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SC Arts Commission Arts in Education Program

 

Purpose

The purpose of the ABC Advancement grant program is to support schools, school districts, or Gifted & Talented Consortia committed to implementing standards-based arts curricula and to making the arts an integral part of the basic curriculum and daily classroom instruction.

Description

Arts in Basic Curriculum (ABC) Advancement grants may support ongoing comprehensive planning, strategic projects and implementation of standards-based arts education initiatives, including but not limited to artist residencies and residency-plus activities. Please note that for each residency funded with ABC Advancement grants, participating teachers and teaching artists must jointly complete the Residency Planning Form and Residency Assessment Form.

An eligible first-time applicant to ABC Advancement will receive a one-year award. The applicant must then reapply at the end of the provisional period in order to enter the two-year ABC Advancement cycle.

After the initial grant award, subsequent applications cover two years. Grantees receive funding for the first year and after submitting and receiving approval of a Final Report for the first year, are assured similar funding for the second year, as long as SCAC's funding remains stable.

ABC Advancement grantees are known as ABC sites, and are expected to send representatives to meet with colleagues from other current and former sites for professional development days during the school year. There are currently 51 sites, some of which have been sites since the project's inception.

The ABC sites are part of the larger ABC Project, which is overseen by a steering committee of approximately 90 members including artists, educators, school administrators, representatives of higher education, business leaders and governmental representatives.

Among ABC Project programs and activities that support the efforts of ABC sites are more than 20 summer institutes for educators, including the Curriculum Leadership Institute in the Arts (CLIA), a summer arts leadership program for arts educators; the Arts Education Leadership Institute (AELI), a summer planning intensive program for school and school district teams; the SC Center for Dance Education at Columbia College; and an expanding statewide outreach program.

Eligibility Requirements

Applicant must be:

• a SC public or private school (preK-12) OR
• a SC school district OR
• a Gifted and Talented Consortium that operates year round

All applicants must:

• have successfully established a Strategic Arts Plan developed through a SCAC Comprehensive Planning grant, SC Department of Education Arts Curricular grant, or as part of an Act 135 Education Improvement Act Plan.
• have a functioning arts steering committee - a broadly based planning and program advisory committee that includes both school and community leaders.
  
  additionally:
• School district applicants must have designated district arts coordinators with appropriate experience and certification in dance, drama, music or visual arts who have responsibility for arts curricula and professional development of district arts educators.

Restrictions

Applications from a Gifted and Talented Consortium that does not operate year round will not be accepted.

Contracted artists must be on the Arts Commission's Roster of Approved Artists. Please be advised that inclusion on the Arts Commission's Roster of Approved Artists is based solely on artistic merit. Schools and other institutions contracting artists are encouraged to follow standard hiring practices for professionals working in schools.

Deadline

January 15, 2008 for support beginning July 1, 2008 and ending June 30, 2010

Applications must be postmarked or hand-delivered to the SC Arts Commission offices before 5:00 PM, no later than the stated date, or, when the deadline occurs on a weekend or holiday, no later than the next business day.

Funding Ranges

• Up to $10,000 per year per single school
• Up to $20,000 per year for a school district

Match

2:1 (applicant:SCAC) 50% of the applicant's match must be cash. Please note that ABC Advancement funds support the operating expenses of the site's arts education programs. Therefore, any district expenditures on the program, such as arts teachers' salaries and arts supplies, qualifies as a cash match.

Grant Payments

Payment will be on an expense reimbursement basis only. Grantees may submit a maximum of two interim payments, totaling no more than 80% of the grant award. Final grant payment will be released upon receipt and approval of grantee's final report.

Filing Fee

$15.00. Make check payable to South Carolina Arts Commission.

Review Process

Please contact your SCAC county coordinator for guidance on completing the application form.

The initial staff review of applications focuses on eligibility, conformity to guidelines, accuracy and detail of budget, clarity of narrative, completeness of packet, compliance with grant requirements, and confirmation of required support materials. A panel reviews and rates grant applications on the basis of specific criteria listed in the guidelines. Funding recommendations based on overall ratings and funding histories are determined by panel discussion and consensus and then presented to the Arts Commission Board of Directors for final funding decisions. Two-year grantees must have an approved first-year final report in order to qualify for second-year funding.

Final Report

All grantees are required to file a AIE Final Report (PDF) (How To Use PDFs) at the end of the grant period. Please note that schools hosting residencies must also turn in the appropriate SCAC Residency Planning and Assessment documents. The Final Report Due Date is printed on your contract. Failure to file the final report by the due date will result in cancellation of the award and repayment of funds received. SCAC will not fund applicants who have outstanding final reports. Submit only original final report forms with original signatures. Do not submit copies or fax your final report form.

Required Application Materials

Each page/item of materials must be labeled with the name of the applicant and be submitted in a format suitable for copying. Typeface must be legible, and no less than 12 point with one inch margins.

Do not use 3-ring binders, folders, or bind the application materials in any way other than with binder clips or paper clips.

The application package must include only one complete collated set of items as follows. Additional application copies will not be accepted.

1. Two Forms

Originals, completed and signed. Forms are in Portable Document Format (PDF). How To Use PDFs

1. Grant Application for Organizations. For individual schools, the school is the primary applicant, and the school district is the secondary applicants. Signatures from the authorized official of both the primary and secondary applicant are required.
2. Detailed Budget, for the proposed first year of arts education program operating expenses (July through June). Itemize all expenses and sources of revenue, including funds designated by the district for arts programs at the site. (Minimum budget must be at least three times the funding request).

2. Narrative

The narrative should not exceed five numbered pages, and must address the criteria below. Each item in the narrative should be identified by the appropriate letter and topic heading. The discussion of each criterion should clearly identify how a school or district meets (or has a strategic plan for meeting) that criterion.

A. Standards-based Arts Curricula in Visual and Performing Arts and Creative Writing
Review Criteria - 30 points

Review indicators include:

• presence of school or district-level guide for implementing state-approved achievement standards in the visual and performing arts as well as language arts standards related to creative writing-literature.
• lesson plans that reflect standards-based teaching.
• evidence of on-going assessment of student achievement in the arts that reflects the acquisition of age-appropriate knowledge and skills, based on the SC curriculum standards.
• professional development for art teachers that supports standards-based curriculum and instruction.
• a school schedule that includes five arts areas (art, creative writing/literature, dance, drama/theatre, music).

B. Arts at the Core of the Curriculum
Review Criteria - 30 points

Review indicators include:

• a school schedule that includes time for the arts that is comparable to the time allotted to other core subjects.
• a teaching staff with appropriate qualifications to teach the arts disciplines to which they are assigned.
• a schedule of professional development for teachers that includes regular attention to the arts, both for arts and non-arts teachers.
• teacher schedules that allow for regular meetings among arts teachers and between arts and non-arts teachers (for integrated curriculum planning) and evidence that such meetings occur.
• a formally adopted resolution, statement, or plan, approved by teachers, parents, administrators, and school board that recognizes the arts as core subjects for every child and as basic elements of the curriculum.
• a schedule of after school programs that includes the arts.
• Districts only: A district arts coordinator whose job includes a significant allotment of time to the oversight and development of arts curricula district-wide. The coordinator should be certified in at least one art area and/or have other training and experience appropriate for the position. A copy of the job description and a resume must be attached.

C. A Five-Year Strategic Plan for the Arts
Review Criteria - 25 points

Review indicators include:
• an up-to-date plan (projecting at least the two years of the proposed grant cycle), which includes objectives, strategies, and parties accountable for the development and implementation of all arts curricula (a copy of this plan must be enclosed with the application, and accomplishments to-date should be summarized in this narrative).
• a process for development of the plan and continuous updating that involves key school and/or district administrators, teachers, parents, and other community members as members of an arts steering committee (a list of arts steering committee members, showing their titles, affiliations, and/or representative roles - i.e., parent, arts council director, etc. - must be enclosed with the application). If a district or school has, as part of its Act 135/SACS school renewal plan, an action team which functions as above, information should be provided on this body.
• evidence of administrative and community support for the plan, as indicated by letters of support from the principal and superintendent, school board resolutions, parent organization resolutions, letters of support from community organizations, parent and community surveys, history of funding and other commitments to support the plan, etc.

D. Regular Evaluation of the Program
Review Criteria - 15 points

Review indicators include:

• a systematic plan for regular evaluation of the effectiveness of the strategic plan for the arts.
• for established ABC sites – evidence of ongoing evaluation of the effectiveness of the strategic plan

3. Staff List
List of key current & proposed project staff positions with brief descriptions. Include names (indicate with asterisks those who are African-American, American Indian/Alaska Native, Asian, and Hispanic) and titles.

4. Résumés

Brief résumés for principal artistic and administrative staff. Individual résumés may not exceed 2 pages each. If additional pages are submitted, only the first 2 pages of each résumé will be submitted to panel.

5. Support Materials

Support materials are as follows:

• The Strategic Arts Plan
• Sample Lesson Plans - not to exceed 10 pages
• Schedules, minutes, attendance sheets, or other evidence of curricular planning meetings between arts teachers, and between arts and non-arts teachers - not to exceed 3 pages
• Class schedule - not to exceed 10 pages
• Arts Steering Committee Membership list - complete with titles, affiliations, or representative roles
• CURRENT letter signed by the district superintendent, that commits the school or district or consortium to continuing as or becoming an ABC Advancement site for at least the two-year grant period.
• Additional signed statements and letters of support from school and community groups as outlined in Section C, bullet 3.

6. Filing Fee

$15.00 check payable to South Carolina Arts Commission

NOTE: Incomplete applications will not be accepted. Submit only one original application forms with original signatures. Do not submit copies or fax your application.