Launched in 2019, the Arts Innovator Micro Grant Program was created to encourage and support artists in San Bernardino County to continue or jumpstart innovative work they are building or imagining. We hope to nourish a future where those visions take shape and take flight in service to a more creative, more possible future for all.
The visual, literary, and performing artists in San Bernardino County do not receive the funding and recognition they deserve from private and public funding sources statewide and nationally, and this grant program intends to change that by providing local individual artists of all disciplines and backgrounds with funding and technical assistance to support project development or career advancement. Applicants must choose to apply in one of these two categories: Impact Projects or
Creative Career Advancement.
One-time grants of $500 and $1,000 are awarded based on a peer review panel process using the selection criteria listed in these guidelines. Artists of all disciplines, ages, and backgrounds are welcome and encouraged to apply. Artists must live and work in San Bernardino County.
The number of grants given each year will vary. Grants will not be given to previous recipients.
Impact Project Development: Proposed projects do not have to be completed with this funding; this can be start-up funding for a new idea, or supplemental funding for ongoing projects. Projects do not need to be large in scope, but they should demonstrate impact on the community served or impact on the artistic practice, or project, in focus. For example, proposed projects might be single events, a series, or an exhibition of a new body of work. Applicants will be asked to share the intended impact area: social (broader), community (local or specific), or personal practice.
Creative Career Advancement: Proposed work should reflect relevant and time-sensitive needs to support the artist’s career. Examples include, but are not limited to, attending mentoring or professional development workshops and training, covering the applicant’s residency fees, software subscriptions or equipment purchases, or compensating research time to develop new work, or complete a portion of an ongoing project.
Introduction and Ice Breaker
Dialogue: What it culture?
Neighborhood exploration
Planning 101
Short term cultural planning
Tactical Urbanism demonstration
Long term cultural planning
Arts Connection’s Fiscal Sponsorship Program provides administrative support and guidance to artists, projects and other organizations, working in a variety of disciplines, so that they can grow, pursue grants, donations, and other sponsorship opportunities that require tax-exempt status. This is an important service in which Arts Connection acts as a partner to help you raise money to produce regional arts and culture events, programs, and projects that benefit each of our creative communities, all across San Bernardino County.A fiscal sponsorship relationship with Arts Connection ensures funding agencies and contributors that donations and grants received on behalf of the artists/projects are well-managed and funds are disbursed according to the grant proposal and their guidelines.
Arts Connection’s Fiscal Sponsorship Program provides administrative support and guidance to artists, projects and other organizations, working in a variety of disciplines, so that they may pursue grants, donations, and other sponsorship opportunities that require tax-exempt status. This is an important service in which Arts Connection acts as a partner to help you raise money and apply for grants to produce regional arts and culture events, programs, and projects that benefit each of our creative communities, all across San Bernardino County. A fiscal sponsorship relationship with Arts Connection ensures funding agencies and contributors that donations and grants received on behalf of the artists/projects are well-managed and funds are disbursed according to the grant proposal and their guidelines.
Criteria:
Working as a state and local partner with the California Arts Council, Arts Connection supports increased grant submissions for the more than 15 grant programs offered annually by this state agency. Arts Connection offers grant writing workshops and individual assistance for artists and organizations who intend on submitting applications and continues to see greater involvement and funding resources sent to the area as a result.
Every fall we offer a grant writing 101 seminar. Check back for dates in 2021. We are working on smaller regional sessions in 2021 to work directly with local artists and organizations. If you’d like us to host a class in your area, please contact the office.
Looking to apply for a grant with a non-profit status eligibility requirement? Arts Connection offers fiscal sponsorship for grant projects. Visit our Fiscal Sponsorship page to learn more.
Arts Connection members receive one free project or grant consultation. Become a member today to receive this benefit.
Professional development for individual artists as well as organizations has always been a cornerstone of the organization’s programming. Each year, Arts Connection offers – either through the support of its own staff or through hiring outside consultants – free professional development classes, covering topics including grant writing, cultural planning, and marketing and business planning. In addition to these professional practice workshops, Arts Connection hosts community mixers, intended to bring together arts professionals, venue owners, producers and community members to share projects and exhibitions and to promote conversations about potential future collaborations.
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Stay tuned for more information about this year’s Teaching Artist Training Series.
Explore a variety of the projects we have worked on over the years.
Please contact us for rates to work with your business, organization or department on your upcoming projects and facilitation needs.
Community Outreach and engagement
Cultural Asset Mapping
Research and resource development
Networking
Outreach and Engagement
Project planning
Surveys and Reporting
Call for Artists – Request for Qualifications
Publicity and editing
Technical assistance
Contracts and agreements
Proposal preparation
Artist consultation
Call for Artists – Request for Qualifications
Publicity and editing
Technical assistance
Contracts and agreements
Proposal preparation
Artist consultation
Arts Connection works with businesses, organizations and civic agencies to develop and facilitate calls for artists and requests for proposals.
This is just one example of a project we worked on with St. John’s Episcopal Church in San Bernardino in 2019.
Community Outreach and engagement
Cultural Asset Mapping
Research and resource development
Networking
The purpose of the strategic plan is to advance the culture and arts of the communities of Morongo Basin, while strengthening the economic impact of these treasured resources. Planning focused on identifying the goals of the artistic and cultural people and organizations in the communities of Morongo Valley, Pioneertown, Yucca Valley, Yucca Mesa, Flamingo Heights, Landers, Joshua Tree, Twentynine Palms and Wonder Valley. Planning encompassed a full range of artists and artistic work present in the region. Artists include the visual artists, musicians, theater artists, dancers, writers, media artists, designers, arts entrepreneurs, arts educators, technicians and other production people, and more.
A Communities Committee guided development of this plan. It is composed of 20 leaders representing the diversity of the region, in several different dimensions. Diversity means representation from the demographic and cultural diversity of the people in Morongo Basin’s communities. Diversity also means geographic representation as well as representation from the arts, education, business, local government, military, National Park and other sectors. The diversity of the group is an essential way of informing the plan and of devising strategies rooted in the region’s communities. The Communities Committee was assisted by a team of consultants and supported by the County staff members.
The plan is informed by community engagement and supplementary research conducted between September 2017 and April 2018. A total of more than 500 people in the region participated directly in planning.
Work sessions of the Communities Committee and sub-committees, or Strategy Teams, which included additional community members
Stakeholder interviews and discussion groups
Public community activities and discussions, including the Joshua Tree Farmers Market, Saturday Art Walk, Beatnik Lounge and Palms Restaurant
Community survey, conducted online and via intercepts at locations throughout Morongo Basin
Inventory and mapping of arts and cultural assets
Market study
Existing conditions analysis
SWOT analysis (strengths, weaknesses, opportunities and threats)
Case studies of organizations and programs relevant to the strategic plan
Research into potential funding sources
Review of relevant plans and studies
A key characteristic of this strategic plan is that the community will be the lead in its implementation. This aligns with the practice of the Land Use Services Department, which has assisted in the development of many local community plans, created by community members. These are designed for local stakeholders to take charge of issues of immediate importance, within the overall framework of the County’s planning.
One objective of this strategic plan is to build capacity for Morongo Basin’s arts community and its partners to take the next steps in cultural development for themselves and their communities. It is envisioned this Morongo Basin Strategic Plan for Culture and the Arts will serve as an exemplar and motivation for other arts communities in the County to assume leadership for their cultural development.
This plan is now a living, breathing document and is evolving alongside the present community efforts. Leading the way for project implementation is Joshua Tree Living Arts, a local non profit agency whose mission is strengthening our community through the arts. See more about JTLA here : joshuatreelivingarts.org
Economic Planning and Development Award
Public Outreach Awards
Outreach and Engagement
Project planning
Surveys and Reporting
Thanks to your workshop, encouragement and help, I was able to complete a grant request to the CA Arts Council for $5000 to redesign CCMA’s website. Regardless of whether it is successful, I learned a lot going through the grant application process. I discovered it is less fearsome than I anticipated, and very friendly toward amateur grant writers like me. It was your urging that made me listen to the CAC webinar on this year’s grant opportunities. It was your coaching at the workshop that spurred me to apply. It was your answer to my e-mail that made me try again after the first failure.` If CCMA is successful, it will be fully due to your personal support and tips for success.
Nancy DeDiemar, Chaffey Community Museum of Art
On behalf of the Morongo Basin Cultural Arts Council, I would like to highly compliment the organizers from Arts Connection for putting together grants ‘how-to’ presentations at their offices at the Garcia Center in the city of San Bernardino, hosting grant application workshops locally in the Morongo Basin, and having in depth seminars in applying for grants at their annual conference. In addition the Arts Connection staff is always available to answer questions via email. For most of us, grant writing is very intimidating and complex. Without their help, many local arts organizations would not know where to start, let alone complete a successful grant application.
Marcia Geiger, President (Morongo Basin Cultural Arts Council)
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P.O. Box 1181
San Bernardino, CA 92402