Folklife & Traditional Arts Project Grants

About This Grant

Purpose

Traditional arts are expressions of shared identity that are learned as a part of the cultural life of a particular group. This shared identity may be rooted in family, geographic, tribal, occupational, religious or ethnic connections, among others. As expressions of a living culture, traditional arts have been handed down from one generation to the next and reflect the shared experience, aesthetics and values of a group. Traditional arts are dynamic, reflecting change and individual innovation over generations of practitioners.

This grant ensures that South Carolina’s diverse living traditions remain vibrant, visible parts of community life and supports nonprofit organizations and units of governments that seek to promote and sustain the traditional arts practiced across the state. South Carolina’s cultural landscape encompasses diverse artistic traditions and practitioners, including indigenous and longstanding art forms and communities, as well as those who are more recently arrived.

• Eligibility

  1. Applicants must be one of the following:
     • A unit of state or local government
     • A college or university
     • A nonprofit organization
       • currently registered as a charity with the S.C. Secretary of State’s Office
         Note: Applicants who are exempt from this registration must upload their registration exemption approval.
       • reflecting S.C. as the primary address on all current official organizational documents
       • with federal tax-exempt status with the Internal Revenue Service
         OR
         applying through a tax-exempt fiscal agent/receiver organization
         Note: Applicants who are applying through a fiscal agent/receiver must submit a letter outlining the working relationship and responsibilities of both parties.
  2. Have a valid Unique Entity ID
     • In accordance with federal government policy, all organizations – including (but not limited to) private schools, public school districts, government entities, and nonprofit organizations – must provide a valid UEI number* to receive an SCAC grant award. *Learn about the new grant requirement: Unique Entity ID (UEI)

       Note: If a grantee is using a fiscal agent/receiver, separate UEI numbers must be provided for both the applicant organization and the fiscal agent/receiver.

• Restrictions

  • Applicants may only submit one (1) Folklife & Traditional Arts Project Grant application per fiscal year.
  • College and university departments are eligible, but only one (1) application per department will be accepted.

• Use of Funds

  The Folklife & Traditional Arts Project Grant funds projects that may include (but are not limited to):

  • Presentation of traditional artists through workshops, concerts, festivals, exhibitions, radio programs, recordings, etc.
  • Documentation of traditional arts and/or folklife of South Carolina (note: the project must result in a public presentation, whether through programming or access to archived materials.)
  • Cultural Survey: fieldwork done to identify traditions and traditional artists
  • Production, documentation and/or distribution of a traditional artist’s work (for example, the production of publicity materials)
  • Acquisition of difficult-to-obtain materials or equipment needed to create traditional art
  • Conservation: projects, such as apprenticeships, that preserve a traditional artform

  The Folklife & Traditional Arts Project Grant does not fund:

  • Interpretations of traditional art (as opposed to the practice of an actual traditional art form)
  • Revivals of traditions that have ceased to exist within the originating culture
  • General oral history projects
  • Projects that are limited to an historical focus
  • Projects that present historical re-creations of past lifestyles

• Additional Requirements of this Grant

  Any activities carried out within this grant must align with state guidelines regarding COVID-19.

• Priority

  Applicants who have received funding for the past two consecutive fiscal years will not be a funding priority.

• Deadline & Grant Period

  Deadline

  March 15, 2023

  Applications may be submitted until 11:59 p.m. (Eastern Time) on the deadline date. However, please be aware that staff members will not be available to assist you with questions or technical difficulties after SCAC closes at 5 p.m. that day.

  Grant Period

  July 1, 2023 – May 30, 2024

  All grant purchases and activities must be complete by May 30. If you have a project occurring after May 30, please reach out to Folklife and Traditional Arts Director Laura Marcus Green, Ph.D. (803.734.8764 | lgreen@arts.sc.gov) before applying.

• Funding & Match

  Funding

  Up to $6,000

  Matching Requirements

  1:1 (grantee:SCAC)

  At least 50% of the grantee’s match must be cash.

  Funds from another SCAC grant may not be used as matching funds. In addition, since this grant uses federal funding, other federal funds may not be used as matching funds.

How to Apply

Applications are accepted through our grants portal, which uses the Foundant platform.

New to Foundant? For frequently asked questions, registration instructions, and other helpful information, we highly recommend visiting the Grants Portal FAQ, before you begin working in the system.

PLEASE NOTE: You are urged to consider the Review Criteria (detailed in the “Review Process” section of these guidelines, under “After You Apply”) as you prepare your application materials. These criteria will be used to evaluate your application and determine the funding of your proposal.

Please note:

1. Before applying for a Folklife & Traditional Arts Project Grant, you are strongly advised to discuss your project with the program director, to determine if your project meets the guidelines.
2. You may request a review of your draft application up to two (2) weeks before the application deadline for feedback. Contact Folklife and Traditional Arts Director Laura Marcus Green, Ph.D. (803.734.8764 | lgreen@arts.sc.gov).

• Your Grants Portal Account

  The applicant must have an active account in our Grants Portal.

  • If you have previously used Submittable to apply for other SCAC grants or programs, please note that the grants portal is a different system. Your Submittable credentials will not work; you will need a grants portal account to apply for this grant.
  • If you have used the grants portal as both an artist and as a contact for a school or organization, be sure you log on with the correct account to apply for this grant.

• Work Samples & Support Materials

  Work Samples

  Work samples representing the artists and traditions featured in your project, as well as your organization, support the application and are required. Work samples help the review panel assess the quality of your proposed program, its potential impact on the tradition(s), community(ies) involved, and your organization’s capacity to complete the project.

  We encourage you to be selective when choosing your work samples. Work samples should:

  1. Demonstrate artistic quality, cultural relevance, and/or technical ability as appropriate to your project.
  2. Best represent the type of work that will be done related to your project.
  3. Be current (less than five years old).

  Choosing Your Work Samples

  • You must submit 5, you may submit up to 10 items.
  • Panelists will review 20 minutes of audio and/or video work.

  Within those limits, you may not submit more than the maximum of each type of item:

  • Video: 2 samples
    • Maximum length of each sample: 3 minutes
    • Accepted file types: .flv, .mov, .mpg, .webm, .wmv,
    • OR provide URL/link
  • Audio: 3 samples
    • Maximum length of each sample: 3 minutes
    • Accepted file types: mp3, wav
    • OR provide URL/link
  • Images: 10
    • Acceptable file types: .gif, .jpg/.jpeg, .png, .tif/.tiff, .svg
    • OR a .pdf file with images
  • Documents: 3
    • Acceptable file types: .doc/.docx, .pdf, .rtf., .txt
  • Websites: 3
    • Provide the URL/link(s) for websites that are relevant to your proposed project.

  Preparing Your Work Samples

  We strongly encourage you to prepare these work samples before you visit the grants portal and begin your application.

  You may need to create new electronic files (documents, video files, etc.) to submit work samples that meet the length, content, and formatting requirements. Alternately, where audio or video files are longer than three (3) minutes, please include instructions as to which 3-minute segment panelists should sample, i.e. “please watch/listen from 04:23 to 07:18,” etc.

  For each work sample, you will be asked to provide:

  • Name of artist(s) or key individuals involved
  • Title of work/image/activity
  • Date of work/image/activity
  • Location (if known)
  • For audio and video, the length of the sample
  • A sentence describing the work and its relationship to the project

  For each sample, you may either

  • Upload one of the accepted file types, or
  • Provide a URL/ link to a website (including social media sites or YouTube videos) where the work sample can be viewed.
    • Be sure the work sample(s) can be accessed without login credentials for that platform. Do not include social media or websites for which a password is required (e.g., If you link to a Facebook video, make sure it’s a public link, as panelists may not have a Facebook account.)

  If you are uncertain what to submit, visit our Support Materials web page, and/or consult the program director (information below).

  Support Materials

  In addition to your Work Samples, you may submit up to five (5) items of support materials to assist the panel in understanding the following:

  • Participating artists’ skill levels and appropriateness to the project,
  • Participating artists’ and applicant’s involvement in the community,
  • The demonstrated need for the project, and/or
  • The likelihood that the project will be successful.

  Support materials may include, but are not limited to:

  • Letters of support
  • Samples of media coverage (e.g., newspaper or magazine articles)
  • Programs or other ephemera from previous similar projects
  • Brief publications or publication excerpts

  Support materials may be uploaded (accepted file types: .doc/.docx, .pdf, .ppt/.pptx, .rtf., .txt) and/or you may provide a link to the support material online.

• Starting Your Application

  1. Follow the “Apply” link below. The grants portal will open in a new browser tab or window.
  2. Log on, then click the “Apply” link at the top of your Applicant Dashboard.
  3. Find “Folklife – Traditional Arts Projects” in the list of available grant applications, and click the “Apply” button to the far right.

After You Apply

• Review Process & Criteria

  The Grants Team will review submitted applications for completeness and compliance with guideline and application requirements. A review panel of professionals representing the field of folk and traditional arts will evaluate the applications based on the published review criteria. An applicant’s panel comments are available to them upon request. Staff will then develop funding recommendations, based on these evaluations and the availability of funds. Recommendations will be presented to the Board of Commissioners, which makes final award decisions. Award notification is expected after the June 2023 board meeting, pending completion of the state budget process.

  Review Criteria

  Artistry and Cultural Context (50%)

  • The artists involved in the project are traditional artists.
  • The artist(s)’ work is of high quality, as demonstrated by the work samples.
  • There is evidence that the artists involved are recognized as experienced practitioners of their art forms within the identified community/folk group.

  Impact (30%)

  • The project involves and impacts members of the identified community and other audiences.
  • The project is relevant for the identified audience.
  • There is a demonstrated need for the project.
  • The project has the potential to promote a broader understanding of traditional arts by presenting them in context and/or with quality interpretive material.
  • The methods used to evaluate the outcomes of the project are appropriate and effective.

  Project Management (20%)

  • The project involves personnel with knowledge of folklife documentation and/or traditional arts programming methods.
  • The proposed project activities are appropriate and achievable.
  • The proposed budget is appropriate and feasible.

• If You Receive a Grant Award

  If your application is funded, you (and your fiscal agent/receiver, if applicable) will enter into a contractual agreement with the South Carolina Arts Commission, and you must comply with all requirements stated in that contract. You will receive notification and instructions when your contract is available in the grants portal. You must submit your completed contract packet, including signatures and other documentation as instructed, by the date indicated in the system. You must also complete all other assigned follow ups by the due date.

  Please note: Any significant revisions to grant-funded activities must be approved in writing, in advance, by the SCAC.

  Additional details about managing an SCAC grant are available on our agency website.

  Grant Payments

  Payment will be on a reimbursement basis. If the applicant is using a fiscal agent/receiver, payment will be made to the fiscal agent/receiver.

  An accurate pay request, listing only expenses allowable under the program guidelines for the certified time period, must be submitted in order to receive payment for the grant award.

  Grantees in this category are eligible for interim payments, with the final grant payment released upon receipt and approval of the grantee’s final report.

  Final Report

  ALL GRANTEES are required to file a final report at the end of the grant period. The final report due date is stated in the grant contract. Failure to submit an accurate and complete final report by the due date will result in cancellation of the award and repayment of any funds received. SCAC will not fund applicants who have outstanding final reports.

I’m Here to Help!

• If you are seeking advisement, please contact Folklife and Traditional Arts Director Laura Marcus Green, Ph.D. (803.734.8764 | lgreen@arts.sc.gov) before submitting an application.
• If you have submitted an application, and/or you have a current grant, please contact the Grants Team (803.734.8695 | grants@arts.sc.gov).

Grants Coaching

We also highly recommend a visit to our Grants Coaching webpage, for

• open coaching calls for artists,
• category-specific information for grant applicants,
• topic sessions, and
• opportunities for one-on-one assistance.

Missed a group call or session? Look for the video link to access a recording of that presentation.