DWAC Grants Process

DWAC Sub-Granting Program – 2026

DWAC Mission Statement

To serve our community in celebrating “art in the everyday” by cultivating and supporting all types of creative exploration and cultural artistic expression.

DWAC Core Values

We believe art, culture, and humanities enrich the quality of life for residents and visitors of North Dakota’s Capital City.

  • Support the sustainability of having a voice for arts and culture – we believe art, culture, and the humanities provide opportunities that are vital to a healthy, prosperous society.
  • Develop meaningful, influential relationships with organizations.
  • Achieve recognition as a premiere advocate for creativity and vibrancy in Bismarck.
  • Serve as the collective voice naming art as a right for all – we believe everyone deserves equal access to a full, vibrant creative life, which is essential to a healthy and democratic society.
  • Bridge multi-cultural relationships through collaborative efforts in the arts and humanities – we believe unique and diverse art forms bring people together across cultures and can bridge and promote positive intercultural relationships.
  • Unite the community through cultural heritage – we believe arts and cultural heritage can provide an automatic sense of unity and belonging within a group, and allow us to better understand previous generations and our histories.
  • Inspire community vitality through economic growth in the arts.

DWAC Sub-Granting Program

The DWAC Sub-Granting Program is designed to help our members, both Arts Professionals and Arts Organizations, apply for funding for arts programming that will benefit the wider community.  As the City of Bismarck is the primary funder for our sub-granting program, the majority of our grants must go to projects specifically offered to the community of Bismarck, though there is some funding available for programming outside the City of Bismarck.

For the purposes of the DWAC Sub-Granting Program, “arts” are defined as, “an outlet of human expression, usually influenced by culture, and driven by human creative impulse. Major constituents of the arts include literature – including poetry, novels and short stories, and epics; performing arts – among them music, dance, and theatre; media arts like photography and film, and visual arts – including drawing, painting, and sculpting”.

Eligibility

Any Arts Professional or Arts Organization who is a member of good-standing with the Dakota West Arts Council can apply for a grant. A member in good-standing means that your membership dues are current, and you are consistently utilizing the Community Arts Calendar for your events.

Applications must be for an “arts” project or event which will be offered publicly to the community.  While all “arts” projects or events will be considered, applications that include collaboration with other Arts Professionals or Arts Organizations, with other cultural organizations, and/or those that offer their programming for free or reduced admission will be prioritized.

Sub-Granting Amounts and Requirements

Applicants for grants may apply for funding depending on their level of membership in the Dakota West Arts Council.  

  • Basic Arts Professional – $250 grant cap
  • Enhanced Arts Professional – $500 grant cap
  • Basic Arts Organization – $1,000 grant cap
  • Enhanced Arts Organization – $2,000 grant cap

Grants over $500 will require a 50/50 match. All grants that are completed, awarded, and accepted will receive full funding of the amount applied for.  75% of the funds will be paid out when the grant is awarded, and the remaining 25%  will be paid out upon completion of the project and submission of the final report and evaluation.

Application Procedure

All applicants must complete the online grant application available through the DWAC website to be considered for a grant. This application includes: a statement on recent arts activity over the past three years, an outline of the project including collaborative partners, costs, impact on the Bismarck community, how the project will be presented to the community and if it is free or ticketed. The goal of the application is to help organizations and individuals create a thoughtful and concise proposal with the goal of giving all applicants an equitable opportunity to be awarded a DWAC grant.

Grant applications are being accepted for programming between February 1 and August 31, 2026.  All grant applications will be reviewed by a grants panel  which will take into consideration that DWAC member is in good standing, the quality of the project for our community, and its artistic merit.  All grants that are approved for funding will receive 75% of their grant funding in April 2026.  To receive the remaining 25% of the award applicants will need to submit a final report including evaluation of the project, pictures and/or video, final costs, and audience/participant information.  All grantees will need to acknowledge DWAC and the City of Bismarck in their programs, website, and promotional materials.

Grant applications will be accepted for “arts” projects or events that fall between February 6 – March 15, 2026.  Applications will be reviewed between March 16 and April 1.  Award announcements will happen in early April with funding checks following.