Uniting Miami Through the Power of Arts Education
The Arts Access Miami Catalyst Grantees are a cohort of grassroots and emerging arts organizations dedicated to expanding access to high-quality, school-based arts education for students across Miami-Dade County Public Schools.
2026 Applications Are Now Open!
POWERED BY
Arts Access Miami is a countywide collective impact initiative that unites schools, nonprofits, funders, and civic leaders to build a sustainable, systems-based solution for arts education.
About the Catalyst Grant
The Arts Access Miami Catalyst Grant Program is a two-year funding opportunity to support grassroots and emerging arts organizations delivering arts education programming for youth across Miami-Dade County Public Schools. Catalyst grants fund real, on-the-ground programming for students—primarily through after-school and in-school activities—across disciplines including visual arts, dance, theatre, ballet, and multidisciplinary practices.
Beyond funding, the Catalyst Program serves as a strategic entry point into the Arts Access Miami ecosystem. It is designed for community-rooted organizations with strong artistic vision that are actively delivering—or preparing to deliver—school-based programming but are not yet ready for large-scale alliance funding. The program intentionally combines direct support for implementation with organizational capacity building, engaging grantees in cohort learning, planning, data sharing, and partnership development to strengthen both their programs and long-term sustainability.
About the Central Dade Arts Alliance
Within five years, participation in arts programming in that region grew from 27% to 81% across 27 schools. Building on this success, Arts Access Miami launched the South Dade Arts Alliance in 2023, expanding into Homestead and surrounding communities. In just one year, participation jumped from 15% to 40% across 28 additional schools.
Today, Arts Access Miami supports more than 14,500 students weekly across 70 schools, connecting classrooms to the community through in-school instruction, youth performances, community events, and regional arts festivals.
Arts Access Miami is a countywide collective impact initiative that unites schools, nonprofits, funders, and civic leaders to build a sustainable, systems-based solution for arts education.
By cultivating collective leadership, delivering community-centered programming, and ensuring impact-driven accountability, we guarantee that every child in Miami-Dade—regardless of zip code—has access to free, high-quality arts education.
This movement is powered by 25 of Miami’s leading arts education organizations, working in partnership with The Miami Foundation and Young Musicians Unite under the leadership of Sammy Gonzalez Zeira, and supported by Dan Lewis, The Frederick A. DeLuca Foundation, The Kirk Foundation, The ELMA Foundation, The Children’s Trust, the Ocean Reef Community Foundation, the City of Miami Gardens, and the City of Homestead.
Instead of competing for resources or duplicating efforts, Arts Access Miami builds a coordinated ecosystem that aligns schools, nonprofits, funders, and government partners. Together, we are closing access gaps, scaling proven programs, and transforming how arts education reaches every community across the county.
Arts Access Miami began in 2020 with a bold idea: what if we stopped working in silos and started working together? In response to longstanding inequities in Miami Gardens, eight local organizations came together to form the North Dade Arts Alliance, a coordinated effort to ensure every student in the Carol City feeder pattern had access to consistent, high-quality arts education from K–12.
Today, Arts Access Miami supports more than 14,500 students weekly across 70 schools, connecting classrooms to the community through in school instruction, youth performances, community events, and regional arts festivals.
About the Central Dade Arts Alliance
Arts Access Miami is a countywide collective impact initiative that unites schools, nonprofits, funders, and civic leaders to build a sustainable, systems-based solution for arts education.
By cultivating collective leadership, delivering community-centered programming, and ensuring impact-driven accountability, we guarantee that every child in Miami-Dade—regardless of zip code—has access to free, high-quality arts education.
This movement is powered by 25 of Miami’s leading arts education organizations, working in partnership with The Miami Foundation and Young Musicians Unite under the leadership of Sammy Gonzalez Zeira, and supported by Dan Lewis, The Frederick A. DeLuca Foundation, The Kirk Foundation, The ELMA Foundation, The Children’s Trust, the Ocean Reef Community Foundation, the City of Miami Gardens, and the City of Homestead.
Instead of competing for resources or duplicating efforts, Arts Access Miami builds a coordinated ecosystem that aligns schools, nonprofits, funders, and government partners. Together, we are closing access gaps, scaling proven programs, and transforming how arts education reaches every community across the county.
What We Launched
Arts Access Miami began in 2020 with a bold idea: what if we stopped working in silos and started working together? In response to longstanding inequities in Miami Gardens, eight local organizations came together to form the North Dade Arts Alliance, a coordinated effort to ensure every student in the Carol City feeder pattern had access to consistent, high-quality arts education from K–12.
Within five years, participation in arts programming in that region grew from 27% to 81% across 27 schools. Building on this success, Arts Access Miami launched the South Dade Arts Alliance in 2023, expanding into Homestead and surrounding communities. In just one year, participation jumped from 15% to 40% across 28 additional schools.
Today, Arts Access Miami supports more than 14,500 students weekly across 70 schools, connecting classrooms to the community through in-school instruction, youth performances, community events, and regional arts festivals.