For Immediate Release: January 12, 2010 Elaine Mariner, elaine.mariner@state.co.us, 303-892-3870 IMPORTANT REMINDER Colorado Creates replaces Grants to Artists and Organizations Guidelines released in late January, deadline April 5

Colorado Creates is a new approach to helping promote cultural, educational and economic growth through statewide investment in creative activities and organizations. The Colorado Creates grant program replaces the CCA’s former Grants to Artists and Organizations program.
 
Over the past two years, the Colorado Council on the Arts (CCA) has sought input from our constituents regarding how the agency's grants can best stimulate creativity and support arts and cultural activities statewide. Via planning retreats, a Listening Tour, online surveys, and one-on-one meetings, you asked for:

• Continued access to grants that leverage other funds and provide a seal of excellence
• Priority support for existing arts and cultural organizations and arts education activities
• Maximize the number of communities that benefit from state grants
• A more streamlined and standardized approach

 
Due to significant revenue shortfalls, it is estimated that through Fiscal Year 2013 the state funds available to CCA could be half of what they were in Fiscal Year 2009. That significantly diminishes the amount available for granting. At their December meeting, Council members therefore decided to implement a new grant approach that would streamline and standardize our application process, increase our use of electronic technology, and implement an "off year" cycle to ensure our more limited funds continue to reach across the state.
 
New guidelines for the Colorado Creates grant program will be available on the CCA website in late January. The new grant deadline will be April 5. Significant features of the new Colorado Creates grant program include:
 

• Use of the Colorado Common Grant (CGA) Application Form.  The Colorado Creates guidelines will customize the CGA slightly, and the application process will still be restricted to online submission only.
• Proposals may be for operating support or for project support. CCA's previous grant categories are no longer applicable. However, the review criteria remain the same: artistic excellence/merit, community involvement/benefit, and implementation capacity.
• Grant amounts will be based on budget size of the organization (not of the project) and will be "flat" amounts. In other words, all funded applicants within the same operating budget range will receive the same amount of money.
• Support materials must be submitted electronically on DVDs or CDs. This includes audio or video clips, PDF samples of literary work, brochures, programs, or curriculum, and links to websites. 
• Applicants who have received a CCA grant three years in a row will be required to "sit out" a fourth year. This practice, increasingly used by foundations, will help us stretch the funds further. There are no restrictions for the April 5, 2010 deadline. The first year of "sitting out" will begin with the April 2011 deadline.
• Artists can only apply via a fiscal agent. Fiscal agents may not apply for a second grant.

 If you are not familiar with the Common Grant Application, we urge you to visit the CGA website www.coloradocommongrantforms.org as soon as possible for an example of the basic application forms and a helpful handbook on how to write an effective application.

The Colorado Council on the Arts is a division of the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade, with a mission to promote the cultural, educational, and economic growth of Colorado through development of its arts and cultural heritage.