, traditional arts instruction, and intergenerational cultural exchange. Funding will directly sustain staff positions essential to program delivery and community engagement. AICC serves as a cultural anchor for urban Native peoples, fostering a sense of identity, belonging, and resilience. Operational support will strengthen AICC’s ability to meet growing community needs and to honor Indigenous cultures and traditions within a vibrant urban setting. |
The AICCSF strives to maintain, preserve and restore a permanent and prominent presence for the Bay Area American Indian inter-tribal community that continues to exist. Our vision is to create and provide a dynamic place of learning, culture and community to the citizens of the Bay Area to learn about American Indian heritage and culture and to enhance a sense of understanding about American Indians in the urban environment. AICCSF will demonstrate community health and wellness through kinship and spirituality by nurturing our connection to our knowledge keepers, oral traditions, tribal languages, and cultures, while encouraging fearless expression through theater arts, music, ceremonial events, media, writing, and film that will increase the visibility of American Indians in the greater Bay |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | Asociación Nacional de Grupos Folklóricos (ANGF) | 9202 North Jade Avenue , Fresno, 93720 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 970-6105 | With support from the California Arts Council, Asociación Nacional de Grupos Folklóricos (ANGF) will present our 2026 Conference and Festival in Los Angeles, California– a week-long gathering of hundreds of practitioners and students exploring the traditional indigenous and mestizo music, dance, and culture of Mexico and Latin America. |
The Asociación Nacional de Grupos Folklóricos (ANGF) is an organization dedicated to the research, preservation, presentation, and education of indigenous and mestizo culture as well as other related folklore within the realm of dance, music, and the visual arts. We formed 53 years ago as an international association to serve as a voice for the promotion and preservation of Mexican folklore traditions. We aim to actively pursue the research, education, and artistic representation of the rich dance, music, and folk art traditions of Mexico. We are here to serve our communities through our distinct culture, educational goals, and outreach endeavors. Our core programs and services include: Our annual conference, where hundreds of participants from all over the world gather to learn and exchange ideas about the rich cultural forms of Mexico and Central America; The 2026 ANGF conference will be held in Los Angeles, bringing thousands of attendees from across the US and Mexico to LA and generating significant revenue and cultural activity. Supporting numerous dance companies, including Los Danzantes de Aztlán, an acclaimed undergraduate dance company based at Fresno State University led by ANGF Vice-President Victor Torres Research, scholarship, advocacy around the cultural and health issues most important to our community. ANGF serves the regional, national, and international community of artists and scholars dedicated to the practice and preservation of the rich dance, music, and folk art traditions of Mexico. Our core audiences, participants, and collaborators come from the historically marginalized Latinx community in California and beyond, with a focus on Fresno/Central Valley, where our dance company Los Danzantes de Aztlán is based. This is a region characterized by high poverty levels, unemployment, and low educational achievement. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | TWOPOINT4 DANCE THEATRE | 731 Barrett Lake Road , WEST SACRAMENTO, 95605 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 541-0053 | With support from the California Arts Council, TwoPoint4 Dance Theatre will expand and enhance its acclaimed educational program, the TwoPoint4 Dance Experience, in Twin Rivers Unified School District (TRUSD) in Sacramento County. Building on a successful two-year collaboration that has reached over 2,200 5th-grade students annually, this project will increase in-person residencies, eliminate digital-only offerings, and significantly enhance the culminating student performance through improved production quality and ADA accessibility. Funding will also support the creation of new, high-quality educational and promotional videos to deepen program impact and share outcomes with the wider community. The program offers year-round, standards-aligned dance education focused on social-emotional learning, self-expression, and community engagement—all at no cost to schools or families. |
Connection lies at the heart of TwoPoint4 Dance Theatre. It unites our ensemble, strengthens bonds with our audience, and builds bridges with the broader community. Dance becomes our universal language, transcending cultural and linguistic barriers to create shared experiences of unity and understanding. Through performances and outreach initiatives, we foster emotional and intellectual connections that resonate deeply and promote a sense of belonging for all. Curiosity drives our creative spirit and fuels our exploration of artistic boundaries. It inspires us to embrace new forms of movement, challenge conventions, and take bold risks in our pursuit of innovation. By nurturing curiosity, we ignite artistic evolution and encourage our dancers and audiences alike to approach the world with open minds, discovering the beauty and infinite possibilities within the art of dance. With unrelenting creativity, dedication, and a steadfast commitment to diversity, accessibility, connection, and curiosity, TwoPoint4 Dance Theatre aspires to be a beacon of artistic excellence. We aim to ignite curiosity, transcend boundaries, and unite communities through the universal language of movement, creating lasting connections that enrich lives both locally and beyond. We support these through arts education, free community classes, and performances. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,750.00 | ArtyHood Foundation | 945 TARAVAL ST #1122 #7, SAN FRANCISCO, 94116 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 654-2717 | 11 | AD17 | SD11 | Artyhood Foundation will continue to produce a series of free, monthly outdoor art markets and pop-up events through the Castro Art Mart program, creating accessible platforms for LGBTQ+, BIPOC, immigrant, disabled, low-income, elder, and youth artists to showcase and sell their work. CAC grant funds will support artist stipends, low-cost vendor spaces, accessibility services, event production, youth engagement activities, and staffing for artist support, marketing, coordination, and onsite safety. Through these events, Artyhood will reduce financial and logistical barriers, provide economic opportunities for underrepresented artists, foster intergenerational engagement, and strengthen cultural visibility and community connection in San Francisco. |
ArtyHood Foundation is a community-centered arts organization that creates accessible public spaces where artists and communities can connect through culture, creativity, and shared experience. Through recurring art markets, performances, and cultural activations, ArtyHood Foundation supports LGBTQ+, BIPOC, immigrant, disabled, and emerging artists by creating opportunities for artistic visibility, economic participation, and community connection. Our programs strengthen neighborhood cultural identity while activating public space, supporting local artists and cultural workers, and contributing to a more inclusive and resilient creative economy. By centering accessibility, equity, and collaboration, ArtyHood Foundation works to sustain vibrant cultural communities where artists can remain visible, connected, and supported within San Francisco. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | BERKELEY SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA | 1919 Addison Street, Suite 201 , BERKELEY, 94704 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 841-2800 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Berkeley Symphony’s Music in the Schools program will provide high-quality arts education programming to 4700 Berkeley public school students. The program will serve K-12 students with over 200 in-class sessions, 100 rehearsals and prep sessions, and 21 in-school concerts, as well as opportunities to perform alongside the professional symphony and specialized support programs for BIPOC students. |
Symphonic and Chamber Music Concerts: four symphonic concerts and four chamber music concerts each year. Public Education Series in Partnership with the Berkeley Unified School District: Music in the Schools offers a total of 200 in-class sessions led by Berkeley Symphony (BSO) musicians and eleven “Meet the Symphony” concerts, one at each BUSD elementary school each year. Six “I’m a Performer!” concerts at BUSD elementary schools each Spring, providing young musicians opportunities to rehearse and perform alongside Berkeley Symphony musicians. All Music in the Schools programming is provided 100% free of charge for children and their families. Launched in 2022, the Music in the Schools program expanded to include an initiative titled “Elevate” which bridges the gap for BIPOC students at key transition points in BUSD instrumental music engagement: third grade, where students select their primary instrument, sixth grade, where students shift from music being required to being an elective, and twelfth grade, where students need guidance during the college application process. Also launched in 2022 was the Students at the Symphony program which provides K-12 students with free admission to all symphonic concerts, with $15 adult companion tickets. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,936.00 | Mon Petit Mojave | 55595 PUEBLO TRL , YUCCA VALLEY, 92284-7505 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (310) 866-8479 | The 2026 Sounds and Storytelling Drive-in Concert Series will produce eight free, culturally diverse performances in California’s rural Morongo Basin, where residents face barriers to accessing live, culturally relevant art. Over 80% of the shows will feature local and regional artists who identify as Black, Indigenous, People of Color, LGBTQ, or disabled. Artists will share their musical journey and background through oral storytelling and live musical performance. The series will also include accompanying live painting or dance, spotlighting diverse artistic expressions. Space for local vendors and culturally specific food pop-ups will provide economic opportunities for local entrepreneurs and community engagement. CAC funds will support artist fees, production costs, and accessibility infrastructure to ensure all residents, regardless of ability or income, can participate in meaningful cultural experiences that reflect and uplift the region’s heritage and voices. |
Community Drive-in Concert series: We began our drive-in concerts as a safe way to gather and listen to live music during the 2020 Pandemic. Guests were able to attend a free show and listen from inside or outside their vehicles, as we had a stage set up while also streamed the event through the radio and social media. As the pandemic eased, the community asked for continuation of these shows because they enjoyed the diverse programming, as well as the unique nature of a drive-in theater. Persons with disabilities can be seated closer or further away from the stage depending on their needs. Immunocompromised individuals can sit farther away in their cars and enjoy a show without worry, yet still feel in community. Families who cannot normally afford multiple tickets to attend concerts can bring their entire family to a show to experience live music without financial constraints. All of the shows are set in a beautiful outdoor setting that promotes healing and community cohesion. Pop-up series: This program intends to meet our communities where they are by “popping up” and bringing culturally rich shows to various locations. Examples include a pop up at Morongo Valley Elementary School, where we hosted a concert that showcased various instruments, their history, and sounds to schoolchildren. Another example is a pop up concert at High Desert Continuing Care, for elder individuals who cannot leave their care center. Finally, “Mon Petit Salon” is our partnership with the Palm Springs Cultural Center (a 501©3 non-profit), where we host a weekly “salon” in Palm Springs to bring culturally-diverse music to the local community. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Amplify Arts Project | 100 Miramar Ave , Santa Barbara, 93108 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 861-8128 | California's 24th congressional district | District 37 | District 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, Girls Rock SB (now known as Amplify Arts Project) will sustain and enrich its organizational operations in service of its mission: to empower girls through music education, the creative arts, community, and positive mentorship. Across all programs, Amplify Arts Project focuses on building safe spaces for participants to be seen and feel connected, as well as serving as an entry point for those who wish to contribute to the arts ecosystem. Amplify Arts Project will continue to prioritize providing our services to historically under-resourced communities who have otherwise not received opportunities to exercise an authentic voice or realize their full potential as artists and community leaders. |
Amplify’s current programs and services include: Amplify Summer Camp: Offering both day camp and sleep-away options, our award-winning immersive summer program provides instruction in music, creative arts, and cultural expression. Through a lens of mentorship, empowerment, and leadership development, this program allows campers to enroll in immersives that include Rock Band Intensive, Bass, Drums, Guitar, Keys, Vocals, Musical Theater, Music Production, Music Video Making, Hip Hop Dance, and Photography. In Summer 2024 we hosted 256 campers. Syryn Records: Amplify’s hybrid virtual/in-person youth-run record label and internship program offers young women a safe and empowering entryway into the music industry. Collectively, each cohort of interns focuses on female teenagers/young adult artists signed to their label. Interns shepherd signed musicians through managing the release and promotion of artists’ work, overseen by program mentors who are music business professionals and educators. Our 2024 program included 54 interns and 9 signed artists. Rural Teaching Artists Residencies: Amplify is committed to bringing diverse artist educators into communities most devoid of arts opportunities. In 2024, we provided a three-week artist residency in New Cuyama, a rural community where 80% of students identify as a minority and 58% are economically disadvantaged. Amplify Weekend: Our annual youth mental health creative arts retreats take place in Ojai, CA for 6th–12th graders. This phone/device-free weekend engages participants in a range of activities themed around mental health through a music and creative arts lens. In 2024, we hosted 84 youth. Instrument Lending Library: The only instrument lending library of its kind on the Central Coast, this free program in partnership with the Santa Barbara Public Library allows any resident to check out musical instruments, including guitars, ukuleles, drums, amps, and more. Launched in 2019, this initiative has resulted in check-outs of 280+ instruments. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Amplify Arts Project | 100 Miramar Ave , Santa Barbara, 93108 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 861-8128 | California's 24th congressional district | District 37 | District 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, GIRLS ROCK SB (now known as Amplify Art Project) will implement the Cuyama Valley Teaching Artist Residency, serving 200 K-12 students in the rural, under-resourced Cuyama Joint Unified School District (CJUSD), where access to arts education is virtually nonexistent. Amplify’s immersive program model reduces economic, geographic, and linguistic barriers to participation by offering three weeks of fully subsidized arts learning, led by teaching artists who live in the community and deliver 100+ hours of music, multimedia, and creative arts instruction. This year’s artist in residence, Al Oard, will guide students through hands-on sound experimentation, music production, and creative design building their own microphones. Students participate during school hours, after-school workshops, open studio time, and community events – culminating in a free public showcase celebrating youth voice and creativity. |
Amplify’s current programs and services include: Amplify Summer Camp: Offering both day camp and sleep-away options, our award-winning immersive summer program provides instruction in music, creative arts, and cultural expression. Through a lens of mentorship, empowerment, and leadership development, this program allows campers to enroll in immersives that include Rock Band Intensive, Bass, Drums, Guitar, Keys, Vocals, Musical Theater, Music Production, Music Video Making, Hip Hop Dance, and Photography. In Summer 2024 we hosted 256 campers. Syryn Records: Amplify’s hybrid virtual/in-person youth-run record label and internship program offers young women a safe and empowering entryway into the music industry. Collectively, each cohort of interns focuses on female teenagers/young adult artists signed to their label. Interns shepherd signed musicians through managing the release and promotion of artists’ work, overseen by program mentors who are music business professionals and educators. Our 2024 program included 54 interns and 9 signed artists. Rural Teaching Artists Residencies: Amplify is committed to bringing diverse artist educators into communities most devoid of arts opportunities. In 2024, we provided a three-week artist residency in New Cuyama, a rural community where 80% of students identify as a minority and 58% are economically disadvantaged. Amplify Weekend: Our annual youth mental health creative arts retreats take place in Ojai, CA for 6th–12th graders. This phone/device-free weekend engages participants in a range of activities themed around mental health through a music and creative arts lens. In 2024, we hosted 84 youth. Instrument Lending Library: The only instrument lending library of its kind on the Central Coast, this free program in partnership with the Santa Barbara Public Library allows any resident to check out musical instruments, including guitars, ukuleles, drums, amps, and more. Launched in 2019, this initiative has resulted in check-outs of 280+ instruments. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | TeAda Productions | 6071 Comey Ave , Los Angeles, 90034-2203 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 998-8765 | California's 37th congressional district | 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, TeAda Productions will utilize these funds to support the retention of current staff which has grown over the last two years thanks to an increase in funding over the pandemic. As a result TeAda has successfully increased engagement and participation of artists, women, immigrants, refugees, indigenous, asylees, and queer communities. TeAda needs to provide competitive salaries while the cost of living continues to rise. As of June 2025, TeAda has already been forced to downsize from a 5 person staff to the current 4 person staff due to the national shift in funding priorities both in government and foundations. Currently TeAda’s staff is comprised of immigrants, women, queer folks, and individuals from a working class background spanning three decades which reflects the community that we serve in California. |
Theater for Asylum Seekers, developed in partnership with Program for Torture Victims in 2018, engages recently arrived immigrants, refugees, and asylum seekers in storytelling and performance art to aid in the healing their trauma from persecution in their homeland and the decision to flee. Our sanctuary space has welcomed participants from Cameroon, Afghanistan, Ukraine, Guatemala, and beyond, reaching approximately 20 participants and 500 audience members annually. Creative Healing Lab combines arts and healing practices through bi-monthly workshops in Los Angeles County led by artists, healing practitioners, and social service professionals responding to rising anti-immigrant and anti-artist sentiment. Launched in 2025, the program served approximately 175 people in its inaugural year. Pasifika Artists Exchange is an emerging mentorship and artist development program connecting Hawaiʻi-based Pasifika teaching artists with diasporic Pacific Islanders in Los Angeles through master classes, devised theater, and public performances that strengthen artistic skills, cultural connection, and civic engagement. Together, we explore critical issues impacting Pasifika communities through storytelling and devised theater to foster community, build artistic skills and civic engagement, and amplify Pasifika voices across oceans and borders. TeAda also tours professional productions nationally and internationally. Nothing Micro About Micronesia, a coming-of-age play exploring migration, assimilation, and cultural reclamation, has reached more than 9,000 people through 80+ performances and workshops across Hawaiʻi, Guam, and the Northern Marianas since premiering at Honolulu Theatre for Youth in 2024. In 2026, TeAda Productions became a National Performance Network Partner, launching our LA-based presenting program and contributing to national arts dialogues through CAATA, Greater Los Angeles Artistic Directors of Color Alliance, and Theatre Communications Group. TeAda’s work has been supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, MAP Fund, and New England Foundation for the Arts, and recognized through initiatives including America’s Cultural Treasures and the Lee Melville Award from Playwrights’ Arena. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Alyse Marie Presents | 4573 Don Miguel Drive , Los Angeles, 90008 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (678) 847-8280 | “With support from the California Arts Council, Alyse Marie Presents will support Echoes of Us, a multimedia arts project that brings together Black artists to co-create original short films and music rooted in their lived experiences. Through workshops, story circles, and public showcases, the project fosters intergenerational healing and cultural expression. CAC grant funds will support artist stipends, community engagement, accessibility services, production equipment, and public events—ensuring equitable access, professional-quality outcomes, and meaningful impact within historically under-resourced Black communities. |
AMP aims to recruit and mentor a new generation who represents the world because, for us, inclusion is a strategic imperative. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,600.00 | Better Youth | 1465 Tamarind Avenue, Suite #216 , Los Angeles, 90028 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 377-7756 | California's 30th congressional district | District 51 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Better Youth will enhance our human resources infrastructure and provide equitable staff benefits, including a new HR platform, 401 (k) implementation, and trauma-informed leadership training. These investments directly support our mission of building life-affirming career pathways in the arts for foster and system-impacted youth by modeling best practices within our own organization. By strengthening our internal capacity, we will improve delivery of our arts and cultural programs—AIM-N-Inspire, Real to Reel Global film platform, and our Registered Apprenticeship Program—which serve youth from historically and systemically underserved communities in South Los Angeles. This support furthers California’s cultural vitality by enabling us to sustain a diverse arts workforce and infrastructure while providing transformative creative expression opportunities that cultivate a better California for all. |
Better Youth serves vulnerable youth,, particularly foster and system-impacted youth, such as foster or former foster youth, and unhoused individuals from underserved and historically marginalized communities. Many of these youth do not have regular access to technology, with up to 84% of households not owning a computer. We bridge the digital disparity gap and provide equitable access to professional creative disciplines and careers. The youth we serve are all interested in the creative industry in some way, such as Film & TV, animation, and digital editing. We provide industry knowledge, training, mentorship, supportive resources, and career connections to aid their development through earn and learn state registered pre-aapprenticeship and state and federally registered apprenticeship programs. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | Diversionary Theatre Productions Inc. | 4545 Park Blvd , San Diego, 92116-2668 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 220-6830 | California's 50th congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, DIVERSIONARY THEATRE PRODUCTIONS, INC. will continue its mission to provide an inspiring, inclusive, and empowering space for community to celebrate and explore complex, provocative, and diverse LGBTQIA+ stories which contribute to the larger cultural discussion. We will do this in FY26, during our 40th Anniversary Season, through our Performing Arts Programs, including our mainstage season of LGBTQIA+ plays and musicals, as well as through our robust roster of vital, free Arts Education and Community Engagement Programs for at-risk LGBTQIA+ youth and seniors across San Diego County. |
Diversionary Theatre produces plays and musicals and develops new works that explore the issues, characters, and stories of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual (LGBTQIA+) community in all its complexity and diversity. By exploring stories of what sets our culture and history apart, as well as stories that focus on LGBTQIA+ people’s humanity rather than their sexuality, we are in a unique position in which we can help bridge the gaps of cultural understanding. Diversionary specializes in uncovering new work by emerging LGBTQIA+ writers, developing their work, and producing World, West Coast, and San Diego Premiere productions on our Mainstage that are subsequently produced on stages across the country and around the world. Additionally, Diversionary offers a total of nine Arts Education programs serving the entire range of San Diego’s population from Elementary School students to Senior Citizens. All of our Arts Education programs are offered 100% free of charge for our community. Activities are integrated throughout Diversionary’s mainstage productions, providing stand-alone programming in our historic site in University Heights, and in classrooms at participating schools, serving thousands of young people and senior citizens across San Diego County. Diversionary is proud of the reputation that we have established by producing quality Mainstage productions and hundreds of other arts events in our Clark Cabaret throughout the year, nurturing new works of LGBTQIA+ theatre, providing a home to some of San Diego’s most talented established and up-and-coming artists, regularly collaborating with local arts and LGBTQIA+ organizations, providing contextualization to and fostering conversations sparked by our productions, and involving the wider community in our mission. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Bay Area Book Festival | 1569 SOLANO AVE PMB 635 , BERKELEY, 94707-2116 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 239-1652 | 13th | 15th | 9th | The Bay Area Book Festival (BABF) will use California Arts Council funds to support general operating needs that ensure organizational sustainability and deepen our impact as a year-round cultural institution. This includes hiring permanent staff, securing a physical office headquarters in Berkeley (that we can do smaller and more regular programming out of), and expanding programs beyond the spring festival. Support will help BABF strengthen free and accessible literary programming that centers historically marginalized voices—including BIPOC, Indigenous, LGBTQIA+, and multiracial communities—through new and existing initiatives. These include our annual festival, two semester-long youth writing projects, the Merritt Dialogue Speaker Series, and three new Affinity Lit Collectives that foster identity-based literary community and dialogue. Funding will also bolster accessibility services, fair artist compensation, and culturally responsive outreach across the Bay Area. |
We create relevant, thoughtful programming presented at our annual, inclusive weekend literary festival and through year-round events. The Festival features dozens of keynotes, interviews, panels, and performances by hundreds of notable writers across genres and backgrounds, plus a robust, free outdoor fair with hundreds of literary exhibitors and free children’s activities. We prioritize international, diverse, and emerging voices—presenting them alongside high-profile names to amplify their work. Our offerings also include Family Day and Writers’ Day, two cornerstone Festival programs that serve children, families, and aspiring writers of all ages. Year-round, we host community-driven events through our new Affinity Lit Collectives (LGBTQIA+, Mixed Race, and Women Lit) and the Merritt Dialogue Series, a civic conversation series addressing justice and democracy. We also run two free, semester-long creative writing workshops for youth: one for Native youth in partnership with the Federated Indians of Graton Rancheria, and one for Black girls ages 12–18 in collaboration with Cinnamongirl Inc. Both feature paid, BIPOC guest authors as mentors and culminate in published anthologies and youth performances on our Young Readers Stage. All outdoor events and youth workshops are 100% free, and most adult literary events are also free or affordably priced to maximize accessibility. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Maraya Performing Arts Collective | 861 Harold Place Suite #208 , Chula Vista, 91914 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 804-1103 | 53rd District | District 79 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Maraya Performing Arts Collective will produce and tour “Bayanihan: For Life, For Blood” a dance theatre performance and civic engagement project addressing the need for ethnically diverse blood donors. CAC funds will support artist compensation for Filipinx artists and creatives, production costs including choreography, technical production, dramaturgy, and community engagement workshops that inform the performance’s narrative. The project will activate parks, cultural hubs, schools, and public spaces. Each performance will be paired with an on-site blood drive in partnership with the San Diego Blood Bank. CAC funding will help transform community spaces into sites of cultural healing, civic action, and collective storytelling, led by and for historically underrepresented communities that include Filipino elders and youth with special needs. |
Maraya Performing Arts (MARAYA) is a socially-engaged performing arts center in Chula Vista, California designed around core principles of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging. Maraya Performing Arts Center is a creative safe-haven, educational and artistic hub for dancers, actors, musicians and creators; students and teachers; and multigenerational audiences in South Bay San Diego and beyond. OUR SERVICES INCLUDE: Triple Threat Training in Singing, Dancing, and Acting for Youth and Adults, Youth Theatre Musical Productions, Adaptive Classes and Shows for Youth with Special Needs, Original Dance Theatre Community Based Shows/Productions, and Professional Development and Career Coaching for Emerging Artists and Nonprofit Arts Leaders. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,600.00 | Maraya Performing Arts Collective | 861 Harold Place Suite #208 , Chula Vista, 91914 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 804-1103 | 53rd District | District 79 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Maraya Performing Arts Collective will strengthen its organizational infrastructure by building staff and board capacity in resource development and fundraising. As a small but growing arts organization serving historically under-resourced communities in South Bay San Diego, we currently rely on short-term consultants and volunteers to manage critical administrative and development functions. CAC funding will allow us to hire part-time staff to support donor cultivation, grant tracking, and outreach. Additionally, we will invest in board recruitment and development to expand and strengthen our Board of Directors, prioritizing individuals with expertise in fundraising, finance, and community engagement. These investments are essential to sustaining our culturally responsive programming and expanding access to the arts youth, families, and intergenerational participants of all ages and abilites. |
Maraya Performing Arts (MARAYA) is a socially-engaged performing arts center in Chula Vista, California designed around core principles of Diversity, Equity, Inclusion and Belonging. Maraya Performing Arts Center is a creative safe-haven, educational and artistic hub for dancers, actors, musicians and creators; students and teachers; and multigenerational audiences in South Bay San Diego and beyond. OUR SERVICES INCLUDE: Triple Threat Training in Singing, Dancing, and Acting for Youth and Adults, Youth Theatre Musical Productions, Adaptive Classes and Shows for Youth with Special Needs, Original Dance Theatre Community Based Shows/Productions, and Professional Development and Career Coaching for Emerging Artists and Nonprofit Arts Leaders. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | Lynda Fairly Carpinteria Arts Center | 865 LINDEN AVE , CARPINTERIA, 93013-2042 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 684-7789 | California's 24th congressional district | District 37 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Carpinteria Arts Center (Arts Center) will continue to provide inclusive comprehensive arts programming on site and in the community, as well as outreach to and involve our local community to create a vibrant community through the arts. Grant funds will be used to support general operating expenses such as salaries and benefits, utilities, supplies, and insurance. These funds are critical to maintain our free, accessible, intergenerational, culturally relevant, and diverse programming aimed at providing arts education, unique and tailored arts activities and groups for children and youth, seniors, persons with physical and cognitive disabilities, and engaging community members of all ages, and socio-economic and cultural backgrounds to connect them to the arts. |
The Carpinteria Arts Center offers a variety of arts programming for all ages, including gallery exhibits with community art submissions, as well as classes in drawing, painting, jewelry, instrumental and vocal music, film, poetry and photography. We offer free concerts, museum and private collection tours, tours of art in public places, and more. Without a Community Center in Carpinteria, we have rapidly become a gathering place for our community. We believe the arts present a unique opportunity for people to come together and it is our goal to be a unifying force in our community as well as a place for healing. Our gallery is staffed each day by volunteers, and with over 100 active volunteers, much of our work is facilitated by the support of volunteers. We support our local and regional artists with regular juried exhibitions in our gallery and free public art receptions and artists talks. Our youth programs include after-school programs and an 8-week summer camp which each offer visual arts in the morning and music, theater or S.T.E.A.M. (Science, Technology, Engineering, Art & Math) in the afternoon. Teens are involved both as volunteer assistants with our youth programs as well as participants in our annual Teen Mural project. We also have a program called Bellas Artes that takes free arts and cultural workshops to the under resourced members of our community on a weekly basis. Our small staff of 3 full-time and 3 part-time employees is led by a 13-member volunteer board of directors. 4 of our staff members speak Spanish, which enables us to successfully reach under-served populations in our community. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Lyrical Opposition | 132 Visitacion Avenue , Brisbane, 94005 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (424) 260-3650 | 15th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Lyrical Opposition will fuse poetry and choreography in a short film about the generational trauma faced by young BIPOC boys growing up in 1990s East Palo Alto. Collaborative partners Antonio Lopez, 2025 Poet Laureate of San Mateo County, and Nathan Cottam, director of Mannakin Theater & Dance will work with Lyrical Opposition to transform Antonio’s book “The Right to Remain Violets” into a short film that draws from Lopez’s award-winning poetry to interrogate what voice and body can express together that neither can alone. CAC funds will support production, post-production, and screenings in jails, reentry spaces, and local venues. This project uses arts as a tool for healing, cultural memory, and narrative power, including facilitated dialogues by system-impacted individuals—offering testimony and movement as vehicles for justice, imagination, and repair. |
Lyrical Opposition develops lyrical artists, activists and educators through personal and professional development. Lyrical Opposition also partners with communities of color in order to curate events centered around joy, liberation, and healing. Lyrical Originals are curated artistic spaces, where Lyrical Opposition organizes events and platforms where artists, musicians, poets, and filmmakers can showcase their work and share messages of hope, empowerment, and social justice. These events are often admission-free, making them accessible to a wider audience. Lyrical Studios is our physical space where we offer artists and filmmakers equipment and software use to create new works. We encourage and support artists who use their creative talents to raise awareness about social issues, challenge systemic oppression, and inspire positive change in their communities. Lyrical Opposition provides resources needed to thrive as a professional artist in the marketplace. Lyrical Academy leads and engages in educational programs and workshops aimed at empowering individuals, particularly youth, to use creative expression as a tool for personal growth, self-expression, and advocacy. Lyrical Open is a monthly open space for creatives to connect, collaborate and network with other artists and community members. Lyrical Opposition aims to create these spaces where people can come together, celebrate their creativity, and find solace and inspiration in the midst of challenging societal issues. Lyrical Vinyl is a nonprofit record store that exists to serve as space for artists to work for supplemental income in between gigs and performances. As well as being a space in the community with the intent of preserving the arts and physical mediums. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Elevate Oakland | 1661 20th St suite 3 , Oakland, 94607-3390 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 878-1831 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, 51OAKLAND will strengthen the operational infrastructure needed to sustain and grow our artist-led, culturally informed music and arts programming for East Bay youth aged 4–19—particularly those attending Title I public schools and living in neighborhoods ranked in the lowest quartile of the California Healthy Places Index. This grant will support core administrative functions, staffing, and internal systems essential to delivering high-impact programming and managing partnerships across multiple school sites. As demand continues to grow, this investment will help us build capacity, improve evaluation practices, and ensure long-term sustainability. In addition to maintaining foundational classroom residencies, CAC support will enable us to deepen our impact, improve program delivery, and advance our mission of equitable, consistent, and transformative arts learning for the youth who need it most. |
Founded in 2011 by a group of acclaimed artists–including legendary percussionist Sheila E. and Yoshi’s Jazz Club founder Yoshie Akiba–and creative professionals with a shared vision of providing inspiration and mentorship to Oakland’s youth, we operate with the goal of bolstering students’ engagement in school while fostering creative self-expression and improving all-around student mental health. We believe in the transformative power that opportunities in music and the arts can have on developing youth, especially those living low-income or high-trauma communities and contexts. Across our programs, our primary focus is not on creating professional musicians, but instead on utilizing music and the arts as a conduit to get students excited about learning and invested in their education. Elevate Oakland supports students by using this excitement to get kids to school, engage them in learning, and support the development of skills that will help them succeed both within and outside of the classroom. Our foundational Artists in Residence (AiR) program embeds renowned artists from within the Bay Area community into Oakland public school classrooms, providing mentorship and learning opportunities for students and teachers alike throughout the school year. This program is built on a long-term (typically semester or year-long) partnership between school educators and one or more teaching artists who help develop and support the school’s music or arts curriculum throughout the school year. Our AiR programs typically culminate in a variety of performance opportunities for students throughout the year at different public venues, including Yoshi’s Jazz Club, the Oakland Museum of California and a variety of community-led festivals and events. In addition to our Artists in Residence program, we also host immersive workshops, masterclasses, demos and speaker series that are offered to student groups in partnership with artists, arts professionals and community educators. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,750.00 | Institute of Contemporary Art, San Diego | 1439 El Prado , San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 436-6611 | California's 50th congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Institute of Contemporary Art, San Diego (ICA San Diego) will continue its residency program designed to support local artists in building and expanding their careers here in San Diego. Through a one year residency for an artist living in San Diego County, ICA San Diego will provide the artist-in-residence with studio space, a stipend, materials budget, and professional development guidance from ICA San Diego’s curatorial team. The artist-in-residence will be provided a solo exhibition at the ICA / North campus during our 2027 season of programming. |
ICA San Diego is devoted to creating a thriving ecosystem of arts and culture across Southern California, presenting an array of art, ideas, and education from galleries in both Balboa Park and Encinitas, totaling more than 15,000 square feet and across six acres of coastal landscape overlooking the San Elijo Lagoon. At ICA / North, we provide contemporary art camps, classes, tours, and workshops for all ages, including our state-of-the-art ceramics lab. When visiting the six-acre campus, visitors will experience our growing Sculpture Trail featuring rare local flora amongst site-specific art installations. At the ICA / Central campus, visitors are welcomed by an engaging mezzanine before being drawn into the open exhibition space for large-scale individual and group exhibitions. ICA / Central hosts our Artist-in-Residence studio and professional development opportunities for local artists and emerging talent from colleges and universities. ICA San Diego provides complimentary admission to the gallery open hours and most events. Public programming includes C You Saturday! monthly events featuring intergenerational art activities and community development based around each featured exhibition, plus free weekend tours led by ICA Engagement Guides who utilize visual thinking strategies to understand our artists and their works. The outreach program, The Valise Project, founded in 1999, was created to meet a growing need for arts education in schools. These unique Valises are brought directly into classrooms to creatively connect to the current California Core curriculum and have expanded to be brought to Senior facilities in our region. A trained Teaching Artist prepares a lesson plan that includes an interactive discussion of the themes, followed by hands-on art-making activities that encourage expressing their own interpretations in visual form to the material presented. This is complemented by our Explore+Make program, which brings students and community groups on guided experiences of our exhibitions and campuses. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Elevate Oakland | 1661 20th St suite 3 , Oakland, 94607-3390 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 878-1831 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, 51Oakland (d.b.a. Elevate Oakland) will deliver culturally relevant music and arts education to predominantly low-income, BIPOC youth through our foundational Artists in Residence program, which embeds professional musicians and artists into Oakland public school classrooms. CAC funding will support teaching artist compensation, curriculum development, and classroom residencies across 4–6 Title I elementary, middle and high school sites during the 2025–26 academic year. This project addresses systemic inequities in arts education by providing students with mentorship, hands-on training, and career exposure in creative fields. Each residency will culminate in student-led performances and community activations that celebrate student voices and Oakland’s cultural legacy. Funding will help Elevate Oakland meet rising demand for its AiR program and deepen its impact by expanding access to high-quality, in-school arts instruction in underserved neighborhoods. |
Founded in 2011 by a group of acclaimed artists–including legendary percussionist Sheila E. and Yoshi’s Jazz Club founder Yoshie Akiba–and creative professionals with a shared vision of providing inspiration and mentorship to Oakland’s youth, we operate with the goal of bolstering students’ engagement in school while fostering creative self-expression and improving all-around student mental health. We believe in the transformative power that opportunities in music and the arts can have on developing youth, especially those living low-income or high-trauma communities and contexts. Across our programs, our primary focus is not on creating professional musicians, but instead on utilizing music and the arts as a conduit to get students excited about learning and invested in their education. Elevate Oakland supports students by using this excitement to get kids to school, engage them in learning, and support the development of skills that will help them succeed both within and outside of the classroom. Our foundational Artists in Residence (AiR) program embeds renowned artists from within the Bay Area community into Oakland public school classrooms, providing mentorship and learning opportunities for students and teachers alike throughout the school year. This program is built on a long-term (typically semester or year-long) partnership between school educators and one or more teaching artists who help develop and support the school’s music or arts curriculum throughout the school year. Our AiR programs typically culminate in a variety of performance opportunities for students throughout the year at different public venues, including Yoshi’s Jazz Club, the Oakland Museum of California and a variety of community-led festivals and events. In addition to our Artists in Residence program, we also host immersive workshops, masterclasses, demos and speaker series that are offered to student groups in partnership with artists, arts professionals and community educators. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Crocker Art Museum | 216 O ST , SACRAMENTO, 95814-5324 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 808-7000 | California's 6th congressional district | District 7 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Crocker Art Museum will launch a pilot program that equips 60 elementary teachers with the skills to integrate the arts into the core subjects of English Language Arts (ELA), Math, Science, and Social Studies. Offered at no cost, this 15-hour course combines hands-on arts learning, guest lectures, and Museum experiences, equipping educators with practical tools to ignite creativity and expand student learning to incorporate arts education. In partnership with CSU Chico, teachers will earn academic credit to support their professional advancement. Incorporating continuous feedback, the program will foster a supportive network of arts-centered educators and serve as a model for museums statewide. At its core, this initiative reflects the belief that every child deserves a classroom where the arts spark imagination, connection, and a love of learning. |
Crocker Art Museum is the only accredited visual arts museum in the greater Sacramento metropolitan area which has 2.4 million residents and welcomes more than 4 million annual visitors. The Museum served 250,000 people annually (pre-pandemic) and in FY2025 is projected to serve 200,000 visitors with an array of temporary permanent collection and travelling special exhibitions (9-12 each year), and educational programs for all age that feature and highlight the Museum’s 30,0000+ objects in its permanent collection. The Crocker houses a premier collection of California art (Gold Rush to today), an important collection of Master drawings, European paintings, a renowned international ceramics collection, and collections of Asian, African, and Oceanic art. Robust exhibition-related programming serves as a crucial source of arts exposure and engagement for the community including for thousands of students. Core education programs include docent-led tours; film; talks by curators, artists and experts; jazz, Classical and contemporary music series; and a monthly art extravaganza, ArtMix. Educational programs provide in and out-of-school arts engagement and instruction for K-12 public, private, and homeschool audiences (students, teachers, parents) and school district staff throughout the state, with a focus on schools and districts within a 60-mile radius of the Museum. School and teacher programs provide ongoing professional development for teachers, district officials, and parents. Core programs also include those at the intersection of art and wellness; programs for youth of all ages; a robust Studio Program that contracts with dozens of regional artists to teach art instruction courses; and the Art Ark, the Museum’s mobile museum that travels to numerous schools throughout the Sacramento region each year. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Barcid Foundation | 2811 Scott Place , Los Angeles, 90026 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 504-4897 | California Assembly district 34 | District 43 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Barcid Foundation will bring together a collection of experienced indigenous artists and community members to foster a new and genuine approach to depicting indigenous representation in the arts. This innovative project will be designed with workshops, mentorship opportunities, and access to cutting-edge resources. The program will nurture artistic growth and provide tools to express unique voices through a wide range of literary techniques that focus on the global climate’s effect on the migration of indigenous communities. |
The Barcid Foundation offers genuine career building programs, workshops and additional opportunities that advance Native American artists and youth. We have developed successful relationships with tribes, art foundations, studios and networks to offer career building art initiatives for Native Americans. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Blue Line Arts | 405 Vernon St, Suite 100 405 Vernon St, Suite 100, Roseville, 95678 | Placer | Upstate | (916) 783-4117 | California District 3 | District 5 | District 4 | Blue Line Arts seeks General Operating Support from the California Arts Council to sustain its core operations and expand its mission-driven work of providing accessible visual arts exhibitions, youth education programs, and public art initiatives throughout South Placer County. CAC funds will support personnel costs, utilities, and essential administrative infrastructure required to maintain year-round exhibition programming, including our “Tour Talk Create” field trips, artist residencies, and public art projects that reflect the region’s cultural diversity. As we approach our 60th anniversary, this funding will help stabilize our organization, invest in our arts workforce, and deepen our commitment to equity, accessibility, and community engagement through the arts. |
Blue Line Arts is a gallery and arts center that offers a range of educational and community programs within the visual arts. Exhibitions: Adult education and workforce development: Youth Education: Public Art: |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Southern Exposure | 3030 20TH STREET , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110-2780 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 863-2141 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, in 2025-2026, Southern Exposure will engage 50-65 youth artists, ages 12-21, from historically marginalized communities in a series of free intensive arts education programs that provide teens with a visual art space to explore issues relevant to them, as well as opportunities to exercise leadership skills and utilize art as a tool for social change. Four after school and summer programs will each culminate in a public exhibition and opening reception in our Mission District gallery in San Francisco. |
Since 1974, the needs and voices of artists have been the driving force behind Southern Exposure (SoEx)’s activities. Through our extensive, innovative programming, SoEx strives to experiment, collaborate, and educate while providing an extraordinary resource center and forum for artists of all ages. Our Artists in Education programs strive to catalyze leadership opportunities for young artists in underserved communities, enabling them to utilize their artistic vision to express their perspectives on the social issues that impact their lives. Our Curatorial Council – a group of BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and immigrant artists who lead SoEx’s creative vision – curates our Projects and Exhibitions program and promotes innovative, risk‐taking visual art practices. And Alternative Exposure is our major re‐granting initiative that provides funding and promotion for the independent, self‐organized work of artist collectives that serve, highlight, or lift up historically marginalized artistic communities within the Bay Area arts community. Having always been located in San Francisco’s Mission District, SoEx has become an even more critical institution for visual artists, especially those that are historically marginalized, given the neighborhood’s and City’s rapid economic transformation. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,500.00 | Rossi Milani | 791 Valencia St , San Francisco, 94110-1734 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 996-6079 | California's 11th Congressional District | 17th Assembly District | 11th Senate District | Rossi MissionSF, a non-profit project fiscally sponsored by Independent Arts & Media, requests $30,000 in General Operating Support from the California Arts Council. These critical funds will bolster our operational capacity, covering essential administrative expenses and providing direct wages for artists and employees vital to our daily functions. This investment will strengthen our three pillars of expansion: Community-Driven Events, Holistic Art Workshops, and Charitable Artist Residencies. By directly supporting our administrative and artist/employee/consultants wages, this grant enables Rossi MissionSF to continue offering safe, inclusive creative spaces. We empower marginalized Bay Area artists experiencing homelessness, disability, substance abuse, and low-income struggles, addressing their urgent needs for living wages and accessible platforms. This grant will ensure our sustained ability to cultivate community, creativity, and care, aligning with CAC’s mission to strengthen arts and culture for a better California. |
Rossi Project offers a dynamic ecosystem of core programs and services centered around three pillars of expansion: Community-Driven Events, Holistic Art Workshops, and Charitable Artist Residencies. Community-Driven Events: Rossi creates vibrant, inclusive gatherings designed to foster connection and collaboration, where art thrives without barriers. These events range from intimate poetry readings to live performances by local DJs, rappers, and musicians. A key aspect is accessibility, with no tickets or cover charges, emphasizing a shared commitment to culture and belonging. Holistic Art Workshops: Redefining art education, these workshops blend artistic technique with lived experience. Led by Bay Area artists, sessions explore not only “how to create” but also “why,” integrating storytelling, networking strategies, and tech-driven innovation. Participants gain tools to navigate the creative industry while discovering their unique voice. Charitable Artist Residencies: Rossi Project invests in artists facing systemic barriers by offering crucial support. This includes studio access and materials for experimentation across mediums, life stabilization support such as housing stipends, healthcare navigation, and food assistance. Residencies also provide mentorship from established creatives, partnerships with social workers, and documentation of artists’ journeys to amplify stories of resilience and inspire systemic change. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | ICYOLA | 6820 S La Tijera Blvd Suite 106 , Los Angeles, 90045 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 788-4260 | California's 43rd congressional district | District 61 | District 35 | The Inner City Youth Orchestra of Los Angeles (ICYOLA) requests your $25,000 partnership to support our comprehensive ICYOLA Academy, providing intensive music education to 60 underserved string students across violin, viola, and cello. Students receive weekly individual lessons plus ensemble instruction, ensuring personalized attention while building collaborative skills. Your contribution represents significant investment in our $115,200 annual budget, supporting five exceptional instructors delivering 1,680 individual lessons and 780 ensemble hours yearly. Beyond musical development, students gain discipline, confidence, and college preparatory experience. Many alumni receive full university scholarships, crediting their transformational orchestral experience. Your support creates pathways to brighter futures, ensuring zip code never determines access to musical excellence. |
ICYOLA offers five programs: the ICYOLA Orchestra Program; the ICYOLA Academy; the South Los Angeles Music Project; the Los Angeles Orchestra Fellowship; and the ICYOLA Drum Corps. Through the ICYOLA Orchestra Program, we present an annual Concert Season that features both the standard orchestral repertoire and contemporary music that resounds within the community that ICYOLA serves. Through the South Los Angeles Music Project, we offer introductory and diversionary music programs to young people who are at risk of entry into the juvenile justice system. Through the Los Angeles Orchestra Fellowship, we train emerging professionals to take and win auditions with American orchestras. The ICYOLA Drum Corps trains young musicians how to play drums and march in step. All ICYOLA programs instill the ancillary values of music into their members. Those values include self-respect, respect for others and property, chain of command, and the pursuit of excellence in all things. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Casa Circulo Cultural | 3090 Middlefield Rd. , Redwood City, 94063 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 346-8468 | California Assembly district 22 | District 22 | District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, Casa Círculo Cultural will present the 2025 Día de los Muertos Festival: Tonantzintla: El Paraíso de los Niños, a free, inclusive, and bilingual celebration inspired by the sacred fusion of indigenous and Catholic traditions found in the Church of Santa María Tonantzintla in Puebla, Mexico. This year’s festival centers children as living symbols of cultural continuity and innocence, drawing on the church’s imagery of dark-skinned angels. CAC funds will support community-built altars, youth-led performances, visual arts workshops, and accessible educational activities that promote cultural pride, healing, and ancestral memory for Latinx immigrant families. |
CCC provides Spanish language programs for families that instill multicultural competencies. Activities show students the beauty of their Hispanic roots. CCC doors are open 45 hours each week offering 25 classes averaging 32 students in each. Individual lessons are also offered on guitar or piano. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,600.00 | Yeah, Art! | 8414 Holly Street , Oakland, 94621 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 938-9096 | 12th Congressional district | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Yeah, Art! will fund general operating expenses to continue bringing free, tech-forward arts programming to underfunded schools. Founded and led by Black artists, we prioritize students of color by hiring Teaching Artists of Color to teach in their own communities. Thanks to past CAC support, this year we’ve expanded from 2 to 8 school sites, launched partnerships with Oakland Symphony and BACR, and hired an Education Director. Our programs now run during and after school and cover disciplines like Music Production, Animation, and 3D Design. This funding will support our staff, Teaching Artists, and continued growth—ensuring students in underserved communities have access to high-quality, culturally relevant arts education that builds confidence, skills, and paves lucrative creative career pathways for historically disadvantaged youth, ultimately creating a more equitable future. |
Arts Education for a New Generation™. Yeah, Art! seeks to empower Bay Area youth with premium arts education that emphasizes technology, creativity and equitable access. The problem: With school budget cuts, arts programs are often the first thing to get dropped, leading the most vulnerable students to miss out on essential creative skills. The solution: Yeah, Art! provides accessible, innovative arts programs to underserved communities, equipping students with skills in Music Production, Animation, 3D Modeling and more. Yeah, Art! offers technology-driven arts education programs tailored for underserved schools, with a focus on students of color in low-income Bay Area districts. Services are delivered by professional, local artists of color who bring their expertise directly to classrooms, creating an engaging and culturally relevant learning environment. Yeah, Art! equips students with in-demand creative skills, fostering both artistic growth and future career opportunities in the arts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Studio ACE | 3861 Mission Avenue, #B3 3861 Mission Avenue, #B3, OCEANSIDE, 92058-1878 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 730-5203 | District 49 | District 76 | District 36 | With support from the California Arts Council, Studio ACE will expand access to two Studio ACE program that are inclusive, culturally responsive arts programming for underserved youth in North County San Diego. One: Art spACE offers scholarship-based arts education to 4th–6th graders, connecting visual art lessons with gallery exhibits, artist statements, curating, and digital engagement—showing youth that art can be a viable career path. Two: Our Neurodivergent Art Classes provide free, sensory-integrated lessons tailored to the needs and interests of neurodivergent kids and teens. These programs foster creative expression, community connection, and equitable access to the arts, breaking down barriers related to disability, socio-economic status, and geographic isolation. |
Studio ACE has four main areas of programming, all relating to Arts Education: ArtsConnect: An Integrated Arts Curriculum Program ~ The signature program of Studio ACE, ArtsConnect is a K-8 elementary school program that integrates the arts with Common Core subjects. It employs Visual and Performing Arts Standards, the Elements and Principles of Art and the project’s connection to Art History. For more information, please click HERE. Art Classes: ACE’s storefront location provides low-cost art lessons to children. Children’s classes are supplemented in part by a donor, enabling children to receive high-quality art lessons at an affordable price. Adult class fees also assist in supplementing children’s classes. Community Festivals: ACE participate in art walks, fairs and festivals in and around the community, providing a free art project to complement the theme of the fair or festival. Community Collaborations: ACE collaborates with community members on specific programming, working with organizations such as the Oceanside Library, Oceanside Cultural Arts Foundation, Oceanside Fire Fighters, City of Oceanside, Buena Vista Nature Center and the Museum of Making Music. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $6,150.00 | New Museum Los Gatos | 106 E. Main Street , LOS GATOS, 95030-6904 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 354-2646 | 16 | 28 | 13 | With support from the California Arts Council New Museum Los Gatos will develop and produce an exhibition Revitalization: Culture, Heritage and Traditions of the Muwekma Ohlone Tribe (working title) and supporting educational toolkit. This exhibition builds upon the museum’s long standing relationship with the local indigenous community, The Muwekma Ohlone Tribe of San Francisco and the San Jose State University Anthropology department. |
NUMU serves the larger Bay Area from the Monterey Bay Peninsula to San Francisco and the South Bay Area. NUMU offers interactive, rotating exhibitions combined with forward thinking programs and education programs for all ages. Contemporary art exhibitions featuring both group shows and individual artists provide a platform for diverse, creative perspectives. We display traditional media like painting and printmaking, as well as unexpected artforms from experimental photography to digital media to fabric sculptures. Our Los Gatos History Project is a platform to research, exhibit, and facilitate important conversations about systemic inequities in local history. We aim to educate our community about how inequities of the past persist today in Los Gatos and beyond. Our biggest endeavor every year is “ArtNow,” our annual high school juried exhibition that enriches the high school arts curriculum throughout Santa Clara County, providing a platform for young artists. ArtNow provides teen artists with professional development workshops, scholarships, and artistic exposure. We host a variety of art educators in our Art Studio and Makerspace, where they teach art classes with pricing that maximizes artist compensation. Our Museum Explorer field trip program has served K-12 audiences for ten years, and accessible virtual and low- or no-cost in-person workshops and programs for all ages feature creative change makers, local artists, artist studios visits, and local history. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Sketch Odyssey East Bay | 6451 Hazel Avenue , Richmond, 94805 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 350-6906 | California Assembly district 14 | District CA-8 | District 7 | The Children’s Art Studio Richmond / Taller de Arte Para Niños Richmond seeks Impact Project Grant funding to expand its impactful arts programming for young learners (ages 2-5) and their families. This expansion will nurture children’s creativity and social-emotional development by providing safer spaces for artistic exploration, fostering critical thinking and collaboration, and integrating diverse artistic practices with bilingual instruction. Specifically, this funding will support inter-related key initiatives: significantly expanding our workshop offerings to reach more families, developing and piloting crucial trauma-informed art workshops, and bolstering our professional development program for early childhood educators. These initiatives directly address our core service areas, forming the foundation of our expanded plan of action. |
The Children’s Art Studio Richmond / Taller de Arte Para Niños Richmond provides free art classes in both English and Spanish to children aged 2 – 5 in the Richmond, CA community, regardless of their background or resources. This program is designed to support each individual child to achieve their highest creative potential, while teaching children basic art-making techniques. We emphasize the importance of cooperation and self-help, self- discipline, and assuming responsibility for the use of these materials. Through this approach, we foster a sense of exploration, creativity, and self- expression in each child. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | San Jose Multicultural Artists Guild | PO Box 2043 , San Jose, 95109 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 272-9924 | California Assembly district 27 | District 27 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Jose Multicultural Artists Guild (SJMAG) will produce their 28th annual Dia de los Muertos events over a six week period in October/November 2025, including a comparsa (parade) culminating in cross-cultural performances, including food vendors, an exhibit of altars honoring departed ancestors, and free children’s art workshops teaching crafts and music will be conducted during the 5 week period. SJMAG will partner with San Jose State and the Dr. MLK Library to curate and produce this large and culturally dynamic event/program. SJMAG’s DOD festival is one of the longest running programs in the southbay that brings together communities. Funds will partially underwrite artists’ fees, production, marketing, and administrative costs. |
SJMAG offers Performing Arts Programs including annual presentations of performances of work created and performed by women, people of color, including solo performances, performances by ensembles, and plays written and acted by black artists; and an annual Girlfriends Day attended by women and their female relatives, colleagues and friends that includes performances by female-identified musicians, dancers and performers; community programs including Day of the Dead celebrations serving more than 20,000 community members annually; and educational programs in school and community settings, run by contracted local artists. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | African-American Shakespeare Company | 762 Fulton Street, Suite 305 Suite 305, San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 680-3830 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | The California Arts Commission funding will support the African-American Shakespeare Company’s touring program, “Shaxespeare Reimagined”, which uses Shakespeare stories and poetry retold in a way that fosters community connection and dialogue while addressing recent political divisions. The tour will reach Central California and rural areas, focusing on communities most impacted by social and political challenges. |
The African-American Shakespeare Company two main core programs are the mainstage productions and Arts Education. The mainstage productions are the centerpiece of our artistic programming and a cornerstone of our organizational mission. Through fully staged, professional productions, we reinterpret classical and contemporary works—through an African-American cultural lens that centers Black narratives, histories, and lived experiences. These productions affirm that classical theater belongs to everyone and that Black artists and audiences are essential to its past, present, and future. Our mainstage productions employ professional actors, directors, and designers, many of whom are artists of color, providing meaningful employment and leadership opportunities within the field. Productions are presented in accessible venues and intentionally priced to encourage broad community attendance, ensuring cost is not a barrier to experiencing high-quality live theater. Each mainstage production functions not only as an artistic event but as a community convening space. Audiences include students, families, educators, first-time theatergoers, and long-time supporters. Post-show discussions, talkbacks, and educational connections deepen engagement and invite reflection on themes that resonate with contemporary social, cultural, and intergenerational experiences. But we also gather for a good solid laugh or cry. Our mainstage work directly informs our education and youth programming, with curriculum and artistic concepts adapted for classroom and community settings. This connection creates a transparent artistic pathway, helping young people see themselves represented onstage and developing futures performers, creators, technicians, cultural leaders, advocates, and donors. Through these productions, African-American Shakespeare Company preserves and expands the theatrical canon, builds cultural pride, strengthens community connection, and advances artistic excellence grounded in equity, relevance, and accessibility. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | CLA | 2 MARINA BLVD FORT MASON CTR C-265, SAN FRANCISCO, 94123-0000 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 775-7200 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, California Lawyers for the Arts (CLA) will continue to provide legal, educational and dispute resolution programs and services for artists and arts organizations throughout California, while expanding access to job training, mentorship and career counseling through creative workforce development programs for under-resourced youth and formerly incarcerated persons. |
Our core services include legal consultations with attorneys who specialize in arts and entertainment fields; alternative dispute resolution services, including negotiations counselling, conciliation, mediation, arbitration, and facilitation; education programs that are designed to help artists and arts organization leaders understand legal rights, relationships and responsibilities so that they can become more sustainable; and arts workforce development programs for youth and adults. Since the organization’s inception in 1974, we have also been engaged in advocacy to support artists’ rights, freedom of expression, and public funding for the arts. Cross sector initiatives have included community development, arts and environment, and arts in corrections. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Yeah, Art! | 8414 Holly Street , Oakland, 94621 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 938-9096 | 12th Congressional district | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Yeah, Art! will continue to provide vital, tuition-free in-class arts education programming at Roosevelt Middle School in East Oakland. Our program focuses on empowering students through culturally relevant arts like Music Production, Songwriting, Poetry and Vocal Performance. This initiative, led by local professional artists of color, aims to create artistic career pathways for disadvantaged youth. Due to recent budget adjustments affecting Oakland Culture Affairs funding, the continuation of this impactful program is at risk. CAC funds will ensure students at Roosevelt Middle School continue to benefit from this successful partnership, which has already yielded significant outcomes, including the student-produced “The Miseducation of Yeah, Art!” mixtape and the collaborative “Forgiveness Project” with the Oakland Symphony. We have media examples highlighting the positive impact and student achievement from these projects. |
Arts Education for a New Generation™. Yeah, Art! seeks to empower Bay Area youth with premium arts education that emphasizes technology, creativity and equitable access. The problem: With school budget cuts, arts programs are often the first thing to get dropped, leading the most vulnerable students to miss out on essential creative skills. The solution: Yeah, Art! provides accessible, innovative arts programs to underserved communities, equipping students with skills in Music Production, Animation, 3D Modeling and more. Yeah, Art! offers technology-driven arts education programs tailored for underserved schools, with a focus on students of color in low-income Bay Area districts. Services are delivered by professional, local artists of color who bring their expertise directly to classrooms, creating an engaging and culturally relevant learning environment. Yeah, Art! equips students with in-demand creative skills, fostering both artistic growth and future career opportunities in the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,600.00 | Riverside Arts Academy | 4010 Merrill Ave. Suite B , RIVERSIDE, 92506 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 266-5540 | California's 41st congressional district | District 61 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, RIVERSIDE ARTS ACADEMY will continue its ongoing operations, which includes offering free to low-cost, community-based music education programs and employing local California artists to teach our programs. CAC funds will support local teaching artists and staff salaries, allowing RAA to continue achieving our mission of providing high quality music education for all young people to enrich their lives and communities. |
RAA’s core programs serve over 500 students in the city of Riverside through a flagship after school and Saturday music program at the historic Cesar Chavez Community Center and after school programs at fourteen public schools across the Inland Empire. RAA co-designs its programs with its partners including Riverside Unified, Alvord Unified, Jurupa Unified, the City of Riverside, and faculty from local postsecondary institutions. RAA programs serve students from the ages of 7 to 18 and center on music education through socio-emotional learning and culturally-responsive pedagogy. Course offerings include multiple levels of Mariachi, orchestra, band, choir, musicianship, and more. Students are enrolled an average of 3 hours per week, with some students pursuing as many as 10 hours of music education each week. RAA further supports the music education landscape in the IE through it’s signature workforce development program that helps emerging educators with professional development, classroom experience, and job placements. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Litquake Foundation | 268 Bush Street #4226 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94104 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 440-4177 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | Elder Project’s goal is to fight isolation by bringing community to Bay Area Elders (aged 65+) through writing classes and public events. The project consists of weekly or biweekly writing sessions combined with hands-on creative exercises to stimulate the senses and memory and to provide an outlet for Elders to preserve and share their stories through creative writing, as well as roughly 12 public events featuring Elder Project writers reading their work. 2025/2026 Service Objectives: |
History & Key Accomplishments: Programs: a. Litquake Out Loud – An annual curatorial program highlighting the Bay Area’s BIPOC & LGBTQ+ writers. 6 curators produce a vibrant, impactful two days of events at a large outdoor stage. 100% free. Expected attendance: 2,500. b. Lit Crawl San Francisco – A one-night ‘pub’ crawl of 60 events that creates collaborations with local arts organizations and writing groups with an emphasis on those who hail and serve BIPOC and LGBTQ+ communities. 100% free. Expected attendance: 6,000. d. Kidquake – Two days assemblies and meet-and-greets with a diverse array of children’s authors (100% BIPOC) paired with activities run by the Bay’s best interactive educators. Serving the Bay Area’s K-5 public schools students (80% BIPOC, 65% on free/reduced lunch). 100% free. Expected attendance: 1,000 in person, 4,000 virtual. 2) Elder Project – Community-building classes that stimulate the senses and memory and provide an outlet for Elders to preserve and share their stories through creative writing. At 4-5 locations this year with 100+ Elders served. 100% free. 3) Litquake Year Round – A series of 30+ in-person events spanning the winter to early summer, focused on partnering with diverse local arts organizations to increase engagement with literature and storytelling. 80% free. Expected Attendance: 8,000 |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | KOHO | 1675 Post St 2nd Floor, San Francisco, 94115-3603 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (650) 888-5010 | District CA-11 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, KOHO SF will further its goal to produce cultural immersive experiences that amplifies the resilience, history and long standing traditions of Japantown while giving voice and narrative to the next generation of creatives. |
KOHO’s programming is designed to create an ecosystem of community, culture, and connections through: KOHO Arts & Culture Creative Hub: KOHO operates San Francisco Japantown’s only intergenerational, multi-use, versatile, multi-ethnic,Creative Arts and Culture Hub for the transmission of the form, practices, and seishin (mind, essence, and spirit) of Japanese art and culture. The Hub curates and produces educational, immersive experiences for multiple generations of Japanese and Japanese-Americans, visitors from various AANHPI communities, and the general public. It is a sanctuary where Japanese and Japanese-Americans find a home away from home, a space that honors tradition while imagining the future—a place where art transcends boundaries and celebrates the universal language of human expression. BonPOP: A reimagined Obon Odori Japantown event that welcomes a local, citywide, and regional audience to immerse themselves in the long-standing Japanese tradition of honoring ancestors through dance, song, and rituals accessible to all regardless of religion, faith, ethnicity, or cultural beliefs. The 2024 event attracted 2,100 participants and engaged over 25 musicians, dancers, vendors and organizers all who honored loved ones who have passed. Festivals: KOHO launched its first artist night market in 2024, celebrating the legacy of Japantown and uplifting local artists and creatives as they connected with new audiences. The event attracted over 1,000 attendees and featured over 40 creatives. KOHO also collaborates in several film festivals (AAPI Collaborative City-wide Film Festival and the Lavender Cinema Lounge series) and, in 2024, produced its first Japantown Film Festival featuring three films focused on the Japanese-American experience today; the influences of historical trauma, resilience and strength of generations; and the search for cultural identity in purpose, place and community. Other festivals include the Ube Meets Matcha themed Yum Yams Festival and participation in Japantown’s annual Cherry Blossom Festival and Nihonmachi Street Fair. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Honey Art Studio | 2021 Fillmore St , San Francisco, 94115-2708 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 699-6555 | California's 11th congressional district | District CA-11 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Honey Art Studio will offer the Creative Edge Lab project, a 12-week workshop series for Transition Age Youth (TAY) in San Francisco’s Fillmore neighborhood. Participants will receive free instruction in Interior Design, Fashion Design, Culinary Arts coupled with artist-entrepreneurship professional development to create pathways into creative careers for under-represented members of San Francisco’s BIPOC communities. |
Each year, thousands of youth and adults take part in programming including: |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | The Rosin Box Project | 2650 TRUXTUN RD STE 201 , SAN DIEGO, 92106-6172 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 259-0184 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Rosin Box Project (TRBP) will continue to redefine how dance is created, experienced, and shared—placing accessibility, innovation, and community engagement at its core. General operating support will fund staff and teaching artist salaries, equitable artist compensation, choreographic commissions, and essential production and programmatic expenses. This investment will sustain TRBP’s bold programming, including three mainstage performance series featuring six new contemporary ballet works annually, immersive and site-specific experiences, and interdisciplinary collaborations. Funding will also expand TRBP’s education and outreach programs in underserved San Diego communities, and support inclusive studio classes, workshops, and intensives open to all. CAC support will be instrumental in advancing TRBP’s mission to create a more inclusive, forward-thinking, and impactful future for dance. |
TRBP’s core pillars are artistic work in the field of contemporary ballet and arts education. In artistic, the company’s nine professional ballet dancers present works by local and international choreographers several times a year to audiences throughout San Diego and the greater US. In arts education, the company’s in-school outreach workshop, The Ballet Machine, reaches upwards of 30 classrooms a year with its arts integrated learning module. TRBP’s afterschool program, Dance Out Loud!, reaches hundreds of students in 10 week choreography workshops. TRBP’s open adult dance class program, The Rosin Box Studio, connects with roughly 500 adults training in dance across San Diego County in its homebase of Liberty Station. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,900.00 | PAC LA | 1933 South Broadway #430 , Los Angeles, 90007 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 324-6011 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Photographic Arts Council Los Angeles (PACLA) will invest in operational development and new strategic initiatives, allowing the organization to: Meet the goals of our 2022 Strategic Plan With previous support from the CAC, other donors and our dedicated leadership team, PACLA has made substantial progress on our goals since 2022. We plan to build from here, using grant funds to: Attract, recruit and hire a new Executive Director |
PAC LA produces a robust calendar of expertly curated public and member events throughout the city, along with online talks and guided travel, on our own and in partnership with other notable arts organizations. These include visits with artists in their studios, conversations with gallerists, panel presentations by educators, printmakers, and museum directors, and access to photographic collections in libraries, private homes, and universities. We also produce a free in-depth digital newsletter every month. In 2023 and 2024, we hosted 75 different events, attended by over 5,000 people. 69 of those events took place in person in Los Angeles, and nine of those events were public online talks with attendees from all over the world. PAC LA exists to build, educate, and engage our community, and that means we do this for all audiences, including our 180+ supporting members, 3,500 Zoom event attendees, 20,000 viewers on our YouTube channel, 2,200 followers on Instagram, 1,200 newsletter subscribers, and the growing numbers of guests (3,200 and counting) at our free in-person public events. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | The Rosin Box Project | 2650 TRUXTUN RD STE 201 , SAN DIEGO, 92106-6172 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 259-0184 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Rosin Box Project (TRBP) will expand its immersive dance exposure and engagement program, Out of the Box, across San Diego Title 1 schools, creating meaningful connections between young aspiring artists and world-class professional dancers. The program offers students a multi-layered experience that grants unique access to the full arc of professional dance, from creation to performance. Components include free contemporary ballet performance featuring a new work by a rising TRBP resident choreographer, interactive artist talk-backs, movement workshops led by TRBP teaching artists and company dancers, and behind-the-scenes access to live company rehearsal. Tailored to partner schools’ community and curriculum, the program fosters creative self-expression, confidence, and artistic mentorship. CAC funding will support artist salaries, choreographic commission, teaching artist fees, production costs, and curriculum development, and accessibility expenses. |
TRBP’s core pillars are artistic work in the field of contemporary ballet and arts education. In artistic, the company’s nine professional ballet dancers present works by local and international choreographers several times a year to audiences throughout San Diego and the greater US. In arts education, the company’s in-school outreach workshop, The Ballet Machine, reaches upwards of 30 classrooms a year with its arts integrated learning module. TRBP’s afterschool program, Dance Out Loud!, reaches hundreds of students in 10 week choreography workshops. TRBP’s open adult dance class program, The Rosin Box Studio, connects with roughly 500 adults training in dance across San Diego County in its homebase of Liberty Station. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | Decentered Arts | 1175 Folsom Street Unit 2A , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 416-9997 | District 11 | 17th District | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Decentered Arts will expand “Gen Blend,” a monthly intergenerational writers program that addresses social isolation and ageism by nurturing connections between seniors and youth through literary arts. Grant funds will directly support artist honoraria for featured writers and musicians, increasing accessibility by providing ASL interpretation and promoting engagement with diverse, historically under-resourced communities. In partnership with Litquake’s Elder Project, and Community Living Campaign, Gen Blend is hosted every first Thursday of each month at Ruth’s Table, a wheelchair-accessible venue in an affordable senior housing complex. The project uses storytelling, poetry, and shared meals to create vital community spaces, amplifying underrepresented voices and strengthening intergenerational bonds. This funding will sustain and enhance a vital program that cultivates empathy and preserves cultural narratives. |
Decentered Arts cultivates an inclusive arts community, empowering underrepresented voices through innovative programs. We host weekly Open Mics, monthly Poolside Poets, writers’ groups fostering craft, hands-on workshops, quarterly art shows, literary salons in unique spaces, vibrant fashion shows, and the immersive Western Wind Course. Recent successes include compensating 100+ diverse Poolside Poets artists (60% BIPOC/LGBTQ+), sustaining Open Mic for 3.5 years, launching the intergenerational Gen Blend initiative, and initiating record/small press publishing for our dedicated writers. Through these efforts, Decentered Arts fosters belonging, collaboration, and equity, supporting marginalized voices to enrich San Francisco’s cultural landscape. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Balboa Art Conservation Center | 1649 El Prado , SAN DIEGO, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 236-9702 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | The Balboa Art Conservation Center (BACC), California’s only publicly accessible nonprofit art conservation organization, submits this proposal in support of its mission to advance the study and preservation of cultural heritage for all communities. Funding will support BACC’s capacity building initiatives designed to increase collections care knowledge in California and develop a network of collections caretakers across the state. Such programs include the California Inclusive Preservation Program (CIPP), a key, cost-free initiative for BACC that reflects our commitment to inclusive, accessible, and sustainable conservation efforts. The outreach of BACC’s programs and content focuses on those tasked with collections that lack resources and access to services and training, particularly those serving underrepresented communities, including but not limited to BIPOC, rural, and veteran communities. |
The Balboa Art Conservation Center works closely with museums, libraries, cultural centers, and historical societies to provide collections surveys, conservation treatment, and educational programs. While there are more than 36,000 museums and historic houses in the nation, only 1% have a conservator on site. The rest of these institutions must rely on outside sources, like BACC, for their conservation. We offer programs for museums and culture centers focused on collections care including Emergency Preparedness Workshops, Art and Cultural Heritage Object Clinics, and lectures on conservation and preservation at community colleges, universities, and museums. We also provide education and outreach programs about conservation to the community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,750.00 | Jmm Dance Co. | 1311 Azalea dr , HOLLISTER, 95023 | San Benito | Central Coast | (408) 600-5107 | California's 20th congressional district | District 30 | District 12 | JMM Dance Co. requests $25,000 from the California Arts Council to expand free, trauma-informed, and culturally responsive dance and social-emotional learning (SEL) programs for youth ages 3–18 in Monterey, San Benito, and Santa Clara counties. As a BIPOC- and disability-led nonprofit serving low-HPI and rural communities, we deliver inclusive, bilingual programming grounded in Juan’s Mindset Method™. Grant funds will support instructional staffing, artist stipends, parent engagement, adaptive sensory tools, and free distribution of our My Emotions Dance Journal. This funding will enable us to serve over 500 youth through accessible, healing-centered arts programming across schools, camps, and community sites. |
JMM Dance Co. – Core Programs and Services 1. SEL-Based Dance Education 2. Adaptive & Inclusive Dance 3. Expanded Learning Programs 4. Professional Development for Educators 5. Camps & Youth Intensives 6. Community Performances 7. Curriculum & Publications 8. Equity & Access Initiatives |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | Teatro Visión | 565 N. Fifth St. , San Jose, 95112 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 294-6621 | District 19 | District 27 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, TEATRO VISIÓN will serve the Latinx and other diverse communities of the Santa Clara Valley and the greater San Francisco Bay Area by producing culturally-based bilingual theater rooted in Chicanx and Latinx experiences, creating new work drawing from the lived experiences of our local community, and offering teatro classes that teach performance as a tool for social change. In FY25-26, we will present three mainstage productions, integrating ongoing financial and linguistic accessibility initiatives, accompanied by community engagement activities that expand their impact. We will also continue to nurture the next generation of Latinx theater-makers through youth programs and professional opportunities for artists. |
Teatro Visión was founded in 1984 by members of Women in Teatro, a statewide network of Chicano theaters. Today, Teatro Visión continues to raise a unique, bilingual voice in Bay Area theater. Our core programs include: Our annual Día de Muertos production is a high caliber professional theater performance, a performance opportunity for community actors of all ages, and the anchor for a series of events that bring our community together around the themes of the play. Our annual youth production offers a cast and crew of young people aged 10 to 18 the opportunity to build skills, confidence, and community connections by participating in a professional theater production. Our smaller productions and events, including La Hora del Mitote and events produced in collaboration with partner organizations, build community while highlighting Latinx artists and artists from other underrepresented groups. Our community-based new work development programs draw on the diverse voices in our community to create unique, relevant works of theater that position Teatro Visión as an innovator in community engagement and theater creation. Our teatro classes teach performance as a tool for social change, strengthening the critical thinking, self-confidence, communication, and problem-solving skills that students need to make positive changes in our community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $22,750.00 | Teatro Visión | 565 N. Fifth St. , San Jose, 95112 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 294-6621 | District 19 | District 27 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, TEATRO VISIÓN will develop and present a Youth Production of the play YAMEL CUCUY in Spring 2026. Our youth productions feature casts and crews of young artists (ages 10-18) performing works of Latinx theater that address their cultural heritage and experiences. It is entirely free for these young artists to participate in the program. Youth rehearse for six weeks under the tutelage of a professional Latinx director, who serves as guide and role model. The project culminates in public performances for family, community, and local school audiences. Our youth productions typically welcome as many as 1900 audience members, including over 400 K-12 students who attend a student matinee through their schools at a discounted or fully subsidized rate. |
Teatro Visión was founded in 1984 by members of Women in Teatro, a statewide network of Chicano theaters. Today, Teatro Visión continues to raise a unique, bilingual voice in Bay Area theater. Our core programs include: Our annual Día de Muertos production is a high caliber professional theater performance, a performance opportunity for community actors of all ages, and the anchor for a series of events that bring our community together around the themes of the play. Our annual youth production offers a cast and crew of young people aged 10 to 18 the opportunity to build skills, confidence, and community connections by participating in a professional theater production. Our smaller productions and events, including La Hora del Mitote and events produced in collaboration with partner organizations, build community while highlighting Latinx artists and artists from other underrepresented groups. Our community-based new work development programs draw on the diverse voices in our community to create unique, relevant works of theater that position Teatro Visión as an innovator in community engagement and theater creation. Our teatro classes teach performance as a tool for social change, strengthening the critical thinking, self-confidence, communication, and problem-solving skills that students need to make positive changes in our community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | ARTogether | 1200 Harrison Street , Oakland, 94612-3913 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 545-2787 | District 12 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTogether will offer the newcomer youth program Shadow Movements, a community arts workshop series for refugee and immigrant high school-aged youth. The Project will blend traditional puppetry traditions with storytelling and filmmaking, helping participants to tell their stories through new media, diverse traditions, and visualized personal narratives. |
ARTogether serves as a resource center for refugees and immigrants throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our services center around three primary areas: (1) Bringing refugees, immigrants and the wider community together through art workshops and art-centered social gatherings, to foster wellness and community connection. (2) Supporting refugee artists by employing refugee art educators, and by connecting refugee artists to local art galleries and social venues that help them to find new markets for their art. (3) Bringing the arts to Bay Area schools, launching engaging arts programs that promote positive images of refugees and immigrants, while raising public awareness of refugee issues through educational campaigns. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | San Benito County Arts Council | 35 5th St. Suite D , HOLLISTER, 95023 | San Benito | Central Coast | (831) 636-2787 | California's 18th congressional district | District 29 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Benito County Arts Council will host the inaugural Calle Mural Fest, a community mural festival designed to honor, reflect and elevate the lived experiences, cultural traditions and histories of Latinx community members in San Benito County. Local and regional artists will be selected to create vibrant murals that depict the themes and imagery from migrants, farmworkers, elders, and youth. Through the power of public art, collective storytelling and intergenerational learning, this festival will be a community celebration of culture, social justice and transformation. |
The San Benito County Arts Council’s signature programs and services include: |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | ARTogether | 1200 Harrison Street , Oakland, 94612-3913 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 545-2787 | District 12 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTogether will be able to sustain and enhance its existing initiatives, ensuring that we can continue providing vital support and opportunities for historically excluded artists, cultural practitioners, and communities of first- and second-generation refugees and immigrants. Funds awarded from CAC support operational expenses such as staff salaries, rent, and utilities – enabling us to maintain the infrastructure, staffing, space, and resources necessary to deliver high-quality programming, reach a wider audience, and create a lasting impact in our community. |
ARTogether serves as a resource center for refugees and immigrants throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our services center around three primary areas: (1) Bringing refugees, immigrants and the wider community together through art workshops and art-centered social gatherings, to foster wellness and community connection. (2) Supporting refugee artists by employing refugee art educators, and by connecting refugee artists to local art galleries and social venues that help them to find new markets for their art. (3) Bringing the arts to Bay Area schools, launching engaging arts programs that promote positive images of refugees and immigrants, while raising public awareness of refugee issues through educational campaigns. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $23,750.00 | Liberated Kids | 2401 35TH AVE , OAKLAND, 94601-3206 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (217) 721-3899 | With support from the California Arts Council, Liberated Kids will empower youth to create, produce, and perform an original, culturally-relevant student musical. Our self-directed learning center in East Oakland serves BIPOC children ages 5–14, many of whom have faced barriers to traditional school settings. Through a 9 month program that integrates literary arts, music, theater, and visual arts, students collaborate with professional teaching artists to develop leadership, confidence, and creative expression. The project culminates in a two-night public performance attended by hundreds of family and community members. CAC funds will support fair compensation for our under-resourced teaching artists, purchase arts materials, support accessibility services, and cover key production expenses to ensure all students can fully participate and share their creative work with the wider community. |
Self-Directed Learning Center: This is our core program. Our learning center, open from Monday to Thursday, is a vibrant hub where children are empowered to discover their passions and shape their creative artistic paths. Each day is filled with exploration, play, socialization, and deep dives into areas of interest. Each week is a tapestry of self-chosen activities, collaborative projects, and community-building events. This dynamic flow allows children to engage deeply with their learning, fostering a love for discovery that extends beyond traditional educational boundaries. Spring Musical: We partner with the best voice, music and theater instructors to work with the children who choose to be part of the Spring Musical! This past year, over 90% of our kids participated in the Musical. They performed a total of 2 shows during the 2023-2024 year in front of over 600 audience members. Community Development: Through workshops, meetings, community gathering, volunteer days and trainings we bring together all the families and integral community members. We collaboratively develop understandings and skills to heal ourselves and be our best selves for our children. We tap into our own creativity and artistic abilities to co-create. Whole Fam Fun! – We organize family-friends events in Oakland that can be enjoyed by the whole family – including the semi-annual Musical, quarterly Day at the Theater, semi-annual Pancake Breakfast, and quarterly Fam Jams – a space for the entire family to enjoy the best Oakland DJ’s and dance the afternoon away. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | California Karen Youth Connection | 399 UCCELLO WAY , SACRAMENTO, 95835-2653 | Sacramento | Capital | (510) 434-6355 | 6th | 6 | 8 | California Karen Youth Connection (CKYC) is a nonprofit empowering Karen and non-Karen youth across California through culturally informed programs in education, leadership, and the arts for more than 12 years. The Karen are an ethnic minority displaced by civil war and persecution in Burma. CKYC seeks support from the California Arts Council to expand its statewide Arts and Cultural Program, which provides free, community-based instruction in Karen language, traditional dance, music, storytelling, and crafts. Programs are bilingual (Karen and English), intergenerational, and led by CKYC instructors. CAC funds will support instructor stipends, program materials, venue rentals, and outreach. This investment expands access to high-quality, culturally relevant arts experiences, strengthens intergenerational community ties, and advances cultural equity and visibility within California’s diverse arts ecosystem. It also promotes healing, empowerment, and cultural preservation through youth-centered creative expression. |
The CKYC is dedicated to empowering both Karen and non-Karen youth and communities statewide through culturally informed leadership education, the arts, advocacy, and human services. With a 13-year track record of leadership, arts education, and community service, CKYC has supported the Karen American refugee and asylum population, as well as other vulnerable and underrepresented communities. We serve over 400 individuals annually across the Bay Area, Sacramento, Manteca, Kern County, and Southern California. Additionally, we collaborate with more than 10 partners to amplify our impact. We deliver four core programs: Arts and Cultural Program, Leadership Development Program, College and Career Mentorship Program, and Civic Engagement Program. These programs and services are critical to the success of our youth and a thriving community. By engaging in cultural practices, youth and the broader community gain not only a sense of pride in their Karen identity but also a deeper connection to their heritage and each other. The preservation of Karen traditions helps break the cycle of trauma and displacement, offering individuals a space to heal, connect, and thrive, furthermore, by passing down knowledge from one generation to the next. The CKYC ensures that these traditions evolve into sources of strength, collaboration, and opportunity for future generations. As youth develop leadership skills, they become ambassadors of their culture, promoting diversity and inclusion both within the Karen community and in society at large. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $22,750.00 | Blue Line Arts | 405 Vernon St, Suite 100 405 Vernon St, Suite 100, Roseville, 95678 | Placer | Upstate | (916) 783-4117 | California District 3 | District 5 | District 4 | Blue Line Arts seeks funding to expand Tour Talk Create, a free, standards-aligned arts education program for underserved K–12 students in Placer County. CAC funds will support teaching artist stipends, art supplies, and consultations with an Art Curriculum Specialist to ensure alignment with CA VAPA and National Core Arts Standards. Each session includes a guided gallery tour and culturally responsive hands-on art activities. Teachers receive lesson plans and follow-up materials to extend learning in the classroom. Designed with Creative Youth Development principles, the program nurtures confidence, creativity, and community connection. Over the grant period, Tour Talk Create will serve 500+ students through free field trips and public events, fostering long-term relationships between schools, families, and Blue Line Arts while increasing access to high-quality arts experiences. |
Blue Line Arts is a gallery and arts center that offers a range of educational and community programs within the visual arts. Exhibitions: Adult education and workforce development: Youth Education: Public Art: |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | OAKLAND INTERFAITH GOSPEL CHOIR | 1212 Preservation Park Way ste 200 , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 839-4361 | California District 12 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir (OIGC) will support its core artistic and administrative staff and operate its eight adult and youth choir programs. Programming will include a year-round schedule of rehearsals for each choir, music education classes in Oakland’s public middle schools, a gospel music apprenticeship program and a season of free Community Engagement performances and self produced concerts that celebrate, bring together, promote and increase the region’s broad community of singers and lovers of folk music rooted in the American historical practice of gospel music traditions. |
OIGC’s programs include the namesake 73-member adult choir, which headlines the organization’s self-produced annual Holiday Concert and Annual Free Spring Concert; performs across the region in a variety of venues and settings; and via its artistic projects and collaborations, preserves and advances the artistic heritage of Oakland’s large African American population. The 110-member Oakland Interfaith Community Choir is a limited-commitment ensemble founded in 2013, open to adults at all skill levels. Oakland Interfaith Kids Choir is open to children between the ages of 5 – 8, while Oakland Interfaith Youth Choir serves those between 9 – 18. The 2022 merger with Oakland Youth Chorus introduced an additional three youth ensemble choruses that have an additional classroom and formal music education component for those who would like to learn to read and write music as well as sing. A Community Engagement Program offers year-round, free, accessible performances to a diverse audience that includes people in shelters, prisons, jails, nursing homes and other institutions; provides no-fee or low-fee performances for social service agencies, faith-based and educational institutions; and performs for large audiences at admission-free civic festivals and other celebrations. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | LIGHT BRINGER PROJECT | 99 S RAYMOND AVE No. 408, PASADENA, 91105-2046 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 590-1134 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Light Bringer Project will be able to provide Room 13 Creative Art Studios at 4 family transitional housing shelters and 5 public school locations (outside of traditional school hours) in Los Angeles County and one community center in greater Pasadena. These studios provide culturally responsive arts-learning experiences taught by qualified community-based artists designed to help vulnerable youth fulfill their creative potential. Our Artists-in-Residence are highly diverse and reflect the communities in which the program takes place. A portion of our attendees at school sites are also foster-care residents. The unique arts learning program, now in its 5th year, anticipates serving morer than 2,500 youth in need. |
The organization began as an oral history project, documenting the contributions of artists and arts supporters to the local environment, including the development of our cultural institutions and community-based organizations. Early on, Light Bringer began producing small visual, media and performing arts events at local venues. Eventually, the organization began producing larger-scale special events and, in 1997, turned its attention to youth development and public education. Current programs offered by Light Bringer Project are LocavoreLitLA, a reading promotion program; Expressing Feelings Through Art, a prevention and visual arts and literacy program; Room 13, which provides arts practice at public school sites; and College & Career Pathways, mentorship, work-based learning program. Each opportunity is designed to impart the 21st century skills of creativity, communication, collaboration and critical thinking, and each supports school-to-career initiatives and preparedness for post-secondary education. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Crescent Moon Theater | 1165 Cottage Lane , Hercules, 94547 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (415) 504-4330 | California Assembly district 10 | District 10 | District 2 | Crescent Moon Theater Productions seeks general operating support to advance our mission of creating healing-centered, community-driven performances. CAC funding sustains essential operations—artist and staff compensation, rehearsal and performance spaces, and accessibility infrastructure—empowering us to collaborate with underserved communities, including refugees and veterans, across California. This support enables us to develop original, participatory works that amplify underrepresented voices and deliver transformative experiences rooted in cultural expression, resilience, and collective healing. |
Crescent Moon Theater Productions creates original, community-based work that weaves together theater, dance, music, and circus arts. Prior to the pandemic, CMTP also produced Blessed Unrest—an annual arts and social justice festival in San Francisco that convened over thirty artists exploring the intersection of creative expression and social change. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Tap Fever Studios | 2146 GARNET AVE , SAN DIEGO, 92109-3602 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 456-7301 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Tap Fever Studios will expand our Adaptive Dance Program to provide free, inclusive dance classes for children across San Diego, with a focus on students with physical and developmental disabilities. Grant funds will support teaching artists, program coordination, and outreach to underserved communities. Tap Fever is one of the few organizations in the region offering accessible dance instruction tailored to children with disabilities, and demand for the program continues to grow. CAC support will ensure that classes remain accessible to families of all income levels. Amid widespread funding cuts, support from the CAC to support this innovative program is critical. Without it, Tap Fever may be forced to reduce operations and eliminate free or low-cost classes, limiting access for those who benefit most from inclusive programming. |
Tap Fever Studios offers an array of classes that teach San Diego residents from all walks of life how to mobilize the rhythm from their hearts. Tap Fever Studios provides students with the chance to participate in classes that span all of the major disciplines including tap, jazz, ballet, contemporary, hip-hop, acro, and even fitness. Program components include: Performances: Tap Fever Studios holds multiple recitals and events that showcase the hard work that dancers have put into learning their craft. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $22,500.00 | Sacred Music Fellowship | 2245 CURTIS ST , BERKELEY, 94702-1825 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (646) 642-9139 | 12 | 14 | 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sacred Music Fellowship will rent a space in Berkeley, expand staffing, and grow outreach—enabling us to offer more music programs for all ages, cultures, and backgrounds. Weekly offerings will include SingJam for children and families, Kenny’s Jam, our rock and folk jam, and Sacred Music Sessions featuring global cultural traditions. With added community support, we’ll also offer workshops in diverse musical styles. Several times a year, we’ll host large interfaith celebrations that bring people together in joyous song and dance. Grant funds will support expanded programming, guest facilitators, and marketing that helps us reach more people. These funds will deepen our impact, broaden our reach, and make SMF a year-round hub for inclusive, intercultural music-making. |
Sacred Music Fellowship (SMF) offers a variety of artistic programs in the Bay Area designed to foster community through music, emphasizing inclusivity and connection. Our core offerings include SingJam sessions, which are singalong, play-along secular music gatherings for all ages led by a professional music team; Sacred Sessions where we learn about several culture or faith based music traditions from a local leaders; and our interfaith holiday music participatory concert events. Our programs are open to people of all backgrounds and skill levels, making music a relaxed and shared experience that transcends religious and cultural boundaries. SingJams provide opportunities for participants to come together in fun, informal and meaningful musical collaboration to sing and play. They serve as welcoming spaces where people can explore new genres and improve their musicianship. Our Sacred Sessions are intended to help bring awareness to the many cultural and faith based music traditions within the Bay Area, and to bring music traditions and people into one room who might not normally share space, increasing cross-cultural understanding. Our larger interfaith concert events celebrate religious and cultural holidays through music. They build dialogue across communities and deepen the spiritual connections of participants through sharing diverse musical traditions. Activities Summary: SingJam, currently twice per month |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Cheza Nami Foundation | 5424 Sunol Blvd. Ste. 10-153 , Pleasanton, 94566 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 398-3827 | California's 15th congressional district | District 16 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Cheza Nami Foundation will sustain and expand our year-round, culturally responsive programs for children and families across the Bay Area. Funding will strengthen staffing, outreach, and accessibility efforts, allowing us to deepen impact in historically underserved communities and preserve African diasporic cultural traditions. |
We offer activities to community organizations, schools and corporations while addressing educational and social needs that help foster community building, global citizenship and personal enrichment through our core programs: Cultural Arts and Learning (CAL) school assemblies for K-12, Drumming & Dancing Workshops – in-school and in-community workshops, Community engagement Drum Circles, Summer Camps for k-12 youth, Community arts programs for hand on engagement in center of learning on public community spaces, Taste of Africa Festival – Cheza Nami’s signature annual extravaganza and community celebration of African art, food music and dance, Essence Production: Cheza Nami’s music and dance production that celebrates the oneness of humankind through music and dance that brings together local master artists to collaborate on fresh works for public presentation annually. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | YOSAL | 1122 E Alisal St , SALINAS, 93901-2406 | Monterey | Central Coast | (831) 756-5335 | California's 20th congressional district | District 30 | District 12 | Youth Orchestra Salinas (YOSAL) seeks California Arts Council support to expand performance opportunities for youth enrolled in its year-round orchestral and ensemble programs. CAC funds will support instructor time, music purchases, and logistics that allow over 60 students to perform in at least three formal concerts and five community-based events throughout Salinas. These performances will feature a mix of classical repertoire and culturally relevant works that reflect the students’ backgrounds, building musical excellence, confidence, and a strong sense of belonging. The program serves predominantly first- and second-generation Latino youth from low-income, bilingual households, and provides a safe, supportive environment for artistic growth and community engagement. |
YOSAL’s primary goals are to make classical and orchestral music accessible to the city’s low-income youth and to provide a safe space and community through which they can also access mental health resources, such as counseling. YOSAL provides instruments, weekly music classes, ensemble rehearsals, choir, music theory, and music history classes, all free of charge to students in 1st through 12th grade. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Indivisible Arts | 618 CYPRESS AVE , HERMOSA BEACH, 90254-4644 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (831) 601-8137 | Los Angeles, CA | 66 | D-CA | With support from the California Arts Council, Indivisible Arts will expand its Creative Wisdom Tools program at Da Vinci RISE High, delivering trauma-informed, arts-based mental wellness education to foster and system-involved youth through weekly sessions led by trained peer mentors. |
Indivisible Arts operates through: 2 youth arts programs – Creative Wisdom Tools and the Visual Arts Program; a professional artist collective (South Bay Artist Collective); and its gallery + event space, Resin. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | Resounding Joy | 11300 Sorrento Valley Rd., Ste 104 , San Diego, 92121 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 457-2200 | California's 50th congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, RESOUNDING JOY INC will deliver free and reduced-cost music therapy and wellness programs to over 10,000 people across San Diego County. We use the power of music to reduce stress, support healing, and strengthen communities. Our four core programs—Sounds of Healing (children with disabilities and complex medical needs), Sounds of Service (Veterans and military families), Sounds of Legacy (older adults with dementia and hospice patients), and Sounds of Community (people in under-resourced communities)—offer group sessions, one-on-one therapy, and community music events. Through these programs, we bring hope, connection, and joy to people often left out of traditional care. We envision a more inclusive world where everyone has equal access to the healing benefits of music therapy. |
Resounding Joy delivers four core programs that provide a continuum of music engagement from clinical care to community-based wellness. Our Board-Certified Music Therapists (MT-BC) meet people where they are—serving individuals in hospitals, client homes, senior living communities, schools, community partner sites, our Music Wellness Center, and through virtual platforms—ensuring access, comfort, and connection. Sounds of Healing supports children and families navigating medical, developmental, and emotional challenges. We serve children with chronic and acute conditions, developmental delays, autism, and other disabilities, as well as those experiencing grief, trauma, or end-of-life care. Through music, children and families find ways to express emotions, build coping skills, and experience moments of joy, connection, and relief during incredibly difficult times. Sounds of Service improves the well-being of veterans, active-duty service members, and first responders. Through individual and group music-making—including guitar, drumming, songwriting, and shared musical experiences—participants work through PTSD, stress, pain, substance use, and suicide risk while rediscovering connection, identity, and a sense of purpose. Sounds of Legacy engages older adults across the spectrum of aging, from active seniors experiencing isolation to individuals living with dementia, memory loss, and other age-related conditions. Music therapy sparks memory, supports communication, and creates meaningful moments of connection with caregivers and loved ones. Sounds of Community expands access to music therapy and inclusive music experiences through partnerships with schools, libraries, parks, and community-based organizations—creating spaces where individuals can connect, express themselves, and feel a sense of belonging. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,900.00 | Bach Collegium San Diego | 1475 CATALINA BLVD , SAN DIEGO, 92107-3763 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 341-1726 | California's 50th congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bach Collegium San Diego (BCSD) will be able to hire top-tier Baroque specialists for its 2025–2026 concert season. This investment will create approximately 175 paid opportunities for freelance musicians, many of whom are California-based artists. By enabling the engagement of these performers, the Council’s funding will ensure high-quality, diverse, culturally significant programming while directly supporting the state’s creative workforce. These musicians will also contribute to our education initiatives, supporting the music education of over 200 students. Our programming and outreach intentionally prioritize engagement with historically and systemically underserved communities located in San Diego’s “Promise Zone”, ensuring broad access to artistic excellence and cultural enrichment. This initiative fosters creative expressions at all levels of music-making and strengthens California’s arts ecosystem by enhancing access to world-class music across the region. |
BACH COLLEGIUM SAN DIEGO was founded by Artistic Director Ruben Valenzuela in 2003 to bring dynamic programming and performances with historical considerations to performance practice. Over the last 20 seasons, BCSD has garnered national and international recognition through its exemplary talent, making it one of the most distinguished early music ensembles in the country today. In 2021, the ensemble gained national attention through its El Mesías: Messiah for a New World project, which commissioned an original Spanish libretto of Handel’s oratorio. BCSD made its European debut at Bachfest in Leipzig, Germany in June 2024, and also performed at other Bach sites in the German state of Thuringia. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Arts and Culture El Dorado | 525 Main Street , Placerville, 95667-2400 | El Dorado | Capital | (530) 295-3496 | California's 4th congressional district | District 5 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts and Culture El Dorado will administer the Veterans’ Voices Writing Workshop, a free, ongoing creative writing program that is open to all veterans from any branch of service. It offers a supportive environment and the tools needed for the writing of fiction and nonfiction stories, service-related or not, as well as memoir, poetry and drama. Newcomers are always welcome. We have engaged two remarkable facilitators – both women, a first for us. Writer Sue Norman, herself a vet, will oversee the South Lake Tahoe program, and poet Lara Gularte will oversee the Placerville program, enabling the Writing Workshop to flourish countywide. In addition, we will publish two anthologies of writing from the program. |
Switchboard Gallery Exhibition Series |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area | 1446 Market Street Intersection for the Arts, San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (619) 993-5147 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California arts council the Arts Education Alliance (AEA) will connect and catalyze arts education communities for a more just and creative Bay Area through the following programs and offerings: |
The Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area CONNECTS and CATALYZES local arts education coalitions for a more just and creative San Francisco Bay Area. We serve as a regional hub and unifying voice for local coalitions of teaching artists, school districts, student and their families, community arts organizations, cultural institutions, city and county agencies, funders, business leaders, and arts education advocates throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our regional work aligns with Create CA’s state arts education efforts as well as the national efforts of the National Guild for Community Art Education and Arts Education Partnership. The Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area supports our members to cultivate responsive leadership and advocate for arts education through ongoing convening events, professional learning workshops, monthly newsletters, and advocacy resources. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | San Diego Made | 2031 Commercial Street , San Diego, 92113 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 817-5517 | California's 52nd congressional district | District CA-52 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Diego Made will fund the salary of our Program Director, Sarah Anderson, whose leadership is essential to the success and impact of our work. Located in San Diego’s Promise Zone, we serve historically under-resourced communities with affordable art spaces and culturally relevant creative programming. A local resident, disabled working mother, and practicing artist, Sarah brings lived experience and strong community ties to this vital role. She manages daily operations for 40+ creative tenants, mentors resident artists, and leads partnerships with community organizations. With this grant, we can continue delivering our impactful programming while reinvesting in the infrastructure that sustains our affordable space model and keeps our work viable. Supporting her role maintains our leadership team as one that is rooted in inclusion, equity, and community representation. |
San Diego Made is an artist-led creative hub that drives social, cultural, and economic opportunities for artists, small businesses, and organizations throughout the region. We’re building a creative ecosystem that equips community members with the resources, support, and connections they need in order to build thriving futures. At our headquarters at the Factory in Logan Heights, our community has access to 12,000 sq. ft. of inspiring studio spaces, event facilities, and exhibition areas where people can hone their craft and showcase their work in a bold, welcoming environment. Through our public programming, artist residencies, and signature maker’s markets, we create immersive experiences that bring creatives and community together—fostering dialogue, sparking collaboration, and promoting meaningful engagement with the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | ABADA-Capoeira San Francisco | 3221 22nd Street , San Francisco, 94110-3006 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 206-0650 | California Assembly District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, ABADA-Capoeira San Francisco (ACSF) will support the salaries of artistic staff, essential for sustaining and expanding artistic leadership and programs. This grant will foster new artistic expression and promote leadership that reflects California’s rich cultural heritage. Additionally, it will enhance ACSF’s capacity to conduct and expand programs, meet strategic goals, and address bandwidth challenges to meet community demand. These foundational expenses are vital for the continuation of programs and the overall stability of the organization. |
ACSF brings high-quality, culturally authentic Afro-Brazilian arts to streets, schools, and stages throughout the Bay Area. Its programs center on Capoeira, an Afro-Brazilian cultural practice created by enslaved Africans in Brazil as a response to oppression and a tool for liberation. Blending self-defense, dance, ritual, acrobatics, and music, Capoeira fosters a dynamic dialogue between body, mind, and spirit and is recognized by UNESCO as Intangible Cultural Heritage. Grounded in resilience, Capoeira’s legacy of uniting diverse communities in pursuit of freedom and justice informs ACSF’s mission and programming. The organization offers year-round arts education; cultural festivals and performances; artist residencies and exchanges; apprenticeships; and employment opportunities, annually serving approximately 12,000 participants, primarily from under-resourced communities. Classes for children, teens, and adults span Capoeira, dance, music, and fitness, creating accessible pathways to engage with traditional arts. The Capoeira Arts Center serves as a vibrant cultural hub in San Francisco’s Mission District, housing the performance company, hosting internationally attended festivals, and providing daily classes alongside affordable space for artists and community organizations. ACSF advances equity and access through free and sliding-scale programs, inclusive and culturally relevant curriculum, leadership development opportunities, and outreach in under-resourced communities—strengthening social connection, supporting intergenerational engagement, and amplifying underrepresented artists while advancing gender equity worldwide. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Lovely Bouquet Foundation | 1465 Tamarind Ave, Box 192 , Hollywood, 90028 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 448-6490 | 30th Congressional District | 51st Assembly District | 26th Senate District | “Lovely Bouquet of Flowers: An Exploration of Non-Traditional Gender Voices” is a fiscally sponsored, performance-based storytelling project amplifying trans and nonbinary voices through live theatre, documentary film, and community-led workshops. With recent grant funding secured from RESIST for programming at Richard J. Donovan Correctional Facility, CAC support would allow us to deepen and expand our work – reaching additional sites across California, including Folsom State Prison and local universities. Funds will support artist stipends, travel, creative materials, and facilitation of trauma-informed workshops rooted in storytelling and symbolic resistance. Though our project has existed since 2012, we relaunched our national tour this year and are operating with new revenue under fiscal sponsorship. CAC funding will be catalytic – allowing us to scale an already-proven model of creative, inclusive community engagement during a moment of urgent cultural need. |
The Anthesis Tour: A multidisciplinary touring initiative featuring live theatrical performances, participatory workshops, film screenings, panel discussions, and community-centered artistic engagement designed to amplify trans and queer voices through storytelling, dialogue, and creative expression. • Theatrical Performances: Original performance works combining monologues, movement, poetry, music, and ensemble storytelling that explore identity, resilience, memory, and collective transformation through trans and queer experiences. • Documentary Film & Docuseries: The feature documentary In Full Bloom…transcending gender and the developing Anthesis Tour docuseries preserve and amplify evolving trans narratives through film, interviews, civic engagement, and community storytelling across California. • Educational Workshops & Public Engagement: Interactive workshops, artist talks, and facilitated dialogue programs presented in universities, correctional facilities, community organizations, and public institutions using symbolic creative frameworks to encourage reflection, participation, and cultural exchange. • Community Partnerships & Accessibility: Collaborative programming developed alongside artists, educators, public health organizations, civic leaders, and community partners to expand access to culturally responsive multidisciplinary arts experiences. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Harmony Project | 2410 Beverly Blvd. , LOS ANGELES, 90057 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 462-4311 | 34th Congressional District | 54th Assembly District | 26th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, the Harmony Project will implement sequential and tuition-free music education programming for the benefit of nearly 3,600 underserved K-12 students residing within historically marginalized communities of color located throughout Los Angeles County and North Orange County. Our holistic approach to program design and implementation incorporates college attainment resources (College, Alumni, Success Team) and social support services (Community and Relational Engagement ) that enhance and reinforce 21st Century skills (creativity, collaboration, communication, etc.) and Social Emotional Learning (self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, etc.), while also inspiring program participants to complete high school and pursue a postsecondary education. This thoughtfully considered combination of programs and services empowers young musicians to become creative thinkers and confident learners capable of realizing their full potential. |
Harmony Project implements music education programming for the benefit of more than 3,600 underserved K-12 students located within Los Angeles County and North Orange County. We believe that combining rigorous music instruction with a robust social support network empowers children and youth (between the ages of five through 18 years old) to become creative thinkers and confident learners capable of realizing their full potential. Our organization also integrates the following program elements at no cost to program participants: Musical Instruments – Every student receives an instrument to take home and practice on. Music Lessons – Four to six hours of weekly music instruction from a teaching artist at nearby school sites and recreational centers. Orchestras & Concerts – Students perform music with their peers at iconic venues such as the Walt Disney Concert Hall and Hollywood Bowl. Holistic Social Support – Our team of counselors, social workers, and therapists help students and their families navigate challenges at home and school. Peer Mentoring – Advanced students support their peers through one-on-one mentoring. Academic Support – Students have access to tutoring services that help ensure they excel in the classroom. College Attainment – Access to one-on-one college counseling for parents and students to help ensure our students remain on track during the college admissions and financial aid process. College Scholarships – We provide funding to support the college aspirations of our high school students. Alumni Network – Alumni remain connected to Harmony Project through regular check-ins, internships, and paid music performance opportunities. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Imagine Art s Center | 63 S MAIN ST , PORTERVILLE, 93257-4703 | Tulare | Central Valley | (559) 615-1373 | 26 | 33 | 16 | Imagine Art Center’s (IAC) proposal for the Arts and Youth program aligns with the Cal Arts commitment to equitable arts access and culturally responsive engagement for young people across the state. Located in rural-serving-Porterville—community within the lowest quartiles of the Healthy Places Index—IAC serves historically and systemically underserved population due to geographic isolation, economic hardship, and limited access to arts education. With a mission to make art accessible, we propose to us $25,000 to expand free/low-cost arts programming for youth 5-18, including language learners, justice-impacted, or experiencing poverty. Programs foster agency, cultural pride, and connection through hands-on, community learning led by local artists who reflect the identities of the youth. With no prior direct CAC operating support, IAC is uniquely positioned to bridge barriers while cultivating a new generation of culturally literate, creatively empowered youth. |
Founded in 2010 by local artist and educator Rebecca Ybarra, Imagine Art Center emerged from a deep commitment to integrate the arts into the heart of community life. From its inception, the organization has upheld a mission both simple and profound: to ensure that art is accessible, inclusive, and empowering for all individuals—regardless of age, income level, or prior experience. This mission guides every aspect of our programming and informs our belief that art has the capacity to transform not only individual lives, but entire communities. At the center of our work is a dynamic portfolio of core programs and services designed to respond to the creative, educational, and emotional needs of our community. These offerings foster artistic expression, support emerging and established artists, and create meaningful cultural engagement opportunities. Our programs are grounded in equity, cultural responsiveness, and the belief that creativity is a human right. We collaborate with city agencies, nonprofits, schools, and local businesses to use art as a vehicle for civic engagement, education, and economic development. Through these partnerships, we aim to elevate the role of artists as change agents and to embed creativity into the public sphere in ways that are lasting and inclusive. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | LIFE I LOVE SCHOOL | 3221 HAMLINE AVE APT 1 , OAKLAND, 94602-1553 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (864) 671-9838 | Life I Love requests $25,000 to implement Healing Through Art: Community Wellness Initiative, a year-long project addressing mental health disparities among Black and Brown girls in Oakland. In partnership with Madison Park Academy, the initiative will engage 3rd-5th grade girls in arts-based wellness circles that build emotional intelligence and self-expression. Led by Sunshine Leaders (local artists and wellness coaches) each session will integrate storytelling and visual art to explore themes such as identity, emotional regulation, and healing. Grant funds will support facilitator compensation, materials, and coordination. This initiative aligns with CAC priorities by centering youth voice, creative practice, and community collaboration to address systemic inequities in mental health and education. Expected outcomes include stronger emotional well-being for participants, increased community capacity to use the arts for healing, and a sustainable model for creative social change. |
Life I Love Wellness Program Sunshine Leader Training Program Together, these two programs create a full-circle approach to healing and growth. From early intervention to leadership development, Life I Love offers Black and Brown girls consistent spaces to build self-worth, manage stress, and grow into powerful advocates for their own well-being. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | JUiCE Hip Hop | 9538 Rhea Ave , Northridge, 91324 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 731-8096 | California's 32nd congressional district | District 40 | District 27 | Funds will support the expansion of youth hip-hop arts programs, building on existing community relationships to deepen access and engagement. Programs will be culturally responsive and designed to reduce barriers to participation, fostering creativity, connection, and lifelong artistic engagement for youth. |
J.U.i.C.E. provides a safe center for emerging and young artists to develop a sense of community and provide a place for self-expression through the hip-hop arts. We foster the development of leadership and technical skills through a variety of art programs and encourage the creative expression through music, spoken word, visual arts, and dance. J.U.i.C.E. creates unique opportunities for these young artists to showcase their work, network with peers and professionals and engage with their communities in a safe and positive manner through the hip-hop arts. For over 2 decades, J.U.i.C.E. has been changing lives in Los Angeles by hosting free weekly art programs. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $22,250.00 | San Diego Made | 2031 Commercial Street , San Diego, 92113 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 817-5517 | California's 52nd congressional district | District CA-52 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Diego Made will continue our My Creative Journey | Mi Viaje Creativo residency program. Successfully implemented in 2024 with support from the City of San Diego’s Impact Grant, additional funding will allow for a fifth session of this pivotal project and help us provide another artist from San Diego’s Promise Zone communities with dedicated studio space, a living-wage stipend, organizational support, and mentorship as they develop free, bilingual, accessible public programming—workshops, speaking events, student visits, and a culminating exhibition. The residency fosters storytelling and cultural exchange, supporting artists as they deepen their creative practice and grow their capacity to produce culturally responsive, engaging events within their communities. The initiative builds cultural pride and belonging while advancing equitable access to space, resources, and opportunity for artists in underserved communities. |
San Diego Made is an artist-led creative hub that drives social, cultural, and economic opportunities for artists, small businesses, and organizations throughout the region. We’re building a creative ecosystem that equips community members with the resources, support, and connections they need in order to build thriving futures. At our headquarters at the Factory in Logan Heights, our community has access to 12,000 sq. ft. of inspiring studio spaces, event facilities, and exhibition areas where people can hone their craft and showcase their work in a bold, welcoming environment. Through our public programming, artist residencies, and signature maker’s markets, we create immersive experiences that bring creatives and community together—fostering dialogue, sparking collaboration, and promoting meaningful engagement with the arts. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,750.00 | TONALITY | 325 N Larchmont Suite 306 , LOS ANGELES, 90004-6717 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (910) 358-7130 | California's 30th congressional district | District 51 | District 26 | Tonality respectfully requests support from the California Arts Council’s Impact Projects program to fund the “Just Me” concert, a collaborative performance that amplifies the lived experiences of transgender and non-binary individuals through music and storytelling, fostering empathy, visibility and social change through artistic expression. Grant funds will support collaborations with Los Angeles County High Schools to conduct Tonality Scholars workshops in fall 2025 led by Tonality’s BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists. These workshops will culminate at Tonality’s “Just Me” concert which will be presented at The Wallis in January 2026. The concert will celebrate resilience, honor truths, and confront ongoing injustices faced by transgender and non-binary people. All workshops and performances will be offered free of charge to participating students and select underrepresented schools, increasing accessibility and cultural participation in classical music. |
Tonality was established in 2016 to serve as a professional choral environment where racial and ethnic diversity would be represented both in the vocal performers and in the genres of music presented. In its second year, Tonality added an extra focus of presenting topics of social justice, particularly issues that affect the most marginalized within our community. Currently, Tonality is proving to be one of the most racially diverse professional choral ensembles in the country. Our commitment to present diverse composers and perspectives to issues of social justice increases every year. Furthermore, our endeavors to expand diversity extends to our Board of Directors, who also strive to maintain a strong sense of diversity in both racial and gender identities. Lastly, Tonality work’s to reflect diversity within the artists and composers is also reflected in the collective mission to serve a diverse audience. Tonality’s core programs include its seasonal concerts, Tonality Youth Scholars Choral Education Program, Systems change in classical music Speaker Series and increasing diverse voices in Music, Film, Tv Special Projects. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Girls Make Beats | 7243 Atoll Ave. Suite A , North Hollywood, 91605 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (954) 871-0683 | California's 29th congressional district | District CA-29 | District 27 | Girls Make Beats proposes a free, year-long after-school music and audio arts program serving girls of color in under-resourced Los Angeles communities. Held at the GMB Academy in North Hollywood, CA, the program offers weekly workshops in music production, DJing, and audio storytelling, led by professional women artists of color. Youth will create original works that reflect their lived experiences, culminating in public showcases and a digital sound archive. CAC grant funds will support artist compensation, youth stipends, equipment, software, and accessibility accommodations, including ASL interpretation and adaptive materials. This program centers community voice and uses music as a tool for healing, empowerment, and cultural pride — providing girls with the skills, space, and support to tell their stories and build creative futures. |
Girls Make Beats offers in-school and after-school courses on industry-leading hardware and software, along with summer camps, industry panels, and networking events. We provide scholarships, internships, live performance opportunities, and portfolio development to empower girls in music production, DJing, and audio engineering. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | Lou Harrison House | 6836 Mount Lassen Ave , Joshua Tree, 92252 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (760) 366-4712 | California's 8th congressional district | District 34 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Joshua Tree Foundation for Arts & Ecology will host Serrano/Cahuilla elder and teacher Kim Marcus and his family for a free week-long Native Voices Camp for youth in our Quartile 1 underserved rural community. This initiative will immerse kids ages 7-12 in indigenous arts and traditions, ensuring cultural knowledge is passed on through interactive workshops on songs, dances, basket weaving, bow and arrow crafting, clothing creation, pictographs, and traditional food preparation used for daily life and ceremony by the First People of our land. This program will culminate in a community gathering, where families can celebrate the youths’ achievements through exhibitions and performances creating meaningful connections across histories and cultures. |
Joshua Tree Foundation for Arts & Ecology, dba Lou Harrison House (formerly HHMA&E) is a center for culture based in an historic retreat that California composer Lou Harrison built in Joshua Tree. Lou Harrison House gives gifted artists of many disciplines a residency opportunity to perch at the intersection of art and ecology and create their best work in a fully supported and inspiring setting. We enliven our rural community with high quality public programs including performances, lecture demonstrations, exhibitions and workshops offered by our residents. In the past three years we have worked with the Morongo Unified School District to bring our gifted global culture bearers into the schools for assemblies and to bring students on field trips to our Arts & Ecology site and Lou Harrison House where we teach each ecology through the lens of art and sound and music appreciation. HHMA&E was established in 2006 and the Arts & Ecology Center in 2016. Without the earth there is no art! Our Arts & Ecology Center explores and demonstrates the regenerative, practical and aesthetic patterns of nature. We offer public tours and workshops that aim to inspire ecological awareness, stewardship and aesthetics. Located on eight desert acres our facilities include: Lou Harrison House Arts & Ecology Center |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | Las Fotos Project | 2210 East Cesar E Chavez Avenue , Los Angeles, 90033 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 618-1653 | 34th Congressional District | District 54 | District 26 | Funding from CAC will support our free Digital Promotoras photojournalism workshop series which aims to achieve the following outcomes: |
Founded in 2010, Las Fotos Project (a Community Partners project) is a non-profit community-based photography program located in Los Angeles, whose primary goal is to advance positive change for adolescent girls and gender-expansive youth through one-on-one mentoring, photography trainings, and assigned field projects. Our programs and services also foster the creativity, communication, critical thinking, and collaboration skills needed to compete in a 21st century workforce. We annually serve more than 300 female and gender-expansive students between the ages of 13-18 from communities of color, who do not have access to photography equipment or arts-based programs. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,750.00 | TRYBE INC | 3542 FRUITVALE AVE 135 , OAKLAND, 94602-2327 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 985-9915 | With support from the California Arts Council, Trybe Inc. will offer free-to-participant art and dance programming for 200 low-income, violence-impacted, Oakland community youth ages 5 to 25 in Clinton Square Park. Grant funds will be used to provide 40 sessions of dance in four genres, along with 10 sessions of hands-on art activities led by Trybe’s resident artist Ryoko Tokuho. All art programming focuses on self-expression, developing agency, individual and community empowerment and voice, while reflecting on and appreciating Oakland’s unique and diverse culture. |
Arts and creativity programming, Youth internships, apprenticeships and mentorships, Youth Outdoor equity programming, age 0-12 enrichment activities, food and basic need distributions, multicultural family events, arts and wellness programs, job readiness programs, and safety ambassadors, serving over 20,000 community members annually. Programming is managed and maintained by staff members rooted in the community they serve. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,500.00 | Bay Area Girls Rock Camp | 1305 Franklin St. , OAKLAND, 94612-8413 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 267-1808 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Bay Area Girls Rock Camp will serve 750 girls, trans, and gender-nonconforming youth in programs: Girls Rock Summer Camp and Girls Rock After School Program. Both programs take place in Oakland at OUSD campuses, and allow at-promise youth (ages 8-18) to receive instrument instruction, attend transformative skill-building workshops, collaborate with peers and write original songs, and present their work at a live concert. Outcomes are to: shift gender norms that exclude and isolate girls/TGNC youth in the arts; build life skills (conflict resolution, leadership, resiliency); provide alternative learning pathways with affinity-based, multigenerational mentorships and representation. |
Bay Area Girls Rock Camp’s core programs are the 10-week Girls Rock After School Program (GRASP), and the month long Girls Rock Summer Camp, each serving girls and gender expansive youth ages 8-18. In both programs, youth receive intensive instrument instruction, form bands with peers, attend transformative workshops, and perform in a culminating showcase for the local community. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,500.00 | Junior Center of Art & Science | 558 BELLEVUE AVE , OAKLAND, 94610-5026 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 839-5777 | California's 13th congressional district | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Junior Center of Art and Science (JCAS) will expand equitable, arts-integrated learning experiences for youth in under-resourced communities across Oakland and the East Bay. Funding will support general operations, allowing us to sustain and grow free and low-cost programs that foster creativity, critical thinking, and belonging through the arts. |
The Center provides high quality programs in the arts and sciences. Our center hosts visitors in our five interactive learning spaces including our art studio, maker space, and animal room. Programs are provided both on-site and throughout the Oakland and East Bay Area through school and community partners. Offerings occur during the day, after school and on Saturdays. Classes are taught by professionals in their fields. We are happy to partner with over 40 school and community sites throughout the East Bay Area. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $22,200.00 | Mr. Holland's Opus Foundation | 2550 N HOLLYWOOD WAY STE 302 , BURBANK, 91505-5049 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 762-4328 | 30th Congressional District | 44th Assembly District | 20th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Mr Hollands Opus Foundation Inc will provide vital support services to K-12 public school districts and musical instruments to underfunded public school music programs across California, giving under-represented youth access to music education, regardless of their economic circumstance. |
MHOF’s core programs and services are: MEDSS® (Music [and Arts] Education District Support Services): MEDSS is an innovative districtwide assessment and consulting service that utilizes data and teacher feedback to identify and address the challenges and barriers both at individual school sites as well as systemically throughout the district that are creating inequities for student access and participation in quality, sequential, and sustainable music and arts programming at every school. MEDSS focuses on why these challenges and barriers exist in order to then implement customized solutions that directly impact teachers and students at scale throughout the system. MEDSS informs and empowers district administrators, principals, teachers, communities, funders, and other stakeholders as to the current state of music and arts, plus the types and amounts of resources and supports needed to serve every student, within every classroom, and at every school throughout the entire district. Musical Instruments Program: MHOF provides musical instruments and related equipment/accessories free-of-charge to K-12 public schools, with a focus on low-income communities. Our quality vetting and granting process is unique by working with each school to customize specific needs that address student enrollment, instrument sharing, replacing aged/broken instruments, and teachers borrowing from other schools. Music Rising: MHOF administers this program focused on rebuilding school music programs in the aftermath of natural disasters, restoring vital music programs and helping communities recover through the power of music. Music Rising was originally co-founded by U2’s The Edge and legendary music producer Bob Ezrin. Holland’s Heroes: This nationwide network of school district arts leaders is dedicated to transforming arts education. By fostering collaboration, sharing best practices, and using data to drive equitable solutions, the group works to expand student access to inclusive, high-quality arts learning and experiences across the country. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | Versa-Style Dance Company | 7300 CASE AVE , SUN VALLEY, 91352-5034 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (831) 419-0427 | CA-29 | AD-43 | SD-20 | With support from the California Arts Council, Versa Style Street Dance Company (VSDC) will subsidize livable wages for three members of our seven-person core administrative staff. Staff members are critical to the organization’s sustainability and capacity as an anchor of Hip Hop and Street Dance culture and education across Southern California. VSDC staff occupy vital roles within the organization, including teaching artist, performer, mentor and cultural practitioner and represent an internal career development pipeline crucial to the organization’s ethos as a cultural institution with county-wide impact. California Arts Council funding will support VSDC’s ability to care for its artists and provide equitable pay. |
VSDC supports 5,000 young, aspiring Hip Hop and Street Dance artists of color, as well as their families: Versa Style Next Generation (VSNG): Since 2009, VSNG provides personalized instruction in Street Dance technique, history and creative industry knowledge for local young artists, ages 15-22. Participants receive consistent mentorship and train twice weekly at VSDC’s public Friday Night Dance Classes and a private weekly rehearsal. VSNG reflects our commitment to cultivating local talent from within and building futures grounded in movement, community, and care. During the 2024-25 programmatic year, 38 aspiring young artists gained new skills in Hip Hop and Street Dance and a greater understanding of career development opportunities in the creative industry. Youth Education:We provide Street Dance instruction during and after school, while our collaboration with Arts for Healing and Justice Network (AHJN) brings residencies to systems impacted youth across the county. VSDC teaching artists offer instruction in Hip Hop and Street Dance technique, history and community building. During the 2024-25 school year, these programs reached nine K-12 schools and three juvenile detention facilities. Dance Companies: We operate two professional dance ensembles: the original Versa-Style Street Dance Company (VSDC) and Versa-Style Legacy, composed of VSNG graduates. While VSDC tours nationally with full-length productions, Versa-Style Legacy performs interactive educational shows across LA. In 2025, both companies presented 42 live performances to almost 10,300 audience members nationwide and reached more than 4,100 K-12 students through 11 educational school show performances. Community Programs: VSDC holds community events for skill building and visibility. Friday Night Dance Classes have been held weekly since 2005. We also host Let the Music Move You events and our Anniversary Hip Hop Dance Festival. In 2025, VSDC’s 20 Year Anniversary Hip Hop Dance Festival attracted almost 1,000 community members through workshops, battles, and performances. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | Jess Curtis/Gravity | 80 Turk St , SAN FRANCISCO, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 322-8320 | CA-011 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Jess Curtis/Gravity, will present “Duetrospective,” a month-long festival to celebrate the legacy and memory of the late American choreographer, Jess Curtis (1962-2024). From May-June 2026, “Duetrospective” will feature interdisciplinary, multicultural, and intergenerational artists who interacted with Curtis during his lifetime to present six revisioned works and two weeks of classes and workshops hosted in partnership with ROT (formerly the Kathleen Hermesdorf FRESH Festival). The activities will take place across San Francisco, including at CounterPulse, and will feature at least ten teachers including Miguel Gutierrez, Sherwood Chen, Maria Scaroni, Stephanie Maher, Rachael Dichter, Gabriele Christian, and more. “Duetrospective” will close with the remounted “Ice/Car/Cage” reimagined by the local, queer, Black artist collective RUPTURE in partnership with Fort Mason Center for Arts & Culture. |
Jess Curtis/Gravity: creates, produces, and tours original works of body-based performance that physically explore and address issues and ideas of substance and relevance to anyone with a body; educates professionals, students, and members of the public with physically accessible workshops presented in cities throughout the US and Europe; nurtures emerging artists through our BEYOND GRAVITY incubation program that provides artistic mentorship, professional guidance, and fiscal sponsorship; fosters international exchange through co-productions that mobilize our international network to bring international artists to San Francisco and help San Francisco artists present work abroad; supports the presentation of free performances in public spaces through our POP UP PERFORMANCES PROJECT program, which commissions Bay Area artists to present site-specific work on city streets; and provides access services and consultations to make performing arts more inclusive of people with disabilities through the GRAVITY ACCESS SERVICES program. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,500.00 | Altadena Music Theatre | 2363 El Moreno St , La Crescenta-Montrose, 91214-3160 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (760) 208-3254 | District 28 | District 44 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Altadena Music Theatre will produce and present professional musical theatre productions and educational programs. Funding will support artist fees, production costs, marketing/public relations, accessibility, and administrative staff. |
Altadena Music Theatre’s core programs and services are its professional season of live musical theatre productions and its children’s musical theatre education programs and camps. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | CreaTV San Jose | 38 S. 2nd Street , San Jose, 95113-2501 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 295-8815 | California's 19th congressional district | District 27 | District 15 | CreaTV Presents will provide bi-monthly opportunities to elevate conversation and creativity through local media arts. The series will invite different guest lead artists and organizations to co-curate events that focus on issues that are relevant to San Jose. CreaTV Presents Events will help demonstrate the relation of creative arts to history, power, culture, local issues. These events are intentionally participatory in nature to afford community members the chance to actively engage with local issues through creative expression and the arts. CreaTV Presents will focus on uplifting local voices, stories, and histories that are often silenced, marginalized, and forgotten. |
CreaTV exists to provide opportunities for the people of San José to receive media technology training, hands-on media creation experience, and access to broadcast/streaming platforms. Our focus in helping the community tell stories is always rooted in equity. We directly address the issue of marginalized communities not having access to media technology learning opportunities/equipment/experts/distribution platforms/multiple participation points (virtual/in-person). Our programs offer comprehensive media education, documentary filmmaking/storytelling, and community engagement opportunities that provides spaces for youth/adults to learn the art and technical aspects of storytelling, to share their unique stories, gather and discuss local media, and to use arts and culture to bring attention to issues in their communities that are important to them. It includes: Our programs provide avenues for artistic self-expression and storytelling, exploration of media/art centric careers, and equitable access to media and technology tools and training for all ages. Our 18,000 sq. ft. facility, Open San José will be the first of its kind. 7 nonprofits (Chopsticks Alley Art, Latina Coalition of SV, LEAD Filipino, Mosaic America, Northern California Public Media, San José Spotlight, and Works/San José) share our values to co-curate the space with us, the community, and other partners. Open San José is a unique community resource for creating, convening, learning, sharing, expressing, archiving, and disseminating. The facility features a large studio, gallery space, and multi-purpose rooms that are technology equipped and designed for live/hybrid meetings, rehearsal space, podcast recording, trainings, and more. The space provides free/below market, tech heavy spaces for cultural/civic events with a focus on equity/social change. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Esperanza Community Housing Corporation | 3655 S GRAND AVE STE 280 , LOS ANGELES, 90007-4377 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 748-7285 | District 37 | District 57 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Esperanza Community Housing Corporation will advance media arts equity among underrepresented youth artists and filmmakers by producing a) the 4th Annual South Central Film Festival and b) five filmmaking and media arts workshops. This project addresses the critical gap in community-led festivals that serve as a platform and networking opportunity for underrepresented youth and promotes skills building and professional development opportunities for young creators systematically excluded from creative industries. |
Esperanza advances the health, dignity, and human rights of South LA through: 1) Affordable Housing – Addressing displacement and housing vulnerability in South L.A., our safe and affordable family housing units offer security and shelter to hundreds of residents. 2) Health and Access to Care – Promoting a broad culture of wellness, Esperanza educates and supports the empowerment of community members to improve health and increase access to care. 3) Economic Development – Facilitating local economic development, Mercado La Paloma provides growth opportunities and financial stability to small, family-owned businesses. 4) Arts and Culture – Stimulating involvement in the arts and increasing civic engagement, our programming celebrates South L.A.’s rich heritage and vibrant traditions. 5) Environmental Justice – Ensuring families are safe from toxins in their homes and neighborhoods, Esperanza advocates for public policy through a human rights and environmental justice framework. 6) Policy Advocacy & Systems Change – Advocating around our core programs, and in partnership with allied organizations, at both the local and state levels, our main focus is on community power-building, equitable development, displacement and gentrification prevention, preservation & production of affordable housing, transit justice, environmental justice, immigrant rights, and public health. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Diamano Coura West African Dance Company | 1428 ALICE STREET; SUITE 201 , OAKLAND, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 326-1968 | California Assembly District 12 | District 18 | District 7 | The 31st Annual Collage des Cultures Africaines – an affordable four-day music and dance festival celebrating the African Diaspora – held in Oakland, CA from March 12-15, 2026. Collage promotes cultural literacy, maintains Oakland’s vibrant and culturally rich community, establishes positive role models for youth, and provides opportunities for professional artists and artisans to share and celebrate their cultural traditions. This intergenerational event makes folkloric performing arts accessible to the diverse Bay Area and California community by offering: a free school-time and site-specific performance and workshop to East Bay elementary, middle, and high school students, affordable dance and music workshops, a gala concert that showcases California folk and traditional performing arts companies, and a free Collage plenary discussion focusing on themes in the African diasporic aesthetics and current issues. |
Diamano Coura offers weekly public classes in music and dance, arts advocacy and information sessions and serves as a community hub for youth-initiated arts education projects. We motivate artists to maximize their potential and encourage youth to explore and express their cultural and ethnic heritage through our arts-in-education programs. Collage des Cultures Africaines Annual Festival and its repertory concert is Diamano Coura’s shown commitment to partnering with other artists and community members to use the inherent power of the arts in breaking barriers that stagnate, to open up corridors that encourage social and economic development, while simultaneously fostering health and well-being. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $22,000.00 | AfroSolo Theatre Company | 762 Fulton Street, Suite 307 Third Floor, San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 346-9344 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, AfroSolo Theatre Company will offer “Black Women: Resilient,” a Black women-led multi-disciplined theatre-based project based on the five principles of Trauma-Informed Care – safety, choice, collaboration, trustworthiness, and empowerment – to create and perform solo performances based on their life experiences. The program includes four 8-week sessions—two in the fall and two in winter/spring—offered both online and in-person at the Dr. George Davis Senior Center. Participants will create original solo pieces based on their lived experiences, building confidence, writing, and public speaking skills. The project will culminate in a public performance at the AfroSolo Theatre Festival in September 2026. |
AfroSolo was founded in San Francisco in 1993 as an act of cultural resistance and affirmation. What began as a focused intervention in solo performance has grown into one of the Bay Area’s longest running Black-led multidisciplinary arts organizations. AfroSolo’s core programming is anchored by the annual AfroSolo Arts Festival, a year long multidisciplinary celebration of Black arts and culture. Each year’s programming is united by a central theme and structured around three signature components. AfroSolo in the Gardens is a free outdoor jazz concert at Yerba Buena Gardens featuring acclaimed Black vocalists and instrumentalists in an accessible public setting. AfroSolo in the Gallery is a curated visual arts exhibition showcasing five Black artists at the African American Center of SF’s Main Public Library. The Black Voices Performance Series is the centerpiece of the festival, presenting solo theatre, poetry, spoken word, and dance by African American and African Diasporan artists in culturally significant venues. During the 2026-2027 period, AfroSolo will include The Sovereign Self Project within its core program continuum as an artist development and performance lab. Informed by AfroSolo’s solo performance legacy, the project combines writing, embodiment, devised theatre, and collective authorship so Black adult participants can transform internalized racial narratives into original performance material. The work is designed as a developmental laboratory that strengthens voice, confidence, creative skill, and pathways to public presentation. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | First Exposures | 265 Shotwell St , San Francisco, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 716-8651 | California Assembly District 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, First Exposures (FX) will serve 65 Bay Area underserved youth, ages 11-18, by providing high-quality photography education and mentorship during our 2025-2026 Yearlong and Summer Mentoring Programs. For over 30 years, FX has positively impacted thousands of youth through our free programs, building their creativity, confidence, and leadership. FX’s Yearlong Photography Mentoring program provides 30 youth with 1:1 positive adult mentorship in Digital or Darkroom Photography classes led by professional Teaching Artists. Youth develop their technical skills, artistic voice, and receive social-emotional support. FX’s Summer Photo Mentoring Program engages 35 youth over 7 weeks in our Darkroom or Digital Photography classes twice a week for 3 hours per class. With the support of Teaching Artists and a group of mentors, classes emphasize collaboration, team-building, and creative exploration. |
FX offers two mentoring sessions each year: Academic Year Mentoring: FX’s 30 academic-year mentees meet weekly on Saturdays for four-hour sessions over 32 weeks. Mentees are matched 1:1 with a mentor/adult role model, providing individualized guidance for the duration of their FX experience. Mentees choose to work with either “traditional” film photography or digital photography. Throughout the year, mentees have opportunities to go on photo walks around the city, field trips to explore new areas like the Marin Headlands and cultural institutions like SFMOMA, and take part in unique photo-based opportunities like constructing a community altar for Dia de los Muertos at the Oakland Museum. Also, every holiday season, mentees participate in a special FX project known as “Envision: Community Portrait Day”, a free day-long event that invites local families, many of them low-income and first-generation, to get their portraits made by our mentees in a professional photo studio. In the culmination of the year and their efforts, mentees are showcased in our annual art auction at SOMArts Cultural Center, where their work is displayed in the First Exposures gallery space alongside their family, friends, and the public. Summer Group Mentoring: Over the summer months, San Francisco’s families, schools, shelters, and centers struggle to find creative ways to keep underserved youth engaged. First Exposures’ summer program, inaugurated in 2014, teaches digital photography and darkroom film photography in small group settings, with two mentors and five mentees working together as a team to provide a unique shared experience and foster more peer-to-peer learning. The program serves 30 mentees over 7 weeks and concludes with a public exhibition of mentee work. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | San Francisco Shakespeare Festival | 1560 Davidson Avenue , SAN FRANCISCO, 94124 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 558-0888 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, SHAKESPEARE – SAN FRANCISCO’S professional teaching artists will partner with four San Francisco Unified School District public middle schools, Francisco, Everett, Aptos and Marina, to implement the Shakespeare’s Heartbeat curriculum, bringing performing arts enrichment and teaching social emotional skills to neuro diverse students in under-served communities. These weekly classes at each school site will run the equivalent of an entire school year through the span of the grant period employing a diverse group of professional teaching artists in providing sustained quality arts instruction for vulnerable youth. |
Free Shakespeare in the Park each year presents a professional production of Shakespeare in five public park venues, reaching ~ 30,000 Bay Area citizens. The Festival also engages communities through five arts education and engagement programs: Shakespeare on Tour performs an abridged Shakespeare play at 150 schools, libraries and community centers in the Bay Area and throughout the State. Youth ages 4-18 attend Bay Area Shakespeare Camps to explore Shakespeare’s plays and also learn the skills needed to perform them. Tailor-Made Residencies connect Festival teaching artists with classroom teachers for in-school theater enrichment tailored to their students. Shakespeare’s Heartbeat is a free education and arts enrichment program for students on the autism spectrum in the San Francisco Unified School District. Shakespeare For All Neighbors is a weekly storytelling workshop for neighbors experiencing homelessness, presented at the Healing Well in the Tenderloin neighborhood in San Francisco. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Los Angeles Poverty Department | 250 S Broadway , Los Angeles, 90012-3605 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 259-1038 | 28 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, LOS ANGELES POVERTY DEPARTMENT will promote cultural equity for the Skid Row community by producing LAPD’s annual Festival for All Skid Row Artists, (FASRA). The free 2-day event held annually (since 2010) in a public park in the heart of the underserved Skid Row neighborhood will showcase the work of roughly 150 artists and arts organizations, and give 1,500 attendees opportunities to make and enjoy art, build social cohesion and celebrate the cultural vitality of their community. |
Founded by director, performer and activist John Malpede, LAPD was the first performance group in the country made up of homeless and formerly homeless people and the first sustained arts initiative in Skid Row. For 40 years, LAPD has been one of the foremost cultural and artistic resources of the community. LAPD presents live theatrical productions, organizes public discussions and presentations, public art programs, parades and festivals, curates and creates installations and exhibitions, all addressing the lives of the neighborhood residents and the issues they face. LAPD’s performances and theater pieces are developed and realized through an extensive and inclusive process that employs research and engagement strategies and activities designed to enlist and disseminate community wisdom, and which typically take place over the course of more than a year. LAPD makes work to change the narrative about people living in poverty. LAPD’s actively maintained (by professional archive staff) Skid Row History Archive documents the history of the Skid Row neighborhood and its achievements and is utilized by scholars, journalists, filmmakers, and community members. The archive is a bulwark against community displacement. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,730.00 | North American Guqin Association | 487 seema circle , union city, 94587 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 857-3918 | California Assembly district 20 | District 20 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, North American Guqin Association(NAGA) will present “Passing the Torch Across Four Generations,” commemorating the 130th birthday of Zha Fuxi, the most influential Guqin master of the twentieth century. In 1945–46, Zha visited California and introduced the 3,000-year-old Guqin to the U.S., giving lectures and performances and making the first Guqin recordings at the Library of Congress. Today, under the direction of guqin master Wang Fei, Zha’s third-generation direct disciple, this project brings concerts, master classes, exhibitions, lectures, and Yaji gatherings to communities across California. Grant funds will support artists, venues, educational materials, outreach, and documentation—bringing a UNESCO-recognized intangible heritage to take root and grow on California’s diverse cultural soil, and honoring master Zha’s enduring legacy. |
NAGA was founded in 1997. In the last ten years NAGA has grown in membership and has increased the number of programs it offers to the public. NAGA activities include guqin presentations, workshops, concerts, lectures, cultural gatherings, conferences etc. NAGA invites guest presenters and performers to its events to expand its mission to bring China’s cultural heritage to local communities. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,750.00 | Barrio Artists Partnership | 2801 B ST. 102 , SAN DIEGO, 92102 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 261-4005 | 52nd Congressional | State Assembly District 78 | State Senate District 18 | The Imperial Arts Corridor project connects local artists with family-run businesses along Imperial Avenue (20th–30th Streets) to revitalize culturally significant storefronts with custom murals, new signage, and facade improvements. Each mural is co-designed by artists and business owners to reflect unique family and cultural stories. Our nonprofit, founded in 2023, anchors the corridor and leads this creative effort alongside a community-facing publicity campaign. Two storefront galleries—Tularoosa and Imperial Mundo—will host monthly public events and workshops in polytab mural-making and living wall creation, further transforming the corridor into a vibrant hub for art, culture, and small business support. |
BAP’s core programs include community murals and public art installations, youth arts education workshops, artist mentorship and workforce development, cultural exhibitions and events, and neighborhood-based cultural preservation initiatives. We provide opportunities for artists and youth to collaborate on murals, public performances, exhibitions, and creative projects that reflect the histories and identities of historically underserved communities. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | Free 2 Be Me Dance | 4140 Glencoe Ave #613 , Marina del Rey, 90292-5610 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 259-8970 | Free 2 Be Me Dance will use CAC General Operating Support funds to sustain and grow our |
Free 2 Be Me Dance offers adaptive dance classes in hip hop and ballet to encourage the confidence, strength and creativity within each dancer. Through specialized instruction and evidence-based techniques such as BrainDance, dancers develop physical, social and emotional skills that support meaningful connections and better quality of life. Such outcomes include the development of self-confidence, empathy, communal spirit, active listening, coordination, focus and creativity. Our approach is rooted in meaningful connections, meeting each dancer where they are at, and ensuring they feel genuinely loved, supported and celebrated from the moment they walk in the door. We also offer scholarships to any family who needs one. On average 70% of our families receive a full or partial scholarship. We never turn anyone away for lack of finances. Our program prioritizes accessibility and inclusivity in order to bring dance to those who are otherwise excluded from the dance community and ultimately, to create a space where each dancer knows they are loved, validated and deserving of the best life. Furthermore, whilst Free 2 Be Me Dance primarily serves those in the Los Angeles area, the COVID-19 pandemic has allowed us to offer our program to dancers world-wide through live Zoom classes. The Zoom platform has opened doors in many ways for our dancers by making classes more accessible to those who need the flexibility of online learning. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $8,800.00 | TaikoMix | PO BOX 52197 , RIVERSIDE, 92517-3197 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 573-0187 | California's 41st congressional district | District 61 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, TaikoMix will expand its programming by reinforcing core infrastructure and deepening community engagement. Funding will support the development of staff positions, enabling the organization to devote more time to program design, outreach, and Board expansion. With enhanced administrative capacity, TaikoMix will expand its footprint in the underserved communities of Riverside and San Bernardino Counties through new partnerships with the Riverside Arts Academy and the Redlands Japanese Cultural Center. We plan to increase the number of taiko classes, workshops, and cultural offerings—maintaining our commitment to keeping programs low-cost or free. Expanding access remains a top priority; we will continue working with consultants to strengthen inclusive practices and improve digital accessibility, including updates to our website and online resources, ensuring our programs remain open and welcoming to all. |
TaikoMix was formed in 2005 by graduating members of the collegiate taiko ensemble UC Riverside Senryu Taiko in response to a specific need for Asian and Asian American community representation of traditional and cultural arts in the Inland Empire region. TaikoMix operates a community performing ensemble, TaikoMix, that is based in Riverside and open to all who wish to study taiko. The community performing ensemble has been practicing together weekly for over fifteen years. In 2015, under the TaikoMix organization, the professional performing ensemble The Wagaku Collective was formed. The Wagaku Collective is an ensemble of musicians who are classically trained on traditional Japanese musical instruments: Okinawan sanshin, shakuhachi, shinobue, Tsugaru shamisen, and taiko. The Wagaku Collective’s purpose is to share Japanese tradition and culture through public performances and educational activities centered on Japanese minyo (folk) music. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | I Sound Music Performing Arts Community Development Inc | 2251 Florin Rd Suite 102, Sacramento, 95822 | Sacramento | Capital | (678) 507-6971 | California Assembly district 7 | District 7 | District 6 | CAC grant funds will be used to support artists and instructors who come from—or serve—communities impacted by systemic marginalization. This includes individuals affected by incarceration and involvement in the justice system, economic and health disparities, disability-related accessibility barriers, housing insecurity, and issues of cultural and social justice, including members of the LGBTQIA+ community. For over six years, iSound Performing Arts has provided at-risk and underserved youth with access to transformative arts experiences. Our programming includes monthly music camps, healing-centered art and painting sessions, and a wide range of creative workshops that promote emotional well-being, self-expression, and personal development. CAC funding will help us sustain and expand these efforts, ensuring that youth and artists from historically underrepresented backgrounds have equitable opportunities to thrive through the arts. |
Sound Performing Arts offers a diverse range of core programs and services designed to inspire, educate, and empower youth through the arts. Our “Arts & Explore” program blends visual art instruction with cultural education, allowing students to engage in hands-on painting while learning about the historical and cultural significance behind various artistic styles. We also offer instruction in art painting, musical instruments, vocal performance, dance, music production, and drama, providing young people with a well-rounded introduction to the performing and creative arts. Participants gain real-world experience with digital production technology, building valuable technical skills as they create and present their work through concerts, recitals, and multimedia projects. In response to the COVID-19 pandemic five years ago, we launched virtual youth community pop-up camps and online classes, ensuring continued engagement and creative development during a critical time. Building on the success of both our virtual and in-person programs, we are now expanding our reach through a weekday after-school program and by bringing our services to more communities. With a focus on accessibility, self-expression, and youth development, we believe creativity has the power to redefine possibilities and shape a brighter future for the next generation. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | Left Coast Chamber Ensemble | 55 TAYLOR ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94102-3916 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 617-5223 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, LEFT COAST CHAMBER ENSEMBLE INC will offer a second session of our successful Pathways program, providing mentor-guided workshops, and professional ensemble performances and recordings for young composers with limited access to these essential resources. Pathways addresses the dearth of high-quality recording resources that overwhelmingly affects BIPOC composers and composers from underrepresented groups, acting as a barrier to future career opportunities. |
The core programs of the Left Coast Chamber Ensemble include: |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | SFIAF | 1471 Guerrero St, #3 , San Francisco, 94110-4371 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 399-9554 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the CAC, SFIAF will conduct the Women in Jazz & World Music (WJWM) Vocal Training Course led by Dr. Dee Spencer supported by band leader, singer and composer Michelle Jacques. The course is designed for under-served youth aged 15-24. It features five four-hour sessions and culminates in a public concert presented free to families and the general public. The program will include four guest lecturers – professional women vocalists whose careers and lives are role models for the students. The program will incorporate a focus on community-building by fostering a network for mentorship, collaboration, and support between younger and older artists. The training is offered at no cost to participants and intentionally recruits under-served students of color. WJWM takes place at the Community Music Center in San Francisco’s Mission District during April 2026. |
The Annual Festival The Last Supper Party Women in Jazz & World Music (WJWM) Lift Every Voice Artist Support Services Program Produced Projects 2020-22: “Daughters of the Delta”, composed by Michelle Jacques and Cava Menzies; arrangements by Bryan Dyer. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,750.00 | Presidio Performing Arts Foundation | 2902 LYON ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94123-3226 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 561-3958 | District 12 | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Presidio Performing Arts Foundation will expand its community outreach program, DANCEOUT! in partnership with the Bayview YMCA, providing underserved students in the Bayview community a positive creative outlet through the arts. DANCEOUT! promotes youth development, cultural literacy and mentorship through dance. Students will additionally have opportunities to participate in community workshops focusing on health & wellness, as well as performing alongside professional artists, as part of Presidio Dance Theatre’s multi-generational dance company. |
Presidio Performing Arts Foundation (PPAF) has a 27 year history of advancing justice through dance. Since its inception, PPAF has continuously engaged and uplifted historically and systemically excluded and erased artists, cultural practitioners, and arts and cultural practices. In partnership with SFUSD and the YMCA, 280,000 students have benefitted from our free public performances, lectures, workforce development opportunities, and community classes. PPAF annually presents Children’s Day at the SF War Memorial Opera House, providing an opportunity for 6,200 Bay Area students and families to enjoy free multicultural dance presentations, highlighting the diversity and inclusive spirit of California. DANCEOUT!’s nationally recognized youth development program, provides culturally informed and responsive arts education, resulting in positive life paths. 85% of our DANCEOUT! students are the first in their families to attend a university; 99% of our graduates pursue a college education. PPAF partnerships include a broad range of local, national and international arts, cultural, and educational entities, including: the United Nations; International Red Cross; UNESCO’s International Dance Council; European Parliament; U.S. Department of State; City of San Francisco; SF Symphony; SFMOMA; SF Opera; SF Unified School District; YMCA; Smithsonian Institute. Presidio Dance Theatre, widely recognized for its signature style of Ethno-Classical Ballet, has received numerous accolades, including the U.S. State Department’s award for “Excellence in Cultural Diplomacy & Dance.” PDT employs and highlights native artists and those from underrepresented cultures, celebrating the rich tapestry of human heritage. PDT’s New Works Series focuses on women’s empowerment and putting women’s stories back into history, while examining gender roles through the ages. PDT has engaged in 13 international tours, representing the U.S. and 5 official SF Sister City Exchanges, supporting global humanitarian causes, while promoting social justice. Global audiences have exceeded 12 million. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Street Spirit | 2726 Martin Luther King Jr Way , Berkeley, 94703 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 350-3626 | District 12 | District 14 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Street Spirit will increase the number of unhoused writers published in our paper, promote equity in our community through compassionate storytelling, and act as a bridge between unhoused people and the local arts scene. Street Spirit eliminates barriers between unhoused people and the arts. Your support will allow us to nurture the voices of emerging unhoused writers. The poetry created in this workshop will chip away at the stigma around homelessness in the Bay Area—a heavy burden marginalized people often carry alone. We will evaluate the impact of your support by tracking the number of new artists published in our newspaper, and participation at open mic events. We have helped unhoused residents change the narrative around homelessness for more than 30 years. Your support will strengthen this work. |
Writing and Arts program – We mentor and publish unhoused writers, artists and journalists using a collaborative editorial process. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | Arenas Dance Company | 3316 24th Street , San Francisco, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 623-6043 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arenas Dance Company will continue our mission to preserve and promote Afro-Cuban art and culture via dance and drum classes and original dance and music works. Funds will be used to: pay a monthly stipend to our Artistic Director/choreographer and our core staff, including our access manager; compensate our dancers and drummers at “market rate” for both rehearsals and performances; and rent studio space for rehearsals. |
Arenas Dance Company (ADC) produces, presents, and creates dance performances celebrating the complexity and beauty of Cuban culture. We work to present the Cuban culture in its fullness and depth. ADC teaches weekly Cuban folkloric and popular dance classes throughout the San Francisco Bay Area, and is frequently invited to guest teach – leading workshops and giving lectures – at schools (Elementary through University), libraries, and camps on Cuban dance, music and traditions. ADC also takes students on annual cultural exchange and study trips to Cuba. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | Art Theatre of Long Beach | 2025 E 4TH ST , LONG BEACH, 90814-1001 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 438-3723 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Art Theatre of Long Beach will sustain its mission to celebrate and preserve the art of cinema while creating an inclusive and engaging cultural space for our community. We will do this through the continuation and expansion of our Film and Speakers Series, programming bi-monthly screenings of relevant films, followed by panel discussion with directors, actors, or subject/community experts. We will present films of artistic, cultural, and historical significance by multiple communities, including African-American, Asian-American, Latino-American, and LGBTQ. Topics embrace environment, history, social justice, LGBTQ issues, food and nutrition, as well as music or art. Emphasizing diversity and representation and offering audiences an enriched viewing experience and educational opportunities, these one-of-a-kind events will take place in our 101-year-old historic single-screen movie theater, remodeled and accessible to everyone. |
Our main programming objectives focus on celebrating and preserving the art of cinema while creating an inclusive and engaging cultural space for our community. As a historic single-screen movie theater, we present films of artistic, cultural, and historical significance, emphasizing diversity and representation through our selection process. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Oakland Ballet Company | 2201 BROADWAY STE LL17 , OAKLAND, 94612-3132 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 893-3132 | 12th Congressional District of CA | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Oakland Ballet Company will present a 2025–2026 season centered on equity, access, and representation in the arts. The season includes four powerful productions – 60th Anniversary Program, The Nutcracker, Rainbow Dances celebrating LGBTQ+ artists, and a remounting of the Angel Island Project, which honors the experiences of AAPI immigrants detained at the Angel Island Immigration Station. CAC funds will support these public performances as well as Discover Dance arts education program activities for schools with limited access to arts education. All programming is designed to reflect the lived experiences of Oakland’s diverse communities and ensure that students and audiences see themselves represented on stage. Through this work, OBC will continue its commitment to breaking down barriers to the arts and fostering a more inclusive and equitable cultural landscape. |
OBC is committed to artistic excellence, serving as a leader in the local arts community, and providing access to the art of dance for 15,000+ community members from Oakland and the greater East Bay each year. OBC’s programs include a diverse mix of professional performances, a robust arts education program, and a youth dance training program. Performances: Arts Education: Dance Training: |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,522.00 | Jazzantiqua Dance & Music Ensemble | 1529 1/2 S BEDFORD STREET , LOS ANGELES, 90035-000 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 943-9229 | California Assembly district 54 | District 54 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Jazzantiqua Dance & Music Ensemble (Jazzantiqua, Inc.) will continue to develop and grow our free jazz dance training program for teens – LEGACY Jazz Project – which includes Summer dance intensives, weekly workshops, master classes at school sites, and the performance group LEGACY Youth Dance Ensemble. |
Jazzantiqua’s core programs and services include: performances, community dance classes, professional dance training and master classes, lecture-demonstrations, panel discussions, jazz music and dance improvisation workshops, community dialogues, apprenticeships and internships, mini-conferences, K-12 school programs and college presentations. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,800.00 | IB Arts | PO BOX 1378 , IMPERIAL BCH, 91933-1378 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 777-6286 | District 52 | DISTRICT AD80 | District 18 | Since 2018, Imperial Beach Arts Bureau has been the primary catalyst bringing public art to Imperial Beach, a majority-Hispanic, low-to-moderate-income city in San Diego. In 2024, IBAB hired its first employee: a part-time executive director to expand outreach, increase art installations and events, improve operational systems, & direct fundraising. |
IB Arts is committed to supporting local artists and fostering a vibrant cultural landscape in Imperial Beach. A key initiative includes **twice-yearly gallery exhibitions at the public library**, providing a dynamic platform for both emerging and established artists to showcase their work and connect with the community. As part of its core programming, IB Arts **commissions artists to create public installations**, many of which reflect Imperial Beach’s coastal identity and natural surroundings. These works celebrate the city’s proximity to the ocean and estuaries, fostering deeper appreciation for environmental themes through artistic expression. Beyond installations, IB Arts actively **engages the community in the artmaking process**, ensuring that creativity is accessible to residents and visitors alike. This includes regular participation in **monthly Farmer’s Markets** and **citywide events** such as **Día de Los Niños** and **Art in the Park**, where hands-on art activities encourage public involvement. To further connect people with local art, IB Arts has curated a **bilingual self-guided Mural Bike Tour**, offering an immersive experience that highlights **over 30 murals** and **34 decorated utility boxes** along a carefully designed route. By integrating public art with active transportation, this initiative allows participants to explore and appreciate the city’s creative landscape in an engaging and interactive way. With these programs, IB Arts continues to enrich Imperial Beach’s cultural identity, making the arts accessible, participatory, and deeply connected to the local environment and community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Give 4 Kidz | 16580 BONANZA DR , RIVERSIDE, 92504-5719 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 345-9726 | 42 | 59 | 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, GIVE 4 KIDZ will expand its Art & Me program to serve more youth ages 2 to 21 in underserved communities across the Inland Empire and Downtown Los Angeles. Free workshops—offered in neighborhoods with a Healthy Place Index score of 20 or below—will engage youth in culturally affirming art experiences such as watercolor, acrylics, ceramics, clay sculpting, drawing, and sensory-based slime making. CAC funds will support program growth through teaching artist fees, inclusive art supplies, and ADA-compliant community venues. This initiative promotes safe, healing-centered environments where young people can build confidence, explore identity, and strengthen their connection to culture through the arts. |
Give 4 Kidz is dedicated to empowering young creatives through two main programs: ‘Art & Me’ and ‘Story Corner’. The ‘Art & Me’ program aims to nurture and support youth by offering them free art materials, workshops, events, and exhibitions. We are proud to collaborate with local artists and organizations that share our vision. The second program, ‘Story Corner’, caters to young individuals with a passion for creative writing. We provide a supportive environment where they can explore their creativity, acquire new skills, and connect with like-minded peers. Through this program, we offer access to writing supplies, events, and workshops led by experienced writers. Our aim is to inspire and foster a love for writing among youth. In this endeavor, we are delighted to partner with local bookstores, authors, and libraries. At Give 4 Kidz, our mission extends beyond traditional boundaries. We strive to reach all children who possess a love for the arts, regardless of their socio-economic backgrounds. To achieve this, we extend our services to family homeless shelters and underserved communities in California. Additionally, we have created remote participation opportunities to ensure inclusivity for all kids. Our goal is to overcome socio-economic challenges and provide equal access to our programs. By embracing diversity and focusing on the potential within each child, Give 4 Kidz is committed to nurturing the creative spirit and enabling young individuals to thrive in the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Women's Voices Now | 525 Ave F , Redondo Beach, 90277 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 247-6130 | District 36 | District 66 | District 24 | Women’s Voices Now (WVN) addresses the exclusion of women from film by combining access, education, amplification, and community engagement. We request $30,000 from the California Arts Council to support staff, stipends, and supplies for our programs: the WVN Film Festival, which uplifts women filmmakers through cash prizes, visibility, and global distribution; Girls’ Voices Now (GVN), an intensive filmmaking and youth development program for girls from underrepresented Los Angeles communities; and the Voices for Change Film Collection, a free digital collection of over 340 socially impactful films. Each program incorporates in-person screenings in LA, bringing local and global issues to California audiences. These initiatives build lasting skills, promote authentic storytelling, and spark public dialogue. WVN fosters a more inclusive media landscape by creating college and career pathways in film and using storytelling for social change. |
We empower filmmakers, produce social-change films, and engage audience members to advance girls’ and women’s rights through our three core programs: 1. WVN Online Film Festival 2. Girls’ Voices Now – Youth Development through Arts Education and Empowerment 3. Voices For Change: A free film collection advocating for women’s and girls’ rights |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Relampago del Cielo, Inc. | PO BOX 3158 600 W. Santa Ana Blvd. Suite 214-A, SANTA ANA, 92704-1388 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 881-4732 | California's 46th congressional district | District 68 | District 34 | With support from the California Arts Council, Relámpago del Cielo, Inc. will bring additional ballet folklórico dance instruction to local public schools, community partners and public events. Funding will bolster our capacity to expand free and low-cost classes and performances to traditionally underserved children, youth and families in vulnerable communities across Santa Ana and central Orange County in this pivotal year as we celebrate our 50th Anniversary. |
Relampago del Cielo arts program provides instruction in Mexican folklorico dance. Students receive weekly classes that are representative of the various regions of Mexico. Approximately 325 students’ ages three to young adult, are in the program. Relámpago offers classes to any interested child regardless of ability to pay. Financial aid is available to low-income families to support tuition fees. Families who meet prerequisite minimum annual income, as established by the U.S. Department of Housing and Urban Development, qualify for assistance. Annual Student Recital: The students showcase their accomplishments and learning at the annual student recital. Students are given the opportunity to perform on stage, to an audience of over a thousand attendees. Community Involvement and Performances: The students perform in educational, cultural, business and community events throughout Orange County, such as community parades, civic celebrations, school presentations and church events. Relampago del Cielo also operates a professional ballet folklorico dance company which offers free and paid performances at a variety of venues across Southern California and beyond and reaches thousands of audience members every year. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,729.00 | Amador Arts | 1324 Jackson Gate Rd , Jackson, 95642-9539 | Amador | Central Valley | (209) 256-8166 | District 5 | District 1 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, AMADOR COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL (Amador Arts) will work as a collective with service agencies, historically disinvested communities, and local artists impacted by suicide, self-harm, the justice system, addiction, homophobia, violence, homelessness, and disabilities, to facilitate social practice arts and devised theatre techniques in collaboration with so-called “non-artist” communities at Sierra Wind Wellness & Recovery Center to compose and produce an album of original songs (including video ASL renditions) and a short documentary about the lifesaving place of music and the arts in suicide and self-harm prevention. |
The Amador County Arts Council (Amador Arts) keeps the arts central to Amador’s life through programs, services, and initiatives. (1) PUBLIC OFFICE: Our accessible public office is open to the public and is located in a historic building on Jackson Gate Road in Jackson, CA. Open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 to 4 PM and staffed by volunteers and employees from the Mother Lode Land Trust, our partner. (2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE: Our team provides free Technical Assistance on California Arts Council grants. (3) PRODUCING PERFORMANCES: Since its establishment, Amador Arts has played a central role in performing arts throughout Amador County. Most notably, since 1998, our “TGIF Free Summer Concerts” have brought live music to thousands of people in outdoor venues where it would otherwise not be available. Producing Poetry Out Loud since 2016, with multi-generational poetry engagement opportunities in addition to the traditional competition. (4) ARTS EDUCATION ADVOCACY: Amador Arts has been a trusted consultant to Amador County Unified School District, providing support and administration for the district’s Arts Plan and the rollout of Prop 28. Additionally, since 2012, Amador Arts has been an Arts Now community, surveying the state of arts education annually and teaching advocacy tools and skills to youth so they can impact their own arts education. (5) PROMOTING THE ARTS: Weekly newspaper article “Heart of Art” in the Ledger Dispatch, which covers all types of impacts of the arts and leans heavily on the research from Americans for the Arts and their Arts Impact Explorer. The articles are also published on our blog. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | 924 Gilman | 924 GILMAN ST , BERKELEY, 94710-1424 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 918-3376 | 12th District of California | 14 | 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Alternative Music Foundation will present Give The Drummer Some, a series of eight free masterclasses led by master Black drummers rooted in the Bay Area. Centering the Black cultural traditions of blues, jazz, gospel, and R&B, this program addresses a community-identified need to celebrate, preserve, and pass down Black musical heritage. Developed in collaboration with local artists and community leaders, the series will uplift the voices of under recognized master musicians and create accessible learning opportunities for participants of all ages. This project affirms the cultural contributions of Black communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification and fosters an environment for accessible, intergenerational learning through culturally responsive arts education. |
Alternative Music Foundation provides an all ages, substance free, collectively run music and arts space for the community. Colloquially known as ‘924 Gilman’, or even just ‘Gilman’, our organization has been around in one form or another since 1986. We started off as a punk collective focused on providing a safe and inclusive space, and have maintained that attitude well into today. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Women's Voices Now | 525 Ave F , Redondo Beach, 90277 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 247-6130 | District 36 | District 66 | District 24 | Girls’ Voices Now (GVN), the youth development program of Women’s Voices Now, empowers girls from under-resourced communities through filmmaking. We cultivate the next generation of changemakers and storytellers by building their confidence, teaching media literacy and critical thinking, and developing professional skills for careers in film and media. GVN is entirely free, offers a $500 stipend, and provides meals and transportation support. Participants—diverse and representative of Los Angeles—learn to use their voices for personal and community advocacy. Over seven years, GVN has proven long-term impact: alumnae have attended top universities and earned prestigious fellowships, internships, and jobs. We graciously request $25,000 from the California Arts Council to support staff costs. These funds will ensure we continue to train, mentor, and launch young filmmakers committed to telling stories that drive social change. |
We empower filmmakers, produce social-change films, and engage audience members to advance girls’ and women’s rights through our three core programs: 1. WVN Online Film Festival 2. Girls’ Voices Now – Youth Development through Arts Education and Empowerment 3. Voices For Change: A free film collection advocating for women’s and girls’ rights |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | CounterPulse | 80 TURK ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94102-2808 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 626-2060 | California Congressional District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, CounterPulse will underwrite costs of the staff who produce our core programming in service to artists, audiences, and residents of historically underserved communities from our home venue in downtown San Francisco. Investing in these cultural workers is vital to CounterPulse’s mission of serving dance, performance, and multimedia artist and audience communities, who tend to be younger, lower-income, and diverse in sexual-orientation, gender-representation, and ethnic backgrounds. CAC support will also facilitate our deep community listening, internal and programmatic equity work, and ongoing commitments to accessibility. |
Since 1991, CounterPulse has been a platform where remarkably multidimensional narratives are synthesized to create, support, and launch art-making activities that speak to critical concerns and reflect the vitality of grassroots communities. In 2005, CounterPulse launched our flagship Artist Residency and Commissioning (ARC) program that includes three residency tracks, spanning contemporary dance, experimental culturally-specific performance, and technologically engaged choreography. CounterPulse has maintained a consistent track record of launching programs of national and international profile, cementing CounterPulse’s leadership in the dance and performance ecosystem; such initiatives include the CounterPulse Festival, ongoing since 2018; large-scale public art projects in 2017 and 2023, and international curatorial initiatives annually. As an outgrowth of this impact, CounterPulse was selected in 2014 to partner with Community Arts Stabilization Trust (CAST) to acquire and renovate a building in San Francisco’s Tenderloin district, moving into the 10,000 sq. ft., fully accessible facility in 2016. Over the ensuing years CounterPulse has deepened our commitment to accessibility as an axis of community building by partnering with local service organizations to facilitate community development through arts in our neighborhood. In 2023, CounterPulse completed a $7 million capital campaign to purchase the building from CAST and is now a permanent and thriving cultural anchor in downtown San Francisco. CounterPulse produces world-class, critically acclaimed programs that directly support working artists. Residency, commissioning, presentation, co-production, fiscal sponsorship, and rental exchange programs work in concert to springboard artists into the next level of their careers and provide access to income, marketing and production support, and below-market rental rates. All of our programs share a commitment to access and affordability aimed at building resilience and risk-taking in communities of artists by giving them a home for making and presenting works. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Eye Discover | 14922 ROMA DR , LA MIRADA, 90638-3818 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 458-2279 | 38th | 64 | 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Eye Discover will lead a collaborative art project that empowers students at Alliance Judy Ivie Burton Technology High School and Alliance Cindy & Bill Simon Technology High School to design and create large-scale murals composed of individual artwork. Rooted in our mission to blend artivism (art + activism) with culturally relevant youth programming, this project addresses the lack of culturally responsive curricula, limited access to arts education, and the need for supportive, creative spaces for youth in under-resourced communities. Co-created by students and artists from historically excluded backgrounds, the murals will amplify diverse voices and lived experiences, celebrating identity, creativity, and civic engagement. This art project will transform school walls into lasting symbols of pride and resilience, giving students an empowering space for expression, connection, and a sense of belonging. |
Eye Discover provides after school programming and summer camps aligned with curriculum standards, and fosters critical thinking, creativity, and active citizenship among elementary school students. Our programs offersa unique combination of STEM, artivism, technology for social change, culturally responsive curriculum, and creative expression that empowers students to become active, engaged, and socially aware members of their communities. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | RICHMOND ART CENTER | 2540 BARRETT AVE , RICHMOND, 94804-1600 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 620-6772 | 8th Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 14 | State Senate District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Richmond Art Center will partner with local visual artists and community organizations to continue developing ARTS EDUCATION and EXHIBITION programs. These programs respond to Richmond’s need for safe, creative spaces; places where people can heal, connect, explore their potential, and build self-confidence and creative problem solving skills. Richmond is a vibrant, racially diverse city with a large working-class and immigrant population (54.8% of residents speak a language other than English at home). Through accessible art classes and hands-on learning programs, Richmond Art Center will foster personal growth and well-being, while exhibitions and public events will amplify the voices of our city and region, engaging directly with local audiences. |
Arts Education: Our arts education program offers art classes to adults, youth, kids and families; on-site in our six studios, and off-site in local schools and community spaces. This includes providing free in-school and after-school arts tuition to K-12 students at local West Contra Costa Unified School District schools. Other arts education initiatives include a paid professional development series for educators, free family day celebrations, youth art tours of exhibitions, Summer Art Camp for Kids, and youth intensive classes. Exhibitions and Events: Exhibitions and public programs feature work by established, early career and aspiring artists. The goal of our exhibition program is to introduce new artists, artwork and perspectives on art; engage Richmond audiences; enhance the visibility of underrepresented groups/artists; and serve as a catalyst for community interaction. Long term community exhibition partnerships include The Art of Living Black/Art of the African Diaspora (since 1997), and the WCCUSD Art Show (since 1965). |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Street Spirit | 2726 Martin Luther King Jr Way , Berkeley, 94703 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 350-3626 | District 12 | District 14 | District 9 | General operating support from the California Arts Council will support Street Spirit as we broaden the reach of the artwork and stories in our newspaper, promote equity in our community through compassionate storytelling, and realize a strong financial position in our next fiscal year. Street Spirit eliminates barriers between unhoused people and the arts, providing vocational training in the process. Your support will complement matching funds committed by a diverse group of funders who are passionate about our mission. We will evaluate the impact of your support by tracking new artistic contributors and participants in our vocational training program, as well as the involvement of key staff. Street Spirit has helped unhoused residents change the narrative around homelessness for more than 30 years, and your support will strengthen our operational integrity. |
Writing and Arts program – We mentor and publish unhoused writers, artists and journalists using a collaborative editorial process. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | "" | 1933 S. Broadway Suite 1108, LOS ANGELES, 90007 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 745-4928 | District 37 | District 59 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, LA Promise Fund will offer 15 total weeks of after-school animation club programming at the Westbrook Academy in South Gate. Club will focus on stop-motion animation and character design, serving a total of 25 at-promise youth participating in the club programming. |
Key regional programs: |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Via International | 1955 JULIAN AVE , SAN DIEGO, 92113-1125 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 310-2105 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 80 | District 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, Via International will expand our Somos La Voz (SLV) Cultural Heritage program to launch a four-week teen summer camp in 2026. “Somos La Voz Teen Camp: Community Art as a Tool for Resistance, Healing, and Identity” will offer free, culturally relevant art and music programming for Mexican, Chicano, and Latinx youth ages 12–20, creating a space for both new and returning participants to explore creative expression and cultural pride. Evaluations from our first two years of SLV show that youth feel empowered as community leaders and gain a sense of intergenerational belonging and healing. The 2026 camp will also provide paid opportunities for advanced youth participants to serve as mentors and camp counselors, deepening their leadership and peer facilitation skills. |
Via works through the paradigm of asset-based community development (ABCD), which is a development practice that centers the community of focus, building on already-present strengths, leadership, and community assets. ABCD works to bring resources to communities of focus to invest in community-sourced and led solutions. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | The Strindberg Laboratory | PO Box 29824 , LOS ANGELES, 90029 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 265-6313 | California's 28th congressional district | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Strindberg Laboratory (TSL) will activate theater engagement programming that meaningfully and intentionally includes participants and audiences from diverse walks of life to help build bridges between individuals and communities that are normally separated. We do this by creating community-driven workshops, pop-up events, and productions for otherwise underserved participants and audiences, with all of our programming and performances provided free-of-charge. Through the lens of our mission, TSL’s work is inspired by what we believe is everyone’s right to arts equity—the right for everyone and anyone, regardless of race, cultural background, socio-economic status, life experience, or citizenship status to create their own paths to self-discovery through theater storytelling, and to connect too-often under-heard voices and stories with a diverse audience. |
Central to TSL’s core programming is our community-driven productions, which we currently create through our Vaudeville Valley Troupe (VVT). Originally established by TSL in 2020 as a workshop for young adults on the autism spectrum, it is now the creative force driving TSL’s annual original productions generated by range of theater, puppetry, and multi-media artists with individuals on the autism spectrum joined by individuals with other neurodivergence and disabilities, individuals experiencing housing insecurity, returning citizens post-incarceration, and others. TSL is committed to providing all of our community artists with stipends for their work and presenting all of our performances free-of-charge. Our most recent production, “Step Forward for All The Poor People!” was performed in 2025, addressing poverty through a satirical take on conquering it once-and-for-all. TSL provides theater arts workshops and presents special performances to communities that cannot typically participate in or attend our productions. Since 2021, we have provided in-service engagement at St. Barnabas Senior Services, Fairfax Senior Center, West Los Angeles Veterans Home, Central City Community Center, and Los Angeles Mission, among others, engaging senior citizens, U.S. military veterans, individuals experiencing homelessness, and individuals challenged with addition. Critically linked to our productions and workshops, we have also developed our own unique theater games rooted in Forum Theatre, an approach explicitly devised to engage audiences as co-performers with a focus on developing open, creative, solution-oriented dialogues around social justice. This approach also informs TSL’s community festivals (such as Together in September in 2022) and ongoing pop-up events and activations in public spaces throughout the Los Angeles area. In 2024, TSL also co-created Citizen Network News, a print-only international newspaper that addresses community-driven issues through an artist-activist lens. TSL believes this type of awareness and public conversation are key, fundamental building blocks for creating bold, innovative theater-makers and artists. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Root Division | 1131 MISSION ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103-1514 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 863-7668 | California's 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Root Division will provide free, high-quality visual arts education to over 1,000 San Francisco youth. We will recruit, train, and place 20 Studio Artists and Fellows to teach at 8 after-school partner sites, reaching low-income, BIPOC, immigrant, and English-Language Learner students in the Mission, SOMA, and Tenderloin neighborhoods. These artist-educators will deliver culturally responsive, hands-on art classes that foster creative expression, build confidence, and strengthen community connection. |
Root Division’s ecosystem includes 4 interconnected programs: In our unique incubator Studios Program we offer discounted space to artists who each volunteer 8 hours of service per month. Artists spend this time teaching free art classes in the Youth Education Program, instructing courses in the Adult Education Program, and/or supporting the Exhibitions & Events Program. We link various interests & audiences in a mutually beneficial relationship making art, artists & arts education more accessible while cultivating artists who give back. Since 2002, Root Division has provided 290+ artists with studios; empowered 480 artists to teach; provided 8,000+ hours of free art classes for neighborhood youth; hosted adult art classes for 4,400 students; exhibited 4,700+ artists; been a gathering place for 75,000 visitors to meet artists & see artwork; sold over $1.27M of emerging artwork; & developed partnerships with two-dozen public schools/ community centers & 180 local businesses. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,900.00 | "" | 1532 35th Ave. , Oakland, 94601 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 320-6534 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Afro Urban Society will support two part-time positions to carry out our mission of a Black-led community-powered arts & cultural organization dedicated to centering creatives and communities of African descent through professional development trainings, arts & cultural workshops, youth programs, festivals, original and curated productions, arts education, and community engagement activities in the SF Bay Area. AUS provides diverse program offerings that sustains the resiliency, interconnection and unique artistic and cultural expressions and contributions of people of African descent in our society. |
Incubate: We curate and host various fellowship and training programs enabling our community members to level up on their creative and artistic craft and practice. Our offerings include: Celebrate: We celebrate the work of community of artists and creatives with and through performance, cultural expression, media, and community events such as: Elevate: |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | SLOMA | PO BOX 813 1010 Broad Street, San Luis Obispo, 93406-0813 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 543-8562 | California's 24th congressional district | District 30 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (SLOMA) will provide free guided museum gallery tours, art activities, and curriculum materials supporting the California Department of Education’s Visual Arts Teaching Standards for schools serving priority student populations. Grant funds will also support transportation subsidies for Title 1 schools to remove financial barriers to arts participation, as well as targeted summer programming for kids from historically underserved and under-resourced communities in south San Luis Obispo County. |
The San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (SLOMA) is located in downtown San Luis Obispo on the west end of Mission Plaza, at the heart of the city’s cultural corridor. SLOMA is committed to an exhibition program that brings together visual artists from around the world with renowned artists from California and the US. With free admission and monthly events, SLOMA is the heart of the Central Coast’s visual arts community, serving as both a gathering place for the community and an essential stop for visitors. Programs and services include a robust exhibitions program, public art, and youth and adult arts education. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,900.00 | AfroSolo Theatre Company | 762 Fulton Street, Suite 307 Third Floor, San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 346-9344 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, AfroSolo Theatre Company will maintain its core programs, including the AfroSolo Arts Festival, Black Women: Resilient, and STOP! SHOW & CONTROL! The Art of Surviving Police Stops! CAC funding will support artist fees, production costs, and accessibility services, enabling AfroSolo to continue offering free and low-cost, high-impact programming in San Francisco’s Black communities. These programs uplift Black voices through solo performance, visual arts, and music while providing opportunities for healing, storytelling, and cultural affirmation. This investment will help AfroSolo remain a vital cultural anchor in the Bay Area—supporting emerging and established Black artists, fostering cross-generational engagement, and ensuring that Black stories and experiences are seen, heard, and honored. |
AfroSolo was founded in San Francisco in 1993 as an act of cultural resistance and affirmation. What began as a focused intervention in solo performance has grown into one of the Bay Area’s longest running Black-led multidisciplinary arts organizations. AfroSolo’s core programming is anchored by the annual AfroSolo Arts Festival, a year long multidisciplinary celebration of Black arts and culture. Each year’s programming is united by a central theme and structured around three signature components. AfroSolo in the Gardens is a free outdoor jazz concert at Yerba Buena Gardens featuring acclaimed Black vocalists and instrumentalists in an accessible public setting. AfroSolo in the Gallery is a curated visual arts exhibition showcasing five Black artists at the African American Center of SF’s Main Public Library. The Black Voices Performance Series is the centerpiece of the festival, presenting solo theatre, poetry, spoken word, and dance by African American and African Diasporan artists in culturally significant venues. During the 2026-2027 period, AfroSolo will include The Sovereign Self Project within its core program continuum as an artist development and performance lab. Informed by AfroSolo’s solo performance legacy, the project combines writing, embodiment, devised theatre, and collective authorship so Black adult participants can transform internalized racial narratives into original performance material. The work is designed as a developmental laboratory that strengthens voice, confidence, creative skill, and pathways to public presentation. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Girls Make Beats | 7243 Atoll Ave. Suite A , North Hollywood, 91605 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (954) 871-0683 | California's 29th congressional district | District CA-29 | District 27 | Girls Make Beats respectfully requests General Operating Support from the California Arts Council to sustain and grow our mission to empower girls and gender-expansive youth, ages 8–17, through music production, DJing, and audio engineering education. CAC funds will support core operational expenses including staff salaries, teaching artist stipends, program coordination, equipment maintenance, and rent/utilities for training spaces. This unrestricted funding will allow us to expand access to culturally relevant, trauma-informed arts education for underserved youth across California, especially in communities of color historically excluded from the music industry. By supporting our general operations, CAC will help ensure the long-term stability and impact of our programs, our workforce, and the cultural ecosystems we help strengthen through creative youth development. |
Girls Make Beats offers in-school and after-school courses on industry-leading hardware and software, along with summer camps, industry panels, and networking events. We provide scholarships, internships, live performance opportunities, and portfolio development to empower girls in music production, DJing, and audio engineering. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | SambaFunk! | 1428 ALICE ST APT 601 , OAKLAND, 94612-4072 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 451-6100 | California Assembly district 18 | District 15 | District 9 | SambaFunk! preserves, centers, and uplifts African Diaspora cultural and healing arts across the San Francisco Bay Area. Rooted in African, Brazilian samba, and Oakland funk traditions, our mission celebrates resilience, shared heritage, and cultural pride while promoting wellness in underserved communities. CAC grant funds will support programs aligned with this mission, including Oakland Carnival, a free annual event sponsored by SambaFunk! for the entire city and San Francisco Bay Area. Held at Mosswood Park, it features African, Caribbean, and Afro-Brazilian arts through music, dance, and wellness activities. Additionally, biweekly drum and dance classes, K-12 arts programs, public performances, artist residencies, and international studies provide inclusive spaces for cultural expression. With a community of over 1,000 participants, SambaFunk! connects people, builds creativity, and sustains traditions essential for healing and future generations. |
Since 2010, SambaFunk! has used music and dance to bridge cultural gaps while providing a safe place for authentic, health-focused cultural creativity. Our core programs include dance/drum classes, K-12 arts education, public performances, international study and support for key social issues. We are proud to say that we regularly host: • biweekly African Brazilian drum and dance classes (30+ attendance on average, and 100+ attendance in Carnaval season) |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Ryman Arts | 1933 S Broadway Suite 1138, Los Angeles, 90007 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 629-2787 | California Assembly district 57 | District CA-37 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Ryman-Carroll Foundation (Ryman Arts) will provide advanced studio art classes (Foundation Drawing, Intermediate Drawing & Painting, and Advanced Painting) and college and career guidance, to over 575 students through its core program and an additional 500+ students through outreach from January – September 2026. Young artists in grades 9–12 (ages 14–18) from Southern California will receive high-quality, sequential art instruction from professional teaching artists at Ryman Arts. Classes will be held on weekends during the school year at our partner campuses—Otis College of Art and Design and Cal State University, Fullerton—and on weekdays during the summer at the USC Roski School of Art and Design. |
Since 1990, Ryman Arts has provided professional fine arts classes along with college and career planning to talented youth in Southern California, at no cost to the students. Recognized for the superior quality of its program, Ryman Arts was named a SoCaL PBS Community Champion, a National Program of Excellence three times by the President’s Committee on the Arts & Humanities and received the Pasadena Art Alliance Impact Award. Ryman Arts offers high quality intensive studio classes taught by master teaching artists, art supplies, college and career planning, field trips, and community engagement opportunities—all at no cost to the student. This 1½-year-long program helps participants build transferable life skills, strengthen their self-discipline and self-confidence, and prepare for a positive, productive future. Classes are held on the campuses of Otis College of Art & Design and California State University, Fullerton. Students complete this program ready to meet the challenges of college, work, and life. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | ARTS | 200 E 12TH ST , NATIONAL CITY, 91950-3314 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 297-2787 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 80 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, A Reason To Survive (ARTS), a place-based Community ARTS after-school program will engage over 150+ young people of color from National City and South County San Diego who consistently experience disproportionate economic, environmental, and structural racial disparities. Community ARTS encompasses the traditional and non-traditional art practices of sound experimentation, textile arts, visual, performing, and media arts. Through our program, we reinforce our community engagement with local artists, creatives, and cultural practitioners through culturally relevant equity-based programs, services, and events that cultivate young people’s artistic voice and vision. Our programs are free for all young people, offering accessible arts-based projects that cultivate healing, develop leadership skills, and enrich academic experiences– setting up young people on a path toward success in life, school and career. |
A Reason To Survive (ARTS) offers arts programming and creative workforce opportunities for youth and young adults (ages 8-24) living the south county region of San Diego. Through our program initiatives – Community ARTS, ARTS 4 Justice, ARTS On Campus, and ARTS @ Work — young people gain exposure to a range of artistic disciplines (visual arts, media arts, music, and industrial arts in our Maker Workshop), while deepening their social-emotional development through meaningful relationships and mentorship provided by teaching artists and ARTS staff. Through our innovative Community of Care model, we integrate social-emotional supports into our program / curricula design and into the overall design of learning spaces, exhibitions, and performances at the ARTS Center. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Western Ballet | 914 N Rengstorff Ave , Mountain View, 94043-1714 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (650) 968-4455 | California's 16th congressional district | District 23 | District 13 | Western Ballet respectfully requests General Operating Support to advance its mission: making high-quality ballet training and performance accessible to all. Grant funds will sustain essential operating expenses—faculty salaries, facilities, and administration—allowing us to keep tuition affordable and expand our need-based financial aid program. Our year-round Youth Program serves students ages 3–19, guiding them from foundational ballet through a rigorous pre-professional track. Financial assistance and merit-based scholarships help ensure that income is not a barrier to participation. Adult and open classes are also priced accessibly, offering lifelong opportunities for engagement in dance. In a high-cost region where equitable access to the arts is increasingly limited, CAC support will help Western Ballet continue its “Ballet for All” commitment—welcoming students from all backgrounds and preserving classical ballet as a vibrant and inclusive cultural resource. |
The curriculum-based Youth Program (ages 3 – 18) provides skill-based training that guides students as they progress from the earliest stages of ballet training to the pre-professional level, ready for any path in life. The adult sequential ballet program (Open Program) serves a broad range of individuals with or without any experience who take ballet classes for their physical and mental health. Serving 4,000+ students, Western Ballet has emerged as the largest ballet center in the region. Performance: Western Ballet produces the following performances annually: 2 Gala Performances, the Nutcracker and spring fairytale full-length ballets, Festival of the Animals, Graduation Gala, and Open Program performance workshops for adults. The main productions feature the Western Ballet Youth Company and contracted guest artists. Western Ballet’s outreach programs include scholarships and financial aid for anyone in need, performances at local libraries, and blocks of free performance tickets to organizations in need. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,500.00 | Melodia Mariposa | 151 S Olive St #1420 , Los Angeles, 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 590-5213 | California’s 28th Congressional District | California State Assembly District 41 | California State Senate District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Melodia Mariposa will present 16 free concerts in Altadena, Pasadena, and nearby areas during the 2025–26 season—including 8 outreach performances at senior residences, memory care centers, and cancer support facilities. All programs will be offered at no cost to support a community still healing from the devastating Eaton Fire. The season also includes Peter and the Wolf at the LA County Arboretum, a family concert introducing children to the orchestra. Grant funds will support fair compensation for professional musicians, venue and production expenses. Programming will span a wide range of musical styles, honoring cultural heritage months and bringing together audiences of all ages. This support will allow Melodia Mariposa to offer a full season of inclusive, high-quality performances that foster healing, connection, and access to the arts. |
Melodia Mariposa is a nonprofit music organization serving Altadena, Pasadena, and surrounding communities in Los Angeles County, presenting live performances featuring top-tier professional musicians in a wide variety of styles and genres—including classical, ballet, tango, opera, folk, and more. All our concerts are free and open to the public, making high-quality artistic experiences accessible to everyone in the community. These core programs reflect our commitment to serve, uplift, and inspire the local community through music and the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $22,200.00 | KZFR 90.1FM | 341 Broadway St Ste 411, Chico, 95928-5321 | Butte | Upstate | (530) 895-0706 | 1st Congressional District of California | District 3 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Golden Valley Community Broadcasters will sustain and strengthen its role as a nonprofit arts and cultural broadcaster serving rural and historically underserved communities in Northern California. CAC funds will support general operating costs—including staff compensation, utilities, program administration, and volunteer training—enabling KZFR to continue offering free, accessible arts programming, inclusive media education, and vital community services such as multilingual public affairs, local music curation, and emergency broadcasting. |
KZFR operates with the support of approximately 120 community volunteers who provide a wide variety of music programming as well as local public affairs and information programs. These volunteers also assist a small paid staff with fundraising, outreach and events for the northern Sacramento Valley and beyond. Agreement with the principles and goals of KZFR is the sole criteria for participation. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $16,600.00 | Audium Theater | 1616 BUSH ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94109-5308 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 771-1616 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Audium will expand its Spatial Sound in Schools program—currently serving two Bay Area public schools- to four partner schools in the 2025-26 academic year. Grant funds will cover staffing, curriculum development, & loaned classroom audio kits for high school workshops introducing spatial audio fundamentals. Each semester-long partnership includes an on-campus demonstration at Audium, in-class composition sessions guided by our tech staff and alumni residents, two mixing visits in our theater, and a culminating student showcase night. Reducing financial barriers and centering culturally responsive pedagogies, we will engage at least 200 additional students- over 50 percent from historically marginalized backgrounds- in hands-on sound composition. This project advances CAC’s Arts & Youth goals by providing equitable access to creative learning, fostering positive social-emotional growth, and empowering youth voices through immersive arts experiences. |
Audium is the first theater of its kind, pioneering the exploration of space in music for over 50 years. The theater is constructed specifically for live sound movement and utilizing the entire environment as a compositional tool. The building consists of a foyer, sound labyrinth and main performance space with over 176 speakers in total. Listeners sitting in concentric circles are enveloped by speakers in sloping walls, a floating floor and a suspended ceiling. Compositions are performed live at each program by a performer who distributes sounds through a custom-designed console. Sounds are “sculpted” through their movement, direction, speed and intensity on multiple planes in space. Live performance of composed works gives a human, interactive element to Audium’s spatial electronic orchestra. Audium has been exploring the ideas of aural immersion and live sound spatialization for decades. Its idea was born out of experimentation by Stan Shaff and Doug McEachern in the late 1950s with Anna Halprin’s dance troup and the now-historic San Francisco Tape Music Center. Audium went through multiple incarnations in its early years, from performances at the SF Museum of Art and SF State University to a fixed installation in San Francisco’s Richmond District for 3.5 years. It found a home at its current site, thanks to a series of grants from the National Endowment for the Arts, in 1975. The theater has held weekly performances ever since (totaling over 4,300 performances and counting). |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $16,133.00 | Liberando Nuestras Voces | 1419 Burlingame Ave suite w2 , Burlingame, 94010 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (510) 501-1347 | Liberando Nuestras Voces is a creative writing program for adolescent Latinx girls that uses writing and art for self-reflection, expression, and well-being. Grounded in cultural and linguistic responsiveness, it encourages participants to share their truths through fierce, authentic writing. Held weekly from September 2025 to May 2026 at the San Leandro Public Library, the program includes mentor texts by women of color authors, pláticas (community-based conversations) with local women artists, and a culminating public reception where girls read a piece, showcase their artwork, and receive certificates. Rooted in joy, play, and social justice, the program affirms Latinx identities and fosters transformation through storytelling. Grant funds will support art and literary materials, program outreach, and artwork showcasing materials for the closing public reception. |
Liberando Nuestras Voces establishes innovative, culturally and linguistically sustaining creative writing spaces that grow the next generation of Latinx women writers. Recognizing the connections between identity, language, and culture, we offer creative writing workshops for adolescent Latinx girls that invite them to use writing and art as tools for self-reflection, expression, and well-being through mentor texts written by BIPOC writers and pláticas with local women of color artists. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | RICHMOND ART CENTER | 2540 BARRETT AVE , RICHMOND, 94804-1600 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 620-6772 | 8th Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 14 | State Senate District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, RICHMOND ART CENTER will expand Art Club, a free visual arts program for Richmond teens (ages 13–18). Art Club offers a safe, inclusive “third space” where youth can create, connect, and build community. Richmond is a racially diverse, working-class city where over half of residents speak a language other than English at home. Art Club primarily serves BIPOC, immigrant, undocumented, LGBTQ+, and low-income teens attending local public schools. Weekly sessions, led by Teaching Artists, feature hands-on projects in painting, printmaking, clay, and more. The culturally responsive curriculum, aligned with VAPA standards and district arts goals, supports both artistic and personal development. Lessons incorporate social-emotional learning and identity exploration, helping teens feel seen, heard, and supported in a space where they can thrive. |
Arts Education: Our arts education program offers art classes to adults, youth, kids and families; on-site in our six studios, and off-site in local schools and community spaces. This includes providing free in-school and after-school arts tuition to K-12 students at local West Contra Costa Unified School District schools. Other arts education initiatives include a paid professional development series for educators, free family day celebrations, youth art tours of exhibitions, Summer Art Camp for Kids, and youth intensive classes. Exhibitions and Events: Exhibitions and public programs feature work by established, early career and aspiring artists. The goal of our exhibition program is to introduce new artists, artwork and perspectives on art; engage Richmond audiences; enhance the visibility of underrepresented groups/artists; and serve as a catalyst for community interaction. Long term community exhibition partnerships include The Art of Living Black/Art of the African Diaspora (since 1997), and the WCCUSD Art Show (since 1965). |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Home of Guiding Hands | 1908 FRIENDSHIP DR , EL CAJON, 92020-1129 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 938-2850 | 51st Congressional District | 79th Assembly District | 39th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Home of Guiding Hands will expand access to arts and music programming for youth with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Grant funds will be used to increase the frequency of visual arts workshops, led by a California-based teaching artist, and to support participation in weekly music sessions facilitated by Banding Together. Workshops will take place at licensed residential homes and community sites and will include adaptive materials, trained support staff, and ADA-compliant transportation. The project will also fund public culmination events where participants can share and, if they choose, sell their work. Direct Service Providers and Program Managers will support accessibility and coordination. |
Core Programs and Services * Residential services: 29 community-based homes offering 24/7 care, daily living support, and community integration. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,600.00 | Bocón | PO BOX 152481 , SAN DIEGO, 92195 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 997-3117 | 52nd | 79 | 39 | Grant funds will support Bocón’s general operations and programming, including arts education in schools and community programs in some of San Diego’s most diverse and socially impacted neighborhoods. Bocón produces bilingual, multicultural plays for family audiences that celebrate and reflect the cultures and languages of our communities. San Diego lacks professional theatre that centers family audiences and communities of color—Bocón fills this gap by offering culturally relevant, accessible performances and learning opportunities. Funds will be used to support administrative staff and program infrastructure, ensuring the sustainability of our mission and continued impact in the community. |
In-school arts residencies with professional teaching artists. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Center Theatre Group | 601 W TEMPLE ST , LOS ANGELES, 90012-2621 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 972-7357 | California's 34th congressional district | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Center Theatre Group (CTG) will produce the fourth iteration of the Storytelling Residency program during the 2025/26 Season. The Storytelling Residency program engages nearly 100 high school students each year across three classrooms as they learn about the art of storytelling by collectively creating a play through a devised theatre project. Each iteration of the program is anchored in a dramatic text that serves as inspiration for students as they study the script and attend the play, with the 2025/26 Season anchor text being JAJA’S AFRICAN HAIR BRAIDING by Jocelyn Bioh. Led by experienced Teaching Artists, the Storytelling Residency provides access for students to engage in quality arts experiences, fosters young people’s voices and creativity, and cultivates skills such leadership and collaboration. |
Comprising the 2,000-seat Ahmanson Theatre, the 736-seat Mark Taper Forum, and the 317-seat Kirk Douglas Theatre, CTG is one of the nation’s largest regional theatres and one of the few regional theatres to successfully produce a broad variety of programming each season. CTG is committed to furthering its mission through programming that meets the challenge of producing and presenting work of the highest quality, while engaging a broad and diverse audience, and expanding community access and arts learning opportunities. These efforts include a robust Artistic Development Program offering commissions of new work, readings and workshops, and an annual L.A. Writers’ Workshop; and an Education and Community Partnerships Department dedicated to providing comprehensive year-round arts education and access to over 20,000 students, educators, and community members each year. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | The Art of Elysium | 3278 WILSHIRE BLVD APT 1001 , LOS ANGELES, 90010-1422 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 389-3201 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Art of Elysium will sustain and expand its transformative, community-based arts programming for individuals facing medical, emotional, and systemic hardship across Los Angeles. CAC funding will support not only our monthly workshops, but also the artists and staff who bring them to life—covering fair compensation, materials, and accessibility resources. From bedside songwriting to youth-led fashion shows, our programs transcend circumstance, fostering belonging, resilience, and joy. Over the past 27 years, we have served more than 445,000 people—patients, elders, unhoused individuals, incarcerated youth, and families in crisis—through trauma-informed, culturally responsive creative experiences. We believe that artists are the solution, and that creativity builds community, heals pain, and lifts the next generation. This grant will help us keep that lifeline strong, sustainable, and open to all. |
We offer academic and community programming matching volunteer artists with communities in need. Artists work with The Art of Elysium’s program directors in their field to develop, or plug into existing programs. Volunteer artists are then eligible for artist support services. We offer community service programs in the following disciplines: Fashion & Design, Film & Theatre, Music & Movement and Visual Arts. Each program is designed to: |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Stronger Together Now | 479 W 4th St , San Bernardino, 92401-1418 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (213) 595-8735 | District 33 | District 45 | District 29 | With support from the California Arts Council, Stronger Together Now will provide a year-long series of monthly street art and graffiti workshops for youth, aimed at promoting creative expression, community pride, and mentorship through public art. The initiative known as “Voices on the Wall” program will engage youth in 2-3 hours sessions, in a safe, structured environment where they can explore their creativity, learn from Arturo Orellana, aka SauceyPasta, as a professional artist, and contribute to beautifying public spaces in downtown San Bernardino. Voices on the Wall offers a positive alternative to vandalism and unstructured afterschool time, reducing risk of negative behavior. Components include art history and cultural roots, sketching and typography, color theory and spray paint techniques, legal art vs. vandalism, design & execution, as well as community showcases. |
We are a 501(c)3 California nonprofit public benefit corporation that aims to improve connectedness and provide resources for the people of the Inland Empire through free public events, mutual aid, outreach programs, educational services, sports programs, and enrichment offerings. Current programs include academic tutoring, mentorship, sports-lunch programs, coaching, and enrichment afterschool programs like barbering. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Sol Treasures | 519 BROADWAY ST , KING CITY, 93930-3230 | Monterey | Central Coast | (831) 386-1381 | California's 20th congressional district | District 30 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sol Treasures will continue to provide accessible arts education, robust youth theater productions, cultural events, and gallery experiences to underserved rural families in South Monterey County. As the only arts and cultural center serving this rural region, we employ four staff and fund three credentialed teaching artists. Our large-scale theater productions at the historic Stanton Theater reach over 2,500 children per show. We host cultural celebrations like Día de Los Muertos, and partner with CHISPA, the Migrant Center, and rural schools to bring arts directly into underserved communities and foster engagement. This funding will sustain operations, expand outreach, and strengthen our mission to inspire, educate, and transform lives through the arts. |
Sol Treasures is a (501 (c) 3 non-profit organization founded in 2008 as an Art and Cultural Center. Sol Treasures provides opportunities for community members of all ages to experience and create art in King City and the other Southern Monterey County communities. Sol Treasures provides art programming where none or very little exists. Underserved, rural-living children and youth have opportunities for creative expression. Sol Treasures serves 400 to 500 individuals weekly through visual and performing arts programs. Sol Treasures’ annual programs include after-school art enrichment classes; children’s musical theater productions, with each production providing a live theater experience for 2,000 of the region’s students; community choruses for students and adults; SOL-O Youth Strings Orchestra; and summer visual and performing art camps for children. Sol Treasures also has technical theatre classes, teaching all aspects of sound, lighting and visual technologies. The Sol Treasures Art Gallery and Gift Shop offer 7-8 annual art exhibits. Sol Treasures in collaboration with La Cocina organize the Dia de Los Muertos Community Altar, Parade and Festival to include classes on costuming, face painting, sculpting, and poetry. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Loco Bloco | 2781 24th St , San Francisco, 94110-4235 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 672-9798 | California's 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | Funds would be used to design and implement a culturally specific Youth Arts Education Program for 250 BIPOC youth, ages 6-14, in three San Francisco public schools that serve students in neighborhoods in the lower two percentile of the California HPI. Master artists from the BIPOC communities of which we are of, by and for will teach the performing traditions (and evolving traditions) of the Afro-Latinx diaspora. Students will also have opportunities to perform in schools, at community events and festivals throughout the Bay Area and in historically marginalized neighborhoods. This Program extends the reach and impact of 30 years of our work in BIPOC, Latinx, and African-American communities, which are under increasing economic and political duress, further limiting their access to cultural programs. This is the first culturally specific arts program in these schools. |
Our programs reflect the richness of the Afro-Latino diaspora, which celebrates both ancestral traditions and contemporary expressions. Our core programs and services involve approximately 400 community participants and professional performing artists and artistic groups annually. The majority of these participants are rooted in San Francisco’s Latinx and African-American neighborhood communities. Our current programs and productions include: |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | The GR818ERS; UNITE Cultural Center | 21710 Sherman Way , Canoga Park, 91303 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 456-4955 | California's 29th congressional district | California's 43rd State Assembly district | California's 20th State Senate district | With support from the California Arts Council, AWOKE will produce cultural arts programs and events across the San Fernando Valley and sustain the UNITE Cultural Center in the underserved community of Canoga Park. The center will serve as a hub for creative transformation, offering inclusive programming for youth and systems-impacted individuals in Greater Los Angeles County. AWOKE will leverage Hip Hop culture as a powerful tool for community engagement and social change, promoting cultural expression and identity. Through trauma-informed practices, the organization will support mental health, healing, and resilience by creating safe spaces for participants to explore movement, music, and visual arts. CAC funds will directly support program delivery, artist stipends, and operational costs, allowing AWOKE to expand access to arts experiences that foster well-being and strengthen cultural belonging for vulnerable communities. |
AWOKE is dedicated to creating a supportive social ecosystem for youth, recognizing that such an environment reduces at-risk behaviors and leads to positive health outcomes. In 2019, AWOKE revitalized an abandoned storefront in the underserved community of Canoga Park, transforming it into the UNITE Cultural Center. This hub for creative transformation, civic engagement, and collective healing is strategically located within a mile of several grade schools, a dense residential community, and a large city park, making it an essential resource for local youth and families. AWOKE offers a variety of arts education and leadership development programs for youth ages 5-26+ at UNITE, in schools, and other public spaces throughout the year. Program specialties include Street Dance, DJing, Arts & Crafts, and Muralism. While activities are available year-round, the core programming occurs during three 12-week seasons. These seasons focus on after-school programs and drop-in activities for all ages, culminating in events that showcase participants’ talents. These inclusive cultural experiences, such as seasonal arts showcases, community arts festivals, and street dance competitions, are open to all ages and encourage community engagement. Beyond these seasons, AWOKE produces workshop series, community gatherings, and mural installations throughout the year. AWOKE’s commitment to community beautification is evident in its numerous mural projects and public art activations, which not only enhance the visual landscape but also instill a sense of pride and ownership among residents. AWOKE’s flagship initiative, “The GR818ERS Internship Program,” is an annual creative workforce development program. This paid internship for youth ages 17-26 provides training and field experience in creative production and arts administration. During the six-month internship, participants join one of three teams: Media & Marketing, Event Planning & Production, and Youth Development. These intern teams work closely with AWOKE staff and leadership to implement project activities, advocate for systems change, and support the organization’s operations. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Art at Vibe | 1503 Macdonald Ave Suite B, Richmond, 94801 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 730-0656 | Art at Vibe requests $30,000 from the California Arts Council to expand trauma-informed, community-based arts programming in Richmond, CA. Funds will support stipends for 8–10 local teaching artists ($12,000), ensuring fair pay for up to 48 workshops. To increase access, $4,500 will subsidize scholarships for low-income, BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, and disabled participants. An additional $4,500 will fund workshop materials such as sewing kits, journals, and instruments. Operational and administrative coordination will be supported with $4,000. Outreach efforts, including multilingual flyers and community events, will be funded at $2,500. $1,500 will support documentation and evaluation, and $1,000 will remain flexible for accessibility accommodations or unexpected needs. This funding ensures consistent, culturally relevant programming serving up to 960 individuals annually and supports Art at Vibe’s goal of making the arts a vehicle for community healing and equity. |
Art at Vibe, our work is twofold: we support artists and instructors while serving community participants through arts experiences that promote wellness, cultural connection, and creative growth. For artists and instructors, Art at Vibe is committed to ensuring that artists are valued, respected, and resourced. We offer: For community participants, our programs offer inclusive, low-barrier access to the arts as tools for healing, identity, and empowerment: Disciplines We Offer: |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | Dimensions Dance Theater Incorporated | 1428 Alice Street, Suite 308 , OAKLAND, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 465-3363 | California Assembly district 12 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Dimensions Dance Theater’ Rites of Passage program will provide 500 students in grades 3-12 at The Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts with in-depth culturally based dance instruction after school and during the summer for 24 weeks with a culminating public performance by students at the end of each session. This community-based, youth-centered arts education initiative is rooted in African Diaspora traditions, serving diverse Oakland youth ages 8–18, and nurturing cultural identity, leadership, and creative expression through dance, music, storytelling, arts exposure, and mentorship. Over the grant year, more than 650 participants will engage in artistic exploration, culminating in public performances and community cultural events. |
Under the artistic leadership of co-founder Deborah Vaughan, Dimensions Dance Theater at 53 is one of the oldest contemporary dance companies in the US. The diversity and inclusiveness of DDT’s repertoire is unique to the company. The company currently employs 14 performing artists, 6 teaching artists, and 5 stipended apprentice teachers. DDT is actively engaged in the ongoing creation of new works that center the voices and needs of the community we serve. We present these collaborative works during our annual home season in October at the Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts. Our current performance project Healing to Joy is a multiyear (2024-2026) series of dance-theater works deepening our Sankofa-informed practice while honoring Black dance traditions and advancing community-centered healing through movement, music, and story. Current weekly dance classes include Rumba, Guinea West African, Afro-Cuban, and Senegalese West African. DDT is a leading member of the MAC, a collective of African American artists and artists of color based at the Malonga Casquelourd Center. This dynamic ecosystem fosters collaboration and creativity, enriching the cultural landscape of Oakland. Our Rites of Passage (ROP) youth program offers a year-round curriculum that includes an array of after-school activities that include: dance classes, life skills workshops, mentoring, career guidance, cultural presentations, internships and apprenticeships, field trips, and art exposure study trips. As one of Oakland’s foremost providers of high-quality arts education for children, youth, and young adults, DDT serves as a vital resource for schools, parents, and community organizations, fostering a rich cultural environment. Through ROP, youth have opportunities to discover and learn the art forms of the African Diaspora, and to develop their voice through the arts. ROP students gain opportunities to perform across Oakland and engage the wider community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | MoAD | 685 MISSION ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94105-4126 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 358-7212 | California's 12th congressional district | 17 | 11 | MoAD in the Classroom (MIC) is an arts-based visual literacy and cultural studies program serving third and fourth graders, focused on schools with little or no arts programming across Alameda, Contra Costa, San Mateo, and San Francisco counties. Each class receives 10 hours of instruction: eight 1-hour visits to the classroom led by MoAD Teaching Artists and one 2-hour field trip to the museum that includes gallery tours and hands-on artmaking. Students learn visual arts vocabulary, explore current exhibitions, and engage with art of the African Diaspora. The program culminates in student-led presentations of original artwork for their classroom and Teaching Artists. All materials, transportation, and museum access are provided at no cost. CAC funding will support Teaching Artist compensation, classroom supplies, curriculum refinement, and field trip resources—expanding access to arts education for students. |
MoAD in the Classroom (MIC) is an arts-based, visual literacy and cultural studies program for third grade classrooms located in the San Francisco Bay Area. A MoAD Educator makes two trips to the classroom and the students make two visits to the museum. While in the classroom, MoAD Educators teach students about museum themes, current exhibitions, and visual arts vocabulary. During the museum visits, students view current art exhibitions, learn how to view and talk about art, and participate in hands-on art activities. Poets in Residence is a 4-month writing residency from September – December for two poets of African descent who will immerse themselves in the current exhibitions and will be provided space to write using the museum as their muse. They will partner with Arise High School in Oakland to teach students creative writing poetry workshops at the high school. Our Emerging Artists Program ( EAP) highlights local, emerging, and mid-career visual artists and art collectives through solo exhibitions that reflect the cultural and artistic richness of the African diaspora. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | Au Co Vietnamese Cultural Center | PO BOX 347042 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94134-7042 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 298-3705 | California Congressional | State Assemblymember | State Senate | With support from the California Arts Council, Au Co Vietnamese Cultural Center will realize a suite of 2026 events that will empower and connect San Francisco’s underserved Tenderloin district and Southeast Asian communities through preservation and revitalization of traditional arts and culture alongside integration of contemporary approaches. These events are: Thi Ca Su Viet 13: Annual concert of Vietnamese traditional and contemporary arts attracting intergenerational audiences. Featured performers will be Vanessa Van Anh Vo’s Blood Moon Orchestra and Johnny Huy Nguyen with the Asian Improv aRts Special Unit 6th Annual Multicultural Spring Festival and 17 Annual Mid-Autumn Harvest Festival: Co-produced with the Southeast Asian Arts and Culture Coalition, these free all-day events serve the Tenderloin Community with cultural exhibitions, demonstrations, and performances from Vietnamese, Lao, Cambodian, Thai, Chinese, Burmese, Filipino communities. |
Au Co realizes its mission and purpose through a multifaceted suite of programs and services that foster intercultural bonds, cultural preservation, and artistic innovation to uplift the community. Our core programs and services include: – The Vietnamese Language Program offering classes for students, ranging from young children to young adults, to learn the Vietnamese language while engaging with culture and the arts |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,500.00 | Coachella Valley Arts Institute | 41550 Eclectic Street , Palm Desert, 92260 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (760) 440-5512 | 25th | 42nd | 28th | Futurenomic Resources seeks CAC General Operating Support to amplify our transformative Explore AI and arts-based out-of-school programs, serving over 500 youth annually across seven zip codes. These funds will directly support dedicated staff, innovative curriculum development, and vital community partnerships that provide safe, creative spaces for underserved youth to thrive. By integrating artistic literacy with cutting-edge technology, our programs empower participants to become confident problem-solvers and future innovators. Last year, 92% of youth reported increased engagement in the arts and STEM. With CAC’s investment, we will expand our reach, bridge critical opportunity gaps, and inspire the next generation of diverse artists and leaders who are shaping a more inclusive and imaginative future for our communities. |
Futurenomic offers a diverse array of programs tailored to enhance literacy, artistic expression, and well-being among youth and homeless populations aged 2 and above. Our commitment to inclusivity is underscored by scholarship opportunities, ensuring access to quality arts education in underserved communities. Our programs encompass: – Vocal Training: Led by professionals employing the Seth Rigg’s method, participants receive comprehensive instruction in Speech Level Singing. – Singing Performance: Explore vocal technique, music theory, and stage presence in a supportive environment. – Dance Training: Experience a unique blend of dance styles tailored for live performances. -First 5 Movement Dance Class: Fosters literacy, balance, and coordination development. – Songwriting: Delve into song structure, vocabulary use, and self-expression. – Acting & Drama: Cultivate creativity and performance skills through immersive training. – STEM Education: Engage in hands-on classes integrating science, technology, engineering, and math with music and movement exploration, guitar craftsmanship, and music production using industry-standard software. – Art Therapy: Utilize Media Arts as a healing tool, employing rhythm, mindfulness, and energy-medicine techniques to support trauma recovery. – Painting: From perspective to composition, participants explore various painting techniques and mediums under expert guidance. – Social Media Class: Gain insights into utilizing social media platforms effectively and safely. – Music Production with Logic Class: Learn the intricacies of music and sound editing using Logic Pro, guided by professional engineers. – Adobe Illustrator Class: Master the basics of graphic design for creative expression. – Tutoring: Virtual sessions offer a wide range of educational opportunities including photography, videography, music production, website design, and marketing classes. At Futurenomic, we’re not just fostering artistic skills; we’re nurturing holistic development, empowering individuals to unleash their potential and contribute positively to their communities. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | The Leela Institute | 23650 Community St. , West Hills, 91304 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 208-9707 | California's 30th congressional district | District 45 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, Leela will present a summer concert series titled “Ananda: Joy” featuring performances of the traditional kathak solo by veteran and emerging dancers and musicians. The series aims to create a space for artists and audiences in the South Asian American community to come together to celebrate their shared cultural heritage and strengthen community bonds. |
Leela’s nationally touring dance company, Leela Dance Collective (LDC), has garnered critical acclaim under the artistic direction of renowned kathak artists Rukhmani Mehta, Seibi Lee, and Rachna Nivas, and engages some of today’s leading dancers and musicians, as well as collaborative artists of other genres. LDC’s repertoire represents the breadth and depth of kathak, and amplifies the voices of a new generation of female artists. Through traditional works, cross genre collaborations, and cutting edge choreography, LDC is making kathak relevant for contemporary audiences worldwide. In addition to performances in public spaces, LDC is expanding its performances in community spaces, such as libraries and local schools. In 2019, Leela joined the roster for the Music Center Performing Artists in Schools and Neighborhoods Program, a program designed to inspire creative thinking and introduce audiences K-12 to the world’s diverse cultural traditions through school performances. Through this program, LDC serves as a model for artistic excellence, inspires creative thinking, and introduces young audiences to the joy of kathak and the rich history of India’s cultural heritage. Leela’s educational arm, the Leela Academy, provides world-class education and training in kathak and Hindustani classical music to children and youth. The Leela Academy’s cornerstone program, the Leela Youth Dance Company (LYDC), serves as our elite pre-professional performing group for girls in grades 7-12. The program champions excellence in kathak while serving as a platform for youth leadership development that empowers young South Asian American women as artists, cultural ambassadors and leaders of social change. Finally, the Leela Foundation provides the financial infrastructure critical for the viability and sustainability of classical Indian artistic traditions. Through the artists, educators and programs supported, the Foundation ultimately seeks to ensure that communities worldwide and generations to come have access to the richness and depth of India’s artistic traditions. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,750.00 | EAST BAY CHILDREN'S THEATRE | 235 30TH ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94131-2420 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 244-4234 | California's 12th congressional district | AD14 | SD07 | With support from the California Arts Council, EAST BAY CHILDRENS THEATRE INC, the oldest continuously operating theatre company in the SF Bay Area, will produce an original musical for our fall school tour. This includes design and construction of sets and costumes; purchases and maintenance of lights, sound equipment and props; printing; storage and transportation rental. It also includes renting rehearsal space and providing travel stipends to actors. The tour consists of eleven Title 1 schools, visiting two or three schools per week. This show will be Jack and the Beanstalk and the Giant, and the Goose, and the Really Truly-Uly Rotten Day, a musical adaptation by Ron Lytle of the classic fairy tale. Public performances on weekends in rented venues provide income of which helps cover the cost of the school tour. |
EBCT’s core program is touring World Premiere musical versions of classic fairy tales to underserved school districts. The musicals are written by EBCT’s resident musical playwright, award-winning Bay Area composer/writer Ron Lytle. EBCT school tours use Ron’s adaptations of these familiar stories and characters to expose young students to the joy and positive instructive power of music and theatrical performance. EBCT’s program is administered through both volunteers, and paid artists/contractors, all of whom reside in the Bay Area. Some of the volunteers come from EBCT’s board of directors who include both current and retired teachers. The paid artists/contractors are seasoned theatrical and educational professionals as well as some who come from other fields but have The school performance tour is conducted over several weeks at approximately 11 Title 1 schools. In advance of its school visits, EBCT provides the school and teachers with a comprehensive Teaching & Activities Guide created by EBCT’s Education Committee, most of whom are former teachers, who tailor each guide to the themes and issues presented in the production. Approximately 400 to 500 children are present at each performance after which the teachers are given evaluation forms to complete in order to provide feedback about the quality of the production, their measure of student engagement and enjoyment, the use and relevance of the Teaching Guide provided by EBCT for pre-performance instruction, the production’s recognition of positive values, and whether the children benefited from the musical as a learning experience. Following the school tour, the production is performed for the general public at theaters in the community, the income from which is used to help fund the cost of the school tours. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Arab Film Festival | 2 Plaza Street , SAN FRANCISCO, 94116 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 564-1100 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Arab Film and Media Institute will produce the 29th edition of the Arab Film Festival, the largest and oldest festival of its kind outside the Arab world. The 2025 festival will be held in the San Francisco Bay Area with a touring edition in Los Angeles and online screenings. |
The Arab Film and Media Institute (AFMI) is the first U.S.-based organization of its kind, dedicated to supporting and showcasing Arab film and media. Rebranded from the Arab Film Festival in 2017, AFMI now operates through four core programming pillars: Exhibitions, Education, Creators, and Industry. Exhibitions include AFMI’s flagship Arab Film Festival, the largest and longest-running independent festival of its kind outside the Arab world. The festival and its year-round screenings provide a vital platform for authentic Arab stories, reaching thousands annually through in-person and virtual events. Programs like Arab Women in the Arts and Arab Love: Queer Lens highlight underrepresented voices and themes. Education brings curated Arabic-language films and discussion guides into Bay Area middle- and high-schools. AFMI also runs Takalam: Arab Youth Speak Up!, a summer filmmaking camp that empowers Arab teens to tell their stories through film. Creators supports Arab and Arab American media-makers through fiscal sponsorship, mentorship, and workshops. The Arab Creators Collective and other services help emerging filmmakers navigate the industry, build skills, and access resources. Industry efforts focus on advocacy and visibility, with events like InFocus: Arab Cinema, a partnership with the Academy of Motion Pictures and NewFilmmakers LA, connecting Arab talent to Hollywood decision-makers and fostering authentic representation. Through these integrated efforts, AFMI combats harmful stereotypes, uplifts Arab voices, and fosters community dialogue, equity, and cultural pride across California and beyond. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Young Audiences of Northern California | 57 Post Street #511 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94104-5028 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 974-5554 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Young Audiences of Northern California will create art experiences that inspire young people, expand learning, and enliven communities; provide gainful employment and career advancement to nearly 100 California creatives; strengthen the field of arts education, and enrich more than 35,000 young lives through direct arts engagement where these youth live, learn, and play. |
Young Audiences of Northern California (YANC) partners with our network of teaching artists to deliver arts education to schools and community centers through our Signature Core Programs: assembly performances, artist residencies, artist workshops, and professional development for classroom teachers. We work in four arts disciplines: visual art, music, theater, and dance. We provide maximum impact on student learning by ensuring that all of our programs are arts-focused, child-centered, outcomes-driven, and measurably effective. To achieve these qualities, all programs offer students the opportunity to: experience the art form demonstrated by a professional artist; understand the art form and its history and culture; create the art form; and connect their learning to other areas of study, and to their lives and world. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Martinez Arts Association | PO BOX 2304 , MARTINEZ, 94553-0230 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (925) 300-6670 | District 8 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Martinez Arts Association, a small arts organization, will present our inaugural Black History Month Festival in February 2026. This program, presented free for the community, will feature an intergenerational lineup of renowned local Black performers spanning jazz, blues, funk, R&B, zydeco, hip-hop, gospel, Afro-Cuban music, poetry, and spoken word as well as visual art from local Black youth artists. The program will be collaboratively developed with community members and respond to a community-defined need to uplift the cultural contributions of under-represented Black artists in the Bay Area and provide culturally responsive programming celebrating Black History Month for Contra Costa County audiences. |
Martinez Arts Association (MAA) provides scholarships to local graduating seniors in the visual arts. In response to budgetary cutbacks to our public schools, the MAA offers grants to teachers for purchasing art supplies for their students. Our annual Art In the Park program, now in its 54th year, is a free community festival held every August featuring fine arts and craft booths, live music, and food trucks. This event features over 60 artists and is also a fundraising event that supports teacher grants and student scholarships. Our annual Black History Month festival is presented free for the community, featuring an intergenerational lineup of local Black artists representing Black cultural traditions of jazz, blues, gospel, R&B, and beyond. We support art exhibits in our Martinez community including at the Martinez Library, Roxx on Main, and The Campbell Theater, John Muir Hospital, and the Contra Costa County Administration Building. Our Dia de los Muertos program at Ignacio Plaza honors those who have passed away through altars, music, food, and rituals. Our SWAN (Support Women Artists Now) Day program celebrates women in the arts with live music and fine arts and crafts exhibits. Our annual Community Arts Award (now in its sixth year) recognizes local artists and arts organizations with a financial award and recognition of their contributions to the arts in Martinez. Our annual Holiday Boutique showcases over 20 local artisans, artists, and craftspeople with a two-week program at the Old Martinez Train Depot. Martinez Arts Association was instrumental in bringing the Alhambra Way Mural Project to fruition, featuring work by local artists and including a mural dedication program. Martinez Arts Association promotes local arts events, exhibits, workshops, and classes in our bi-monthly newsletters. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Sacramento Comedy Spot | 1050 20TH ST STE 130 , SACRAMENTO, 95811-3153 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 444-3137 | California's 6th congressional district | District 6 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, SACRAMENTO COMEDY SPOT will use awarded funds to cover expenses related to rent and utilities for two facilities while our organization continues to work towards attaining pre-pandemic revenue levels and security. |
Sacramento Comedy Spot is the first theater in Sacramento to feature improv, stand-up, and sketch comedy shows and classes. The Comedy Spot also produces original videos, films, and comedy events, and is Northern California’s largest comedy school. We host shows five nights a week, featuring students who have recently completed our school courses, and other local comedians. Performances include amateur nights, graduation shows, developing shows, one-off themed and variety shows, and established favorites. We are the home of Anti-Cooperation League, Sacramento’s longest-running comedy show, and Lady Business, Sacramento’s first all-female comedy troupe. The Comedy Spot hosts annual events such as local fundraiser Big Day of Giving, the experimental, performance marathon of Weird • Strange • Bizarre, and many recurring shows that have become audience favorites. Guests attending these events add to the local economy with their patronage of nearby establishments. For students seeking a path in performing arts, our courses help develop a strong foundation in comedy on their way to professional success. Students become eligible to enter the performance arena through existing shows, or by developing their own. Our comedy school also caters to non-performing individuals interested in improving personal skills and/or mental well-being. Improv is well-documented as providing mental health benefits in the workplace, in the classroom, and at home. Diversity scholarship opportunities are available for all of our courses. We look forward to adding to our instructor base and increasing our available courses and workshops. Our community outreach efforts include connecting talent to fundraising events and programs for area nonprofits. Team-building workshops allow outside organizations to experience improv as a way to nurture group dynamics. We also have a strong internal community of members that provide a lifeline of support to each other, on and off stage, through which we also encourage working together through volunteerism. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Murphys Creek Theatre | 580 Algiers St. , MURPHYS, 95247 | Calaveras | Central Valley | (209) 728-8422 | 5 | 8 | 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Murphys Creek Theatre will revive The Mirror Project, its summer theatre conservatory for youth ages 9–17 that mirrors our professional Shakespeare production. Participants will receive daily instruction in acting, design, movement, and more from the very artists performing in the mainstage show. Each young actor is paired with an adult cast member playing the same role, creating a unique mentorship model rooted in artistic growth and community connection. The four-week program culminates in a youth-led Shakespeare performance. CAC funds will support equitable access through scholarships and help cover the costs of artist-educators and administrative staff. This project brings high-quality arts education to rural youth who might not otherwise have access, and cultivates the next generation of creators, storytellers, and leaders through a culturally responsive, performance-based learning experience. |
Murphys Creek Theatre produces a five-play professional mainstage season with approximately 70 performances annually. Productions span bold reinterpretations of classics, contemporary plays, and world premieres selected for artistic rigor, emotional depth, and relevance to the community we serve. Every performance features Pay-What-You-Can ticketing, ensuring that cost is never a barrier to experiencing live theatre. MCT is also committed to developing new work through our Quill to Act New Play Festival. Each year, community readers evaluate over 100 script submissions and select three finalists for public staged readings. Audience feedback and talkbacks help determine one winning play, which receives a professional world-premiere production the following season. The festival supports the development of new theatrical voices while positioning rural audiences as active participants in the creation of brand new plays. Our youth education programs provide training in theatre, film, and performance for students across the Sierra Foothills. Current offerings include Summer on Stage, Summer on Screen, Make-a-Musical, and after-school theatre programs. Programs introduce students to acting, storytelling, production skills, collaboration, and creative expression while creating pathways for continued artistic growth. Scholarships and subsidized tuition help ensure participation is financially accessible. MCT also provides low-cost access to its stage and facilities for artists and community groups based in Calaveras County, supporting rehearsals, performances, educational activities, and cultural events that strengthen the region’s creative life. Together, these programs create year-round opportunities for artistic participation, cultural dialogue, and community connection in a county with limited access to professional arts programming. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | Avenue 50 Studio, Inc. | 3714 N Figueroa St , Los Angeles, 90065-2447 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 352-3010 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the CAC, Avenue 50 Studio will further strengthen our 26-year legacy as an arts organization as we transition into a new location. |
Avenue 50 Studio is an arts organization that promotes and presents Latina/o/x and diverse local artists and poets, and is grounded in the community, geography, history, and struggles of the Northeast/East Los Angeles urban region where we are located. We have been presenting exhibitions since 2000, having organized over 300 exhibits and over 180 literary events, celebrating a variety of artistic media and themes and shown almost 1,100 artists, poets and musicians. Through our commitment to bridge the diverse cultures of the LA area and to represent the unique artistic presence of our largely working class, Latina/o/x neighborhood, we provide a platform for local artists, writers, advocates and local audiences to express and address the complex issues we face in our communities. We present work that constructively and creatively address racial, cultural, and world issues. Our mission engages the arts in an active role to bridge cultures, build community, and empower its members. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth | 1733 BROADWAY , OAKLAND, 94612-2105 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 599-7774 | District 12 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Restorative Justice for Oakland Youth will offer the 12-Week Youth Arts Intensive in Spring 2026. This free program, held weekly for 12 weeks, will engage Black youth ages 10-16, offering instruction in vocals and performance, guided by a restorative justice curriculum and culminating in a free community performance. The program will be collaboratively developed with community members and address a community-identified need to utilize the arts to repair historic and community harm caused by racialized oppression that relegates Black youth to futures defined by mass incarceration and institutionalization. |
RJOY offers speaking, training, workshops and technical assistance to communities, schools, and justice groups in California and throughout the nation. Our annual Youth Arts Intensive is a 10-week program offering free arts training and performance opportunities for youth ages 10-16. The Restorative Art & Healing Circle, meeting every Thursday 5-7pm, is an intergenerational space for creativity, connection and care, incorporating poetry, music, theater, storytelling, collage, dance, painting, cooking, beadwork, drumming, sculpture, mixed-media, singing, and culinary arts. The Safe Space Studios Restorative Sound and Healing Circle, held every Thursday 6-8pm, is a healing circle designed for artists to receive guidance from professionals within the music industry and to create a safe space, time, and opportunities to perform at live showcases. The Music and Healing Cohort offers an opportunity for artists to dive into an individual and collective healing journey, supporting each other in turning healing stories into the music they love to write and perform. Participants record and mix their original songs and storytelling, guided by a restorative justice curriculum. The RJOY Ubusha youth program fosters restorative practices through engaging activities like community building, hands-on farm work, and rejuvenating retreats at our Ubuntu Farm and Healing Center. Participants learn the art of healing connections, sustainable agriculture, and self-discovery in a supportive environment that empowers them to contribute positively to their communities. The Restorative Justice in Schools Learning Community is designed to create a state-wide network for restorative justice practitioners, educators, and administrators. Our role in this initiative is to provide resources for developing restorative programs in schools districts across California. We are responsible for holding monthly webinars for restorative training, creating a network forum for dialogue, and providing a database with real evidence of the work being done to fight institutions that perpetuate punitive systems of oppression to Black and brown children. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Fox Cultural Hall | 8707 North Lake Boulevard , Kings Beach, 96143 | Placer | Upstate | (209) 202-9238 | California Assembly District 3 | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts For The Schools will launch Sounding the Wild, an arts and eco-literacy education program that blends music, environmental themes, and place-based learning to spark creativity, connection, and critical thinking. In this initial phase, the program will focus on our youngest learners—kindergarten through 2nd grade students in the Tahoe Truckee Unified School District—prioritizing Title I school sites and campuses ranked lowest on the California Healthy Places Index (HPI). Sounding the Wild features assemblies by world-class musicians, each centered on a distinct ecological theme, followed by in-class integration through the Musical Field Journal, a curriculum tool combining journaling, lyrics, and science-based observation. Aligned with NGSS, SEL, and VAPA standards, the program allows students to extend their learning beyond the performance and into the natural world. |
Arts for the Schools offers Performing Arts assemblies (music, dance, theater), Visual Arts instruction (hands-on creative projects), and Sounding the Wild—an immersive program connecting students to nature through music, storytelling, and environmental awareness. arTRAIN- Free professional training in arts integration for classroom teachers and schools to promote equitable learning outcomes among students. The Mural Project –A collaboration of area organizations, to beautify local businesses with artistic murals, in the heart of North Lake Tahoe communities. The art conveys important local themes of environmental stewardship, history and cultural heritage, with the goal of bringing attention to local small businesses. Mexican Heritage Festival – The festival honors Mexican cultural traditions through celebration of Mexican music, dance, arts, artisan vendors, crafts, food and local businesses. In addition to supporting and celebrating Mexican culture, arts and artists, the festival promotes and supports, local LatinX-owned businesses. School- based Programs: The Performing Arts program provides performances and workshops with cultural, performing artists in K-12 schools to promote cultural learning. The program serves 10,000 students and reaches 22 schools in our service area, and supports 35-40 artists annually. The Community School program provides in-depth course work in music, visual arts, and digital arts for juvenile-justice system and vulnerable youth at school. The program serves students with in-depth fine arts and career-training course-work. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,900.00 | Automata | 504 Chung King Court , LOS ANGELES, 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 356-5482 | 30th Congressional district of California. | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, AUTOMATA ARTS will strengthen our ability to uplift and highlight artists who are marginalized by economic, logistical, and language barriers. Through support for our General Operations, a percentage of the rent and utilities for our space and for staff salaries will be covered, allowing us to dedicate more time and resources to supporting the work of diverse artists and fostering a welcoming and accessible space for sharing work, as well as providing greater support for diversely-abled community members. We will also be able to expand the scope of outreach strategies including incorporating other language accessibility (predominantly Spanish/Cantonese). |
Automata was founded in 2004 by artists Susan Simpson and Janie Geiser. Since that time, we have been presenting intimate performances of original work, film screenings of contemporary and historical avant-garde film, lectures, workshops, and exhibitions in a variety of spaces in Los Angeles. We have invited playwrights and composers, puppeteers and designers, visual artists, and new media experimenters to collaborate and create new works using performing objects. From 2007-2009 we operated The Manual Archives, a micro performance and exhibition space dedicated to newly invented folklore for the city of Los Angeles. Automata moved into its present Chinatown performance gallery in 2012. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | Community Rejuvenation Project | 2721 60TH AVE , OAKLAND, 94605-1534 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 269-7840 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Community Rejuvenation Project will partner with Communities United for Restorative Youth Justice (CURYJ) to design and produce a large-scale community mural in the Casa Sueños Building in Oakland’s Fruitvale District: CURYJ’s new hub for the Youth Power Zone and permanent supportive housing for system-impacted youth and families. The project, titled From Bars to Blossoms: Dreaming Beyond Incarceration, will be co-created with youth leaders from CURYJ’s Dream Beyond Bars, Homies 4 Justice, and Life Coaching programs. Through intergenerational storytelling workshops and community design sessions, youth, elders, and families will shape a mural that reflects cultural resilience, justice, and collective healing. CAC funds will support artist compensation, youth fellowships, supplies, and community engagement activities, ensuring the mural reflects the lived experiences, visions, and values of Fruitvale’s historically under-resourced communities. |
As a pavement to policy organization, CRP develops and implements best practices around public art policy through strategy-based, on-the-ground experience in urban communities. Over the past twelve years, the collective has painted more than 300 murals throughout the Bay Area. CRP has developed an innovative and effective model for community engagement by incorporating multimedia and documentary filmmaking into its approach. In addition, CRP has advocated strongly for increased investment in public art and more sensible public art policy. CRP has also been a founding member of several community-based coalitions working on ongoing equitable development, anti-displacement, and cultural resiliency campaigns, as well as increased transparency and accountability from public officials. CRP has also been a part of important discussions, both in the municipal and public sectors, around creative placemaking, cultural equity, and new directions in public art, on both a local and national level. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Jacob Jonas The Company | 1922 Arizona Ave , Santa Monica, 90404 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 963-0248 | California Assembly district 50 | District 50 | District 26 | As a first-time California Arts Council grantee, Jacob Jonas The Company (JJTC) requests funding to support general operating costs, including subsidized equitable wages for essential administrative and artistic staff. This support will help sustain swiftly growing operations and strengthen JJTC’s capacity as a nonprofit dedicated to innovative dance performance, interdisciplinary collaboration, and community engagement. During the grant period, JJTC will premiere three new works for its 2026 season, present non-traditional performances across the region, deliver movement-based arts education and wellness programs, and expand access through digital content. Staff members are critical to the organization’s long-term sustainability and ability to provide meaningful engagement across Los Angeles and beyond. CAC funding will directly advance JJTC’s mission to make dance more accessible, relevant, and healing for diverse communities. |
JJTC is a Santa Monica-based nonprofit dance organization dedicated to expanding the presence of dance through live performances, digital storytelling, and community engagement. Founded in 2014, JJTC has become a pioneering force at the intersection of dance, technology, and community, working to make high-quality, innovative dance accessible to a diverse audience. Since its inception, JJTC has redefined the possibilities of dance by bringing performances to unconventional spaces, such as the Santa Monica Pier and Getty Museum, and by engaging local communities in meaningful collaborations. A core belief in dance as a universal language drives the company to dismantle barriers to arts participation, offering a wide range of programs that bridge cultural and socio-economic divides. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | WriteGirl | 1330 Factory Pl, F-104 Los Angeles, Los Angeles, 90013 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 253-2655 | With support from the California Arts Council, WriteGirl will continue its mission to empower underserved teen girls and gender expansive youth through creative writing workshops, publishing and performance opportunities, one-on-one mentoring by professional writer volunteers, and college entrance guidance. Funding would support the organization as it provides year-round programming at no cost to 600 teens and young adults, ages 13-24, who reside in Southern California. Grant funds will be applied to staff costs, rent, utilities, program development, volunteer recruitment and training, staff development and other operational expenses. |
WriteGirl provides one-on-one mentoring, college entrance guidance, publishing/performance opportunities, and more than 100 writing, educational and leadership development workshops each year. All programming is provided at no cost to participants, through two main programs: 1) The WriteGirl Core Mentoring Program presents year-round, online and in-person writing workshops that feature engaging activities, special guest presentations, self-care segments, and time for youth to write and share their creative work. Outside of workshops, more than 100 mentee-mentor pairs meet for regular, one-hour writing sessions, both online and in-person. The “Bold Futures” aspect of this program provides in-depth college entrance guidance to WriteGirl high school juniors and seniors, and career-focused workshops and resources for college-aged WriteGirl alumni and recent college graduates. WriteGirl also offers a monthly leadership training series called “Bold Leaders” to help teens develop skills in public speaking, time management and communication. 2) WriteGirl Partner Programs provide writing workshops for youth throughout Los Angeles County in collaboration with school districts, agencies, and organizations that include the Arts for Healing and Justice Network (AHJN). Recent programming has included weekly writing workshops for youth at Camp Kilpatrick, monthly writing workshops for trans and nonbinary youth, and writing sessions for teens attending community events sponsored by LA County Parks and Recreation and other organizations. WriteGirl volunteers are accomplished writers who work professionally with media companies, film studios, music publishers, news organizations and more. They complete two days of intensive training and receive ongoing guidance to help them become effective, long-term mentors for youth. Dozens of special guest writers, musicians and performers also participate in our workshops and showcases, enhancing our programming and bringing teen writing to life. Program partners, including the Japanese American National Museum, the Recording Academy, the Wende Museum and The Autry, provide inspiring workshop locations. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | "" | 1611 S HOPE ST STE E , LOS ANGELES, 90015-4115 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 747-2777 | California Assembly district 53 | District 53 | District 30 | Create Now respectfully requests General Operating Support from the California Arts Council to help sustain and strengthen our core operations as we continue delivering free, high-quality arts education to underserved youth across California. Funding will support staff salaries, teaching artist compensation, program coordination, and essential administrative infrastructure that enables us to provide visual arts, music, writing, performance, and multimedia programs in schools, shelters, group homes, and juvenile facilities. This support will allow us to maintain continuity, expand reach, and deepen impact in communities where access to the arts is limited, while ensuring our programs remain culturally relevant, inclusive, and accessible to all youth. |
Our unique partnership model helps Create Now provide access to the arts for youth who are most likely to miss out on impactful extracurricular opportunities and creative education. All of our programs are offered at no cost to youth and their families. Our partnerships with schools and community agencies have been built for nearly 30 years. This unique connection helps us reach youth who are underserved, experiencing homelessness, in foster care, or who have experienced the juvenile justice system. Like many other arts education organizations, Create Now relies on local schools and community agencies in underserved communities as crucial partners. A variety of our programming occurs on campus at various schools. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | Son of Semele | 4009 West Avenue 43 , Los Angeles, 90041 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 841-9151 | California's 34th Congressional District | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Son of Semele Ensemble will produce “Out Loud,” a summer theatre enrichment program that gives high school students an opportunity to write and perform a play with guidance and support from a team of professional Teaching Artists. The program and presentation will take place within the brand new multi-million dollar Valley Academic and Cultural Center on the campus of Los Angeles Valley College. “Out Loud” celebrates the diverse experiences of young people, amplifying their voices through an enriching theatre arts experience that exposes them to many aspects of theatre arts, and presents their stories, dreams, and aspirations as a world premiere play of their own making. |
Son of Semele has served thousands of Angelenos annually through our creative work. To date, we estimate that SoS has been the producer of 200 different events, which have been attended by over 23,000 people. We are currently in residence at Los Angeles Valley College (LAVC), a community college in Valley Glen. The artistic opportunities offered to LAVC students from this partnership will deepen SoS’s impact and expand our creative reach. For example, we are currently hiring three summer interns from LAVC’s Theatre Arts program to assist us with a summer theatre arts enrichment camp, and we anticipate that this camp will become part of our annual programming. PRODUCTIONS & EDUCATION Our productions are developed and produced through a collaborative approach and are selected by the Artistic Director based on their artistic potential. Typically, our productions receive 8-15 ticketed public performances over 2-4 weeks. They have served many thousands of Angelenos. Additionally, this year we are producing our first summer theatre camp for high school students, an extension of a new and exciting direction for the company. NEW WORK SUPPORT Our annual Creation Festivals for new work supported solo work, devised work, and short-form plays. For 10 years, they’ve fostered community and exposure for like-minded artists and their networks. Artists receive administrative, marketing, and artistic support to create their work, which is presented for 1-4 weeks. As many as 1,200 Angelenos have annually attended Creation Festivals. Additionally, our Commissions and Workshops have supported new work, either directly to playwrights in the form of a commission, or through funded workshops exploring a more collaborative process to new play development. In the last two years, we have commissioned “This is the Subtext,” a new play by Brian James Polak, and “Independent,” a verbatim theatre piece exploring democracy in Ukraine. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | World Arts West | 1446 Market St. , SAN FRANCISCO, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 474-3914 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, World Arts West will produce Amazed by Grace, a new multidisciplinary performance collaboration between choreographer Nikka Maynard, West African dance company Diamano Coura (DC), composer Terrance Kelly, and the Oakland Interfaith Gospel Choir (OIGC). The project explores the connections between African Diasporic cultural forms from our African homelands to our current home communities in the East Bay, with a focus on the forms of Praise Dance, West African traditional drumming/dancing, and Gospel Music. |
World Arts West Dance Festival Arts Equity Research Artist Service Programs Cultural Artist Visibility & Advocacy Grants Accelerator Program (GAP) Wallace Foundation National Arts Partners Regranting Cohort Special Artist Commissions |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | World Arts West | 1446 Market St. , SAN FRANCISCO, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 474-3914 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, World Arts West will conduct artist service and advocacy programs that promote the artistic and economic development for our Northern Californian community of 600+ cultural dance companies with over 20,000 artists. Awarded funds will support World Arts West’s staff and contractors who administer and implement our capacity-building services dedicated to building a sustainable future for California’s cultural artists. Funded programming includes: Artist Service Program; Live Performance Presentations; Special Artist Commissions; Arts Equity Research; The 2026 World Arts West Dance Festival; and Artist Visibility & Advocacy programs. |
World Arts West Dance Festival Arts Equity Research Artist Service Programs Cultural Artist Visibility & Advocacy Grants Accelerator Program (GAP) Wallace Foundation National Arts Partners Regranting Cohort Special Artist Commissions |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $23,000.00 | Musicians at Play | 4951 Agnes Ave , Valley Village, 91607 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 632-4868 | California's 29th Congressional District | District 44 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, MUSICIANS AT PLAY FOUNDATION INC will provide a music mentorship program for youth at Monroe Community of Schools in North Hills, a community that has long faced chronic underfunding and limited access to the arts. This out-of-school initiative expands access to high-quality music education and meaningful artistic experiences typically unavailable to students in this underserved area. CAC funds are used to support professional mentor compensation. |
Founded in 2015 by the family of renowned film composer John Williams, MAP is a vibrant community of world-class musicians and educators who partner with schools across Los Angeles County to provide tuition-free instrumental and vocal music instruction, coaching, and mentoring for youth ages 5-18, along with free or low-cost professional community concerts in underserved communities. It began with a single band class at New Roads HS in Santa Monica and has grown to include partnerships with schools and school districts in Burbank, Simi Valley, Los Angeles, Inglewood, and North Hills/Monroe Community, as well as music career training and apprenticeship programs serving young people ages 15-27. Since its inception, MAP programs have impacted more than 41,000 students, teachers, parents, and community members. Its core instructional program, Artists in Schools, is facilitated by award-winning professional musicians working in the film, concert hall, and recording industries. They provide mentorship and training through sequential workshops in fourteen disciplines (including Choral, Trumpet, Trombone, Tuba, Horn, Saxophone, Clarinet, Flute, Percussion, Bass, Cello, Viola, Violin, and Piano), culminating in public performances. All programs align with California Visual & Performing Arts Standards. Our larger goal is to improve the creative workforce pipeline by aligning music education with paid, credentialed career pathways. MAP created two pre-professional training programs—RISE Film Scoring Orchestra and the Civic Orchestra of Los Angeles (CO-LA) and, in April 2024, was approved for a groundbreaking, federally recognized apprenticeship supporting twelve music occupations. MAP is a highly sought-after partner, recognized for high-quality instruction and youth engagement. The program instills confidence, builds teamwork, and prepares youth for a lifelong journey of creativity and growth. Additionally, MAP creates jobs, contracting an average of 150 teaching artists to support approximately 800 classes, workshops, and public events annually. Nearly 70% of the annual budget directly supports professional teaching artists and mentors. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | "" | 1611 S HOPE ST STE E , LOS ANGELES, 90015-4115 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 747-2777 | California Assembly district 53 | District 53 | District 30 | Create Now respectfully requests General Operating Support from the California Arts Council to sustain and strengthen our core programs that empower youth and young adults from underserved communities across California through transformative arts education. Grant funds will be used to support essential operational costs, including staffing, program coordination, and administrative infrastructure. This support will allow Create Now to continue delivering high-impact arts programming in music, visual arts, writing, dance, and multimedia, while expanding our reach into new communities facing economic and social barriers. As a long-standing nonprofit arts organization, this funding is critical to maintaining stability and ensuring the continuity of services that nurture creativity, self-expression, and career development for vulnerable youth statewide. |
Our unique partnership model helps Create Now provide access to the arts for youth who are most likely to miss out on impactful extracurricular opportunities and creative education. All of our programs are offered at no cost to youth and their families. Our partnerships with schools and community agencies have been built for nearly 30 years. This unique connection helps us reach youth who are underserved, experiencing homelessness, in foster care, or who have experienced the juvenile justice system. Like many other arts education organizations, Create Now relies on local schools and community agencies in underserved communities as crucial partners. A variety of our programming occurs on campus at various schools. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | New Art City Theatre | 214 JORDAN AVE , VENTURA, 93001-3508 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 242-8575 | 24th Congressional District | State Assembly District 38 | State Senate District 21 | New Art City Theatre (NACT), a professional nonprofit based in Ventura County, seeks General Operating Support from the California Arts Council to sustain core operational expenses, including salaries for full-time and part-time staff and stipends for participating artists. Grant funds will support year-round community engagement and ensure ongoing programming that provides equitable access to theatre for low-income and historically excluded local residents. This support will also strengthen NACT’s role as a Southern California arts incubator dedicated to developing new works and increasing access to professional theatre. |
NACT serves two distinct communities: the theatre-going public of Ventura County, and the playwrights, composers, and lyricists who create new work for the stage. For the theatre-going public, NACT makes attending professional theatre possible for low-income individuals, enriching the arts experience of the local community. For playwrights, NACT ensures equitable access for all writers and provides the resources necessary to advance compelling new theatre from the page to the stage. The core programming component at NACT is the annual festival of new plays and musicals. Each project selected for the festival is chosen from hundreds of nationwide submissions reviewed by a panel of 47+ NACT volunteers. The annual festival is free, and the public plays a pivotal role by providing feedback both in real time and at the post-show talkback sessions. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | Media Arts Santa Ana, a project of Community Partners | PO Box 1816 , Santa Ana, 92701 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (888) 906-0340 | California's 46th congressional district | District 68 | District 34 | With support from the California Arts Council, Media Arts Santa Ana (MASA) will expand our free year-round community media arts programming at our TVGB instruction, presentation and production digital maker space in Santa Ana, and broaden programming at our adjoining visual arts/augmented reality gallery, MASARTE. We will strengthen our diverse, accessible and bilingual programming, including the 16th OC Film Fiesta multicultural film festival, Millennial Producers Academy (MILPA), Curator Incubator Project, SMART Walk (South Main Art Retail & Technology) Resource Fair, Youth Cinema Camp, Café MASA and Grassroots GarageBand class. In our MASARTE gallery, we will produce original exhibits that address community histories, aesthetics, and issues. MASA will deliver a robust schedule of innovative screenings, classes, workshops, networking and performance opportunities for intergenerational artists to produce and present empowering and uplifting experiences combining art, technology and community. |
MASA’s core programs include the OC Film Fiesta multicultural film festival, SMART Walk (South Main Art, Retail & Technology) resource fair, the Millennial Producers Academy (MILPA), Cafe MASA, Grassroots Garage Band, MASARTE Gallery exhibits, Curator Incubator Project, the OC Teen Cinema Camp, the Youth Murals and Media Class and Taco Truck Cinema. MASA is also a presenting partner in Arts Orange County’s OC Día del Niño festival. MASA promotes self-expression, community empowerment, civic participation and cultural agility by providing affordable film screenings and discussions, media arts training and interdisciplinary workshops to underserved youth and adults in the primarily Latino immigrant and working class communities in and around Santa Ana. Media Arts Santa Ana operates the TVGB Digital Maker Space and MASARTE Gallery, located in the Santa Ana Arts Collective artist affordable housing building, located at 1666 N Main in Santa Ana. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | RCF Connects | 3260 BLUME DR STE 110 , RICHMOND, 94806-1960 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 234-1200 | District 8 | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Richmond Community Foundation will offer our Arts Alive! after school program in Spring 2026. This free program held twice weekly for a 12-week session will engage Black youth ages 10-16, offering instruction in singing and dance from master Black women artists in our community, culminating in a free recital for the community. This project will be collaboratively developed with community members and will address a community-identified need for accessible, culturally responsive arts instruction for under-resourced youth, in alignment with our Equity for Black Women and Girls Initiative. |
We facilitate the infrastructure and provide operational support for grassroots programs and partnerships designed to amplify equity in our communities, including offering fiscal sponsorship services to arts organizations and initiatives. We fund and support grassroots, equity-focused partners looking to pilot and amplify services for the community, by the community, including funding local arts programs and services. RCF Connects and its partners, Chase Bank and Renaissance Entrepreneurship Center, have developed our Equity for Black Women and Girls Initiative, an incubator model tailored specifically to address the needs, struggles and obstacles Black women face when building a business and accessing capital. Our approach is guided by the belief that Black women deserve to be seen, heard, valued, and served. Sistas SOAR, led by an all-Black team, provides Black women with the support they need to have a successful entrepreneurial journey. The initiative also offers coaching and training in Sister Circles, a process that provides Black women and girls safe spaces to address issues and build communities of support. The mission of the Healthy Richmond Initiative is to help make Richmond a place where all children are safe, healthy and ready to learn. Healthy Richmond Hub staff engages, convenes and coordinates community based organizations and resident leaders in the initiative to collectively work towards increased health equity and racial justice in the community. Healthy Richmond staff provides resources and opportunities to our partners to build their advocacy capacity and supports them in keeping true to the Healthy Richmond Logic Model. Mobility Learning and Action Bets – or Mobility LABS – is a pioneering, four-year initiative to spur the development of new solutions to sustainably lift families out of poverty, and to promote dynamic leaders who will aim to change the national conversation around social and economic mobility. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | El Teatro Campesino | PO BOX 1240 705 Fourth St, SAN JUAN BAUTISTA, 95045-1240 | San Benito | Central Coast | (831) 623-2444 | California's 20th congressional district | District 30 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, El Teatro Campesino will provide its fourth year of “Teatro de Nosotros” (“Theater of Us”) – a free bilingual Youth Theater program for Watsonville youth. Unfolding in two parts over the summer, Part 1 is a unique developmental week to inform an original script and Part Two is a three week rehearsal and production process to bring that new script to life with an all youth cast. CAC funds will support artist fees for teaching, script development, production design, directing, and physical production costs in order to support the creative development of these youth. |
Founded by Luis Valdez in 1965 as the cultural arm of the UFW movement, El Teatro Campesino (ETC) functions as a multi-generational theatre company. For sixty years now, ETC has been at the forefront of using theatre as an artistic generator of social change and continues to empower artists and communities from its home in San Juan Bautista. The spheres of ETC’s work can be summarized into three core areas: professional arts, arts education and community arts. Within these areas, ETC runs an annual theatre season, a developmental lab to create new work, regional/statewide tours, cultural festivals for Latino holidays, community based art making and arts education programming within schools. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | WRITERS GROTTO | 1663 Mission St #602 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 579-4504 | 12th | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, WRITERS GROTTO will produce 1) Rooted & Written, our tuition free annual conference by and for writers of color. 2) Provide Flor Y Canto Fellowships for Black and Latinx writers, providing free membership. 3) Offer mentorship, which extends beyond Rooted & Written. Mentees can find support around a range of topics, from writing query letters and searching for literary agents to addressing racist tropes to aesthetic diversity. 4) Present 265 events, from classes to free literary readings for the SOMA/Tenderloin/Mission neighborhoods. 5) Support genre-based groups open to all members. All instructors read Craft in the Real World and The Anti-Racist Writing Workshop as a baseline. 6) Organize Craft & Career workshops on “The Pride of Craft: LGBTQ BIPOC Writing,” and “LGBTQ Parents,” “How to Build a World.” |
A key part of the Writers Grotto community resource is its integration of extensive public programming through the presentation of its members’ created works and works-in-progress at public readings, literary festivals, and cultural events. The Writers Grotto also provides classes year round in all genres of literature, both free (through its Rooted & Written Conference and Fellowship for Writers of Color), and at low cost. Given the reality of continually rising rents in the Bay Area, and the gradual retraction in jobs and paying markets for writers, aspiring writers without outside income—and many well-published writers as well—are increasingly unable to find opportunities to work together in a professional setting. The Grotto provides an affordable physical community space along with rich, invaluable daily membership conversations and support provided both in person, through virtual gatherings, and through the Grotto daily listserve. 200+ classes and workshops per year are taught by Grotto members on writing fiction, essays, memoir, journalism, poetry, children’s books, screenwriting, social media, professional development and grant-writing, and more. Classes range from one afternoon to 8 weeks, and enrollment ranges from 10-30 participants per class. Classes are held in person at The Grotto, via Zoom, or as hybrid courses. The Grotto also offers low-cost, drop-in writing sessions that encourage participants to write and support each other in a communal setting. Write-ins last for 2.5 hours and are held in person at The Grotto, via Zoom, or as hybrid courses. The annual Rooted & Written Conference and Fellowship for Writers of Color anticipates featuring internationally renowned keynote speakers/luminaries (all creative artists of color based in literature), and Teaching Faculty who will offer workshops and classes in multiple genres (fiction, non-fiction, poetry, screenwriting, etc.) to 30+ Fellows, all writers of color who receive a full scholarship to the conference. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | WRITERS GROTTO | 1663 Mission St #602 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 579-4504 | 12th | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Writers Grotto will host the Rooted & Written 2026 Conference/Fellowship by and for writers of color. The conference will serve 40 Fellows at no cost and 250+ additional participants, culminating in a national public reading and amplifying the Grotto’s mission to elevate voices of color. The Rooted & Written Conference is the only tuition-free literary conference designed for Writers of Color. It attracts international audiences to San Francisco in-person and virtually, gathering at the Writers Grotto Mission District/SOMA Headquarters for presentations and networking. Renowned for its commitment to elevating Writers of Color, the conference amplifies their creative output. The fellowship program nurtures emerging Writers of Color, providing mentorship, craft refinement, and industry connections. It awards 40 fellowships to the most promising BIPOC candidates, with participation entirely free. |
A key part of the Writers Grotto community resource is its integration of extensive public programming through the presentation of its members’ created works and works-in-progress at public readings, literary festivals, and cultural events. The Writers Grotto also provides classes year round in all genres of literature, both free (through its Rooted & Written Conference and Fellowship for Writers of Color), and at low cost. Given the reality of continually rising rents in the Bay Area, and the gradual retraction in jobs and paying markets for writers, aspiring writers without outside income—and many well-published writers as well—are increasingly unable to find opportunities to work together in a professional setting. The Grotto provides an affordable physical community space along with rich, invaluable daily membership conversations and support provided both in person, through virtual gatherings, and through the Grotto daily listserve. 200+ classes and workshops per year are taught by Grotto members on writing fiction, essays, memoir, journalism, poetry, children’s books, screenwriting, social media, professional development and grant-writing, and more. Classes range from one afternoon to 8 weeks, and enrollment ranges from 10-30 participants per class. Classes are held in person at The Grotto, via Zoom, or as hybrid courses. The Grotto also offers low-cost, drop-in writing sessions that encourage participants to write and support each other in a communal setting. Write-ins last for 2.5 hours and are held in person at The Grotto, via Zoom, or as hybrid courses. The annual Rooted & Written Conference and Fellowship for Writers of Color anticipates featuring internationally renowned keynote speakers/luminaries (all creative artists of color based in literature), and Teaching Faculty who will offer workshops and classes in multiple genres (fiction, non-fiction, poetry, screenwriting, etc.) to 30+ Fellows, all writers of color who receive a full scholarship to the conference. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $11,250.00 | Iranian Women In Networking (IWIN) | 2135 ASCOT DR APT 8 , MORAGA, 94556-2280 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (925) 913-0313 | With support from the California Arts Council, Iranian Women in Networking (IWIN) will offer 33 two-hour, after-school workshops at Ygnacio Valley High School for approximately 35 Afghan girls (grades 9–12) and their siblings, reaching over 50 youth total. These trauma-informed “Creative Art for Well-Being” sessions integrate visual, textile, and clay art with breathwork, gentle movement, and group dialogue. Using a strength-based, culturally responsive approach, youth will build resilience, confidence, and cultural pride while exploring life skills such as boundary-setting, emotional expression, and time management. CAC funds will support artist facilitators, interpreter access, and all materials. As part of the program, students will also co-create a global public art installation—“25 Shoes / 25 Cities”—to raise awareness of gender-based violence, amplifying the voices of Afghan and Iranian women through art in San Francisco and beyond. |
At IWIN (Iranian Women in Network), our core programs are rooted in the belief that art is both a tool for healing and a voice for justice. We offer culturally responsive, trauma-informed spaces where women and youth—particularly from Iranian, Afghan, and immigrant communities—can process experience, express identity, and build community. We aim to inspire the next generation to discover the artist within—and to see creative expression not only as healing, but also as a possible career path. Transformative Art workshops use visual and tactile practices—painting, textile art, clay, collage, and gentle movement or yoga-based practices—to foster emotional healing, identity exploration, and self-worth. Offered in schools, refugee centers, and clinics, these workshops have served over 400 participants, including Afghan girls, refugee mothers, and immigrant youth. Active in Contra Costa and Alameda counties. Activism Through Art channels community voices into powerful public works: community quilts composed of 18-piece panels, often featuring multilingual messages and personal stories. These works are fully inspired by the AIDS Memorial Quilt project. In 2025, we launched our own collaborative AIDS Memorial Quilt initiative, exhibited at San Francisco City Hall, Yerba Buena Center, Golden Gate Park, and other prominent Bay Area spaces—reaching over 1,000 community members and allies. To date, we have collected over 600 quilt pieces globally and assembled 52 completed panels. While this work is centered in San Francisco, it has been exhibited as far as Long Beach University and Sacramento County. Our work is as an emerging grassroots and collaborative, led by immigrant women artists,. IWIN’s founder—a polio survivor paralysis in both legs—is an Iranian engineer, single mother, and lifelong advocate. She is currently training as a lay counselor, deepening IWIN’s capacity to integrate emotional support. Through art, we build spaces of healing, expression, and belonging—one story, one workshop, and one quilt at a time. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $16,425.00 | CTN | 1471 GUERRERO ST STE 3 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110-4371 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 867-7080 | 11th Congressional District of California | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, US JAPAN CULTURAL TRADE NETWORK INC (CTN) will commission, produce, and present Memento Forest – Katami, a multimedia intergenerational performance project by dancer/choreographer Marina Fukushima. Taking inspiration from dialogues and interactions with Japanese and Asian American elders, as well as with her own family, including her late father and three generations of mothers, Marina centers and uplifts unseen bodies, unheard stories, and intergenerational relationships, transforming a personal grieving process into a communal and collective caring and healing process. Following its scheduled premiere in spring 2026 at NOHSpace in San Francisco, the artists will create a digital collage of the work, which will be published as one of the micro-seasons in the Digital Library of CTN’s 72 Seasons Project, offering continued engagement for current and future audiences. |
CTN’s programs and services include: designing and delivering exemplary arts and cultural programs in San Francisco Bay Area and various communities across the U.S. and Japan through producing, presenting, and programming; building and sharing broad knowledge about artistic resources and cultural practices of the U.S. and Japan; providing access to contextual understanding for the artistic works to enhance understanding and appreciation of audiences/participants; facilitating strong working relationships between and among diverse communities, including artistic professionals in the U.S. and Japan; and providing translations, facilitation and coordination services to enable intercultural dialogues, collaborations and projects in both countries with an emphasis on the San Francisco Bay Area, where it’s based since 2007. By collaborating with regional and national network organizations as well as larger institutions and international arts festivals, our programs and services cover broad geographies and reach diverse demographics, promoting Japanese cultural traditions, artistic expressions and wisdom of the community. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,250.00 | Kala Art Institute | 1060 HEINZ AVE Kala Institute, BERKELEY, 94710-2719 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 841-7000 | California's 13th congressional district | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council Kala Art Institute will continue to provide a cohort of veteran artists custom-tailored artist residencies at Kala, invite veteran alumni to return to Kala as mentors, and new this cycle we will design course offerings and lead quarterly community-based workshops for military communities, all free and open to the public. Kala’s Veterans Initiative in the Arts includes artist residencies, exhibition and public programs opportunities for veteran artists, and quarterly art-making workshops for military families, caregivers, and the extended veterans community. Residencies include 24/7 access to Kala’s printmaking studio, digital lab, darkroom, sculpture lab and project spaces, a project stipend, technical support, opportunities for exhibition and artist talks at Kala, and resources to design and lead workshops for other veterans and for the general public. |
The heart of Kala’s mission is supporting artists and engaging the community. Kala’s artist residency program offers professional facilities to those working in and across printmaking and digital media, new media, public art, sculpture, installation, and performance. Kala’s artist residency program is known for the support it offers to artists, specialized resources spanning printmaking, photography, sculpture and media arts, points of contact with accessible staff, and the caliber of work artists are able to produce and share with the community while in residence. Kala’s artist residencies provide time, space, equipment, and a knowledgeable network of artists (175+ artists a year) to foster dialogue, risk-taking, creation of new work, and community building. Kala’s exhibitions and gallery, free and open to the public Tuesday-Saturday, provide a platform for innovative presentations of contemporary art and a forum for artists and the public – sparking conversations across views and timely topics. This complex web of timely topics includes racial and social justice, displacement, the environment, community wellness, and more. Kala hosts community events, film screenings, artist talks, and performances in the gallery too. Kala fosters a fresh approach to experimentation, as artists investigate the interface of digital work, work made by hand, and everything in between. A spirit of exchange and education is nurtured through all Kala’s programs. Kala offers quality arts education to the general public and local youth through its on-site art classes – after school studio art, teen studio workshops, family and community art-making sessions, summer art programs, field trips, and a robust Artists-in-Schools program, established in 1991, providing artist-led instruction to students in neighboring East Bay public schools. Providing multiple points of access to space and resources through artist residencies, exhibitions, and arts education is more important than ever as we fight for equitable engagement in the midst of these challenging times. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,455.00 | TODAY'S FUTURE SOUND | 666 Bellevue Ave , OAKLAND, 94661-0267 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 465-1850 | California's 12th congressional district | District 18 | District 7 | Today’s Future Sound (TFS) will deliver a 12-week Therapeutic Beat Making (TBM) program at Alameda County Juvenile Hall, offering two 1.5-hour sessions per week. Youth will collaborate with professional teaching artists to compose original beats, learn music production, and create a class album. Grounded in trauma-informed, culturally responsive pedagogy, the program supports emotional regulation, self-expression, and community connection. Funds will support artist stipends, program coordination, training, planning, and curriculum delivery, as well as equipment upkeep and materials needed for accessibility accommodations. TFS will also conduct a pre-program survey and post-workshop evaluations to assess growth in student engagement, confidence, and skill development. The program’s goals are to promote healing, increase access to high-quality arts education, and provide youth with meaningful tools for expression, skill-building, and future success. |
Interdisciplinary, cross-cultural, therapeutic, arts education through beat making and music production that builds confidence, inspires creativity, and helps individuals create positive change. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Root Division | 1131 MISSION ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103-1514 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 863-7668 | California's 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Root Division will sustain and grow its studios, exhibitions, and arts education programs that empower emerging BIPOC artists and engage communities of color through culturally responsive practices. Funding will support 2025–26 programming, staffing, and operations, enabling us to continue our unique studios incubator, offer free visual arts classes to underserved youth, and present exhibitions that center diverse voices and narratives. Root Division remains committed to cultivating leadership and shared knowledge across our ecosystem. Our core focus is on uplifting historically marginalized communities—specifically artists, educators, curators, and youth who identify as BIPOC, immigrants, and LGBTQIA+—and providing meaningful access to creative opportunities that reflect and shape the future of San Francisco’s vibrant cultural landscape. |
Root Division’s ecosystem includes 4 interconnected programs: In our unique incubator Studios Program we offer discounted space to artists who each volunteer 8 hours of service per month. Artists spend this time teaching free art classes in the Youth Education Program, instructing courses in the Adult Education Program, and/or supporting the Exhibitions & Events Program. We link various interests & audiences in a mutually beneficial relationship making art, artists & arts education more accessible while cultivating artists who give back. Since 2002, Root Division has provided 290+ artists with studios; empowered 480 artists to teach; provided 8,000+ hours of free art classes for neighborhood youth; hosted adult art classes for 4,400 students; exhibited 4,700+ artists; been a gathering place for 75,000 visitors to meet artists & see artwork; sold over $1.27M of emerging artwork; & developed partnerships with two-dozen public schools/ community centers & 180 local businesses. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Museum of Social Justice | 115 PASEO DE LA PLZ , LOS ANGELES, 90012-2922 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 224-8759 | California's 34th congressional district | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the MUSEUM OF SOCIAL JUSTICE will collaborate with artist Oscar Magallanes to develop a multidisciplinary exhibition focused on the lived experiences of Indigenous youth from southern Mexico and Central America who have been separated from their families at the U.S.-Mexico border. The project will include a gallery exhibition, a short documentary film, and a public art or digital mural component. Grounded in trauma-informed collaboration, the work will center youth voices, many of whom speak K’iche’ and Mam, and reflect their cultural identities and resilience. In partnership with advocacy and legal organizations, and with guidance from a trauma-informed mental health advisor in designing healing-centered workshop components, the project will serve as both testimony and cultural preservation, using art to inform and honor communities navigating forced migration and systemic erasure. |
As part of its permanent collection, the Museum showcases the work of women missionaries who established schools, medical clinics, and other services for refugees of the Mexican revolution in the early 1900’s, including the first integrated drinking fountain in Los Angeles from circa 1917. Through a collaboration with the Bradley Center at Cal State University, Northridge the museum was able to digitize over 2,000 photographs documenting life in Los Angeles for poor Latinos beginning in 1899. The museum has worked with a variety of curators to plan exhibitions on diverse social justice themes, including the Civil Rights Movement, immigration, and East L.A. student activism. In 2017, the Museum began partnering with artists from under-served communities to produce artistic responses to our major exhibitions. The museum invests in young adult leadership to act as docents, support our media needs, research our archives, develop educational components for upcoming exhibitions, etc. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | VELASLAVASAY PANORAMA | 1122 W 24TH ST , LOS ANGELES, 90007-1724 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 746-2166 | 37th Congressional District of California | District 57 | District 28 | With the support of the California Arts Council, Velaslavasay Panorama will partner with Community and Environment Research Lab in the Department of Environmental and Occupational Health at University of California Irvine to host: three artistic immersive panorama-making workshops centering on environmental awareness to envision healthy futures at multicultural community outreach events in South/East Los Angeles, including Dia de Los Muertos, and Bob Baker Day. In addition, we will host three garden sessions of healing, empowerment and transformation to increase climate awareness and resources for low-income communities of color living in proximity to inner-city oil drilling sites and manufacturing facilities. |
Immersive panoramic installations are the philosophical center of the VP and are presented on a semi-permanent basis. Former works included: “Panorama of the Valley of the Smokes” (2000-2004), a surreal scene of the LA basin 200 years ago and “Effulgence of the North” (2007-2017), a hypnotic depiction of the Arctic landscape by night. “Shengjing Panorama,” (2019-present), our current panorama on view, is a visionary experience of daily life in Shenyang, China circa 1910-1930 and the first ever US-China collaborative panorama. Beyond the panorama, the VP curates highly collaborative performances, film screenings and illustrated lectures on visual art, arcane culture and experimental media. Programs include: “Union Square Florist Shop,” a living installation and performance of a bygone flower store circa 1969; an archo-historical illustrated lecture by the Shenyang Visual Archive; an evening of magic lantern performances by Charlotte Pryce; a 16mm film screen series with Jesse Lerner exploring themes of tourism, documentary, surrealism and archaeology in Mexican cinema; theatrical performances of “The Grand Moving Mirror of California,” a moving panorama tradition dating back to 1853. Our blossoming garden is an extension of immersive landscape art offering an oasis of lush, tropical foliage. We are open to the public weekly on a by-donation basis and serve an annual visitorship of over 15,000 people. Our performances, exhibits and programs are primarily focused on serving the Los Angeles community at our headquarters in West Adams/University Park but we reach additional audiences nationally and internationally by sharing our work at festivals, universities, conferences and other presenting opportunities including via postal mail. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Riverside Arts Academy | 4010 Merrill Ave. Suite B , RIVERSIDE, 92506 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 266-5540 | California's 41st congressional district | District 61 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, RIVERSIDE ARTS ACADEMY will sustain and expand its free, community-based music education program serving over 500 youth weekly across the Inland Empire. CAC funds will support local teaching artists, instrument maintenance, supplies, and transportation for 13 culturally responsive ensembles and classes—including Mariachi, Orchestra, Choir, Guitar, Strings, and a new Music 101 course. Designed for low-income, majority-Latino youth with limited access to the arts, this program fosters creativity, cultural identity, and personal growth while advancing equity and long-term participation in California’s arts ecosystem. |
RAA’s core programs serve over 500 students in the city of Riverside through a flagship after school and Saturday music program at the historic Cesar Chavez Community Center and after school programs at fourteen public schools across the Inland Empire. RAA co-designs its programs with its partners including Riverside Unified, Alvord Unified, Jurupa Unified, the City of Riverside, and faculty from local postsecondary institutions. RAA programs serve students from the ages of 7 to 18 and center on music education through socio-emotional learning and culturally-responsive pedagogy. Course offerings include multiple levels of Mariachi, orchestra, band, choir, musicianship, and more. Students are enrolled an average of 3 hours per week, with some students pursuing as many as 10 hours of music education each week. RAA further supports the music education landscape in the IE through it’s signature workforce development program that helps emerging educators with professional development, classroom experience, and job placements. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | STUDIO 395 | 17600 Collier Ave h185 , Lake Elsinore, 92530-2633 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 741-7337 | California's 41st congressional district | District 63 | District 32 | With support from the California Arts Council, STUDIO 395 Foundation will fund an At Risk Art (ARA) Program that will focus on providing art instruction to teens and young adults who are in need of prevention and intervention services for drug/alcohol/gang involvement. We will be doing this with Art Not Drugs, a newly granted 501(c)3 developed by a STUDIO 395 board member to redirect youth in our community towards a more constructive life and positive self-image. A teen track program will be supported by school district referrals of students needing active engagement. The second track will be supported by local gang task force recommendations of youth at risk in the community. The program is focused on art as a means to express emotions and initiate healing. |
STUDIO 395 is an organization comprised of artists and art enthusiasts engaged in enriching the community and its members through arts education, participation, and expression. STUDIO 395, established in 2011, has developed programs in cooperation with civic leaders, businesses, other non-profits, and through previously awarded grants, to advance artistic creation and appreciation with a focus of “art as a social practice” and community improvement. We have worked with our local government engaging community members, of all ages, who are low-income, seen as “at risk” and ethnically diverse, at venues in their neighborhoods, involving them in projects as we can. Our group maintains a business model approach, seeking donations and grants for programs, events, and venue development. Currently, we manage a workshop/class/event space in an outdoor retail establishment that we use as a creation space for artists and can be set up for classes, workshops, and interactive events. We also sponsor an ongoing large mural program there and offer window space for local artists to display and sell their creations. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Arts4MC | 24600 Silver Cloud Ct suite 202 , Monterey, 93940-6555 | Monterey | Central Coast | (831) 622-9060 | California's 20th congressional district | District 30 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Arts Council for Monterey County (Arts4MC) will provide an enriching visual arts education program to 1-2 elementary schools in South Monterey County, a historically excluded community, where very few opportunities for the arts exist. A local community artist with many ties to these students, has been selected to design and lead these programs. |
There is no organization in our county that connects more artists, students, cultural nonprofits and partners to the arts. Each year we expand our capacity to ensure that everyone benefits from high quality arts programs, including developing strategic partnerships in every supervisorial district in our large and diverse county. Our guiding strategy is to support artists, teaching artists and arts organizations wherever there are substantial gaps – whether by demographics, location or by circumstances, we provide direct services. Today, we strengthen the ability of hundreds of artists, cultural groups and arts organizations to effectively serve our residents, as we present award-winning programs that address our communities’ greatest needs through the arts, serving our residents in English and Spanish. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Pelisa Arts & Energy | PO BOX 30863 , Oakland, 94604 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 290-4262 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pelisa Arts & Energy will produce Rhythms of Fatherhood, an ongoing series of community events for Black and Brown fathers and children in Oakland, centered on health and wellbeing. The project was born out of Kiazi’s journey as a single father of a four-year old girl in Oakland. Our events feature music and dance performances, African Diasporic-rooted cultural workshops, and healthy Afro-Caribbean and Jamaican cuisine. |
Pelisa Arts & Energy’s core programs include: Ngoma Drumming and Percussion Community Outreach: Free drumming and dance workshops for African-Diasporic youth and families at schools and community centers across the Bay Area, providing hands-on instruction in traditional Congolese percussion and dance. Through partnerships with schools and community organizations in Oakland, Hayward, and East Palo Alto, we offer ongoing class series, drum circles, cultural workshops, and Black History Month assemblies. Rhythms of Fatherhood: Ongoing series of community events for Black and Brown fathers and children in Oakland, centered on health and wellbeing rooted in the mbongui healing traditions of the Kongo Kingdom. Events feature live music and dance, culturally resonant meals, facilitated community dialogue with licensed therapists, cooking workshops, outdoor activities, and planting events. Music as Medicine: Live performance and cultural healing series bringing culturally grounded music and gathering practices into healthcare settings, produced in partnership with clinical and community health organizations. Each session integrates Ngoma drumming, communal dialogue, shared meals, and mental health support. Professional Dance and Music Performances: Collaborations with local arts and community organizations showcasing Congolese dance and music at festivals, cultural celebrations, and community events throughout the Bay Area and beyond. EPA to DRC: A socially-engaged dance and music performance project exploring parallels between Silicon Valley’s exploitation of the Black community of East Palo Alto and the exploitation of the Democratic Republic of Congo for its cobalt and labor. Social Justice and Environmental Advocacy: Using the arts as a vehicle for change, Pelisa increases access to renewal energy in underserved communities and raises awareness about environmental and social impacts of cobalt mining – fostering dialogue about the impact of resource extraction on African diasporic communities. Rhythms Risings: Culture Mentorship & Healing: African-diasporic arts and culture programming with justice-system impacted youth in Alameda County Juvenile Hall. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | Noe Music | 1021 SANCHEZ ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94114-3312 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 648-5236 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Noe Valley Chamber Music (DBA Noe Music) will connect Black and Latinx expecting mothers with world-class musicians to compose and record original lullabies for their babies, fostering community through music, strengthening maternal health, healing, and parent and child bonding. |
Noe Music presents diverse artists in multi-day residencies. Our artists immerse themselves in our community by presenting public concerts for adults, interactive family concerts, and free public school workshops. The range of artists we present includes world, jazz, folk and experimental styles, as well as classical music, with a guiding emphasis on diversity and inclusion. Another core offering is the Lullaby Project—connecting pregnant women experiencing homelessness with professional Bay Area artists to compose original lullabies for their newborns. The project began as a partnership with the Homeless Prenatal Program in San Francisco and Carnegie Hall’s Weill Music Institute. We now expand our collaborations to include Alameda Health System’s Spanish Centering and Beloved Birth Black Centering programs, running eight programs to date. Our intended audience is families of all ages. We create offerings for every stage of life, starting with the Lullaby Project in which we encourage mothers’ musical messages to reach their babies in utero. Our Noe Music Kids series offers interactive concerts tailored to young ears, for kids ages 3 to 12. We also offer free workshops to public schools in SF. At our mainstage offerings for adults, we offer discounted student tickets and complimentary childcare for those parents who would otherwise struggle to attend. All of our public offerings are wheelchair accessible. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | GOLDEN THREAD PRODUCTIONS | 1695 18TH ST #C101 Annex , SAN FRANCISCO, 94107-2376 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 626-4061 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | Golden Thread will use CAC funds to support ongoing operations of the Bay Area’s only theatre company dedicated to celebrating the multiplicity of Middle Eastern perspectives and identities. CAC funds will contribute to the production of passionate and provocative plays from or about the Middle East. This will serve Middle Eastern audiences who rarely encounter meaningful reflections of their own culture in the performing arts, while exposing non-Middle Eastern audiences to the authentic voices and alternative perspectives of the region. |
We fulfill our mission through rich and diverse programming, artist development, and community engagement. Our programs include the development and production of full-length plays; an annual New Threads Staged Readings series; annual events such as What do the Women Say? a celebration of International Women’s Day; and our two signature programs: the Golden Thread Fairytale Players, offering a cultural exploration of the Middle East designed for children, and the ReOrient Festival, a biennial festival of short plays highlighting the diversity of Middle Eastern perspectives and aesthetics, which also includes a ReOrient Forum, featuring discussions and performances by artists, academics, and activists. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | GOLDEN THREAD PRODUCTIONS | 1695 18TH ST #C101 Annex , SAN FRANCISCO, 94107-2376 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 626-4061 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | Golden Thread Productions will present the world premiere of a new Afghan-American play titled PILGRIMAGE by Afghan-American playwright Humaira Ghilzai, co-written by Bridgette Dutta Portman and co-produced with Z Space. PILGRIMAGE tells the story of five Afghan and Muslim American women who embark on an Umrah, a minor pilgrimage, to Mecca in Saudi Arabia. As they travel together on a journey of spiritual reawakening, they navigate grief, faith, family conflict, and personal transformation. The play offers an unprecedented representation of Afghan and Muslim women rarely seen on U.S. stages. It presents a nuanced, woman-centered story that explores what it means to be Afghan, Muslim, and American today. The production will be guided and supported by Afghan-American artists, community council members, and community organizational partners who will provide cultural competency, outreach, and engagement. |
We fulfill our mission through rich and diverse programming, artist development, and community engagement. Our programs include the development and production of full-length plays; an annual New Threads Staged Readings series; annual events such as What do the Women Say? a celebration of International Women’s Day; and our two signature programs: the Golden Thread Fairytale Players, offering a cultural exploration of the Middle East designed for children, and the ReOrient Festival, a biennial festival of short plays highlighting the diversity of Middle Eastern perspectives and aesthetics, which also includes a ReOrient Forum, featuring discussions and performances by artists, academics, and activists. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | Black Women's Roots Festial | 3064 Richmond Blvd , Oakland, 94611 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 658-2016 | 12th Congressional District | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Black Women’s Roots Festival will pursue our ongoing programming and operations as a small arts and cultural organization and further our mission to celebrate and promote Black women and girls in the arts through performance and educational programming, centering Black cultural traditions of roots music – jazz, blues, country, gospel, and beyond. |
Black Women’s Roots Festival presents an annual festival in the San Francisco Bay Area, now in its sixth year, showcasing an intergenerational lineup of Black women in blues, gospel, jazz, country, R&B, classical, hip-hop, poetry, spoken word, and beyond. The festival includes live performances, a free video livestream, a live radio broadcast in partnership with KPFA Radio, and a mentorship program for youth performers. We offer free after school youth arts programs, engaging Black youth ages 10-16 with curriculum in vocals, dance, and instrumental music. These programs are taught by renowned Black women artist-educators in our community. We present 3-4 free youth workshops and performances annually including programs with Black-women led string quartets and Black women country, blues, and roots artists. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,500.00 | Joshua Tree Living Arts | PO BOX 878 , JOSHUA TREE, 92252-0878 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (760) 910-3472 | California's 23rd Congressional District | District 47 | District 19 | Joshua Tree Living Arts’s eight-month series of Youth Tile Art Workshops brings together a professional ceramic artist, local youth, and the Twentynine Palms community—giving young people a place at the table and the opportunity to help shape a collaborative public mural. Through hands-on tile-making, students gain more than art skills—they gain a sense of authorship, agency, and the possibility of seeing their ideas made permanent in the landscape of their hometown. This isn’t just an art class—it’s a formative invitation to step into the role of artist, community builder, and cultural contributor by entering a broader civic dialogue and creating a personal tile for the City’s Freedom Plaza Tile Mural Project. |
Joshua Tree Living Arts (JTLA) offers a diverse range of programs and services designed to enrich the High Desert community through arts education, creative collaboration, and sustainable practices. These initiatives aim to foster creativity, cultural enrichment, and community engagement across people of all ages and backgrounds. ARTISTS IN SCHOOLS COLLABORATIVE ART INSTALLATIONS COMMUNITY WORKSHOPS KIDS MUSIC PROGRAMS ARTIST MENTORSHIP FISCAL SPONSORSHIPS COMMUNITY LIAISON |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Dance Brigade or Dance Mission | 3316 24TH ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110-3803 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 826-4441 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Dance Brigade (aka Dance Mission Theater) will present Liberation Academy 4.0, a comprehensive cultural dance performance initiative that addresses the urgent need for platforms to uplift, educate, and inspire new generations of dancers and cultural practitioners from the African Diasporic community. Grant funds will be utilized to run a five-month program, including a season of workshops, mentorships, classes, special performance commissions and student showcase performances designed to enhance participants’ technical skills, artistic expression, and understanding of the cultural, social, and historical contexts of the African Diaspora. |
-Operating an artist-driven, feminist arts service organization rooted in intersectionality that combats systems of oppression by dedicating its resources to supporting historically marginalized artists, ensembles, and cultural practitioners. We’re committed to building community, addressing social justice issues, exploring cultural identities, and creating a more peaceful world through collective action. -Creating infrastructure in which art is recognized as a tool for social change and where marginalized communities have access to the resources they need for artistic expression and cultural preservation. -Run a thriving inter/multicultural community arts venue, Dance Mission Theater (DMT); -Create, produce, and sustain groundbreaking festivals including the Mission Youth Arts Festival, Manifest-ival for Social Change, and D.I.R.T. (Dance In Revolting Times) – all of which explore issues of equity through the assertion of culturally rooted dance forms and/or sociopolitical subject matter; -Present and foster the work of other companies and festivals – like the Black Choreographers, Deaf Dance, and CubaCaribe Festivals; -Help incubate and launch the professional careers of artists through programs such our Choreographers Showcase; -Provide high quality facilities and resources that support over 110 choreographers every year, the majority of whom are women and people of color, via rental subsidies, fiscal sponsorship, grant and publicity mentorship, performance opportunities, and co-productions. -Serve 1,000 adults/week through a diverse array of classes in dance styles such as Haitian, samba, hip hop, house, and others in our three dance studios, as well as off-site at other community venues. – Run a comprehensive, affordable dance instruction program for youth ages 3 – 18 serving more than 400 children per semester and providing a number of scholarships to local families; -Producing the Liberation Academy with citywide workshops and performances focused on African Diasporic arts, centering Black-focused and Black-led storytelling -Create original productions by DMT’s resident company, Dance Brigade, San Francisco’s groundbreaking, feminist social-change modern dance company. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Dance Brigade or Dance Mission | 3316 24TH ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110-3803 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 826-4441 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Dance Brigade (commonly referred to as Dance Mission Theater) will expand its capacity to produce inclusive, artist-driven programming to further racial and gender equity in the arts. Funds will support the development of new works by women, LGBTQIA+ artists, and artists of color. DMT will enhance accessibility by offering affordable classes, performances, and studio rentals, ensuring economic barriers do not prevent participation. We will continue to foster partnerships with local cultural organizations, support emerging artists through showcases and residencies, and provide free dance and wellness programs for underserved communities. Additionally, funds will be used to sustain our accessibility upgrades and support our Accessibility Coordinator, ensuring all programs and services are accessible to people with disabilities. |
-Operating an artist-driven, feminist arts service organization rooted in intersectionality that combats systems of oppression by dedicating its resources to supporting historically marginalized artists, ensembles, and cultural practitioners. We’re committed to building community, addressing social justice issues, exploring cultural identities, and creating a more peaceful world through collective action. -Creating infrastructure in which art is recognized as a tool for social change and where marginalized communities have access to the resources they need for artistic expression and cultural preservation. -Run a thriving inter/multicultural community arts venue, Dance Mission Theater (DMT); -Create, produce, and sustain groundbreaking festivals including the Mission Youth Arts Festival, Manifest-ival for Social Change, and D.I.R.T. (Dance In Revolting Times) – all of which explore issues of equity through the assertion of culturally rooted dance forms and/or sociopolitical subject matter; -Present and foster the work of other companies and festivals – like the Black Choreographers, Deaf Dance, and CubaCaribe Festivals; -Help incubate and launch the professional careers of artists through programs such our Choreographers Showcase; -Provide high quality facilities and resources that support over 110 choreographers every year, the majority of whom are women and people of color, via rental subsidies, fiscal sponsorship, grant and publicity mentorship, performance opportunities, and co-productions. -Serve 1,000 adults/week through a diverse array of classes in dance styles such as Haitian, samba, hip hop, house, and others in our three dance studios, as well as off-site at other community venues. – Run a comprehensive, affordable dance instruction program for youth ages 3 – 18 serving more than 400 children per semester and providing a number of scholarships to local families; -Producing the Liberation Academy with citywide workshops and performances focused on African Diasporic arts, centering Black-focused and Black-led storytelling -Create original productions by DMT’s resident company, Dance Brigade, San Francisco’s groundbreaking, feminist social-change modern dance company. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,900.00 | RX BALLROOM DANCE | 28 AGAVE CT , LADERA RANCH, 92694-0877 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 938-1620 | California's 49th Congressional District | California's 71st State Assembly District | California's 38th State Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Rx Ballroom Dance will be able to pay for teacher salaries, teacher professional development, student curriculum development (including bilingual curriculum and outreach materials), and evaluative student growth measurement. These funds will enable us to meet our equity and accessibility goals and further develop them; expand our program reach substantially; and continue to provide quality therapeutic ballroom dance instruction, support the senior disabled community, and reach marginalized populations in underserved locations. |
Rx Ballroom Dance provides free, adaptive ballroom dance programs designed for individuals living with Parkinson’s disease, Alzheimer’s, and other neurological or age-related conditions. Our core programs blend the artistic beauty of ballroom dance with evidence-based therapeutic strategies to improve quality of life, mobility, and emotional well-being. All programs are culturally inclusive, community-centered, and accessible to people with disabilities. 1. Free Weekly Therapeutic Dance Classes 2. Care Partner Involvement 3. Participant Performances & Showcases 4. Community Engagement & Education 5. Instructor Training & Evaluation Partnerships Together, these services create a joyful, empowering space for healing and artistic expression. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | Poetic Justice | PO Box 3997 , San Diego, 92163 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 881-7334 | 53 | San Diego 78th | San Diego 39th | With funding from the California Arts Council, a general operations grant will provide critical wages for formerly-incarcerated and system-impacted teaching artists who are trained in the Poetic Justice trauma-informed and gender-responsive program that serves 455 people annually incarcerated in women’s and girls jails and prisons throughout California. Unlike many rehabilitative arts programs, Poetic Justice is committed to using its operations funding to pay $100 per class for the expertise, historic resilience, and lived experience of a team that does not necessarily have the privilege to volunteer for 4-6 hours of facilitation and travel time, weekly. The CAC-supported stipend will be a lifeline for working artists who simultaneously balance multiple jobs and/or childcare despite the ongoing and harmful effects of the prison system in their lives. By supporting their work, PJ can better support incarcerated poets. |
Poetic Justice offers poetry classes and workshops in the following California carceral settings: Programs Launching in 2026 Other PJ Work in California A typical weekly class provides gender-diverse and sensitive access by incorporating mindful breathing, trauma-responsive programming, community support, creative writing, and therapeutic visual arts. For example, participants might explore aspects of anxiety, worthlessness, shame, etc. through poetry’s grapho-motor process within a trusted community engaged in evidence-based healing because putting language to the unspeakable supports healing from root causes of trauma and PTSD, and provides pathways forward. Whereas abuse, depression, and addiction damage language centers, poetry reactivates them. In fact research indicates that poetry (rhythm, metaphor, rhyme) activates the right hemisphere. The left brain is responsible for acquisition and expression, but the right brain’s ability to integrate unrelated concepts into comprehensible metaphor with repetition and syncopation can access language pathways damaged by trauma. Research, including JW Pennebaker’s work, shows “writing about upsetting events improves physical and mental health,” but only by creating safe communities for interoception and embodied agency. The traumatized brain doesn’t remember in logical sequences; trauma memory returns in sensory experiences rooted in the limbic system rather than language centers – this is why poetry is consequential for healing. |
| State Local Partner Mentorship | 2025-26 | $51,500.00 | Fresno Arts Council | 1245 Van Ness Ave. 1245 Van Ness Ave., FRESNO, 93721-1711 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 237-9734 | California's 21st congressional district | District 31 | District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Fresno Arts Council INC will continue to provide mentorship and technical assistance to members of the Kings County Arts community to lead them to the eventual establishment of the Kings County State Local Partner of the California Arts Council. |
Fresno Arts Council Programs and Services |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Junior Center of Art & Science | 558 BELLEVUE AVE , OAKLAND, 94610-5026 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 839-5777 | California's 13th congressional district | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Junior Center of Art and Science (JCAS) will expand equitable access to arts education for East Bay youth through its high quality, hands-on after-school classes. Founded in 1954, JCAS serves over 6,000 youth and 325 families annually, with a focus on reaching low-income communities, Title I schools, and neurodivergent students who benefit from hands-on, sensory-rich learning environments. |
The Center provides high quality programs in the arts and sciences. Our center hosts visitors in our five interactive learning spaces including our art studio, maker space, and animal room. Programs are provided both on-site and throughout the Oakland and East Bay Area through school and community partners. Offerings occur during the day, after school and on Saturdays. Classes are taught by professionals in their fields. We are happy to partner with over 40 school and community sites throughout the East Bay Area. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,000.00 | TWDCC | 1060 RIVER STREET , SANTA CRUZ, 95060-1769 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 588-6902 | District 19 | County of Santa Cruz | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, TANNERY WORLD DANCE & CULTURAL CENTER (TWDCC) will continue its mission to facilitate a working home for professional world and contemporary dance artists, while providing dance education that is committed to accessibility, equity, and excellence. As the only Black led organization of its kind in Santa Cruz County, we will continue to serve a large population of Black and BIPOC artists, educators, students, and families. Building on fourteen years of service at the Tannery Arts Center, we will continue to create a stable, central hub for community engagement, after-school dance and cultural programming that centers physical and mental health, and a community center which supports the livelihood of dozens of professional artists and hundreds of dance learners and patrons each year. |
Tannery World Dance and Cultural Center (TWDCC) is a cultural hub located at the Tannery Arts Center serving 500 people weekly. TWDCC offers both adult and youth dance programs that are designed to be accessible to everyone and make all students feel seen, heard, and part of something larger than themselves. The only Black led organization of its kind in Santa Cruz County, we serve a large population of Black and BIPOC artists, educators, students, and families. Our fifteen years in service at the Tannery Arts Center has created a stable, central hub for community engagement, healthy after-school dance and cultural programming, and a community support hub that umbrellas the livelihood and platform for over three dozen professional artists each year. TWDCC also provides need based scholarships to 22% of our student body, supporting young artists in their journey as leaders of tomorrow. Our Diaspora Performance Project gives professional support to 5 selected artists. Launched in 2018, the Diaspora Performance Project seeks to support our thriving community of artists of the African Diaspora, providing opportunities for the development of new work, deep and meaningful connection to our community, as well as teaching and performance opportunities. It’s a priority in our mission to sustain a dance and cultural space supporting Santa Cruz artists of the African Diaspora, and artists who have left their country of origin who are now navigating a professional career as immigrants. Our program provides direct services to securing grants, leveraging opportunities for job placement, and commissioning work for the continuation of their professional career in a new country. We produce and curate many cultural community events each year, including the World Arts Festival, the Deep Roots Dance Fest, the Winter Dance Fest, as well as host multiple African drum and dance conferences in our studios. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Kid City Hope Place | 1021 S Hope St , Los Angeles, 90015 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 749-7371 | California District 37 | Assembly District 57 | Senate District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kid City will provide free music education to low-income, first-generation teens and young adults living in South and Central Los Angeles. For teens in high school, Kid City provides music instruction, performance group guidance, performances, workshops, and field trips with a modern band approach – which is highly engaging to young people who are fans of Spanish rock, punk, pop, and jazz. |
Kid City’s robust year-round youth development programs in arts, college access, and career readiness for high school and college students includes: individual and band music lessons, band rehearsals, community performances, mentoring, tutoring, personal statement and FAFSA workshops, college admissions guidance, college and career workshops and support, advocacy training, and leadership retreats. 100% of graduating seniors involved with the music program are attending college. In its 17-year history, Kid City has helped 1000+ high school students apply and attend a 2- or 4- year college. Each year, Kid City music students perform in bands they create for 3000+ audience members in South and Central Los Angeles. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | Yerba Buena Gardens Festival | 760 HOWARD ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103-3119 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 987-1718 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Yerba Buena Gardens Festival will partner with American Indian Contemporary Arts to present the 27th annual Native Contemporary Arts Festival (NCAF) on June 21, 2026. This multi-cultural gathering and Father’s Day tradition will celebrate, honor, and acknowledge the original peoples of California and around the globe. The Native Contemporary Arts Festival brings together Californian and urban Native Americans as well as the Indigenous people of the Americas from Alaska to Patagonia and the Pacific Rim through artistic presentations of music, dance, poetry, and crafts. All of the live performances and interactive art experiences will be outdoors, admission-free, family-friendly, clean and sober, ADA compliant, easily accessible by public transport, and open to the public in San Francisco’s Yerba Buena Gardens. |
YBG Festival presents classical, world, and jazz music, contemporary and traditional dance, theater, children’s and family programs, and cultural events reflecting the rich cultures and creativity of the region. Artistic excellence, inclusion, diversity and innovation are at the heart of our mission. As the only curated arts park fully dedicated to the long-term presentation of free arts and cultural programs, Yerba Buena Gardens has a unique place in the cultural landscape of San Francisco. Note: YBGF is not affiliated with YBCA (Yerba Buena Center for the Arts). There is no overlap between the two entities. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Musica Sierra | PO BOX 111 , LOYALTON, 96118-0111 | Sierra | Upstate | (209) 202-9238 | 1 | 1 | 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, New Vintage Baroque Inc. dba Musica Sierra will present Musical Headwaters: Hello, Cricket!, the sixth commission in its acclaimed Musical Headwaters series. This innovative program commissions new musical works inspired by the Sierra Valley, bridging nature-based education with the visual & performing arts to deepen children’s social-emotional connection to the earth. Musica Sierra will bring out The Chivalrous Crickets, a dynamic folk-Celtic ensemble, to create “Hello, Cricket!”, a story-driven musical tailored for first-grade learners. Rooted in traditional music forms, the work uses play, storytelling, and song to align with the five domains of Social and Emotional Learning (SEL). The project includes a week-long residency across Sierra-Plumas School District, culminating in public performances. This collaboration highlights folk and traditional arts as powerful tools for learning and connection in rural communities. |
Music education for ages 0-99 in the schools and community, music exposure through world class performance and community engagement. This is all done through the arm of Musica Sierra, based in Sierra County. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Film2Future | 6310 San Vicente Blvd Suite 101, Los Angeles, 90048-5426 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (206) 418-8778 | 30th Congressional District of California | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Film2Future will deliver its Intensive Animation Program, a free, 300+ hour filmmaking and career-readiness program for underserved and underrepresented high school students across Los Angeles. Students will learn the animation pipeline from pitch through post-production, working in teams to create original short films that reflect their lived experiences and cultural perspectives from hundreds of volunteer industry professionals. CAC funds will support staffing, mentor coordination, and instructional resources that ensure students receive individualized guidance, access to all needed filmmaking tools, and a professional-caliber training experience. All participants will receive a laptop with industry-standard software, free transportation, meals, and individualized support to remove barriers to their participation and success. Through the program, students gain creative confidence and direct connections to professionals in the entertainment industry. |
The core of F2F’s program is our filmmaking intensives. Students work in teams to create short films with instruction and mentorship from 200+ industry professionals. We have provided five summer intensive courses: Narrative Filmmaking, Animation, Emerging Technologies (VR, AR podcasting), Music Video Production, and Advertising. We also provide our students year round learning and networking opportunities, providing them the and opportunities needed to succeed in entry level positions and emerging industry disciplines. We partner with leading companies in the industry to deliver our programs, such as Lord Miller, Universal Pictures, Sony Pictures, and many more. Volunteer industry professionals give students a 360-degree view of the filmmaking industry. They also teach life skills associated with being an artist, such as accepting feedback, overcoming disappointment and financial literacy. Speakers in our programs include leaders in their respective fields such as Kemp Powers (Writer/Director, Soul), Kristen Schaal (Voice Actor, Bob’s Burgers), Thomas Kail (Director, Hamilton) and Joseph Raymond Lucero (Actor, Mayans MC). F2F’s strong industry partnerships allow us to secure paid internships and jobs in the film industry for alumni at companies such as Netflix, NBC and CBS, and shows like Glow, Grey’s Anatomy and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. To date we have secured over 150 paid opportunities for alumni, also aiding them in developing their resumes and practicing their interview skills. These well-paying positions enable F2F youth to keep their artistic talents at the center of their career. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Youth in Arts | 917 C ST , SAN RAFAEL, 94901-2805 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 457-4878 | 2nd Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 12 | State Senate District 2 | California Arts Council support will strengthen Youth in Arts’ Intensive Arts Mentorship (I AM) paid arts mentorship program for teens, advancing our commitment to creative youth development and equity. CAC funds will directly support mentorship activities, public art creation and installation, teaching artist fees, and stipends for teen participants—underscoring our belief that young people deserve to be paid for their creative contributions to community. The Arts and Youth grant will help empower marginalized youth in Marin County by providing access to high-quality arts education, valuable creative job skills, and leadership opportunities, while promoting economic and community development, and offering a platform to amplify youth voice, through public art. |
For 50 years, Youth in Arts has developed visual and performing arts skills in young people through innovative and meaningful programs that foster confidence, compassion and resilience in students of all abilities. Through direct education, intentional teacher/educator support, and meaningful advocacy, Youth in Arts changes the lives of thousands in and around San Francisco’s north bay as well as insisting that access to a creative life is a right for all students.Through residencies, performances, community events, and intensive mentorship programs , we help young people develop specific art skills and provide opportunities for them to share their work. We maintain a roster of Mentor Artists that is both artistically and culturally diverse, and are dedicated to the principle of “reaching all learners,” differentiating and tailor designing programs for students of diverse backgrounds and students of all abilities. Through our Arts Unite Us residencies, we are the only consistent provider of arts for special education classrooms in Marin County. Other core programs include an extensive in-school residency program, assembly and workshops programs from a culturally relevant pedagogical lens, `Til Dawn A Cappella our teen mentorship, the YIArts.COR is our creative online resource for virtual and digital learning, and the YIA Gallery, one of only a handful of galleries in the country dedicated to showcasing youth art. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | The Great Star Theater | 636 JACKSON ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94133-5007 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 735-4159 | 11th Congressional District | 19th Assembly District | 11th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, The Great Star Theater will continue to serve San Francisco Bay Area residents as the oldest Chinese American theater in the North America, just as it has for over a century. In 2026—the theater’s 101st year—we will present a diverse season of year-round performances including circus arts, comedy shows, magic shows, burlesque, Cantonese opera, and guzheng concerts that offer awe-inspiring cultural experiences. Additionally, CAC grant funds will enable us to distribute 700 free tickets to low-income families, seniors, and Bay Area veterans, expanding access to the arts and deepening our commitment to community engagement. |
1. Cinema Showings: Through these core programs and services, the Great Star Theater aims to be a cornerstone of cultural, educational, and social life in Chinatown, making the arts accessible and engaging for a community of diverse backgrounds and ages. |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | $450,000.00 | KDA | PO BOX 12407 , BAKERSFIELD, 93389-2407 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 491-5376 | California's 23rd Congressional District | District 34 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, KERN DANCE ALLIANCE (KDA) will uplift artists across 14 counties by serving as the Administering Organization (AO) for the Individual Artists Fellowship (IAF) program in Region 4: Central Valley & Eastern Sierra. Building on a decade of transformative grantmaking, including the administration of the $4.2M KDA Creative Corps (KDACC) program, KDA will implement a two-year fellowship program celebrating artistic excellence and equity. Funds will regrant $360,000 to Emerging ($5,000), Established ($10,000), and Legacy ($50,000) Artist Fellows, with $90,000 for administration and outreach. KDA’s robust online grants management system, culturally sensitive outreach, and professional development workshops will ensure equitable access for diverse artists living in our region’s most disinvested communities. By convening fellows, producing virtual showcases, and amplifying their work, KDA will elevate voices shaping the region’s cultural ecosystem. |
KDA serves a diverse population through our programs: – ADAPTIdance®: DANCE + DISABILITY offers adaptive dance classes for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. – BOOKS IN MOTION®: DANCE + LITERACY links dance and literacy to inspire children to read. – CHILDREN’S DANCE EDUCATION + OUTREACH PROGRAM provides at-risk youth with an afternoon of dance at the Bakersfield Fox Theater. – DANCING with the ANGELS connects foster care families through the arts. – HealingMOTION: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for cancer patients and survivors. – KDA INDIVIDUAL ARTISTS FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM provides unrestricted funds to individual artists living in California’s Central Valley and Eastern Sierra counties. – NATIONAL DANCE DAY provides a celebratory day of dance classes for the community to enjoy. – NATIONAL HONORS SOCIETY FOR DANCE ARTS recognizes artistic merit, leadership, and academic achievement in students studying dance. – MemoryMOVES®: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients. – MightyMOVERS: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for pediatrics patients. – OPEN STAGE affords creatives access to the Bakersfield Fox Theater’s technical staff and theater amenities for free. – PASO A PASO utilizes dance to support empowerment through life-skills workshops for Kern County high school girls, specifically Latinas. – SHINE DANCE + MATH = SUCCESS combines dance with math to improve girls’ math scores and spark interest in STEAM. – TASTE OF DANCE celebrates cultural diversity in Kern County by showcasing cultures through culinary and performing arts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | KDA | PO BOX 12407 , BAKERSFIELD, 93389-2407 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 491-5376 | California's 23rd Congressional District | District 34 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, KERN DANCE ALLIANCE (KDA) will produce the 10th annual Books in Motion: DANCE + LITERACY program, a free summer reading program fostering literacy through the arts for 4,000 children in Kern County’s underserved communities. Targeting unhoused, low-income, and marginalized youth, Books in Motion delivers 50+ performances across 23 Kern County Library branches and homeless shelters. Children engage with literature through performances, learn choreography, create crafts, and receive free books. With American Sign Language (ASL) services and Spanish-language offerings, Books in Motion ensures inclusivity. By integrating dance with Common Core literacy standards, Books in Motion cultivates critical thinking, cultural responsiveness, and positive self-expression, empowering youth in a region with limited arts access. Funds will support artist honorariums, books, craft supplies, and accessibility accommodations, transforming lives through equitable arts education. |
KDA serves a diverse population through our programs: – ADAPTIdance®: DANCE + DISABILITY offers adaptive dance classes for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. – BOOKS IN MOTION®: DANCE + LITERACY links dance and literacy to inspire children to read. – CHILDREN’S DANCE EDUCATION + OUTREACH PROGRAM provides at-risk youth with an afternoon of dance at the Bakersfield Fox Theater. – DANCING with the ANGELS connects foster care families through the arts. – HealingMOTION: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for cancer patients and survivors. – KDA INDIVIDUAL ARTISTS FELLOWSHIP PROGRAM provides unrestricted funds to individual artists living in California’s Central Valley and Eastern Sierra counties. – NATIONAL DANCE DAY provides a celebratory day of dance classes for the community to enjoy. – NATIONAL HONORS SOCIETY FOR DANCE ARTS recognizes artistic merit, leadership, and academic achievement in students studying dance. – MemoryMOVES®: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for Alzheimer’s and dementia patients. – MightyMOVERS: DANCE + THERAPY are dance therapy sessions for pediatrics patients. – OPEN STAGE affords creatives access to the Bakersfield Fox Theater’s technical staff and theater amenities for free. – PASO A PASO utilizes dance to support empowerment through life-skills workshops for Kern County high school girls, specifically Latinas. – SHINE DANCE + MATH = SUCCESS combines dance with math to improve girls’ math scores and spark interest in STEAM. – TASTE OF DANCE celebrates cultural diversity in Kern County by showcasing cultures through culinary and performing arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Give 4 Kidz | 16580 BONANZA DR , RIVERSIDE, 92504-5719 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 345-9726 | 42 | 59 | 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, Give4Kidz will expand capacity to reach more underserved youth and families through free, culturally relevant art workshops, community art events, and art supply distributions across the Inland Empire and downtown Los Angeles. Grant funds will support increased staffing and the development of inclusive programming, including new sensory-friendly workshops like slime sculpting—designed to support neurodiverse children. Give4Kidz partners with libraries, museums, shelters, and schools to connect with families who might not otherwise access arts education. Workshops are beginner-friendly, process-focused, and available in English and Spanish. Parents are now invited to create alongside their children, fostering deeper connection through shared creative experiences. This funding will allow Give4Kidz to serve more communities, train staff in inclusive facilitation, and continue uplifting the creative voices of all children—especially those experiencing barriers to access. |
Give 4 Kidz is dedicated to empowering young creatives through two main programs: ‘Art & Me’ and ‘Story Corner’. The ‘Art & Me’ program aims to nurture and support youth by offering them free art materials, workshops, events, and exhibitions. We are proud to collaborate with local artists and organizations that share our vision. The second program, ‘Story Corner’, caters to young individuals with a passion for creative writing. We provide a supportive environment where they can explore their creativity, acquire new skills, and connect with like-minded peers. Through this program, we offer access to writing supplies, events, and workshops led by experienced writers. Our aim is to inspire and foster a love for writing among youth. In this endeavor, we are delighted to partner with local bookstores, authors, and libraries. At Give 4 Kidz, our mission extends beyond traditional boundaries. We strive to reach all children who possess a love for the arts, regardless of their socio-economic backgrounds. To achieve this, we extend our services to family homeless shelters and underserved communities in California. Additionally, we have created remote participation opportunities to ensure inclusivity for all kids. Our goal is to overcome socio-economic challenges and provide equal access to our programs. By embracing diversity and focusing on the potential within each child, Give 4 Kidz is committed to nurturing the creative spirit and enabling young individuals to thrive in the arts. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | JAZZLINE INSTITUTE | 5924 ALLEN AVE , SAN JOSE, 95123-2620 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (415) 860-9866 | 19th Congressional District | District 28 | District 15 | WIth support from the California Arts Council, JaZzLine INSTITUTE, a small arts organization, will present ‘Blues Explosion,’ a week-long, intergenerational celebration of the Black cultural tradition of the blues, including four blues concerts featuring a 7-piece ensemble of Black vocalists and instrumentalists, a live radio broadcast, two free blues masterclasses, a free jam session, and an awards program honoring Black musical pioneers and emerging talent in our community. ‘Blues Explosion’ is collaboratively developed with community members and addresses a community need to uplift the Black cultural tradition of the blues in the Bay Area, create opportunities for accessible intergenerational learning, and center under-resourced Black Bay Area communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification. |
JaZzLine INSTITUTE is dedicated to the preservation, celebration, and education of the historical and cultural significance of music out of the African-American diaspora through performance and educational programs. We produce masterclasses and workshops with visiting artists, educational programming in public schools, music scholarship fundraisers for local youth, memorial programs for departed local musicians, radio programming including live in-studio concert broadcasts, jam sessions for youth, educational events in local juvenile detention centers, and concert programming celebrating Black History and centering women in music. We recognize musical pioneers in our community, both living and departed, through our BAJABA awards. JaZzLine INSTITUTE celebrates diverse forms of music from the African-American diaspora including Negro spirituals, jazz, blues, R&B, soul, gospel, and hip-hop. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $22,750.00 | Autie Carlisle Film Productions | 5211 Woodside Dr , Mount Shasta, 96067-9112 | Siskiyou | Upstate | (530) 859-0600 | 1st Congressional District of California | District 1 | District 1 | Shasta Stories is an ongoing docuseries and storytelling organization that pairs film with community screening events; sharing personal stories from underrepresented and diverse voices across rural Siskiyou County. Each 20–35 minute film explores themes like identity, belonging, and what it means to call a place home—across ethnic, cultural, age, income, and gender groups. Rooted in community, each episode centers the first-hand stories of local residents—told in their own words, on their own terms. Screenings are free and facilitated for dialogue and empathy; films are also available online for free. Grant funds help us hire California-based artists to research, film, and edit episodes, and host events throughout Northern California. With focus on storytelling, listening, and place, Shasta Stories reflects the richness and complexity of home in one of the state’s most rural, misunderstood, and underfunded regions. |
Shasta Stories’ primary program produces 25–40 minute documentary episodes featuring first-person stories from racially, culturally, gender-diverse, and economically under-resourced residents of Siskiyou County. Collaborating closely with culture bearers and local artists, we create films centered on social justice, community resilience, and ecological mindfulness. Episodes are paired and showcased at free community screenings designed to encourage dialogue, cultural exchange, and active participation through facilitated story circles held in safe, inclusive spaces welcoming all walks of life. We prioritize accessibility by ensuring our screenings provide accommodations such as wheelchair access, ADA-compliant facilities, and subtitles, creating an inclusive experience for all community members. Following public events, the films are accessible online at no cost, preserving local history and expanding audience reach. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Visual Communications Media | 120 Judge John Aiso Street Basement Level, Los Angeles, 90012-3852 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 680-4462 | California's 34th Congressional District | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Visual Communications Media’s ARMED WITH A CAMERA FELLOWSHIP will develop and support two (2) Lead Artists and six (6) Emerging Fellows to create six (6) media art works to amplify the cultures, histories, and perspectives of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders in California. |
Visual Communications’ programs includes: the annual Los Angeles Asian Pacific Film Festival and year‐round screenings and exhibitions; the Armed With a Camera Fellowship for Emerging Media Artists; the Digital Histories media production and storytelling program for older adults. We are home to the VC Archives, one of the largest photographic and moving image collections on Asian Pacific experiences in America. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $23,500.00 | La Luz Center | 17560 GREGER ST , SONOMA, 95476-3617 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 938-5131 | California's 5th congressional district | District 4 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, La Luz Center will offer free, high-quality summer arts camps through its Casa de la Cultura initiative, serving low-income Latino youth in Sonoma Valley. Programs include Aventura Artistica, a hands-on visual and culinary arts camp; Film Camp, where students create original short films; and Mariachi & Folklórico Camp, focused on traditional Mexican music and dance. Led by bilingual teaching artists who reflect the community, each camp engages students in culturally meaningful instruction. CAC funds will support artist stipends, supplies, and coordination. Over 100 youth, ages 7–17, will participate in these creative learning experiences during the summer. Casa de la Cultura promotes artistic development, cultural pride, and a strong sense of belonging while uplifting youth voice and fostering cross-cultural understanding in Sonoma Valley. |
Founded in 1985, La Luz Center has supported Latino individuals and families in Sonoma Valley as they work to meet their basic needs. To break the generational poverty cycle, our programs and service also aim to increase the earning potential of Latino families through our English as a second language (ESL) program, employment services, and small business support program; We aim to mitigate the education gap by providing early childhood education to Latino parents and their children (ages 0-3); We support eligible immigrants through the complex immigration system, and; We create interactive cultural spaces to explore, celebrate, and share traditional and modern Latino cultures, and to raise the voice of Latino families and individuals. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | La Peña Cultural Center | 3105 Shattuck Avenue , Berkeley, 94705 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 849-2568 | District 12 | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, LA PENA CULTURAL CENTER INC will fund operations and programs directed to and by Latinx, Indigenous, and Caribbean communities. La Peña is a cultural home for communities living in diaspora, an incubator for artistic talent, and a collaborative partner with groups that promote social justice and liberation. La Peña is also an internationally known performance center with programs spanning music, dance, theater and spoken-word performances; art exhibits; book talks; and public dialogues. Focusing primarily on the arts and progressive movements of the Americas, La Peña supports hundreds of working artists each year. |
La Peña Presents Program (LP curated events) |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | City Hearts: Kids Say Yes to the Arts | 24404 S Vermont Ave Suite 207, Harbor City, 90710 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 455-2898 | California's 33rd congressional district | District 50 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, City Hearts’ H.E.A.R.T. in Arts Program will provide no-cost arts education and experiences, including weekly classes, field trips, masterclasses, and public performance opportunities for low-income youth across Los Angeles County. Taught by practicing professional artists during in-school and afterschool classes on Title I school campuses, neighborhood resource centers, and at the City Hearts’ Harbor City office, the H.E.A.R.T. program aims to close academic and career exposure opportunity gaps created by a lack of access to the Arts. Healing-centered and VAPA Standards-aligned, this program provides avenues for young people to see affirming representations of their cultures and develop a stronger sense of self and appreciation for Los Angeles County’s rich artistic and cultural legacy. |
City Hearts delivers Visual and Performing Arts programs throughout the school year through weekly in-school and afterschool classes that ensure consistent creative engagement for students. Current offerings include the following programs: Guitar & Songwriting, Mixed Media Arts, Movement Through Dance, Photography, Stand-Up Comedy (offered in limited 2-4 week sessions), The Wilson ’n William Theatre Program (our immersive, career-readiness acting program for high school students), and Young Actors Club (serving elementary and middle school youth). Classes are held primarily on Title I school campuses to remove transportation and access barriers, with one program hosted at our Harbor-area office. All programs are provided at no cost to students and their families, ensuring equitable access to high-quality arts education. In addition, we provide unique arts experiences that deepen student learning and creative career exposure, including Masterclass workshops led by renowned Guest Artists, field trips to prestigious museums and live theatre performances, and meaningful culminating opportunities such as our recent student showcase hosted by NBCUniversal. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | The Colburn School | 200 S GRAND AVE , LOS ANGELES, 90012-3007 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 621-1049 | 34th District | District 54 | Senate District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Colburn School will deliver high-quality, tuition-free performing arts education to approximately 200 low-income youth in Los Angeles, ages 7 months to 18 years, through the 2025–26 Jumpstart Program. Jumpstart provides instruction in instrumental music (band, strings, piano), dance, and early childhood arts education. Students receive weekly private lessons taught by distinguished Colburn faculty and Teaching Fellows from the Colburn Conservatory of Music. The program fosters creativity, discipline, and confidence through consistent engagement in the arts. Once enrolled, students receive 100% tuition relief throughout their time in Jumpstart or until they graduate from high school, removing financial barriers to access and facilitating success in the arts. |
The Colburn School is the region’s recognized leader in performing arts education. Colburn’s four academic units and community programs are: – Community School of Performing Arts enrolls 1,700 students who are between the ages of 7 months and 18 years of age, come from areas across the County and reflect the cultural diversity of Los Angeles. Colburn annually presents 350 free or affordably priced public performances both at it’s downtown campus on Grand Avenue, the art epicenter of Los Angeles, as well as across the County, engaging 36,000+ attendees. We empower our expansive network of musical and dance leaders of tomorrow by equipping them with the tools needed to build creative careers that are sustainable and relevant in our rapidly shifting cultural landscape. We contribute to the creative workforce by supporting professional artists who provide instruction, mentorship, panel discussions, musical direction, and master classes. Colburn’s community impact initiatives serve both internal and external stakeholders simultaneously. Internally, we offer robust learning and performance opportunities for Colburn students in the areas of interactive performance, community engagement, and pedagogy. Externally, we offer a suite of pipeline programs designed to equitably engage students from Title I Schools, present programing for underserved populations, and partner with culturally specific organizations on multiple projects. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Film Independent | 5670 Wilshire Blvd., 9th Floor 9th Floor, Los Angeles, 90036 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 556-9361 | District 30 | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, FILM INDEPENDENT INC will partner with LA Promise Fund to match two public, middle-school classrooms with Film Independent’s network of professional filmmakers from underrepresented communities who will serve as classroom Mentors. Up to 60 middle-schoolers in South Los Angeles will gain hands-on filmmaking training and learn to think critically about the role of visual media in representing diverse viewpoints. Additionally, Film Independent Mentors will lead a half-day teacher training for up to 10 middle-school media arts teachers, who will gain artistic and technical skills to enhance their work with students. |
Our Artist Development (AD) programs offer free labs for selected screenwriters, directors, producers, episodic content creators and documentary filmmakers to experience valuable career building and networking opportunities. We also offer over $6M per year in grants and awards and run an annual film finance market. Project Involve, our signature AD program, fosters the careers of filmmakers from communities historically excluded from the industry (including women, people from BIPOC communities, LGBTQ+ filmmakers and filmmakers with disabilities). Each year, up to 35 filmmakers are given the opportunity to hone skills, form creative partnerships, create short films and gain industry access needed to succeed as working artists. Our Education programs offer virtual and in-person opportunities to learn from renowned artists, stay up-to-date on the distribution landscape and acquire the acumen needed to secure financing. Our Future Filmmakers program serves youth creators in middle and high school, who receive mentorship from emerging and professional filmmakers and become empowered to find their voice and tell their own unique stories through film. We produce the annual Film Independent Spirit Awards, the premier awards event recognizing excellence in independent film and television, and Film Independent Presents, a year-round program offering unique virtual and in-person cinematic experiences. Through our International programs, we connect international filmmakers with leading U.S. entertainment professionals through comprehensive filmmaker education, business training, professional networking opportunities and tailored mentorships. International Fellows from all over the globe are selected for a year-long mentorship program that includes a Residency in Los Angeles, which provides master classes, industry sessions, field trips, cultural engagement and access to individual Mentors for project support and networking. We also travel abroad to better understand the global media landscape and organize in-depth workshops for filmmakers all over the world. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | Write Out Loud | 3640 Alabama Street , SAN DIEGO, 92104-2720 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 944-8953 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, WRITE OUT LOUD will offer literature-based programs FREE to San Diego residents and visitors. |
Write Out Loud offers nine core programs throughout San Diego County: 1)Story Concerts – actors read literature aloud in a variety of venues; 2) Stories for Seniors – short story presentations in independent and assisted living facilities and senior centers; 3) Kamishibai – introduces elementary students to a Japanese teaching tradition that combines storytelling with pictures and written words; 4) Read Imagine Create – challenges students in grades 6-12 to read a particular book, respond to the book’s themes, and create a personal expression (e.g. story, poem, visual art, film); 5) Poetry Out Loud – Regional coordinator for national poetry recitation competition for High School students; 6) Let Your Voice Be Heard – K-12 poetry initiative providing poetry writing workshops and public displays of student poems; 7)Ripples From Walden Pond – a one-man play about Henry David Thoreau; 8) PoeFest – a series of performances of literature of the macabre; 9) World Kamishibai Forum – Monthly on-line workshops for educators and Kamishibai (Japanese storytelling form) artists from across the globe. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | Museum of Dance | 77 Van Ness Avenue Ste 101 , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (520) 780-6672 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | The International Museum of Dance (IMOD) requests California Arts Council funding to expand its dance education programs serving public school students across California. Grant funds will support culturally relevant in-school residencies, community-based youth development, educator professional development, and field trips to IMOD’s interactive museum space. Centering BIPOC dance forms, the project fosters cultural identity, creativity, and belonging while addressing reduced access to arts education due to budget cuts. Building on successful partnerships with San Francisco and Berkeley Unified School Districts, IMOD will expand programming to Los Angeles and Oakland Unified. Funds will increase the frequency and duration of residencies, provide training for educators in arts integration, and create opportunities for students to engage with professional dance and cultural programming. This project advances equity and healing by empowering youth and educators through inclusive, trauma-informed dance education. |
Our core programs and services include: Education Partnerships: Collaborating with local and national schools, we provide comprehensive dance education programs for students of all ages, including movement, technique, choreography, performance, and dance history. We also offer civic engagement projects and paid internships, fostering a deep connection between dance and community. Artist Partnerships: Working closely with local and national dance artists, we offer support, resources, and space for their presentations, performances, lectures, and teaching work. By nurturing these partnerships, we contribute to the growth and visibility of dance artists. Archive Partnerships: We collaborate with local and international dance archives, shining a spotlight on hidden dance archives and assisting in the interpretation and understanding of their significance. By showcasing these archives, we contribute to the broader appreciation and preservation of dance history. Exhibition Planning and Preparation: Engaging with students, local artists, national and international historians, and archivists, we design and create dynamic “Pop-Up” exhibitions that explore the connections between dance and communities. These exhibitions foster a sense of community engagement and connection. At the Museum of Dance, we are dedicated to creating an inclusive and enriching environment that celebrates the art of dance and its profound impact on our lives. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,750.00 | LRCC | 5776 LINDERO CANYON RD D289 Suite D289, WESTLAKE VILLAGE, 91362-6428 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 496-9616 | California's 26th district | District 42 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Robles Children’s Choir (LRCC) will expand its CORO Outreach Program, a series of free, bilingual family singalong events offered in underserved communities throughout Ventura County. These events are designed to eliminate financial and cultural barriers to music education by providing joyful, inclusive, and participatory singing experiences. CAC funds will help cover personnel costs, teaching artist stipends, marketing expenses, and event supplies, enabling LRCC to sustain and scale these successful outreach efforts. This initiative aligns with LRCC’s mission to inspire, educate, and empower children through choral music and furthers CAC’s goal of promoting arts access and equity across California. |
LRCC offers four levels of vocal instruction to children ages 5-18 years old on a weekly basis. We also offer choral workshops and several community concert events each season including collaborations with New West Symphony and other professional arts organizations. The choir tours both domestically and internationally every other year. We hold weekly musicianship classes where students build their theory and sight singing skills to improve their overall musicianship. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,900.00 | Visions Museum of Textile Art | 2825 DEWEY RD STE 100 , SAN DIEGO, 92106-6147 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 546-4872 | 52nd District | District 78 | District 39 | Visions Museum of Textile Art (VMOTA) engages diverse communities through culturally responsive exhibitions, educational programs, and partnerships that celebrate heritage, identity, and innovation in textile art. Our curatorial team presents simultaneous exhibitions featuring 100+ local, national, and international artists annually, exploring themes such as immigration, sustainability, and social issues that impact underrepresented communities. Programs are shaped in collaboration with cultural organizations to reflect the lived experiences of those we serve. VMOTA provides hands-on textile art experiences for students from Title I schools (700 students to date), introducing self-expression and creative career pathways to arts to youth facing economic barriers. VMOTA uses textile art as a tool for dialogue, cultural exchange, and storytelling, ensuring our exhibitions and programs are not only accessible, but deeply relevant. CAC funds will support curatorial/programming staff salaries and gallery rent. |
Provide art exhibitions and related educational programs to the general public with a focus on textile and fiber art. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | Luna Dance and Creativity | 931 Ashby Avenue , Berkeley, 94710 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 883-1118 | California's 12th congressional district | District 14 | District 7 | Funding for Luna Dance and Creativity (“Luna,” formerly Luna Dance Institute) would support culturally responsive, anti-biased dance education programs for children, families, educators, artists, and agencies from underserved communities across California. PROFESSIONAL LEARNING provides intensive, holistic training to teachers, fostering leadership, creative self-efficacy, and equity. FIELD MOVING advances justice through practice-to-policy strategies, research dissemination, and advocacy rooted in community collaboration. Through PARTNERSHIPS, Luna works with schools, districts, and organizations to build sustainable, equity-focused dance programs. Luna’s EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION program promotes developmentally informed, intercultural learning grounded in neuroscience and play theory. STUDIO LAB offers dance-making classes for children and adults, free family classes, panels, and works-in-process showcases. As a 33-year old anchor organization, Luna serves individual artists and dance organizations, who are especially at risk during our current economic uncertainty and lack of federal support. |
Our ADA-accessible STUDIO LAB children’s program offers a progression of dance learning designed to nurture the choreographer in every child in a studio class structure at Luna’s studios in Berkeley. The STUDIO LAB adult program offers opportunities for and presentations on dance research, the choreographic process, and topics that expand ideas about what dance is and who can dance. PROFESSIONAL LEARNING fulfills Luna’s mission to bring all children to dance as we deepen the knowledge and practice of dance learning through workshops, courses, panel conversations, and resources designed so that creative practitioners manifest creative self-efficacy, investigate teaching practice, establish collegial communities, cultivate dance leadership, and become change agents. Luna helps the field of dance education arc toward justice through FIELD MOVING, our practice-to-policy approach that includes sharing the findings of our inquiries and research; joining with others to create impact; and relentlessly advocating for inclusion, creativity, and self-determination. Recognizing that our work is situated within systems of oppression and racial injustice, we seek change by working together in community, paying attention, staying true to our values, and placing children as the future at the center of our work. Through PARTNERS FOR CHANGE, Luna collaborates with organizations (social service and human welfare agencies, schools and school districts) throughout the region, state and nation to build capacity for enduring dance programs that support the values of each community. Luna, an expert in EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION in dance, has refined, over more than three decades, its pedagogy and curriculum to align with discoveries in neuroscience, play research, child psychology, and cultural responsiveness. As we envision a future with today’s toddlers becoming tomorrow’s leaders, early learning demands our crucial attention and focus. Luna faculty continue our research, theory-building, and practice to better understand how dance is at the convergence of all processes of learning. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | BOYS & GIRLS CLUB OF GREATER SHASTA | 803 CEDAR ST , MOUNT SHASTA, 96067-2110 | Siskiyou | Upstate | (530) 220-7623 | California's 1st Congressional District | California's 1st Assembly District | California's 2nd Senate District | The Boys & Girls Club of Greater Shasta seeks CAC funding to expand our arts-based social-emotional wellness program at Sisson Middle School in rural Siskiyou County—where access to arts education and mental health resources is extremely limited. As the only low cost youth program of its kind in the area, we serve low-income families through weekly, trauma-informed arts workshops in visual art, music, and storytelling. Led by teaching artists and trained staff, youth build confidence, process emotions, and explore identity through creative expression. The program culminates in a public year-end showcase, giving members a platform to share their voices and strengthen community connection. CAC support will allow us to reach more youth, support local artists, and sustain a model of creative wellness that addresses urgent needs in an under-resourced, high-poverty, youth-isolated region. |
Our core programs are designed around five priority outcome areas: Academic Success, Healthy Lifestyles, Good Character & Citizenship, Creative Expression, and Career Exploration. Key programs include: Afterschool and Summer Enrichment: Operating at our Mount Shasta Elementary and Sisson Middle School sites, we serve nearly 300 youth annually through structured programming in academics, recreation, and the arts. Power Hour Homework Help: Provides tailored academic support, including coordination with school teachers and individualized attention. Creative Arts Program: A core pillar of our services, this includes weekly visual arts, performing arts, and music sessions. Members engage in painting, sculpture, collage, drama, and song—often culminating in public showcases like our annual Youth Art Show. Many of our teaching artists are local professionals or partners, bringing high-quality arts education to a rural region where access is otherwise limited. Outdoor Adventure & Leadership: Builds confidence, resilience, and teamwork through mountain biking, hiking, and nature-based exploration. Community and Cultural Events: From art showcases to family engagement nights, these events highlight youth creativity and build stronger community bonds. Our programs are equity-driven and designed to ensure every child—regardless of background—has the opportunity to thrive and express themselves. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | No Limits for deaf children and families | 9801 WASHINGTON BLVD SECOND FLOOR , CULVER CITY, 90232-2723 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 280-0878 | California's 37th congressional district | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, No Limits Theater Group Inc. will serve low-income deaf youth through our Los Angeles Theater Workshop program, which teaches theater and life-building skills with culminating public performances of our originally scripted plays. This program focuses on sharing the talents and voices of deaf youth as the country’s only theater program for deaf youth who are learning to speak. |
No Limits was founded in 1996 by Dr. Michelle Christie (named a 2017 CNN Hero) as a language-enriched theater program. In 2002, No Limits expanded to provide auditory, speech, and language training, as well as literacy, parent education, advocacy training, tutoring, and enrichment programs. All of our programming is provided free-of-charge. The No Limits Theater Program engages deaf children and adults in professional theatrical productions as actors, storytellers, workshop team members, lighting and sound technicians, and directors. To date, No Limits has produced over 200 theatrical performances, reaching more than 500,000 people nationwide. Our Youth Theater Workshops Program is the only theater program in the country for deaf youth learning to speak. It is an immersive workshop-based model that culminates in public performances by using original, educationally based scripts for deaf children to increase self-esteem, expand vocabulary, and develop public speaking skills that help them confidently move through the world. No Limits also created “Silent NO MORE,” a nationally touring theatrical storytelling production (with a corresponding book) that aims to influence policies and perceptions by educating people across the world about the struggles and triumphs of people with hearing loss. The No Limits Educational Centers (in Los Angeles and Oxnard, CA) and our 64 satellite and pop-up sites nationwide (including 54 in California) provide year-round comprehensive educational services at no cost to low-income families. Our programming includes individual speech and language therapy, literacy classes, academic tutoring, STEM engagement, arts enrichment, parent education and supports, a teen Leadership and Mentoring Academy, auditory device support, and much more. We also provide family learning and support modules through No Limits TV, accessible to all free-of-charge. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | LA County Library | 7400 Imperial Hwy. , Downey, 90242-3375 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 940-8400 | With support from the California Arts Council, LA County Library will conduct two six-week sessions of free group music classes for middle schoolers in acoustic guitar, keyboard, and electric drums, hosted at six libraries throughout Los Angeles County which currently have a Tool Lending Library (Rosemead, Compton, San Fernando, Malibu, Norwalk, and Lancaster). Classes will focus on music theory, sight reading, and basic playing techniques, and will utilize the library as a safe community gathering place. Participants may also borrow the instruments, free of charge, for the duration of the class, to allow for practice. The program aims to overcome financial barriers to music education, particularly in underserved neighborhoods, and promote cognitive, emotional, and social benefits through music training. |
Founded in 1912, LA County Library is one of the largest and most innovative library systems in the US. It provides culturally responsive and dynamic collections, programs, and services to meet the literacy, information, personal enrichment, and entertainment needs of all residents across Los Angeles County. Dedicated to reducing barriers and increasing equitable access for all, LA County Library serves 3.4 million residents across 3,000 square miles through its 86 libraries, and mobile fleet of 15 vehicles, including 4 Bookmobiles, 6 MākMō (maker mobiles), 3 early literacy vehicles, and 2 mobile outreach vehicles. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | La Raíz Magazine | 3275 Stevens Creek Blvd Ste 301 , Santa Clara, 95050 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 781-6928 | With support from the California Arts Council, La Raíz Magazine will organize San José Youth Poetry Ambassadors to provide bilingual youth workshops and events designed specifically for Raza & Chicano youth in San José, Santa Clara County, and the South Bay Area, in neighborhoods with large numbers of bilingual and monolingual Spanish-speaking youth, mixed migration status households, and working-class families. The programming will prioritize ages 5-18, and serve a limited amount of participants ages 19-25, during and after school at various sites within the community, with interactive, culturally-relevant, empowering workshops, performance opportunities, and arts events. |
Publication – in print and online; poetry and visual art by community members, artists, and poets. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,000.00 | RAMA Blueprints | 2782 5th St , San Bernardino, 92410 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (415) 312-5822 | 33rd Congressional District | District 45 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, RAMA Blueprints will continue to produce free community discussions at BRAVA Theater under the banner of the Tres Generaciones/Three Voices series. This insightful initiative features panels composed of three highly experienced and respected local intergenerational community leaders, each deeply rooted in the practice of community support services. In turn, the podcasts are then archived and available to inform both interested community members and other communities and cities seeking solutions and culturally responsive practices. RAMA Blueprints takes on the crucial role of both facilitator and producer for these engaging panels. CAC funding would be used for the facilities rental costs, technical crew, marketing and promotion, in-state travel and lodging expenses, research and development for the production, and subscription costs for podcast production and archiving services. |
The core programs of the RAMA Blueprints Podcast are the podcast that documents the oral histories of San Francisco community leaders as a method to pass on knowledge, wisdom, and cultural education; Tres Generacíones/Three Voices a series of live dialogues with multi-generational leaders to create narrative that addresses the persistent challenges and disparities that need to be addressed to ensure equity and opportunities for all; the RAMA Archives which consist of relevant interviews, profiles and community discussions that places and showcases the San Francisco Mission District and Latine community as an integral part of California history, shaping the present and the future generations. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,073.00 | Mental State Foundation | 7177 Brockton Ave suite 331 , Riverside, 92506 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 267-9935 | District 39 | State Assembly District 58 | State Senate District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mental State Foundation will establish our Creative Community Program to increase arts access and engagement for youth, especially those impacted by mental health challenges. This initiative includes Creative Accountability Groups that foster self-efficacy and self-expression in community with others. Our Free Art Supply program collects new and gently used art supplies to be distributed to youth at no cost, removing barriers to creativity and expression. Participants will also contribute to the Mental State Zine – a youth-focused publication showcasing creativity, sharing resources, and fighting stigma. Grant funds will support staffing, stipends, accessibility measures, and use of an accessible and consistent space for programming. The Creative Community Program, by design, includes and celebrates individuals with disabilities – especially mental/chronic illnesses through online, in-person, and asynchronous engagement options. |
Creative Wellness Initiatives Support for Mental Health Professionals Community Engagement and Education Through these programs, Mental State Foundation works to create a supportive environment where creativity and mental wellness intersect, benefiting individuals living with mental illness, mental health professionals, and the broader community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Ignite Arts & STEM | 5609 YOLANDA AVE # 571255 , TARZANA, 91357 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 863-6035 | 32nd Congressional District | State Assembly District 46 | 27th Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, Ignite Arts & STEM will enhance our comprehensive Art Mentoring Program, integrating The Business of Art Program and the Igniting Ideas: Emerging Artists Exhibition. This culturally responsive initiative will serve up to thirty BIPOC students in grades 6-12 across the Greater Los Angeles area, expanding access to high-quality arts learning through direct mentorship, portfolio development, and professional exhibition opportunities. CAC funds will specifically support essential program materials, exhibition costs, art framing and display, and student awards, ensuring equitable participation for all. By equipping students with vital business skills and amplifying their artistic voices, this program fosters creative expression, cultivates positive self-identity, and promotes long-term engagement in the arts, ultimately bridging the gap between artistic talent and professional readiness for a new generation of empowered young artists. |
Ignite Arts & STEM is dedicated to empowering Black, Indigenous, & People of Color (BIPOC) students, focusing on comprehensive arts programming to bridge educational gaps & foster professional development. Scholarships: Ignite Arts & STEM provides crucial financial aid specifically through the Palette & Purpose Scholarship. This scholarship supports BIPOC high school seniors who are passionate about pursuing higher education & careers in the Arts, helping to alleviate financial barriers. Art Mentoring Program: Ignite Arts & STEM offers a comprehensive, year-long art mentoring program designed to cultivate young BIPOC artists in the Greater Los Angeles area. This program integrates two key components: the Igniting Ideas: Emerging Artists exhibition & The Business of Art Program. This combined approach provides a platform for showcasing artwork & equips students with crucial business skills often overlooked in traditional art education. Fall/Winter: The Business of Art Program: This 8-week program, plus an exhibition week, teaches 6th to 12th-grade students the essential business skills for marketing, selling, & professionally presenting their artwork. Weekly topics cover branding, pricing, contracts, marketing, gallery etiquette, & exhibition planning. The program culminates in a gallery-style exhibition at their school, with participating students’ art also featured in a special winter exhibition at the Rod Briggs Gallery in Long Beach. Spring: Igniting Ideas: Emerging Artists Exhibition: This annual art exhibition provides an additional professional gallery platform for thirty BIPOC students in grades 6-12 to showcase their artwork & develop vital presentation skills. Students can sell their art, with proceeds returned to them on a custom reloadable Visa gift card. Eligibility is open to students who successfully completed The Business of Art Program or those who submit an application for consideration by a panel of art professionals. Through these programs, Ignite Arts & STEM aims to transition talented young artists from hobbyists to professionals, ensuring they have the skills & opportunities to succeed in the art world. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,750.00 | Active Cultures | 1370 N St Andrews Pl , LOS ANGELES, 90028 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (917) 916-5432 | District 30 | District 51 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Active Cultures will launch galaFEST Los Angeles, a public festival of art, food, and ecologies. Developed in collaboration with the Green Art Lab Alliance (GALA), galaFEST will commission and present new artist-led projects in public outdoor sites across Los Angeles that explore climate, culture, and land. CAC funds will support artist fees, production, and staffing to realize this inaugural initiative, culminating in a series of free public programs—including performances, installations, and workshops—that foster collective imagination around ecological futures through the arts. |
Active Cultures offers programming in three concentric tiers: Member and Community Programs, Public Projects, and Large-Scale Community Events. Our year-round projects provide opportunities for deep collaborations with artists over time, building public programming that centers broad and diverse artistic practice and prioritizes direct engagement with Los Angeles audiences. We embrace the concept of radical hospitality to inspire curiosity and feed empathy, while gathering communities to experience art accessibly with intention and conviviality. We operate in the public sphere to deepen our relationships to land and food, and we uplift Los Angeles as a vital hub of the international art and food movement. Food is the essential lens through which we examine fundamental questions about power, cultural expression, history, equity, climate futures, and ourselves. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Majdal | 329 E. Main St , El Cajon, 92020 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 891-8081 | Grant funds from the California Arts Council will support the Majdal Center’s “Homeland and Homemaking” Arts Program. Through this program, Arab refugee and immigrant youth in San Diego will engage various cultural and multimedia art forms as a way to cultivate both individual and community-wide narratives. Utilizing various media—including film, embroidery, theatre, and intergenerational oral histories—youth participants will have the opportunity to reflect on and develop their own stories relating to themes of displacement, migration, resettlement, and diaspora through the media of their choice. This program will serve an estimated 50 to 60 youth between the ages of 14 and 22. The workshop series will culminate in a community showcase. |
The Majdal Center’s services, programs, and campaigns intersect across four programmatic areas: Youth Education and Leadership; Community Health and Wellbeing; Economic Empowerment; and Advocacy and Policy. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Calidanza | 8181 Kirkwall Ct , Sacramento , 95829 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 599-3441 | California Assembly district 8 | District 10 | District 8 | Calidanza Dance Company will implement culturally responsive after-school arts programs at eight K–12 sites within the Sacramento City Unified School District, engaging underserved youth ages 5–18 in traditional Mexican folk dance. Led by culturally reflective teaching artists, students will explore movement, music, and storytelling that foster self-confidence, cultural pride, and life skills. A special educational production, Navidades!, will take place on December 4, 2025, at the Crest Theater, providing students with a live, culturally enriching performance. CAC funds will support artist pay, curriculum development, and program coordination. This project removes barriers to arts access and creates inclusive, empowering learning experiences rooted in heritage. |
Calidanza Mexican Dance Company is a multi-faucet community based organization that serves the artistic and cultural needs of the Latino community of Sacramento, CA. Our organization offers classes, workshops, public performances, in school arts programming and educational shows in and around the Sacramento community. The purpose of this project will be to offer the underserved Latino population of Sacramento a viable outlet to learn, observe, participate or appreciate Latino/Mexican arts programming in their own communities as well as in public venues open to the public. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Geffen Playhouse | 10886 LE CONTE AVE , LOS ANGELES, 90024-3021 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 208-6500 | California's 36th Congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, GEFFEN PLAYHOUSE INC will engage approximately 2,000 youth in under-resourced LAUSD high schools through our High School Partnerships Program. Through attending plays at the Geffen Playhouse and participating in in-school workshops, students are encouraged to open their minds to diverse points of views, reflect on their own personal experiences, and build their creative voices. |
Geffen Playhouse is a not-for-profit organization dedicated to enriching the cultural life of Los Angeles through plays and educational programs that inform, entertain, and inspire. Noted for its intimacy and celebrated for its renowned mix of classic and contemporary plays as well as provocative world premiere productions, Geffen Playhouse presents a body of work that garners national recognition. Our artistic programming reflects our bold commitment to transforming the landscape of contemporary American theater by prioritizing creative storytelling, new artistic perspectives, and advanced technical requirements and production design, making the Geffen Playhouse a haven for playwrights and a world-class laboratory for new plays. Geffen Playhouse is led by Artistic Director Tarell Alvin McCraney and Executive Director/CEO Gil Cates, Jr. Supporting artists is central to the Geffen Playhouse’s mission, and new play development is a cornerstone of that support. To date, Geffen Playhouse has produced more than 45 world premieres and has active commissions with 20 playwrights/writing teams. Each season we produce plays in our 500-seat proscenium Gil Cates Theater and in our flexible black box space, the Audrey Skirball Kenis Theater. More than 90,000 traditional theater goers attend productions annually, and over 5,000 non-traditional theater goers attend through our education and community engagement programs, which inspire students and community members to develop a lifelong relationship with theater. We provide year-long access for over 2,000 Los Angeles high school students and community members, immersing them in rigorous learning experiences, artistic exercises, and powerful dialogues that give them a voice through theater. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | US | 33170 ALVARADO NILES RD UNIT 795 , UNION CITY, 94587-5820 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (877) 522-1968 | 14th District | 20th District | 10th District | Freedom Through the Arts is The Village Method’s culturally rooted arts enrichment program that centers Black youth and families while welcoming all. This program provides weekly after-school and community-based workshops led by teaching artists in drumming, dance, visual arts, spoken word, and ancestral storytelling. CAC funds will support artist stipends, youth supplies, and coordination of up to seven (7) sites across Southern Alameda County. Freedom Through the Arts affirms identity, builds resilience, and improves school engagement by offering trauma-informed healing centered spaces that explore themes of oppression without causing depression. We uplift untold histories, promote creative expression, and cultivate pride, connection, and joy. Students will publicly showcase their growth through culminating community events. This project builds long-term pathways for healing and academic success through the power of culture, creativity, and collective memory. |
The Village Method (TVM) offers culturally responsive, year-round programs that use arts and cultural education to support youth and families across Southern Alameda County—from San Leandro to Fremont and Newark. Our core services center African diasporic traditions, creative expression, and academic support. ASHÉ (Academic Support & Holistic Enrichment): Camp G.R.A.C.E.: Youth Cultural Ambassadors: Family Engagement & First Teachers Collaborative: Cascading Mentorship Program (with Chabot College): All programs are free and designed to reduce anxiety, build identity, and improve outcomes through culturally grounded arts education. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Outside the Lens | 125 14th St , San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 349-7578 | District 50 | District 77 | District 39 | Outside The Lens (OTL) requests $25,000 to provide quality arts experiences and learning opportunities through NextGen Voices, an 10-week intensive media arts program serving at least 50 neurotypical and neurodivergent youth ages 13-25. CAC funds directly support Media Educator salaries, youth artist stipends, outreach, exhibitions, and assistance technology. Meeting 2 hours weekly, youth build confidence while artistically expressing their own stories through media arts. Using Hello Insight’s evidence-based tools, we track social-emotional development including self-management, positive identity, and creative confidence. The program centers youth voices through workshops driven by and adapted to participant needs and interests. Our trauma-informed approach creates safe spaces for priority population youth from juvenile justice facilities, alternative schools, and underserved communities. This culturally responsive program develops critical thinking, communication, and technical skills while transforming participants into skilled creators and arts advocates. |
Outside the Lens engages the next generation of artists, storytellers, and innovators through media arts education. Through our programs, youth learn media arts skills, media literacy, socio-emotional development, vocational exploration, and civic engagement. Our Media Educators create a learning environment centered on trauma-informed practices, culturally responsive teaching, socio-emotional learning, and restorative practices. K-8 Programs: Partnering with schools and districts, we enhance students’ learning by integrating media arts and technology into core curricula (Math, Science, Social Sciences, English Language Arts) for grades K-8. These projects deepen students’ understanding of core content, cultivate media arts skills, and foster a well-rounded educational experience. Our after-school programs and summer camps offer youth opportunities to explore their passions, develop new skills, and discover the transformative power of media arts. Teens and Transitional Age Youth Programs: We provide specialized programming for teens and Transitional Age Youth (TAY) (18-25 years old) through community partnerships. Our projects enhance media literacy, promote social-emotional wellbeing, and foster intergenerational community connections. This programming develops creative pathways for career and college readiness, encourages self-discovery, and civic engagement, empowering teens to amplify their voices and effect positive change. Educator Trainings: We offer arts-integration teacher training to help educators integrate art-based lessons into their curriculum. Available for individual educators, grade level teams, schools, or districts, these trainings provide innovative ideas, practical skills, and ready-to-use projects aligned with Media Arts and Common Core standards. Summer Camps: Our Media Arts Summer Camps offer youth in grades K-8 to explore various artistic mediums, such as photography, filmmaking, graphic design, and animation. Community Workshops: Our weekend and evening media arts workshops, open to families, teens, and adults, cater to both budding artists and experienced creators seeking further skill development. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $24,000.00 | Support Black Theatre | 4718 W. Washington Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90016 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 619-6322 | 37 | 55 | 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Support Black Theatre will introduce young scholars to Black history, pride, power, and art through Black theatre and storytelling, creating pathways to personal agency, social connection, and resilient futures through unforeseen opportunities, transferable skill-building, and exposure to Black movement-building. Year-round arts exposure, arts education, and workforce development programming offered through our GroundED initiative provides 300+ youth ages 15-25 with early exposure to a wide variety of artistic disciplines and experiences, helps participants explore career options in the arts, and sets them on the path to tangible futures in the creative industries they weren’t aware were open to them. |
Support Black Theatre’s four core initiatives – New Works Pipeline, Talk Forward™, Equip, and GroundED – follow the principle of “See, Create, and Invest.” Our New Works Pipeline retains the power of decision making for Black artists and theatre by developing new Black plays and securing funding for Black theatres to mount full productions of new work by Black artists. Talk Forward cultivates and nurtures Black audiences, flipping the model of the traditional post-show talkback by inviting audiences into the process of theatre making through reflective feedback long before a full production is mounted. The Equip initiative builds theatres’ executive leadership capacity through leadership courses and nonprofit management training and direct services including introductions to funders, grant writing seminars, writing letters of support. The initiative raised over $1.3 million in grant awards for Black theatres between 2021 and 2025. Equip also offers technical training and paid internships in dramaturgy, playwriting, directing, stage management, producing, and technical design. The GroundED initiative provides year-round arts workforce development and artistic opportunities, building career pathways in the arts and related fields for 300+ youth ages 15-25 each year. GroundED introduces young people to careers in Black theatre through the work of August Wilson, among other playwrights. Our annual August Wilson monologue competition for high school students includes complementary in-school education throughout the school year, culminating with late-spring performances and judging at partner Ebony Repertory Theatre. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,000.00 | Tenderloin Museum | 398 EDDY ST , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 351-1912 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | CAC Impact Project funding will sustain ongoing operations of “The Compton’s Cafeteria Riot Play,” building on our successful launch. Funds will support continued production costs and stabilize our operations moving forward. The play runs Friday and Saturday nights at our dedicated Larkin Street venue, providing stable employment for 21+ LGBTQ+ artists while offering free and sliding-scale tickets to ensure community accessibility. This ongoing production addresses the critical need for authentic transgender storytelling and economic opportunities for LGBTQ+ artists in the Tenderloin, home to one of San Francisco’s largest transgender populations. The play preserves and shares the pivotal story of the 1966 Compton’s Cafeteria Riot—a foundational moment in transgender civil rights history that occurred in the Tenderloin neighborhood—through community-centered programming that transforms historical trauma into collective healing and pride. |
The Tenderloin Museum opened in 2015 with the intersecting goals of promoting a deeper understanding of the history of the Tenderloin neighborhood, re-imagining our collective future, and supporting our current community. To accomplish these goals, the museum enacts a three-pronged approach: a critically acclaimed permanent history exhibition, community-driven programs and tours, and economic support in the form of local partnerships and hiring practices. Each year, TLM produces more than 150 public programs, including 5–7 gallery exhibitions, approximately 50 resident-led walking tours, and 90–100 theatrical performances through its dedicated performance venue. All told, these programs reach approximately 7,000 people each year. We invest in deeply collaborative relationships with more than 50 organizations in the arts, humanities, and social sectors, and our success on a relatively small budget is directly linked to those efforts. Together, these programs serve Tenderloin residents—including LGBTQ+, immigrant, low-income, and disabled communities—while also engaging visitors in meaningful, place-based cultural experiences. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,800.00 | Support Black Theatre | 4718 W. Washington Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90016 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 619-6322 | 37 | 55 | 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Support Black Theatre will generate cultural capital and create a thriving Black ecosystem where theatre is at the center of mutual aid, political power, and economic growth, through grassroots community power-building campaigns that center Black storytelling. A general operating support award will fund capacity building costs for organization sustainability, including gap funding for operations, staff training and burnout prevention, executive training, board training and expansion, strategic planning, and a financial audit. Building organization capacity will result in the long-term sustainability necessary to succeed in its mission as an arts service/network organization and generate this community transformation. |
Support Black Theatre’s four core initiatives – New Works Pipeline, Talk Forward™, Equip, and GroundED – follow the principle of “See, Create, and Invest.” Our New Works Pipeline retains the power of decision making for Black artists and theatre by developing new Black plays and securing funding for Black theatres to mount full productions of new work by Black artists. Talk Forward cultivates and nurtures Black audiences, flipping the model of the traditional post-show talkback by inviting audiences into the process of theatre making through reflective feedback long before a full production is mounted. The Equip initiative builds theatres’ executive leadership capacity through leadership courses and nonprofit management training and direct services including introductions to funders, grant writing seminars, writing letters of support. The initiative raised over $1.3 million in grant awards for Black theatres between 2021 and 2025. Equip also offers technical training and paid internships in dramaturgy, playwriting, directing, stage management, producing, and technical design. The GroundED initiative provides year-round arts workforce development and artistic opportunities, building career pathways in the arts and related fields for 300+ youth ages 15-25 each year. GroundED introduces young people to careers in Black theatre through the work of August Wilson, among other playwrights. Our annual August Wilson monologue competition for high school students includes complementary in-school education throughout the school year, culminating with late-spring performances and judging at partner Ebony Repertory Theatre. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $19,873.00 | Ink People Center for the Arts | 627 3rd Street , EUREKA, 95501-0417 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 442-8413 | District 2 | District 2 | District 2 | WIth support from the California Arts Council, INK PEOPLE INC will provide programming for youth ages 12-22 throughout the 2025/2026 school year. This programming will include 1) weekly drop-in activities in the Media Arts Resource Zone where youth learn digital media skills to empower their voices, 2) Queer-affirming programming centering artists with lived experience who will support youth in designing and creating chapbooks and stickers, 3) A film camp, creating a culminating experience to celebrate the completion of the school year, and 4) the development of youth leadership through the Youth Advisory Panel and Ink People Board Position |
The Ink People is a community-based, grassroots, artist-run, arts and culture organization. For 47 years, we have organized our work around community access principles and the belief that art, in all its forms, is essential to the human spirit and well-being. We base our activities in a philosophy of sharing and community-building, and we work to connect community members with resources for cultural development. With over 700 subscribers, we nurture cultural enrichment through education and engagement of artists and communities. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Chico Art Center | 450 Orange St., Ste. 6 , Chico, 95928 | Butte | Upstate | (530) 895-8726 | California Assembly district 3 | District 3 | District California | With support from the California Arts Council, Chico Art Center will provide an after school art and entrepreneurship program. Creative Futures is a five-month series of workshops designed for high school continuation students who face systemic barriers to educational and creative opportunities. We have partnered with Fair View High School to teach weekly, hands-on visual storytelling, 2D and 3D functional art and sustainable fashion that explore students’ individual and diverse inspirations. The culminating event will exhibit and sell artwork and handmade goods at a local pop up art market. Grant funds will compensate six teaching artists, pay for art supplies and art market vendor booth fees. By removing barriers like cost and transportation, and creating pathways for artistic and personal development, Creative Futures honors students’ lived experiences and positions them as artists, storytellers, and changemakers. |
CHICO ART CENTER: Core programs include: • Annual Open Studios Art Tour: Butte County’s only Open Studios Art Tour, featuring over 70 artists. This accessible program invites the public to interact with artists in their studios, increasing visibility and generating income opportunities to participating artists. • Arts Education: Affordable classes and workshops for youth and adults, taught by local artists. Scholarships, sliding-scale fees, and inclusive teaching practices ensure access for individuals across ability levels and economic backgrounds. Launching in 2026, the public will have access to our new digital arts classroom. • Community Engagement: Ongoing events including open mic nights, spoken word, live art demonstrations, and Maker Space programming. Free art-making activities and partnerships with schools and community organizations extend access to new and underserved audiences. • Artist Support: Opportunities to exhibit, teach, and sell work through exhibitions, the Open Studios tour, and a year-round gift shop featuring unique wares by member artists. Additional support includes promotional exposure and access to studio and classroom space. • Volunteer Program: A robust volunteer base, including students, seniors, and individuals with disabilities contributes hundreds of service hours annually, supporting operations and deepening community connection. • Together, these programs ensure broad, inclusive access to the arts while sustaining artists and enriching the cultural life of Butte County. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | homeLA | 3760 MAYFAIR DR , LOS ANGELES, 90065-3209 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 709-2691 | 34th Congressional district of California | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, homeLA will provide–through its education program, inSITE–one season of free site-specific dance mentorship to students studying dance at the Los Angeles Unified School District’s Title 1 Ramón C. Cortines School of Visual and Performing Arts. inSITE is taught by California artists to uplift historically underrepresented youth voices through site-specific dance. All facets of learning and support will happen on campus and at partnering art and cultural site, the Los Angeles State Historic Park–where students will develop, rehearse, and present their final performance to the public. |
homeLA is a nomadic, site-specific performance platform that supports experimental artists in dance, performance, and media through three core programs: public performance, learning and engagement, and advocacy, serving diverse audiences across Southern California. Public Performance: We produce two performance events annually that support the development and presentation of experimental work while fostering community connection and amplifying underrepresented histories. Projects engage dance, performance, film, video, intermedia, and sound artists through a three-month residency and rehearsal structure embedded within domestic, historic, or public architecture. Artists create original work in dialogue with overlooked site-specific histories and community narratives. Since our founding, we have made a significant investment in professional artists of Southern California, employing 240 artists and 566 collaborators, and reaching over 5,481 attendees through intimate, immersive programs. Accompanying discursive programming fosters deeper connections between artists’ work and audiences. Learning and Engagement: inSITE (est. 2020) provides free after-school classes in site-specific dance and film for students enrolled in Title I public high school dance programs. Led by California artists, students engage in critical thinking about public space, land, and belonging through collaborative choreography and site activation. inSITE has served 90 youth across multiple campuses and remains central to our commitment to educational equity. The We in Me (est. 2021) is a creative platform that addresses homelessness through arts programming that fosters awareness, learning, and civic engagement while amplifying voices and livelihoods of those with lived experiences of housing insecurity and system-impacted youth, reaching over 1,800 community members in-person and online. Advocacy: homeLA leads field-building efforts to advance equitable working conditions for performance in visual art contexts, organizing working groups and convenings with artists, curators, and institutions, and extending this work into public-facing tools, publications, and regional presentations that support transparency, sustainability, and equity across the field. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,000.00 | Tenderloin Museum | 398 EDDY ST , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 351-1912 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | The Tenderloin Museum requests CAC operational support to sustain community-centered programming during significant growth and economic uncertainty. As we break ground this summer on our historic expansion—tripling our footprint to 10,050 square feet—CAC funds provide critical operational stability enabling us to maintain our equity-focused mission while navigating this transformative period. Grant funds will support staff salaries, utilities, insurance, and program materials across our Eddy Street museum and Larkin Street venue, where our “Compton’s Cafeteria Riot Play” celebrates transgender resistance and community. This operational foundation is essential as we manage construction complexities and ensure uninterrupted service to the Tenderloin’s diverse communities. Operational support directly enables our equity goals: maintaining free and sliding-scale programming, continuing individualized support for disabled artists, and preserving the community co-creation approach that has guided our work for nearly a decade. |
The Tenderloin Museum opened in 2015 with the intersecting goals of promoting a deeper understanding of the history of the Tenderloin neighborhood, re-imagining our collective future, and supporting our current community. To accomplish these goals, the museum enacts a three-pronged approach: a critically acclaimed permanent history exhibition, community-driven programs and tours, and economic support in the form of local partnerships and hiring practices. Each year, TLM produces more than 150 public programs, including 5–7 gallery exhibitions, approximately 50 resident-led walking tours, and 90–100 theatrical performances through its dedicated performance venue. All told, these programs reach approximately 7,000 people each year. We invest in deeply collaborative relationships with more than 50 organizations in the arts, humanities, and social sectors, and our success on a relatively small budget is directly linked to those efforts. Together, these programs serve Tenderloin residents—including LGBTQ+, immigrant, low-income, and disabled communities—while also engaging visitors in meaningful, place-based cultural experiences. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Sonoma Community Center | 276 E NAPA ST , SONOMA, 95476-6721 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 938-4626 | 4th Congressional District of California | District 4 | District 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Sonoma Community Center will offer 3 afternoons of arts after-school enrichment during the school year for all students ages 5-17 in the Sonoma Valley region. The goal is to provide responsive art experiences that increase community connection, build self-esteem and self-expression, build artistic skills and literacy, and connect students and their families to rich artistic and cultural experiences. The program is accessible to participants of all backgrounds and fills a need for safe after-school childcare that promotes social-emotional learning and high level artistic instruction. We focus on projects and themes that promote cultural diversity that instill pride and unleash curiosity and exploration. The program utilizes multidisciplines, such as painting, drawing, hand and machine sewing, print making, culinary arts, ceramics, fiber arts, multimedia, collage, and more. |
Driven by values of community, innovation, creativity, inclusion, and leadership, the Sonoma Community Center offers a broad range of programs, events, and performances that encourage people from all walks of life to create, connect, thrive, and build community together. We offer over 250 classes annually in ceramics, fine art, fiber art, printmaking, music, movement, culinary arts, and writing. We also host an Artist-in-Residence program that attracts expert artists to work and teach at the Center. Our Andrews Hall Theater offers a year-round schedule of films, live music, theater performances, and more for audiences of all ages. We also host a variety of creative community events throughout the year, including our annual Lunar New Year Celebration, Día de los Muertos celebration in early November, and our free Thanksgiving Dinner, a valued community tradition for decades now. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Village Arts Inc | 6720 FORBES AVE , VAN NUYS, 91406-5512 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 926-8194 | California's 29th congressional district | District 46 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, Village Arts will continue to fund three administrative positions and employ multiple teaching artists at our community arts center. All funds will be used to bring diverse arts programs to the children and families of the greater San Fernando Valley. |
Village Arts is a year round community based arts education organization. We offer arts programming in the performing and visual arts. Our programs include after-school and weekend classes as well as a robust theatre program where students rehearse and perform a classic musical. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Sierra Repertory Theatre | 13891 Mono Way , SONORA, 95370-3030 | Tuolumne | Central Valley | (209) 532-0502 | California's 4th congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | Sierra Repertory Theatre seeks to strengthen and expand its “SRT in Schools” program for the coming year. This popular program brings live productions directly to dozens of elementary schools, reaching more than 3,000 students per year in our rural, underserved region of the Sierra foothills and Central Valley. A troupe of 3-5 professional actors and a stage manager travel to school sites throughout the region each Fall and Spring semester to present 50-minute live theater productions adapted from titles selected from the California School Reading List. The program is delivered at no cost to schools, enabling small, remote communities to bring students a high-quality introduction to the magic of live theater. CAC grant funds will offset direct costs and allow us to reach a wider range of schools, fulfilling core goals of the CAC. |
Sierra Repertory Theatre (SRT) is a professional non-profit theatre in Tuolumne County, California. Nestled in the foothills of the Sierra Nevada, Tuolumne County is home to just over 54,000 residents. SRT offers the local community 10 top-quality mainstage productions from its East Sonora Theatre and Fallon House Theatre in Columbia State Historic Park. The Theatre sees over 45,000 visitors every season consisting of residents primarily from Tuolumne, Calaveras, San Joaquin, and Stanislaus Counties. Sierra Rep is the only regional theatre in the area that maintains a contract with the Actor’s Equity Association, ensuring the local community can enjoy talent from across the country. With the same enthusiasm and vision, SRT is equally committed to supporting local school-age children and fostering a rich arts culture within the Tuolumne County area through its Youth Education and Outreach Program which includes SRT Jr. and SRT in Schools. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | GYOPO | 801 S Vermont Avenue, Unit 201 , LOS ANGELES, 90005 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 421-7974 | California Assembly district 53 | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, GYOPO will be able to help fund salaries for part- and full-time staff members as well as rent for our organization’s headquarters in the Koreatown neighborhood of Los Angeles. Located in the lowest quartile of the Healthy Places Index, our 1,300 sq ft headquarters is a vibrant, flexible space used for public programs, community salons, internal workshops for volunteers, and office space. |
Formed in the wake of the 2016 presidential election, GYOPO was impelled to develop a more vital sense of agency, progress, and connection amongst individuals of the Korean diaspora within and beyond Los Angeles. Since its founding, GYOPO has worked with a range of nonprofit art spaces, cultural institutions, schools, and other venues to organize artist talks, lectures, symposia, and performances by contemporary artists, architects, professors, curators, filmmakers, actors, writers, and other cultural producers, both emerging and internationally renowned. Through diverse programming, GYOPO aims to strike a balance between creating dedicated spaces for “gyopos” (a term in the Korean language that refers to persons of Korean descent who live outside of Korea), and providing free public forums for lively, intergenerational, intersectional, and cross-cultural discussions. GYOPO offers free, year-round programming for the public that fall under categories such as: critical discourse, artist talks, curator lectures, exhibition walkthroughs, symposiums, traditional focus, film screenings, panel discussions, and workshops. Additionally, GYOPO hosts social events for gyopos and the wider community such as the annual Chuseok fundraiser, GYOPO edition launch, welcome receptions, cultivation gatherings, and volunteer retreats. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,000.00 | ABD Productions / Skywatchers | 447 Sutter St., Ste 405 #94 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94108 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (781) 820-7712 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Skywatchers will produce Calling Us In, a dance-based exploration of radical inclusion and community accountability, challenging myths about substance use disorder and poverty and exposing the humanity and real solutions available to us. The Skywatchers ensemble will collaborate with renowned choreographer Sarah Crowell to develop a series of 4 dance works designed to reach thousands of audience members and draw attention to San Francisco’s critical public health crises of opioid overdoses and housing insecurity. Performances are presented for free in 4 public locations in the Tenderloin: Glide Memorial Church, Faithful Fools, Tenderloin Museum, and San Francisco City Hall. |
Since 2011, SKYWATCHERS—an ensemble composed largely of Tenderloin (TL) residents subject to housing insecurity, social isolation, and chronic illness—has been co-creating site-specific, multidisciplinary artworks that center and uplift the lives, histories, and urgent concerns of the residents of the TL. Ranging from little formal training to over 40 years of professional experience, ensemble members contribute our varied experience and skills to an arts-based platform of our own making. Each year over 100 Tenderloin-based performer-residents come together to engage several thousand audience participants and a substantially larger audience for web-based and video production. All events are free and held in ADA-accessible spaces. Participation is also free, and SKYWATCHERS’ open-door policy invites anyone interested in joining to drop in and participate. The organization and all our programming is dedicated to expanding the boundaries of traditional performance forms and modes of engagement. We are an ever growing and changing group of co-creators that attract audiences who may rarely enter conventional arts venues, but come to see our stories spoken, sung, and moved on SKYWATCHERS’ stage. We also attract traditional arts audiences that are engaged by the works’ themes, aware they don’t see these stories in other artwork they seek out. Over the last decade, SKYWATCHERS has made works that address the slow violences of poverty and structural disenfranchisement, mass incarceration and the war on drugs, the climate crisis and clean water, and revolutionary acts of community survival. SKYWATCHERS creates lasting impacts: |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,000.00 | ABD Productions / Skywatchers | 447 Sutter St., Ste 405 #94 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94108 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (781) 820-7712 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, ABD Productions/Skywatchers will sustain its programs, staff and operations supporting our cross-cultural, intergenerational, and mixed-ability community arts program centered in the Tenderloin neighborhood of San Francisco. Awarded funds will support ABD Productions/Skywatchers staff who administer and implement our arts performances and community engagement programs dedicated to engaging and uplifting the voices of marginalized residents with lived experience of housing insecurity, economic precarity, and substance use disorder. Funded programming includes: Ongoing Weekly Mentorship Workshops; Community Grand Rounds health equity program; Annual Memorial Processional & Vigil honoring those who have died on the street; 50+ yearly community engagement events across the Tenderloin, Mid-Market, and Mission districts; and the Calling Us In multidisciplinary performance project. |
Since 2011, SKYWATCHERS—an ensemble composed largely of Tenderloin (TL) residents subject to housing insecurity, social isolation, and chronic illness—has been co-creating site-specific, multidisciplinary artworks that center and uplift the lives, histories, and urgent concerns of the residents of the TL. Ranging from little formal training to over 40 years of professional experience, ensemble members contribute our varied experience and skills to an arts-based platform of our own making. Each year over 100 Tenderloin-based performer-residents come together to engage several thousand audience participants and a substantially larger audience for web-based and video production. All events are free and held in ADA-accessible spaces. Participation is also free, and SKYWATCHERS’ open-door policy invites anyone interested in joining to drop in and participate. The organization and all our programming is dedicated to expanding the boundaries of traditional performance forms and modes of engagement. We are an ever growing and changing group of co-creators that attract audiences who may rarely enter conventional arts venues, but come to see our stories spoken, sung, and moved on SKYWATCHERS’ stage. We also attract traditional arts audiences that are engaged by the works’ themes, aware they don’t see these stories in other artwork they seek out. Over the last decade, SKYWATCHERS has made works that address the slow violences of poverty and structural disenfranchisement, mass incarceration and the war on drugs, the climate crisis and clean water, and revolutionary acts of community survival. SKYWATCHERS creates lasting impacts: |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Rogue Artists Ensemble | 4211 Laurel Canyon Blvd apt 102 , Los Angeles, 91604-4706 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 259-3738 | District 29 | District 43 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, ROGUE ARTISTS ENSEMBLE will provide fair wages for its part-time staff, with special emphasis on sustaining the company’s Managing Director and newly appointed Artistic Director. Staff support will underwrite the company’s leadership transition as it fortifies its operational structure, as well as the company’s new play development events and at least one world premiere production over the next year. |
Rogue creates original works of theater incorporating mask, puppetry and modern technology. We believe in collaboration as an approach for creating work and frequently partner and work closely with guest artists, diverse communities and other arts organizations to realize projects. We have a strong commitment to community outreach and educational programs including school workshops and classes for adults, many of which are provided for free. Our all-ages shows have toured throughout California to small community events and schools, in addition to larger venues including The Geffen Playhouse, The Pasadena Playhouse, Segerstrom Performing Arts Center, Rio Hondo College, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and the National Puppetry Festival in Minneapolis. Rogue has received accolades from critics in LA and a UNIMA Citation of Excellence, the highest honor within the puppetry community. We have also received Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle and LA Stage Alliance Awards. We believe that storytelling is a powerful platform for social inclusion and cultural exchange. All Rogue projects are built in collaboration and conversation with our audiences across the greater community of L.A. These interactions inspire us to create responsively, with inclusion at the core of our work. We strive to include a multitude of voices and perspectives in the planning and implementation of each project’s development, as well as through the company’s administrative operations. Theater is a living art form that requires inherent intellectual and emotional exchange between audience and performers, and our values are put into practice through listening, responding, and refining. The art we create emerges in dialogue with audience feedback. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | Rogue Artists Ensemble | 4211 Laurel Canyon Blvd apt 102 , Los Angeles, 91604-4706 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 259-3738 | District 29 | District 43 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, Rogue Artists Ensemble will support the development and world premiere of SHELLS, a surrealist new comedy that faces the challenges of cooping with mental illness and gun violence in an increasingly chaotic reality. |
Rogue creates original works of theater incorporating mask, puppetry and modern technology. We believe in collaboration as an approach for creating work and frequently partner and work closely with guest artists, diverse communities and other arts organizations to realize projects. We have a strong commitment to community outreach and educational programs including school workshops and classes for adults, many of which are provided for free. Our all-ages shows have toured throughout California to small community events and schools, in addition to larger venues including The Geffen Playhouse, The Pasadena Playhouse, Segerstrom Performing Arts Center, Rio Hondo College, the Oregon Shakespeare Festival, and the National Puppetry Festival in Minneapolis. Rogue has received accolades from critics in LA and a UNIMA Citation of Excellence, the highest honor within the puppetry community. We have also received Los Angeles Drama Critics Circle and LA Stage Alliance Awards. We believe that storytelling is a powerful platform for social inclusion and cultural exchange. All Rogue projects are built in collaboration and conversation with our audiences across the greater community of L.A. These interactions inspire us to create responsively, with inclusion at the core of our work. We strive to include a multitude of voices and perspectives in the planning and implementation of each project’s development, as well as through the company’s administrative operations. Theater is a living art form that requires inherent intellectual and emotional exchange between audience and performers, and our values are put into practice through listening, responding, and refining. The art we create emerges in dialogue with audience feedback. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | MashUp Contemporary Dance Company | 2926 Gilroy St , Los Angeles, 90039 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 259-3289 | 30th Congressional district of California. | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, MashUp Contemporary Dance Company will sustain essential administrative and artistic leadership through funding for its full-time Executive Director. Providing strategic oversight and organizational leadership, the Executive Director will be vital to the company’s operations, driving artistic vision, program development, community engagement, communications, fundraising, and financial planning forward. Investment in this role would enable MashUp to thrive as a leader in the contemporary dance field and a change-maker for gender equity in the arts. By establishing this position, MashUp ensures the stability and growth of its programs while staying rooted in its mission to uplift and support female-identifying and non-binary artists. |
MashUp sustains the following programs: International Women’s Day Dance Festival (IWDDF) — Annually in March, MashUp recognizes the advancements of women with a four-day festival, featuring an all-female and non-binary choreographer showcase, movement classes, dynamic panel discussions around gender equity in the arts, and unique networking opportunities. Highlights include one-on-one mentorship for high school students at the Women Dance Summit and the electrifying Support Women Artists Day film festival. National Women’s Equality Day (NWED) – Each August, MashUp joins forces with female-identifying creative teams, ideological partners, or social justice organizations to celebrate NWED via a performance, creation of a film, or community gathering. This program provides an opportunity for cross-disciplinary female artists and activists to collaborate, and challenges audiences to examine a current, culturally critical feminist topic. Choreographic Residency — Open to female-identifying and non-binary emerging and mid-career choreographers, the residency includes a stipend ($2K-$4K), studio time with MashUp company dancers, and a fully produced showcase with professional documentation. A direct investment in the future of the dance field, this program is one of the only LA residency opportunities that provides this level of financial and producorial support. Choreography Open Mic Nights — Quarterly events that offer eight LA-based choreographers 10 minutes to showcase their work and engage with a supportive public audience. The environment is designed to be extremely supportive, encouraging choreographers to ask for feedback and allowing audiences, including “non-dancers,” to learn how to articulate their thoughts about dance and directly interact with the artists, fostering a deeper appreciation for the art of dance. Intensives — MashUp hosts two-day dance intensives at its home studio: Frogtown Creative, as well as sends teachers out to studios to ensure access. Crafted specifically for the early career professional, these intensives include movement classes, Q&As with industry leaders, and mentorship sessions. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,500.00 | Playwrights Project | 3675 Ruffin Road, Ste. #130 , San Diego, 92123 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 384-2970 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With the CAC’s support, Playwrights Project will implement a play development and production campaign to destigmatize the experience of incarceration, shed light on imbalances in the justice system, and celebrate our shared humanity. Teaching Artists with lived experience in the carceral system will co-facilitate playwriting workshops, engaging individuals who have returned home after incarceration and students at local high schools to gather writing about the justice system from multiple perspectives. Professional actors will perform plays at each site. Selected writing, along with work from currently incarcerated writers, will be devised together and presented in public performances at San Diego State University. After each performance, audiences will be invited to pose questions, process emotions, and reflect on the issues with a panel of returned citizens and experts in the justice system. |
Playwrights Project provides playwriting workshops in schools, communities, and correctional facilities, conducts the annual California Young Playwrights Contest for writers under the age of 19, and professionally produces community readings and full productions of Plays by Young Writers and The Mosaic Festival. Playwrights Project’s programs engage underserved populations in dramatizing stories drawn from imagination and life experiences, including reflections on the impact of poverty, incarceration, addiction, foster care, and military service. Recognizing that life presents difficult situations, forces beyond our control, and challenging decisions, the programs guide individuals to reflect on past experiences with compassion, create fictional plays that examine hardships, explore positive non-violent solutions, look forward to brighter futures, and celebrate the resilience gained by triumphing over difficulties. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Shiptyard Trust for the Arts | 101 Horne Ave , SAN FRANCISCO, 94124 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 822-0922 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | Our project will engage youth from preschool through age 25 in Bayview Hunters Point to create art and gather stories for the 2026 Semiquincentennial Crane Illumination Project at the Hunters Point Shipyard. Led by artist Shipyard William Rhodes and supported by Shipyard teaching artists, we will conduct art classes in community spaces and at the Shipyard itself, focusing on drawing, painting, quilt-making, and storytelling. Youth will connect with seniors who have personal ties to the Shipyard, sharing stories that deepen the meaning of the artwork and strengthen intergenerational bonds. Field trips to the Shipyard will encourage participants to see themselves as part of its ongoing story. This project highlights Black and historically marginalized voices, strengthens community identity and pride, and ensures youth voices shape a major community celebration. |
STAR supports artists through curated exhibitions, a dedicated website and social media presence, and periodic Open Studios events that create opportunities for sales and exposure. The organization also offers professional development in presentation, pricing, sales, and marketing to strengthen artists’ careers. STAR’s Artist-in-Residence program provides 18 months of free studio space to three artists from Bayview Hunters Point. Launched in 1996, the program has significantly increased local artist participation, with more than 75% of residents securing permanent studios afterward. Teaching artists lead classes at nearby schools and senior centers, enriching lives through creative engagement. On-site classes, tours, and events at the Shipyard connect children, adults, and seniors with the artistic process and the site itself. Uncovering and sharing the Shipyard’s layered history—also the history of this traditionally African American neighborhood—remains a central focus. STAR maintains a free website, www.shipyardartists.com, where all Shipyard artists have individual, editable pages. Online and in-person art sales through exhibitions and auctions further support artists’ visibility and income. In 2018, construction began on a new artist building secured by STAR as a community benefit. It was halted due to falsified soil testing, delaying development. STAR continues to advocate for its completion and for upgrades to existing facilities. Our newest project, CRANE, expands this work by using public art, storytelling, and community events to highlight the Shipyard’s historical significance and deepen awareness of its relationship to Bayview Hunters Point. CRANE also invites the local community to participate in shaping the Shipyard’s future through dialogue, memory, and shared vision. CRANE will culminate in the fall of 2026 with a major light and sound installation around the landmark gantry crane. STAR also collaborates with the U.S. Navy to provide informational meetings on environmental cleanup, while hosting independent events that raise public understanding and promote long-term safety. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | The Arts Council of Kern | 1020 18th Street , BAKERSFIELD, 93301 | Kern | Central Valley | (661) 324-9000 | California's 20 Congressional District | District 35 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts Council of Kern will complete Roots & Resilience, a culturally grounded youth arts initiative that combines Indigenous traditions, behavioral health support, and Blue Zones longevity principles to empower underserved youth in Kern County. This project uses Indigenous storytelling, art, movement, and community rituals to promote identity, resilience, and wellness among young people aged 12–21. |
Community Grants and Partnerships: Provides grant funding, technical assistance, and free monthly Cultivate Kern workshops (sponsored by The Wonderful Company) to support artists, nonprofits, schools, libraries, and museums, expanding participation and organizational capacity. Includes marketing, social media, and storytelling support to increase visibility and engagement. ACK Gallery: A central hub for community engagement, hosting eight annual exhibits, workshops, and performances. Signature events like Latination engage up to 5,000 participants through cultural arts, music, dance, and hands-on activities. Artist Promotion: Art Walk & Makers Markets: Dynamic monthly public event in downtown Bakersfield for original visual and performing artists to showcase their work. Makers Market showcases local arts/crafts for sale, rotating artists every quarter and is open when ACK is open. Arts Education/Creative Economy Training: ACK offers arts integration classes for teachers, artists in residency (classroom/after-school), community schools CTE, and a new workforce development program for junior high students. Summer camps and Artist Catalog also key features. Prison Arts Initiative: Provides multidisciplinary arts programming for incarcerated individuals, building self-awareness, communication skills, and workforce readiness. Art4Rehabilitation (A4R): Award-winning program serving justice-involved youth most vulnerable to recidivism, reducing behavioral incidents while building creative and career skills through mentorship and internships. Common Ground: Indigenous arts program offering workshops, storytelling, murals, and exhibitions that strengthen cultural identity and expand access in underserved communities. Public Art Programs: Partnerships with Caltrans and public parks to engage communities in mural projects that increase cultural storytelling and neighborhood pride. Literary Arts: Poet Laureate, Poetry Out Loud, Stories on the Sidewalk, and open mic events promote literacy, storytelling, and community dialogue. 2026-27 Pilot Programs: Creative Pathways for Healthy Futures, a Kaiser-funded initiative and Creative Recovery for Women, another grant funded program, using the arts to support individuals facing barriers to employment to find work in the creative economy. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Salastina | PO Box 4164 , Glendale, 91222 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 332-6874 | California's 28th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Salastina will continue to enrich lives through its three core programs: 1) Presenting affordable, equitable, and world-class live classical chamber music concerts in the greater Los Angeles area, offering a generous allocation of complimentary tickets to under-resourced communities |
Salastina provides three areas of program activity: 1) Live performances that invite audiences into our creative space. Salastina’s programming seeks to add depth and breadth to traditional classical music. All concerts are live-streamed. Notably, our in-person audience attendance has surged 198% when comparing our last complete pre-pandemic season to the current one. On average, Salastina presents 25 performances per season, at least one of which is free. Five Main Series programs are repeated in Pasadena, West Los Angeles, Orange County, and Palos Verdes, with additional events rounding out the season. Our proprietary concert formats include: – Sounds Unknown: an exploration of the many reasons — from racism to misogyny to bad luck — why some composers never gain due recognition 2) The Composer Collective is Salastina’s tuition-free Young Composer apprenticeship program serving up to five young composers free of charge. All instruction occurs virtually. Most participants are local to Southern California. 3) Vital Sounds: one-on-one virtual bedside concerts for ICU patients. Since May 2020, Salastina has provided private, virtual bedside concerts to the bedsides of critically ill patients at Huntington Health. Our musicians have provided over 85,000 minutes to more than 6,500 patients and their caregivers. We provide two hours of free, one-on-one, virtual bedside concerts weekly at no cost to patients or hospital partners. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,500.00 | Berkeley FILM Foundation | 2600 10TH ST STE 427 , BERKELEY, 94710-3105 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 705-1481 | We give away the vast majority of our revenue as grants and maintain a very small operating budget, so BFF would use $30,000 in general operating support to strengthen our core operations and expand our impact. $4,000 would support the administration of our grant program, including application maintenance and panel management. $10,000 would fund outreach and engagement efforts targeting under resourced filmmakers in the East Bay through marketing. Critically, $6,000 would be dedicated to improving our data infrastructure—gathering and analyzing demographic information about our applicants, grantees, audiences, and the regional filmmaker landscape. This will inform more equitable funding strategies and community programming. Finally, $5,000 would fund our staff person and $5,000 for office software and telephone expenses. This support ensures BFF continues to advance diverse storytelling and inclusive filmmaking in the East Bay and beyond. |
Berkeley FILM Foundation serves filmmakers who live or work along the Eastern Shore cities of the San Francisco Bay – specifically Berkeley, Emeryville, El Cerrito, Richmond, and Oakland. Equity and inclusion are at the core of our work; 47.64% of the projects we have funded were created by women, artists of color, and filmmakers who identify as disabled or part of the LQBTQIA+ community. We hold regular screenings at The New Parkway Theater in Oakland which connects filmmakers with local audiences and strengthens theatrical attendance. Our professional development program connects established filmmakers with new talent to assist on their project. And our biannual educational workshops addressing relevant industry topics and trends attract many attendees. BFF is often among grantees’ first supporters. We award grants to 20-25% of applicants each cycle, while many of our national peers’ funding rates are closer to 1-2%. BFF’s early investments in emerging filmmakers establishes a pipeline for artists to successfully apply for other programs through the lifecycle of their film as was the case with films such as “Crip Camp,” “Inequality for All,” and “Friendly Signs.” Filmmakers consistently share that BFF support was fundamental to unlocking subsequent opportunities, demonstrating our crucial role in sustaining the East Bay’s vibrant filmmaking ecosystem. As you already know, independent filmmakers in the Bay Area face significant challenges. According to a 2024 survey of Bay Area filmmakers conducted by BAVC Media, 43% of respondents believe the odds of them living in the Bay Area in three years are 50% or less, with many of these respondents citing the high cost of living. 32% of respondents described their careers as “stagnant,” and 12% as “declining.” BFF is deeply invested in serving this community, and the East Bay filmmaking community in particular, which contains a wide range of artistic visions and lived experiences. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | BEYOND BAROQUE LITERARY ARTS CENTER | 681 VENICE BLVD , VENICE, 90291-4805 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 822-3006 | California's 33rd congressional district | District 61 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, BEYOND BAROQUE FOUNDATION will sustain the salaries of its Associate Director and Programs Manager as they manage, coordinate, curate, and assess over 100 yearly free and low-cost programs, including readings, festivals, seminars, and writing workshops. This grant will also allow the Center to implement outreach strategies and connect with underrepresented communities throughout the Los Angeles region in support of our ongoing efforts to make the literary arts accessible to all. |
Since 1968, Beyond Baroque has been the key institution in the development of LA’s grassroots literary culture. Featuring a theater, bookstore, workshop space, and an art gallery, it is the central forum for literary exchange in a region whose 18.7 million residents have few other dedicated literary spaces. Committed to supporting writers and artists otherwise marginalized by traditional literary institutions, Beyond Baroque’s legendary free workshops have nurtured some of the country’s most notable writers, while its reading and performance series has hosted many of the world’s greatest writers, artists, and performers. Today it combines a rigorous commitment to artistic excellence with an equal commitment to ensuring that the literary arts remain accessible to all at little or no cost. It does so by offering an extensive array of free and low-cost workshops for writers of all levels in multiple genres, by programming over 100 yearly literary events, and by hosting eight contemporary arts shows per year in its gallery space. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Aunt Lute Books | 2180 Bryant Street, Suite #207 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 826-1300 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | CAC funds will be used to pay salaries and assist in overhead expenses as 1) we publish 4 books–including “Caramelle & Carmilla”—which features the award-winning work of California-based author Jewelle Gomez; 2) launch Aunt Lute’s first audiobook, read by California author, Ginny Berson; and 3) execute four community programs in West Oakland and San Francisco’s Tenderloin and Civic Center. All three areas have zip codes that rank in the two lowest quartiles of the Healthy Places Index. |
Aunt Lute publishes 3-4 new titles a year, provides editorial support, and promotes authors through extensive programming, leveraging the power of literature to manifest connection. Our programming includes readings, workshops, and conferences, providing writing, publication, and promotional skills as well as representation on the literary stage. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Museum of Dance | 77 Van Ness Avenue Ste 101 , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (520) 780-6672 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | The (INTERNATIONAL-new branding name) Museum of Dance (legally names with IRS as such) requests $30,000 in General Operating Support to sustain staffing for our first public space in San Francisco, launched through the city’s Vacant to Vibrant initiative. Funds will support IMOD personnel overseeing day-to-day operations, program management, and partner coordination. IMOD will lead this new cultural hub in collaboration with San Francisco Dance Film Festival, San Francisco Dance Works, and ChromaDiverse. Together, we will offer dance education, public programming, exhibitions, artist residencies, and digital archive labs. Staff will ensure inclusive, high-quality, and community-centered programming—expanding access to vocational training, cultural preservation, and performance opportunities. This support strengthens IMOD’s capacity to manage a vibrant, shared space that serves artists, students, and the public, advancing equity and innovation across San Francisco’s dance and arts ecosystem. |
Our core programs and services include: Education Partnerships: Collaborating with local and national schools, we provide comprehensive dance education programs for students of all ages, including movement, technique, choreography, performance, and dance history. We also offer civic engagement projects and paid internships, fostering a deep connection between dance and community. Artist Partnerships: Working closely with local and national dance artists, we offer support, resources, and space for their presentations, performances, lectures, and teaching work. By nurturing these partnerships, we contribute to the growth and visibility of dance artists. Archive Partnerships: We collaborate with local and international dance archives, shining a spotlight on hidden dance archives and assisting in the interpretation and understanding of their significance. By showcasing these archives, we contribute to the broader appreciation and preservation of dance history. Exhibition Planning and Preparation: Engaging with students, local artists, national and international historians, and archivists, we design and create dynamic “Pop-Up” exhibitions that explore the connections between dance and communities. These exhibitions foster a sense of community engagement and connection. At the Museum of Dance, we are dedicated to creating an inclusive and enriching environment that celebrates the art of dance and its profound impact on our lives. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | OPAC | 800 Hobson Way , Oxnard, 93030 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 385-8147 | California's 26th congressional district | 38 | 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Oxnard Performing Arts Center Corporation (OPAC) will fill the visual arts void in Oxnard by formalizing an exhibition space at The Mexican Consulate, providing rotating exhibitions, printed catalogs, gallery talks, and other public programs for residents and the Consulate’s 96,000 annual visitors from the Central Coast of California. Due to budget cuts, the City of Oxnard’s Carnegie Art Museum closed in 2019 and remains closed to this day, leaving residents without a public venue to appreciate/ engage with visual art. Curated by artist and educator Rafael Perea de la Cabada, the Consulate Gallery: 1) showcases artwork that speaks to Mexican/American and Latinx beauty, culture, traditions, and issues, 2) provides opportunities to local artists, and 3) makes a government building more welcoming. |
OPAC, the Oxnard Performing Arts Center Corporation, is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit dedicated to providing dynamic cultural and community programming at the Oxnard Performing Arts & Convention Center and beyond. As a creative hub in Ventura County, we present a diverse array of events, performances, and educational opportunities that bring people together through the power of the arts. Our programming spans from large-scale mainstage productions and campus-wide festivals to intimate workshops and lectures, ensuring there is something for everyone. We proudly showcase both emerging and established local and international artists, fostering a vibrant cultural scene that enhances Oxnard’s creative landscape. Through our initiatives, we provide vital arts education, engagement, and entertainment for residents and visitors alike. Signature Events Signature Programs (All Free!) Through these programs and events, OPAC strengthens community connections, nurtures artistic expression, and ensures the arts remain accessible to all. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | The Ed Fund | 520 3RD ST STE 109 , OAKLAND, 94607-3503 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 221-6968 | District 12 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Oakland Public Education Fund (OPEF) will implement Oakland Grown, a student arts program that furthers performing arts education for Oakland youth and increases arts engagement between public schools and community. Oakland Grown was piloted in 2024 as a youth arts festival, featuring performances from Oakland TK-12 students in disciplines including dance, orchestral music, and gospel. In 2025-26, we will expand Oakland Grown into a year-round program by partnering with Town Nights, a Community-Based Organization that hosts free weekly activation events across Oakland to strengthen the social fabric of our city. Together, OPEF and Town Nights will organize Oakland Grown performances at Town Nights events throughout the year, creating valuable performance opportunities for students and providing unique avenues for students to share their artistic accomplishments with their community. |
The Ed Fund leads several key initiatives to advance educational equity. Oakland School Volunteers trains and places thousands of volunteers in public schools to support teachers with classroom management, improve students’ academic outcomes, build bonds with students as trusted mentors, and increase engagement between public schools and the surrounding community. The A to Z Fund awards educator-led grants for enrichment activities, field trips, and professional development – all of which have incredible value for students, yet are consistently underfunded. Since its launch in 2016, the A to Z Fund has awarded and managed over $1.2 million in grant funding to classroom projects in subject areas including STEM, Arts Education, Health & Wellness, and Literacy, as well as educator Professional Development grants that equip teachers with new skills to better serve their students. Other programs such as TechLink and ConstructionLink provide hands-on career learning pathways for high school students interested in technology, engineering, architecture, and construction fields. The Oakland School Emergency Fund provides rapid-response resources to schools and families in crisis, working with school site leadership and educators to identify and address urgent needs, and The New Teacher Supply Fund ensures first-time OUSD educators receive essential classroom materials that help create a welcoming, well-stocked learning environment for students. In October 2024, we launched the innaugural Oakland Grown: Student Art & Music Festival – a community-focused student performing and visual arts program in partnership with OUSD’s Visual and Performing Arts department (VAPA). |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Creative Netwerk | PO BOX 22960 , Santa Barbara, 93121 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (413) 404-6505 | California's 24th Congressional District | District 37 | District 21 | With support from California Arts Council, Creative Netwerk will expand equitable access to culturally-relevant weekly Hip-Hop and Street Dance, DJ, and Wellness education programming for 2,500+ underserved youth, ages 5-18, majority Latinx and African American, across Northern Santa Barbara County. Benefiting from Creative Netwerk’s professional development seminars and mentorship by nationally-recognized master teaching artists, 10 local teaching artists will expand programs at Lompoc Unified schools, launch new artist residencies at elementary and middle schools, and provide weekly arts learning and healing for system-affected youth at Santa Maria Juvenile Hall and local community centers. Programming integrates social-emotional learning, cultural identity, and career readiness, and culminates in youth-led performances, battles, and family engagement activities, serving 3,000 audiences. With trained, culturally-competent teaching artists, this project creates long-term infrastructure for healing-centered, high-impact arts learning. |
In Santa Barbara County, Creative Netwerk partners with Goleta USD, Carpinteria USD, Lompoc USD, and Santa Barbara USD, offering hip-hop, street/club dance, and DJ programs, and curricula connecting regional dance styles to wellness and family engagement, in after-school weekly classes and events. CN provides access to Winter, Spring Break, and Summer Dance Camps, in partnership with A-OK and United Way, leading to performances and family dance celebrations with live music by DJs. CN reaches 3,500 K–12 students/year across Santa Barbara County in Lompoc, Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, Goleta, Santa Maria, Santa Ynez, Buellton, Guadalupe, Isla Vista. CN partners with Title I public schools, affordable housing, juvenile justice facilities, and CBOs, finding solutions to learning loss, isolation, and trauma through dance culture, music, and community. CN’s diverse arts leaders deepen collaboration and unification of the many regional street dance forms across California. DJs, teaching artists, and community partners expand access to free, life-changing learning, dance cultural development, and family engagement events. Community partners include United Way Fun in the Sun, One Community Bridge Project, the Theater Program at La Cumbre MS, the Dance Program at Santa Barbara HS, Santa Barbara City Parks and Recreation, Santa Maria Juvenile Hall, Notes for Notes, and more. At the Boys & Girls Club of Downtown Santa Barbara, CN teaches four days/week youth and teen Hip-Hop, Breaking, DJ, and Folklorico classes, weekly open sessions, and a monthly family class. With Lompoc HS, CN provides weekly after-school programs and 20 week-long artist residency programs, sharing foundation, history, culture, and training in dance, DJing, event production, photography, videography, MCing, and music production. In LA, CN partners with After-School All-Stars, the ICEF Drama Club, ISANA, Boys & Girls Clubs, Glendale Unified, and the Arc to serve 1,000 students/year, including education in regional dances such as Clowning and Krump. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Creative Netwerk | PO BOX 22960 , Santa Barbara, 93121 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (413) 404-6505 | California's 24th Congressional District | District 37 | District 21 | With support from California Arts Council, Creative Netwerk will expand after-school and summer Hip-Hop and Street Dance education programs, 1-5 days/week, for underserved youth, ages 5-18, and families of color and low-income communities across Santa Barbara County. Funds will support culturally-rooted programming in schools, affordable housing, juvenile justice facilities, and community centers, along with teacher training for local street/club artists. CN will offer 35–85 weekly classes in dance, DJing, and wellness, serving 4,000+ youth and fostering confidence, creativity, and community engagement. Youth-led performances and family/community dance celebrations reach 4,000+ audiences. CN will expand its partnership with Lompoc USD, launching artist residencies, welcoming 20+ guest artists from around the nation to lead seminars in Dance, DJing, Music Production, Wellness, MCing, Photography, Artist Career Development, Theater, connecting with hundreds of students/week. |
In Santa Barbara County, Creative Netwerk partners with Goleta USD, Carpinteria USD, Lompoc USD, and Santa Barbara USD, offering hip-hop, street/club dance, and DJ programs, and curricula connecting regional dance styles to wellness and family engagement, in after-school weekly classes and events. CN provides access to Winter, Spring Break, and Summer Dance Camps, in partnership with A-OK and United Way, leading to performances and family dance celebrations with live music by DJs. CN reaches 3,500 K–12 students/year across Santa Barbara County in Lompoc, Santa Barbara, Carpinteria, Goleta, Santa Maria, Santa Ynez, Buellton, Guadalupe, Isla Vista. CN partners with Title I public schools, affordable housing, juvenile justice facilities, and CBOs, finding solutions to learning loss, isolation, and trauma through dance culture, music, and community. CN’s diverse arts leaders deepen collaboration and unification of the many regional street dance forms across California. DJs, teaching artists, and community partners expand access to free, life-changing learning, dance cultural development, and family engagement events. Community partners include United Way Fun in the Sun, One Community Bridge Project, the Theater Program at La Cumbre MS, the Dance Program at Santa Barbara HS, Santa Barbara City Parks and Recreation, Santa Maria Juvenile Hall, Notes for Notes, and more. At the Boys & Girls Club of Downtown Santa Barbara, CN teaches four days/week youth and teen Hip-Hop, Breaking, DJ, and Folklorico classes, weekly open sessions, and a monthly family class. With Lompoc HS, CN provides weekly after-school programs and 20 week-long artist residency programs, sharing foundation, history, culture, and training in dance, DJing, event production, photography, videography, MCing, and music production. In LA, CN partners with After-School All-Stars, the ICEF Drama Club, ISANA, Boys & Girls Clubs, Glendale Unified, and the Arc to serve 1,000 students/year, including education in regional dances such as Clowning and Krump. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,000.00 | Jazz Organ Fellowship | 1210 HERMOSA WAY , SAN JOSE, 95125-3511 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 410-8265 | District 16 | District 28 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Jazz Organ Fellowship, a small arts organization, will present “The B3 Sessions,” a series of 8 free masterclasses with master Bay Area Hammond B3 organists. This program will respond to a community-defined need to uplift marginalized master musicians from the Black cultural traditions of jazz, blues, gospel, and R&B and provide accessible, culturally relevant intergenerational learning opportunities. The program will be collaboratively developed with community members and use artistic practices to impact Black Bay Area communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification. |
The Jazz Organ Fellowship (JOF) provides workshops at jazz camps and community venues with world class jazz organists; presents performances with organ combos at middle schools and high schools; promotes a jazz organ curriculum explaining the lineage of jazz organ music, its primary proponents, and the significance of this genre within the wider musical spectrum; donates Hammond organs and Leslie speakers to schools, museums, and venues; promotes an awards program including The JOF Award and The Jazz Organ Fellowship Hall of Fame honoring living and deceased jazz organists who have contributed significantly to the development of the music; and presents jazz organ concerts at festivals, concert halls, and clubs throughout the San Francisco Bay Area and beyond. JOF programs elevate the position of the organ in all aspects of the music world, centering Black cultural traditions of jazz, blues, gospel, R&B, and beyond. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Inlandia Institute | 4178 CHESTNUT ST , RIVERSIDE, 92501-3539 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 790-2458 | California's 39th congressional district | District 58 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, Inlandia Institute will implement a pilot project in Riverside, California, for “Pura Madre”, a multi-pronged creative literary arts program for women-identifying Latine mothers and their children beginning and ending in Hispanic Heritage Month. In Mexican Spanish “pura madre” has several meanings. Literally translated into “pure mother”, “pura madre” or “madre” is a slang phrase that is used to indicate something is worthless. We’re reclaiming the phrase by creating a program that will enrich the lives of our community’s mothering creatives and their children. Latinas make up over 50% of the population of women in the Inland Empire. Pura Madre will provide both income and space for Latina mother artists/writers in the region to focus on their creative practice with their child nearby engaged in similar activities. |
Organization’s Core Programs and Services: Inlandia Institute is the only regionally focused nonprofit literary arts network dedicated to the Inland Empire region. Each of our five core programs supports the artistic development of the region’s writers, from beginners through intermediate practitioners to professionals. At each level, artists share expertise through workshops, professional development activities, and outreach and engagement programs, including an award-winning publications program. Inlandia Institute’s five core programs are: Children’s Creative Literacy, Adult Creative Literacy and Professional Development for Writers, Publications, Free Literary and Cultural Programs, and Literary Laureate. Celebrating the region in word, image, and sound, Inlandia is dedicated to fostering a dynamic and successful community of artists who explore our diverse and vibrant region. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,750.00 | Contempo Ballet | 100 MONTEREY RD , S PASADENA, 91030-3521 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 868-0320 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Contempo Ballet offers a comprehensive, all-inclusive, dance educational arts program in partnership with community and cultural practitioners who are focused on helping underserved and under resourced youth (0-25), and/or system impacted youth residing in remote areas of southern California. The project will take place in various institutions and/or community-based settings; providing free access opportunities for participants (regardless of background or ability) to fully engage and participate in the arts. Programs, services, and activities are facilitated within safe, courageous and the least restrictive environments (LRE) while promoting healthy, positive, relatable perspectives on Latin heritage. This project is fueled by instruction, mentorship, and facilitated guidance for all youth to discover, self-express, and learn skillsets/disciplines that support, empower, restore, and transform them into successful leaders for tomorrow. |
Educational Dance Programs in Schools, Community Dance Workshops, Dance and Education Performance Series, Pre and Post Performance Workshops, Master Classes, and Summer Programs. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,500.00 | Timken Museum of Art | 2550 5TH AVENUE Suite 500, SAN DIEGO, 92103-6612 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 239-5548 | California District 50 | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Putnam Foundation (DBA Timken Museum of Art) will implement Creative Choices—a trauma-informed arts program for system-engaged youth incarcerated at the Youth Transition Campus (YTC). Designed for adolescent, teen, and young adult males and females, the program features weekly art classes, guest artists, two collaborative murals, a public art exhibition, arts and culture field trips to Balboa Park, and youth internship opportunities. Creative Choices fosters self-expression, nurtures confidence, and encourages healing through creative engagement. CAC funds will compensate a teaching artist, guest artists, cover art materials and supplies, and support transportation and exhibition expenses. This program provides system-engaged youth with a constructive, empowering outlet and new ways to imagine their futures through the transformative power of art. |
The following describes our core programs, all provided free of charge: Exhibitions and lecture series: 3 exhibitions annually that focus on a specific painting in our collection, positioning it in the larger context of works by a master or artistic movement. Each exhibition has a series of morning, afternoon and evening lectures, and daily docent-led tours. School programs: school tours; teacher workshops for educators to learn how art can connect to their teaching; Outreach Español (Spanish docent-guided tours for Spanish-speaking students); Creative Choices (artist-in-residency program for at-risk students in Juvenile Hall). Programs for adults, families and visitors with special needs include: tours by trained docents in 8 languages; Family Mural Making Project; Memories at the Museum (docent tours in partnership with USCD’s Shiley-Marcos Alzheimer’s Disease Center); and Creative Engagement (comprehensive art program for veterans with post-traumatic stress disorder). |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,355.00 | E4TT | 55 Taylor St. , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 684-0505 | California's 12th congressional district | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ensemble for These Times will present “El Tiempo Latine: Mujeres Ahora” (Latine Time: Women of Today): a project celebrating contemporary women, queer, and nonbinary Latine composers, which will include a free concert of music by eight women and LGBTQ+ composers and releasing a new recording with music by these composers; all conducted with the goal of inspiring, uplifting, and bringing increased recognition to BIPOC women composers and their work in the field of contemporary classical music. |
Winners of The American Prize in 2021 in Chamber Music Performance, Ensemble for These Times (E4TT) is a contemporary chamber music group currently celebrating its eighteenth season. E4TT performs 4-6 hybrid concerts each season in the San Francisco Bay Area at various venues for an enthusiastic and growing audience; 1-2 of these concerts are offered free-of-charge to all attendees and ticket prices are kept deliberately low for the remaining concerts, with deeply discounted prices for students and the elderly, and a policy of no one turned away from attending self-presented concerts due to a lack of ability to pay. All self-presented concerts continue to be available online at no charge to viewers and are archived on YouTube for later viewing at no cost to all. The group regularly commissions new work for premiere on their annual season, and is committed to performing the works of women, people of color, members of the LGBTQIA community and by those historically oppressed or forgotten. In 2020, the group began an interview series focusing on women creative artists; the second season of the series in 2021 focused on BIPOC composers and musicians, and a third season, which started in January 2022, focused on California BIPOC women composers. The group began a podcast version of the interview series, entitled “For Good Measure,” in June 2022, which is continuing. The group also began a pilot outreach program, “Uplift,” in 2022/23. Ensemble for These Times also tours regularly, with previous engagements in New York, Boston, Southern California, Madrid, Krakow, Berlin, and Hungary, and has released five award-winning CDs, with the ensemble’s sixth recording to be released in May 2026. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $22,750.00 | Leap Arts in Education | 1935 Addison Street, Suite A , Berkeley, 94704 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 512-1899 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Leap Arts in Education will deliver free, high-quality arts education to 500 students through 20 residencies across five Title I (federally designated low-income) San Francisco public schools: Redding, Ulloa, Bessie Carmichael, Jean Parker, and Sheridan. These schools serve students facing systemic barriers, including economic hardship, language access, and limited arts programming. Leap’s professional, culturally fluent Teaching Artists will lead weekly instruction in visual arts, performing arts, and architecture. Programs are co-developed with classroom teachers to reflect student identities, integrate social-emotional learning, and align with California Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) Standards. |
ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE PROGRAM Evolving since 1979, Leap’s program is unique in that: Leap participants develop technical discipline-specific skills, integrate arts learning with other academic subjects. make positive connections, practice and strengthen skills in critical thinking, collaboration, and problem solving. TAs create an environment in which students feel safe and supported to create art with their inherent talents, unique perspectives, and life experiences. More important than gaining specific art skills, students’ perspectives dramatically shift. They develop tools to think critically, collaborate, create, communicate, and connect with others—21st century skills that strengthen communities. EQUITY TRAINING INITIATIVE |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Leap Arts in Education | 1935 Addison Street, Suite A , Berkeley, 94704 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 512-1899 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Leap Arts in Education will provide free arts education to nearly 10,000 students at 33 Bay Area public schools during the 2025–26 school year. Through its Artist-in-Residence Program, Leap brings professional Teaching Artists into K–8 classrooms to deliver culturally responsive instruction in visual art, ceramics, music, dance, theater, architecture, and creative writing. Programs are co-developed with classroom teachers, aligned with California Visual and Performing Arts Standards, and tailored to reflect the strengths and needs of each student community. Each residency spans 8–16 weeks and includes weekly sessions of 1–2 hours, culminating in student-led performances or final projects. In total, Leap will provide over 4,000 hours of arts instruction across Title I (federally designated low-income) public schools, helping students build confidence, creativity, and connection through the arts. |
ARTIST-IN-RESIDENCE PROGRAM Evolving since 1979, Leap’s program is unique in that: Leap participants develop technical discipline-specific skills, integrate arts learning with other academic subjects. make positive connections, practice and strengthen skills in critical thinking, collaboration, and problem solving. TAs create an environment in which students feel safe and supported to create art with their inherent talents, unique perspectives, and life experiences. More important than gaining specific art skills, students’ perspectives dramatically shift. They develop tools to think critically, collaborate, create, communicate, and connect with others—21st century skills that strengthen communities. EQUITY TRAINING INITIATIVE |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | Arts Benicia | 1 Commandant's Lane , BENICIA, 94510 | Solano | Capital | (707) 747-0131 | California District 8 | District 11 | District 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts Benicia will invite teens and young adults to participate in its Printmakers’ Workshop, a signature program of the organization founded in 2001 by Bill Harsh. The project will reach out to youth in disadvantaged and diverse segments of the community to provide formative art education experiences. It will ensure the development of the next generation of California printmakers by providing access to instruction, mentoring, and equipment that would otherwise not be accessible. |
Since its formation in 1987, Arts Benicia has established a compelling series of ongoing annual exhibitions, classes for adult, teens, and children, events, and public programs that have contributed significantly to the region’s cultural vitality and attract thousands of visitors each year. A community-based non-profit organization, Arts Benicia serves as a hub for the visual arts community in Benicia and the Historic Arsenal District, and it offers resources and benefits for artists, including opportunities to exhibit and promote their work. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | ARTHATCH | 317 E GRAND AVE SUITE B , ESCONDIDO, 92025-3301 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 781-5779 | District 50 | District 76 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, ArtHatch will offer 50 creative workshops for at-risk youth, the majority of whom are currently on probation. Through these sessions, teens will have the opportunity to create, curate, and install a full-scale exhibition of their artwork, which will be featured for one month in our main gallery space. Workshops will include various forms of painting, 3D art, and creating mini graphic novels. |
ArtHatch provides free opening receptions for new exhibitions, Q and A artist sessions and talks, open studios, and live music free for the public 12 times per year. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | Future Leaders California | 44648 15th St W , Lancaster, 93534-2806 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (888) 480-3353 | 27 | 39 | 23 | Future Leaders California will implement Just-Us Film Lab: Voices Through the Lens, a yearlong arts initiative that expands on our existing Justice Sunday Arts Initiative. CAC grant funds will support youth engagement in theater and digital media arts through performance, filmmaking, and storytelling. From December 2025 to January 2026, youth will participate in the Justice Sunday performances, using story circles and cultural exploration to explore identity and justice. From February to September 2026, youth will develop original short films in a new Just-Us Film Lab, gaining hands-on experience in directing, cinematography, editing, and storyboarding. Funds will support artist stipends, youth compensation, production materials, community showcases, and more. The project promotes youth voice, justice-centered storytelling, and access to quality arts education for underserved youth in the Antelope Valley. |
Future Leaders California is a community-rooted youth development organization that has delivered culturally relevant, arts-integrated programming to underserved youth across the Antelope Valley and Los Angeles County since 2014. At the center of every program is The 4 E’s of Life Coaching™, a proprietary, community-defined framework that uses SEL-integrated components such as creative expression, storytelling, and identity-affirming experiences to build self-regulation, leadership, and future orientation in underserved youth who yet to benefit from arts participation and opportunity. FLC’s Just Us Arts initiative is a comprehensive arts portfolio, spanning theater, film, narrative arts, and community performance. Justice Sunday, operating since 2016, is a nationally recognized, fully youth-led theater program in which youth research, write, produce, and perform original two-hour social justice plays highlighting lesser-known but historically significant figures. Just Us Film Lab is a multi-week creative workforce development program building technical filmmaking skills, including directing, cinematography, editing, and storyboarding, through original short films exploring identity and justice. The Concrete Programs are arts-based, SEL-integrated, gender-responsive workshop series teaching emotional regulation and positive self-expression through FLC’s proprietary curriculum and culturally resonant literature. The Juneteenth Review is an annual community performance event where youth perform original scenes, songs, dances, and poetry in public spaces across the Antelope Valley. The Just Us Gala celebrates the Just Us Arts community annually, honoring youth artists, alumni, and creative industry partners. The Justice Sunday Alumni Youth Board retains and elevates former participants as active leaders, mentors, and co-designers of current programming. Beyond Just Us Arts, FLC delivers school-based mentorship and early intervention programming, civic engagement and institutional trust-building programming, financial literacy, and workforce development programming, all unified by The 4 E’s and all designed to ensure that every young person FLC serves leaves with a stronger sense of who they are and what is possible for them. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $4,332.00 | Raising the Curtain Foundation | 24820 ORCHARD VILLAGE RD STE A 200 , SANTA CLARITA, 91355-3092 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 713-7903 | 27 | 40 | 23 | While performance opportunities in the Santa Clarita Valley are plentiful, elementary students rarely get to explore the behind-the-scenes roles that bring theater to life. To fill this gap, we propose expanding A Celebration of the Performing Arts — a free, half-day event introducing students to technical and creative theater careers. Students rotate through five hands-on workshops led by industry professionals, covering lighting, sound, costumes/hair/makeup, blocking/directing, and set design. The day begins with a short story enactment, which becomes the foundation for each station. Instructors demonstrate how their specialty helps transform the story into a dynamic performance. Our goals include supplying interactive materials, creating a festive and immersive environment, increasing turnout through better promotion, and reaching students from all four local elementary school districts, private and charter schools, and homeschooling communities. |
A core program is our Saturday’s Kids programming, providing quality theater for young children for a very low cost. We provide this program 3-4 times a year. Another core program has been our backstage workshop for kids. Formally known as “A Celebration of the Performing Arts”, we are looking to rebrand this event and grow it to serve more of the communities needs. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | Neighborhood Music School Association | 358 South Boyle Ave , Los Angeles, 90033 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 268-0762 | 34th Congressional District of California | District 53 | District 24 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Neighborhood Music School Association will continue to grow and strengthen its highly demanded programming for the hard-of-hearing community within Los Angeles. This project will engage our already established community partners with the Bionic Ear Lab and John Tracy Center to build out more opportunities for hard-of-hearing individuals of all ages to strengthen their sense of music appreciation and develop musical skills. Our project will also provide continued one-on-one and group music workshops at the Neighborhood Music School catered specifically for hard-of-hearing folks. |
Founded in 1914 by musician and composer Carrie Stone Freeman, Neighborhood Music School was first known as the Los Angeles Music Settlement and was a part of the Settlement movement, a cause which helped immigrant families to assimilate and adjust to their new home in Los Angeles. Our neighborhood of Boyle Heights is one of Los Angeles’ oldest and was known as “the Ellis Island of the West Coast” due to its large and diverse immigrant population throughout the late 19th and early 20th centuries. True to its original purpose over a century ago, Neighborhood Music School offers low-cost, high-quality one-on-one music instruction on a wide variety of instruments. Students at NMS typically take one private lesson per week on the instrument of their choice, and many play multiple instruments. In addition to private instruction, NMS provides collaborative, performance-based learning environments to students through our Ensemble Program and Summer Camp offerings. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | Sacramento Women's Chorus | PO BOX 661705 , SACRAMENTO, 95866-1705 | Sacramento | Capital | (562) 397-3938 | District 6 | District 6 | District 8 | With the support from the California Arts Council Sacramento Women’s Chorus (SWC) will: |
SWC’s core program is choral music performance provided by women. Our |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Center for World Music | 2225 9th Street , Encinitas, 92024-6512 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 363-3007 | California's 49rd Congressional District | District 77 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Center for World Music (CWM) will strengthen its core operations and sustain culturally inclusive programs that foster global understanding through the performing arts. Grant funds will support general operating expenses, including rent and staff salaries, enabling CWM to continue serving historically underserved communities across San Diego County—particularly youth and families in the lower two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index. Through school programs, public concerts, and senior programs, the CWM engages participants in diverse music and dance traditions led by artists who are culture bearers. This funding will help ensure organizational stability, support a diverse arts workforce, and expand access to arts education and cultural experiences for those with the least opportunity. |
The Center for World Music (CWM) delivers transformative arts programming across San Diego County through three flagship initiatives, each designed to serve a distinct segment of the community and showcase the performing arts of Asia, Africa, Latin America, Europe, and North America. WORLD MUSIC CONCERTS SCHOOLS PROGRAM ACCESS TO ARTS FOR SENIORS CWM’s core programs are rooted in authenticity, accessibility, and a commitment to cultural respect, ensuring that world music and dance remain vibrant and available to all members of San Diego’s diverse community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Center for World Music | 2225 9th Street , Encinitas, 92024-6512 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 363-3007 | California's 49rd Congressional District | District 77 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Center for World Music will promote awareness and understanding of the rich performing arts traditions of the world through school-wide, student-interactive assemblies in underserved UTK-12 San Diego area schools. Part of the CWM’s World Music in the Schools core program, our assemblies create opportunities for schools to maximize student exposure to traditional performing arts by bringing large numbers of students together at one time to engage with teaching artists who are also culture bearers. Students experience world music and dance in an exciting format, gaining beneficial knowledge about world geography, history, cultures, languages, and traditions. |
The Center for World Music (CWM) delivers transformative arts programming across San Diego County through three flagship initiatives, each designed to serve a distinct segment of the community and showcase the performing arts of Asia, Africa, Latin America, Europe, and North America. WORLD MUSIC CONCERTS SCHOOLS PROGRAM ACCESS TO ARTS FOR SENIORS CWM’s core programs are rooted in authenticity, accessibility, and a commitment to cultural respect, ensuring that world music and dance remain vibrant and available to all members of San Diego’s diverse community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,750.00 | Francisco Music Mission Corporation | 1062 Valencia Street , San Francisco, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (209) 609-3512 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | Music Mission San Francisco (MMSF) requests California Arts Council (CAC) grant funds to provide 100% compensation for three teaching artists and 94% compensation for a fourth teaching artist. These artists are essential for delivering 60 weekly classes of free, intensive instrumental music instruction to underserved children (ages 7-12) in San Francisco’s Mission District. Operating from September 2025 to May 2026 at the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts and the Community Music Center, our program will provide a vital creative outlet, foster significant personal and social development, and address critical gaps in arts access. |
Since its inception in 2015, Music Mission San Francisco (MMSF) has provided free, high-quality after-school music education to underserved children (ages 7-14) in San Francisco’s Mission District. Operating primarily from the Mission Cultural Center for Latino Arts (MCCLA), MMSF established itself as a vital community resource, consistently offering around 60 classes annually and enriching the community with two to three public student concerts each year. Our commitment to accessibility was formalized in 2020 when Music Mission San Francisco officially became a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization. Our program has demonstrated consistent growth and adaptability. During the 2019-20 school year, prior to the pandemic, MMSF provided intensive instruction (four hours per week) in violin, cello, and choir to 45 students, organized into five distinct skill levels. When the COVID-19 pandemic necessitated a shift in approach, MMSF demonstrated resilience by transitioning to online instruction, ensuring continuity of learning for our students during a challenging period. We proudly returned to in-person learning for the 2022-2023 school year. The 2023-24 school year marked a significant expansion. In addition to our established programs at MCCLA, MMSF opened a second site at the Community Music Center (CMC), introducing instruction in flute, clarinet, trumpet, and trombone. This growth trajectory continued into the 2024-25 school year, where MMSF achieved a record-high enrollment of 53 students. Beyond regular instruction and concerts, MMSF enriches the student experience by occasionally hosting professional musicians who perform for and with our students. Furthermore, students and their parents have been offered unique opportunities to attend rehearsals by the San Francisco Youth Symphony, broadening their exposure to the wider musical world. Throughout our history, Music Mission San Francisco has remained steadfast in its commitment to removing financial barriers: the entire program, including the provision of musical instruments, is offered free of charge to all participating families. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,900.00 | Local News Matters | 900 HILLDALE AVE , BERKELEY, 94708-1418 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 251-8100 | California Congressional District 12 | California Assembly District 14 | California Senate District 7 | Bay City News Foundation seeks general operating support from the California Arts Council to sustain and expand nonprofit journalism that strengthens California’s arts and civic infrastructure. CAC funding would support our Arts & Entertainment and Bay City Books sections on LocalNewsMatters.org, including weekly cultural coverage, newsletters and radio appearances that spotlight local artists, performers and authors across 13 counties. Funds would also support our youth journalism programs: paid summer internships for college students and stipends for high school trainees in our Contra Costa Youth Journalism initiative. These programs cultivate the next generation of diverse journalists and ensure that arts and culture reporting remains vibrant, inclusive and accessible. In a time of deep cuts to local news, this work helps preserve essential storytelling and civic engagement for Northern California’s diverse communities. |
ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT Our Arts & Entertainment (A&E) section amplifies local artists, musicians, performers and cultural events, ensuring the creative voices of the region receive the attention they deserve. Under the leadership of A&E editor Leslie Katz, who also reports on air with our partner Radio Sausalito, this coverage reaches diverse audiences through both digital and broadcast media, deepening community engagement with the arts. BAY CITY BOOKS Complementing our A&E coverage, our Bay City Books section celebrates literary culture by featuring author profiles, book reviews and coverage of local literary events. This platform supports the vibrant literary scene across our 13-county service area, connecting readers and writers while promoting local bookstores and literary nonprofits. YOUTH JOURNALISM TRAINING In addition to producing high-quality journalism, BCN is deeply committed to nurturing the next generation of reporters and storytellers. We offer two training programs: a paid college internship that provides hands-on experience in multimedia journalism, and Contra Costa Youth Journalism (CCYJ), a high school journalism training program that empowers students from underserved school districts with essential reporting skills. CCYJ was recently invited to cover the Lesher Newsmakers Speaker Series with funding from the Lesher Foundation. Their impressive work can be found here: CCSpin.net. Together, our editorial content and educational initiatives contribute to a more informed, connected, and culturally rich community, underscoring the vital role journalism plays as both an art form and a cornerstone of democracy. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Bay Philharmonic | 3375 Country Drive , FREMONT, 94536 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (341) 201-4205 | District 14 | District 24 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bay Philharmonic (Bay Phil) will unite communities and improve residents’ quality of life through dynamic performances during the 25/26 season. Funding will support our core operations, especially increased salaries for 35-45 professional musicians who deliver each show. |
Founded in 1964, the Bay Philharmonic (formerly Fremont Symphony) fills a non-traditional-symphony niche in the Bay Area. Our performances at Chabot College Performing Arts Center are the most innovative musical experiences around. Three to four times a year, Bay Philharmonic (Bay Phil) presents themed, culturally-inclusive performances that have broad appeal—-from traditional symphony lovers to families, and young adults. Our shows help educate, inspire, and bring joy to all our guests. Bay Phil Youth Orchestra, launched in 2016, provides an encouraging and motivating environment for 35-50 young musicians aged 7 -18 to pursue musical excellence and gain performance experience. The students receive high-quality instruction from Bay Phil’s professional musicians. Through a variety of performance opportunities, BPYO empowers young musicians to actively engage in preserving and promoting the performing arts in our community. Our Bay Phil Guild consists of volunteers who support and promote the Bay Philharmonic and BPYO. They organize and host youth competitions and recitals throughout the year. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Los Cenzontles Cultural Arts Academy | 13108 SAN PABLO AVE , SAN PABLO, 94805-1311 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 233-8015 | California's 8th congressional district | District 15 | District 7 | Los Cenzontles Cultural Arts Academy offers hands-on training in Mexican traditional and popular art forms to 150 underserved children and youth ages 4-17. Los Cenzontles trains community youth in traditional art forms and ancestral cultures, with a focus on cultivating excellence and mastery of art forms through long-term acquisition of skills. The program functions within a social context, mirroring the ways in which traditional arts have been practiced for centuries within Mexican communities, and fostering an environment in which youth can tap into the resilience of their community and culture. Classes are taught by artists from the community, many of whom were trained themselves at the academy. A teen mentorship program provides hands-on training in teaching, production and performance. |
In our San Pablo/Richmond neighborhood: Nationally: And beyond – media and online production: |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | FASO | 6621 DENNY AVE , N HOLLYWOOD, 91606-2204 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 770-2807 | Congressional District 29 | Assembly District 43 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Filipino American Symphony Orchestra will address segregation and its inequities by directly providing music education to youth from BIPOC communities, fostering a healthy environment and an empowering identity context. |
FASO utilizes music as a unifying force to celebrate and build bridges among diverse cultures, while providing a platform for marginalized voices. Programs include: Key Accomplishments: |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | Una Productions | 368 Richland Avenue , San Francisco, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 370-4105 | District 12 | District 17 | Disctrict 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Una Productions will develop and present the San Francisco premiere of Infinity in September 2026. Co-directed by choreographers and drag artists Fuchsia and Eric Garcia (Churro Nomi), Infinity is a multidisciplinary performance featuring Bay Area-based Queer and trans dancers, drag performers, and musicians. Set in an intergalactic cabaret, the work uses movement, live music, costume, and immersive design to explore themes of transformation, liberation, and collective imagination. Infinity addresses the systemic under-representation of trans and gender non-conforming people in the performing arts by creating equitable, paid opportunities for LGBTQIA+ artists and offering accessible public programming. The project includes free community showings and sliding-scale workshops designed to uplift Queer voices, engage local audiences, and foster inclusive, celebratory space for artistic expression, empowerment, and community healing. |
Una’s core programs for the SF Bay Area include dance classes, workshops, studio showings and theater performances. The company also creates dance for film, outdoor performances and online streaming of our performances to create more accessibility to dance and performance. Una has multiple performances and free studio showings a year in San Francisco, as well as international touring, teaching and choreographic commissions. In the Bay Area, we teach ongoing classes for the The Training Ground SF’s curriculum, affordable public dance classes, as well as seasonal workshops open to the public throughout the year. These classes and workshops are accessible to a range of movement backgrounds and experience levels. Una also provides mentorship for young artists, dancers and choreographers as well as outreach with public schools and youth dance programs that include workshops, showings and q&a discussions. Una is currently a partner/company in residence with Lowell Public High School in SF and Westlake School for Performing Arts in Daly City. Una has been presented by UCCS/ENT Center, Z Space, the 92NY Harkness Mainstage Series, The Clarice Smith Performing Arts Center, the Chutzpah! Festival/BCMAS in Vancouver, Port Hardy, Campbell River, Sointula and Alert Bay – performing for and engaging in cultural exchange with the ‘Namgis First Nation Community, Fusion International (Japan) in Kaga and Tokyo, co-presented by the ODC Theater, presented by the Spectrum Dance Festival at The Launchpad, Movement Research at the Judson Church, Jacob’s Pillow Inside/Out, Springboard Danse Montreal, and more. Fuchsia has been an Artist in Residence of ENT Center, RoundAntennae, Berkeley Ballet Theater, Fusion International (Japan), Brooklyn College/CUNY Dance Initiative, The Launchpad (CO), 92nd St. Y, and a choreographic fellow for the Alvin Ailey Dance Foundation NDCL. They were also a recipient of the Inaugural Illume Award, the Rainin Opportunity Fund and a USAI grant from the MidAtlantic Foundation. |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | $700,000.00 | ArtsOC | 17620 Fitch Avenue Suite 255, Irvine, 92614 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 556-5160 | 47 | 73 | 37 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTS ORANGE COUNTY will serve as Administering Organization for Region 7 for the CAC’s Individual Artists Fellowship Program, leading a consortium of the State-Local Partners serving the region’s three counties that will assist in its implementation. |
Arts Orange County fulfills its mission by offering the following programs and services: Regranting – when funds are available. During pandemic, raised private funds and secured County funding, oversaw regranting of nearly $8 million. In 2023-24, served as Administering Organization for CAC’s Individual Artist Fellowship Program in Region I (Imperial, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego counties). Orange County Arts Awards, honoring artists, arts visionaries and arts patrons Creative Edge Lecture, presenting thought-leaders in the field of creativity Imagination Celebration, county-wide, six-week festival of arts for families & children in collaboration with Orange County Department of Education Día del Niño, a free festival of Latino arts for families and children OC Jails Project, creative writing instruction to Transitional Age Youth SparkOC.com, online arts calendar Newsletter, bi-monthly ArtsOC institutional & arts community news Leadership Convenings, bringing together arts leaders of various cohorts and artists for regular online and in-person gatherings to share concerns, best practices Breaking Through, webinars for arts leaders about exemplary local programs fulfilling diversity, equity and inclusion goals Emerging Arts Leaders-OC Consulting and Project Management services on cultural planning & public art to municipalities and arts organizations |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Free Arts | 11099 S. La Cienega Blvd Suite 235, Los Angeles, 90045 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 871-5559 | California Assembly district 43 | District 61 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Free Arts for Abused Children dba Free Arts will increase the number of underserved, historically marginalized children who are engaged in trauma informed, evidenced based therapeutic art programs that have been found through peer reviewed research to reduce depression and anxiety and build resiliency and life skills. |
Free Arts core programs and services are delivered through weekly, 1.5-hour, 8–12–week art workshops where youth engage in visual, dance, spoken word or clay art projects designed to support them in their recovery from trauma. Teaching artists and volunteers trained as mentors facilitate the curriculum for each workshop focused on an art medium and subject. Teaching artists create and bring samples of finished products for youth to model. Youth learn to use art supplies and art techniques while ameliorating the effects of trauma. Workshops are held for youth by age group, sometimes with their parents, grandparents or caregiver. Free Arts collaborates with other community organizations to host 2–3 art festivals in underresourced neighborhoods throughout Los Angeles annually that feature culturally responsive live music, local artists’ works, food, art activities, mindfulness, yoga, self-advocacy and community advocacy. The festivals give communities a chance to bond and learn to advocate for themselves. Free Arts helps youth use art to develop a lifelong outlet for negative emotions. Free Arts creates a safe environment where youth, through the act of creating, regain a sense of mastery, resiliency and self-esteem. Free Arts uses the creative process and trained mentors to support youth in recognizing, understanding and coping with feelings of depression and anxiety, and finding positive ways to help youth deal with their emotions. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,250.00 | Cinnamongirl | 1431 17th Avenue , OAKLAND, 94602 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 299-5622 | California's 12th congressional district | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Cinnamongirl Inc will enhance our proven Write Your Story program to serve 75 girls of color (ages 13-18) annually through our “Voices of Belonging” initiative. The $25,000 grant will strengthen our masterclass model with accomplished published authors of color while adding Community Culture Bearer sessions connecting girls with local storytellers and elders. |
Cinnamongirl serves girls of color ages 8-18 through three age-specific sisterhood cohorts — Sprouts (elementary), Waves (middle school), and Radiance (high school) — each offering developmentally appropriate programming across the school year and into summer. Every cohort is anchored by a social-emotional learning curriculum facilitated by licensed therapists and coaches from The Wright Institute, giving girls concrete tools for identity development, emotional wellbeing, and self-knowledge. Big Sister/Little Sister mentorship creates an intergenerational sisterhood that extends well beyond any single program year. Literary and performing arts drive our voice development programming. Write Your Story is a year-long literary arts program where girls receive instruction in fiction, poetry, and narrative nonfiction from female authors of color, supported by individual writing coaches, and culminating in a published annual anthology. Travelgirl provides tiered travel — local overnight adventures for elementary girls, domestic exploration for middle schoolers, and international journeys for high schoolers — using the world as a classroom for identity and leadership. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | 2332 W 4TH ST 2332 W 4th ST, LOS ANGELES, 90057-2702 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 382-8133 | 34 | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA will fund 2 part-time Marketing/Community Outreach people to develop a marketing strategy via social media as well as a plan to conduct outreach in the community to promote our programming and reach new audiences. |
Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA (Synergy Theater Group) is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit arts organization operating out of the William Reagh Los Angeles Photography Center, located at 2332 W 4th St., in the heart of the Westlake District, one of the most densely populated and economically challenged areas of Los Angeles on the outskirts of Downtown. We organize arts programs representing the major ethnic groups residing within a five-mile radius of the Center, primarily Latino immigrant groups from Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Mexico. Throughout the years, SINERGIA has worked diligently to establish a working relationship with the surrounding community in order to integrate them as welcomed members of the company. Our focus continues to be on works and arts education programming relevant to our underserved community. We presently serve a highly transient, zero to low-income population, comprised mostly of first-generation immigrants. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Deborah Slater Dance Theater | 3435 Cesar Chavez #210, SAN FRANCISCO, 94110-2423 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 308-1612 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Art of the Matter Performance Foundation will: continue development of new artistic work and pay our performing company members and artistic collaborators; continue our residency |
Deborah Slater Dance Theater live performances |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Hidden GEM Creative Studios | 5621 Lowell St. Suite G, Oakland, 94608 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (206) 214-7496 | California Assembly district 15 | Funds requested will allow us to hire part-time instructors and youth interns to lead our 9-month Hidden GEM Career Pathways Program, and pay rent for our creative studio so we can continue operating our employment program which connects up to 100 alumni from our talent pool to job opportunities. This program recruits and professionally trains a cohort of up to 45 young BIPOC filmmakers (ages 18-28) in an intensive film training and mentorship program where they create content that leads to their employment or enrollment in post-secondary education. Funds support filmmakers develop portfolios/resumes and pipelines them into internships, apprenticeships and entry-level jobs, while improving outcomes as it relates to employment, housing, education and mental health. All content students produce is stipended and made in collaboration with local community leaders, non-profits, and local social justice initiatives. |
CAREER PATHWAYS PROGRAM SCREENWRITERS WORKSHOP SOCIAL ENTERPRISE WORK PROGRAM |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | Hidden GEM Creative Studios | 5621 Lowell St. Suite G, Oakland, 94608 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (206) 214-7496 | California Assembly district 15 | Funds requested will allow us to hire part-time instructors and youth interns to lead our 9-month Hidden GEM Career Pathways Program, and pay rent for our creative studio so we can continue operating our social enterprise which hires up to 100 alumni from our talent pool to work on films. This program recruits and professionally trains a cohort of up to 45 young BIPOC filmmakers (ages 18-28) in an intensive film training and mentorship program where they create content that leads to employment or enrollment in post-secondary education. Funds support filmmakers develop portfolios/resumes and pipelines them into internships, apprenticeships and entry-level jobs, while improving employment, housing, education and mental health outcomes. Students are provided a stipend for their creative work and they make content in collaboration with local community leaders, non-profits, and social justice initiatives. |
CAREER PATHWAYS PROGRAM SCREENWRITERS WORKSHOP SOCIAL ENTERPRISE WORK PROGRAM |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Mariposa Arts Council | 5009 CA-140 , Mariposa, 95338 | Mariposa | Central Valley | (209) 966-3155 | California's 4th congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | This program serves rural, severely geographically isolated youth—including a significant number of Indigenous and undocumented students, most of whom live in the lowest quartiles of the Healthy Places Index. The Mariposa County Arts Council’s SITE + VISION program builds visual literacy skills among high school students through structured engagement with curated museum exhibitions in the Bay Area. California Arts Council grant funds will support direct program costs, including curriculum development and in class artist/educator facilitation, and transportation costs. The 5-week standards-aligned unit includes in-class preparation, a museum field trip, and a creative reflection process. By teaching students to analyze visual imagery, the program fosters critical thinking, empathy, and cultural awareness. SITE + VISION offers equitable access to high-quality arts experiences that would otherwise be out of reach for this isolated and underserved student population. |
The Mariposa County Arts Council (MCACI) opened its doors in 1981 and is dedicated to enriching Mariposa through the arts. Serving the county at large and working closely with our local government leaders as well as individuals, regional organizations and businesses, we develop and implement cultural policies, creative placemaking projects, arts educations initiatives and produce artistic programming designed to positively increase the visibility of Mariposa and amplify the many diverse voices in our community. Our work welcomes all local residents and visitors to engage with art experiences and is designed to facilitate personal interpretations, expression, and growth; strengthen social connections and community dialogue; connect rural Mariposa to issues, movements, and opportunities beyond its borders; and support the healthy development of individuals of all ages by engaging them in the creation and appreciation of art. MCACI’s work includes: develop cultural policy and creative placemaking initiatives; providing technical assistance to regional artists and arts organizations; developing and delivering a variety of TK-12 grade creative youth development and arts education programming to youth across Mariposa County; targeted mentoring programming for at-promise youth; special arts programming for adults with limited or no access to the arts (particularly incarcerated and geographically isolated older adults); public programming (community theatre and summer concert series); and local, regional, state, and national advocacy work. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,900.00 | City of Berkeley | Civic Arts | 2180 Milvia St , Berkeley, 94704-1122 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 981-7539 | With support from the California Arts Council, the City of Berkeley | Civic Arts will make additional funding awards in its grants programs. |
The Civic Arts Program (Civic Arts) is housed within the City’s Office of Economic Development and implemented by the City’s Civic Arts staff. The organizational structure and work flow of the Civic Arts creates an interrelationship between elected officials, City staff, Civic Arts Commissioners and the various arts programs, activities, and policies. Civic Arts currently has four core programmatic areas: 1. Civic Arts manages a transparent and equitable grants process to distribute City funds to artists, arts organizations, and festivals in the City of Berkeley. 2. Civic Arts works with artists to produce permanent and temporary public art projects throughout Berkeley in accordance with two city ordinances; Berkeley Municipal Code Section 6.14 (which provides opportunities for the placement of site-specific public art projects in public spaces), and the Public Art on Private Development Ordinance. 3. Some of the recent strategic initiatives and partnerships Civic Arts has engaged in include: 4.The City of Berkeley’s poet laureate program honors a Berkeley-based poet, spoken word, or other literary artist to serve as a creative ambassador of the city. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,800.00 | Vatthanatham Lao Foundation | 1146 MIRROR LAKE DR , MERCED, 95340-0669 | Merced | Central Valley | (424) 272-5889 | With support from the California Arts council, Vatthanatham Lao Foundation will help with; |
Lao New Year celebration, Lao Arts & Culture Summer camp, Lao Boat Racing Festival |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | Elemental Music | 1906 Olympic Blvd , Santa Monica, 90404-3816 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 220-0349 | California Assembly district 50 | District 50 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Elemental Music will support staff salaries and music teacher fees related to Encore, our free private music lesson program that serves primarily underresourced students, 100% of whom are Title I music students in the Santa Monica-Malibu Unified School District |
Since 2004, we have served over 3,000 students across 10 programs. We changed our organization name from Elemental Strings to Elemental Music in 2016 to reflect the broad variety of programs offered. Our ensemble and lesson programs comprehensively address the needs of hundreds of motivated young musicians each season. Most of our programs are ensemble-based: Prelude (3rd–4th grade beginning strings) Our ensembles perform 3 concerts annually. Ensemble students also often take part in community performances at Little League games, local cafes, movie theaters, and even a residency at a senior living community. We also have 1 private music lesson program: Bergmann Program/Encore (4th–12th grade/ free, year-round private lessons to 90 socioeconomically disadvantaged SMMUSD students who could not otherwise afford this critical tool in a musician’s development) In the 2022/23 season, we also launched three new programs: Elemental Music Teaching Fellowship (a paid fellowship for college musicians in southern California to receive hands-on teaching experience in our Santa Monica ensemble programs, mentorship, and professional development training, with the goal of expanding representation of teachers from marginalized backgrounds in the music classroom) Elemental @ Broadway (choirs for grades K–5 and string classes for grades 3–5 at Los Angeles Unified School District’s Broadway Elementary School) Elemental @ Westminster (sequential in-school general music classes for grades 3–5 at Los Angeles Unified School District’s Title I Westminster Elementary) |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Modoc County Arts Council | 212 W. Third St. , Alturas, 96101 | Modoc | Upstate | (530) 708-7233 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Modoc County Arts Council will supports art programs that will serve to preserve and inspire marginalized groups, activate youth voices, promote wellness, and celebrate cultural diversity. Collaboration with Warner Mountain Indian Health Clinic’s Teen Wellness Cafe to create a mural that will build familial and community bonds in a sober environment. MCAC will utilize cultural assets by implementing arts events to support tribal communities rebuild the erasure of their culture from local history of boarding schools and genocide. By partnering with Modoc County Probation and CASA to reach justice-involved youth, and Pit River Indian Behavioral Health we will use art therapy to develop murals that support personal health, improve positive identity, and reflect hope for the future, and give back to the community through restorative justice. |
The Modoc County Arts Council is organized into four main programs: Visual Arts, Arts Education, Performing Arts, & Culture. Under Visual Arts we have gallery shows including a student art show, and a digital art gallery (pending), Sponsorship of galleries in two Modoc towns, mural projects on buildings in Alturas and Cedarville; under Arts education we have consulting and collaborating with the Modoc High Art Classes, our Arts Instructors Program in partnership with The Art Center of Alturas, and sponsorship of local galleries in two Modoc County towns that have arts educational programs; under Performing Arts we have the Missoula Children’s Theatre one-week residency and the Poetry Out Loud programs for Modoc County, as well as partner with the Modoc Performing Arts Theater and the Modoc High School Drama Club. We have implemented the Modoc Community Concert Series and have four concerts per year – we hope to expand this to eight concerts per year with additional funding. We have a community radio station KILN 99.1 LP FM that has local content from area musicians and provides consulting and assistance with recording. Under Culture we have anticipated partnerships with the Library, Museum, local ranches, and Tribes to provide venues, events, and classes that foster the celebration and understanding, and artwork of different cultures in Modoc County. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Sacramento Master Singers | PO BOX 15020 , SACRAMENTO, 95851 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 788-7464 | California's 6th congressional district | District 7 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Sacramento Master Singers will use grant funds to help pay for general operating expenses associated with the 2025-26 season. These expenses include venue rental fees, marketing expenses, and salaries for our artistic and administrative staff. |
The Sacramento Master Singers presents three unique programs of choral music each year, covering a broad spectrum of themes, styles, and genres. These concerts take place in December, March and May, including a family holiday concert for a total of 10 performances. The Sacramento Master Singers Scholarship for Young Choral Singers was established in 2003 in memory of Asya Pleskach, a former SMS singer who passed away in a car accident at the young age of 18. The purpose of this scholarship is to encourage young, dynamic singers with strong leadership skills who dedicate their talents and energies toward their school, church or community choral programs. Winners and runners-up are recognized and perform at our May concerts. Every 2-3 years we also host a collaborative concert with area high school choirs in which our director works with the choirs ahead of time, each choir performs 1-2 of its own pieces, and then all choirs and the Sacramento Master Singers perform together collaboratively at the end of the concert. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,750.00 | JOYCE GORDON FOUNDATION OF THE ARTS | 406 14TH ST , OAKLAND, 94612-2702 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 823-8152 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Joyce Gordon Foundation of the Arts, a small Oakland-based arts organization, will present renowned vocalist and educator Faye Carol and her ensemble in lecture/performances centering women in jazz and blues, in celebration of Women’s History Month, at 8 Title 1 public schools in historically Black, low-income communities of East Oakland, West Oakland and Richmond. This program is collaboratively developed with community members and responds to a community defined need for culturally responsive arts curricula in underserved public schools, centering Black communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification. |
We present the annual Oakland Youth Art Explosion (OYAE), a two-day program consisting of a youth art exhibit and reception, along with an outdoor street festival exclusively for youth. The festival includes free workshops by professional artists, music, dance performances, spoken word, and a youth entrepreneur vendor market. The program seeks to empower and inspire youth to take an active role in the arts community here in Oakland, while also providing a platform for emerging young artists to showcase their work. Through this program, young people will gain valuable skills in curation, project management, and leadership, while also contributing to the cultural landscape in our community. Our annual Holiday Youth Jazz Benefit Concert employs young musicians from the Oakland School of the Arts and invite them to perform a concert for community members at the Joyce Gordon Gallery. Musicians are paid for their time and celebrated for their talents. This program also includes a youth entrepreneur vendor market during and after the show. We use funds raised from ticket sales to purchase jackets for distribution to underserved youth throughout Oakland. In 2025 we presented the Handful of Keys masterclass series, featuring a series of free 6 piano masterclasses led by master artists and educators in our community. Classes delved into the Black cultural traditions of jazz, blues, R&B, gospel, funk, and beyond. Our annual lecture-performance series at presents Black History Month programs at eight Title 1 public schools in historically Black neighborhoods of West Oakland, East Oakland, and Richmond. This free program brings professional musicians to perform assemblies at under-resourced public schools and teach students about the origins of Black music and the connection of the arts to Black history and social movements. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,750.00 | Masil | 6233 BLOSSOM AVE , SAN JOSE, 95123-4604 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (669) 216-0424 | Simcheong’s Secret Recipe is a bilingual, community-engaged performance project that brings together Korean American elders and younger generations through food, storytelling, and theater. Developed by Masil Theater in collaboration with Korean American Community Services and Rising Youth Theatre, the project centers on immigrant women whose stories have rarely been heard on stage. Many elders feel disconnected from their children and grandchildren due to language and cultural shifts. While younger generations may not speak Korean, food remains a shared bridge, carrying memories, identity, and care across time. Through interviews, story-based workshops, and a staged reading in San Jose, participants will create and perform original material based on their lived experiences. This work aims to reconnect generations, honor unseen labor, and spark healing dialogue within the Korean American community through the shared language of food and performance. |
In the hope Art gives rest to live, and life gives breath to the Art |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Rhythmix Cultural Works | 2513 Blanding Avenue , Alameda, 94501 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 865-5060 | 12th Congressional District of California | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Rhythmix Cultural Works (RCW) will present Performance, Art & Learning “PAL”, a multicultural arts education program that presents professional world music and dance assemblies to elementary school students throughout Alameda County. From October 2025 – September 2026, PAL will present 16 multicultural performances at RCW’s Alameda-based theater and neighboring school district theaters to over 4,000 students from 30+ schools in Alameda County highlighting music and dance traditions from around the globe including Africa, Asia, South America, the Caribbean, Southeast Asia and the Pacific. Supplemental curriculum materials are provided for teacher and student use. PAL helps to empower underserved youth by fostering awareness about world cultures and stimulates a sense of pride in students’ cultural heritage by deepening connections to their communities. |
Rhythmix Cultural Works (RCW) serves approximately 15,000 adults and students each year through a combination of performances, classes and workshops. RCW features artists that present a mix of contemporary and traditional arts disciplines from around the world. RCW offers a wide array of programming including world music concerts, art walks, festivals, music appreciation classes, K Gallery art exhibits, family events, and free/low-cost world music and dance assemblies through RCW’s Performance, Art & Learning (PAL) program offered to thousands of students throughout Alameda County. Over the years, live performances of various genres have included Latin jazz, Bollywood blues, Venezuelan Rock fusion, flamenco, comedy, and free community events such as RCW’s Island City Waterways, Love Our Island Art Walks, and ‘Round the World Festivals. After emerging from the pandemic, Rhythmix expanded its live PAL assembly offerings and created new free community programs including cultural heritage festivals and a world music family concert series in local parks. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | Rhythmix Cultural Works | 2513 Blanding Avenue , Alameda, 94501 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 865-5060 | 12th Congressional District of California | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Rhythmix Cultural Works (RCW) will continue to create and produce engaging and culturally relevant multidisciplinary arts programming that is meaningful and accessible to the communities that it serves. Working collaboratively with local artists and organizations, RCW’s programs reflect the cultural heritage and diversity of the Bay Area, activate public spaces, bring local history to life and honor and uplift historically marginalized populations. As the organization grows and deepens its impact, RCW is committed to strengthening its capacity to meet the evolving needs of its community. RCW remains dedicated to its mission of building community by inspiring engagement in the arts—creating opportunities for people to connect, learn from one another, and gain deeper understanding of the world through shared arts and cultural experiences. |
Rhythmix Cultural Works (RCW) serves approximately 15,000 adults and students each year through a combination of performances, classes and workshops. RCW features artists that present a mix of contemporary and traditional arts disciplines from around the world. RCW offers a wide array of programming including world music concerts, art walks, festivals, music appreciation classes, K Gallery art exhibits, family events, and free/low-cost world music and dance assemblies through RCW’s Performance, Art & Learning (PAL) program offered to thousands of students throughout Alameda County. Over the years, live performances of various genres have included Latin jazz, Bollywood blues, Venezuelan Rock fusion, flamenco, comedy, and free community events such as RCW’s Island City Waterways, Love Our Island Art Walks, and ‘Round the World Festivals. After emerging from the pandemic, Rhythmix expanded its live PAL assembly offerings and created new free community programs including cultural heritage festivals and a world music family concert series in local parks. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | Media Arts Santa Ana, a project of Community Partners | PO Box 1816 , Santa Ana, 92701 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (888) 906-0340 | California's 46th congressional district | District 68 | District 34 | With support from the California Arts Council, Media Arts Santa Ana will launch the Santa Ana Multi-Media Institute (SAMMI), a free multi-faceted intergenerational program that teaches artists and community members how to impact positive community change via digital production skills, citizen journalism, mini-documentaries, social media commentaries, podcasts, video poems, public service announcements and innovative digital media campaigns. This program centers artists and community members to collaborate on, develop and produce a magazine-format arts and cultural affairs series that addresses community issues, such as social justice, health and wellness, housing insecurity, historical erasure/trauma, poverty and immigrant and LGBTQ+ rights. SAMMI will utilize acclaimed instructors who foster creative social change through their work to empower and inspire participants to use technology and creative expression to heal, uplift, and transform the historically under-resourced and marginalized Santa Ana community. |
MASA’s core programs include the OC Film Fiesta multicultural film festival, SMART Walk (South Main Art, Retail & Technology) resource fair, the Millennial Producers Academy (MILPA), Cafe MASA, Grassroots Garage Band, MASARTE Gallery exhibits, Curator Incubator Project, the OC Teen Cinema Camp, the Youth Murals and Media Class and Taco Truck Cinema. MASA is also a presenting partner in Arts Orange County’s OC Día del Niño festival. MASA promotes self-expression, community empowerment, civic participation and cultural agility by providing affordable film screenings and discussions, media arts training and interdisciplinary workshops to underserved youth and adults in the primarily Latino immigrant and working class communities in and around Santa Ana. Media Arts Santa Ana operates the TVGB Digital Maker Space and MASARTE Gallery, located in the Santa Ana Arts Collective artist affordable housing building, located at 1666 N Main in Santa Ana. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Tuleburg Press/The Write Place | 343 E. Main St., #101 , Stockton, 95202 | San Joaquin | Central Valley | (209) 949-2233 | California's 9th congressional district | District 13 | District 5 | Wordstock209 is a proposed week-long, community-based literary festival that will take place in Stockton, California, in 2026. In collaboration with the Behavioral Health Program of Community Medical Centers, our team includes B.C. Leake, the Season 15 America’s Got Talent winner, Orlando “”Zeps” Molina, author of the children’s series Rhymosaurs, the four San Joaquin county poets laureate (Tracy, Stockton, Escalon and Lodi). This event will spotlight all the San Joaquin County Poets Laureate and serve as a platform to uplift local and regional voices, celebrate diverse literary traditions, and engage the public in free, accessible literary programming. The festival will feature readings, workshops, school visits, and hands-on book arts activities for youth and families. In addition to delivering meaningful community impact, Wordstock209 will further elevate Tuleburg Press as a literary leader in planning, coordination, and outreach. |
Tuleburg Press publishes local authors and mentors emerging writers at The Write Place, the organization’s creative writing and book arts center. We publish 1-3 books a year. Classes and field trips for people of all ages, with specific attention to low-income and marginalized groups, are held in papermaking, bookbinding, letterpress printing, and writing in fiction, creative nonfiction, and poetry. We currently serve between 30-40 participants a month. Tuleburg Press collaborates with other organizations to provide these same services to specific groups: the San Joaquin County Office of Education, Community Medical Centers, and San Joaquin County Housing Authority communities are priority partners. We also work with justice-impacted individuals through memoir writing and journal-making workshops in partnership with Friends Outside and the Community Medical Centers Respite Center, supporting healing and self-expression through the literary arts. Tuleburg Press is a stakeholder in the revitalization of the downtown Stockton core and a lead organization on arts advocacy and access in Stockton. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | Blindspot Collective | 601 11th Avenue, Unit 1103 , San Diego, 92101-7865 | San Diego | Far South | (405) 206-4345 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Blindspot Collective will create, produce, and tour a brand new theatre production designed for early elementary schools in low-income, rural, or historically underserved communities in San Diego County. The production will center social-emotional skills, sustainability, and inclusive storytelling, using original characters and student participation to promote connection, joy, and imaginative play. CAC grant funds will support the development, production, and delivery of performances at local schools, ensuring access to high-quality arts experiences at no cost to participating campuses. The project aims to uplift youth, strengthen school communities, and reduce barriers to arts engagement by bringing transformative, culturally responsive programming directly to students where they are. |
Since its founding in 2017, Blindspot Collective has developed new works of theatre with and for historically marginalized communities in San Diego County. We believe storytelling is a valuable tool to build human connections and foster understanding between disparate communities, as evidenced by past projects that highlighted the experiences of refugees, immigrants, people of color, transgender youth, people with disabilities, military veterans, and other marginalized groups. In addition to in-school performances, workshops, and residences serving K-12 students, we develop original work that merges artistic excellence and culturally responsive community development. Blindspot Collective has received acclaim for both its innovative original work, much of which is site-responsive or tours locally to increase community accessibility, and its development processes, which prioritize authentic community engagement and participation toward sustainable cultural change. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Pedal Press | 2117 Esplanade , Chico, 95926 | Butte | Upstate | (530) 520-3110 | District 1 | District 3 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pedal Press will expand its art-based youth programs in Butte County, focusing on justice-involved youth, particularly from Chico, Oroville, and Paradise. CAC funds will support a re-entry program in partnership with Butte County probation. Programming integrates social-emotional learning, case management, and career and technical education through screenprinting. Youth will gain hands-on skills, income, and leadership opportunities while addressing social determinants of health like economic stability, education, and community connection. Funds will also support staffing, outreach, and evaluation to measure impact and improve program delivery. |
Our organization offers accessible and affordable printing services to our community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,040.00 | Los Angeles Master Chorale | 135 NORTH GRAND AVENUE , LOS ANGELES, 90012-3013 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 972-3121 | California's 34th congressional district | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Master Chorale will increase youth participation in and access to high-quality, culturally responsive, vocal arts education through Voices Within and Youth Chorus Los Angeles. |
The Grammy™ Award-winning Los Angeles Master Chorale is the “the finest-by-far major chorus in America” (Los Angeles Times) and a vibrant cultural treasure. Hailed for its powerful performances, technical precision, and artistic daring, the Chorale is led by Grant Gershon, Kiki & David Gindler Artistic Director; Associate Artistic Director Jenny Wong; and President & CEO Scott Altman. Created by legendary conductor Roger Wagner in 1964, the Chorale is a founding resident company of The Music Center and choir-in-residence at Walt Disney Concert Hall. A standard-bearer for classical music performed at the highest level, the Chorale continues to balance traditional and evolving repertoire. Having just celebrated its 60th anniversary, the Chorale has spent decades growing its reputation and has established itself as a critical leader in classical choral music. We envision a world in which choral music is a conduit for belonging, a vehicle for participation in the arts, and a means for understanding and exploring commonalities and differences. Each year, the Chorale involves approximately 80,000 in-person concertgoers, students, families and community members through its own concert series at Walt Disney Concert Hall, learning programs, innovative collaborations, commissioning of new work, recordings, performances with the L.A. Phil, LA Sings! community concerts, and domestic and international touring. The Chorale is dedicated to transforming L.A. into a city of singers and nurturing our vibrant choral ecosystem. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,250.00 | "" | 1117 Mountain Blvd , Oakland, 94611-1958 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 846-5828 | 12th Congressional district of California | Assembly District 14 | Senate District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Hungry Ghost Productions will produce ‘Love Letter to Oakland #4,’ a collaborative mural project at Oakland Technical High School that celebrates the city’s intergenerational creative legacy through student-led public art. Led by professional muralist-educators, the project will engage over 1,800 students in nominating notable alumni and peers to feature, 50 in design workshops, and 10 for hands-on mural mentorships. Community painting days and a public unveiling event will further connect students, families, faculty, and local leaders. The mural will include a QR-linked short documentary exploring Oakland’s intergenerational cultural heritage. CAC funds will support artist fees, materials including adaptive brushes, and documentation. At a Title 1 school facing budget cuts, this project provides vital, arts-rich learning that fosters identity, representation, and pride. |
PUBLIC ARTS: site specific, community-driven murals ARTS EDUCATION: COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT: involve community in co-creation of public art to promote representation, connection, and belonging. Encourage civic engagement and dialogue. CULTURAL AWARENESS AND PRESERVATION COMMUNITY IMPROVEMENT AND REVITALIZATION |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Geoffrey's Inner Circle | 410 14th St , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 839-4644 | 13th Congressional District of California | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Geoffrey’s Inner Circle will pursue our ongoing programming and operations as a small arts and cultural organization and further our mission as a multidisciplinary arts venue and Black cultural center to uplift and promote Black culture and diverse Black art forms in Oakland through educational and performance initiatives, engaging youth, seniors, and low-income individuals. |
Geoffrey’s Inner Circle is a multidisciplinary arts venue and Black cultural center, operating as a hub of Black life in Oakland since the late 1970s and in its current downtown location since 1993. Geoffrey’s has for over 40 years consistently produced arts & culture programming including music and comedy shows, jam sessions, festivals, community events, vocal and instrumental masterclasses with resident and visiting artists, an annual 10-week youth arts intensive, free summer camp programs for youth, livestreams and lecture/performances for youth, and political events. Geoffrey’s centers Black musical forms including jazz, blues, gospel, hip-hop, R&B; Black spoken word and rap traditions; and Black traditions of dance including lindy hop, swing, turf, hip-hop, and West African dance; and features programming celebrating Black History Month, Black Music Month, and Kwanzaa. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | Geoffrey's Inner Circle | 410 14th St , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 839-4644 | 13th Congressional District of California | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Geoffrey’s Inner Circle will offer our fourth annual Youth Arts Camp in Oakland in summer 2026. This program is collaboratively developed with community members and addresses to a community-identified need for youth arts education centering Black youth and Black cultural traditions that is accessible to low-income families. Our Youth Arts Camp is a free, week-long intensive engaging Black youth ages 10-16 of all skill levels, offering a multidisciplinary arts curriculum with classes in singing, dance, rap, percussion, music theory, and visual art taught by a lineup of renowned Oakland-based artist-educators. |
Geoffrey’s Inner Circle is a multidisciplinary arts venue and Black cultural center, operating as a hub of Black life in Oakland since the late 1970s and in its current downtown location since 1993. Geoffrey’s has for over 40 years consistently produced arts & culture programming including music and comedy shows, jam sessions, festivals, community events, vocal and instrumental masterclasses with resident and visiting artists, an annual 10-week youth arts intensive, free summer camp programs for youth, livestreams and lecture/performances for youth, and political events. Geoffrey’s centers Black musical forms including jazz, blues, gospel, hip-hop, R&B; Black spoken word and rap traditions; and Black traditions of dance including lindy hop, swing, turf, hip-hop, and West African dance; and features programming celebrating Black History Month, Black Music Month, and Kwanzaa. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,900.00 | Washington Neighborhood Center | 400 16TH ST , SACRAMENTO, 95814-1003 | Sacramento | Capital | (408) 648-6205 | California's 6th congressional district | District 6 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Washington Neighborhood Center will cover increased general operating costs tied to the launch of eight new facilities in Spring 2026. Funds will support staff wages, utilities, insurance, facility maintenance, and essential administrative functions. In addition, the grant will strengthen program delivery through artist stipends, materials, equipment, and venue rentals. This support is critical to sustaining our expanded operations while ensuring all programs remain free and accessible. It reflects our ongoing commitment to equity by removing barriers related to cost, language, and physical accessibility for the communities we serve. |
Our programming is based on our pillars of Cultural Art-Activism, Academic and Career Readiness, and Health and Wellness. – K-12th Grade STEAM events: Integrating science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics to foster curiosity and critical thinking skills. – Youth and all ages open mic and art gallery: Providing platforms for artistic expression and talent showcase. – Chicano Drawing Classes: Exploring identity and heritage through visual arts. – Native Garden and S.T.E.A.M. Soil Lab: Beautifying the community while educating on sustainable practices and indigenous plant species, as well as learning about biology through the soil. – Art Activism: Using creative expression as a tool for social transformation and awareness. – Open Wall: Offering a safe space for artists, including “street artists,” to create freely without fear of harassment or prosecution. – 2 Spirit queer trans job readiness empowerment sessions: Tailored support and resources for marginalized communities seeking economic independence and empowerment. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Your Neighborhood Museum | 4707 Fountain Ave , Los Angeles, 90029 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 788-3012 | With support from the California Arts Council, Your Neighborhood Museum will bring together Native artists, culture workers, and repatriation specialists for a 2-day convening. We will establish a cohort that will build upon the evolving role of Native artists in the repatriation of cultural items from museums and universities. Our goals are to support Native artists who are seeking informed guidance as they encounter repatriation practice in museums, foster mutual support among the cohort, build awareness of the impacts of repatriation by examining the tensions faced by Native artists who must engage with museums that are interested in their art while simultaneously falling behind on the return of ancestral remains and cultural items. The convening will empower artists to engage institutions in meaningful discussions, advocating for artists while also supporting repatriation. |
We utilize mutual aid frameworks to provide museum services like conservation, archiving, exhibitions, public programs, grant writing, repatriation support, and research directly to our communities, as well as training in these areas. We do this by creating more sustainable community-led models for curation, preservation, and programming. We make these skills and resources accessible to those under-resourced and under-recognized by traditional art institutions. We leverage our skills, networks, and experience to support preservation projects led by communities. We create systems that better serve the immediate needs of communities while investigating and addressing root causes, such as inequities in preservation investments and a lack of diversified options for training and development. Our collaborators have decades of cumulative experience in social justice organizing and cultural heritage care both within and outside of traditional institutional structures. We provide training and mentorship, sacred site protection, heritage care workshops, and technical and administrative support. Previously supporting our communities as volunteers, in 2019 we began formalizing to build our capacity and received our 501c3 status in 2021. Our largest program is CARE: Caring for and Repatriating Everything, a seminar and workshop series that supports California Tribes reclaiming cultural items under the Federal and California Native American Graves Protection and Repatriation Acts (NAGPRA/Cal-NAGPRA). This program covers the repatriation processes and caring for cultural materials with Know-Your-Right and skills based training, grants for cultural workers, and building networks of mutual support. Workshops with Community Partners: we offer hands-on training, like basket cleaning with CA Tribal partners, removing museum labels on repatriated items, testing for harmful pesticides on repatriated items, addressing fire and smoke damage on art and belongings in LA. Mentorship: Providing hands-on skills-building, field work, and intellectually rigorous experiences for students by utilizing existing YNM programs for training while co-developing leadership opportunities with students to facilitate programs. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Mil-Tree | P.O. Box 1762 , Joshua Tree, 92252 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (323) 791-2986 | District 23rd | District 47 | District 19 | Writes of Passage: Journeys of Service is a collaborative storytelling project that brings veterans and civilians together to share and preserve personal narratives of service. The program begins with a story hike to build connection, followed by a 2.5-day retreat led by local culture bearers. Participants then engage in writing and storytelling workshops, culminating in public performances. A consistent cohort allows participants to develop their stories over time, fostering trust and understanding. Centered in the Morongo Basin—home to a significant veteran population—this initiative is led by local, military and community-based facilitators who understand the isolation and marginalization faced by both veterans and rural residents. Stories will be recorded and archived online, uplifting underrepresented voices and strengthening community ties. CAC funds will support artist facilitators, culture bearers, venue, social worker and media production. |
Mil-Tree’s core programs are creative and art-based workshops and retreats that support our vision to provide safe spaces for veterans returning to civilian life to gather, express themselves and tell their stories in a non-judgmental environment. We do this through ongoing creative programs that engage veterans and their families, active military and the greater community. Mil-Tree is a grassroots nonprofit organization based in the High Desert community of Joshua Tree, California serving San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. The organization is inclusive and offers creative outlets in the arts and held spaces for dialogue and discussion for veterans, active military and civilians. Mil-Tree was created to welcome our veterans home not only with words by providing various opportunities of engagement with the community at large. Recognizing the loss incurred by leaving the close-knit unit formed in the military, this organization strives to help build new relationships within the community. We include active military, family members and civilians to accomplish this goal, and provide different types of art workshops and projects, including movement, writing, art, music, theater, building and rock climbing. We also provide dialogue circles and retreats to help support the ongoing transition from military service into civilian life. Our programs have a strong track record of positive impact on program participants. Those who participate feeling alone or isolated find a fun, safe and creative environment where collaboration and expression lead easily to new friendships. We have found that arts and dialogue are the best way to bridge different parts of community, building on trust and the things we have in common. Often our programs lead to personal transformation and growth, and the synergy created between our participants is recognizable and profound. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Pacific Opera Project | 125 S. Avenue 57 , LOS ANGELES, 90042 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 739-6122 | 34th Congressional District | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pacific Opera Project will reinforce the staffing and programming that support education and community engagement opportunities for those with limited access to live musical performances. Following the successful pilot of our first Spanish-language music education program curriculum in spring of 2025, POP’s Education & Community Engagement Department will integrate this continuing initiative into our broader spectrum of engagement activities, supporting our first mainstage production in Spanish/English (May 2026). POP will also enhance access to live opera performances for our school partners through a touring version of our “Cinderella Story” (2024), which POP will produce on-site at six schools in FY26. |
Founded in 2011 by Artistic Director Josh Shaw, POP produces 4-5 fully staged operas with orchestra annually. POP’s team includes 3 FT and 7 PT staff, c. 40 volunteers, and c. 150 contracted artists. With tickets starting at $15, POP’s production model attracts audiences seeking an accessible entry point while high artistic standards sustain our devoted audience base. POP’s institutional maturity is reflected in its inclusion on the LA Times “Best of 2024 in Classical Music” list. POP’s Education & Engagement Department (est. 2021) helps youth and adults experience opera as a vehicle for human connection and creativity through free and low-cost educational school residencies and community performances. Core Programs 1. Mainstage Programs 2. Youth Programs 3. Highland Park Recital Series |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | Cultural Odyssey | 762 FULTON ST 3RD FLOOR 301 P.O. Box 156620, San Francisco, CA 94115, SAN FRANCISCO, 94102-4119 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 292-5589 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, IDRIS ACKAMOOR AND CULTURAL ODYSSEY (IACO) will produce “Artistic Beingness,” an innovative residency that promotes artists’ ability to thrive as working professionals in California. It includes a live performance by the world renowned Idris Ackamoor providing: (1) Three Artist Survival Seminars with networking resources to link artists to business supports; As SF’s oldest, continuously operating African American performing arts organization, IACO has employed 1000s of artists. It promotes emerging artists by facilitating the next generation to survive and retire in San Francisco. “Artistic Beingness” will be RECORDED as part of IACO’s “Don’t Drop Dead on Stage: Prosperity, Sustainability, & Success” an unprecedented curriculum that integrates 50 years of “Lessons Learned,” for future artists. |
As the oldest, continuously operating African American performing arts organization in San Francisco, IACO has employed 1000s of arts professionals, contributing to the vitalization and diversity of the local arts industry. (1) Founded in 1972, Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids Ankhestra (IAPA) implements innovative arts experimentation through live productions and international publications. For example, Black History Month 2024, IAPA performed the UNDERGROUND JAZZ CABARET residency featuring movie star DANNY GLOVER and legendary actress/activist RHODESSA JONES. Sold-out audiences witnessed multidisciplinary arts, woven into historic, imminent social issues as part of SF FOUNDATION’S BAY AREA CREATIVE CHANGE program (Strut Records/iK7 April 2025 release). (2) Committed to dismantling biases and stereotypes, AFRICAN AMERICAN THEATER ALLIANCE FOR INDEPENDENCE (AATAIN) is IACO’s consortium of SF fiscal sponsorees that work together to increase inclusion of underrepresented artists in the City. In 1998, AATAIN! became a landmark project, pioneering the regranting business model to save Black theater (inspired by August Wilson). This includes Fiscal Sponsorship, Technical Assistance, development resources, and mentoring. Since 2021, AATAIN! collectively activated 17 Cultural Spaces by producing 85 public events, 28 workshops, 51 artworks, 4 exhibitions, and compensating over 100 arts professionals. Distributing $2.4 million, IACO’s highlighted regrantees have included African American Shakespeare, AfroSolo Theatre, Bay Area Theater Company, African American Art & Culture Center, and Medea Project: Theater For Incarcerated Women (an IACO founded company). (3) “Don’t Drop Dead on Stage” is a new curriculum/workshop series designed to educate artists and arts administrators to establish economic security and long-term sustainability in San Francisco. (4) Film Production: Based on its historic role in pioneering the Performance Art Theatrical Method, IACO’s tradition of ”Arts as Social Activism” continues in its public awareness films. Examples include: ”This Ain’t Your Mamas Theater Company” (women’s health/incarceration), ”Artistic Being” (imminent politics), and “We Just Telling Stories“ (theater recovery in prisons). |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | Opera Parallele | 44 PAGE ST STE 400 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94102-5975 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 626-6279 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Opera Parallèle (OP) and partners will produce the fifth iteration of Expansive, a collaboration between OP and San Francisco’s Transgender District (TGD or “the District”) that celebrates the breadth of transgender and gender nonbinary performing artists by showcasing such artists working in classical music and opera. Our partnership furthers TGD’s strategic initiatives to celebrate the culture, resilience, and resistance of transgender individuals in the city’s Tenderloin neighborhood through arts and culture programming led by and for transgender people, while offering a career-enhancing performance opportunity and compensation for transgender artists, and a boost to the local economy for LGBTQ+-friendly business owners, cultural workers, and more. |
Opera Parallèle develops and performs contemporary opera, commissions new works, and re-orchestrates existing contemporary grand opera, breathing new life into underperformed masterworks of the 20th and 21st centuries. Embracing rituals of old while bravely finding space for the new, this tension sparks creativity—colorful collisions that inspire new ways of experiencing opera. Born in San Francisco, a city built on both old and new, between art and technology, Opera Parallèle merges tradition with innovation to reimagine the power of opera for our modern world, highlighting stories of social relevance that explore the depth of the human condition. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | Cultural Odyssey | 762 FULTON ST 3RD FLOOR 301 P.O. Box 156620, San Francisco, CA 94115, SAN FRANCISCO, 94102-4119 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 292-5589 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, IDRIS ACKAMOOR AND CULTURAL ODYSSEY (IACO) will contribute to the vibrant culture of arts in California by advancing a diverse arts workforce and providing innovative community resources through three (3) goals: 1. To produce critically-acclaimed arts events that improve racial equity and access to workforce opportunities through the employment and education of artists; Implementing these goals assures IACO’s long-term continuation, across generations, by contributing effectual resources to the next generation of working artists. |
As the oldest, continuously operating African American performing arts organization in San Francisco, IACO has employed 1000s of arts professionals, contributing to the vitalization and diversity of the local arts industry. (1) Founded in 1972, Idris Ackamoor & The Pyramids Ankhestra (IAPA) implements innovative arts experimentation through live productions and international publications. For example, Black History Month 2024, IAPA performed the UNDERGROUND JAZZ CABARET residency featuring movie star DANNY GLOVER and legendary actress/activist RHODESSA JONES. Sold-out audiences witnessed multidisciplinary arts, woven into historic, imminent social issues as part of SF FOUNDATION’S BAY AREA CREATIVE CHANGE program (Strut Records/iK7 April 2025 release). (2) Committed to dismantling biases and stereotypes, AFRICAN AMERICAN THEATER ALLIANCE FOR INDEPENDENCE (AATAIN) is IACO’s consortium of SF fiscal sponsorees that work together to increase inclusion of underrepresented artists in the City. In 1998, AATAIN! became a landmark project, pioneering the regranting business model to save Black theater (inspired by August Wilson). This includes Fiscal Sponsorship, Technical Assistance, development resources, and mentoring. Since 2021, AATAIN! collectively activated 17 Cultural Spaces by producing 85 public events, 28 workshops, 51 artworks, 4 exhibitions, and compensating over 100 arts professionals. Distributing $2.4 million, IACO’s highlighted regrantees have included African American Shakespeare, AfroSolo Theatre, Bay Area Theater Company, African American Art & Culture Center, and Medea Project: Theater For Incarcerated Women (an IACO founded company). (3) “Don’t Drop Dead on Stage” is a new curriculum/workshop series designed to educate artists and arts administrators to establish economic security and long-term sustainability in San Francisco. (4) Film Production: Based on its historic role in pioneering the Performance Art Theatrical Method, IACO’s tradition of ”Arts as Social Activism” continues in its public awareness films. Examples include: ”This Ain’t Your Mamas Theater Company” (women’s health/incarceration), ”Artistic Being” (imminent politics), and “We Just Telling Stories“ (theater recovery in prisons). |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | The Wayward Artist | 4915 Alton Parkway , IRVINE, 92604 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 733-0220 | District 47 | District 73 | District 37 | The Wayward Artist is a nonprofit theater company in Irvine, California, dedicated to producing innovative, inclusive, and community-driven performances. We are requesting General Operating Support to sustain our core operations, including staff wages, rent, utilities, and administrative costs. This funding will support our continued commitment to artistic excellence and equity through programming like Wayward Voices, which uplifts BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ artists, and by offering accessible, socially relevant productions. Following our move to a new shared space with Irvine United Congregational Church, we are expanding our reach and building deeper community partnerships. General Operating Support will ensure our long-term stability and growth as we remain a creative home for emerging and marginalized artists in Orange County and continue our mission to reimagine theater as a space for radical inclusion, dialogue, and transformation. |
Core Programs and Services – The Wayward Artist Internship and Mentorship Programs OC Theatre Guild Membership and Collaboration Educational Outreach and Partnerships Wayward Voices: BIPOC Artist Initiative Community Engagement and Support |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Triton Museum of Art | 1505 Warburton Avenue , Santa Clara, 95050-3712 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 247-2438 | California's 17th congressional district | District 25 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, TRITON MUSEUM OF ART will continue its trajectory of increasing diversity and inclusive exhibitions and art education programming to better reflect and represent the cultural, educational, and professional demographics of our regional audience. Over the past five years, the Triton Museum has made great strides in reaching out to formerly under-represented facets of our community, in its exhibition programs, its board representation, and its staff diversity. While we have come far and are reaping the rewards of new programming, we still have much to do. A grant from the California Arts Council will not only enable us to continue in these efforts, but will serve as a statement of support and validation that our efforts to be inclusive, aware, and equitable are well founded and well received. |
The Triton Museum of Art is a vital community resource that provides accessible exhibition and education programs, which promote a broad range of contemporary California art. Through our multi-faceted programs, we strive to bring together the culturally diverse population of the Greater Bay Area to foster a better understanding of art and its role in building a strong community. Through its art exhibitions and collections, the Triton Museum showcases works by California artists that are aesthetically and historically significant to our region and which demonstrate the rich diversity of cultural traditions, influences, and ideas that make up our community. Education is central to the vision of the Museum and integral to the development and design of each exhibition. The Museum offers a learning environment in which curiosity, experimentation, and spirited dialogue are encouraged. Our aim is for each visitor to experience the Museum with enthusiasm, empowered by new perspectives and ideas. Art education programs for children, youth, and adults are designed to enhance the experience of art and to help develop skills of creation and appreciation. The Community is the life force of the Triton Museum of Art. Each exhibition and program is developed with the visitors’ experience as a compass. The Museum serves as a resource for the community through collaborations with local arts and service organizations, schools, universities, and local civic and corporate partners. For the entirety of its history, the Triton Museum of Art has been free to the public. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | The Center for ArtEsteem | 3111 West Street , Oakland, 94608 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 652-5530 | District 12 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Attitudinal Healing Connection, Inc., doing business as The Center for ArtEsteem, will engage 1,400 children and youth in weekly, standards-based integrated arts instruction through our ArtEsteem Integrated Arts Education program. ArtEsteem integrates sequential arts education with academic subjects, both during school hours and after school, for marginalized students of color in under-resourced K-12 Oakland schools, where students lack access to arts programming. The curriculum incorporates leadership development and cultural and environmental awareness while increasing access to arts instruction for youth. ArtEsteem also integrates Attitudinal Healing principles and practices, which support students’ social-emotional wellness, inner healing, self-esteem, creativity, and self-empowerment. The program engages youth in uplifting and inspiring creative practices and art projects that benefit their mental health and emotional resilience. |
ARTESTEEM Projects include: *ArtMobile *Oakland Super Heroes Mural Project *Professional Development *COMMUNITY BUILDING |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,000.00 | ANGELS GATE CULTURAL CENTER | 3601 S GAFFEY ST BOX 1/Building A , San Pedro, 90731 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 519-0936 | California's 44th congressional district | 65 | 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, Angels Gate Cultural Center will continue to carry out our mission to provide space for artists to work and to engage our community through arts education, exhibitions of contemporary art, and cultural events. As a primary provider of community-based arts programming for the Los Angeles Harbor area, AGCC recognizes our responsibility to provide equitable access to artistic and cultural resources for local families. We offer high-quality, year-round arts experiences for the public and elevate artists as integral and essential to a healthy and vibrant society. Grant funds will support salaries for our diverse staff of arts professionals, who curate and implement a robust calendar of programming designed to serve LA Harbor community members of all ages. |
Angels Gate Cultural Center (AGCC) is a nonprofit organization whose mission is to provide space for artists to work and to engage the community through arts education, exhibitions of contemporary art, and cultural events in the Los Angeles Harbor Region. AGCC emerged in the 1970s when a group of artists gathered to create artist studios and exhibition space in the 1940s-era Army barracks of Angels Gate Park in San Pedro, California. The site became a facility of the City of Los Angeles Recreation and Parks Department in 1977, with the requirement that a cultural center be developed to benefit the community. In 1982, AGCC was established as a nonprofit 501(c)(3) to provide a variety of arts engagement opportunities for the San Pedro community. Today, AGCC provides greater access to the arts—and to artists themselves—for Harbor Region families. In recent years, we have seen how the arts have the ability to uniquely strengthen communities and foster a renewed sense of belonging. At AGCC, we deliver high-quality arts programs while seeking to create safe spaces for gathering, to help break down social barriers, and to encourage community collaboration and wellbeing. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Sacramento Ballet | 2420 N Street Suite 100, SACRAMENTO, 95816 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 552-5800 | California 007 | District 6 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, SACRAMENTO BALLET ASSOCIATION will provide 2,500 free tickets to the final dress rehearsals of NUTCRACKER (1,500 tickets) and SLEEPING BEAUTY (1,000 tickets) to students attending Title 1 Schools in Sacramento. To ensure that this is a communal experience we will also invite the families of these students to attend the performances. This will provide opportunities to experience live ballet performance for those who might not otherwise have access. |
Sacramento Ballet celebrates its 70 years in 2024 as a highly regarded cultural asset renowned for artistic and production quality. We serve the entire Sacramento metropolitan region at the center of The Northern California Megaregion with a population of over 12 million, accounting for over 32% of California’s population. Sacramento Ballet is a cultural cornerstone and integral member of the Sacramento Arts community. More than 1 million people have enjoyed our performances, and many more participate in our School of Ballet, stage productions, and neighborhood, community, and scholastic outreach and engagement programs. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Owens Valley Career Development Center | 2574 Diaz Ln , Bishop, 93514 | Inyo | Central Valley | (760) 873-5107 | With support from the California Arts Council, Owens Valley Career Development Center will offer Reconnecting Native Culture Through Indigenous Art, a workshop series for Native youth and families in Coleville, Lake Isabella, Lone Pine, Porterville, and Tule River. Led by a California poet and member of the Bishop Paiute Tribe, the workshops will bring together creative writing and traditional Native arts including sand painting, ribbon skirt and shirt making, pottery, basket weaving, hand games, and beading. Workshops will center around themes that encourage both personal reflection and cultural connection, using a healing-centered approach that emphasizes strength, resilience, and wellness. The series will conclude with a public art exhibit and open mic event celebrating youth creativity. Grant funding will support artist fees, workshop materials, travel to rural Tribal locations, and coordination of a final community event. |
Tribal Temporary Assistance for Needy Families, Early Head Start, Family Literacy, Native Languages |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | BAYCAT | 2415 Third Street Suite 230 , San Francisco, 94107 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 701-8228 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With Support from the California Arts Council, BAYCAT will provide free digital media education to youth (ages 11-17) through our project-based film and audio production curriculum, and employ diverse young storytellers (ages 18-25) in our paid Studio internship which offers the opportunity to work with our professional in-house production team creating socially-conscious media for clients like the Golden State Warriors. Courses emphasize hands-on learning to build expertise in professional tools like Adobe Creative Suite and cutting-edge equipment, and BAYCAT interns are well-positioned to secure employment once they graduate. Our programs culminate in public screenings at our Dogpatch headquarters or local venues like the historic Roxie Theater. Showcases uplift the meaning of their work and publicly declare themselves as artists to an audience of their community. |
Our award-winning Pathways model offers a continuum of opportunities to meet the needs of young creatives from their first touchpoint and throughout their careers as alumni: BAYCAT ACADEMY provides free digital media education to youth (ages 11+) year-round through our project-based film and audio production curriculum. Mentors guide youth through the creative process to generate and pitch ideas, produce short films, respond to their peer’s work, and connect projects to social justice issues. Courses emphasize hands-on learning to build expertise in professional tools like Adobe Creative Suite and cutting-edge audio/video equipment. Our advanced media makers, “The Crew,” are paid to produce pro bono media for local partners like the San Francisco Public Utilities Commission and immigrant advocacy group, PODER. BAYCAT STUDIO, our professional in-house production team, creates socially-conscious media for clients like the Golden State Warriors. Our paid Studio Internship mentors diverse young storytellers (ages 18+) through hands-on experiences in six to eight-week internships focused on skills spanning pre production to post or short term intensives to train participants to apply for on-set employment. BAYCAT interns are better-positioned to secure employment once they graduate with a reel, a stronger resume, a LinkedIn profile, and a network of diverse industry professionals. Programs culminate in public screenings at our Dogpatch headquarters or local cultural venues to celebrate the impact of their work and publicly declare themselves as artists to their community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | 7545 Hampton Ave., # 207 , W HOLLYWOOD, 90046-5542 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 814-8597 | California's 28th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | CAC grant funds will be used to support a series of educational concerts featuring the Click Clack Moosic! program set to the popular book Click Clack Moo for children ages 3 – 7. The performances will take place in East L.A. and reach up to 2,000 L.A. Unified School District elementary school students. This high-quality music programming for young children is a live musical-story time event. Students learn about musical instruments through the pre-concert curriculum and the pre-concert petting zoo. This updated version of classic programs like Peter and the Wolf covers more diverse styles of music including salsa, a ho down, waltz, and blues. Through the story, children learn about working together, collective action, and how one small voice can make a big difference. |
Helix Collective formed in 2009, as a chamber music ensemble with the objective of bringing classical music to new and diverse audiences. A feature of a “helix” is the ability to recombine into many different yet related forms. Thus, Helix Collective evolves and recombines for every program. The original group included flute, oboe and piano. With this trio, we toured and recorded the critically-acclaimed album, All In. In 2012, we became a non-profit 501(c)3. We added percussion and created the World Dance Club program, an album featuring newly-commissioned international dance music. Our current core programs are the Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival, additional live score-to-screen concerts of media music, and music and storytelling concerts. We’ve developed new partnerships with the L.A. Film School for our annual festival and the Film Music Connect workshop with SAGindie, providing original, recorded scores for participating SAGindie filmmakers. The Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival pairs directors of short films with film composers. The composers write original scores for Helix Collective to perform live-to-picture at the festival. After the festival, the scores are recorded for inclusion in the final version of the films. Films for the most recent festivals were curated by SAGindie and the L.A. Film School. We also partner with the Composers Diversity Collective, an organization dedicated to increasing the visibility of composers from diverse backgrounds throughout the music industry and to mentoring emerging composers from underserved communities. Helix Collective recorded and produced “Shoutout!” a visual album of music by 12 composers from the collective, “Spotlight” a live concert featuring Composers Diversity Collective composers and Level Up game music concert featuring women and BIPOC composers. In 2024 Helix Collective made the West coast premiere of Click Clack Moosic, a children’s musical story time program at Boston Court Pasadena. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,000.00 | TIPEY JOA NATIVE WARRIORS | PO BOX 12033 , EL CAJON, 92022-2033 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 445-7726 | Tipey Joa Native Warriors offers sustained, intergenerational arts and cultural programming that supports the creative and cultural survival of Indigenous communities along the California and Baja California border. We focus on the transmission of traditional knowledge and arts—such as basket weaving, storytelling, song, dance, and plant-based practices—as essential forms of cultural continuance. These practices are not only artistic expressions, but vital ways of sustaining language, kinship, and land-based knowledge in the face of ongoing disruption. |
Tipey Joa Native Warriors is a grassroots, binational nonprofit organization dedicated to promoting health, cultural preservation, and social justice within Indigenous communities, particularly among Yuman groups such as the Kumeyaay. Operating across the U.S.-Mexico border, the organization addresses systemic inequalities by providing essential resources and services to underserved tribal communities in Baja California and Southern California. Key programs include: |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | SAPPA | 475 S. Oakland Ave., Suite 2 , Pasadena, 91101 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 641-3262 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAPPA will provide free music instruction and performance opportunities for 100 low-income children and youth ages 7 to 22 in South Los Angeles and Watts. In the program, called the Watts Willowbrook Music Academy and Watts Willowbrook Youth Orchestra, participants learn to play violin, viola, cello, bass, guitar and keyboards, develop their musical skills and knowledge, and perform for the public. The programs take place after school and in the summer at six partner sites throughout the community. |
-The Watts Willowbrook Music Academy is a collaboration with multiple organizations in South LA. In sequential group classes taught by professional musicians at each site, students ages 7-18 learn to playing violin, viola, cello and bass. Instruction is offered at the beginning, continuing and advanced levels. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Wheelchair Dancers Organization | 4584 Calle de Vida , SAN DIEGO, 92124-2304 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 573-1571 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Wheelchair Dancers Organization, now locally known as Dynamic Inclusive Dance (D.I.D), will create meaningful connections through dance by providing a creative and inclusive space where dance classes are accessible to all. CAC funds will help D.I.D grow its reach, strengthen partnerships, and deliver inclusive workshops and events throughout San Diego County—ensuring that all individuals can express themselves through dance. |
Wheelchair Dancers Organization (WDO) offers 6 and 8-week dance classes for wheelchair users and standing partners. All classes are provided free of charge to participants. A professionally trained dance instructor teaches the dance moves, and over the course of the classes a dance routine is perfected. Wheelchair Dancers provides dance for individuals of all ages and abilities, including children as young as age four and as old as age 90. The dancers are provided several opportunities throughout the year to participate in performances for a variety of audiences, including the WDO Showcase that takes place in September of each year and attracts an audience of nearly 500 people. We have also expanded our classes to be virtual as well. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,255.00 | Institute of Inquiry | 6875 VALLEY VIEW DRIVE , Twentynine Palms, 92277 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (760) 666-8341 | California's 23rd District | State Assembly District 34 | State Senate District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Institute of Inquiry will implement Creative Fields, a 28-week arts apprenticeship program that uplifts transitional-aged youth in the Morongo Basin while providing employment and professional to creative professionals. The program fosters self-esteem, community and artistic identity for youth who often face systemic barriers to arts and career education due to mental health or socioeconomic factors. Through 115 hours of immersive studio workshops in disciplines including fiber arts, woodworking, ceramics, photography, and theater, Creative Fields offers a transformative learning opportunity rooted in mentorship, creative discovery, and collaboration. In parallel, Teaching Artists receive values-based employment, and training in youth-centered, trauma-informed curriculum design. The program culminates in an exhibition celebrating youth voice and resilience, and providing avenues for creative confidence, and stable careers—for participants and the teaching artists who guide them. |
As we enter our ninth year as an organization, we are acutely focused on building greater interdependence into our operations. Together, our high desert region and the broader Inland Empire contribute immense creative and cultural value to the state, even as our communities have historically received far less material investment and resources than our urban counterparts. Our work is informed by our deep knowledge of these structural and economic challenges of rural desert life. We are dedicated to the long-term health of our vibrant but underserved communities through providing responsive arts education and substantive, creative employment. Our core programs and services include” Creative Fields”, a 100-hour arts apprenticeship and career mentorship program for teens and transitional-aged youth, and its corresponding career development pathway for Teaching Artists. Arts professionals who participate in Creative Fields receive over 40 hours of mentorship and training in youth-centered approaches to education. Our support of the local creative economy is expanding to the greater Inland Empire through our evolving partnership with Arts Connection, our longtime fiscal sponsor and mentor organization. Arts Connection’s Estudio Aire program supports artists through one to two-month long, work-only residencies focused on professional development. Beginning in Fall 2026, the Institute of Inquiry will host two Estudio Aire artists-in-residence annually for an extended period through live-work residencies at our location adjacent to Joshua Tree National Park.For artists who reside in more densely populated and urban parts of the Inland Empire, these residencies offer the gift of extended time in the wildlands of the high desert, where our relationship to the natural world cannot be easily managed or ignored. In opening our programming to a wider geographic region, we are also enriching the lives of youth participants through mentorship with artists representing a broader spectrum of cultural and racial backgrounds. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Bay Area Music Project | 740 SANTA CLARA AVE , ALAMEDA, 94501-3334 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 917-6050 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from CAC, this fall, Bay Area Music Project (BAMP) will open our first dedicated independent facility, a new community music education center, expanding access to East Bay youth beyond our five partner school sites. The center will expand employment opportunities for teaching artists and house cutting-edge music production technology to support our growing digital audio programs. CAC funds will also support BAMP’s work at partner schools, prioritizing under-resourced students from diverse socio-economic and cultural backgrounds, from kindergarten through high school. BAMP currently serves over 250 students and is poised to expand its on-site programming for high school students in 2026. BAMP’s student-centered model integrates socio-emotional learning to empower future leaders during their most formative years. This expansion marks a transformative step toward broader access to an inclusive creative future. |
Bay Area Music Project (BAMP) serves over 300 young people ages 4–25 from under-resourced communities in Alameda and Marin County, where access to high-quality music education is limited. More than half of our students identify as low-income, and BAMP is committed to removing barriers to participation through sliding-scale and full-tuition scholarships, free instruments and inclusive, culturally responsive programming. In 2026, BAMP will expand its regional impact through a new partnership with the Sausalito Marin City School District, bringing equitable music education opportunities to youth in Southern Marin. BAMP currently operates across multiple program sites during the academic year. Our immersive after-school programming operates 3–6 hours daily, five days per week. Beginning in second grade, students choose from a range of music-making pathways, including choir, strings, winds, brass, percussion, ukulele, and music composition and production. Our instructional model emphasizes small-group learning, leveled ensembles, mentorship, and repertoire that reflects the cultures and identities of the communities we serve. Students regularly perform throughout the Bay Area through collaborations with organizations including West End Arts District, Radium Presents, Young People’s Symphony Orchestra, and the Recording Academy San Francisco Chapter. In 2025, BAMP launched BAMP Creative Studio, a music education center for students ages 12–25, offering intensive instruction in music production, recording technology and a chamber music and orchestral program. In year two, BAMP will expand programming, reduce barriers to access, and develop credentials that strengthen students’ college and career pathways. BAMP’s community impact has earned widespread recognition, including the 2024 Alameda County Arts Leadership Award, the 2023 Jefferson Award for Public Service, and the 2021 Spotlight on Quality Award from the California Department of Education. At our core, we believe every child deserves the transformative power of music and the confidence to thrive. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | YoloArts | 508 Gibson Road , WOODLAND, 95776-8250 | Yolo | Capital | (530) 309-6464 | California's 4th District | District 4 | District 3 | Using CAC funds, Community through Art (CTA) brings professional artists and supplies to increase arts engagement practices for those who are unhoused, in recovery, processing trauma, and/or struggling with their mental health. In collaboration with our partners the Recovery Cafe program of Mercy Coalition in West Sacramento (offers daily meals, classes on health and personal growth, and job skills training), 4th & Hope in Woodland (an emergency shelter, supportive housing, and substance abuse treatment center), and Davis Community Meals and Housing in Davis(a non-profit providing day-use resource center, and emergency, transitional, and permanent supportive housing), participants will engage in skill exploration in a supported environment while gaining self-confidence and creative problem-solving skills. Mediums explored each week are determined by participants and teaching artists together in the previous session. |
Our support and dedication to the arts in Yolo County has its foundation in projects reflecting the cultural make-up of the county as we work to connect artists, young people, students, art supporters, the community at large, and political and business stakeholders to our developing arts culture. YoloArts promotes access to arts through our arts education programs in public schools around Yolo County, by operating two public art gallery, Gallery 625 and The Barn Gallery, sponsoring arts events and celebrations, working with local jurisdictions on community engagement and economic development through the arts, and providing professional development activities and opportunities for artists and the county-wide art community. The Art & Ag Project remains a signature creative placemaking effort for us as it connects artists with Yolo County farms, and results in an arts showcase at our annual Art Farm Gala. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Museum of Latin American Art | 628 ALAMITOS AVE , LONG BEACH, 90802-1513 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 216-4117 | 42 | 69 | 33 | With the support of the California Arts Council, the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) will provide arts education and interpretive programs for youth through its core APRENDE (LEARN) program. APRENDE provides access to high-quality, culturally relevant arts curriculum and experiences in the region’s schools and communities through its three-pronged approach: Tours and Workshops, Evening for Educators, and Free Family Cultural Festivals. MOLAA has noticed an increase in demand for APRENDE’s program. Funding from California Arts Council will support the growing demand through providing scholarships for low-income K-12 students, supporting teaching artists fees, professional development for K-12 educators, art materials and supplies, and bilingual translation services. |
The Mission of the Museum of Latin American Art (MOLAA) is to expand knowledge and appreciation of modern and contemporary Latin American and Latino/a art through its collection, groundbreaking exhibitions, stimulating educational programs, and engaging cultural events. Founded in 1996, MOLAA serves a significant role in the arts and culture, humanities, and museum fields as the only museum in the United States solely dedicated to the exhibition and research of national and international modern and contemporary Latin American, Latino/a and Latinx artists. The collection now includes more than 1,600 works of art in all media including painting, sculpture, drawing, mixed media, photography and video art from Latin America and throughout the United States. In 2014, MOLAA revised its mission statement to include Latino/a and Chicano/a artists and artworks in its collection and exhibition programming to represent more fully its audiences and cultural role in the local and international community. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,000.00 | San Jose Taiko | 565 N. 5th St. , San Jose, 95112 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 293-9344 | 19 | District 27 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Jose Taiko will provide performance, education, and outreach programming that celebrates 52 years of artistic excellence and presents the Asian-American art of taiko as a path to social action, community development, cultural preservation, and Asian-American identity, uplifting San Jose Japantown and our larger Asian-American community. |
CORE PERFORMANCES – broad reach of ~31,000+ audience members EDUCATIONAL PERFORMANCES – deeper impact for ~23,000+ students CORE CLASSES/TRAINING – deepest impact for ~1,100 students/trainees |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | WIA | 1123 Pine Street , South Pasdena, 91030 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (619) 341-9599 | 28th Congressional district of California | District 49 | District 25 | WIA is seeking funds to elevate the visibility of women (cis and trans) and gender non-binary creatives in animation, VFX, and gaming. We offer mentorship, professional development, and industry access to underrepresented talent through programs like Mentorship Circles (500 participants/year), professional growth events (30 planned in 2026), a 6,000+ user Talent Database, a year-long Leadership Institute, and youth-specific support. Informed by community feedback, 2026 will include a six-part freelance course and live portfolio reviews to help creatives adapt and get hired. We partner with studios to increase visibility and push for inclusive hiring. |
Having grown from 120 members to 17,000 creatives over the last 10 years, we are on the brink of realizing a major milestone for the animation industry: our goal is to see women and non-binary people in 50% of animation and VFX creative roles. With LA being home to the biggest animation studios in the world, it is a major focus of ours. Realizing our goal of gender-parity will not only increase representation and inclusivity in animation and visual effects, but leverage the entertainment industry’s cultural influence to move gender equity forward across California and beyond. 1) Mentorship Circles – WIA has 50 Mentorship Circles, connecting 500 women and nonbinary creatives to mentors in the animation, VFX, and gaming industries each year. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | Pacific Arts Movement | 7675 Dagget Street, Suite 360 , San Diego, 92111 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 400-5911 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pacific Arts Movement will sustain its organizational infrastructure to continue delivering year-round public programming that centers Asian, Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander stories. CAC support will help maintain staff roles essential to producing accessible cultural experiences like the San Diego Asian Film Festival, Spring Showcase, Cinemathek, and youth education programs, ensuring equitable access to media arts across San Diego. |
Pacific Arts Movement (Pac Arts) is one of the largest media arts organizations in North America, specializing in Asian American and Asian international cinema. Our flagship event, the San Diego Asian Film Festival, has emerged as a leading showcase for Asian cinema in North America and a significant platform for Asian American media. This festival serves as a celebration of the diversity and breadth of the Asian and Pacific Islander diaspora, featuring everything from passionate independent voices and thought-provoking documentaries to major hits from Asia and work from cinema masters. In addition to the film festival, we operate Reel Voices, a program that has been empowering local high school students to master the art of documentary filmmaking since 2005. This program includes a comprehensive 10-week summer class and a year-round partnership with Monarch School. Through Reel Voices, we inspire and equip the next generation of storytellers, teaching them technical skills like video editing software and guiding them through all stages of production. The ultimate goal is to create socially-conscious storytellers who can authentically represent their experiences and perspectives, aligning with our mission to amplify underrepresented voices and reduce barriers to entry into the media arts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Pacific Arts Movement | 7675 Dagget Street, Suite 360 , San Diego, 92111 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 400-5911 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Pacific Arts Movement will strengthen its Reel Voices program, an eight-week documentary filmmaking course for high school students from historically underserved communities. CAC funds will support student stipends and expanded outreach to low-income schools and neighborhoods, ensuring access, mentorship, and public storytelling opportunities that foster cultural pride, healing, and civic engagement. |
Pacific Arts Movement (Pac Arts) is one of the largest media arts organizations in North America, specializing in Asian American and Asian international cinema. Our flagship event, the San Diego Asian Film Festival, has emerged as a leading showcase for Asian cinema in North America and a significant platform for Asian American media. This festival serves as a celebration of the diversity and breadth of the Asian and Pacific Islander diaspora, featuring everything from passionate independent voices and thought-provoking documentaries to major hits from Asia and work from cinema masters. In addition to the film festival, we operate Reel Voices, a program that has been empowering local high school students to master the art of documentary filmmaking since 2005. This program includes a comprehensive 10-week summer class and a year-round partnership with Monarch School. Through Reel Voices, we inspire and equip the next generation of storytellers, teaching them technical skills like video editing software and guiding them through all stages of production. The ultimate goal is to create socially-conscious storytellers who can authentically represent their experiences and perspectives, aligning with our mission to amplify underrepresented voices and reduce barriers to entry into the media arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Bell Arts Factory | 432 N VENTURA AVE STE 101 , VENTURA, 93001-1953 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 641-3132 | California Assembly district 37 | District 37 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bell Arts Factory is dedicated to harnessing the power of the arts to celebrate and showcase the rich diversity of thought and culture within our community. Our mission goes beyond artistic expression – we seek to inspire and promote acts of kindness and social good that resonate throughout the region. Situated at the crucial intersection of the arts and nonprofit work, we are committed to ensuring that all community members, regardless of background or circumstance, have meaningful access to creative experiences. By fostering an inclusive and welcoming environment, we empower individuals to express themselves, build connections and contribute to a vibrant compassionate community. |
After-school art programs English and Spanish , Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday and Saturdays. Summer Spanish Art Programs. We also offer offer monthly community events, low cost artist studios, and monthly gallery openings. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,924.00 | YG2D | 375 Elsie St Lower Unit, San Francisco, 94110-5519 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (310) 948-8900 | With support from the California Arts Council, YG2D will expand and sustain our Songs for Life program, which connects professional musicians with hospice patients to provide evidence-based musical comfort, companionship, and legacy creation during end-of-life care. Currently serving the San Francisco Bay Area with volunteer staff and musicians, CAC funding will enable us to launch sustainable operations in Los Angeles while strengthening existing Bay Area services through equitable compensation for participating musicians and dedicated program managers. |
“Songs for Life” is a heartfelt program connecting professional musicians with hospice patients to provide musical comfort and companionship. Adding meaning to life’s final chapter, musicians create original music inspired by and in honor of each patient’s life. “ALIVE INSIDE” is a transformative program that establishes a symbiotic relationship between local artists and the incarcerated community through music and poetry. Facilitated by YG2D trained personnel, led by local artists, and in collaboration with prison health and wellness programs, YG2D offers this marginalized community the uncommon opportunity to express grief and honor loss through creative mediums in the context of a safe and powerful communal listening space. The shared experiences within these sessions foster large-scale communion as both artists and inmates connect through their vulnerability and sharing of personal experiences of grief, ultimately amplifying the voices of the incarcerated population both within and beyond prison walls. “Weekly Community Grief Release”: YG2D facilitates a weekly online gathering space where individuals share and witness grief within a supportive community. The event features music and poetry from local artists and time for communal sharing in a safe virtual space. “You’re Going to Die” Podcast: YG2D’s weekly podcast navigates conversations on grief, loss, and mortality through personal stories, insights, and reflections shared by a variety of guests, including activists, authors, musicians, and individuals who have experienced profound loss. “You’re Going to Die” Open Mics: Poetry, Prose, and Everything Goes; Mourning Our Mothers/Fathers; All The Feels, and more! YG2D’s beloved open mic events have been the main attraction of YG2D since its inception. Now held live monthly in the Lost Church in San Francisco and virtually every quarter, YG2D continues to provide communal space to explore and embrace mortality through live music and poetry performed by local artists while celebrating the joy of being ALIVE together. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | DISCO RIOT | 7849 Wing Span Dr. , SAN DIEGO, 92119 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 379-8747 | 51 | 78 | 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, DISCO RIOT will continue to support and produce a wide range of artists through our innovative programming. DISCO RIOT has developed a shared leadership model that includes a collaborative staff and board support system. Funds from CAC will supplement the compensation of key staff members, including our Operations Coordinator, Education & Outreach Coordinator and Producing Artists, as well as be used to continue fair wages for our teaching and tech staff. These funds help us support our team which in turn provides sustainability, increased impact, and professional development, particularly for BIPOC, 2SLGBTQIA+, and transitional youth artists in our community. |
We achieve our mission through a combination of activities that create opportunities for movement-artists to develop their practice that also invite the general public to explore the impact of movement in their own lives. These activities include classes, artist residencies, networking events, performance opportunities, and online projects. Our key programs like Choreo & _____, S P A C E Alliance Studio Residencies, Queer Mvmnt Fest, PIPO (Pop In Pop Out) Workshops, and ongoing donation-based classes allow the larger arts community and the public to come together with socially conscious dance as the fulcrum. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | San Diego ART Matters | 1100 Market Street #100-618, San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 358-3585 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Diego ART Matters will provide an annual schedule of free and low-cost programs and services to individual artists, cultural practitioners, nonprofit arts and culture organizations, and other members of San Diego County’s arts and culture sector to include, advocacy training and engagement, coalition building and networking, professional and career development, marketing and communications, research and intermediary services. |
SDAM’s core programs and services support our mission through education, advocacy initiatives, strategy development, coordinated communications, research, convenings, coalition building, and public forums. PROGRAM: Education and Advocacy – SDAM serves all county residents through education and advocacy in support of arts and culture in the following ways: PROGRAM: Member Services – SDAM serves coalition members through a variety of programs, including but not limited to the following: PROGRAM: Intermediary Services- SDAM helps ensure grants and impact investments reach artists and other “hard-to-reach” communities: |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,900.00 | Clarion Alley Mural Project (CAMP) | P.O. Box 420442 , San Francisco, 94142 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (209) 247-4715 | District 11 | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Clarion Alley Mural Project will support: 1) a series of five new murals on Clarion Alley in celebration of our California farmworkers; 2) a community celebration for the new murals with music, poetry, and food; and 3) a series of poetry readings by local California poets. |
Since 1992, CAMP has produced over 900 murals and worked with many talented artists, many of whom are just starting their careers and looking for opportunities to publicly display their work – some would identify themselves as primarily muralists or public artists, for others it’s a chance to create public work for the first time. In addition to works directly on Clarion Alley, CAMP has produced a number of offsite projects in collaboration with community partners, including two international exchange and residency projects with Yogyakarta, Indonesia in 2003 and 2018-2022. CAMP has worked with many collaborative initiatives, including La Casa de las Madres, Poor Magazine, Creativity Explored, the San Francisco Print Collective, Oasis For Girls, Horizons Unlimited, the American Indian Movement Youth Council, the Anti-Eviction Mapping Project, the South of Market Community Action Network (SOMCAN), Hospitality House, WRAP (Western Regional Advocacy Project), San Francisco Poster Syndicate, Arab Resource and Organizing Center (AROC), and Art Forces. In addition to its direct work with artists and organizations through the production of murals, CAMP has been very active in the community through participation in public presentations about public art and its role in social activism. Specifically, Clarion Alley Mural Project provides the following programs and services: |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | ArtsOC | 17620 Fitch Avenue Suite 255, Irvine, 92614 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 556-5160 | 47 | 73 | 37 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTS ORANGE COUNTY will present its annual “Día del Niño,” a free admission festival celebrating the artistic richness and cultural heritage of OC’s Latinx community through engaging arts experiences for all ages, featuring participatory workshops and performances by award-winning professional artists, community groups and young artists. |
Arts Orange County fulfills its mission by offering the following programs and services: Regranting – when funds are available. During pandemic, raised private funds and secured County funding, oversaw regranting of nearly $8 million. In 2023-24, served as Administering Organization for CAC’s Individual Artist Fellowship Program in Region I (Imperial, Orange, Riverside, San Bernardino, San Diego counties). Orange County Arts Awards, honoring artists, arts visionaries and arts patrons Creative Edge Lecture, presenting thought-leaders in the field of creativity Imagination Celebration, county-wide, six-week festival of arts for families & children in collaboration with Orange County Department of Education Día del Niño, a free festival of Latino arts for families and children OC Jails Project, creative writing instruction to Transitional Age Youth SparkOC.com, online arts calendar Newsletter, bi-monthly ArtsOC institutional & arts community news Leadership Convenings, bringing together arts leaders of various cohorts and artists for regular online and in-person gatherings to share concerns, best practices Breaking Through, webinars for arts leaders about exemplary local programs fulfilling diversity, equity and inclusion goals Emerging Arts Leaders-OC Consulting and Project Management services on cultural planning & public art to municipalities and arts organizations |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,750.00 | Shoong Family Chinese Cultural Center | 316 9TH ST , OAKLAND, 94607-4212 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 452-1204 | With support from the California Arts Council, SHOONG FAMILY CHINESE CULTURAL CENTER will launch the “From Source to Future” Community art project, which will culminate in a large-scale mural on its historic building in Oakland Chinatown. The project includes multi-generational, bilingual storytelling and calligraphy workshops with our community. The contributions of local youth, artists and elders will shape a collective narrative spanning the Center’s past, present, and future, as a community center in Chinatown since 1953. This creative intervention reclaims space for cultural pride, visibility, and belonging. It aims to amplify underrepresented voices, foster intergenerational connection, and spark civic revitalization in a neighborhood impacted by systemic inequities and the pandemic. The mural will stand as a lasting symbol of resilience and healing—strengthening community ties and anchoring Oakland Chinatown’s cultural identity for future generations. |
We serve over 500 youth per week through these programs: |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | About Productions | 145 N. RAYMOND AVE. , PASADENA, 91103 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 396-0920 | California's 28th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, ABOUT PRODUCTIONS will conduct the intergenerational “Social Justice Residency” which will engage 4 East L.A. area community leaders in interviews conducted by 25-30 high school students at Roosevelt High School’s Math, Science, and Technology Magnet Academy (MSTMA) in Boyle Heights (East L.A.). Students will be mentored by a team of teaching artists to collaboratively write 4 plays based on the interviews, collectively titled “Seeds of Resistance: Social Justice Plays by Youth Inspired by Community Leaders’ Stories.” A production of the 4 plays, directed by the teaching artists and the classroom teacher will be performed by the students and professional actors, presented at Roosevelt High School Performing Arts Center for a community audience with a post-play panel of the 4 community leaders. |
Now in our 37th year, our itinerant company’s critically acclaimed INTERDISCIPLINARY THEATERWORKS have been seen extensively in Greater L.A., in the U.S. and Canada, and on national TV. We collaboratively create and present innovative original theaterworks with community performing and visual artists to unearth and illuminate cultural histories of Latin America, the Southwest, California and L.A., and explore the human spiritual condition. We are one of the few companies that brings affordable theater to low-income, under-served communities by mining seldom-tapped regional histories that address relevant issues and under-represented voices. In partnership with performing arts and cultural centers, community-based arts organizations, and educational institutions, we have collaborated with many of the region’s leading community artists — performing, media, and visual — authors and historians. Our interdisciplinary productions have integrated media, music, dance, and innovative storytelling and lighting design. Presented in numerous L.A. County neighborhoods, our productions have also been featured in festivals such as the International Hispanic Theatre Festival in Miami, Telluride Theatre Festival in Colorado, New Voices Festival at The Public Theater in New York City, and SXSW in Austin. Our successful 25+ year YOUNG THEATERWORKS program serves L.A. area highest-risk and educationally disadvantaged youth with standards-based intensive residencies and workshops to impact their academic achievement, creative engagement and connection to their community. The program improves literacy, communication and collaboration skills as students explore personal identity, family and community history, and social issues. Working with committed principals and classroom teachers in the L.A. and Pasadena Unified School Districts we provide free or low-cost 6-10 week residencies and workshops. In conjunction with our original theaterworks we also provide workshops that engage students in the content and artistic strategies of these theaterworks, giving them the opportunity to see professional work and directly connect them to professional artists in their community. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Youth Art Exchange | 1950 Mission St , San Francisco, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 574-8137 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Youth Art Exchange (YAX) will operate community-driven art spaces in San Francisco and engage youth of color, artists of color, and their diverse communities of all ages through exceptional multidisciplinary arts programming, events, and exhibitions. Funds will be used to support general operating expenses, including critical salary support for key staff positions for two arts centers housing specialized multidisciplinary studios and gallery spaces in 100% affordable housing sites in the Excelsior and Mission. As we celebrate 25 years of arts education and experiences in San Francisco, we will activate these spaces and make the arts accessible with workshops, classes, and interactive artist residencies, provide paid opportunities for artists, and contribute to San Francisco’s vibrancy. |
Our core youth and community programming is free to increase accessibility to the arts. High school programs in disciplines like architecture, fashion design, film photography, music production, and printmaking include after school studio classes, in-school residencies, summer intensives in the arts and architecture, and paid summer creative workforce internships. We also have a Youth Advisory Board, teaching assistantships, and alumni internships. Our programs provide a safe third space for youth to explore themselves, build positive relationships, develop a foundation in the arts, connect to cultural traditions, and make San Francisco thrive. Within our new arts centers, we have expanded program offerings to include younger students and more adult activities too. We have strong ties and connections with the communities of our core constituency, particularly in underserved areas of San Francisco. Our priority for low income youth and youth of color to shape their city has led to several notable public projects including youth designed and built parklets, public art projects such as murals, installations, creative disruptions, and events. We have convened the annual San Francisco Youth Arts Summit for 15 years to bring together youth artists and arts educators across the Bay Area for creative exchange and community building. We have an active role in arts advocacy and the representation of youth artists in San Francisco. Integral to our work is the experience of the artists who teach in our programs. We value their ability to further their own practice, both in partnership with their students and through residencies, public projects, exhibitions, and exchange with other artists. Through youth programming, exhibits, public projects, our annual participatory (415) Public Gallery, events, adult classes and community workshops, we serve 600+ enrolled youth, 30 artists, and 7000+ audience members per year. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Green Room Theatre Company | 74300 OLD PROSPECTOR TRL , PALM DESERT, 92260-5618 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (442) 215-7039 | 41st Congressional District | California's 47th State Assembly District | California's 18th State Senate District | With support from the California Arts Council, GREEN ROOM THEATRE COMPANY will bring theatre and dance performances and training directly to under-resourced communities, enhancing career skills, literacy, and community connections. Funds will be used primarily for the following: (1) mount a New(ish) Shakespeare festival, introducing the Bard’s magic to new audiences through a bilingual adaptation of “As You Like It” and a drama based on “Othello” focusing on inclusion and the Black male experience in theatre and beyond, (2) provide mental health and theatre literacy education of special value to Latine youth, based on our recent successful production of Luis Alfaro’s “Black Butterfly,” and (3) expand ballet folklorico training to children and youth. |
GRTCCV provides: (1) classes for children, youth, and adults; (2) touring productions; (3) staged readings; (4) ballet folklorico training; and (5) performances of reinvented classics at pivotal Coachella Valley venues. Now in its 17th season, GRTCCV is focusing especially on serving the Central and East Coachella Valley, providing employment development training. Many alumni of our training programs have found paid theatre work in the Coachella Valley and beyond, or majored in theatre at colleges and universities. For many years, the summer conservatory’s large Broadway musical trained 60 young actors and technicians. However, responding partly to changes wrought by the pandemic, recently Green Room has focused on projects that address the needs of under-served local communities, such as bilingual theatre productions and plays that address important social justice issues. For example, we just concluded a successful Newish Shakespeare Festival. This included productions of “Como Te Gusta” (our family-friendly bilingual adaptation of “As You Like It”) and “American Moor” (about a veteran African-American actor’s experience taking on the role of “Othello” while working with an inexperienced White director). We also presented an immersive adaptation of George Orwell’s “1984.” Recently we expanded ballet folklorico classes in Indio public schools and spotlighted folklorico performances along with our theatre productions. GRTCCV is innovative in its performance venues, themes, and approaches. For example, we recently devised a play about the history of “Section 14,” addressing a controversial episode when the City of Palm Springs in the 1960s forcibly evicted hundreds of mainly Black and Latine residents from a planned downtown redevelopment site. This innovative project used oral history and a community advisory committee to help develop the play. Our performances have been held in a 400-seat auditorium, a brew pub, bookstores, and even a cemetery in order to reach diverse audiences. |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | $450,000.00 | Commission for Arts and Culture / Cultural Affairs | 1200 Third Ave., Ste. 924 , San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 236-6800 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from California Arts Council, City of San Diego Cultural Affairs and its advisory body, Commission for Arts and Culture (Commission) will serve as Region Administering Organization for the Region 8 Individual Artists Fellowship Program (IAFP), serving San Diego and Imperial counties. In alignment with the recently adopted Creative City cultural plan vision, the initiative will elevate the visibility of artists and cultural bearers, affirming their vital role in our bi-county, border region’s culture, ecologies and traditions. IAFP offers seldom-provided financial resources, applying our belief that artists build thriving practices and community-change impact through access to funding, networks, and support. By harnessing its regional network, Commission seeks to sustain and invest in Region 8’s dynamic arts ecosystem, amplifying the voices of its diverse and innovative artistic communities—an essential part of the region’s identity. |
Through the Commission, the City invests in San Diego communities through grantmaking, placemaking, accessible arts and cultural experiences, global cultural initiatives, performance spaces, and individual artists/culture bearers. The goal is to enrich every neighborhood through arts, culture, and creativity through each community’s self-determination. Over the last 37 years, this investment has been disseminated through two core programs, Public Art and Funding. The Public Art Program transforms the human experience of the city’s built environment through public art. The Commission stewards the Civic Art Collection of over 950 objects, integrates art into capital improvement projects, and ensures the inclusion of art or cultural space in private development projects. The Commission is the largest arts grantmaker in the region and annually awards funds for general operating and project-specific support. These grants are fundamental to the sustainability of many organizations. This general operating support is often the most significant annual grant and the sole multi-year funding to organizations of all sizes. For project support, the City’s grant is routinely awarded over multiple years, also providing continuity for festivals and events such as Pride San Diego and many of San Diego’s film festivals. Initiatives focus on data collection and field assessments, cultural planning, cultural tourism, creative youth, cultural space, technical assistance for organizations, and training and support for artists, and poet laureateship and municipal photography fellowship programs. Historically recognized for supporting arts and culture organizations, Commission now focuses on the broader creative sector – including creative industries and individual artists- and community-wide issues where the arts can play an essential role, such as civic engagement and social justice. In 2025, through the Commission the City adopted the Creative City cultural plan, a long-term plan to advance arts, culture and creativity for the benefit of San Diegans as well as the the greater Cali-Baja megaregion. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Pacific Chamber Orchestra | 2145 Donald Drive #12 , Moraga, 94556 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 324-2775 | 15th Congressional Distrcit | District 16 | District 5 | With support from the California Arts Council, the PACIFIC CHAMBER ORCHESTRA will be able to plan, promote, and perform our main season and Dream American emerging composers’ concerts as well as to carry out our multi-generational music and educational programs. The funds will support artistic, operational and educational program expenses. |
PCO is a resident company of Livermore’s Bankhead Theater and also performs in Lafayette, with a history of serving additional communities throughout the region. The organization presents a range of programs designed to engage diverse audiences and expand access to live orchestral music. PCO concerts create live experiences that are engaging, welcoming, and meaningful, fostering lasting connections between audiences, artists, and the music. PCO presents multiple concert programs each season across two primary locations. These programs balance core repertoire with accessible and engaging programming, supported by spoken introductions that guide audiences into the music and enhance understanding. Concert presentation, scheduling, and program design are shaped by audience engagement and feedback, including the transition to daytime performances and the development of family-oriented and thematic programs that broaden access while maintaining artistic depth. A dedicated program each season features new works by emerging composers through the Winning Scores initiative, providing professional performance opportunities and direct engagement between composers and audiences. PCO’s educational programs include in-school elementary assemblies, full-orchestra student matinee performances, and clinics for middle and high school students. These programs introduce fundamental musical concepts through live performance and participation, reaching thousands of students annually across Livermore, Pleasanton, Hayward, Pittsburg, and Richmond. Programs are designed to build understanding over time. Through repeated engagement, students and audiences deepen listening, develop discernment, and form lasting connections to the art form. Community-based programming further expands access and participation. Events such as Handel’s Messiah incorporate local singers alongside professional musicians, while family-oriented and community events provide additional entry points for new audiences. Across all programs, PCO prioritizes accessibility, artistic excellence, and meaningful engagement, ensuring that live orchestral music remains a vital and inclusive part of the community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | AIMUSIC.US | 22051 Regnart Road , Cupertino, 95014-4842 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 921-1862 | California Assembly district 28 | District 28 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, Aimusic.us will offer the free “Chinese Instrumental Music Education for Youth” program to 20–30 youth ages 7–13, primarily from underserved communities. This culturally responsive program provides 30 group lessons led by award-winning California artists, along with weekly music fundamentals classes. The program fosters positive social and emotional development in a safe and inclusive environment, emphasizing youth voice and cultural pride. By engaging students in traditional Chinese music, the project promotes cultural connection, life skills development, and equitable access to quality arts education. Collaboration between artists, families, and the community ensures a supportive learning experience that empowers youth to become confident creators and advocates in the arts. |
Founded 30 years ago as Firebird Youth Chinese Orchestra (FYCO), Aimusic.us services our multicultural community by providing performances, festival concerts, and Chinese music classes. Providing unique Chinese music performances is our first core program. Aimusic is one of the few Asian-American art groups in the nation highly-demanded by our communities. Before the pandemic, we gave over 40 performances and served more than 10,000 residents in the grand San Francisco Bay Area annually. After back to in-person, 5 teaching artists and 40 FYCO young musicians have brought 23 performances to the community last year and the same amount so far this year. We are invited by public libraries, schools, community centers, senior homes, high-tech companies, and cultural celebrations held by government agencies and nonprofit organizations. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Bithiah's Family Services | 12345 MOUNTAIN AVE SUITE N 208 , CHINO, 91710-2783 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (909) 671-4113 | Bithiah’s Family Services is seeking CAC grant funding to support “Healing Through Art: Messy Art Nights,” a recurring evening event at our Pomona Resource Center designed specifically for youth impacted by the foster care system. This program offers a therapeutic and creative space where children can engage in expressive art activities led by trauma-informed clinicians, helping them process emotions and build confidence through artistic exploration. While youth participate in guided art therapy sessions, their caregivers are provided with a much-needed evening of respite. Grant funds will support clinician facilitation, high-quality art supplies, and program coordination. This initiative promotes emotional healing and well-being for youth while strengthening the caregiving environment by offering rest and relief to foster, adoptive, kinship, and biological families involved in the child welfare system. |
Bithiah’s Family Services offers a comprehensive array of core programs and services that address the unique needs of individuals impacted by the foster care system. These services are grounded in a trauma-informed approach and are designed to promote healing, independence, and long-term stability. Our core programs include: 1. Housing Program for Transitional Aged Youth (TAY): 2. Pomona and San Marcos Resource Centers: 3. Holiday and Back-to-School Drives: |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $20,440.00 | DFD | 1048 IRVINE AVE 213 , NEWPORT BEACH, 92660-4602 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 478-3224 | With support from the California Arts Council, Down For Dance will expand our reach and deepen our impact by providing inclusive, high-quality dance, movement, and art programming for individuals of all abilities—especially those with Down syndrome and other disabilities who have been historically excluded from the arts. Grant funds will support general operations, including hiring and training additional instructors, securing studio rental space in professional dance environments, and expanding scholarship support to ensure financial barriers do not prevent participation. These investments will allow DFD to reduce waitlists, reach more communities across Southern California and beyond, and provide students with transformative opportunities to build confidence, express themselves creatively, and connect with others through the arts. This work fosters inclusion, equity, and representation in California’s cultural landscape, empowering individuals to thrive on and off the stage. |
DFD offers a variety of inclusive, high-quality, low-cost art and dance classes to more than 200 individuals with Down syndrome and other disabilities annually. Based in Southern California, DFD delivers more than 11,000 student-hours of direct programming each year through our core programs which include year-round instruction and performance opportunities in traditional dance styles (musical theater, tap, and ballet), modern dance styles (hip hop and jazz contemporary), and visual arts. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | QWOCMAP | 1014 Torney Avenue Suite 111 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94129-1755 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 752-0868 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, QUEER WOMEN OF COLOR MEDIA ARTS PROJECT-QWOCMAP will activate youth voices, narratives, and perspectives through the Film & Freedom Academy, which provides FREE artistically rigorous, culturally responsive filmmaking workshop that provides social/emotional learning for LBTQIA+ BIPOC Youth ages 18-24 (African descent/Black; Native American/American Indian, Indigenous, First Nations; Native Hawaiian & Pacific Islander; Asian, incl. Southeast Asian & South Asian; Latinx, incl. indígena & afrodescendiente; Southwest Asian, North African, Arab, “Middle Eastern,” & Muslim; and multi-ethnic & multi-racial people of color). QWOCMAP will offer creative experiences in a safe, healthy, and appropriate learning environment that empowers youth, fosters creative abilities, and cultivates transferable leadership skills through this workforce development program. |
Filmmaker Development Program QWOCMAP provides professional development, artistically rigorous training, and resources and support while increasing economic mobility through on-the job training, filmmaking gigs, stipend internships, filmmaker honoraria, and teaching artist fees. 26-year IMPACT: International Queer Women of Color Film Festival 22-year IMPACT: Distribution Program 20-year IMPACT: |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,500.00 | Red Poppy Art House | 2698 Folsom St , San Francisco, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 512-0022 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the CAC, Red Poppy Art House (RPAH) will present the 22nd Anniversary Season of the Mission Arts Performance Project (MAPP), a series of FREE-bimonthly, multidisciplinary, intercultural arts events. Funds will support artists, and administrative costs for MAPPs at RPAH which includes performances, exhibitions/site-specific Installations, updating the second exterior mural and the FREE family-Art program. MAPP at RPAH engages the community with arts-programs focused on current social-themes, facilitating artists and audience collaboration. Incubated in 2003 by the Red poppy Art House Artists, the Mission Arts & Performance Project (MAPP) is a homegrown bi-monthly, multidisciplinary, intercultural event that takes place in the Mission-District of San-Francisco. Started at RPAH and expanded to the neighborhood, on the first Saturday of every even-month, the MAPP transforms ordinary-spaces into pop-up performance/exhibition sites for an intimate-scale artistic and cultural exchange. |
Red Poppy Art House produces more than 150 multi-disciplinary events each year including music, poetry, dance, literary events, art exhibitions, workshops and lectures that showcase the talent of local and far-flung artists. The Poppy is known locally, nationally and internationally as a venue that welcomes artists from all backgrounds to share the music of their culture, allowing the changes and fusion that naturally comes from performing in the diversity of San Francisco. Operating from a neighborhood storefront, The Poppy’s intimate performing space is ideal for listening and creating diverse art forms. In addition to its performing program, The Poppy serves emerging arts professionals through its Professional Development Track, which provides training in community arts presentation through workshops and internships. Finally, the Poppy serves neighborhood youth through its monthly free Family Art afternoons. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Red Poppy Art House | 2698 Folsom St , San Francisco, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 512-0022 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, we at Red Poppy Art House (RPAH) celebrate our 22nd anniversary and will produce another year-long program of in-person multidisciplinary performances, featuring music, poetry, dance, literary events, visual and performing workshops, art-exhibits, and lectures. We will continue offering our free, bi-monthly Mission-Arts-Performance-Project (MAPP) and free family-art classes, while also completing the final steps of becoming a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization, and will begin preparations for applying to the Legacy-Business-Registry as a long-standing, community-serving organization that contributes meaningfully to the history and identity of the Mission. These funds are critical to sustaining our operations, deepening our impact in the community, and supporting our continued-growth. |
Red Poppy Art House produces more than 150 multi-disciplinary events each year including music, poetry, dance, literary events, art exhibitions, workshops and lectures that showcase the talent of local and far-flung artists. The Poppy is known locally, nationally and internationally as a venue that welcomes artists from all backgrounds to share the music of their culture, allowing the changes and fusion that naturally comes from performing in the diversity of San Francisco. Operating from a neighborhood storefront, The Poppy’s intimate performing space is ideal for listening and creating diverse art forms. In addition to its performing program, The Poppy serves emerging arts professionals through its Professional Development Track, which provides training in community arts presentation through workshops and internships. Finally, the Poppy serves neighborhood youth through its monthly free Family Art afternoons. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | West Edge Opera | 1700 SHATTUCK AVE NO 312 , BERKELEY, 94709-3402 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 841-1903 | California's 13th congressional district | District 15 | District 9 | West Edge Opera (WEO) seeks 30K in General Operating support from the California Arts Council October 1st, 2025 – September 30th, 2026 in order to continue organization’s mission to develop new operas with California themes, and in order to bolster the WEO annual opera festival in downtown Oakland that employs over 100 local artists and technicians each year. New Operas: Opera Festival: |
West Edge Opera was founded in 1979, initially as Commedia dell’Opera, then as Berkeley Opera. In 2012, the organization became West Edge Opera led by General Director Mark Streshinsky. In its 39-year history, West Edge Opera has presented 100 complete operas by 63 different composers. In 2014, West Edge Opera (WEO) focused all programming on an annual Summer Opera Festival, presenting fully staged and fully orchestrated operas performed in repertory. To present these operas, WEO turned toward unique venues of East Bay cultural history. Previous festival venues have included The 16th Street Train Station in Oakland, The Craneway Pavilion in Richmond, The Bridge Yard, in Oakland. In 2017, WEO launched a standing Winter program called SNAPSHOT – a presentation of new operas at the Ed Roberts Campus, Berkeley, and the Wilsey Center for Opera, San Francisco. Since 2017, WEO has presented excerpts from 16 new operas by new and established librettist/composer teams from the West Coast region. In 2020, WEO began commissioning and developing new operas toward world premieres. In 2020, WEO announced the commission of Bulrusher from Eisa Davis and Nathaniel Stookey (based on her play by the same name) and in 2024 the opera premiered at the WEO Summer Opera Festival in downtown Oakland. In 2021, WEO announced the commission and development of Dolores by Nicolás Lell Benavides and Marella Martin Koch and in August 2025 the opera will premiere in downtown Oakland with Dolores Huerta in attendance. 2 more commissions are due for upcoming premieres. Each year, WEO serves approximately 90 local artists and 5,000 audience members in the Bay Area. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $22,800.00 | SAINT REMY ARTS AND CULTURE | 1242 Monte Vista Ave STE 1 , Upland, 91786 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (562) 551-2590 | State Assembly District 38 | State Assembly District 56 | State Assembly District 30 | Saint Remy Arts & Culture seeks General Operating Support to sustain and expand its trauma-informed, culturally-rooted arts programs serving individuals with mental illness, PTSD, and suicidal thoughts, especially within Latinx, BIPOC, LGBTQ+, veterans and the unhoused communities. CAC funds will support staff salaries, artist fees, free public workshops/classes, and administrative costs to deepen our impact across Los Angeles County and beyond. This support will help us continue fostering safe, inclusive spaces for healing through visual and performing arts while building long-term capacity for community leadership, intercultural collaboration, and systemic change. |
Saint Remy Arts & Culture is a Latinx and disability-led nonprofit committed to advancing equity at the intersection of arts and mental health. We provide free, trauma-informed, and culturally rooted art programing for individuals living with mental illness, PTSD, and systemic exclusion. We believe art is a human right that fosters emotional, physical, spiritual, and communal wellbeing. Through workshops, classes, artist residencies, and exhibitions, we create restorative spaces where BIPOC, LGBTQ, veterans, disabled, and unhoused communities can heal, connect, and reclaim their voices. Guided by empathy, equity, and transparency, we uplift marginalized artists, sustain living-wage teaching opportunities, and model a nontraditional community-centered approach that integrates creativity, social justice, intercultural leadership, and mental health advocacy. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | SAN FRANCISCO BOYS CHORUS | 333 HAYES ST STE 116 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94102-4455 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 861-7464 | Congressional District 12 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN FRANCISCO BOYS CHORUS (SFBC) will provide access to in-depth, sequential, after-school choral arts instruction and performance opportunities to 190+ students at four sites (San Francisco, Marin, East Bay, San Mateo) during the grant period (10/1/25-9/30/26). SFBC will focus on helping choristers strengthen their vocal technique and performance skills. Choristers will participate in a series of community performances, working with guest artists and SFBC’s partner performing arts organizations to bring choral music to diverse local audiences. SFBC will also continue to provide tuition assistance for choristers from low-income families, reflecting its mission to provide access to arts engagement and learning opportunities and an avenue for choral arts training for young people from all backgrounds in the region. CAC funds will help underwrite artist fees for the project. |
CORE PROGRAMS AND SERVICES: SFBC’s choral arts training program provides afterschool instruction to young people (ages 5-18) at four rehearsal sites in the Bay Area, including San Francisco, the East Bay, Marin, and San Mateo. Students from all sites gather in concerts and performances throughout the Bay Area. SFBC provides up to 32 weeks of instruction at each site during the academic year. SFBC also requires choristers to participate in Summer Music Camp, which entails a week-long overnight camp for older choristers and day camp for younger choristers. SFBC’s choral arts training program has four components: 1) Instruction; 2) Performance; 3) Recording; and 4) Touring. Training is sequential, divided into five tiers based on age and skill. SFBC also offers a Handbell Program. SFBC is committed to the preservation and revitalization of the boys choral tradition, and to providing a safe and nurturing space for boys to explore and develop their artistic capabilities. SFBC maintains an open-door policy, welcoming students across the gender spectrum to participate in and benefit from the Chorus experience. The Chorus is headed by Artistic Director Ian Robertson, a veteran conductor who served as the Chorus Director for the San Francisco Opera and the Scottish Opera. Robertson oversees SFBC’s artistic staff, which consists of 12 experienced music educators and music professionals who serve as instructors, accompanists, and vocal coaches for the program. The artistic staff is supported by a Program Administrator, who handles logistics and coordinates parent volunteers and school outreach. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Luther Burbank Center for the Arts | 50 Mark West Springs Road , Santa Rosa, 95403 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 800-7505 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Luther Burbank Memorial Foundation will provide free Mariachi Summer Camps and a free year-round Ensemble where 310 youth from historically underserved communities will learn music fundamentals and cultural practices of this culturally responsive art form while developing and deepening vital life skills. These programs deliver much-needed free music education and engagement to underserved youth during critical out-of-school hours, helping them to discover and develop their unique talents, foster their personal identity, and build their communication and teamwork skills. Working with outstanding teaching artists and mentors through a culturally significant creative outlet, youth achieve success, gain confidence, build healthy relationships, and learn new arts skills. Instruction, instruments, meals, uniforms, books, and academic tutoring are provided at no cost to the students or their families. |
LBC is the North Bay’s premier arts and events center presenting world-class performances, nationally-recognized education programs, contemporary visual art, and many popular community events. A 501(c)(3) private non-profit organization, the Center is ranked among the world’s top 100 performing arts presenters hosting performances in music, theater, dance, comedy, family programming and renowned speaker events; and serving more than 50,000 children annually through its Education Through the Arts programs. Located in the heart of the Sonoma wine country, the Center is owned and operated by the Luther Burbank Memorial Foundation, and relies on the generosity of members, donors, and sponsors to achieve its mission to enrich, educate, and entertain the North Bay community. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Women's Audio Mission | 542-544 NATOMA ST #C-1, SAN FRANCISCO, 94103-2817 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (800) 926-1338 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Women’s Audio Mission (WAM) will continue scaling our award-winning music production training, artist recording residencies, mentorship, and performance programs to Los Angeles to meet ever-growing demand for our programs in Southern California. Serving 2,500+ California women/girls/gender-expansive artists from under-resourced communities (96% low-income, 93% BIPOC) every year, WAM addresses the staggering gender inequity in the music and media industries, where fewer than 5% of the people creating the sounds, music, and media in the soundtrack of our lives are women/gender-expansive. Named “Best Hope for the Future of Music” by the SF Weekly, WAM has been an essential part of the Northern California music ecosystem/community for over 22 years. |
WAM has consistently engaged thousands of women, girls, and gender-expansive individuals every year from historically marginalized communities over the last 23 years. ● WAM’s Artist Residency programs provide free recording studio services ($10K value) and artist mentorship/development in WAM’s professional recording studios to 10-15 local female/gender-expansive artists each year, as well as digital distribution and promotion to expand their audience. ● Girls on the Mic (GOTM) annually provides 2,000+ girls/gender-expansive youth from the most under-resourced communities (96% low-income/93% BIPOC/ages 11-18) with free music production and media arts training that inspires them to amplify their voices and creativity. ● WAM Academy provides music production and recording arts training to 500+ women/gender-expansive students every year in San Francisco and Los Angeles. Curriculum includes everything from songwriting, electronic music composition in Ableton Live to industry certifications in Pro Tools recording software Dolby Atmos/Spatial Audio. ● Paid Internship & Job Placement program: WAM’s paid internship program serves 60 college-age women/gender-expansive young adults (94% low-income; 84% BIPOC)/year with hands-on Music production training,, career counseling, mentorship and job placement in creative careers at companies like Dolby, Pixar, NPR, Sony, Disney, ESPN, etc. WAM hosts 6 cohorts/year (3 in SF, 3 in LA). ● Local Sirens Concert Series serves 30-40+ under-represented women artists every year (majority low-income; 100% BIPOC) with performance opportunities at premier venues like Yerba Buena Center for the Arts, SF Jazz, Brava, Dolby, The Independent, Rickshaw Stop, etc to audiences of 2,000+. ● WAMCon is a national recording arts conference series for women/gender-expansive aspiring music producers, songwriters and recording engineers. WAM has hosted dozens of conferences in Los Angeles, Nashville, New York, Boston, and virtually reaching 2,000+ women/gender-expansive people from 30+ countries and featuring music producers, songwriters and recording engineers who have worked with everyone from Selena Gomez to Cardi B to P!nk and Rihanna. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $15,800.00 | Uprise Theatre | 541 MERLIN DR , SAN DIEGO, 92114-2337 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 821-5340 | California's 51st congressional district | State Assembly District 79 | State Senate District 40 | Uprise & Grind cultivates the power of community by centering locally-owned neighborhood coffee shops as the venue for our groundbreaking theatre and arts program. A special Uprise Theatre project, Uprise & Grind collaborates with five coffee shops around San Diego, to bring the artistic and innovative teaching of legal rights to the people. |
Uprise Theatre’s Core programs are: Theatre/Art Program: Our flagship program is a 16-week legal course that teaches topics including domestic violence (DV), sexual assault (SA), LGBTQ+ rights, 4th and 5th Amendment rights, and gang and conspiracy charges. Participants, turned peer-educators, re-teach the information they have learned to the community through live performances. Equal Access to Justice Legal Program: Uprise has grown from its flagship program to include pro-bono legal services for criminally impacted families. As a founding member of San Diego’s Participatory Defense group (based on the pioneering work of Raj Jayadev and Silicon Valley De-Bug in San Jose), Uprise founder, Annie Rios, has provided legal consultations and coaching for individuals and loved ones affected by the criminal justice system. Cultural Advocacy Response/Ability (CARA) Training Series: In addition to direct-service programs, Uprise provides a series of trainings to other community organizations/legal-aid programs that work with vulnerable clients. A five-part training, with topics that include (1) implicit bias, (2) cultural humility, (3) client centered services and trauma informed care, (4) grounding and motivational interviewing, and (5) self-care, is given free to organizations that provide pro bono services to people experiencing trauma. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | AAW&A | 6315 IMPERIAL AVE , SAN DIEGO, 92114-4201 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 249-8557 | 52nd Congressional district | State Assembly District 79 | State Senate District 39 | African American Writers & Artists (AAW&A) seeks funding for “Poems from Within the Teenage Soul,” also known as the S.O.S. (Saving Our Stories) project. This program offers FREE creative writing workshops for foster youth, youth in the juvenile justice system and alternative schools, and those in San Diego’s Promise Zones. Led by culturally responsive teaching artists and supported by mental health professionals, youth will explore healing through self-expression. The program culminates in a professionally designed anthology featuring participants’ original work. Focusing on marginalized voices—especially African American youth—the project promotes empowerment, literacy, and mental wellness. Grant funds will support teaching artists, mental health staff, interns, program materials, and accessibility needs. Funding will also provide youth incentives and help host a ceremony to recognize and celebrate the creative achievements of participating youth. |
Yearly artist exhibitions |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | THE AJA PROJECT | 4504 51st Street , San Diego, 92115 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 230-5556 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | “Counter Surveillance” will collaborate with emerging artists and cultural bearers, specifically those of immigrant/refugee backgrounds, in a 6-month fellowship to creatively tackle the racialized impacts of San Diego’s rapidly advancing surveillance technologies, such as the newly installed “smart” streetlight cameras. These cameras disproportionately impact San Diego’s most vulnerable communities, equipped with facial recognition and artificial intelligence that turn people into searchable data. We will engage fellows and our community in educational workshops dissecting key components of surveillance. Under the lead artist’s guidance, fellows will create media arts projects based on their learnings. The project will then become a traveling pop-up exhibit shown throughout San Diego to unite and educate different neighborhoods while inviting them in for further dialogue. |
The AjA Project has a strong reputation of delivering high-quality, high-impact programs to young people from diverse cultural, ethnic, and socio-economic backgrounds. This includes in-school and after-school programs as well as participatory workshops in collaboration with cross-sector partner organizations. AjA’s programs support young people to process experiences, understand their social and political landscapes and use the arts as a tool for creative self expression and social change. This year we have provided programming to newly arrived refugees, teen mothers, youth in detention, young people in military families, and youth across San Diego. The work at AjA remains grounded in the power of photography and visual arts as a tool for all youth, regardless of background, to see themselves as agents of change. AjA remains committed to igniting individual and social change from a grassroots, creative approach. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,750.00 | Lovers Lane | 57 Balmy Alley , San francisco, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 632-2029 | 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, lead artist Lucia Gonzalez Ippolito and the Lovers Lane SF artist collective will curate our 5th annual Lovers Lane artisan street fair where thousands attend to support 70+ artisans of all kinds and create 100s of art pieces on the spot for free! Lovers Lane 2026 will take place on Valentine’s Day in the Mission District’s Balmy Alley. In addition to our artisan vendors, we will provide free resources in the form of a health and wellness section, children’s art and physical activities, and all day performances by local artists. Our event represents radical love for our communities, cultures, and families as we come together to celebrate, connect, and create through a day full of joyful resistance in honor of San Francisco’s artistic and activist legacies. |
We aim to bring diverse and vibrant collaborative projects that celebrate love, compassion, and the rich heritage of the Mission District. Lovers Lane is a collective made up of cultural keepers, revolutionary organizers, multidisciplinary artists, and community youth and elders. We truly strive to obtain seven core values of trust, respect, service, creativity, safety, collaboration and community. Through a combination of visual art, music, lowriders, community resources, all ages activities, food, and health/wellness spaces, Lovers Lane aims to foster a sense of togetherness and appreciation for both all types of relationships and the broader community. By embracing the intersectional Latino culture that thrives in the Mission District, Lovers Lane seeks to create an atmosphere of multiculturalism, welcomeness, and safety during any space we occupy. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | Joe Goode Performance Group | 499 ALABAMA ST # 150 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110-1967 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 561-6565 | California Assembly district 12 | District 17 | District 11 | Funding from the CAC would support JGPG’s Resilience Project, which provides free, weekly Mindful Movement classes for veterans and veteran service providers. These trauma-informed classes focus on breath, gentle movement, and mind-body awareness to foster resilience, healing, and connection. Accessible online and adaptable for all mobility levels, the program requires no prior experience. It integrates expressive movement and storytelling to reduce isolation and support healing. Facilitators work to cultivate lasting community bonds, directly addressing the loneliness many veterans face. This program offers a vital, inclusive space where participants can connect, heal, and build a sense of belonging. |
JGPG uses an intersectional equity framework in the design and implementation of all its programming. JGPG centers the experiences of these communities through core guiding principles: Listen and make art collaboratively with the people in the room—their bodies, their stories and their sensibilities. – New Work: site-responsive installations, in-theater works, and intimate performances in the Annex. Most recently Are You Okay? (2025) Co-directed by Joe Goode and Melecio Estrella was an immersive dance theater work that asked how we are managing in a world that is personally and collectively unstable. – JGPG’s GUSH Dance Theater Festivals have uplifted LGBTQ+ and QTPOC artists and audiences. GUSH 2020, 2022 and 2024 all featured the work ofLGBTQ+, BIPOC and QTPOC artist. GUSH 2026 will serve as a legacy project for JGPG. – JGPG artist Wailana Simcock, hosts D.R.A.G @ the Annex, inviting QTBIPOC artists to share their knowledge and understanding of gender in JGPG-produced events and workshops. – Through JGPG’s partnership with San Francisco Veterans Services JGPG offers 2 weekly movement and community connection classes for veterans and veteran service providers. – JGPG’s Youth Program: Inspired Bodies, a free youth dance program led by JGPG teaching artists currently has served over 150+ Bay Area middle and high school students in the 2025-26 school year. – Beginning in March 2026, JGPG is partnering with Open House and Shanti Project to offer PLUSH – weekly expressive movement class for LGBTQ+ older adults and those with disabilities at the Joe Goode Annex. – Weekly Movement for Humans: a gentle accessible movement class for people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities. We will continue to host online classes every Saturday from 10:00am to 11:15am. – JGPG Annex Rentals: accessible studio rental program serving over 8,000 audience members and 90 renting artists per year. Efforts are made for artist-centered access; rentals are offered at below-market rates. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | BAVC Media | 145 9th St Ste 101 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 861-3282 | CA 12th District | District 17 | District 11 | BAVC Media requests $25,000 to support nine months of staffing for our Youth and Emerging Media Maker (YEMM) Programs. YEMM programs have been a staple in the Bay Area community, providing systematically under-served California youth ages 11-25 with access to media arts education for over twenty years. We offer in-school, afterschool, and summer programs ranging from courses for those with no media-making experience to “earn and learn” workforce training programs. YEMM programs intervene in systemic inequities in media arts education by providing under-resourced youth tools and opportunities to express themselves and build confidence in safe and supportive environments. Through mentorship and project-based, hands-on, collaborative learning models, YEMM programs also support participants practice vital soft-skills such as problem-solving, conflict resolution, and communication, all of which serve their academic, professional, and social-emotional development. |
BAVC is a community hub and resource for media makers in the Bay Area, California and across the country, serving over 7,500 freelancers, filmmakers, job-seekers, activists, and artists every year. BAVC provides access to media making technology and education, storytelling workshops, a diverse and engaged community of makers and producers, advisory and AV production services, media making grants and other resources. BAVC advocates for those whose stories aren’t being told, and provides the resources for anyone to create and share, and amplify their stories and those of their communities. BAVC’s diverse, inclusive, and innovative programs lead the field in media training for youth and educators, technology and multimedia focused workforce development, visually-driven new media storytelling and audio-visual preservation. BAVC has been a trusted community educator, collaborator, incubator, community builder and resource for the media arts world since 1976. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Contemporary Art Review Los Angeles | 10866 WASHINGTON BLVD UNIT 850 , CULVER CITY, 90232-3610 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (858) 442-1047 | With support from the California Arts Council, CONTEMPORARY ART REVIEW LOS ANGELES will prioritize bolstering key operations that sustain the health of the nonprofit organization, which is centrally anchored by Carla magazine, a quarterly publication published in print and online that exists as an active source of critical dialogue on L.A.’s art community, and is available for free in over 170 galleries and art spaces around the city. Beyond production costs, this grant funding will support critical strategic planning which will help our nonprofit work towards the longer-term goals of bringing on additional staff (such as full-time operational support and a membership and development employee), raise compensation to writers and other contributors, and allow us to produce more community events. |
The materials in Carla’s archive include published reviews, essays, and podcast episodes that |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Senderos | 840 N BRANCIFORTE AVE , SANTA CRUZ, 95062-1028 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 854-7740 | D-CA 19th District | District 28 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, Senderos (meaning pathways) will provide equitable access to baile folklórico (Mexican folkloric dance) and Oaxacan banda de viento (wind band) with free after-school classes for Latino youth and all who are interested in participating in Santa Cruz County. Linking young people to their cultural heritage enhances self-esteem and promotes family unity as they learn about, embrace, value, and share traditions together. For over 20 years Senderos has presented community events sharing Indigenous traditions of Mexico, particularly from Oaxaca, like the Guelaguetza cultural arts festival, creating a sense of belonging and pride for Latino youth and families and increasing understanding of diversity in our region. |
Senderos core programs and services are: |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | MashUp Contemporary Dance Company | 2926 Gilroy St , Los Angeles, 90039 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 259-3289 | 30th Congressional district of California. | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, MashUp Contemporary Dance Company will develop and present the company’s 10th Annual International Women’s Day Dance Festival (IWDDF), a four-day celebration of women in dance. Featuring performances, screenings, classes, mentorship, and community events across Los Angeles, IWDDF centers feminist perspectives while welcoming participants of all identities. Grant funds will play a critical role in sustaining the festival and supporting the celebration of its 10th anniversary, and in particular, the cornerstone Showcase event. As MashUp celebrates its 15th year as a company, and the 10th year of IWDDF, this investment advances the company’s mission to uplift underrepresented voices and provide sustainable, paid opportunities for artists. With over 400 attendees annually, IWDDF fosters cultural exchange, expands dance literacy, and strengthens LA’s creative ecosystem through inclusive, accessible programming. |
MashUp sustains the following programs: International Women’s Day Dance Festival (IWDDF) — Annually in March, MashUp recognizes the advancements of women with a four-day festival, featuring an all-female and non-binary choreographer showcase, movement classes, dynamic panel discussions around gender equity in the arts, and unique networking opportunities. Highlights include one-on-one mentorship for high school students at the Women Dance Summit and the electrifying Support Women Artists Day film festival. National Women’s Equality Day (NWED) – Each August, MashUp joins forces with female-identifying creative teams, ideological partners, or social justice organizations to celebrate NWED via a performance, creation of a film, or community gathering. This program provides an opportunity for cross-disciplinary female artists and activists to collaborate, and challenges audiences to examine a current, culturally critical feminist topic. Choreographic Residency — Open to female-identifying and non-binary emerging and mid-career choreographers, the residency includes a stipend ($2K-$4K), studio time with MashUp company dancers, and a fully produced showcase with professional documentation. A direct investment in the future of the dance field, this program is one of the only LA residency opportunities that provides this level of financial and producorial support. Choreography Open Mic Nights — Quarterly events that offer eight LA-based choreographers 10 minutes to showcase their work and engage with a supportive public audience. The environment is designed to be extremely supportive, encouraging choreographers to ask for feedback and allowing audiences, including “non-dancers,” to learn how to articulate their thoughts about dance and directly interact with the artists, fostering a deeper appreciation for the art of dance. Intensives — MashUp hosts two-day dance intensives at its home studio: Frogtown Creative, as well as sends teachers out to studios to ensure access. Crafted specifically for the early career professional, these intensives include movement classes, Q&As with industry leaders, and mentorship sessions. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Chance Theater | 5522 E LA PALMA AVE , ANAHEIM, 92807-2108 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (888) 455-4212 | California District 40 | District 59 | District 37 | With support from the California Arts Council, CHANCE THEATER will offer their 2025 six-week summer workshop series “Teens Speak Up” and “Spectrum Speak Up” for a total of three workshops designed to provide a safe, nurturing space for teens, including those on the autism spectrum, to explore creative expression through writing, storytelling, and theater arts. Each workshop culminates in an original student-written and performed show before a live audience. The program encourages students to creatively express thoughts, feelings, and experiences that may be difficult to communicate otherwise, and does so in an environment that focuses on collaboration with peers and community-building. To ensure equitable access to arts education, the program will be offered free of charge to all participants, and will actively seek to represent students from diverse backgrounds. |
Our production season presents socially-conscious, provocative, intimate theater experiences for a diverse audience. Our post-show audience engagement program hosts discussions after every performance. Furthering our goal to provide audiences with access to the creative process, our OTR “On the Radar” new works development series consists of 3-4 readings and 1-2 workshops per year. Designed to foster the educational and emotional growth of young people, our Theater for Young Audience (TYA) series have adult actors performing work geared towards young people. With our Veterans Initiative, we continue our outreach to vets by giving them a voice through storytelling workshops. Finally, our education programs are designed to reinforce the truth that theater is a place for expression and connection. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Páah Áama Paddle Club | 1109 West Gate Dr , Eureka, 95503 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 476-3710 | State Assembly District 2 | State Senate District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Páah Áama Paddle Club will connect Indigenous youth in the Klamath River basin with opportunities to embrace traditional river-based culture, helping them harvest cultural materials and learn from Karuk master basket weaver Wilverna Reece. They will learn from Storytellers within their own tribal communities who will share cultural stories of how the River has sustained Native cultures from time immemorial and then learn to create their own stories that this generation of youth can pass on to the next. With last year’s completion of the largest dam removal in history, the Klamath River is now flowing freely for 300+ miles for the first time in a century so this Project allows Native youth to directly experience the revitalization not only of the watershed, but also their traditional cultures. |
Our core programs provide exposure to healthy river-based activities, livelihoods and culture for local Native youth in our communities. This includes building confident river based navigation skills on the water, creating river-based community events, creating opportunities for youth to participate in traditional cultural activities, including inter-generational Storytelling with opportunities for Native youth to publicly share their own stories from their own cultural perspective, and leadership development. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | ArtReach | 1065 University Avenue , San Diego, 92103 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 940-7278 | California's 53rd Congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, ArtReach will provide free and low-cost visual arts programs for over 7,000 young people annually, focusing on those with limited access to creative opportunities, including youth from low-income families, newcomer and refugee communities, Native youth, and LGBTQIA+ youth and families. General Operating Support will help sustain ArtReach’s in-school and community-based programs and strengthen the team’s capacity to meet growing demand across San Diego County. Funding will support staffing, artist wages, and the continued activation of ArtReach’s new community arts center in Hillcrest, an inclusive and intergenerational space that welcomes diverse communities, especially those living in the lowest quartiles of California’s Healthy Places Index. This support is vital to ensure long-term sustainability and equitable access to arts engagement for historically marginalized populations. |
ArtReach San Diego is a nonprofit organization committed to increasing access to visual arts education for youth, especially those from under-resourced schools and communities. ArtReach offers the following programs: In-School Programs: These programs utilize an inquiry-based, standards-aligned, and sequential curriculum designed to foster creativity, critical thinking, and self-expression. With a strong focus on supporting social-emotional learning goals, the lessons help students build confidence, resilience, and emotional awareness through artistic exploration. Mural Programs: ArtReach engages youth in collaborative public art projects, where they design and create large-scale murals that promote teamwork, community pride, and artistic achievement. Additionally, ArtReach offers commercial mural projects that provide youth apprentices with real-world work experience, helping to support reduced-cost murals for Title I schools. Community Programs: ArtReach hosts accessible art workshops and classes for families and individuals in a variety of settings, including our two in-house art studios, libraries, and community centers. These workshops focus on process-based techniques led by local artists, creating opportunities for authentic connection through the arts. ArtReach employs local artists as teaching artists, ensuring that its programs not only deliver valuable arts education but also support the local creative economy. These programs are offered county-wide, providing free or low-cost services to Title I schools and underserved communities across San Diego County. |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | $300,000.00 | Arts Council Santa Cruz County | 1070 River Street , Santa Cruz, 95060 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 475-9600 | California's 20th congressional district | District 28 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTS COUNCIL SANTA CRUZ COUNTY will serve as AO for the Central Coast’s Individual Artists Fellowship program, collaborating with arts councils and agencies from Monterey, San Benito, San Luis Obispo, Santa Barbara, and Ventura County. Our goal is to increase access to funding for underrepresented artists, affirm their intrinsic value for fellowships, and develop their skills for future opportunities. We will implement a streamlined online application and award system. Comprehensive artist assistance, including virtual workshops and personalized partner support, will be provided. Targeted outreach, utilizing culturally relevant materials and community networks, will engage diverse artists. Fellowships will be awarded through five peer review panels. We will organize fellow convenings in Northern and Southern regions to celebrate deserved acclaim, build community, inspire future artists, and enrich California’s cultural landscape. |
Guided by its 2022-27 Strategic Plan, Arts Council Santa Cruz County will build, support, and sustain a dynamic, responsive, and inclusive arts culture in Santa Cruz County as characterized by: Through grants to artists and arts organizations, arts education programs that serve more than 18,000 youth across Santa Cruz County, and community initiatives such as Open Studios, the Tannery Arts Center, and the Watsonville Center for the Arts, we help Santa Cruz County thrive. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Arts Council Santa Cruz County | 1070 River Street , Santa Cruz, 95060 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 475-9600 | California's 20th congressional district | District 28 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTS COUNCIL SANTA CRUZ COUNTY will enhance arts education for youth, especially those from systemically disinvested communities. We’ll ensure access to high-quality, culturally relevant arts experiences by training local artists and teachers, mentoring youth, and offering school-based programs, directly addressing inequities. |
Guided by its 2022-27 Strategic Plan, Arts Council Santa Cruz County will build, support, and sustain a dynamic, responsive, and inclusive arts culture in Santa Cruz County as characterized by: Through grants to artists and arts organizations, arts education programs that serve more than 18,000 youth across Santa Cruz County, and community initiatives such as Open Studios, the Tannery Arts Center, and the Watsonville Center for the Arts, we help Santa Cruz County thrive. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,750.00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center | 388 9TH ST STE 290 , OAKLAND, 94607-4295 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 637-0455 | 12th Congressional district of California | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Oakland Asian Cultural Center will hold its third annual Lunar New Year x Black History Month Celebrating Asian and African-American Solidarity. Free to the public, we will showcase dance and music from the Asian and African diaspora. Our partners Eastwind Books and Marcus Books will run a cross cultural children’s zone that will provide a story time, children’s books with solidarity and anti-racist themes, and an educational art project. We will also offer a marketplace where BIPOC artists and small businesses will sell food, art, and handmade products to the public. This event engages community members in cross-cultural exchange, developing cultural pride, and engaging in solidarity and healing that is grounded in a space that rejects racism, colorism, and xenophobia. |
Every year, OACC welcomes 25,000+ visitors for cultural and community focused events. OACC offers affordable or no-cost, unique, and easily accessible multi-ethnic and multidisciplinary art and cultural programs. Programs include: (1) Classes and special Workshops (2) Exhibitions; (3) Festivals; (4) Performances and Other Special Events; (5) Film screenings (6) Book talks (7) School Tours & Community Outreach |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Living Jazz | 1528 Webster Street #2 , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 858-5313 | District 12 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Living Jazz will sustain RootED (formerly the Living Jazz Children’s Project), a culturally responsive music education program serving 1,500 TK–12 students across 21 public schools in Alameda and West Contra Costa Counties. Following a period of substantial growth (14 to 21 schools), this support will help ensure program continuity and sustainability. RootED provides free, year-round instruction in choir, rhythm, movement, and vocal expression, led by diverse teaching artists who reflect the students they serve. Over half of partner schools are in the lowest two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index, and many higher-HPI schools enroll students from low-HPI neighborhoods, with up to 76% qualifying as low income. CAC funds will support teaching artist and staff compensation, curriculum development, and consistent program delivery that fosters creativity, confidence, and belonging. |
“In the Name of Love” is the East Bay’s only non-denominational musical tribute honoring Dr. King Jr. Launched in 2002, the annual event celebrates the talents of local artists in a themed program highlighting social justice and has showcased 80+ prominent solo guest artists, commissioned and premiered new works, provide a platform for first-time collaborations, attracted sell-out audiences of ~1300 and celebrated the cultural, racial and ethnic diversity of Oakland’s public school system through performances by the Living Jazz Children’s Project choir. On hiatus since a 2021 online concert during the pandemic, ITNOL was re-imagined in 2024, with the 20th anniversary concert featuring the musical theme of Stevie Wonder and his activism, a sold-out much larger venue, and a larger roster of artists representing Oakland’s various communities of color. Living Jazz RootED (formerly The Living Jazz Children’s Project) is a free in-school performing arts education and performance program serving ~1,500 Oakland and West Contra Costa public elementary, middle, and high school students. Created in 2005, the program includes choral, vocal, and rhythm music components and a dance component that builds fundamental music and dance skills while teaching students about cultural diversity and social justice. Jazz Camp West is a nationally acclaimed jazz immersion program known for its culturally diverse curriculum; multi-generational, racially diverse student body; supportive, collaborative environment; renowned faculty artists; and spectacular outdoor setting. The eight-day program is now entering its 42nd season and serves ~250 people ages 15 and up. Jam Camp West is a supportive, nurturing seven-day alternative, sleep-away music camp for youth, modeled after Jazz Camp. LJ debuted the program in 2008 to serve youth with and without prior musical training. It features diverse urban-influenced contemporary music styles (spoken word, Afro-Cuban percussion, steeldrum, songwriting, ukulele, beatbox) in a beautiful redwood setting for ~125 youth ages 10-17. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Create Peace Project | 6231 Bernhard Ave , Richmond, 94805 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (415) 385-4065 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Create Peace Project will amplify its impact on youth development and community building through facilitating the creation of eight student-led murals within elementary schools throughout the San Francisco Bay Area in the 2025-2026 academic year. Over a focused 4-6 week period for each mural, our comprehensive program will immerse the entire student body of each participating school in dynamic creative arts and peace education initiatives. This deeply collaborative approach, expertly guided by resident artist Ross Holzman and his team, will empower students, educators, and the school community to actively participate in every stage of the mural process, from initial concept to final execution, fostering a sense of ownership and collective achievement. The resulting large-scale artworks will serve as enduring visual testaments to collective creativity and strengthened community spirit. |
Create Peace Project’s core programs are the peace Exchange, Banners for Peace, Community Murals, the Singing Tree Project, Peace Flags, Peace Media Project, and More Love. More Peace. The Peace Exchange is an international exchange of art and messages of peace using where students are asked to artistically express their visions for peace on postcards that are used in a global cross-cultural exchange. Banners for Peace is a collaborative painting workshop focused on promoting positive messages and uplifting art into the schools on giant canvases. Community murals transform school yards and barren walls into educational and inspirational works of art. Many of these murals are youth inspired, bringing entire communities together to create a cohesive vision of peace for the entire school population to engage. The Singing Tree Project is a STEM visual arts and writing workshops for students ages 8+. Students work together to create a leaf for the school tree mural to share their individual vision of peace with the school community. Peace Flags are a visual art activity for school children of all ages. Students are prompted to create their vision of peace on piece of fabric. The pieces are sewn together to create a finished flag that is hung in the school. Our Peace Media project translates these works of art onto traditional advertising spaces, to promote the visions of our youth to the general public. More Love. More Peace is a cross-cultural, virtual education platform launched in 2020 to provide students with a space to share their vision of peace through art. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | Artist As First Responder | 1240 Minnesota St , San Francisco, 94107 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (303) 260-9209 | 11th Congressional District | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Artist As First Responder will continue programming for the AfroPortals Project Space & Archive—an interactive arts, design, media, literary, and archive lab located in East Oakland. This artist-led, place-based initiative centers storytelling, healing, and global connection while addressing community-identified needs related to displacement, grief, joy, cultural erasure, and climate resilience . |
Exhibitions: Salt to Catch Ghosts (2022), Collective Arising: The Insistence of Black Bay Area Artists (2022), and Black Joy Story Windows (2021 and ongoing), a self-guided multi-media public art exhibition installed in 30+ storefronts in Downtown Oakland that highlights the work of more than 20 local Black Artists, Cultural Organizations, and businesses. Site-specific Ceremonies: A Meditation for Black Lives (2020) and Art of Defense #Shield Build (2020) took place to honor Black Lives in the wake of the murders of George Floyd, Brianna Taylor, and Ahmaud Aubrey, and Black Women in Mourning & Joy Collective (2022-ongoing) offers space for Black Femmes, Trans, and Non-Binary family to process their mourning through different arts rituals and practices. Print and Public Talks: Since 2000, AAFR authored and facilitated the forum and live zine series Blatant. It centers on the radical imagination of Black women artists and cultural workers creating across disciplines and geography. The series has been sold at the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco, the Berkeley Museum of Fine Art, Bandung Books, and the San Francisco Museum of Fine Art. The AfroPortals Project Space & Archive: an experimental, interactive Art and Design Lab rooted in the principles of Afrofuturism, Black Memory, and Collective Liberation, housed in two retrofitted shipping containers in East Oakland. AfroPortals fosters resilience and builds power within communities by cultivating belonging, storytelling, and radical imagination. The space blends art and technology to inspire community healing. A monthly Men’s Wellness Fellowship gathering, a space of courage and safety for Black and Brown men in the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2024, Artist As First Responder produced two print publications, created a site-responsive ceremony, hosted 64 public forums and 13 exhibitions, partnered with five global activation sites, and facilitated five community activations through the Climate Justice Artist in Residence. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Remainders Creative Reuse | 787 East Washington Blvd. suite 101, PASADENA, 91104-5055 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 532-0537 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Remainders Creative Reuse will be able to increase organizational capacity by providing a salary for a part time Director of Finance and two new teaching artists. Having reached annual revenues of over $1,000,000 in 2024, we feel it is imperative to have a staff member dedicated to overseeing all financial activity. Also, adding two teaching artists will enable us to increase the number of affordable art classes, workshops, and community events, some of which are free or subsidized through scholarships, enabling us to reach more individuals across all age groups and backgrounds. The Remainders budget has allocated the matching amount of $30,000, providing for these salaries. |
Remainder’s Creative Reuse is a Pasadena-based nonprofit and creative reuse center that supplies abundant low and no-cost arts and crafts materials to a diverse and inter-generational audience as well as educational resources and active arts programming. We provide art opportunities to people of all ages and economic levels, engaging them in maker culture as a means for creative expression, personal growth and well-being while educating artists, artisans and teachers to include creative reuse in their work and training them to teach others. Remainder’s is an inter-generational space where seasoned local artists and makers work side by side with younger generations providing a space for connection and community. New learners benefit from the open sharing of knowledge and experience and older adults benefit from being able to connect and serve the community through our volunteer and workshop programming. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Noorani Dance | 56 LORELEI LN , MENLO PARK, 94025-1754 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 704-0987 | California's 18th congressional district | District 24 | District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, Noorani Dance will utilize general operating funding for personnel expenses for our Artistic/Executive Director, School Administrative Director, Administrative Manager, Marketing Manager, Development Manager, and Administrative Assistant. |
Noorani Dance is committed to enlightening minds and hearts through the arts by (i) presenting traditional and innovative performances of kathak dance, (ii) offering training in kathak dance, and other traditions related to South Asian classical arts (iii) participating and presenting works of collaborative partnerships across other forms of performing arts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Keshet Chaim Dancers | 4155 DIXIE CANYON AVE , SHERMAN OAKS, 91423-4337 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 784-0344 | 32 CA | 46 | 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, KESHET CHAIM DANCERS will provide competitive wages to its actors, director, tech crew, and administrator for the high school tour of SURVIVORS by Wendy Kout. |
CONCERTS: KCDE develops and presents productions of original works by resident and guest choreographers and performed locally, nationally, and internationally. We have performed locally at venues including Kodak Theater, Disney Concert Hall, Ford Amphitheatre, Hollywood Bowl, and Paramount Studios. TOURING: Nationally, KCDE has traveled to NYC, San Francisco, San Diego, and Washington DC as headliners for large festivals. Tour locations include New York, Texas, Florida, Moscow, Mexico City, and Tel Aviv. HOLOCAUST EDUCATION: Our Holocaust education program is centered around a one-act play called SURVIVORS by Wendy Kout. The play shows the history of Holocaust through eyewitness testimony of ten adolescent survivors, presenting it from their points of view. The show stresses the importance of speaking up and acting against hatred and bullying in our world today. It gives the students a stark warning, connecting WWII Nazis to present-day racists in politics, sports, and the media. After the show, we host a talkback with the playwright and actors, hosted by trained Holocaust educator from The Museum of Tolerance and Stand With Us. They are sometimes joined by a Holocaust survivor which makes an even more impactful impression on the students. COMMUNITY DANCE: Folk dance workshops are held through the week at temples, schools, and community centers in LA. These classes introduce students to Israeli dance and music. Locations include American Jewish University, and Pasadena Jewish Temple. COLORS OF ISRAEL EDUCATIONAL PROGRAM: Colors of Israel uses dance and music to teach elementary-school students about Israel, history, and culture. This program has been in public and private schools since 2006.Currently, we provide this program to all students at Lashon Academy, a Hebrew language LAUSD school. |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | $300,000.00 | Teatro Nagual | 15 MOSES CT , SACRAMENTO, 95823-6368 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 549-3341 | 6 | 10 | Sacramento | With support from the California Arts Council, Teatro Nagual will create an equitable, multilingual regranting program to distribute $240,000 in unrestricted fellowship awards to emerging, established, and legacy artists in Region 2. Drawing on our experience managing the Sacramento Artists Corps and leading the Capital Region Creative Corps—where, as a City of Sacramento employee, I administered $3.75 million in support of 208 artists and 25 organizations—we will implement a culturally responsive selection process centered on artistic excellence, equity, and social impact. CAC funds will support outreach, technical assistance, adjudication, and artist convenings, while amplifying the visibility of awardees. Our approach prioritizes trust, transparency, and cultural competency to ensure historically underserved artists across the region access vital support to sustain and elevate their work. |
Founded in 2006, our core values have expanded into three pillars of core programs and services. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,900.00 | Maya's Music Therapy Fund | PO BOX 7110 , BERKELEY, 94707-0110 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 704-8476 | With support from the California Arts Council, Maya’s Music Therapy Fund will provide free and low cost music therapy to 101 youth and adults with developmental disabilities in individual and group sessions throughout the Bay Area. Through consistent weekly music therapy sessions, participants will develop artistic, cognitive, and social skills based on individualized goals. |
Maya’s Music Therapy Fund’s board certified music therapists work with people with disabilities such as autism, cerebral palsy, Down’s syndrome, brain injury, hearing and vision impairment, ADHD, Rett syndrome, and other developmental disabilities. Experiencing the unique power of music to engage our brains and our bodies, clients gain physical and social skills while building self-esteem and confidence during individual and group music therapy sessions. MMTF also collaborates with agencies and existing programs that serve people with disabilities from Alameda, Contra Costa, and San Francisco Counties in Northern California. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Middletown Art Center | 21456 State Hwy 175 , MIDDLETOWN, 95461-1616 | Lake | Upstate | (707) 809-8118 | California's 5th congressional district | District 4 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, EcoArts of Lake County DBA Middletown Art Center (MAC) will deliver YÓMI–PLACE, providing Title I public school students with free field trips to an exhibit of contemporary Native American art at MAC. Field trips center inquiry-based, standards-aligned gallery tours led by a culture bearer together with a seasoned teaching-artist, paired with creative arts studio activities using traditional and contemporary materials led by cultural educator and emerging artist Way-La Brown. All activities model the power of arts integration and kinesthetic experiences to enhance core curriculum and diverse learners’ voices and understandings in an exhibition with profound and meaningful content that grounds them in place-based natural history and Native American cultural heritage. Students will demonstrate their understandings through written and spoken observational notes, dialogue, and art making. |
Community-focused, MAC serves a geographically dispersed region where arts resources are very limited, working to reach, connect, and uplift people of diverse backgrounds and abilities, with an emphasis on service to Lake County’s underrepresented communities. At the core of MAC’s programming are rotating curated exhibitions showcasing local and regional contemporary artists with emphasis on historically excluded voices including culturally diverse artists and artists with disabilities. Exhibitions serve as a platform for public dialogue, learning, and connection within the gallery, studio, and outdoor spaces. MAC delivers free and low-cost programming onsite and in communities throughout Lake County. Activities include musical performances, DJ dances, cultural celebrations, open mics, readings, arts education, and community-engaged art-making at festivals, schools, Tribal and other community spaces. Cultural arts projects centered around exhibitions, with workshops and field trips, are collaboratively designed and led by BIPOC artists, culture bearers, and community advocates, ensuring authentic representation and culturally appropriate outreach within their communities, fostering engagement. Public art projects, such as murals and sculpture, invite community participation. Education is central to MAC programming and designed to engage diverse learners. School field trips and artist-in-schools introduce students to contemporary and culturally rooted artistic practices through inquiry-based learning. Summer camp, homeschool, and after-school programs are low-cost, with subsidies available. In partnership with Woodland Community College, MAC hosts accredited college art classes. Also a creative workforce development hub, MAC supports artists’ professional growth through exhibitions, public art and teaching opportunities, promotion, and documentation. Youth are mentored in studio, gallery, and curatorial assistance, teaching, community activation, mural-making, project coordination, promotion, and operations—building skills, leadership, and pathways to higher education and employment in the arts, nonprofit, and other sectors. All programs are free, by donation, or low-cost, ensuring equitable access, elevating underrepresented voices, and cultivating a resilient arts ecosystem that strengthens community connection and well-being. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Hero Theatre | PO BOX 26275 , LOS ANGELES, 90026-0275 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 206-6415 | 30 | 52 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, HERO Theatre will use grant funds for staff salaries, artist fees, rent for office and storage space, overhead, and programming costs to support our commissioning, development, and production work. |
HERO’s goal is to create programming that has a lasting impact on audiences and helps shape a better society. We produce elaborately staged readings, full productions of plays, and special events like FESTIVAL IRENE: a 2-week festival honoring the life and legacy of Cuban playwright Maria Irene Fornés. We commission bold, innovative new work. In 2019, HERO launched OUR AMERICA new play commissioning series, in which BIPOC playwrights explore real stories of cities in America undergoing vast socio-economic change. Under this, HERO produced Amina Henry’s TROY, inspired by THE TROJAN WOMEN and based on true stories of unhoused women in L.A. HERO partnered with local shelters to invite more than 300 unhoused women to attend and provided free tickets, round-trip transportation, concessions, and a post-show talkback with artists. HERO’s 2023 production of Henry’s NOTHING, NOTHING continues these partnerships and responds to audience desire to celebrate Black women and joy. In 2021, HERO launched NUESTRO PLANETA (NP), a multimedia new works initiative rooted in research around ecological concerns in Latine countries and the U.S. and how Latine American families are directly affected. In September 2021, HERO presented an elaborately staged reading of FLEX by Candrice Jones about a Black high school girls’ basketball team that explores such themes as teen pregnancy and abortion. In 2022, we produced Velina Hasu Houston’s TEA and also RISE: An Immersive Exploration of Gun Violence in Schools which received critical acclaim. HERO’s education programming serves elementary through high school students in the L.A. school district, specifically through Inner-City Arts and solo writing and performance classes at Homeboy Industries for formerly incarcerated youth. HERO’s Dukakis Mentorship Program, provides early career artists and administrators one-on-one mentorship; 50+ artists served. HERO frequently invites communities represented in the work on our stages to attend our programming for no cost. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,000.00 | Independent Arts & Media (fiscal sponsor) | 2830 20th Street, Ste 201 , San Francisco, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 269-0073 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, StageWrite will strengthen organizational infrastructure with expanded administrative roles, while supporting the immediate needs of our partner school communities with residencies, educator workshops, and teaching artist training to support equitable access for youth to engage with drama as a crucial means of self-expression, identity-building, and well-being. |
StageWrite serves approximately 1000 students annually in San Francisco public elementary schools. StageWrite’s Building Literacy through Theatre sequential drama program begins with kindergarten and 1st grade students participating in story dramas based on social issues; 2nd and 3rd graders explore narrative story elements creating performances that reimagine grade-level texts; and 4th and 5th grade students write original work, including monologues and one-act plays, which are performed by the students and by professional actors. Our ADAPTS (Autism & Drama with Artists, Parents, Teachers & Students) program serves students with autism in inclusive residencies to engage students in creative play, improve communication, and encourage personal growth. All StageWrite programs are designed and implemented using student-centered methodology. It is our belief that students learn the most from examining their own thoughts and feelings, and thinking critically about the world. We believe in theatre as a tool for social change, and a means of empowering students and communities. This principle of StageWrite’s work has been a guiding force for 20+ years and has been essential in informing our response to the challenges of today. As a response to the pandemic, StageWrite developed, piloted, and refined two new curricula: “Zoom-a-Rama: Community Through Drama,” designed for distance learning at the start of the pandemic, and “Room-a-Rama” which re-imagined our curriculum to use improvisational drama games and collaborative storytelling activities to build classroom communities and support social emotional learning as students returned in-person, serving 45 classrooms at 6 San Francisco public elementary schools. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Hero Theatre | PO BOX 26275 , LOS ANGELES, 90026-0275 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 206-6415 | 30 | 52 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, HERO Theatre will provide a free 15-session participatory performance, writing, and dance workshop with the Youth Group at Alexandria House, a transitional residence that provides safe and supportive housing for women and children experiencing homelessness and trauma, in their community room. It will run a minimum of fifteen 2-hour sessions, meeting twice weekly. The project will culminate with a devised play that the Youth Group and HERO will present to the residents and staff of Alexandria House. In addition, props and costumes will be made during the workshops, and we’ll invite adult residents and smaller children to join, engaging multiple generations at Alexandria House in the project. |
HERO’s goal is to create programming that has a lasting impact on audiences and helps shape a better society. We produce elaborately staged readings, full productions of plays, and special events like FESTIVAL IRENE: a 2-week festival honoring the life and legacy of Cuban playwright Maria Irene Fornés. We commission bold, innovative new work. In 2019, HERO launched OUR AMERICA new play commissioning series, in which BIPOC playwrights explore real stories of cities in America undergoing vast socio-economic change. Under this, HERO produced Amina Henry’s TROY, inspired by THE TROJAN WOMEN and based on true stories of unhoused women in L.A. HERO partnered with local shelters to invite more than 300 unhoused women to attend and provided free tickets, round-trip transportation, concessions, and a post-show talkback with artists. HERO’s 2023 production of Henry’s NOTHING, NOTHING continues these partnerships and responds to audience desire to celebrate Black women and joy. In 2021, HERO launched NUESTRO PLANETA (NP), a multimedia new works initiative rooted in research around ecological concerns in Latine countries and the U.S. and how Latine American families are directly affected. In September 2021, HERO presented an elaborately staged reading of FLEX by Candrice Jones about a Black high school girls’ basketball team that explores such themes as teen pregnancy and abortion. In 2022, we produced Velina Hasu Houston’s TEA and also RISE: An Immersive Exploration of Gun Violence in Schools which received critical acclaim. HERO’s education programming serves elementary through high school students in the L.A. school district, specifically through Inner-City Arts and solo writing and performance classes at Homeboy Industries for formerly incarcerated youth. HERO’s Dukakis Mentorship Program, provides early career artists and administrators one-on-one mentorship; 50+ artists served. HERO frequently invites communities represented in the work on our stages to attend our programming for no cost. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $10,750.00 | Fuse Theatre | 364 Lorraine Blvd , San Leandro, 94577-2727 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 701-3873 | District 15 | District 21 | District 13 | With funds from the CAC General Operating Support grant, Fuse Theatre will bolster the administrative, marketing, and communications infrastructure necessary for the sustainable operation of our three core programs: Community Connections, Connect and Play, and Ignite Artists. These programs are the backbone of Fuse Theatre’s mission to create meaningful theatre experiences that expand perspectives and foster civic engagement. Supporting this operational capacity through the grant is crucial for planned strategic expansion and fulfilling Fuse Theatre’s commitment to equity, justice, and inclusion for all. It directly contributes to engaging and uplifting historically under-resourced communities and ensuring that Fuse events and programs align with accessibility standards for people with disabilities. |
Fuse collaborates with local groups and individuals to present theatre for social awareness, justice and change. We work to make theatre accessible to all communities and inspire our audiences with stories that matter in our world. We have four programs: Ignite Artists Initiative, Community Connections, Connect and Play and Theatre for Trees – working within the three strategies of Education, Performance and Partnerships. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,750.00 | WHIPPOORWILL ARTS INC | 201 Martina Ave. , Richmond, 94801 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 708-3147 | Whippoorwill Arts appreciates the CAC’s consideration of a $30,000 general operating support grant for your continued support of two critical part-time staff positions: Tiara Amar, Team Co-Director of Advocacy and Fellows, and Gabriel Block, Team Co-Director of Music aLIVE. Tiara leads our Fair Play Initiative—a diverse, artist-led coalition advancing fair pay, professional protections, and equitable hiring practices for musicians—and manages our Fellows Program, which provides $25,000 fellowships to a talented and diverse cohort of artists. Gabriel directs artist engagement and production for Music aLIVE, which brings free live music to underserved schools, elder care centers, and community partners. With CAC’s renewed partnership, Whippoorwill Arts will continue to support an outstanding cohort of musicians, foster more inclusive audiences, and bring the joy of live music directly to communities where it is needed most. |
In response to the needs identified by roots musicians through our national survey, Whippoorwill Arts developed four interconnected program areas that support them and advance a more equitable music ecosystem in local communities: Advocacy: Through Advocacy and our Fair Play Initiative (FPI), we collaborate with municipalities, arts organizations, businesses, and philanthropists to better support local musicians. FPI priorities are identified collectively by a diverse coalition of musicians across ages, cultures, musical genres, and union membership statuses. Current priorities include establishing local wage standards, expanding job opportunities, and advancing equitable hiring practices. Music aLIVE: Through Music aLIVE, we organize free community concerts and create guaranteed paid performance opportunities for musicians. Concerts are curated for underserved communities in non-traditional settings through partner agencies such as senior centers, prisons, rehabilitation centers, veterans’ homes, and K–12 public schools. We intentionally uplift musicians of color, LGBTQIA+ musicians, and disabled musicians, and provide ethical pay of $200/hour for performances that are free to partner agencies and communities. To date, Music aLIVE has produced 965 concerts, created opportunities for 485 musicians, and brought live music to 48,000 audience members. Fellowships: We recognize and support under-the-radar musicians who have demonstrated sustained accomplishment, commitment, and artistic excellence. Fellows receive $25,000 over two years, undertake a professional music project, and join the Whippoorwill Fellows community for professional development, retreats, and performance opportunities. Since 2021, 17 fellows have been supported across four cohorts. Festival Partnerships: Each year, Whippoorwill Arts collaborates with festival organizations such as the Freshgrass Foundation and Northwest Folklife to present live music featuring regional and national roots musicians while promoting equitable pay, community-centered booking practices, and broader visibility for roots artists. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Create CA | 85 S. Grand Ave., , Pasadena, 91105 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 578-9315 | California's 28th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Create CA will produce two Arts + Activism Days for current California high school students. These events, taking place at the California State Summer School for the Arts (CSSSA), provide access to meaningful, culturally responsive workshops that activate young changemakers. Guided by Create CA’s youth program participants, Arts + Activism Days will connect 550 students to half-day workshops with community artists. Workshops provide engagement in the arts and social justice, providing students with leadership skills to communicate the importance of the arts. 50% of participants are located in the lower two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index and represent the economic, cultural and ethnic diversity of all 58 California counties. Students will collaborate on art with a purpose, gaining creative skills for life. |
Create CA works to fulfill its mission through three programs: The Arts Now program trains advocates to work with local school boards, design strategic arts education plans, and improve resources for arts education. Participants receive strategic coaching, training, communications support, and micro-grants. The Student Voices program provides leadership training and advocacy opportunities for current public school students. Our annual Student Arts Advocacy Day is the largest arts advocacy training event for high schoolers in California. Lastly, Create CA’s public will program influences decision-makers, raises awareness about the benefits of arts education, and increases access to and participation in the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | "" | 468 W. 5th Street, Suite 218 , San Bernardino, 92401 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (909) 381-5388 | California's 31st congressional district | District 40 | District 23 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Bernardino Symphony Association will fund office rent, utilities, and a parttime administrative staff member to assist with ticket sales, music rentals, and the Association’s Youth Orchestra. |
The San Bernardino Symphony actualizes our mission through engaging and culturally/artistically relevant programming. We also provide a variety of educational enrichment programs, including concerts for the schools serving over 1,700 students annually, introductory workshops on orchestral instruments for every local third grade class (roughly 5,000 students each year), online educational videos, and our San Bernardino Symphony Youth Orchestra, a 70+ piece orchestra dedicatd to the performance of works by underrepresented composers. We also offer certificated Symphony Teens programs providing job skills training to local high school students. The vast majority of these students are of minority decent and considered at-risk due to economic circumstances. The Symphony also operates the Guthrie Music Rental Library providing low cost orchestral parts to other orchestras, schools, and choral groups. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,000.00 | Kids & Art Foundation | 1443 Howard Ave, Suite 218, Burlingame, 94010 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 877-2750 | California's 15th Congressional District | District 21 | District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kids & Art Foundation will advance strategic priorities that strengthen our capacity and expand our impact. This includes key staffing hires to enhance operational efficiency and fundraising; improvements to infrastructure and accessibility, including a transition to a more functional office space to support our growing ArtKit program; investment in monitoring and evaluation systems to better assess impact and inform program design; and deeper partnership engagement through travel, collaboration, and professional development. These efforts will ensure we remain a responsive, equity-driven arts organization serving pediatric cancer patients and their families. |
Kids & Art delivers free, trauma-informed creative arts and wellness programs that address the emotional, social, and psychological needs of children and families facing pediatric cancer and serious illness. Our programs offer children and families moments of agency, connection, and creative expression during an otherwise overwhelming time, and include: -The Artist-in-Residence (AiR) program brings professional artists to pediatric patients at two care centers in the Bay Area each week. The AiR works closely with hospital staff to identify patients in need, and creates with them 1-on-1 at bedside, in infusion rooms, or in small groups in waiting rooms. -Amaeyzing ArtKits are all-in-one art projects curated by professional artists that contain all materials, written instructions, and a QR code to a pre-recorded instruction video featuring the artist who created the kit. Projects are about process, encouraging patients and families to explore materials, ideas, and techniques. ArtKits are sent to children’s hospitals and patient homes throughout the U.S. -Destination Workshops, held throughout the Bay Area and hosted with partners such as Pixar Animation Studios, Chabot Space & Science Center, and the San Francisco Zoo, bring pediatric patients and their families together for joyful, community-based creative experiences beyond the hospital, taking the venue as a point of departure for art-making. -Custom Workshops, for patients in treatment, hospice, or for bereaved family members, pair families with professional artists to create personalized one-on-one art experiences that support reflection, memory-making, and healing. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | Synchromy | 1390 North Arroyo Blvd , Pasadena, 91103 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 255-5718 | California Assembly district 43 | District 43 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, SYNCHROMY will produce Urban Birds: The Plasticine with San Pedro-based artist Ashton Phillips by holding ten oral history workshops designed for San Pedro’s marginalized community members who are disproportionately impacted by Diesel Particulate Matter. The workshops will equip participants with the tools to carry out their own oral history practice and create intercommunity archives of stories that may otherwise be erased. With permission from workshop participants, the sound and language of the participant’s stories will become the fabric of a performance built through collaboration, experimentation, and care at Angels Gate Cultural Center in San Pedro, California. This project draws out previously untold, unheard human and ecological stories to notice the interconnection between humans and our environments, and to localize these stories to the immediate environment. |
LIVE MUSIC PROGRAMMING SUPPORT FOR COMPOSERS COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | San Diego Opera | 233 A ST STE 500 , SAN DIEGO, 92101-4095 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 232-7636 | California's 50th congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Diego Opera will implement its flagship Words & Music program, a dynamic in-school arts residency that empowers youth in grades 3–12 to create and perform original operas and songs inspired by their personal stories. Grant funds will support professional teaching artists, curriculum development, and supplies needed for student performances in eight partner schools. The program enhances arts access for students from under-resourced communities, cultivates cultural literacy, and nurtures creativity, confidence, and collaboration through songwriting, storytelling, and musical performance. |
San Diego Opera (SDO) is a widely respected member of the international opera community and an invaluable cultural resource to the San Diego region. San Diego Opera Association was incorporated in 1965 as a producing company and presented its first staging of La Bohème in the newly opened San Diego Civic Theatre. Led since 2015 by General Director David Bennett, the Company has embarked on a series of community-based initiatives, free public performances, and family-friendly operas with world-renowned opera stars to better serve the diverse San Diego region. In 2016, the Company premiered its wildly popular dētour Series, which explores the expressive nature of opera with the potency of intimate theater. SDO’s commitment to providing a valuable artistic service to our community extends to our offstage work including: Words and Music, an artist residency program that serves hundreds of San Diego youth with in-school, after-school, and summer arts instruction; Opera Hack, a hackathon that brings together leaders in the arts and technology to improve the production and performance of opera; an Artist-in-Residence program where residents of City Heights and San Ysidro create artistic works together that tell their stories, and; an Opera en Español initiative dedicated to building partnerships with arts organizations and artists in Mexico and the U.S. and commissioning, producing, and presenting Spanish-language opera. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Heidi Schwegler | 57275 Canterbury St , Yucca Valley, 92284 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (503) 789-8050 | California's 8th congressional district | District 42 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, Yucca Valley Material Lab (YVML) will continue its dedication to hands-on making, material exploration, and cultural exchange for people of all abilities. Funds will support the five pillars of the organization including: the musician and artist residency programs; public workshops in rare materials such as glass, metals, neon, and more; Yucca Alta, YVML’s music program, recording studio, record label; the Living Library, Tool Library, and archive resources; and exhibitions of regional artists in Lazy Eye Gallery, a 64 sq. ft. micro gallery inside of a repurposed water tower. Additional funds will support ongoing organization-wide accessibility efforts, the 2025 Intertribal Noise Symposium, and creative opportunities, collaborations, and partnerships that fall outside of YVML’s planned 2025 programs and events. |
Established in 2019, Yucca Valley Material Lab (YVML) is an artist-founded nonprofit arts organization in the rural Morongo Basin supporting hands-on making, material exploration, artist development, accessibility, and public cultural exchange. YVML operates as a material lab, residency program, workshop space, music initiative, exhibition site, and public learning environment. YVML’s core programs include funded artist and musician residencies, public workshops, free events, youth arts learning, Lazy Eye Gallery, Yucca Alta, and a multi-sensory art and craft library with archive and tool resources. Workshops specialize in techniques often missing from traditional arts education, including glass, metal, fiber, wood, neon, sound, digital fabrication, adobe, and related material practices. In a typical year, YVML offers approximately 40 workshops, 15 free public events, 6 music performances, 2 musician residencies, 2 Yucca Alta recording projects, and youth workshops serving approximately 300 students. Adult workshops serve approximately 320 students annually, and total annual participation reaches approximately 1,120 people. YVML supports artists through funded residencies that include lodging, studio access, technical mentorship, public presentations, and opportunities to explore unfamiliar materials and practices. Yucca Alta, YVML’s music program, recording studio, and record label, supports experimental musicians through residencies, performances, and recording projects. Lazy Eye Gallery presents exhibitions in a 64-square-foot micro gallery housed in a repurposed water tower. YVML is led by Founding Director Heidi Schwegler and supported by a staff team in programs, facilities, music, and philanthropy. The Board of Directors provides financial, strategic, and governance oversight, supported by advisors with expertise in art, music, disability advocacy, Indigenous arts, education, law, accounting, accessibility, and community engagement. YVML allocates 5% of its operating budget toward accessibility and accommodations, offers scholarships and local discounts, and is developing the Sustainable Adobe Studio through its Campaign for Creative Access. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | AXIS Dance Company | 1370 Tenth Street N/A, Berkeley, 94710-1510 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 625-0110 | 12th Congressional district of California | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, AXIS Dance Company will ensure our ongoing core programs and accessibility throughout. These include: Open Community Classes and Access in Motion—free, accessible workshops led by D/deaf, disabled, non-disabled, and neurodivergent artists supporting creative expression and community wellness; Artistic Advancement, including our Summer Intensive, Company Technique Classes, Choreo-Lab, and Teacher Trainings to uplift artists across a range of embodiments and experiences; Home Season and Touring, which bring inclusive dance to local and national audiences through performance, workshops, and panels; and dissemination of our Access Guide, a national resource advancing accessibility in performing arts. These programs cultivate a thriving ecosystem that increases visibility and opportunity for D/deaf, disabled, non-disabled, and neurodivergent artists. |
Our Artistic Advancement Program serves as a training ground for professional D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent artists and consists of our Summer Intensive, Company Appreniceship, Choreo-Lab, and Teacher Trainings. Our Summer Intensive, now entering its seventeenth year, provides professional development for dancers at all levels of their growth through a multi-day experience that connects participants. Our Choreo-Lab paves the way for D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent choreographers to elevate their artistry through mentoring, networking, and peer support while producing original work. We have built a robust professional development suite of services that deepens Choreo-Lab participants’ understanding of the craft, including grants & fellowships, budgeting, production, presenting, and disability justice workshops, an enhanced year-round mentorship component, and opportunities to connect with Choreo-Lab Alumni and meet with presenters to learn from them. Through our Choreo-Lab program, we have a unique capacity to increase the representation of D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent artists in the dance field. Many educators lack the tools or training to confidently create inclusive learning spaces for D/deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent students. AXIS bridges that gap. We pair 45-minute integrated dance performances with artist-led discussions, introducing young audiences to disability representation and the expressive power of movement. These experiences are joyful, interactive, and often a student’s first encounter with professional dance. In tandem, we equip educators with tools to create inclusive classrooms through movement-based exercises and dialogue about language, access, and belonging. Our focus on youth programming furthers our goal to introduce new populations to integrated dance. In 2024, AXIS reached 8,000 K-12 students in the Bay Area. 50% of participants were from low-income communities and 80-100% of participants were BIPOC. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Long Beach Camerata Singers | PO BOX 90511 , LONG BEACH, 90809-0511 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 900-2863 | California's 47th congressional district | District 69 | District 33 | With support from the California Arts Council, CAMERATA SINGERS OF LONG BEACH INC will present the Peace4Youth program, centering environmental justice issues, to students in three Long Beach School District Middle Schools. |
Camerata Singers of Long Beach (CSLB) is a 90-voice classical music chorus completing its 58th season. The organization is led by Grammy-winning Artistic Director, Dr. James K. Bass, Director of Choral Studies at UCLA. It produces 4 concerts per year, including the annual Peace Project, examining social justice topics, an annual performance of Handel’s Messiah, ChoralFest Long Beach in the Spring, and Evening of Song to finish the season. CSLB is the artistic partner of the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra. In the summer months, LBCS presents its free, community based outdoor concert series, The Front Porch Concerts. LBCS also runs two education programs. The Camerata Children’s Music Academy provides three weekly workshops teaching music fundamentals to pre-K children at the Long Beach YMCA Early Education Program, which runs state-funded child development centers for low-income families. Peace4Youth is presented in partnership with the Long Beach Unified School District, and brings the Peace Project into Middle and High Schools. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | San Diego Museum Council | 1270 Cleveland Ave Unit B136, San Diego, 92103-3379 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 342-6272 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | San Diego Museum Council would use CAC funds to present three major regional programs that remove economic barriers for families throughout the San Diego region: – Museum Month in February (half-off admission for all) – The Big Exchange in May (free reciprocal member admission) – Kids Free San Diego in October (free admission for ages 12 and under). We are small yet have a big impact. Last year, we served more 220,000 people including more than 40,000 people in historically and systemically underserved communities and rural and inland areas of San Diego County (lower two quartiles of CA Healthy Places Index), plus more in the Tijuana cross-border region. Funding will also help provide professional development, marketing support, networking, free artist housing/event space, and advocacy for more than 80 museums and cultural sites in the San Diego region. |
San Diego Museum Council is comprised of more than 80 member museums, aquariums, gardens, historic sites, gardens, parks, and more across San Diego County. We connect hundreds of thousands of residents and tourists each year to a range of arts, culture, history, and science offerings that is diverse, vibrant and unique to the region. Each year, San Diego Museum Council delivers three promotional programs including “Museum Month” in February, “The Big Exchange” in May and “Kids Free San Diego” in October. These signature programs are designed make our museums more accessible by reducing financial barriers for families. The programs include educational, professional development and outreach events and are supported by integrated marketing campaigns. All year round, San Diego Museum Council provides its members with collaborative marketing, professional development, and networking opportunities. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | THE AJA PROJECT | 4504 51st Street , San Diego, 92115 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 230-5556 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from California Arts Council, The AjA Project will urgently expand our mission of collective empowerment through participatory storytelling, focusing on youth, emerging artists, and cultural bearers from refugee and immigrant backgrounds in San Diego. In a time of rising stigma and hateful rhetoric against these communities, our work is more critical than ever. Funding will be used to deliver accessible media arts workshops, fellowships, and community exhibitions that challenge exclusion, uplift lived experiences, and foster resilience and belonging. By offering a safe, creative space, we empower underrepresented youth to share their stories, preserve cultural heritage, and strengthen intercultural understanding through artistic expression. |
The AjA Project has a strong reputation of delivering high-quality, high-impact programs to young people from diverse cultural, ethnic, and socio-economic backgrounds. This includes in-school and after-school programs as well as participatory workshops in collaboration with cross-sector partner organizations. AjA’s programs support young people to process experiences, understand their social and political landscapes and use the arts as a tool for creative self expression and social change. This year we have provided programming to newly arrived refugees, teen mothers, youth in detention, young people in military families, and youth across San Diego. The work at AjA remains grounded in the power of photography and visual arts as a tool for all youth, regardless of background, to see themselves as agents of change. AjA remains committed to igniting individual and social change from a grassroots, creative approach. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Marin Theatre Company | 397 Miller Ave. , Mill Valley, 94941 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 388-5200 | 2 | District 12 | District 2 | Marin Theatre seeks funding to achieve two key goals 1) expand our theatre education programming and reach young people from the developmentally disabled community in the Bay Area and 2) build our organizational capacity to bring the arts to the disabled community by expanding access accommodations. To do this successfully, we will partner with AXIS Dance, a Berkeley-based advocacy group and ensemble of disabled and neurodiverse performers, along with the Marin-based chapter of The Arc, a national organization supporting access to education, workforce development, and enrichment opportunities for people with intellectual and developmental disabilities. Marin Theatre will offer weekly theatre workshops with young adults from The Arc and enlist training and consultation from AXIS Dance to reimagine our theatre’s accessibility and equip our teams with revised best practices for disabled equitable language and accommodations. |
Marin Theatre (MT)’s arts programs and services include 4-5 theatrical experiences produced on our mainstage each season and robust educational programming delivered to the community across Marin County and the Bay Area. MT creates intimate, resonant theatrical performances that champion diverse American playwrights and ignite dialogue around the complexities of human relationships and our shared humanity. We complement our productions with robust public programs including cast and creative team interviews, Q&As hosted both at the Theatre and at our local partner bookstore, Book Passage, and curated visual art installations in our lobby that reflect the themes of each show. These multidisciplinary offerings deepen audience understanding and foster meaningful engagement with communities throughout the Bay Area. Along with public programs, MT’s educational offerings serve learners from early childhood through adulthood and include in-school residencies, student matinees, after-school programs, adult theater workshops, pre- and post-show conversations, and summer camps. Summer camps engage youth ages 6–14, while in-school residencies and matinee programs focus on high school students, introducing them to the power of live performance and storytelling. Each season, MT welcomes more than 30,000 patrons, artists, and creative collaborators into its spaces. While we maintain a deeply engaged, predominantly Marin-based subscriber base, our artistic and public programming is intentionally designed to reach audiences across the region. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | Clockshop | 2806 CLEARWATER ST , LOS ANGELES, 90039-2808 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 915-4311 | District 30 | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Clockshop will use funding to underwrite the salaries of our highly-trained Artistic Project Director and Curatorial Associate due to the diminishing availability of arts funding at the local and federal levels. Both have significant experience working with artists on commission and in public space, and have training in equity and accessibility measures for presenting contemporary art to broad audiences and in collaboration with community. They also have formed deep relationships with our Parks partners and local neighborhood organizations and the arts community, which are crucial to presenting rigorous, ambitious, and accessible contemporary art in public spaces. |
As a Los Angeles-based arts and culture nonprofit, Clockshop produces free public programming and commissions contemporary artist projects on public land to better connect Angelenos to the land we live on. We address the climate crisis as a cultural problem that requires equitable cultural solutions. Through long-term collaborations with artists, like-minded partners, and local stakeholders, Clockshop promotes ecological stewardship and climate resilience among the communities we serve. Our projects center working-class communities of color in Los Angeles and aim to support the wellbeing and vitality of multiple communities. Whether Indigenous, African American, Latinx, Asian American, Pacific Islander, or immigrants living in LA, we shape the city’s future together. We bring this mission to our work at Los Angeles State Historic Park in Chinatown, and Rio de Los Angeles State Park (“The Bowtie”) in Glassell Park, in collaboration with California State Parks. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,263.00 | Trails and Vistas | 10309 CROMLEY SQ , TRUCKEE, 96161 | Nevada | Upstate | (213) 500-7758 | California Assembly district 1 | District 1 | District 1 | With California Arts Council support, Trails and Vistas will collaborate with Artist/Culture Bearers on five projects: a. Four days of Dreaming Tree Field Trip, which will take 400+ third grade students on accessible, interactive art walks (music, poetry and visual arts) with Culture Bearers, environmental leaders and California artists, and partial printing of our field journal. |
Art in Nature Field Trips – an interactive art hike for 400+ California and Nevada third grade students with music, poetry, environmental studies, and visual art. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | California Symphony | 100 Pringle Ave., Ste. 540 , Walnut Creek, 94596 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (925) 280-2490 | 11th Congressional District | District 16 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, CALIFORNIA SYMPHONY ORCHESTRA INC will reach more students by increasing accessibility to violin, cello, vocal, and musicianship instruction for 2nd-6th graders and will compensate Teaching Artists for increased annual hours from 170 to 261, honoring school leadership requests. Sound Minds will expand the number of days/hours into the school day in addition to existing after-school programming. The benefit of additional hours of instruction will amplify the depth of programming for participating youth. More hours will also serve to: 1) accommodate more advanced learning for 5th and 6th graders in preparation for middle-high school advancement into regional partnership youth orchestras, 2) help students resist the inclination to select soccer or other competing after-school activities instead, and/or 3) recruit youth who might have not approached the after-school opportunity beforehand. |
California Symphony is a cornerstone producer at the Lesher Center for the Arts in Walnut Creek and presents its 10-concert subscription series in the 785-seat Hofmann Theatre. The orchestra musicians also regularly perform with the San Francisco Symphony, San Francisco Opera, and San Francisco Ballet, among others. California Symphony is distinguished by its vibrant concert programs that combine classics alongside American repertoire and works by living composers, and for presenting emerging talents. Outside of the concert hall, California Symphony actively supports music education as a driver for social change through its El Sistema-inspired Sound Minds program, which brings intensive music instruction in an area where 91% of students qualify for the federal free or reduced-price lunch program. The orchestra also hosts the highly competitive Young American Composer-in-Residence program and has launched the careers of some of today’s most well-known artists and composers. Its newest education program, Fresh Look, aims to fill the gap left by a lack of arts education for the “classically curious” adults in our community. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | DSTL Arts | 1069 W. Avenue 37 , LOS ANGELES, 90065 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (760) 521-7018 | California's 34th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the CAC, DSTL Arts will execute a limited series of free, arts-based, civics-themed workshops focused on examining the significance of the U.S. Bill of Rights & supporting the production & public presentation of community-generated literary & visual artwork inspired by the theme, “We the People,” ultimately culminating in the publication of “Art Block Zine; Vol. 11: We the People” in July 2026 to coincide with the 250th anniversary of the U.S.’s declaration of independence. |
DSTL Arts fulfills its mission to inspire, teach, and hire emerging artists from underserved communities through a variety of arts-based programs, mentorships, and publishing opportunities for emerging writers and artists. This includes our Poet/Artist Development Program offering mentorships, professional development, and publishing opportunities to emerging poet/artists, ages 18 and older, specifically from historically marginalized communities. Furthermore, our Art Block Zine and Aurtistic Zine publications feature emerging writers and artists from Los Angeles County and beyond, and in particular, neurodivergent artists from ages 6 and older through Aurtistic Zine. Our Conchas y Café bilingual community writing workshop series produces a zine of the same name featuring the work of bilingual (English/Spanish) and monolingual (Spanish-speaking) adults learning new skills and techniques in creative writing. Lastly, our Creative Impact community-based, social justice-themed arts workshops provide paid teaching artist internships to select emerging poet/artists enrolled in our Poet/Artist Development Program and poet/artist-led, intergenerational, social justice-focused, arts workshops and publishing opportunities for our broader community. To make all of these programs accessible to our community, DSTL Arts offers our Mobile Art Lab as an additional resource, bringing an upfitted, tech-laden vehicle to community settings where local access to large-format scanners/printers, tablets, and WiFi is limited, thereby addressing the digital divide our community members often experience. And to further engage and celebrate our community and program participants, we host a podcast that highlights local artists and featured artists from our zines, as well as provide all of our workshops as both in-person and virtual programs that exist in perpetuity on our YouTube channel where individuals are welcome to continue their learning experience. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,246.00 | Jail Guitar Doors - USA | 842 N FAIRFAX 2ND FLOOR , LOS ANGELES, 90046-7208 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 852-0457 | California's 28th congressional district | District 50 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Jail Guitar Doors (JGD) will create a multi-discipline project celebrating evolving expressions entitled “Queer Liberation Series & Exhibition.” Curated by five LGBTQIA+ artists within our community, the project includes a free culminating public performance, short documentary, and art exhibition at JGD’s CAPO Center located in Hollywood, CA. The project will provide resources to develop an original performance piece and exhibition that celebrates the healing, stabilization, uplifting and transformation of the LGBTQIA+ community. Through workshops led by gay icons and legends in the drag, ballroom, and punk communities, participants will explore historically groundbreaking music, art, fashion, and movement disciplines rooted in the expression of queer identity. Visual arts curation, including photography of the ballroom workshops, will be supported by local gender expansive and non-conforming artists who specialize in building exhibitions. |
JGD provides music education programs for current and potential system-involved youth. The two main programs include Songs and Beats Workshops and Community Arts Programming & Outreach (CAPO) Project. Songs and Beats is a 12-week songwriting workshop for incarcerated youth that Weekly prompts are focused on age-appropriate themes that are designed to help youth heal past traumas, learn to positively experience their emotions, and improve their relationships with others as well as themselves. CAPO was created as an extension of JGD’s Songs and Beats Workshop to support youths’ successful return to their community. Not solely for formerly justice-involved youth, CAPO is an originative reentry and diversion program that is also open to marginalized and at-risk youth ages 12-22. CAPO delves beyond the 12-week workshop to gain a comprehensive working knowledge of the many facets of the music and entertainment industry. Classes and workshops include music production, engineering, composition and arranging, recording and editing, licensing, marketing and promotions, and digital design. At CAPO, each participant will have a mentor who will help them develop a Personal Program Log (PPL) with an Individual Service Plan (ISP) and Individual Program Plan (IPP). Together, these tools create a holistic approach that include well-being, probation, life-skills, emotional support, transportation plan, and any plans for therapy/sobriety to support youth in successful completion of their probation and reaching their individual goals. Taught by music industry professionals, youth have the opportunity to develop mastery in their chosen fields of interest. JGD also fosters relationships within its extensive network to create an advisory board of music and entertainment industry professionals to serve as mentors to assist in CAPO participants in entering the field through internships that provide hands-on working experience. Prior musical training is not required. Programs are open to all races, denominations, genders, and sexual orientation. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | COMPASSPOINT MENTORSHIP | 318 Morse Ave , Sunnyvale, 94085-4329 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 478-0683 | District 14 | district 26 | District 13 | COMPASSPOINT MENTORSHIP will empower 40+ high school youth across two projects- particularly from Asian American and Latinx communities – to create two collaborative public murals across Silicon Valley. CAC funds will support two professional lead artists providing mentorship in traditional and contemporary painting techniques while integrating environmental education. The project includes community engagement through 50+ resident surveys, collaborative design sessions, intensive 5-15 day painting camps, and community celebrations. Grant funds will provide full scholarships for 10-20+ students covering materials, meals, and transportation, ensuring economic barriers don’t prevent participation. This project addresses youth civic disengagement and cultural isolation while creating lasting public art that deters graffiti, enhances community spaces, and celebrates local heritage. These two murals will serve as a permanent testament to youth leadership and cross-cultural collaboration, building bridges between communities while developing culturally competent leaders. |
leadership opportunities / ownership: Youth take charge through our issue-based committees, designing and leading projects that address real community challenges. Students develop leadership skills while creating meaningful change that bridges cultural divides. hands-on learning: Through innovative community projects like AI integration and public murals, youth build STEM skills and confidence while making tangible contributions that connect diverse neighborhoods. cross-cultural connection: Year-round camps, cultural festivals, and collaborative projects bring together youth from Asian, Latinx, and other backgrounds, with full scholarships ensuring all can participate in experiences that celebrate shared histories and build lasting connections across communities. mentorship and training: Experienced mentors from diverse professional and cultural backgrounds provide guidance through career workshops, leadership training, and college preparation support that honors students’ cultural identities. community-responsive partnerships: We develop relationships with organizations that share our nimble, youth-centered approach, creating networks that amplify youth voice and community impact across geographic and cultural boundaries. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Djerassi Resident Artists Program | 2325 BEAR GULCH RD , WOODSIDE, 94062-4405 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 260-1025 | California Assembly district 24 | District 24 | District 13 | With support from the CAC, the Djerassi Resident Artists Program continues their 42-year mission to give artists the gift of time and space to develop their work in a unique setting of protected nature. In 2025 and onward, DRAP expand their programming with the intention of widening impact and lowering barriers to entry, by creating new opportunities for site access for the public, specifically for diverse communities. At the same time, DRAP extends its programming outward with satellite exhibits ranging from San Jose to San Francisco and beyond. |
The Program provides – free of charge to artists – studio space, room, meals, and administrative support to artists and scientists each year in the disciplines of visual art, media art, writing, music composition, choreography, and science. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | David Herrera Performance Company | 447 Minna St , San Francisco, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (310) 528-2040 | California Assembly district 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, David Herrera Performance Company will present Galán, a 60-minute immersive dance performance at Z Space in San Francisco. The production reevaluates and recontextualizes the familiar galán (“heartthrob /hero”) persona found in Latinx telenovelas and popular culture. Galán empowers gender and sexual fluidity through the celebration, honoring, and uplifting of non-patriarchal and queer identities in Latinx communities. |
David Herrera Performance Company’s core programs are multi-fold consisting of 1) performances, 2) community impact programming 3) collaborations and partnerships, and 4) and new programs. Performances: Community Impact: Latinx Hispanic Dancers United (LHDU) is a network in which dance artists, scholars, and administrators come together to build regional and national community and support systems. LHDU is also a pipeline through which resources and ideas are exchanged, creating discourse and collaboration, building community, and developing cultural power. Signature events include yearly panels and virtual roundtables, LHDU Summit & Retreat, Dance USA Conference meet-up (2026). LHDU has a 600+ artist reach nationally. Collaborations: New Programs include ProDanza Collaboration Commissions and the Latinx Dance Archive. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | The Michael's Daughter Foundation | 23638 LYONS AVE 233 , NEWHALL, 91321-2513 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (347) 989-7654 | District 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, Michael’s Daughter Foundation will offer the “Dream Forward Arts in Residency”, an arts education program that teaches filmmaking to underserved youth ages 12–24 in Title 1 schools and juvenile detention facilities across LA County. The program includes in-school learning, arts education for justice-impacted youth, creative youth development, and arts exposure through field trips, guest speakers, and interactive activities. |
The Michael’s Daughter Foundation offers a diverse range of arts programs, including filmmaking, animation, puppetry, creative writing, original play creation, performance art, monologue development, short films, documentaries, and music. We also provide financial literacy workshops for all ages in partnership with local banks. These programs are held year-round across various communities in Los Angeles. Additionally, we are committed to offering college scholarships to students impacted by incarceration or with an incarcerated loved one, as well as providing emergency support to families affected by incarceration. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $22,200.00 | Marin Society of Artists | 1515 3RD ST , SAN RAFAEL, 94901-2710 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 454-9561 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 12 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, MARIN SOCIETY OF ARTISTS INC will foster opportunities with and for people of differing backgrounds and life experiences to incorporate the arts in their lives, with particular focus on opportunities and access for the immigrant population of color in the nearby San Rafael Canal community. |
We support art makers and creators in all stages of development & foster activities encouraging the general public, whether they consider themselves creators or not, to incorporate arts, culture and human enrichment in their lives. Core programs at the Art Center in San Rafael, CA include: free or affordable visual arts exhibitions; classes, critiques & workshops in a broad range of arts & enrichment activities; small ensemble, voice & performance; poetry/literature; health & life improvement. Our Crossroads Program makes the Art Center available for diverse community use. We provide space and services for artist studios, youth & under-served communities, and other arts & community groups. We partner with Blind & Vision Impaired of Marin to host & provide workshops with 1 to 1 assistance for vision challenged artists. We partner with agencies like Alchemia.org & Canal Alliance.org and The Canal Arts.org to support creative efforts of developmentally challenged artists, & in newcomer communities of color such as the Canal district of San Rafael. We sponsor art activities for youth. Programs are on-line, at the Art Center, in local schools, at the Boro Community Center in the Canal and elsewhere in the community. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Tandy Beal & Company (TBC) | 221 Olympia Station Rd , felton, 95018 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 335-5973 | California Assembly district 28 | District CA-19 | District California | Tandy Beal & Company(TBC) will produce our integrated arts education program, ArtSmart, in 3 Central Coast counties that have limited access to the arts, featuring: *Interactive School-Concerts by excellent California-based artists in world music, dance and circus, with unique study guides for each event. *6-12 week Public School Residencies: “Dance Around the World”, “The Kindness Project”, “Wide Wide World” and creative movement. All VAPA aligned. *Teaching-artist training workshops—“Expanding Horizons”—and ongoing mentorships, fostering professional growth and enhancing the quality of arts education provided to students. *Continuing Education Units available for schoolteachers to enrich their arts commitment (and salaries). *Outdoor public free world arts festival. *Online evaluations. To deepen the goals and their success, TBC partners include County Offices of Education, district superintendents, arts councils, principals, teachers and artists. This multi-platformed approach helps anchor arts in schools. |
After 40 years of touring internationally, TBC currently focuses on regional art-making. LIVE CONCERTS: 2) “Keep on Truckin’”: free 20-minute family shows (Music and Circus), outdoors and covid-safe, with diverse artists and forms: Gospel, Brazilian, Balkan, Latin Percussion, Celtic, Moroccan. Classical, Americana, Body Music & Banjo, Circus, Chinese Magic. In parks, schools and senior centers. 3) “HereAfterAfter: a self-guided tour of eternity” on the subject of our mortality(’18, /’27) with 15 outreach events. Partner: Hospice 4) Other new TBC concerts. Examples: “‘Futurespective” -’25, “Scovilleana – ’26 5) Free annual Multicultural Fair. Partner: local schools and Chamber of Commerce. ARTS EDUCATION: •”Dance Around the World”-DATW-8-week VAPA-aligned residencies furthering kinesthetic and socio-emotional learning; language development; engagement with the beauty of diverse world cultures; and dance. •”The Kindness Project”-KP-focuses on caring for others and the broader community. After movement exercises, reflecting, writing, and listening to each other’s essays, students collaborate to choose where they want to expand kindness in the community. Then TBC gives them a check for a non-profit that champions their intentions and choice. •“Wide Wide World”-WWW-introduces classrooms to different world artists each week. •“Expanding Horizons”-Teaching-Artist Training open to public, partnering with Cabrillo College and Arts Council. Selected teaching-artists receive individual mentorship as paid assistants. Schoolteachers can receive Continuing Education Units to support their commitment to arts-learning and arts integration. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | Micaya Presents | 5800 Tehama Ave , Richmond, 94804 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (415) 297-9740 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the CAC, funding will support Know Yourself 4.0, a free, day-long intergenerational arts and wellness workshop rooted in the theme To Be Seen, Heard, and Understood. Designed for BIPOC youth and their caregivers in Bayview-Hunters Point and East Oakland, and co-presented with ANYxMEANS, an Oakland-based BIPOC and Queer music organization, the program integrates dance, music, and mindfulness to strengthen cultural identity, emotional well-being, and family connection. Participants engage in youth and family sessions, culminating in a community reflection circle and creative showcase that honors their voices and stories. All materials, meals, and artistic support gifts are provided at no cost. In an ADA-compliant venue with full accommodations, CAC funds will support artist stipends, production coordination, accessibility services, meals, and outreach, ensuring a trauma-informed space where healing and joy thrive. |
Micaya Presents creates dynamic events where historically marginalized communities feel seen, respected, and celebrated. Our commitment to first-rate production values and community-building strategies invites artists into a professional, inclusive atmosphere that celebrates their talent and achievements. Micaya Presents realizes its mission through four programs: 2. Mission in the Mix was founded in 1992 to highlight the talents of local emerging and established Bay Area performing artists representing different genres of performing arts. Presented every June at San Francisco’s Dance Mission Theatre in the historic Mission district, Mission in the Mix features a diverse array of performing artists, such as: hip hop, modern, ballet, bellydance, tap, and salsa dancers, youth dance companies, singers, and rappers in curated showcases. 3.The RESPECT podcast, founded in 2020, is a 6-week series that gives artists a platform for in-depth analysis of their work and the multidimensional nature of hip hop dance. The episodes are focused on education of the origins, history, and cultural impact of these dance forms. 4. Know Yourself was created in 2022 with partner AnyxMeans to introduce underserved youth and their caretakers to creative methodologies that build self-confidence and reinforce a sense of belonging. This free all-day camp includes classes in dance, music and mindfulness, along with meals, t-shirts, workbooks and artistic giveaways . 5. Angel Program subsidizes tickets annually for youth, families and communities who would not otherwise afford to attend. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,000.00 | Micaya Presents | 5800 Tehama Ave , Richmond, 94804 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (415) 297-9740 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | The San Francisco International Hip Hop DanceFest (SFIHHDF), a project of Micaya Presents, will produce its 27th annual festival at the Palace of Fine Arts, featuring 8–12 world-class hip hop dance companies. CAC funds will support artist fees, production, accessibility services, and community engagement. The festival includes mainstage performances, a kids’ freestyle circle, an audience dance battle, an after-party, and ASL interpretation. Year-round programs include “Mission in the Mix” (local artist showcase), the “RESPECT!” Podcast (free hip hop dance history), and “Know Yourself,” a free arts and mindfulness workshop for underserved BIPOC youth and families. By centering cultural equity, accessibility, and representation, this project ensures that historically excluded artists and audiences can participate in high-quality, inclusive arts experiences that reflect and celebrate their communities. |
Micaya Presents creates dynamic events where historically marginalized communities feel seen, respected, and celebrated. Our commitment to first-rate production values and community-building strategies invites artists into a professional, inclusive atmosphere that celebrates their talent and achievements. Micaya Presents realizes its mission through four programs: 2. Mission in the Mix was founded in 1992 to highlight the talents of local emerging and established Bay Area performing artists representing different genres of performing arts. Presented every June at San Francisco’s Dance Mission Theatre in the historic Mission district, Mission in the Mix features a diverse array of performing artists, such as: hip hop, modern, ballet, bellydance, tap, and salsa dancers, youth dance companies, singers, and rappers in curated showcases. 3.The RESPECT podcast, founded in 2020, is a 6-week series that gives artists a platform for in-depth analysis of their work and the multidimensional nature of hip hop dance. The episodes are focused on education of the origins, history, and cultural impact of these dance forms. 4. Know Yourself was created in 2022 with partner AnyxMeans to introduce underserved youth and their caretakers to creative methodologies that build self-confidence and reinforce a sense of belonging. This free all-day camp includes classes in dance, music and mindfulness, along with meals, t-shirts, workbooks and artistic giveaways . 5. Angel Program subsidizes tickets annually for youth, families and communities who would not otherwise afford to attend. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $23,500.00 | RuckusRoots | 2630 Crestmoore Place , Los Angeles, 90065 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 967-2766 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, RuckusRoots will offer our Wild Art program to approximately 200 3rd-8th grade students at Isana Octavia Charter School in spring 2026. We are excited to expand this offering to a larger group of students after launching a successful partnership with the school in 2025. One of RuckusRoots’ flagship programs, Wild Art employs a professional teaching arts to lead students in fundamentals of design, color theory, drawing and painting, with integrated lessons on local Los Angeles wildlife, creative reuse and conservation, resulting in a collaboratively-made art piece (mural or collage). Funds will be utilized to support the teaching artist, program-specific staff hours and purchase supplies, ensuring that students engage in high-quality arts programming that they otherwise do not receive as part of their regular school day. |
RuckusRoots’ programs fall into three categories: In-School, Apprenticeship and Public, all working to achieve the following goals: 1. Co-create arts programming in communities where it is needed and wanted. Main programs: -In-School: Wild Art, TRASHformation and A.L.I.V.E.: Art Living in Vibrant Environments are offered as enrichment or expanded learning opportunities to elementary and middle school-students. Our multi-week programs last 1-6 months, with students aged 5-13 led by professional local artists. Programs aim to build age-appropriate visual arts skills in the areas of painting, drawing, sculpture, design and/or creative reuse, and social-emotional skills of collaboration, creative confidence and change-making. Each program results in a collaboratively-built, large-scale final artwork, ie: a mural, creative-reuse collage, or sculpture, and culminates with a public showcase i.e.: open house, community event or art walk. Teen / Young Adult: For high-school and transition-aged youth, these programs (The Rebel Garden Project and Public ARTivism Apprenticeship) offer smaller groups of students (10-40) deeper learning and mentoring experiences with practicing artists. Themes of art as activism and as a profession are explored; students gain experience creating artworks as well as in professional development and entrepreneurship (artist statements, documentation, branding, design and project management). Public Workshops: We offer free, youth or multigenerational, multi-series or one-time workshops (Garden Magic, From Earth to Art) in which the public is invited to learn techniques and sustainability-uses of specific mediums (fabric, ceramics, non-toxic paint, biodegradable and natural materials) from local artists and experts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | ESMoA | 14929 Hawthorne Blvd , Lawndale, 90260-1502 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 277-1020 | 43 | District 61 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTLAB21 FOUNDATION will operate the Experimentally Structured Museum of Art (ESMoA) in Lawndale, fostering creativity and greater cultural equity and access through (1) entirely free admission and programming, (2) exhibition models and civic art projects that push artistic boundaries and enliven non-traditional spaces, (3) arts education for K-12 public school students, and (4) artist residencies/exchanges. |
ESMoA believes that many people should contribute to the interpretation and creation of art in an atmosphere that is free – we do not charge fees for admissions or programs – and freeing to visitors and artists. Since 2023, we have been headquartered in Lawndale, where 40% percent of residents are immigrants and 63% identify as Latinx. We are its first-ever visual arts space, with a gallery and art workshop studio. At our weekly drop-in Art Maker Space, visitors create art – collages/lino prints/drawings/paintings – at long tables, family-style. A weekly session for young children (3+) combines storytelling and artmaking. Experiences – our word for exhibitions – offer curated presentations of contemporary art. One recent show was XICANA!, a cross-generational look at the Chicana Arts Movement featuring 67 artists, which travels in June to Escondido with an expanded checklist of San Diego artists. In the upcoming Experience GRIEF, our guest curator will trace stages of grief. As with each Experience, ESMoA will commission new works of art. ESMoA nurtures artists. Through the LAB Residency, local artists create new work to accompany Experiences and lead workshops. We have just initiated an international exchange program. For Experience 62: STATIONS (2025), undergraduates from El Camino College collaborated with visiting students from the University of Fine Arts Münster, Germany, on a mural. Under an initiative called EXTENSION, ESMoA organizes Experiences beyond our four walls. Our first such venture was EDGE (2024), which brought together the work of L.A. graffiti writers/muralists. To commemorate Juneteenth, we partnered with the organization Black in Mayberry on the exhibition FREEDOM. ESMoA is integrated into the community’s fabric. Our team leads a school library-based Story Artlab sessions as well as workshops at the City’s Youth Day Parade, Day of the Dead festivities, and “Chalk Away” muralmaking on City Hall Plaza. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | HELIX COLLECTIVE | 7545 Hampton Ave., # 207 , W HOLLYWOOD, 90046-5542 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 814-8597 | California's 28th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council Helix Collective will invest in live workshops and artistic programs, and strengthen our marketing to better reach a wider audience. This support will allow us to pay contractors to achieve these aims including artists, videographers, and for marketing, administrative support, and online tools. |
Helix Collective formed in 2009, as a chamber music ensemble with the objective of bringing classical music to new and diverse audiences. A feature of a “helix” is the ability to recombine into many different yet related forms. Thus, Helix Collective evolves and recombines for every program. The original group included flute, oboe and piano. With this trio, we toured and recorded the critically-acclaimed album, All In. In 2012, we became a non-profit 501(c)3. We added percussion and created the World Dance Club program, an album featuring newly-commissioned international dance music. Our current core programs are the Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival, additional live score-to-screen concerts of media music, and music and storytelling concerts. We’ve developed new partnerships with the L.A. Film School for our annual festival and the Film Music Connect workshop with SAGindie, providing original, recorded scores for participating SAGindie filmmakers. The Los Angeles Live Score Film Festival pairs directors of short films with film composers. The composers write original scores for Helix Collective to perform live-to-picture at the festival. After the festival, the scores are recorded for inclusion in the final version of the films. Films for the most recent festivals were curated by SAGindie and the L.A. Film School. We also partner with the Composers Diversity Collective, an organization dedicated to increasing the visibility of composers from diverse backgrounds throughout the music industry and to mentoring emerging composers from underserved communities. Helix Collective recorded and produced “Shoutout!” a visual album of music by 12 composers from the collective, “Spotlight” a live concert featuring Composers Diversity Collective composers and Level Up game music concert featuring women and BIPOC composers. In 2024 Helix Collective made the West coast premiere of Click Clack Moosic, a children’s musical story time program at Boston Court Pasadena. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | Vita Art Center | 28 West Main St. 28 West Main St., Ventura, 93001 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 644-9214 | 26th congressional district | Steve Bennett | 19th State Senate district | With support from the California Arts Council, Vita Art Center will strengthen its capacity to deliver inclusive, high-impact arts programming that serves Ventura’s diverse communities. General Operating Support will sustain core operations, support staff and teaching artists, and ensure continued access to free art classes for youth, adults, and seniors. Funding will expand our partnership with the San Buenaventura Housing Authority, supporting weekly off-site programs and a new initiative with their HOMEKEY community. We will continue our ceramics class for children with disabilities and expand culturally grounded Chumash led traditional arts workshops. CAC support will also help us revitalize a previously blighted lot into a vibrant outdoor art garden and gathering space enhancing community wellness, connection, and engagement through the arts. Our growing campus includes 32 artist studios, three galleries, and a ceramics studio. |
Since 2008, Vita Art Center has been an important part of Ventura’s cultural life, offering high-quality arts education, exhibitions, and community-based programming. The organization creates opportunities for people of all ages and backgrounds to engage with the visual arts through classes, workshops, exhibitions, and artist-centered spaces that support both creative practice and community connection. Vita Art Center’s campus includes four galleries, a dedicated teen exhibition wall, a ceramics studio, an outdoor classroom, and 45 artist studios, making it a vibrant place where art is made, experienced, and shared. With more than 30 classes offered onsite each week, Vita Art Center serves youth, teens, and adults through hands-on instruction led by teaching artists who bring both skill and passion to their work. These programs help participants build artistic techniques while also developing creativity, confidence, critical thinking, and self-expression. In addition to its onsite offerings, Vita Art Center brings free arts programming to low-income housing communities, serving youth, seniors, and formerly homeless adults. The organization also offers cultural classes taught by Chumash artists and knowledge keepers, connected to the building of a tomol onsite, as well as a ceramics program created for children with disabilities. Across all of its work, Vita Art Center is committed to making the arts accessible, inclusive, and deeply connected to community. By bringing together exhibitions, education, working artist studios, and outreach programs, the organization helps foster belonging, cultural understanding, and meaningful creative exchange throughout Ventura. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,480.00 | Poetic Justice | PO Box 3997 , San Diego, 92163 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 881-7334 | 53 | San Diego 78th | San Diego 39th | With support from the California Arts Council, POETIC JUSTICE will use poetry, a simple technology, to restore and save lives. By writing and sharing poetry, people impacted by juvenile incarceration in youth facilities create communities rooted in mental health, physical safety, and rehabilitation. Through poetry, multimodal therapeutic art, and somatic mindfulness activities, Poetic Justice artists support young artists incarcerated in San Diego’s Youth Transitional Center (YTC) as they learn to access the root causes of trauma and harm in their lives and become participants in their personal and community transformation. CAC funding will make it possible for PJ to implement the “Free Verse” poetry project to girls and gender-diverse youth, ages 13-24. YTC has already requested that PJ scale the program for the boys’ cottages and high security East Mesa in 2026. |
Poetic Justice offers poetry classes and workshops in the following California carceral settings: Programs Launching in 2026 Other PJ Work in California A typical weekly class provides gender-diverse and sensitive access by incorporating mindful breathing, trauma-responsive programming, community support, creative writing, and therapeutic visual arts. For example, participants might explore aspects of anxiety, worthlessness, shame, etc. through poetry’s grapho-motor process within a trusted community engaged in evidence-based healing because putting language to the unspeakable supports healing from root causes of trauma and PTSD, and provides pathways forward. Whereas abuse, depression, and addiction damage language centers, poetry reactivates them. In fact research indicates that poetry (rhythm, metaphor, rhyme) activates the right hemisphere. The left brain is responsible for acquisition and expression, but the right brain’s ability to integrate unrelated concepts into comprehensible metaphor with repetition and syncopation can access language pathways damaged by trauma. Research, including JW Pennebaker’s work, shows “writing about upsetting events improves physical and mental health,” but only by creating safe communities for interoception and embodied agency. The traumatized brain doesn’t remember in logical sequences; trauma memory returns in sensory experiences rooted in the limbic system rather than language centers – this is why poetry is consequential for healing. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | HAVEN ACADEMY OF THE ARTS | 3827 W Rosecrans Ave , Hawthorne, 90250 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 504-4132 | California's 33rd congressional district | District 62 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Haven Academy of the Arts will continue our year-round, tuition-free youth arts programming at our LA City Branch. |
Haven Academy of the Arts consists of two main branches: Haven South Bay and Haven LA City Programs… Haven Academy’s curriculum offers three core programs: Musicals, Camps, and Classes. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Magic Theatre, Inc. | 2 MARINA BLVD BLDG D , SAN FRANCISCO, 94123-1284 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 441-8822 | 11th Congressional district of California | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Magic Theatre will continue its value-driven mandate to serve historically excluded artists and organizations through partnerships, commissions, and residencies. We believe that giving local artists and organizations a theatrical home fights displacement and ensures the continued representation of all voices in our region. Recognizing that companies and artists lacked a permanent home because of demographic and economic shifts in the Bay Area, the Magic Theatre developed long-term partnerships with multi-year residencies, subsidized rental programs, institutional partnerships, administrative support, and community-oriented gatherings. We are the only producing San Francisco theatre with a facility that has prioritized support at this level. The Magic’s education program, Making Magic: Art & Community, is a year-round literacy education program for youth and adults situated in the Tenderloin district. |
Magic Theatre’s core artistic programs provide writers with the practical resources they need to develop new works from conception to performance. We support commissioned artists during the early stages of play development with public readings of the script, casting support, fundraising, workshops, previews, and present the world premiere. Additional support comes through structured partnerships with local organizations connected to the play’s themes. We make long-term investments in the playwright by presenting premieres throughout the writer’s career as they build a body of work, and promoting the plays to our nationwide network to build a writer’s career with other theaters. Recognizing that BIPOC companies lacked a permanent home because of demographic and economic shifts in the Bay Area, the Magic has prioritized persons of color in all aspects of our organization- from staffing to creative support and partnerships. We revised our programs to better serve artists with multi-year residencies, organizational partnerships, and subsidized rental programs. We provide space, infrastructural, technical, and labor support; the artists and organizations are responsible for the creative and production elements of the performances. Each artist and organization we present reflects a different BIPOC experience, culminating in a tapestry of powerful work that is often ignored by mainstream theaters. The Magic believes that the long-term vitality of our field is achieved through art education that inspires and motivates students and cultivates new audiences for theater. Making Magic: Art and Community partners with community service organizations to provide a standards-based literacy and art education program for youth and adults in the San Francisco Tenderloin, one of the city’s most vulnerable neighborhoods. Making Magic provides free, after-school theater and literature education modules to school-age youth in partnership with the Southeast Asian Development Center. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Fernando Pullum Community Arts Center | 3351 W. 43rd. St. , LOS ANGELES, 90056-0237 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 449-0128 | California's 37th congressional district | District 54 | With support from the California Arts Council, Fernando Pullum Community Arts Council (“Pullum Center”) will provide performing arts instruction for more than 1,400 students, ages 5 – 20. Pullum Center serves underserved youth in historically and systemically underserved communities located in South Los Angeles, which are in the lower two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index. |
The Pullum Center provides free arts instruction in 24 areas of study to more than 1,400 students, ages 5 to 20, at our headquarters and partner schools. Classes are offered in music, acting, dance, and music recording. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | San Diego Children's Choir | 402 W Broadway, Suite 1240 , SAN DIEGO, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 587-1087 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Diego Children’s Choir will strengthen operations and expand access to choral music education for more than 1,500 children, ages 1–18, primarily from historically and systemically underserved communities across San Diego County, including inland neighborhoods and areas ranked in the lower two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index. CAC funds will support salaries for diverse teaching artists and staff, facility costs, and delivery of inclusive, community-centered programs. Over 70% of participants receive free, culturally responsive, singing-based music education through school and community-based programming. The Choir’s weekly Kodály-based instruction and performances foster musical growth, self-expression, and belonging. This investment will sustain a vital arts workforce, deepen cross-sector partnerships, and ensure that children from all backgrounds can access transformative arts experiences—strengthening the region’s cultural vitality and future. |
The San Diego Children’s Choir (SDCC) offers a continuum of high-quality music education programs designed to serve children at every stage of development. Our Introductory Music Program engages children ages 1–6 through play-based learning that builds foundational music skills and joyful expression. The Ensemble Program provides sequential choral training for students in grades 1–12 across six levels, developing music literacy, vocal technique, and collaboration through structured rehearsals and performances held at sites across San Diego County. Performance opportunities include concerts, community events, and regional and national collaborations, offering students real-world artistic experiences. Choristers start their touring experience in elementary school with a local mini-tour, progressing to a regional tour for middle and high school age choirs, and national or international tours alternating each year for our most advanced ensembles. The School Outreach Program delivers free, in-school music education to preschool-5th grade students in underserved communities at their Title I elementary schools, expanding arts participation for students who might not otherwise have access. Through scholarships, geographic accessibility, and school partnerships, SDCC ensures that financial or logistical barriers never prevent a child from participating. SDCC also presents an annual San Diego Youth Choral Festival, which brings together middle and high school choirs from across the nation for collaborative performances, cultural exchange, and advanced artistic learning opportunities that strengthen San Diego’s cultural vitality. The festival includes the premiere of a newly commissioned piece at a culminating concert presented to the community. SDCC believes every child deserves access to high-quality music education. To advance this commitment, the organization provides affordable tuition for families, ensemble program scholarships and free in-school programming; partners with Title I schools; and offers rehearsal and program sites across geographically and socioeconomically diverse communities throughout San Diego County. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Shasta County Arts Council | 1313 Market St. , Redding, 96001 | Shasta | Upstate | (530) 241-7320 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, SHASTA COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL will produce “World Beats” concert series featuring distinct world music performances, each showcasing a different genre, hosted at Old City Hall in the heart of Redding Cultural District, downtown Redding. |
Shasta County Arts Council (SCAC) is housed in the City of Redding’s National Registry 1907 City Hall – 8,000 sq. feet that includes a classroom, ballroom, television studio, administrative offices and a pocket park next door. Our gallery features 13 exhibits annually including High School & Middle School Juried Art Competitions where 20+ schools participate. SCAC was the first arts council in the state to manage a public access television station (SCAC.tv) and we now teach digital media arts skills to at-risk youth and interested public members. Our ballroom is host to classical music monthly (we own a Yamaha Grand piano), ballroom, ballet & modern dance classes weekly, concerts, performances as well as theater throughout the year. We also host community meetings & rentals, using our space 300+ days per yr. SCAC is the lead agency for the newly formed Redding Cultural District which is one of 14 districts throughout the State of California. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | Mil-Tree | P.O. Box 1762 , Joshua Tree, 92252 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (323) 791-2986 | District 23rd | District 47 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mil-Tree Veteran Project will continue to strengthen its organizational capacity to better serve veterans and their families in San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. Grant funds will be used to partially support salaries for co-executive directors, an administrative assistant, an outreach and research assistant, and accounting services. These key roles will enable us to implement a leadership succession plan and begin using validated tools—such as surveys and screenings—to measure the long-term impact of our programs on participants. |
Mil-Tree’s core programs are creative and art-based workshops and retreats that support our vision to provide safe spaces for veterans returning to civilian life to gather, express themselves and tell their stories in a non-judgmental environment. We do this through ongoing creative programs that engage veterans and their families, active military and the greater community. Mil-Tree is a grassroots nonprofit organization based in the High Desert community of Joshua Tree, California serving San Bernardino and Riverside Counties. The organization is inclusive and offers creative outlets in the arts and held spaces for dialogue and discussion for veterans, active military and civilians. Mil-Tree was created to welcome our veterans home not only with words by providing various opportunities of engagement with the community at large. Recognizing the loss incurred by leaving the close-knit unit formed in the military, this organization strives to help build new relationships within the community. We include active military, family members and civilians to accomplish this goal, and provide different types of art workshops and projects, including movement, writing, art, music, theater, building and rock climbing. We also provide dialogue circles and retreats to help support the ongoing transition from military service into civilian life. Our programs have a strong track record of positive impact on program participants. Those who participate feeling alone or isolated find a fun, safe and creative environment where collaboration and expression lead easily to new friendships. We have found that arts and dialogue are the best way to bridge different parts of community, building on trust and the things we have in common. Often our programs lead to personal transformation and growth, and the synergy created between our participants is recognizable and profound. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Benkadi, a project of Community Partners | 1000 N Alameda St Ste 240, Los Angeles, 90012-1804 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 258-9245 | With the support of the California Arts Council, Benkadi, a project of Community Partners, will continue to provide high-quality West African Drum, Dance, and Culture programs to schools in under-resourced and underserved communities in Los Angeles County to promote academic growth and cultural diversity. The program delivers equitable access to art education by offering weekly African drum, dance, and culture classes as part of the curriculum to all students regardless of income, background, prior experience, or abilities. Beyond the classroom, Benkadi supports the broader community through experiential events and workshops, collaborating with local organizations in these areas. The requested funding will support the administrative capacity of the program, including an update of the strategic plan, professional development for staff, and the completion of custom-created state-standard-compliant learning tools and aides for students. |
Benkadi brings West African drum, dance and culture programs to schools of economic and social need in Los Angeles County and provides experiential events and learning opportunities to the wider community. Benkadi is fiscally sponsored by Community Partners. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Artist As First Responder | 1240 Minnesota St , San Francisco, 94107 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (303) 260-9209 | 11th Congressional District | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Artist As First Responder (AAFR) will strengthen its organizational capacity and sustain community-centered arts programming that amplifies the work and leadership of artists who heal communities and save lives. CAC funding will support general operations, including staffing, administration, and core programs across Exhibitions, Artist Residencies, Public Forums, and Community Archive Building. This support will enable AAFR to deepen its impact, advance equity, and expand opportunities for collective healing and creative leadership within the San Francisco Bay Area’s cultural landscape. |
Exhibitions: Salt to Catch Ghosts (2022), Collective Arising: The Insistence of Black Bay Area Artists (2022), and Black Joy Story Windows (2021 and ongoing), a self-guided multi-media public art exhibition installed in 30+ storefronts in Downtown Oakland that highlights the work of more than 20 local Black Artists, Cultural Organizations, and businesses. Site-specific Ceremonies: A Meditation for Black Lives (2020) and Art of Defense #Shield Build (2020) took place to honor Black Lives in the wake of the murders of George Floyd, Brianna Taylor, and Ahmaud Aubrey, and Black Women in Mourning & Joy Collective (2022-ongoing) offers space for Black Femmes, Trans, and Non-Binary family to process their mourning through different arts rituals and practices. Print and Public Talks: Since 2000, AAFR authored and facilitated the forum and live zine series Blatant. It centers on the radical imagination of Black women artists and cultural workers creating across disciplines and geography. The series has been sold at the Museum of the African Diaspora in San Francisco, the Berkeley Museum of Fine Art, Bandung Books, and the San Francisco Museum of Fine Art. The AfroPortals Project Space & Archive: an experimental, interactive Art and Design Lab rooted in the principles of Afrofuturism, Black Memory, and Collective Liberation, housed in two retrofitted shipping containers in East Oakland. AfroPortals fosters resilience and builds power within communities by cultivating belonging, storytelling, and radical imagination. The space blends art and technology to inspire community healing. A monthly Men’s Wellness Fellowship gathering, a space of courage and safety for Black and Brown men in the San Francisco Bay Area. In 2024, Artist As First Responder produced two print publications, created a site-responsive ceremony, hosted 64 public forums and 13 exhibitions, partnered with five global activation sites, and facilitated five community activations through the Climate Justice Artist in Residence. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,000.00 | Oakland Asian Cultural Center | 388 9TH ST STE 290 , OAKLAND, 94607-4295 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 637-0455 | 12th Congressional district of California | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, API Cultural Center, Inc. will build vibrant communities by providing high-quality Asian Pacific Islander American (APIA) focused arts and cultural programs including performances, workshops, festivals, classes and exhibitions. These programs will nurture inter-generational and cross-cultural dialogue and understanding, collaboration, and social justice. API Cultural Center, Inc. dba Oakland Asian Cultural Center (OACC) is the oldest pan-Asian performance and arts space in the East Bay Region of the San Francisco Bay Area. OACC provides easy access to unique, affordable or free, multi-ethnic and multidisciplinary arts and cultural programs. |
Every year, OACC welcomes 25,000+ visitors for cultural and community focused events. OACC offers affordable or no-cost, unique, and easily accessible multi-ethnic and multidisciplinary art and cultural programs. Programs include: (1) Classes and special Workshops (2) Exhibitions; (3) Festivals; (4) Performances and Other Special Events; (5) Film screenings (6) Book talks (7) School Tours & Community Outreach |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,489.00 | Benkadi, a project of Community Partners | 1000 N Alameda St Ste 240, Los Angeles, 90012-1804 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 258-9245 | With support from the California Arts Council, Benkadi will provide an 18-week in-school African Drum, Dance, and Culture program to 80 students in 5th and 6th grade at Gil Garcetti Learning Academy in South Central Los Angeles. This program aims to foster creative expression, introduce African arts and culture, enhance cognitive development, and improve mental and physical well-being. It also seeks to cultivate cross-cultural understanding and empathy. |
Benkadi brings West African drum, dance and culture programs to schools of economic and social need in Los Angeles County and provides experiential events and learning opportunities to the wider community. Benkadi is fiscally sponsored by Community Partners. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Long Beach Camerata Singers | PO BOX 90511 , LONG BEACH, 90809-0511 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 900-2863 | California's 47th congressional district | District 69 | District 33 | With support from the California Arts Council, Camerata Singers of Long Beach (CSLB) will support the second half of it’s 60th Anniversary season. |
Camerata Singers of Long Beach (CSLB) is a 90-voice classical music chorus completing its 58th season. The organization is led by Grammy-winning Artistic Director, Dr. James K. Bass, Director of Choral Studies at UCLA. It produces 4 concerts per year, including the annual Peace Project, examining social justice topics, an annual performance of Handel’s Messiah, ChoralFest Long Beach in the Spring, and Evening of Song to finish the season. CSLB is the artistic partner of the Long Beach Symphony Orchestra. In the summer months, LBCS presents its free, community based outdoor concert series, The Front Porch Concerts. LBCS also runs two education programs. The Camerata Children’s Music Academy provides three weekly workshops teaching music fundamentals to pre-K children at the Long Beach YMCA Early Education Program, which runs state-funded child development centers for low-income families. Peace4Youth is presented in partnership with the Long Beach Unified School District, and brings the Peace Project into Middle and High Schools. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Intersection | 1446 Market Street , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 626-2787 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Intersection for the Arts will celebrate our 60th Anniversary, continuing to deliver robust programs and services that strengthen the Bay Area’s diverse arts ecosystem. CAC funding will sustain Intersection’s fiscal sponsorship, professional development offerings, and affordable shared administrative and creative space in the heart of San Francisco, serving a wide range of artists and cultural workers. Specifically, funds will support Intersection’s capacity-building initiatives for artists and small arts organizations, including our Fiscal Sponsorship Program and Artist Empowerment Program. Through these programs, Intersection will offer engaging professional development opportunities such as THRIVE: A BIPOC Arts Leadership Program, Arts Finance Empowerment Camp, Art of the Hustle marketing cohort, Coaching Cohort Circles, Grants Coaching, and our Annual Membership Meeting, ensuring equitable access to resources and tools that empower artists to thrive. |
For six decades, Intersection for the Arts has served as a bedrock institution in the San Francisco Bay Area, providing critical support to artists and small arts organizations across disciplines. As a nonprofit deeply rooted in the region’s artistic landscape, Intersection offers a unique blend of services that empower artists and cultural workers to bring their creative visions to life. At the heart of Intersection’s work is our Artist Membership Program & Incubator, which provides fiscal sponsorship and integrated programming described below, enabling over 135 artist led arts organizations working in visual arts, literary arts, music, theater, dance, arts education, advocacy, and emerging art forms to access funding, grants, and administrative support. This program helps artists navigate the often-complex nonprofit funding landscape while focusing on their creative work. Intersection’s Artist Empowerment Program is designed to equip artists with the tools and skills they need to thrive. Offerings include THRIVE: A BIPOC Arts Leadership Program, the Arts Finance Empowerment Camp, the Art of the Hustle marketing cohort, Grants Coaching, and an Annual Membership Meeting. These programs strengthen artists’ entrepreneurial skills, financial literacy, and leadership capacity. In addition, Intersection offers low-cost administrative and creation space in the heart of San Francisco, providing affordable co-working, rehearsal, and event space where artists can collaborate, experiment, and build community. Through these core programs and services, Intersection ensures that Bay Area artists and cultural workers have access to the vital resources, networks, and learning opportunities they need to grow. With a passionate team of artists supporting artists, Intersection upholds our mission of helping the arts sector thrive, building a more vibrant, inclusive, and resilient cultural ecosystem in the process. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,000.00 | The University of California, Berkeley | 119 California Hall # 5940 , Berkeley, 94720 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 642-0120 | U.S. Congressional District: 12th | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Regents of the University of California at Berkeley/Cal Performances will present Berkeley/Oakland AileyCamp in 2026, a nationally-acclaimed summer program that uses dance as a vehicle for developing self-esteem, creative expression, and critical thinking skills among underserved or at-risk middle school students ages 11-14. |
Cal Performances brings the best of music, dance, and theater from around the globe directly to Bay Area audiences, fostering life-affirming encounters with the performing arts, as well as countless opportunities to ignite discovery. Cal Performances is known for the unmatched quality and variety of our programming—every season, we present approximately 80 world-class performances ranging from classical music to jazz to musical traditions from around the world, from ballet to contemporary dance, from large-scale multidisciplinary works to intimate theater, to spoken word, and everything in between. Located on the UC Berkeley campus, we engage as deeply with our campus community as we do with the broader Bay Area, including by welcoming UC Berkeley students into our halls, offering special access programs for students and others associated with the University, and creating links between our programming and the rich intellectual life of the campus. Additionally, our Cal Performances Classroom initiatives plant the seeds for future generations of performing arts lovers by offering a variety of avenues for local K-12 youth to engage with our programming. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,872.00 | Maya's Music Therapy Fund | PO BOX 7110 , BERKELEY, 94707-0110 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 704-8476 | With support from the California Arts Council, Maya’s Music Therapy Fund will provide free weekly music therapy sessions to youth with developmental disabilities at two East Bay after-school program sites. Through music therapy sessions and performing at our Spring Music Festival, participants will foster creative self-expression and gain new musical, cognitive, and social skills. |
Maya’s Music Therapy Fund’s board certified music therapists work with people with disabilities such as autism, cerebral palsy, Down’s syndrome, brain injury, hearing and vision impairment, ADHD, Rett syndrome, and other developmental disabilities. Experiencing the unique power of music to engage our brains and our bodies, clients gain physical and social skills while building self-esteem and confidence during individual and group music therapy sessions. MMTF also collaborates with agencies and existing programs that serve people with disabilities from Alameda, Contra Costa, and San Francisco Counties in Northern California. |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Izcalli | 4219 E. Overlook Drive , SAN DIEGO, 92115 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 857-1148 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 79 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Izcalli will empower youth to create and perform original live theater centered on the theme of freedom at the Chicano Park Museum and Cultural Center in the heart of San Diego’s Barrio Logan Cultural District. The Museum and Chicano Park—home to an Izcalli organization mural and a site with a powerful history of successful resistance—will serve as relevant and meaningful rehearsal and performance venues for amplifying youth voices and demonstrating effective strategies for community empowerment. |
Izcalli delivers its mission through four interconnected arts-centered Restorative Theater for Youth brings theater-based healing to young people at Teatro Izcalli is the organization’s professional Chicano theater troupe and Indigenous Restorative Circles integrate spoken word, song, ceremony, and Tlahtolli Trainings — named for the Nahuatl concept of The Word, representing |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Chopsticks Alley Art | 38 S 2nd Street , San Jose, 95113-2501 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (831) 239-9710 | California Assembly district 18 | District 25 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, Chopsticks Alley Art will produce “Flavors of the Diasporas: A Culinary Journey of Belonging”, a multidisciplinary exhibition featuring immigrant and first-generation American artists navigating bicultural identities from Malaysia, Vietnam, Cambodia, Thailand, Iran, India, and the Philippines now living in the Bay Area. Each artist will create new work exploring their personal migration stories through visual art, dance performance, spoken word, and culinary storytelling. The project will culminate in a free public exhibition, live performances, and a community gathering centered around food and cultural exchange. CAC funds will support artist stipends, materials, venue rental, and community outreach. Flavors of the Diasporas provides a platform for underrepresented immigrant voices, fosters cross-cultural understanding, and creates a welcoming space for dialogue, connection, and healing through the arts. |
Founded in 2014, Chopsticks Alley Art (CAA) creates educational arts programming that celebrates and addresses the needs of Southeast Asian Americans to celebrate their cultural heritage while engaging in social issues affecting our communities. Past programs have included art classes, gallery exhibits, free cultural festivals, and pubic art-making events. CAA has an established record of programing successful and accessible cultural events that appeal to a demographically diverse and inter-generational audience. One of our primary first initiatives, Chopsticks Alley Eats, organized community members to promote volunteerism in support of homeless children. Chopsticks Alley has an online, multimedia publication to share the voices of young Vietnamese and Filipino Americans through talk shows, podcasts, and other media. Building from this online platform, we launched Chopsticks Alley Arts as a 501(c)(3) organization in 2017, furthering the impact of our programming. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Luna Dance and Creativity | 931 Ashby Avenue , Berkeley, 94710 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 883-1118 | California's 12th congressional district | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Luna Kids Dance, Inc. dba Luna Dance & Creativity (formerly Luna Dance Institute) will offer dance integration strategies to early childhood education (ECE) teachers in Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) to meet their |
Our ADA-accessible STUDIO LAB children’s program offers a progression of dance learning designed to nurture the choreographer in every child in a studio class structure at Luna’s studios in Berkeley. The STUDIO LAB adult program offers opportunities for and presentations on dance research, the choreographic process, and topics that expand ideas about what dance is and who can dance. PROFESSIONAL LEARNING fulfills Luna’s mission to bring all children to dance as we deepen the knowledge and practice of dance learning through workshops, courses, panel conversations, and resources designed so that creative practitioners manifest creative self-efficacy, investigate teaching practice, establish collegial communities, cultivate dance leadership, and become change agents. Luna helps the field of dance education arc toward justice through FIELD MOVING, our practice-to-policy approach that includes sharing the findings of our inquiries and research; joining with others to create impact; and relentlessly advocating for inclusion, creativity, and self-determination. Recognizing that our work is situated within systems of oppression and racial injustice, we seek change by working together in community, paying attention, staying true to our values, and placing children as the future at the center of our work. Through PARTNERS FOR CHANGE, Luna collaborates with organizations (social service and human welfare agencies, schools and school districts) throughout the region, state and nation to build capacity for enduring dance programs that support the values of each community. Luna, an expert in EARLY CHILDHOOD EDUCATION in dance, has refined, over more than three decades, its pedagogy and curriculum to align with discoveries in neuroscience, play research, child psychology, and cultural responsiveness. As we envision a future with today’s toddlers becoming tomorrow’s leaders, early learning demands our crucial attention and focus. Luna faculty continue our research, theory-building, and practice to better understand how dance is at the convergence of all processes of learning. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | IAMA Theatre Company | 3269 Casitas Avenue , Los Angeles, 90039 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (917) 312-9282 | 30th Congressional District of California | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, IAMA THEATRE COMPANY will sustain its innovative and inclusive new play development programs and expand its community outreach throughout Los Angeles. Funds will be used to offset increased rental and operation costs, pay artists and staff a living wage, and invest in more accessibility and audience engagement services that will increase our impact, with a focus on providing more free and low-cost performances, culturally responsive community events, and student scholarships. Our 2025/2026 season will include: the creation and presentation of 1 World Premiere mainstage production; our annual New Works Festival, featuring 8 new plays by L.A. based playwrights that engages over 50 local artists; 2 public, staged workshops of new plays by underrepresented writers; and our arts education platform, designed to support emerging artists from historically underserved communities. |
For 18 seasons, IAMA Theatre Company has produced over 40 World and West Coast Premieres of new plays for the American theater, and developed over 200 more through our unique, ensemble-driven work and collaborative, new play development process. In addition to our mainstage productions, we program a variety of theatrical events, community engagement initiatives, education programs, and development opportunities for L.A. based artists and audiences including: • The IAMA New Works Festival, our leading new play development program that features an annual series of staged reading workshops, public presentations, and post-show community discussions. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | The Cypher Spot | 12844 Hawthorne Blvd , HAWTHORNE, 90250 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 577-0321 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Cypher Spot will expand our free and affordable arts programming for youth in Hawthorne and surrounding communities. Grant funds will support culturally rooted street dance classes—including Krump, Breaking, Hip Hop, and Afrobeats—as well as growing visual art offerings like screen printing, drawing, and painting. All classes are led by professional artists who reflect the backgrounds and experiences of the youth we serve. Funding will go toward artist pay, equipment, community outreach, and expansion of programs, ensuring access for families facing financial and social barriers. Our goal is to provide a safe, uplifting space where youth can explore their creativity, build confidence, and connect more deeply to their culture and community through the arts. |
The Cypher Spot has been a home for many since we opened in Inglewood in 2016. We build character, skill, confidence, and perseverance in our students using the elements of urban culture (dance, art, and media). We host daily classes for our students in Hip Hop, Breakdance, Krump, House, Popping, painting, video production, and much more. We foster creative abilities of youth through programs focused on learning foundational knowledge and having them apply it to their own personal art. Students are often challenged to create their own dance choreography, create original pieces of art, and compete and showcase freestyle/improvisational dance. Not only do we teach our students the application of the art but we also focus on the history behind it too. This empowers the youth to see that even they can create an art form, a dance style, or an art piece that can change the world and reach past the borders of our city. Many styles of dance that we focus on originated and/or blossomed in the streets, parties, and backyards of Los Angeles that now stretch all around the world. We love to teach the history of these cultures so that our students may find representation in them. Through our classes and events, our goal is to encourage our students to challenge themselves through new styles in dance and art which in return will encourage critical thinking, problem solving, leadership, collaboration, and creativity. In this we provide our students a chance to share their voice, release, and their energy. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Level Ground | 1920 Hillhurst Avenue #V939 , Los Angeles, 90027 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 452-0235 | California's 30th congressional district | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Level Ground will produce and exhibit a two-week culminating gallery show for our Social Practice Labs — a new program featuring artist-led book clubs, seminars, workshops, and events inspired by revolutionary texts that lead us towards social and cultural change. Inspired by our 18-month engagement with Octavia E Butler’s “Parable of the Sower,” this culminating gallery show titled “Season of the Sower” includes work from 10 Black and trans emerging and mid-career artists selected by Lead Curator yétúndé olagbaju. |
We run three distinct, interdependent programs. The specific events and projects within each program may evolve or even change year-to-year on account of our capacity, budget, and strategic decision-making, but these programs provide the consistent scaffolding for where Level Ground directs our resources. Our Residency Program provides emerging visual artists and cultural stewards with financial, creative, and care support to produce and exhibit a new body of work. A rotating selection committee curates each residency cohort, and every program cycle culminates with a free public offering from the residents. Our Production Incubator supports experimental and nonfiction filmmakers making work about critical socio-political issues. We create opportunities for collaboration and provide resources for project development, production, and distribution. Our Social Practice Labs are artist-led humanities seminars and workshops inspired by revolutionary texts where our larger communities join the Level Ground Collective to study and practice frameworks of collective liberation and abolition. Each year, the lab is documented in an annual group publication and/or exhibition. Alongside our programs, Level Ground maintains a Mutual Aid Network that offers responsive, ongoing, and direct material support specifically and exclusively for the Level Ground Collective (i.e. emergency grants, health stipends, project materials). |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $22,750.00 | Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego | 700 Prospect Street , La Jolla, 92037 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 454-3541 | California's 52nd Congressional District | District 78 | District 39 | With funding from California Arts Council, the Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego will deliver the Teen Art Collective (TAC), a 75+ hour after-school program that brings together diverse high school students for a transformative experience in contemporary art, identity, cultural preservation. In partnership with the Balboa Art Conservation Center, TAC fosters youth voices through hands-on workshops, mentorship with California artists, and field trips to artists’ studios and cultural institutions. Students engage with professionals—many reflecting their own backgrounds—and explore museum collections, conservation science, and creative careers. The program is free to all participants and emphasizes culturally responsive learning, emotional growth, and collaborative artmaking. TAC culminates in a student-curated exhibition at MCASD, activating youth narratives and cultivating critical thinking, leadership, and respect for diverse cultures in a safe, supportive environment. |
MCASD provides an unprecedented variety of exhibition spaces and experiences for the community, showcasing an internationally recognized collection and a dynamic schedule of exhibitions and public programs. The Museum presents a rotating schedule of exhibitions annually and has a strong history of touring exhibitions to prestigious national and international venues. Youth are a key audience and, since 2007, MCASD has offered free admission to all visitors ages 25 and under. Programs for young people include the Extended School Partnership, Teen Art Collective, Family Art Labs, and monthly Family Free Days, as well as interactive night time event series. The Museum’s Reflections creative aging program serves older adults. On Free Third Thursdays the Museum offers extended hours with a changing roster of films, talks and perfromances. Play Days take place on the second Sunday of the month are also free for all and offer dedicated family programming and artmaking. The Museum’s La Jolla campus reopened to the public in April 2022 after a significant expansion which quadrupled the gallery space. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,000.00 | Media Arts Center San Diego | 1100 Market Street Suite 326, San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 230-1938 | California's 53rd congressional district | California's 80th District | 78th District | With support from the California Arts Council, MEDIA ARTS CENTER SAN DIEGO (MACSD) will serve underrepresented youth (ages 6-25) in San Diego County through the Young Producers Project (YPP), a visual storytelling and media literacy initiative. YPP programs include the Teen Producers Project, Emerging Makers, City Heights IdeaLab, Youth Creators Media Camp, student outreach screenings, Teen Filmmaking Bootcamps, In-School and Library Workshops, and Workforce Development Initiative. During the past thirty-two years, our programs have experienced remarkable growth, paralleled by an increasing demand from our community. Funds from this grant will help MACSD improve its capacity to best serve youth who lack access to culturally resonant media stories and digital tools. Through hands-on programs, filmmaking, screenings, free field trips, and mentorship, we teach participants how to transform their communities through the power of media arts. |
MACSD programs, events, and film festivals are inclusionary—designed with audiences, participants, and community collaboration in mind. A summary of core organizational programs and services can be broken down into three categories: WATCH— We produce the San Diego Latino Film Festival (SDLFF), including the iVIE Awards and Student Film Festival, as well as screen films at our independent cinema the Digital Gym CINEMA. We also exhibit the artworks produced through our educational programming during family screenings. LEARN—Media education programs for youth fall under the umbrella of Young Producers Project (YPP) and include Young Creators Media Camps, Teen Producers Project, and the Workforce Development Initiative. CREATE—Tools for community-based media production and collaboration include: production training courses for independent filmmakers in San Diego; and Video Production Services, helping community groups make digital media presence available and affordable. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | PIECE BY PIECE | 6417 S. Main St , Los Angeles, 90003-1525 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 459-1420 | California Assembly district 53 | District 53 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, PIECE BY PIECE will provide free, therapeutic mosaic workshops for Veterans from across Los Angeles County. While some success has been made to house more Veterans – housed or unhoused – they are still among our most at-risk citizens suffering isolation, mental and physical health issues, PTSD, and depression. By engaging in the meditative process of mosaic arts in a supportive community Veterans, from all branches of the military and years of service have an opportunity to process complex emotions, and find satisfaction in the transformative, creative practice of art without judgement or expectation – and in a highly accessible medium that does not require prior experience. Funds will support the trauma-informed teaching staff, all mosaic materials and tools, and workshop set up providing full accessibility for disabled vets. |
Programs include: – Artisan Certification Program: Progressive skill-building course guiding participants through four certification levels in mosaic. – Directed Studies: Multi-week sessions focusing on advanced techniques led by Piece by Piece instructors and professional Visiting Artists. – Open Studio: Open session for active participants to create personal projects, refine skills, and receive support from instructors. – Community Outreach: Group projects with community members in an inviting, low-commitment setting. – Social Enterprise: Artisans complete orders and commissioned projects, receiving an hourly wage for their work. – Studio Prep Associates Program: The organization employs individuals who have experienced homelessness to provide program support sorting, preparing, and managing donated mosaic materials. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | PALENKE ARTS | 1713 Broadway Ave. , SEASIDE, 93955-4609 | Monterey | Central Coast | (831) 333-6612 | With support from the California Arts Council, Palenke Arts wil continue its work of community transformation through the arts. Thus we’ll provide high-quality multicultural arts classes and events to underserved youth and families in the city of Seaside who would otherwise not have access to them. Our goal for 2025-26 is to serve 275 + unduplicated students both during school hours and after school at both our sites: the Martin Luther King School of the Arts and our brand new Teen Arts Center. |
Palenke Arts is a multicultural arts organization founded in 2016 by a committed group of artists, educators and community members who wanted to address the lack of affordable multicultural arts programs for the youth in the city of Seaside. For the past seven years, we have provided high quality multidisciplinary arts, music and dance classes and workshops to many families who would traditionally not be able to pay for them. In addition to our educational programs, Palenke Arts offers an awe-inspiring concert series that features local and international artists (México, Morocco, Cuba, Iran, Brazil, Vietnam, Spain) including Grammy and Emmy winners. Thus, over the past 7 years we have organized and participated in countless community events such as our own annual Palenke Arts Festival presenting to over 5,000 audience members yearly. Palenke Arts exists to create a safe, vibrant and inclusive multicultural arts center in the city of Seaside that will benefit all of the Monterey Peninsula. We aim to uplift youth voices, inspire creativity and transform our community into a place where everyone feels seen, valued and welcomed through the healing power of the arts. In recognition of our work, in 2019, we received the award as the Nonprofit of Year in Arts and Culture from the Nonprofit Alliance of Monterey County. In 2022 our Executive Director Juan L. Sánchez obtained the Champion of the Arts Award from the Arts Council of Monterey County. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,600.00 | Deaf West Theatre | 4531 Tujunga Ave. , Studio City, 91602 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 762-2998 | California's 30th congressional district | District 38 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, Deaf West Theatre will continue its long history of working to fully integrate Deaf artists and audiences into the world of live Theater through its productions, training, education and advocacy programs. |
Stage Productions and multi-media projects. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Unearth and Empower Communities | 1317 N Pearl Ave , Compton, 90221 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 242-8383 | 43rd | 65th | 35th | With support from the California Arts Council, UNEARTH AND EMPOWER COMMUNITIES will sustain and expand its community-based arts programming in Compton, California, by providing year-round creative experiences for youth and families. CAC grant funds will support core operational costs including teaching artist stipends, program supplies, and administrative infrastructure essential to delivering our free Community Art Camp, Little Creators early childhood program, Houses of Steam, DiscoverU, and Compton Mural Project. These initiatives engage youth ages 0–18 in culturally relevant visual and performing arts that promote creative expression, civic engagement, and healing through the arts. Funding will help ensure equitable access to high-quality arts education in a historically under-resourced region, centering racial equity, youth leadership, and community pride. This general operating support will strengthen UEC’s capacity to serve over 400 youth annually and deepen its long-term impact. |
Community Art Camp (Ages 3 – 9th Grade) Little Creators (Ages 0–4 + Caregivers) Compton Mural Project (7th–12th Grade) Houses of STEAM (K–6 + Families) DiscoverU Enrichment Center (2nd–8th Grade) Pathways Program (Post-High School) Compton Youth Career Pathways (Ages 14–24) |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Unearth and Empower Communities | 1317 N Pearl Ave , Compton, 90221 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 242-8383 | 43rd | 65th | 35th | With support from the California Arts Council, Unearth and Empower Communities (UEC) will offer a youth-centered public art initiative that engages BIPOC students in grades 7-12 in a transformative, arts-based learning experience. The Compton Mural Project is a collaborative effort between UEC, The Makers Hub, and Compton District 2 Councilmember Andre Spicer. This 10-week high-impact program provides participants with an intensive 30-hour curriculum that combines hands-on mural design and creation with civic education, cultural heritage exploration, and artistic skill-building. Our plan is to offer two cohorts, one in the fall and one in the spring, thereby serving approximately 30 youth. |
Community Art Camp (Ages 3 – 9th Grade) Little Creators (Ages 0–4 + Caregivers) Compton Mural Project (7th–12th Grade) Houses of STEAM (K–6 + Families) DiscoverU Enrichment Center (2nd–8th Grade) Pathways Program (Post-High School) Compton Youth Career Pathways (Ages 14–24) |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Izcalli | 4219 E. Overlook Drive , SAN DIEGO, 92115 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 857-1148 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 79 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Izcalli Escuela de la Raza will expand its staff and programs. General operating support will allow the organization to continue its mission of promoting cultural consciousness through the arts, education, and community dialogue, specifically by supporting culturally relevant theater education, professional performances by Teatro Izcalli, restorative arts trainings for educators, and Indigenous Restorative Circles that foster rehumanization and cultural reconnection. |
Izcalli delivers its mission through four interconnected arts-centered Restorative Theater for Youth brings theater-based healing to young people at Teatro Izcalli is the organization’s professional Chicano theater troupe and Indigenous Restorative Circles integrate spoken word, song, ceremony, and Tlahtolli Trainings — named for the Nahuatl concept of The Word, representing |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,500.00 | Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center | 934 BRANNAN ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103-4906 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 829-9467 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | In celebration of the 30th anniversary of our United States of Asian America Festival’s (USAAF), the Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center (APICC) will curate a landmark visual arts exhibition at SOMArts Cultural Center, showcasing three decades of arts-based community building, diasporic cultural memory, and collective resilience and advocacy across Asian American, Native Hawaiian, and Pacific Islander (AANHPI) communities in the Bay Area. This exhibition will feature archival materials, artist retrospectives, and participatory public programming that illuminate the stories of historically underrepresented communities. CAC funds will support curatorial labor, venue costs, and accessibility services, ensuring equitable participation across AANHPI diasporas, including LGBTQIA2S+, refugee, immigrant, and mixed-race artists. This project reflects APICC’s commitment to cultural preservation, intergenerational healing, and equity in the arts, and will serve as a vital platform for reflection, resistance, and imagining collective futures. |
Through collaboration, productions, and presentations, APICC supports the development and growth of the diverse artistic endeavors of the San Francisco Bay Area Asian/Pacific Islander (API) community. Founded in 1998, our primary purpose is to heighten the visibility of artists and address the interests of San Francisco’s underserved API audiences. By means of technical services for our community’s emerging artists and arts groups, APICC collaborates with emerging and well-established groups with special focus on mid-career artists, allowing them access to production and fundraising expertise, performance and rehearsal space, as well as organizational consulting. APICC’s anchor program, the annual United States of Asian America Festival (USAAF), presents artists and organizations representing a diverse range of ethnic and cultural groups. All disciplines are represented: theater, music, dance, film, literature, visual arts, and more. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,000.00 | ELM | 2960 KERNER BLVD , San Rafael, 94901 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 870-9053 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 10 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, ENRICHING LIVES THROUGH MUSIC will launch the Music and Memory Project, a cultural and creative initiative that honors students’ heritage by collecting and exploring their families’ traditional lullabies and the stories behind them. Students will collaborate with teaching artists and guest composers to study the musical structure and cultural context of these lullabies, then use this knowledge to compose original chamber ensemble pieces. These compositions will be performed in community gatherings and formal concerts, celebrating cultural identity through shared storytelling and music-making. |
Enriching Lives through Music (ELM) is a multi-year, tuition-free, community-based music program primarily for first generation Latine students in San Rafael, California. We promote social change through the ambitious pursuit of musical excellence. ELM currently offers 170+ children ages 8-18 instruction on orchestral instruments, year-round, for their entire childhood – providing increasing layers of support to them and their families as they grow older. We plan to admit a new cohort of 25-30 third grade students each year. ELM is based on a model of inclusivity, equity, and intensity. Students participate in ELM for 10 hours, four days per week. After school, students study their primary instruments (violin, cello, flute, clarinet, oboe, trumpet, trombone), participate in enrichment classes, and receive academic support. In addition to instrument-specific classes, all students have weekly sectionals, weekly ensemble (orchestra) rehearsals, and musicianship/theory classes. On Saturdays the ELM community joins together to rehearse in orchestras. ELM creates opportunities for students to thrive creatively, academically, socially, and emotionally. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,750.00 | Haemil Performing Group | 1220 CRENSHAW BLVD , LOS ANGELES, 90019-3128 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 576-9284 | 37th Congressional district of California | 54 | 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Daroo Korean Performing Arts and Culture (Daroo KPAC) will present the 12th Annual Korean Traditional Music & Arts Festival, also known as the Roar Cultural Festival, in November 2025. This multi-day, multicultural celebration will feature traditional and contemporary performances, community workshops, cultural exhibitions, and interactive arts education activities. Grant funds will support artist stipends, cultural programming, and community engagement efforts that center immigrant voices, intergenerational participation, and cross-cultural understanding. The festival provides a platform for Korean American and other underrepresented artists while fostering inclusive, community-driven dialogue around identity, belonging, and heritage. By deepening access to traditional arts and encouraging active participation from historically underserved communities, Daroo KPAC seeks to use this project to elevate cultural equity and visibility, especially among youth, seniors, and multilingual families in Southern California. |
1. The Annual Roar Cultural Festival, held since 2022, promotes Korean performing arts to both Korean and non-Korean communities. Its goals are to: |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,500.00 | Legends Purpose | 3734 BRADVIEW DR , SACRAMENTO, 95827-9702 | Sacramento | Capital | (530) 355-2256 | District 6 | District 7 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, Legend’s Purpose will expand its Creative Empowerment Lab to deliver free, high-quality, culturally responsive arts programming to underserved youth ages 12–24 across Sacramento County. This initiative centers system-impacted youth—including those in foster care, the justice system, or experiencing economic hardship—and engages them in self-reflective and expressive art forms such as visual storytelling, spoken word, and collaborative public art. CAC funds will support teaching artist stipends, materials, youth transportation, and community-based art showcases. Through this work, Legend’s Purpose will foster personal growth, creative skill-building, and community pride—using the arts as a vehicle for healing, empowerment, and leadership. |
1. Creative Empowerment Lab (Self-Reflective & Expressive Arts) |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Flyaway Productions | 1068 Bowdoin St. , San Francisco, 94134 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 672-4111 | U.S. House of Representatives district 15 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, FLYAWAY PRODUCTIONS will create FREEDOM COMES WHEN ONE WALKS THROUGH IT, a dance-based public art project connecting public libraries -designed to freely nourish people, and prisons -designed for punishment and isolation. FREEDOM COMES will be created in coalition with Empowerment Avenue, incarcerated writer April Harris, and composer Kalyn Harewood. It will explore testimony from currently incarcerated women regarding their specific paths to freedom via commutation, parole, 1170 resentencing, appeals, legislation (like the Racial Justice Act), activism, and art creation. It will uplift their struggle and honor how the soul gets free. The project will culminate in multiple aerial performances in/on SF Library branches starting in 2026. This is Flyaway Productions’ eighth project with systems-impacted people and second collaboration with women behind the walls. |
PERFORM: We make dances that are site-specific, off the ground, and justice-driven. We perform in unlikely places, activating the sides of buildings above bleak city streets. Discarded needles; unhoused bodies lining sidewalks. This is where we create. Our site-specific dances impact neighborhoods because they unfold at the very place where conflict lives. For us, a building is a witness. It holds the complexity of a neighborhood’s history in its “hands,” I-beams, or concrete walls. Our tools include coalition building, an intersectional feminist lens, and a body-based push against the constraints of gravity. From 2017-2023, Flyaway created The Decarceration Trilogy: Dismantling the Prison Industrial Complex One Dance at a Time. We continue to create new work centering incarcerated artists and exploring prison systems change. TEACH: We offer year-round classes to adults, teens, and youth. Each summer, we offer GIRLFLY, a Youth Art & Activism Program, integrating dance-making and activism. Our training with youth offers some remedy for the ways women and girls/GNC youth remain underserved in public culture as a whole. We also offer teaching residencies that link social justice content, school curriculum, and movement innovation, where your young artists are our collaborators. ADVOCATE: We provide a bridge between the arts, gender justice, racial justice, and everyday life. We are constantly developing new forms for community engagement and coalition building with activists and non-arts partners. COLLABORATE: We have worked with Bay Area Dance Artists Bianca Cabrera, Quinn Dior, Clarissa Dyas, Laura Elaine Ellis, Sonsherée Giles, MaryStarr Hope, B Dean, Megan Lowe, Jhia Jackson, Saharla Vetch and natalya shoaf. We also work in collaboration with designer Sean Riley, rigger Dave Freitag, and over a dozen women/nonbinary composers, including Pamela Z, Madlines, Jewlia Eisenberg, Carla Kihlstedt, Van Anh Vo, Melanie DeMore, and Theresa Wong. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | 82-2363154 | 2728 Sixth Avenue , SAN DIEGO, 92103 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 738-1232 | California's 50th congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from California Arts Council, Voices of Our City Choir (Voices) will advance our mission to amplify the voices of people impacted by homelessness through music and the arts. Funds will be used to enhance and expand the capacity of our program service model, which integrates welcoming, healing music/artistic programs into person-centered, culturally responsive outreach and case management to foster empowerment and respect, help unsheltered artists meet basic needs, and transform cultural narratives about homelessness. A grant from CAC will 1) increase the number of unsheltered San Diego artists we engage in musical programming that is incorporated into case management/wraparound support; 2) increase the visibility of San Diego artists experiencing homelessness to public audiences; and 3) elevate lived experiences of our Choir Members during performances to reframe public perceptions/stigmas around homelessness and catalyze change. |
San Diego-based musician Steph Johnson co-founded Voices as a Performance Choir in 2017, in collaboration with local musicians and people experiencing homelessness. Our Choir has performed in more than 150 events, including San Diego Symphony Orchestra, San Diego Master Chorale, and America’s Got Talent (AGT), where Members received the Golden Buzzer award and inspired San Diego’s Board of Supervisors to declare June 2nd “Voices of Our City Day.” To build upon the success of our choir, Voices expanded our arts and creative offerings to include songwriting and music production workshops and wraparound services that link Members to housing/social supports. We offer songwriting workshops to engage Members in creating new, original productions for our Choir to perform in community events. We also provide Members access to our in-house studio to learn music recording, engineering, video, and production skills. In 2022, we formalized the structure of our case management, wraparound service referrals, and basic needs services into a Choir Member Services program. Through our musical programs, Members develop trusting, authentic relationships with our Member Services staff; these connections provide a critical avenue for staff to identify Members’ housing, food, and mental health needs and provide a symphony of resources to meet them. In this way, Voices uses the rhythm of musical programs to move Members through the hierarchy of basic needs and help them realize their full potential. In the process, Voices evolved from a performance ensemble to a nonprofit using musical programming to help unsheltered neighbors meet basic needs. Voices has received excellence awards from Mayor Todd Gloria and the San Diego Psychological Association. Voices also received the 2022 Peacemaker award from the National Conflict Resolution Center and Blue California Promise 2025 Leading the Way Award for Wellness & Empowerment. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,500.00 | Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls San Diego | PO BOX 232342 , ENCINITAS, 92023-2342 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 390-3972 | California's 49th congressional district | District 76 | District 36 | With support from the California Arts Council, Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls San Diego will hire a seasoned non-profit Executive Director, who will intentionally grow and activate our organization in innovative ways. We will branch out beyond our signature Gxrls Rock! Summer Camp and hold year-round workshops to activate multiple community venues across San Diego. And, we will aim to triple our scholarships so that girls and non-binary youth, who are most disconnected from engagement with the arts, are able to have access to and participate in quality music programming. |
Currently, our signature program/activity of Rock n’ Roll Camp for Girls San Diego is to produce our annual week-long Gxrls Rock! Summer Camp for 50-55 girls and non-binary youth ages 8-17 during the month of June. In one week, we provide over 40 hours of direct programming. Campers receive fun and engaging music education, they form bands, write original songs, and learn an instrument. We also hold unique workshops during camp, working on a community impact project with other nonprofits. Campers are mentored by 15 inspirational professional artists, and participate in a live showcase performance at a professional venue, in front of over 250 audience members. As of 2024, Gxrls Rock! Summer Camp has created 65 youth bands, and 65 original songs have been written by our camp attendees, and we have served over 350 youth, and performed to over 2,000 family and community members. With additional capacity, we hope to provide quarterly year-round workshops (e.g., vocals, songwriting, ukulele). |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | transcenDANCE Youth Arts Project | 5700 El Cajon Blvd , San Diego, 92115-3737 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 310-5330 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 79 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, TRANSCENDANCE YOUTH ARTS PROJECT will engage up to 70 youth from underserved communities in our CREATE Performance Group program from October 2025 – August 2026. In accordance with our ongoing, successful program model, students ages 9-19 years will experience a holistic and culturally affirming creative process with professional Teaching Artists through a robust Creative Youth Development program. The students and artists will co-create an original dance theatre production that will be presented at a culminating performance on a professional San Diego Stage in Spring 2026, and we will offer additional community outreach performances during Summer 2026. Through this programming we will address community-identified needs including youth mentorship, access to youth-tailored creative spaces, making art with an equity lens, and providing a platform to amplify youth voice and vision. |
transcenDANCE programs provide youth development opportunities through a unique three-tiered program model: CONNECT, CREATE, CONTRIBUTE. transcenDANCE CONNECTS to youth and communities through in-school and out-of-school time dance classes, artist-in-residency programs, outreach performances, and summer camps. CREATE is the heart of the transcenDANCE programs. Youth explore dance and the performing arts through rigorous dance training and immersion in a social change and social emotional learning curriculum over 7-9 months, which culminates in an annual performance on a professional San Diego stage. transcenDANCE alumni CONTRIBUTE to transcenDANCE through performances, teaching and choreography assistantships and paid roles, and mentoring of incoming students. All students have access to mental health services, mentorship, and leadership development opportunties. Our students’ transformative experience develops their leadership skills, social and emotional resilience, and confidence to change the trajectories of their lives and positively impact the communities they live in. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | Hijos del Sol Arts Productions | 443 E Alisal St, Suite C , Salinas, 93905-4514 | Monterey | Central Coast | (831) 210-2552 | 18th Congressional District of California | District 29 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, HIJOS DEL SOL ARTS PRODUCTIONS will expand access to culturally rooted arts education for over 2,250 youth participants and over 1,100 audience members in East Salinas and surrounding communities. ALL are welcome to join our free studio programs, school-based residencies, and community events that celebrate creativity, heritage, and identity. Youth receive unlimited art supplies, instruction, healthy snacks, and mentorship to support their educational and creative journeys. Programs culminate in annual student exhibits—A Toda Madres, Garabatos, and Día de Muertos—where young artists share and sell their work. Through community murals and paid apprenticeships, older youth also gain leadership skills and hands-on experience. Our work transforms public spaces and builds pride across generations, fostering connection, resilience, and opportunity through the arts. |
Embodying a philosophy of interconnectedness, “Hijos del Sol” is a saying from indigenous peoples that describes our interrelatedness with the sun, moon, and planets. Inspired by his own journey as a child immigrant farmworker, Native American, and self-taught artist, José G. Ortiz founded Hijos del Sol to meet the need for a dedicated studio space to support youth who, like him, face significant barriers. Hijos del Sol is a safe arts sanctuary that builds confidence, belonging, and cultural pride—key indicators of well-being—while developing skills and self-concepts that support pathways in education, creative work, and community leadership. Core Programs and Services include: HIJOS DEL SOL TRAVELING EXPERIMENTAL ARTS STUDIOS are set up on school grounds for all students to access and rotate into the experimental studio environment. In the coming year, we expect to continue to work with all 14 schools of the Salinas City Elementary District and more. HIJOS DEL SOL CULTURAL EVENTS WITH ARTS EXHIBITS work with students throughout the year fosters a sense of belonging and cultural appreciation. At these events, we keep our traditions alive, preserving our heritage. 1) A Toda Madres, 2) Dia de los Muertos, and 3) Garabatos. HIJOS DEL SOL TRANSFORMATIVE COMMUNITY MURALS include vibrant, symbolic images that reflect the strength of our people, uplift our community, and spread messages of unity and hope. HIJOS DEL SOL APPRENTICES are a cohort under the guidance of Arts Director Jose G. Ortiz and Jose “Pepe” Nolasco. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | URBAN VOICES PROJECT | 420 S SAN PEDRO ST #423, LOS ANGELES, 90013-2192 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 741-1887 | CA-34 | District 57 | Distract 28 | Rooted in Skid Row through music, community, and openhearted inclusion of the most marginalized members of society, Urban Voices Project amplifies artistic expression to improve well-being, strengthen social networks, and inspire individuals to be their own best advocates. Our programming consists of community singing, performing ensemble choir, music education classes, music wellness workshops, and recurring events designed to build community and strengthen access to resources for individuals experiencing homelessness. Funding from the California Arts Council will support general operating costs, including employee training and professional development, paying local artists and choir members, expanding program offerings to other healthcare and social service sites to reach more community members, and training teaching artists/facilitators in this community-driven instructive methodology behind impactful and culturally competent UVP programming. |
To place music & singing community spaces in every medical and social service site across Los Angeles, to create community and a more comprehensive, holistic system for engaging individuals coping with the conditions of homelessness. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $16,316.00 | SCARF | 1060 UPPER PACIFIC DR , WHITETHORN, 95589-9117 | Humboldt | Upstate | (760) 420-2296 | Second Congressional District | State Assembly District 2 | State Senate District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, the SHELTER COVE ARTS AND RECREATION FOUNDATION (SCARF) will offer 10 free art classes to under-resourced communities* in Shelter Cove and Southern Humboldt. Our goal is to foster a sense of community by encouraging creative collaboration and helping participants develop an appreciation for the area’s natural beauty, biodiversity, and history. Through a diverse range of art classes, we will honor the work of local research and conservation organizations, as well as the rich heritage of indigenous peoples, their preservation practices, and their impact on the community. These classes will introduce artistic mediums, providing students with opportunities to explore their creative potential while being guided through the artistic process. |
Management of the Lost Coast Artist’s Art Gallery located at the Inn of the Lost Coast in Shelter Cove, CA |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Nevada County Arts & Culture | PO BOX 1833 , NEVADA CITY, 95959-1833 | Nevada | Upstate | (530) 718-0727 | California's 3rd congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Nevada County Arts Council will deliver Bass Dojo—a therapeutic, culturally responsive music program for system-engaged youth at Nevada County’s only remaining residential facility for high-needs students, Mountain Valley Child and Family Services. Led by professional bassist and seasoned educator Pancho Tomaselli, the program provides in-school instruction centered on improvisation, collaboration, and personal expression. Youth will find their voice, and together build resilience, emotional literacy, and a sense of agency through creative practice. Grant funds will support artist compensation, curriculum development, instrument rentals and evaluation. Bass Dojo serves students in a deeply remote, rural area ranked in the lowest HPI quartile and historically underfunded by state arts resources. It directly addresses a critical service gap—meeting CAC priorities through equity-focused, healing-centered arts engagement in one of California’s most underserved communities. |
Nevada County Arts & Culture’s Core Programs and Services can be understood across six interconnected areas. CORE PROGRAMS ARTS & CULTURE PLANNING / CULTURAL INFRASTRUCTURE —Culture Forward 2026–2032 implementation ARTIST SERVICES & CREATIVE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT —Business of Art Symposium ARTS EDUCATION & YOUTH DEVELOPMENT —Artists in Schools LITERARY ARTS & PUBLIC PROGRAMMING —Sierra Poetry Festival PUBLIC ART, EXHIBITIONS & PLACEKEEPING —Art in Public Spaces REGIONAL LEADERSHIP, ADVOCACY ®GRANTING —State-Local Partner leadership |
| State Local Partner Mentorship | 2025-26 | $56,500.00 | Nevada County Arts & Culture | PO BOX 1833 , NEVADA CITY, 95959-1833 | Nevada | Upstate | (530) 718-0727 | California's 3rd congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Nevada County Arts Council will continue to mentor a new a county-designated local arts agency in Glenn County. Glenn County Arts & Culture (GCAC)—now a 501c3—will build infrastructure, deepen community partnerships, and will plan for culturally inclusive programming guided by input from multilingual Listening Sessions held across the county. Year Two activities include formalizing a strategic plan, expanding board and advisory leadership, launching public programs centered on youth and Latinx culture, and strengthening systems for outreach and accessibility. Grant funds will support local staffing, mentorship, public engagement—and shared office space in Orland. Under continued mentorship from Nevada County Arts Council, GCAC will document its progress toward meeting CAC’s requirements for State-Local Partner designation, including securing a Board of Supervisors resolution and demonstrating two years of arts programming and services. |
Nevada County Arts & Culture’s Core Programs and Services can be understood across six interconnected areas. CORE PROGRAMS ARTS & CULTURE PLANNING / CULTURAL INFRASTRUCTURE —Culture Forward 2026–2032 implementation ARTIST SERVICES & CREATIVE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT —Business of Art Symposium ARTS EDUCATION & YOUTH DEVELOPMENT —Artists in Schools LITERARY ARTS & PUBLIC PROGRAMMING —Sierra Poetry Festival PUBLIC ART, EXHIBITIONS & PLACEKEEPING —Art in Public Spaces REGIONAL LEADERSHIP, ADVOCACY ®GRANTING —State-Local Partner leadership |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | $300,000.00 | Nevada County Arts & Culture | PO BOX 1833 , NEVADA CITY, 95959-1833 | Nevada | Upstate | (530) 718-0727 | California's 3rd congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Nevada County Arts Council will will partner with its entire peer network of State-Local-Partners across our 19-county Upstate Region, building on our regranting and grantmaking experience to implement an equitable, accessible multilingual program that supports artists whose work demonstrates artistic merit, community impact, and a commitment to practice. Funds will be used to grant Fellowships directly to individual artists, with remaining funds supporting outreach, technical assistance, panel facilitation, and program administration. Our approach will prioritize historically underserved communities across 47,000 square miles of rural Northern California through inclusive application and review processes that center multiple equity lenses. Together with county arts agencies in every county, we will elevate artists as essential voices in advancing community well-being and shaping the cultural vitality and capacity of our Upstate Region. |
Nevada County Arts & Culture’s Core Programs and Services can be understood across six interconnected areas. CORE PROGRAMS ARTS & CULTURE PLANNING / CULTURAL INFRASTRUCTURE —Culture Forward 2026–2032 implementation ARTIST SERVICES & CREATIVE WORKFORCE DEVELOPMENT —Business of Art Symposium ARTS EDUCATION & YOUTH DEVELOPMENT —Artists in Schools LITERARY ARTS & PUBLIC PROGRAMMING —Sierra Poetry Festival PUBLIC ART, EXHIBITIONS & PLACEKEEPING —Art in Public Spaces REGIONAL LEADERSHIP, ADVOCACY ®GRANTING —State-Local Partner leadership |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | KeyNote/SDYS | 1650 El Prado 207A , San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 233-3232 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, KeyNote will provide music education programs in Chula Vista, reaching early childhood (0-5) through the Chula Vista Elementary School District Office of Early Childhood Development, Opus Project after-school music ensembles in four Elementary Schools, and music enrichment for students up to age 18 through a special pathway to join the San Diego Youth Orchestra. |
Celebrating 80 years in 2024-25, SDYS is San Diego’s comprehensive provider of cradle-to-college music education opportunities through: Our flagship ensemble program, housed in San Diego’s historic Balboa Park, features thirteen to fifteen orchestras and bands for musicians of all levels and provides additional depth through chamber music, theory, composition, second instrument camps, and summer opportunities. SDYS’ Community Opus Project has partnered with Chula Vista Elementary School District for 15 years to restore music education programs to more than forty schools and is a national model for community engagement through music education. Lastly, SDYS’ early childhood program, Chimes, works with infants, toddlers, and their families to promote creative youth development, pre-literacy, and school readiness through music education and pre-ensemble training. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | On the Margins, Inc. | 245 Kentucky St Suite E, Petaluma, 94952-2877 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (415) 212-9064 | 2nd Congressional District of California | 12th State Assembly District | 2nd District | With support from the California Arts Council, ON THE MARGINS INC is expanding ¡DALE!, a multicultural arts program designed to cultivate young artists and activists. ¡DALE! provides meaningful and culturally responsive arts experiences for BIPOC and LGBTQIA+ youth aged 14-18 in Sonoma County. The program bolsters youth leadership, art and organizing skills, empowering youth to work towards a more inclusive and equitable California. Grant funds will specifically support youth engagement with the arts, communiy artists and menors and expand the program to include increased recruitment efforts of differently abled youth maintaining the priority on underserved target populations from communities of color and LGBTQIA2+ youth. |
Arts-based interventions are at the very center of our work at On the Margins (OTM), an organization deeply rooted in Sonoma County, within the broader San Francisco Bay Area. We passionately believe in the transformative power of artists and creative expression as a vital tool for healing, liberation, and community building, particularly within historically marginalized communities. Our commitment extends across a range of impactful programs: ¡DALE! empowers youth through art to address social justice issues; SER utilizes artistic modalities in its bilingual, family-oriented approach to support identity and intergenerational healing; HEAL employs creative practices in peer support for processing trauma and fostering well-being; and RISE integrates artistic exploration into culturally responsive career counseling. Furthermore, LA ASAMBLEA, a collaborative initiative we spearhead, centers arts-based engagement as it distributes grant funds to Sonoma County BIPOC and Queer artists, supporting their economic stability, access to creative spaces, educational advancement, and overall health through grants and a variety of artistic events and workshops. Even within our therapy, clinical training, and consultation services, we prioritize and incorporate arts-based approaches, recognizing their unique ability to facilitate emotional processing, build resilience, and foster connection in accessible and profound ways, making art an integral and invaluable aspect of everything we do to cultivate a more equitable and liberated future. One of our strategic priorities is to cultivate a network where BIPOC and Queer artists can share knowledge, deepen skills, and nurture connections |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | LA Commons | 4343 Leimert Blvd. , Los Angeles, 90008 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 792-0366 | 37th Congressional District of California | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, LA Commons will leverage the power of our Day of the Ancestors: Festival of Masks to celebrate Blackness and promote healing in Leimert Park as community members across the generations engage with cultural traditions from across the African diaspora. |
LA Commons programs engage residents of neighborhoods where most live below the poverty line and are new immigrants struggling to find their place in Los Angeles. Target audiences are artists and culture bearers, youth ages 15–25, and residents of all ages. Participating neighborhoods include MacArthur Park, Leimert Park, and greater South Los Angeles. By engaging community members in our core “Neighborhood Story Connection” program, we create a space where stories & voices are heard and then transformed into dynamic public art that reflects local hopes, dreams & identities. Relationships developed through these public art projects are leveraged to engage people of all ages in the stories of our Los Angeles, through resident led neighborhood tours, public art campaigns, and other culturally informed experiences that support local businesses and artists, and share opportunities to experience authentic food, music, festivals and rich cultural histories across Los Angeles. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | UC Riverside | 245 University Office Building , RIVERSIDE, 92521-9800 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 827-5535 | California's 41st congressional district | District 58 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, the REGENTS OF THE UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA AT RIVERSIDE / UCR ARTS will have the critical funds necessary to help a new generation of high-school aged filmmakers to develop their own voices by providing them with artist mentorship, filmmaking technologies, and a college-level curriculum through its OFF THE BLOCK summer documentary filmmaking workshop. |
UCR ARTS is the University of California, Riverside’s internationally recognized photography museum and art center. UCR ARTS produces an average of 14 exhibitions, 150 screenings, and 20 performances annually, serving 33,000 visitors, students, and community members each year. Its rich history extends back to the founding of the Sweeney Art Gallery in 1963, the California Museum of Photography in 1973, and the Barbara and Art Culver Center for the Arts in 2010. With over 750,000 photographs, photographic imaging technologies, and contemporary artworks in its collection, these entities comprise one of premiere university art museums and centers in the country. From major thematic exhibitions, historical photography exhibitions, artist projects, new work by emerging artists/curators, and touring exhibitions, UCR ARTS strives to cover the range and diversity of photography and contemporary art and the cultural heritage in the region. Additionally, the center houses the only independent cinema in the area, bringing foreign, independent, experimental, documentary, and exemplary Hollywood film to Riverside in its 72-seat theater. UCR ARTS’ mission complements the University’s greater mission to provide opportunities and educational success for students from under-represented communities by bringing world-class visual arts to the area, and marrying these national and international activities to significant, local community initiatives with hands-on, in-depth educational opportunities. Beyond UCR ARTS’ multiple galleries, exhibition spaces, and screening room, the facility houses a media editing lab, with extensive capabilities for the creation of film and web-based media, 360 video, virtual reality, among others. UCR ARTS also houses two dance studios, a black box theater equipped with green screen and full theatrical lighting, and a sound recording studio with full mixing and mastering capabilities. UCR ARTS’ staff consists of 16 arts professionals dedicated to bringing a slate of diverse and dynamic exhibitions, performances, educational opportunities, and related programming to its region. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Variety Children's Charity of the Desert | 42600 COOK ST STE 150 , PALM DESERT, 92211-6108 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (760) 773-9800 | 25 | 47 | 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, VARIETY CHILDREN’S CHARITIES OF THE DESERT TENT 66 will expand its free, inclusive arts programming for underserved and disabled children ages 5–18. Monthly Adaptive Art and Sensory Art classes will be offered at our Palm Desert center and introduced in high-need communities through Family Resource Centers in Mecca and Desert Hot Springs. CAC funds will support art supplies, bilingual teaching artist stipends, and program staffing to ensure equitable, culturally responsive, and accessible arts experiences for youth who face barriers due to disability, illness, income, or geography. |
Variety Children’s Charity of the Desert delivers life-changing services for children (ages 0–18) across the Coachella Valley, with offices in Palm Desert, Mecca, and Desert Hot Springs. We support children with disabilities, chronic health conditions, and those facing economic hardship through four core programs. Freedom Program Restores mobility, independence, and inclusion through adaptive bikes, strollers, and mobility equipment, Bikes for Kids, and Recycled Rides, ensuring children and families can access daily life, care, and opportunity. Future Program Builds confidence and connection through inclusive art, adaptive recreation, and family-centered activities that create belonging and joyful experiences. Care Program Provides early developmental and autism screenings, resources, and guidance for families, delivered in person and through telehealth to ensure access to care and early intervention. Outreach Program Strengthens families through case management, referrals, food distribution, and resource navigation, helping caregivers meet basic needs and access critical services. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | KULARTS | 65 Langton St , San Francisco, 94103-3915 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 295-2677 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, KULARTS will conduct artist service and advocacy programs that promote the artistic and economic development of our Bay Area Pilipinx diaspora community. Awarded funds will support KULARTS staff and partners who administer and implement our arts and education performances and programs dedicated to engaging and uplifting the voices of the Bay Area’s 500,000 Pilipinx community members. Funded programming includes: KULARTS Presents; Making Visible Project; Agos Community Engagement and Education Program; Philippine Master Artists-in-Residents; Art Dialogue in the Pilipinx Diaspora; Kularts Curatorial Continuum Program; and building capacity towards the opening of our new APICC/KULARTS Community Arts Space in 2027. |
Every season, KULARTS provides various participatory programming, activities for artists and the greater community including: KULARTS PRESENTS THE MAKING VISIBLE PROJECT AGOS ED PROGRAM – KULARTS’ new youth & family centered education program of folkloric dance and music and sociopolitical knowledge building. PHILIPPINE MASTER ARTISTS-IN-RESIDENCE – the facilitation of cultural exchanges between master artists and the Pilipinx community; and PHILIPPINE TRIBU TUR – a biennial immersion in Philippine indigenous communities designed for US-based artists and cultural workers. ART DIALOGUE IN THE PILIPINX DIASPORA – gathers contemporary practitioners, master artists, and allied artists in a symposium and performance showcase to discuss urgent issues in the field. KULARTS CURATORIAL CONTINUUM PROGRAM – curatorial committees—Queering Pilipinx Dance Aesthetics and NexGen Curators & Makers—of artists and creators under the mentorship of Artistic Director Alleluia Panis |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | KULARTS | 65 Langton St , San Francisco, 94103-3915 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 295-2677 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, KULARTS will support the winter/spring 2026 semester of our Agos program, a community-led initiative fostering Creative Youth Development among Pilipino American youth through arts-based education, mentorship, and cultural exploration. Established in 2009, Agos engages youth in ages 12-24 with a dynamic curriculum that combines Pilipino folkloric dance, music, historic education, and political discourse to build self-identity, community connection, and leadership skills. Agos activities include after-school programming for ages 12-17 and young adult engagements for ages 18-24, rooted in the traditions of the Pilipino diaspora. |
Every season, KULARTS provides various participatory programming, activities for artists and the greater community including: KULARTS PRESENTS THE MAKING VISIBLE PROJECT AGOS ED PROGRAM – KULARTS’ new youth & family centered education program of folkloric dance and music and sociopolitical knowledge building. PHILIPPINE MASTER ARTISTS-IN-RESIDENCE – the facilitation of cultural exchanges between master artists and the Pilipinx community; and PHILIPPINE TRIBU TUR – a biennial immersion in Philippine indigenous communities designed for US-based artists and cultural workers. ART DIALOGUE IN THE PILIPINX DIASPORA – gathers contemporary practitioners, master artists, and allied artists in a symposium and performance showcase to discuss urgent issues in the field. KULARTS CURATORIAL CONTINUUM PROGRAM – curatorial committees—Queering Pilipinx Dance Aesthetics and NexGen Curators & Makers—of artists and creators under the mentorship of Artistic Director Alleluia Panis |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | White Hall Arts Academy | 2812 W 54TH ST , LOS ANGELES, 90043-4824 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 235-0665 | California Assembly district 55 | District CA-37 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, White Hall Arts Academy Foundation will expand Saturday Sessions, JAMM-U, and Soundworks programs to provide free and low-cost arts education for youth ages 4–18 and workforce training for transitional-aged youth 18–24 in South LA. Grant funds will support instructors, materials, and outreach to ensure equitable access to music, dance, acting, and technical training for underserved and justice-impacted and foster youth. |
Soundworks is a workforce development program that trains justice-affected and transitional aged foster youth in audio engineering, lighting design, and video production, then connects them to on-the-job training opportunities. We equip youth with skills and work experience that prepare them for careers in the creative economy. Saturday Sessions provides inclusive arts education year-round serving youth ages 4–12 and teens ages 13 and older through group classes in drums, violin, guitar, piano, singing, dance, music production, and acting. Classes are offered in 4 and 8-week sessions throughout the year. My First Job is our youth workforce development program serving youth ages 14–21. Participants gain first-time job experience as office assistants, teaching aides, media creators, and event staff while building workplace skills, confidence, and financial literacy. Youth also receive mentorship in resume writing, interview preparation, and professional behavior to support future employment success. ARTS-MUSIC-POWER (AMP) is an onsite program designed for youth with limited access to arts education and instruments. AMP provides guitar, vocal, and music production instruction at schools and educational support centers throughout South Los Angeles, Watts, Inglewood, and Compton. Music Creators Camp is a free immersive program for South LA youth ages 9–17 interested in music and creative careers. The 2-week-long experience provides mentorship, industry exposure, and hands-on learning opportunities, including visits to the Apple Store at The Grove and Universal Music Group Recording Studios. Private Music Lesson Scholarships provide more than $20,000 annually in free music lessons for children in underserved communities and youth affected by foster care. Rock The Block is our free community festival with more than 3,000 attendees for a day of music, empowerment, and connection in South LA. The event features live performances, wellness services, youth activities, and discussions focused on community wellbeing and economic empowerment in partnership with local agencies and community organizations. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,600.00 | White Hall Arts Academy | 2812 W 54TH ST , LOS ANGELES, 90043-4824 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 235-0665 | California Assembly district 55 | District CA-37 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, White Hall Arts Academy Foundation will expand access to year-round, culturally responsive arts education and workforce development programs for youth and young adults in South Los Angeles. Grant funds will support instructor compensation, curriculum materials, and community outreach across our core initiatives. |
Soundworks is a workforce development program that trains justice-affected and transitional aged foster youth in audio engineering, lighting design, and video production, then connects them to on-the-job training opportunities. We equip youth with skills and work experience that prepare them for careers in the creative economy. Saturday Sessions provides inclusive arts education year-round serving youth ages 4–12 and teens ages 13 and older through group classes in drums, violin, guitar, piano, singing, dance, music production, and acting. Classes are offered in 4 and 8-week sessions throughout the year. My First Job is our youth workforce development program serving youth ages 14–21. Participants gain first-time job experience as office assistants, teaching aides, media creators, and event staff while building workplace skills, confidence, and financial literacy. Youth also receive mentorship in resume writing, interview preparation, and professional behavior to support future employment success. ARTS-MUSIC-POWER (AMP) is an onsite program designed for youth with limited access to arts education and instruments. AMP provides guitar, vocal, and music production instruction at schools and educational support centers throughout South Los Angeles, Watts, Inglewood, and Compton. Music Creators Camp is a free immersive program for South LA youth ages 9–17 interested in music and creative careers. The 2-week-long experience provides mentorship, industry exposure, and hands-on learning opportunities, including visits to the Apple Store at The Grove and Universal Music Group Recording Studios. Private Music Lesson Scholarships provide more than $20,000 annually in free music lessons for children in underserved communities and youth affected by foster care. Rock The Block is our free community festival with more than 3,000 attendees for a day of music, empowerment, and connection in South LA. The event features live performances, wellness services, youth activities, and discussions focused on community wellbeing and economic empowerment in partnership with local agencies and community organizations. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Prescott Circus Theatre | 1721 Broadway #201 , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 350-7207 | 12th Congressional District | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Prescott Circus Theatre will provide 10 months of |
Prescott Circus Theatre provides no-cost, year round public school and community based programs for youth representing historically oppressed and marginalized communities (primarily low-income, Black and Children of Color) in partnership with professional artists, public schools, and other local organizations. Our culturally responsive programs apply educational standards based curriculum with youth development best practices to support students’ learning to perform their best on stage and in life. School programs take place at as many as seven Oakland public schools with complimentary weekly training for older youth and an annual summer circus arts and academic program. School programs serve students in general and special education classes with some exclusively for students with disabilities. The organization produces two free public shows each year in the spring and summer. The Prescott Circus Youth Performing Company performs and make appearances at over twenty events annually from civic parades to visits to senior centers. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | Children's Fairyland | 699 BELLEVUE AVE , OAKLAND, 94610-5055 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 452-2259 | With support from the California Arts Council, Children’s Fairyland will develop, deliver, and evaluate a new suite of arts learning programs for children ages 2 to 8 that use puppetry to foster social and emotional learning (SEL) and early language and literacy development. The “Puppet Education” program builds on Fairyland’s 69-year history of presenting original puppet shows, and includes: 1) add-on field trip workshops featuring original puppet storytimes and interactive dramatic play; 2) in-classroom workshops that adapt the field trip program for the classroom; and 3) puppet-based teacher training opportunities for early childhood educators. The program targets under-resourced children in and near the city of Oakland, and will be provided free for groups in need. We anticipate serving roughly 1,400 under-resourced children, caretakers, and teachers over the course of the grant period. |
Children’s Fairyland provides a safe, screen-free space for all children to learn, grow, and play. The park boasts 40 whimsical fairytale-themed exhibits, the oldest continuously operating puppet theater in the United States, gentle animals, and eight acres of lush gardens. We offer family friendly performances and educational programs all year long that celebrate and enrich our Oakland community. Fairyland has seen significant shifts in focus and priorities in recent years. Guided by our strategic plan, we are integrating more diverse stories in our core programs. Daily original puppet shows are one of the most popular park experiences, and we are collaborating with cultural consultants and native voice actors to produce authentic cultural tales that make every child feel seen and represented. Our community programs include a year-round calendar of cultural heritage events featuring performers, crafts, and food; book celebrations highlighting local authors and a rich tapestry of stories; and a lighthearted cooking series that pairs Fairyland’s puppet mascot with guest chefs to take families on cultural culinary adventures. We strengthened what we offer field trip participants, with the launch of a curriculum-based preschool puppet workshop that will soon make its way to Oakland classrooms. The program complements our Fairyland Flora & Fauna program serving early elementary classes. We are telling stories that celebrate differences, and reaching more under-resourced youth through our Children’s Theatre program, Youth Writers Workshop, weekly Toddler Storytimes, and Summer Day Camps. We employ and train about 30 Park Ambassadors each year, mostly young Oaklanders of color, to develop professional skills that will help them on their life’s journey. Taken together, all the elements of Fairyland combine to serve as a vital resource for children and families to help them prepare for school, develop emotionally within a supportive community, and unleash their creativity. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $22,000.00 | Lieder Alive | 14 IMPERIAL AVE , SAN FRANCISCO, 94123-3604 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 561-0100 | 11th Congressional District of California | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Lieder Alive and the San Francisco VA Medical Center will launch Finding Voice and Vision: Empowering Veterans through Music, Writing, and Film. This bold, arts-driven initiative transforms the lives of veterans through the healing power of creative expression. Designed for those most often left behind—women, BIPOC, LGBTQ+ individuals, and those in rural or low-income communities—this free, 3-month online program helps participants process trauma, rediscover identity, and reconnect with others. Creative prompts focused on trauma and resilience are inspired by the poetry of veteran Brian Turner and music by Kurt Erickson. Veterans create, reflect, and share work in a culminating public event that engages communities, fostering awareness, connection, and recognition. More than a workshop, it’s a transformative lifeline—restoring dignity, supporting reintegration, and empowering veterans to reclaim stories through art. |
*The organization is preparing its14th season of presenting chamber music, including known and new vocal and instrumental artists. *At the core of our Lieder Alive Amici Educational Program is an immersive and intimate environment for professional and aspiring professional vocal artists, pianists, and other instrumental musicians to explore their craft. This includes intensive coaching sessions and performance opportunities with Lieder Alive. *The organization has evolved into an organization with a much broader and more extensive outreach serving new and historically under-served audiences. Multiple languages are being presented, and the authenticity of the artists is primary. Both elements have prompted a change to the mission statement embracing the global aspect of the organization. *A concerted effort is being made to engage historically marginalized groups. We seek to create engaging opportunities for under-served groups of community members who would benefit from the healing experience of poetry put to music – the essence of Lieder. *Lieder Alive has a collaboration with an online music distributor to commission new works from leading vocal composers from California. Each featured Guest Composer will contribute a 3–7-minute vocal/piano art song (Lied). The new works will constitute the Lieder Alive Neue Lieder Songbook and receive their World Premiere at Lieder Alive concerts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,800.00 | Table Mountain Rancheria | 23736 Sky Harbour Road , Friant, 93626 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 325-0351 | 20th District of California | CA 8th Assembly District | CA Senate District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, Table Mountain Rancheria will continue to develop its museum project, which is currently in the design stage. During the 2025-2026 fiscal year, key staff will revise its policies and procedures and draft the museum’s strategic plan, which will include increased accessibility to onsite exhibitions. The funds will be used for research visits to California collections where Native culture and history are presented to the public. Awarded funds will also support the reinstallation of exhibitions in the Rancheria’s Fort Miller buildings (1851-1865), where the history of the Alta California missions, early American military and settler occupation, and unratified treaties are presented from the Native perspective using photographs, artifacts, and didactic materials. These buildings, alongside its educational Native plant trail, form the first phase of the tribe’s museum complex. |
Table Mountain Rancheria offers a variety of public and community-based programs such as workshops and classes on California Central Valley Native art practices and languages, exhibitions on local history and California Native basket weaving at CSU Fresno and Fresno City College, and at the Tribes annual intertribal powwow. Table Mountain Rancheria also maintains a series of historical mid-19th century structures known as the Fort Miller buildings that were relocated, reconstructed, and restored on tribal land as the site of educational exhibitions and tours for local community members and school-aged children. Adjacent to this site is a Native plant trail and reconstructed structures modeled on those used by tribal ancestors that collectively serve as an educational resource and include a cedar bark house, a grass house, and the excavated site of a sweat lodge once used by local Native doctor William Taucha. Table Mountain Rancheria also maintains an archive of local historical documents, photographs, recordings, videos, and transcribed oral histories, which is open to tribal members and researchers by appointment. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | BAVC Media | 145 9th St Ste 101 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 861-3282 | CA 12th District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bay Area Video Coalition (BAVC Media) will continue to serve as a mulit-disciplinary media arts hub for youth and adult film and media makers – providing advanced training and workforce development programs, artist support services, preservation and digitization services, and access to facilities, equipment and broadcasting through our community media program. For 49 years, BAVC Media’s programs have evolved with emerging technologies and industry shifts in production, exhibition and distribution. CAC’s general operating support will help BAVC Media continue to serve diverse independent media makers, and to sustain our organization financially. |
BAVC is a community hub and resource for media makers in the Bay Area, California and across the country, serving over 7,500 freelancers, filmmakers, job-seekers, activists, and artists every year. BAVC provides access to media making technology and education, storytelling workshops, a diverse and engaged community of makers and producers, advisory and AV production services, media making grants and other resources. BAVC advocates for those whose stories aren’t being told, and provides the resources for anyone to create and share, and amplify their stories and those of their communities. BAVC’s diverse, inclusive, and innovative programs lead the field in media training for youth and educators, technology and multimedia focused workforce development, visually-driven new media storytelling and audio-visual preservation. BAVC has been a trusted community educator, collaborator, incubator, community builder and resource for the media arts world since 1976. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Everyday Arts | 12046 Peoria Street , Sun Valley, 91352 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 669-9049 | California's 34th congressional district | District 53 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Everyday Arts will implement “Everyday Arts in El Sereno,” a multi-disciplinary arts initiative aimed at giving students at Huntington Drive Elementary School (a free public school in LAUSD, 27.5% Healthy Places Index) the chance to develop their social-emotional competencies through inclusive arts integration. Our holistic, multi-tiered approach includes: Class Visits, where we facilitate weekly visual and performing arts integration activities with students; Professional Learning, where we train classroom teachers in our methodology, so they can continue incorporating arts integration after the residency; and Bilingual Family Events, where students and caregivers create art together to increase family resilience. We use the CASEL “core competencies” (self-awareness, self-management, social awareness, relationship skills, and responsible decision-making) as our framework, and utilize Universal Design for Learning to ensure accessibility for all students. |
Our core program offerings are: Everyday Arts prides itself on delivering fun, hands-on workshops that include collaborative art-making, group discussion, reflective practice, and lesson-planning. Participants learn inclusive teaching strategies, utilizing music, visual arts, drama, and movement activities aligned to the California Arts Standards. Our curriculum is adaptable for a wide range of populations, including students with autism spectrum disorder, intellectual disabilities, multiple disabilities, emotional disturbance, and learning disabilities, and has been shown to have a positive effect on reaching Individualized Educational Plan goals in self-contained classrooms as well as inclusion settings. We utilize the principles of Universal Design for Learning as well as the Collaborative for Academic, Social, and Emotional Learning “Core SEL Competencies” to help students with diverse learning needs reach their goals. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Vital Arts | 1831 SOLANO AVE UNIT 7612 , BERKELEY, 94707-5032 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (408) 933-8692 | 12 | 14 | 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Vital Arts will commission Dabke Drag Drums Against Displacement, an experiment in the synthesis of Dabke (dance tradition from Palestine, Lebanon, and Syria) drag, contemporary dance and advocacy. Created by choreographer Shams Amal, the project draws on ancestral strategies of their Bedouin ancestors for placemaking: rhythm, storytelling, migratory land tending, and textile. The work incorporates belly dance, folk dance, Sufi whirling, and the subculture of queer and Black diaspora and Latine dances including ballroom, vogueing, and Cumbia. The project develops through a year-long community-engaged process beginning in Fall 2025, culminating in August 2026 with a community processional event beginning at Oscar Grant Plaza in Oakland, traveling up and down Telegraph Avenue, and ending with a processional, full-length performance, and celebration at BAM House Cultural Center, Oakland. |
Performance Activations Artist Displacement Prevention Grants (ADPG) Bay Area Artist Census (BAAC) Artist Legal Cafe Advocacy |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Vital Arts | 1831 SOLANO AVE UNIT 7612 , BERKELEY, 94707-5032 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (408) 933-8692 | 12 | 14 | 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Vital Arts will fund full time salaries for our Executive Director, Program & Operations Coordinator, and Communication Manager to support our core programming including our ongoing Bay Area Artist Census, Artist Housing Advocacy support programs, development of our 10th anniversary Ghost Ship memorial event at Grace Cathedral and producing our Dabke Drag & Drums performance commission. |
Performance Activations Artist Displacement Prevention Grants (ADPG) Bay Area Artist Census (BAAC) Artist Legal Cafe Advocacy |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | THE HOUSE OF MAGIC FOUNDATION FOR THE ARTS INC | 15500 W TELEGRAPH RD STE B15 , SANTA PAULA, 93060-3050 | Ventura | Central Coast | (855) 300-4422 | 26TH DISTRICT | AD37 | DISTRICT 19 | The House of MAGIC Foundation for the Arts requests funding to expand Magic Mentor, a STEAM-focused initiative that teaches underserved and at-risk youth in Santa Paula and the Santa Clara River Valley through the art of magic. This innovative program uses age-appropriate magic tricks to engage students in science, technology, engineering, arts, and math concepts in a hands-on, memorable way. CAC grant funds will support the delivery of free and low-cost Magic Mentor workshops, including curriculum materials such as a teacher’s guide, student handouts, and instructional videos. Funds will also support educator stipends, specialized supplies, and facility costs essential to delivering consistent, high-quality instruction. This support will help The House of MAGIC Foundation provide an accessible, intellectually stimulating experience that fosters curiosity, critical thinking, and confidence in students often left behind in traditional settings. |
Educational classes and showcases in Performing Arts. We also develop programs to help educate kids about bullying, saying no to drugs, staying out of gangs, the dangers of social media, self-respect, and more. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | AXIS Dance Company | 1370 Tenth Street N/A, Berkeley, 94710-1510 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 625-0110 | 12th Congressional district of California | District 14 | District 7 | With support from CAC, AXIS Dance Company will expand its Youth Performance program to offer four 45-minute youth performances followed by interactive discussions for K–5 students at partnering venues in systemically under-resourced areas of Contra Costa, San Francisco, Alameda, and Santa Clara Counties. These engaging matinees feature performances by disabled, D/deaf, , non-disabled, and neurodivergent professional dancers who share personal stories and demonstrate integrated choreography that redefines traditional ideas of who can dance. Youth Performances offer educational insights on disability and accessibility, followed by dancers sharing their personal journeys. Introducing the K-5 audience to integrated dance, many youth’s first dance performance experience. Students will leave with an expanded understanding of dance and disability and the empowering message that if you have a body, you can dance. |
Our Artistic Advancement Program serves as a training ground for professional D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent artists and consists of our Summer Intensive, Company Appreniceship, Choreo-Lab, and Teacher Trainings. Our Summer Intensive, now entering its seventeenth year, provides professional development for dancers at all levels of their growth through a multi-day experience that connects participants. Our Choreo-Lab paves the way for D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent choreographers to elevate their artistry through mentoring, networking, and peer support while producing original work. We have built a robust professional development suite of services that deepens Choreo-Lab participants’ understanding of the craft, including grants & fellowships, budgeting, production, presenting, and disability justice workshops, an enhanced year-round mentorship component, and opportunities to connect with Choreo-Lab Alumni and meet with presenters to learn from them. Through our Choreo-Lab program, we have a unique capacity to increase the representation of D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent artists in the dance field. Many educators lack the tools or training to confidently create inclusive learning spaces for D/deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent students. AXIS bridges that gap. We pair 45-minute integrated dance performances with artist-led discussions, introducing young audiences to disability representation and the expressive power of movement. These experiences are joyful, interactive, and often a student’s first encounter with professional dance. In tandem, we equip educators with tools to create inclusive classrooms through movement-based exercises and dialogue about language, access, and belonging. Our focus on youth programming furthers our goal to introduce new populations to integrated dance. In 2024, AXIS reached 8,000 K-12 students in the Bay Area. 50% of participants were from low-income communities and 80-100% of participants were BIPOC. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Foglifter Press | 1200 CLAY ST APT 4 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94108-1428 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 710-6537 | California's 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Foglifter Press will produce the 2025-26 Start a Riot! Chapbook Prize for San Francisco Bay Area 2SLGBTQIA+ BIPOC (QTBIPOC) literary artists, including a $4,000 prize, publication, promotion, and a free, accessible public release event. Designed in response to the displacement and erasure of QTBIPOC+ writers in the Bay Area, this artist-led program uplifts historically excluded voices, supports community connection, and advances equity in the literary arts. CAC funds will support artist pay, ASL interpretation, venue and event production, and promotion. |
Foglifter operates four core programs: 1) Annually publishes two issues of our Foglifter literary journal featuring the original work of 60–80 2SLGBTQIA+ literary artists who receive honorariums for publication; 2) Annually publishes one Start a Riot! chapbook with prize winning authors receiving honorariums/royalties); 3) Annually produces at least four free literary events each featuring at last six 2SLGBTQIA+ writers who receive honorariums; 4) Invests in the professional development of 2SLGBTQIA+ literary artists through our programming, workshops, social media outreach and guest editorships featuring paid honorariums. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Chrysalis Studio/Queer Ancestors Project | 934 Brannan Street , San Francisco , 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 826-9697 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from CAC, Chrysalis/Queer Ancestors Project will offer four workshops for transitional age LGBTQ2S+ artists: our 18-week QAP PRINTS! program on visual storytelling and queer printmaking; 10-week Kaleidoscope literary workshop with Still Here San Francisco exploring identity and memory; 18-week QAP RESISTS! series focused on interdisciplinary art and activism; and 4-week Comix workshop in the spirit and tradition of resistance. |
Please use Version 3 from GENOP: |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Southland Sings | 1320 Calle Galante , San Dimas, 91773 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 235-2596 | California Assembly district 48 | District 48 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Southland Sings will present “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song” for children and youth with disabilities at three sites: Oak Grove Center in Murrieta, Dohallen Elementary School in Rialto, and to students in the Orange County Department of Education’s ACCESS program. |
Southland Sings offers two programs: “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song” and “From the Page to the Stage.” In both programs, children and youth write and perform an original musical or play in a series of 10-14 consecutive 60-minute weekly sessions. “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song” teaches children to become writers, composers, singers, and performers of their own original musicals. Working together, the students improvise and write melodies with original accompaniment, and then merge their musical creation with their own lyrics. The finished piece contains 5-8 original short songs and poems, dialogue, movement, and narration. There is also an optional component that allows students to create original animations of their work. “From the Page to the Stage” uses the same methodology as “My Story, My Voice: Poetry to Song,” but the students create a play instead of a work of musical theater. The primary purpose of these programs is to deeply involve students in the subject of their play or musical. For example, students learning about Harriet Tubman would have the chance to speak her words, walk in her shoes, and write and sing songs about what she felt and experienced. In both programs, students determine the theme and plot of their work, create characters, dialogue, and narration based on their life experiences or on a common classroom subject. Students work both individually and in small groups, and the project culminates with a student-performed show for a live audience. Both programs serve general education students, students with disabilities, and students in a variety of settings including incarcerated youth facilities, and both integrated and isolated special education sites. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Bloom Arts Foundation Inc | 2116 COLORADO BLVD , LOS ANGELES, 90041-1222 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 262-8838 | 34 | 52 | 26 | Bloom Arts Foundation will use CAC General Operating Support funds to deliver inclusive, culturally relevant music and dance education to PreK–6th grade students across Los Angeles County, with a focus on underserved Title I public schools. Funds will support weekly in-school classes, Interactive Assemblies, professional development for educators, and global exchange initiatives through our Futures in Tune program. Our sequential curriculum is grounded in the philosophy of Orff Schulwerk and inclusive of students with disabilities through adapted instruments and sensory support. CAC support enables us to expand access to communities historically excluded from arts learning, uplift cultural heritage through performances by culture-bearer Teaching Artists, and build long-term partnerships that center joy, creativity, and belonging. By embedding arts deeply into school culture, we foster student confidence, connection, and lifelong engagement in the arts. |
In-School Weekly Classes: Interactive Assemblies: Futures in Tune: Professional Development for Educators: Why This Matters: |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,853.00 | The Short Center | 5051 47th Avenue , Sacramento, 95824 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 456-5166 | District 7 | District 10 | District 8 | Developmental Disabilities Service Organization seeks CAC funding to help establish ALL IN: The Festival of Accessible Theater as an annual cultural event in the Sacramento region. DDSO launched the festival in 2024 as an outreach project funded by a Creative Corps grant. Given the community’s positive response, DDSO will present a second festival in late June of this year. CAC grant funding would support a third festival in June 2026. Grant funds would help compensate the festival’s artistic and administrative directors; audio describers for festival performances; speaker fees for the Forum on Accessible Theater during the festival; venue rental; photography, videography and graphic design services; and printing and advertising. Grant funding would also support training in technical and performance skills for actors from Short Center Repertory, InnerVision Theater and Theater V58. |
DDSO runs a multidisciplinary art center serving Sacramento County, and one life skills program for adults with severe and profound disabilities. Outreach programs include a touring theatre company (The Short Center Repertory) and an online archive of artists with developmental disabilities. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | SACRA/PROFANA | 4271 Clairemont Mesa Blvd , SAN DIEGO, 92117 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 432-2920 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, SACRA/PROFANA will produce its 17th artistic season. Since its inception, SACRA/PROFANA has worked to bring contemporary and innovative choral repertoire to the greater San Diego area through concerts and educational programs. We’re dedicated to providing experiences that create and celebrate the power of choral music and strive to ensure that these choral experiences are accessible to artists, patrons and students. Season 17 will feature five concerts and provide workshops and mentoring for hundreds of middle and high school students. One of the most impactful educational outreach programs is the Summer Choral Intensive week-long choral camp, in its 12th season. Funds would be used specifically for artistic and education staff, singers, accompanists, teaching artists and choral artistic leadership. Funds would also support important operational activities underlying those programs. |
Founded in 2009, SACRA/PROFANA is San Diego’s only year-round professional chorus and has been described as “one of San Diego’s prominent vocal groups. Under Artistic Director Juan Carlos Acosta, it has a gift for combining high-level technical singing with community consciousness.” As part of its focus on community service, SACRA/PROFANA provides dynamic Education Outreach Programs that support and enhance music education in the San Diego Unified School District. These include: • Seminars for high school music students coupled with concerts side-by-side with SACRA/PROFANA’s core professional choir; • Demonstrations led by SACRA/PROFANA personnel to middle and high school students that include musicianship and vocal technique, and • A summer program, The Summer Choral Intensive, one of San Diego’s most sought after vocal programs for high school and middle school singers. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | A PLACE OF HER OWN | 1890 Bryant St., 302 1890 Bryant St., 302, SF, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 722-4296 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | CAC funding will support PLACE alumni with new workshops and a culminating exhibition. “Travel Diaries”: Journeys from Chronic Heartache towards Resilience invites alumni to artistically reflect on their overarching healing journey inspired by their PLACE experience. Using mixed media, installation, and storytelling, participants will explore their growth, epiphanies, and challenges. The project will culminate in an exhibition and community events with virtual options. Guided workshops will help alumni create intuitively, while learning curatorial practices and public event production for leadership development. All programming is free, ensuring accessibility for under-resourced communities. PLACE nurtures multi-generational, culturally rooted artists, leaders, and healers. |
We offer both hybrid, online and in-person lectures, workshops, art exhibitions, lectures and artists’ talks sharing intuitive art making processes for self-reflection, and group discussions that help explore and release generational family trauma. Participants learn to recognize and release family patterns, including links to cultural and societal dysfunction. To claim aspirations, and grow self-agency, the art workshops, artists’ talks and exhibitions provide platforms to artistically answer the question: “If you had a place of your own, what would it be?” This is an artistic exercise in “self-agency”. Leadership Development: |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Dan Froot & Company | 11405 BIONA DR , LOS ANGELES, 90066-3307 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 766-4942 | “Essay Whaat?” is a series of free Saturday morning arts events designed to activate and connect under-resourced Los Angeles neighborhoods through theater, music, and dialogue. Led by Dan Froot & Company in partnership with local venues in Watts, Orange Heights, Sun Valley, Westlake, Inglewood, and West Adams, each event features professional actors performing original interpretations of community-curated texts, as well as live music by neighborhood-based artists, and locally prepared food and drink. CAC funds will support compensation for actors, musicians, community participants, project coordination, artistic direction, venues, and production costs. “Essay Whaat?” offers a replicable model for inclusive, community-driven arts programming that deepens local relationships and builds cultural networks across some of LA’s most vibrant neighborhoods. |
501 (see three) ARTS develops and tours original, ensemble-devised performance works that often address pressing social issues. These works are typically developed through community-based research and storytelling, culminating in performances that blend theater, movement, and music. Our performance events often double as community forums, fostering dialogue among audience members on topics ranging from food insecurity to gun violence to plastic pollution. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,800.00 | Dan Froot & Company | 11405 BIONA DR , LOS ANGELES, 90066-3307 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 766-4942 | With support from the California Arts Council, 501 (see three) ARTS will hire its first General Manager to implement strategic initiatives, manage budgets, and oversee fundraising efforts. This position will expand our capacity to develop socially engaged, artist-led dance, music, and theater projects that serve, among others, communities across California most impacted by environmental injustice. The GM will align financial strategies with our values of equity and inclusion, facilitate cross-sector collaborations, and help ensure low-barrier community access to arts participation. They will also lead inclusive strategic planning and support efforts to embed ensemble members in civic, institutional, and community settings as we expand and deepen our reciprocal partnerships. This position will help build the organizational backbone needed to sustain long-term relationships, center community relevance, and uphold equitable practices across all programming. |
501 (see three) ARTS develops and tours original, ensemble-devised performance works that often address pressing social issues. These works are typically developed through community-based research and storytelling, culminating in performances that blend theater, movement, and music. Our performance events often double as community forums, fostering dialogue among audience members on topics ranging from food insecurity to gun violence to plastic pollution. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Fern Street Circus | 4063 Polk Ave , San Diego, 92105-1436 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 320-2055 | 52nd congressional district of California | District 79 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Fern Street Community Arts (FSCA) will enhance its organizational infrastructure to meet community demand for its core programs. Grant funds will support salaries of key staff (Program Director, Operations Manager, and Social Work Educator) who ensure FSCA’s effectiveness, sustainability, and impact. These leaders are vital to program delivery as well as responsible financial stewards who uphold strong governance, operational accountability, and people-centered practices. Their work reflects FSCA’s core values: investing in human potential, nurturing a cooperative community culture, and maintaining responsible, mission-driven operations. FSCA’s initiative, Fern Street Circus (FSC)—offers free, year-round circus arts education and public performances, primarily in City Heights. This funding will support the essential infrastructure that enables artists to bring accessible, high-quality arts directly into the community, using circus for connection, learning, and joy. |
Founded in 1990, Fern Street Circus (FSC) has built a legacy of circus in San Diego through a series of annual shows in Balboa Park, Golden Hill, City Heights, and in neighborhoods across San Diego County. EDUCATION. FSC’s education programs focus on serving communities mostly through City recreation centers. At Mid-City Gym in City Heights, we teach low-income youth free-of-charge, emphasizing skill building, conditioning, team work and cultural understanding. PERFORMANCE. Known for creating performances with a playful sense of place, the Circus mixes adult professionals with after-school students. Anchor elements include live music; sets conceived and built by locally known visual artists; and a bi-lingual, non-linear narrative. FSC’s Neighborhood Tour takes place each spring, with free shows in Mid-City San Diego neighborhood parks. COMMUNITY. The Circus is resident in City Heights, interacting daily with and supporting activists and their constituents from around the world. In September 2023, FSCA moved into a recently vacated elementary school in City Heights, Central. At the former Central campus, FSCA has a 2,500 square foot gym with wood floors,, 20′ ceiling, natural light and a stage, as well as 4 classrooms for training, storage and an office. This is FSCA’s first-ever dedicated indoor space. Fern Street Community Arts was named Live Well San Diego’s Central Region “Public Health Champion” of 2025. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Fern Street Circus | 4063 Polk Ave , San Diego, 92105-1436 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 320-2055 | 52nd congressional district of California | District 79 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, FERN STREET COMMUNITY ARTS will provide free-of-charge opportunities for circus education and performance to historically underserved youth in City Heights, San Diego. Programming includes our year-round After-School Circus Program, Central Elementary Minimum Day Program, and Fern Street Family Services. Youth performance opportunities include the annual month-long Neighborhood Tour to parks in underserved neighborhoods and community-driven performances throughout the year. Through teaching and performing of circus arts, we seek to build vibrant, visible community, and enliven public spaces, with a primary focus on Creative Youth Development. |
Founded in 1990, Fern Street Circus (FSC) has built a legacy of circus in San Diego through a series of annual shows in Balboa Park, Golden Hill, City Heights, and in neighborhoods across San Diego County. EDUCATION. FSC’s education programs focus on serving communities mostly through City recreation centers. At Mid-City Gym in City Heights, we teach low-income youth free-of-charge, emphasizing skill building, conditioning, team work and cultural understanding. PERFORMANCE. Known for creating performances with a playful sense of place, the Circus mixes adult professionals with after-school students. Anchor elements include live music; sets conceived and built by locally known visual artists; and a bi-lingual, non-linear narrative. FSC’s Neighborhood Tour takes place each spring, with free shows in Mid-City San Diego neighborhood parks. COMMUNITY. The Circus is resident in City Heights, interacting daily with and supporting activists and their constituents from around the world. In September 2023, FSCA moved into a recently vacated elementary school in City Heights, Central. At the former Central campus, FSCA has a 2,500 square foot gym with wood floors,, 20′ ceiling, natural light and a stage, as well as 4 classrooms for training, storage and an office. This is FSCA’s first-ever dedicated indoor space. Fern Street Community Arts was named Live Well San Diego’s Central Region “Public Health Champion” of 2025. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,750.00 | Longshadr Productions | 1102 Warren Creek Road , Arcata, 95521 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 223-0265 | With support from the California Arts Council, Longshadr will engage members of the Blue Lake and Arcata communities in a collective creation process using the plays of John B. Keane as a vehicle for storytelling. Keane’s plays’ themes include capitalism’s effects on rural communities, emigration and nomadship, and addictions. Real stories from community members will be interwoven into a devised piece of theater and performed by both community members and professional actors, titled CAPITAL & KIN: STORIES FOR SALE. |
Longshadr’s programs and productions are all community-developed. Programs that have been successfully developed through this project include: |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | The High Steppers Drill Team, Inc. | 3919 TEAK ST , SAN DIEGO, 92113-2868 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 742-0369 | District 52 | District 79 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, The High Steppers Drill Team, Inc. will provide social-emotional creative experiences in safe and nurturing environments through our proposed project and core program, The High Steppers Drill Team. The High Steppers Drill Team empowers youth through the preservation, revitalization, and reclamation of the cultural practice of Step, a traditional artistic and cultural practice that dates to the aftermath of the slave rebellion of 1739 and is shaped out of the African American college movements at the turn of the 20th century. In addition, The High Steppers integrate Drill and Dance into their movement-based programs, with wraparound services such as mental health and wellness and academic support. |
Our organization supports 3 core programs with wraparound services including, but not limited to, academic awareness and mental health support. Six staff members and 4 teaching artist alumni — all members of the Black Indigenous People of Color (BIPOC) community — oversee and manage The High Steppers programs and day-to-day operations within the organization. In service of our mission, our organization directly serves approximately 75 young people per year. One of our core programs is our Drill Team, which utilizes the art of military drill technique, dance, and step routines as an access point for creative youth development. Our team of 10-30 participants per semester, ranging from 3 to 17 years old, engages in 2-hour practice sessions on Tuesdays and Thursdays each week during our 16 week-long spring semesters, 4 week summer boot camps, and 12 week fall semesters. Co-Founder and Executive/Artistic Director Charolette Patton-Logan leads the Drill Team program. Grounded and rooted within their community, The High Steppers have a long-standing tradition of cultivating relationships with community members and service providers working across sectors. Student alumni and graduates from the organization’s programs work alongside The High Steppers Co-Founder and Executive/Artistic Director, Charolette Patton-Logan, as Junior Step Instructors and Step Masters in training. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,000.00 | Manilatown Heritage Foundation | 868 Kearny Street , SAN FRANCISCO, 94108 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 312-7239 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Manilatown Heritage Foundation will continue sustaining the historic International Hotel Manilatown Center—a gallery, creative studio, and multidisciplinary community gathering space in San Francisco, California. Grant funds will support communication accessibility services for our collaborators and audience members, utility expenses for our Center, and salaries for our existing staff across gallery operations, administration, education, and arts programming. Manilatown Heritage Foundation’s core programs honor the legacies of San Francisco’s Historic Manilatown and the 1977 International Hotel Anti-Eviction Movement, preserving a critical chapter of Asian American civil rights history. In addition, our Center serves as a cultural incubator, uplifting the activist artistic visions of today’s Filipino and Asian American communities through live music, spoken word, visual arts, and pre-colonial Philippine cultural practices. |
The Manilatown Heritage Foundation’s core program is to maintain the legacies of San Francisco’s historic Manilatown neighborhood and the 1977 International Hotel Eviction by maintaining the International Hotel Manilatown Center as both a memorial to these legacies and as a multipurpose community gathering space for creative expressions relevant to today’s community. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | In The Band | 2118 WILSHIRE BLVD STE 1170 , SANTA MONICA, 90403-5704 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 320-8585 | California's 36th congressional district | District 51 | District 24 | With support from California Arts Council, In The Band (formerly Sound Art) will use general operating relief to sustain our infrastructure and overhead costs of supporting our music education and career readiness programs for vulnerable youth in underserved L.A. neighborhoods. With professional musicians as teaching artists, our mobile Music Education program uses contemporary music to teach the fundamentals of musicianship to K-12 students. Utilizing teaching teams of professional composers and audio engineers, our School to Career Readiness program provides music education and mentorship in songwriting, recording and production using the latest industry-standard Digital Audio Workstation technology, to at-promise youth, homeless young adults and foster youth in transitional housing, ages 17-24. |
Our core programming provides on-site mobile music education to underserved students from K through 12th grade and at-risk, homeless and foster youth, ages 17 – 24, using contemporary music to teach the fundamentals of musicianship. Through one-on-one interaction, demonstrations and instruction from professional musicians, composers and audio engineers, we offer age-appropriate instruction in alignment with VAPA standards for school aged students. In The Band also offers songwriting, recording and production for homeless and foster youth, ages 17-24. School aged students will learn to play a minimum of four quality pieces of music and will master an instrument within one year, while our older youth will write, produce and record music. In addition, students will have opportunities to release music on the internet and perform at events throughout the city. In The Band curriculum includes the following topics: Tempo; Dynamics; Techniques specific to each instrument; Techniques for audio production and recording; Rhythmic concepts; Understanding and Reading musical notation; Writing musical notation; Understanding ‘beat’ and measures in 4/4 and other time signatures; Introduction to the music of world cultures; Introduction to rhythmic concepts (reading and writing); and Introduction to ensemble playing; and Introduction to performance. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,750.00 | Drawing Together | 45 S. Arroyo Parkway , Pasadena, 91105 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 657-0065 | CA-28 | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Drawing Together will partner with a community-based organization in Pasadena to deliver a series of workshops focused on intuition and authenticity as a way to facilitate healing after the Eaton fires in January of 2025. The goal will be to create one authentic artwork that will then inspire a series of saleable items to address economic impact, which will be presented at one of the Pasadena ArtNights. |
Our organization serves early childhood ages, school age, teens, youth in group homes, and adults in two counties (Los Angeles and San Bernardino) through a variety of formats that includes culturally responsive, contemporary arts education; workshops through different curriculum such as our mindfulness and authenticity as a trauma-informed tools; community projects that address specific health indicators as determined by health organizations; workbook publication that is utilized in our workshops and help to contextualize our community projects; and outreach and advocacy services that connect art making to social outcomes. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $22,200.00 | Mariachi Women’s Foundation | 5280 E. Beverly Blvd. Unit C , LOS ANGELES, 90022 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (858) 847-5419 | 34th Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 52 | State Senate District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Mariachi Women’s Foundation (MWF) will strengthen its general operations, support a diverse and vibrant arts workforce, and sustain its infrastructure through grant funding for staffing. This support will allow the MWF to continue delivering culturally relevant arts programming to East Los Angeles—a historically and systemically underserved community ranked in the lowest quartile of the Healthy Places Index. The MWF remains committed to its mission by offering mariachi performances, youth mariachi instruction, and community engagement programs that highlight the vital and growing role of women in preserving and advancing the mariachi tradition. |
Core Programs and Services include: 1. MARIACHI MUSIC PERFORMANCE 2. MARIACHI MUSIC EDUCATION 3. COMMUNITY ENGAGEMENT |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Gamelan Sekar Jaya | 3023 Shattuck Ave , Berkeley, 94705 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 655-1227 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Gamelan Sekar Jaya (GSJ) will build our institutional capacity by expanding staffing, and strengthening our education and performance programs to sustain and improve the accessibility of our programs for historically under-resourced community members, including Indonesian Americans, economically disadvantaged communities, and disabled ensemble members and students. This support will allow GSJ to strengthen and expand the accessibility of our many programmatic activities, including regular open houses with free community workshops, sliding scale public classes for all ages, residencies, workshops, and assemblies at local public schools with artists-in-residence and local teaching artists, Balinese cultural events in collaboration with the Indonesian consulate in San Francisco, as well as our free and low-cost performances across the Bay Area and beyond that reach an audience of approximately 10,000 people annually. |
Direct artistic interaction is key to GSJ’s unique programming. Many of Bali’s most renowned performing artists have joined GSJ for extended residencies over the past 47 years. The artist-in-residence program is the only US program outside of a university or consulate to regularly host Balinese artists for extended residencies, making it an important resource for the public. Artists-in-residence share their artistic skills, experience, and creativity with these shared goals: direct artistic interaction with performers, students, and audiences; dissemination of major works from the living tradition of Balinese arts; enriching historical, cultural, |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | Gamelan Sekar Jaya | 3023 Shattuck Ave , Berkeley, 94705 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 655-1227 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Gamelan Sekar Jaya will conduct three residencies in Title 1 Oakland Unified School District (OUSD) schools, engaging Oakland students in collaborative musical and choreographic composition grounded in the Balinese performing arts tradition. These residencies will be a collaboration between Balinese culture bearers, local dancers and musicians, OUSD faculty, and OUSD students. |
Direct artistic interaction is key to GSJ’s unique programming. Many of Bali’s most renowned performing artists have joined GSJ for extended residencies over the past 47 years. The artist-in-residence program is the only US program outside of a university or consulate to regularly host Balinese artists for extended residencies, making it an important resource for the public. Artists-in-residence share their artistic skills, experience, and creativity with these shared goals: direct artistic interaction with performers, students, and audiences; dissemination of major works from the living tradition of Balinese arts; enriching historical, cultural, |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,000.00 | Media Arts Center San Diego | 1100 Market Street Suite 326, San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 230-1938 | California's 53rd congressional district | California's 80th District | 78th District | With support from the California Arts Council, Media Arts Center San Diego (MACSD) will continue to accomplish its mission of providing new media tools and channels to create equitable and engaged communities where underserved voices are heard. MACSD serves populations in the lower two quartiles of the Healthy Places Index in the San Diego region through our Education, Exhibitions, and Community Production programs. Funds from this grant will support our general operating costs (staff salaries, program costs, admin expenses, overhead fees, facility rentals), and support the professional development of media artists; thereby sustaining transformative community-oriented artistic programs and a creative workforce in San Diego and beyond. |
MACSD programs, events, and film festivals are inclusionary—designed with audiences, participants, and community collaboration in mind. A summary of core organizational programs and services can be broken down into three categories: WATCH— We produce the San Diego Latino Film Festival (SDLFF), including the iVIE Awards and Student Film Festival, as well as screen films at our independent cinema the Digital Gym CINEMA. We also exhibit the artworks produced through our educational programming during family screenings. LEARN—Media education programs for youth fall under the umbrella of Young Producers Project (YPP) and include Young Creators Media Camps, Teen Producers Project, and the Workforce Development Initiative. CREATE—Tools for community-based media production and collaboration include: production training courses for independent filmmakers in San Diego; and Video Production Services, helping community groups make digital media presence available and affordable. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | TuYo Theatre | 2971 Greyling Dr , San Diego, 92123 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 944-2719 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, TUYO THEATRE INC will produce Everything You Need to Know About Abortion in One Hour or Less and tour it in San Diego’r South Bay Communities. |
The core programming of TuYo Theatre is a community and professional theatre company. TuYo Theatre produces plays, staged-readings, theatrical developmental workshops, and educational theatre programs. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,000.00 | The Crow | 2525 MICHIGAN AVE UNIT F4 , SANTA MONICA, 90404-4014 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 322-8017 | 36 | 51 | 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Crow Comedy Inc. will produce a season of Storyectomy: American Heroes. This project is a six-week, in-person storytelling arts course dedicated to amplifying the lived experiences of military veterans, their families, and the medical personnel who serve this population. ‘American Heroes’ is an extension of Storyectomy—an umbrella of workshops that raise awareness for mental health equity in our communities. The interdisciplinary curriculum encompasses creative writing and storytelling arts, including concept design, plot, arc, punchlines, performance techniques, and the fundamentals of comedic arts, offering a transformative experience for both storytellers and audiences. Funding from the CAC will help offset production costs: sound, lighting, videography, photography, and stipends for arts instructors and guest performers. The final performance will be filmed and published online on our YouTube Channel and website. |
Storyectomy – Our flagship six‑week, tuition‑free storymaking mentorship. Cohorts of 8‑10 individuals gather around a shared lived experience (cancer, homelessness, military service, LGBTQ+ family life, maternal mental health, re‑entry, grief). Guided by professional comedians and a clinical psychologist, participants transform trauma into humorous narratives. Each cohort culminates in a filmed live showcase and docuseries. Youth Arts Education – Eight weeks of Kids Summer Comedy Camp (ages 7‑12), a Teen Saturday Night Live‑style intensive (13‑18), and year‑round after‑school classes (kids, tweens, teens). Programs teach joke structure, improv, sketch writing, and public speaking through play‑based, trauma‑informed instruction, celebrating neurodiverse learners. Professional Advancement – Door Girlz provides stage time and mentorship for female‑identifying and non‑binary comics. The Bergamot Comedy Festival showcases 50+ emerging comedians (90% BIPOC, LGBTQIA+, or disabled) with industry panels, headshots, and performance reels, leading to representation and Netflix bookings. All programs are tuition‑free with scholarships, ASL, and ADA accommodations. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | Golden Gate Men's Chorus | 116 Eureka Street , SAN FRANCISCO, 94114-2435 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 668-4462 | California Congressional District 12 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Golden Gate Men’s Chorus will produce a series of six choral performances in San Francisco during the grant period of October 1, 2025 to September 30, 2026, including promotion expenses (marketing, printing, postage, graphics) and production expenses (rehearsal and performance venue, music purchase, licensing, artists’ compensation, audio/visual recording engineer). |
The GGMC presents spring, summer, and winter programs of men’s choral music annually, in addition to guest and community benefit performances throughout the year. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | MUSYCA Children's Choir | 21019 Gresham St #18 , Canoga Park, 91304 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 554-9937 | California's 32nd congressional district | District 40 | District 27 | With support from the California Arts Council, MUSYCA will expand equitable access to high-quality choral music education and culturally responsive arts programming for youth ages 4–25 across Los Angeles County. Grant funds will support inclusive music instruction, performance opportunities, and creative workshops designed to empower youth from underserved communities. The program will engage participants in active music-making, foster cross-cultural understanding, and promote their personal and artistic growth. |
MUSYCA Children’s Choir is a multiracial, multicultural choral music education organization, shaping the future by making a difference in the lives of children and youth through musical excellence. MUSYCA rehearsals, music classes, and performances take place during after-school hours and on weekends in a community setting. The children study and perform a varied musical repertoire, consisting of high-quality, age-appropriate choral music for young people, varied in style, time period, and character. MUSYCA In-School program serves children in partnership with local schools, providing instruction in choral singing, musicianship, and recorders. The choir provides many performance and recording opportunities for the students throughout each year and participates in outreach and collaborations with community organizations, performing arts groups, composers, and artists. MUSYCA’s student-led outreach initiative, Nurturing Association of Young Artists (NAYA) provides senior citizens in nursing homes with intergenerational activities and performances. MUSYCA serves children and youth ages 3-21 in Los Angeles County and neighboring communities. Most of the students come from financially disadvantaged families and attend Title 1 public schools. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Encore Programs, Inc. | 15239 SPRINGDALE ST , HUNTINGTN BCH, 92649-1156 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 898-8184 | 47th Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 72 | State Senate District 36 | With support from the California Arts Council, ENCORE PROGRAMS INC A NONPROFIT PUBLIC BENEFIT CORPORATION will continue and expand our unique arts based therapeutic program in Orange County. This Arts Exposure Project, first funded by CAC in 2023-24, ressurected our long standing commitment to arts based DEI oriented services, after a long interruption due to state budget cuts and the Covid pandemic. The financial support has resulted in many first time ventures and further support will allow us to greatly expand our reach into new culturally based events, workshops, and exhibits. Our participants have greatly benefited from these excursion, but they have been confined to nearby events due to transportation costs. Further support will allow to travel further afield, and participate in additional events. |
Encore Programs offer two programs based on the creative arts: Encore as a vocational and occupational program and Creative and Vocational Arts (CAVA) as a therapeutic arts program for dual diagnosed adults who are developmentally disabled. Encore Programs uses an Arts based approach (Visual, Music, and Drama) to teach the skills necessary to integrate more closely with their surrounding communities. To that end , students are trained in the arts, given opportunities to enter and participate in exhibits and performances and learn about the Arts Industry should they ever apply for volunteer programs or jobs. They use the therapeutic components of our approach to manage their own behaviors and life stressors. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $13,200.00 | Children's Discovery Museum of the Desert | 71701 GERALD FORD DR , RANCHO MIRAGE, 92270-1934 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (760) 321-0602 | U.S. Representative | California State Representative | Senator | With support from the California Arts Council, the Children’s Discovery Museum of the Desert will expand its Museum on the Go initiative to underserved communities in the Eastern Coachella Valley (ECV)—a region facing systemic inequities, limited transportation access, and few arts education opportunities. This mobile program directly delivers hands-on, bilingual arts and STEAM (Science, Technology, Engineering, Arts, Math) experiences to children and families in schools, parks, and community spaces. With a strong emphasis on visual and performing arts, the program highlights cultural relevance and creative expression while building community connections. Grant funds will support local educator and artist salaries, supplies, and culturally responsive programming. By engaging families in joyful, creative learning and hiring local talent, Museum on the Go supports educational equity and contributes to the ECV’s cultural and economic vitality. |
Our Values Learning |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | Independent Arts & Media (fiscal sponsor) | 2830 20th Street, Ste 201 , San Francisco, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 269-0073 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, StageWrite will deepen our partnerships with two San Francisco public elementary schools, Glen Park Elementary and William Cobb Elementary, providing classroom drama residencies in General Education, Spanish Bi-Literacy and Special Education classrooms. StageWrite will also provide interactive, arts integration professional development workshops for partnering classroom teachers, enhancing the collaborative relationships between artists and teachers while building a body of shared knowledge in theatre-in-education pedagogy. StageWrite’s engagement with school partners will also extend to students’ families via facilitation of Community Drama Events, further strengthening our collaboration between teachers, teaching artists, students, and families. |
StageWrite serves approximately 1000 students annually in San Francisco public elementary schools. StageWrite’s Building Literacy through Theatre sequential drama program begins with kindergarten and 1st grade students participating in story dramas based on social issues; 2nd and 3rd graders explore narrative story elements creating performances that reimagine grade-level texts; and 4th and 5th grade students write original work, including monologues and one-act plays, which are performed by the students and by professional actors. Our ADAPTS (Autism & Drama with Artists, Parents, Teachers & Students) program serves students with autism in inclusive residencies to engage students in creative play, improve communication, and encourage personal growth. All StageWrite programs are designed and implemented using student-centered methodology. It is our belief that students learn the most from examining their own thoughts and feelings, and thinking critically about the world. We believe in theatre as a tool for social change, and a means of empowering students and communities. This principle of StageWrite’s work has been a guiding force for 20+ years and has been essential in informing our response to the challenges of today. As a response to the pandemic, StageWrite developed, piloted, and refined two new curricula: “Zoom-a-Rama: Community Through Drama,” designed for distance learning at the start of the pandemic, and “Room-a-Rama” which re-imagined our curriculum to use improvisational drama games and collaborative storytelling activities to build classroom communities and support social emotional learning as students returned in-person, serving 45 classrooms at 6 San Francisco public elementary schools. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $17,750.00 | Fresh Meat Productions | PO BOX 460670 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94146-0670 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (707) 563-1117 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Fresh Meat Productions (FMP) will organize and produce our 25th Anniversary FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL of transgender and queer performance June 18-20, 2026 (Z Space, SF). All performances will feature ASL interpretation. Our FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL is a beloved community gathering with artists creating and performing new work at the intersections of transgender, racial and disability justice. CAC funds will support Artist Fees of the festival’s 10 performing artists and ensembles, and will also support our festival’s annual commissioning program, FRESH WORKS! — FMP will award FRESH WORKS! commissions of $5,000 each to 4 BIPOC transgender, gender-nonconforming and queer artists, to support the creation of new work. FMP will present the world premiere of these 4 commissioned works at the 25th Anniversary FRESH MEAT FESTIVAL. |
Since 2002, Fresh Meat Productions (FMP) has presented over 750 Transgender, gender nonconforming (GNC) and queer artists, paying them more than $7.5 million. We are now celebrating our 25th Anniversary Season! FMP’s year-round programs are intentionally and authentically reflective of – and deeply relevant to – diverse transgender, GNC and queer communities, and are open to everyone: THE CREATION AND PERFORMANCE OF NEW WORK: PERFORMING ARTS PROGRAMS & EVENTS: ENGAGEMENT AND EDUCATION: ADVOCACY: Disability Justice and Access are the FIRST things we consider in all of our programming, communications and events. We consider front-of-house access for audiences AND backstage/onstage access for artists, staff and crew. Based on our commitment to trans/racial/disability justice, FMP’s year-round programs and events are all FREE or $0+ sliding-scale with no one turned away for lack of funds. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $14,800.00 | Tomato Sage Consortium | 1002 Marcheta St , Altadena, 91001 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 394-6001 | 27 | 41 | 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Tomato Sage Consortium, with Francis Wong as Project Director, William Roper as Lead Artist, Steven L. Isoardi, Ph.D. as advisor, will produce “Up from the Ashes”, an oral history and community engagement project exploring the experiences of multiple generations of musicians and composers in Altadena who lost everything in the Eaton Wildfire. Through video interviews of ten artists in Altadena, the project will document the contributions of these important culture bearers at this critical time, uncovering their reflections on the loss of home, their life’s work, and potentially generational wealth, as they fight to maintain the spirit, vision, and artistic legacy of jazz music and community in the aftermath of the fires. The project culminates with a film and public programming in Altadena, Pasadena and Los Angeles. |
Tomato Sage Consortium’s core program and services is to cause the creation, performance, documentation and distribution of new works of art particularly but not limited to the disciplines of composed and improvised music, performance art, dance, theatre and video works. Our primary service is to make available to the public documentations of live performances, studio recordings and video works through the media entity Tomato Sage Consortium Records. |
| Individual Artist Fellowships-AO | 2025-26 | $1,000,000.00 | Los Angeles Performance Practice | 110 Judge John Aiso St. #722 , LOS ANGELES, 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (401) 640-1651 | California Assembly district 34 | District 45 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Performance Practice (LAPP) will act as an Administering Organization in Region 6 (Los Angeles County) to administer funds for the Individual Artist Fellowships program, a program that is fully aligned with our core mission of supporting independent artists in the region. Los Angeles Performance Practice successfully served as the Administering Organization for the Individual Artist Fellowships program for Los Angeles County during the program’s most recent round in 2022-2024. |
I. Programs for Artists FREE ADVICE | Open consultations with staff and guest advisors from LA arts institutions to encourage a generous exchange of ideas, practices, knowledge, and resources. WORKSHOPS | Professional development sessions cover practical skill-sets such as grant writing and budgeting, as well as creative topics like devising performance and dance practices. RESEARCH + DEVELOPMENT (R+D) | Early project support gives time and space to multidisciplinary artists developing new projects. Includes childcare. ACCELERATOR | A cohort of independent artists meet monthly to deepen self-producing skills and resource new work. CASUAL | Artists show experimental work in early development to viewers for critical feedback. II. LIVE ARTS EXCHANGE [LAX] FESTIVAL III. CREATIVE PRODUCING IV. FIELD INITIATIVES INDIVIDUAL ARTIST FELLOWSHIPS | We administered unrestricted funds to a broad range of LA County artists as an Administering Organization for the California Arts Council in 2023. RESEARCH IN THE ARTS | A comparative study of contemporary performance-making examining geographic funding disparities, now expanded to include institutional networks for alternative governance in the arts. BRIDGE THE GAPS | An artist recovery initiative offering microgrants and residencies to wildfire-impacted artists in Los Angeles, in partnership with the City of Santa Monica Cultural Affairs. MENTORSHIP | Through the LA County Department of Arts and Culture, we offer paid internships focused on production and development in the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,600.00 | Los Angeles Performance Practice | 110 Judge John Aiso St. #722 , LOS ANGELES, 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (401) 640-1651 | California Assembly district 34 | District 45 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, LOS ANGELES PERFORMANCE PRACTICE (LAPP) will sustain and strengthen its artist-centered infrastructure that supports a network of independent artists working in contemporary, experimental, and multidisciplinary performance. CAC funds will directly support LAPP’s core programs and initiatives, including free artist consultations, professional development workshops, research and development support, creative producing partnerships, fiscal sponsorship, mentorship, wildfire relief, and a cohort program providing peer-to-peer artist support. General Operating Support will allow LAPP to maintain responsive, equity-driven services that build resilience, capacity, and creative agency for Los Angeles artists navigating ongoing precarity. |
I. Programs for Artists FREE ADVICE | Open consultations with staff and guest advisors from LA arts institutions to encourage a generous exchange of ideas, practices, knowledge, and resources. WORKSHOPS | Professional development sessions cover practical skill-sets such as grant writing and budgeting, as well as creative topics like devising performance and dance practices. RESEARCH + DEVELOPMENT (R+D) | Early project support gives time and space to multidisciplinary artists developing new projects. Includes childcare. ACCELERATOR | A cohort of independent artists meet monthly to deepen self-producing skills and resource new work. CASUAL | Artists show experimental work in early development to viewers for critical feedback. II. LIVE ARTS EXCHANGE [LAX] FESTIVAL III. CREATIVE PRODUCING IV. FIELD INITIATIVES INDIVIDUAL ARTIST FELLOWSHIPS | We administered unrestricted funds to a broad range of LA County artists as an Administering Organization for the California Arts Council in 2023. RESEARCH IN THE ARTS | A comparative study of contemporary performance-making examining geographic funding disparities, now expanded to include institutional networks for alternative governance in the arts. BRIDGE THE GAPS | An artist recovery initiative offering microgrants and residencies to wildfire-impacted artists in Los Angeles, in partnership with the City of Santa Monica Cultural Affairs. MENTORSHIP | Through the LA County Department of Arts and Culture, we offer paid internships focused on production and development in the arts. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Institute of Arts Music & Science | 16415 Clark Avenue , Bellflower, 90706 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 920-7119 | California's 38th congressional district | District 58 | District 32 | We propose a 6 month, tuition-subsidized music education program providing weekly private lessons to 15 youth from under-resourced families, including children with autism and other developmental differences. Students select one instrument—piano, violin, cello, guitar, drums, or voice—and receive individualized instruction from trained teaching artists. The program promotes creativity, confidence, and emotional well-being, and culminates in a student recital that showcases participants’ progress and celebrates their achievements with family and community. CAC grant funds will be used to compensate teaching artists, provide instruments and learning materials, support administrative costs, and ensure accessibility for students with disabilities. This project increases access to high-quality, inclusive arts education, supports youth development, and uplifts communities by centering the arts as a powerful tool for connection, healing, and personal growth. |
We have 14 highly qualified instructors and staff, many with advanced degrees from USC; 5 have earned their PhD. We have 2 buildings on site. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | The Unusual Suspects Theatre Company | 300 S. Raymond Ave., Suite 9 , Pasadena, 91105 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 739-0768 | California's 28th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, UNUSUAL SUSPECTS THEATRE CO (USTC) will deliver five total 12-week Youth Theatre Conservatory performance residencies at four arts-poor, Title 1 school sites and one community-based site. These 5 after-school residencies will provide 100+ LA County high-school students opportunities to create and perform original plays based on their personal experiences and shared culture. Each residency will provide an intensive, youth-driven creative process that combines a standards-based and culturally-responsive curriculum with deep mentorship to increase access to formative arts education in under-resourced LA County communities for youth (ages 14–19; 98% BIPOC). Each residency will culminate in 1-3 public youth performances—with an additional final “Best of Fest” event—attended by peers, families, neighbors, and site partners. Funds will support key USTC staff and Teaching Artists (TAs) who implement the Conservatory program. |
USTC believes that the future of theatre lives in Los Angeles, and has developed a 5-year plan (2024-2028) to increase the quality and reach of our programs. We are adding partners and updating curricula to better connect with and meet the needs of today’s young people and provide the best possible platform for learning and creating theatre-arts. Through cross-training services and deepening partnerships, USTC also strives to support equity in disenfranchised communities holistically, promoting systemic change beyond our own work. For example, USTC is a founding member of the Arts for Healing and Justice Network (AHJN), an interdisciplinary collaborative of 19 arts organizations working to build resiliency and wellness, eliminate recidivism, and transform the juvenile-justice system. Programs include: YOUTH THEATRE CONSERVATORY: Our flagship program offers experiential theatre-arts education and mentoring for high school students via two sequential after-school residencies (playwriting then performance) across 22 weeks wherein youth collaborate to create and perform original plays based on their lived experiences and shared culture. YOUTH THEATRE RESIDENCY: Standards-based workshops in-and-out of the classroom (K-8th) that help students build teamwork, communication, and socialization skills. VOICES FROM INSIDE PROGRAM (VIP): Provided in partnership with AHJN, our site-adaptive VIP offers healing-informed, standards-based theatre-arts education and mentoring for incarcerated, justice-involved, and other trauma-impacted minors. NEIGHBORHOOD VOICES: Engages intergenerational community residents (ages 11-65+) in creating and performing an original play in an intensive 12-week residency. Performances often feature lively post-show community discussions. THEATRE CAMP: Offered in partnership with LAUSD and PUSD, this program provides K-8 students with foundational theatre skills during school breaks. THEATRE & CULTURE ACCESS PROGRAM: Free field trips introduce students and families to professional theatre across Los Angeles County. YOUTH JOURNALISM FELLOWSHIP: Provides emerging writers (ages 15-25) with professional critical writing instruction/mentoring and opportunities to publish original pieces, in partnership with Stage Raw. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Meztli Projects | 6615 Easton Street , Los Angeles, 90022 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 637-4375 | California's 40th congressional district | District 52 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Meztli Projects will provide IndigenARTS & Wellness, a project blending art, Indigenous practices, with mental health and wellness support. Using a variety of contemporary and traditional art forms, we generate dialogue around intergenerational trauma & resiliency, sexual & gendered violence, systemic violence, and art as medicine and a tool for healing to process, reflect, and work towards individual & collective wellness. Guided by artists, culture bearers, and Elders, IndigenARTS & Wellness offers culturally relevant and competent free arts programming centering collaborative artmaking, connectivity, ……………… to increase wellness as-well-as employ arts practitioners rooted in Indigenous practices. (64 words) |
Meztli Projects provides culturally relevant and competent arts programming to Native/Indigenous populations as well as the general public. Workshops range from printmaking such as screen printing and lino block printing to beading, drum making, mural painting, and zine making. Youth Development: Meztli Projects’ (Ready 2 Rise Project) is a unique set of interlocking programs between youth, artists and cultural workers from East Los Angeles who have been impacted by street violence and incarceration, developed to specifically center impacted youth by building a framework for participation, decision-making, apprenticeship, and entrepreneurship. The suite of programs include a Cultural Worker Apprenticeship program, a Youth Arts & Action Workshop Series and a 10-month program focusing on Arts-Based Healing Practices. Each program folds into the next creating a pathway for employment and wellness through art making, opportunities to assist program facilitators, and mentorship. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Hanford Multicultural Theater Company | 119 1/2 North Douty Street , Hanford, 93230 | Kings | Central Valley | (559) 997-3838 | California Assembly district 33 | District 33 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Hanford Multicultural Theater Company will expose our diverse youth to spoken word, storytelling, poetry, playwriting, puppetry, and performance skills, empowering them to create their own original work to perform for the public. The engagement will be at two locations: the Lil’ Brick Theater and the Santa Rosa Rancheria Tachi-Yokut Tribe Educational Center. |
Our organization plays a vital role in our community by inspiring participants to take risks, have fun, and discover how the arts can be both freeing and essential to overall wellbeing. Recognizing that our area lacked accessible artistic opportunities, we founded the Hanford Multicultural Theater Company on February 1, 2017, with the guiding principle: “Theater for all people.” From the beginning, we offered free acting classes and staged performances in unconventional spaces such as parks, malls, parking lots, a museum, a historical church, and courtyards—bringing theater directly to the community. Three years ago, we established a permanent home in a repurposed building, now known as Lil’ Brick Theater. Designed to reflect the intimacy of small theaters in major arts cities, this space provides a unique and welcoming environment that feels both professional and accessible. We have since expanded our programming to include improv, puppetry, Shakespeare, playwriting, and community events like Monologue Slams, Story Slams, Jam Labs, and open-mic nights. Our community faces significant economic challenges, with many residents living below the federal poverty line. These barriers often limit access to the arts, making our free classes and pay-what-you-can events essential. By removing financial obstacles, we create an inclusive space that fosters creativity, connection, and personal growth. We are deeply committed to equity and representation. Our programs serve individuals of all ages, cultures, and abilities, reflecting our region’s rich diversity. We also extend our outreach by teaching theater to youth at the Santa Rosa Rancheria. With most participants new to the stage, our work builds confidence, skills, and opportunity. Through volunteer-driven efforts, we continue to ensure that the arts remain accessible, transformative, and a natural part of life in our community. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,500.00 | Dance Resource Center / DRC | 3773 Crenshaw Blvd , Los Angeles, 90016 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 425-3463 | 37 | 55 | 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Dance Resource Center of Greater Los Angeles (DRC) will continue to empower and bolster Greater LA and Southern California’s creative economy via DRC’s HomeGrown Community Space; Residency and Performance Opportunity. HomeGrown is a multi-site collaboration with local artists, dance studios, small businesses and community driven organizations across the County to provide free, accessible, sustainable, well-furnished studio space to multi-discipline, multicultural and all ability individual artists and dance companies from predominantly marginalized groups at varying stages of career. Through HomeGrown, with support from CAC, DRC will respond to direct and vital need via thoughtful strategic partnerships and shared resources, strengthening art programming and delivering on the organizations mission as an effective centralized service organization, resource hub, network and advocacy center for arts, culture, and the professional creative community. |
DRC serves a varied constituency consisting of small to mid-sized dance companies, choreographers, independent artists, presenting venues, educators, agents and administrators, and regularly engages with the substantial and diverse population of Los Angeles. DRC is the central source, voice, and advocate for dance in a variety of community spaces. DRC is the only discipline specific dance service organization in LA County that offers specialized and creative options to meet the significant and vast infrastructural needs of its constituents. DRC’s events and programs expand opportunities for growth that foster leadership within dance, performing and cultural arts. DRC’s resources provide infrastructure in communities to not only evolve dance, but allow dance to be self-sustaining within communities. DRC believes in providing a platform for dance throughout Los Angeles so that communities have the creative control to formulate relative programming and art making, in order to best serve and represent their respective communities. Via nuanced, reliable, high quality and trusted services and programs, DRC actively supports leaders and stakeholders in Los Angeles so that there may be a comprehensive representation in arts leadership. DRC has a considerable membership program that offers discounts on dance events, conferences, showcases, one-on-one meetings with mentors, the ability to reach dance audiences through marketing services, and priority access to resources and opportunities. DRC advocates for LA dance on local, regional, and national levels through research and advocacy addressing the unique aspects that effect the LA-area dance and movement sector. Importantly, DRC collaborates with organizations across various sectors. DRC’s current programming has three areas of focus: Community (online calendar; convenings; weekly LA Moves newsletter; Day of Dancer Health; comprehensive Dance Directory; Marketplace); Administrative Support (consultations; fiscal sponsorship; marketing services; staffing; technical assistance) and Artistic Development (supported performances, HomeGrown residencies, and showcases). Additionally and as needed, DRC offers Emergency Relief Microgrants. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | VOLTI | PO BOX 15576 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94115-0576 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 847-6010 | With support from the California Arts Council, Volti will continue its mission to champion living composers and push the boundaries of contemporary vocal music through bold, adventurous programming. CAC funds will support general operations and Season 47 activities, including three distinct concert programs and a landmark interdisciplinary collaboration with Del Sol Quartet and the Oakland Ballet. Exploring themes of memory, nature, play, and transformation, the season features recent works by Sarah Kirkland Snider, Marcos Balter, Žibuoklė Martinaitytė, and Chris Castro; composers whose music exemplifies Volti’s commitment to innovation and expressive depth. CAC funding will help ensure fair compensation for artists, sustain educational programs like the Volti Choral Institute, and strengthen community engagement efforts, ensuring Volti remains a vital incubator for groundbreaking vocal music in the Bay Area and beyond. |
Volti’s core program is presenting concerts and creating recordings of leading-edge unaccompanied music for vocal ensemble. In addition, Volti enjoys frequent collaborations and partnerships with groups including Kronos Quartet, Del Sol Quartet, ODC/Dance, Left Coast Chamber Ensemble, San Francisco Chamber Orchestra, San Francisco Contemporary Music Players, Festival Napa Valley, and Cal Performances. Another core service is educating young singers through the Choral Institute, centered on an annual retreat gathering several high school choirs for an intensive weekend of music-making. Volti singers serve as faculty and offer coaching and voice lessons to the student singers. The Choral Institute often includes working with a composer in residence on a piece commissioned for the occasion. We offer discounted participation in the Choral Institute to the Ruth Asawa San Francisco School of the Arts, serving students from low-income and marginalized communities. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,000.00 | Arms Wide Open | 237 East Main Street , El Cajon, 92020 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 579-6197 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 71 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arms Wide Open (AWO) will pay operating expenses that include studio rent, teaching artists, and production expenses, including those for productions by Rising Stars (exclusively for people with disabilities) and the Inspire program that offers individuals who are especially talented more challenging performance experiences. While the majority of AWO’s programs are designed solely for people with disabilities, INSPIRE is designed for people both with and without disabilities, giving each participant the chance to learn from others who share the same love of performance and who can offer valuable life lessons. Grant funding will also support AWO’s first satellite site in North San Diego County that expands its geographic reach by making it possible for people from other parts of the region to participate…a long-time vision realized! |
Arms Wide Open provides a wide range of classes (e.g. Hip-Hop; Jazz; Health & Fitness; Tap; Voice; Percussion) designed specifically for individuals with disabilities to provide them opportunities for engagement in activities that improve their health and can lead to a positive and busy social life. AWO serves 200+ individuals with autism, Down Syndrome, Cerebral Palsy, brittle bone disease, and other developmental delays and physical challenges. They are from many cultural/socio-economic backgrounds and live in a variety of settings (e.g. group/foster homes, with families). They come to East County from throughout San Diego, and now North County residents can take classes at AWO’s new site at the California Center for the Arts. A team of master teaching professional artist/choreographer, musician/vocal coach director/drama instructors teach classes six days a week at the main studio and one day a week at the new North County site.. For many years, a highlight of AWO’s programming was its annual theatrical productions at the Lyceum Theatre. Due to Covid-19, performances at a professional theatre could not take place, but AWO transformed a dance studio into a theatre seating 80 people. Over the past several years, AWO presented four musicals – most recently, Wizard of Oz (Fall 2023). AWO now offers two large scale production programs: Rising Stars serves people with special needs or disabilities by producing and creating annual musicals. Most productions feature a cast of 80+ actors. Because these productions are so popular there are several casts so that everyone who is interested can participate. Unlike Rising Stars, INSPIRE is designed for people with and without disabilities, giving each participant the chance to learn from others who share the same love of performance and who can offer valuable life lessons. In May 2024 AWO returned to a large stage with performances of Newsies: The Musical. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,600.00 | Alliance for California Traditional Arts | 985 N Van Ness Ave , Fresno, 93728 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 248-1563 | California, District 21 | Assembly District 31 | Senate District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, ACTA will continue to serve California’s diverse traditional arts ecosystem through statewide programs, services, and grantmaking that center historically underrepresented artists and cultural communities. As a hybrid arts service organization and direct program provider, ACTA invests in cultural transmission and community well-being through initiatives like the Apprenticeship Program, Living Cultures Grant Program, Traditional Arts Roundtable Series, Arts in Corrections, and Reentry Through the Arts. General operating support will sustain ACTA’s work in rural and urban regions, prioritizing communities in the lowest quartiles of the California Healthy Places Index. Funding will bolster ACTA’s ability to provide direct support to traditional artists, technical assistance, and field-building efforts statewide that affirm culture bearers as essential contributors to community health, racial equity, and collective resilience across California’s cultural landscape. |
ACTA is a unique hybrid organization, serving as both a trusted statewide intermediary and a producer of programs, allowing us to distribute resources across the field while developing and implementing initiatives shaped by deep community relationships and cultural knowledge. As an intermediary, our work is grounded in long-standing relationships, cultural knowledge, and a commitment to reaching artists who have historically been excluded from funding systems. Our Apprenticeship Program offers $5,000 contracts to mentor artists for one-on-one training with apprentices, and Living Cultures Grants Program distributes $7,500 to individual artists and $10,000 to nonprofits, fiscal sponsors, and Tribal Nations. Since our inception, ACTA has partnered with the CAC to support California’s folk & traditional artists, first as the CAC’s designated partner to receive the NEA Folk & Traditional Arts State Partnership grants through 2020, and since 2022 as the CAC’s Administering Organization for Folk & Traditional Arts. Through the Taproot Artists & Community Trust, ACTA has expanded its reach nationally, supporting accomplished traditional artists and culture bearers across the United States and Territories. Public program engagement is central to our work. ACTA’s Traditional Arts Roundtable Series convenes artists for peer learning and exchange, while Sounds of California brings communities together through field research, storytelling, live performances, and media production. In Fall 2026, ACTA will launch its first annual festival in Fresno, “The Great Valley Gathering: Celebrating our Living Traditions,” a large-scale, place-based celebration of the region’s cultural life. Our work also extends into spaces shaped by structural inequities. Through Building Healthy Communities and La Cultura Cura, traditional arts are integrated into community health and well-being efforts. Through Art Breaks In, we bring traditional arts to incarcerated individuals in 17 state prisons and to recently incarcerated participants in Los Angeles and the Antelope Valley—supporting cultural restoration in some of California’s most vulnerable communities. |
| Folk and Traditional Arts | 2025-26 | $828,415.00 | Alliance for California Traditional Arts | 985 N Van Ness Ave , Fresno, 93728 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 248-1563 | California, District 21 | Assembly District 31 | Senate District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Alliance for California Traditional Arts (ACTA) will strengthen and uplift traditional artists, culture bearers and cultural communities throughout California by providing responsive grant support, informed care-centered assistance, peer convenings and professional development opportunities in its Living Cultures Grant Program (LCGP). The Living Cultures Grant Program (LCGP) supports pathways that nurture, sustain, and engage participants in traditional arts, with grants of $7,500 to individuals and $10,000 to California-based nonprofits, fiscal sponsors, and Tribal Nations. Through this program, we honor the breadth and vitality of cultural practice and artistic expression in California’s cultural communities as foundational sources of social belonging, power and justice for all Californians. |
ACTA is a unique hybrid organization, serving as both a trusted statewide intermediary and a producer of programs, allowing us to distribute resources across the field while developing and implementing initiatives shaped by deep community relationships and cultural knowledge. As an intermediary, our work is grounded in long-standing relationships, cultural knowledge, and a commitment to reaching artists who have historically been excluded from funding systems. Our Apprenticeship Program offers $5,000 contracts to mentor artists for one-on-one training with apprentices, and Living Cultures Grants Program distributes $7,500 to individual artists and $10,000 to nonprofits, fiscal sponsors, and Tribal Nations. Since our inception, ACTA has partnered with the CAC to support California’s folk & traditional artists, first as the CAC’s designated partner to receive the NEA Folk & Traditional Arts State Partnership grants through 2020, and since 2022 as the CAC’s Administering Organization for Folk & Traditional Arts. Through the Taproot Artists & Community Trust, ACTA has expanded its reach nationally, supporting accomplished traditional artists and culture bearers across the United States and Territories. Public program engagement is central to our work. ACTA’s Traditional Arts Roundtable Series convenes artists for peer learning and exchange, while Sounds of California brings communities together through field research, storytelling, live performances, and media production. In Fall 2026, ACTA will launch its first annual festival in Fresno, “The Great Valley Gathering: Celebrating our Living Traditions,” a large-scale, place-based celebration of the region’s cultural life. Our work also extends into spaces shaped by structural inequities. Through Building Healthy Communities and La Cultura Cura, traditional arts are integrated into community health and well-being efforts. Through Art Breaks In, we bring traditional arts to incarcerated individuals in 17 state prisons and to recently incarcerated participants in Los Angeles and the Antelope Valley—supporting cultural restoration in some of California’s most vulnerable communities. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Playhouse Merced | 452 W. Main Street , Merced, 95340 | Merced | Central Valley | (209) 725-8587 | California's 16th congressional district | District 21 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, Playhouse Merced will sustain its year-round community theater productions, youth conservatory training, and outreach programs in Merced County—a culturally diverse, historically underserved region of California’s Central Valley. Grant funds will support core operational costs, including staff salaries, utilities, and production expenses, allowing the organization to offer affordable performances, need-based scholarships, and inclusive programming that reflects the community it serves. This funding will help Playhouse Merced strengthen organizational capacity, maintain accessibility for Title I school partners and older adult performers, and provide a welcoming space for creative expression and mental well-being. As one of the only producing theaters in the region, Playhouse Merced plays a vital role in ensuring local access to the arts and inspiring the next generation of performers, technicians, and creative leaders. |
Playhouse Merced provides on-site educational services through classes and workshops in acting, dance, voice, playwriting and instrumental music as well as off-site programming by providing trained teaching artists to schools. In addition, Playhouse Merced presents a 10-show season on-site and off-site performances and episodic programming. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2025-26 | $63,100.00 | ARTS AND CULTURE ALPINE COUNTY | 760 Hot Springs Rd #31, Markleeville, 96120 | Alpine | Central Valley | (619) 993-2606 | District 5 | District 1 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts and Culture Alpine County (ACAC) will offer arts and culture opportunities to the residents and visitors of Alpine County. Library Arts Shows featuring local area artists, workshops and classes taught by local area artists, Alpine County schools’ student events, an arts and culture walk at Grover Hot Springs State Park, and Washoe storytelling performances are some of the program offerings. All of Alpine County is in the lowest quartile of the California Healthy Place Index (HPI). |
Arts and Culture Alpine County (ACAC) offers art shows, crafts fairs, workshops and classes in music, painting, sketching, and other arts media for the citizens and visitors of Alpine County. ACAC also cooperates with Diamond Valley School to offer special arts programs to its students and with the Alpine County Historical Museum to present an art show focusing on artists of Alpine County’s past decades. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,900.00 | SACRAMENTO FINE ARTS CENTER | 5330 GIBBONS DR, STE B , CARMICHAEL, 95608-1671 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 971-3713 | California's 7th congressional district | District 6 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sacramento Fine Arts Center will be able to fully sustain its operations in 2025/ 2026 with enough personnel to continue meeting its community goals and expand programs in an effective and efficient manner. |
The Sacramento Fine Art Center (Sac Arts), established in 1986, is a nonprofit organization located in Carmichael and is one of the largest community art centers in the unincorporated area of Sacramento County. With a membership of over nearly 400 artists, 50% percent in the over 60 age group, Sac Arts provides over 7000 square feet of exhibit, classroom, and studio space. Sac Arts provides exhibits, classes, workshops, art opportunities, and events as a major art facility serving Sacramento and surrounding counties. Sac Arts is home to a collaboration of art groups, including Northern California Arts (NCA), representing artists of all media and styles, and Watercolor Artists of Sacramento Horizons (WASH), supporting water media artists. Our members come from nearly every Sacramento county zip code as well as thirteen other California counties. The Galleries are open 32 hours per week, at no cost to visitors. Sac Arts is run by volunteers, with a very small staff, and is self-supporting through show and class revenue as well as several annual fundraising activities. Our programs include juried exhibitions, group exhibitions, and solo shows. The organization also offers a variety of classes and demonstrations. Sac Arts hosts 36 juried exhibits were held in the larger galleries with 26 separate artist-led courses and workshops presented for 215 sessions in the studio. Artist receptions are held on the second Saturday of every month with live music and food provided. Approximately 10,000 people visit Sac Arts annually. Monthly club meetings for (WASH) and (NCA) provide free art demonstrations by noted artists. Members are apprised of activities through a bimonthly newsletter and social media announcing shows, classes, and special projects. Sac Arts offers free quarterly lectures on business development for artists and low-cost bimonthly tech assistance for artists. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,750.00 | The Regents of the University of California, Santa Cruz | 1156 HIGH ST , SANTA CRUZ, 95064-1077 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 419-1123 | California's 19th congressional district | District 28 | District 17 | With support from the CAC, the Mary Porter Sesnon Art Gallery at UC Santa Cruz will launch Art Hustle To Go (AHTG), a program for undergraduate and high school students, to attend high-quality exhibitions in local and regional arts venues, learn to mentor others, and expand their museum and gallery experiences. AHTG’s goal is to serve students who may not have had access to such experiences due to socio-economic status, geographic region, or other aspects of students’ life experiences that elevate the impact of having opportunities to engage with these cultural assets. AHTG experiences will also include campus events and workshops led by arts and culture practitioners. ATHG is part of Art Hustle, the Sesnon career development initiative that focuses on giving students direct experiences in the art industry that complement their academic experience. |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | The Francisco Homes | 1224 W 40th Place , Los Angeles, 90037 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 293-1111 | 37th Congressional District | 59th District | 28th District | With support from the California Arts Council, Starfish Stories Inc DBA The Francisco Homes (TFH), will continue to engage TheatreWorkers Project (TWP) to implement LIFER: Stories from the Inside/Out enabling men on parole from serving life sentences to express themselves through a two-part incentivized, rehabilitative theatre process that will begin with a writing component to be used as the basis for a script. The second phase will include acting coaching, rehearsals and 2 performances, each followed by “Second Act” participant-audience dialogues. The performances will be documented and streamed to multiple audiences. The participants may choose to join both the writing and performance components of the program or conclude their creative journey with the writing portion. Stipends will be paid for each workshop, rehearsal and performance they participate in. |
The Francisco Homes provides housing and an environment where our residents have a full range of daily choices and an individualized service plan which is their road map to a successful transition from prison to freedom. We provide case management, counseling, groups, workshops and life skills classes along with opportunities for community service. We greet them with a hug and the simple statement, “Welcome Home.” |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $22,200.00 | RuckusRoots | 2630 Crestmoore Place , Los Angeles, 90065 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 967-2766 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, RuckusRoots Inc will strengthen our capacity to deliver inclusive, community-centered, and environmentally-focused arts programming across Los Angeles. Funds will be used to support our core operations, including staff salaries, teaching artist fees, and administrative infrastructure such as our studio rental space, insurance and essential supplies. We plan to invest further in strategic planning efforts, program evaluation procedures, and professional development to ensure our programs remain equitable, impactful, and accessible. With this crucial funding, RuckusRoots can build long-term sustainability, better supporting both our team of teaching artists and small core staff, and amplify the voices of youth and community members through our intersectional approach to climate resilience through art-making. |
RuckusRoots’ programs fall into three categories: In-School, Apprenticeship and Public, all working to achieve the following goals: 1. Co-create arts programming in communities where it is needed and wanted. Main programs: -In-School: Wild Art, TRASHformation and A.L.I.V.E.: Art Living in Vibrant Environments are offered as enrichment or expanded learning opportunities to elementary and middle school-students. Our multi-week programs last 1-6 months, with students aged 5-13 led by professional local artists. Programs aim to build age-appropriate visual arts skills in the areas of painting, drawing, sculpture, design and/or creative reuse, and social-emotional skills of collaboration, creative confidence and change-making. Each program results in a collaboratively-built, large-scale final artwork, ie: a mural, creative-reuse collage, or sculpture, and culminates with a public showcase i.e.: open house, community event or art walk. Teen / Young Adult: For high-school and transition-aged youth, these programs (The Rebel Garden Project and Public ARTivism Apprenticeship) offer smaller groups of students (10-40) deeper learning and mentoring experiences with practicing artists. Themes of art as activism and as a profession are explored; students gain experience creating artworks as well as in professional development and entrepreneurship (artist statements, documentation, branding, design and project management). Public Workshops: We offer free, youth or multigenerational, multi-series or one-time workshops (Garden Magic, From Earth to Art) in which the public is invited to learn techniques and sustainability-uses of specific mediums (fabric, ceramics, non-toxic paint, biodegradable and natural materials) from local artists and experts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $6,450.00 | International Orange Chorale of San Francisco | 77 VAN NESS AVE STE 101 PMB 2222 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94102-6042 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 378-9365 | With support from the California Arts Council, INTERNATIONAL ORANGE CHORALE OF SAN FRANCISCO will sustain and expand its commitment to performing and commissioning new choral music by living composers. Funding will support general operations, including the production of our 2025 world premiere of A Dominion of Light: Requiem for the Estranged by Tarik O’Regan and our signature Freshly Squeezed program, which exclusively features new works by underrepresented composers. Our performances are free to the public and presented in accessible venues, removing financial barriers to attendance. CAC support will help us reach broader Bay Area audiences by adding concerts in the SF South Bay, expanding beyond our current footprint in San Francisco and the East Bay. This support will help ensure that cutting-edge choral music continues to flourish and resonate with California communities. |
The International Orange Chorale of San Francisco has performed world premieres of dozens of choral works and has also presented regional premieres of multiple works, including Milton Babbitt’s Music for the Mass, Jake Heggie’s Faith Disquiet, Fredrik Sixten’s Missa Brevis, Sarah Kirkland Snider’s Unremembered, Nico Muhly’s Lorde Heare My Prayer Instantly, and Pulitzer Prize-winner Caroline Shaw’s Fly Away I. To date, IOCSF has: |
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| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $22,000.00 | School of The Getdown | 1804 Russell St , Berkeley, 94703 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 658-2016 | 13th Congressional District of California | District 15 | District 9 | With support from California Arts Council, School of The Getdown, a small arts organization, will celebrate Black Music Month in June 2026 by presenting the fifth annual Black Music Month Festival: A Cultural Mosaic. Presented free for the community, the program be collaboratively developed with community members, featuring a multigenerational, cross-genre array of Black Oakland-based musical acts. The program is collaboratively developed with community members and addresses a community defined need to uplift under recognized Black artists and cultural traditions and foster an environment for intergenerational collaboration in the arts, centering Black Bay Area communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification. |
School of The Getdown offers a weekly vocal workshop series; private lessons in singing, instrumental music, performance, and music history; an annual multidisciplinary youth arts summer camp; vocal and instrumental masterclasses with resident and visiting artists; and masterclasses and lecture performances in schools, prisons, and educational programs worldwide. We produce multicultural and intergenerational concert series, free community programming, commissioned artistic works, festivals, and lecture performances, and thematic programming celebrating Black history and Black culture, primarily in the San Francisco Bay Area. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | EOYDC | 8200 INTERNATIONAL BLVD , OAKLAND, 94621-2234 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 569-8088 | District 12 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, East Oakland Youth Development Center (EOYDC) will invite East Oakland youth, ages 12 to 18, to engage in positive, culturally resonant, and artistic expression with Onyx AfroDance Ensemble. By creating and performing original choreography rooted in West African tradition, Black and Brown youth dance their stories; through community arts presentations, they share their hopes and aspirations. In doing so, they cultivate a better Oakland – and a better California – for all. |
In 1978, East Oakland community leaders collaborated with former Clorox CEO Robert Shetterly to found EOYDC. In partnership, they defined the mission and vision of EOYDC which, for nearly five decades, has served as an anchor educational and community East Oakland institution, advancing opportunities for East Oakland youth to develop as responsible citizens and dynamic leaders in this community. EOYDC remains a stabilizing force that offers direct educational support, leadership development, arts, and wellness services to local children and youth. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Immersive Arts Center | 1039 S OLIVE ST , LOS ANGELES, 90015-1601 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 669-5767 | With support from the California Arts Council, IMMERSIVE ART COLLECTIVE will present the third annual Creative Bend Summer Camp—a FREE, two-week multidisciplinary arts program for youth ages 6–12 from low-income communities in Downtown Los Angeles. Led by professional teaching artists and volunteers, the camp offers immersive instruction in world-building, set design, movement, drumming, and storytelling. Participants collaborate to create and perform an original piece for family and community, celebrating their growth and creativity. CAC grant funds will support artist stipends, program supplies, meals, and administrative costs, ensuring equitable access to high-quality arts education and empowering young people through creative expression. |
Immersive Art Collective empowers creatives from disadvantaged backgrounds through collaborative arts workshops and theatrical productions intended to introduce participants to a variety of art forms, provide a safe space for expression and exploration, encourage healing, and supply education and skills training. In addition to these services, we have a collective of artists in a Discord forum where they can facilitate networking and social events. Moreover, in the past year, Immersive Art Collective has been able to produce over 12 unique theatrical events which have funded therapeutic art workshops and art-form instruction for group homes, trauma centers, and recovery houses. |
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| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Youth Speaks | 265 Shotwell St , San Francisco, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 255-9035 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Youth Speaks will sustain and expand its year-round arts education, public performance, youth-led narrative strategy, and artist development initiatives. As a multidisciplinary arts service organization, Youth Speaks not only supports young artists through spoken word and performance-based programming, but also strengthens the field by supporting uplifting BIPOC artists. CAC funds will support program delivery, curriculum development, artist pay, and infrastructure that enables culturally responsive, artist-led engagement. Youth Speaks trains and mentors emerging artists, offers professional development, and builds capacity through fellowships, narrative change campaigns, and community partnerships. Through our youth-centered, equity-driven approach, Youth Speaks cultivates a vibrant arts ecosystem that amplifies emerging voices and advances creative leadership across generations. |
For 30 years, Youth Speaks has nurtured platforms – from classrooms to national stages – where youth boldly “take up space” through writing workshops, open mics, school residencies, and narrative change campaigns. Our programs promote joy, healing, and belonging by uplifting stories that confront exclusion and celebrate cultural identity and expression. Each year, we support up to 10,000 youth in building narrative power, civic courage, and creative agency. Youth Speaks does more than “turn up the volume” on youth voices; we prepare and reposition the importance of those voices in public platforms, policy conversations, and community-based movement work. Founded in 1996, Youth Speaks is a national leader in spoken word performance, arts education, and Creative Youth Development. Trailblazers of local and national youth poetry slams and festivals, Youth Speaks offers a comprehensive slate of arts education, public presentation, and youth-led cultural organizing programs that provide young people with meaningful opportunities to be heard—not only by peers, but within public discourse, civic spaces, and movement work. Youth Speaks programs are designed as an interconnected pathway that supports young people from first expression to public leadership. Through arts education, youth-led performance spaces, and narrative change initiatives, participants build artistic skill, confidence, and the capacity to influence culture and systems. Programs span in-school and out-of-school settings and include writing workshops, open mics, residencies, festivals, and youth-led campaigns. Together, these offerings meet young people where they are while providing a clear runway toward cultural organizing, workforce development, and civic engagement. Youth Speaks delivers programming through two core pathways: (1) Creative Youth Development and Arts Education (CYDAIE) and (2) Narrative Change and Field Building. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Fostering Dreams Project | 5440 TUJUNGA AVE APT 1109 , N HOLLYWOOD, 91601-4978 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (818) 284-3506 | California Assembly district 39 | District 39 | District 18 | With the support from the California Arts Countil, Fostering Dreams Project will provide a 12-week culturally responsive dance and music program at the Children’s Center of Antelope Valley serving up to 25 foster, unhoused, and system-impacted youth ages 8–18. This program will use healing-centered arts education to foster self-expression, cultural identity, and social-emotional growth. Youth will engage in diverse dance styles, storytelling, and music therapy while building confidence, leadership, and connection to community. |
At Fostering Dreams Project our mission is to transform the lives of youth in foster care through the healing art of dance and performing arts. By providing a structured curriculum aligned with the California VAPA Standards that produces positive outcomes for youth, our purpose is to ensure foster and at-risk youth make measurable progress in the areas of: Through the combination of dance instruction, history, and meditative and self-reflective practices, “soft skills,” such as leadership, teamwork, motivation, self- expression, emotional wellbeing, and self-discipline are developed throughout the program. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | NAKA Dance Theater | 44 Gough St. Suite 201 , San Francisco, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (650) 759-8770 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, NAKA will create and present performances of Ja weya ob’aj wij, ex weya nchemaj/Mi Historia, Mi Telar/My Story, My Weaving. Our work is a new narrative-based dance-theater performance project, created in collaboration with women from the Indigenous Maya Mam immigrant community of East Oakland, CA. Our project integrates personal and collective narratives, movement, textile art, and poetry into a full-length touring dance-theater performance project featuring the voices and visions of the Mam community in Oakland. |
-Producing LIVE ARTS IN RESISTANCE, a series of performance showcases, artist residencies and community town halls that address racial inequity & white supremacy in popular culture. -Creating and touring experimental performance works; including Y Basta Ya!, a dance-theater performance and community workshop series and shines a light on the stories of Latina and Indigenous Maya Mam women and their experiences with invisibility, labor rights, domestic violence, and sexual abuse. -Research residencies in Japan and Mexico as part of NAKA’s work in community-based ritual practices. -Producing Dismantling Tactic X artist residency and multidisciplinary performance project convening a cohort of radical, social-practice artists who center their work on the topic of race and white supremacy. -Co-Facilitating ongoing Circulos de Aprendizaje (Collaborative Learning Circles) with Oakland Latina and Indigenous Maya Mam (Guatemala) immigrant women, using art for healing and addressing issues such as racism and colorism in the Latine community. We have co-presented two Mam cultural festivals in Oakland. -Ja weya ob’aj wij, ex weya nchemaj/Mi Historia, Mi Telar/My Story, My Weaving narrative-based dance-theater performance project integrating personal and collective narratives, movement, textile art, and poetry into a full-length touring dance theater performance project featuring the voices and visions of the Mam community here in Oakland. -Pro-Bono Language Justice Access Consulting, to arts and social justice organizations who want to hire in-person or online sign language interpreters. This includes: referrals for culturally appropriate interpreters who would be a good match for the situation (including trilingual Spanish-English-ASL / Chinese-English-ASL interpreters); sharing best practices about publicity and outreach (best done by Deaf-led organizations); sharing best practices about budgeting for interpreters, necessary prep information that interpreters will need prior to an assignment, interpreter placement, lighting; advocacy for the hiring of Deaf Interpreters. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $21,300.00 | Urban Jazz Dance Company | 1446 Market Street , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 575-9711 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Urban Jazz Dance Company will sustain and expand our Deaf-led, intersectional programming from October 2025 through September 2026. We will produce our 18th annual Home Season, present the 12th Bay Area International Deaf Dance Festival, deliver performances and workshops at schools across California, and continue our virtual #DeafWoke series, elevating BIPOC Deaf and Disabled stories. CAC funds will support essential staff, artist fees, and production costs, enabling us to meet increased demands for accessible programming that centers Deaf leadership, racial justice, and disability justice. Our work amplifies the voices of those most impacted by systemic oppression, bridges Deaf, hearing, and Disabled communities, and deepens cultural equity in the performing arts. We will ensure our programs remain accessible, inclusive, and rooted in community leadership. |
UJDC educates audiences about current events, empowering minorities, lack of early access to language for Deaf children and social justice. We provide educational workshops/performances at Deaf schools, mainstream programs, Universities, state colleges and seniors homes in the process, creating a healing space for many who have experienced domestic abuse. UJDC passionately visits over 70 schools per year, local to International, working with both hearing and Deaf people of all ages and abilities. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | 18th Street Arts Center | 1639 18th Street , Santa Monica, 90404 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 453-3711 | CA District 36 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, 18th Street Arts Center will present a series of community events honoring Japanese American resilience during WWII incarceration through the “Manzanar Baseball Project Grand Opening” led by artist Dan Kwong, with partners Great Leap and the Manzanar National Historic Site. The project includes a live-streamed broadcast of the cultural celebration featuring vintage-style baseball games at the Manzanar Internment Camp site, offering accessible remote viewing. A local screening event, community workshop, and culminating multi-media performance by Kwong will all be held at 18th Street Arts Center in Santa Monica. Using baseball — a symbol of both Americana and quiet defiance — the project pays tribute to the spirit and resistance of those unjustly imprisoned, supporting cultural memory, healing, and resilience. Funding supports artist compensation and production expenses. |
18th Street provides a hub for contemporary artmaking through two program areas that reflect its mission: |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | The Compton Arts Project | 4252 Crenshaw Blvd., Unit 115 , Los Angeles, 90008 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (315) 514-2253 | 43 | 64 | 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, CAKECUTTER INSTITUTE (The Compton Arts Project DBA) will expand its Cultural Preservation Project through a six-part community engagement series. Artists from Compton Cipher and Reading the City will collaborate with residents to inspire five new public art sites, 7–10 traffic light box installations designed by lead partner Sēpia Artist Collective. Each piece will include augmented reality (AR) elements linked to the Compton Memory Map, a growing digital archive of neighborhood memory and civic identity. Centering Black, Latinx, and differently abled communities, the project offers paid creative roles, accessible cultural programming, and inclusive workshops. It also includes media documentation, public reflection events, and a forthcoming publication. Through art, storytelling, and technology, this initiative aims to foster community wellbeing, honor personal histories, and build lasting pride in Compton’s cultural legacy. |
Cakecutter Institute DBA The Compton Arts Project activates creative placemaking, public art, storytelling, and community cultural engagement projects across Compton and surrounding communities. Powered by Sēpia Artist Collective (Sēpia LLC), our work is organized through four core program areas: Arts Advocacy & Policy Development Creative Placemaking & Public Art Cultural Programs & Storytelling Healing Arts & Environmental Justice Our programs are supported through a collaborative network of artists, curators, educators, youth leaders, community partners, and advisory board members. Through Sēpia Artist Collective, participating artists and curators are contracted to support project-based public art, exhibitions, storytelling initiatives, workshops, and cultural programming activities. We prioritize fair artist compensation, accessibility, equitable participation, and long-term community-rooted cultural development. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | COMMUNITY MUSIC CENTER | 544 Capp Street , San Francisco, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 647-6015 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Community Music Center (CMC) will continue offering the tuition-free Mission District Young Musicians Program (MDYMP) to 25 primarily Latinx youth ages 11 – 18, outside of school time. This bilingual program is designed to engage and empower students through the music of Latin America. Youth receive a comprehensive Latin music education including private lessons, ensemble rehearsals, theory classes, and performances, with a focus on social-emotional learning and creative expression. MDYMP is critical to CMC’s efforts to amplify the voices of black and brown students and faculty. Inspired by their training and MDYMP’s Latinx teaching artists, students become skilled musicians, creative leaders, and community culture-bearers. This program’s NEA grant for FY2025 was terminated on May 2, 2025, and CMC does not expect its FY2026 request to be funded. |
CMC provides: |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,250.00 | SAN FRANCISCO CHILDRENS ART CENTER | 2 Marina Boulevard Fort Mason Center, Building C, San Francisco, 94123 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 771-0292 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Francisco Children’s Art Center (SFCAC) will provide in-school programming with 12 week visual arts residencies in 30 San Francisco Unified School District and Head Start Early Education classrooms, serving youth in San Francisco’s economically vulnerable and historically marginalized communities and increasing equitable access to creative experiences. Funding will also support expanded community outreach programs that will enhance SFCAC’s connections with San Francisco families via family artmaking workshops hosted at San Francisco Public Library branches in the same under-resourced neighborhood communities where we are providing in-school programming. |
Annually, SFCAC serves more than 1200 San Francisco children, ages 2-10 years old, and their teachers and families. Our students are predominantly from economically vulnerable families (70%) and students of color (90%). SCHOOL PROGRAMS: OUT-OF-SCHOOL ART CLASSES & CAMPS: PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT: COMMUNITY OUTREACH: |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | Dancers Group - Fiscal Sponsor for Grown Women Dance Collective | 44 Gough Street, Suite 201 , San Francisco, 94103 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (925) 680-4400 | California's 12th congressional district | District 15 | District 7 | With support from California Arts Council, Grown Women Dance Collective will collaborate with community mobilizers and social justice organizations in Contra Costa County and Oakland to produce arts and wellness programs supporting disinvested communities, especially those impacted by incarceration, Long Covid, and voter disenfranchisement. We will present a world-class dance performance, teach 200 community arts and wellness classes to children 3-18, adults and seniors, help mobilize voters with a #DanceTheVote campaign, and support high school and transition-aged interns. Programs will support cultural resistance, resilience, self-empowerment, and joy, celebrating and strengthening Black and Brown communities. All programs will be free. |
Our programs celebrate resistance, resilience, self-empowerment and joy. Performances & Narrative Shift Choreography: We create world class performances led by dancers of color in our 50’s and 60’s, centered around African American experiences and achievements. Our choreography shifts the narrative on important societal issues such as mass incarceration, homelessness, voting rights, and environmental justice. We challenge stereotypes, create cross-cultural, intergenerational, and cross-class bridges, catalyze new conversations and community action, and create a forum for healing based on art, justice, and human connection. Dance and Healthy Movement Instruction in Under Resourced Communities: Pilates Certification Training and Mentorship for Underestimated Community Members: |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | San Diego Civic Youth Orchestra | 2975 WAHUPA RANCH RD , ESCONDIDO, 92029-5800 | San Diego | Far South | (760) 728-1977 | California 25th Congressional District | California State Assembly District 75 | California State Senate District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, CIVIC YOUTH ORCHESTRA (CYO) will collaborate with the Escondido Union School District to provide “Allegro” an after-school strings program providing no cost, professional instruction to Title 1 elementary school students, grades 3-5. This CAC grant will make it possible for 1,250 underserved students to be enrolled in the Allegro program and grow within a structured performing arts program. |
Since 1956 the Civic Youth Orchestra has enriched the lives of aspiring musicians, from those who are just beginning their musical experience to the most advanced, through a stair-step program designed to inspire and cultivate excellence through music and an appreciation for the arts. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | Dancers Group - Fiscal Sponsor for Grown Women Dance Collective | 44 Gough Street, Suite 201 , San Francisco, 94103 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (925) 680-4400 | California's 12th congressional district | District 15 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Grown Women Dance Collective will produce world-class dance performances, community arts and wellness classes for children, adults, and seniors in under-resourced communities, and dance and movement-based workforce development training. Funds will support artists and staff, increasing our capacity to empower BIPOC artists, center the voices of historically marginalized community members, and strengthen our organizational partners’ missions through art. We will celebrate and strengthen Black and Brown communities; support cultural resistance, resilience, self-empowerment, and joy. Support will help create spaces that inspire a sense of belonging, dignity, trust, joy, collaboration, and innovation, and empower folks from historically disinvested groups to leverage their strengths, imagine new possibilities, achieve goals, reinvest people-power back into our communities, and collectively create a more just future. |
Our programs celebrate resistance, resilience, self-empowerment and joy. Performances & Narrative Shift Choreography: We create world class performances led by dancers of color in our 50’s and 60’s, centered around African American experiences and achievements. Our choreography shifts the narrative on important societal issues such as mass incarceration, homelessness, voting rights, and environmental justice. We challenge stereotypes, create cross-cultural, intergenerational, and cross-class bridges, catalyze new conversations and community action, and create a forum for healing based on art, justice, and human connection. Dance and Healthy Movement Instruction in Under Resourced Communities: Pilates Certification Training and Mentorship for Underestimated Community Members: |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | LAMusArt | 3630 E 3RD ST , LOS ANGELES, 90063-2409 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 262-7734 | California's 34th Congressional District | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, LAMusArt will sustain the provision of the Tuition-Free Music Ensembles program, which serves East LA youth with free, weekly music education. |
Since its inception, LAMusArt has created equitable opportunities to engage in free and/or low-cost quality arts programming for students as young as age 4 continuing to seniors 65+. Across four disciplines, we offer dozens of weekly (private and group) classes (both low cost and no cost) held on our campus, an 11,000 square foot facility in the heart of East Los Angeles which includes over 20 classrooms, an audio recording studio, and an outdoor performance space where events, performances, exhibits, etc. take place. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Liberty Arts | 108 W. Miner St. , Yreka, 96097 | Siskiyou | Upstate | (530) 842-0222 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, LIBERTY PAINTING CORP will offer arts education opportunities to all Siskiyou County students through the gallery’s Explorations program. Class visits are structured using the California Arts Education Framework, following the definition of an advanced comprehensive art program and are adaptable for all learners. The liberty arts education team has made it a priority to reach out to remote communities that have been recognized as historically underserved and direct our resources towards those facing disparities in art education opportunities. Through our LIBERTY ART DAYS, 8-12 artists travel to schools up to 75 miles away, bringing projects and supplies- even a printing press, to spend a day sharing projects with students not normally tackled in a classroom. Grant funding will support educators and materials. |
Our core programming is through our exhibition schedule which is generated from our community, and includes: LOCAL FOCUS- exploring work by regional artists; BRIDGE SHOWS- bringing new work and ideas in from metropolitan areas, and OPEN-CALL opportunities, inviting the community to participate, often for the first time, in curating, creating and exhibiting work. Annually, members are invited to propose a show. As future curators, they prepare a presentation, outlining the theme/invitation/artists to be exhibited. All proposals are considered, with a vote by community participants selecting the most promising for inclusion in our upcoming exhibition schedule. Art education is delivered through our Explorations outreach classes, which introduce students to art in a gallery setting, with local artists often sharing their knowledge and creative inspiration. Students are introduced to work through context, language and process. They have time to individually view the art, then come together for discussion. In our dedicated studio they then create work related to the themes and processes they have just learned about. Liberty Arts transports artists with supplies yearly into outlying schools for projects not normally seen in a classroom. We have made the 150-mile round trip journeys to schools in the lowest HPI quartile areas or even so remote they have no score. Liberty Arts also serves our community as a venue for performance and special events, including hosting musicians, our biennial fashion extravaganzas, and “Special Delivery” evenings which feature twelve speakers who introduce audiences to a wide range of art, culture and local topics. We also participate in city street fairs, where hundreds of families and community members have made free creative art projects such as our “print a bug” linocut prints last year, first inked and then printed using an etching press. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | CITY OF CALEXICO - RECREATION DEPARTMENT | 608 HEBER AVENUE , Calexico, 92231 | Imperial | Far South | (760) 768-7487 | 25th Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 36 | State Senate District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, the City of Calexico’ s Cultural Arts Division will continue sustaining operating expenses in the form of key essential supporting staff salaries and funding of general expenses, while providing arts and culture exposure and opportunities to the community – specially those who are underserved. |
The City of Calexico Cultural Arts Division (CCAC) operates under the City’s Recreation Department, serving as a vital hub for artistic and cultural expression. Since its inauguration in February 2008, the CCAC has been committed to providing accessible and enriching artistic opportunities for the community. Our core programs and services include: Art Exhibits – CCAC hosts diverse art exhibitions, inviting children, youth, and adult artists from various backgrounds to showcase their work. These exhibits foster creativity, encourage artistic expression, and provide the community with exposure to different artistic styles and perspectives. Workshops & Classes – We offer meaningful and affordable arts education, including papel picado workshops, inclusive art programs for developmentally challenged individuals, dance and music courses, poetry circles, photography, acrylic painting, and themed painting nights among others. Community & Cultural Events – CCAC plays a central role in celebrating cultural heritage through festivals, themed exhibits, and heritage events. Our programs highlight Mexican American and Latino traditions, featuring mariachis, rondallas, and handicrafts, as well as featuring other cultures and traditions. Concert Series – The arts center hosts live music performances, including concert nights that provide cultural enrichment and entertainment for the community. Youth & Senior Arts Engagement – We design specialized programs to foster artistic expression among youth and senior citizens, ensuring accessibility and engagement across all age groups. Mural Projects – CCAC coordinates public art initiatives, issuing calls for artists to install murals at key locations throughout the city. These murals serve as visual narratives reflecting the city’s values, history, and cultural identity, instilling community pride. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,250.00 | Kearny Street Workshop | 1246 Folsom Street, Suite 1 , San Francisco, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 789-5966 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kearny Street Workshop will launch year 2 of a community-responsive arts fellowship for Asian Pacific American (APA) visual artists (AVA Lab) providing community-based education and wellness practices, culminating in a healing retreat with award-winning faculty and facilitators, and a year-end exhibition. |
KSW makes artists out of community members and community members out of artists. For the past 54 years, KSW has nurtured the creative spirit, offered an important platform for new voices to be heard, and built artistic communities grounded in the San Francisco Bay Area. We prioritize racial justice and healing, prioritizing art that expands liberation for all people. We act as an incubator for emerging AAPI artists, placemaking in the Soma neighborhood of San Francisco where we are based, and connecting arts & culture to broader solidarity movements for societal change. KSW’s core programs include: |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Academy of Special Dreams Foundation | 115 W CALIFORNIA BLVD 326 , PASADENA, 91105-3005 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 235-9387 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, ACADEMY OF SPECIAL DREAMS FOUNDATION will present an inclusive art exhibition celebrating traditional Indigenous embroidery and textile arts. Featuring artists with disabilities from California and beyond, the project uplifts cultural heritage, promotes disability inclusion, and showcases the resilience of underrepresented voices through art rooted in tradition. |
The Academy of Special Dreams Foundation is dedicated to promoting the creative talents of people with disabilities. To achieve this mission, the foundation employs three key strategies: Encouraging artistic expression through open-call competitions: The foundation organizes and administers competitions that invite individuals with special needs to showcase their artistic talents through various artistic mediums. Providing financial support for artists with disabilities: The foundation offers scholarships, cash awards, and other forms of financial support to artists with disabilities, in order to promote their continued involvement in the arts. Showcasing artistic expressions: The foundation hosts art exhibitions in the community, as well as web-based virtual galleries and exhibitions and produces videos that highlight the works of artists with disabilities. Additionally, the foundation offers an art therapy program to promote mental health. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Humboldt Arts Council | 636 F Street 636 F Street, Eureka, 95501 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 442-0278 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Humboldt Arts Council will send experienced poet-teachers into local K-12 schools to teach poetry reading, writing, performance, and publication. Our program will bring poetry—a source of coping, creativity, empowerment, and healing through crises—to over 1,000 students and the larger community. Schools will include those with a high percentage of Native American students near the Hoopa and Yurok Reservations, adjacent to Karuk land tracts; and a significant percentage of students representing a cross-section of cultures: Latinx, Asian (particularly Hmong), Black, and those with disabilities. |
A private, nonprofit arts agency, the Humboldt Arts Council was formed in 1966 to serve in a rural county with a vibrant arts community. HAC incorporated as a private, California 501©3 in 1971, became the state/local partner of the California Arts Council in 1987, and became owners and operators of the Morris Graves Museum of Art in 2000. HAC is also the owner of the Romano Gabriel Sculpture Garden in Eureka, acquired in 2012. As a lead participant in community arts planning for over five decades, HAC has contributed significantly to the current level of maturity and vitality of Humboldt arts and culture. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,750.00 | San Diego Creative Youth Development Network | 1100 Market St Ste 326, San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (816) 853-7466 | California's 50th Congressional District | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Diego Creative Youth Development Network will deliver a Restorative Practices Training Program for Creative Youth Development organizations and practitioners, led by Macedonio Arteaga, Jr., Lead Artist & Restorative Practitioner/Trainer. This training program is specifically designed to strengthen the relational and cultural foundations of organizations serving young people through the arts, especially those navigating systemic inequities, trauma, and structural harm. |
Creative Youth Development (CYD) is a holistic approach to deeply engaging young people through the arts and creativity to promote personal well-being and support them in reaching their full potential. SDCYD Network is a coalition of providers, partners, and young people dedicated to harnessing their collective strength to build the field of creative youth development to maximize impact for youth. We achieve this by: Building public awareness of the impact of youth arts programs as drivers of personal and community change. • Initiate and conduct field research & evaluation Sharing expertise and best practices with youth arts programs. • Provide leadership & professional development Cultivating new pathways of support that benefit all local youth arts programs. • Advocate for policy & systems change |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $22,200.00 | San Diego Creative Youth Development Network | 1100 Market St Ste 326, San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (816) 853-7466 | California's 50th Congressional District | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Diego Creative Youth Development Network will provide direct programming and services, including but not limited to, convening & networking opportunities, arts advocacy, information and research, professional development opportunities, and marketing, promotion, audience development services to our Network of community-based artists, creators, tradition bearers, educators, and arts/culture organizations who are direct providers of creative youth development programming. These include the organizations and the people who lead, support and provide artistic (e.g., in dance, music, theatre, playwriting, photography/film) and cultural programming. |
Creative Youth Development (CYD) is a holistic approach to deeply engaging young people through the arts and creativity to promote personal well-being and support them in reaching their full potential. SDCYD Network is a coalition of providers, partners, and young people dedicated to harnessing their collective strength to build the field of creative youth development to maximize impact for youth. We achieve this by: Building public awareness of the impact of youth arts programs as drivers of personal and community change. • Initiate and conduct field research & evaluation Sharing expertise and best practices with youth arts programs. • Provide leadership & professional development Cultivating new pathways of support that benefit all local youth arts programs. • Advocate for policy & systems change |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $19,500.00 | Asian Improv aRts | 456 MONTGOMERY ST STE 1350 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94104-4711 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 908-3636 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Asian Improv aRts with multidisciplinary lead artist, Truc Nguyen, will produce “Ordinary People”, a 45-minute multimedia film / video performance April 2026 at Dresher Ensemble Studio, marking over 50 years since Vietnamese refugee resettlement at the end of the Vietnamese-American War in 1975. Additionally Truc will create a companion 15-18 minute video/audio work that can live on its own and be accessible after the in-person performances. |
Asian Improv aRts goals: 1) To make it possible for artists to create innovative works that are rooted in the diasporic experiences of Asian and Pacific Islander heritage. 2) To engage a next generation of community members in the arts through arts education. 3) To enable sustainability for artists and arts organizations in a challenging economic environment. 4) To facilitate creative collaborations that bring together major institutions, artists, and multigenerational audiences and participants. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Ventura County Arts Council | 646 County Square Drive Suite #154, Ventura, 93003 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 658-2213 | California's 26th congressional district | District 38 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Ventura County Arts Council (VCAC) will establish mini art galleries inside three county libraries. The galleries will be curated by VCAC, offering opportunities for local artists to display their work. All three branches are situated in the lower quartile of the California Healthy Places Index: the Albert H. Soliz Library in El Rio, the Fillmore Library in Fillmore, and the Ray D. Preuter Library in Port Hueneme. The branches were chosen because no local art galleries or public art spaces currently exist for the communities residing there. |
VCAC runs several programs and looks for opportunities to offer grants to smaller arts organizations and individual artists. We prioritize partnering with arts organizations and artists serving marginalized and underrepresented people and working in the communities where they reside. Our Arts & Youth Justice program brings arts instruction to youth at the court school in the Juvenile Justice Center. We teach fine art, poetry and podcasting. The Atrium Gallery is a public art program. We curate three floors in the Government Center in collaboration with the county Arts & Culture Manager, focusing on exhibitions that highlight artwork by people outside of the mainstream along with several juried shows open to the public that offer cash prizes. We established a county Poet Laureate and Youth Poet Laureate program. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,900.00 | NAKA Dance Theater | 44 Gough St. Suite 201 , San Francisco, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (650) 759-8770 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, NAKA will sustain its programs, staff and operations from October, 2025 through September, 2026. Supported programs will include: Maya Mam Weaving Project performances and gallery presentations; Dismantling Tactic X performances; Publication of a new book commissioned by Maggie Allessee National Center for Choreography; Voces Feministas workshops and public events; Live Arts in Resistance performance series collaboration with EastSide Arts Alliance; and the publishing of the NAKA Dance Theater 25th Anniversary Photo Book. |
-Producing LIVE ARTS IN RESISTANCE, a series of performance showcases, artist residencies and community town halls that address racial inequity & white supremacy in popular culture. -Creating and touring experimental performance works; including Y Basta Ya!, a dance-theater performance and community workshop series and shines a light on the stories of Latina and Indigenous Maya Mam women and their experiences with invisibility, labor rights, domestic violence, and sexual abuse. -Research residencies in Japan and Mexico as part of NAKA’s work in community-based ritual practices. -Producing Dismantling Tactic X artist residency and multidisciplinary performance project convening a cohort of radical, social-practice artists who center their work on the topic of race and white supremacy. -Co-Facilitating ongoing Circulos de Aprendizaje (Collaborative Learning Circles) with Oakland Latina and Indigenous Maya Mam (Guatemala) immigrant women, using art for healing and addressing issues such as racism and colorism in the Latine community. We have co-presented two Mam cultural festivals in Oakland. -Ja weya ob’aj wij, ex weya nchemaj/Mi Historia, Mi Telar/My Story, My Weaving narrative-based dance-theater performance project integrating personal and collective narratives, movement, textile art, and poetry into a full-length touring dance theater performance project featuring the voices and visions of the Mam community here in Oakland. -Pro-Bono Language Justice Access Consulting, to arts and social justice organizations who want to hire in-person or online sign language interpreters. This includes: referrals for culturally appropriate interpreters who would be a good match for the situation (including trilingual Spanish-English-ASL / Chinese-English-ASL interpreters); sharing best practices about publicity and outreach (best done by Deaf-led organizations); sharing best practices about budgeting for interpreters, necessary prep information that interpreters will need prior to an assignment, interpreter placement, lighting; advocacy for the hiring of Deaf Interpreters. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,300.00 | Grand Vision Foundation | 434 W. 6th Street , San Pedro, 90731 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 833-4813 | California's 44th congressional district | District 65 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, GRAND VISION FOUNDATION will sustain its operations as a vital arts and culture hub in the underserved LA Harbor area, providing live music experiences in the community and music education in public schools. |
Grand Vision Foundation (GVF) is a music-focused community arts organization, founded in 1996 to save and restore the historic Warner Grand Theatre, a 1,500 seat art deco movie palace. Today, the City of LA owns and operates the Theatre, hosting 100+ events annually, GVF serves as Theatre’s Friends’ Group, partnering with the City on ongoing events and promotion. Since 2008, we’ve seen our vision come to life at the Grand Annex Music Hall, our 150-seat cabaret style storefront theatre, where we present an ongoing concert series of innovative global, Latin, jazz, and American roots music artists. The Annex has become a hub for the L.A. Harbor and South Bay communities, where residents and visitors can find a range of high quality and accessible cultural experiences. In addition to the indoor stage, GVF regularly collaborates with other community organizations to co-produce free outdoor music and arts festivals. GVF engages the next generation through Meet the Music (MTM), a robust in-school youth education program, serving approximately 2,500 elementary school students annually with innovative musical skill building and engagement curricula. Founded in 2009, MTM provides equitable access to music education through sequential standards-based instruction and participatory live music experiences. MTM helps to close the arts education opportunity gap (compared to students in affluent districts) while deepening student capacity for creative learning. We serve under-resourced LA Unified School District schools with a focus on the LA Harbor area, providing innovative musical skill-building and engagement curricula. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,250.00 | Grand Vision Foundation | 434 W. 6th Street , San Pedro, 90731 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 833-4813 | California's 44th congressional district | District 65 | District 35 | With support from the California Arts Council, GRAND VISION FOUNDATION will sustain its Roots of Music Program (RoMP) which exposes students to live music concerts in partnership with professional, community-based artists, while providing rich music learning through in-school lessons and student recital performances. RoMP is part of Grand Vision’s Meet the Music (MTM) education program, which provides standards-based, culturally relevant weekly music instruction in underserved elementary schools in the LA Harbor area and beyond, as well as arts integration training to classroom educators. |
Grand Vision Foundation (GVF) is a music-focused community arts organization, founded in 1996 to save and restore the historic Warner Grand Theatre, a 1,500 seat art deco movie palace. Today, the City of LA owns and operates the Theatre, hosting 100+ events annually, GVF serves as Theatre’s Friends’ Group, partnering with the City on ongoing events and promotion. Since 2008, we’ve seen our vision come to life at the Grand Annex Music Hall, our 150-seat cabaret style storefront theatre, where we present an ongoing concert series of innovative global, Latin, jazz, and American roots music artists. The Annex has become a hub for the L.A. Harbor and South Bay communities, where residents and visitors can find a range of high quality and accessible cultural experiences. In addition to the indoor stage, GVF regularly collaborates with other community organizations to co-produce free outdoor music and arts festivals. GVF engages the next generation through Meet the Music (MTM), a robust in-school youth education program, serving approximately 2,500 elementary school students annually with innovative musical skill building and engagement curricula. Founded in 2009, MTM provides equitable access to music education through sequential standards-based instruction and participatory live music experiences. MTM helps to close the arts education opportunity gap (compared to students in affluent districts) while deepening student capacity for creative learning. We serve under-resourced LA Unified School District schools with a focus on the LA Harbor area, providing innovative musical skill-building and engagement curricula. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $16,800.00 | Guitars Antiqua Music Program | 1402 W. 180th Street , Gardena, 90248 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 880-6613 | 43rd congressional district | District CA-66 | District California | With support from the California Arts Council, GUITARS ANTIQUA MUSIC PROGRAM will expand and enrich its free classical guitar youth program through a series of workshops, lectures, a field trip, and outreach performances. These activities are designed to enhance the musical knowledge of our youth participants, particularly for those in middle to high school grades, providing a close insight into the field of music. The project aspires to offer music-centered activities that will not only educate our participants beyond the limits of our regular guitar lessons, but also spark their interest in further education and open doors to possible career paths. Beneficiaries from the Lawndale and Hawthorne communities will acquire higher knowledge in the arts. |
Guitars Antiqua Music Program was established in 2017 as a parent and community initiative with the sole intent to provide a 100 % tuition-free, after-school music program for youths living in the underserved communities of Gardena, Lawndale, and Hawthorne, all part of the greater Los Angeles County. We offer group guitar lessons to youth ages 9 yrs old to 17 yrs old. The program aims to engage students with fewer resources for music education and offer a quality experience and opportunity regardless of their families’ economic status. We offer two main programs: (1) Group lessons at our local park, where we have classes for beginning, intermediate, and advanced levels. All participants are provided a guitar package (on a loaner basis) to extend their music education at home. We offer 32 weeks of instruction during the school calendar year and an addition six-week summer session. (2) Thanks to our partnership with the Lawndale Elementary School District, we provide guitar lessons at all six elementary school sites in the district and are currently serving over 100 students every school year. During our program sessions, we offer many opportunities for students to explore their music curiosity and enhance their artistic development. Our work has been recognized and supported by private and public arts organizations such as the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Department of Arts and Culture, D’Addario Foundation, Guitar Center Music Foundation, and Find Your Light Foundation. Our after school classes conducted at Bodger Park in Hawthorne, California are made possible through our Core Community Partnership with the Los Angeles Department of Parks and Recreation. While guitar education is our top priority, Guitars Antiqua allows and encourages students to experience the highest expression of themselves creating the true transformative impacts in their lives. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | TheatreWorkers Project | 1795 La Loma Rd , Pasadena, 91105 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 319-1020 | California's 28th congressional district | 41 | 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, TheatreWorkers Project (TWP) will continue to provide Theatre Inside, a rehabilitative, literacy-building arts program, for residents of California State Prison, Los Angeles County (LAC). Theatre Inside will enable participants to explore and reframe their narratives, culminating in a theatre piece written and performed by the participants, presented to audiences of their peers, families, and the public.In accordance with the California Department of Corrections and Rehabilitation (CDCR), TWP’s program will support the goal of facilitating “the successful reintegration of individuals …back to their communities equipped with the tools to be drug-free, healthy, and employable members of society.” |
Using theatre to illuminate social and political issues has been our goal since 1983 when founder Susan Franklin Tanner was awarded a CAC Artist in Communities grant to create theatre with unemployed steelworkers in southeast LA. With that grant, Tanner founded TheatreWokers Project (TWP) and pioneered a form of documentary theatre where the participants, supported by professional artists, provided the content and became the storyteller/actors. TWP went on the create theatre projects with and/or about shipbuilders, meat packers, longshoremen, critical nurses and Latinx immigrant workers. Over time, our focus expanded to include collaborating with community-based re-entry programs serving the formerly incarcerated and prison programs serving incarcerated youth and adults, workshops for community and university medical centers, and providing classical and contemporary theatre experiences for youth through ongoing school residencies and performances. COVID-related restrictions have prompted us to embrace and incorporate filmed performance collages, virtual program delivery and correspondence courses as centerpieces of our programming. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Muses & Melanin Fellowship | 180 Steuart Street Box 190206, San Francisco, 94119 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 420-3886 | 11 | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Muses & Melanin (M&M) will admit and graduate the 2026 cohort of talented BIPOC writers. This program, an eight-month professional development practicum for California creative writers of color, is designed to advance the trajectory of their literary careers. Funding will go towards: |
We provide professional development via our 8-month career-accelerator practicum that helps talented creative writers of color establish sustainable literary careers in a #PublishingSoWhite industry. Our program launches participants into the literary profession with a series of professional development workshops, writing workshops, guest speakers, and co-working sessions, culminating in a public graduation and readings ceremony and reception. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,750.00 | Neococo Collective | 3540 S Sycamore Ave , LOS ANGELES, 90016 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (316) 737-7585 | With support from the California Arts Council, Neococo Collective will expand its arts-based empowerment program for forcibly displaced women and nonbinary individuals in Los Angeles. Through collaborative textile arts, storytelling, and entrepreneurship workshops, participants will gain creative expression, job training, and economic opportunity in a trauma-informed, multilingual environment. CAC grant funds will support teaching artist fees, culturally responsive materials, supportive services and stipends for participants, ensuring accessibility and sustained engagement. The program will culminate in a community exhibition celebrating participants artistic work and personal narratives, fostering cross-cultural dialogue and inclusion. This initiative not only nurtures artistic practice but also builds pathways to economic stability and community integration for immigrants navigating new lives in California. |
Neococo Collective’s core programs and services center on empowering forcibly displaced women and nonbinary individuals through art, economic opportunity, and community building. Our primary initiatives include: |
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| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,500.00 | KARMIC ACTION RETRIBUTION MANAGEMENT AGENCY | 3547 HILLVIEW PL , LOS ANGELES, 90032-1404 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 326-3226 | 34 | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, KARMIC ACTION RETRIBUTION MANAGEMENT AGENCY will host LA Rooted: Art, Healing & Rhythmic Resistance, a culturally grounded summer program for youth ages 13–16. Led by local artists and cultural bearers—Susana Figueroa (SONJIART), Christine Jimenez, and Ana Ruth Yela Castillo—this program connects youth to ancestral knowledge and creative expression through visual art, dance, storytelling, and nature-based practices. Participants will explore themes such as Art in Liberation, Healing, and Motion through hands-on workshops, mural-making, plant-based art, and community storytelling. By centering BIPOC youth voices and lived experiences, LA Rooted fosters identity, belonging, and emotional wellbeing. This program will activate cultural resilience and leadership in youth, cultivating a deeper connection to land, heritage, and the transformative power of art within their communities.CAC funds will support artists, materials, coordination, and accessibility. |
Projects of KARMA: Roots in Motion (RIM) cultivates intergenerational health and resilience in low-income communities of color through outdoor adventures and movement-based activities. As part of Karmic Action Retribution Management Agency, RIM celebrates diverse identities and ancestral heritages, creating empowering programs that foster wellness, creativity, and community connection. Since 2013, we’ve offered year-round initiatives like youth camps, bike trips, and backpacking journeys, providing spaces for self-growth and nature-led connections. Bicilibre Community Bicycle Shop stands in solidarity with day laborers, the unhoused, and local organizations by providing vital bike repair services and support. Our mission is to empower these communities through accessible transportation, fostering mental wellness and economic resilience. By challenging health disparities and systemic inequality, we use the bicycle as a tool for community strength, mobility, and justice. KARMA’s fiscal sponsorship program- A grantor-grantee structure, sponsored projects remain independent from KARMA and manage their own tax reporting and liabilities, while KARMA facilitates the receipt and distribution of grants and tax-exempt donations to help realize the project’s purpose. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | Art Bias | 1700 INDUSTRIAL ROAD , SAN CARLOS, 94070-4155 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 593-3177 | California's 14th congressional district | District 21 | District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, Art Bias will offer the 3rd year of a free, life-changing group and individual mentorship program consisting of hands-on art making, portfolio development, field trips, curatorial, and professional growth opportunities to guide underserved students at Sequoia High School into the advanced, college level International Baccalaureate (IB) art program. Based at Art Bias in our community space and co-designed with the Sequoia High School art teachers, each mentee receives at least 40 weekly meetings of 2 hours (80 hours annually) of instructional time including painting, weaving, felting, photography, Chinese brush painting, Japanese calligraphy, Mexican milagritos, linocut, portraiture, and more, directly from professional artists. In addition to creative work, youth receive one-on-one guidance and individual support for network building, college applications, interview prep, and introductions to paid work. |
We provide 50 artist studios, professional development resources and events, classes, exhibition opportunities, teaching opportunities, and a thriving community of artists amplifying art’s positive impact on society. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,600.00 | WESTWIND BRASS INC | 6839 51st St , San Diego, 92120-1209 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 665-9125 | California's 51st congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Westwind Brass seeks General Operating Support to sustain our vital role in San Diego’s cultural ecosystem. Aligned with the CAC’s commitment to broad reach and equity, we provide diverse musical experiences, enriching our community. This funding will directly support our ongoing operations, including essential expenses like staffing and facilities, ensuring our capacity to deliver high-quality performances and educational programs. As a dedicated arts organization, this support is crucial for maintaining our organizational strength and continuing to contribute to California’s vibrant arts landscape, fostering accessibility and engagement for all. |
Through our outreach programs, our goal is to not only help provide a well-rounded education for children and create a healthier community, but also, by offering students the chance to participate in this learning process, we help build the future arts audience. WWB strives to achieve its mission by building and satisfying a worldwide following of dedicated individual and organizational supporters, professional peers, music educators, and public audiences that: (a) organize, stage and attend concerts of outstanding classical and contemporary brass chamber music; (b) encourage instructional presentations and discussions of brass chamber music; (c) stimulate and foster creation, research and presentation- both live and recorded- of brass chamber music of the highest artistic and professional quality. |
| State Local Partner Mentorship | 2025-26 | $56,500.00 | Amador Arts | 1324 Jackson Gate Rd , Jackson, 95642-9539 | Amador | Central Valley | (209) 256-8166 | District 5 | District 1 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, the AMADOR COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL (Amador Arts) will mentor the San Joaquin creative community and the Stockton Art League toward establishing the State Local Partner for this county. Modeling best practices in Anti-Racism, Tribal Land acknowledgments, safe space holding, cross-disciplinary arts business resources, and technical assistance services, Amador Arts will partner with the Stockton Art League, using an OF/BY/FOR ALL approach to serves the people, especially those in the bottom quartile of the Healthy Places Index. This includes: |
The Amador County Arts Council (Amador Arts) keeps the arts central to Amador’s life through programs, services, and initiatives. (1) PUBLIC OFFICE: Our accessible public office is open to the public and is located in a historic building on Jackson Gate Road in Jackson, CA. Open Tuesday through Saturday from 11 to 4 PM and staffed by volunteers and employees from the Mother Lode Land Trust, our partner. (2) TECHNICAL ASSISTANCE: Our team provides free Technical Assistance on California Arts Council grants. (3) PRODUCING PERFORMANCES: Since its establishment, Amador Arts has played a central role in performing arts throughout Amador County. Most notably, since 1998, our “TGIF Free Summer Concerts” have brought live music to thousands of people in outdoor venues where it would otherwise not be available. Producing Poetry Out Loud since 2016, with multi-generational poetry engagement opportunities in addition to the traditional competition. (4) ARTS EDUCATION ADVOCACY: Amador Arts has been a trusted consultant to Amador County Unified School District, providing support and administration for the district’s Arts Plan and the rollout of Prop 28. Additionally, since 2012, Amador Arts has been an Arts Now community, surveying the state of arts education annually and teaching advocacy tools and skills to youth so they can impact their own arts education. (5) PROMOTING THE ARTS: Weekly newspaper article “Heart of Art” in the Ledger Dispatch, which covers all types of impacts of the arts and leans heavily on the research from Americans for the Arts and their Arts Impact Explorer. The articles are also published on our blog. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $21,000.00 | California Chamber Orchestra | 43460 Ridge Park Drive, Ste. 220 , Temecula, 92590 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (909) 496-3030 | California's 50th congressional district | District 71 | District 32 | With support from the California Arts Council, GOLDEN VALLEY MUSIC SOCIETY INC will present “Orchestra Experience Live!” for all 4th grade students in the Murrieta Valley Unified School District featuring the California Chamber Orchestra, Conductor Dana Zimbric, and local artists in the Murrieta Mesa High School Gershwin Performing Arts Center. |
The California Chamber Orchestra (CCO), operating under the umbrella of the Golden Valley Music Society, is a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization established in 2005. Led by Artistic Director and Conductor Dana Zimbric, CCO hosts nearly 20 professional concerts and recitals annually, distinguishing itself as the primary professional orchestra in the Temecula/Murrieta area. Comprised of leading professional musicians from across Southern California, CCO has maintained a collective bargaining agreement with the American Federation of Musicians Local 325 since 2023. From 2005 to 2019, CCO collaborated with the Old Town Temecula Community Theater to present an annual seven-concert Classical Series, four of which showcased the orchestra. Since July 1, 2019, the orchestra has shifted its focus to the Gershwin Performing Arts Center in Murrieta for its annual concert series. Since October 2008, CCO has hosted Classics at The Merc, a Sunday afternoon series featuring chamber recitals by professional soloists and small ensembles. Held in the intimate setting of the Old Town Temecula Community Theater, this series offers a unique musical experience for audiences. The series highlights the region’s premier chamber musicians in a monthly recital format. Since 2012, CCO has been dedicated to providing music education to over 20,000 students in the Temecula and Murrieta communities. This includes live theater performances of classical works like “Peter and the Wolf” and “Carnival of the Animals,” as well as interactive assemblies for elementary students. Additionally, the organization offers coaching for middle and high school orchestras, master classes, and affordable or complimentary tickets to CCO performances. Collaborations, such as the “Just Add Jazz” project with acclaimed jazz vocalist Sherry Williams, further enrich the educational experiences provided by CCO. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | "" | 468 W. 5th Street, Suite 218 , San Bernardino, 92401 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (909) 381-5388 | California's 31st congressional district | District 40 | District 23 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Bernardino Symphony Association will operate a Youth Symphony Orchestra dedicated to the performance of works by systemically underrepresented composers. |
The San Bernardino Symphony actualizes our mission through engaging and culturally/artistically relevant programming. We also provide a variety of educational enrichment programs, including concerts for the schools serving over 1,700 students annually, introductory workshops on orchestral instruments for every local third grade class (roughly 5,000 students each year), online educational videos, and our San Bernardino Symphony Youth Orchestra, a 70+ piece orchestra dedicatd to the performance of works by underrepresented composers. We also offer certificated Symphony Teens programs providing job skills training to local high school students. The vast majority of these students are of minority decent and considered at-risk due to economic circumstances. The Symphony also operates the Guthrie Music Rental Library providing low cost orchestral parts to other orchestras, schools, and choral groups. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,000.00 | Bay Area Creative | 1389 Jefferson St Apt C505 , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (949) 285-9086 | California Assembly district 20 | District 20 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, BAY AREA CREATIVE BAC will strengthen its SPARC Creativity program, delivering year-round arts education to over 7,000 K-12 youth across the Bay Area. Grants fund will sustain culturally responsive, trauma-informed workshops in spoken word poetry, hip hop dance, visual arts and filmmaking, led by professional artists rooted in the communities they serve. This support will allow BAC to deepen its impact in underserved neighborhoods, maintain fair compensation for artists, expand bilingual and accessible programming, and invest in the organizational infrastructure needed to deliver transformative art experiences that affirm identity, foster resilience and build community pride. |
SPARC Creativity offers spoken word poetry, dance, filmmaking workshops and performances tailored for underserved youth aged 5-18. Our comprehensive services encompass weekly arts workshops conducted during the school day, after school, and throughout the summer. Additionally, SPARC teaching artists lead impactful school day performances that showcase the creative expressions of our participants. Revisions stands as a beacon of therapeutic arts for youth and families, providing essential services such as facilitating writing groups in Juvenile Hall, facilitating creative support groups for social workers, leading conferences focused on substance abuse prevention, and performing at mental health symposiums. Educators for Empathy is dedicated to professional development for both classroom teachers and teaching artists. Our impactful sessions take the form of in-service school district-wide half and full-day training sessions. We extend our reach by collaborating with other nonprofits, offering monthly one-on-one coaching sessions to empower educators with transformative teaching practices. Spoken works delivers local creative professionals to provide team building sessions that |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $15,000.00 | Bay Area Creative | 1389 Jefferson St Apt C505 , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (949) 285-9086 | California Assembly district 20 | District 20 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bay Area Creative (BAC) will deliver transformative arts programs that ignites self-expression, healing, and social change. Founded by nationally ranked spoken word poets, BAC provides steady work for over 30 artists each year abd reaches over 14,000 low-income youth and adults through free workshops and events in spoken word poetry, urban dance, and visual arts. Led by professional artists from the same communities they serve, these programs offer vital spaces for participants to process their experiences, build resilience, amplify their voices and share their creative works for the betterment of society. Through school-day residencies, after-school programs, summer workshops, and weekly community performances; BAC fosters a new generation of artists and leaders, strengthening the Bay Area’s arts ecosystem and cultural fabric. |
SPARC Creativity offers spoken word poetry, dance, filmmaking workshops and performances tailored for underserved youth aged 5-18. Our comprehensive services encompass weekly arts workshops conducted during the school day, after school, and throughout the summer. Additionally, SPARC teaching artists lead impactful school day performances that showcase the creative expressions of our participants. Revisions stands as a beacon of therapeutic arts for youth and families, providing essential services such as facilitating writing groups in Juvenile Hall, facilitating creative support groups for social workers, leading conferences focused on substance abuse prevention, and performing at mental health symposiums. Educators for Empathy is dedicated to professional development for both classroom teachers and teaching artists. Our impactful sessions take the form of in-service school district-wide half and full-day training sessions. We extend our reach by collaborating with other nonprofits, offering monthly one-on-one coaching sessions to empower educators with transformative teaching practices. Spoken works delivers local creative professionals to provide team building sessions that |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Playhouse Merced | 452 W. Main Street , Merced, 95340 | Merced | Central Valley | (209) 725-8587 | California's 16th congressional district | District 21 | District 12 | Playhouse Merced’s Conservatory provides theater education, scholarships, and accessible performances for diverse youth in Merced County. |
Playhouse Merced provides on-site educational services through classes and workshops in acting, dance, voice, playwriting and instrumental music as well as off-site programming by providing trained teaching artists to schools. In addition, Playhouse Merced presents a 10-show season on-site and off-site performances and episodic programming. |
| Impact Projects | 2025-26 | $18,500.00 | Black Humboldt | 39 5th St , Eureka, 95501-0333 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 840-4641 | 2nd Congressional District | State Assembly District 2 | State President Pro Tempore | With support from the California Arts Council, Black Humboldt will implement the Arts & Legacy Project—an 18-month, humanities-informed arts and culture initiative that uplifts the creative legacies and living narratives of Black and Brown communities on California’s rural North Coast. The project blends public art, showcases, performances, intergenerational storytelling, and community-based archiving to foster cultural belonging, healing, and visibility in historically underserved areas creating culturally relevant art and dialogue in rural communities where BIPOC stories are often erased. Grant funds will be used to: |
Arts & Culture Programming – visual arts exhibitions, performance showcases, cultural festivals, and educational lectures focused on Black and Brown contributions to arts and culture. Uses creativity as a tool for wellness, expression, and community building. Uses arts and culture as a vehicle for Black & Brown history, education and representation. Community Events & Celebrations- Intentional social gatherings designed to cultivate connection, joy, and solidarity among local Black and Brown residents. Leadership Development & Community Advocacy- Programs designed to develop leadership among Black and Brown individuals in Humboldt, with a focus on equity, representation, and civic engagement. Network-building initiatives connecting local grassroots organizers and BIPOC-led groups to share resources and strengthen community infrastructure. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Museum of the American Indian | 2200 NOVATO BLVD , NOVATO, 94947-2079 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 897-4064 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 10 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Museum of the American Indian will work towards our mission of uplifting, supporting, and making visible the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas through authentic educational programs and cultural resources for Marin and the Greater Bay Area. In the coming fiscal year, our organization aims to move forward in four key areas: (1) Educational programming, including our Field Trip program which serves 4,000 youth annually and traditional crafts workshops with Native culture bearer honoraria; (2) Collections work which continues our collaboration with the Coast Miwok Tribal Council on provenance research; (3) Supporting Indigenous California artists through special exhibitions in our Contemporary Native Artists Gallery, with dedicated artist stipends; and (4) Organizational sustainability through new financial management systems, upgraded technology, a new comprehensive revenue strategy. |
For over 50 years, the Museum has served the Bay Area community as an educational and cultural center dedicated to supporting the Indigenous Peoples of the Americas. The Museum was founded in 1967 when an excavation of Miwok Park unearthed masses of artifacts related to the Coast Miwok people. From our location on unceded Coast Miwok land, we are dedicated to ensuring that our exhibits and programming bring greater awareness to this community, their place in our shared history, and their cultural contributions. Working with the Coast Miwok Tribal Council, the Museum’s permanent collection has been carefully curated to focus on two key themes: the Coast Miwok people have a living culture that has evolved from their distant past to the current day; and their culture can be a source of inspiration and wisdom for all peoples now living in Marin, especially as it pertains to living in relationship with the natural world. Beyond visitors to our permanent collection and rotating exhibits, the Museum is an institution for the youth of the Bay Area. Prior to our COVID-related closure, the Museum welcomed between 4,000 and 5,000 elementary school children as a part of our field trip programs, the majority of whom were from Marin County Public Schools. After re-opening, we aim to provide co-curricular activities that support key learning objectives for State of California students in the 4th and 9th grades. In addition to our field trip programs, the Museum partners with the local Native community to address issues specific to them – this may include hosting educational workshops facilitated by Native-led organizations, or working with Native artists to curate contemporary exhibits in our gallery. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $16,200.00 | Black Humboldt | 39 5th St , Eureka, 95501-0333 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 840-4641 | 2nd Congressional District | State Assembly District 2 | State President Pro Tempore | Black Humboldt is seeking general operating funds to sustain and expand our culturally responsive programming, administrative capacity, and community engagement efforts throughout California’s Northern Coast. CAC grant funds will support the staffing and operations required to continue our core programs—including the Arts & Legacy Project, Juneteenth Cultural Festival, The Black Aesthetic podcast, and youth-centered archival work—while enhancing organizational sustainability. Funding will help us provide stipends for artists and culture bearers, increase outreach to underserved areas like Trinity and Del Norte Counties, and invest in the infrastructure needed to expand our impact. This support ensures Black Humboldt remains a vital hub for Black and Brown creatives, storytellers, and community leaders across rural and coastal Northern California. |
Arts & Culture Programming – visual arts exhibitions, performance showcases, cultural festivals, and educational lectures focused on Black and Brown contributions to arts and culture. Uses creativity as a tool for wellness, expression, and community building. Uses arts and culture as a vehicle for Black & Brown history, education and representation. Community Events & Celebrations- Intentional social gatherings designed to cultivate connection, joy, and solidarity among local Black and Brown residents. Leadership Development & Community Advocacy- Programs designed to develop leadership among Black and Brown individuals in Humboldt, with a focus on equity, representation, and civic engagement. Network-building initiatives connecting local grassroots organizers and BIPOC-led groups to share resources and strengthen community infrastructure. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $20,500.00 | Street Poets | 2116 Arlington Ave. Suite 310 , Los Angeles, 90018 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 737-8545 | District 37 | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the CAC, Street Poets will facilitate weekly Beats and Rhymes music/poetry sessions . Youth will record tracks for our annual album and perform at the Open Mic. Funds also support our Music Fellowship program that engages our standout youth and provides lessons/mentorship around music production, business and more. |
Street Poets programming consists of transformational poetry/music workshops designed specifically for system-impacted youth. These include those in LA County’s juvenile detention facilities, community centers, and underserved public school, and at our Street Poets office and via our Poetry in Motion Van. Weekly workshops are supplemented by workforce development and leadership training, and mentoring, open-mic events, poetry performances and poetry reading series, as well as youth-driven books, CD and DVD projects that amplify/illustrate the kind of fearless creative work that inspires young people. Annually, we reach approximately 750 system-impacted youth, ages 11-18 directly through our long and short-term workshops, and over hundreds more via one-time Street Poets performances at schools and in the community. After 30 years of facilitating healing, transformational poetry, writing, and music production workshops; hosting inspirational community open mic events; and providing mentoring support and leadership retreats for youth and young adults in Los Angeles, Street Poets has put down permanent roots in the city it has served so well. Street Poets’ future arts/cultural center sits directly across the street from John Adams Middle School just south of downtown Los Angeles. Slated to open in the summer of 2026, the future Street Poets’ permanent home, Street Poets Center for Community, Culture and Wellness, begins an exciting new chapter in our evolution as a culture-shaping, system-changing community-based organization. This new space will anchor our arts-based outreach and community-building work here in LA. It will serve as a welcoming collaborative hub and convening space for the many arts and youth-serving organizations with whom we work, and as a multi-generational destination for poets of all ages. |
| General Operating Support | 2025-26 | $12,300.00 | Association of California Symphony Orchestras | 633 W 5th St., Ste 6000 c/o LBBS, LOS ANGELES, 90071 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (800) 495-2276 | California's 34th Congressional District | District 54 | District 28 | strengthen California’s orchestra and music ecosystem by building the capacity of the staff, board, musicians, and volunteers within its workforce. Through professional development, advocacy, and knowledge-sharing, we empower 115 orchestras and their workforce of 2,600+ to navigate change, seize opportunities, and deepen their impact for communities in every corner of of the state, ensuring all Californians have access to the transformative power of music. |
The Association of California Symphony Orchestras (ACSO) is the collective force for orchestral music in California and the West. Founded in 1969, ACSO is the longest-running and largest membership-supported organization of its kind in the United States and is the preeminent leader in connecting, providing resources and education, and advocating for its community. Guided by its commitment to be the voice, the forum, and the network for a growing community of orchestras, choruses, festivals, youth and university orchestras, aligned businesses, and orchestra professionals, ACSO provides essential leadership, networking, and learning through its annual conference; year-round educational, networking, and advocacy programs; and customized research and technical support. Advocacy Professional Development Capacity Building Peer-to-Peer Learning |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Silicon Valley Shakespeare | 775 E. Brokaw Road , SAN JOSE, 95112-1014 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 289-1901 | California's 17th congressional district | District 25 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, Silicon Valley Shakespeare will create the program “Shakespeare Is Us,” bringing culturally, financially, and geographically accessible afterschool theatre residency programs and student matinees to middle- and elementary-schoolers at Title I schools. Through the original curriculum “Shakespeare Through Your Eyes,” this identity-centered approach invites students to explore and reinterpret Shakespeare’s stories through their own cultures, languages, and lived experiences. Using movement, ensemble-building, and personal storytelling, students build confidence, communication skills, and a sense of creative ownership, connecting them to and giving agency over a 400-year-old artistic legacy and language shared across the globe. The program culminates in student matinees and public performances of an adapted Shakespeare play, reimagined entirely through their own voices. |
OUR CORE PROGRAMS *Free Shakespeare in the Park – produce one Shakespeare play, free to the public, at Willow Street Park in San José each spring (9 performances). *Winter Production – produce one classic, winter-themed production in the South Bay (11+ performances). *Education – provide a summer Shakespeare Camp for kids, in-school workshops, assemblies, and after-school programs to over 2,000 students in local schools, and an immersive trainee/mentorship program for local high-school and college students to develop professional skills. *Special events including an annual 48-hour Play Festival of locally developed new works, in partnership with a local college or university. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | San Francisco Youth Theatre | 1446 Market Street , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 571-1234 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, San Francisco Youth Theatre (SFYT) will build on existing partnerships by providing theatre arts training to Marshall Elementary School (grades K-5), and continue our long-time engagement with young children (PreK/Tk) in six SFUSD Early Childhood schools and classrooms. School populations include 460 youth from low-income households, ELL Spanish-speakers, and students with disabilities. Residencies will be taught by teachers who reflect the student population at each school, and will explore a wide range of theatre arts in both English and Spanish–acting, music, movement, story telling and dance, infusing joy and creativity into children’s school day. |
Founded in 2014, SFYT provides fully-accessible arts training and performance opportunities for youth ages 3-24 onsite at its Mission District location and in partnership with SFUSD schools and Community-Based Organizations. Primary beneficiaries are grades PreK–College low-income youth with limited access to theatre arts, including youth who are low income, LGBTQ+, youth with disabilities, newcomers, and English language learners. Transitional-aged youth (18-24) participate in SFYT’s Emerging Theatre Professional Program, which provides a pathway to arts careers through internships and employment opportunities. SFYT serves ≈1200 students in year-round school day, after-school, and summer programs. SFYT’s ongoing creative programs include: |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $17,500.00 | Arts & Learning Conservatory (ALC) | 151 Kalmus Drive, Suite G-3 SUITE G3, COSTA MESA, 92626-5988 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 728-7100 | California's 47th congressional district | District 73 | District 37 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts & Learning Conservatory (ALC) will provide a high-quality, comprehensive musical and technical theatre education program, encompassing theatre, dance, vocal instruction, and tech design at two schools, Letha Raney Intermediate School and Corona Fundamental Intermediate School, where approximately 80% of students face socioeconomic barriers. This initiative will serve 70 students (35 per school) ages 12-14, and reach an estimated audience of 1,300 community members. Designed to nurture self-awareness, build self-esteem, and enhance social-emotional learning, the program also equips students with tools for academic success and fosters meaningful community connections. For over two decades, Arts & Learning Conservatory has delivered world-class arts instruction directly to under-resourced schools, reviving creativity and opportunity in places too often silenced by budget cuts and systemic inequities. |
Key ALC programs include After School Arts Program (ASAP); Arts Connect; Theatre and Music Camps; Youth Mainstage Theatre Productions; smaller programs conducted at the ALC studio. All ALC teachers have Bachelor of Arts degrees and 60% have earned Master of Arts degrees. Their time teaching with us ranges from 3 to 15 years with a combined experience of 48 years. As professional and accomplished artists, they are role models and mentors for the students. 50% of our instructors are of color, representing those they serve. Our students, staff, and Master Class hosts reflect the community we serve including the deaf. ALC utilizes American Sign Language interpreters or full closed captions during designated performances. Staff and students of all abilities know that our conservatory listens with intent to the needs of the community to create support and artistic opportunities. Founded in 2004, ALC exists to ensuring equitable access through the transformative power of the arts. Grounded in our “Arts for All” mission, ALC delivers immersive, culturally responsive arts education that champions diversity, and cultivates student talent. ALC serves as a creative catalyst through sustained partnerships such as Think Together, and the Boys and Girls Clubs of the Central Coast. Our programs reach students in public and charter schools alike, many of whom come from historically underserved communities, and provide access to high-quality performing arts and Technical Theatre instruction. By intentionally casting students of all backgrounds in both lead and supporting roles, ALC ensures that every child has a voice and a stage. Our youth-centered curriculum not only builds artistic skill and confidence but also opens career pathways in the arts and beyond. These programs dismantle systemic barriers and stereotypes, preparing students, particularly students of color, with the tools they need to thrive in school, in the workforce, and in their communities. |
| Arts and Youth | 2025-26 | $18,000.00 | Mono Arts Council | 501 Old Mammoth Rd Suite 5, Mammoth Lakes, 93546-6098 | Mono | Central Valley | (760) 923-8984 | California's 3rd congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mono Arts Council will continue to provide all elementary and middle school students of the Eastern Sierra Unified School District with an engaging, community driven, hands-on music program. Started in 2022, the Crescendo Music Program has provided over 300 students in these rural Mono County communities with access to a sequential, standards-based music education they would not otherwise receive. |
Mono Arts Council offers arts programs to all residents and visitors of Mono County. We continue to create awareness of MAC activities through public outreach, our Gallery & Art Center, and our Art Festivals.Through the MAC Community Arts Center & Gallery we create a space for local, regional and emerging artists to exhibit their work. MAC offers art education in all Mono County schools. We provide free in school art instruction, free after school art and Kids Summer Art Camps. MAC reaches all students through in-school programs such as the Create With the Greats and Crescendo Music program. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | IN THE MARGIN | 2700 Capitol Ave , Sacramento, 95816 | Sacramento | Capital | (310) 923-4306 | With support from the California Arts Council, our proposal aims to empower marginalized communities through a culturally immersive playwright residency. The grant funds will be utilized exclusively within the U.S., focusing on the development of plays and stage readings following an ITM residency. Funds will support artists’ stipends, administrative costs, and travel within California. Our project centers on fostering collaboration between local artists and community members, prioritizing the voices of historically underrepresented groups. By creating inclusive spaces for artistic expression and cultural exchange, we seek to address social inequalities and promote healing and empowerment. Through ongoing evaluation and responsiveness to community needs, we aim to create a transformative and sustainable impact on California’s cultural landscape. |
ITM core programming includes educational workshops for professional development and skill building, new work development, and arts programming (theatre, film, multimedia). |
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| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $6,481.00 | Front Porch Music | 716 ST MARYS RD , LAFAYETTE, 94549-5339 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 616-8512 | With support from the California Arts Council, Front Porch Music will build on its successful track record of networking acoustic musicians across Contra Costa, Alameda, Solano, Marin, and San Francisco counties. Since 2019, our core programs—including monthly open mic nights and affordable public performances—have been serving senior musicians, emerging artists, and folk music lovers throughout the region. Our network has grown from 20 to 250 members. This grant will enable us to add and maintain robust web features for musician profiles, collaboration and performance opportunities, and gig listings. Additionally, it will support nonprofit partnerships for a volunteer corps of Front Porch musicians to bring the joy of acoustic music to charitable events for marginalized communities. This grant will help ensure musicians are well-connected, fostering inclusivity, meaningful performances, and intergenerational connections for the community at large. |
The flagship program of Front Porch Music is a monthly open mic, now in its sixth year, which provides a regular platform for musicians of all skill levels to perform, connect, collaborate, and share their music with each other and the community. It is free to participate, with a suggested donation for those who can afford it. For two years, we have produced a highly affordable quarterly public performance series in partnership with the Town Hall Theatre in Lafayette (a letter of support is attached), showcasing the region’s amazing, non-professional musical talent nurtured through the Front Porch open mics, and giving musicians a chance to participate in a polished show on a big stage with great lighting, sound, videography, and sold-out seats. The Town Hall shows also feature a professional musical group to cap off the evening, further inspiring audiences and regional musicians. Our website and e-newsletter serve as a digital hub for the community, offering news, updates, and resources related to local music events, opportunities, and Front Porch Music initiatives. This year, we transitioned to 501(c)(3) status and are developing a series of workshops with regional performers on songwriting, stage performance, playing in a group, and so forth. These will help musicians improve their craft and gain confidence. Additionally, we are developing a gift guitar program to ensure that music is accessible to everyone by providing guitars to individuals who might not otherwise have the opportunity to play. At present, we have six gifted guitars in-house ready for their new homes, with many more to come. Our goal for late ’24 and through ’25 is to expand our capabilities as a regional network for folk musicians and members of the community through this grant request. |
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| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | $18,517.00 | Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area | 1446 Market Street Intersection for the Arts, San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (619) 993-5147 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | The mission of the Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area (AEA) is to connect and catalyze arts education communities for a more just and creative Bay Area. With support from CAC, AEA will provide a hands-on, standards aligned arts integration workshop series across three Bay Area school districts for a total of six workshops. Districts include San Francisco-, Oakland-, and West Contra Costa Unified School Districts and will be open to all K-5. The content of the workshop series will be informed by Creative Youth Development and Culturally Responsive teaching practices and tailored to community specific needs to further develop the ability of teachers to implement responsive arts integrated curriculum. Our goal is to share best arts integration strategies and practice while deepening community connection within and across district educator networks. |
The Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area CONNECTS and CATALYZES local arts education coalitions for a more just and creative San Francisco Bay Area. We serve as a regional hub and unifying voice for local coalitions of teaching artists, school districts, student and their families, community arts organizations, cultural institutions, city and county agencies, funders, business leaders, and arts education advocates throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our regional work aligns with Create CA’s state arts education efforts as well as the national efforts of the National Guild for Community Art Education and Arts Education Partnership. The Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area supports our members to cultivate responsive leadership and advocate for arts education through ongoing convening events, professional learning workshops, monthly newsletters, and advocacy resources. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | Queer Cultural Center | 934 Brannan St , San Francisco, 94103-4906 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 821-8254 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the CAC, QCC will promote the artistic and economic development of the SF Bay Area’s LGBTQ2S+ (lesbian, gay, bisexual, transgender, queer, and two-spirit) arts community by: 1) publishing 12 monthly newsletters; 2) providing fiscal sponsorship and grant writing services to 12 emerging LGBTQ2S+ arts groups and individual artists; 3) and conducting 8-12 capacity-building workshops. Additionally, funding will support an active assessment of the current Fiscally Sponsored Project program in order to increase its effectiveness, capacity, and reach, with a focus on extending QCC’s ability to support QTBIPOC (queer and transgender black, indigenous, and people of color) artists and arts organizations throughout California. |
Since 1998, QCC has curated and produced 26 month-long National Queer Arts Festivals that have featured over 2500 LGBTQ2S+ artists in 1150+ different arts events. QCC’s arts services comprise artistic program planning, fiscal sponsorship, free/low-cost grant-proposal and report writing, marketing strategies, capacity-building workshops, and free/low-cost strategic/development planning services to emerging queer and trans arts organizations with a focus on organizations led by BIPOC, trans and gender non-conforming people, and lesbians, who are all marginalized in LGBTQ2S+ arts funding. To date, our arts services program has enabled over 46+ Bay Area LGBTQ2S+ arts organizations to raise over $8,600,000. QCC’s arts services support the next generation of emerging Queer and Trans artists to acquire the skills to develop, finance, and stage work addressing LGBTQ2S+ Civil rights and social justice issues. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Healing Rhythms | 12561 Palm Dr Ste. D, Desert Hot Springs, 92240-4521 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (619) 917-2101 | California Congressional District 25 | California State Assembly District 36 | California State Senate District 23 | With support from the California Arts Council, Healing Rhythms will facilitate an after school West African drumming program for children, ages twelve-fourteen two days a week. This program will be a series of workshops on Thursdays and Fridays at two different after school programs in the underserved community of North Palm Springs. |
Core Programs Services |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | East LA Rising | 324 N MCDONNELL AVE , LOS ANGELES, 90022-1127 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 590-8881 | With support from the California Arts Council, EAST LOS ANGELES BOYS AND GIRLS CLUB will address the evolving needs of students in our underserved communities and our system-impacted, at-promise youth through an important resource. high-quality creative arts education. We will use our four complementary concepts: (1) Social Emotional Learning through the Arts (2) Development of life skills such as critical thinking, problem solving, leadership, and collaboration. |
ELABGC has been a community pillar, tirelessly dedicated to serving those in greatest need. Our youth programs, including Mentoring with Case Management in the M.E.N.T.O.R. initiative, uniquely blend with the Department of Education’s A-G curriculum. Our A-G approach provides youth with essential tools for success: mentors and holistic care. Our diverse programs span Academic Enrichment/STEM, The Arts, Athletics, Anti-Bullying, Buddies (mentors), Character Development, Cultural Awareness, College/Career Prep, Community Advocacy, Dealing With Your Feelings, Drug Prevention, Employment, Environmental Science, Food and Fitness, Financial Literacy, Family Resources, Gang Prevention, Gender-based Rites of Passage courses, and Health & Wellness. Our programs are evidence-based and all contain character development principles and social-emotional learning. |
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| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Mariachi Scholarship Foundation | 3757 SWEETWATER RD , BONITA, 91902-1137 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 888-9509 | 53rd | 79th | 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Mariachi Scholarship Foundation will be able to fund 250 students’ participation in the 2025 San Diego International Mariachi Summit at Southwestern College. Participation includes instruction from the best mariachi and ballet folklórico performers in the world (former members of Mariachi Vargas de Tecalitlán, Ballet Folklórico de México de Amalia Hernandez, and others), tickets to four concerts (Gala Concert, Folklórico Performance, Welcome Concert with Southwestern College Mariachi Garibaldi, Student Showcase), a guided tour of the largest-in-the-world mariachi history museum, and performance opportunities for the students. The fee of $100 per student includes instruction, instructional materials, tickets to all 4 concerts, and three meals while onsite. |
Core programs include annual conferences to teach the study of instruments including trumpet, violin, guitar, vihuela, guitarron and harp and to provide mariachi music education from some of the most famous mariachi performers in the world. We also provide ballet folklorico dance training to students at his annual conference with the most famous ballet folklorico teachers in the world. We then provide college scholarships annually to those students who participate in the Mariachi in the Schools programs and the Southwestern Community College District and the ballet folklorico programs in the same schools. The foundation also provides opportunities for these students to perform with world famous mariachis and ballet folklorico dancers in various large theatre venues in California. During the pandemic, being unable to meet in person, the foundation provided a virtual mariachi summit, providing over 200 videos to instructors to teach students, reaching over 20,000 students in California, throughout the United States and all over the world. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | People's Conservatory | 6738 BANNING DR , OAKLAND, 94611-1561 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (917) 806-9606 | 12th Congressional District | District 14 | District 7 | With support of the California Arts Council, The People’s Conservatory (TPC) will facilitate an outstanding Community Arts Summer Intensive program in 2025- offering 3 weeks/15 days of high-quality cultural-based professional arts classes to Youth, in grades K-12, in the Jingletown and Fruitvale areas of Oakland, CA 94606. This area has an HPI score of 26.6 and a block from15.3 HPI. We want to pour into these youth and offer them skills across artistic disciplines. TPC’s Summer Arts Intensive will take place during June 5-23, 2023. This program will be focused on enhancing neighborhood vibrancy and community cohesion, will offer a variety of multidisciplinary arts classes, be taught by TPC’s Staff of locally based Master Teaching-Artists and be FREE to participants. |
TPC currently serves over 2000 students at 6 school sites directly and several additional schools throughout the East Bay. We offer fully-integrated school day arts programming, after school arts academies, homeschool programming, weekend arts classes, one-day workshops, teacher trainings, and school showcases. 92% of our students are of African American and/or Latinx descent, 85% free/reduced lunch, and mostly reside in Oakland’s lower economic areas including East Oakland, West Oakland and Fruitvale. TPC’s curriculum is rooted in ethnic and cultural studies that honors our students’ backgrounds and inherent artistic voices. Our culturally and community responsive techniques are designed to develop professional arts knowledge and skills, as well as cultivate imagination, creativity, self-knowledge, and social awareness. It is Visual and Performing Arts Standards aligned, Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) aligned, and is informed by Culturally Responsive Pedagogy (CRP) and Arts Integration research. |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | $18,517.00 | CoTA (Collaborations: Teachers and Artists) | 342 Euclid Ave, Ste 406 #110 , San Diego, 92114 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 677-0751 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, CoTA (Collaborations: Teachers and Artists) will coach 21 teachers (TK-6th grade) at Barton Elementary on planning, implementing and assessing arts integrated projects to support student learning in the classroom. Each grade-level team will be trained in two art strategies (visual arts, creative movement and/or creative drama) and each teacher will lead two arts integrated projects with their students. Projects will address language arts and/or math standards as well as California visual and performing arts standards. Celebrations of Learning will be presented to share student learning with the broader school community. |
Our core work involves professional development over a three-year period with every teacher in our partner schools. Each teacher is strategically paired with one of our highly-trained teaching artists. CoTA works incrementally with each classroom teacher by providing differentiated one-on-one lesson design and co-teaching over an annual ten-week period. Students receive 60 minutes per week of direct artist instruction (10 hours). Teachers receive an additional 30-45 minutes per week of training/coaching from Teaching Artists (project planning, reflections, and lesson study). CoTA’s design is built around a model of gradual release of responsibility that incrementally shifts the classroom teacher into a leadership role in the arts integration process. This individual work with teachers is complemented by whole school workshops and lesson study involving the entire staff at key points during the school year. In 2018, the Centers for Research on Creativity (CRoC) completed a three-year study on the impact of arts integration implementation in three San Diego school districts employing a process methodology developed by CoTA. CRoC’s findings synthesized quantitative outcomes employing the Next Generation Creativity Assessment (NGCA) created by Principal Investigator and CRoC founder, the late James Catterall. Qualitative analysis gleaned from structured observations, questionnaires and interviews of teachers, artists, principals, and school district superintendents was also undertaken by CRoC research associates in the field. CRoC concluded that the three-year findings are promising for students with sustained, statistically significant growth in demonstrated creativity, creative self-efficacy, and empathy. Additionally, in the final year, students experienced a very large significant gain in critical thinking. CRoC suggests that the CoTA program builds upon creative skills sequentially, targeting general creativity in the early years, followed by deep critical thinking in the final year of the program, after solidifying general creativity, collaboration, and empathy. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | Fua Dia Kongo | 1428 Alice Street , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 629-9382 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | The Kizingu project by Fua Dia Kongo empowers African descent youth in California through an innovative performing arts and leadership program. Rooted in Kongolese dance, drumming, and traditions, Kizingu celebrates cultural identity, fosters creativity, and nurtures leadership among ages 9-19. With CAC grant funds, Kizingu offers comprehensive arts education including dance, drumming, theater, storytelling, and staging training. The program provides apprenticeship opportunities for mentorship in traditional arts, leading to performance experience. Participants share their talents through staged performances, sharing cultural heritage. Grant funds cover instructor fees, materials, venue rentals, administrative costs, and apprenticeship support. Kizingu aims to preserve cultural heritage, empower youth, and promote social change, aligning with Creative Youth Development goals in California. |
MalongaFest, Community Dance & Drum Classes at the Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts, Embrace Kongo, Ballet Kizingu Youth Ensemble |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Center for World Music | 2225 9th Street , Encinitas, 92024-6512 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 363-3007 | California's 49rd Congressional District | District 77 | District 38 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Center for World Music will promote awareness and understanding of the rich performing arts traditions of the world through school-wide, student-interactive assemblies in underserved PreK-12 San Diego area schools. Part of the CWM’s World Music in the Schools core program, our assemblies program brings maximal numbers of students into contact with teaching artists who are also culture bearers. Students experience world music and dance in an exciting format, gaining beneficial knowledge about world geography, history, cultures, languages, and traditions. |
The Center for World Music (CWM) delivers transformative arts programming across San Diego County through three flagship initiatives, each designed to serve a distinct segment of the community and showcase the performing arts of Asia, Africa, Latin America, Europe, and North America. WORLD MUSIC CONCERTS SCHOOLS PROGRAM ACCESS TO ARTS FOR SENIORS CWM’s core programs are rooted in authenticity, accessibility, and a commitment to cultural respect, ensuring that world music and dance remain vibrant and available to all members of San Diego’s diverse community. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Teatro Visión | 565 N. Fifth St. , San Jose, 95112 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 294-6621 | District 19 | District 27 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, Teatro Visión will continue the development of a new work of live theater created through a series of conversations and workshops with community members in East San José in collaboration with poet and activist, Yosimar Reyes, currently serving as Poet Laureate of Santa Clara County. Reyes and Teatro Visión will conduct interviews and poetry-writing workshops with local community members to capture their experiences, historical and regional knowledge, and their place in the cultural landscape of our community. Weaving these narratives together, Reyes will work with Teatro Visión and other artists, incorporating local history and music, to create a flexible performance piece that elevates community voices and inspires continued civic engagement in our region. |
Teatro Visión was founded in 1984 by members of Women in Teatro, a statewide network of Chicano theaters. Today, Teatro Visión continues to raise a unique, bilingual voice in Bay Area theater. Our core programs include: Our annual Día de Muertos production is a high caliber professional theater performance, a performance opportunity for community actors of all ages, and the anchor for a series of events that bring our community together around the themes of the play. Our annual youth production offers a cast and crew of young people aged 10 to 18 the opportunity to build skills, confidence, and community connections by participating in a professional theater production. Our smaller productions and events, including La Hora del Mitote and events produced in collaboration with partner organizations, build community while highlighting Latinx artists and artists from other underrepresented groups. Our community-based new work development programs draw on the diverse voices in our community to create unique, relevant works of theater that position Teatro Visión as an innovator in community engagement and theater creation. Our teatro classes teach performance as a tool for social change, strengthening the critical thinking, self-confidence, communication, and problem-solving skills that students need to make positive changes in our community. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | EPACENTER | 1950 Bay Rd , East Palo Alto, 94303 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 313-2626 | California Assembly District 16 | District 21 | District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, EPACENTER will build on its rich history as a youth arts organization, created by youth and for youth in San Mateo County, and develop a new Youth Leadership Program with the aim of creating a vibrant arts district in the city of East Palo Alto. EPACENTER will invest in a diverse cohort of young adults, ages 18-24, who will participate in a series of visioning exercises and art projects for the community. During first phase of this project, EPACENTER’s Youth Fellows will identify how arts and culture can address the needs of East Palo Alto, and the role that EPACENTER can play in creating a vibrant arts district in the city. The second phase will include large scale arts events that uplift local artists and showcase youth leadership. |
EPACENTER offers free and low-cost programming, ensuring that the arts remain accessible to those most in need in San Mateo and Santa Clara Counties. Every weekday, the center serves as a learning environment in the arts for adults with developmental disabilities during the day, and for toddlers, kids, and teens after school. On weekends, the center offers classes for all ages, and community events that are accessible, family-friendly, and reflective of the region’s cultural diversity. Through our programming, we are working towards a vibrant Silicon Valley where anyone can explore their talents, realize their creative potential, and enjoy the arts in all forms. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | The David's Harp Foundation, Inc. | 705 16th Street , San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 707-5855 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, The David’s Harp Foundation will empower justice-involved youth at East Mesa and Kearny Mesa Juvenile Detention Facilities through culturally relevant media production programs. This initiative aims to elevate the voices of marginalized youth, especially those reintegrating into the community after the closure of state facilities. By offering art-making opportunities, mentorship from trusted adults, and equitable access to the local creative economy, we provide a holistic support system for these young individuals. Grant funds will be used to employ graduates of TDHF who have successfully completed probation, hiring them as beat-making instructors to work alongside our Artist Mentors within all county juvenile detention facilities. This ensures continuity of support and the development of a strong, positive community for youth both during and after their time in the detention facilities. |
The David’s Harp Foundation’s core programs and services provide a relationship-centered creative youth development pathway for opportunity youth, including young people impacted by juvenile justice, foster care, homelessness, poverty, and educational disruption. The Student Studio is often the first point of connection. Youth gain access to professional music production, songwriting, recording, podcasting, and media arts instruction. Through creative projects, Artist Mentors build trust, support emotional expression, and help young people develop confidence, collaboration, and a positive sense of identity. Beats Behind the Wall brings this same creative and relational model inside juvenile detention facilities, including East Mesa and Kearny Mesa. Young people who are incarcerated participate in music production, songwriting, recording, digital arts, and storytelling. The program creates a safe space for youth to process their experiences, build skills, and be seen as artists, leaders, and creators rather than being defined by their charges or circumstances. Beats Beyond the Wall is the reentry continuation of this work, connecting youth to continued support, mentorship, and programming after release. The Biz Pod is our creative workforce development program. Youth learn videography, photography, audio engineering, editing, design, project management, client communication, and entrepreneurship through paid work on real projects for nonprofit, corporate, and community partners. This helps young people build resumes, earn income, and access San Diego’s creative economy. The Transformation House provides safe, supportive, family-style housing for young people who need a stable bridge into adulthood. Residents participate in David’s Harp programming while receiving mentorship, workforce support, life skills development, and preparation for independent living. Together, these programs form a continuum of care that reaches youth inside institutions, welcomes them into community, and supports them as they create, heal, work, lead, and thrive. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | Lyrical Opposition | 132 Visitacion Avenue , Brisbane, 94005 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (424) 260-3650 | 15th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Lyrical Opposition will be able to expand and further our equity goals through our project, Re-Entrification. We plan to use a multi-phase approach, starting with creating spaces that center artists and community voices while promoting equity through inclusive storytelling around the concept of Re-Entrification, which addresses the intersections of housing insecurity, displacement, gentrification, and the need for affordable housing for artists and community members. This project will use film screenings, Q&A discussions, and live art exhibits to promote community engagement, raise awareness, facilitate dialogue, and empower advocacy for equitable housing solutions. Re-Entrification will utilize the arts to continue next steps, including research, funding acquisition, and capital campaigns for artist villages, to long-term sustainability and equity, increasing the likelihood of creating lasting, equitable affordable housing and artistic expression solutions. |
Lyrical Opposition develops lyrical artists, activists and educators through personal and professional development. Lyrical Opposition also partners with communities of color in order to curate events centered around joy, liberation, and healing. Lyrical Originals are curated artistic spaces, where Lyrical Opposition organizes events and platforms where artists, musicians, poets, and filmmakers can showcase their work and share messages of hope, empowerment, and social justice. These events are often admission-free, making them accessible to a wider audience. Lyrical Studios is our physical space where we offer artists and filmmakers equipment and software use to create new works. We encourage and support artists who use their creative talents to raise awareness about social issues, challenge systemic oppression, and inspire positive change in their communities. Lyrical Opposition provides resources needed to thrive as a professional artist in the marketplace. Lyrical Academy leads and engages in educational programs and workshops aimed at empowering individuals, particularly youth, to use creative expression as a tool for personal growth, self-expression, and advocacy. Lyrical Open is a monthly open space for creatives to connect, collaborate and network with other artists and community members. Lyrical Opposition aims to create these spaces where people can come together, celebrate their creativity, and find solace and inspiration in the midst of challenging societal issues. Lyrical Vinyl is a nonprofit record store that exists to serve as space for artists to work for supplemental income in between gigs and performances. As well as being a space in the community with the intent of preserving the arts and physical mediums. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | Intersection | 1446 Market Street , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 626-2787 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Intersection for the Arts will continue to offer our robust programs and arts services including fiscal sponsorship, professional development, and low-cost shared administrative and creation space in the heart of San Francisco to diverse Bay Area artists and cultural workers. CAC funding will support Intersection’s capacity building programming for the Bay Area’s artists and small arts organizations including our Fiscal Sponsorship Program and our Artists Learning in Community Program which will offer the following professional development programs: BIPOCArts Leadership Program, Arts Finance Empowerment Camp, Art of the Hustle marketing cohort, Coaching Cohort Circles, Grants Coaching & Proposal Reviews, and our Annual Membership Meeting. |
For six decades, Intersection for the Arts has served as a bedrock institution in the San Francisco Bay Area, providing critical support to artists and small arts organizations across disciplines. As a nonprofit deeply rooted in the region’s artistic landscape, Intersection offers a unique blend of services that empower artists and cultural workers to bring their creative visions to life. At the heart of Intersection’s work is our Artist Membership Program & Incubator, which provides fiscal sponsorship and integrated programming described below, enabling over 135 artist led arts organizations working in visual arts, literary arts, music, theater, dance, arts education, advocacy, and emerging art forms to access funding, grants, and administrative support. This program helps artists navigate the often-complex nonprofit funding landscape while focusing on their creative work. Intersection’s Artist Empowerment Program is designed to equip artists with the tools and skills they need to thrive. Offerings include THRIVE: A BIPOC Arts Leadership Program, the Arts Finance Empowerment Camp, the Art of the Hustle marketing cohort, Grants Coaching, and an Annual Membership Meeting. These programs strengthen artists’ entrepreneurial skills, financial literacy, and leadership capacity. In addition, Intersection offers low-cost administrative and creation space in the heart of San Francisco, providing affordable co-working, rehearsal, and event space where artists can collaborate, experiment, and build community. Through these core programs and services, Intersection ensures that Bay Area artists and cultural workers have access to the vital resources, networks, and learning opportunities they need to grow. With a passionate team of artists supporting artists, Intersection upholds our mission of helping the arts sector thrive, building a more vibrant, inclusive, and resilient cultural ecosystem in the process. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | Rios to Rivers | 100 tomorrow lane , Somes bar, 95569 | Humboldt | Upstate | (970) 948-2395 | 2nd congressional district | District 1 | Dahle | With support from the California Arts Council, the Paddle Tribal Waters Storytelling Project will honor the largest dam removal in history underway on the Klamath River by lifting up voices of Native youth as they prepare to be the first to paddle the River as it flows freely for the first time in a century, documenting their journey, supporting them as storytellers and the next generation of leaders to help restore cultural river-based identities. The program equips Indigenous youth to confidently express the importance of this historic moment through verbal, written and visual storytelling – including documentary film and photography – and draws upon ancestral cultural traditions through inter-generational community celebrations. The program reinforces Narrative Sovereignty, allowing Native peoples historically excluded from telling our own stories to have authority over our own identities and cultures. |
Our core program in the USA is Paddle Tribal Waters which provides Indigenous youth from the Klamath River Basin ways to intimately experience their ancestral watersheds, revitalizing river-based identifies, working with inter-generational culture bearers to revitalize traditional cultural practices and passing on Traditional Ecological Knowledge (TEK). Paddle Tribal Waters provides intensive summer, year-long and multi-year opportunities for youth to learn to safely navigate local rivers, to build leadership development skills, and to become Storytellers through their own perspectives, including through documentary film, photography, written and spoken word, and visual and traditional arts. Our program integrates ecological, spiritual, emotional and physical health in a holistic way that encourages young people to be role models and leaders in their communities. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Healing Heels | 3053 Freeport Blvd suite 402 , Sacramento, 95818 | Sacramento | Capital | (510) 423-1041 | 7th congressional District | District 06 | District 08 | With support from the California Arts Council, Healing Heels will be able to create a meaningful production, highlighting artistic expression and mental health awareness. This grant will enable us to provide comprehensive training and performance opportunities for our diverse group of youth participants. The artists involved will benefit from industry-level mentorship and development, enhancing their skills and boosting their confidence. By offering professional training and resources, we empower these young artists to reach new heights in their creative journeys, fostering a sense of achievement and career pathways in the arts. The community will also reap significant benefits from this showcase. It will serve as a unifying event that celebrates the “art saves lives” mantra. Moreover, the showcase will spark important conversations around mental health and cultural identity, contributing to a more inclusive and understanding community. |
Say hello to healing through the arts, because the arts saves lives. Art forms we are provide: Through the arts we provide assemblies, residences, summer camps, and pre/professional productions to ages 4 & up all over Sacramento region, next is the Bay Area and Los Angeles. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $23,147.00 | Nava Dance Theatre | 80 Turk Street , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (925) 457-1140 | 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Nava Dance Theatre will produce our fourth iteration of Unrehearsed: Artist Residency and Commissioning Program (URP) which confronts systemic structural prejudices in the Indian performing arts community by curating art-centered interactive work in progress showings, performances, and discussions to make dialogue around these issues more accessible. Unrehearsed will center in-person presentations in San Francisco, along with public workshops by the residents for community members/dancers and non-dancers. CAC funds will support three California based resident artists and their production expenses, project personnel and project venue costs for presenting their work in San Francisco. |
Nava Dance Theatre (NDT), led by Artistic Director Nadhi Thekkek, is a Bharatanatyam company using South Indian dance as a medium for reflection and discovery. We focus on two main programs: original dance works and our Unrehearsed: Artist Residency and Commissioning program. We also offer subsidized workshops, co-produce the Varnam Salon, and organize classes as part of our community engagement. Highlights include residencies at CounterPulse and A.C.T., two commissions from Oakland Ballet, and support from the New England Foundation for the Arts’ National Dance Project. Our work has also been funded by the MAP Fund, National Endowment for the Arts, California Arts Council, San Francisco Arts Commission, and more. Since 2013, we’ve performed nationally at venues such as La Mama (NYC), National Steinbeck Center, SF Ethnic Dance Festival, Yerba Buena Gardens Festival, UC Davis Mondavi Center, and UMass Amherst Fine Arts Center. NDT creates immersive, community-centered performances rooted in South Asian storytelling through Bharatanatyam and experimental movement. Our blend of dance, music, and narrative reflects the lived experiences of Indian and South Asian communities. Drawing from oral histories and interviews, we explore themes like migration, identity, and justice. Through responsible, culturally responsive storytelling, we center underrepresented voices and invite audiences to reflect, connect, and take pride in our shared histories. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | YOSAL | 1122 E Alisal St , SALINAS, 93901-2406 | Monterey | Central Coast | (831) 756-5335 | California's 20th congressional district | District 30 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, EL SISTEMA USA SALINAS INC (DBA YOSAL) will continue to fund crucial operational needs such as space rental, teacher salaries for equity focused music educator development. This support enables us to sustain our exceptional music education programs—OrcheSTARS!, Da Capo, and Symphony Orchestra—that serve over 250 underserved students annually in Salinas and surrounding areas. Our programs are crafted to accommodate various skill levels and age groups, providing a transformative experience that fosters discipline and teamwork among predominantly Latino youth. This operational support is vital for continuing to deliver high-quality, transformative music education and for strengthening YOSAL’s impact, reshaping community perceptions through the power of outstanding musical learning. |
YOSAL’s primary goals are to make classical and orchestral music accessible to the city’s low-income youth and to provide a safe space and community through which they can also access mental health resources, such as counseling. YOSAL provides instruments, weekly music classes, ensemble rehearsals, choir, music theory, and music history classes, all free of charge to students in 1st through 12th grade. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Raizes Collective | PO BOX 8606 , SANTA ROSA, 95407 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 486-6300 | California's 5th congressional district | District 10 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, RAIZES COLLECTIVE will invite 15-20 students to attend 4 excursions in the academic year of 2024-2025. RAIZES will arrange in-person workshops with 4 prominent Bay Area Artists before witnessing major artistic works at The Brava Theater, YERBA Buena Center for the Arts, The San Francisco Symphony, and the Youth Speaks Poetry Slam. We work weekly with 250 students, who have self-identified as 35% housing insecure, 10% impacted by the criminal or juvenile justice system, 10% in foster care, and 25% are enrolled in Restorative Justice classes on their campus. Field Trips will be all-inclusive covering the costs of entrance fees, Artist Stipends, Transportation, meals, chaperone stipends, and a 10% Administration expense. With the help of matching funds, Field trips will range from $6000 – $8000 each. |
COSECHA PROGRAM; YOUTH EMPOWERMENT. This program brings together SUPPORT FOR ARTISTS OF COLOR. Raizes provides artist members support, like showcasing and offering opportunities to exhibit or perform. ALMAS LIBRES; A membership organization, ALMAS Libres offers Immigrant and Indigenous women access to information, know-your-rights training, leadership development and policy campaigns. COMMUNITY CULTURAL EVENTS AND ACTIVITIES. Murals and cultural gatherings. COMMUNITY OUTREACH AND ENGAGEMENT. Raizes offered critical outreach and information to communities of color during natural FISCALLY SPONSORED ARTISTIC AND CULTURAL PROJECTS |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $23,147.00 | MID-CITY COMMUNITY MUSIC | 4011 Ohio Street , San Diego, 92104 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 268-1312 | California's 53rd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Mid-City Community Music (MCCM) will provide a free of cost music performance workshop to under-resourced youth in Central San Diego. MCCM connects middle and high school aged youth in weekly group music lessons and performance rehearsals. Students prepare a 30 to 45 minute set filled with songs they selected, learned, and interpreted as a group. Every 12 weeks, students are given an opportunity to perform alongside other MCCM artists in a concert for family, friends, and community members. Funding from the CAC would ensure that this program can continue to be accessible and allow for growth in enrollment. |
MCCM serves San Diego’s Mid-City neighborhoods through the following programs: Juvenile Court and Community Schools (JCCS) Instrument Instruction Community Concerts Mid-City Entrepreneurs |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $127,459.00 | Office of Arts and Culture | 915 I Street 3rd Floor, Sacramento, 95814 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 808-3979 | California's 6th congressional district | District 7 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, Sacramento Office of Arts and Culture will invest in funding and capacity building in unincorporated areas of Sacramento. With a population of over 600,000, these unincorporated communities include some of the lowest quartile census tracts in Sacramento County and, historically, have not received the level of city and county funding support as the incorporated areas. This investment will provide much needed resources for arts and cultural activities and creative sector activation within these neighborhoods. Funds will also support implementation of the county-wide Poetry Out Loud high school poetry recitation competition. |
The four core programs of the Office of Arts & Culture (OAC) are: 1. Grants & Capacity Building Programs; – These include Cultural Arts Awards, an operating support program and joint program of the City of Sacramento and Sacramento County; Cultural Equity Investment Program, for organizations led by, and predominantly serving marginalized communities; and Sacramento Cultural Match Fund for grassroots creative placemaking, in partnership with social justice focused crowdfunding platform ioby.org. An annual schedule of professional development trainings accompany each of these grant programs. 2). Arts Education – training and vetting of teaching artists for Any Given Child Sacramento, partnership in Sacramento Arts Education Consortium, and management of Artlook, an equity driven arts education database and mapping tool for Sacramento schools. 3.; Art in Public Places – APP includes management of a collection of 700 works of art, commissioning new work, and engagement with the community in creative placemaking activities. 4; Sacramento Film + Media – oversees the city’s film office which is responsible for permitting film in the City and improving the climate for, and expanding production of, film in the city. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Greater Bay Area Arts and Cultural Advocacy Coalition | California for the Arts, 1731 Howe Avenue , Sacramento, 95805 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 800-5881 | With support from the California Arts Council, California for the Arts will serve as the fiscal sponsor of the Greater Bay Area Arts and Cultural Advocacy Coalition. The Coalition delivers advocacy programming in the form of in-person convenings, monthly calls, and financial support of professional development for advocates. The Coalition builds the capacity of artists, arts organizations, and arts supporters in the region to engage in the public policy making process at city, county, and state levels. The education activities equip members to take action in two issue areas: 1) equitable investment and capacity building for artists and small and BIPOC-led organizations and 2) community economic and cultural resilience. The Coalition aims to strengthen Greater Bay Area communities by shaping arts, cultural, and community development agendas and developing recommendations that inform policy implementation. |
Strategically, the coalition engages in opportunities like advocacy actions, fellowships, and sub-regional projects. We are expanding our network with new members and deepening policy engagement to drive change. Future directions include developing core narratives with artists as strategists, expanding membership diversity, and strategizing around state-regional policy efforts. These efforts aim to ensure a sustainable, inclusive, and equitable future for the arts and cultural communities across the Greater Bay Area. The coalition commits to the following values in action in our collective work: |
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| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | Theatre Bay Area | 499 Alabama St. #450 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 430-1140 | 11th Congressional District of California | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Theatre Bay Area will pursue our mission of service and support for the Bay Area theatre community by providing grants, programs, services, convening for the field, and audience-building activities across 13 counties. |
TBA’s programs & activities: Professional Development: Includes monthly webinars, roundtables, and the weekly Writers’ Room, in partnership with Z Space. TBA’s major convenings include 1. Annual General Auditions (connecting 200+ actors with 100+ producers and casting directors), 2. Annual TBA Conference (convening 200+ theatremakers for a full day of learning and community building). Grants & Awards: Include the Hewlett Foundation-funded CA$H Grants program; the Rella Lossy and Glickman Awards for local playwrights; the Arts Leadership Residency Program; the RHE Artistic Fellowship; and the Mary Mason Lemonade Fund. Collectively, these programs will contribute over $175,000 to Bay Area theatremakers in FY26. Audience Development: TBA helps theatre companies grow their audiences through initiatives like the Postcard Distribution Network, which distributes marketing collateral at 57 locations; Bay Area Theatre Week, which highlights the diverse offerings in our community with targeted discounts and community gatherings; the TheatreGoer e-newsletter delivering monthly show listings and special offers to 12,000 subscribers; and the TBA Highlights program which celebrates productions that meet objective criteria in alignment with our community’s values. Research & New Initiatives: TBA explores innovative research initiatives and pilot programs that address challenges facing theatremakers. TBA’s Shared Services Project aims to increase administrative efficiency, reduce costs, and support the long-term sustainability of Bay Area theatre. Throughout 2025-26, TBA will pilot elements of the Shared Services program and continue sharing research results with our community so we can co-create impactful programs. Arts Advocacy: TBA partners with groups like Arts for a Better Bay Area, Bay Area Arts Together, Californians for the Arts, and California Arts Advocates to effect policy change and secure increased arts funding. Recent successes: TBA supported AB280, which created a carve-out for nonprofits, and was involved in efforts related to SB478 and the implementation of the Performing Arts Equitable Payroll Fund. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $23,147.00 | Aunt Lute Books | 2180 Bryant Street, Suite #207 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 826-1300 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Aunt Lute Books will partner with Yaffa A.S. and the Muslim Alliance for Sexual and Gender Diversity to execute a three-part program serving trans and queer Palestinians as well as others who have been impacted by or displaced by genocide, especially those racialized as Arab or Muslim and Black and Indigenous folks. We will host: a panel on how culture workers, artists, and writers can move society towards more equitable and just conditions, centering trans Palestinian voices and including queer, Black, and Indigenous culture workers; a workshop for trans and queer, Palestinian, Arab, and Black artists and writers training them on how to use art to move toward utopia; and a reading of works written during that workshop. |
Aunt Lute publishes 3-4 new titles a year, provides editorial support, and promotes authors through extensive programming, leveraging the power of literature to manifest connection. Our programming includes readings, workshops, and conferences, providing writing, publication, and promotional skills as well as representation on the literary stage. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | ArtReach | 1065 University Avenue , San Diego, 92103 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 940-7278 | California's 53rd Congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, ArtReach will expand the Youth ArtReach Studio (Y.A.S.) program. Y.A.S. provides youth-centered after-school visual art workshops that teach traditional arts and cultural practices through contemporary mediums and showcase artists and art practices from marginalized communities. Y.A.S. aims to reach at-promise youth populations ages 5-25 in San Diego County for whom extracurricular art activities are inaccessible due to financial barriers, the school they attend, or an absence of mediums in which they are interested. Funds awarded for Y.A.S. will cover the cost of materials for 44 workshops serving up to 1,320 youth, Teaching Artist and Culture Bearer fees, and the staff wages required for teaching and administrative tasks directly related to Y.A.S. for the duration of the grant cycle. Workshops will take place at the newly expanded ArtReach Studios. |
ArtReach San Diego is a nonprofit organization committed to increasing access to visual arts education for youth, especially those from under-resourced schools and communities. ArtReach offers the following programs: In-School Programs: These programs utilize an inquiry-based, standards-aligned, and sequential curriculum designed to foster creativity, critical thinking, and self-expression. With a strong focus on supporting social-emotional learning goals, the lessons help students build confidence, resilience, and emotional awareness through artistic exploration. Mural Programs: ArtReach engages youth in collaborative public art projects, where they design and create large-scale murals that promote teamwork, community pride, and artistic achievement. Additionally, ArtReach offers commercial mural projects that provide youth apprentices with real-world work experience, helping to support reduced-cost murals for Title I schools. Community Programs: ArtReach hosts accessible art workshops and classes for families and individuals in a variety of settings, including our two in-house art studios, libraries, and community centers. These workshops focus on process-based techniques led by local artists, creating opportunities for authentic connection through the arts. ArtReach employs local artists as teaching artists, ensuring that its programs not only deliver valuable arts education but also support the local creative economy. These programs are offered county-wide, providing free or low-cost services to Title I schools and underserved communities across San Diego County. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | Theatre Bay Area | 499 Alabama St. #450 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 430-1140 | 11th Congressional District of California | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Theatre Bay Area will sustain and expand its Arts Leadership Residency (ALR), which funds aspiring artistic directors and managing directors in residence at Bay Area theatres for a 12-16 week period during which the residents are mentored by the artistic and/or managing directors and lead a significant mainstage project during the season. Unfortunately, the past corporate sponsor of this program is no longer able to continue their support, so a grant from the CAC will ensure this important leadership pipeline program continues into 2025. The ALR provides $12,000 in funding per resident to the host companies, facilitating deep and substantive mentorship for emerging arts leaders from historically marginalized groups — a vital investment in the long-term sustainability of the Bay Area theatre workforce. |
TBA’s programs & activities: Professional Development: Includes monthly webinars, roundtables, and the weekly Writers’ Room, in partnership with Z Space. TBA’s major convenings include 1. Annual General Auditions (connecting 200+ actors with 100+ producers and casting directors), 2. Annual TBA Conference (convening 200+ theatremakers for a full day of learning and community building). Grants & Awards: Include the Hewlett Foundation-funded CA$H Grants program; the Rella Lossy and Glickman Awards for local playwrights; the Arts Leadership Residency Program; the RHE Artistic Fellowship; and the Mary Mason Lemonade Fund. Collectively, these programs will contribute over $175,000 to Bay Area theatremakers in FY26. Audience Development: TBA helps theatre companies grow their audiences through initiatives like the Postcard Distribution Network, which distributes marketing collateral at 57 locations; Bay Area Theatre Week, which highlights the diverse offerings in our community with targeted discounts and community gatherings; the TheatreGoer e-newsletter delivering monthly show listings and special offers to 12,000 subscribers; and the TBA Highlights program which celebrates productions that meet objective criteria in alignment with our community’s values. Research & New Initiatives: TBA explores innovative research initiatives and pilot programs that address challenges facing theatremakers. TBA’s Shared Services Project aims to increase administrative efficiency, reduce costs, and support the long-term sustainability of Bay Area theatre. Throughout 2025-26, TBA will pilot elements of the Shared Services program and continue sharing research results with our community so we can co-create impactful programs. Arts Advocacy: TBA partners with groups like Arts for a Better Bay Area, Bay Area Arts Together, Californians for the Arts, and California Arts Advocates to effect policy change and secure increased arts funding. Recent successes: TBA supported AB280, which created a carve-out for nonprofits, and was involved in efforts related to SB478 and the implementation of the Performing Arts Equitable Payroll Fund. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | People's Conservatory | 6738 BANNING DR , OAKLAND, 94611-1561 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (917) 806-9606 | 12th Congressional District | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, The People’s Conservatory will provide dynamic, empowering, high-quality, professional, culturally-based professional afterschool arts programming for marginalized youth in the proposed schools in Oakland, CA. This programming will serve students across levels in grades K-8, fom January 6 through May 29. 2025 |
TPC currently serves over 2000 students at 6 school sites directly and several additional schools throughout the East Bay. We offer fully-integrated school day arts programming, after school arts academies, homeschool programming, weekend arts classes, one-day workshops, teacher trainings, and school showcases. 92% of our students are of African American and/or Latinx descent, 85% free/reduced lunch, and mostly reside in Oakland’s lower economic areas including East Oakland, West Oakland and Fruitvale. TPC’s curriculum is rooted in ethnic and cultural studies that honors our students’ backgrounds and inherent artistic voices. Our culturally and community responsive techniques are designed to develop professional arts knowledge and skills, as well as cultivate imagination, creativity, self-knowledge, and social awareness. It is Visual and Performing Arts Standards aligned, Social-Emotional Learning (SEL) aligned, and is informed by Culturally Responsive Pedagogy (CRP) and Arts Integration research. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | JOYCE GORDON FOUNDATION OF THE ARTS | 406 14TH ST , OAKLAND, 94612-2702 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 823-8152 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Joyce Gordon Foundation of the Arts will present ‘Keys to the Kingdom,’ a series of 8 free masterclasses with Oakland master pianists, organists, and keyboardists. This program will create a platform for master Black and Latinx artists to pass on their cultural legacy to their community – particularly Black and Latinx youth – and center Black and Latinx Bay Area communities whose culture is threatened by gentrification. |
We present the annual Oakland Youth Art Explosion (OYAE), a two-day program consisting of a youth art exhibit and reception, along with an outdoor street festival exclusively for youth. The festival includes free workshops by professional artists, music, dance performances, spoken word, and a youth entrepreneur vendor market. The program seeks to empower and inspire youth to take an active role in the arts community here in Oakland, while also providing a platform for emerging young artists to showcase their work. Through this program, young people will gain valuable skills in curation, project management, and leadership, while also contributing to the cultural landscape in our community. Our annual Holiday Youth Jazz Benefit Concert employs young musicians from the Oakland School of the Arts and invite them to perform a concert for community members at the Joyce Gordon Gallery. Musicians are paid for their time and celebrated for their talents. This program also includes a youth entrepreneur vendor market during and after the show. We use funds raised from ticket sales to purchase jackets for distribution to underserved youth throughout Oakland. In 2025 we presented the Handful of Keys masterclass series, featuring a series of free 6 piano masterclasses led by master artists and educators in our community. Classes delved into the Black cultural traditions of jazz, blues, R&B, gospel, funk, and beyond. Our annual lecture-performance series at presents Black History Month programs at eight Title 1 public schools in historically Black neighborhoods of West Oakland, East Oakland, and Richmond. This free program brings professional musicians to perform assemblies at under-resourced public schools and teach students about the origins of Black music and the connection of the arts to Black history and social movements. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center | 934 BRANNAN ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103-4906 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 829-9467 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Asian Pacific Islander Cultural Center will collaborate with San Francisco based filmmaker and photographer Harvey Magsaysay Lozada to produce and present “The Low & Slow Movement” a short film documentary and photo exhibition that will premiere at the 28th Annual United States of Asian America Festival in San Francisco, California in June 2025. “The Low & Slow Movement” documentary and photo exhibition tells the story of the San Francisco LowRider Council, an organization founded in 1981 to unite all LowRider clubs in the San Francisco Bay Area. The film will document the cultural contributions made by the Lowrider community to San Francisco and highlights their struggles to transform negative stereotypes surrounding communities of color while addressing structural violence and police brutality by holding space in the community. |
Through collaboration, productions, and presentations, APICC supports the development and growth of the diverse artistic endeavors of the San Francisco Bay Area Asian/Pacific Islander (API) community. Founded in 1998, our primary purpose is to heighten the visibility of artists and address the interests of San Francisco’s underserved API audiences. By means of technical services for our community’s emerging artists and arts groups, APICC collaborates with emerging and well-established groups with special focus on mid-career artists, allowing them access to production and fundraising expertise, performance and rehearsal space, as well as organizational consulting. APICC’s anchor program, the annual United States of Asian America Festival (USAAF), presents artists and organizations representing a diverse range of ethnic and cultural groups. All disciplines are represented: theater, music, dance, film, literature, visual arts, and more. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | Diversionary Theatre Productions Inc. | 4545 Park Blvd , San Diego, 92116-2668 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 220-6830 | California's 50th congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, DIVERSIONARY THEATRE PRODUCTIONS INC will continue its mission to provide an inspiring, inclusive, and empowering space for community to celebrate and explore complex, provocative, and diverse LGBTQIA+ stories which contribute to the larger cultural discussion. We will do this in FY25 through our Performing Arts Programs, including our mainstage season of LGBTQIA+ plays and musicals, as well as through our nine free Arts Education and Community Engagement Programs. |
Diversionary Theatre produces plays and musicals and develops new works that explore the issues, characters, and stories of the lesbian, gay, bisexual, and transgender, queer, intersex, and asexual (LGBTQIA+) community in all its complexity and diversity. By exploring stories of what sets our culture and history apart, as well as stories that focus on LGBTQIA+ people’s humanity rather than their sexuality, we are in a unique position in which we can help bridge the gaps of cultural understanding. Diversionary specializes in uncovering new work by emerging LGBTQIA+ writers, developing their work, and producing World, West Coast, and San Diego Premiere productions on our Mainstage that are subsequently produced on stages across the country and around the world. Additionally, Diversionary offers a total of nine Arts Education programs serving the entire range of San Diego’s population from Elementary School students to Senior Citizens. All of our Arts Education programs are offered 100% free of charge for our community. Activities are integrated throughout Diversionary’s mainstage productions, providing stand-alone programming in our historic site in University Heights, and in classrooms at participating schools, serving thousands of young people and senior citizens across San Diego County. Diversionary is proud of the reputation that we have established by producing quality Mainstage productions and hundreds of other arts events in our Clark Cabaret throughout the year, nurturing new works of LGBTQIA+ theatre, providing a home to some of San Diego’s most talented established and up-and-coming artists, regularly collaborating with local arts and LGBTQIA+ organizations, providing contextualization to and fostering conversations sparked by our productions, and involving the wider community in our mission. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | Latino Center of Art and Culture | 2700 FRONT STREET , SACRAMENTO, 95818-1118 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 446-5133 | California's 6th congressional district | District 6 | District 8 | With the support from the California Arts Council, LATINO CENTER OF ART AND CULTURE will fund essential areas such as staff salaries, ensuring the retention of experienced and dedicated personnel crucial for program success. It will support translation services and bilingual marketing materials, facilitating effective communication and engagement with both English and Spanish-speaking community members. Furthermore, LCAC will enhance volunteer engagement by providing resources for training and coordination, maximizing community involvement and it will carry out the Section 504 evaluation process to improve accessibility, ensuring inclusive participation for individuals with disabilities. |
LCAC produces El Arte del Pueblo, a multidisciplinary series of events that engage community in art creation, and strengthens identity through the interpretation of significant Latino cultural traditions including El Panteón de Sacramento/Dia de los Muertos, Dia del Niño, and Fiesta de Frida. Our Visual Arts Program uses our gallery space to support and amplify local and emerging artists. Artists are supported with a stipend and provided with mentorship. Our Community Service Program offers our space to organizations in need of exhibitions, events, or performance space. Our Volunteer Engagement Program offers community service and leadership opportunities to youth and adults. Our program supports academic and court-mandated community service. Our Individual Artist Program provides low cost studio space to artists. Our Youth Program teaches youth traditional dances from Mexico and leadership skills to strengthen positive and community identity. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Pony Box Dance | 3687 Hackett Avenue , Long Beach, 90808 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 256-0198 | California's 47th congressional district | District 70 | District 33 | With support from California Arts Council, Pony Box Dance Theatre will With support from CAC, PBDT will provide therapeutic dance classes, at the Downtown Women’s Center, a shelter for unhoused, and GEMS Uncovered, a nonprofit serving individuals that have experienced trafficking. Choreographer/Childhood Abuse Survivor Jamie Carabetta will lead “my/story” workshops, reframing traumatic events through dance. |
1. Pony Box Dance Theatre, Professional Repertory Company 2. Best Foot Forward, Cultural Enrichment Program 3.The Dance Renewal Project |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $18,517.00 | Bob Baker Marionette Theatre | 4949 YORK BLVD , LOS ANGELES, 90042-1609 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 250-9995 | California Assembly district 51 | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bob Baker Marionette Theater (BBMT) will offer low- and no-cost field trips throughout the school year for Title 1 schools which run in-tandem with our current major productions along with an arts enrichment workshop facilitated by a local artist(s) and complementing one production’s content. Along with our shows, the enrichment workshops celebrate local culture and artistry. For example, for our Spring/Summer show, Hooray LA, BBMT partners with Gabrieleno artist Lazaro Arvizu who guides students in making and performing with traditional clapper sticks – musical instruments used by the First Peoples of Los Angeles. Enrichment workshops for our show, ¡Fiesta!, are facilitated by local artist collective Kalli Arte, and students learn the art of mask-making. |
Our annual programming focuses on performances, educational workshops and cultural events. We inspire and educate over 100,000 intergenerational Angelenos annually through world-class puppetry performances in-theater, touring shows, community and civic events, field trips and educational workshops in collaboration with artist partners, our annual free community festival, Bob Baker Day, traveling exhibitions, and special musical and performance events with cultural partners. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirits (BAAITS) | 415 Valencia St , San Francisco, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (702) 481-2536 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | Support from CAC’s Impact grant will will provide support for Bay Area American Indian Two-Spirits (BAAITS) to organize the Two Spirit Powwow Week of Events series of arts and culture programming focused on Two-Spirit and LGBTQIA+ Indigenous communities in the days leading up to their annual Powwow, which draws more than 5,000 people. Events such as our Water Ceremony, talking circles, Indigequeer drag shows, potlucks, hand drum contests, and “State of the Two Spirit Movement” panels will allow Two Spirit and allied community members to create meaningful collaborations around the Powwow, acting as a cultural incubator for Two-spirit communities from around California and beyond. |
BAAITS largest program is our annual Two-Spirit Powwow. At this Powwow all Two-Spirit identified Native American, American Indian, and T-SLGBTQI people and their allies get a chance to come together to celebrate culture, build community, and express themselves. The BAAITS Powwow was the world’s first public Two-Spirit Powwow and we are now the world’s largest. The BAAITs Two Spirit Powwow is modeled after a traditional Oklahoma style Powwow and is an intertribal event that also invites non-Native guests to experience Native cultures. On the day of and the months leading up to the event, we have contact with thousands of people who identify as Two-Spirit, American Indian, Indigenous and allies. We reach them, spread our mission, and gather people from all over the US and Canada to celebrate and heal. Powwow participants feel “ohno cochico”, community love or the way that one feels when they are amongst their tribe. It is a place where we can truly restore and reclaim the role of Two-Spirit people. We do this through cultural expression, getting back in touch with our culture, and ceremony. Our oldest program, the BAAITS Drum is an all-gender big drum group that meets once a month. BAAITS Drum participates in drumming and community events throughout the year, and drums at our annual Powwow. BAAITS organizes social gatherings, Two Spirit Artist & Cultural Bearer’s workshops and TS Talking Circles throughout the year and marches in the annual San Francisco Pride Parade. In addition to the social gatherings, BAAITS organizes and participates in panels, cultural and artistic performances, and offers classes and workshops leading up to our annual Powwow, such as bead working, regalia making, protocol, and cultural dances for American Indian and non-Two-Spirit allies. BAAITS also participates in national and international meetings with other Two-Spirit societies and Native American organizations. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $127,459.00 | San Luis Obispo County Arts Council | 810 Orcutt Rd --, San Luis Obispo, 93401 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 544-9251 | California's 24th congressional district | District 30 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN LUIS OBISPO COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL will retain professional staff and systems to expand access to the visual, literary, and performing arts, lifelong arts education, and related cultural activities in the region, recognizing the role the arts play in enhancing neighborhoods, quality of life, community placekeeping, cultural understanding, and local economy. |
Community Programs Open Studios Art Tour — 141 artists opened their studios to an estimated 2,500–3,000 visitors, generating income and visibility for local artists. Artist Support & Grants Individual Artist Fellowship — A prestigious award (up to $50k) for working artists, launching in 2026 in partnership with the California Arts Council. Advocacy & Research Published the first-ever Arts and Culture Economic Impact Report for SLO County, documenting $478.7 million in total economic impact and 5,163 jobs supported. Arts Education (Launching 2026) Creative Futures Initiative — A youth arts education program targeting underserved South County communities, employing 6–7 teaching artists to serve 200–300 students. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | ARTS | 200 E 12TH ST , NATIONAL CITY, 91950-3314 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 297-2787 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 80 | District 18 | With support from the California Arts Council, A Reason to Survive (ARTS) will elevate the Creative Youth Development framework with young people in South County San Diego through meaningful, culturally responsive arts-learning experiences: We co-create an environment where young people have creative experiences that will help them become confident, compassionate, and courageous as they see themselves in the role of community builders. Our “Create, Connect, and Catalyze” framework our work, impact and partnerships, and culture align with our mission, and include: 1) high-quality creative youth development programming, for youth ages 8-24, centering social justice, youth voice, and collective action; 2) mobilizes arts and culture within our and community committed to self-care, health equity, and justice; and 3) grows our Community of Care network of partners offering services, rooted in healing-centered engagement. |
A Reason To Survive (ARTS) offers arts programming and creative workforce opportunities for youth and young adults (ages 8-24) living the south county region of San Diego. Through our program initiatives – Community ARTS, ARTS 4 Justice, ARTS On Campus, and ARTS @ Work — young people gain exposure to a range of artistic disciplines (visual arts, media arts, music, and industrial arts in our Maker Workshop), while deepening their social-emotional development through meaningful relationships and mentorship provided by teaching artists and ARTS staff. Through our innovative Community of Care model, we integrate social-emotional supports into our program / curricula design and into the overall design of learning spaces, exhibitions, and performances at the ARTS Center. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | Kala Art Institute | 1060 HEINZ AVE Kala Institute, BERKELEY, 94710-2719 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 841-7000 | California's 13th congressional district | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kala Institute will serve as a regional hub, broadening the scope and services offered to individual artists including teaching artists and arts administrators working in the artist residency field or other non-profit art spaces who share similar missions to support artists work over the long arc of their careers. Services offered to the network include professional development classes, art workshops, artist and arts administrators meet-ups and resource sharing, teaching artist training, artist residencies field sharing, fiscal sponsorship, art sales and consulting, and sharing of gallery and classroom space. |
The heart of Kala’s mission is supporting artists and engaging the community. Kala’s artist residency program offers professional facilities to those working in and across printmaking and digital media, new media, public art, sculpture, installation, and performance. Kala’s artist residency program is known for the support it offers to artists, specialized resources spanning printmaking, photography, sculpture and media arts, points of contact with accessible staff, and the caliber of work artists are able to produce and share with the community while in residence. Kala’s artist residencies provide time, space, equipment, and a knowledgeable network of artists (175+ artists a year) to foster dialogue, risk-taking, creation of new work, and community building. Kala’s exhibitions and gallery, free and open to the public Tuesday-Saturday, provide a platform for innovative presentations of contemporary art and a forum for artists and the public – sparking conversations across views and timely topics. This complex web of timely topics includes racial and social justice, displacement, the environment, community wellness, and more. Kala hosts community events, film screenings, artist talks, and performances in the gallery too. Kala fosters a fresh approach to experimentation, as artists investigate the interface of digital work, work made by hand, and everything in between. A spirit of exchange and education is nurtured through all Kala’s programs. Kala offers quality arts education to the general public and local youth through its on-site art classes – after school studio art, teen studio workshops, family and community art-making sessions, summer art programs, field trips, and a robust Artists-in-Schools program, established in 1991, providing artist-led instruction to students in neighboring East Bay public schools. Providing multiple points of access to space and resources through artist residencies, exhibitions, and arts education is more important than ever as we fight for equitable engagement in the midst of these challenging times. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Trinity County Arts Council | 55 Sharron Ct. , WEAVERVILLE, 96093 | Trinity | Upstate | (530) 623-2760 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Trinity County Arts Council and collaborative partners the Nor-Rel-Muk Wintu Nation, Yurok Tribe Community & Environment Division, and Hmong Hayfork Cultural Committee will address community-identified needs of the lowest HPI geographic and cultural regions of Trinity county by 1) bolstering community and ecosystem resilience, 2) promoting ecological land stewardship, 3) facilitating intergenerational learning, 4) enhancing cultural knowledge and skills, and 5) strengthening community health, by preserving and stabilizing important cultural lifeways through arts-driven revitalization of cultural heritage, and fostering year-round intergenerational, community-driven education and practice in traditional arts, customs and practices of the Indigenous Peoples whose Ancestral Lands we reside on today, and of the diverse cultures of people that make up the fabric of our rural communities and way of life, including the Wintu, Yurok, and Hmong. |
Trinity County Arts Council represents a deeply rural and underserved community and has an abiding commitment to prioritize social and racial equity. Outreach and Access to our underserved communities is highly prioritized and underlies all of our programming, including those regions in the lowest 15% HPI, and underserved cultural communities including the Hmong, Native American, Latinx, LGBTQ+, and the geographically remote. All TCAC programs and services are designed, evaluated, and regularly improved in order to equitably reach all of our citizens, provide direct access to the arts and culture by diverse ages and demographics, and assist in the development of professional artists and community arts organizations while promoting Trinity County as an Arts & Culture Destination. We facilitate arts education for all ages through workshops offered locally and outside of Trinity. We prioritize youth arts education through the Festival of Light Art Music & Dance Scholarship, and Artists in Schools Programs, augmenting k-12 arts education, and involvement in the North State Together internship program. We provide opportunities for musicians and artists to network, exhibit and sell their art through the signature events that we produce. These events have a proven track record for attracting residents and visitors from beyond Trinity County; Monthly Art Walk, Artists in Action, Wintu We Are Still Here Project, Get To Know Your Neighbors Storytelling and Culture Project; Festival of Light Crafts Event and Art, Music and Dance Lessons Scholarship Program, Art 4 Arts Sake, Music in the Park, Trinity Alps Chamber Music Festival, and Trinity Heritage Days Festival. Artists enjoy increased exposure to a wide audience through the Art in Public Places Program. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | In Lak'ech Dance Academy | 2885 Ettie Street , Oakland, 94608 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 314-6364 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, In Lak’ech Dance Academy will hire a full-time operations manager to oversee programs and facilities at our newly acquired dance studio. This addition will enable us to significantly expand our class and production offerings, reaching more community members and enhancing our efforts to create safe spaces for queer and transgender individuals. The operations manager will play a crucial role in managing daily operations, coordinating events, and supporting our mission to celebrate and uplift marginalized voices through dance and cultural expression. |
In Lak’ech Dance Academy is the first Afro-Latin dance academy in the U.S. created by and for queer and trans people and their allies. We offer weekly classes in Salsa, Bachata, Merengue, Cumbia, and Afro-Caribbean movement that center joy, cultural reclamation, and accessibility. Our structured cohort model supports progression from beginner to advanced levels, leading to instructor training, leadership development, and performance opportunities. We host Queer Sabor socials, seasonal showcases, and original projects like Morir Soñando and ChingonaX, which amplify the stories of queer and trans BIPOC dancers through choreography and collective reflection. Our programs foster holistic health, cultural pride, and belonging. Students report improved physical, emotional, and mental well-being, along with deeper connections to identity and community. At every level, we offer a transformative space where LGBTQ2S+ dancers can reclaim their culture, express their full selves, and build a stronger, more inclusive world—one step at a time. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | InterMusic SF | 135 Main Street, Suite 1140 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94105 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 818-2825 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, InterMusic SF will continue to promote artistic and cultural engagement by providing vital resources for artists, and bolstering access for community members to live music throughout the Bay Area region. InterMusic SF empowers music creators and cultural bearers to serve as the foundation for a sustainable creative environment that is diverse, equitable, and inclusive. InterMusic SF will remain steadfast in its founding commitments of providing capacity-building services to community members, enabling artists and cultural bearers and practitioners to continue to be active community-engagers that passionately bring people together for shared musical experiences. Now in its 26 year, InterMusic SF’s programming includes: Fiscal Sponsorship Program; Musical Grant Program; Professional Development Workshop Series; and InterMusic Presents, producing admission-free performances like, SF Music Day and the Listen Local Concert Series. |
InterMusic’s core programs include paid performance opportunities, grantmaking, fiscal sponsorship, professional development, and free live performances for Bay Area audiences. InterMusic SF annually hosts SF Music Day, a free public music festival that features 25 Bay Area-based ensembles and attracts roughly 3,000 local audience members for 7 hours of continuous music at the historic SF War Memorial & Performing Arts Center. Launched in 2008, SF Music Day showcases diverse cultural and musical traditions, including blues, chamber-folk, classical/Western European (early, classical, romantic, and new), experimental, gospel, hip-hop, jazz, R&B, tango, world music, and countless genres that have resulted from the blending of multiple traditions. SF Music Day captures the scope of diversity and excellence that defines the Bay Area as a leader of arts and culture. Our Musical Grant Program uses an open application process, funding 25 Bay Area musical projects annually, and has cumulatively awarded $1.2MM, supporting nearly 400 local projects. InterMusic SF believes that musicians, composers, and concert presenters face financial barriers to creating, celebrating, and practicing the art of small ensemble music making. With 86 Affiliate artistic entities that include individuals, ensembles, composers, concert presenters, and community-rooted art organizations, InterMusic SF serves as a trusted fiduciary and provides Affiliates with pathways to grant funding opportunities and tax-deductible donations. Affiliates also receive access to professional development opportunities including free technical assistance sessions for musicians by industry experts. InterMusic SF’s professional development workshops are free and open to the public. They feature experts who engage with local artists to assist and support musicians in building and sustaining careers in the arts. Topics include Engaging the Press, Grant Writing, Body-Awareness Practices, Performance Contract Drafting, and Musical Entrepreneurship. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,849.00 | Casa Circulo Cultural | 3090 Middlefield Rd. , Redwood City, 94063 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 346-8468 | California Assembly district 22 | District 22 | District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, Casa Circulo Cultural will present the 2024 Day of the Dead Festival: “Sueño de una Tarde Dominical en la Alameda Central.” This event will offer an immersive cultural experience inspired by Diego Rivera’s mural. Grant funds will be utilized for cultural performances, artistic workshops, historical exhibits, and an interactive altar display. The festival aims to educate and connect the community, celebrating Mexican history and art through accessible and inclusive programming. It will also feature a vibrant procession, traditional food and craft vendors, and comprehensive accessibility features to ensure participation for all community members. |
CCC provides Spanish language programs for families that instill multicultural competencies. Activities show students the beauty of their Hispanic roots. CCC doors are open 45 hours each week offering 25 classes averaging 32 students in each. Individual lessons are also offered on guitar or piano. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $23,147.00 | 826LA | 1714 W SUNSET BLVD , LOS ANGELES, 90026-3225 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 413-3388 | 30 | 52 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, 826LA will facilitate our Field Trips program at our Writing Labs in Los Angeles and traveling field trips to Los Angeles Unified School District (LAUSD) schools, introducing over 3,100 students to the literary arts annually. In our improv-style program, “Barnacle and Barnacle Publishing” is owned and operated by the mysterious Professor Barnacle who engages 826LA volunteers to help students learn the fundamentals of storytelling-including plot, characters, setting, and dialogue–and publishing. Students work collaboratively and independently, and at the end of each field trip, leave as published authors, taking home a copy of the book they worked together to write. |
We provide after-school tutoring, evening and weekend workshops, in-school tutoring, help for English language learners, and assistance with student publications. All of our programs are challenging and enjoyable, and ultimately strengthen each student’s power to express ideas effectively, creatively, confidently, and in their individual voice. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Back to the Start | 1187 Coast Village Road Suite 101 , Santa Barbara, 93108 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (415) 317-5255 | California Assembly district 37 | District CA-24 | District 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, Back to the Start will, in collaboration with incarcerated artists, host narrative and story telling workshops at San Quentin Rehabilitation Center (previously known as San Quentin State Prison). Centering equity and justice through first hand accounts, our program is producing narratives that highlight our nation’s systemic and racial inequities across a life time. Leveraging story telling and the arts, Back to the Start advocates for upstream policy solutions at the intersection of poverty, trauma, and systemic racism. The funds will allow us to host our third incarcerated cohort as well as build out and refine our curriculum for future cohorts which can be scaled and expanded to other sites. |
Back to the Start produces powerful narratives underscoring the need for critical investments in early childhood and family resources. Co-led by incarcerated individuals at San Quentin and a former Chief Physician and Surgeon of California’s prison health care system, the new narrative series is written by incarcerated persons reflecting on the arc of their lives from childhood to incarceration. This initiative is grounded in the power of stories and provides a historically |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Luke Madrigal Indigenous Storytelling Non Profit | 31805 TEMECULA PKWY NUM 552 , TEMECULA, 92592-8203 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (909) 262-8325 | 48 | 71 | 32 | With support from the California Arts Council, the LUKE MADRIGAL INDIGENOUS STORYTELLING NONPROFIT will Produce and oversee the touring production of Isabella Madrigal’s new play “Skywomen,” a semi-autobiographical multi-media performance piece that explores Anishinaabe and Cahuilla water and migration stories passed down by a mother to her daughter. This project is designed to support Indigenous cultural revitalization and arts-based climate justice efforts. We will perform the play at a minimum of three venues in the Southern California Riverside/San Bernardino Area: the Dorothy Ramon Learning Center (an Indigenous cultural center in Banning, CA), Noli Indian School, and Sherman Indian High School. Following each performance, this interactive play will feature community talkbacks that allow audience members to imagine a future where Indigenous peoples, specifically Indigenous women, are centered in climate conversations. |
We support a wide range of storytelling modalities, including theater, film, and arts workshops, to amplify Indigenous voices and foster community healing, balance, and resilience. Founded in 2020 by Sophia Madrigal (Cahuilla/Chippewa) during the COVID-19 pandemic to honor her father’s legacy, the organization began with virtual workshops titled Healing Through the Indigenous Art of Storytelling. In that same period, Sophia wrote and released Wildflower: Indigenous Spirit, a film exploring grief and loss in Native communities, which has reached over 10,000 viewers online. Her sister, Isabella Madrigal, writer of the acclaimed play Menil and Her Heart, serves as co-director of the organization. Menil and Her Heart first began as a grass-roots effort to highlight Missing and Murdered Indigenous Women, Girls, and Two-Spirit People. The theater ensemble that performs Menil and Her Heart consists of eighteen community members, mostly Indigenous people. The winner of the 2020 Yale Young Native Storytellers Contest, Menil and Her Heart has been performed at 16 venues across the nation and was featured at the United Nations’ Girls Speak out Event in 2019 and at the California State Capitol in 2022 for legislators. In 2024, Isabella received a grant from the Center for Cultural Power to go towards the creation of a short film version of Menil and Her Heart. We also offer arts and culture workshops, which have been hosted in educational spaces, including Noli and Sherman Indian Schools, as well as at the Dorothy Ramon Learning Center, a Native American community center. Additionally, the LMISN recently served as the Master of Ceremonies for the Tribal Ecological Knowledge Region Nine Tribal EPA Conference. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Ophelia's Jump Productions | 2009 Porterfield Way, Suite H , Upland, 91711-2525 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (909) 734-6565 | California's 28th Congressional District | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ophelia’s Jump Productions will partner with three nonprofit organizations to produce free bespoke performances to raise awareness and/or funds in support of their missions. The three partner organizations are AgingNext which supports Seniors with resources and assistance to allow them to age at home, Shoes that Fit which identifies children in need and sources new well fitting athletic shoes for them, and Crossroads for Women that provides housing, education, support, counseling, and employment readiness in a homelike environment for women who have been incarcerated. |
OJP produces 4 “main stage” shows annually at our 70 seat theater in Upland and additional programming in our 50 seat studio theatre; we also present staged readings of works in development, and each July we put on the Midsummer Theatre Festival at the Sontag Greek Theatre in Claremont which is co-produced with Pomona College. We have a strong improv and “alternative performance” program and present improv, open mic, performance art, and a wide variety of music shows (such as Flamenco, Appalachian, Middle Eastern and other culturally specific music) on weekends when our main productions are dark. OJP’s Theatre for Good program partners with other nonprofit organizations to raise funds for social justice and community welfare projects by presenting free staged readings of plays coupled with informative presentations and talkbacks. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Washington Neighborhood Center | 400 16TH ST , SACRAMENTO, 95814-1003 | Sacramento | Capital | (408) 648-6205 | California's 6th congressional district | District 6 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council (CAC) grant, the Washington Neighborhood Center proposes holistic Chicano, Native, Latinx, 2-Spirit, LGBTQ+ cultural arts and S.T.E.A.M. education for low-income youth and families. This addresses the lack of free, accessible arts programming for marginalized communities and the disinvestment of Sacramento’s oldest Chicano cultural arts center. Utilizing grant funds, the project will create education videos, cultural events, Aztec dance workshops, Chicano drawing classes, Native garden sessions, LGBTQ+ dance, art entrepreneurial classes, S.T.E.A.M. and literacy programs, yoga, and writing workshops. This aims to engage 500 California youth and community with the Chicano and Native art activism and education, cultural art and muralism techniques, and the significance of preserving Center as a site of Chicano Art Activism movement to encourage more appreciation and investment in the Washington Neighborhood Center. |
Our programming is based on our pillars of Cultural Art-Activism, Academic and Career Readiness, and Health and Wellness. – K-12th Grade STEAM events: Integrating science, technology, engineering, arts, and mathematics to foster curiosity and critical thinking skills. – Youth and all ages open mic and art gallery: Providing platforms for artistic expression and talent showcase. – Chicano Drawing Classes: Exploring identity and heritage through visual arts. – Native Garden and S.T.E.A.M. Soil Lab: Beautifying the community while educating on sustainable practices and indigenous plant species, as well as learning about biology through the soil. – Art Activism: Using creative expression as a tool for social transformation and awareness. – Open Wall: Offering a safe space for artists, including “street artists,” to create freely without fear of harassment or prosecution. – 2 Spirit queer trans job readiness empowerment sessions: Tailored support and resources for marginalized communities seeking economic independence and empowerment. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Del Sol Performing Arts Organization | 751 47TH AVE , SAN FRANCISCO, 94121-3205 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 374-0074 | California's 11th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Del Sol Performing Arts Organization will produce “Songs of the Diaspora,” a multi-disciplinary poetry and music performance that explores the Chinese diaspora experience through the female voices. New poetry by Genny Lim will interweave with music by Theresa Wong, Vivian Fung, and Meilina Tsui, performed by the Del Sol Quartet, against a background of visual and laser projections by Mark Hellar and Olivia Ting. DSPAO will mount 1 large-scale performance in San Francisco, with 3 community events in San Francisco and Oakland Chinatowns. |
Each season Del Sol performs 50-70 concerts, including its own local productions, concerts sponsored by other Bay Area presenters, and national and international engagements. Del Sol has commissioned and premiered hundreds of works from a diverse range of contemporary composers. It has released thirteen full-length albums of new works, including recents albums of North Indian, experimental pop, and Iranian collaborations. Their podcast “Sounds Current” was an official selection the 2024 Tribeca Festival. Del Sol has a long history of presenting concerts and collaborative productions in the Bay Area, including both large scale, multi-day music festivals and smaller explorative programs such as “Pacific Pythagorean Music Festival” (bringing together musicians using non-Western tuning systems) and the first-ever Angel Island Immigration Station concert series uplifting immigrant communities. Recent productions include internationally-acclaimed “Angel Island Project” with Chinese-American composer Huang Ruo uses the poems of detainees held on the island during the Chinese Exclusion Act to explore the history of discrimination and immigration. “The Resonance Between” collaboration with world-renowned North Indian musicians Alam Khan, Arjun Verma, and Nilan Chaudhuri. Our “Joy Project” brings newly composed music onto the streets and into the parks in short, outdoor concerts. “The Jingwei Bird” is an collaboration exploring climate change through bilingual poetry with “The Last Hoisan Poets.” Deeply committed to education and community outreach for over thirty years, Del Sol has reached thousands of students through inventive school performances, workshops, coaching programs and residencies, locally and nationally. Recent programs include our “Composer Incubator” for promoting equity in early-career composers, an ongoing collaboration with the Gabriela Lena Frank Creative Academy of Music in Boonville, California, a multi-disciplinary arts and music program in a SF elementary school focusing on Angel Island, and our community outreach program, “Angel Island Insight,” in collaboration with various Chinese community organizations and artists. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $23,147.00 | Center for Urban Excellence | PO BOX 5543 , VALLEJO, 94591-0555 | Solano | Capital | (707) 731-4243 | California's 8th Congressional District | California's 11th State Assembly district | Senate District 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Center for Urban Excellence will reignite the weekly “Art is Resilience” program to engage 30 system-impacted youth and young adults ages 12-25 in Solano and Contra Costa Counties. Professional Teaching Artists, Music Professionals, wellness practitioners, and Juvenile Justice professionals will create a space for youth to channel their strength, resilience, and hope through a poetry, visual, and recording artivism. We empower young artists to lead, create, and articulate their vision for the future, strengthening their voices and promoting positivity. Through these vibrant artistic expressions, we illuminate the inherent power of our youth, sparking an enduring beacon of resilience in their communities. |
At the Center for Urban Excellence (CUE), our core programs and services are organized around five connected pillars that empower system-impacted youth, young adults, and families through healing, leadership, and opportunity. Healing Arts Education: We provide creative outlets and artistic skill-building through poetry, spoken word, emcee and movement classes, and visual/mixed-media workshops, including opportunities for performances and exhibitions. Program: Art is Resilience (poetry and visual arts) in partnership with three Golden Gate Community Schools and Contra Costa County Office of Education. Fostering Resilience Framework and Training: We equip youth with practical resilience tools through mindfulness, arts-based activities, stress management techniques, and problem-solving strategies that support emotional regulation and healthy coping. Youth Leadership Development: Through our Fostering Resilience: Youth Leadership Program, youth build leadership skills through mentorship, community service projects, and training that supports them as agents of change. College and Career Readiness: In partnership with the California & Solano County Workforce Development Board, we prepare youth and young adults for college and employment through post secondary exploration, college application and financial aid support, career counseling, and job readiness training. Critical Media Literacy Workshops: We strengthen young people’s ability to navigate today’s media landscape by teaching them to critically analyze media and make informed decisions using The Media and Me: A Critical Media Literacy Guide for Young People, which our CEO Reina Robinson co-authored. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | "" | PO BOX 56226 , SAN JOSE, 95156-6226 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (408) 230-5199 | Chamber Music Silicon Valley proposes to use the 2024 Arts Education Exposure Grants funds to produce 10 educational performance workshops featuring the Common Sounds Ensemble. These workshops will showcase traditional Arabic and Palestinian music, as well as original compositions, targeting Title 1 schools and incarcerated youth. The project aims to provide culturally enriching experiences, foster a deeper understanding of diverse musical traditions, and engage underrepresented students through interactive and educational performances. |
Concert experiences that blend classical chamber music with multi-disciplinary and cross-cultural art practices, incorporating civic and social engagement elements. The annual Emerging Artist Fellowship Program, which provides fellows with professional development education and performance opportunities while also challenging them to explore unconventional paths in their musical careers Collaborative community engagement and social justice initiatives in diverse settings, such as the U.S./Mexican Border, supporting unhoused women, California’s farmworkers, and the Juvenile Hall Systems. |
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| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | In Lak'ech Dance Academy | 2885 Ettie Street , Oakland, 94608 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 314-6364 | California Assembly district 18 | District 18 | District 9 | The Impact Project grant will support, In Lak’ech Dance Academy (ILDA) in producing the 7th annual Queer Afro Latin Dance Festival (QALDF). Featuring over 50 queer and transgender Black, Indigenous, and people of color (QTBIPOC) artists and attracting nearly 2,000 attendees, QALDF is a transformative cultural event that celebrates Queer Afro-Latin arts and culture. QALDF provides vital educational, artistic, and community-building opportunities. Attendees can engage in workshops, film screenings, panel discussions, and more, all within a safe and inclusive environment. CAC funds will enhance our accessibility efforts and support additional festival staff, ensuring QALDF’s continued growth and profound impact. |
In Lak’ech Dance Academy is the first Afro-Latin dance academy in the U.S. created by and for queer and trans people and their allies. We offer weekly classes in Salsa, Bachata, Merengue, Cumbia, and Afro-Caribbean movement that center joy, cultural reclamation, and accessibility. Our structured cohort model supports progression from beginner to advanced levels, leading to instructor training, leadership development, and performance opportunities. We host Queer Sabor socials, seasonal showcases, and original projects like Morir Soñando and ChingonaX, which amplify the stories of queer and trans BIPOC dancers through choreography and collective reflection. Our programs foster holistic health, cultural pride, and belonging. Students report improved physical, emotional, and mental well-being, along with deeper connections to identity and community. At every level, we offer a transformative space where LGBTQ2S+ dancers can reclaim their culture, express their full selves, and build a stronger, more inclusive world—one step at a time. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | SOMArts | 934 BRANNAN ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103-4906 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 863-1414 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, SOMArts Cultural Center will present ‘Reclaiming Our Image Through Muralism’ in collaboration with lead artist Chris Gazaleh. This project will explore the diaspora of Palestinian identity during a volatile time of censorship, misinformation, and discrimination. Addressing issues surrounding the ongoing vandalism of Gazaleh’s public murals, this project will feature a visual exhibition of his murals and paintings in a setting that ensures the artist and his work will be presented in a safe environment. A complimentary select group of artists will exhibit alongside Gazaleh, while a series of related programming will engage poets, film makers, and performers to celebrate the intersectionality of the Palestinian community with the diverse SOMArts arts community. |
Our core programs include: As a cultural center, we administer: |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Muzeo Museum and Cultural Center | 241 S ANAHEIM BLVD , ANAHEIM, 92805-3821 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 765-6450 | California's 46th congressional district | District 69 | District 34 | With support from the California Arts Council, Muzeo will implement an After High School Art Appreciation Program. This initiative will offer classes in painting, drawing, and photography to high school students. The program aims to foster creativity, enhance cultural awareness, and provide a constructive outlet for young adults. Funding will be utilized to secure qualified instructors, purchase necessary art supplies, and host monthly workshops. These workshops will culminate in a public art exhibition showcasing the participants’ works, providing them with a platform to display their talent. Through this program, Muzeo seeks to engage the community, support emerging artists, and contribute to the cultural enrichment of Anaheim. |
Muzeo Museum and Cultural Center (Muzeo) operates at the intersections of art, culture, education, and civic life. Muzeo serves 20,000 to 30,000 visitors each year through presentations of traveling and community-produced exhibitions, art workshops, literary programs, field trips for local school children, and free public festivals. We are located in Anaheim’s redeveloped downtown district, bringing vibrant cultural experiences to a burgeoning local business and residential corridor. The heart of our operation is the Historic 1908 Carnegie Library, where we present exhibitions of community artists and arts organizations free to the public. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Viver Brasil Dance Company | 2141 N Gower Street , Los Angeles, 90068 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 804-1466 | 28th Congressional District | State Assembly District 43 | State Senate District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Viver Brasil (VB) can build on its tradition of offering a master-level dance class at no charge to low-cost, donation-based to Angelenxs from all walks of life. Since our inception in 1997, VB has embraced a socially engaged artistic approach to how we represent and share Afro-Brazilian culture and ancestral wisdom. We stay tethered to our spiritual and cultural elders in our sister city, Salvador, Bahia, Brazil and yet also work to remain socially responsive to the needs of the most disadvantaged communities of LA. Our free Community Class has served as a lifeline for many residents, meeting a clear healing justice need especially in light of recent pandemic conditions. With CAC’s generous support we will provide this rich experience to over 1,000 Angelenxs during the grant period. |
Samba in the Streets, VB’s free community engagement program teaches Afro-Brazilian traditional dances modeled on Blocos Afro, Afro-Brazilian parading organizations that introduce communities to Afro-Brazilian history through traditional and contemporary dance and music. Cooking Samba, VB’s signature family program is a narrated 45-minute show that include the royal orixa dances, riveting capoeira, joyful samba and Bahian carnaval with live music and an interactive dance workshop. Community Class, is a weekly Afro-Brazilian technique dance class led by founding artistic directors Linda Yudin and Luiz Badaro accompanied by live music. Dancing at the Source is a 16-day cultural immersion program to Salvador, Bahia, Brazil where participants experience: daily Afro-Brazilian dance, music, and culture classes taught by experienced faculty who are master cultural workers, that reflects VB’s role as a bridge between the U.S. and Salvador, Bahia, Brazil. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | SAPPA | 475 S. Oakland Ave., Suite 2 , Pasadena, 91101 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 641-3262 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAPPA will provide free musical instrument instruction and performance opportunities for 100 low-income youth in South Los Angeles and Watts. In the program, called the Watts Willowbrook Music Academy and Youth Orchestra, participants learn to play orchestral instruments, develop their musical skills and knowledge, and perform for the public. |
-The Watts Willowbrook Music Academy is a collaboration with multiple organizations in South LA. In sequential group classes taught by professional musicians at each site, students ages 7-18 learn to playing violin, viola, cello and bass. Instruction is offered at the beginning, continuing and advanced levels. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area | 1446 Market Street Intersection for the Arts, San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (619) 993-5147 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area (AEA) will connect and catalyze arts education communities of artists, community arts organizations, educators, young people, families, and advocates across all five regions of the San Francisco Bay Area. Through arts advocacy events and resources, networking events, professional learning opportunities, and ongoing communications our programs will provide practical services for each of our constituents. Through these offerings, we serve as a regional hub and unifying voice for local coalitions of teaching artists, school districts, students and their families, throughout all nine counties of the Bay Area. We align our regional work with state and national efforts to ensure best policies and practices that are responsive to the culturally specific and geographic needs of our diverse communities. |
The Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area CONNECTS and CATALYZES local arts education coalitions for a more just and creative San Francisco Bay Area. We serve as a regional hub and unifying voice for local coalitions of teaching artists, school districts, student and their families, community arts organizations, cultural institutions, city and county agencies, funders, business leaders, and arts education advocates throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our regional work aligns with Create CA’s state arts education efforts as well as the national efforts of the National Guild for Community Art Education and Arts Education Partnership. The Arts Education Alliance of the Bay Area supports our members to cultivate responsive leadership and advocate for arts education through ongoing convening events, professional learning workshops, monthly newsletters, and advocacy resources. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | San Diego Performing Arts League | 28 HORTON PLZ , SAN DIEGO, 92101-6143 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 234-2787 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Diego Performing Arts League (SDPAL) will enable our organization to focus on long-term sustainability by contracting with a development consultant, and invest in strategic marketing initiatives centered around increasing accessibility to the arts. If granted, these funds would benefit all of our member organizations and individuals, but especially those organizations and individuals with smaller budgets. Nearly 50% of the arts organizations in San Diego County operate with budgets less than $100,000 per year, and limited resources for marketing. Our unique, collaborative marketing model enables us to provide marketing support for these organizations that they otherwise could not afford. This ultimately builds audience development, impacts economic growth in the arts and is helping SDPAL become more relevant to the region. |
SDPAL programming is focused on enabling access to the arts, promoting audience development and providing professional development and job opportunities for arts professionals. Through ArtsTix, the only not-for-profit ticket service in San Diego, we offer discount performance tickets to offer tickets that otherwise may go unsold, and enabling access for all San Diegans. Theatre Month is a month-long celebration of the arts, where tickets to performances are offered at discount prices and marketing efforts are targeted to underserved communities. Through our Cast and Crew program, we offer job training, professional development and job placement assistance for performing arts professionals. Our combined membership encompasses nearly 300 performint arts organzations and performing arts professionals throughout San Diego county. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Berkeley Art Center | 1275 WALNUT ST , BERKELEY, 94709-1406 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 644-6893 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Berkeley Art Center will pilot its Curatorial Youth Coalition, supporting a cohort of 7 Bay Area transitional age youth in developing curatorial & cultural organizing values/statements and gaining skills in exhibition making and public programming. This program will activate youth voices, narratives, and perspectives by influencing BAC’s core exhibitions programs, and cultivates skills of community responsive cultural organizing, critical curatorial frameworks, and administrative skills needed to develop, organize, and implement exhibition programs. |
Berkeley Art Center is a hub for contemporary art and community building. By virtue of its location in an urban park, BAC emphasizes an approach to art and artists that values their work as an important part of daily life and a vital contribution to the good of the community. Its serene setting invites visitors to approach the gallery as a space of reflection and contemplation, while also forging a more intimate connection between artist and viewer. BAC is committed to making contemporary art by local artists approachable and accessible. It produces visual art exhibitions, artist talks, art-making workshops, performance and social practice projects, film and video screenings, symposia and other social gatherings throughout the year. Educational programs for teens connect art with activism, while professional development workshops for artists provide opportunities to build skills and networks to sustain their careers. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Arts Bridging the Gap | 815 S Sherbourne Dr, Unit 6 , Los Angeles, 90035-1866 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 244-0720 | 30th Congressional District | District 51 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts Bridging the Gap (ABG) will bring its multidisciplinary and holistic Arts+Wellness Program to Fairfax High School, its ecosystem, and surrounding community. Aiming to develop mindfulness and mental health tools, democratize learning for BIPOC youth and youth from other marginalized communities, and explore young people’s creativity through new mediums, this program will result in three new murals on campus co-created with local Los Angeles artists: Ethel Zafranco, Amani Holbert, and Gilyon Brace-Wessel. |
Since its founding in 2014, Arts Bridging the Gap has administered 900+ art classes for 2,030 young people and spearheaded the creation of 70 murals. The organization strongly believes that consistent, reliable programming is essential to system-level change; therefore, ABG’s work is codified into four primary programs (below) in deep collaboration with long-term partners. Arts+Wellness — Built in response to compounding effects of COVID-19 on under resourced communities, this multidisciplinary program focuses on healing trauma and supporting high school students in developing their wellness and mindfulness. Aiming to spark empathy building, trauma healing, restorative justice, creative expression, and civic leadership, the students help select the art forms and societal issues explored, together. Each series of classes have a creative focus such as: Art for Social Change (Fairfax High School, LA High School, Maywood Academy High School), Culinary Arts (LA High School), and Urban Farming (LA High School). LA Street Art Initiative — A socio-emotional arts program that gathers youth, artists, and community members together to design, co-create, and paint public murals. Aiming to install 150 murals across LA before 2025, this program empowers people to engage with their community, build understanding, and spark essential dialogue to support collective healing. The participants experience ABG’s Empathy Curriculum, and during the 5-8 week program, they grow in their confidence, awareness, and sense of ownership for how their art can create change in their community. Futures Rewired — An after school program for 12-18 year old female-identifying, non-binary, and gender expansive youth that explores immersive technology as an interest and career path; this program is in residence at GALA: Girls Academic Leadership Academy. PenPal Art Share — An art sharing program that connects ABG’s LA participants with youth across the globe. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Side Street Projects | 145 N RAYMOND AVE , PASADENA, 91103 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 798-7774 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With Support from the California Arts Council, Side Street Projects will deliver a public art curriculum to all 2nd graders in PUSD. The program pairs artist –led public art field trips with an in-classroom public artmaking project. This curriculum is a part of a sequential k-6 program in PUSD. |
Side Street Projects is mobile artist run organization that connects artists to communities. We do this through programs that nurture relationships to promote creativity, wellbeing and the potential for collective growth. “The Woodworking Bus” teaches children design and fabrication. We lead local 2nd graders on public art walking tours and that inspire collaborative public art for the schools. Every Saturday we host free Skill Shares and Artist Projects. Everything we do encourages creative problem solving in a hands-on art-making context, which is reflected in our unusual operating model. Our offices are solar powered vintage trailers and modified shipping containers. We use mobility to meet folks where they are. We believe that deep collaboration between community, government agencies, and organizations makes our whole greater than the sum of its parts. We maintain a horizontal dialogue with our artists and community that continuously shapes the organization and its programs. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Freedom Forward | 198 Potrero Ave , San Francisco, 94103-4813 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 525-4438 | District 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Freedom Forward’s Hip Hop HEALS program engages youth aged 14-24 through artistic outlets that enhance their social and emotional development and strengthen community bonds. Based in the HYPE Center and in collaboration with Hip Hop For The Future, the initiative integrates hip-hop culture with holistic wellness programs to serve 300 unique youth annually. The HYPE Center operates as a multi-service drop-in space designed by and for youth, promoting access to resources under one roof in service to preventing commercial sexual exploitation. The project includes Youth-led Open Mic Nights and Hip Hop Education Workshops, which are designed to empower youth by providing them with leadership roles and opportunities to express themselves creatively. The program also focuses on quarterly outreach events that connect youth with essential community services and resources. |
The cornerstone of our intervention strategies is the HYPE (Helping Young People Elevate) Center, inaugurated in 2019 as a sanctuary designed by and for the youth. This multi-service drop-in center was conceived to directly confront and dismantle the barriers that vulnerable youth in San Francisco encounter. By centralizing a suite of services from peer partners—including legal support, mental health counseling, workforce development, and alternative healing practices—alongside providing essential resources such as showers, nutritious food, clothing, and laundry facilities, HYPE stands as a beacon of hope and transformation. The center operates on both a feedback-driven model, ensuring that the voices and needs of the youth are not only heard but are central to the ongoing evaluation and adaptation of our services, and a collaborative healing-focused peer service providers. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $13,888.00 | Coachella Valley Arts Institute | 41550 Eclectic Street , Palm Desert, 92260 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (760) 440-5512 | 25th | 42nd | 28th | With support from the California Arts Council, FUTURENOMIC RESOURCES INCORPORATED DBA Coachella Valley Arts Institute (CVAI) will bridge arts education inequity for HPI underserved communities. Our “Explore AI” project offers free art programs to unhoused youth, integrating art therapy and AI technology in music, animation, and special effects. This initiative promotes racial equity, social justice, and youth voices, fostering healing and mental well-being through rhythm, mindfulness, and energy-medicine techniques. We will document the journey and transformation of participating youth, culminating in a final project from each student. CAC grant funds will cover program costs, including AI technology, art supplies, and professional instructors. By offering these programs, CVAI aims to improve self-esteem, mental health, and economic status among low-income, at-risk youth, and BIPOC communities, empowering them to explore creativity and build resilience. |
Futurenomic offers a diverse array of programs tailored to enhance literacy, artistic expression, and well-being among youth and homeless populations aged 2 and above. Our commitment to inclusivity is underscored by scholarship opportunities, ensuring access to quality arts education in underserved communities. Our programs encompass: – Vocal Training: Led by professionals employing the Seth Rigg’s method, participants receive comprehensive instruction in Speech Level Singing. – Singing Performance: Explore vocal technique, music theory, and stage presence in a supportive environment. – Dance Training: Experience a unique blend of dance styles tailored for live performances. -First 5 Movement Dance Class: Fosters literacy, balance, and coordination development. – Songwriting: Delve into song structure, vocabulary use, and self-expression. – Acting & Drama: Cultivate creativity and performance skills through immersive training. – STEM Education: Engage in hands-on classes integrating science, technology, engineering, and math with music and movement exploration, guitar craftsmanship, and music production using industry-standard software. – Art Therapy: Utilize Media Arts as a healing tool, employing rhythm, mindfulness, and energy-medicine techniques to support trauma recovery. – Painting: From perspective to composition, participants explore various painting techniques and mediums under expert guidance. – Social Media Class: Gain insights into utilizing social media platforms effectively and safely. – Music Production with Logic Class: Learn the intricacies of music and sound editing using Logic Pro, guided by professional engineers. – Adobe Illustrator Class: Master the basics of graphic design for creative expression. – Tutoring: Virtual sessions offer a wide range of educational opportunities including photography, videography, music production, website design, and marketing classes. At Futurenomic, we’re not just fostering artistic skills; we’re nurturing holistic development, empowering individuals to unleash their potential and contribute positively to their communities. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $23,147.00 | Film2Future | 6310 San Vicente Blvd Suite 101, Los Angeles, 90048-5426 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (206) 418-8778 | 30th Congressional District of California | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Film2Future will provide an Intensive Animation Program that provides students underserved Los Angeles youth hands on experience creating short films and prepares them for careers in media arts by growing students’ professional creative skills and industry network. |
The core of F2F’s program is our filmmaking intensives. Students work in teams to create short films with instruction and mentorship from 200+ industry professionals. We have provided five summer intensive courses: Narrative Filmmaking, Animation, Emerging Technologies (VR, AR podcasting), Music Video Production, and Advertising. We also provide our students year round learning and networking opportunities, providing them the and opportunities needed to succeed in entry level positions and emerging industry disciplines. We partner with leading companies in the industry to deliver our programs, such as Lord Miller, Universal Pictures, Sony Pictures, and many more. Volunteer industry professionals give students a 360-degree view of the filmmaking industry. They also teach life skills associated with being an artist, such as accepting feedback, overcoming disappointment and financial literacy. Speakers in our programs include leaders in their respective fields such as Kemp Powers (Writer/Director, Soul), Kristen Schaal (Voice Actor, Bob’s Burgers), Thomas Kail (Director, Hamilton) and Joseph Raymond Lucero (Actor, Mayans MC). F2F’s strong industry partnerships allow us to secure paid internships and jobs in the film industry for alumni at companies such as Netflix, NBC and CBS, and shows like Glow, Grey’s Anatomy and Brooklyn Nine-Nine. To date we have secured over 150 paid opportunities for alumni, also aiding them in developing their resumes and practicing their interview skills. These well-paying positions enable F2F youth to keep their artistic talents at the center of their career. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | Youth Orchestras of Fresno | 2503 W Shaw Ave #103 , Fresno, 93711-3309 | Fresno | Central Valley | (812) 219-5590 | California's 21st congressional district | District 31 | District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Youth Orchestras of Fresno will partner with local art teachers to involve high school students in a project-based learning experience creating stage sets inspired by and illustrative of the music programmed at concerts during our 75th Anniversary season. |
We are a youth music organization running two distinct but symbiotically connected programs: our youth orchestras themselves (260 participants in three orchestral ensembles rehearsing weekly and producing a minimum of four concerts per season); our FOOSA Summer Music Academy (a two-week immersive program featuring internationally acclaimed faculty from some of the best music schools in the world and offering a tour to Los Angeles to perform at Disney Hall) |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $9,735.00 | ACCIS | 2740 Fulton Ave #129 , SACRAMENTO, 95821-5115 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 672-1183 | 6 | 6 | 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arab Community Center for Integration Services (ACCIS) will enhance integration programs for refugees in Sacramento. Founded in 2019 but active since 2014, ACCIS has supported over 6,000 Arab refugees through Referral Services, Women and Youth Empowerment Programs, and Cultural Integration Activities. Our proposal targets Youth Enrichment and Community Involvement. Funds will expand our youth programs like Cultural Summer Camp, Artistic Expression Workshops and Dabke Dance sessions. ACCIS aims to minimize cultural shock and create a welcoming environment, empowering immigrants to thrive in their new community while preserving identity. This project will unite children and youth in a healthy environment promoting cultural exchange, inclusion, social, emotional, and artistic development. It will provide equitable resources to underserved youth, celebrate cultural heritage, and empower refugees to thrive in their new community. |
Core programs are Referral Services, Women and Youth Empowerment Programs, and Cultural Integration Activities. Navigating a new community is challenging, especially when confronted with unfamiliar systems. Our Referral Services Program in Sacramento is designed to provide vital resources to newly arriving immigrants and refugees to ease the process through key components such as employment assistance, health referrals, and immigration support. Our focus is on fostering community connections through cultural integration activities. The Youth & Children Enrichment Program in Sacramento plays a vital role in supporting young individuals, especially immigrant and refugee youth facing unique challenges being caught between two cultures and dealing with emotional trauma from war and resettlement to a new environment. The program empowers them to thrive, succeed, and contribute positively to their communities. We addresses these challenges through wellness activities focused on emotional intelligence, cultural-related events, outdoor team-building activities, mentoring, and coaching at low or no cost, ensuring inclusivity for participants facing financial constraints. ACCIS is dedicated to creating a welcoming space for immigrants and refugees in Sacramento, empowering them to seamlessly integrate into the community and fostering a sense of belonging. Through active participation in events, ACCIS celebrates diversity and contributes to the well-being of immigrants and refugees, building a strong, inclusive community through shared experiences. |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | $18,517.00 | Guitars and Ukes in the Classroom | 1286 University Ave. #389, SAN DIEGO, 92103-3312 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 840-1010 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Guitars and Ukes in the Classroom will implement high quality, consistent, culturally responsive and inclusive professional development training in music integration and leadership for literacy, math, and social emotional learning with teachers serving in UTK and TK classrooms in schools of greatest need and concern in San Diego Unified School District. We will offer instruction and facilitation through 8 cohorts, meeting monthly, each serving 20+ teachers, in partnership and collaboration with the district’s department of Visual and Performing Arts. General, Special, and Music Education teachers will team up in these neighborhood cohorts and will learn to teach and lead developmental music together, strengthening each others’ skills, and areas of knowledge for the upliftment of San Diego’s youngest students in many of our most under-resourced and marginalized communities. |
GITC provides professional development training and classroom capacity-building residencies for educators, in person and online. Participants receive instruction in ukulele, guitar, singing, and music integration. Our services include: |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | VECA | 25251 CAMPUS DR , HAYWARD, 94542-1119 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 390-2410 | Hayward city | District 20 | District California | With the generous support of CAC, the Vietnamese Education & Cultural Association (VECA) and the Blood Moon Orchestra (BMO) are proud to present a workshop series for underserved youth in the East Bay area through the exploration of traditional music. Led by esteemed master traditional artist Van-Anh Vo, this series comprises 10 workshops spanning six months. Beyond cultivating musical proficiency, these sessions are designed to cultivate a profound appreciation for the cultural heritage woven into the music, fostering the growth of future cultural ambassadors. Van-Anh Vo brings over a decade of experience in mentoring youth and conducting music and cultural education workshops throughout California. Our initiative is specially tailored to address the needs of marginalized youth in the East Bay Area, offering access to music education and cultural insights often overlooked in mainstream educational settings. |
VECA offers a number of essential cultural and educational programs to its participants. One of our primary goals is to expand our youth participants’ horizons and bridge gaps in their education. Education and Culture Focus: Leadership Courses Life Skills Courses Culture and Music Appreciation Workshops Summer program (camping, arts and crafts) Community Focus: City-wide community service program (city clean up day, etc.) Charitable fundraising for victims of natural disasters |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $127,459.00 | San Francisco Arts Commission | 401 Van Ness Avenue Suite 325, San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 252-2266 | California's 11th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With the support of the California Arts Council, the San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) will expand its partnership with the Office of Civic Engagement and Immigrant Affairs (OCEIA) by creating a monthly series of artist-led workshops for migrant newcomer communities. San Francisco is a sanctuary city that promotes trust and cooperation among residents and the City is seeing an increase in the number of migrant families and asylum seekers. This year-long program aims to enhance and build artistic skills and equip participants with the knowledge and resources needed to enhance their income from their crafts. Led by local practicing artists, these workshops will be interactive, combining theoretical instruction, demonstrations, hands-on practice sessions, group discussions, feedback sessions, and professional development. The workshops will be organized throughout San Francisco in locations that are welcoming to migrant communities. |
SFAC’s major programs are Community Investments (including a funding program that supports eleven grant categories for individual artists and organizations, arts education, and seven cultural centers; and an Artist Vendor Licensing Program); and Urban Infrastructure, including the award-winning Public Art Program, SFAC Galleries, Civic Design Review (an oversight body for all public development projects) and the Civic Art Collection which manages, conserves and maintains approximately 4,500 artworks owned by the City. The Monuments and Memorials Advisory Committee is a priority initiative launched in 2021 that will impact the Public Art Program and the Civic Art Collection moving forward. It is a mayoral directive and charges SFAC to administer a partnership with the Human Rights Commission and the Recreation and Parks Department that convenes community members to create criteria and guidelines by which to determine the fate of historic monuments in the collection and the basis for commissioning public art memorials in the future. The SFAC implements programs and policies that demonstrate cultural and racial equity values across all agency functions. We continue to develop as a local, national and international leader and resource for advancing racial equity practices in arts and culture services—both for the community and for the agency’s own infrastructure. In January 2019, SFAC became the first City & County of San Francisco agency to have passed a racial equity statement and plan. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $46,293.00 | BAVC Media | 145 9th St Ste 101 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 861-3282 | CA 12th District | District 17 | District 11 | Bay Area Video Coalition (BAVC Media) requests CAC grant funds to expand the Bay Area Media Maker Summit (BAMMS), a collaborative project that BAVC Media co-created and launched in 2021 to cultivate a healthy and inclusive Bay Area filmmaking community through learning, connection and local exhibition events. With support from CAC, the initiative will become more accessible to a wider geography of the Bay Area, and will become more sustainable with paid staffing support to manage outreach and operations. |
BAVC is a community hub and resource for media makers in the Bay Area, California and across the country, serving over 7,500 freelancers, filmmakers, job-seekers, activists, and artists every year. BAVC provides access to media making technology and education, storytelling workshops, a diverse and engaged community of makers and producers, advisory and AV production services, media making grants and other resources. BAVC advocates for those whose stories aren’t being told, and provides the resources for anyone to create and share, and amplify their stories and those of their communities. BAVC’s diverse, inclusive, and innovative programs lead the field in media training for youth and educators, technology and multimedia focused workforce development, visually-driven new media storytelling and audio-visual preservation. BAVC has been a trusted community educator, collaborator, incubator, community builder and resource for the media arts world since 1976. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | The David's Harp Foundation, Inc. | 705 16th Street , San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 707-5855 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, the David’s Harp Foundation will expand its impactful Digital Arts program to ensure equitable access and empower a new generation of leaders. We will hire a talented alum from our Biz Pod program as an Artist Mentor (teaching artist) to guide elementary and high school-aged youth at risk of justice system involvement. This grant will cover their training and salary, allowing them to mentor and inspire at-risk youth through digital music and multimedia production. In line with our organization’s goal to transition executive directorship to a program graduate by 2031, this initiative fosters leadership from within the community, creating a powerful ripple effect of transformation and empowerment through creative expression and professional development. |
The David’s Harp Foundation’s core programs and services provide a relationship-centered creative youth development pathway for opportunity youth, including young people impacted by juvenile justice, foster care, homelessness, poverty, and educational disruption. The Student Studio is often the first point of connection. Youth gain access to professional music production, songwriting, recording, podcasting, and media arts instruction. Through creative projects, Artist Mentors build trust, support emotional expression, and help young people develop confidence, collaboration, and a positive sense of identity. Beats Behind the Wall brings this same creative and relational model inside juvenile detention facilities, including East Mesa and Kearny Mesa. Young people who are incarcerated participate in music production, songwriting, recording, digital arts, and storytelling. The program creates a safe space for youth to process their experiences, build skills, and be seen as artists, leaders, and creators rather than being defined by their charges or circumstances. Beats Beyond the Wall is the reentry continuation of this work, connecting youth to continued support, mentorship, and programming after release. The Biz Pod is our creative workforce development program. Youth learn videography, photography, audio engineering, editing, design, project management, client communication, and entrepreneurship through paid work on real projects for nonprofit, corporate, and community partners. This helps young people build resumes, earn income, and access San Diego’s creative economy. The Transformation House provides safe, supportive, family-style housing for young people who need a stable bridge into adulthood. Residents participate in David’s Harp programming while receiving mentorship, workforce support, life skills development, and preparation for independent living. Together, these programs form a continuum of care that reaches youth inside institutions, welcomes them into community, and supports them as they create, heal, work, lead, and thrive. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | Healthy Black Families Inc | 2927 Adeline St , BERKELEY, 94703 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 285-6689 | District 12 | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Healthy Black Families will produce an After-School Arts Program in early 2025. This free program prioritizing Black youth ages 10-18 will offer classes in spoken word/rap and drum corps, and will take place twice weekly for a series of 10 weeks, culminating in a free final performance for the community. |
Healthy Black Families offers programs empowering individuals, families, and organizations to advance social equity and justice in the Black community through social programs and support groups, lifestyle educational programs, and educational and performance programs in the arts. Our after school arts program offers free classes in vocals and visual art, prioritizing Black youth ages 10-16. Our Sisters Together Empowering Peers program began in 2002 and is a peer-led support and empowerment group that addresses health and social inequities for African American parenting women in our community, providing education in areas such as access to essential goods and services, housing, education, job training, school readiness, and health information. Our Thirsty 4 Change program works with community partners to engage African-Americans in South and West Berkeley to support improved health including community gardening, shopping at farmer’s markets, education in nutrition and cooking, and a youth water ambassador program to increase community knowledge about the health impacts of sugar sweetened beverages. Through the Telling Our Stories program, we offer participants a safe space to address stressors associated with motherhood through self-expression in a communal writing space. This program has completed nine rounds of healing writing circles, culminating in eight self-published books. Our Kindergarten Readiness program provides African-American parents with educational information through community empowerment groups, educational forums, expert presentations, and workshops. Our free Soul Line Dancing program with dance instructor Valid Holmes and our free Gentle African Caribbean Movement program with dance instructor Karma Smart are each held weekly, providing instruction and a forum for community expression in African Diaspora dance styles for participants of all ages and levels. Our Celebrating the Bay Area’s Black Musical Heritage program premiered in 2019, presenting free programs honoring our Black musical legacy through live performances with living legends and tributes to departed heroes. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | PIECE BY PIECE | 6417 S. Main St , Los Angeles, 90003-1525 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 459-1420 | California Assembly district 53 | District 53 | District 30 | With help from the California Arts Council, Piece by Piece will continue offering therapeutic art workshops for Veterans empowering them to create a community of healing. Since 2007 we have provided free, mosaic workshops staffed with trauma informed professionals – where individuals who have experienced trauma from being unhoused, military service, poverty, or physical/mental/emotional disabilities have an opportunity to heal through participation in the creative arts. We practice mosaic arts – easily accessible and requiring no prior experience – workshops led by Piece by Piece Artistic/Program Director, Dawn Mendelson ensure that veterans, their families, and/or care givers can participate and benefit. The curriculum was created by Dawn in collaboration with Village for Vets and James G, a veteran and Certified Piece by Piece artist. Funds will directly support materials, staff, and accessibility for all abilities. |
Programs include: – Artisan Certification Program: Progressive skill-building course guiding participants through four certification levels in mosaic. – Directed Studies: Multi-week sessions focusing on advanced techniques led by Piece by Piece instructors and professional Visiting Artists. – Open Studio: Open session for active participants to create personal projects, refine skills, and receive support from instructors. – Community Outreach: Group projects with community members in an inviting, low-commitment setting. – Social Enterprise: Artisans complete orders and commissioned projects, receiving an hourly wage for their work. – Studio Prep Associates Program: The organization employs individuals who have experienced homelessness to provide program support sorting, preparing, and managing donated mosaic materials. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles | 4301 W 3RD ST , LOS ANGELES, 90020-3809 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 380-6448 | With support from the California Arts Council, the YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles will expand its Youth Institute for Media Arts (YIMA) program to reach underserved communities. This initiative will provide low-income youth with hands-on training in digital arts, including filmmaking, graphic design, and music composition. Participants will gain access to state-of-the-art equipment and mentorship from industry professionals. The program aims to enhance academic success, career readiness, and social-emotional development through creative expression. By empowering youth with digital skills and fostering a supportive community, Youth Institute of Media Arts will create pathways for future success and civic engagement, ultimately contributing to the cultural and economic vitality of Los Angeles. |
The YMCA of Metropolitan Los Angeles (LA Y) offers a diverse and comprehensive range of programming designed to support the health, wellness, and development of community members across all age groups. Central to its mission, the LA Y provides extensive fitness programs including group exercise classes, personal training, swimming, and youth sports, all aimed at promoting physical health and fostering a sense of community. Additionally, the LA Y is deeply committed to youth development, offering after-school programs that provide children and teenagers with a safe and nurturing environment. These programs include homework assistance, arts and crafts, and various educational workshops that emphasize leadership and personal growth. The LA Y also runs summer camps that offer youngsters the chance to explore new activities, develop new skills, and build lasting friendships in a supportive setting. Community support is another pillar of the LA Y’s offerings. It provides a variety of programs designed to help individuals and families from all walks of life, including support groups, job training initiatives, and wellness seminars. These programs are tailored to meet the diverse needs of the community, ranging from mental health support to nutritional guidance. Through its dedication to nurturing the potential of kids, promoting healthy living, and fostering a sense of social responsibility, the LA Y continues to make a significant impact on the Los Angeles community, making it a vital local resource for personal development and collective well-being. |
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| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Via International | 1955 JULIAN AVE , SAN DIEGO, 92113-1125 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 310-2105 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 80 | District 40 | With support from the California Arts Council, Via International will expand our successful pilot program, Somos La Voz Arts & Cultural Heritage, to offer contemporary and folkloric art programming to approximately 60 Mexican, Chicano, and Latinx at-promise youth in historic barrios of San Diego. Through this program, Mexican and Chicano teaching artists will offer intensive courses in art mediums representative of Chicano and Mexican cultures, such as Son Jarocho, Aztec Dance, Graffiti Art, Painting, and more. These classes will 1) introduce youth to specific art techniques representative of Chicano and Mexican cultures and theory of art as a tool for social justice and 2) connect youth with their unique cultural legacy. Somos La Voz will empower youth who face discrimination and erasure to harness the power of art as an expression of activism and social justice. |
Via works through the paradigm of asset-based community development (ABCD), which is a development practice that centers the community of focus, building on already-present strengths, leadership, and community assets. ABCD works to bring resources to communities of focus to invest in community-sourced and led solutions. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $18,517.00 | East West Players | 120 Judge John Aiso St. , Los Angeles, 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 625-7000 | California's 34th Congressional district | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, East West Players will enhance its Theater for Youth (TFY) program, reaching more students across Los Angeles County. TFY commissions new plays focused on significant AAPI historical figures and social issues, providing free or low-cost performances to schools, libraries, and community partners. The 2024/25 academic year selection focuses on Rep. Patsy Mink of Hawaii, the first woman of color elected to Congress and co-author of Title IX. This support will help us serve 7,000 students through 40 performances. Additionally, funding will enable us to collect teacher feedback and provide teacher support, ensuring the program’s effectiveness and enriching students’ understanding of AAPI history and culture while promoting empathy and critical thinking skills. |
EWP’s signature programs are its mainstage productions. Each season they produce three to five original and classic works (including one musical and at least one world premiere), hire hundreds of creative and technical personnel, and nearly 20,000 audience members, all of which contribute to the Little Tokyo community and its businesses. To supplement EWP’s mainstage productions, throughout the year they program free community conversations, readings, and workshops of new works to explore current issues affecting our society, such as immigration, houselessness, and mental health. EWP’s largest arts education programs are Theatre for Youth (TFY) and EWPlay!: TFY commissions playwrights to devise a script centered around notable Asian American historical figures. It is fully produced and performed in schools, libraries, and community centers all over Los Angeles County at little to no cost for host venues. Performances are 45 minutes. Tours are accompanied by a standards-based study guide to help educators frame and explore the themes of the play in the classroom. EWPlay! is an after-school program for middle schoolers that introduces youth to the theatre arts and connects students with AAPI culture and experience. More than 60% of student audiences are from underserved Title I schools. As one participant from Palms Middle School explains: “One thing I learned is to be myself no matter what anybody else thinks of me, and no matter who is judging me, to be myself because if they’re not gonna like me for who I am, they don’t deserve to know me. What I liked about these classes were how free we were to be ourselves and how we could express ourselves in the way I personally loved.” Arts education programs extend beyond youth programming with our year-round adult Professional Enrichment courses, designed to provide training to the next generation of entertainment industry professionals. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $140,979.00 | Arts Connection - The Arts Council of San Bernardino County | 536 W 11th St , San Bernardino, 92410 | San Bernardino | Inland Empire | (909) 381-1900 | California's 31st congressional district | District 40 | District 23 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts Connection will continue shaping an equitable future in which communities’ arts & cultural priorities are incorporated into county and local civic policies, planning, granting and development practices. AC will continue working with our county partners to facilitate Poetry Out Loud, and further work to create the first Teen Poet Laurette with SB County Schools, expanding opportunities for in-class and afterschool arts education programming, promoting pathways for teaching artists and identifying more future arts educators. AC will continue working on our current collaboration with Just SB, advocating for and creating equitable jobs, an arts and cultural center, and education pathways for artists and creatives regionwide. Grant funds will directly support staff costs and operating expenses associated with this program facilitation and continued advocacy work. |
Arts Connection offers a comprehensive slate of programs that uplift artists, expand access to the arts, and strengthen San Bernardino County’s creative economy. As the State-Local Partner of the California Arts Council, we serve as a central hub for arts education, workforce development, and public engagement throughout the region. Our commitment to arts education is exemplified through Arts Avenue, an after-school program operated in partnership with San Bernardino City Unified School District. This initiative brings high-quality, standards-based instruction in ceramics, music, visual art, and media arts to K–12 students while employing and training Community Teaching Artists from the region. The program fosters creativity, confidence, and skill-building in students, while investing in the local creative workforce. We support creative career development through several key initiatives. Estudio Aire is a residency program that provides BIPOC and LGBTQ+ artists with free studio space, mentorship, and customized professional development. Our Professional Development Workshop Series equips artists with skills in branding, pricing, portfolio building, and fundraising. The Inland Film Festival offers training opportunities for filmmakers—covering everything from pre-production to post-production. In addition to regranting over 20k in microgrants to artists. Arts Connection also leads public art and cultural planning efforts across the county. We have spearheaded projects like Sole Alley, a creative revitalization effort in downtown San Bernardino. Our team regularly supports cultural asset mapping and creative placemaking projects that promote community-led planning and investment in cultural infrastructure. We provide fiscal sponsorship, technical assistance, and capacity-building support to more than a dozen grassroots arts organizations and collectives. This includes grant management, strategic advising, and mentorship to help scale their programs and deepen their impact. Our advocacy efforts at the city, county, and state levels ensure that artists and creative professionals have access to the funding, infrastructure, and career pathways they need to thrive. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | CA for the Arts | 1731 Howe Ave #585 , SACRAMENTO, 95825-2209 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 296-1838 | California's 6th congressional district | CA-6 | CA-6 | With support from the California Arts Council, CA for the Arts champions arts and culture as essential to vibrant communities through statewide programming, services, and advocacy networks that foster public awareness, center equity, and generate resources to cultivate a thriving arts and cultural sector. Unique in a cross-sectoral approach, bridging connections, empowering arts and cultural communities, and uplifting marginalized voices, CA for the Arts translates public need to public policy. CA for the Arts understands that arts and culture are essential to the wellbeing of society and embedded in community life and we advocate for policies where arts, culture and creativity intersect with broader policy change to reshape systems toward equity and justice. CA for the Arts’ diverse approach holds space for the arts ecosystem to articulate vision, strategy, and equity across the cultural sector. |
Regional Advocacy Infrastructure Network (RAIN), which encompasses the Grassroots Artists Advocacy Network (GAAP) and the Regional Program Manager (RPM) initiatives, and Arts, Culture & Creativity Month (ACCM), featuring the CA Arts & Culture Summit and Arts Advocacy Day. Special initiatives focus on Arts & Health, Arts & Space, cultural districts and artist employment programs. These core programs are supported by research, technical assistance, and public awareness campaigns. Programs and services are based on the following goals: |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Young Musicians Foundation | 1044 East Jefferson Boulevard, Suite A , Los Angeles, 90011 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 987-0065 | California's 37th congressional district | District 57 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council the Young Musicians Foundation (YMF) will deliver music and media arts education, experience and workforce development training to underserved, underpresented youth in South and East Los Angeles. The first track are programs that fall under Creative Career Pathways programs for at-promise transitional aged youth (TAY) ages 16 – 24, and justice system impacted TAY re-entering the community. These programs are healing-based and founded on principles of student-led, culturally responsive pedagogies. They emphasize creative self-expression while also providing skills and experience in utilizing music and media arts production technologies, laying foundational skills required for participation in the creative economy. |
YMF provides year-round tuition-free music, media arts, creative career pathway classes and workforce development training to the communities of South Central Los Angeles through our newly completed, state-of-the-art facility in Historic South Central Los Angeles. In-school programs are delivered weekly to over 6,000 students at 26 partner schools in under-served, high-need communities across Los Angeles. Community programs originate from the YMF Center for Music and Creative Technologies (CMCT). Classes are free of charge and open to the the communities of South Central Los Angeles and beyond. Offerings include classes keyboard, guitar, violin, trumpet, flute clarinet, drums, and percussion, composition/songwriting, music technology/production, songwriting, and filmmaking. The CMCT features a multimedia lab/classroom, audio/visual control room, and a production studio/sound stage that comprise the heart of our Creative Career Pathways and Workforce Development Programs. Creative Career Pathway programs were created to serve at-risk and system impacted youth ages 16 to 25 by developing creative self-expression through lyric writing, storytelling and digital music and video creation while also providing the foundational skills needed for participation in the creative economy. In-school programs bring tuition-free, weekly, music instruction directly to over 5,200 students at 24 partner schools in South LA, Eastside LA, and Downtown LA. Programs run throughout the academic year and over the summer. Many of these programs are dual-language. In-school programs are guided by benchmark Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) Standards. YMF’s proprietary curricular planning tools integrate the domains of Social/Emotional Learning (SEL) with musical skill development. Specialized classes include Music Fundamentals for pre-k through 4-th Grade, and Music Technology and Production, Songwriting, Strings, (including guitar and ukulele), Brass, Woodwinds, and Percussion for grades 4 – 12. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $46,293.00 | Media Arts Center San Diego | 1100 Market Street Suite 326, San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 230-1938 | California's 53rd congressional district | California's 80th District | 78th District | With support from the California Arts Council, Media Arts Center San Diego (MACSD) will strengthen its long-running Frontera Filmmakers initiative that serves diverse, underrepresented filmmakers; and helps to grow the filmmaking industry in the San Diego County border region, with professional trainings to develop skills, exhibition opportunities, networking to enhance industry relationships, work-readiness opportunities, and fiscal sponsorship for filmmakers’ projects. |
MACSD programs, events, and film festivals are inclusionary—designed with audiences, participants, and community collaboration in mind. A summary of core organizational programs and services can be broken down into three categories: WATCH— We produce the San Diego Latino Film Festival (SDLFF), including the iVIE Awards and Student Film Festival, as well as screen films at our independent cinema the Digital Gym CINEMA. We also exhibit the artworks produced through our educational programming during family screenings. LEARN—Media education programs for youth fall under the umbrella of Young Producers Project (YPP) and include Young Creators Media Camps, Teen Producers Project, and the Workforce Development Initiative. CREATE—Tools for community-based media production and collaboration include: production training courses for independent filmmakers in San Diego; and Video Production Services, helping community groups make digital media presence available and affordable. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $140,979.00 | Mariposa Arts Council | 5009 CA-140 , Mariposa, 95338 | Mariposa | Central Valley | (209) 966-3155 | California's 4th congressional district | District 8 | District 4 | With CAC support, Mariposa County Arts Council (MCACI) will leverage the arts for constructive community engagement; support historically underrepresented communities; build and grow partnerships; and, served the creative interests of residents and visitors through a range of public cultural and arts education programming, creative placemaking initiatives, local/regional/statewide advocacy, network developments at the local, regional and state level, cultural policy leadership and provide granting and technical assistance to local artists and grassroots arts organizations. |
The Mariposa County Arts Council (MCACI) opened its doors in 1981 and is dedicated to enriching Mariposa through the arts. Serving the county at large and working closely with our local government leaders as well as individuals, regional organizations and businesses, we develop and implement cultural policies, creative placemaking projects, arts educations initiatives and produce artistic programming designed to positively increase the visibility of Mariposa and amplify the many diverse voices in our community. Our work welcomes all local residents and visitors to engage with art experiences and is designed to facilitate personal interpretations, expression, and growth; strengthen social connections and community dialogue; connect rural Mariposa to issues, movements, and opportunities beyond its borders; and support the healthy development of individuals of all ages by engaging them in the creation and appreciation of art. MCACI’s work includes: develop cultural policy and creative placemaking initiatives; providing technical assistance to regional artists and arts organizations; developing and delivering a variety of TK-12 grade creative youth development and arts education programming to youth across Mariposa County; targeted mentoring programming for at-promise youth; special arts programming for adults with limited or no access to the arts (particularly incarcerated and geographically isolated older adults); public programming (community theatre and summer concert series); and local, regional, state, and national advocacy work. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | Inland Empire Community Foundation | 3700 6TH ST STE 200 , RIVERSIDE, 92501-2885 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (951) 241-7777 | California Assembly district 58 | District 58 | District 31 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Inland Empire Community Foundation (IECF) in partnership with San Bernardino Arts Connection (SBAC) and Riverside Arts Council (RAC)) will build capacity for the Inland Empire Arts Partnership (IEAP), formed with input from 74 artists, arts & cultural administrators and culture bearers to create a collective vision of cooperation among the IE creative bloc and to provide a long-term direction and framework with actionable strategies for advancing the arts, culture, and creative industries sector in the Inland Empire region. IEAP will evaluate the impact this grant has in advancing equity for the communities across the Inland Empire region by co-creating an equity framework with concrete actionable strategies and objectives within each of the committees |
In the past, IECF has provided capacity building grants through its endowed Community Impact Fund (CIF). In March 2020, adopted a focus on racial, gender, and economic equity. This means ensuring our staff and Board reflect the communities we serve and that our grantmaking builds the voice and power of our grantees to transform their communities. It also means listening to and incorporating the lived experiences of people who daily struggle to achieve safety, health, and prosperity in the Inland Empire. In doing this work, IECF will rely on data that shows where disparities exist to drive our grantmaking, programs, and partnerships. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Long Beach Opera | 4425 Atlantic Ave b10 , Long Beach, 90807-2238 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 470-7464 | California Assembly district 69 | District CA-42 | District 33 | With support from the California Arts Council, Long Beach Opera (LBO) will offer multiple performances of Acquaprofonda, an opera for children dealing with subjects of environmental conservation, at the Aquarium of the Pacific (AoP) in Long Beach in July 2025. In preparation for the performances, we will offer curricular materials to be shared with all registrants before the performances. We will recruit our audience from Long Beach schools where we have performed during the school year, local after-school programs, and past and current participants in AoP’s educational programs. After the opera, we will offer an opportunity to take environmental action with a beach clean-up for children and families sponsored by the Surfrider Foundation. |
Founded in 1979, the Long Beach Opera is the oldest operatic producing company in the metropolitan Los Angeles/Orange County region. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Joe Goode Performance Group | 499 ALABAMA ST # 150 , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110-1967 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 561-6565 | California Assembly district 12 | District 17 | District 11 | With the support from the California Arts Council, Joe Goode Performance Group (JGPG) will create an original dance theater performance piece elevating the stories and experiences of middle-high school age youth using JGPG’s signature creative methodologies. This free program supports youth in training and creating alongside dance theater professionals. |
JGPG uses an intersectional equity framework in the design and implementation of all its programming. JGPG centers the experiences of these communities through core guiding principles: Listen and make art collaboratively with the people in the room—their bodies, their stories and their sensibilities. – New Work: site-responsive installations, in-theater works, and intimate performances in the Annex. Most recently Are You Okay? (2025) Co-directed by Joe Goode and Melecio Estrella was an immersive dance theater work that asked how we are managing in a world that is personally and collectively unstable. – JGPG’s GUSH Dance Theater Festivals have uplifted LGBTQ+ and QTPOC artists and audiences. GUSH 2020, 2022 and 2024 all featured the work ofLGBTQ+, BIPOC and QTPOC artist. GUSH 2026 will serve as a legacy project for JGPG. – JGPG artist Wailana Simcock, hosts D.R.A.G @ the Annex, inviting QTBIPOC artists to share their knowledge and understanding of gender in JGPG-produced events and workshops. – Through JGPG’s partnership with San Francisco Veterans Services JGPG offers 2 weekly movement and community connection classes for veterans and veteran service providers. – JGPG’s Youth Program: Inspired Bodies, a free youth dance program led by JGPG teaching artists currently has served over 150+ Bay Area middle and high school students in the 2025-26 school year. – Beginning in March 2026, JGPG is partnering with Open House and Shanti Project to offer PLUSH – weekly expressive movement class for LGBTQ+ older adults and those with disabilities at the Joe Goode Annex. – Weekly Movement for Humans: a gentle accessible movement class for people of all ages, backgrounds, and abilities. We will continue to host online classes every Saturday from 10:00am to 11:15am. – JGPG Annex Rentals: accessible studio rental program serving over 8,000 audience members and 90 renting artists per year. Efforts are made for artist-centered access; rentals are offered at below-market rates. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | East Bay Center for the Performing Arts | 339 11TH ST , RICHMOND, 94801-3105 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 234-5624 | California's 8th Congressional District | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, EAST BAY CENTER FOR THE PERFORMING ARTS will deepen the quality of its Young Artist Diploma Program (YADP) by fostering holistic youth development through trauma-informed, cross cultural, multidisciplinary performing arts education. The program aims to engage Richmond adolescents in intensive, culturally resonant artistic training, support their academic and personal growth, and promote equity and community well-being. |
1) Training/Instruction: Year-round comprehensive courses, private instruction, recitals & student support services at the Center’s state-of-the-art facility nurture 350 students ages 3-18, including 110 Young Artist Diploma Program students, who represent the most committed 7th-12th graders in our program. The Center provides them with an intensive year-round, 6-year, tuition-free, cross-cultural, cross-disciplinary (music, theater, dance) performing arts program. 2) School Partnerships: Provides foundational music, dance and theater instruction for 3,700 students at 17 Title I TK-12 public schools & 4 community centers, along with professional development for 50 public school classroom. 3) Artistic Productions: The Center’s “Call & Response” program involves our 7 youth/young adult performing resident companies (90+ students) reaching local audiences of 20,000+ annually through more than 75 community gatherings, recitals and the creation of new work. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | Elevate Oakland | 1661 20th St suite 3 , Oakland, 94607-3390 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (925) 878-1831 | California Assembly district 15 | District 15 | District 9 | With the support from the California Arts Council, 51OAKLAND will partner with a collective of local performing artists and the Castlemont High School Alumni Association for the “Deep East Oakland Vocal Project”, an intergenerational community effort to revive the legacy of choral music in Deep East Oakland through music education, performance and storytelling. Program elements include weekly classroom instruction for more than 150 students along a continuum of Deep East Oakland Elementary, Middle and High Schools led by community teaching artists, an archival storytelling project conducted in partnership with local artists and Castlemont alumni, as well as a series of community performances that will culminate with the Deep East Oakland Vocal Festival at Castlemont High School in the Spring of 2025. |
Founded in 2011 by a group of acclaimed artists–including legendary percussionist Sheila E. and Yoshi’s Jazz Club founder Yoshie Akiba–and creative professionals with a shared vision of providing inspiration and mentorship to Oakland’s youth, we operate with the goal of bolstering students’ engagement in school while fostering creative self-expression and improving all-around student mental health. We believe in the transformative power that opportunities in music and the arts can have on developing youth, especially those living low-income or high-trauma communities and contexts. Across our programs, our primary focus is not on creating professional musicians, but instead on utilizing music and the arts as a conduit to get students excited about learning and invested in their education. Elevate Oakland supports students by using this excitement to get kids to school, engage them in learning, and support the development of skills that will help them succeed both within and outside of the classroom. Our foundational Artists in Residence (AiR) program embeds renowned artists from within the Bay Area community into Oakland public school classrooms, providing mentorship and learning opportunities for students and teachers alike throughout the school year. This program is built on a long-term (typically semester or year-long) partnership between school educators and one or more teaching artists who help develop and support the school’s music or arts curriculum throughout the school year. Our AiR programs typically culminate in a variety of performance opportunities for students throughout the year at different public venues, including Yoshi’s Jazz Club, the Oakland Museum of California and a variety of community-led festivals and events. In addition to our Artists in Residence program, we also host immersive workshops, masterclasses, demos and speaker series that are offered to student groups in partnership with artists, arts professionals and community educators. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | RACE Matters SLO County | PO BOX 5215 , SN LUIS OBISP, 93403-5215 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (415) 264-8641 | 24th District | 30 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, R.A.C.E. Matters will fund our “Untold Coastal Stories” project. Through this project, we will amplify Black, Indigenous, and People of Color (BIPOC) who live, work and recreate on the Central Coast of California, including but not limited to African American surfers and fisherfolk, Latino farmworkers, and the yak titʸu titʸu yak tiłhini (YTT) Northern Chumash Tribe. Through this artistic rendering of physical, place-based, culturally-significant benches that are installed along coastal, high-trafficked locations coupled with an auditory, storytelling experience, we intend to create awareness and space for marginalized people. This grant will help support the purchasing of the benches, compensation for artists and storytellers, engineering the audio experience, and creating a landing page to engage visitors. |
We fulfill our mission through the production of events and media content, cultural activations, response to social and racial injustice, and support of others in the community working in this space. In May 2023 R.A.C.E. Matters will open an operational and creative hub that will house programs and special events. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $127,459.00 | Arts Council Napa Valley | PO Box 2782 , Napa, 94558 | Napa | Bay Area – Other | (707) 257-2117 | California's 5th congressional district | District 4 | District 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts Council Napa Valley (ACNV)will continue connect, advocate and lead the arts community countywide. This is accomplished through our network of advocates, by organizing policy initiatives, and empowering the industry through education, information, and resources. ACNV will also continue to enact our change plan to increase diversity, inclusion and equity with the arts ecosystem with the vision of an arts scene that matches the diversity of our County. ACNV’s core programs are The Community Grant Fund, supporting artists and small arts organization through twice yearly grants; The Arts Education Alliance, supporting arts student and teachers as well as selecting the arts student of the month and year; and The Napa County Creative Directory, connecting working artists with hirers. |
As the official local arts agency in Napa County, it is our role to connect, advocate and lead the arts community countywide. By building a network of advocates, organizing policy initiatives, and empowering the industry through education, information, and resources, we serve to benefit all residents with a more sustainable, accessible and quality local arts scene. Arts Council Napa Valley’s core programs are The Community Grant Fund, supporting artists and small arts organization through twice yearly grants; The Arts Education Alliance, supporting arts student and teachers as well as selecting the arts student of the month and year; and The Napa County Creative Directory, connecting working artists with hirers. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | Santa Cecilia Orchestra | 2759 W BROADWAY , LOS ANGELES, 90041-1038 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 259-3011 | California's 34th congressional district | District 52 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Santa Cecilia Orchestra will enhance its ability to provide exceptional musical experiences and educational programs to our community. The grant funds will be used to cover general operating expenses, including rent, utilities, staff salaries, and program development. This support will enable us to maintain our high standards of artistic excellence, expand our outreach initiatives, and ensure the sustainability of our educational programs, which aim to inspire and educate the next generation of musicians. |
The Orchestra consistently performs sell-out orchestral concerts and has an extensive education program that introduces children to classical music to provide an outlet for expression and awareness of cultural heritage. It consists of three components: a basic introduction for elementary schools that includes classroom visits by musicians, duets and trios playing in the classroom and free tickets to Orchestra concerts; a String Program for elementary school children to learn to play violin and viola; and a mentorship program for middle schools and high schools that pairs professional musicians with students. We also have an honors program for gifted students of all ages with free lessons on an instrument. The basic education program reaches approximately 16,000 students each year |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Kearny Street Workshop | 1246 Folsom Street, Suite 1 , San Francisco, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 789-5966 | California Assembly district 17 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Kearny Street Workshop will launch year 2 of a community-responsive arts fellowship for Asian Pacific American (APA) visual artists (AVA Lab) providing community-based education and wellness practices, culminating in a healing retreat with award-winning faculty and facilitators, and a year-end exhibition. |
KSW makes artists out of community members and community members out of artists. For the past 54 years, KSW has nurtured the creative spirit, offered an important platform for new voices to be heard, and built artistic communities grounded in the San Francisco Bay Area. We prioritize racial justice and healing, prioritizing art that expands liberation for all people. We act as an incubator for emerging AAPI artists, placemaking in the Soma neighborhood of San Francisco where we are based, and connecting arts & culture to broader solidarity movements for societal change. KSW’s core programs include: |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,099.00 | Green Room Theatre Company | 74300 OLD PROSPECTOR TRL , PALM DESERT, 92260-5618 | Riverside | Inland Empire | (442) 215-7039 | 41st Congressional District | California's 47th State Assembly District | California's 18th State Senate District | With funds from California Arts Council, Green Room Theatre Company Coachella Valley will provide the Black Butterfly Resiliency Project to under-resourced schools, churches, Boys and Girls Clubs, and other youth institutions to educate students in literacy and mental health strategies based around the bilingual play “Black Butterfly.” GRTCCV has provided outstanding theatre education for 15 years. This request builds on recent accomplishments partnering educational programs with bilingual youth-oriented plays (“Maggie Magalita” and “Novio Boy”). CAC funding will bring a performance-component based, educational, mental health program into public schools to help at-risk students in high need areas relate to, process, and learn emotional resiliency skills based on thematic issues raised in “Black Butterfly” and the Californian Latina teen characters’ lives. Students will also learn resiliency skills through direct instruction, through peer interaction, and through peer support. |
GRTCCV provides: (1) classes for children, youth, and adults; (2) touring productions; (3) staged readings; (4) ballet folklorico training; and (5) performances of reinvented classics at pivotal Coachella Valley venues. Now in its 17th season, GRTCCV is focusing especially on serving the Central and East Coachella Valley, providing employment development training. Many alumni of our training programs have found paid theatre work in the Coachella Valley and beyond, or majored in theatre at colleges and universities. For many years, the summer conservatory’s large Broadway musical trained 60 young actors and technicians. However, responding partly to changes wrought by the pandemic, recently Green Room has focused on projects that address the needs of under-served local communities, such as bilingual theatre productions and plays that address important social justice issues. For example, we just concluded a successful Newish Shakespeare Festival. This included productions of “Como Te Gusta” (our family-friendly bilingual adaptation of “As You Like It”) and “American Moor” (about a veteran African-American actor’s experience taking on the role of “Othello” while working with an inexperienced White director). We also presented an immersive adaptation of George Orwell’s “1984.” Recently we expanded ballet folklorico classes in Indio public schools and spotlighted folklorico performances along with our theatre productions. GRTCCV is innovative in its performance venues, themes, and approaches. For example, we recently devised a play about the history of “Section 14,” addressing a controversial episode when the City of Palm Springs in the 1960s forcibly evicted hundreds of mainly Black and Latine residents from a planned downtown redevelopment site. This innovative project used oral history and a community advisory committee to help develop the play. Our performances have been held in a 400-seat auditorium, a brew pub, bookstores, and even a cemetery in order to reach diverse audiences. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | Yeah, Art! | 8414 Holly Street , Oakland, 94621 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 938-9096 | 12th Congressional district | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Yeah, Art! will expand our in-class arts education programs in schools across the Bay Area, continuing our focus on low-income districts and communities of color. Our initiative, spearheaded by local professional artists of color, aims to establish artistic career pathways for disadvantaged youth. With this funding, we seek to expand to at least (2) additional schools: Oakland School for the Arts and Oakland High School. This year, we plan to emphasize the following disciplines: Art Appreciation, Songwriting (including Pop Songwriting and Protest Songwriting), Music Production, and 3D Modeling. |
Arts Education for a New Generation™. Yeah, Art! seeks to empower Bay Area youth with premium arts education that emphasizes technology, creativity and equitable access. The problem: With school budget cuts, arts programs are often the first thing to get dropped, leading the most vulnerable students to miss out on essential creative skills. The solution: Yeah, Art! provides accessible, innovative arts programs to underserved communities, equipping students with skills in Music Production, Animation, 3D Modeling and more. Yeah, Art! offers technology-driven arts education programs tailored for underserved schools, with a focus on students of color in low-income Bay Area districts. Services are delivered by professional, local artists of color who bring their expertise directly to classrooms, creating an engaging and culturally relevant learning environment. Yeah, Art! equips students with in-demand creative skills, fostering both artistic growth and future career opportunities in the arts. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Infinite Flow Dance | 14622 VENTURA BLVD STE 102-373 , SHERMAN OAKS, 91403-3662 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (949) 267-8751 | 32nd Congressional district of California | District 44 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, INFINITE FLOW DANCE will support Infinite Flow Kids, an inclusive kids dance company, where kids with and without disabilities dance and grow together, cultivating young leaders and dancers, and shaping a new generation where inclusion is the new standard. |
Pillar 1: YOUTH EDUCATION. Pillar 2: WORLD CLASS DISABILITY INCLUSION DANCE ENTERTAINMENT. Pillar 3: DANCE TEACHER TRAINING. Pillar 4: COMMUNITY. COLLECTIVE LIBERATION. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | Root Division | 1131 MISSION ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103-1514 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 863-7668 | California's 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Root Division will continue to sustain and enhance studios, exhibitions, and arts educational programming that supports emerging BIPOC artists while engaging communities of color in authentic, intentional, and culturally responsive ways. Funds will be used to support Root Division’s 2024-25 programming, staffing, and operational costs as the organization continues its unique studios incubator, offers free dynamic youth arts programming, develops new projects and exhibitions, and supports the continued development of empowering leadership and shared knowledge. Across its core programs, RD is focused on supporting and nurturing historically marginalized communities, specifically artists, educators, curators, and youth who identify as BIPOC, immigrants, and LGBTQIA+. |
Root Division’s ecosystem includes 4 interconnected programs: In our unique incubator Studios Program we offer discounted space to artists who each volunteer 8 hours of service per month. Artists spend this time teaching free art classes in the Youth Education Program, instructing courses in the Adult Education Program, and/or supporting the Exhibitions & Events Program. We link various interests & audiences in a mutually beneficial relationship making art, artists & arts education more accessible while cultivating artists who give back. Since 2002, Root Division has provided 290+ artists with studios; empowered 480 artists to teach; provided 8,000+ hours of free art classes for neighborhood youth; hosted adult art classes for 4,400 students; exhibited 4,700+ artists; been a gathering place for 75,000 visitors to meet artists & see artwork; sold over $1.27M of emerging artwork; & developed partnerships with two-dozen public schools/ community centers & 180 local businesses. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Root Division | 1131 MISSION ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94103-1514 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 863-7668 | California's 11th Congressional District | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, ROOT DIVISION will provide free visual arts education to 800+ San Francisco youth. We will recruit, train, place, and support 15 Studio Artists/Fellows to teach in 8 after-school partner sites, serving low-income, BIPOC, English-Language Learners, and/or immigrants in Mission/SOMA/Tenderloin neighborhoods. This program provides access and opportunities for safe social-emotional art experiences, fosters creative abilities through culturally and linguistically responsive arts learning, and activates youth voices, narratives, and perspectives. The program includes space for youth to connect meaningfully with professional artist-mentors, empowering youth in the creation, presentation, and celebration of visual art-making. |
Root Division’s ecosystem includes 4 interconnected programs: In our unique incubator Studios Program we offer discounted space to artists who each volunteer 8 hours of service per month. Artists spend this time teaching free art classes in the Youth Education Program, instructing courses in the Adult Education Program, and/or supporting the Exhibitions & Events Program. We link various interests & audiences in a mutually beneficial relationship making art, artists & arts education more accessible while cultivating artists who give back. Since 2002, Root Division has provided 290+ artists with studios; empowered 480 artists to teach; provided 8,000+ hours of free art classes for neighborhood youth; hosted adult art classes for 4,400 students; exhibited 4,700+ artists; been a gathering place for 75,000 visitors to meet artists & see artwork; sold over $1.27M of emerging artwork; & developed partnerships with two-dozen public schools/ community centers & 180 local businesses. |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | $23,147.00 | Bloom Arts Foundation Inc | 2116 COLORADO BLVD , LOS ANGELES, 90041-1222 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 262-8838 | 34 | 52 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bloom Arts Foundation will expand its arts integration professional development for Pre-Kindergarten (PreK) and Transitional Kindergarten (TK) classroom teachers across Pasadena Unified School District (PUSD). The grant will enable us to provide comprehensive professional development to PUSD educators, including one-on-one mentoring and tailored arts integration resources designed by our Executive Director, Laura Porter. Funds will also support the implementation of digital surveys at the beginning and end of the program to gather essential feedback from educators and families. Finally, the project includes weekly PreK and TK inclusive music and dance classes, during school hours, aligned with California Arts Standards, professional development workshops, and live student presentations to foster community engagement. Our program aims to enrich early childhood education for all students and provide training opportunities for educators. |
In-School Weekly Classes: Interactive Assemblies: Futures in Tune: Professional Development for Educators: Why This Matters: |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | White Hall Arts Academy | 2812 W 54TH ST , LOS ANGELES, 90043-4824 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 235-0665 | California Assembly district 55 | District CA-37 | District 28 | Funds will support our Soundworks workforce development program that trains justice-affected and transitional aged foster youth in live sound engineering and lighting, then provides internship opportunities within the entertainment industry. Soundworks aims to equip young individuals with valuable technical skills and work experience in the entertainment industry preparing them to participate in the creative economy. We strive to bridge the gap between mental health, social emotional learning, arts development, and creative expression by creating educational arts programming to youth and young adults with the end goal of producing quality live and digital productions. |
Soundworks is a workforce development program that trains justice-affected and transitional aged foster youth in audio engineering, lighting design, and video production, then connects them to on-the-job training opportunities. We equip youth with skills and work experience that prepare them for careers in the creative economy. Saturday Sessions provides inclusive arts education year-round serving youth ages 4–12 and teens ages 13 and older through group classes in drums, violin, guitar, piano, singing, dance, music production, and acting. Classes are offered in 4 and 8-week sessions throughout the year. My First Job is our youth workforce development program serving youth ages 14–21. Participants gain first-time job experience as office assistants, teaching aides, media creators, and event staff while building workplace skills, confidence, and financial literacy. Youth also receive mentorship in resume writing, interview preparation, and professional behavior to support future employment success. ARTS-MUSIC-POWER (AMP) is an onsite program designed for youth with limited access to arts education and instruments. AMP provides guitar, vocal, and music production instruction at schools and educational support centers throughout South Los Angeles, Watts, Inglewood, and Compton. Music Creators Camp is a free immersive program for South LA youth ages 9–17 interested in music and creative careers. The 2-week-long experience provides mentorship, industry exposure, and hands-on learning opportunities, including visits to the Apple Store at The Grove and Universal Music Group Recording Studios. Private Music Lesson Scholarships provide more than $20,000 annually in free music lessons for children in underserved communities and youth affected by foster care. Rock The Block is our free community festival with more than 3,000 attendees for a day of music, empowerment, and connection in South LA. The event features live performances, wellness services, youth activities, and discussions focused on community wellbeing and economic empowerment in partnership with local agencies and community organizations. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | The Sofia, Home of B Street Theatre | 2700 Capitol Avenue , Sacramento, 95816-3212 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 443-5300 | California's 6th congressional district | 6 | 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, B Street Theatre will produce four fully professional plays for its 2023-2024 Student & Family Matinee Series. Over 40,000 K-12 students and families, from multiple counties, will attend a performance during the school year. |
Since its inception in 1986, B Street Theatre has been recognized as one of California’s leading professional theatres. As a resident new works theatre and core member of NNPN, B Street produces an acclaimed adult theatre series featuring new works and contemporary plays enjoyed by tens of thousands of patrons each year. B Street is the region’s only resident children’s theatre and LORT member, producing a dynamic children’s series that serves tens of thousands of K–12 students annually. The Family & Student Matinee Series features adaptations of classic stories, novels, and folktales, as well as depictions of historical figures and new plays, bringing high-quality theatre experiences to student audiences across the region. Central to B Street’s mission is its outreach and education programming. Professional teaching artists deliver hundreds of customizable in-school workshops each year, alongside a wide array of onsite classes, after-school programs, and professional development opportunities at The Sofia. These programs are designed to serve diverse communities, including individuals navigating the justice system and children receiving care through hospital-based programs. Additional educational initiatives include an immersive internship for early-career theatre professionals and a robust volunteer program that engages hundreds of community members annually. |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | $18,517.00 | Turnaround Arts California | 12541 Beatrice Street , LOS ANGELES, 90025-1078 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 482-3131 | District 36 | District 55 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Turnaround Arts: California will engage teachers and principals at two Title 1 public elementary schools in our Lesson Labs program to develop their capacity to create, implement, and evaluate arts-integrated lesson plans that are rigorous, standards-aligned, culturally responsive, engaging, and build equity and access for their students. |
Turnaround Arts California’s programming is community-driven, culturally responsive, and focused on long-term sustainable school transformation through the arts. Our statewide network brings artists and arts organizations together with our partner schools to leverage and develop our collective expertise in arts education and arts integration. Together we cross-pollinate learnings, ideas, and data to move forward a new vision for public education across California. Our core community arts programs and services include: Retreats and Convenings: Network-wide convenings for principals, teachers, teaching artists, and arts organizations provide time for exchange around challenges and successes in advancing equity through the arts in public schools, while supporting strategic arts planning and arts-based professional development. Coaching: Our coaching program, in partnership with our network of arts organizations, helps principals and teachers build their knowledge of arts integration, strengthen their leadership through the arts, align the arts to meet school district priorities, and become effective advocates for equity. Professional Development: Professional development workshops provide teachers, principals, and teaching artists/arts organizations with strategies – centered in culturally responsive teaching and learning practices – they can immediately implement at school sites. Support for Special Projects & In-kind Supplies: We provide flexible funding, in-kind supplies, and strategy support to help partner schools and arts organizations collaborate to implement special projects at individual school sites such as artistic residencies, family art nights, community engagement projects, school musicals, arts-based field trips, additional professional development for teachers, etc. |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | $23,147.00 | Artist Magnet Justice Alliance | 1600 3rd Ave Apt 29 , Oakland, 94606 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (661) 802-1546 | 13th Congressional district of California | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, Artist Magnet Justice Alliance will contract teaching artists, Bernard Brown, Jessica Moneá Evans and Latrice Postell, to provide dance integration training, titled ART HIPPIE MOVES, for teachers at Foshay Learning Center in South LA and Incarnation Parish School in Glendale, CA. |
AMJA provides the following free arts services: (1) annual virtual professional development and networking events in which emerging arts leaders have the opportunity to engage established arts practitioners to network, receive mentorship and discuss important issues relevant to the industry; Artist Magnet Justice Alliance’s core programs are targeted to support emerging arts-makers from marginalized communities, centering QTBIPOC artists. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $23,147.00 | Urban Jazz Dance Company | 1446 Market Street , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 575-9711 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Urban Jazz Dance Company will produce the 13th annual Bay Area International Deaf Dance Festival (BAIDDF) to be held August 2025 in collaboration with Dance Mission Theater. The 2025 BAIDDF will feature over 60 Deaf and Hard of Hearing (D/hoh) artists for an audience of 500. The 13th Annual BAIDDF will consist of three performances, three workshops, and an Artist Q&A for Deaf and Hearing audiences and students. While primarily featuring dance, BAIDDF will also include poetry and music. The first of its kind in the Bay Area, BAIDDF is a highly anticipated annual event and fosters shared understanding by highlighting the contributions that Deaf artists make to our community and raising Deaf awareness. |
UJDC educates audiences about current events, empowering minorities, lack of early access to language for Deaf children and social justice. We provide educational workshops/performances at Deaf schools, mainstream programs, Universities, state colleges and seniors homes in the process, creating a healing space for many who have experienced domestic abuse. UJDC passionately visits over 70 schools per year, local to International, working with both hearing and Deaf people of all ages and abilities. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | Urban Jazz Dance Company | 1446 Market Street , San Francisco, 94102 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (510) 575-9711 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Urban Jazz Dance Company (UJDC) will present our October 2024-September 2025 programming including our 17th annual Home Season to take place in November 2024, perform at 15 schools, produce 10 #DeafWoke episodes and present other QTBIPOC Deaf and/or Disabled artists. CAC funds will go towards staff salaries and will support UJDC to produce 2 annual dance productions, the ongoing virtual #DeafWoke and a series of dance performances and workshops in San Francisco. As members of the Deaf community, UJDC founders and staff are of the very communities we serve. We believe in access for all, center diverse historically excluded communities most impacted by oppression in our programming, and deeply embed access in our work. UJDC will bring real Deaf stories to the stage. |
UJDC educates audiences about current events, empowering minorities, lack of early access to language for Deaf children and social justice. We provide educational workshops/performances at Deaf schools, mainstream programs, Universities, state colleges and seniors homes in the process, creating a healing space for many who have experienced domestic abuse. UJDC passionately visits over 70 schools per year, local to International, working with both hearing and Deaf people of all ages and abilities. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | Los Angeles Ballet | 11755 EXPOSITION BLVD , LOS ANGELES, 90064-1338 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 477-7411 | With support from the California Arts Council, Los Angeles Ballet (LAB) will provide programming with, and cultivate the growth of, a network of artists, creators, and culture bearers committed to ballet. As the only professional ballet company in Los Angeles and the largest dance company in Southern California, LAB believes that ballet is a transcendent art form that should be shared with and enjoyed by as many people as possible. LAB is committed to Los Angeles’ imaginative spirit of what is possible, what is unique, and what is the future. Through our network of professional dancers, theatrical designers, composers, choreographers, emerging artists, and community partners, LAB’s objectives are to: 1) Present bold, innovative works; 2) Collaborate with a diverse array of artists; 3) Expand people’s knowledge of and appreciation for ballet. |
LAB’s core programs are anchored in professional productions and community engagement. Our professional productions are shaped as annual seasons that include approximately 30 performances for 30,000 audience members throughout Southern California. Our seasons include a combination of classical ballets, contemporary choreographic masterpieces, and commissioned world/national/regional premieres by renowned choreographers—including 16 world premieres since our founding. LAB annually employs a company of 25 dancers and operate a scholarship dancer trainee program in partnership with Westside School of Ballet for eight dancers. LAB’s Dance Engagement activities are currently centered on two long-standing programs. Power of Performance (POP!) was launched in 2006 and provides at least 10% of each season’s, to under-resourced community members, free-of-charge. We identify these community members by partnering with nonprofit, social service, and community-based organizations focused on supporting and enriching the lives of vulnerable groups, including foster children, senior citizens, U.S. military veterans, formerly incarcerated adults, and more. This season, approximately 3,000 free tickets will be provided through POP. LAB’s other primary Dance Engagement program is A Chance To Dance (ACTD), established in 2012. ACTD is an arts learning program that provides monthly free dance classes to the public, regularly engaging community members ages 4 and up, with attendees frequently in their 70s. ACTD features age- and skill-appropriate dance instruction, with all classes taught by LAB company dancers. ACTD also includes wellness and nutrition coaching, as well as conversations that encourage personal creative and artistic growth. ACTD has historically engaged approximately 500 attendees annually; in 2024 we are expanding the program to serve 1,000 individuals by doubling the program’s operations from occurring monthly for six months per year to year-round. In addition to doubling our traditional ACTD programming, in Spring 2024 LAB re-activated ACTD in public schools as part of an ongoing partnership with Turn Around Arts. |
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| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | California Humanities | 300 Frank H. Ogawa Plaza, Suite 203 , Oakland, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (415) 391-1474 | California's 12th congressional district | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, California Humanities will support the cultural ecosystem of California through statewide grant making that amplifies public programs at the intersection of the arts and the humanities. |
The California Documentary Project supports high-quality media projects that seek to document California in all its complexity. We support film, radio, and interactive media projects that inform and engage broad audiences though multiple platforms. The Humanities for All grant making program supports locally-initiated public humanities projects that respond to the needs, interests, and concerns of Californians and aims to promote understanding among our state’s diverse peoples. The Literature & Medicine program brings together hospital staff and visiting scholar facilitators – in hospitals throughout California – to explore the human element of medicine through conversations about literature, art, and other media. The Library Innovation Lab allows libraries to field test new programs to engage immigrants in their communities. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,356.00 | Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy | BUILDING 201 FORT MASON , SAN FRANCISCO, 94123-0000 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 561-3000 | Congressional District 11 | Assembly District 19 | Senate District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Golden Gate National Parks Conservancy will fund an emerging artist specializing in Media Arts and supporting staff to collaborate with Urban Trailblazers at the Crissy Field Center on a media project. This project will explore the themes of community, identity, and leadership through digital media. The Urban Trailblazers program (UTB) will delve into these themes during a summer-long media program in 2025. Under the guidance of media artist Koby Park, 44 middle school-aged youth from underserved communities in the San Francisco Bay Area will engage in photography, videography, and digital audio projects. These activities aim to help the participants develop as leaders and elevate their narratives through visual storytelling. |
The Parks Conservancy has a 35-year history of leading science-based conservation and stewardship programs, both as a partner to the National Park Service in the SF Bay Area and more recently as the backbone organization for a regional cross-boundary collaboration – One Tam, and for the statewide California Landscape Stewardship Network. Currently, Conservancy scientists and ecologists lead landscape-scale restoration and climate adaptation projects, regional monitoring, seed production and early detection programs within almost 100,000 acres of diverse ecosystems. Central to this work has been creating pathways and programs to broaden the diversity of future environmental stewards. These include environmental internships, restoration-based work force development, youth career development programs and school-based community science opportunities. Since the earliest days of the National Park Service, artists have drawn inspiration from these parks. Through Art in the Parks, visitors experience a wide range of site specific experiences that reflect and respond to the beautiful setting and unique history of the Golden Gate National Recreation Area. Art in the Parks has been highlighted as an element of the National Park Service Director’s Call to Action, a strategic vision for the agency that encourages national parks to illuminate the meaning of parks to new audiences through dance, music, visual arts, writing, and social media. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | FASO | 6621 DENNY AVE , N HOLLYWOOD, 91606-2204 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 770-2807 | Congressional District 29 | Assembly District 43 | District 20 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Filipino American Symphony Orchestra will address segregation and its inequities by directly providing music education to youth from BIPOC communities, fostering a healthy environment and an empowering identity context. |
FASO utilizes music as a unifying force to celebrate and build bridges among diverse cultures, while providing a platform for marginalized voices. Programs include: Key Accomplishments: |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | Danza Floricanto/USA | 2900 Calle Pedro Infante , Los Angeles, 90063 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 466-2611 | California's 34th congressional district | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, FLORICANTO DANCE THEATRE will provide after school |
Concert presentations, Festivals, Lecture Demonstrations., Workshops, dance classes, student recitals, hosting of local artists for the community, |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $17,082.00 | Women Who Submit | 5619 N Angelus Ave , San Gabriel, 91776 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 484-0582 | California's 28th congressional district | District 49 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, Women Who Submit will produce the Writers Spotlight Project. This project features writers from historically underrepresented communities including women, nonbinary, queer, BIPOC, disabled, and senior citizens through online publications and in person events. Writers Spotlight Project includes professional opportunities for our writers through the WWS Blog series, PUBLISHED! Reading series, WWS Open Mic, and the WWS Chapters Reading Regrant, which distributes funds to a selection of California-based WWS Chapters to produce readings in their regions. |
WWS offers free public workshops lead by local, professional writers and orientations to submission strategies every other month. Topics for these workshops have included applying for academic jobs, applying for artist workshops, residencies and fellowships, strategies for submitting to contests, strategies for performing in public, pitching an essay, and strategies for writing while mothering. We also host private submission parties aka community coworking events on the off months for our members in private homes around Los Angeles. These submission parties are the core vision of our organization. In 2009, Vida, Women in Literary Arts published the first VIDA Count, which gave quantitative evidence of the disparity between men and women representation in top tier journals. The “submission party” was created as an action to change those numbers by creating a safe and supportive space for women and nonbinary writers to share resources and submit their work with community support. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | Dimensions Dance Theater Incorporated | 1428 Alice Street, Suite 308 , OAKLAND, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 465-3363 | California Assembly district 12 | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Dimensions Dance Theater will continue its community-centered arts programming that fulfills our mission to preserve and perpetuate African Diaspora dance through dance education, the creation of collaborative productions that shift perspectives, and communal events that uplift systemically underserved African American communities in the Oakland Bay Area, bringing communities together, breaking down cultural barriers, and create a sense of belonging through shared humanity. |
Under the artistic leadership of co-founder Deborah Vaughan, Dimensions Dance Theater at 53 is one of the oldest contemporary dance companies in the US. The diversity and inclusiveness of DDT’s repertoire is unique to the company. The company currently employs 14 performing artists, 6 teaching artists, and 5 stipended apprentice teachers. DDT is actively engaged in the ongoing creation of new works that center the voices and needs of the community we serve. We present these collaborative works during our annual home season in October at the Malonga Casquelourd Center for the Arts. Our current performance project Healing to Joy is a multiyear (2024-2026) series of dance-theater works deepening our Sankofa-informed practice while honoring Black dance traditions and advancing community-centered healing through movement, music, and story. Current weekly dance classes include Rumba, Guinea West African, Afro-Cuban, and Senegalese West African. DDT is a leading member of the MAC, a collective of African American artists and artists of color based at the Malonga Casquelourd Center. This dynamic ecosystem fosters collaboration and creativity, enriching the cultural landscape of Oakland. Our Rites of Passage (ROP) youth program offers a year-round curriculum that includes an array of after-school activities that include: dance classes, life skills workshops, mentoring, career guidance, cultural presentations, internships and apprenticeships, field trips, and art exposure study trips. As one of Oakland’s foremost providers of high-quality arts education for children, youth, and young adults, DDT serves as a vital resource for schools, parents, and community organizations, fostering a rich cultural environment. Through ROP, youth have opportunities to discover and learn the art forms of the African Diaspora, and to develop their voice through the arts. ROP students gain opportunities to perform across Oakland and engage the wider community. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | ARTE AMERICAS THE MEXICAN ARTS CENTER | 1630 VAN NESS AVE , FRESNO, 93721-1129 | Fresno | Central Valley | (559) 268-6130 | California's 21th congressional district | District 31 | District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arte Américas will expand our successful Bilingual Storytime and Art program to establish bilingual curriculum resources for educators engaged with TK-6th grade students, bridging the gap between the classroom and Arte Américas, which supports positive self-identification and respect for diverse cultures. This program fosters creative abilities of youth through culturally and linguistically responsive arts learning and connects children and families with the vibrant community of professional artists that exists in the Central Valley. Interdisciplinary artistic processes inspired by children’s literature will inspire young people to use their own voices and share their own unique narratives, and perspectives all while deepening parent-child bond through creative problem solving and self expression. |
With multiple exhibitions a year in four gallery spaces, an outdoor music series, indoor concerts, receptions, lectures and community festivals, Arte Américas is the largest Latinx Cultural Center in the Central Valley. Major opportunities to engage include our annual dia de muertos programs and exhibitions, a Mothers’ Day Mariachi Brunch and Summer Concert Series (6 per year) in an outdoor venue known as Plaza Paz. We facilitate biweekly bilingual storytime and art workshops as well as biweekly artmaking workshops so that every weekend, our community can connect at Arte Américas. We function as fiscal sponsor for scaling organizations including an ongoing program of Mexican folkloric dance groups in the valley, Danzantes del Valle. We contract with Fresno Unified School District to teach after school and winter break arts enrichment programs for youth. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | "" | 1611 S HOPE ST STE E , LOS ANGELES, 90015-4115 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 747-2777 | California Assembly district 53 | District 53 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Create Now will fulfill its equity-centered mission to reach young artists facing the highest barriers to arts education and creative expression. Our year-round, no-cost arts programming helps transform the lives of Los Angeles’ most vulnerable youth (ages 3-24) by fostering a love for the arts across diverse backgrounds. Create Now partners with local schools and charitable organizations to provide arts education, and experiences. Our equity model unites schools, social services, and professional artist mentors to deliver arts education directly to the most vulnerable. We also host vibrant arts festivals, giving under-served youth a platform to showcase their talents along with our Cultural Journeys program. By prioritizing equity and cultural relevance, Create Now helps youth discover their artistic voices and thrive in a diverse, inclusive creative world. |
Our unique partnership model helps Create Now provide access to the arts for youth who are most likely to miss out on impactful extracurricular opportunities and creative education. All of our programs are offered at no cost to youth and their families. Our partnerships with schools and community agencies have been built for nearly 30 years. This unique connection helps us reach youth who are underserved, experiencing homelessness, in foster care, or who have experienced the juvenile justice system. Like many other arts education organizations, Create Now relies on local schools and community agencies in underserved communities as crucial partners. A variety of our programming occurs on campus at various schools. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Museum of Children's Art | 1221 Broadway LL - 49 , OAKLAND, 94612 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 465-8770 | California's 13th congressional district | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, MUSEUM OF CHILDREN’S ART will teach art-focused curriculum, plan for, and execute four field trips that will expose 105 Oakland Unified School District high school youth, who participate in its Community Futures School, to high-quality museum and arts-tech interactive exhibits by facilitating attendance and engagement with their peers and arts educators. For under-resourced students who would particularly benefit, the field trips will help cultivate appreciation for the arts and understanding of themselves as the next generation of world citizens; and promote culturally responsive learning through the arts to support students’ positive self-identification within and respect for diverse cultures. |
MOCHA annually serves 30,000 Bay Area children, youth and their families, in three core program areas: School Programs, through which professional teaching artists lead sequential art lessons in classrooms and after school programs and provide professional development to teachers; Museum Programs, which include exhibits, open studios, field trips, art parties, art camps and family workshops in our downtown Oakland museum; and Community Programs, through which we bring interactive art making and family programming to libraries, recreation centers, festivals and other public venues. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | Latino Arts Network | 1443 EAST WASHINGTON BLVD 224 , PASADENA, 91104-2650 | Sacramento | Capital | (415) 846-3179 | California's 27th congressional district | District 41 | District 25 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Latino Arts Network will implement the project “Advancing California’s Traditional Artists” which will create a directory of California traditional artists who interpret dances related to Mexican cultural celebrations. The directory will include fees, contact information and images and be distributed by LAN to cultural centers, and college and university presenters. Additionally, LAN will provide technical support in the areas of budget development and employment requirements to organizations who wish to tour. |
The Latino Arts Network of California (LAN) is a statewide alliance of community cultural centers, artists, advocates and patrons. LAN was founded in 1997 to support and strengthen Latino Arts in California and promote the cultural well being of the communities and artists we serve. Our focus includes arts advocacy; arts research and marketing; arts education; cultural presenting and touring; and technical assistance for artists and organizations. Our public programs include the LAN Maestro Awards which recognize unsung community heroes in arts and cultural leadership throughout the diverse statewide communities and the LAN Catalyst in Residence Program enacting mentorship residencies that pair up organizations seeking support with leaders in the field to serve as a source and resource in a range of capacities from technical assistance to aesthetic inspiration. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | Bay Philharmonic | 3375 Country Drive , FREMONT, 94536 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (341) 201-4205 | District 14 | District 24 | District 10 | With support from the California Arts Council, Bay Philharmonic (Bay Phil) will bring communities together and improve residents’ quality of life with transportive performances during the 2024-25 season. We will use this funding to support our operations, especially musician salaries for 40-50 professionals who perform each show. We present inclusive, high-quality, and accessible shows (we don’t call them concerts) that engage and inspire every guest. Our shows embrace different cultures, traditions, and music genres. Bay Phil musicians, accompanied by guest soloists and other professional performers, including choruses, dancers, actors, and storytellers, deliver imaginative, relatable performances to over 1,400 audience members. Professional musicians are the heart of our success. This grant will help Bay Phil continue to hire the best Bay Area musicians, maintain artistic excellence, and offer beautiful music in the region. |
Founded in 1964, the Bay Philharmonic (formerly Fremont Symphony) fills a non-traditional-symphony niche in the Bay Area. Our performances at Chabot College Performing Arts Center are the most innovative musical experiences around. Three to four times a year, Bay Philharmonic (Bay Phil) presents themed, culturally-inclusive performances that have broad appeal—-from traditional symphony lovers to families, and young adults. Our shows help educate, inspire, and bring joy to all our guests. Bay Phil Youth Orchestra, launched in 2016, provides an encouraging and motivating environment for 35-50 young musicians aged 7 -18 to pursue musical excellence and gain performance experience. The students receive high-quality instruction from Bay Phil’s professional musicians. Through a variety of performance opportunities, BPYO empowers young musicians to actively engage in preserving and promoting the performing arts in our community. Our Bay Phil Guild consists of volunteers who support and promote the Bay Philharmonic and BPYO. They organize and host youth competitions and recitals throughout the year. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $18,462.00 | Cal Shakes | 100 California Shakespeare Theater Way , Orinda, 94563 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 548-3422 | California's 11th congressional district | District 16 | District 16 | With support from the California Arts Council, California Shakespeare Theater (Cal Shakes) will conduct one, full programmatic term of its Student Discovery Program, supporting a subsidized youth matinee series built around Cal Shakes’s 2025 production, THE TEMPEST, at its award-winning venue, The Bruns Memorial Amphitheater. This matinee series will be made accessible to Cal Shakes’s partner schools, and will involve complementary programming, including Interactive Study Guides, a picnic lunch and pre-show educational activities, and a Q&A with production actors. |
Cal Shakes brings together people from all walks of life to connect with our shared humanity through its work onstage, in schools, and in community. Our Main Stage season runs May – October at the outdoor, solar-powered Bruns Amphitheater. Artistic Learning programs engage young people through Student Discovery matinees at our Theater, our summer Conservatories, and theater-based artist-led residencies in classrooms. Artistic Engagement programs are developed in partnership with people from a wide range of communities to expand opportunity for the artist in everyone, claim and tell our own narratives through theater-based activities, and spark intersectional conversation around the plays on our stage. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,813.00 | SWOP-LA | 837 W WASHINGTON BLVD , LOS ANGELES, 90015 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 720-9019 | 37th District | District 57 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, TOGETHER IN SERVICE (operating as SWOPLA) will host creative workshops through the project, “Geographies of Utopia”, involving locals from South Central to reflect the lived histories and utopian visions of the community. Our participants include sex workers who work on the South Figueroa corridor (90003), owners of family-run motels lining the corridor, and residents who live near Figueroa. These participants will be compensated to attend workshops over a span of 12 months. Each workshop invokes a temporality (past, present, or future) in relationship to the local geography, applying a different artistic technique (i.e. developing creative writing prompts, collecting field recordings, constructing mixed-media maps, etc). The produced materials from these workshops will then be aggregated and re-presented in a form determined by the working group participants. |
We are sex workers dedicated towards fighting for the fundamental human rights of all sex workers and our communities. While our pre-Covid, in-person support groups once only served the local population of LA sex workers, in 2020 we expanded our service virtually to serve sex workers across the US. Part of our mission is to fight anti-sex worker stigma, which is inevitably tied towards gender oppression. Our fight is concurrent with many social justice movements intersectional to our own, including but not limited to Black Lives Matter, disability rights, drug and immigration reform, gender equality and the LGBTQ movement, and the rights of the working class. SWOPLA sustains a wide variety of ongoing projects to support and advocate for sex workers in the city of Los Angeles, the state of California, and beyond. While some of our projects have immediate impacts on the health and mental health of our community members, others are oriented towards longer term political or systemic change. Our current ongoing activities can be categorized into three main strategies: 1) Direct Services and Mutual Aid, 2) Community Building and Representation, and 3) Research, Education, and Political Action. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | Chrysalis Studio/Queer Ancestors Project | 934 Brannan Street , San Francisco , 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 826-9697 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Chrysalis Studio will conduct Queer Ancestors Project PRINTS!, a free 18-week series of printmaking and LGBTQ2S+ history workshops taking place in Fall 2024 and Winter 2025 at San Francisco’s SOMArts Cultural Center for 10 Queer and Transgender young artists age 18-26, who will create and disseminate prints exploring the roots of their own individual experience of Queerness. The workshop series will culminate in a Group Exhibition and Artist Panel at STRUT, a health center serving LGBTQ2S+ people in San Francisco’s Castro LGBTQ+ Cultural District. CAC funds will support project costs including project personnel, guest artists, project materials, and the culminating exhibition expenses. |
Please use Version 3 from GENOP: |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | $9,844.00 | C5 Studios Community Arts Center | 250 Sneden St 250 Sneden Street, Bishop, 93514 | Inyo | Central Valley | (760) 258-1059 | California Assembly district 26 | District 26 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, Eastern Sierra Artists dba C5 Studios Community Arts Center will partner with local districts and schools in Inyo County to provide Arts Integration Training to teachers, managers and educators with a specific focus on cultural and linguistic responsiveness and relevancy. |
Eastern Sierra Artists (formerly the Bishop Mural Society), believes that art has the ability to transcend traditional boundaries, reaching individuals from all walks of life. It is a powerful tool for dialogue, connection, and cultural appreciation. Eastern Sierra Artists supports and connects artists throughout the Eastern Sierra region by funding and facilitating public art and events. Eastern Sierra Artists works with local artists, community members, and civic organizations to co-create public art projects to connect the public to our unique cultures and landscape; sponsors events in Downtown Bishop to build and support community; and is proud to support C5 Community Arts Center to bring artists together through shared studio spaces, gallery shows, and expansive arts education programming for children and adults. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | Media Arts Center San Diego | 1100 Market Street Suite 326, San Diego, 92101 | San Diego | Far South | (619) 230-1938 | California's 53rd congressional district | California's 80th District | 78th District | With support from the California Arts Council, Media Arts Center San Diego (MACSD) will produce Connected Voces, a collaborative digital media storytelling initiative and work readiness opportunity for system-engaged young adults ages 18-30 living in Encanto, a neighborhood in Southeast San Diego. MACSD will collaborate with Second Chance, a non-profit that offers reentry services for formerly incarcerated individuals, and local filmmaker Amada Torruella, to guide program participants through an intensive filmmaking course designed to produce short documentaries about mental health in the age of COVID-19 and in the aftermath of flooding that affected the Encanto community in January 2024. Torruella will collaborate with participants on the structure and direction of the media projects. Participants will earn stipends and may be eligible for apprenticeship, internships, and/or future work through MACSD community partnerships. |
MACSD programs, events, and film festivals are inclusionary—designed with audiences, participants, and community collaboration in mind. A summary of core organizational programs and services can be broken down into three categories: WATCH— We produce the San Diego Latino Film Festival (SDLFF), including the iVIE Awards and Student Film Festival, as well as screen films at our independent cinema the Digital Gym CINEMA. We also exhibit the artworks produced through our educational programming during family screenings. LEARN—Media education programs for youth fall under the umbrella of Young Producers Project (YPP) and include Young Creators Media Camps, Teen Producers Project, and the Workforce Development Initiative. CREATE—Tools for community-based media production and collaboration include: production training courses for independent filmmakers in San Diego; and Video Production Services, helping community groups make digital media presence available and affordable. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | Community Arts & Empowerment | 240 MAPLE AVE , WATSONVILLE, 95076-4815 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 498-6048 | “With support from the California Arts Council, COMMUNITY ARTS & EMPOWERMENT will continue operating a free mosaic arts center where both paid and volunteer high school youth create public art mosaics for the City of Watsonville at the Muzzio Mosaic Arts Center located in Muzzio Park. We will use the CAC grant funds to further our community-engaged arts practice by creating 200 square feet of mosaics to be installed on the outside of our Arts Center. The mosaics will be designed by high school youth who will be paid a stipend for their designs and fabricated by high school volunteers and student interns. |
Through community engagement, we help identify the values of a neighborhood and the visual aesthetics of its members. We seek out local artists to assist in the design of local community-based public artwork and facilitate community builds for the fabrication of permanent public art. Our process empowers communities by encouraging their members to spend time with each other, defining their social and physical identities. Returning individuals teach and learn new skills together for the benefit of all; transforming a physical space into a magical place. We operate a free after-school mosaic arts center in Watsonville for youth aged 11-22. We are open 5 days a week for 25 hours. Youth are engaged in all the phases needed to create public art mosaics in their community. Our largest project is called Watsonville Brillante, and consists of 12,500 square feet of mosaics covering the Watsonville Civic Parking Garage. Our process empowers communities by encouraging its members to spend time with each other defining their social and physical identities. Returning individuals teach and learn new skills together for the benefit of the all; transforming a physical space into a magical place. We operate a free afterschool mosaic arts center in Watsonville for youth aged 11-22. We are open 5 days a week for 25 hours. Youth are engaged in all the phases needed to create public art mosaics in thier community. Our current project is called Watsonville Brillante and when completed will consist of 12,500 square feet of mosaics covering the Watsonville Civic Parking Garage. |
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| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $127,459.00 | Stanislaus Arts Council | 1315 J St , Modesto, 95354-0924 | Stanislaus | Central Valley | (209) 529-3369 | California's 5th congressional district | District 22 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, CENTRAL CALIFORNIA ART LEAGUE |
Central California Art League, dba Stanislaus Arts Council operates a small gallery in downtown Modesto, provides classes for youth and adults at the gallery, and throughout the community by collaborating with other arts and cultural organizations, organizes a monthly Art Walk for the community of artists, local businesses and residents, and administers a teaching artist program (CLASS) that provides art instruction in elementary schools throughout Stanislaus County. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Youth Art Exchange | 1950 Mission St , San Francisco, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 574-8137 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Youth Art Exchange (YAX) will partner with lead artist Leonard Reidelbach and additional printmakers to create a free popup community printshop with open hours for community members to explore printmaking as a medium for protest, amplifying voice, and self-expression. By facilitating free access to printmaking tools and skills over a 6-month period, Leonard aims to disrupt barriers to the discipline and center creative exchange between artists and community. The popup will occur in YAX’s youth printmaking studio on the ground floor of a 100% affordable housing site in the vibrant and diverse Excelsior neighborhood in San Francisco. |
Our core youth and community programming is free to increase accessibility to the arts. High school programs in disciplines like architecture, fashion design, film photography, music production, and printmaking include after school studio classes, in-school residencies, summer intensives in the arts and architecture, and paid summer creative workforce internships. We also have a Youth Advisory Board, teaching assistantships, and alumni internships. Our programs provide a safe third space for youth to explore themselves, build positive relationships, develop a foundation in the arts, connect to cultural traditions, and make San Francisco thrive. Within our new arts centers, we have expanded program offerings to include younger students and more adult activities too. We have strong ties and connections with the communities of our core constituency, particularly in underserved areas of San Francisco. Our priority for low income youth and youth of color to shape their city has led to several notable public projects including youth designed and built parklets, public art projects such as murals, installations, creative disruptions, and events. We have convened the annual San Francisco Youth Arts Summit for 15 years to bring together youth artists and arts educators across the Bay Area for creative exchange and community building. We have an active role in arts advocacy and the representation of youth artists in San Francisco. Integral to our work is the experience of the artists who teach in our programs. We value their ability to further their own practice, both in partnership with their students and through residencies, public projects, exhibitions, and exchange with other artists. Through youth programming, exhibits, public projects, our annual participatory (415) Public Gallery, events, adult classes and community workshops, we serve 600+ enrolled youth, 30 artists, and 7000+ audience members per year. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Youth Art Exchange | 1950 Mission St , San Francisco, 94103 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 574-8137 | California's 12th congressional district | District 17 | District 11 | With support from California Arts Council, Youth Art Exchange will partner with its Youth Advisory Board, artists, and community partners in the activation of YAX’s new high school youth lounge on the ground floor of a 100% affordable housing site in San Francisco as a creative third place for youth to hang out, engage in arts learning, and connect to others. Through this space, we are prioritizing overall well-being and aiming to reduce isolation and provide a safe space to come during out-of-school time where they feel a sense of belonging and creative inspiration. Youth will engage in multidisciplinary arts learning centered on racial equity and open studios as they explore social justice issues, youth-driven social action, and how to express themselves through the arts. The project will engage both youth as facilitators and participants. |
Our core youth and community programming is free to increase accessibility to the arts. High school programs in disciplines like architecture, fashion design, film photography, music production, and printmaking include after school studio classes, in-school residencies, summer intensives in the arts and architecture, and paid summer creative workforce internships. We also have a Youth Advisory Board, teaching assistantships, and alumni internships. Our programs provide a safe third space for youth to explore themselves, build positive relationships, develop a foundation in the arts, connect to cultural traditions, and make San Francisco thrive. Within our new arts centers, we have expanded program offerings to include younger students and more adult activities too. We have strong ties and connections with the communities of our core constituency, particularly in underserved areas of San Francisco. Our priority for low income youth and youth of color to shape their city has led to several notable public projects including youth designed and built parklets, public art projects such as murals, installations, creative disruptions, and events. We have convened the annual San Francisco Youth Arts Summit for 15 years to bring together youth artists and arts educators across the Bay Area for creative exchange and community building. We have an active role in arts advocacy and the representation of youth artists in San Francisco. Integral to our work is the experience of the artists who teach in our programs. We value their ability to further their own practice, both in partnership with their students and through residencies, public projects, exhibitions, and exchange with other artists. Through youth programming, exhibits, public projects, our annual participatory (415) Public Gallery, events, adult classes and community workshops, we serve 600+ enrolled youth, 30 artists, and 7000+ audience members per year. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Yeah, Art! | 8414 Holly Street , Oakland, 94621 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 938-9096 | 12th Congressional district | District 18 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, Yeah, Art! will provide tuition-free after-school arts education programming to schools in Oakland, with an emphasis on low-income districts and communities of color. Our program, led by local professional artists of color, is designed to create artistic career pathways for disadvantaged youth. This year, we plan to emphasize the following disciplines: Art Appreciation, Songwriting (including Pop Songwriting and Protest Songwriting) , Music Production, and 3D Modeling. |
Arts Education for a New Generation™. Yeah, Art! seeks to empower Bay Area youth with premium arts education that emphasizes technology, creativity and equitable access. The problem: With school budget cuts, arts programs are often the first thing to get dropped, leading the most vulnerable students to miss out on essential creative skills. The solution: Yeah, Art! provides accessible, innovative arts programs to underserved communities, equipping students with skills in Music Production, Animation, 3D Modeling and more. Yeah, Art! offers technology-driven arts education programs tailored for underserved schools, with a focus on students of color in low-income Bay Area districts. Services are delivered by professional, local artists of color who bring their expertise directly to classrooms, creating an engaging and culturally relevant learning environment. Yeah, Art! equips students with in-demand creative skills, fostering both artistic growth and future career opportunities in the arts. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Art Tonic | 8101 La Riviera Dr , Sacramento, 95826 | Sacramento | Capital | (530) 665-9076 | District 7 | District: 06 | District: 08 | With support from the California Arts Council, Art Tonic will strengthen our network beyond Sacramento County. We will also increase our partnerships in neighboring California counties, including Placer County, Nevada County, Yolo County, and Alameda County. We will strengthen and increase collaborations with underserved artists, arts organizations, and businesses that hire artists, fostering a thriving regional network that enriches the California arts ecosystem. By creating connections among these partners, we will cultivate a supportive region where all artists can thrive. |
Artistic Pathways: Networking and Moderated Discussion Series for Artist Business Owners Professional Development Workshops Application Help and Feedback: For Artists Professional Writing: For Artists and Organizations Project Management: For Artists and Organizations One-to-One Mentorship: For Artists (in development) |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | Senderos | 840 N BRANCIFORTE AVE , SANTA CRUZ, 95062-1028 | Santa Cruz | Central Coast | (831) 854-7740 | D-CA 19th District | District 28 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, Senderos will provide equitable access to after school performing arts to 80 Latino immigrant youth ages 5-24 with free Mexican folkloric dance (Centeotl Danza y Baile) and music (Ensamble Musical) instruction, particularly from Indigenous Oaxacan cultural traditions. Working with experienced bilingual teaching artists, youth will learn Mexican cultural arts, teamwork and leadership skills, deepen their connection to their family heritage, gain self-confidence and a stronger sense of self-identity, and showcase their talents with pride at over 20 school and community events, including Senderos’ signature annual Vive Oaxaca Guelaguetza festival. |
Senderos core programs and services are: |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | The Sidewalk Project | 800 MCGARRY ST 421 , LOS ANGELES, 90021-1950 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (415) 654-7905 | District 37 | District 57 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Sidewalk Project will train lived-experience Skid Row residents as filmmakers who will plan and produce short-form documentaries about the rich creative life and artistic skills of their unhoused and formerly unhoused neighbors. These films will be shared in Skid Row at local screenings, in trailers on Sidewalk’s social media platforms, and in full-length short films on the project’s dedicated YouTube channel, which will serve to counter harmful stereotypes and reporting about Skid Row and celebrate the many artists who live undiscovered in this creative community. |
Our syringe service program, which started unofficially in 2019 and became city-sanctioned in 2020, emerged in response to a profound unmet need. As we built relationships with hundreds of unhoused and drug-using residents of Skid Row, and later, MacArthur Park, harm reduction came to include MAT, social service referrals, healthcare linkages, and building relationships with street and agency partners. TSP’s new Skid Row drop-in crisis center for women and gender-expansive people opened in 2024 and offers system navigation, a safe space, and community-building opportunities among unhoused women, sex workers and femmes escaping intimate partner violence/street violence, and folks who use drugs and/or live with serious mental illness. In addition to daily harm reduction outreach, TSP has historically held monthly events including food, hygiene supplies, music, and art, as well as organizing summer music festivals and underwriting mural painting. TSP’s county-funded three-year project to interrupt violence and reclaim public housing, through art, music, and organizing, takes place in an apartment building abandoned by the now-defunct Skid Row Housing Trust and occupied by medically vulnerable, formerly unhoused older adults. The grant also funds the build-out of the number-one item on every Skid Row wish list: A music recording studio. All activities come with participation practical and basic needs support. A central harm reduction strategy for TSP is job creation for unhoused local residents. Sidewalk promotes intersectionality and equity through diversity in hiring. Peer advocacy breaks down the barrier of the participant-provider construct, restores dignity, and aids self-determination. Providing day labor pay for folks with limited employment opportunities is the first step toward regular work and is our most effective leadership-building strategy. TSP provides support and supplies to a wide network of smaller mutual aid and partner organizations to serve local unhoused, drug-using, and sex worker populations. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Stanford Live | 3145 Porter Dr , Palo Alto, 94304-1224 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (650) 723-2551 | California Assembly district 23 | District CA-16 | District 13 | With support from the California Arts Council, THE BOARD OF TRUSTEES OF THE LELAND STANFORD JUNIOR UNIVERSITY (for Stanford Live) will present student matinee performances representing a broad range of art forms and world cultures. CAC funds will support artist fees, production costs, and bus transportation subsidies for schools. |
Stanford Live was founded as Stanford Lively Arts in 1969 as the performing arts presenter at Stanford University. We present up to 150 performances each season on the Stanford campus featuring classical, jazz, and world music, dance, theater, and multimedia. We also present an outdoor summer concert season with genres from classical to hip-hop. Our seasons are guided by unifying themes such as “Art and Politics.” We present some of the world’s leading performing artists, along with regional, national, and world premieres each year. We also present dozens of free community and campus engagement events each season featuring visiting and local artists, Stanford faculty and guest scholars. These programs increase access to the arts and offer insights into the artists and works we present. Our K-12 education and community engagement programs include student matinees; professional development workshops for teachers; interactive workshops, artist talks and performances on campus and at community partner sites; and an artists-in-schools program in nearby East Palo Alto. We primarily serve the communities of Silicon Valley, with 82.5% of our audiences from the Peninsula and South Bay regions. Among other audience members, about 5% each come from San Francisco, the East Bay (Berkeley/Oakland), and locations outside California, and the remaining 3% are from areas in California outside our immediate region. In January 2013 we opened Bing Concert Hall, an 842-seat, state-of-the-art space. The hall has become a vital Bay Area resource, acclaimed for its extraordinary acoustics, stunning architecture, and intimate audience experience. In summer 2019 we reopened Stanford’s renovated 8,000-seat Frost Amphitheater, adding an outdoor summer season to become a year-round presenter. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Million Little | 25050 Avenue Kearny #212 , Valencia, 91355 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (661) 240-9163 | California Assembly district 38 | District 38 | District 21 | With support from the California Arts Council, Million Little will advance equity in arts education and promote healthy social-emotional development for students in kindergarten through third grade from historically underrepresented and under-resourced schools. |
Million Little empowers and supports the healing process of children and youth (ages 4-25) who have experienced trauma through the power of creativity. We offer strengths-based arts programming, youth resources, educational workshops and trainings in partnership with school districts, department of probation and community based social services organizations. We also work closely with teachers, care givers and professionals who are involved in the lives of our children through our professional development trainings and workshops on a various topics such as creativity, mindfulness, trauma and self-care. Our strengths-based arts programming is offered at juvenile detention camps, community based social services organizations and schools. Youth experiencing Incarceration, homelessness, those in poverty and those suffering from violence/adversity are all part of the population that Million Little serves. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $19,443.00 | West Coast Songwriters Association | 303 Twin Dolphin Drive, Floor 6 , Redwood City, 94065 | San Mateo | Bay Area – Other | (650) 654-3966 | California's 14th congressional district | With support from the California Arts Council, WEST COAST SONGWRITERS ASSOCIATION (WCSA) will build on its historic, 45 consecutive years of artist support and programmatic work to deliver targeted professional services to the organization’s members and inclusive, statewide community of independent singers/songwriters/musicians. All services are designed and delivered with a prominent focus on the association’s priorities for ever-increasing diversity across age, culture, ethnicity, socioeconomics status, sexual orientation and gender identity. Funds will be allocated to support community outreach along with content design, editorial, and production for WCSA’s robust schedule of workshops, trainings, conferences, networking events, creative collaborations and peer reviews, in-community performance showcases with professional hosts and moderators, online forums and publications, competitions, professional skills |
West Coast Songwriters is a membership-based organization, providing its members with access to education and networking events involving a community of dedicated and supportive industry professionals, educators, musicians and booking agents. Each year, the organization presents hundreds of opportunities for its members to participate, network, learn and grow through classes, workshops, song screenings, special events and an annual conference highly regarded as one of the music world’s pre-eminent education and professional networking events for songwriters. |
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| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Barcid Foundation | 2811 Scott Place , Los Angeles, 90026 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 504-4897 | California Assembly district 34 | District 43 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, Barcid Foundation will bring together a collection of experienced Native American artists and community members to foster a new and genuine approach to depicting Native American representation in the arts. This innovative project will be designed with workshops, mentorship opportunities, and access to cutting-edge resources. The program will nurture artistic growth and provide tools to express unique voices through a wide range of literary techniques that focus on mental and behavioral health. |
The Barcid Foundation offers genuine career building programs, workshops and additional opportunities that advance Native American artists and youth. We have developed successful relationships with tribes, art foundations, studios and networks to offer career building art initiatives for Native Americans. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $127,459.00 | Madera County Arts Council & Circle Gallery | 424 North Gateway Drive , Madera, 93637 | Madera | Central Valley | (559) 661-7005 | California's 13th congressional district | District 27 | District 14 | With support from the California Arts Council, Madera County Arts Council & Circle Gallery will continue to support and promote the arts throughout our communities. Partnering with Madera County school district and bringing arts education to our local schools, offering in-house arts education, visual and performing arts classes, and community enrichment programs and acting as a catalyst for arts project throughout our County. SLP funds provide vital operational support toward salaries and rental of our facilities including our 5,000 square foot gallery and classroom space, where we hold six art exhibits per calendar year., plus additional classes, workshops, meetings and events. |
Our core programs and services include: educational programs in partnership with school districts, community programs in partnership with public and private entities, in-house cultural enrichment programs in our classroom, exhibits at our Circle Gallery, theatrical productions through the Madera Theater Project, and Poetry Out Loud. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | OUTWORDS | 3108 Glendale Blvd #522 , Los Angeles, 90039-1806 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (424) 261-9171 | 34th Congressional District | District 54 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Outwords Archive will continue to record, preserve, and share the stories of LGBTQ+ elders, to build community and catalyze social change. OUTWORDS’ overarching focus is using the media arts and storytelling to promote social equity of all types and to address systemic inequities in American society and beyond. OUTWORDS functions simultaneously as a media production company (for the purpose of gathering new interviews), an archive (for the purpose of organizing and preserving our assets), and a distribution company (for the purpose of sharing our extraordinary elder stories with the LGBTQ+ community and beyond through multiple channels). Our distribution occurs primarily through a robust array of public events, corporate DEI trainings, partnerships with LGBTQ+ organizations, and social media. |
OUTWORDS is the first and only national organization dedicated to recording professional-quality, on-camera interviews with LGBTQ+ elders across the US. OUTWORDS was founded to preserve the histories of LGBTQ+ elders as a priceless record of an unprecedented American social change movement. We share our full interviews on our website, which functions as an online digital archive. To date, OUTWORDS has recorded nearly 400 interviews with LGBTQ+ elders in 47 states and Washington, D.C. We serve a wide variety of people (11.7 mil in 2024) through our online archive and social media platforms, with the majority being LGBTQ+ and between the ages of 25-34 years old. We use media arts and storytelling to promote social equity, explore and illuminate queer history and address systemic inequities. The Outwords Archive is highly intentional in seeking out and recording stories from marginalized communities within the LGBTQ+ community, including communities of color, individuals with fewer financial and educational resources, transgender and gender non-conforming individuals, the bisexual population, intersex individuals, and LGBTQ+ people living with disabilities. For the past three years, we have devoted 50% of our new interviews to the TGI (transgender, gender non-conforming and intersex) community, and 60% to people of color. OUTWORDS functions simultaneously as a media production company (for the purpose of gathering new interviews), an archive (for the purpose of organizing and preserving our assets), and a distribution company (for the purpose of sharing our extraordinary elder stories with the LGBTQ+ community in LA and beyond through multiple channels). Our distribution occurs primarily through our website (www.theoutwordsarchive.org) and through an array of public events in CA and beyond, corporate DEI trainings, partnerships with LGBTQ+ organizations, and social media. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Vietnamese American Arts & Letters Association (VAALA) | 9574 MOSS GLEN AVE , Fountain Valley, 92708 | Orange | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (714) 914-2260 | California Assembly district 72 | District 72 | District 34 | With support from California Arts Council, the Vietnamese American Arts and Letters Association (VAALA) will successfully conduct the Youth in Motion Filmmaking Workshop, providing a free-of-charge and an invaluable platform for youth to explore and express their creativity through film. This support enables VAALA to offer high-quality instruction, access to necessary equipment, and a collaborative environment where young participants can develop their storytelling skills. The funding also facilitates outreach efforts to engage the young participants, fostering an inclusive community that celebrates cultural heritage and artistic innovation. As a result, the workshop not only nurtures budding filmmakers but also strengthens the cultural fabric of the community. |
VAALA organizes cultural events such as art exhibitions, book signings, concerts, plays, workshops for the youth, and the annual Viet Book Fest and Viet Film Fest, at little to no cost, for the community. Currently, our programming consists of four pillars: Gallery Beyond Walls: Visual arts program focused on engaging the community in the arts, facilitating dialogue, revitalizing marginalized communities, and highlighting freedom of expression. Youth Programs: Year-round art workshops in a variety of art forms for local underserved youth in Southern California. Our objectives are to enhance creativity and self-expression, build confidence and self-esteem, develop a sense of community-orientation. Viet Film Fest: The largest and only film festival in the world that celebrates Vietnamese stories and voices in cinema. Viet Film Fest draws an annual, onsite audience of over 5,000 people. The festival features films by persons of Vietnamese descent or productions that focus on the Vietnamese experience. Viet Book Fest: an annual book festival that promotes Vietnamese voices in literature. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | Los Angeles Filmforum | 1465 Tamarind Ave #155 , Los Angeles, 90028-8412 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 377-7238 | 30 | 51 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Filmforum inc. will produce and present twenty (20) or more screenings per year with guest filmmakers in conversation. The artists and films will come from California and around the world, including films by multiple communities, including African-American, Asian-American, Latino-American, and LGBTQ, as we have done for 49 years. 2025 will be our 50th year. |
Filmforum is currently the longest-running venue in Southern California dedicated exclusively to the ongoing, non-commercial exhibition of independent, experimental, and progressive cinema. We screen films, sponsor independent experimental films, and communicate about other screenings in the county. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | Everybody Dance LA! | 2955 Wilshire Blvd. , LOS ANGELES, 90010 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 365-2491 | CA-034 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Everybody Dance LA! (EDLA!) will provide 150 low-income students with the Middle and High School Enrichment Program, which offers students advanced dance instruction, opportunities to choreograph original work, field trips, master classes, mentoring, and assistantships and internships. |
EDLA!’s work ensures that young people—many carrying the weight of economic hardship, family responsibility, and limited access to the arts—have a safe, supportive place to move, express themselves, and build confidence. Today, EDLA! is reaching 6,834 youth – 6,164 at 40 in-school locations and 670 at five after-school sites in under-resourced communities throughout Los Angeles. Our programs cultivate more than dancers—they nurture collaborators, communicators, and emerging leaders who carry these skills into every area of their lives. EDLA!’s programs form a comprehensive continuum that supports youth from early childhood through young adulthood (ages 4-19). In-School Program: EDLA!’s In-School Program integrates standards-based dance education into the school day across Los Angeles. Professional Teaching Artists collaborate with school administrators and educators to align programming with academic goals and student needs. Classes incorporate movement and mindfulness to support focus, emotional regulation, and engagement in learning. Each residency culminates in a performance that celebrates student growth and strengthens the school community. After-School Programs: EDLA!’s year-round After-School Program offers sequential level dance training led by professional Teaching Artists. Students can study multiple dance forms—including ballet, contemporary, jazz, hip hop, breaking, tap, and salsa—and often take more than one class per week. Every student performs twice annually, building confidence and pride through public performance. Enrichment, Leadership, and College Pathways: To deepen impact and retain middle and high school students, EDLA! offers enrichment programs at no additional cost, serving more than 140 students annually. These include: |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | DANCE AND DIALOGUE | 11645 GORHAM AVE APT 206 , LOS ANGELES, 90049-4756 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 909-3565 | California Assembly district 50 | District 50 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Dance and Dialogue will host its after school Community Centered Program at Wisdom Elementary School. This program will focus on Folklórico as a means of dialogue and expression to empower youth and their families to cultivate joy, cultural pride, and collaboration within their community. |
Since its founding in 2012, D&D has reached 40,000+ young people via its primary programs: ALL CITY Workshops — Established in 2013, this full day workshop gathers middle and high schoolers from across the region in one location for cultural exchange, dance, and dialogue. In School Residencies — Launched in 2018, this program consists of 8-12 week dance residencies for 3rd-12th grade students during/after school. Combining evidence-based methods of social emotional learning, mindfulness practices, and dance, D&D’s Residency Curriculum focuses on exploring relevant, age-appropriate themes through the arts. Summer Leadership Intensive — A week-long immersive experience for high school students interested in the intersection of community building and the arts. This program is relaunching in summer 2022, with a specific focus on serving LGBTQIA+ youth. Community-Centered Programs — Started in April 2022, this after school enrichment program is crafted for students grades 3-6. Delivered in collaboration with schools’ Parent & Family Centers, D&D provides a range of creative classes (dance, spoken word, poetry, sign language, drumming) that intersect with therapeutic dialogue and community building practices. heARTs in the Community Series — Launched in April 2022, this program offers Saturday morning art classes to families across the County via zoom. Teacher Drop in & Fill Up — This series for educators and administrators offers teachers tools for the post pandemic classroom, including redirection strategies, student support and overall classroom management. Training focuses on helping teachers with creative strategies to keep the classroom flowing with less disruption, bringing curiosity, wonder and engagement front and center. Peer Mentoring Training Workshop — This series trains students in peer-to-peer mentoring skills and offers opportunities for hands-on experience helping professional instructors during D&D workshops; mentorship has a proven-track record of reducing fear and judgment and increasing self esteem for both mentors and mentees. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | Ink People Center for the Arts | 627 3rd Street , EUREKA, 95501-0417 | Humboldt | Upstate | (707) 442-8413 | District 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ink People Inc will deepen professional development opportunities for the 100+ projects fiscally sponsored within the DreamMaker Program, will support regional leadership opportunities for cultural practitioners and creatives, and will collaborate with allied organizations and artist-leaders to further establish connectivity amongst cultural leaders throughout the region. The Ink People will also continue to develop advocacy and networking efforts throughout the region and State. |
The Ink People is a community-based, grassroots, artist-run, arts and culture organization. For 47 years, we have organized our work around community access principles and the belief that art, in all its forms, is essential to the human spirit and well-being. We base our activities in a philosophy of sharing and community-building, and we work to connect community members with resources for cultural development. With over 700 subscribers, we nurture cultural enrichment through education and engagement of artists and communities. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Chamber Music Unbound | 289 Wagon Wheel Rd. PO BOX 1219, MAMMOTH LAKES, 93546-1219 | Mono | Central Valley | (760) 934-7015 | California Assembly district 8 | District CA-3 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Chamber Music Unbound will implement “Roll Over Beethoven” in the underserved school communities of the Eastern Sierra. The project facilitates in-person interactions between students of all ages and teaching artists, who guide students in forging a meaningful relationship with instrumental music as a “language-without-words”. |
Core Chamber Music Unbound programs are: |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $46,293.00 | KALEIDOSCOPE | 1818 Thayer Ave. #301 , LOS ANGELES, 90025-4142 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 795-9051 | California Assembly district 50 | District 50 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Kaleidoscope Chamber Orchestra will provide musicians and composers in California with crucial opportunities for career advancement and professional development through our call for scores program. |
Founded in 2014, Kaleidoscope has performed over 400 concerts throughout Southern California from venues ranging from Walt Disney Concert Hall to homeless shelters on Skid Row. Kaleidoscope has been especially known for their commitment to diversity and new music, with premieres of over 100 works, substantial programming of music by women and people of color, performances of large orchestral works like Mahler and Shostakovich Symphonies without a conductor, and frequent performances at schools, hospitals, homeless shelters, and other community organizations. To address income inequality and help build new audiences for classical music, most of Kaleidoscope’s public concerts are free admission with a suggested donation. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $140,979.00 | San Benito County Arts Council | 35 5th St. Suite D , HOLLISTER, 95023 | San Benito | Central Coast | (831) 636-2787 | California's 18th congressional district | District 29 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the SAN BENITO COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL will increase arts and cultural equity, impact and accessibility for all residents in San Benito County through expanded programs, services and funding. CAC Funds will be applied to general operations, including salaries and rent, and Poetry Out Loud. |
The San Benito County Arts Council’s signature programs and services include: |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $46,293.00 | POETS & WRITERS INC | 3452 2nd Ave , Los Angeles, 90018 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 481-7195 | California Assembly district 55 | District CA-37 | District 28 | With support from the California Arts Council, Poets & Writers will strengthen the vibrant literary network built over decades of work with California writers and literary presenters. We will regrant $25,000 to support literary events in big cities and small towns throughout the state, convene two regional roundtable meetings for California writers and literary presenters to exchange information and ideas and make connections, manage regional listservs to facilitate communication between members of the state’s diverse literary communities, provide technical assistance to support writers and presenters planning literary events statewide, and host online tools that connect California writers with opportunities throughout the state and beyond. |
The Readings & Workshops program provides small grants to support readings and writing workshops throughout California and New York State. In California alone, last year we distributed $23,250 in the form of writers fees to 114 writers participating in 216 literary events in partnership with 55 organizations located in 20 counties across the state, reaching an audience of more than 10,000. Through our flagship publication, Poets & Writers Magazine, as well as our website, pw.org, we serve as the creative writer’s go-to resource for trustworthy information and advice about writing and publishing. Our website draws 1.7 million unique visitors annually, 10% from California. Poets & Writers Magazine has a readership of 100,000, 10% in California. We also sponsor awards for writers, including the Jackson Poetry Prize and the Writers Exchange Award; past winners of these two prizes include 15 California writers. We offer unique professional development opportunities for writers, including online courses that demystify the publishing process and help writers delve deeper into craft, and Get the Word Out, a publicity incubator for early career authors. Countless writers have told us that discovering Poets & Writers Magazine is what first helped them shape their writing goals, so to inspire the next generation we distribute free subscriptions to high school students who show dedication to creative writing, in partnership with groups that recognize achievement in young writers, and to high school creative writing teachers for classroom use. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Los Angeles Poverty Department | 250 S Broadway , Los Angeles, 90012-3605 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (310) 259-1038 | 28 | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, LOS ANGELES POVERTY DEPARTMENT will promote cultural equity for the Skid Row community by producing LAPD’s annual Festival for All Skid Row Artists, (FASRA). The free 2-day event held annually (since 2010) in a public park in the heart of the underserved Skid Row neighborhood will showcase the work of roughly 150 artists and arts organizations, and give 1,500 attendees opportunities to make and enjoy art, build social cohesion and celebrate the cultural vitality of their community. |
Founded by director, performer and activist John Malpede, LAPD was the first performance group in the country made up of homeless and formerly homeless people and the first sustained arts initiative in Skid Row. For 40 years, LAPD has been one of the foremost cultural and artistic resources of the community. LAPD presents live theatrical productions, organizes public discussions and presentations, public art programs, parades and festivals, curates and creates installations and exhibitions, all addressing the lives of the neighborhood residents and the issues they face. LAPD’s performances and theater pieces are developed and realized through an extensive and inclusive process that employs research and engagement strategies and activities designed to enlist and disseminate community wisdom, and which typically take place over the course of more than a year. LAPD makes work to change the narrative about people living in poverty. LAPD’s actively maintained (by professional archive staff) Skid Row History Archive documents the history of the Skid Row neighborhood and its achievements and is utilized by scholars, journalists, filmmakers, and community members. The archive is a bulwark against community displacement. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | JAZZLINE INSTITUTE | 5924 ALLEN AVE , SAN JOSE, 95123-2620 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (415) 860-9866 | 19th Congressional District | District 28 | District 15 | With support from California Arts Council, JaZzLine INSTITUTE will present a series of 8 free Black History Month lecture/performances at local Title 1 public schools, bringing renowned local Black jazz and blues artists to underserved schools in historically Black, low-income communities of East Oakland, West Oakland, Richmond, Pittsburg, and Antioch. |
JaZzLine INSTITUTE is dedicated to the preservation, celebration, and education of the historical and cultural significance of music out of the African-American diaspora through performance and educational programs. We produce masterclasses and workshops with visiting artists, educational programming in public schools, music scholarship fundraisers for local youth, memorial programs for departed local musicians, radio programming including live in-studio concert broadcasts, jam sessions for youth, educational events in local juvenile detention centers, and concert programming celebrating Black History and centering women in music. We recognize musical pioneers in our community, both living and departed, through our BAJABA awards. JaZzLine INSTITUTE celebrates diverse forms of music from the African-American diaspora including Negro spirituals, jazz, blues, R&B, soul, gospel, and hip-hop. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | CELEBRATION ARTS | 2727 B ST , SACRAMENTO, 95816-3212 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 455-2787 | California's 6th congressional district | District 6 | District 8 | With support from the California Arts Council, Celebration Arts will remount TEEN MAGIC, eight-week performing arts camps providing African American teens (13-17) with quality arts education in Sacramento. Once a vital resource in the community, TEEN MAGIC can be revived with this grant, addressing budget cuts and limited resources in underserved schools preventing quality arts education. This program will engage youth in positive, creative activities that explore Black culture and experiences, fostering teamwork, communication, problem-solving, and creativity. Unlike other costly theatre programs, TEEN MAGIC will offer affordable access and center Black culture. The grant will enable us to lower fees, increase production budgets, and pay teaching artists, contributing to the creative economy. |
Celebration Arts offers transformative arts education and performance opportunities that inspire creativity, build confidence, and elevate underrepresented voices—particularly within the Black community. At the heart of this work is the ACTivate! Arts Academy, which provides engaging arts experiences for K–12 students: Kids’ Time is an eight-week program for up to 50 children ages 6–12. Through music, movement, and drama, participants grow in confidence, discipline, and creativity. The program concludes with a live performance that celebrates their achievements. Teen Magic serves up to 50 African American teens ages 13–17, addressing the lack of arts education in many underserved schools. Over eight weeks, teens explore theater, music, and dance while building teamwork, leadership, and communication skills in a culturally affirming environment. School Field Trips bring nearly 3,600 K–12 students to Celebration Arts annually. These visits expose young people to live theater and the transformative power of storytelling. Celebration Arts also stages six theatrical productions each year, showcasing works by award-winning Black playwrights. These plays center the Black experience and foster dialogue around culture, identity, and community. In addition, the organization hosts two annual dance concerts, highlighting local and regional performers. These events celebrate the depth and diversity of Black artistic expression through powerful movement and storytelling. Through its performances and educational programs, Celebration Arts nurtures the next generation of artists and storytellers. The organization remains deeply committed to creating space for creativity, connection, and the amplification of Black voices in the arts. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Honey Art Studio | 2021 Fillmore St , San Francisco, 94115-2708 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 699-6555 | California's 11th congressional district | District CA-11 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Honey Art Studio will offer the Creative Edge Lab project, a 12-week workshop series for young adults in San Francisco’s Fillmore neighborhood. Ten participants will receive 108 hours of instruction in entrepreneurship, Interior Design, Fashion Design, and Culinary Arts to create pathways into creative careers for under-represented members of San Francisco’s BIPOC communities. |
Each year, thousands of youth and adults take part in programming including: |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $140,979.00 | Ventura County Arts Council | 646 County Square Drive Suite #154, Ventura, 93003 | Ventura | Central Coast | (805) 658-2213 | California's 26th congressional district | District 38 | District 19 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Ventura County Arts Council will further advance a burgeoning partnership with our county government, a relationship that recently provided several re-granting opportunities. We will maintain our programmatic focus on DEI and on grant giving. We’ll assist smaller arts non-profits and community arts organizations and individual artists with capacity building and help them to expand their practices. In partnership with the newly created County Arts & Culture Manager, we will increase VCAC’s operating capital and programmatic reach, continuing to prioritize areas of the county that represent the lowest quartiles on the California Healthy Places Index. |
VCAC runs several programs and looks for opportunities to offer grants to smaller arts organizations and individual artists. We prioritize partnering with arts organizations and artists serving marginalized and underrepresented people and working in the communities where they reside. Our Arts & Youth Justice program brings arts instruction to youth at the court school in the Juvenile Justice Center. We teach fine art, poetry and podcasting. The Atrium Gallery is a public art program. We curate three floors in the Government Center in collaboration with the county Arts & Culture Manager, focusing on exhibitions that highlight artwork by people outside of the mainstream along with several juried shows open to the public that offer cash prizes. We established a county Poet Laureate and Youth Poet Laureate program. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | SLOMA | PO BOX 813 1010 Broad Street, San Luis Obispo, 93406-0813 | San Luis Obispo | Central Coast | (805) 543-8562 | California's 24th congressional district | District 30 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council, the San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (SLOMA) will provide free guided museum gallery tours, curriculum support, and teachers’ guides for schools. The project will also support transportation subsidies for Title 1 schools to remove financial barriers to arts participation, as well as targeted summer programming for kids from historically underserved and under-resourced communities in south San Luis Obispo County. |
The San Luis Obispo Museum of Art (SLOMA) is located in downtown San Luis Obispo on the west end of Mission Plaza, at the heart of the city’s cultural corridor. SLOMA is committed to an exhibition program that brings together visual artists from around the world with renowned artists from California and the US. With free admission and monthly events, SLOMA is the heart of the Central Coast’s visual arts community, serving as both a gathering place for the community and an essential stop for visitors. Programs and services include a robust exhibitions program, public art, and youth and adult arts education. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | Dance Brigade or Dance Mission | 3316 24TH ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110-3803 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 826-4441 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from California Arts Council, DANCE BRIGADE A NEW GROUP FROM WALLFLOWER ORDER (aka Dance Mission Theater) will provide youth ages 3-18 years with weekly out of school dance classes in styles that range from hip hop to modern to salsa, serving approximately 400 low to moderate income youth/year from San Francisco. Approximately 75% of students attend for free or receive financial support. |
-Operating an artist-driven, feminist arts service organization rooted in intersectionality that combats systems of oppression by dedicating its resources to supporting historically marginalized artists, ensembles, and cultural practitioners. We’re committed to building community, addressing social justice issues, exploring cultural identities, and creating a more peaceful world through collective action. -Creating infrastructure in which art is recognized as a tool for social change and where marginalized communities have access to the resources they need for artistic expression and cultural preservation. -Run a thriving inter/multicultural community arts venue, Dance Mission Theater (DMT); -Create, produce, and sustain groundbreaking festivals including the Mission Youth Arts Festival, Manifest-ival for Social Change, and D.I.R.T. (Dance In Revolting Times) – all of which explore issues of equity through the assertion of culturally rooted dance forms and/or sociopolitical subject matter; -Present and foster the work of other companies and festivals – like the Black Choreographers, Deaf Dance, and CubaCaribe Festivals; -Help incubate and launch the professional careers of artists through programs such our Choreographers Showcase; -Provide high quality facilities and resources that support over 110 choreographers every year, the majority of whom are women and people of color, via rental subsidies, fiscal sponsorship, grant and publicity mentorship, performance opportunities, and co-productions. -Serve 1,000 adults/week through a diverse array of classes in dance styles such as Haitian, samba, hip hop, house, and others in our three dance studios, as well as off-site at other community venues. – Run a comprehensive, affordable dance instruction program for youth ages 3 – 18 serving more than 400 children per semester and providing a number of scholarships to local families; -Producing the Liberation Academy with citywide workshops and performances focused on African Diasporic arts, centering Black-focused and Black-led storytelling -Create original productions by DMT’s resident company, Dance Brigade, San Francisco’s groundbreaking, feminist social-change modern dance company. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | Chopsticks Alley Art | 38 S 2nd Street , San Jose, 95113-2501 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (831) 239-9710 | California Assembly district 18 | District 25 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, Chopsticks Alley Art will launch “Collective Journeys: Preserving Cultural Stories with Sơn Mài,” an initiative involving local artists in creating art rooted in cultural practices. It aims to uncover, preserve, and celebrate stories through the traditional Vietnamese art form of Sơn Mài (lacquer painting). The project will address social and economic inequalities by prioritizing culturally rooted artistic expressions and collaborative practices. The program will serve historically and systemically under-resourced communities in Santa Clara County, focusing on Southeast Asian emerging artists. These artists often face challenges related to economic disparity, cultural preservation, and social marginalization. Key Activities will include researching histories and collecting materials from nature, workshops, and training of artists in Sơn Mài traditions, creating art projects, exhibition and public showcase of the artworks, and community dialogues. |
Founded in 2014, Chopsticks Alley Art (CAA) creates educational arts programming that celebrates and addresses the needs of Southeast Asian Americans to celebrate their cultural heritage while engaging in social issues affecting our communities. Past programs have included art classes, gallery exhibits, free cultural festivals, and pubic art-making events. CAA has an established record of programing successful and accessible cultural events that appeal to a demographically diverse and inter-generational audience. One of our primary first initiatives, Chopsticks Alley Eats, organized community members to promote volunteerism in support of homeless children. Chopsticks Alley has an online, multimedia publication to share the voices of young Vietnamese and Filipino Americans through talk shows, podcasts, and other media. Building from this online platform, we launched Chopsticks Alley Arts as a 501(c)(3) organization in 2017, furthering the impact of our programming. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $127,459.00 | Creative Sonoma | 141 Stony Circle Suite 110, Santa Rosa, 95401 | Sonoma | Bay Area – Other | (707) 565-6121 | District 4, District 2 | Districts 2, 4, 12 | Districts 2 and 3 | With support from the California Arts Council, County of Sonoma Economic Development Board/Creative Sonoma will serve the county’s creative community, its residents, and visitors with programs including grants, professional development, public art, arts education activities, and other special initiatives. |
Creative Sonoma provides services in six key areas: |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $46,293.00 | Dance Brigade or Dance Mission | 3316 24TH ST , SAN FRANCISCO, 94110-3803 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 826-4441 | California Assembly district 11 | District 17 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Dance Mission Theater (DMT) will expand its inclusive, artist-driven programming to further racial and gender equity in the arts. Funds will support the development of new works by women, gender-expansive artists, and artists of color. DMT will enhance accessibility by offering affordable classes, performances, and studio rentals, ensuring economic barriers do not prevent participation. We will continue to foster partnerships with local cultural organizations, support emerging artists through showcases and residencies, and provide free dance and wellness programs for underserved communities. Additionally, funds will be used to sustain our accessibility upgrades and support our full-time Accessibility Coordinator, ensuring all programs and services are accessible to people with disabilities. This grant will enable DMT to deepen its impact on the Bay Area’s diverse artistic community. |
-Operating an artist-driven, feminist arts service organization rooted in intersectionality that combats systems of oppression by dedicating its resources to supporting historically marginalized artists, ensembles, and cultural practitioners. We’re committed to building community, addressing social justice issues, exploring cultural identities, and creating a more peaceful world through collective action. -Creating infrastructure in which art is recognized as a tool for social change and where marginalized communities have access to the resources they need for artistic expression and cultural preservation. -Run a thriving inter/multicultural community arts venue, Dance Mission Theater (DMT); -Create, produce, and sustain groundbreaking festivals including the Mission Youth Arts Festival, Manifest-ival for Social Change, and D.I.R.T. (Dance In Revolting Times) – all of which explore issues of equity through the assertion of culturally rooted dance forms and/or sociopolitical subject matter; -Present and foster the work of other companies and festivals – like the Black Choreographers, Deaf Dance, and CubaCaribe Festivals; -Help incubate and launch the professional careers of artists through programs such our Choreographers Showcase; -Provide high quality facilities and resources that support over 110 choreographers every year, the majority of whom are women and people of color, via rental subsidies, fiscal sponsorship, grant and publicity mentorship, performance opportunities, and co-productions. -Serve 1,000 adults/week through a diverse array of classes in dance styles such as Haitian, samba, hip hop, house, and others in our three dance studios, as well as off-site at other community venues. – Run a comprehensive, affordable dance instruction program for youth ages 3 – 18 serving more than 400 children per semester and providing a number of scholarships to local families; -Producing the Liberation Academy with citywide workshops and performances focused on African Diasporic arts, centering Black-focused and Black-led storytelling -Create original productions by DMT’s resident company, Dance Brigade, San Francisco’s groundbreaking, feminist social-change modern dance company. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $127,459.00 | Friends of the Arts | 527 Flume St, Unit 2 , Chico, 95928-5608 | Butte | Upstate | (530) 228-2860 | California's 1st congressional district | District 3 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, Upstate Community Enhancement Foundation (UCEF) will operate BCAC.tv, our digital media arts center in Chico, which has traditionally focused on at-risk youth. We will continue to partner with CSU, Chico, and Butte College on grant opportunities for the community, and Butte County Office of Education, (BCOE): $5,000 of the total award amount will support the implementation of Poetry Out Loud. Additionally, we will continue to partner with BCOE to get artists back into schools and work to create full access and equity in arts education programs and resources for K–8 students through BCOE’s “Any Given Child” partnership with UCEF. Finally, we will continue to provide technical, financial, and programmatic assistance to arts and cultural groups and individuals while focusing on the underserved and marginalized in Butte County. |
UCEF’s core programs and services for the 2026–2028 strategic cycle reflect the organization’s continued transition from an event-focused arts presenter to a regional backbone organization centered on technical assistance, economic development, and services for highly under-resourced communities throughout Butte County. Following the conclusion of its long-standing public access television contract with the City of Chico and post-pandemic community reassessment, UCEF intentionally shifted toward systems-building, collaboration, and direct support for artists, nonprofits, continuation and alternative schools, and emerging community initiatives. Historically, UCEF operated Butte County’s public access television station, BCAC.tv, where it provided digital media arts training, equipment access, youth programming, and community broadcasting services. UCEF also maintained a free lending library of media equipment for filmmakers, students, artists, and grassroots organizations. During its transition, UCEF redistributed equipment to local nonprofits and expanded its role as a facilitator and capacity-building organization. Over the next two years, UCEF will focus on grant-writing assistance, fiscal sponsorship, organizational coaching, and one-on-one technical assistance for artists, cultural organizations, and startup community projects. UCEF will continue to support Poetry Out Loud, underserved schools, affordable housing initiatives, tribal and rural communities, and arts education programs through partnerships with social service agencies, continuation and alternative schools, and local governments. UCEF also advances economic development through arts and culture by supporting cultural district exploration, artist housing research, regional tourism partnerships, and creative workforce initiatives. Community visibility remains central through UCEF’s weekly arts newsletter, reaching nearly 10,000 residents, and its monthly KZFR radio program, “Butte Views & Beyond,” which highlights local artists, cultural organizations, economic development, and community issues. UCEF’s work is grounded in collaboration, equity, cultural awareness, and strengthening long-term community resilience through arts and culture. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | JAZZLINE INSTITUTE | 5924 ALLEN AVE , SAN JOSE, 95123-2620 | Santa Clara | Bay Area – Other | (415) 860-9866 | 19th Congressional District | District 28 | District 15 | With support from the California Arts Council, JaZzLine INSTITUTE will present the Funky Latin Getdown, a four-day multicultural, intergenerational celebration of Black and Latinx culture in Oakland, including two evening concerts showcasing a dynamic 9-piece ensemble of Black and Latinx artists, a live radio broadcast, two free masterclasses and jam sessions with renowned Black and Latinx guest artists, and an awards program honoring Black and Latinx musical pioneers and emerging talent in our community. |
JaZzLine INSTITUTE is dedicated to the preservation, celebration, and education of the historical and cultural significance of music out of the African-American diaspora through performance and educational programs. We produce masterclasses and workshops with visiting artists, educational programming in public schools, music scholarship fundraisers for local youth, memorial programs for departed local musicians, radio programming including live in-studio concert broadcasts, jam sessions for youth, educational events in local juvenile detention centers, and concert programming celebrating Black History and centering women in music. We recognize musical pioneers in our community, both living and departed, through our BAJABA awards. JaZzLine INSTITUTE celebrates diverse forms of music from the African-American diaspora including Negro spirituals, jazz, blues, R&B, soul, gospel, and hip-hop. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | Hijos del Sol Arts Productions | 443 E Alisal St, Suite C , Salinas, 93905-4514 | Monterey | Central Coast | (831) 210-2552 | 18th Congressional District of California | District 29 | District 17 | With support from the California Arts Council HIJOS DEL SOL ARTS PRODUCTIONS will conduct programming from the newly opened HIJOS DEL SOL EXPERIMENTAL ARTS STUDIO. The free and open studio is our unique model, key for youth to find freedom and express themselves while allowing for collaborative innovations. Through this arts collective and hub, Hijos del Sol will conduct professional visual arts instruction, provide supplies and materials. Participants contribute toward the creation of |
Embodying a philosophy of interconnectedness, “Hijos del Sol” is a saying from indigenous peoples that describes our interrelatedness with the sun, moon, and planets. Inspired by his own journey as a child immigrant farmworker, Native American, and self-taught artist, José G. Ortiz founded Hijos del Sol to meet the need for a dedicated studio space to support youth who, like him, face significant barriers. Hijos del Sol is a safe arts sanctuary that builds confidence, belonging, and cultural pride—key indicators of well-being—while developing skills and self-concepts that support pathways in education, creative work, and community leadership. Core Programs and Services include: HIJOS DEL SOL TRAVELING EXPERIMENTAL ARTS STUDIOS are set up on school grounds for all students to access and rotate into the experimental studio environment. In the coming year, we expect to continue to work with all 14 schools of the Salinas City Elementary District and more. HIJOS DEL SOL CULTURAL EVENTS WITH ARTS EXHIBITS work with students throughout the year fosters a sense of belonging and cultural appreciation. At these events, we keep our traditions alive, preserving our heritage. 1) A Toda Madres, 2) Dia de los Muertos, and 3) Garabatos. HIJOS DEL SOL TRANSFORMATIVE COMMUNITY MURALS include vibrant, symbolic images that reflect the strength of our people, uplift our community, and spread messages of unity and hope. HIJOS DEL SOL APPRENTICES are a cohort under the guidance of Arts Director Jose G. Ortiz and Jose “Pepe” Nolasco. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $140,979.00 | DNACA | 224 F St. , CRESCENT CITY, 95531 | Del Norte | Upstate | (707) 464-1336 | California's 2nd congressional district | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, Del Norte Association for Cultural Awareness (DNACA) will provide programs like our Performance Series, Art in Public Places, Poetry Out Loud, and Arts in Education. DNACA has been a cornerstone of the arts in Del Norte County for over 40 years. Serving a low-income area with limited access to cultural opportunities, DNACA fills a critical gap in a region with little arts funding. Funds requested from this grant will support our programs, maintain staff, and assist in funding our Executive Director. This is a pivotal moment for DNACA, and ongoing support is vital to continue providing essential arts support to underserved populations including Indigenous, Hmong, and Hispanic cultural communities, as well as the elderly and at-risk youth in Del Norte County. |
1. Performance Series, with engagement activities and Courtesy Seats. These are live performances from national and international performers in a variety of forms, such as dance, music, storytelling etc. Performers often hold an engagement activity (class or workshop) with local students or community members in their area of expertise. Courtesy Seats are tickets that are provided by local businesses via donation, and offered to foster youth, shelter residents, and other “at risk” community members; |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | Junior Center of Art & Science | 558 BELLEVUE AVE , OAKLAND, 94610-5026 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 839-5777 | California's 13th congressional district | District 18 | District 9 | With the support of the California Arts Council, Junior Center of Art and Science will continue to engage in arts-integrated programming with school and community partners. We have returned to our updated facility equipped with multiple interactive learning spaces that meet the needs of families and youth ages 2-17. This grant would allow us to expand onsite operations, and grow our outreach efforts with our local community. Despite our setbacks, we have been able to build new programs, fundraise for our scholarship and sliding scale, and form new community partners, because we remain steadfast in our commitment to arts and science education for all. |
The Center provides high quality programs in the arts and sciences. Our center hosts visitors in our five interactive learning spaces including our art studio, maker space, and animal room. Programs are provided both on-site and throughout the Oakland and East Bay Area through school and community partners. Offerings occur during the day, after school and on Saturdays. Classes are taught by professionals in their fields. We are happy to partner with over 40 school and community sites throughout the East Bay Area. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Justice for My Sister | 1000 North Alameda Street, Ste. 240 , Los Angeles, 90012 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (626) 533-3706 | California's 34th congressional district | 52 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Justice For My Sister will cover 4 days of stipends for on-the-job training of 21 PA Certification Program students. This initiative provides participants ages 18-24 with highly sought-after professional opportunities as early-career filmmakers of color after training them on soft and technical skills required to start a career in the Film & TV industry. By placing our participants on BIPOC film & TV productions, we provide them with tools to start their careers while increasing capacity on set for those productions that are usually under-resourced. |
Our programs aim to elevate the voices of emerging filmmakers of color who don’t see themselves represented in the TV and film industry due to nepotism, unpaid internships and exclusionary hiring practices. We also give access to arts to youth and families in communities of color where an arts education is sorely lacking. Our programs serve over 2000 individuals annually through three focus areas: Youth Leadership: Workforce Development: Systems Change: |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | Skid Row Arts Alliance | 420 S. San Pedro APT 423 , Los Angeles, 90013 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (562) 547-9965 | California's 34th congressional district | With support from the California Arts Council, Skid Row Arts Alliance will develop and create artistic experiences for the largest unhoused community in America, namely, the Skid Row community of Los Angeles, that is served by SRAA members Los Angeles Poverty Department, Urban Voices Project and Piece-by-Piece, among others. |
The SRAA creates collaborative projects which engage the Skid Row community of Los Angeles County through community events, dialogue, celebration, and important artistic and civic initiatives. The Alliance develops and produces projects which lie beyond the scope of any single membership organization or individual, with the aim to benefit, serve, and reach all constituents and participants of each membership organization. The SRAA serves the intersection of three stakeholders in Los Angeles County, providing services to (1) individual artists impacted by homelessness and severe poverty, (2) a coalition of constituent arts non profit organizations and (3) participating service-provider organizations such as health/wellness and housing providers. |
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| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $140,979.00 | Visalia Arts Consortium, Inc. | 340 E Oak Ave ste 112 , Visalia, 93291 | Tulare | Central Valley | (559) 772-0001 | California's 21st congressional district | District 32 | District 12 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Visalia Arts Consortium, Inc., will continue providing the following forms of crucial support to Tulare County, with tracts predominantly rated below 50% in the Healthy Places Index: |
Our programs include: |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | San Diego Museum Council | 1270 Cleveland Ave Unit B136, San Diego, 92103-3379 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 342-6272 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 78 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, SAN DIEGO MUSEUM COUNCIL INC will increase accessibility for under-served communities to more than 80 culturally diverse member museums with three major San Diego County regional programs: “Museum Month” (half-off admission) in February “The Big Exchange” (free admission with memberships) in May “Kids Free San Diego” (free admission ages 12 and under) in October We also provide substantial marketing support, collaboration opportunities, professional development, co-op advertising and networking opportunities for member museums and their people and continue to support historically marginalized cultural institutions. We also actively serve as arts and culture funding advocates on a state and local level. |
San Diego Museum Council is comprised of more than 80 member museums, aquariums, gardens, historic sites, gardens, parks, and more across San Diego County. We connect hundreds of thousands of residents and tourists each year to a range of arts, culture, history, and science offerings that is diverse, vibrant and unique to the region. Each year, San Diego Museum Council delivers three promotional programs including “Museum Month” in February, “The Big Exchange” in May and “Kids Free San Diego” in October. These signature programs are designed make our museums more accessible by reducing financial barriers for families. The programs include educational, professional development and outreach events and are supported by integrated marketing campaigns. All year round, San Diego Museum Council provides its members with collaborative marketing, professional development, and networking opportunities. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $46,293.00 | CLA | 2 MARINA BLVD FORT MASON CTR C-265, SAN FRANCISCO, 94123-0000 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (415) 775-7200 | California's 12th congressional district | District 19 | District 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, California Lawyers for the Arts (CLA) will continue to provide legal, educational and dispute resolution programs and services for artists and arts organizations throughout California, while expanding access to job training, mentorship and education and career counseling through creative workforce development programs for under-resourced youth and formerly incarcerated persons. |
Our core services include legal consultations with attorneys who specialize in arts and entertainment fields; alternative dispute resolution services, including negotiations counselling, conciliation, mediation, arbitration, and facilitation; education programs that are designed to help artists and arts organization leaders understand legal rights, relationships and responsibilities so that they can become more sustainable; and arts workforce development programs for youth and adults. Since the organization’s inception in 1974, we have also been engaged in advocacy to support artists’ rights, freedom of expression, and public funding for the arts. Cross sector initiatives have included community development, arts and environment, and arts in corrections. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | The Ebell of Los Angeles | 743 S LUCERNE BLVD , LOS ANGELES, 90005-3707 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (323) 931-1277 | With support from the California Arts Council, The Ebell of Los Angeles will expand its free student matinee program with two new shows celebrating the overlooked accomplishments of historical Los Angeles women. Firstly, The Ebell will present the new musical All About Rose, a piece which is the second installment of The Ebell’s larger Living Herstory initiative– a decade project that educates students on LA women’s history through musical theatre. Secondly, The Ebell will partner with all-female mariachi group Las Colibrí to develop and produce their new piece, Versos y Besos: The Story of Manuela C. García. All About Rose is aimed at 3rd-5th grade students, while Versos y Besos is developed for student grades 6-8. Both programs will be freely presented to LA County schools through The Ebell’s expanding student matinee program. |
Today, The Ebell serves over 100,000 people annually as a vibrant cultural presenter, creator, convener, and civic space. In FY2023-2024, The Ebell produced 367 events serving 19,000 individuals as part of its non-profit work, including over 3,000 students. 83.4% of these programs were presented free or low-cost (less than $20 per person). Additionally, The Ebell served 65,000 theatre attendees in 2023-2024, and 20,000 patrons of private rental events. As a creator and producer, The Ebell develops original programs that elevate women’s voices and uncover LA’s untold histories. Flagship initiatives include the Living Herstory free student matinee series, a decade project of musicals, workshops, and curriculum centered on women leaders in Los Angeles, and The Ebell Institute, a public scholarship initiative supporting residencies, symposia, and archival research centered on LA’s unique women’s history. As a presenter, The Ebell curates bold, thought-provoking programming that brings artists, thought leaders, and culture-bearers to the fore. From LA Voices, a free monthly series spotlighting local talent, to Live in the Lounge’s intimate concerts, to high-profile conversations through The Ebell + Writers Bloc Present, The Ebell creates space for connection, dialogue, and discovery—on stage, in conversation, and across artistic disciplines. As a convener, The Ebell provides space for civic dialogue and volunteerism. Programs such as Ebell CARES and the Rest Cottage Association offer critical support services, while the campus regularly hosts public forums, policy summits, and major civic gatherings—from Arts for LA’s State of the Arts to congressional debates. A historic space, The Ebell provides a home for a network of 60+ smaller arts nonprofits, supporting their work through low-cost or free rehearsal/performance space, parking, and technical support. The Ebell of Los Angeles stewards its campus and collections, safe-keeping its rich 100-year history for generations to come. |
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| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Playwrights Project | 3675 Ruffin Road, Ste. #130 , San Diego, 92123 | San Diego | Far South | (858) 384-2970 | California's 52nd congressional district | District 77 | District 39 | With support from the California Arts Council, Playwrights Project will empower system impacted youth (youth who are justice involved, in foster care, struggling with housing insecurity, or pregnant/parenting) to take part in restorative circles and write plays that reflect on their personal strengths, voice their stories, and communicate the changes they want to see in the world. By uplifting individual voices, youth will gain confidence in their creative skills and resilience, develop greater empathy for one another, and demonstrate to the public the importance of second chances and countering negative stereotypes. The grant will fund artists’ fees and program and production costs. |
Playwrights Project provides playwriting workshops in schools, communities, and correctional facilities, conducts the annual California Young Playwrights Contest for writers under the age of 19, and professionally produces community readings and full productions of Plays by Young Writers and The Mosaic Festival. Playwrights Project’s programs engage underserved populations in dramatizing stories drawn from imagination and life experiences, including reflections on the impact of poverty, incarceration, addiction, foster care, and military service. Recognizing that life presents difficult situations, forces beyond our control, and challenging decisions, the programs guide individuals to reflect on past experiences with compassion, create fictional plays that examine hardships, explore positive non-violent solutions, look forward to brighter futures, and celebrate the resilience gained by triumphing over difficulties. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $16,897.00 | Lead Guitar | 8105 N Dacosta Street , Downey, 90240 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (520) 329-2312 | California Assembly district 42 | District 64 | District 30 | With support from the California Arts Council, Lead Guitar will expand its free services to five additional LAUSD schools where 80% or more of students qualify for Free or Reduced-Price Lunch. Currently, Lead Guitar provides Teaching Artists for classroom instruction, curriculum, teacher training and experiential learning opportunities – like student concerts at local college campuses – to 1,363 students in 21 Los Angeles schools annually. 94% of those students qualify for FRPL, 86% identify as Latinx and 25% are English Language Learners. In-school assemblies from global touring artists and other events serve around 5,000 additional students and community members. Demand for Lead Guitar’s services is out pacing our current reach. We have ten qualifying schools on our waiting list. GOS support from CAC would allow us to reach half of those waiting list schools. |
Lead Guitar has a 24-year history of success establishing local operations in major urban areas and positively impacting outcomes in struggling schools. We have served more than 37,500 students and earned the consistent support of the National Endowment for the Arts, the Arizona Commission on the Arts, and the Illinois Arts Council. Lead Guitar’s Four Pillars of Service include: Co-Teaching and Curriculum: Lead Guitar has assembled an international team of Teaching Artists: global concert musicians, Fulbright Scholars and professors with a passion for mentorship. They collaborate with certified K-12 teachers to co-teach in-school guitar ensemble classes using Lead Guitar’s proprietary curriculum and Lead Guitar Digital: a library of instructional videos, lesson plans, and extension activities accessible from any device. Professional Development: Our Teachers’ Workshops offer K-12 teachers formal PD towards promotion and recertification as they master the Lead Guitar curriculum and improve their own playing. In-School Assemblies & We Are Guitar: Global touring guitarists perform for, dialogue with, and inspire students in person, right at their own school, while our interactive We Are Guitar YouTube broadcast (in partnership with Guitar Salon International) provides an online forum for students nationwide to learn from, interview, and perform with guitar celebrities. Student Performances: Middle and High school students perform and are celebrated in front of family and friends at annual Showcase Concerts at their local college campus. Our elementary school families come together at school to perform, celebrate and share food in an atmosphere that supports community building. In short, Lead Guitar delivers “tangibly better student outcomes in terms of dropout rates, behavioral issues and academic achievement” (US News & World Report). |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | Edge on the Square | 800 GRANT AVE , SAN FRANCISCO, 94108-1709 | San Francisco | Bay Area – San Francisco | (628) 800-8980 | 11 | 17 | 11 | With support from the California Arts Council, Chinatown Media and Arts Collaborative/Edge on the Square will engage artists and elders in a creative social practice collaboration that will: 1) improve the health and well-being of physically isolated seniors through social cohesion and artmaking; 2) produce artwork as an act of relationship-building, belonging, wellness and thriving; 3) decrease marginalization of Asian American seniors, establishing them as valued contributors to the cultural landscape; 4) help rewrite the anti-Asian narrative still prevalent in a post-pandemic world; and 5) center and amplify underrepresented voices through creative expression and participation in shaping a more equitable, just and joyful world for all. Lead Artist collective (For You—Erika Chong Shuch, Rowena Richie, Ryan Tacata) will support local artists Chris Cheung, Bijun Liang, Summer Mei Ling Lee, Spencer Tsang and Hou Yumei. |
Edge on the Square is a visitor destination with community-serving programs that leverage the power of art and culture for social change and economic recovery. Programs include an annual contemporary art festival, an arts educational programs for underserved youth groups and former SRO families in Chinatown, hands-on art workshops for children, community film screenings, literary and culinary programs, and multimedia art exhibitions. |
| State Local Partner Mentorship | 2024-25 | $41,664.00 | Arts and Culture El Dorado | 525 Main Street , Placerville, 95667-2400 | El Dorado | Capital | (530) 295-3496 | California's 4th congressional district | District 5 | District 4 | With support from the California Arts Council, Arts and Culture El Dorado will enter Year Three of our mentorship of Alpine County. We have met our Year One and Year Two goals, which included working with elected officials and County staff, merchants, artists, and community leaders; holding public meetings; convening a Steering Committee; choosing a name and deciding on organizational structure; initial program development; filling the new Executive Director position, filing for and receiving nonprofit status, presentation of public programs, refining the organizational budget, and identifying Board members. In Year Three we will focus on fundraising, program development, and marketing, with continued mentorship of the new Executive Director. |
Switchboard Gallery Exhibition Series |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA | 2332 W 4TH ST 2332 W 4th ST, LOS ANGELES, 90057-2702 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 382-8133 | 34 | District 53 | District 24 | With support from the California Arts Council, SINERGIA Theatre Group-Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA will continue its free Staged Reading Series so that Latinx playwrights can present their work to the public. |
Grupo de Teatro SINERGIA (Synergy Theater Group) is a 501 (c) (3) non-profit arts organization operating out of the William Reagh Los Angeles Photography Center, located at 2332 W 4th St., in the heart of the Westlake District, one of the most densely populated and economically challenged areas of Los Angeles on the outskirts of Downtown. We organize arts programs representing the major ethnic groups residing within a five-mile radius of the Center, primarily Latino immigrant groups from Guatemala, Nicaragua, El Salvador, and Mexico. Throughout the years, SINERGIA has worked diligently to establish a working relationship with the surrounding community in order to integrate them as welcomed members of the company. Our focus continues to be on works and arts education programming relevant to our underserved community. We presently serve a highly transient, zero to low-income population, comprised mostly of first-generation immigrants. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Youth in Arts | 917 C ST , SAN RAFAEL, 94901-2805 | Marin | Bay Area – Other | (415) 457-4878 | 2nd Congressional District of California | State Assembly District 12 | State Senate District 2 | California Arts Council support for Youth in Arts will advance our impactful Intensive Arts Mentorship (I AM) program for teens and fuel our growth as a community leader in equity-focused initiatives. Bolstering resources for I AM will facilitate economic development through public art and workplace empowerment for Marin’s marginalized youth; amplifying their creative voice, while paying them as working artists. The CAC funds will enable Youth in Arts to continue to evolve as a key advocate for educational equity in and around the North Bay area. The CYD grant will directly support mentorship activities, public art creation and installation, teaching artists’ fees, and the student participants’ stipends, ensuring that our programs continue to provide valuable skills, opportunities, and exposure for underrepresented youth in our community. |
For 50 years, Youth in Arts has developed visual and performing arts skills in young people through innovative and meaningful programs that foster confidence, compassion and resilience in students of all abilities. Through direct education, intentional teacher/educator support, and meaningful advocacy, Youth in Arts changes the lives of thousands in and around San Francisco’s north bay as well as insisting that access to a creative life is a right for all students.Through residencies, performances, community events, and intensive mentorship programs , we help young people develop specific art skills and provide opportunities for them to share their work. We maintain a roster of Mentor Artists that is both artistically and culturally diverse, and are dedicated to the principle of “reaching all learners,” differentiating and tailor designing programs for students of diverse backgrounds and students of all abilities. Through our Arts Unite Us residencies, we are the only consistent provider of arts for special education classrooms in Marin County. Other core programs include an extensive in-school residency program, assembly and workshops programs from a culturally relevant pedagogical lens, `Til Dawn A Cappella our teen mentorship, the YIArts.COR is our creative online resource for virtual and digital learning, and the YIA Gallery, one of only a handful of galleries in the country dedicated to showcasing youth art. |
| Statewide and Regional Networks | 2024-25 | $32,405.00 | Street Symphony | 1001 Wilshire Boulevard PMB 2258 , Los Angeles, 90017 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 222-6221 | 34th Congressional District | District 54 | District 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, STREET SYMPHONY PROJECT INC will continue to invest in the artistic and human flourishing of individuals recovering from incarceration, addiction and homelessness living in the Skid Row community of Los Angeles through collaborative workshops, performances, and individual instruction – particularly in the creation of new multidisciplinary works of performing art presented entirely for free in Skid Row shelters, clinics and community centers. Since 2011, Street Symphony has provided thousands of world-class musical programs with nearly 100 individual LA-based artists from across a variety of diverse musical genres (Jazz, Mariachi, Reggae, West African Drumming, Son Jarocho, Choral and Classical) – bringing in the voices of musicians and artists living in Skid Row shelters who participate in Street Symphony’s programs. All Street Symphony artists – including community members, are paid a professional honorarium. |
Street Symphony musicians provide regular performance and workshop programs to shelters, reentry facilities and clinics in Skid Row, LA County jails, and state prisons. In the last 14 years, Street Symphony groups, composed of leading choral, instrumental, Son Jarocho, Mariachi, and jazz musicians in Los Angeles, have presented over 1500 unique programs, reaching 25,000 people affected by homelessness, incarceration, and poverty in LA. Each engagement is a musical performance as well as an opportunity for dialogue, human connection, and storytelling. Street Symphony also hosts a renown yearly event known as The Messiah Project, a community singalong performance of Handel’s beloved “Messiah,” with community artists as choristers, and even composers and soloists. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $140,979.00 | Santa Barbara County Office of Arts and Culture | 1100 Anacapa St , Santa Barbara, 93101 | Santa Barbara | Central Coast | (805) 568-3990 | California's 24th congressional district | District 37 | District 19 | With support from the CAC, the Santa Barbara County Office of Arts & Culture will work in community to leverage SLP funds to offset operational expenses and costs for 3 full-time & 3 part-time staff working at 2 public office locations in North and South county to: administer grant programs, produce free public art exhibitions and opportunities, facilitate public meetings, provide training and consultation, and support artists, culture bearers, and arts and cultural organizations countywide. We will continue to prioritize those that have been historically under-resourced, including those in the lowest quartile of the Healthy Places Index, in programming efforts and resource allocations. Abbreviations (used throughout application): |
SBCOAC administers a range of programs and services that directly support artists, nonprofits, cultural organizations, and the broader community. – Grants & Funding: SBCOAC manages 4+ annual grant programs that provide direct financial support to artists, nonprofits, and cultural initiatives—promoting innovation, community engagement, and access. SBCOAC continues to expand its reach and impact through regional collaboration and cross-sector partnerships that foster a more vibrant, inclusive, and resilient arts and culture ecosystem in Santa Barbara County. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $23,147.00 | Ghetto Film School | 6121 West Sunset Blvd., c/o NeueHouse , LOS ANGELES, 90028 | Los Angeles | South – Los Angeles & Orange | (213) 738-8290 | 34 | 51 | 26 | With support from the California Arts Council, Ghetto Film School will provide 30 LA high-school students with an intensive, afterschool four-month Fine Art & Cinema program, engaging students in more than 150 hours of art history and filmmaking coursework in partnership with the Huntington Library, Art Museum, and Botanical Gardens. All students will write and produce their own two- to four-minute films using hand-cranked Bolex cameras, 15 of which will be selected for public exhibition in the Museum’s galleries and website. Tuition is free, and healthy meals, transportation, and equipment are provided. Fine Arts & Cinema is the third course in the GFS Fellows Program – a 2.5 year, graduate level program in cinematic storytelling that trains students in the art and business of multimedia storytelling while preparing them to advance to higher education. |
GFS enacts its mission through two program tracks: a rigorous and practical film education program for high school students (FELLOWS) and early-career support for alumni and young professionals (THE ROSTER). GFS annually serves 5,000 individuals, 14-34 years of age. GFS Fellows Program immerses high school students in a curriculum that develops their artistic expression, executive function, technological expertise, and media-business savvy. The program is grounded in experiential learning and gives participants a well-rounded education in film and media, as well as nurtures their unique interests and strengths. Our curriculum, culture, and support structures are based on a core value of young peoples’ agency over their own narratives and a belief in their innate creative potential. GFS establishes an even playing field with its students, treating all as emerging artists, and emphasizing high expectations, accountability and trust. Our most recent study showed 98% of Fellows graduate high school; 92% matriculate into colleges; and 75% pursue creative careers. Through its Roster member network, GFS paves the way for a successful education-to-industry transition, connecting NYC’s early-career creatives in the film, television and entertainment industries and providing professional development support. Roster creates employment opportunities for GFS alumni, so that media professions become accessible to more diverse visual storytellers, and media content – from feature films to commercials to games – includes the perspectives and experiences of people from backgrounds that are under-represented. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $21,989.00 | SPACE | 508 W PERKINS ST , UKIAH, 95482-4774 | Mendocino | Upstate | (707) 462-9370 | California Assembly district 2 | District 2 | District 2 | With support from the California Arts Council, SPACE will support our Latinx community performing arts program, ¡Viva La Cultura! led by Olivia Zamora. The program includes weekly dance and theater classes, an annual showing of classwork, seasonal dance/theater productions and a Spanish-language summer camp for youth – all focused around supporting Latinx intergenerational learning, cultural enrichment and artistic excellence. |
SPACE currently offers over 40 classes-a-week, including: Music Together/Rhythm Kids – Music program for children ages infant through 7. Teen Performing Groups – Advanced performing groups for ages 13-18. Teen Intern Training Program – Offering youth job experience and job-related skills in working with children as well as working in technical theater. Participants have gone on to teach at SPACE and other regional and national theaters. Students often list their SPACE Intern Certificate of Completion on their college and job applications. Performance Workshop – 30 students rehearse and perform a fully-staged musical theater production; 1200 school children attend school day matinees at SPACE Theater. Dance/Theater – Students rehearse and perform fully-staged, theme-based shows created from interviews with participants that address social norms, drug & alcohol abuse prevention, social media addiction, bullying, unlearning racism and gender issues specifically focused on rural youth and families. Latino Community Engagement – Engaging the Latino community as creators, producers, and audience in 2 annual productions. Spring & Winter Dance Festivals – 300+ dancers and singers ages 7 to teens with guest artists, perform in several weekends of shows in December and May. Wanna Dance Latin & Social Dance –Ongoing event on the first Saturday of every month, includes diverse local and regional teachers sharing social dance. Classes & Summer Camps – After-school music, dance, acting, voice classes and summer camps for ages infant to 18 yrs. Contract with Ukiah Unified School District – Performing arts instruction to over 2,200 K-12th graders and to South Valley High School students. Art Exploration – Small groups of children work with master artists to create art using a wide variety of materials. All-Ability Arts – Providing access to the arts for children with disabilities; specialized instruction and accommodations are provided within each class to promote a safe space for self-expression and creativity. |
| Arts Integration Training | 2024-25 | $10,439.00 | Musica Sierra | PO BOX 111 , LOYALTON, 96118-0111 | Sierra | Upstate | (209) 202-9238 | 1 | 1 | 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, NEW VINTAGE BAROQUE INC dba Musica Sierra will implement the “A Musical Field Journal” project at Loyalton Elementary School for grades K and 3-6. This innovative book will seamlessly integrate Social & Emotional Learning (SEL), Next Generation Science Standards (NGSS), and Visual and Performing Arts (VAPA) into general education classrooms. The Musical Field Journals will enhance SEL, Science, English Language Arts (ELA), and VAPA skills by exploring elements of nature through song. Students will express their findings through journaling, singing, and dancing. The Musical Field Journals feature engaging melodies and art by local California artists, hands-on activities that bridge music with STEM concepts and environmental awareness, and reflective prompts for students to express their thoughts and feelings. This approach will foster a deep connection to nature and the arts. |
Music education for ages 0-99 in the schools and community, music exposure through world class performance and community engagement. This is all done through the arm of Musica Sierra, based in Sierra County. |
| Impact Projects | 2024-25 | $20,832.00 | ARTogether | 1200 Harrison Street , Oakland, 94612-3913 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 545-2787 | District 12 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTogether will launch the Artist Mentorship Hub, a multidisciplinary artist residency and exhibition project centered around and for first and second-generation refugee and immigrant artists. The Hub will work to foster community and collaboration, guiding participants through one-on-one mentorships, professional development workshops, and creative wellness activities. Through artist retreats, participants will explore their narratives, grounded in diasporic and anti-racist frameworks. The project will culminate in a multi-genre public exhibition and events showcasing their work, providing platforms to their stories and engaging diasporic artists more deeply with the Bay Area artistic community. |
ARTogether serves as a resource center for refugees and immigrants throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our services center around three primary areas: (1) Bringing refugees, immigrants and the wider community together through art workshops and art-centered social gatherings, to foster wellness and community connection. (2) Supporting refugee artists by employing refugee art educators, and by connecting refugee artists to local art galleries and social venues that help them to find new markets for their art. (3) Bringing the arts to Bay Area schools, launching engaging arts programs that promote positive images of refugees and immigrants, while raising public awareness of refugee issues through educational campaigns. |
| General Operating Support | 2024-25 | $20,276.00 | AXIS Dance Company | 1370 Tenth Street N/A, Berkeley, 94710-1510 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 625-0110 | 12th Congressional district of California | District 14 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, AXIS Dance Company will ensure ongoing accessibility throughout all of our core programs and will produce our 2024/25 Home Season, a biannual event in the Bay Area where we will premiere new work by D/eaf, disabled, non-disabled, and neurodivergent artists. |
Our Artistic Advancement Program serves as a training ground for professional D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent artists and consists of our Summer Intensive, Company Appreniceship, Choreo-Lab, and Teacher Trainings. Our Summer Intensive, now entering its seventeenth year, provides professional development for dancers at all levels of their growth through a multi-day experience that connects participants. Our Choreo-Lab paves the way for D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent choreographers to elevate their artistry through mentoring, networking, and peer support while producing original work. We have built a robust professional development suite of services that deepens Choreo-Lab participants’ understanding of the craft, including grants & fellowships, budgeting, production, presenting, and disability justice workshops, an enhanced year-round mentorship component, and opportunities to connect with Choreo-Lab Alumni and meet with presenters to learn from them. Through our Choreo-Lab program, we have a unique capacity to increase the representation of D/deaf, disabled and neurodivergent artists in the dance field. Many educators lack the tools or training to confidently create inclusive learning spaces for D/deaf, disabled, and neurodivergent students. AXIS bridges that gap. We pair 45-minute integrated dance performances with artist-led discussions, introducing young audiences to disability representation and the expressive power of movement. These experiences are joyful, interactive, and often a student’s first encounter with professional dance. In tandem, we equip educators with tools to create inclusive classrooms through movement-based exercises and dialogue about language, access, and belonging. Our focus on youth programming furthers our goal to introduce new populations to integrated dance. In 2024, AXIS reached 8,000 K-12 students in the Bay Area. 50% of participants were from low-income communities and 80-100% of participants were BIPOC. |
| Arts Education – Exposure | 2024-25 | $23,147.00 | Calidanza | 8181 Kirkwall Ct , Sacramento , 95829 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 599-3441 | California Assembly district 8 | District 10 | District 8 | With Support from the California Arts Council, Calidanza will enlighten students in the Sacramento region with a professional educational production in May 2025 and present school site assemblies for K-8 Schools. The objective of the program is to educate and entertain students with Mexican folk dance and music, teach them about Mexican folk culture and inspire future artist with professional productions that represent Mexico. |
Calidanza Mexican Dance Company is a multi-faucet community based organization that serves the artistic and cultural needs of the Latino community of Sacramento, CA. Our organization offers classes, workshops, public performances, in school arts programming and educational shows in and around the Sacramento community. The purpose of this project will be to offer the underserved Latino population of Sacramento a viable outlet to learn, observe, participate or appreciate Latino/Mexican arts programming in their own communities as well as in public venues open to the public. |
| State-Local Partnership | 2024-25 | $127,459.00 | Shasta County Arts Council | 1313 Market St. , Redding, 96001 | Shasta | Upstate | (530) 241-7320 | California's 1st congressional district | District 1 | District 1 | With support from the California Arts Council, SHASTA COUNTY ARTS COUNCIL will utilize the grant funds towards staff compensations to continue provision of essential services, including technical support to empower local artists and organizations, artist-in-residence opportunities to foster creativity and innovation, content creation to showcase the rich cultural tapestry of our region, and promotion and advertising to amplify the visibility of local arts and cultural events. Additionally, we will support regional arts coalitions, strengthening collaborations and networks among arts organizations to amplify our collective impact, and provide a wide array of arts, cultural, and educational services that enrich the lives of Shasta County residents. Positions supported by this grant are the executive director, arts & grants coordinator, events and member services coordinator, facility coordinator, and media and promotion coordinator. |
Shasta County Arts Council (SCAC) is housed in the City of Redding’s National Registry 1907 City Hall – 8,000 sq. feet that includes a classroom, ballroom, television studio, administrative offices and a pocket park next door. Our gallery features 13 exhibits annually including High School & Middle School Juried Art Competitions where 20+ schools participate. SCAC was the first arts council in the state to manage a public access television station (SCAC.tv) and we now teach digital media arts skills to at-risk youth and interested public members. Our ballroom is host to classical music monthly (we own a Yamaha Grand piano), ballroom, ballet & modern dance classes weekly, concerts, performances as well as theater throughout the year. We also host community meetings & rentals, using our space 300+ days per yr. SCAC is the lead agency for the newly formed Redding Cultural District which is one of 14 districts throughout the State of California. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Sojourner Truth African Heritage Museum | 2251 FLORIN RD STE #126, SACRAMENTO, 95822-4490 | Sacramento | Capital | (916) 320-9573 | California's 6th congressional district | District 9 | District 6 | With support from the California Arts Council, we will expand and strengthen our Youth Docent program. We will increase our annual Youth Docent staff from six to ten docents, host a monthly guest speakers series (including artists, scholars, and entrepreneurs), take the docents on educational field trips, and expand our annual Juneteenth celebration (facilitated by our docents). This grant will also allow us to hire an artist as the Youth Docent Program Manager, which will take some of the pressure off of our Executive Director, Shonna McDaniels, who currently facilitates all of the programs at the museum herself. |
SOJO has been working towards expanding and promoting the arts and artists from diverse cultures since its inception. Our goal is to remove barriers and improve representation in the arts. We support race and cultural equity in various ways, such as: |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $17,360.00 | ARTogether | 1200 Harrison Street , Oakland, 94612-3913 | Alameda | Bay Area – Other | (510) 545-2787 | District 12 | District 18 | District 9 | With support from the California Arts Council, ARTogether will engage 10-15 refugee and immigrant youth participants in creative activities at the ARTogether Center in downtown Oakland. Meeting bi-weekly, our Youth Creative Impact Studio (YCIS) program will create art projects addressing community issues like climate change, water conservation, and mental wellness. Through printmaking and board game design, our young cohort will learn creative tools for community-building and social justice advocacy. YCIS will include guest speakers and artists guiding the youth in using art as a tool for activism. Additionally, participants will attend local events to practice public speaking and leadership skills. The Project will culminate in a final exhibition showcasing their work, highlighting the program’s impact on empowering youth through creative expression and cultural connection. |
ARTogether serves as a resource center for refugees and immigrants throughout the San Francisco Bay Area. Our services center around three primary areas: (1) Bringing refugees, immigrants and the wider community together through art workshops and art-centered social gatherings, to foster wellness and community connection. (2) Supporting refugee artists by employing refugee art educators, and by connecting refugee artists to local art galleries and social venues that help them to find new markets for their art. (3) Bringing the arts to Bay Area schools, launching engaging arts programs that promote positive images of refugees and immigrants, while raising public awareness of refugee issues through educational campaigns. |
| Creative Youth Development | 2024-25 | $16,203.00 | Sketch Odyssey East Bay | 6451 Hazel Avenue , Richmond, 94805 | Contra Costa | Bay Area – Other | (510) 350-6906 | California Assembly district 14 | District CA-8 | District 7 | With support from the California Arts Council, the Children’s Art Studio Richmond / Taller de Arte Para Niños Richmond will expand our process-based and nature-inspired arts program for underserved and under-resourced learners aged 2-5 and their families. Building on our program’s strengths, we will continue to nurture creativity, social-emotional skills, and family engagement through workshops, exhibitions, and community events. Our culturally responsive approach and unique bilingual programming ensure inclusivity for these communities of color. We will partner with existing Richmond arts organizations, leveraging spaces to uplift the need for arts and early learning investments while showcasing young talent. This program fosters critical thinking, problem-solving, and collaboration, enriching the lives of an estimated 180 students, 90 parents, and 200 community members. |
The Children’s Art Studio Richmond / Taller de Arte Para Niños Richmond provides free art classes in both English and Spanish to children aged 2 – 5 in the Richmond, CA community, regardless of their background or resources. This program is designed to support each individual child to achieve their highest creative potential, while teaching children basic art-making techniques. We emphasize the importance of cooperation and self-help, self- discipline, and assuming responsibility for the use of these materials. Through this approach, we foster a sense of exploration, creativity, and self- expression in each child. |
