Applications Are Now Open for the FY25 Funding Cycle
Important: All proposed activities must take place within the City of New Orleans to be considered for funding.
The Mayor’s Office of Cultural Economy is happy to announce that applications for the 2025 Grant Funding Program open on Thursday, May 1, 2025.
For the FY25 Funding Cycle, twenty-five (25) grants of $2,000 will be awarded to individuals and organizations that are engaging in activities that promote the cultural economy through educating our youth, training our cultural producers, providing networking opportunities, creating cultural events, and other projects that align with the Office of Cultural Economy’s mission.
Please Note: All grants and sponsorships must acknowledge support from the Mayor's Office of Cultural Economy through use of our logo and written/verbal acknowledgment.
Grant Packet:
Please do not alter or change the format of these forms in any way. The only modifications allowed are filling out the required fields and providing your answers. Ensure that you submit these forms in their original format for proper processing and consideration.
All applications must be fully completed (including proper format and required materials) to be considered for funding. Incomplete applications or those missing required reports from previous funding cycles will not be reviewed.
**All interested applicants should carefully and thoroughly read the funding terms and conditions before submitting.**
**For-Profits do not need to submit proof of City tax clearance.**
**FY24 grantees must submit their final performance reports before being considered for the FY25 Funding Cycle.**
Deadline:
- Applicants may only submit one proposal per grant cycle. Multiple submissions from the same applicant will not be considered.
Funding Calendar:
- Grant awards are processd and disburesed through BRASS, the City’s Procurement and Finance System. Potential grant recipients must be registered in the system as a supplier or vendor to receive funding payment.
- The estimated time for awards to be processed and disbursed is between 30-60 days. Please plan accordingly and allow sufficient time for review and processing.
BRASS Registration:
All grant recipients must be registered in the City's BRASS System to receive payment. For more information, please click here.
Questions regarding the BRASS Portal should be sent to procurement.brass@nola.gov or call (504) 658-1550.
Recipients experiencing difficulties in the BRASS Supplier Portal can also submit a form to request assistance from the Office of Procurement, available here.
Contact Us
Please direct any questions to culturaleconomygrants@nola.gov.
What We Fund:
- Workshops, training, and conferences that build cultural economy capacity in cultural non-profits, neighborhood organizations, and cultural businesses. Capacity Building includes networking, teaching skills such as fundraising/grant writing, working with partners to improve programming, leveraging, education about sustainability, learning of new concepts such as place-based planning, etc.
- Workshops, training, and conferences in any of the Cultural Economy segments as defined by the Office of Cultural Economy: Entertainment (dance, theater, music, film, sound recording), Design (fashion, interactive media, communications), Preservation (architecture, construction, landscape architecture, and interior design related to preserving historic buildings and assets), Culinary Arts, Literary Arts and Humanities, and Visual Arts and Crafts.
- Events with art and cultural components. Funds can be used for paying musicians or other performers, attracting tourists, or other activities that will directly impact either cultural workers or attract sales for art and cultural vendors.
- *Note: all funded programs, events, and activities must acknowledge support from the Office of Cultural Economy through use of our logo or written/verbal acknowledgment*
Who We Fund:
- State and federal 501(c)3 nonprofits
- For profit businesses licensed with the City and State and are in good standing
- *Note we do not fund for-profit activities, but community/cultural activities organized by for-profit businesses qualify.*
- Individuals, such as artists, who have secured a fiscal agent (such as a nonprofit)
How We Evaluate:
- A committee of five employees from the Office of Cultural Economy reads through all applications
- Each employee then scores each application on the strength of the following criteria:
- Community Impact: Creates a deep and lasting affect on the community and the means to maintain that impact
- Economic Impact: Significantly impacts the economy through training, networking, and creating lasting contributions to individuals and businesses’ development in their field
- Cultural Contribution: Deeply aligns with the culture of the community, enhances it and recognizes its diversity, and works with those qualities to contribute to the culture
- Alignment with the missions of the Cultural Economy and Economic Development Offices
