Fitchburg Cultural Council
FY26 Grant Season – Public Input Survey – Deadline August 1, 2025
Annual Public Input Meeting
August 7, 2025 – 6PM
Fitchburg Art Museum
The Fitchburg Cultural Council is committed to supporting diverse and inspiring programs for its residents. These programs in arts, culture, science and humanities provide cultural enrichment in the everyday lives of our community. We serve as a conduit for conveying artistic and culturally based activities through community programs and grant solicitation. The selection of recipients and awarding of funds for grant recipients is primarily made possible from resources from the Massachusetts Cultural Council as well as fundraising endeavors and other charitable donations
¡LLAME PARA NUEVOS MIEMBRO Buscando: Artistas • Estudiantes • Contadores • Multilingües ¡Y cualquier persona interesada en involucrarse con las artes y la cultura en nuestra comunidad! Asista a nuestras reuniones mensuales que están abiertas al público. Envíenos un correo electrónico hoy a [email protected] para obtener más información.
Join our fb group: Arts, Culture, & Things to Do in Fitchburg
The FCC meets on the 4th Monday from 5:00-6:00 pm at the Legislative Building at The Fitchburg City Hall. Meetings air Live, when available and replayed on FATV.
Contact
Eva Kelly, Chair
[email protected]
978-829-1800
https://massculturalcouncil.org/local-council/fitchburg/
Address
718 Main Street
Fitchburg, MA 01420-3125
Connect on Social
Facebook
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Application Information
FY26 Allocation
$58,600
FY26 Local Priorities
Based on feedback collected through August 7, 2025, the Fitchburg Cultural Council will encourage all programming opportunities with priority given to the following:
1) Priority will be given to applicants who live or work in Fitchburg and/or who offer programs and presentations that specifically benefit the Fitchburg community.
2) Types of programs: Priority will be given to programs that fall into one of these categories:
• Youth Programs
• Unifying gatherings for all interests, ages, demographics
• Celebrating local history, cultures & diversity
• Music
• Downtown revitalization efforts
• Public Art & Beautification
3) Publicity: Priority will be given to applicants that describe a marketing plan detailing action steps to promote their program to Fitchburg residents. For example: local newspapers, newsletters, mass mailings, banners, and flyers all around Fitchburg (Main St-Mill St, Library, City Hall, Community Centers, etc.) and online (social media, evite, YouTube, community calendars, official website, etc.). Programs or projects that spread awareness of Fitchburg programs locally and beyond are also encouraged, particularly with early marketing campaigns (> 2 weeks), multilingual options, FATV and podcast advertising.
4) Program Location: In-person programs that offer effective, virtual and accessible options (i.e. hybrid) will be prioritized. Virtual programs that collaborate with Fitchburg Access Television and invest in bilingual (especially Spanish) and ASL translators will be prioritized over virtual programs that do not.
FY26 Local Guidelines
All applications and supplemental materials must be submitted online. For special assistance, contact The Fitchburg Cultural Council via email: [email protected]. For additional questions, call The Mayor’s office at (978) 829-1800.
Requirements:
1) Out-of-town applicants: If you do not live or work in the City of Fitchburg, you are required to provide a letter of support from a Fitchburg partner. A commitment letter from the venue is required and serves to meet this requirement.
2) Partners and Advisors: When you are listing local contributors / partners, please provide names and list their qualifications and in what way they will be assisting you.
3) Virtual Programming guidelines: Applicants for virtual programming applications must reside in North Central Massachusetts or the program must have campaigns promoting specifically to the Fitchburg Community.
Notes on Funding:
Funding Limits: The Fitchburg Cultural Council may initiate a funding limit on grants to fund as many viable projects as possible. You are encouraged to ask for as much funding as you wish and demonstrate how you will scale back your program in the event it cannot be fully funded. If, after granting monies to all viable projects, there are still remaining funds to be disbursed, the council will award additional funds to the priorities listed above.
Funding: Will be the direct grant process.
Funding Sources: As always, we encourage Applicants to seek multiple sources of funding. On your application, you MUST list all other sources of financial assistance and grants that you have applied for and/or received. If your project will NOT happen without funding from the Fitchburg Cultural Council, you MUST let us know. For links to other programs and grants offered by the Mass Cultural Council, please visit: https://massculturalcouncil.org/about/programs-a-z
Grant Trainings: Two trainings will be conducted. Thursday, September 11 & Thursday, October 2, 6-7PM at The Fitchburg Legislative Building, 718 Main Street. Any additional trainings or changes to these dates can be found at the City of Fitchburg’s Agenda Center: https://www.fitchburgma.gov/agendacenter as well as our social media sites.
Please add our email to your address book: [email protected] and let us know if you have any questions.
How Grant Recipients Are Paid
Direct Grants
FY26 Funding List
| Name | Project Title | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Arthur M. Longsjo Middle School | Imperial Lion Dance | $700 | City of Fitchburg | Fitchburg Civic Days Block Party | $1,000 | City of Fitchburg | Civic Days Parade | $750 | City of Fitchburg | Trick or Treat on Main St. | $1,000 | City of Fitchburg | Holiday Lights | $1,000 | City of Fitchburg | Latino Festival | $1,000 | Congo, Deanna | Magic for Seniors | $544 | Coy, Kenisha | Cultural Infrastructure Study: The Photography of Community Repair | $1,200 | Cragin, Sally | Be PAWSitive 2026 | $1,400 | Cragin, Sally | Stratton Players 2026 | $2,000 | Cragin, Sally | Friends of Fitchburg Cemeteries 2026 | $1,000 | Cragin, Sally | The Reveille and Poetry Readaloud 2026 | $1,420 | Daoust, Ellen | Yoga + Meditative Art | $970 | DiPrima, Jay | Henry David Thoreau: Lyceum Lecturer | $550 | Discovery Museum, Inc. | Open Door Connections | $500 | Fedirko, Anthony | Fitchburg City Wide Jazz Masterclass and Concert | $1,200 | Fitchburg Access Television, Inc. | Local Concert Series on FATV | $1,050 | Fitchburg Art Museum, Inc. | 90th Regional Exhibition of Art & Craft | $1,000 | Fitchburg Cultural Alliance, Inc. | Fitchburg Open Studios 2026 | $1,000 | Fitchburg Historical Society | Fitchburg En Espanol / Fitchburg in Spanish | $2,450 | Fitchburg Juneteenth Community Collaborative | Juneteenth Community Celebration | $2,500 | Fitchburg Military Band, Inc. | Fitchburg Military Band Summer Concert Series | $1,400 | Fitchburg Military Band, Inc. | Fitchburg Military Band Annual Holiday Concert | $1,000 | Fitchburg Parks and Recreation Department | Concerts on the Common | $1,500 | Fitchburg Parks and Recreation Department | Movies In the Park | $1,000 | Fitchburg Parks and Recreation Department | DPW Day | $1,200 | Fitchburg Public Library | Mason Jar Gardens | $425 | Fitchburg Public Schools | FPS Spring 2026 Arts Showcase | $2,500 | Fresh Films Co. | Film & Media Career Pathway Program | $1,000 | Friends of Coggshall Park | Concerts at the Stonehouse/Coggshall Park | $1,500 | Groton Hill Music, Inc. | Fitchburg and Leominster Boys and Girls Club Afterschool and Summer Music Classes | $1,000 | Grow Native Massachusetts, Inc. | Spanish translation and printing of brochure and information sheets | $1,024 | Haley, J. | Caves to Code - STEAM Learning Series | $1,000 | Johnny Appleseed Trail Association, Inc. | Johnny Appleseed Visitor Center Cultural Components | $1,000 | Kirouac, Daniel | The Music of McCartney: The World's Most Successful Songwriter | $300 | Laurelwood Garden Club | Art/Beautification/Public Benefit | $675 | Luria, Paul | A Little Bit of Ireland with Vinny Prendergast & The Sons of Blarney | $600 | Madan, Achla | 23rd Annual Fitchburg Art and Music Festival | $2,000 | Minuty, Kimrâh | Lowe Park Chalk Art Festival 2026 | $5,000 | New Players Theatre Guild, Inc. | You're a Good Man Charlie Brown | $1,000 | New Players Theatre Guild, Inc. | Blithe Spirit by Noël Coward | $1,000 | Parisi, Rita | Women of '76 | $600 | Quirk, Carolyn | Accessible Art Studio | $1,500 | Revontulet, Inc. | Finnish Folk Dancing in Fitchburg | $2,500 | Simeone Xavier, Racheal | Raw Couture: The Art of Handmade Fashion in Fitchburg | $2,500 | Sound Bites Events | Artist Nights at Thirsty Robot | $2,000 | The Thurston Consort, Inc. | A Concert of Latin American Chamber Music | $1,500 | Tincknell, Roger L. | Swinging on a Star | $550 | Troxler, Edward | Free Music lessons and instruments for need based residents. | $1,200 | Troxler, Edward | Jazz around town | $1,200 | Van Egmond, Timothy | Concert at the Senior Center | $425 | Vazquez, Dina | Gallery Marquee 2026 Workshop Series | $1,000 | Vazquez, Dina | Pocket-Sized Resistance: A Community Art Exhibition & Workshop | $1,000 | Williams, Shannon | Gateway City Orchestra Inaugural Concerto Competition | $1,000 |