The United Arts Council of Catawba County offers numerous opportunities for individuals and organizations to receive funding to promote arts, science and history. The State of North Carolina has named the UAC as the Designated County Partner for Catawba County. The Designated County Partner has the responsibility to redistribute funds received from the state and local governments. In addition, individuals, corporations, foundations, as well as local and state government agencies, contribute money to grants listed below. The United Arts Council also strives to provide opportunities for the youth of our community.
You may access the appropriate acknowledgment wording for grant awards, here.
Artists from Alexander, Burke, Caldwell, Catawba, Iredell and McDowell Counties are now eligible for Artist Support Grants. The grant, operated by local arts councils, will fund professional and artistic development for emerging or established artists to create work, improve business operations, or bring work to new audiences. The Artist Support Grants replaces the Regional Artist Project Grants (RAP-G).
How to apply:
Email the contact for your county to set up an appointment to begin your process.
Alexander County: Donna Latham, donnahiddenitearts@gmail.org 828-632-6966
Burke Arts Council: Deborah Jones, director@burkearts.org 828-433-7282
Caldwell Arts Council: Ellen Ball, ellen@caldwellarts.com 828-754-2486
United Arts Council of Catawba County: Ingrid Keller, executivedirector@artscatawba.org 828-324-4906
Iredell Arts Council: John Koppelmeyer, jkoppelmeyer@gmail.com 704-880-2101
McDowell Arts Council Association: Susan Pyatt-Baker, mcdowellarts@gmail.com 828-652-8610
Rock School Arts Foundation: Sharon Bowman, rsaf1893@gmail.com 828-838-9806
The North Carolina legislature has designated $10 million in American Rescue Plan Act (ARPA) funds to be distributed through the Grassroots network over two years with no match required. The United Arts Council of Catawba County is the Designated County Partner in the Grassroots network of the North Carolina Arts Council system. Arts organizations in Catawba County may apply for ARPA funds to build, develop and invest, with the strategy of improving our local arts ecosystem.
View Presentation with Guidelines
To apply, you must first contact Ingrid Keller to discuss your organization's needs and goals. Then, email your completed 2023-2024 application as a fillable pdf plus attachments to executivedirector@artscatawba.org and include a cc to businessmanager@artscatawba.org.
Email your 2022-2023 Final Report as a fillable pdf plus attachments to executivedirector@artscatawba.org and include a cc to businessmanager@artscatawba.org.
A new grant initiative, called Collaborative Arts Projects (CAP), has been established by the United Arts Council of Catawba County to encourage collaborations among cultural and/or community nonprofit organizations for arts, science and history projects reaching underserved audiences.
The Community Cultural Fund promotes cultural activities, throughout Catawba County enabling municipalities and non-profit organizations to provide cultural programs at community and heritage festivals and events for their respective communities. Special priority is given to the municipalities that fund UAC, organizations representing diverse populations, events that feature artists of diversity, organizations that target special population groups and events that will potentially reach large segments of Catawba County residents.
Innovative Artist Grants are made possible by monies raised during a silent art auction held each year as part of our annual fundraising event, the Jingle Bell Bash. The grant awards are for innovative and creative projects, with collaborative efforts encouraged. Seeking to cultivate area artists, the purpose of these grants is to create exposure and a focus on Catawba County’s support of its artists.
View 2023-2024 Application and Guidelines
Submit Your Application HERE
View 2022-2023 Final Report
Submit Your Final Report HERE
NOTE: You must email a completed fillable pdf application.
Nonprofit organizations are awarded grants for projects that encourage innovative arts projects and will enhance and strengthen the cultural community and broaden the services offered to Catawba County citizens. Projects Pool Grants, which are administered by the United Arts Council of Catawba County, are made available by the North Carolina Arts Council through the North Carolina Grassroots Arts Program. Additional dollars are added by Catawba County government and five municipalities, including Maiden, Catawba, Claremont, Conover, Hickory, and Newton.
Email your completed 2023-2024 application as a fillable pdf plus attachments to executivedirector@artscatawba.org and include a cc to businessmanager@artscatawba.org.
Email your 2022-2023 Final Report as a fillable pdf plus attachments to executivedirector@artscatawba.org and include a cc to businessmanager@artscatawba.org.
Print and complete application
Staff and board members of UAC member organizations, with the exception of public and private school teachers, qualify to receive this type of grant to attend workshops and conferences that will strengthen their professional skills and expand their capabilities.
View Guidelines and Application
The TAG (Theatre Arts Grant) is available to help defray costs for theatre productions at public high schools in Catawba County. Qualified applicants can apply for a maximum of $500. These grants are available throughout the school year or until the funds are exhausted. Applications may be sent to Ingrid Keller, Executive Director, at executivedirector@artscatawba.org
View Guidelines and Entry Form (doc) / pdf)
Created by the family of Edna Bost Barringer in her memory, this scholarship is awarded annually by the United Arts Council to area youth under the age of 21. The competition is alternated each year between visual/literary artists and performing artists. Judges from the North Carolina School of the Arts select the winner(s). The total amount awarded each year is $1,000. This amount may be given to an individual or broken into two awards of $500 each. This award goes to students planning to pursue career in the arts.
The Board of the United Arts Council of Catawba County has established a scholarship in honor of Kathryn T. Greathouse, who served as the Executive Director of the United Arts Council for many years and had a passion for helping young people achieve their artistic endeavors. The mission of this need and merit-based scholarship is to provide cultural education opportunities to students of the primary and secondary education level. Students seeking collegiate financial help are not eligible for this scholarship.
View Application and Guidelines ( doc / pdf )
Final Report (Coming soon!)
Did you find what you are looking for?
If you do not find a grant in the above listings that meets your needs, we recommend you do some research on Candid. The database can be found here:
https://fconline.foundationcenter.org/fdo-search/member-index/
Full access comes with a subscription available through (and at) the Catawba County Library.