Many project-based grants given to arts organizations tend to be in centralized community hubs radiating from the downtown area, but what about the folks living on the outer edges of the county that might not have access to these programs?
Starting with the current Cultural Development Grants as a guideline, the Arts Council of Hillsborough County’s (ACHC) has pulled together a smaller sister program called the
Community Arts Impact Grants (CAIG), which aim to bring the arts to underserved communities across Hillsborough County.
“Last year with our Cultural Development Grants program that has larger awards, we had a couple of organizations that were very small and applying for the first time without much experience,'' says Terri Simons, Director of Programs and Communications of the ACHC. "It became clear that there was a need for something that would help small organizations in the outer reaches of the county that had very worthy projects, and where it was easier to apply. We wanted something that would help incubate these programs so they could learn how to apply for grants while also noting that they have a different population to serve.”
Though this new CAIG grant is smaller, it’s still significant: Applicants can ask for up to $5,000 to support a specific arts- or culture-centered project, which could be anything from classes to murals or many other options.
The main prerequisite is that it brings these kinds of programs to areas of the county that don’t have immediate access to it (whether it be boundaries of geography, ethnicity, age, or disabilities) to bring inclusivity to the arts. Applications are due by Friday, July 13, at 4 p.m.
“The program could also serve veterans or people with special needs. Many parts of the county don’t have a formal cultural center building like Carrollwood, or the one in New Tampa they are currently working on. We’re hoping that organizations in underserved areas will be asking for grants. Applicants don’t necessarily have to be an arts or cultural nonprofit, but they could be. It could also be a neighborhood association partnering with an arts nonprofit,” Simons says.
The ACHC anticipates at least 24 of these grants to be dispersed, and they are hoping to soon have all parts of the grant process online.
Because smaller organizations are volunteer-run and might not have experience, an application workshop for both this CAIG Grant as well as the Cultural Development Grant will be held on Monday, May 21, from 10 a.m.-noon at the Children’s Board of Hillsborough County.
Registration online at this link is required.
“This CAIG grant is pretty short and the application workshop will help applicants through that, as well as gathering more information about it. The workshop will cover both grants for cultural grants, but applicants cannot apply to both. There are different requirements for each program and this workshop will help organizations determine which one to apply to,” Simons says.
Nonprofit Grants Workshops are planned in two locations: May 21 at 10 a.m. in Ybor City; and May 30 at 10 am in Riverview. Registration is requested -- at TampaArts.org.
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