FY26 Color the Curb: School Safety Program Workshop

The Commission on the Arts and Humanities (CAH), the independent state arts agency (SAA) for the District of Columbia, is empowered through D.C. Official Code § 39–204 to issue competitive grants for projects in the arts to individuals and organizations based in and primarily serving the District. CAH in partnership with the District of Columbia Department of Transportation (DDOT), and District of Columbia Public Schools (DCPS), seeks District-based artists experienced in large-scale exterior murals, youth engagement, and community-based projects to design and install ground murals to increase pedestrian safety in the intersections near four (4) DCPS schools in Washington, DC. Selected artists will be paired with one of the designated schools and will work closely with faculty and students at the paired school to create a final mural design. DDOT will provide a ground mural technical expert who will work with each selected artist/artist team on planning and implementation of the approved final design.

Applications will be reviewed and evaluated based on prior work demonstrating experience with large-scale exterior murals, youth engagement, and community-based projects. Selected artists will work with school personnel at their assigned school to gather student input on the mural design. This input will help form the basis for the development of site-specific designs to be approved by CAH, DDOT, and DCPS for final installation. The intention is to create engaging and vibrant works of art that build a sense of ownership and connection to their community and that will be a source of neighborhood pride for all residents.

Calendar of key dates:

Monday, November 17, 2025 Color the Curb: School Safety RFA launched

Monday, January 12, 2026, at 9pm Application submission deadline

January 2026 Selection Panel convenes

March 2026 Applicants notified. Selected artists/artist teams paired with selected school

March 2026 Meet with students to plan designs. Develop design and get approval from CAH, DDOT, and DCPS

Summer 2026 Install ground murals

September 2026 Murals complete

Please note that these grant application workshops will take place online via Zoom.

CAH staff members are available to help develop grant applications through group and individual technical assistance. CAH will conduct free workshops and live web chats for participants to learn about the agency’s funding opportunities and how to submit an application.

Workshop dates, times and locations are subject to change. All workshops are free and open to the public; however, participants are encouraged to RSVP. Workshop attendance is strongly recommended for first-time applicants.

Please be advised that this workshop will include live real-time captioning via Zoom.For reasonable accommodation requests regarding access and inclusion, please contact us at CAHaccessibility@dc.gov, no later than 5 business days before the start of the workshop you register for.

For any other questions, please email cah@dc.gov.