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ARTIST OPPORTUNITY GRANTS

SPECIAL PROJECTS GRANTS

NEA GRANT

CULTURE WORKS FUNDED GRANTS

 

OPERATING SUPPORT FOR ORGANIZATIONS

COMMUNITY ARTS GRANTS

About the Program

The Community Arts Grant is a community funded grant that provides general operating support to arts organizations that enrich and inspire the Dayton Region through innovative performances, exhibitions, and informed educational programs for all ages. The grant is reviewed by a panel of community members, including grant writers, artists, arts administrators, and art patrons. Culture Works fundraises for and administers the grant, nurturing a collaborative feedback loop between regional arts organizations and the community they serve. 

Applicants are placed into one of the following categories based on their annual budget:

General Operating Support (GOS) - Organizations with annual budgets of $500,000 to $10 million
Community Arts Development (CAD) - Organizations with annual budgets of $100,000 to $499,999

Specifically, the funding for these grants comes from our annual Campaign for the Arts—a community-wide fundraising effort that draws support from thousands of individuals, local companies, and foundations. Through this community grant, Culture Works endeavors to foster a supportive ecosystem based in multi-disciplinary artforms and creative place making that benefit all community members.

For the 2024-2025 arts season, Culture Works provided Community Arts Grants to 10 organizations: Bach Society of Dayton, The Contemporary Dayton, the Dayton Art Institute, Dayton Contemporary Dance Company, Dayton Performing Arts Alliance, Dayton Public Radio (WDPR), The Human Race Theatre Company, K12 Gallery & TEJAS, Muse Machine, and the Springfield Symphony Orchestra. We thank you, our givers, for your support as we work to build a  climate in which all arts can thrive and all communities have access to the arts.

  • General Operating Support (GOS) Eligibility
  • FAQS
  • Community Arts Development (CAD) Eligibility
  • 2025-2026 TIMELINE
  • The 2025-2026 Community Arts Grant application is now closed. The application deadline was Friday, April 4, 2025 at 4:00pm. No late applications were  accepted.

    If you would like to review the Public Panel Review of the applications,
    you can watch the recording here
    .

    The public review will take place on Tuesday May 20 from 10:30a.m. to 2:00p.m. 

    Public Panel Review 
    Schedule & Procedures

    If you would like to access the recording of the 2025-2026 Community Arts Grant Orientation or the Public Panel Review (to be posted within 5 business days of the meeting), you can do so here. 

    Please, contact the Director of  Grantmaking & Impact at ren@cultureworks.org if you any questions or concerns.

    Application

    Questions? Contact Ren (Rachel Evans Nead), Culture Works Director of Grantmaking & Impact, at ren@cultureworks.org
    or schedule 15 minutes with her using the Bookings link provided above.

    FAQS

    What is the source of the funding used to provide Community Arts Grants?

    The source of funding for these grants is money raised through Culture Works’ annual Campaign for the Arts. Individuals and companies throughout the region participate, with more than 50% of the funding coming from workplace giving campaigns. The annual Campaign allows individuals to support not just one art form or organization, but to invest in the fundamental value of arts and culture to our community.

    How are funding decisions made?

    In 2014, Culture works implemented an outcomes-based funding model to better evaluate the effectiveness of applicants in aligning with larger community objectives. Under this model, a panel of knowledgeable local citizens evaluates applications using an established scoring rubric (see "How Are Applications Scored?").

    Panelists also make site visits to applicant organizations—attending a performance, exhibition, or other event—to gain additional insights into the organization beyond the information included in the application. Panelists review and score applications independently from mid-April to mid-May, then discuss the applications as a group and make final scoring decisions at a Public Grant Panel Meeting held in mid-late May. Final scores are entered into a funding formula that takes into consideration the total amount of funding available, the number of applicants, and each applicant organization’s budget to determine the grant amounts.

    Why does Culture Works use an outcomes-based grantmaking process?

    In 2014, Culture Works changed its process to provide more fairness, transparency, and accountability. We also wanted to have more precise outcomes to report back to those who support the annual Campaign for the Arts to show that their gifts are truly making a difference. We take our responsibility to be good stewards of the funding entrusted to us through the annual Campaign for the Arts very seriously.

    Is there a precedent for this kind of grantmaking process?

    Absolutely! An outcomes-based process with a panel, scoring mechanism, and public grant process is used by the Ohio Arts Council to make funding decisions, and by other state arts councils. The same process is also used by the National Endowment for the Arts and a majority of local area arts agencies across the country. Culture Works is now much more aligned with national standards for best practices through the changes that we have made to our grant making process.

    Who serves on the panel?

    Culture Works recruits an independent panel of arts administrators, artists, business leaders, and passionate community volunteers to serve on our grant panels.

    How are grant applications scored?

    Panelists score each application in three areas: Community Impact & Engagement (45 pts), Artistic & Cultural Vibrancy (35 pts), and Organizational Capacity (20 pts). A checklist showing the full evaluation criteria is available here. To determine each organization's final score, Culture Works takes the average score they received from panelists. Organizations must score at least 70/100 points to be eligible for funding.

    Why are organizations required to support the annual Campaign for the Arts in order to apply for Community Arts Grant funding?

    Conducting a united arts fund campaign is only one of the programs of Culture Works. Organizations that choose not to support the Culture Works annual Campaign are still eligible to take advantage of the marketing, advocacy, and other support provided to every cultural organization in the Dayton Region by Culture Works. However, if organizations wish to benefit directly from the pool of money gathered through the annual Campaign, we think that it is important that these organizations commit to partnering with us to achieve the best possible outcomes for the annual Campaign by being champions for this effort.

    OK

    2024-2025 Community Arts Grant Timeline

    Friday, January 17, 2024

    Deadline for applicants to submit an Intent to Apply for 2024-2025 Funding form and a current board roster.

    Friday, March 1, 2024

    Grant application available through the Culture Works website.

    March 1-May 5, 2024

    Panelist site visits take place.

    Tuesday, March 5, 2024

    Grant application info session for applicants via Zoom.

    Friday, April 5, 2024

    Grant application deadline—must be received by 4pm.
    (This is also the deadline for Culture Works leadership to give a brief presentation to your board about the Campaign for the Arts.)

    Mid-April 2024

    Grant panel begins application review.

    Thursday, May 16, 2024

    Public Grant Panel Meeting. During this meeting, grant panelists will discuss applications for 2024–2025 Culture Works Community Arts Grant funding. Applicants and interested members of the public are invited to attend. The discussions will be recorded, and a recording will be made available on the Culture Works website, cultureworks.org, within a week following the meeting.

    Tuesday, June 25, 2024

    Funding amounts approved by the Culture Works Board of Trustees.

    July 2024

    Applicant organizations receive panelist feedback and notification of 2024–2025 grant amounts.

    OK
     

    FUNDING FOR STUDENTS

    LEONARD P. ROBERTS MEMORIAL SCHOLARSHIP

    The Culture Works Leonard P. Roberts Memorial Scholarship was established in 1993 in honor of Mr. Roberts, who was the Chairman of the Dayton Performing Arts Fund (now Culture Works) at the time of his death. Since the first scholarships were awarded in 1994, more than $400,000 from the Leonard P. Roberts Scholarship Fund has been provided to 200 students to assist them in their educational pursuits.

    Culture Works is pleased to offer scholarships to students who demonstrate participation in and patronage of the arts. Candidates must be graduating high school seniors living in the Dayton Region (Butler, Clark, Darke, Greene, Miami, Montgomery, Preble, or Warren County) or college students at any level who live in and attend college in the Dayton Region. Priority may be given to students majoring in arts disciplines, business, and engineering; however, all majors may apply. Scholarships will be awarded in the amount of $1,000 - $5,000.

    SCHOLARSHIP ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA:

    • Be a graduating high school senior living in the Dayton Region (Butler, Clark, Darke, Greene, Miami, Montgomery, Preble, or Warren County); OR be a college student living in and attending school in the Dayton Region
    • Plan to be a full-time student for the entire upcoming academic year
    • Demonstrate participation in the arts
    • Have a minimum 2.0 cumulative GPA
    How to Apply:

    The applications for 2025-2026 are currently under review.

    Good luck to all applicants, and thank you for all you do in the arts!

      
    Please spread the word to all students involved in the arts -- regardless of major.

    Go to Scholarshipconnect

    Questions? Contact Ren (Rachel Evans Nead), Culture Works Director of Grantmaking & Impact, at ren@cultureworks.org.

    ELIGIBILITY CRITERIA

    To be eligible for the Artist Opportunity Grant program, an applicant must:

    • Be a resident of Montgomery County, Ohio, with a valid street address (no P.O. boxes) demonstrated by a driver’s license, utility bill, bank statement, voter registration document, etc.; and
    • Be a United States citizen or a permanent legal resident; and
    • Be at least 18 years old; and
    • Be an artist or creative entrepreneur. For the purposes of this grant program, an artist is defined as someone who has practiced their artistic discipline for at least three years*, demonstrates strong artistic potential, and is committed to developing their craft and artistic career. Artists devote a significant portion of their time to creating, practicing, or teaching their artform and receive compensation for their work.
    • Have exhibited, performed, or published work as an artist within the past three years, including self-curated opportunities or those in non-traditional venues.

    *NOTE: An applicant’s history of artistic practice can include time spent in, and activities completed as part of, an undergraduate or graduate art program.

    Note: In the 2024-2025 application cycle, the project or opportunity for which an applicant seeks funding must take place between January 1, 2025 and December 31, 2025. If the grant is to complete a project already in progress, it must culminate with a completed work within the grant period. Projects anticipated to not be completed by December 31, 2025 will not be considered.

    Before beginning your application, review the complete eligibility criteria in the Artist Opportunity Grant Program Guidelines.

    OK

    EVALUATION CRITERIA

    All proposals will be evaluated based on the following criteria:

    Artistic Merit: The artistic capabilities of the applicant; the strength and quality of the creative vision and the originality of the applicant’s work as demonstrated in the application, previous work, and artist’s statement. Grant reviewers will consider whether:

    • The artist’s work demonstrates familiarity and control of craft and technique and a level of skill appropriate to the artist’s career stage.
    • The artist’s work is of compelling artistic vision and singular voice.
    • The artist’s work is inventive, imaginative, and substantive in form and content.

    Potential Impact of the proposed project to advance/further the applicant’s work/career. Grant reviewers will consider whether:

    • The opportunity is unique, time-sensitive, and not a repeat of past experiences.
    • The artist identifies clear and realistic artistic/professional goals and makes a case for how this opportunity will help achieve them.
    • There is a potential for the opportunity to deepen the artist's practice and facilitate future creative work.

    Quality of Proposed Project: The artistic strength, quality, vision, and originality of the proposed opportunity/project. Grant reviewers will consider whether:

    • The opportunity/project is clearly defined and meets professional standards.
    • (As applicable) The mentors/instructors involved are well qualified and/or the artist demonstrates capacity for self-directed learning.
    • The opportunity/project is original and reflects awareness of the history and contemporary practice of the artist’s field and its relationship to both (i.e., it is not a duplication of an existing effort).
    • The opportunity/project is an important or a once-in-a-lifetime opportunity.

    Administrative Capability: The feasibility of the proposed project as determined by the applicant preparing and clearly articulating a logical, well- conceived project plan that can be reasonably executed and includes a realistic timeline and accurate budget. Grant reviewers will consider whether:

    • The artist provided a clear project timeline and explanation of how funds will be used.
    • The project budget is realistic and supported by documentation of expenses. (See the Artist Opportunity Grant Guidelines for more about budget requirements.)
    • The artist has a history of presenting work to the public and a record of creative accomplishment appropriate to their career stage.

    Public Benefit: The applicant seeks to increase the public’s access to and direct participation in quality arts and cultural resources that celebrate diversity and foster creativity within Montgomery County. Grant reviewers will consider whether:

    • The artist has a clear plan to share their work or project outcomes with the community.
    • The artist articulates how the opportunity/project will benefit intended audiences.
    • (As applicable) The artist has a commitment from the intended exhibition space or performance venue.

    THE REVIEW PROCESS

    All applications will be reviewed by staff for completeness and eligibility before being submitted to an independent grant panel for consideration.

    Grant Panel

    Culture Works and the MCACD will identify an independent panel consisting of artists, arts administrators, educators, and community members who understand and have an appreciation for the careers and creative development of artists. Every effort is made to avoid conflicts of interest.

    Panelists will be provided online access to eligible applications, supporting materials, and artistic samples. Panelists will review the applications independently over the course of a month and assign scores based on the criteria outlined above. The highest possible score an applicant can receive is 25.

    Public Panel Meeting and Funding Recommendations

    In late-November / early December 2024, the panel will convene at a virtual public panel meeting to discuss applications and make award recommendations as a group. To facilitate discussion and funding recommendations, applications with the lowest initial scores may be eliminated from consideration prior to the public meeting. Applicants will be notified in advance of whether their application will proceed to the panel meeting.

    The panel meeting will be open to the public and will begin with introductions of everyone in the room. The audience will be given a brief overview of the grant review and scoring process.

    Each application will be reviewed using the following process:

    • a) The first reader (discussion leader) will lead the panel in a general discussion of the application.
    • b) After all panelists have had a chance to comment, the panel facilitator will draw the discussion of the application to a close and each panelist will have an opportunity to adjust their scores if necessary.

    When desired, panel members will be given the opportunity to review an artist’s application and/or documentation. This is done for clarification purposes. As a result of the panel discussion or further review of an applicant’s application or documentation, panelists may adjust their scores. Because materials will have been previously reviewed by panelists, they may or may not ask to review the same materials for every applicant.

    After all applications have been discussed and final scores have been submitted, the panel will enter a closed session to review a master list of all applicants, ranked from highest to lowest average score. The panel will make funding recommendations based on these rankings and the funding that is available.

    Following the panel meeting, all funding recommendations are reviewed for final approval by the MCACD board. Award recipients will then enter into a contract/grant agreement with Culture Works.

    OK

    RESOURCES FOR APPLICANTS

    • Before beginning your application, read the full 2024-2025 Artist Opportunity Grant Guidelines here.
    • Review the Tips for Writing a Great Application
    • Review the Work Sample Guidelines
    • Watch the 2023-2024 Artist Opportunity Grant Info Session here and download the presentation slides here. (2024-2025 forthcoming)
    • Culture Works Director of Grantmaking & Impact is hosting a series of workshops. All applicants and interested parties are welcome to participate. Each weekly workshop focuses on a different aspect of the grant application and is offered at two different times to provide more access based on your own schedules.

      The same Zoom link works for all workshops. Passcode: Arts4All
      Please see the schedule below and come as you may!

    1. September 16, 2024 at 12pm EST & September 17, 2024, at 7pm EST
      Artist Opportunity Grant & Community Force Orientation

      Not familiar with the application? New to grant writing? Unfamiliar with the application portal, Community Force? Be prepared for a thorough introduction with time for your questions! No registration required – Come when you can, stay as you can!

    2. September 23, 2024 at 12pm EST & September 24, 2024, at 7pm EST
      Artist Statement Workshop

      The Artist Statement is your opportunity to share your vision as an artist and to tell grant reviewers about your journey as an artist, but how do you write one? Come read through samples with your fellow applicants and begin writing your own! No registration required – Come when you can, stay as you can!

    3. September 30, 2024 at 12pm EST & October 1, 2024 at 7pm EST
      Project Budget Workshop

      A project budget is a crucial part of an Artist Opportunity Grant application, but how do you develop one? And how do you balance the story of your project with the projected costs of that project? This workshop will offer support as you create a project budget with supporting documentation and narrative. No registration required – Come when you can, stay as you can!

    4. October 7, 2024 at 12pm & October 8, 2024 at 7pm EST
      Peer Review Workshop

      An opportunity to receive feedback on an early draft of your application from fellow applicants and past grantees. Registration will be required by October 1 for participation in this workshop by emailing REN@cultureworks.org. *Dates and times may be updated based on participation.

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    Dayton, OH  45402

    PH 937-222-ARTS (2787)

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