A woman gestures and smiles in front of a backdrop of elaborate quilts.

Quilter and 2018 NEA Heritage Fellow Marian Coleman. Visit arts.gov/Heritage to nominate an individual for a National Heritage Fellowship. Photo by Tom Pich

On a stage, musicians in military dress play musical instruments. In the foreground is a seated audience.

Musicians of the United States Military, recipients of the 2019 Medal of Arts, perform at the White House ceremony. Photo by Daniel Swartz

Children dressed as pirates onstage.

Missoula Children's Theatre's production of "Blackbeard the Pirate", supported by the NEA. Photo by the Missoula Children's Theatre Red Truck Tour

Men and women dance on a stage, their arms outstretched.

Participants of an Exit12 program perform at the Intrepid Museum in New York City, supported by a Creative Forces Community Engagement grant. Photo by Alberto Vasari

A woman sits in a chair holding up bells and smiling. A man stands next to her, playing a drum that he holds between his legs.

2019 NEA National Heritage Fellow and African-American storyteller Linda Goss performing with drummer/storyteller David Fakunle at the 2019 National Heritage Fellowships concert. Photo by Tom Pich

A young man holds a binder and speaks to a group of men, around them are microphones and music stands.

Owen Yeh-Lee provides feedback during a rehearsal of his original song, "Spacetime", as part of the Musical Theater Songwriting Challenge. Photo by Rebecca J. Michelson

A boy looks at the camera, standing at a table where a man and little girl are seated with papers, crayons and colored pencils.

A boy looks at the camera, standing at a table where a man and little girl are seated with papers, crayons and colored pencils.

A man and several children dance onstage. The children are all dressed alike as mice with white and pink leotards and ears on headbands.

The New Ballet Ensemble's performance of "NutRemix" in Memphis, Tennessee, supported by the NEA. Photo courtesy of the New Ballet Ensemble and School

Two women at a table weaving baskets.

An Alabama Folklife Association community workshop in Mobile, supported by the NEA. Photo courtesy of the Alabama Folklife Association

What’s Happening at the NEA

Graphic of a bookmark with NEA and Second Lady Logos and text reading: Bookmark Design Challenge: Celebrating America’s 250th
K-8 students! Design an original bookmark celebrating the nation’s 250th anniversary
Deadline: March 31, 2026
A woman works on a printmaking project. Other older adults are working at tables in the background
NEA Awards New Round of Grants Celebrating America’s Birthday
Red background with NEA logo and text reading: NEA Research Awards Grant Opporunities
Research Grants in the Arts & NEA Research Labs
Deadline: March 23, 2026

Stories

See All Stories
A dancer with flying white skirt floats above the Sierra Nevada Mountains while tethered to the mountain
Read
Dance in America: From Tradition to Innovation
a woman working on a glass mosaic portrait of a rippling US flag
Read
Notable Quotables: Creative Forces and the Power of Connection
Black man in hat and shiny jacket singing into mic on stage.
Watch
NEA National Heritage Tribute Video: William Bell

News

See All News
Headshot of Mary Anne Carter
Mary Anne Carter Confirmed as National Endowment for the Arts Chairman
Composite image with the logos for the National Endowment for the Arts and the America 250 celebration, the words "NEA Celebrating America 250: Arts Projects Honoring the National Garden of American Heroes", and the number "250" on a background of red, white, blue, and black. The numbers are filled with portraits of notable Americans such as Amelia Earheart, Harriet Tubman, and Duke Ellington.
National Endowment for the Arts Awards 50 Grants for Celebrating America250: Arts Projects Honoring the National Garden of American Heroes
Photos of the 2026 NEA Jazz Masters placed in circles with their names and text reading: National Endowment for the Arts 2026 Jazz Masters
2026 NEA Jazz Masters Announced

Grants

The National Endowment for the Arts awards grants to nonprofit organizations, state arts agencies, and regional arts organizations in support of arts projects across the country.
Go to the Grants section »
Volunteer to be an NEA panelist »

Impact

See the impact of the Arts Endowment on your state, and how the agency's work in research, accessibility, and other areas has had a major impact in the arts and culture of the country.
Go to the Impact section »

Some Facts about the National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent federal agency that funds, promotes, and strengthens the creative capacity of our communities by providing all Americans with opportunities for arts participation.

Approximately 2,400 Grants

Recommended for grant awards annually in all 50 states, DC, and U.S. territories.

More than 60 Percent

Percentage of Arts Endowment grants that go to small and medium-sized organizations (budgets up to $2 million).

Approximately 34 Percent

Percentage of Arts Endowment-funded activities in high-poverty communities.

Some Facts from the National Endowment for the Arts

These facts are based on the most recent data (2023) from the Arts and Cultural Production Satellite Account (ACPSA), which is produced jointly by the National Endowment for the Arts’ Office of Research & Analysis and the Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Commerce Department. The ACPSA tracks the annual economic impact of arts and cultural production from 35 industries, both commercial and nonprofit.

$1.2 trillion

Amount the arts and cultural industries contribute to the U.S. economy.

4.2 Percent

Percentage of the nation’s Gross Domestic Product is accounted for by arts and cultural industries.

Nearly 5.4 Million

Americans work in the arts and cultural industries on payroll.

Some Facts about the National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent federal agency that funds, promotes, and strengthens the creative capacity of our communities by providing all Americans with diverse opportunities for arts participation.

62 Cents

The Arts Endowment’s annual cost to each American.

0.003 Percent

The Arts Endowment’s percentage of the federal budget.

Nearly $6 Billion

Amount awarded by the Arts Endowment since its beginning in 1965.

Some Facts from the National Endowment for the Arts

These facts are based on the most recent data (2022) from the Survey of Public Participation in the Arts (SPPA), a national survey conducted in partnership with the U.S. Census Bureau that has allowed cultural policymakers, arts managers, scholars, and journalists to obtain reliable statistics about American patterns of arts engagement.

Utah

The state’s percentage of adults who attended a live performing arts event (62 percent) exceeded that of the national percentage of U.S. adults (38 percent).

Vermont

The percentage of the state’s adults who read a literary work (60 percent) far exceeded the national average (38 percent).

Wisconsin

The state’s adult population created or performed any type of art at a higher percentage (73 percent) than the national average for U.S. adults (52 percent).

Some Facts about the National Endowment for the Arts

The National Endowment for the Arts is an independent federal agency that funds, promotes, and strengthens the creative capacity of our communities by providing all Americans with opportunities for arts participation.

Approximately $8 million

Amount of arts education funding for lifelong learning projects annually.

More than 24 million

Estimated number of people who attend a live arts event annually.

42

Percentage of NEA grants awarded to localities of less than a million people.