Arts (Large Org.)

Deadline:
Deadline:
3x per year
• Annual Expenses:
Annual Expenses:
$500,000+
-

Overview

Miller Foundation arts grants support those who put "art at the heart" of their work. We also fund other types of organizations that deliver ongoing arts or arts education programming. Together, we can help the arts play a key role in all our Oregon communities.

Minimum annual expenses

Most organizations requesting Arts or Arts Education funding through our Standard Process have minimum annual operating expenses of $500,000.

Activities we fund

Please consult our Arts page for details on the types of activities we fund.

Please be sure to review the list of activities that are ineligible for funding.

Specific eligibility considerations

K-12 Arts Education

Because the Miller Foundation believes that every child should have access to a well-rounded education that includes the arts, our Arts grants also support K-12 Arts Education programs. If you provide arts education programming, you have a greater chance of receiving Miller funding if your programs meet any of the criteria below:

  • You provide non-school based sequential arts education specifically engaging youth who face economic, geographic, or other barriers to participation.
  • You work in partnership with public schools to provide arts education where such programming would otherwise be unavailable.
  • You connect young people with professional teaching artists.
  • You provide culturally specific arts education.

Deadline and response time

We accept applications three times annually. The first step is to complete our Inquiry Form. Inquiry Forms have three deadlines each year. We will notify you three weeks after the deadline if a full application is invited.

Mark your calendars

1st Grant Cycle for 2024
Inquiry Form opens:
Jan
1
Inquiry Form due:
Feb
16
Invited Application due:
Apr
5
Recipients notified:
May
29
2nd Grant Cycle for 2024
Inquiry Form opens:
Jan
1
Inquiry Form due:
Jun
14
Invited Application due:
Aug
2
Recipients notified:
Sep
25
3rd Grant Cycle for 2024
Inquiry Form opens:
Jan
1
Inquiry Form due:
Oct
11
Invited Application due:
Nov
22
Recipients notified:
Jan
31
1st Grant Cycle for 2024
Inquiry Form opens:
Jan
1
Inquiry Form due:
Feb
16
Invited Application due:
Apr
5
Recipients notified:
May
29
2nd Grant Cycle for 2024
Inquiry Form opens:
Jan
1
Inquiry Form due:
Jun
14
Invited Application due:
Aug
2
Recipients notified:
Sep
25
3rd Grant Cycle for 2024
Inquiry Form opens:
Jan
1
Inquiry Form due:
Oct
11
Invited Application due:
Nov
22
Recipients notified:
Jan
31

Grant duration options

Applicants may apply for one, two, or three years of support. However, please note that newer applicants are unlikely to receive multi-year support. We recommend first-time applicants request a one-year grant.

  • If you have a 5-year history of grant funding with Miller, you are eligible to apply for up to 3 years of support.
  • For those applicants with a grant history of between 2-4 years of funding, you are eligible to apply for up to 2 years of support.

Grant history can be non-sequential. (i.e. Past funding does not need to have been in 5 consecutive years.)

Request amounts

Our operating support grants typically represent between 3-5% of an organization’s annual operating expenses.
(We consider an average of the organization's expenses over recent years).

Here are typical examples of how our operating support grants are commonly funded:

  • If an organization's annual expenses are under $1 million, then the grant amount would likely be up to 5% of those expenses.
  • If an organization's annual expenses are between $1-2 million, then the grant amount would likely be up to 4% of those expenses.
  • If an organization's annual expenses are over $2 million, then the grant amount would likely be up to 3% of those expenses. (Please note, our typical maximum for operating support grants is $150,000.)

A note to broader-missioned organizations:

For those broader organizations working beyond Arts activities: Our operating support grant amounts are based on the portion of your organization budget dedicated to Arts activities.

Please feel free to reach out to our program team at grants@millerfound.org if you have questions about how much to request. We are happy to discuss an appropriate amount. 

Types of support

Our Operating Support grants typically support organizations with missions that are focused solely in the Arts and K-12 Arts Education. The Miller Foundation understands that funding general operations is the best way to help organizations thrive. Our Standard Application Process provides operating support to help organizations have maximum flexibility.

Miller Foundation operating support grants can be used for a grantee's operating expenses. Examples:

  • Artist or Contractor fees
  • Staff wages
  • Rent/utilities
  • Technology
  • Programming, performance, presentation, or exhibit expenses
  • Moveable equipment
  • General business expenses
  • Marketing, fundraising or technical support
  • Addition of new paid staff

Expenses not considered operating support include:

  • Debt repayment
  • Capital campaigns

In rare cases, an organization may wish to apply for project support for a discrete opportunity, rather than operating support. While we strongly encourage applicants to apply for operating support, the Miller Foundation also provides project support. Please note: we are unlikely to fund the majority of a project’s costs.

Examples of discrete opportunities for project support grants:

  • Partnerships, mergers, acquisitions
  • Special opportunities, change capital, re-structuring

Activities we don't fund

We value your time. To keep staff, grantwriters, and volunteers from applying for something we don't currently fund, please see the list below.

Activities that we do not currently fund include:
  • ​​Capital purchase and permanently installed (non-movable) equipment
  • Facilities construction
  • Debt relief and endowment
  • Religious institutions and programs significantly shaped by religious affiliation (with rare exceptions for religiously-affiliated schools providing tuition-free opportunities to specific student populations)
  • Colleges and universities
  • Requests from individual schools or classrooms for in-school arts projects or programs (arts education courses, assemblies, school trips to performances, school clubs, field trips, art materials, or musical instruments)
  • Adult education, including adult literacy programs and standalone adult arts education

The Miller Foundation has collaborated with the Oregon Community Foundation and the Oregon Arts Commission to fund individual artists. Specifically, we participated in funding the Artist Relief Program and the Artist Resilience Program as part of our COVID-19 response efforts.

WHAT'S NEXT: In 2024, the Miller Foundation will begin providing grants directly to Individual Artists. Stay informed: sign up for our newsletter.

Activities that we do not currently fund include:
  • Museums whose primary focus is not art (except for culturally specific museums)
  • Art therapy/arts programming in therapeutic settings
  • Arts programming in residential or correctional settings
  • Scholarships or tickets to performances
  • Historical societies
  • After-school arts enrichment programs
  • Recreational camps and summer programs
  • Festivals, either single-focus or culturally specific, with the exception of festivals where the primary focus is art (film, music, visual art, literary arts, etc.)
Activities that we do not currently fund include:
  • Social service supports, including mental and behavioral health interventions, foster care and juvenile justice programs
  • Physical education, including sports programs
  • Environmental or ecology education, including gardening programs
  • STEM-focused education
  • Special Education programs or schools focused on a single diagnosis
  • After-school enrichment programs such as Boys & Girls Clubs
  • Scholarships or tuition assistance
  • Private schools with tuition-based, traditional models where most students pay tuition
  • Pre-K/Early Learning supports (we fund these only by invited initiative)
  • Parenting or caregiver education (as distinct from school-based family engagement)
  • Food and housing assistance for families
  • Recreational camps and summer programs (except for programs addressing academic disparities or summer learning loss)
  • Museums (except statewide institutions with extensive K-12 education programming)
  • Career pathways or workforce Development
  • Higher Education institutions
  • Permanent school personnel and activities that fall under public schools' core operating budgets

Take your next steps!

Solo artist wearing a black jumper working on a screen print in turquoise and brown
  • Create your account on our grants portal.
  • Take our Eligibility Quiz to see if you qualify.
  • Apply for a grant if you're a fit!
Start Application