Amherst Cultural Council
The Amherst Cultural Council allocates state Arts Lottery funds, but it is directed to support and nurture arts activities in the community by seeking private or other public funds and initiatives.
Contact
William Murry - Co-Chair / Cody Rooney - Co-Chair
[email protected]
413-259-3002
Address
4 Boltwood Avenue
Amherst, MA 01002-2302
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Application Information
FY27 Allocation
$58,100
FY27 Local Priorities
In addition to the state criteria applications will be evaluated using the following review criteria:
• How well the program meets our local priorities
• Community support and involvement
• Evidence of track record and dedication of the applicant
• Ability to address the diverse cultural needs of a community’s underserved populations or support diverse forms of cultural activities
• Financial need
• Demonstrated planning through support letters from host agencies and/or venues as part of the application packet
• Specific location, date, and times for the event(s)
FY27 Local Guidelines
When reviewing applications, the council evaluates projects based on four core criteria:
• Quality, Originality, and Creativity: The artistic, scientific, or humanistic merit and innovation of the proposed project. Also, does the presenter/host live in Amherst?
• Community Impact and Priorities: Direct engagement with targeted community needs, identity groups, and local underserved populations.
• Accessibility and Benefit: How openly accessible the program is to Amherst residents and the wider regional public.
• Planning and Budgeting: The organizational feasibility, clear timeline, support letter(s) from host organization(s), and financial soundness of the proposal.
Funding Focus Areas
• Equity and Inclusion: Prioritizing projects for and by historically underrepresented or marginalized groups, such as low-income residents and BIPOC creators.
• Youth and Education: Allocating a significant share of resources toward school field trips, after-school youth programming, and family-friendly educational events.
• Public Festivals and Gatherings: Supporting participatory community traditions like local music series, cultural heritage celebrations, and town-wide public festivals.
How Grant Recipients Are Paid
Direct Grants
FY26 Funding List
| Name | Project Title | Amount |
|---|---|---|
| Amherst Art Alliance, Inc. | Art for Community II | $250 | Amherst Autoharp Workshop | Support for Amherst Autoharp Workshop | $800 | Amherst Business Improvement District, Inc. | Showcase Stage at Block Party | $2,000 | Amherst Cinema Arts Center, Inc. | Juneteenth and $5 Family Films | $1,250 | Amherst Community Band | Building Community through Music | $2,000 | Amherst Community Television, Inc. | Celebrating Arts in Amherst at Amherst Media | $250 | Amherst Community Theater | Theatre Access Tickets for Amherst Community Show- Wizard of Oz | $1,050 | Amherst Historical Society | Amherst Was Never Silent: 250 Years of Speaking Out | $2,000 | Arcadia Players, Inc. | Arcadia Players 36th season | $300 | Black Business Association of Amherst Area, Inc. | Amherst Juneteenth Jubilee | $5,000 | Bowman, Judith | "Clark House Cuts-Up" | $250 | Center for Human Development, Incorporated | All In End-of-Year Recital | $500 | Cepeda, Brendaliz | Cultural Connections: Exploring Puerto Rican Heritage Through Bomba | $1,500 | Collaborative for Educational Services, Inc. | Two Musical Amherst Kindergarten Readiness event | $500 | Collider Music & Food Inc. | Secret Planet Music Series | $250 | Comeau, Robert | Cemeteries of Amherst | $270 | Congo, Deanna | Magic for Seniors | $250 | Druyan, Ron | Tiny Tutti | $500 | Elkus, Eli | Musical Storytelling & Folk Songs by Eli Elkus at Amherst Farmers' Market | $602 | Escamilla, Marshall | Following the Dino Tracks: Live Science Events Across Western Mass | $1,500 | Ferreira, Temistocles | I Am Super! | $1,900 | Ferry, Chris | Emerging Filmmakers of Western Massachusetts | $675 | Friedman, Andrew D. | Juggling at the Amherst Farmers Market | $250 | Friends of the Mount Holyoke Range, Inc. | Summit House Sunset Concert Series | $600 | Ghost Ensemble, Inc. | Deep Listening in Community: Workshop Series | $500 | Hampshire Young People's Chorus, Inc. | Hampshire YPC Spring Concert | $250 | Hilltown Youth Performing Arts Program, Inc. | Hilltown Youth Recovery Theatre presents The Spiderwick Chronicles | $250 | Holmes, Mary Ann | Together In Motion - Rocking Through the Decades - An Evening of Music & Dance! | $250 | Inglese, Judith | Ceramic mural, "The Song of Earth Has Many Different Chords", public installation | $500 | Interlink Foundation Inc. | Storytime in the Garden | $1,500 | Keezing, Jonathan A. | Plant A Seed! | $550 | Leader, Rachel | KlezCummington | $250 | Local Access to Valley Arts | On the Boards '26 | $200 | Maichack, Mary Jo D. | Memoir Writing Workshop: Making a Present of Your Past | $487 | Manselle, Jafar | West African Drumming Workshop - Come Out to Play | $300 | Martinez, Deliabridget | Salsa con Tacos Latin Dance | $1,700 | Massachusetts Center for the Book, Inc. | Amherst Literary Walk | $750 | Narluga Arts | Busking on the Common | $1,000 | Novi Cantori of Greater Springfield, Inc. | Novi Cantori Spring Concert | $250 | Odenong Powwow | 6th Annual Odenong Powwow | $7,000 | Pasley, Becca | Bicycle Noise Creation Machine | $500 | Piti Theatre Company, Inc. | Story Wizards | $750 | Porter-Phelps-Huntington Foundation, Inc. | Wednesday Folk Traditions 2026 | $375 | Regional Tibetan Association of Massachusetts | Fostering Language and Culture Preservation | $1,000 | Restless Books, Inc. | Amherst Immigrant Writing Workshops (Fiction, Nonfiction, and Translation) | $2,000 | Ross, Sheldon | Ragtime Five Brass Quintet Concert | $325 | Ryan, Elizabeth | Adventure into Amherst | $250 | Silverthorne Theater Company, Inc. | Summer 2026 Season | $750 | Starlight's Youth Theatre, Inc. | Little Mermaid, Jr | $500 | Summit Academy | Mindfulness Garden Mural Project | $300 | Survival Centers, Inc. | Tunes@Noon | $1,200 | The Amherst Ballet Theatre Company,Inc. | Costume Restoration Exhibition & Community Lending Closet | $1,000 | The Brick House Community Resource Center, Inc. | Liberation Playback Theatre 2026 Training Series | $300 | The Center Dance School | A 21st Century Nutcracker | $500 | The Country Dance and Song Society, Inc. | Downtown Amherst Contra Dance Series | $2,000 | The Downtown Amherst Foundation, Inc. | Amherst Regional Public Schools @ The Drake | $1,500 | The Jones Library, Inc. | Jones Library and UMass Indian Classical Arts Society Performance Showcase | $250 | The Nolumbeka Project, Inc. | A Celebration of Native American Art, Music, and Cultures | $585 | The Queercore Collaborative | QueerCore Collaborative Presents Live at the Drake | $2,000 | Town of Amherst Department of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion | Amherst Global Village Festival | $1,500 |
Review Complete LCC Program Guidelines