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Following are answers to the most frequently asked questions about the Creative Connections Fund.
General
Process overview and response times
Supporting documents (IRS letters, financial statements)
Eligibility
Fiscal sponsors
Organizations with budgets less than $100,000
Competitiveness
How to prepare a competitive application
Organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area
Budget
Maximum grant request
Indirect costs
Applying for a second time
Renewals
Applying after a previous denial
Concurrent grants
Technical questions
Cultural Data Profile
Accessing a saved application to the Creative Connections Fund
Uploading your Creative Connections Fund application
Privacy and security
Process overview and response times
The application review process takes approximately 12 weeks, and it consists of three steps:
- Organization submits an application. You will receive an automatic email letting you know that your application has been successfully submitted. This email will be sent to the executive director of the applying organization.
- Irvine staff confirms eligibility. Our Grants Administration staff will conduct an initial review of your application to determine eligibility. If your organization is not eligible, we will contact you as soon as possible, generally within four weeks. If you do not hear from our staff, your organization is eligible for funding, and the application is being reviewed.
- Funding decision. We will notify you, by letter, with a final decision about funding, generally within 12 weeks of the application deadline. This letter will be mailed to the executive director of the applying organization.
Supporting documents
You do not need to submit any supporting documents with your Creative Connections Fund application. Irvine will receive a variety of organizational and financial information through your Cultural Data Profile (see Step 3 of the application process). More information on the Cultural Data Project can be found at
www.caculturaldata.org.
Fiscal sponsors
If your organization does not have 501(c)(3) status or is tax-exempt under any IRS code other than 501(c)(3), we will accept the application if you have an established relationship with one of the following fiscal sponsors:
Our experience is that these organizations meet a high standard of care in how they oversee and interact with projects for which they accept fiscal responsibility. Over the years, we have developed confidence in and experience with these fiscal sponsors, and we can immediately rely on their judgment and oversight.
If your organization has a relationship with another fiscal sponsor, you may not apply in the current application round. However, we are open to learning more about your fiscal sponsor and the degree of oversight that organization provides, and we might decide to approve the fiscal sponsor for future application rounds. To ask our Grants Administration staff to consider a fiscal sponsor not on the above list, please email us at grantsadmin@irvine.org.
Organizations with budgets less than $100,000
We have found that very small organizations often have a difficult time presenting a competitive application when compared with larger arts organizations in a funding process like the Creative Connections Fund. For this reason, we restrict eligibility to organizations that have a track record of generating $100,000 or more in revenue each year. At the same time, we respect the effort and dedication of the volunteers and staff at very small organizations, and we offer other ways for grassroots organizations to receive Irvine support. We provide regranting dollars to a variety of intermediary organizations that provide coaching and technical assistance to very small organizations, in addition to grant funds. A list of arts intermediaries that provide Irvine regranting funds is available here, and we recommend that you visit each organization’s Web site for further details.
How to prepare a competitive application
Funding through the Creative Connections Fund is extremely competitive, and we anticipate being able to fund only 10 to 15 percent of applications received. We offer applicants the following advice:
- Double check the eligibility requirements to ensure that your organization is eligible for Irvine funding. If you have questions about eligibility, you may email our Grants Administration staff at grantsadmin@irvine.org
- Think critically about how well your project aligns with our criteria. Many worthy and important projects across the state apply for funding. However, we are able to fund only those projects that most closely align with our criteria and, even then, we must regrettably say "no" to many worthy projects.
- Apply under one category only. If your project could fit within both categories, please choose the one that most closely fits your project.
- Attend an information session about the Creative Connections Fund. We offer a free, hands-on workshop, in partnership with the Foundation Center, on how to write a more effective grant application. Please check our current schedule for specific locations and dates.
Organizations in the San Francisco Bay Area
Organizations based in the San Francisco Bay Area are eligible to apply to the Creative Connections Fund. However, we give preference to organizations outside the Bay Area. We realize that this is disappointing to many excellent arts organizations. But the Bay Area's arts sector has funding resources that far exceed those of other regions of the state, and as a statewide organization, Irvine has decided to focus particular attention on areas that are, by comparison, underserved by philanthropy. A recent study, for example, found that the nine-county Bay Area receives $250 in foundation funding per capita — and San Francisco County receives an impressive $678 per capita. By comparison, the San Joaquin Valley receives only $16 in foundation funding per capita.
(Source: Foundation Giving in California, 2006.) Irvine seeks to offer resources broadly across the state, reaching all regions in relative proportion to population.
Maximum grant request
Organizations may request a grant of no more than 10 percent of the organization's annual budget per year, to a maximum of $50,000. This restriction helps ensure that an organization does not become dependent on Irvine funding or experience instability when the Irvine grant ends.
Indirect costs
We believe that quality artistic programs need strong organizations to implement and sustain them, and we see a direct link between supporting organizational capacity and achieving program impact and, ultimately, our mission. Staffing or other operating costs that directly relate to the proposed project may be requested as separate line items in the project budget. In addition, Creative Connections Fund applicants may request up to 10 percent of their grant for indirect costs to support the organization's general operations. Indirect costs should be included as a budget line item, with the total grant request not to exceed $50,000.
Renewals
If you have received a previous Irvine grant (through our invitational portfolio, the New Connections Fund or Creative Connections Fund), you may apply to the Creative Connections Fund for renewal funding. For most organizations, we generally recommend that you propose a different project than the one which was originally funded, as the Creative Connections Fund is designed to support a diversity of projects and ideas.
Applying after a previous denial
If you have previously applied for a New Connections Fund or Creative Connections Fund grant and were denied funding, we encourage you to carefully review the funding guidelines before reapplying. The Creative Connections Fund is highly competitive, and we are able to fund only those projects that most tightly align with our criteria, with preference given to projects outside of the San Francisco Bay Area. We do not encourage applicants to reapply, round after round, for the same project.
Concurrent grants
We do not award concurrent grants. If you have an active grant from the Irvine Foundation, whether through our invitational portfolio, the New Connections Fund or the Creative Connections Fund, you should not apply for a new grant until current Irvine funding has ended.
Cultural Data Profile
If you have questions about any aspect of the California Cultural Data Project or submitting your Funder Report for the Creative Connections Fund, please contact:
California CDP Help Desk
Toll Free: 1-866-9-CALCDP
Email: help@caculturaldata.org
The California CDP Help Desk is available Monday – Friday from 9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Pacific Time.
Accessing a saved application to the Creative Connections Fund
When you save an application, you will be prompted to create a username (your email address) and a password. The system will send a confirming email to the email address provided. Saved applications can be accessed at https://www.grantrequest.com/SID_377. You will need to enter the correct username and password.
Uploading your Creative Connections Fund application
You will need to upload two files: your completed application and your Funder Report generated by the California Cultural Data Project (in PDF format). When you are ready to upload these files, please use this link to launch Irvine’s online system. After entering a variety of administrative data, you will be prompted to upload the files. Click on the browse button, which will allow you to "browse" your computer files. Go to the location on your computer where you saved the files, and select "Upload." Once uploaded, the first document will appear in the Uploaded Files box at the top of the screen. Repeat this process to upload the second document.
Privacy and security
By accepting proposals online, we are able to gather information directly from grantseekers (such as contact details, geographic region served) and transfer that information into our grants database. This saves time, reduces errors in data entry, and streamlines the process for the grantseeker. It also allows our staff to review your materials electronically without having to receive multiple copies of your proposal. The technology that enables us to receive proposals online is made available through
MicroEdge Technologies, the developer of our grants database, and it is being increasingly used by other foundations. The application system is private and secure, and we encourage you to visit the MicroEdge Web site if you have any questions about the protection of your organization's information.
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Online Grants Database