ARTISTS IN SCHOOLS PROGRAM
(K-12)
PROGRAM GUIDELINES 2008-2009

Application Postmark Deadline: January 30, 2008
Application can be obtained on the CAC web site at www.cac.ca.gov

Program Guidelines

The California Arts Council (CAC) has promoted arts education since 1976 through its support of in-school arts programs that engage community arts resources, such as highly skilled artists and professional arts organizations. In this program, the Council’s primary goal is to partner with, collaborate and support the educational community in creating and sustaining a comprehensive, articulated program of arts education for all students. It is not the intent of this program to supplant teachers or arts programs, but rather to augment and integrate community arts resources into a comprehensive, standards-based arts program K-12.

The Artists in Schools Program (AIS) provides funding for residency activities that emphasize long-term, in-depth interaction between professional artists and a group of students, during school or after-school programs. 
Arts organizations of all disciplines are eligible to apply. Residencies should enable students to understand specific art forms and to develop their creativity.  All projects should consist of hands-on participation and must include the California Visual and Performing Arts Content Standards of Aesthetic Perception, Creative Expression, Historical/Cultural Context, Aesthetic Valuing and Connections.  (For more information about the Standards refer to http://www.cde.ca.gov/ci/vp/).

Each residency must be locally designed and developed in partnership between an arts organization and school(s). All residencies require matching funds. CAC funding can be matched by the arts organization or jointly by the arts organization and school. Projects that reflect matching funds from both the arts organization and school(s) will be more competitive in the panel process.

OBJECTIVES

  • To develop partnerships between schools and local arts organizations
  • To use existing community arts resources
  • To maximize available funding sources for the arts
  • To develop the artistic abilities and creativity of students
  • To serve diverse school communities throughout the state
  • To promote learning and problem-solving through the arts
  • To expand professional artists’ participation in society

ELIGIBILITY

  • The arts organization must have been engaged in programming for a minimum of three years at the time of application.
  • The arts organization and school must be in California.
  • Artists working with the applicant arts organization must show professional experience of at least 3 years in the artistic discipline to be taught; must be residents of California; and may not be full-time students in a degree program.
  • The arts organization must be a non-profit arts organization, and must demonstrate proof of nonprofit status under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code, or section 23701d of the California Revenue and Taxation Code, or must be a unit of government.
  • If the arts organization does not have nonprofit status, but meets all other requirements, it may use another arts organization with nonprofit status as the fiscal receiver. The fiscal receiver will meet all fiscal and administrative obligations for the grant.
  • Fiscal receivers must meet the same eligibility requirements listed above for an arts organization applying to the Artists in Schools program. Both the arts organization and its fiscal receiver must have similar organizational goals and objectives, and must enter into a formal agreement on the management of grant funds and responsibilities associated with the completion of the project.
  • Both the arts organization and school(s) must comply with the following: the Civil Rights Act of 1964, as amended; section 504 of the Rehabilitation Act of 1973, as amended; the Age Discrimination Act of 1975; the Drug Free Workplace Act of 1988; California Government Code Sections 11135-11139.5 (barring discrimination based on race, color, national origin, sex, age, and disability); the Americans With Disabilities Act of 1990 (“ADA”); the Fair Employment and Housing Act; and the Personal Responsibility and Work Opportunity Reconciliation Act of 1996.
  • Both arts organization and school(s) must comply with the Fair Labor Standards Act, as defined by the Secretary of Labor in part 505 of title 29 of the Code of Federal Regulations, and pay professional performers, artists, and other personnel at a compensation level for persons similarly employed elsewhere.

REQUIREMENTS

  • Include one or more artists of the same or different disciplines who conduct activities at one, minimum to a total of four schools.
  • Engage students in a broad range of arts activities, all of which must be unified by a single philosophy, vision, purpose or theme.
  • Each student or a core group of students must receive a minimum of 12 weeks to a maximum of 32 weeks in FY 2008-2009 (October 1, 2008 thru June 30, 2009).
  • Be free of charge to students.
  • Include a project coordinator from the arts organization and a school site coordinator from each participating school.  Residency projects are collaborations between arts organizations and school(s), with shared responsibility for project planning and implementation.
  • Include professional fees for artists: fees must be comparable to others employed in the same field.
  • Submit only one application per funding cycle.  AN ARTIST MAY BE PART OF ONLY ONE APPLICATION TO THE ARTISTS IN SCHOOLS PROGRAM IN ANY ONE YEAR.
  • Neither the arts coordinator nor the school site coordinator may serve as an artist in the residency.
  • State funds cannot be used for hospitality, purchase of equipment, out of state travel.

FUNDING CATEGORIES
Applicant organization can only apply in one Category

  • EFFECTIVE ARTS ORGANIZATION AND SCHOOL PARTNERSHIPS: Creating and sustaining projects taking place in public or private nonprofit schools, during regular school hours.  Specialized schools, court or continuation schools or schools focusing on students with disabilities are also eligible.  A one-to-one dollar match is required.
  • K-12 STANDARDS-BASED ARTS IN AFTER-SCHOOL PROGRAMS: Projects taking place on school campuses, reinforcing, expanding and deepening the arts learning for students.  A one-to-one dollar match is required. (Example:  During the school day students are taught acting techniques and stage directions.  The reinforced, expanded and deepening activity after school may utilize those learned skills to perform a scene or a play.)
  • PLANNING GRANT-ARTISTS IN SCHOOLS:  A limited number of planning grants are available to support non-profit arts organizations with no or limited history working with schools, but have identified a school(s) in their community as a possible partner.  Awards of $2500 in this category would assist the arts organization and a school partner to plan a course of action and strategies to incorporate community arts resources into the ongoing standards-based arts activities of a school. Planning grants do not require a match.  If your organization applied and received a Planning Grant in the last cycle, you ARE NOT eligible to apply.

    Funds may support--but are not limited to--staff development workshops for artists and/or teachers, curriculum development, educational and artistic collaborations between artists and teachers, training for artists on classroom management skills and teaching pedagogy, and training to better one’s understanding of how to use the Visual and Performing Arts Content Standards effectively. CAC program staff will evaluate all completed plans.  Organizations that are successful in securing a planning grant in FY 2006-07 will be eligible to apply for program funding in FY 2007-08. Planning grants must adhere to the financial restrictions required by the state.

 

RESPONSIBILITIES
Arts Organization Coordinator must:

  • Develop a specific plan for space, time, equipment and participation with artists and school staff.
  • Introduce the artists and the residency objectives to school staff.
  • Act as facilitator and liaison between the arts organization, school(s), artists, and the CAC.
  • Comply with CAC reporting requirements.

School Site Coordinator assures that the school provides:

  • All supplies, materials and equipment necessary for the residency.
  • Appropriate space for the residency.
  • Students.

Joint Responsibilities must include:

  • Publicizing the residency to parents, school administration, county superintendents of education and local governmental officials.
  • Providing on-going assistance to the artists and teachers.


Length of Residency:

In a regular school year, the length of residency ranges from 12 weeks to 32 weeks.

Request Amount and Match:

Residency project awards up to $12,000 depending on the length, number of artists, matching ability and/or the objectives of the residency.

  • Projects require a dollar- for-dollar match, that is, one dollar of CAC funds matched by one dollar of non-state funds.
  • A minimum of 75 percent of project funds (of both CAC request and match) must be used to pay artists for residency activities.
  • Up to 25 percent of project funds may be used for project costs, other than artists’ fees.

WHAT WE DO NOT FUND

  • Projects that charge students for residency activities
  • Residencies where the primary activity is any of the following:

Artist performances, tours or exhibits
Artist fellowships or individual artistic projects
Staffing functions of arts organizations
Technical assistance or consultations to organizations or artist groups
Art therapy
Job training

If you are not certain that your project is appropriate for the Artists in Schools Program, consult CAC program staff before you prepare a proposal.

HOW APPLICATIONS ARE EVALUATED

A volunteer panel of artists, arts administrators and educators reviews all Artists in Schools applications. Recommendations of the peer review panel are submitted to the California Arts Council for final approval.
Review Criteria For Applications:

Effective Arts Organization and School Partnerships or K-12 Standards-Based Arts in After-School Programs

Artistic Quality

  • Work samples for each Artist
  • Work samples of Students (required for returning grantees)
  • Experience of each Artist (resumes)
  • Design of project

Strength of Arts Organization

  • Fiscal and managerial soundness
  • Organization Capacity

Impact of the Residency

  • School’s commitment
  • VAPA Standards
  • Project impact on students
  • Evaluation design

Planning Grant-Artists in Schools

  • Soundness of plan based on narrative
  • Strength of artistic action plan as it relates to arts organization and school goals
  • Benefit to the school and to the arts organization

APPLICATION DEADLINE
Postmark Deadline is January 30, 2008

  • Incomplete applications will not be accepted.
  • Non-requested materials will not be reviewed

TIMELINE:

Application Postmark Deadline

Panel Meeting

Award Notification

Earliest Start Date

Latest End Date

January 30
2008

March 2008

Early June
2008

October 1
2008

June 30
2009

Staff Assistance

CAC staff members are available on a limited basis to offer guidance and clarification as you prepare your application. Be sure to contact staff far enough ahead of the deadline to ensure that your question can be answered.
Contact:

Wayne Cook, Arts Program Specialist
(916) 322-6344

If you are using a Macintosh computer to fill out this AIS application and are having difficulty, please contact us so that we may assist you.