One State Scholarships

The Illinois Arts Council (IAC) is offering scholarship funds of up to $750 to cover expenses related to attending the 2025 One State Together in the Arts & Humanities ConferenceThe 2025 One State Together in the Arts & Humanities is hosted in partnership with Illinois Humanities and Arts Alliance Illinois and will be held on November 5–7, 2025, in Champaign-Urbana.

Scholarship funds may be utilized for registration, travel, and lodging. Scholarship funds are a taxable award. The deadline to apply is Friday, June 20, 2025. All applications must be submitted via the applicant's IAC Salesforce account.

Each IAC region has its own allocation and will select recipients from the applications submitted in that region.

Visit our About One State page for more information about Registration and Accommodations for One State.  

At the time of application, individual applicants must:

• Be a current, legal resident of Illinois for at least 12 months prior to the application deadline.
• NOT be enrolled in any degree or certificate-granting program (including high school, bachelor's, or master's degree programs) at the time of application or during the award period. (Ph.D. candidates need to have completed their coursework by the application deadline to be eligible.)
• Apply utilizing a Salesforce account registered to the individual applicant, not the organization.

• Review the Guidelines before completing the application.
• Use Chrome as your browser when working in Salesforce.
• Once logged into Salesforce, first complete, or update, the Applicant Information tab.
• Questions? Contact your Program Director.

What are eligible expenses?

Only costs related to 2025 One State Together in the Arts & Humanities Conference, to include registration, travel, and lodging costs. Per diems, meals, and non-cost-effective travel or lodging will not be considered.

What are appropriate rates to budget?

All state-funded travel must be done by the most cost-effective means for that area of the state.

Registration:
Should be budgeted at the rate of $125.

Travel:
Travel should be budgeted for the most cost-effective means allowable by your location in the state of Illinois.

If driving, the mileage reimbursement rate must follow state standards of $0.70 per mile.

Lodging:
Conference hotels are $155 per night.

Applicants local to the Champaign-Urbana area may not request lodging expenses.

I did not submit my application on time; can I still apply?

IAC is unable to accept late application submissions.

What if I need reasonable accommodations to apply?

Reasonable accommodations for application procedures can be provided with a minimum request time of 3 business days before the deadline.

When can I get my money?

IAC does not issue checks directly. IAC vouchers payment authorizations through the state comptroller’s office. Grantees may check the state comptroller’s website for updates on their grant payments. Additionally, if an applicant has received a payment from the state within the past 12 months, they may call the state comptroller at (217) 557-0930 to request a direct deposit.

I have a question: who should I reach out to?

If you have questions on the grant, please email your program director. You can use the Program Director finding tool if you are not sure who your Program Director is.

If you need Salesforce assistance, please email Jasmine Roberson at jasmine.roberson@illinois.gov.

Please note that on deadline dates, IAC staff is only available until 5pm to provide assistance, including technical support. IAC cannot accept late applications, so please start your application early with enough time to reach out if questions arise. We cannot accommodate support requests submitted via social media.