Indianapolis arts organizations say the loss of grants from the National Endowment for the Arts under President Trump’s sweeping cuts to the federal agency put a host of public services in jeopardy, including arts initiatives in underserved communities, support for artists and a summer concert series.
Indy Convergence is among the organizations feeling the squeeze after the Trump administration on May 2 sent letters to hundreds of arts organizations notifying them of the canceled grants amid what it termed a refocusing of priorities.
The near westside arts- and community-based nonprofit, best known for connecting artists to opportunities and hosting the Rising Tide arts series along the White River, learned its $130,000 ArtsHERE grant was terminated effective May 31. Indy Convergence is one of 120 organizations across the country that received the grant, which was for a pilot program designed to increase arts participation for underserved groups and communities.
A photo from the 2017 art walk.
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Whether the other organizations’ grants were terminated, as well, is unclear.
For Indy Convergence, the loss of the ArtsHERE grant represents half of its budget, co-founder and managing director Caitlin Negron said. She said Indy Convergence planned to use the grant to help the organization develop a strategic plan to better serve artists and the community in Haughville, Hawthorne, Stringtown and We Care neighborhoods.
Despite the financial blow, Negron told Mirror Indy that she remains optimistic about the future of Indy Convergence. She and her team are inviting supporters to make donations.
“I’m really proud that we’re part of the Indianapolis arts and culture community,” Negron said. “Even though we’re facing these challenges, I know that people will continue to create and innovate. We can put our trust in the artists and creatives to lead the way through.”
President Trump has proposed eliminating the National Endowment for the Arts entirely in the next federal budget. The NEA, established in 1965, is an independent federal agency and the largest funder of arts and arts education.
Since 2020, the NEA has distributed more than $13.7 million to Indiana arts organizations — much of that to groups based in Indianapolis. Seven organizations in one round of grant awards earlier this year were to receive a total of $175,000. The status of each of those grants is unclear, though one recipient, the Indy Arts Council, said its $50,000 award was rescinded.
Although the amount would have represented only a small slice of its budget, the Indy Arts Council said it had planned to use the money to create a new arts and culture projects grant program for individual artists, collectives and nonprofit organizations for Marion County-based arts projects.
Shannon Forsell, artistic director and CEO of The Cabaret, shows where The Alley Sessions take place, May 21, 2025, outside of The Cabaret Indianapolis. The Alley Sessions is a free summer concert series that features live music and art and is broadcast live on the radio. Forsell and her colleagues worry they’ll lose a $20,000 grant, which funds about half of the annual budget for the sessions.
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At The Cabaret, leaders are worried about the loss of a $20,000 grant. Shannon Forsell, artistic director and CEO, said the funds supported half of its budget for The Alley Sessions, a free summer concert series that features live music and art and is broadcast live on the radio.
Since the concert series launched in 2021, more than 200 artists have been paid to perform, and 1,300 people have attended.
Her organization received an email on May 2 from the NEA that it is “updating its grantmaking policy priorities to focus funding on projects that reflect the nation’s rich artistic heritage and creativity as prioritized by the President.”
An event layout for The Alley Sessions is seen May 21, 2025, at The Cabaret in Indianapolis. The Alley Sessions is a free summer concert series that features live music and art and is broadcast live on the radio.
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Forsell said Cabaret leaders were confused by the termination letter because they had already received a $20,000 reimbursement in 2024 for the previous The Alley Sessions.
“We were scared because we read it, ‘Oh my gosh, do we have to freeze our account? Are they going to take away what we’ve already used it for?’” Forsell told Mirror Indy.
The Cabaret made an appeal to the NEA to avoid having to return the reimbursement.
The organization has a pending grant application to support the summer series this year, but Cabaret leaders aren’t hopeful it will be approved. Forsell said The Alley Sessions will happen this year even if The Cabaret does not receive funding from the NEA.
(From left) Val Phelps, Julie Goodman and Shannon Forsell talk about The Cabaret’s The Alley Sessions in a meeting May 21, 2025, at their office in Indianapolis. The Alley Sessions is a free summer concert series that features live music and art and is broadcast live on the radio. Forsell and her colleagues worry they’ll lose a $20,000 grant, which funds about half of the annual budget for the sessions.
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But the organization is unsure about 2026 and beyond.
Forsell said watching the Indianapolis arts and culture community wrestle through the funding cuts is difficult.
“Just to see your colleagues struggling. Folks really have just gotten stabilized from the pandemic, and we’re like, ‘Oh my gosh, this feels like the pandemic again,” she said. “But the pandemic was unifying. This is divisive.”
Mirror Indy reporter Mesgana Waiss covers arts and culture. Contact her at 317-667-2643 or [email protected].
