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Operating support for arts and cultural organizations in Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties.
A partnership between The Kresge Foundation, Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation, and Hudson-Webber Foundation.
Which Best Describes You?
Funding
Applications for the 2025-2028 funding cycle will open on Thursday, May 1, 2025.
Other Project Dates
- Kick-off Breakfast – Friday, May 2, 2025 10am-12pm (Event Details)
- Application Closes – Monday, June 30, 2025 at 5pm
Reporting
Detroit Arts Support represents an opportunity for the partner foundations—The Kresge Foundation, Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation, and Hudson-Webber Foundation—to learn alongside the cultural sector and to share those learnings broadly. To that end, grantees should annually submit a report via the Detroit Arts Support website.
Report Questionnaire Elements
Requested Information
Organizations will be asked to respond to six questions about their mission and programmatic activity. Requested attachments will include organizational budgets from the current, previous, and projected fiscal years; most recently completed audit or Form 990; a narrative about major budget decisions.
Report Submission Timeline
- First Interim Report Due – 6/30/2023
- Second Interim Report Due – 6/30/2024
- Final Report Due – 9/30/2025
Process
Step 1 | Application Submission
Eligible organizations should submit one application. Applications are due Monday, June 30th at 5:00pm EST.
Step 2 | Foundation Eligibility Review
Applications are shared with program staff of the Detroit Arts Support funding partners (The Kresge Foundation, Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation, and Hudson-Webber Foundation), who will each individually review applications for eligibility aligned with their foundation’s specific funding criteria.
Step 3: Financial Health Assessment
Susan Nelson of the nonprofit consulting group TDC performs a financial health assessment of applying organizations and shares findings with the DAS funding partners. TDC will also be available to review results with organizations on an individual basis (an amazing and valuable opportunity for all applicants to gain insights about their organization). Scheduling details will be announced following the application deadline: Monday, June 30th at 5:00pm EST.
Step 4: Decisions and Notification
Each DAS funding partner works with their internal staff and board to finalize their funding decisions. Individual grant sizes will range from $5,000 to $100,000 per year. All grants will be made in three-year commitments. Foundations will collaboratively announce these decisions in the fall of 2025. Applicants will be notified by email and CultureSource will post funding plans on this website.
Note: Not all organizations will be selected for funding by each funding partner, and selection is not merit based.
About
Detroit Arts Support provides multi-year operating support grants to arts organizations in Wayne, Oakland, and Macomb counties.
DAS in supported by The Kresge Foundation, Fred and Barbara Erb Family Foundation, and Hudson-Webber Foundation.
The fund was launched by the Kresge Foundation in 2007, and the Erb Family and Hudson-Webber foundations joined in 2010 and 2018, respectively. The fund is administered by CultureSource, a coalition of more than 170 nonprofit arts organizations in Southeast Michigan
For over 10 years, the Detroit Arts Support (DAS) initiative has provided unrestricted operating funding to arts and cultural organizations in the metro Detroit region. The program aims to strengthen the sector broadly through consistent support for a diverse set of organizations that contribute to the quality of life in metropolitan Detroit, and provide opportunities for creative expression to people of all backgrounds.
General operating support is not tied to a specific initiative, allowing nonprofits to use these grants to support their day-to-day work, and lessen the impact of unexpected costs such as canceled gigs or shifting funding priorities. This type of support for an organization’s core work helps them to sustain and grow their business over an extended period of time.
The three participating foundations share a single application and review process before making their independent decisions. This partnership streamlines the application process for nonprofit arts organizations, while offering shared learning opportunities and improving systems for data collection and analysis necessary for the participating foundations to make funding decisions.
2022 Cycle
For the 2022 cycle of the Detroit Arts Support program, 91 applications for general operating funding were submitted.
After a series of focus group dialogues about applications with community leaders, and explorations of applicant organizations’ financial health by TDC, the funding partners of Detroit Arts Support Art began making funding decisions. Each partner foundation made funding decisions based on their foundation’s individual eligibility criteria.
In late-2023, DAS expects to release a comprehensive report on the initiative, reflecting on the great work of grantees and the impacts of multi-year general operating funding.
Curious about eligibility for the 2022-2025 cycle? Learn more.
The Detroit Arts Support partners are proud to announce the full list of 80 funded organizations. You can also view each foundation’s individual funding decisions.
Please note: Throughout the DAS cycle, organizations will be pushed notifications via email from the address grants@culturesource.org.
Partners
Contact
For questions regarding the application, please email grants@culturesource.org.
For additional questions about funding geographies and priorities, please explore the funding partner’s details and contact information below.
Note: CultureSource serves as the administrator for DAS. CultureSource does not make funding recommendations or funding decisions.
Process
Step 1 | Application Submission
Eligible organizations should submit one application. Applications are due Thursday, July 28th at 5:00pm EST.
Step 2 | Foundation Eligibility Review
Applications are shared with program staff of the Detroit Arts Support funding partners (The Kresge Foundation, Fred A. and Barbara M. Erb Family Foundation, and Hudson-Webber Foundation), who will each individually review applications for eligibility aligned with their foundation’s specific funding criteria.
Step 3 | Focus Groups
Four groups of community members (“focus groups”) each receive 20-25 applications to read. Focus group participants are connected to the regional arts and culture sector as supporters, advocates, or practitioners.
Focus group participants will not score applications or provide funding recommendations—again, each foundation will have their own process for reviewing applications against their own funding priorities. Instead, focus groups will surface characteristics and qualities they notice about applying organizations, highlighting points of perceived strength, fascination, and curiosity. The focus group dialogue is meant to provide helpful insights about the state of cultural organizations and reflect a useful range of perceptions about organizations as they present themselves in application materials. Applicants will be able to listen to the focus group discussion of their application. Scheduling details will be announced following the application deadline: Thursday, July 28th at 5:00pm EST.
Apart from focus group participants and DAS funding partners, your application information will be kept confidential.
Focus Group Participants:
- Louis Aguilar
- Racheal Allen
- Rachel Bendit
- Annmarie Borucki
- Sandy Burnley
- Cézanne Charles
- Mark Clague
- Shamyle Maya Dobbs
- Khalilah Burt Gaston
- Mia Khim
- Dustin McClellan
- Peter Robinson
- Buzz Thomas
Step 4: Financial Health Assessment
Susan Nelson of the nonprofit consulting group TDC performs a financial health assessment of applying organizations and shares findings with the DAS funding partners. TDC will also be available to review results with organizations on an individual basis (an amazing and valuable opportunity for all applicants to gain insights about their organization). Scheduling details will be announced following the application deadline: Thursday, July 28th at 5:00pm EST.
Step 5: Decisions and Notification
Each DAS funding partner works with their internal staff and board to finalize their funding decisions. Individual grant sizes will range from $5,000 to $100,000 per year. All grants will be made in three-year commitments. Foundations will collaboratively announce these decisions in the fall of 2022. Applicants will be notified by email and CultureSource will post funding plans on this website.
Note: Not all organizations will be selected for funding by each funding partner, and selection is not merit based.
Get Started Here
Applications Due By Thursday, July 28th at 5:00pm EST
Please watch the recording of the Detroit Arts Support Info Session below
Contact
CultureSource is helping DAS partners administer this initiative. CultureSource is not making funding recommendations or making funding decisions.
For questions regarding the application, please email grants@culturesource.org.
For additional questions about funding geographies and priorities, please explore the funding partner’s details and contact information below.
