The Leeway Transformation Award provides awards of $15,000 to women, trans*, and gender nonconforming artists and cultural producers living in Greater Philadelphia who create art for social change and have done so for the past five years or more, demonstrating a commitment to art for social change work. These awards are unrestricted (they are not project-based) and open to women, trans*, and gender nonconforming people working in any art form.

Review guidelines here (PDF).

Application Deadline

• Stage 1: May 15 (by 11:59pm EST)
• Stage 2: By invitation only

Applications (electronic or hard-copy) must be received by the deadline date. We do not accept applications sent by email or fax. Please either use this electronic form or mail/drop-off a hard-copy application at our office.

How to Apply / Eligibility  The Transformation Award is open to individual artists and cultural producers creating art for social change in any medium, including traditional and non-traditional as well as multimedia and experimental forms.

Eligibility

• Applicants may apply for and receive the Art and Change Grant and/or the Window of Opportunity Grant in the same year.
• Applicants may not apply for the Media Artist + Activist Residency in the same year.
• If you receive a Transformation Award, you may not apply for the Art and Change Grant and/or Media Artist + Activist Residency during your award year.

You are eligible to apply if you:

• Have lived for the past two years or more (since April 2024) in Bucks, Camden, Chester, Delaware, Montgomery, or Philadelphia County 
• Are at least 18 years old
• Identify as a woman, trans*, and/or gender nonconforming person
• Have been creating art for social change for the past five years or more

*Leeway is a trans-affirming organization committed to gender self-determination, and we use the term “trans” in its most inclusive sense, as an umbrella term encompassing transsexual, transgender, genderqueer, Two-Spirit people, and anyone whose gender identity or gender expression is nonconforming and/or different from their gender assigned at birth.

You may not apply if you:

• Are a full-time student in an arts degree program
• Have previously received a Transformation Award
• Have received a Media Artist + Activist Residency in 2025
• Have not turned in all reports due from previous Leeway grants and residencies

Application Support  Throughout the year, Leeway staff will host several Information and 1-on-1 Applicant Support Sessions. For a list of upcoming sessions and to RSVP, visit luma.com/user/LeewayFound or call 267.831.4886.

Questions/concerns?  Leeway staff are available to support you as you put your application together. If you have language translation or access needs that make our application inaccessible to you, please don't hesitate to contact us at info@leeway.org or by phone at 267.831.4886.