UPDATE: Applications to the Capacity-Building Grant Program closed on October 28, 2022. To view the list of recipients, visit: https://poets.org/academy-awards-capacity-building-grants-fifty-three-organizations
New York, NY (September 7, 2022)— The Academy of American Poets announced today a new multi-year funding opportunity for literary organizations that present or serve poets, or incorporate poetry as part of their programming. Eligible organizations will be able to apply for two-year grants of $5,000–$25,000 each year, or $10,000–$50,000 total, to support capacity-building initiatives. A grant from the Hawthornden Foundation, originally founded in 1983 by the late Drue Heinz, makes this program possible.
“Even before the pandemic, nonprofit literary organizations faced a dearth of institutional funding, making the literary field one of the most under-resourced. Yet these organizations provide essential support and opportunities to our country’s writers and their readers. We’re pleased, thanks to the Hawthornden Foundation, to be able to help strengthen these important organizations that contribute so much to our culture,” said Jennifer Benka, executive director of the Academy of American Poets.
Through the Academy of American Poets’ Capacity-Building Grant Program, independent nonprofit literary organizations that meet the eligibility requirements can apply for two-year grants to support projects that aim to create a sustainable and effective organization in areas such as fundraising, marketing, and web development; skill-building opportunities for staff and board members; strategic and succession planning; diversity and equity initiatives; and leadership development and management training.
Grants will be recommended by an independent panel of three individuals: Kazim Ali, M.L. Smoker, and Crystal Wilkinson. Final grant decisions will be approved by a committee of the Academy of American Poets Board of Directors.
Applications will be accepted from September 12 through October 28, 2022 at 5 p.m. ET on the Academy of American Poets Submittable page.
For answers to frequently asked questions, visit: https://www.poets.org/faq-capacity-building-program.
To learn about a similar grant opportunity for poetry publishers offered through the Community of Literary Magazines and Presses (CLMP), visit: https://www.clmp.org/capacity-building-grant-program.
The Academy of American Poets and CLMP hosted a joint information session for interested applicants on September 16, 2022 at 1 p.m. ET. A recording of the session is available here: https://vimeo.com/751874017/edfdda3816
About the Academy of American Poets
Founded in 1934, the Academy of American Poets is the nation’s leading champion of poets and poetry with supporters in all fifty states and beyond. The organization annually awards more than $1.3 million to more than 200 poets through its prize and fellowship programs and more than $750,000 to hundreds of poetry organizations through its regranting projects. The organization also produces Poets.org, the world’s largest publicly funded website for poets and poetry; established and organizes National Poetry Month each April; publishes more than 250 poets’ new work in the popular Poem-a-Day series, which reaches hundreds of thousands of readers each morning; publishes the biannual American Poets magazine; serves more than 50,000 K-12 educators with resources, including the award-winning weekly Teach This Poem series, Dear Poet project, and Educator newsletter; hosts an annual series of poetry readings and special events; initiated the Literary Arts Emergency Fund; and coordinates a national Poetry Coalition working to promote the value poets bring to our culture.