Community Arts Grant Program

The Community Arts grant program is administered by the Zellerbach Family Foundation (ZFF), a private philanthropic organization based in San Francisco. The foundation supports a wide range of community arts efforts with a focus on equity, accessibility, and community engagement. Through this initiative, ZFF awards approximately $1 million annually to individual artists and nonprofit arts and culture organizations located in the Bay Area, specifically in Alameda, Contra Costa, and San Francisco counties. The program is designed to foster artistic expression and strengthen community through creative work that is rooted in and responsive to local cultures and communities. The Community Arts grants are issued quarterly, with four application cycles each calendar year. Grant awards are offered in fixed amounts of $5,000, $10,000, or $15,000 depending on the size and need of the applicant organization or project. Although applicants must submit a proposal for a specific project, all awards are made as general operating support. Applications must be submitted through the Fluxx portal, with deadlines falling on January 13, April 13, July 13, and October 13, respectively. Notifications of funding decisions are issued approximately three months after each deadline. Applicants are encouraged to attend optional quarterly workshops to better understand the application process. Eligible applicants include 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations and fiscally sponsored individual artists, collectives, or arts groups with organizational budgets under $2 million. The program supports a broad range of primary and sub-disciplines, including but not limited to dance, music, theater, literary arts, and visual arts. However, disciplines such as film, digital media, and AR/VR are only supported if they are components of a broader multidisciplinary project. Projects must occur in one of the three eligible counties and must include a public presentation component. Applications proposing activities not open to the public, taking place outside the eligible counties, or focused primarily on youth training, education, or performance are not eligible. Applications are evaluated by a rotating panel of seven professional Bay Area artists who represent a diversity of disciplines, backgrounds, and geographies. Evaluations are based on four weighted criteria: relevance and urgency of the work (30%), artistic excellence and craft (30%), connection to and engagement with the community (30%), and organizational or project capacity (10%). Each application receives a score based on this rubric, although funding decisions are not made solely on numerical scores. To apply, grantseekers must register in the Fluxx online system to obtain credentials, which are typically issued within 2–3 business days. Applications include narrative questions related to project vision, collaborators, timing, venue, audience, and community impact. Additional required components include a project budget, work samples (up to three totaling five minutes), and supporting documentation such as an artist CV or letter of support. Fiscally sponsored applicants must upload a memorandum of understanding (MOU). Each grant has a one-year performance period starting from the notification date. Grantseekers may apply in multiple cycles but can receive only one award per calendar year. The Foundation encourages applications from underfunded artists and organizations, especially those located in Contra Costa County or those that work with historically underrepresented communities. The Zellerbach Family Foundation may be acknowledged in grantee materials but such recognition is optional. Questions may be directed to the Foundation’s Community Arts email at [email protected] or by phone at (415) 421-2629.

Attend an application workshop; clearly articulate community engagement and artistic relevance.