Arts in Health Care Project Grants
Deadline: July 1, 2008 (for projects October 1, 2008 – March 31, 2009) and January 2, 2009 (for projects April 1 - September 30, 2009)

Grant Coordinator: Judy Rigmont
Judy.L.Rigmont@dcr.nh.gov
(603)271-0794

This grant category supports the presentation of arts programs, artists in residence programs, and training programs in health care and nursing home facilities.

Funds are available through the State Arts Council's Creative Communities Program to support the following arts and health care projects:

• New participatory arts programs offered in health care and nursing home facilities;
• Multi-day artist residencies in health care facilities and nursing homes where patients/residents/clients and staff are directly engaged in the creative process with professional artists;
• Arts training programs for artists, health care and nursing home staff; and
• Planning artist residency programs with practitioners, artists and consultants involved in the regional arts and healing initiative or Arts in Health Care Artist Directory.

Sample Programs

• A county nursing home initiates a new arts workshop series by professional artist(s) for its residents in painting, African drumming, storytelling and/or memoir writing.
• A professional artist works with staff, medical students and patients to create a mural or weaving to be installed in a public area of the facility.
• A theatre company or artist works with senior citizens and a service organization serving seniors to produce a theatre piece on issues facing seniors (i.e. fear of falling, loss of senses/mobility, depression) that is presented in a nursing home setting or senior centers.
• An arts organization partners with a hospital, rehabilitation center, hospice program or nursing home to offer an artist in residence program for staff, patient/client/resident and families resulting in an exhibition, publication, film or performance of their work.
• A dancer/dance company offers an adaptive dance program in a rehabilitation center or long term care facility for residents/patients and staff.
• A hospital brings in a professional musician to perform a noontime concert in lobby, cafeteria, or waiting area for staff, patients and visitors which also includes broadcast via the hospital's cable TV network and visits to individual rooms for interactive bedside programs.
• A senior center and school co-sponsor an intergenerational project involving oral histories, writing, and visual arts workshops where seniors and students tell, write, and illustrate stories. The residency culminates with publication of a book (thanks to computer students), public readings and/or an exhibit at the health care facility and school.
• A health care facility brings in a professional artist(s) to offer training sessions for their staff and other local artists.  
• A nursing home or health care organization contracts with an arts consultant to work with administrators, staff, artists or an arts organization to develop an artist in residence program or initiate a series of arts workshops for staff and/or patients/residents.

Funding priority will be given to proposals that show a commitment to sustaining arts programs beyond the life of the grant or, if a planning grant, to an implementation phase of the project.

*Note: A professional artist is defined as: "People who devote a majority of their time to practicing, performing, and/or teaching an arts discipline and who receive payment for their work in that discipline." Priority is given to artists listed on our Arts in Health Care Artist Directory or artists with a history of working in health care/nursing home environments. If the artist participating in the project for which you are seeking funding is not listed in the Arts in Health Care Artist Directory, work samples must accompany your application.

Maximum Grant Request
Requests may be made for $1,000 - $5,000. Applicants may apply for two applications per fiscal year (July 1 – June 30) with combined total grant amounts awarded not to exceed $5,000.

Important Note: All grant categories and amounts are subject to change, depending on availability of state and federal funds for any fiscal year.

Required Match
At a minimum, grants must be matched with one dollar in cash and/or in-kind goods and services for each dollar requested. In-kind goods and services may comprise up to 50% of the required match (i.e., if $1,000 is requested, at least $500 has to be a cash match and $500 can be through in-kind donations such as use of space, and supplies donated by the applicant organization). State Arts Council funds may not be matched by other State Arts Council or National Endowment for the Arts funds.

Who May Apply?
Hospitals, county and nonprofit nursing homes, veteran’s homes, hospice care programs, rehabilitation centers, assisted living facilities, visiting nurse associations, agencies serving the elderly, and arts organizations with 501 (c) (3) tax-exempt status from the IRS and not-for-profit incorporation in the State of New Hampshire that:

• Make their programs accessible to people with disabilities.
• Have submitted all required reports on past State Arts Council grants (if a previous grantee).

Restrictions
This grant does not fund:

• Projects that are already receiving funding from any other State Arts Council grant category.

The following costs are not eligible for funding and should not be included in the application's budget:

• Capital improvements, construction or purchase of non-consumable equipment, contributions to an endowment fund.
• Previously incurred debts or deficits.
• General operating expenses not related to this project; if an Operating Grant recipient, only costs associated with artist fees, travel and supplies are eligible for support.
• Hospitality costs.

How to Apply
Applicants must contact the grant coordinator prior to writing their applications. Draft applications may be reviewed if submitted at least two weeks in advance of the application deadline. First time applicants must contact the grants coordinator prior to application to determine eligibility and discuss the proposed project.

• Answer the Narrative Questions below
• Fill out the Application Form and Budget Form: MSWord / PDF
• Provide Support Materials (see Preparation of Support Materials)
• Follow the directions in How to Prepare the Application Package, as noted below.

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Deadlines
Applications must be postmarked or hand delivered to the NH State Council on the Arts office at 2½ Beacon St, second floor, Concord, by 4:15 p.m. on the deadline date noted above. Office hours are Monday - Friday, 8:15 a.m. - 4:15 p.m. The office is closed all state and most federal holidays. Late applications will not be accepted. The Council cannot accept applications transmitted by facsimile (FAX) or be responsible for applications lost in transit. Errors and omissions may affect a panel's evaluation of your application, so please prepare your application carefully and follow instructions.

Notification
Applicants will be notified of their application status within approximately six to eight weeks after the application deadline.

Payment
The NHSCA disperses funds appropriated from public sources, both federal and state. Checks are issued by Administrative Services of the State of NH, not the Department of Cultural Resources or NHSCA.

Upon receipt of properly executed grant forms, the State of New Hampshire generally pays grants under $5,000 to grantees within 4 to 6 weeks. If a grantee is awarded $5,000 or more or has received other State Arts Council funds which brings the cumulative total received for that fiscal year (July 1 – June 30) to $5,000 or above, grants need to be approved by Governor and Council; consequently, payment can take up to ten weeks. All awards are subject to availability of state and federal funds. Therefore, we ask grantees to plan cash flow accordingly.

IMPORTANT:
Payment of a grant will be withheld if final reports for previous grants are not in compliance with policy below.

Grant Period and Final Report
The grant period for the July 1, 2008 deadline is October 1, 2008 - March 31, 2009. A final report must be submitted by no later than July 31, 2009. An extension of up to three months may be requested by writing to the grant coordinator responsible for administering the grant. The request should be sent no later than July 15, 2009 and should briefly note why the extension is necessary and the date the report will be submitted. A status report will be due with the request.

 The grant period for the January 2, 2009 deadline is April 1, 2009 - September 30, 2009 . A final report must be submitted by no later than October 31, 2009. No extensions may be granted.

Failure to submit the final report by the required date will result in the organization becoming ineligible to apply for NHSCA funding for two years. Additionally, failure to submit the final report may result in a withholding of funds from any currently awarded NHSCA grant. Click here for the Final Report Download Center.

Funding Criteria
The following criteria are used by the panelists to rate applications:

Quality of Arts Programming/Services (If applicable to project)

• Artistic merit of participating artists
• Use of professional artists listed in the Arts in Health Care Directory or professional NH/visiting artists with a history of working in health care settings
• More than one arts Program presented while the artist is in the facility (e.g., multiple performances; and/or variety of programs offered, including performances, lecture-demonstrations, workshops, classes, staff training)

Response to Audience/Community (If applicable to project)

• Opportunities for residents, patients and staff to actively participate in the creative process
• Evidence of support and involvement with staff
• Efforts to educate participants and broaden their appreciation of the arts
• Skills of staff in presentation of arts programs are enhanced
• Likelihood of having a broad impact on participants
• Degree of physical and programmatic accessibility/Americans with Disabilities Act compliance

Administrative Capacity (If applicable to project)

• Clarity and feasibility of project design
• Realistic budgetary projections
• Budget reflects cash revenue and/or in-kind donations (private donations, corporate or business support, donated space and supplies, lodging for the artist while in residence, if necessary)
• Sound public relations or marketing plan to make community aware of the program
• Realistic timetable for project
• Qualifications of project director/trainer/consultant
• Experience of artist in overseeing projects
• Sound plan for use of volunteers and/or staff

Evaluation/Documentation (If applicable to project)

• Useful evaluation methodology
• Plan for documentation of project (photographs, filming, written)

Sustainability (If applicable to project)

• Plan to sustain arts programming beyond the grant period

Narrative Questions
Please answer the following narrative questions on no more than 5 typed pages. Margins, fonts (not smaller than 12 point), and spacing should provide easy reading for the panelists. Please be sure to number and respond to the following questions in the order in which they appear noting the section titles in bold.

NOTE:
For Arts Programs/Artist Residencies: Answer all questions.
For Planning/Training Projects: Answer all EXCEPT #’s 5, 12 & 13.

Who You Are and What You Want to Do

1. Organizational Profile: Provide a short profile of your organization including its mission and who it serves.

2. Project Description: Summarize your proposed project noting:

• Participating artists* or consultants;
• Programs or services being offered;
• When the project will occur;
• Location(s) of program(s);
• Targeted participants and audience;
• If a public art project: explain how and when you plan to present or display the new work within your facility and how the staff and population you serve will be engaged in the creative process with the resident artist.
• If a planning project: attach a timeline (maximum one page) noting projected meeting dates, participants, and objectives.

* Note: If participating artists are not listed in the NHSCA Arts in Health Care Directory, attach resumes, three references, and work samples.

Why You Are Doing It

3. Project Goal(s): Explain the goal(s) and intended outcomes of this project.

How You Are Going to Do It

4. Financing: Complete the project budget expense and income forms. Provide a brief narrative describing how you plan to meet the cash match and note in-kind donations. Make sure that the project costs outlined on the budget forms correspond with the narrative.

5. Marketing/Outreach Plan: If this project involves an artist residency/programs culminating with a performance or exhibit for the public, describe how you will market/promote the event to attract an audience

6. Selection of Participants: How will participants be selected?

7. Accessibility: Identify the ways you will provide access to people with disabilities and/or senior citizens so they may benefit from this project (i.e., physical access, programmatic access via large print programs and signage, sign language interpretation, assistive listening devices, adaptive equipment, transportation).

8. Project Director/Consultant/Trainer: Include name and qualifications of the staff project coordinator, consultant, or trainer who will be involved with this project and attach a short bio or his/her resume.

How You Will Evaluate and Document It

9. Evaluation: How will you measure if your project’s goals and intended outcomes listed above (#3) were met? Please attach copies of evaluation forms, if available.

10. Project Documentation: How do you plan to document this project (i.e., video, web site, print, photography)?

11. Sustainability: How do you plan to build on the impetus of this project in order to sustain arts programming in your facility? Are future arts programs being planned?

12. Community Involvement: Will the community be involved in this project? If so, how?

13. Volunteers: Will volunteers be used for this project? If so, how? Is there a Volunteer Coordinator?

Required Support Materials
Four copies of

• List of current board or arts advisory committee members with addresses and occupations.
• Financial Statement for most recently completed fiscal year.
• Resume or bio of project director, consultant or trainer.
• Evaluation Forms, if available.
• Timetable (for planning projects only).

One copy of

• Work samples for artists who are not already juried by the State Arts Council or participating in the regional arts and healing initiative (e.g., CDs, DVDs, audio or videotape(s), slides, manuscript pages). See Preparation of Work Samples for instructions on preparing work samples/support materials.
• First-time applicants only: tax-exempt status letter from the Internal Revenue Service.

How to Prepare the Application Package
1. Fill out and sign the original application form and make 3 copies.
2. Fill out the original project budget form and make 3 copies.
3. Complete the narrative questions and make 3 copies.
4. Collate the original and 3 copies of the application form, project budget form, narrative questions, list of board members, financial statement, project director's/consultant’s or trainer’s resume/bio, written materials about artists (if not juried by the Council), program materials, timetable (if planning project) and evaluation form(s), resulting in a total of 4 sets (original plus 3 copies).
5. The original application and all collated supporting materials are for Council files. Add to this set the single copy of IRS letter, if applicable, and work samples of artists, if applicable. Please include a SASE if you want your audio-visual materials returned.
6. The other three copies of the collated materials are for the review panelists. Please do not use binders or folders for the 4 separate sets of materials. It is helpful if you use post-it notes or label the application cover sheets to indicate original, set 1, 2 and 3. Staples and clips are acceptable. Four separate, large envelopes may be used to contain the collated supporting materials, if applicable.
7. Don't forget to make a copy of the application for your files!
8. Mail everything together in one package, putting the set with the application form with original signature on top.

Last updated: February 12, 2008