Cultural Grant Application Guidelines and Process

This page covers the Boulder Arts Commission grant application guidelines and process.

For information on the grants program visit the Cultural Grants Program page.

This process may vary per grant.

1. Review the application in full at Office of Arts and Culture’s website.
2. Log onto the Boulder Arts Commission online grant portal. If you have not logged on before, make a profile. Applications must be submitted using our online grant applications.
3. Complete the application by 11:59 p.m. on the day of the deadline.
4. Look for an automated email message confirming receipt of your application.
5. After the deadline, staff will send all applications to the panel for scoring and comments. The panel consists of the seven City Council-appointed Boulder Arts Commissioners.
6. You will receive notification that the panel’s scores and comments on your application are available. Please review their scores and comments and prepare a one-page response for the panel.
7. Before the Arts Commission meeting, the panel will rescore the applications. At the decision meeting, the members of the Boulder Arts Commission then deliberate to decide final approval of the applications which will receive a grant.
8. If you are awarded a grant, staff from the Office of Arts and Culture will contact you to complete any necessary paperwork.

1. Grant workshop. Attendance at a grant workshop is highly encouraged. Contact the grants coordinator with any questions you may have on the application or process.
2. Application. Submit your application online no later than 11:59 p.m. on the deadline. Applications are made through the Office of Arts and Culture’s website.
3. Staff review. Staff reviews all applications for completeness and compliance with grant requirements.
4. Grant revisions. Staff will contact applicants if any revisions are necessary.
5. Panel sequestration. During the scoring process, from the opening of the online panel system until the finalists are approved, the members of the panel may not be contacted through any means by applicants and/or their surrogates.
6. Questions or concerns about application. Applicants with questions or concerns about the status of their application may contact staff, who then may at their discretion communicate with the panel members. Communications will not be passed on to panel members if the staff determines that the question or message: a) is intended to lobby the panel members in favor of an application, or b) will purposefully or inadvertently interfere with the stewardship of the grants program.
7. Preliminary panel review and scoring. Panel members score the applications. The panel members are also encouraged to add any questions or comments to their score, which can be useful to applicants in preparing their one-page response. An explanation of the scoring system and the rubrics used by the panel can be found here.
8. Preliminary scores. Applicants will be notified when scores and comments are available.
9. Preparation of one-page response. Applicants have time to prepare a one-page response document for the panel following the first round of scoring and comments. The one-page response is intended to add to the information found in the application based on the comments and questions of the panel. Please do not repeat the information in your application.
10. Funding decisions. The Boulder Arts Commission makes final decisions on Community Project Grants, Arts Education Grants, Operating Grants, and the Leadership Pipeline Fund Scholarship.
11. Thanking City Council. It is suggested that all grant recipients write the Boulder City Council members to thank them for supporting the Boulder Arts Commission and the Office of Arts and Culture. Please let them know how this grant will be used, and the difference it will make to your organization. Please also invite them to attend your events and programs. Visit the City Council website page to find out more about contacting City Council members.
12. Written Appeals Process. The deadline for a written appeal is 14 days after funding decisions has been made by the Boulder Arts Commission. The appeals process can be found on the Office of Arts and Culture website.
13. Rescoring of grant applications. Before the Arts Commission meeting, the panel will rescore the applications. At the decision meeting, the members of the Boulder Arts Commission then deliberate to decide final approval of the applications which will receive a grant.

Written appeals process. The deadline for a written appeal is 14 days after funding decisions have been made. The appeals process can be found on our website.

Log onto the Boulder Arts Commission online grant portal to preview and apply. If you have not logged on before, make a profile. Applications must be submitted using our online grant applications.

If awarded a grant, Grantees will need to complete a grant report at the Boulder Arts Commission online grant portal. After logging in, go to Dashboard then Follow Up. Use the Edit button to review and complete the final report. The report due date is in your grant application.

1. Notifications and dispersal of funds. Staff notifies all applicants if their application has been successful and begins the process of securing supporting information and issuing payment for successful applicants. Grantees must contact the grant coordinator to arrange for payment. Checks are sent by mail or electronically to bank accounts designated by the applicant.
2. Communications. All official communications and notifications will be made to the named individual applicant or person designated as the organization contact. It is this person's responsibility to communicate Boulder Arts Commission requirements of the grant award to collaborators or other participants. This includes, but is not limited to, requirements for compliance with grant agreements, identifying Boulder Arts Commission sponsorship on publicity materials, and reporting.
3. Implementation. Grantees shall implement programs / projects as outlined in the grant application. Any change to the project, venue, Grantee address, schedule, or staff / team members must be reported to culturegrants@bouldercolorado.gov.
4. Award amount. The Boulder Arts Commission reserves the right to adjust the amount of a grant award offered to an Applicant.
5. PERA impacts. Retirees affiliated with the Colorado Public Employees Retirement Association (PERA) will be impacted by a withholding requirement enacted by the Colorado State Legislature if awarded an arts grant. Details are available on the PERA website. See "Disclosure of Compensation."
6. Vendor forms. Grantees must submit a City of Boulder vendor form and current IRS W-9 form in order to receive the grant award. The W-9 must be in the same name as the Grantee named on the grant application. Individual Grantees must also submit a Determination of Independent Contractor / Employee Status for Payment document and copy of their Driver’s License. Applicants will receive the appropriate forms from payments@bouldercolorado.gov. Failure to supply a proper W-9 may invalidate the grant award.
7. IRS taxation. Grant awards are non-transferable, taxable and are reported to the federal government.
8. Agreement. When a grant award is made by the Boulder Arts Commission, the successful Applicant will be contacted by staff to sign a Grant Letter of Agreement. In that agreement, the Grantee will indicate the completion date of the project and the date a grant report will be submitted.
9. Issuance of funding checks. Once the agreement is signed, staff of the Office of Arts and Culture will submit it to City Finance along with the invoice. Funds/checks are delivered within the next three weeks. Community Project, Arts Education, and Professional Development Grants are initially funded at 80 percent of the grant amount awarded. The remaining 20 percent of the grant awarded is paid out upon receipt and Boulder Arts Commission approval of the grant report. The remaining grants are paid in full once the agreement is signed. Failure to submit a final grant report will result in ineligibility to apply for future grants.
10. Acknowledgment of Boulder Arts Commission funding. All publicity for Boulder Arts Commission-funded projects must include the following credit line: This project is funded (or funded in part) by a grant from the Boulder Arts Commission, an agency of the Boulder City Council. In lieu of the credit line, the Boulder Arts Commission logo may be used. The Grantee must sign a release form and submit photographs and/or videos of the project that the Office and Arts and Culture may use on its website, social media, printed materials or for any other publicity purpose.
11. Thanking City Council. It is suggested that all grant recipients write the Boulder City Council members to thank them for supporting the Boulder Arts Commission and the Office of Arts and Culture. Please let them know how this grant will be used, and the difference it will make to your organization. Please also invite them to attend your events and programs. Visit the City Council website page to find out more about contacting City Council members.