We hear you.

Over the last several days, we have received feedback from community members in response to the first grants awarded by the Metropolitan Atlanta Arts Fund in support of arts organizations impacted by the COVID-19 pandemic. Your thoughts are important to us and we are listening.

It is imperative for a community foundation to reflect and represent the diverse needs and interests of the community it serves. Last year, our Board adopted a new strategic plan committed to equity of opportunity. This priority goes to the heart of the most persistent and pressing challenges we face in our region. The COVID-19 crisis has clearly increased the hardships facing residents and the speed at which we need to respond.

Arts organizations have been hit especially hard and we are able to use our Arts Fund to support these organizations through this crisis. We knew that focusing on immediate needs and short-term survival was not enough and looked to provide a funding bridge for long-term sustainability. We relied on existing criteria and processes for grant applications and, in so doing, we inadvertently created barriers for access by smaller and persons of color-led organizations.  

Here’s what we have learned so far:

• Our application did not provide enough flexibility for smaller organizations and those founded, led by and serving people of color – black-led organizations in particular. This meant that we received very few applications from those organizations. 
• The application needs to be streamlined. Its complexity is a barrier for organizations to apply.
• Our shift to rolling grant cycles instead of a single deadline for this program resulted in our first round of applications coming primarily from larger organizations with the capacity to complete the complex application while also applying for federal funding.

Here’s where we are:

• We don’t want to stop the arts grantmaking that is already in process. Frankly, we know that organizations need money and they need it now.
• We are streamlining the application and will make it available by June 15. For those that have already applied, no further action is needed. We will be in touch with you. 
• Next week, Foundation staff will reach out to arts leaders, especially those who have not received funding in the past or recently, to get their input to inform the future direction of our arts programming. We are particularly interested to learn more about the barriers they have experienced in applying.

Our Board, volunteers and staff are committed to working in and with our community to make a difference.

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Arts Fund Questions and Answers: 

Q: What was the racial and ethnic makeup of the review team? Does it reflect the diversity of Atlanta’s community? 

A: We are a multiracial multi-ethnic organization and the review team reflects that diversity and that of our community.

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Q: The Arts Fund guidelines say you “anticipate most grants will be up to $50,000.” Did the Community Foundation award more than $50,000 to arts organizations? And if so, why? 

A: Yes, the Arts Fund awarded several organizations grants above $50,000. Instead of putting a cap on grants, like we typically do, we decided to put a mid-point. For over 10 years, we have given up to 10% of an organization’s budget for this program. Therefore, larger grants were awarded to organizations with larger budgets. This language was not clear in the guidelines and we will fix that when new materials are published by June 15.

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Q: What parts of the process are onerous and therefore being removed in order to make the process more inclusive?

A: The application requires organizations to complete several documents that can take multiple hours and to submit attachments that are prepared by accountants, which meant that some organizations chose not to apply. We are reviewing everything we ask of applicants and will provide a simpler application form and process that does not create these barriers.

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Q: Did any black-led (or black-founded) organizations apply to the Arts Fund during the first round of grants? 

A: Yes, one black-founded organization applied but the application was incomplete. Our team is working directly with that organization to include them in a future grant cycle.

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Q: Are there any black-led or black-founded organizations that you have supported over the last year through the Arts Fund that have been unable to apply because it was a two-year grant? 

A: To clarify, in the past, we’ve asked organizations to wait until their grant period ends before applying for a new grant. Because of the impact of COVID-19 on nonprofits, we removed this requirement and are allowing grantees whose grant periods are still active to apply. Additionally, we chose to award all of our multi-year commitments in April 2020, six months prior to when we were scheduled to do so, as we knew organizations would benefit from having the funds on-hand at the moment.

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Q: Has the Community Foundation reached out to organizations led or founded by people of color, especially those that are black-led, directly and asked for their input/guidance? 

A: Not in an organized, proactive way. Our staff has had conversations with arts organizations that have contacted us. As was noted above, our staff will conduct outreach to organizations beginning next week. If you know of organizations you would suggest we speak to, please reach out to Katrina DeBerry (kdeberry@cfgreateratlanta.org) and Anna Theodore (atheodore@cfgreateratlanta.org).