Rural Grants

Announcing Our New Rural Grants Initiative

In February, Humanities Texas launched a new grant program for organizations based in Texas counties with a population of 60,000 residents or fewer. Our rural grants support educational, historical, and cultural organizations offering public humanities programs to rural communities throughout the state.


Rural Grants At-a-Glance

  • Awards of up to $2,500
  • Streamlined application
  • No cost-share requirement
  • Available year-round with a rolling deadline
  • Award decisions within ten business days
  • Staff offers live support and technical assistance


Rural Grants

Humanities Texas major and mini-grants have been serving rural Texas for over fifty years. With this new grant line, we aim to expand our service to rural communities, where access to philanthropic resources can be limited.

Our rural grants have a streamlined application process that does not require cost-share. Our grants team provides organizations with focused support throughout the entire process, from questions about program design and budgeting, to basic grants administration, to conducting a program evaluation and writing an effective final report.

A key goal of this new initiative is to increase the fundraising and administrative capacity of the organizations that receive support.

Eligible Organizations

Humanities Texas welcomes proposals from applicants based in Texas counties with a population of 60,000 residents or fewer.

Eligible organizations include, but are not limited to, museums, libraries, cultural centers, historical associations, city governments, county judge offices, community colleges, and school districts.

Applicants must have an active, publicly searchable System for Award Management Unique Entity ID (SAM UEI). Visit www.SAM.gov to check your registration status. Refer to our applicant help document for assistance with the SAM UEI.

Eligible Programming

Rural grants support public programs in the humanities. Humanities content, themes, and topics include, but are not limited to, the following: history, literature, heritage, art history, philosophy, social sciences, and contemporary society and culture.

Eligible programs can take many different formats, such as book discussions, conferences, lectures and panel discussions, exhibitions, festivals, film screenings, living history, media productions, oral history, workshops, and educational digital and web media.

If you are interested in applying for a grant to cover the cost of renting a Humanities Texas traveling exhibition, follow the link to learn more about our new exhibition grants.

All funded programs are firmly grounded in the humanities and are directed to the general public, both adults and young people, outside of the regular school or college classroom. Programs targeting special audiences such as K–12 teachers, ethnic and community groups, or professional groups are also welcome.

Eligible Costs

Rural grants can cover many categories of program expenditures, including personnel, consultants, honorarium, travel, promotion, program evaluation, and other related program costs.

Apply

Humanities Texas has transitioned to an online application system. All applicants must submit their applications via the grants portal. If you cannot access the portal, please contact our grants team. If you do not have reliable internet service or have other accessibility needs, please email our team or call us at 512.440.1991. Please read the grant guidelines document for more information on our grants program.

Application Deadlines

Rural grant applications are accepted on a rolling basis, but applications must be received at least six weeks before the grant period start date. The grant period must begin the first day of the month that promotion and/or project activities begin. Decisions are made within ten business days after submission of an eligible application.

Application Best Practices

To ensure your application is competitive, grants staff recommend the following considerations when crafting your proposal:

  • Ensure your program has a single activity with clear outcomes.
  • Include clear and specific program details in the activities section.
  • Verify you are selecting an eligible grant period (must begin on the first of the month, at least six weeks from the date you apply).

How Funding Decisions Are Made

The Humanities Texas executive director and staff, with the authorization of the Board of Directors, review mini-grants. Projects are evaluated based on Humanities Texas's organizational mission and grants guidelines. Of particular importance are the quality of each project's conception and design, the strength of its humanities component, and the extent to which it will meet the intellectual, cultural, or professional needs and interests of its target audience(s) in Texas. Priority is given to applications from Texas-based organizations, organizations located in underserved counties, and organizations that have not received funding in the past five years.

Log Into the Grants Portal

Meet with a Grants Team Member

Questions about Grants

Call 512.440.1991 (press 1) or email grants@humanitiestexas.org


Map showing recently awarded Humanities Texas grants in rural areas. Over the past five years, Humanities Texas has awarded 186 grants to organizations serving communities in rural counties.

Friends of Monument Hill and Kreische Brewery State Historic Sites held Bluff Schuetzenfest, an annual festival honoring the legacy of German Texan brewmaster Heinrich Kreische.
Levelland Wallace Theater hosted two Humanities Texas traveling exhibitions alongside student-created pop-up displays.
The Chisholm Trail Heritage Museum hosted a presentation by Senator Kay Bailey Hutchison on notable Texas women drawn from her book Unflinching Courage: Pioneering Women Who Shaped Texas.