The New Jersey Cultural Trust was created in July 2000 as a public/private partnership to help ensure a stable and healthy nonprofit cultural industry in New Jersey that is sustainable even in the toughest of economic times.

The Trust provides grants to support capital projects, endowments and institutional and financial stabilization of arts, history and humanities organizations in New Jersey. Funding for the grants comes from interest earned on the Cultural Trust Fund, which is a permanent investment fund.

The New Jersey Cultural Trust invites you to join us in celebrating the Trust’s 25th anniversary at a special anniversary board meeting on Monday, May 18 at 11 a.m. More details about the event and the Cultural Trust’s 25th anniversary are on the Cultural Trust Features page.

The guidelines for the Cultural Trust’s FY27 Institutional and Financial Stabilization Grants for Arts Organizations (IFS Arts) are now available. For FY27, the New Jersey State Council on the Arts is accepting applications from arts organizations to recommend to the Cultural Trust for funding.
More information about the grant round is on the Current and Recent Grant Opportunities page.

To be eligible to participate in the FY27 IFS Arts grant program, or any Cultural Trust grant program, an organization must first be designated “qualified” by the Cultural Trust. The Cultural Trust periodically holds qualification workshops and virtual office hours on Zoom to provide live technical assistance to potential applicants. Participation is free, but registration is required. Upcoming dates:

• Office Hours: Monday, April 27 at 11 a.m. — Register for the April 27 session
• Qualification Workshop: Tuesday, May 12 at 2 p.m. — Register for the May 12 workshop
• Office Hours: Friday, May 29 at 11 a.m. — Register for the May 29 session

For more information about qualification, visit the Qualification page.

The mission of the Cultural Trust is to ensure a stable and healthy cultural industry in New Jersey that is sustainable under fluctuating economic conditions through the establishment of permanent, interest-generating funds to be an additional source of revenue to nonprofit arts, history and humanities organizations.

Carol Cronheim, Chair
Bette C. Daniele, Vice Chair
John Paul Nicolaides, Vice Chair for Finance
Claire Knopf, Secretary
Deborah R. Bozarth, Board Member
S. Nadia Hussain, Board Member


ex officio members
Lt. Gov. Dr. Dale G. Caldwell, Secretary of State
Aaron Binder, State Treasurer
Felicia Grant, Chair, NJ State Council on the Arts
Peter Lindsay, Chair, NJ Historic Trust
Maxine Lurie, Chair, NJ Historical Commission

General Contact
609-292-6403
cultural.trust@sos.nj.gov

Isabel (Izzy) Kasdin, Executive Director
609-633-0522
isabel.kasdin@sos.nj.gov

Avery Wehrs, Grants and Operations Coordinator
609-777-3657
avery.wehrs@sos.nj.gov