General Support Program

​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​​The purpose of the Office of Arts and Culture's General Support program is to strengthen the community's access to arts and culture programming. The General Support ​program provides core operating support to arts and cultural organizations of all sizes that have a primary mission to create, produce, or provide arts and cultural programming to enhance the quality of lives for Phoenix residents.​​

​​Submit your application
​Register for Grant Orientation

​Staff Contact

Sarah León Moreno,
Grants and Community Engagement Director,
602-262-6164
sarah.leon@phoenix.gov​ 

Schedule virtual meeting here:  

calendly.com/sarah-leon-moreno/grants​


Guidelines and Details


Overview

The Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture’s General Support program provides core operating support to arts and cultural organizations of all sizes that have a primary mission to create, produce, or provide arts and cultural programming to enhance the quality of life for Phoenix residents.

Goals

  • Support arts and cultural opportunities among residents of all ages through education and outreach programs and opportunities for personal artistic expression and participation.
  • Encourage broad-based, community-wide participation in arts and cultural activities resulting from a diversity of programming that is accessible to all residents.

  • Sustain a community of organizations that are responsibly governed and managed, financially sound, and assist organizations that have reached a critical stage in artistic or institutional development by encouraging the identification of internal needs important to the sustainability or growth of the organization.

Application Timeline

​Date​
Event
​Feb. 15
​Guidelines published | Application opens
​Feb. 23 | Mar. 1 | Mar. 23
Feb. 27
​Orientation works​hops (English
Orientation workshop​ (Spanish)
​Feb. 21 – Mar. 24
​One-on-one application consultations with staff
​April 3 AT 5 P.M. (EXTENDED)
​Application deadline

All sessions are held virtually via WebEx and are in Arizona Time. A recording will be available on the grants page 24 hours after each session is held.

Video one-on-one appointments and application consultations can be made with grants staff between February 21 and March 24, 2023.

Who can apply?​

To be eligible for the General Support program, applicants must meet all the following criteria:

  • Have a primary mission of producing or creating arts and culture programming and education for Phoenix residents
  • Must have a minimum prior-year income of $4,000 (i.e., a total of earned income from Phoenix sources only and contributed income from all sources)
  • Be in good standing concerning all contract agreemen​ts with the City of Phoenix, including filing previous grant final reports
  • Must complete and submit a DataArts Cultural Data Profile with three years of financial data (applicants with a prior annual income of $4,000 to $249,999 have the option of submitting completing the provided summary form.)

  • Not be an organization that is applying to the Project Support program
  • Exist as a 501(c)3 organization for at least three years that has a business address and administrative offices in the city of Phoenix (no PO BOX) and conducts a majority of its programs and services in the city of Phoenix. Applicants that are not a 501(c)3 nonprofit but meet all the other eligibility criteria are eligible if their average annual income from the past three fiscal years is not over $250,000, and they also meet the evaluation criteria below.

Funding

Applicants do NOT make specific funding requests:

  • Like-sized budgeted organizations are reviewed by a review panel. Organizations receive award allocations determined by the ranking it receives in the panel.

The General Support program does not fund:

  • Individual or single-member LLCs
  • Any division of local, state, or federal government
  • Organizations outside of the city of Phoenix boundaries
  • Schools, including public, private, and charter
  • Colleges and universities, other City of Phoenix departments, auxiliary/affiliate organizations
  • Organizations that produce a single annual event
  • Religious institutions or religious group-sponsored organizations not open to participation by non-congregants
  • Religious institutions or religious group-sponsored organizations whose primary purpose is the religious socialization of individuals or whose arts programming exists as parts of religious sermons or services
  • Debt reduction
  • Re-granting, unless permission is received
  • Grant administration, overhead, or processing fees taken by an umbrella/parent organization as a percentage of the total award, except for fiscal sponsors
  • Lobbying expenses
  • Expenses related to the construction of facilities
  • Food and beverage for receptions and hospitality functions
  • Fundraising projects
  • Scholarships and awards​

Evaluation Criteria and Application Questions

Applications are reviewed for eligibility by staff and evaluated and ranked by review panelists using the criteria listed below. Applications are scored on a 100-point scale. 

Community Significance

Evaluation Criterion (30 points)
The applicant clearly and specifically identifies the community the organization engages; reveals an understanding about how they currently effectively engage their community; describes a concrete path to reengaging any paused relationships with community post-pandemic.

Application questions:

  • What community does your organization engage? Include demographic information, if available, or describe the community as specifically as possible. (400 words)
  • What tried-and-true tactics does your organization rely on to engage your itended community? (400 words)
  • As we transition out of the pandemic, what steps is your organization taking to reestablish community connections and/or collaborative relationships that were impacted by the pandemic? (400 words)

Artistic/Cultural Value

Evaluation Criteria (40 points)
The applicant is thoughtful in delivering programs and services that advance the organization’s artistic/cultural mission; demonstrates intentionality behind upcoming programming; and shows commitment to the success and development of Phoenix artists.

Application questions:

  • Highlight upcoming programming that is exciting to the organization. Explain why that programming is particularly unique, innovative, and/or exceptional. (300 words)
  • Describe the development process of your programming (event, workshops, performances, etc.). Who is involved in the programming development process? (400 words).
  • How does your organization support local artists and culture workers through opportunities, fair wages, promotion, and/or professional development? (400 words)
  • Primary Programs/Events Upload (past three years of programs, events, and services)
  • Support Materials (Video, Images, Brochures, etc.)

Financial & Leadership Capacity

Evaluation Criteria
The applicant shows fiscal accountability and is flexible to keep up with the challenges the organization faces during the Coronavirus crisis, including fiscal health, staff, and board development, and a focus on the future; and reveals leadership's thoughtfulness regarding building equity into the organization.

  • Adjusted annual revenue from most recently completed fiscal year (this is the figure labeled "Total Revenue Unrestricted Less In-kind Unrestricted" found on your DataArts profile or Statement of Activity). 
  • Cultural Data Profile Report (Form upload option for organizations with prior year annual income between $4,000 and $249,999)
  • Reference and explain specific Cultural Data Profile/budget expense and/or revenue line item trends/variances or debt/loan circumstances impacting the financial position. (400 words; Optional)
  • Describe successes, challenges, or special circumstances related to your financial position in the past, current, and next fiscal year. Reference the CDP report/summary form when applicable. (400 words)
  • What are three unique reflections about possible next steps for your organization to build a more equitable organizational framework? (400 words)

​Other application questions/attachments

  • Background/About the Organization (200 words)
  • What is your organization's Mission Statement? (250 words)
  • What is your organization's Vision Statement? (250 words)
  • Upload bios of 1) Artistic/Program Director or equivalent, 2) Executive Director/CEO or equivalent, and 3) Board Chair​​.​​
  • Primary Programs/Events Upload (past two years + current year of key programs, events, and services)


 ‭(Hidden)‬ Eligibility

​​To be eligible for the General Support program, organizations must meet all the following criteria:

  • H​ave a primary mission of producing or creating arts and culture programming for Phoenix residents

  • Must have a minimum prior year income of *$5,000 (i.e., total of earned income from Phoenix sources only and contributed income from all sources)

  • Exist as a 501(c)3 organization for at least three years t​hat has a business address and administrative offices in the city of Phoenix (no PO BOX) and conducts a majority of its programs and services in the city of Phoenix

  • Be in good standing concerning all contract agreements with the City of Phoenix, including filing previous grant final reports

  • Must complete and submit a DataArts Cultural Data Profile​ with three years of financial data (organizations with prior year operating budget of $5,000 to $99,999 have the option of instead uploading a statement of activity/profit and loss with three years of data)

  • Not be an o​rganization that is applying to the Project Support program​​

*Guidelines updated to reflect a minimum prior year income of $5,000 (from $25,000) (3/19/2021)

 ‭(Hidden)‬ Funding

Applicants do NOT m​​ake specific funding requests:

  • Like-sized budgeted organizations are reviewed by a review panel. An organizations receives an award allocation determine​d by the ranking it receives in the panel.

  • ​​The Rental Support Program was previously housed under the General Support program (formerly CIEG). Rental support is currently on hiatus for FY2021-2022. To be eligible for General Support, an organization must meet the full program eligibility.

The General Support program does not fund:

  • Any division of local, state or federal government.

  • Organizations outside of the City of Phoenix

  • Applications submitted by for-profit entities

  • Schools, including public, private and charter

  • Colleges and universities, other City of Phoenix departments, auxiliary/affiliate organizations, and organizations without a 501(c)3

  • Organizations that produce a single annual event

  • Religious institutions or religious group-sponsored organizations not open to participation by non-congregants

  • Religious institutions or religious group-sponsored organizations whose primary purpose is the religious socialization of individuals or whose arts programming exists as parts of religious sermons or services

  • Debt reduction

  • Re-granting, unless permission is received

  • Grant administration, overhead or processing fees taken by an umbrella/parent organization as a percentage of the total award, except for fiscal sponsors

  • Lobbying expenses

  • Expenses related to the construction of facilities

  • Food and beverage for receptions and hospitality functions

  • Fundraising projects

  • Scholarships and awards

 ‭(Hidden)‬ Evaluation Criteria

Applications are reviewed for eligibility by staff and evaluated and ranked by review panelists using the criteria listed below.

Community Significance 

The applicant has the clarity of the organization’s mission, vision, and goals and how they relate to the community being served, especially given the current health pandemic. 

  • What community does your organi​​zation serve? Include demographic information, if available, or describe the community as specifically as possible. (400 words)
  • Describe continued, evolved, and new engagement strategies that keep you connected to your community during this pandemic. (400 words)
  • From the surprises and lessons learned in the past year, how are you reimagining community engagement post-pandemic? (400 words)

Artistic/Cultural Value

The applicant has identified ways to be thoughtful in providing the community with programs and services that advance the organization’s art/cultural mission during COVID-19.

  • Given COVID-19, list any new or evolved modes of delivering programming (e.g. virtual classes, etc.). What are advantages and disadvantages of these delivery modes to the organization's primary art/cultural form? (400 words)
  • List and describe upcoming programming that is exciting to the organization and why. (400 words)
  • Primary Programs/Events Upload  programs/events produced by your organization during the past two fiscal years and the current year.
  • Video Upload/Link and Description
  • Image Upload and Description​
​​​Financial and Leadership Capacity 
The applicant has fiscal accountability and is flexible to keep up with the challenges the organization faces during the Coronavirus crisis, including fiscal health, staff and board development, and a focus on the future.
  • Cultural Data Profile Report (Statement upload option for organizations with prior year operating budget between $5,000 and $100,000)
  • Reference and explain specific Cultural Data Profile/budget expense and/or revenue line item trends/variances, or debt/loan circumstances that are impacting the financial position. (400 words)
  • Describe successes, challenges, or special circumstances related to your financial position in the past, current, and next fiscal year. Reference the CDP report/budget when applicable. (400 words)​

Other application questions/attachments

  • What is your organization's Mission Statement?
  • What is your organization's Vision Statement?
  • Upload a list of Board of Directors and list of staff, if applicable
  • Upload bios of 1) Artistic/Program Director or equivalent, 2) Executive Director/CEO or equivalent, and 3) Board Chair​

 ‭(Hidden)‬ Equity Assessment

​Since 2017, the Phoenix Office of Arts and Culture researched, reviewed case studies, and identified values, concepts, and practices concerning equity, diversity, and inclusion (EDI) as it relates to the Office of Arts and Culture's programs. For the 2021-2022 grants cycle, General Support applicants are invited to participate in an optional equity assessment of their organization. The ​Assessment can help the applicant's commitment to building inclusive and equitable strategies, policies, and programs that provide opportunities for diverse community participation. Assessments are due in the beginning of May and will not be reviewed by panelists. ​

More Information