Trump’s New Arts Funding Guidelines May Put Local NEA Arts Grants in Jeopardy
New Rules Spark Uncertainty and Fear Among Local Arts Organizations
The Chicago Latino Theater Alliance each fall stages a theater festival during Latino Heritage Month. The organizers planned this year on a $20,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), the most prominent federal arts funder. The grant was submitted and approved, but with a rash of new guidelines coming from the Trump administration around arts funding — including a prohibition on using federal monies for programs supporting “diversity, equity, and inclusion (DEI) that violate any applicable federal anti-discrimination laws” — it’s unclear whether or not the funds promised will actually be delivered.
“Existence is resistance,” said Jorge Valdivia, executive director of the Alliance. “That is what this is feeling like now, and it should not feel that way.”
Uncertainty and Fear
Tarah Ortiz Durnbaugh, the executive director of the Hyde Park School of Dance, is worried, too, even though the dance school’s grant for 2025 also has received preliminary approval of moneys to fund free dance classes for South Side seniors and refugees to the city.
Durnbaugh chooses her words carefully, her thoughts on the matter interrupted with pregnant pauses. “There is not a lot of confidence that that money will come through …”
There’s been a lot of hesitancy, uncertainty — even outright fear — among many in the Chicago performing arts community, after the NEA announced a raft of new rules.
Changes in NEA Guidelines
Among the changes are the doing away with $10,000 Challenge America grants for small arts organizations tailored to benefit underserved communities. Any organization that’s applied for a Challenge America grant for 2026 must now reapply for a more general grant that doesn’t emphasize the arts-deprived component, the NEA said in its recent announcement.
The agency goes further, saying, “the NEA continues to encourage projects that celebrate the nation’s rich artistic heritage and creativity by honoring the semiquincentennial of the United States of America.” The effort is part of the America250 commission, an FAQ says, designed to promote the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence.
According to new guidelines, three other areas of priority are: projects that originate in Historically Black Colleges and Universities; efforts that support health and well-being of communities; and “technology-centered creative practices,” including work that explores artificial intelligence.
Reaction from the NEA
A spokeswoman for the NEA said in an email this week to the Sun-Times that the grant application changes are simply about streamlining at the agency.
“This change to Challenge America will allow the NEA to more efficiently process grant applications this year. Under Grants for Arts Projects, the NEA will continue to support excellent arts projects of all kinds, including those serving rural, urban, suburban, and tribal communities of all sizes, and those that engage with individuals whose opportunities to experience and participate in the arts are limited,” said the spokeswoman, Elizabeth Auclair.
Impact on Local Arts Organizations
Still, in several cases, the new compliance requirements demand that theaters no longer do the specific work they were founded to do. Chicago’s About Face Theatre, which stages LGBTQ stories, received a 2025 grant to support a free theater festival. Executive director Megan Carney is unsure whether or not this grant will be delivered. But she is sure About Face will not apply for funding again next year. The new guidelines state applicants will be out of compliance if they use funds to “promote gender ideology.”
“We cannot comply,” said Carney. “We’re not going to be able to affirmatively say we will comply with these orders because of our mission alone. Our mission is to advance LGBTQ-plus equity through community building, education, and performance.”
Arts organizations in Illinois have received preliminary approval for a total of about $1.9 million in 2025 NEA grants, including $150,000 in Challenge America money. In 2024, the single largest NEA grant in Illinois — about $1.1 million — went to the Illinois Arts Council, which helps support arts activities statewide.
Conclusion
The changes in NEA guidelines have sparked uncertainty and fear among local arts organizations, with some feeling that their very existence is under threat. While some are choosing to wait and see how the new guidelines play out, others are already preparing for the worst.
FAQs
* What are the new guidelines for NEA grants?
The new guidelines require arts organizations to reapply for general grants, rather than specific grants for underserved communities.
* What is the purpose of the new guidelines?
The guidelines are intended to streamline the grant application process and support projects that celebrate the nation’s artistic heritage.
* How will the new guidelines affect local arts organizations?
The changes may force some organizations to re-evaluate their mission and goals, and may result in a decrease in funding for programs that support underserved communities.
* What is the reaction from the NEA?
The NEA has stated that the changes are intended to make the grant application process more efficient and to support a broader range of projects.
Note: The article includes the following images:
* Megan Carney, artistic director of About Face Theatre, is photographed at the company’s Edgewater space in 2023.
* Rashun Carter and Kenesha Kristine Reed in Judy’s Life’s Work at Definition Theatre.
* A photo of a performance at the Hyde Park School of Dance.
