Grassroots Art Grants Available

Applications Due to Watauga Arts Council by September 24

Watauga County Arts Council once again offers organizations planning arts-related activities an opportunity to apply for Grassroots Grants for the 2010-2011 fiscal year. The Grassroots Arts Program of the North Carolina Arts Council is a long-standing program through which the North Carolina General Assembly and the North Carolina Arts Council are able to fund local arts-related programming.

In each county, a Local Distributing Agent (LDA) is appointed to accept applications for Grassroots Grants from the community, and a panel of local representatives reviews those applications and awards funding in accordance with criteria set forth by the North Carolina Arts Council.

In Watauga County, the appointed LDA is the Watauga County Arts Council. For the last two years, the Arts Council has been unable to offer these grants due to budgetary concerns; however, the council is able to bring the program back this year.

Projects eligible for this grant program are those artistic and cultural activities sponsored by any nonprofit community-based organization. In accordance with state guidelines, emphasis will be placed upon the projects of qualified arts organizations (e.g. theaters, galleries, art guilds, choral societies, musical organizations, dance companies, writers groups and arts festivals); the support of arts in education programs conducted by qualified artists which take place in school settings, after school or through summer programs (however, grassroots funds may not be used for activities associated with a school’s internal arts programs such as in-school student performances, the purchase of art supplies, or student arts competitions and publications); and arts programs provided to the community by other community organizations. The programs should be conducted by qualified artists.

All projects that receive funding must take place between now and May 30, 2011. All grant awards must be matched by at least an equal cash match from the applicant organization and may not be matched by funds from the state of North Carolina.  Applications for up to $500 will be considered. The amount of money available for each grant is dependant upon the total Grassroots allotment from the North Carolina General Assembly to the North Carolina Arts Council. These funds are then reallocated to the Watauga County Arts Council on a per capita basis. This state and local partnership is the North Carolina Arts Council’s single largest category of funding and the strongest supporter of local arts organizations and programs.

Criteria for selection will include:

• strong community support

• involvement of racial and ethnic minorities and other traditionally under served segments of the community

• responsiveness to community cultural needs

• involvement of local professional artists

• the organization’s administrative ability and financial stability

• the organization’s ability to develop sufficient funding for the project

Applications are due to the Watauga County Arts Council’s offices in the Jones House Community Center by 5:00 p.m. on Friday, September 24. All necessary application forms and guidelines are available on the Arts Council’s website at www.watauga-arts.org. For more information, call 828-264-1789.

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