Texas Cultural Trust Announces Annual Arts Inspire Grant Recipients

by Texas Cultural Trust

AUSTIN, TX [DECEMBER 8, 2025] – The Texas Cultural Trust (TXCT), a statewide nonprofit dedicated to increasing awareness, access, and support for the arts in Texas, has announced the recipients of the 2025 – 2026 Arts Inspire Grants. These grants, offered through the Trust’s Arts Access program, are designed to reduce financial barriers to accessing engaging in-person arts experiences for students in Title I schools and low arts access communities. This year, grants will be awarded to thirteen schools across the following cities: Bluff Dale, Dallas, El Paso, Garland, Houston, Kress, New Braunfels and San Antonio. 

Each Arts Inspire Grant recipient will receive up to $1,000 for expenses associated with arts experiences, including artist honorarium fees for school visits or transportation and admission fees for field trips involving visual arts, dance, music, or theatre. 

“With the Arts Inspire Grant, I will take my Advanced Placement students on a field trip to the University of Texas at Arlington to tour the campus and Gallery at UTA, exploring programs including Painting, Drawing, Ceramics, Art Education, Cinematic Studies, and Photography,” says Gianna LoScerbo-Starkus, AP arts educator at Sunset High School in Dallas.

“Two-time Grammy nominee Haydn Vitera will spend a day at our school working with each Orchestra class, introducing Salsa and Cumbia grooves to help students improve timing, rhythm, and creativity,” says Heather Gonzalez, instructor at John Jay High School in San Antonio. “This fusion of grooves and orchestral playing encourages students to move with the music and express themselves more freely.”

The 2025 – 2026 Arts Inspire Grant recipients are as follows: 

  • Bluff Dale Secondary Campus, Bluff Dale ISD
  • Classical Center at Brandenburg Middle School, Garland ISD
  • Colonies North Elementary, Northside ISD
  • Cooper Elementary School, Garland ISD
  • Cypress Creek HS, Cypress-Fairbanks ISD
  • Drew Academy, Aldine ISD
  • John Jay High School, Northside ISD (NISD)
  • Kress Elementary, Kress ISD
  • Memorial Elementary, New Braunfels ISD
  • Northbrook High School, Spring Branch ISD
  • Routh Roach Elementary School, Garland ISD
  • Sunset High School, Dallas ISD
  • Young Woman’s STEAM Research and Preparatory Academy, El Paso Independent School District

“Following the impact and enthusiastic reception of our Arts Inspire Grant program, the Texas Cultural Trust remains deeply committed to ensuring every child has access to the transformative power of the arts,” says Texas Cultural Trust CEO Heidi Marquez Smith. “This year we were able to increase our funding, building upon our initial momentum to expand tangible access to engaging in-person experiences, sparking imagination and realizing the full benefits of a quality arts education for young Texans.”

These grants are offered on an annual basis and will reopen for applications in the fall of 2026. To learn more about the Texas Cultural Trust and available grants through its Arts Access program, please visit https://txculturaltrust.org/what-we-do/arts-access.