FIND GRANT OPPORTUNITIES THAT ARE RIGHT FOR YOU
Grants:
- Fairfield Cultural Alliance – Cultural Trust Fund Mini Grant: Awarded annually by the Fairfield Cultural Alliance, the intent of the Cultural Trust Mini Grants are to promote and further develop art and culture within our community by offering financial support to individuals and organizations whose historic or artistic contributions offer to define Fairfield as a significant arts and culture hub in Southeast Iowa. FCA’s vision is to empower creators in Fairfield through connections, mentorship, and skills development.
- Apply for the 2025 Cultural Trust Mini Grant here.
- Submission deadline is September 30, 2025.
- Review the 2025 Cultural Trust Fund Mini Grant Guidelines here.
- Apply for the 2025 Cultural Trust Mini Grant here.
- Visual Spectrums: Calling creative souls of all visual abilities! We’re currently looking for artists excited to join us in creating works facilitating a visually inclusive visual arts experience.
- Big Field Fund: Grants for artists in Eastern Iowa. The Big Field Fund (BFF) awards grants to artists and collectives to support publicly-engaged experimental, collaborative, and connective visual arts projects in eastern Iowa.
- Iowa Economic Development & Finance Authority (IEDA): Iowa Arts & Culture offers competitive funding to support the development of your community, organization or career in arts, film and media, and historic preservation.
- Arts Midwest: Arts Midwest advances creativity across our region, building unprecedented opportunity for everyone who calls this place home. We support, inform, and celebrate arts organizations and creative communities in Illinois, Indiana, Iowa, Michigan, Minnesota, North Dakota, Ohio, South Dakota, Wisconsin, the Native Nations that share this geography, and beyond.
- Refocus Film Festival: A vibrant, wholly unique annual festival that celebrates adaptation, transforming one art form into another. The Iowa City based festival will take place primarily in FilmScene’s five theaters at the Chauncey and on the Ped Mall, with Opening Night at The Englert Theatre and additional programming in the downtown district.
- Terrain Biennial: A grassroots public art festival that brings artists and neighbors together to put public art on the front lawns (and stoops, porches, windows and rooftops, too) of neighborhoods across the world.
- Harpo Foundation: The Foundation currently makes grants directly to artists to support their development. Applications are evaluated on the basis of the quality of the artist’s work, the potential to expand aesthetic inquiry, and the ability to fulfill the Foundation’s priority to provide support to visual artists who are under-recognized by the field. Additionally, The Impact Award focuses on amplifying the contributions of under-recognized Native American contemporary visual artists.
- Rapson Collaborative: now funding original musical projects that explore critical social issues. Awardees can receive up to $5,000 for projects that tell marginalized histories, support underrepresented artists and engage diverse communities.
- Center for Craft – Craft Archive Fellowship: Six fellowships of $5,000 will be awarded to support archival research on underrepresented and non-dominant craft histories in the United States.
- Iowa City Songwriters Festival Scholarships: A new, intimate 3-day music festival and conference centered around the craft of songwriting, presented by The Englert Theatre across downtown Iowa City.
Artists:
- The award-winning Fairfield First Fridays is held the 1st Friday of every month in downtown Fairfield. In October 2002 the ArtLife Society began the 1st Fridays Art Walk, now the Fairfield First Fridays.
- The Jefferson County Fair, the 1st State Fair in Iowa, is held every year in late June/early July.
- Vintage Power Wagons has a rally every June, drawing Power Wagons from around the world.
Art & Music Organizations:
- See more on the Fairfield CVB website.
- The Fairfield Art Association has been serving the arts since 1966.
- The Fairfield Concert Association in Fairfield was established in 1948 to provide varied, entertaining concerts.
- Iowa Contemporary Art (ICON) provides programs to raise the public’s awareness of art, and is a venue for high-quality contemporary fine art.
Recreation
- An overview of recreational opportunities in and around Fairfield, from the Jefferson County Trails Council website.
- Fairfield Park & Recreation Dept sponsors recreational facilities in Fairfield.
- Jefferson County Conservation Board manages Jefferson County Park and other parks, and camping and conservation areas in Jefferson County.
- Jefferson County Trails Council website tells the story of the walking/bicycling Loop Trail surrounding Fairfield.
- Lamson Woods is one of the Iowa DNR State Preserves in Fairfield.
Government and Services:
- Weather in and around Fairfield (from the JCTC Weather webpage).
- The City of Fairfield website has much information. Also, see their new Facebook page, and find out about the Fairfield Blue Zones Project.
- The Jefferson County Board of Supervisors website presents information about the Jefferson County (Iowa) government.
- Maharishi Vedic City is the newest city in Iowa, four miles northwest of Fairfield.
- The Jefferson County Heritage aims to inspire the future generations that take direction from the lessons of our past & the wisdom of our elders.
- The Carnegie Museum is the fifth oldest in Iowa, and is located in an historic building. Limited hours.
- The Fairfield Public Library website includes the story of Carnegie’s gift to Fairfield, a University of Iowa project.
- Let’sGoJeffCo is meant to be Jefferson County’s first stop for information and resources to improve wellness via a healthy mind and a healthy body.
- Fairfield Volunteer Center, make volunteering a community event.
- Jefferson County Health Center offers a wide variety of services and assists in promoting recreational use of the trails.
- Pathfinders Resource Conservation and Development (RC&D) Area, Inc. projects are tied to economic development, natural resource conservation or recreation in its six-county area.
- The Greater Jefferson County Foundation has a grant application form on their website.
- The Iowa State University Extension in Jefferson County brings Iowa State University resources to you.
Media:
- The Fairfield Daily Ledger is the local daily newspaper.
- The KMCD/Classic 96 FM website brings you news, weather, events, and shopping. KMCD (1570AM) and Classic 96 (95.9FM).
- Fairfield Media Center provides FPAC9, Fairfield’s local access channel, and more.
- The Iowa Source, a monthly regional paper published in Fairfield, has a regional Calendar of Events.
- Iowa Public Radio. Stations nearest to Fairfield in Ottumwa are KDWI (89.1FM) & KUNZ (91.1FM), and in Iowa City WSUI (910AM) & KSUI (91.7FM).
Other:
- The Fairfield History Center is an online museum about Fairfield history.
- Abundance EcoVillage is a leading example of successful sustainable design in Fairfield.
- From Fairfield First!, “for the sustainable, local economy in Fairfield, Iowa”.
- The Art on Barns project of Jefferson County.
- The Bike Fairfield Blogspot is about biking.
Education:
- Fairfield Community School District website.
- Preschool to Grade 12 at Maharishi School of the Age of Enlightenment.
- Maharishi International University is in Fairfield.
- Parsons College opened in Fairfield in 1875 and closed in 1973.
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