The Maine Community Foundation’s Maine Expansion Arts Fund is accepting proposals from nonprofits for grants of up to $10,000 for arts organizations and arts-based programs in Maine serving rural communities and/or Black, Indigenous, and other people of color, particularly in areas with limited access to the arts.

The deadline for grant applications is September 15, 2021. An online application, guidelines and a list of recent grants are available at www.mainecf.org.

Recent grantees include:

Maine Forestry Museum, Rangeley, to promote, expand and preserve the folk art traditions of clogging, bluegrass/folk music, and childhood oral lore

Our Town Belfast, to add artwork to the city's downtown crosswalks, increasing visibility and safety while creating visual interest

University of Maine Foundation, Hudson Museum, Orono, to create and promote a virtual Wabanaki Winter Market,  including educational content and a Wabanaki Artist Directory.

The Maine Expansion Arts Fund is a collaborative effort of the National Endowment for the Arts, Lillian M. Berliawsky Charitable Trust, Maine Community Foundation, and Maine Arts Commission to strengthen and ensure the future of artistic traditions in Maine. Additional funding has been provided through the Elizabeth Laughlin Anderson Memorial Fund at the Maine Community Foundation and a significant gift in 2021 from MacKenzie Scott and Dan Jewett.

If you would like more information about the fund, please contact MaineCF Senior Program Officer Leslie Goode at 207-412-2002 or by email at lgoode@mainecf.org.

Headquartered in Ellsworth, with additional personnel in Portland, Dover-Foxcroft, Mars Hill and Rockport, the Maine Community Foundation works with donors and other partners to provide strong investments, personalized service, local expertise, and strategic giving to improve the quality of life for all Maine people. To learn more about the foundation, visit www.mainecf.org.