Founded in 1967, the North Carolina Arts Council promotes "arts for all citizens," aiming to develop and support the arts for North Carolinians and their communities across all 100 counties. By delivering resources for arts development in a fair, transparent, and accountable manner, the council, an agency of the North Carolina Department of Natural and Cultural Resources and advised by a 24-member citizen board appointed by the Governor, furthers arts development statewide.
As the arts sector navigates rebuilding, the North Carolina Arts Council focuses on the stabilization of arts organizations through flexible grant funding. This assistance supports core operational needs, such as personnel and facility costs, along with programming expenses. The grant amounts range from $2,000 to $15,000 based on organizational budget size and the category's total applications. For independent 501(c)3 organizations, awards are anticipated to be 10% of the most recent actual organizational expenses, up to $15,000. University-based arts organizations can receive up to $7,500. These Organization Support Grants do not require matching funds and cannot be used as matching funds for other projects funded by the North Carolina Arts Council.