To bolster the sustainability of the community’s cultural organizations, a series of operating grants is a priority for the cultural grants program. This system of institutional funding supports the Community Priorities and goals in the 2015 Community Cultural Plan, including the “Support for Cultural Organizations” strategy.

Si prefiere leer esta página en español por favor haga clic aquí. Se puede responder a la solicitud en español. Un miembro del personal de la Oficina de Artes y Cultura traducirá sus respuestas para que sean revisadas.

For this application in other languages please contact the Office of Arts + Culture Grants Manager Sarah Harrison at harrisons@bouldercolorado.gov.

Purpose

Our approach to operating funding is derived from the National Assembly of State Arts Agencies, and is here modified to suit the circumstances of the Community Cultural Plan:

  • Operating grants maintain the autonomy of grantees, allowing them to allocate the dollars to their most pressing needs.
  • Operating grants tend to be more predictable over time, which helps organizations maintain continuity of services to their communities.
  • Because Operating grants are flexible, grantees can use the funds in more opportunistic or entrepreneurial ways than project-restricted funds often allow.
  • Operating grants come with stringent accountability and management requirements that incentivize and perpetuate good business practices among arts organizations.
  • Because the grantee—not the grant maker—ultimately defines the activities for which operating grants are used, this funding mechanism can reduce "mission drift" among grantees and can help to curtail the proliferation of programs designed solely to appeal to funders.

Operating grants strengthen the non-profit arts infrastructure and deepen working relationships between funders and core grantees.

Details

Total funds: $297,000

Awards: In 2025 there will be four levels of GOS grants, based on the size of the organization’s budget:

  • Extra Large Orgs (1M or more) with grants of $55K each
  • Large Orgs (250k - 999k) with grants of $22K each
  • Mid-sized Orgs (100k - 249k) with grants of $11K each
  • Small Orgs (99k or less) with grants of $8.8K each.

The number of General Operating Support Grants in each category will vary depending on the number of applicants in order to ensure that levels of competition are similar in each category. Review the fund structure here.

CategoryNumber of GrantsGrant Amount
Extra Large (Renewal)9$55,000
Extra Large (New - estimated)2 (estimated)$55,000
Large (Renewal)10$22,000
Large (New - estimated)4 (estimated)$22,000
Mid (Renewal)9$11,000
Mid (New - estimated)5 (estimated)$11,000
Small (Renewal)14$8,800
Small (New - estimated)5 (estimated)$8,800

Details

  • Your annual revenue according to your 2024 income statement and balance will determine your award category.
  • Reporting once a year, the organizations will be responsible for providing the Boulder Arts Commission with necessary information to track progress on their stated evaluation.

How to Apply

Get Informed

Review the below information in full.

Grant Portal

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.

Application Contents

  • Online application form
  • Financial Documents. Please provide an income statement and balance sheet for 2023 and 2024 (or your last completed fiscal year) and budget for the current year.
  • Financial Overview Document. Please download this document, complete the green cells, and upload it as an excel or PDF.
  • Major Contributors. For the previous two fiscal years, list major contributors (foundations, businesses, government, individuals) with amounts. Do not include names of the individual donors.
  • In-kind Contributions. Summary of significant in-kind donations (donated goods and professional services) received by the organization for the last fiscal year.
  • Board of Directors List. Include the following information for each board member:
  • Position(s) on the board (officer and committee positions)
    • Occupation and name of employer and/or affiliation(s)
    • City or county of residence
    • Term end date for each board member
  • Proof of IRS Federal Tax-exempt Status. Also called a Letter of Determination. This will be used to demonstrate your eligibility. Alternatively, small and mid-sized organizations who are applying with alternative governance structures can provide a statement of fiscal sponsorship, or a letter which describes how the organization fulfils eligibility described above.
  • Anti-discrimination Statement.
  • Staff List. Include only key staff with their qualifications and length of service with the organization. Do not include job descriptions or resumes.
  • Annual Report or Strategic Plan. (Optional)
  • Evaluation Results. Provide the organization’s most recent evaluation results or findings relevant to this request. (Optional)

Application Confirmation

Look for an automated email message confirming receipt of your application.

Scoring Round One

After the deadline, applications will be sent to the panel for scoring and comments. The panel consists of five grant panel members. Information on the grant panel can be found on the website.

Respond to the Panel

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 response for the panel.

Scoring Round Two

Before the Arts Commission meeting, the panel will rescore the applications. At the decision meeting, the members of the Boulder Arts Commission then review the panel's recommendations and deliberate to decide final approval of the applications which will receive a grant.

Completion of Paperwork

When a grant is awarded, staff from the Office of Arts and Culture will contact the successful applicant to complete any necessary paperwork.

Decision Timelines

General Operating Support Grants

  • Wednesday, February 12 at 11:59 p.m. – Deadline for applications
  • February 12 to 19 – Review by staff for eligibility and revision by applicants if necessary
  • February 19 to March 5 – Preliminary review and score by panel (15 days)
  • March 5 to 12 – Score processing by staff
  • March 12 – Preliminary scores and comments sent to applicants via email
  • March 12 to March 19 – Applicants prepare and send written responses to the panel’s questions. The written response should be emailed to Sarah Harrison at culturegrants@bouldercolorado.gov by Wednesday, March 19, 2025, at 11:59pm.
  • March 19 to 21 – Response processing by staff
  • March 21 – Responses sent to panel.
  • March 26 (est.) – Panel meeting to discuss applications
  • March 26 to April 9 – Final review and score by panel (15 days)
  • April 9 to 18 – Processing of final scores
  • April 18 – Final scores published in the Arts Commission meeting packet
  • April 23 – Arts Commission meeting. Discussion and final decisions on grants

Eligibility Requirements

  • General eligibility. Meets all general eligibility requirements.
  • Budget thresholds – In 2025 there will be four categories:
    • Extra Large Orgs (1M or more)
    • Large Orgs (250k - 999k
    • Mid Orgs (100k - 249k)
    • Small Orgs (99k or less).

The number of General Operating Support (GOS) Grants will vary depending on the number of applicants in order to ensure that levels of competition are similar in each category

  • Service area and programming. Must be able to demonstrate that a majority of the organization’s programming takes place in the City of Boulder and that the programming meets the criteria described in the Chapter 14-1-2 of the City of Boulder Revised Code. The organization must also demonstrate that they are headquartered in Boulder. For the determination of programming or organizational headquarters location, the term “Boulder” is defined in the Boulder Valley Comprehensive Plan. For additional information on the planning area and Comprehensive Plan visit this link. As a shorthand, office staff use addresses with the zip code starting with 803— to determine if it is in the acceptable area.
  • Emerging organizations with revenues under $250,000 that have not yet achieved not-for-profit status or community-oriented businesses may also apply for this grant. These organizations must be able to demonstrate the following:
    • The organization has community-oriented mission and goals, services, and
      programming.
    • The organization is currently active and has conducted programming consistently for at least two years.
    • The organization has oversight from a board, advisory committee, or other stewardship group. That group must include community representation.
    • In lieu of Non-Profit Verification, the applicant is encouraged to provide a copy of their form CR0100 (Colorado Business Registration) and documentation of the above criteria. This can take the form of strategic or business plans, year-end reports, media clippings, letters of support, or other documents.

If an organization is applying with a fiscal sponsor, the sponsor must receive the grant award payment.

Consistent Management. The organization must have consistent management with no planned or expected changes to leadership during the term of the funding. It is recommended, but not required, that organizations maintain a succession plan in their human resources policies in order to demonstrate fulfilment of this requirement.

Apply

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.

Review Process

  • Deliberation. Applications are reviewed by the Boulder Arts Commission grants panel. Final funding decisions are made at public Boulder Arts Commission meetings. See schedule.
  • Evaluation of applications. Funding in previous years does not imply continued support. Each application is reviewed anew in the context of current policies and applications. Applicants that have received repeated funding should be aware that the Boulder Arts Commission looks for indication of growth and a fresh approach to their work.
  • Evaluation criteria.
    • Capacity Building (Maximum 8 points)
    • Community Priorities (Maximum 8 points)
    • Proposed outcomes and evaluation strategy (Maximum 8 points)
    • Cultural Equity (Maximum 8 points)
    • Encouragement Points (Maximum 4 points)
  • The complete scoring system and rubric for General Operating Support Grants can be found here.

Appeals Process

Written Appeals Process. The deadline for a written appeal is 14 days after funding decisions has been made by the Boulder Arts Commission. Find more information about the appeals process.

Reporting

Grant report forms are on the Boulder Arts Commission grants software. Log in with the same user name and password utilized to submit the application. After logging in, go to the ‘Dashboard’, then you’ll see a ‘Follow Up’ section for the grant. On the far right is the ‘Edit’ button. That will take you to complete the final report.

After you submit the report you’ll receive email confirmation and copy of the report via the email that you have included in the report. Contact Sarah Harrison at harrisons@bouldercolorado.gov or 303-441-3907 if you do not receive email confirmation.

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