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County Fair Arts Access and Cultural Heritage Grant - Competitive

How to Apply

  • Applications may be submitted via email, delivered in person, or by regular mail.
  • Applications can be emailed to Emily.Murphy@state.mn.us
  • Paper Copies of completed applications can be mailed or delivered to:

    • Minnesota Department of Agriculture
    Marketing and Development Division
    Attn: Emily Murphy
    625 Robert Street North
    St Paul, MN 55155

  • Download the Competitive Application (PDF: 240 KB / 4 pages)

Timeline

  • All applications must be received by the MDA no later than 4:30 PM on Monday, February 13, 2012.
  • Grantees will be notified by April 16, 2012.
  • Contracts will be mailed to grantee by May 1, 2012.

Requirements

  • Funded activities must directly develop or enhance county fair facilities or other projects or programs that provide access to the arts, arts education, or agricultural, historical, and cultural heritage programs.  
  • Funded activities must supplement traditional programming and not substitute. Grant money must supplement the fair’s budget, allowing it to undertake a project that goes above and beyond what traditional financial sources allow and does not supplant, replace or substitute portions of the regular budget.

Funding

The Minnesota Department of Agriculture (MDA) is charged with distributing, through a competitive grant program, approximately $700,000 of Legacy Arts and Cultural Heritage Funds to the state’s 95 county fairs.

Applications will be reviewed in three different categories: Construction and Capital Improvement; Event Enhancement; Programming. Fairs can submit applications for all three categories, but may only be awarded one grant. Grantee can rank which proposal they prefer to have funded.

Program Objectives

  • To ensure all Minnesotans have the opportunity to participate in the arts, arts education, and in programs that preserve and promote Minnesota’s agricultural, historical, and cultural heritage.
  • To increase exposure to, and preserve, the diversity of cultural heritages that make up Minnesota’s history and culture.
  • To promote and highlight artistic excellence and exceptional programming, administered by state and local organizations and by individuals.
  • To engage new audiences by removing barriers—whether they be geographic, economic, related to age, racial/ethnic characteristics, disability—to access the arts, arts education, and programs that preserve and promote Minnesota’s agricultural, historical, and cultural heritage.
MDA Contact

Emily Murphy, State Program Administrator
Emily.Murphy@state.mn.us, 651-201-6648

 Ag Marketing & Development Division