The Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area (MDNHA) is announcing a revamped grants program, with the proposal application portal opening in summer 2022. Known as the MDNHA Grants Leadership Academy, the retooled federally-funded grants program will feature a maximum grant value of $29,500 per project. Grantee organizations must match their proposed projects at least 1:1 with non-federal in-kind or cash resources.

Grantee organizations chosen for the inaugural 2022 cohort will participate in an intensive 3-day training in federal grants management and compliance at Delta State University. Upon completion of the Grants Leadership Academy, organizations will be awarded funds to support the cultural heritage development project proposals that they submitted as part of their Grants Leadership Academy applications.

On Wednesday, May 18 at 10 a.m., MDNHA will offer a Grants Leadership Academy virtual pre-application information session. This session will cover how to prepare a proposal for the Grants Leadership Academy, the timeline for applications, and other relevant topics.

The Zoom session will be free and open to the public. It will be accessible on the MDNHA website. Information on in person application information sessions is forthcoming. If you have questions, you can reach the MDNHA team at grants@msdeltaheritage.com or visit www.msdeltaheritage.com/grants.

In successive years, organizations that have completed the Grants Leadership Academy training previously will be considered for new grants on the merits of their project proposal applications and their organizational standing. Organizations that have not previously completed the Grants Leadership Academy will do so if they are selected as a grant awardee.

Since 2016, MDNHA has awarded over $1 million in funds to organizations throughout the Mississippi Delta towards work focused on everything from music and folk art to civil rights history and the built environment. Grants have included projects such as documentary films, historic preservation projects, museum instillations, and learning opportunities for students. Though the structure of the grants program is evolving, its focus on the arts, history, economic development, and cultural heritage of the Mississippi Delta remains intact. To learn more about the MDNHA’s cultural heritage themes, visit the “Culture & Heritage” section of the MDNHA website.

The MDNHA includes 18 counties that contain land located in the alluvial floodplain of the Mississippi Delta: Bolivar, Carroll, Coahoma, DeSoto, Holmes, Humphreys, Issaquena, Leflore, Panola, Quitman, Sharkey, Sunflower, Tallahatchie, Tate, Tunica, Warren, Washington, and Yazoo. The MDNHA was designated by U.S. Congress in 2009 and is governed by a board of directors representing agencies and organizations defined in the congressional legislation. More information about the MDNHA, including the complete approved management plan, is available at www.msdeltaheritage.com.

The mission of The Delta Center for Culture and Learning is to promote greater understanding of Mississippi Delta culture and history and its significance to the world through education, partnerships, and community engagement. The Delta Center serves as the management entity of the MDNHA and is the home of the International Delta Blues Project and the National Endowment for the Humanities “Most Southern Place on Earth” workshops. For more information, visit http://deltacenterdsu.com.