NYSCA for Members

We (humbly) recommend reading this whole guide from start to finish — it's designed to answer all your questions, one by one. But before we jump in, let's get real for a second: applying for state funding only makes sense if you feel ready to dig in and commit to the application cycle. If the prospect of filling out multiple forms, gathering materials, and responding to our emails doesn't seem feasible this year, consider saving NYSCA for next year! But if you're confident and committed, we're here to support you every step of the way.

a looping image of two guinea pigs sitting together in front of a window, looking out on a rainy day

⚠️ FY27 Update

Current Fractured Atlas members have priority access to submit an application to NYSCA through Fractured Atlas until Wednesday, June 10th. Please email support@fracturedatlas.org to receive the eligibility quiz. Completing the eligibility quiz will hold your place in line, until we can confirm you are eligible for the opportunity. If we have space for more applicants after this date, we will open the NYSCA application process to incoming fiscally sponsored projects. If you have not already, please review our Required Grant Educational Resources to be sure you have a great foundation for a successful application submitted with Fractured Atlas.

➕ Update as of June 8th

We have had a very high volume of responses to our eligibility quiz and have hit the 50 application cap. We are working on reviewing the submissions, so if you completed the form and have not heard from us yet, you will hear from us soon confirming whether or not you are eligible, and if you were one of the first 50 eligible applicants.

If you still hope to apply for NYSCA this season, NYSCA encourages you to search through previous awardees to see what other fiscal sponsors were successful in submitting applications. The National Network of Fiscal Sponsors might be another good resource for you.

If you are a current fiscally sponsored project and would like to be added to the waitlist, you can still email support@fracturedatlas.org to express your interest. We highly recommend looking into other fiscal sponsors in the meantime, as we can not guarantee spots will become available. Unfortunately, we will not have space this year for new fiscally sponsored projects.

Heads Up: you can ignore all prequalification stuff — we take care of that part.

First Things First: Eligibility ✏️

If you applied for NYSCA’s Support for Artists funding last year, you are not eligible to apply again this year, whether you were awarded or not. This rule applies to your entire fiscally sponsored project, even if the lead artist is different.
Support for Sponsored Organizations requires a minimum operational budget of $20,000 in the fiscal year ending in 2025 in order to be eligible.
Fractured Atlas requires that you speak to NYSCA about your eligibility before applying with us.
LLC’s are not eligible to apply for Support for Artists or Support for Sponsored Organizations.
Projects fiscally sponsored by us are eligible to submit one NYSCA application per cycle.
If you have questions about your eligibility, please contact the NYSCA team directly. Reaching out to the Program Director of your discipline is the best starting place.

Before you apply 📝

NYSCA grants are getting more competitive every year. You want to make sure you’re putting your best foot forward! Under both the Support for Artists and Support for Organizations sections of this page, we've included questions to ask yourself before getting to work. If after reflection, you don’t feel ready this year, there’s no shame in waiting until next cycle to throw your hat in the ring!

The best way to identify your eligibility is to check in with NYSCA! You can find their office hours here, or reach out to your discipline’s Program Director directly. Fractured Atlas requires that you speak to NYSCA about your eligibility before applying with us.

Please note: Fractured Atlas reserves the right to not fiscally sponsor an application, if we feel it does not meet NYSCA’s eligibility requirements or if the content does not feel competitive enough.

1. SUPPORT FOR ARTISTS

Questions to ask yourself before applying 💬

Is this a brand new work that you will be creating? The Support for Artist grant is a creative grant, not a production grant. They want a new piece of art to be created during this grant cycle!
Are you ready to articulate clearly the project you have upcoming - what is happening, when is it happening, how is it happening? The panel wants to know that you have a vision and the tools to make it come to life!
Do you have a compelling way to share why this project is important to you now in this stage of your career?
Do you have exciting work samples that match the discipline of the project that you are planning to apply for? For example, if you are a composer, be sure to prioritize work samples of your composed work rather than your performance work as a musician!
Are you applying on your own behalf as the artist? Applications should be written from the perspective of the artist, not anyone producing the work.

Please note: You cannot apply for the Support for Artist grant two years in a row, regardless of whether or not you were awarded. It’s important to be strategic and think through whether or not to apply!

Application Materials 🎸

From financial documents to work samples, gathering materials for a hefty application like NYSCA can make anyone's head spin. We're here to make things a little easier. Keep scrolling to view the required support materials for your application 🎥 🎨 🎹 🤖 🎭

Google Document with Application Information	This will be provided to you once you’ve been approved to apply with Fractured Atlas. It includes the basic application information - name, contact info, what discipline you’re applying with, etc.
Narrative Questions	This self created document will be submitted to the Fractured Atlas created Google folder Reminder, this is not a creative document. Feel free to use the exact language of the questions in your answers and frontload information that will clearly outline to the panel what you plan to do and how, including a clear timeline of how you plan to create this work (ex: tentative months, venues, workshops, etc.) While public benefit and presentation is one of the evaluation criteria, community engagement is not. Do not center the community engagement elements of your work unless it is crucial to the art creation itself!
Resume(s)	Not a bio, a resume! Your resume should reflect primarily your work in the discipline you are applying to this NYSCA grant with.
Work Samples	Please review the work sample requirements for your discipline carefully, each one is a bit different! You can find them starting on page 18 of NYSCA’s guidelines. Put your best foot forward! Prioritize work samples that demonstrate your abilities in the discipline you are applying for this grant with. If the upcoming project is a departure from your typical medium, still try to include work samples that show the panel that you are capable of pulling off the project you’re pitching. Do not include fundraising pitches as your work samples!
Letter of Agreement	We will send this NYSCA created document to you to sign via DocuSign upon receipt of your application materials

2. SUPPORT FOR ORGANIZATIONS

Questions to ask yourself before applying 💬

Does your project’s budget meet or surpass NYSCA’s $20,000 budget minimum?
Does your legal entity status fit within NYSCA’s guidelines?
Are you prepared to apply with your project’s operational expenses in mind? Do you have a clear pitch on how a NYSCA Support for Organizations grant can enhance the mission of your organization through operational support?

Application Materials 🎸

Beginning on Page 19, the NYSCA Support for Organizations manual lists all the application questions and required support materials. New this year, NYSCA is providing a budget template to use for your budget document. Please review the guidelines to see what this will require of you. Fractured Atlas will provide you with a Google Doc for your answers, so don’t worry about formatting—just mind the character limit for now!

NYSCA Season Schedule

NYSCA accepts applications during a short window of time every year. The handy table below outlines how the entire NYSCA season can be broken down in your calendar! We just ask that make yourself available via email or phone throughout the process for edits and notes from our team so we can work together to get your best application submitted ✔️

Please note: Fractured Atlas is unable to accept grant review rush services for NYSCA applications. This ensures our team has time to review your application thoroughly and provide detailed feedback to help you submit the strongest application possible. Our June 22nd internal deadline is the absolute final day we can receive materials for this NYSCA season.

Tuesday, June 2nd	NYSCA’s application portal opens. Fractured Atlas will handle the prequalification process and the creation of each application, so there’s nothing you need to do here ✔️
Wednesday, June 10th @ 5pm ET	Deadline for current fiscally sponsored projects to let us know that you’re interested in applying for NYSCA. Email us by the deadline and we will send you our required internal eligibility quiz. Completing this quiz will hold your place in line until we are able to confirm your eligibility for NYSCA. We will confirm your eligibility within 1-2 business days. Once we have hit our 50 application cap, our NYSCA Hub will be updated. Any submissions to the eligibility quiz after the 50 application limit will be automatically added to the waitlist.
Monday, June 22nd @ 9am ET	Deadline for your project to upload your application form and supplementary materials to your Fractured-Atlas-created NYSCA Google Drive folder and submit a review request through your Fractured Atlas grant dashboard.
Monday, June 22nd - Wednesday, July 8th	Please be available during this time for emails and/or calls from our team. We will be working hard to review your materials to make sure they are as strong as possible before submission, and need to be able to get a hold of you!
Wednesday, July 8th	NYSCA portal closes at 5pm ET.

Your step-by-step guide to NYSCA

STEP 1 Ensure that your fiscal sponsorship is active and in good standing, and review our Required Grant Educational Resources.

STEP 2 Email support@fracturedatlas.org as soon as possible to express your interest in applying for NYSCA. We will send you our required internal eligibility quiz. Completing the quiz is what holds your place in line while we confirm eligibility.

STEP 3 Once we’ve confirmed that you are eligible to apply, we will provide you with a Google Drive folder for your project to upload your application form and supplementary materials.

STEP 4 When your Google Folder is ready for our final review, submit your official request via the Grants Dashboard on your Fiscal Sponsorship Dashboard. We only check folders once we are notified, so this final step is essential. Please ensure whatever you submit to your Google Folder is in final form! If your materials look good to go, we will submit on your behalf automatically.

Materials MUST be submitted to us for review by Monday, June 22nd @ 9am ET. Fractured Atlas is unable to accept grant review rush services for NYSCA applications. This ensures our team has time to review your application thoroughly and provide detailed feedback to help you submit the strongest application possible.

reminder: check your email regularly throughout this process

STEP 5 Once your application materials are ready, Fractured Atlas will click submit on your behalf in the NYSCA portal! We will send you a confirmation email, and good luck energy 🔥

A Bundle of Resources 🧺

✉️ Get in touch with NYSCA

📓 Attend NYSCA's webinars and office hours

✏️ Peruse some Inciter Art blog posts for your NYSCA journey

Let's get real for a second. NYSCA season is . . . busy, to say the least. We want to do justice to every application we receive, and per NYSCA's new guidelines, Fractured Atlas can only submit up to 50 applications between the Support for Sponsored Organizations and Support for Artists grant opportunities. The only way to secure your spot applying for NYSCA with Fractured Atlas is by 1) completing our internal eligibility quiz before we have met that threshold and 2) preparing competitive application materials. We will of course let you know when we hit capacity.

We also recommend gifting yourself some more ease this year by setting personal, early deadlines — so you can sit back, relax, and dream up more creative projects while we submit your application.

Please note: Due to the quick NYSCA turnaround this year and our Fourth of July closure, we are unable to accept rush review applications for NYSCA FY27 as we have in previous years. Our June 22nd internal deadline is the absolute final day we can receive materials for this NYSCA season. This is to ensure our team has time to review your application thoroughly and provide detailed feedback to help you submit the strongest application possible.

That’s all! You made it to the end. But your NYSCA journey is just beginning. We wish everyone an easeful (and fruitful!) NYSCA season 🍋🍓🫐