ARTS PARTNERSHIP

ARTS EDUCATION PROJECT SUPPORT

The Arts Partnership program is designed to provide a flexible source of support for arts learning projects that address the needs of individual learners and their communities, particularly underserved populations. Arts Partnership funds may be used to:

• Enhance the skills and knowledge necessary for learners of any age to engage in, interpret or understand the arts;
• Assist professional development efforts that prepare educators or artists to engage arts learners;
• Conduct research that advances the depth and breadth of knowledge about best practices in arts education;
• Undertake planning efforts that aim for greater access to arts learning in schools and communities.

Grant recipients should engage in collaborative planning with partners or participants, emphasize in-depth study of the arts and use arts learning outcomes and standards-based arts education practices. By supporting projects and programs that share these characteristics, the OAC works to strengthen arts education locally, regionally and statewide.

Application Deadline: March 1

• What the Program Supports
• Who May Apply
• How to Apply
• Review Criteria

View a list of application questions for Arts Partnership.

View a list of Arts Partnership FAQs.

WHAT THE PROGRAM SUPPORTS

The Arts Partnership program provides one- or two-year grants to schools and organizations for activities that enhance the quality of and access to arts learning for people of all ages, backgrounds, experience levels and abilities. This program supports Ohio schools and organizations that plan and conduct projects or long-term initiatives with arts learning at their core. Priority will be given to projects that target underserved populations, including—but not limited to—rural and urban youth. Applicants are encouraged to use professional artists (e.g., artists from the Arts Learning Artist Directory) in the planning and implementation of projects.

Allowable Expenses
OAC funds may be used for a wide variety of expenses. Organizations often choose to dedicate Arts Partnership funds to artistic or educational expenses. Other allowable expenses include program planning and evaluation. Please refer to the Funding Restrictions section of the OAC Guidelines for a list of activities the OAC cannot fund. In addition to these restrictions, OAC funding cannot be used for:

• Tickets for performances, unless the event is an integral part of the goals, objectives and outcomes of the proposal;
• Final product expenses (as opposed to process-driven project expenses), e.g., costumes, travel costs for competitions, permanent art installations, fairs or festivals, competitions or awards programs;
• Commission of new work or permanent art installations not connected to instructional components or the goals, objectives and outcomes of the proposal;
• Artist residencies that are part of higher education coursework for which students are charged tuition;
• Projects that supplant an existing school program, including any after-school component of a curricular, co-curricular or extracurricular school activity;
• Pre-professional company operating costs.

Transportation for participants is an allowable expense but it cannot be more than 10 percent of the program budget or exceed $1,000. Meals or snacks that are part of programming are permissible; however, hospitality expenses, such as food for exhibition openings, receptions or public performances, may not be funded by this program.

Grant Awards
Applicants may request up to $20,000. All Arts Partnership grants require at least a 1:1 cash match. Applicants may request two-year funding in odd-numbered calendar years only. If two-year funding is awarded, grantees may not submit additional requests the following even-numbered calendar year.

WHO MAY APPLY

HOW TO APPLY

Application Basics
Organizations applying for an Arts Partnership grant are encouraged to contact the Arts Learning program coordinator to discuss the program's grant Guidelines and application process. All applications to the Arts Partnership program must be submitted via the OAC's OnLine Grant Application system (OLGA). No paper applications are accepted.

Applicants are strongly encouraged to submit a draft application through OLGA at least 30 days before the final deadline date. To submit a draft, follow the instructions on the final page of the online application.

Applicants must submit their application electronically via OLGA by 5 p.m. on the final deadline date. If the application is not submitted electronically, it will not be accepted. Your organization will be notified via e-mail (sent through OLGA to the primary contact listed in the application) when your application is received. For assistance with OLGA, call the help desk at 614/728-4449 between 9 a.m. and 5 p.m. on weekdays, or e-mail olgahelpdesk@oac.state.oh.us.

In the second year of a two-year Arts Partnership grant, applicants are required to submit to the OAC updated information regarding programming and budget. Your organization will receive detailed instructions via e-mail (sent through OLGA to your primary contact person) when this updated information is required.

Support Materials
To complete an application for this program, applicants must submit one set of support materials in hard copy form to the OAC. Applications that do not include support materials will not be accepted.

Each OAC program has different support material requirements. To learn which materials are required for this program, as well as other materials that are optional but may strengthen your application, refer to the Support Materials Grid for Organizations of the OAC Guidelines. You may choose to direct panelists to review some support materials online rather than sending them in hard copy form; please refer to the Online Support Material Submission form for further information and submission instructions.

The signature page and support materials must be received in the OAC office by 5 p.m. seven calendar days following the final application deadline date (regardless of postmarked date). If the signature page and support materials do not reach the OAC within this timeframe, the application will not be accepted. Your organization will be notified via e-mail (sent through OLGA to your primary contact person) when your support materials are received.

Timeline
The timeline below presents a general outline of the grant application process for the Arts Partnership program. Please note that if a deadline falls on a Saturday, Sunday or state holiday, the deadline will be extended until the next business day.

Grant application available in OLGA	November 1
Draft application deadline	February 1
Final application deadline	March 1
Support material deadline	7 calendar days following the application deadline
Panel Meeting	May
Grant award announcement	early July
Signed grant agreement deadline	August 30
Grant period	July 1 - June 30
Final report deadline	30 days after program ends

For 2-year grantees only
Year 2 update available in OLGA	January 1
Year 2 update deadline	April 1
Year 2 grant award announcement	early July
Year 2 signed grant agreement deadline	August 30
Year 2 grant period	July 1 - June 30
Year 2 final report deadline	30 days after program ends

Evaluation and Scoring
A panel of arts and cultural professionals, educators, Ohio artists and other community members evaluate and score Arts Partnership grant applications and support materials. Panel meetings are open to the public and representatives from your organization are encouraged to attend to hear the panel’s comments about your application. Many panel meetings are streamed live on the Internet to make them more accessible to applicants and the general public; contact the Arts Learning program coordintor or visit the Deadlines and Panel Meetings page for details and instructions for participating.

At the panel meeting, an evaluative discussion will occur for each application. Following the discussion, a vote will be taken to determine whether the application advances to the scoring round. If an application moves to the scoring round, it will be scored based on how well it meets the review criteria. After the panel meeting, the score and the organization’s request will be used to determine the funding award recommendation. Funding recommendations must be approved by the OAC board, the only body authorized to make final funding decisions.

The review process is competitive; not all applications are funded. Applicants not voted into the scoring round will not be funded. A cutoff point in the scores may be determined so that applications below a certain score are not funded. As noted before, priority will be given to projects that target underserved populations.

Review Criteria
Applicants will be given a numerical score based on how well their application meets the criteria in the following evaluation categories: 1) Artistic/Educational/Cultural Value; 2) Community Participation and Accessibility; 3) Planning, Evaluation and Documentation; and 4) Organizational and Financial Management. Evidence of meeting the criteria will be found in the application’s narrative, budget information, support materials and website. There is a maximum of 100 points across the four categories:

Evaluation Criteria

Artistic/Educational/Cultural Value
The highest score for this category is 30 points.

• The arts learning experiences are sequential, in-depth and of high quality with an emphasis on developing the imaginations and creative abilities of learners;
• Professional development activities reflect best practices in education and arts education;
• Staff, artists, consultants and/or volunteers possess the requisite skills and knowledge to achieve stated goals and work effectively with learners;
• Educational materials reflect credible research and professional standards and are appropriate for those being served;
• In-school programming addresses the Ohio Fine Arts Academic Content Standards.

• Community partnerships strengthen the organization’s ability to fulfill project goals and sustain activities over time;
• Project plan reflects understanding of and responsiveness to the diverse needs of the community, including underserved populations, and especially rural and urban youth;
• Barriers to cultural participation, such as disabilities, transportation, information, prior experience, etc., have been identified and minimized;
• Project includes plans to promote activities to target audience and larger community.

• The selected Arts Learning Outcome is addressed through the project’s design, implementation and evaluation;
• Project design is informed by a needs assessment;
• Project is well-articulated with clearly defined partner roles, goals and activities;
• Applicant’s program evaluation strategies measure progress toward stated goals;
• Returning applicants—annual evaluation report summarizes key findings and recommendations for improvements and future planning.

• Applicant has the internal capacity to manage resources and achieve stated goals;
• Project budget is realistic and correlates with the application’s narrative;
• Project budget reflects a mix of revenue and support from earned, private, government and in-kind sources, if feasible.