Cultural Council

About the Carlisle Cultural Council

The Carlisle Cultural Council (CCC) promotes the arts, music, history, culture and the humanities in Carlisle. Our goal is to serve our community by supporting and producing both participatory and audience-based cultural and arts activities which benefit local residents.  

The Carlisle Cultural Council is appointed by the Select Board to support local cultural initiatives. The CCC supports these initiatives through an annual grant award process established by the Massachusetts Cultural Council that provides funds to deserving organizations and individuals to offer a variety of cultural experiences to the residents of Carlisle. The Council can also raise money independently in order to support additional cultural programs produced by the Council or other organizations. 

The Carlisle Cultural Council is part of the largest grassroots cultural funding network in the nation, the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s Local Cultural Council (LCC) Program. Each year, LCCs award more than $3 million in grants to more than 6,000 cultural programs statewide, supporting thousands of community-based projects in the arts, sciences and humanities.

Like us on Facebook! We regularly post about local cultural programs and other related topics.

FY22 Cultural Grants

The Carlisle Cultural Council will be accepting grant applications for FY22 funding under the Massachusetts Cultural Council’s Local Cultural Council (LCC) program between September 1 and October 15, 2021

Local cultural grants support a wide variety of community arts, humanities, and science programs - including exhibits, festivals, field trips, short-term artist residencies, performances, workshops, and lectures produced by individuals or local organizations. FY22 programs may be scheduled to occur through December 31, 2022.

What we mean by culture: music, dance, theater, fine art, pop art, sculpture, photography, multimedia, fiber arts, ethnic customs, culinary arts, humanities, literature, poetry, nature, gardening, woodworking, ceramics, storytelling, history, science, language and more…

Carlisle Cultural Council grant eligibility guidelines will be updated by September 1. Current guidelines may be found on the Grants Information Page. Applications will be available online as of September 1 at https://www.mass-culture.org/Carlisle

Feel free to discuss project ideas with us in advance. Contact culturalcouncil@carlislema.gov

FY21 Cultural Grants

Our grants this year support a wide range of visual arts, music, humanities, theater arts and multidisciplinary programs. With COVID-19 safety protocols still in place, many programs will be conducted virtually as necessary.

See the full list of FY21 grants here.

The entire greater Carlisle community is invited to support these artists and creators by attending and participating in these wonderful local performances and events. Check for details and location/login information in the Carlisle Mosquito or organization websites. 

Cultural Council 2020 Community Survey

Thank you to all the Carlisle residents who responded to our survey. See a summary of the results here.

New Council Members Wanted!

The Cultural Council is always open to new members who want to help create and run programs, collaborate with other cultural organizations, and participate in the annual grant funding process. Members are appointed by the Select Board for 3-year terms. If interested, please email culturalcouncil@carlislema.gov

Questions? Contact culturalcouncil@carlislema.gov