The Community Investments program supports San Francisco-based artists, arts organizations, and communities with an equity lens through grants, technical assistance, arts education initiatives, and community-based Cultural Centers.
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Important Dates
| 2022 Grantseeker Information Sessions | Sessions will be announced soon |
| Special Project Grants (SPX) Application Due | Wednesday, September 22 at 12 p.m. |
| Ebony McKinney Community Stewards Grant (EMCS) Application Due | Friday, September 24 at 12 p.m. |
| Artistic Legacy Grant Application Due | Tuesday, October 19 at 12 p.m. |
| Creative Space Grant (CRSP) Application Due | Wednesday, October 27 at 12 p.m. |
| Cultural Equity Initiatives (CEI) Application Due | Wednesday, November 3 at 12 p.m. |
| San Francisco Artist Grant (SFA) Application Due | Wednesday, November 10 at 12 p.m. |
| Native American Arts and Cultural Traditions Special Grant Application Due | Closed |
Helpful Hints
Grantseeker Information Session videos will be posted within 3 business days following the event.
2021 Information Workshop Recordings
Check out our FAQs page.
The Organization Project Grant category continues to be on hiatus for projects taking place July 1, 2022-June 30, 2023 given the uncertainty of the re-opening schedule of venues in San Francisco. For questions, contact sfac.grants@sfgov.org
Grant Categories
The Artistic Legacy Grant (ALG) is an annual grant for $40,000 to acknowledge the impact of an artistic director that has served the organization consistently for 25 years or more. Through the vision of the artistic director, the awarded organization is considered to be a vital member of the respective community(ies) they serve and has a history of working to educate the broader community on the importance of their culture and/or artistic genre.
For questions about this grant category, please contact Program Officer, Debbie Ng at debbie.h.ng@sfgov.org or (415) 252-2216.
The Artivist-in-Residence (AIR) is a grant program for a nonprofit arts organization to hire teaching artists as part-time hourly employees to design and implement socially responsive art and creative exploration learning experiences (e.g. in-person, hybrid, remote) as a means to heal and build community. In turn, teaching artists are provided equitable compensation and opportunities to further their artistic practices and professional development as educators in a three-year cohort.
For questions about this grant category, please contact Program Officer Tina Wiley at tina.wiley@sfgov.org
The vitality and vibrancy of San Francisco depends on the dedication and determination of its arts and cultural communities. These communities and their representatives worked to support the passage of Proposition E in November 2018. With 75 percent voter approval, Proposition E restored the historic hotel tax allocation for the arts, and stabilized funding for continued deep support for arts and culture throughout the City. Arts Impact Endowment (AIE) grants include:
- Arts Hub: Support up to $250,000 for a nonprofit arts and culture service provider to develop, host, maintain, and regularly update a web-based perennial listing of current funding, grants, resources, and exhibition opportunities in San Francisco, as well as online tools, training, and educational materials relevant to the arts sector. The Arts Hub, modeled after similar, longstanding arts sector online resources such as NYFA.org and ArtsForLA.org, will provide a comprehensive and dynamic city-wide information resource and clearinghouse for artists, arts organizations, businesses in the arts industry, art and arts service consumers, and arts funders and supporters.
- Universal Basic Income (UBI): Support up to $870,000 for a nonprofit organization to develop and administer a Universal Basic Income grant for San Francisco artists and cultural workers to mitigate the financial impact of the coronavirus on their livelihoods and the community arts sector. UBI grants seek to provide immediate financial relief to BIPOC, immigrant, transgender and people with disabilities. (Note: Individual artists will be able to apply for UBI funds once the intermediary has been selected to administer this grant program. We anticipate this will be in early 2021.)
- Re-Opening Safely: Support up to $800,000 for a nonprofit organization to develop a re-granting program to serve the nonprofit arts and culture sector in re-opening safely in compliance with public health orders.
For questions about this grant category, please contact Deputy Director of Programs Joanne Lee at joanne.lee1@sfgov.org or 415-252-2238.
The Creative Community Response (CCR) pilot program recognizes artists as critical to San Francisco's economic and emotional recovery. Artists often utilize the creative process to collaborate, solicit community input, and develop solutions to community issues. With funding from the California Arts Council, the Creative Community Response grant supports small-sized arts organizations, with budgets under $30,000, to respond to urgent needs in BIPOC communities by using art as a vehicle for positive social change. Request amounts may be up to $6,500 for projects with a grant window from January 1, 2021 to December 31, 2021.
For questions about this grant category, please contact Program Officer Robynn Takayama at robynn.takayama@sfgov.org
The Creative Space (CRSP) grant program supports the enhancement of San Francisco cultural facilities through Planning and Facility Improvement Grants. The category aims to improve existing arts facilities and develop new ones that will support the work of San Francisco’s arts organizations and artists.
PLANNING GRANTS: Grants for up to $50,000 to arts organizations for the planning or pre-planning for the development or acquisition of arts facilities.
FACILITY IMPROVEMENT GRANTS: Grants for up to $100,000 to tax-exempt arts organizations with programming space for capital improvements and/or to address key safety, code-compliance, and/or ADA accessibility issues.
- LEVEL 1: Grants for up to $50,000 for arts organizations that have at least three years remaining on their lease at the start of the grant term, or, has a year-to-year lease and has leased the space for a minimum of ten years prior to the start of the grant term.
- LEVEL 2: Grants for up to $100,000 for arts organizations that hold title to their space, or have a lease with at least five years remaining at the start of the grant term
For questions, contact Senior Program Officer Jaren Bonillo at jaren.bonillo@sfgov.org or (415) 252-2227.
The Cultural Equity Initiatives (CEI) grant program offers core support grants up to $100,000 to small and mid-sized arts organizations over two years. CEI grants may be used to fund general operating expenses such as salaries, rent, equipment and supplies, providing arts organizations with the flexibility and support for organizations to pivot their programs and meet community needs in new ways.
CEI will continue to honor and amplify the legacy of the Cultural Equity Endowment by supporting vital San Francisco-based arts organizations that are deeply embedded in their communities and reflect the priority communities identified in our Cultural Equity Endowment legislation. (SF ADMIN. CODE CHAPTER 68: CULTURAL EQUITY ENDOWMENT FUND.)
Note: CEI previously funded capacity-building projects such as strategic planning, databases, and staff development. This shift in strategy was informed by community engagement and the Arts Commission's desire to be responsive to the needs of the arts sector due to COVID-19.
For questions, contact Program Officer Debbie Ng at debbie.h.ng@sfgov.org or (415) 252-2216.
The Dream Keeper Initiative is a new, citywide effort to reinvest $120 million over the next two years from law enforcement into San Francisco's Black and African-American communities. This initiative is part of Mayor London N. Breed's roadmap for reforming public safety and addressing structural inequities in San Francisco.
The Arts Commission is investing $2.1 million in arts and culture organizations to anchor support for the cultural assets and economic vitality in historically Black and African-American communities facing rapid change.
For questions about this grant category, please contact Senior Program Officer Jaren Bonillo at jaren.bonillo@sfgov.org or 415-252-2227
The Ebony McKinney Community Stewards Grant (EMCS) is a regranting opportunity that supports the collaborative development and release of the Ebony McKinney Arts Leadership Grant with a focus on reimagining and centering racial equity, addressing harm, and the ideals embodied by Ebony: vision, determination, and advocacy for the arts as social practice.
SFAC seeks a very small to mid-sized arts organization to utilize a restorative justice lens for understanding the background and history of the Ebony McKinney Arts Leadership Grant among the San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC), Emerging Arts Professionals San Francisco Bay Area (EAP/SFBA), and Ebony’s Community who include members from EAP/SFBA and Arts for a Better Bay Area. Funds will support the administrative costs associated with revitalizing the process and criteria for the next Ebony McKinney Arts Leadership Grant including, launching the guidelines and application, selecting the grantee, and administering $20,000 to the grantee.
For questions about this grant category, please contact Program Associate Candace Eros Diaz at candace.diaz@sfgov.org.
DEADLINE: Friday, September 24, 2021 at 12 p.m.
Ebony McKinney Community Stewards Grant Guidelines & Application
The Native American Arts and Cultural Traditions Special Grant (NAACT-SPX) consists of a one-time grant to address emerging needs within the arts ecosystem of San Francisco that supports and/or highlights the Native American community. Projects cover a wide range of arts activities related to arts access.
For questions about this grant category, please contact Senior Program Officer Jaren Bonillo at jaren.bonillo@sfgov.org or 415-252-2227
San Francisco Artist Grants (SFA, formerly Individual Artist Commissions/IAC) are for individual artists and fund works of art made by artists living in San Francisco. Artist projects and the majority of activities must take place in San Francisco and benefit a San Francisco audience. This grant category considers proposals for projects in all artistic genres and at any stage of an artist's career. Grant requests can be up to $20,000. Priority funding goes to artists that are deeply rooted in and reflective of communities listed in the Arts Commission's 1993 Cultural Equity Endowment Legislation and informed by current best practices in racial equity.
(Please note, the SFA grant is for individual artist projects. The Universal Basic Income grant, listed above, for individual artists will be open once the intermediary has been selected to administer this grant program. We anticipate this will be in early 2021.)
For questions, contact Program Officer Anne Trickey at anne.trickey@sfgov.org or (415) 252-2213.
The Special Project Grants (SPX) program consists of one-time grants to address emerging needs within the arts ecosystem of San Francisco. Projects cover a wide range of arts activities related to neighborhood and/or community-based engagement and arts access. The SFAC has allocated resources to make grants in multiple program areas based on supervisorial districts and/or specific communities.
For questions about this grant category, please contact Deputy Director of Programs, Joanne Lee at joanne.lee1@sfgov.org
The word Sankofa is connected to the West African proverb, “It’s not wrong to go back for that which you have forgotten.” With this proverb as our north star, this responsive recovery fund prioritizes BIPOC-led (Black/Indigenous/People of Color) organizations to uplift BIPOC communities through their own self-determination.
For questions about this grant category, please contact Program Officer Tina Wiley at tina.wiley@sfgov.org
The Special Project Grants (SPX) program consists of one-time grants to address emerging needs within the arts ecosystem of San Francisco. Projects cover a wide range of arts activities related to neighborhood and/or community-based engagement and arts access. The San Francisco Arts Commission (SFAC) has allocated resources to make grants in multiple program areas based on supervisorial districts and/or specific communities.
Applicants may only apply for funding specific to those geographic areas or communities outlined within these guidelines. For questions about this grant category, please contact Senior Program Officer Jaren Bonillo at jaren.bonillo@sfgov.org or 415-252-2227.