Shutesbury Cultural Council LCC Priorities
When determining whether to fund a grant request, the Cultural Council uses the following Council Priorities to evaluate the proposed programming.
The mission of the Shutesbury Cultural Council is to promote excellence, education, diversity, and inclusion in the arts, humanities, and sciences in order to foster a rich cultural life for all Shutesbury residents.
The Council is committed to funding a broad cross-section of programs, activities, events, and projects. We support a wide variety of art forms, the work of individual artists, education projects, collaborative proposals that bring together artists and other types of organizations, local cultural groups, and projects that serve specific populations, such as youth, older adults, people living below the poverty line, and people living with disabilities.
Applications are evaluated in terms of several review criteria, including:
- artistic or creative merit;
- project design;
- qualifications, dedication and track record of the individuals and organizations involved;
- physical accessibility of any facilities being used;
- community benefit, support, and/or involvement;
- ability to address the diverse cultural needs and audiences of the community;
- evidence of planning and potential for success/completion;
- financial need and/or availability of other sources of funding.
Priority is given to:
- Shutesbury-based applicants;
- projects, events, or programs that have already secured a local venue;
- projects, events, or programs that serve the widest range of local populations.
The proposed event, project, or program must take place between January 1 and December 31 of the year following the application.
Proposals from schools and libraries must not request support for activities that should be or used to be part of the municipal budget (i.e., teacher salaries, classroom supplies, school-sponsored clubs and organizations, library books/videos, etc.).
Enrichment projects utilizing outside professionals are allowed.
Applications should state, as explicitly as possible, the ways in which the proposed program will benefit the Shutesbury community.
The Council will carefully scrutinize repeated requests; such proposals should show other sources of support to show the project is not dependent solely on Council funding.
The Shutesbury Cultural Council requests that additional information accompanying the application be limited to one item.