By Max Bowen-max.bowen@northstarreporter.com
The North Attleborough Cultural Council (NACC) has opened its annual grant application process, with an eye to increase accessibility to the arts and foster community pride.
Applications can now be submitted, and the window closes on Oct. 15. NACC members Ralph DiMarco and Kristin Blye said that once the deadline passes, the council spends November and December reviewing every application and voting on which projects get funded.
Decisions on the grants are made by Jan. 15, 2027, and applicants will hear from the council through the state’s online grant system, the same portal through which they apply.
“It’s a lot less intimidating than people think,” they said of the application process. “You apply online through the state’s grant portal with the basics: what the project is, what it costs, when and where it’ll happen, roughly how many people it’ll reach, and who in town benefits.”
During the review process, the council assesses the applications based on a number of criteria, including inclusivity or if the proposal supports the community’s culture, among others. Grants are reimbursements, and the money is given after the event occurs, with receipts provided. Grant recipients have a year from getting the award to make the event happen.
Every year, the Massachusetts Cultural Council allocates funds to each of the 329 Local Cultural Councils, which cover every city and town in the commonwealth. Last year, the state allocated $20,000 to North Attleborough, which was increased to $30,000 in grants by adding in unused funds from previous years.
“Our goal is to deplete our grant budget each year in order to secure future budget for community projects,” said DiMarco and Blye. “Based on this report, the state calculates how much our town is eligible to award. This calculation typically includes a base allocation from the state, plus any unencumbered funds remaining from the previous year’s grant cycle.”
Among the previous grant recipients are Illuminate Creative & Theatrical Arts Company’s Shakespeare in the Skate Park, a non-profit educational theater arts organization based in Attleboro. North Attleborough Middle School PTO received a grant for its Painting the Town ‘Big Red’ program. The North Attleborough Historical Society used its grant to host a speaker series that delved into the town’s history.
“We look at surrounding towns and see some great art installations and programs for which we’d love help to bring to North Attleborough,” they said. “We want to make it clear that community members are just as capable of making change in this town as our elected officials. Great things happen because we all get involved.”
For those not familiar, the NACC’s role is to ensure that the community has an active cultural life, which can include arts, history, music, science and a sense of belonging and inclusion. The NACC is known for its Summer Concert Series, and it also runs the Paint North Attleborough Beautiful event and facilitated the town’s first Poet Laureate, Kayla Roy.
“If your child has ever brought home a North Attleborough coloring book from their Little Red Schoolhouse field trip, that also came from us,” said DiMarco and Blye. “We’ve teamed up with the Post Office and DANA for the Santa Parade, where mail carriers march collecting Letters to Santa (two years running). We even ran a volunteer fair so residents could meet local organizations looking for help.”
The NACC is always looking for new members, they added.
“Our members join the Cultural Council because they want to inspire positive change in this community,” they said. “That’s really at the heart of our mission: growing the economy, enriching town pride, making arts and grants accessible, and giving people a way to create.”
The Cultural Council will host a Grants Info Session at the Richards Memorial Library on Thursday, Sept. 17, from 6:30 p.m. to 7:30 p.m. For more information on the grant process, visit the Grant FAQ guide. Email ralph.dimarco@nattleboro.com for more information.