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GO ART! schedules workshops for grants to support cultural programming

By Tom Rivers, Editor Posted 18 August 2022 at 11:40 am

There will be a series of workshops in Genesee and Orleans counties for artists, municipalities and non-profit organizations to learn about grant funding.

The Genesee-Orleans Regional Arts Council (GO ART!) administers the Statewide Community Regrant Program.

GO ART! last year approved $107,800 in grants for artists, community organizations and municipalities for concerts and other cultural activities in 2022. GO ART! doesn’t know the total funding level available for 2023.

The local arts council said the SCR grants are designed to support and develop the capacity of individual artists, collectives, and small nonprofit organizations to develop high quality local arts projects and programming. The efforts should contribute to the Genesee and Orleans communities by providing opportunities for the public to experience and engage with the arts. Emphasis is placed on the quality and artistic merit of proposed projects and the depth and authenticity of audience experience, participation and engagement.

The Statewide Community Regrant Programs consists of three different grants: Reach, Ripple and Spark.

Reach – The Reach grants provide seed funding to individual artists, collectives and arts organizations for projects and activities that enable Genesee and Orleans communities to experience and engage with the performing, literary, media, and visual arts. Each year the program supports over arts projects, including concerts, performances, public art, exhibitions, screenings, festivals, workshops, readings, and more.

Ripple – The GO ART! Individual Artist Commission (Ripple Grant) supports local, artist-initiated activity, and highlights the role of artists as important members of the community. The Ripple funding is for artistic projects with outstanding artistic merit that work within a community setting.

Spark – The Arts Education Program (Spark grant) supports arts education projects for youth and/or senior learners. Emphasis is placed on the depth and quality of the creative process through which participants learn through or about the arts. Projects must focus on the exploration of art and the artistic process. Funds can support arts education projects that take place in-school during the school day and/or in after-school and community-based settings for youth and/or senior learners and must be carried out in partnership with a public school or a community-based organization.

Funding amounts differ from program to program, but the maximum allowable project request from each applicant is $5,000. Applicants may submit up to three separate project requests in any grant cycle, with the total of all requests not to exceed $5,000.

Applications will be accepted from Sept. 15 to Nov. 1.

Who is Eligible?

  • Nonprofit organizations, NYS incorporated nonprofits, agencies of local government (not New York State agencies)
  • Individual artists, groups or collectives, unincorporated entities must have a fiscal sponsor or community partner (see specific program guidelines)
  • All applicants must be over the age of 18 and have a permanent address in the county in which the programming will take place.

Selection Process: Awards are based on a competitive, transparent peer panel review process. A panel composed of artists, arts administrators, and community leaders (who work and/or reside in Genesee or Orleans) review each project on the basis of its own merits and against others in the application pool. Awards are based on panel recommendations at the completion of the review process. Limited funds are available, and priority is given to applications that meet the specific program criteria published within SCR guidelines.

Schedule of upcoming SCR Grant Workshops

All potential applicants are required to attend a grant workshop. Registration is required at least two days prior to the scheduled workshop.

  • Saturday, 8/27 @ 10 a.m. GO ART! 201 E Main St., Batavia
  • Saturday, 9/3 @ 10 a.m., Virtual (zoom link will be provided upon registration)
  • Tuesday, 9/6 @ 6 p.m., Woodward Memorial Library, 7 Wolcott St., Leroy
  • Saturday, 9/10 @ 10 a.m., Hoag Library, 134 Main St., Albion
  • Monday, 9/12 @ 5 p.m., Hollwedel Memorial Library, 5 Woodrow Drive, Pavilion
  • Tuesday, 9/13 @ 6 p.m., Orleans YMCA, 306 Pearl Street, Medina
  • Saturday, 9/17 @ 10 a.m., Haxton Memorial Library, 3 N Pearl St., Oakfield
  • Monday 9/19 @ 6 p.m., Virtual (zoom link will be provided upon registration)
  • Tuesday, 9/20 @ 5 p.m., Byron-Bergen Public Library, 13 S Lake St., Bergen
  • Saturday, 9/24 @ 5 p.m., Yates Community Library, 15 N Main St., Lyndonville

For more information on the application process, to register for a workshop, to apply, or nominate a panelist, please visit www.goart.org/grants. For any questions about the program, contact the SCR Program Coordinator, Mary Jo Whitman, at mjwhitman@goart.org.