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Frequently Asked Questions
Clarification to Creative Schools grant request limits
If you are applying for funding under the Creative Schools program, please note that the grant request limits listed in the guidelines are per year, as follows:
Individual schools may request up to $10,000 per year.
School districts may submit the number of applications listed below. It
is the responsibility of each district to make sure that the total request
from all applications within the district does not exceed the following
per year :
| Students in district |
Applications per district |
Total request per district per year |
| Up to 10,000 | 3 |
$30,000 per year |
| 10,000 - 20,000 |
4 |
$30,000 per year |
| 20,000 - 40,000 |
5 |
$35,000 per year |
| Above 40,000 |
6 |
$40,000 per year |
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Is the Creative Schools Program grant
a 2-year grant?
Yes. Eligible projects must occur over the course of two school years.
This allows applicants to do more in-depth work and to build stronger
relationships with artists, scholars, scientists and cultural organizations.
NOTE: The next application deadline is February 27, 2008.
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What is the Creative Schools Program?
The Creative Schools Program provides support for schools and school districts
to strengthen teaching and learning in the arts, humanities and interpretive
sciences. Projects supported by the program connect directly with school
and district curriculum and educational goals. Eligible projects include
curriculum development, in-depth artist-in-residence programs (five days
per year or more), educator professional development, and arts education
planning. The MCC is particularly interested in receiving proposals from
schools and districts serving high percentages of low-income students.
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How do we apply?
The next application deadline is February 27, 2008. Guidelines
can be viewed online.
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What assistance is available for schools
preparing applications?
MCC staff members are available to assist schools and districts throughout
their planning process. Contact MCC's Creative
Schools Program Manager to talk through potential projects and how
they might fit with the goals of the program.
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Can a school apply to the Creative Schools Program
to bring in an artist-in-residence?
Applicants interested in bringing an artist or organization into a school
for six days per year or more may apply to the Creative Schools Program.
However, the application must make a strong link between the residency
and the school's curriculum.
Residencies must include professional development for participating
teachers in each year to assist classroom teachers and specialists in
understanding the residency goals and to help them determine how best
to integrate the residency work with the curriculum.
Schools that want to bring in artists for one- to five-day programs
are encouraged to seek support from resources in their community.
In many communities, such funding is available through local
cultural councils. Applicants should contact
the LCC in their community before applying, to review their
council's funding guidelines and priorities. The annual deadline
for LCC applications is October 15 (or the Monday following
if Oct. 15 falls on a weekend).
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Are there limits on the number of applications a
school or district can submit?
Individual schools may submit only one application and request up to $10,000.
School districts may submit the number of applications listed below.
It is the responsibility of each district to make sure that the total
request from all applications within the district does not exceed the
following:
| Students in district |
Applications per district |
Total request per district per year |
| Up to 10,000 | 3 |
$30,000 per year |
| 10,000 - 20,000 |
4 |
$30,000 per year |
| 20,000 - 40,000 |
5 |
$35,000 per year |
| Above 40,000 |
6 |
$40,000 per year |
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Are there limits on the amount of funding
a school or district can request?
An individual school may request up to $10,000 per year. See chart
above for limit on district requests per year.
Grants are awarded based on a competitive review of all the applications.
For grants given in fiscal year 2008, funding ranged from $4,000
to more than $24,000.
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Can we request a different grant amount
for the second project year?
No. The requested grant amount must stay the same for both project
years.
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How can a school find out if other district
schools are also applying?
Potential applicants should contact their district's arts coordinator/administrator
before applying to the Creative Schools Program. All applicants
are required to submit a letter of commitment from the district's
arts coordinator as part of their proposals. Therefore, the
coordinator will be aware of other schools' projects.
If your district does not have an arts coordinator, the district
administrator responsible for implementing the district's arts
curriculum, including supervising arts teachers, should write
the letter.
The MCC strongly encourages collaboration between schools to
make the best use of limited funds. If your project is similar
to that of another school in your district, you should consider
applying together.
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What are the matching requirements for
the Creative Schools Program in this cycle?
Matching requirements vary according to how long a project has
received two-year funding through Creative Schools. First cycle
projects (years 1 and 2 of Creative Schools funding) must provide
a 2:1 match. That is, for every $2 the MCC provides, grantee
schools/districts must contribute $1 or more in cash and in-kind
goods or services. Returning projects (years 3, 4, and beyond)
must provide a 1:1 match.
The MCC encourages applicants to think creatively about sources of matching
funds. Local businesses and local education foundations can also be potential
sources for funding. Local Cultural Council grants or funds distributed
through other MCC programs cannot be used as part of the match.
Schools and districts, particularly those with limited financial
resources, may apply towards their match some ordinary budget
expenses such as the salary equivalent of personnel time a teacher
spends on a Creative Schools project, or the cost of school
arts supplies, provided that the costs are related specifically
to the project. MCC funds cannot be used to pay for any portion
of teacher salaries.
Creative Schools applications that provide evidence of cash
contributions by the school or district are likely to be more
competitive.
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Can an independent or parochial school
apply? The Creative Schools Program application asks for information
and letters of commitment that do not seem applicable. How should
an independent/parochial school fulfill these requirements?
All schools are eligible to apply. The MCC asks that you submit as much
relevant information as possible, substituting terms widely used in public
schools with your own. For example, a letter from the Superintendent may
be substituted with one from the chair of your school's board of directors
or advisory committee. For the curriculum, include your school's strategic
plan or list of educational goals and objectives for the year. Contact
MCC staff members if you have additional questions.
Don't forget to include your FEID number on the first page of
the application.
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When is the next application deadline for
the Creative Schools Program?
The next application deadline is February 27, 2008.
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