Five Tips to Writing a Successful Grant Proposal:

Tip #1:   Meet with TCAH.  You are strongly encouraged to discuss your project and proposal with the Council's Executive Director before the grant deadline. By doing so, you may help reduce the chance of making technical errors or omitting critical information from your request. It is also an opportunity to learn about possible changes in the commission's grant policies, the application process, and available funds.  Because the Executive Director does not participate in award decisions, she is available to explain grant policies and provide assistance in grant writing. Our staff is your advocate and advisor, ready to lend a helping hand.  First-time applicants may find it useful to read well-written proposals prepared by previous grantees. Download a sample artist fellowship or small grant before taking the plunge. Make sure to schedule an appointment with our staff.  Appointments are fifteen minutes in length, so please come prepared with a draft application. Request a meeting after the February/August information seminar at the library. 

Tip #2:  Timing.  Carefully consider the commission's application dates (first Thursday in March and September) in order to match your proposed project with the appropriate grant competition. Apply in March for projects taking place between April and September.  Apply in September for projects taking place between October and March.  Think about submitting your proposal earlier than the deadline.  Most unsuccessful applicants concede that their proposals were casualties of last-minute scrambles. Bear this in mind!

Tip #3:  Narrative.  Develop an easy-to-understand, organized, fully-developed narrative which explains what you are proposing to do and how you plan to do it. Most requests suffer from too little detail rather than too much. Provide a clear description of the planned activity including specific dates, times, locations, and the names and qualifications of participating artists. Be mindful that there are seven Council board members who will read your submission. Don't assume they know more than they do about you and your project.  Also, think about injecting some excitement into your proposal. Tuck in a short quote by a participating artist or organizer to perk up your narrative. The enthusiasm you and others express about your project can be infectious.

Tip #4.  Impact.  Successful proposals are ones which clearly articulate the desired results that the project will have on your immediate audiences, neighborhood, or other service area. The Council is also interested in knowing more about the lasting, positive impact you hope your project will have on the larger community.  Make sure to include photos of work you have done, and if the grant is speculative, a sketch of your finished project as you envision it.  Finally, keep to page limits. They are there for a reason.  If you exceed the page limits, this looks bad; don't overload your proposal with redundant information.  Attach only one page of samples (all on one page).  Keep your resume short, too.  Please note that the Council gives special consideration to proposals which serve rural areas and outlying communities in San Miguel County.

Tip #5:  Budget.  The most commonly made mistakes in proposal writing occur in the math department. Don't ignore your budget pages! Your figures should be realistic and accurate. Check and recheck your addition, then bring your draft Budget when you meet with the Council's Executive Director. Above all else, make sure that your projected cash income equals your projected cash expenditures. If your budget includes admission fees or other earned revenue as cash income, or if it includes personnel fees attributable to the project, be certain to include it. This is a requirement, so you won't want to overlook it.

CCAASE Funding:

Because we receive grant funds from CCAASE (and Telluride Foundation and San Miguel County) to fund our Small Grants program, we are contractually unable to fund you or your organization if you already receive funds from CCAASE.  However, we are able to fund you if (1) your funds from CCAASE are for general operating expenses and this is a new program that wasn't part of your grant application with CCAASE last year ("first-time program") or (2) you request in your grant application that, although you receive funds from CCAASE for this project, you are requesting your small grant award to come from Telluride Foundation funds, which is a more competitive grant review and needs-focused review ("foundation-sourced").  Note that if your "first time" program is successful, please include it in your application to CCAASE the following year. 

To be clear: CCAASE can fund nonprofits, and non-501c3's, but not individuals.  Telluride Foundation can fund nonprofits only if they are also 501c3's.  TCAH steps in to fund those who would otherwise be in the gap.  So, if you are an individual not funded by anyone,  you are eligible for the grant, no restrictions.  If you are neither funded by Telluride Foundation nor CCAASE, you are eligible for the grant, no restrictions.  If you are funded by Telluride Foundation but not CCAASE, you are eligible for the grant, no restrictions.     If you are funded by CCAASE (and any other organization), you are eligible providing that you check the boxes entitled "I request these funds be allocated from the Telluride Foundation source" on the First Page (and you are aware that this is a more heavily-scrutinized grant for the needs of the organization and the effectiveness of the program).