Arkansas Arts Council — Arts in Education Major Grants (opens Oct 15, 2026)

This is money for organisations rather than for artists directly — but it is one of the main ways a working musician in Arkansas gets paid to teach and perform in schools and community settings. Applications come from schools, nonprofits and governmental institutions, and the artist they engage must be on the Arkansas Arts Council's Arts in Education Artist Roster. For a musician, then, the practical first step is getting onto that roster.

The "major" grants cover three components. The In-School Residency places a roster artist in a school during the school day or year, for anything from ten days to a full school year, with award payments of up to USD 40,000. The After-School/Summer Residency does the same outside school hours and outside school buildings — community centres, low-income housing projects, parks and recreation programmes, juvenile facilities, boys and girls clubs — up to USD 10,000. The Arts Curriculum Project supports work that strengthens existing arts curricula or helps establish ongoing arts programming, also up to USD 10,000. All three require a 1:1 match, of which up to half may be in-kind, and no organisation may hold more than two Arts in Education major grants.

Applications open on 15 October 2026 and close on 29 January 2027, through the Council's online grants portal. Late applications are refused except for genuinely uncontrollable events such as a natural disaster, as judged by the executive director. Incomplete packages are rejected outright: the budget comes as a downloadable Excel form and every line must carry a figure, with zeroes where a line does not apply, and each applicant must certify that a Section 504 self-evaluation is on file. Staff check completeness first, then a panel scores each eligible application at a public review, and that score combined with available funds sets the final award. The Council advises talking to the programme manager before applying.