Cuyahoga Arts & Culture (CAC) is seeking panelists to review applications for 2024 grants. Panel reviews will take place online in September 2023.
As the public funder for arts and culture in Cuyahoga County, CAC strives to uphold its values of stewardship and trust in all of its work, especially in its
panel review process. Each fall, CAC convenes a panel of diverse arts and cultural professionals from outside the Cleveland, Ohio region. Panelists are carefully vetted by staff and charged with evaluating applications at an online interactive public panel meeting or through a written review online.
CAC will hold three grant panels in 2023:
- 2024 Project Support: Grants up to $20,000 for 501c3 nonprofit organizations presenting arts and cultural projects in Cuyahoga County in 2024.
- 2024-25 General Operating Support: Multi-year core support grants for qualifying organizations with a primary mission of arts and culture.
- 2024-25 Cultural Heritage: Multi-year core support grants of up to $30,000 for qualifying cultural heritage organizations with a primary mission of arts and culture.
Panel reviews take place through either a livestreamed virtual meeting or a written review online shared publicly with applicants. The results of these panels will be made available on CAC’s website and are shared with applicants. Panelists discuss each application, assessing it against CAC’s funding criteria of Public Benefit, Artistic & Cultural Vibrancy and Organizational Capacity. CAC staff serve as the panel chairs to guide and moderate the panel discussion and administer the panel process.
We are currently accepting self-nominations and reviewing candidates to join us for our 2023 Panel Review, taking place this fall. Panelists play a pivotal role in Cuyahoga Arts & Culture’s grantmaking, serving as an extension of the CAC team through the panel review process. Submission does not guarantee placement on a panel. Panelists will receive a $200 honorarium for their complete participation in the panel review process.
Panelist Duties
- Attend a 1-hour virtual training for your assigned panel around CAC’s funding criteria and scoring process.
- Project Support Written Panelists – Monday, August 28, 2023 at 12pm ET
- Project Support Interactive Panelists – Tuesday, August 29, 2023 at 12pm ET
- General Operating Support + Cultural Heritage Interactive Panelists – Wednesday, August 30, 2023 at 12pm ET
- Review applications: this work is done remotely, on your own time.
- Most panelists will review between 15-20 applications
- Reviewing and preparing comments/score typically takes up 5-10 hours
- Submit scores:
- Project Support Written Panelists will submit final scores and comments by EOD, Sunday, September 17, 2023 (no live panel meeting)
- General Operating Support, Cultural Heritage, and Project Support Interactive Panelists will submit initial scores by EOD Sunday, September 17, 2023
- Live (Interactive) Virtual Panel Meetings are a half-day obligation. Final scores are submitted at the conclusion of these meetings.
- Cultural Heritage Interactive Panel Meeting – Tuesday, September 19, 2023 (morning)
- General Operating Support Interactive Panel Meeting – Tuesday, September 19, 2023 (afternoon)
- Project Support Interactive Meetings – Wednesday, September 20, 2023 (panelists will be assigned either the morning or afternoon panel)
“I know this work isn't easy and I appreciate how you refine the application and processes each year to better meet your goals and hold organizations accountable for how they are working with their communities. In my experience as a panelist, I have always appreciated [CAC’s] professionalism, your steadfast commitment to your mission to serve your community through arts and culture, and how you operate as a team.” – Past CAC Panelist
How does CAC fund artists?
Cuyahoga Arts & Culture is a political subdivision of the State of Ohio. By law, CAC can fund nonprofit organizations only. However, CAC recognizes the important role artists play in the local creative economy.
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