LEAD Scholarship Grant

About

The North Carolina Arts Council’s LEAD Scholarship Grant provides professional development for arts administrators who are new to the field of arts accessibility and who are proactively developing inclusive arts programs and experiences for artists and audiences with disabilities in their communities. 

The Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts’ Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disabilities Conference

The Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disability Conference focuses on expanding the breadth and scope of accessible cultural arts programming. Through LEAD, cultural arts administrators engage in conversations with colleagues and experts from around the world; learn practical methods for designing inclusive arts experiences and environments; and develop best practices and resources. This year’s conference will take place August 18-22, 2025 in Cleveland, Ohio. For more information, please visit the conference website.

Application dates

• Due: Thursday, May 1, 2025
• Award notification: Friday, May 30, 2025

Program provides funding for

• A $3,500 Technical Assistance grant to support conference registration fees and per diem travel and accommodations to attend the Kennedy Center for the Performing Arts’ 2025 Leadership Exchange in Arts and Disabilities Conference (LEAD®) in Cleveland, Ohio.
• Participation in a statewide arts accessibility learning cohort hosted by the North Carolina Arts Council in collaboration with Arts Access.

Who may apply

To be eligible for a LEAD Scholarship Grant, applicants:

1. Must be a nonprofit organization (or an organization that has applied for non-profit status using a fiscal agent).
2. Must have been producing quality arts programs for at least two consecutive years.
3. Must have prior-year organizational cash operating expenses of at least $20,000.

Participation requirements

If awarded a scholarship grant, each organization will select one arts administrator to participate in the program. This participant will represent the host organization for the entirety of the program. Participants will agree to the following:

• Attend the in-person Kennedy Center for Performing Arts’ LEAD Conference in Cleveland, Ohio, scheduled for Aug. 18-22, 2025.
• Participate in a statewide arts accessibility learning cohort hosted by the North Carolina Arts Council in collaboration with Arts Access.
  • Cohort kickoff meeting will take place on Wednesday, July 23 (2-3:30 p.m.).
  • Virtual monthly meetings will be held on the third Wednesday of each month from September through December 2025.
  • During these facilitated sessions, participants will have opportunities to ask questions, share lessons learned, discuss challenges and achievements in their accessibility work, and explore accessibility topics of mutual interest to the group.
• Identify individual organizational goals/projects to increase accessibility for people with disabilities.
• Grant funds which are not used to cover conference registration fees and travel costs associated with the LEAD Conference can be used towards implementing an accessibility initiative at the grant recipient’s host organization or toward the participant’s administrative time participating in the cohort.
• Grants funds must be spent by December 31, 2025. Upon completion of the program, grant recipients will be required to submit a final report which includes information about the accessibility initiative implemented at their organization (if applicable) along with an itemized budget and related support materials.
   

Project period

If accepted into the program, grant recipients will attend the 2025 LEAD Conference in Cleveland, Ohio scheduled for August 18-22, 2025, and participate in a statewide arts accessibility learning cohort during the Fall of 2025. The funding period for the Technical Assistance Grant ends December 31, 2025.

How we make funding decisions

Review process and criteria

A panel of North Carolina Arts Council staff will review applications and make recommendations for funding based on the following criteria:

• Applicant has a genuine interest in learning about best practices for developing inclusive arts experiences for audiences with disabilities. While applicants may be new to their work in accessibility, they must illustrate what steps they are currently taking to integrate inclusive practices within their organization (i.e. serve as an accessibility coordinator, have made a concerted effort to reach out to artists with disabilities within their community, and/or develop inclusive programs for audiences with disabilities).
• Applicant outlines how this grant opportunity will provide professional development and resources to authentically integrate accessibility within the growth of their organization.
• Applicant outlines the impact this grant opportunity will have on the participant’s professional development with regards to arts accessibility. 

In addition to the review criteria listed above, priority is given to arts organizations based in Tier 1 and Tier 2 counties. Priority will also be given to arts organizations that are new to this grant category and have not received a prior LEAD Scholarship Grant from the North Carolina Arts Council. To ensure the statewide accessibility learning cohort is reflective of the arts sector of North Carolina, Arts Council staff will take into consideration the applicants’ arts genre, geographic, racial, cultural, and organizational diversity. 

Application information

Contact Music & Dance Director and Accessibility Coordinator Jamie Katz Court and submit your application through the GO Smart grant portal. Applicants will be asked to provide the following information. Reach out to your staff contact for questions or application assistance.

Profile questions

In addition to contact information, you will be asked to submit your organization’s mission statement, an organizational history, and both an Employer Identification Number (EIN) and Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number.

Application narrative

1. Who from your organization will be participating in the LEAD Scholarship Program?
   • Please provide name, title, contact email and phone number.
   • Describe their level of experience with accessibility.
   • What are their primary responsibilities within the organization?
2. Provide a brief description of your organization and its arts programming.
3. What types of accessibility programs and initiatives does your organization currently offer? What types of accessibility programs and initiatives do you want to learn more about through this program?
4. What benefits do you see for your organization by attending the LEAD Conference and participating in a statewide arts accessibility learning cohort?
5. How will participation in the LEAD Scholarship Program benefit the participant professionally? 

Staff contact

Jamie Katz Court
Music and Dance Director, Accessibility Coordinator
(919) 814-6502
jamie.katzcourt@dncr.nc.gov

Grant Application Assistance

North Carolina Arts Council staff are here to assist with grant applications. Visit our application assistance page for resources and grants staff contact information. 

Accessibility

For accessibility questions or accommodation requests, please contact the North Carolina Arts Council's Music and Dance Director, Accessibility Coordinator, Jamie Katz Court, at jamie.katzcourt@dncr.nc.gov or 919-814-6502.