The opportunity window is open for money from the state Humanities Council. There is a month to apply for up to $10,000 of grant funding with the organization.
Applications are open until Oct. 15, and the grants are open to any group that advances the mission of the South Dakota Humanities Council.
Melinda Berdanier is the grant coordinator with the group.
“We make awards in basically three competitive categories," Berdanier said. "So, they’re discussion, media and research. We have opportunities for small grants, we have opportunities for larger grants. We want to celebrate things like literature, we want to celebrate things like civil conversation, and most of all we want to tell the stories that define our state.”
She said they’re looking for conversation starters.
“Organizations that want to have a discussion program, bring in a speaker, something that’s interesting for the public that meets our mission,” Berdanier said.
Berdanier said there have been great responses from those who got involved.
“We do have repeat applicants, people are generally pleased with the process and pleased with receiving the funds," Berdanier said. "We feel so good about supporting all the projects we support. The board makes the decisions on all the applications that come through, so I just try to help people with the process ahead of time, so they have a strong application.”
Berdanier encouraged anyone interested in the grants to reach out to her directly. Additional grant information and application materials can be found on the organization's website.