Develop Quick Grants

Develop Quick Grants
Funding for professional development (activities that improve artistic skills or expand business and professional capacity) up to $1,000. Open to Santa Cruz County artists and arts organizations.
Apply online in the grants portal from September 9, 2026 to May 25, 2027.
Applications reviewed and awarded monthly for a quick turnaround.
- Apply by September 29 → for grant activities starting in November or after.
- Apply by October 27 → for grant activities starting in December or after.
Please read the guidelines before beginning your application. Guidelines include important information about eligibility and review criteria.
Watch the video recording of the September 9 info session, covering both Support Grants and Develop Quick Grants.
Download the presentation slides from the September 9 info session, covering both Support Grants and Develop Quick Grants.
Download a list of the application questions as a Microsoft Word doc.
Key Dates
The application for Develop Quick Grants (and Support Grants) opens September 9. Our grants info session will cover everything you need to know in order to apply for both grants. There will be time for questions after each part of the session. Artists, join at 4:30pm and/or at 5pm. Arts organization representatives are encouraged to attend the entire session (join at 4pm).
- 4-4:30pm: Support Grants - for arts organizations only
- 4:30-5pm: Online grants portal walkthrough
- 5-5:30pm: Develop Quick Grants - for artists & arts organizations
¿Desea solicitar un servicio de interpretación al español? Email grantsprogram@artscouncilsc.org.
Mondays from 4-5pm
September 14, 21, and 28
Join Zoom Meeting (no registration)
Zoom office hours are informal times when you can get grant application support from Grants Program Manager Tamara Liu. You can drop in during any of the scheduled times, and since there isn’t a presentation, you don’t have to be there at the beginning or stay til the end. If lots of folks show up at once, we’ll use a learning circle approach, with each person sharing questions or ideas. If you’re the only one, you will get direct one-on-one support! No questions or situations are too simple or too complicated. Hope to see you there!
Can’t attend at this time, or want to request an in-person meeting? Click here to book a time or email grantsprogram@artscouncilsc.org.
¿Desea solicitar un servicio de interpretación al español? Email grantsprogram@artscouncilsc.org.
Apply: September 9, 2026 - May 25, 2027.
Applications reviewed and awarded monthly for a quick turnaround. Submit an application by the last Tuesday of each month for grants awarded by the end of the following month:
- Apply by Sept. 29 → Award by end of Oct. → for grant activities in Nov. or after.
- Apply by Oct. 27 → Award by end of Nov. → for grant activities in Dec. or after.
- Apply by Nov. 24 → Award by end of Dec. → for grant activities in Jan. or after.
- No awards made in January.
- Apply by Jan. 26 → Award by end of Feb. → for grant activities in Mar. or after.
- Apply by Feb. 23 → Award by end of Mar. → for grant activities in Apr. or after.
- Apply by Mar. 30 → Award by end of Apr. → for grant activities in May or after.
- Apply by Apr. 27 → Award by end of May → or grant activities in June or after.
- Apply by May 25 → Award by end of June → for grant activities in July or after.
- No awards made in July / August / September.
Develop Quick Grant FAQs
- No awards will be made in December or January due to the holidays (awards will be made in February instead). See Monthly Application & Award Schedule above.
- $5,000 has been cut from our Develop Quick Grant budget due County of Santa Cruz funding cuts. However, this year the cut is offset by $5,000 in additional funding from Hewlett Foundation (a renewal of an increase from last year, which will not continue in the future).
Some examples include but are not limited to: fees and travel expenses to attend a class or conference, apprenticeship, hiring a consultant, software purchases, social media support, updating a website, purchasing equipment, or even marketing materials for a specific development opportunity (such as a film festival). View our list of current grantees for some examples of recently funded Develop quick grants (note that all types of grants are included on this webpage).
Yes, we recognize that in certain cases materials or supplies can have a significant impact on an artist’s skills or career, even if they are “consumable” and will be used up quickly. However, you must be able to make a clear case for why those specific materials will have an impact for you in the long term. What will happen once those materials/supplies are gone? Will you then be at a new place in your artistic development? If so, it may be worthwhile to apply. If not, an application for those materials/supplies will likely not be very competitive compared to other applications. We know every artist needs access to materials and supplies, but since our grants are limited by our available budget, we want to ensure our grants have the most impact possible.
First, read the guidelines and attend the grants orientation (or watch the recording). Once you've done that, if you're still unsure, please feel free to reach out and ask! Email our team at grantsprogram@artscouncilsc.org.
We would like to learn more about your recent professional development (in the past two years) and how the activities/expenses you are seeking funding for are related to the professional development work you have engaged in most recently.
If you are planning to have an audience and / or participants, then you most likely are eligible to apply for a Create grant, which has a higher maximum award. If you're not planning to share your work publicly as part of the grant, then a Develop quick grant may be a better fit. However, certain activities can sometimes fit either type of grant. First, read the guidelines and attend the grants orientation (or watch the recording). Once you've done that, if you're still unsure, please feel free to reach out and ask! Email our team at grantsprogram@artscouncilsc.org.
The video recording, slides, and transcript from the grant orientation will be posted on this webpage (above). If you’d like to meet with Grants Program Manager Tamara Liu, book an appointment or email tamara@artscouncilsc.org.
General FAQs are available at the bottom of our Apply for a Grant webpage.