ECRAC: Art In Our Schools Grant

ECRAC: Art In Our Schools Grant

Status: ACTIVE
Funder: East Central Regional Arts Council
Amount: Up to US $5,000
Last Updated: February 16, 2026

Summary

The ECRAC: Art In Our Schools Grant aims to enhance the arts curriculum in K-12 educational facilities located in Region 7E, Minnesota. Grants of up to $3,000 are available to support artistic residencies, field trips, and special events that are open to the public. This funding encourages schools to provide enriching arts experiences while ensuring that projects are accessible to all students and the community, without requiring a match.

Overview

ECRAC: Art In Our Schools Grant The purpose of this ECRAC grant is to enhance the existing arts curriculum in educational facilities throughout Region 7E (Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Mille Lacs and Pine Counties in Minnesota.) The standard for the program is artistic excellence. This program will supplement the existing school arts curriculum with such programs as artistic residencies, arts related field trips, and special arts events or projects. Grants of up to $5,000 are available. No match is required. Grants can be used to support all K-12 students and/or student groups such as drama club, art classes, entire grades, gifted and talented students, or Community Education programming for all ages. Program Rules Grant funds must be used within one year from the deadline date and must have a component that is open and accessible to the public. Grants of up to $5,000 are available. Grants may be for 100% of the Total Project Expenses; however, a match is encouraged. The request for funds should be the difference between the Total Income (Match) for the Project and the Total Project Expenses. Project income (match) is not required for this funding; however, it is strongly encouraged. Any cash and in kind contributions must be available and explained in detail. In-kind  income should be significant items such as donated materials, labor, or space that can be given a dollar value. Cash match may include earned income, other contributions, and/or cash on hand. Residencies must involve the general community in some significant aspect. Example: receptions, poetry readings, exhibitions of the artist’s or students’ work, or a public performance. Residencies must also allow at least one core group or class of students to work with the artist daily throughout the residency. A teacher must be present in the classroom at all times during residency, special art project, or on the field trip. Residencies, special projects, and field trips must include at least one hour of in-service for artist(s)/teacher contact time. Residency artists selected should reflect applicable background to the school’s artistic needs. Field trips and special arts projects must also involve the general community in some significant aspect. Applications may not include costs associated with food or beverages for participants. Applicants must submit a residency and/or a field trip schedule as part of the application for the proposed project. Grant funds cannot be used for travel outside of Minnesota, equipment purchases, capital investments, construction, purchases of real estate, endowment funds, and sole purchase of, or to solely commission works of art. Nor can funds be used to support “routine” school arts activities, such as one-act plays, music competitions, etc. All projects must be activities not funded by the school in the last school year, or they will be considered ineligible. Granted activities must not be essentially for the religious socialization of the participants, or be primarily historic in nature. The Council does not provide grant funds to schools with past due or unacceptable final or other reports from prior ECRAC funded projects. Grant applicants may not discuss their application with ECRAC review panelists or ECRAC board members following the grant deadline until the ECRAC board has acted on the application. Communications regarding an application with ECRAC board members or panelists during this time will result in the application being deemed ineligible for funding. It is the responsibility of each school receiving public funds to comply with the Americans with Disabilities Act (ADA) regulations. Grant awardees must include the required credit line in all advertising, news releases, printed programs, and promotional materials for the project.

Eligibility

We've imported the main document for this grant to give you an overview. You can learn more about this opportunity by visiting the funder's website. This grant program is open to all public or private non-parochial elementary, middle, secondary, or charter schools physically located in Region 7E (Chisago, Isanti, Kanabec, Mille Lacs and Pine Counties in Minnesota). No school district may receive more than two Art in Our Schools grants per fiscal year. All projects must be those not funded by the school in the last school year. These funds are intended to supplement existing curriculum, not supplant it. All projects must have an open and accessible to the public component.

Ineligibility

Purchase of equipment.Applications that do not have an arts and/or culture related focus.Applicants not located in or grant activities that do not take place in Minnesota.Activities of a for-profit project, organization, or business.Any travel costs outside of Minnesota. You may engage an out-of-state artist within your project, but their travel expense to get to or from Minnesota cannot be included in the request.Applicants that contact ECRAC board members or grant review panelists regarding their proposal after submission and before final grant approval.Religious organizations or projects that are for the religious socialization of the participants or audience. This includes parochial schools.Activities that engage in political lobbying or intend to influence public policy.Projects in which artists are required to pay excessive entry or exhibition fees in order to exhibit or perform.Activities that are not open to the public or are not ADA accessible.Projects that try and substitute traditional sources of funding with an ACHF grant. The Minnesota Constitution requires that ACHF dollars must be used to supplement not substitute for traditional sources of funding. All recipients of ACHF dollars must ensure that they are in compliance with this requirement. “Traditional support” is defined as grants received that were funded with state general fund dollars, or funding from the state’s capital investment budget.Projects in which funds are requested for deficits in projects or programs begun prior to the earliest allowable grant start date. In other words, payment of any debts incurred before the grant activities begin or outside of the approved grant start and end dates are not allowed.Applications in which funds will be used to match other ECRAC funded grants or grant applications.Requests for new building construction, purchase of real property, or endowment funds.Expenses to purchase alcoholic beverages or to pay associated costs (servers, insurance, liquor licenses, etc.).Fundraising events. Fundraising is defined as primarily intended to raise funds and donors are then provided with the appropriate acknowledgement of their tax-deductible gift.Grantees unwilling or unable to track and report grant costs. ACHF grant dollars must not be spent on administrative costs, indirect costs, or other institutional overhead charges that are not directly related to and necessary for the specific projects or activities that will be funded with Arts and Cultural Heritage Fund dollars.  Requests for operating support. Grantees that during promotion of the public component of the project will not use the proper ECRAC funding credit line (in a legible font) and that won’t use both the ECRAC logo and the ACHF Clean Water Land and Legacy logoFor grant requests from Region 7E schools, ECRAC cannot provide funds for these activities or the following.Supplanting discontinued or non-existent arts programs in schools.Paying an artist or arts organization to provide essentially the same services that an ongoing teacher or arts specialist would be expected to provide.Compensating school employees or personnel in full or in part.In-school projects by students or projects carried out exclusively by or for student organizations or programs by schools that are limited in access to the public or serve only students or staff.Tuition for teachers to earn degrees, meet licensure requirements, or meet continuing education requirements to retain a teaching license