Group of men on stage playing jazz, saxophonist at far left, pianist, man holding clarinet, and man singing

NEA Jazz Masters Jimmy Heath, Chick Corea, Paquito D'Rivera, and James Moody at the 2006 awards concert. Photo by Tom Pich

Teenage girl on stage reciting poetry

Minnesota's state champion Isabella Callery (Anishinaabe) became the 2019 Poetry Out Loud National Champion. Photo by James Kegley

Group playing jazz onstage; from left, drummer, man playing bass, woman in red singing, and trumpet player.

NEA Jazz Masters Jack DeJohnette, Ron Carter, Sheila Jordan, and Jimmy Owens performing at the 2012 tribute concert. Photo by Michael G. Stewart

Man playing drums at White House.

2004 NEA Jazz Master Chico Hamilton performs as part of A Salute to NEA Jazz Masters, a White House concert in celebration of Black Music Month in 2004. Photo by Vance Jacobs

Black teenager standing next to a lighted mirror.

2017 Poetry Out Loud National Champion Samara Elán Huggins from Georgia backstage during the competition. Photo by James Kegley

Group playing jazz on stage

2011 NEA Jazz Masters the Marsalis Family perform with bassist Jason Stewart at the tribute concert at Jazz at Lincoln Center in New York City. Photo by Frank Stewart

Woman in orange dress singing in front of an all-women jazz orchestra

Dianne Reeves, with Sherrie Maricle and the Diva Jazz Orchestra, performs a tribute to Dee Dee Bridgewater at the 2017 NEA Jazz Master Tribute Concert. Photo by Shannon Finney

Teenager crying on stage with other teenagers after winning contest.

DC state champion Amanda Fernandez is announced as the 2007 Poetry Out Loud National Champion. Photo by James Kegley

Jazz band playing on stage.

Jason Moran, Cleve Guyton, Noah Jackson, Terence Blanchard, and Terri Lyne Carrington perform in honor of 2019 NEA Jazz Master Abdullah Ibrahim at the Kennedy Center in Washington, DC. Photo by Shannon Finney<

Teenage boy on stage reciting poetry.

2011 Poetry Out Loud National Champion Youssef Biaz from Alabama. Photo by James Kegley

Supporting the Arts in Your Community

The National Endowment for the Arts supports exemplary arts projects in communities nationwide through grantmaking, initiatives, partnerships, and events.
An intricately painted mask in mostly shades of grey with words of inspiration and hope

Visit the Creative Forces: Healing the Invisible Wounds of War online exhibition.

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General Operating Support Waivers for FY2019-2021 Grantees

Image of COVID-19 virus

National Endowment for the Arts on COVID-19.

Two dancers in red costumes and masks

NEA receives $135 million in American Rescue Plan to support jobs in the arts sector.

Three young men play guitars

Arts Endowment Supports the Arts with over $27.5 Million in Awards in First Round of FY2021 Funding

Photos of the 2020 National Heritage Fellows

Check out the archive of “The Culture of America: A Cross-Country Visit with the National Endowment for the Arts National Heritage Fellows" event from March 4, 2021.

collage of student faces

Meet the 2020 Musical Theater Songwriting Challenge Winners!

Grants

The National Endowment for the Arts awards grants to nonprofit organizations, creative writers and translators, state arts agencies, and regional arts organizations in support of arts projects across the country.
Go to the Grants section »

Impact

See the impact of the Arts Endowment on your state, and how the agency's work in research, accessibility, and other areas has had a major impact in the arts and culture of the country.
Go to the Impact section »

Featured Stories

See All Stories
Photo of Latino man
Blog

Crossing Borders with Poet and NEA Creative Writing Fellow Javier Zamora

Headshot of a man.
Podcast

Albert “Tootie” Heath

Percussionist and 2021 NEA Jazz Master
Woman with kerchief on her head singing into microphone.
Magazine Article

Reverberations

The Ongoing Musical Legacy of Betty Carter

Featured News

See All News
Ad for 2021 Jazz Master concert

Come Celebrate the 2021 NEA Jazz Masters!

Tune in for the virtual tribute concert on April 22, 2021 at 8pm ET/5pm PT. 

Chart with arrows pointing upward.

New BEA Report Shows Impact of Arts & Cultural Sector

2019 data reveal arts & culture add 4.3 percent/$919.7 billion to the nation's GDP.

Invitation with three photos of students reciting and text: Who will be the next Poetry Out Loud National Champion?

Poetry Out Loud National Finals Broadcast May 2 and 27, 2021

Students nationwide to compete for $20,000 grand prize.

Some Facts about the National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent federal agency that funds, promotes, and strengthens the creative capacity of our communities by providing all Americans with diverse opportunities for arts participation.
40 Percent

Percentage of Arts Endowment funding is awarded directly to the states through their state and regional agencies, reaching millions more people in thousands of communities.

$9

Amount leveraged by private and other public funds for every $1 of direct Arts Endowment funding.

$500 Million

Direct grant-matching support for Arts Endowment projects each year.

Some Facts about the National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent federal agency that funds, promotes, and strengthens the creative capacity of our communities by providing all Americans with diverse opportunities for arts participation.
Approximately 2,400 Grants

Recommended for grant awards annually.

42 Percent

Percentage of Arts Endowment grants take place in high-poverty neighborhoods.

35 Percent

Percentage of Arts Endowment grants reach low-income audiences or underserved populations.

Some Facts from the National Endowment for the Arts

These facts are based on the most recent data (2019) from the Arts and Cultural Production Satellite Account (ACPSA), which is produced jointly by the National Endowment for the Arts’ Office of Research & Analysis and the Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Commerce Department. The ACPSA tracks the annual economic impact of arts and cultural production from 35 industries, both commercial and nonprofit.
$919.7 Billion

Amount the arts and cultural industries contribute to the U.S. economy.

4.3 Percent

Percentage of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product is accounted for by arts and cultural industries.

5.2 Million

Americans work in the arts and cultural industries on payroll.

Some Facts about the National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent federal agency that funds, promotes, and strengthens the creative capacity of our communities by providing all Americans with diverse opportunities for arts participation.
48 Cents

The Arts Endowment’s annual cost to each American.

0.003 Percent

The Arts Endowment’s percentage of the federal budget.

$5.5 Billion

Amount awarded by the Arts Endowment since its beginning in 1965.

Some Facts about the National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent federal agency that funds, promotes, and strengthens the creative capacity of our communities by providing all Americans with diverse opportunities for arts participation.
Around 45 Million Americans

Attend a live arts event supported by the Arts Endowment annually.

More than 40,000

Concerts, readings, and performances are supported annually.

More than 6,000

Exhibitions are supported annually as well.

Some Facts from the National Endowment for the Arts

These facts are based on the most recent data (2017) from the Survey of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPA), a national survey conducted in partnership with the U.S. Census Bureau that has allowed cultural policymakers, arts managers, scholars, and journalists to obtain reliable statistics about American patterns of arts engagement.
North Dakota

The state's residents attend live performing arts events at a higher rate than U.S. adults as a whole—with 62 percent for North Dakota residents versus 48.5 percent of U.S. adults.

Montana

Outperforms the national rate of attending art exhibits, with 33.5 percent of this state’s residents doing this activity versus 23 percent of Americans overall.

Oregon and Washington

Their literary reading rates (upwards of 60 percent) far exceed the U.S. as a whole (44 percent).