Federal education grants can be as simple as tuition assistance or as complex as federal funding for a new department chair at a undergraduate university. The availability for such grants changes on a very frequent basis, so applicants must do ample research before applying. Some common education grants include: scholarship grants (both as fellowships for universities and individual grants), material grants (for specific purchases) and grants to increase diversity enrollment at schools.
The government's National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) is designed to support and provide funding to promising American artists. To this end, there are a variety of NEA grants available. Such grants include: leadership grants for art teachers, outdoor grants for those involved in the National Park Service, and ethnic-specific grants to encourage a diverse sampling of American art. These grants are especially competitive.
Federal housing grants are often the most popular and most used. In their basic form, these grants can provide financial assistance to citizens who could not otherwise afford a large down payment on a new home. The goal of the Department of Housing and Urban Development is to increase homeownership and homeowner diversity. Some grants include: housing assistance grants for veterans, down payment tax credits (collected during tax season), and farming grants designed to help rural farmers improve their land and equipment.