Council for the Arts Grants Program Guidelines
The Grants Program of the Council for the Arts at MIT was established
to foster the creative and performing arts by providing financial
support to arts proposals submitted by students, staff and faculty
of the MIT community. Since 1974, the Grants Program has awarded
over $1,000,000 to more than 1,000 projects.
The Grants Program welcomes proposals in all arts disciplines:
architecture, creative writing, dance, design, film, media arts,
music, photography, theater, video, and visual arts.
Applications are solicited and reviewed in three funding cycles
during the academic year. A Grants Committee, composed of Council
members with professional expertise and experience in the arts,
evaluates these competitive applications and recommends funding.
Amounts awarded may range from the hundreds to thousands of dollars.
(Projects seeking less than $500 may apply at any time for a Director's
Grant.)
The staff of the Council for the Arts is available to assist
any eligible person, group or organization with project development
and application preparation. The staff serves as an important
link between the applicant and the Grants Committee. All prospective
applicants are strongly encouraged to meet with a staff member
to discuss a project before submitting an application.
Eligibility
Any student currently receiving academic credit from MIT, or current
MIT staff and faculty are eligible to apply for Grants Program
funding. Applicants may submit proposals individually or on behalf
of a group or organization.
Funding Policy and Criteria
The Grants Program supports those projects that offer MIT community
members opportunities to create, participate in, and learn about
the arts. This objective is regarded as the highest priority of
the program. The Grants Committee evaluates applications on the
quality and innovation of the project, and the potential for broad
involvement of the MIT community, especially MIT students. While
previous experience in the arts is not a requirement for funding,
the Committee does consider an applicant's ability to realize
the project.
Applicants may request funding for the following project expenses:
- Materials
- Transportation
- Equipment
- Publicity
- Facilities
- Fees
- Payment to professional performers or technical assistants
Some restrictions to the above expenses may apply. For example,
applicants will be encouraged to rent equipment, rather than purchase
it, whenever possible. Travel or accommodation expenses for individual
applicants are rarely funded. Please note that requests for annual
funding are discouraged. When applying for funding for the purchase
of equipment such as cameras or computers, the Committee's usual
practice is to require that the equipment be donated to an MIT
department or returned to the Council for the Arts at MIT after
use.
Applicants may not request funding for:
- Food and beverages or reception costs.
- Stipends for their own time or work in creating the project.
- Projects requiring retroactive or concurrent support.
(N.B. rojects must occur at least 14 days after Grants Committee
review date)
- Routine curricular activities.
- CD production
Application Preparation
Applicants are encouraged to apply on-line, from Application
Form. Hard copies of the application forms may be picked up
at the Council for the Arts office (E15-205) or will be mailed
upon request.
The Council staff is available to advise applicants on proposal
writing and budget preparation. Applicants are advised to seek
additional financial support or in-kind contributions (donated
or discounted equipment and services) from other MIT or outside
sources whenever feasible. The Council staff can suggest possible
sources of such support from MIT sources.
By the deadline date of each funding cycle, applicants must submit
a complete application form that consists of applicant information,
a concise project description, and a detailed budget. Supporting
material and permission letters must be provided by the deadline
date for such material. Incomplete or irregular applications will
be returned to the applicant. Applications or supporting material
submitted after the respective deadlines will be accepted at the
discretion of the Director of the Council for the Arts.
In addition to submitting a complete application, applicants are required to provide:
- Supporting material for the project (e.g., letters of recommendation,
portfolios or examples of previous work, vendor price quotes,
models, sketches, reviews, resume).
- Letters of permission from appropriate MIT personnel if projects
require the use of Institute sites, facilities, or equipment.
- Brief follow-up report after project is completed.
Site Visit and Application Review
Proposals deemed consistent with the funding criteria and application
procedures will be distributed to members of the Grants Committee
for review. Committee members will receive the application form
and selected supporting material submitted for each proposal.
On the review date, each applicant will meet with one or more appointed
Grants Committee member for 30-45 minutes. This "site visit" allows
the applicant to describe his/her project in greater detail and
to display certain kinds of supporting material. The visit also
enables committee members to pose questions directly to the applicant.
The site visit is a critical part of the application process.
All applicants must be available for a site visit between 8:30-11:00am
on the review date. The time and place of the site visit will
be determined by the Council's Director. If the applicant is unavailable
at the specified time and date, the applicant must send an e-mail
message to the Council's Director, with the words "please reschedule
site visit" in the subject line. This e-mail must be sent at least
2 weeks prior to the committee review date. The Council's Director
will then make arrangements for a site visit on the day before
the committee review.
When all site visits have been completed, the Grants Committee
convenes to evaluate applications that afternoon. For each proposal,
the appointed committee member will summarize the project, report
on the site visit, and recommend a level of funding. The full
committee will then vote upon that recommendation. It is the prerogative
of the Grants Committee to award a sum less than the applicant's
request, or reject the request.
Notification
All applicants will be notified of the Grants Committee's decision
by the Council staff within three weekdays of the review meeting.
A confirmation letter will be provided by the Council's Director
on request. Upon receipt of confirmation, successful applicants
may arrange for the disbursement of grant funds.
Grant Disbursement
To obtain funds, grant recipients must choose from one of two methods of payment outlined below.
- A check will be prepared in the recipient's name for the
full amount of the grant. This sum is considered taxable income
and must be reported as part of one's annual income when filing
with the Internal Revenue Service.
- The full amount of the grant will be transferred to a five-digit,
internal MIT account. To use this method of payment, the recipient
must first obtain permission from the individual or department
overseeing that account. The recipient or authorized MIT staff/faculty
member is responsible for preparing all necessary accounting
documents. Internal transfers of funds are not considered taxable
income.
Acknowledgment of Council Support
Grant recipients must credit the Council for the Arts at MIT in
all announcements, publicity, and programs for the funded project.
To fulfill this requirement, the following phrase is recommended:
Made possible (or Made possible in part) by the Grants Program
of the Council for the Arts at MIT. The Committee also asks that,
when possible, the Council logo be used in conjunction with the
credit line. The logo will be provided when grants results are
sent.
Please note that the Council does not serve as the sponsor of any
project awarded funding through its Grants Program and may not
be so described.
The Council for the Arts reserves the right to describe or reproduce
material from any project awarded funding through its Grants Program
for publication or public relations purposes.
Project Deadlines and Final Reports
All projects awarded funding by the Grants Program must be completed
within six months after the release of funds. Funds may be expended
only for the specific purpose of the grant as set forth in the
award letter. Should completion of the project exceed this date
or should the project be altered significantly, written notification
must be submitted to the Council's Director for approval.
Within one month of project completion, grant recipients must
submit a narrative report and a financial statement. The report
should summarize the project's process and outcome. Copies of
all printed material for the project must be submitted as well.
The financial statement must itemize all income and expenses for
the project and include copies of receipts equal to the amount
of the grant. The receipts must apply to expenses listed on the
budget section of the application form and approved by the award
lettter.
In addition to the final reports, grant recipients may be requested
by the Council's Director to meet with Grants Committee members
to conduct follow-up interviews.
Failure to comply with these deadlines and reporting requirements may jeopardize future applications by an individual or organization.
Director's Grants
Applicants seeking Council funds of up to $500 may submit proposals
at any time for a Director's Grant. These grants are made available
to assist projects that occur between scheduled funding cycles
or that require modest support. Applications are reviewed by the
Council's Director.
Proposals must abide by the funding criteria and application preparations
outlined above. Applicants will be notified of the Director's
decision within three weekdays of submitting an application form
and supporting material. Within two weeks of the project's completion,
a final report and financial statement must be submitted.
For more information about the Council for the Arts at MIT and
the Grants Program, please contact:
Susan Cohen
Director, Council for the Arts at MIT
E15-205, 20 Ames Street
Cambridge, MA 02139
(617) 253-4005
e-mail cohen@media.mit.edu
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