Guidelines: Operating Grant Program
Updated March 26, 2020 – Calgary Arts Development is continuing to monitor and assess the impact that COVID-19 is having on our arts sector. In these ever-changing and extraordinary circumstances the community investment team is in the process of evaluating how our grant investment programs need to shift to support the community in relevant and responsive ways.
Guidelines Prior to COVID-19
Operating Grant Increase Deadline: May 19, 2020, 4:30pm MST
Applications Open: April 13, 2020
Download as a PDF
Applications for a funding increase must be submitted through the online grant interface by the deadline of May 19, 2020, 4:30pm MST. Late submissions will not be accepted. Please see the Deadline Extension Policy for information about extensions.
Organizations who do not submit their 2020 interim report by March 30, 2020 will not be eligible to apply for increased funding. Organizations who do not submit an application will not receive additional funding beyond their base grant from 2020 to 2022.
If you have any questions about this program please review the Operating Grant Program FAQs or contact Marta Ligocki, Specialist, Arts Organizations, at 403.264.5330 ext.205 or marta.ligocki@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.
Sections
- Accommodation and Accessibility
- Program Overview
- Funding Increase Framework
- Program Criteria
- Scoring Matrix
- Assessment Process
- Application Checklist
- Additional Files
Accommodation and Accessibility
Our team is available to answer questions and to offer support at any time during the application process. Staff can provide feedback up to one week before application deadlines. Please contact your program specialist as early as you can to ensure they can provide the best support possible. Please see the program FAQs for answers to common questions, and contact the program specialist as early as you can to ensure they can provide the best support possible.
Calgary Arts Development is committed to open, fair and transparent processes. We will work one-on-one with applicants who experience barriers to access to develop accommodations that suit their abilities. Some examples of accommodations are:
- Translation of written materials.
- Interpretation for meetings.
- Grant writing assistance.
- Braille transcription.
- Physical access to meeting spaces.
- Video or audio applications.
Program Overview
Operating Grant funding increases will be determined through a hybrid formula and peer assessment process. Organizations will be placed into one of seven categories split by overall budget. Each category has a grant range of percent grant to budget, which have been set based on patterns and trends within the current cohort.
The formulas used are:
$ Total Operating Grant / $ Overall Budget (Three-year average) = % of Grant to Budget
$ Total Operating Grant – $ Base Grant = $ Increase
After the submission of interim reporting, organizations will receive a notification letter stating the following:
- Overall budget (three-year average).
- Category
- % funding range.
- Application requirements.
- Any Fair Notice Policy flags applied by staff.
Organizations who currently receive a base grant of more than 33% of their overall budget AND more than $10,000 will not be eligible for an increase, regardless of category.
Actual grant increases be allocated based on the organization’s total score in assessment. Please see the Assessment Process section for more information on the allocation process. Increases to grant amounts will be made based on demonstrated organizational strength, impact, and merit.
In order to ensure strong investments, organizations who receive a score of less than 65% will not receive an increase to their base grant.
| January – April 2020 | April 2020 | May 19, 2020 | June – July 2020 |
| Submission of interim reporting by March 30, 2020
Disbursement of base grant funds |
Calgary Arts Development staff sends notification of application requirements and potential range
Application opens April 13, 2020 |
Application deadline | Assessment and notification period
Disbursement of increase funds |
Funding Increase Framework
We recognize that this framework is not one size fits all. Process contingencies have been developed in order to address unique organizational contexts who may not fit within the framework. The applicable organizations will be notified of their unique context via the notification letter and follow-up conversations.
Please see the Category Descriptions document for full details about the categories, process contingencies, and definitions of terms.
| Category | Budget Range | Application & Reporting Requirements | Grant as % of Budget Range |
| A | up to $50,000 | Reduced application, staff assessment, reduced reporting | 14 – 16% |
| B | $50,001 – $100,000 | Reduced application, peer assessment, reduced reporting | 12 – 14% |
| C | $100,001 – $200,000 | Reduced application, peer assessment, reduced reporting | 10 – 12% |
| D | $200,001 – $500,000 | Full application, peer assessment, reduced reporting | 8 – 10% |
| E | $500,001 – $1,000,000 | Full application, peer assessment, full reporting | 6 – 8% |
| F | $1,000,001 – $3,000,000 | Full application, peer assessment, full reporting | 4 – 6% |
| G | $3,000,001 and over | Full application, peer assessment, full reporting | 3 – 5% |
Program Criteria
The Operating Grant increase will be assessed on four criteria with a total possible score of 100. Grant increases will be made based on organizational strength, impact, and merit, as outlined in the criteria below. In order to ensure strong investments, organizations who score less than 65 (which is equal to fair in the provided scoring matrix) will not receive a funding increase.
The point weighting will be the same for all categories. Please contact the program specialist for clarification of terms.
Artistic Vibrancy (35 points)
- The organization understands and demonstrates how they develop, preserve, or innovate within their artistic and cultural disciplines and communities.
- The organization understands and demonstrates how they contribute to the vibrancy and vitality of Calgary.
- The organization provides relevant and high quality artistic or cultural programming aligned with their mandate and organizational context.
- The organization understands and demonstrates how their programming and services create opportunities for artists, participants, or partners to develop and present artistic work.
Community Connection (35 points)
- The organization understands who their communities are, which may include artists, partners, audiences, volunteers, and participants.
- The organization understands and demonstrates how they impact and engage with their communities through their programming and services.
- The organization understands and demonstrates how their relationships with their communities inform and impact their work.
- The organization understands and demonstrates how they create programming and services that are accessible, inclusive, and welcoming to their communities and public.
Organizational Capacity (15 points)
- The organization understands their current opportunities and challenges and demonstrates their ability to respond.
- The organization demonstrates resource management practices that are realistic and relevant to their operational context.
- The organization demonstrates their ability to deliver on their mission through responsible decision-making practices and governance.
Strategy & Evaluation (15 points)
- The organization understands their future opportunities and challenges and demonstrates their ability to respond.
- The organization demonstrates their adaptive capacity, which includes challenging assumptions about how and why work is done, and responding to challenges and opportunities as they arise.
- The organization demonstrates how they measure and assess the impact of their programming and services, and how they reflect on, respond to, and implement the results.
Scoring Matrix
The assessment committee will use a scoring matrix to assess each criterion according to the information requested and provided in the application.
Artistic Vibrancy and Community Connection
| Weak | Fair | Good | Strong | Exceptional |
| 1 – 18 | 19 – 25 | 26 – 29 | 30 – 32 | 33 – 35 |
Organizational Capacity and Strategy & Evaluation
| Weak | Fair | Good | Strong | Exceptional |
| 1 – 6 | 7 – 8 | 9 – 10 | 11 – 13 | 14 – 15 |
Exceptional: Responses to application questions are clear, relevant, and directly address criteria. The applicant demonstrates a deep understanding of their role in Calgary. The application provides a clear and distinct vision of their context, mandate, programming, and communities. The application creates overwhelming trust and confidence that the organization will be adaptive, resilient, and impactful in the future.
Strong: Responses to application questions are clear, relevant, and directly address criteria. The applicant demonstrates a strong understanding of their role in Calgary. The application provides a clear vision of their context, mandate, programming, and communities. The application creates significant trust and confidence that the organization will be adaptive, resilient, and impactful in the future.
Good: Responses to application questions are sufficient and address criteria. The applicant demonstrates a general understanding of their role in Calgary. The application provides some clarity on their context, mandate, programming, and communities. The application creates trust that the organization will be adaptive, resilient, and impactful in the future.
Fair: Responses to application questions are limited and may not directly address criteria. The applicant demonstrates a vague understanding of their role in Calgary. The application provides limited clarity on their context, mandate, programming, and communities. The application provides limited evidence to create trust and confidence that they will be adaptive, resilient, and impactful in the future.
Weak: Responses to application are insufficient and do not address criteria. The applicant does not demonstrate or articulate their role in Calgary. The application does not provide clarity on their context, mandate, programming, and communities. The application does not provide evidence to create trust and confidence that they will be adaptive, resilient, and impactful in the future.
Assessment Process
Applications for Operating Grant increases will be assessed by a peer committee made up of artistic peers, arts champions, and artistic community members. Separate committees will be convened for categories B, C, D, E, F/G. Category A applicants will undergo a staff assessment process outlined in the Category Definitions document.
The membership of the peer assessment committee will be chosen through public nominations and staff expertise. Membership of each committee is designed to reflect the broad diversity of Calgary and its artistic communities, including but not limited to artistic discipline, gender, sexuality, age, religion, beliefs, nation, physical, and neurological identities, etc.
Please complete the Assessor Nomination Form if you are interested in nominating yourself or someone else for an assessment committee.
Committees will be selected based on the below:
- Seven-member committee per category.
- Committee members with experience and knowledge working in and with the types of arts organizations in their category.
- Artistic Peers: Artists and arts workers with experience and knowledge in the arts community as artists, staff, volunteers, board members, etc.
- Arts Champions and Artistic Community Members: Individuals who actively participate in, experience, and advocate for the work of the arts community; have perspectives and skill-sets transferable to the arts sector.
Assessment committees will read and score applications in the online granting interface according to the program criteria and scoring matrix, and then discuss each application and make final scores in a meeting facilitated by the program specialist.
Assessment committees are held to the Terms of Reference and Group Agreements intended to commit to open, generous, and respectful conversations.
After the assessments for each category have been completed, the final scores will be compiled into a list of all organizations across categories. Organizations who receive scores between 65 and 100 will receive an increase relative to their scoring position.
The potential increases to grant amounts in this program far outstrip the amount of money available in the pool. Grant allocations will be proportionally distributed within the total pool available. All organizations who receive any increase within their category percent range are considered to have demonstrated strength, impact, and merit and be successful in the program, and will not be eligible to appeal their grant amount. Please see the Appeals Policy for more information.
Application Checklist
Calgary Arts Development only accepts applications through the online granting interface. The application form opens on April 13, 2020. Applications must be submitted by May 19, 2020 4:30pm MST. Please see the Operating Grant FAQs for troubleshooting, or contact grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.
You will receive a notification by email from Calgary Arts Development no later than April 10, 2020 outlining your calculated three-year budget average and corresponding category and application requirements.
Category A applicants will be contacted directly by the program specialist to discuss the application and staff assessment process.
Category A, B, C (Budgets up to $200,000)
- 2020 Interim Report (uploaded by community investment staff)
- Organizational Mandate (6,000 characters maximum)
- Artistic Vibrancy:
- Describe how your artistic programming and services contribute to your artistic and cultural discipline and communities (2,000 characters maximum).
- Describe what artistic success might be for you in the next three years (4,000 characters maximum)
- Community Connection:
- Describe who your communities are, and how you engage with them (2,000 characters maximum).
- Describe what community success might be for you in the next three years (4,000 characters maximum).
- Organizational Capacity:
- Describe your governance and programming model (3,000 characters maximum).
- Strategy & Evaluation
- Describe how you measure and assess if you have been successful (3,000 characters maximum).
- List of Board Members (Standard CADA template or your own document)
- Organizational Structure
- Support Material (four upload fields, maximum 3MB each, video and audio material should be provided as a link)
Category D, E, F, G (Budgets over $200,000)
- 2020 Interim Report (uploaded by community investment staff)
- Organizational Mandate (6,000 characters maximum)
- Artistic Vibrancy:
- Describe how your artistic programming and services contribute to your artistic and cultural discipline and communities (3,000 characters maximum).
- Describe what artistic success might be for you in the next three years (4,000 characters maximum).
- Community Connection:
- Describe who your communities are, and how you engage with them (3,000 characters maximum).
- Describe what community success might be for you in the next three years (4,000 characters maximum).
- Organizational Capacity:
- Describe what organizational sustainability and resiliency means to you (3,000 characters maximum).
- Describe the current challenges or constraints to your organizational sustainability and resiliency. How might you respond to or mitigate these? (3,000 characters maximum).
- Describe how your governance and resource management models or practices contribute to your sustainability and resiliency (3,000 characters maximum).
- Strategy & Evaluation:
- Upload your strategic plan. If you do not have a formal strategic plan, please describe how you will plan, implement, and achieve your goals over the next three years (upload 3MB maximum or 4,000 characters maximum).
- Describe how you measure and assess the impact of your programming and services (3,000 characters maximum).
- List of Board Members (Standard CADA template or your own document)
- Organizational Structure
- Support Material (four upload fields, maximum 3MB each, video and audio material should be provided as a link)
Additional Files
Application Forms and Templates
Policies
Deadline Extension Policy
Fair Notice Policy
Appeals Policy
Accessibility and Accommodation Policy
Disclosure of Grant Information Policy
Other
Terms of Reference
Group Agreements
Frequently Asked Questions
Assessor Nomination Form
