Artist Development Microgrant 2024

We will work one-on-one with assessors who experience barriers to access to develop accommodations that suit their unique abilities and situations. Some examples of accommodation are:

• Language interpretation during meetings.
• Translation of written materials.
• Transcription of verbal meetings or audio and video recordings into a written document.
• Access to a loaner laptop from Calgary Arts Development.
• Support for other expenses necessary to attend required meetings (like childcare coverage or parking costs for in-person meetings, if applicable).

Our team is available to answer questions and offer support during the assessment process. Please contact the program specialist as early as you can to ensure they can provide the best support possible.

The primary contact person for this program is Taylor Poitras, Grant Specialist. They can be reached at taylor.poitras@calgaryartsdevelopment.com or 403.264.5330 ext. 215.

The membership of the peer assessment committees will be chosen through public nominations and staff expertise.

Anyone can ask to participate on a Calgary Arts Development assessment committee by completing the assessor nomination form or by emailing grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.

Assessment committees are chosen to represent the broad diversity of Calgary and its artistic communities, including artistic discipline, gender, sexuality, age, religion, beliefs, nation, physical and neurological identities, and more.

• Committee Size: The volume of applications received will determine the number and/or size of committees required to assess the program.
• Committee Membership: Individual artists and arts workers with experience and knowledge from a variety of artistic disciplines and practices, who actively participate in, experience and advocate for the arts community’s work.

Qualifications

• Relevant skills, experience and knowledge that will accommodate the range of applicants to be juried.
• A generous spirit, strong listening skills and a willingness and ability to embrace change, complexity and different viewpoints.
• An openness to productively and respectfully check in with bias.
• An understanding and awareness of Calgary and region, and an insight into our social and cultural climate.
• Respect of peers in the community.
• The ability to function well within a committee structure.

Assessors are responsible for participating in each part of the assessment process. Full participation is mandatory to ensure all perspectives are present throughout the process and applied fairly to each application assigned.

TIME COMMITMENT:

October 2024: Attend assessor training.

• Participate in one two-hour training and orientation session, hosted by Calgary Arts Development, in preparation for the review process. This will be hosted online or hybrid (i.e. with an option to attend online or in-person at the Calgary Arts Development office).

Mid-October – Mid-November: Review applications.

• Individually review the contents of each application assigned online.
• Applications will not be scored based on program criteria. Assessment committees are responsible for reviewing applications for eligibility. This includes ensuring that applications are complete and that requested expenses and activities align with the program guidelines.

Mid-November: Lottery process.

• Calgary Arts Development staff will review the final list from the assessment committees and make the final decision on eligibility, as needed.
• The $500,000 pool available for this program will be divided between the two program streams based on the number of applicants that apply to that stream, and the dollar amount requested within that stream:
  • Professional and Artistic Skill Development Stream
  • Business and Career Development Stream
• All eligible applications will be entered into a lottery for each stream.
• Applications will be drawn at random and awarded funding until the available funds run out.

October 2024 – December 2025: Experience Arts Events.

• As part of your participation in the assessment process, Calgary Arts Development will provide up to two tickets anonymously on your behalf to up to three public events or programming that Calgary Arts Development has directly funded.
• This is to ensure that you’re able to experience the arts within the local community. Beyond participating in the assessment process, we hope that you will advocate for the arts in Calgary and encourage your respective communities to participate in Calgary’s vibrant arts sector.

Calgary Arts Development will provide an honorarium to assessors as a gift to recognize their time. Since gifts and honoraria are considered taxable under Canada Revenue Agency, Calgary Arts Development will be required to issue a T4A tax form to assessors for the full amount of their honorarium for the year in which the payment was received. A T4A is given for any honorarium amount over $500.

Honorarium rates for this program are as follows:

• Reading Fee: $10 per application
• Training / Orientation Session Fee: $100

The honorarium will be provided to assessors after the review process is completed.

Assessors will report to Calgary Arts Development staff. All deliberations of the assessment committee and all records, material and information obtained by a member and not generally available to the public shall be considered confidential.

Adhering to the Confidentiality Policy, assessors shall maintain the confidentiality of their deliberations and shall safeguard such records and information from improper access.

Assessors are required to declare conflicts of interest according to the Conflict of Interest Policy. Calgary Arts Development thinks of conflicts of interest as close family members, people who are involved in the activity being applied for or where there is a real or perceived financial benefit. If in doubt, assessors are encouraged to talk with Calgary Arts Development staff. If a committee member has applied to the program or declared a conflict of interest, they will not assess those specific applications or be present for any discussions of those applications.

Calgary Arts Development reserves the right to remove individuals from the process or assessment committee if they do not adhere to the terms of reference, program guidelines, group agreements, conflict of interest policy or confidentiality policy, or if their conduct is otherwise counter to the stated values and expectations of this program.

Artist Development Microgrant Program Guidelines
Group Agreements
Conflict of Interest Policy
Confidentiality Policy
Assessor Nomination Form
Equity Priority Group Descriptions
Commitment to Equity