Applying for a Grant

About the Process  

While Mellon only accepts proposals by invitation, organizations are welcome to submit a funding inquiry through Fluxx, our Grants Portal. 

The timeline varies by program and type of grant. For more information on proposal timelines, please speak with program staff if you are invited to submit a proposal.

A chart that shows the process for applying for a Mellon grant

If your proposal is approved, you will be asked to sign a standard grant agreement prior to funding—please view Grantmaking Policies for more details. For information on managing an active grant, please visit Managing a Grant.

Inquiries 

We are always interested in learning about ambitious, visionary work at the intersection of the arts and humanities and social justice. If your organization has a project that aligns with one of our programmatic strategies, please consider submitting an inquiry.  

If you are a current grantee, you may contact program staff directly or log in to your Grants Portal account to submit an inquiry. If you do not have a Grants Portal account, please submit an inquiry.

Program staff review all inquiries to make informed judgments about a project’s alignment with our strategies. 

Invited Proposals 

Guidelines by Program Area 

The Foundation’s Grant Proposal Guidelines provide detailed instructions about how to prepare and submit an invited proposal. Each program has unique proposal requirements; please refer to the Guidelines for the appropriate program area below.  

 

Submitting Proposals 

Program staff are active partners in the proposal process and work with grantees iteratively throughout the proposal development and submission.  

To begin the process, applicants will receive an email notification inviting them to submit a proposal via our Grants Portal. For more information, please consult the Guidelines above, as well as our Submitting a Proposal guide for detailed directions.  

If you have any questions about using the Grants Portal, please contact Foundation staff at fluxxusers@mellon.org or at (212) 500-2484 during business hours (9:00 a.m. – 5:30 p.m. EST).  

Please let staff know if you need any assistance or disability accommodations as part of the proposal process.