Arts And Humanities Grants

ARTS AND HUMANITIES GRANTS The Arts and Humanities program assists organizations in Maine as they investigate and present stories and cultural expressions of the state, its communities and its people. These grants support projects and public programs that include or combine both arts and humanities disciplines. The humanities explore the nature and value of human experience through literature, history, theology, philosophy and the disciplines of social and political science. Community arts programs help build communities by helping them discover their cultural assets and build communities through those. The range of potential projects under the Arts and Humanities Grants is limited only by the applicant’s imagination; however there must be both arts and humanities content in the project. The funding partners are particularly interested in projects that explore diverse cultures or that provide programming to underserved or new audiences. Projects might include a local folk life festival, a community performance of an historical play, a school-based historical mural project or a project combining oral history and documentary photography.  Deadline: Applications are accepted throughout the year, but must be received by the Maine Arts Commission at least 60 days prior to the start date of the initiative.  Maximum grant amount: $1,000 (with a required match of 1:1)  An organization may only receive one Arts and Humanities grant per calendar year

Who is Eligible to Apply? Any community organization that is:   

a nonprofit organization, legally established in the State of Maine, and has tax-exempt status 501(c)(3) from the Internal Revenue Service, or is a unit of local, county, state or tribal government; and

 has completed and filed all final reports required for previous Maine Arts Commission and Maine Humanities Council grants. An applicant must demonstrate a fiscal structure that allows them to legally and responsibly utilize grant funds. An organization may serve as the sponsor for an artist or a community organization that is not a registered nonprofit, but must be responsible for the grant. All contact information should be that of the legal applicant.

Examples of recent Arts and Humanities Grants Review Process Applications are reviewed approximately once a month by staff members of both the Maine Arts Commission and Maine Humanities Council. In most cases, decisions on applications are available a few weeks after the application is received.

Review Criteria All grant proposals are considered on a competitive basis using the following criteria:    

Clarity of the proposal and project design. Humanities and artistic quality and content of the proposed project. Ability to reach a broad public audience. Realistic funding and implementation plans.

Projects should also, wherever appropriate, present a range of viewpoints on an issue. The strongest project proposals will:  Include at least one public program.  Provide a reasonable amount of time for planning, publicity and program activities.  Show evidence of cooperation between organizations or groups.  Present a clear statement of the project, plan and budget showing how the project will be completed.  Specify which staff person or organization is responsible for each of the various aspects of the project.  If appropriate, indicate that the applicant has made provision for the materials or findings generated by the project to be preserved for use after the project ends through a library, historical society, local arts agency or other resource.

Page 2

Required Application Materials Preparing your documents for submission – All word documents must be saved as .doc or .rtf files and follow the following naming convention: lastname_firstname_TitleOfDocument.rtf (example: veilleux_lisa_resume.doc or veilleux_lisa_narrative.rtf). 1.

eGRANT Application You will upload all supporting documents (with exception to video, audio, or images) through eGRANT. 2. Application Budget Form and Detail (form below) providing evidence of 1:1 cash and/or in-kind match. No substitutions for the budget form are allowed. 3. Letters of Support from community members (up to three). 4. Resume(s) of those responsible for carrying out the project (up to three). 5. Application Narrative (form below) Clear, specific responses to each of the project description statements, addressed sequentially and numbered. Responses can not exceed five pages. The project description is the central element of the grant request. 6. Assurance Form (form below) with original signature of an authorizing official. Please mark with name of applicant. 7. Vendor Form (form below) This is information used by the Treasury to generate a check if the grant is awarded. Applicants should be sure to indicate the address the check should be sendt to. You must mail the form with your signature to our office. Faxed copies are not accepted. Mail assurance form and vendor form to Maine Arts Commission, 193 State Street, Augusta, Maine 04333-0025

STOP!

Each applicant is required to speak with Kathy Ann Shaw, Senior Development Associate at the Maine Arts Commission at 207/287-2750, toll-free 877/887-3878, TTY/NexTalk 877/887-3878 User ID kathy.shaw, [email protected] and/or Martina Duncan, Assistant Director of the Maine Humanities Council at 207/773-5051, [email protected] about the project before submitting an application.

How to Apply Applicants are required to apply through the Maine Arts Commission eGRANT system. pplicants who are unable to apply through e-GRANT must contact Kathy Ann Shaw at 207/287-2750, 877/887-3878 TTY/NexTalk User ID: kathy.shaw or [email protected] to discuss an alternative prior to Page 3

applying. Alternative submissions will not be accepted without prior authorization. The agency will not accept late or incomplete applications under any circumstance. Grant information is available in large print format by request. All Maine Arts Commission programs are accessible to people with disabilities. All programs funded by the Maine Arts Commission must also be accessible.

APPLY NOW! Arts and Humanities Grant Program Guidelines and Application Forms Arts and Humanities Grant Program Application Forms Assurances Budget Vendor Form (PDF) or Application Narrative eGRANT (PDF) Form JPG

Page 4