The Vilcek Foundation will award $200,000 in new grants to select organizations through the 2026 open call for applications. Mission-aligned nonprofits that provide aid to immigrants in the arts, sciences, education, or the provision of social services are encouraged to apply. 

At a time when scientific and cultural organizations are struggling with funding cuts and heightened anti-immigrant sentiments, the Vilcek Foundation has remained constant in its commitment to uplift immigrants, the arts, and the sciences. Since its establishment in 2000, the Vilcek Foundation has given over $7.4 million in grants to organizations in 30 states, one U.S. territory, and Washington, D.C. 

“Immigrant contributions shape communities in every state and territory in our country,” says Vilcek Foundation President Rick Kinsel. “As the foundation celebrates its 25th anniversary, we hope to continue to expand our work to new places across the United States. We are especially eager to partner with organizations taking bold, creative approaches that drive meaningful change in order to increase the scope of our support of immigrant professionals and the arts and sciences more broadly.”

At the conclusion of its first grant cycle in 2025, the foundation awarded a total of $200,000 to 14 nonprofit organizations, giving grants in nine states and territories where it had not previously funded work, including Alaska, Colorado, Kentucky, Montana, North Carolina, North Dakota, Ohio, Utah, and Guam. The recipients are:

• The Anchorage Museum of Art
• Arts Students League of Denver
• Breaking Wave Theatre Company
• The Cincinnati Opera Association
• Cinema Tropical
• CitySeed, Inc. 
• The Carrier Pigeon Post
• Gateway Regional Arts Center
• The Mint Museum of Art
• The Plains Art Museum
• The PEN/Faulkner Foundation
• Tinworks Art
• Theater Mu
• Utah State University

Read more about the recipients of the 2025 Vilcek Foundation Grants and the projects and operations for which funding was provided. 

The deadline to apply for a 2026 Vilcek Foundation Grant is April 30, 2026. Ideal grant recipients will create outputs, provide services, or serve populations in a way that sets them apart from other institutions in their sector. Organizations that have applied for a grant in the foundation’s previous call-for-applications that did not receive funding are eligible to reapply.