Guidelines: Recovery Fund

Guidelines: Recovery Fund

Letter of Intent Deadline: July 27, 2020, 4:30pm MDT
Letter of Intent Opens: June 26, 2020
Application Deadline: August 10, 2020, 4:30pm MDT
Download as a PDF

Letters of intent and applications must be submitted by the stated deadline. Late submissions will not be accepted. Please see the Deadline Extension Policy for information about extensions.

Letters of intent and applications are accepted through the online grant interface. If this is your first time submitting an application to Calgary Arts Development you will need to create a profile from the login page. If you have any questions or need assistance in setting up a profile or creating an application, please contact grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.

Please note that in order to access applications for this program, you must receive an access code from Calgary Arts Development staff. Please see the How to Apply and Application Checklist sections below for more information.

Calgary Arts Development staff are continuing to work remotely. If you have any questions about this program please contact grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com.

Sections

Accommodation and Accessibility

Calgary Arts Development is committed to open, fair, and transparent processes. While we may not be able to meet in person at the current moment, our team will be available to answer questions and offer support during the application process either over the phone, through email, or through the use of audio and video platforms.

Please see the investment 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. Staff can provide feedback up to one week before application deadlines.

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
  • Grant writing assistance
  • Transcription
  • Video or audio applications
  • Interpretation for phone or video meetings (Note: This will depend on the availability of external service agencies)

Program Overview

Calgary Arts Development has been granted $2,000,000 by The City of Calgary in one-time Emergency Resiliency Funds. The purpose of these funds is to enable non-profits, including The City’s civic and community partners, to continue to serve Calgarians during the response phase of the COVID-19 pandemic by ensuring adequate services are available, and to pursue partner capacity to support Calgary’s social, economic, and cultural recovery. This grant will be distributed equally through two programs, this Recovery Fund, and the Resiliency Fund.

The Recovery Fund is open to current Operating Grant clients and registered non-profit or charitable arts organizations. Applicants must either be Calgary-based, or be able to demonstrate that they make significant contributions to the arts that are accessible to Calgary citizens on an ongoing basis.

Applicants may apply for up to $50,000 to develop and implement strategic recovery and resiliency plans. The application should demonstrate how the support will work towards or help ensure long term sustainability. The Recovery Fund will be considered unrestricted operating funds (excluding capital contributions to property or land), but organizations should be considering any of the following:

  • Human Resources: Staff salaries, wages, contract fees, etc.
  • Strategic Planning: Creation or redevelopment of recovery, resiliency, scenario, or
    strategic plans
  • Administration or Operations: Fixed expenses, overhead, technology, etc.

This program will be assessed by a peer committee. Please see Assessment Process below, and Terms of Reference for further information.

How to Apply

I do not receive a Calgary Arts Development Operating Grant (new clients)

Organizations not currently receiving operational funds from Calgary Arts Development must complete a letter of intent in the online grant interface outlining their artistic mandate, non-profit status, and impact from COVID-19.

Letters of intent will be assessed by Calgary Arts Development staff who will provide the access code to the application process if eligibility is met. Letters of Intent must be submitted in the grant interface by Monday, July 27, 2020, 4:30pm MDT. Letters of Intent will be reviewed by staff on a rolling basis and eligible organizations will be granted access to the application form no later than Friday, July 31, 2020.

I am applying to the Operating Grant Increase Program

Operating Grant organizations must email Alisha Gordon at alisha.gordon@calgaryartsdevelopment.com to receive the access code for the Recovery Fund application. Organizations must email with their intent to apply no later than Monday, July 27, 2020, 4:30pm MDT.

All relevant information from the Operating Grant Increase program will be copied by Calgary Arts Development staff into the application form, but organizations must complete the remainder of the application, upload their own support material and submit the application by the deadline of August 10, 2020, 4:30pm MDT.

I am an Operating Grant client but am not applying to the Operating Grant Increase Program

Operating Grant organizations who are not eligible for an increase or who will not be applying for an increase must email Alisha Gordon at alisha.gordon@calgaryartsdevelopment.com to receive the access code for the Emergency Resiliency Fund application. Organizations must email with their intent to apply no later than Monday, July 27, 2020, 4:30pm MDT.

Program Criteria

In order to make a strong case for the Recovery Fund, organizations should demonstrate:

  • Loss of revenue due to COVID-19.
  • Cancellation, postponement, or loss of programming due to COVID-19.
  • Planned investment of the funds into the foundation of their organization in order to become adaptive to uncertain futures with the hopes of ensuring long term sustainability.

Applications will be assessed based on three criteria with a total possible score of 100. In order to ensure strong investments, organizations who score less than 55 (which is equal to fair in the provided scoring matrix) will not be funded through this program. Due to the competitive nature of this program and the significant need in the arts sector, maximum grant requests cannot be guaranteed.

Reflection & Response (35 points)
  • The organization demonstrates a strong awareness of how their organization has been impacted by COVID-19 to date.
  • The organization demonstrates how they have responded to this impact through adapting or altering their programming and operations to date.
  • The organization has considered how the ongoing impacts of COVID-19 will affect their ability to deliver programming and operate into the future.
  • The organization demonstrates a plan on how to adapt to the new normal and a clear description of how the funding will be used.
Strategy & Adaptation (35 points)
  • The organization has demonstrated an ability to adapt, experiment, innovate, or strategize in order to continue meeting their mandate.
  • The organization has demonstrated how the allocation of funds will contribute to their ability to adapt, experiment, innovate, or strategize.
Organizational Capacity (30 points)
  • The organization has demonstrated the financial, operational, and governance capacity to develop and implement a recovery plan or strategy.
  • The organization has demonstrated the financial, operational, and governance capacity to address and mitigate risk.

Scoring Matrix

The assessment committee will use a scoring matrix to assess each criterion according to the information requested and provided in the application.

Reflection & Response and Strategy & Adaptation (35 points each)
Weak Fair Good Strong Exceptional
1 – 18 19 – 25 26 – 29 30 – 32 33 – 35
Organizational Capacity (30 points)
Weak Fair Good Strong Exceptional
1 – 16 17 – 21 22 – 24 25 – 27 28 – 30

Exceptional: Responses to application questions are clear, relevant, and directly address criteria. The application provides a clear and distinct vision of their organizational context, a strong critical self-awareness of their current state, and a clear sense of how plans and decisions are made. 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 application provides a clear vision of their organizational context, a critical self-awareness of their current state, and a clear sense of how plans and decisions are made. 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 application provides some clarity on their organizational context, some self-awareness of their current state, and a sense of how plans and decisions are made. 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 application provides limited clarity on their organizational context, limited self-awareness of their current state, and a limited sense of how plans and decisions are made. The application provides limited evidence to create trust and confidence that the organization will be adaptive, resilient, and impactful in the future.

Weak: Responses to application are insufficient and do not address criteria. The application does not provide clarity on their organizational context, no self-awareness of their current state, and no sense of how plans and decisions are made. 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 to the program will be assessed by an independent, arm’s-length assessment committee made up of artistic peers and community members. Calgary Arts Development staff will select committee members.

Any individual may request to participate in a peer committee by completing the Assessor Nomination Form.

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.

  • Five-member committees.
  • Representation across artistic disciplines, practices, and organizational experience.
  • 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.

The assessment committee will read and score applications in the online grant interface, then discuss each application in a meeting facilitated by Calgary Arts Development staff and make final grant recommendations based on applicant’s total scores.

Assessment committees are held to the Terms of Reference and Group Agreements intended to commit to open, generous, and respectful conversations.

Please see the Disclosure of Grant Information Policy for information about how Calgary Arts Development collects and uses information submitted through grant applications.

Application Checklist

Letter of Intent (new clients only)

If your organization wishes to be considered for the Recovery Fund, you must complete a letter of intent through the online grant interface. The letter of intent will be assessed by Calgary Arts Development staff, and eligible organizations will be given an access code to complete the Recovery Fund application.

  • Organization Name
  • Contact Information
  • Organization Mandate (6,000 characters maximum)
  • Briefly describe how your artistic programming and services contribute to your artistic and cultural discipline and communities (2,000 characters maximum).
  • Briefly describe who your communities are, and how you engage with them (2,000 characters maximum).
  • Please indicate how you have been impacted by COVID-19 (select all):
    • Loss of revenue
    • Cancellation of programming
    • Loss of audiences or participants
    • Staff layoffs
    • Increased expenses
    • Other
  • Proof of non-profit or charitable status (upload field)

Application

Note to Clients Submitting an Operating Grant Increase Application: The bolded fields below are duplicated from the increase application. Leaving the fields blank in the Recovery Fund application will indicate to Calgary Arts Development that you would like your responses from your OG increase application to be copied over.

  • Contact Information (name, address, phone, email)
  • Grant Request (up to $50,000)
  • Describe your proposed plan to become more adaptive or move your organization towards recovery and resiliency, including how you will allocate the funds. Please include a description of the opportunities, challenges, and assumptions that you considered in your planning (10,000 characters maximum)
  • Financial Statements (Statement of Operations and Balance Sheet for last completed fiscal year, with two years comparison)
  • Draft or To-Date Financial Statements for current fiscal year (Statement of Operations and Balance Sheet)
  • Current fiscal year monthly cash flow forecast (standard CADA template or your own document)
  • Organizational Mandate (6,000 characters maximum)
  • Current State: COVID-19
    • Describe the impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on your current programming, operations, and strategic plan (3,000 characters maximum).
    • Describe how your organization has responded to this impact, and how you have adapted or altered your programming and operations (3,000 characters maximum).
    • Describe how your organization is planning for the future in the context of these impacts (3,000 characters maximum).
  • If your organization has received emergency or recovery support from other levels of government, or other programs, please list them here (1,000 characters maximum).
  • Upload your strategic plan, if available (optional).
  • Support Material (four upload fields, maximum 3MB each, video and audio material should be provided as a link)

Audio or video files cannot be directly uploaded to the granting interface. Instead, they must be uploaded to a file sharing site such as YouTube, Vimeo or Dropbox with the link provided in the application. If the link requires a password to access the audio or video file, please provide that in your application as well.

Please contact grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com early on if you require assistance.

Additional Files

Application Templates

Cash Flow Template

Policies

Deadline Extension Policy
Accessibility and Accommodation Policy
Disclosure of Grant Information Policy

Other

Terms of Reference
Group Agreements
Frequently Asked Questions
Assessor Nomination Form

Successful Applications and Final Reporting

Applicants will be notified of their results by email. Successful applicants will be sent an investment agreement via DocuSign and are required to sign and return the agreement within 30 days of receiving it in order to receive funding.

A short interim report will be assigned to you in the grant interface, due by November 1, 2020. This is part of the City of Calgary requirements for this funding in order to report back to council:

  • What impacts has this funding had on your organization and what have you used it for? If you have not yet expended the funds, what do you plan on using them for? (maximum 500 words)

A final report will be assigned to you in the grant interface, due by April 1, 2021. This is part of the City of Calgary requirements for this funding in order to report back to council:

  • Provide a one-page update describing the impact this fund has had on your organization and why.
  • Provide an outline of what these funds were budgeted and used for.

Successful applicants may also be asked to participate in optional surveys, research, and peer-to-peer learning. Please contact grants@calgaryartsdevelopment.com with any questions about reporting requirements.

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