Mass Cultural Council

Mass Cultural Council is the Massachusetts state agency that supports the arts, humanities and sciences across the Commonwealth. It promotes excellence, inclusion, education and diversity in cultural life, working through grants, initiatives and advocacy for artists, communities, cultural organizations and schools. The council treats culture as a force that enriches communities, drives economic growth and expands access, and it publishes data on the economic impact of the cultural sector and the jobs connected to it.

Its programs reach well beyond Boston. The council funds Local Cultural Councils in cities and towns, which support community projects such as field trips, library events, lectures, festivals, exhibits and dance performances. It offers unrestricted grants to individual artists, culture bearers and creative practitioners, and it designates Cultural Districts, such as Downtown Lynn’s, that help municipalities build local cultural and economic life.

What to Know

• Grant opportunities follow a state fiscal year cycle, and the council posts a regularly updated list of key deadlines.
• It runs youth programs that put creativity at the center of education.
• The agency has formal equity plans for Native American and Indigenous communities and for d/Deaf and disabled people.
• A Prescribing Culture initiative works with community health centers on health outcomes.