SFCA ARP Grants for Individuals

The State Foundation on the Culture and the Arts will utilize American Rescue Plan (ARP) funding to administer two grants benefiting the state’s arts community: one for nonprofit organizations and one for individual artists and cultural practitioners.

What is the SFCA American Rescue Plan Grant?​

The National Endowment for the Arts provided funds received from the American Rescue Plan to the State Foundation on Culture and the Arts (SFCA) to distribute to the arts and culture community throughout the State of Hawaiʻi. This emergency funding is designed to support the arts sector as it recovers from the devastating impact of COVID-19.

The State Foundation on the Culture and the Arts will utilize this funding to administer two grants benefiting the state’s arts community: one for nonprofit culture and arts organizations and one for individual artists and cultural practitioners.

The American Recovery Plan (ARP) Individual Artist Grant 2022 is closed. The application deadline was September 30, 2021.

Applicants who have questions may email our Staff at: [email protected]

Approximate timeline for applications that were successfully submitted by the application deadline:

  • Panel Review period – October 2021
  • SFCA Board of Commissioners Meeting (November 17, 2021) for review and approval of panel recommendations
  • Applicant Notification – November/December 2021
  • Project Grant Implementation – January 1 through June 30, 2022
  • Final Report deadline – July 30, 2022

What is this grant for?

The SFCA American Rescue Plan (ARP) Recovery Grant Individual Artist 2022 is for qualified individual artists to implement projects that have community impact in the State of Hawaiʻi.

A wide range of arts disciplines and cultural arts are possible. See section below: Examples of Projects/Activities.

Who are qualified individual artists?

Individual artists who are eligible may apply for this grant. Eligible individual artists meet the eligibility criteria listed below and are actively practicing as:

  • Teaching Artists,
  • Traditional Arts Cultural Practitioners,
  • and/or Western-based and Contemporary Artists.

What are the eligibility criteria for individual artists?

  • U.S. citizen or permanent resident
  • State of Hawaiʻi resident
  • Age 18 years or older
  • Not barred or suspended from receiving federal funds
  • Not an SFCA Staff or Commissioner or immediate family member of an SFCA Staff or Commissioner
  • Minimum one year of project experience with the type of project proposed
  • Registered and compliant with Hawaiʻi Compliance Express (https://vendors.ehawaii.gov/hce/)

We recommend that you begin your registration or update your registration in Hawaiʻi Compliance Express immediately. Please make sure that you are compliant by the application deadline. You are required to upload your compliant certificate with your application.

Exception as of 8/5/2021 – Pursuant to the Governor’s Emergency Proclamation, signed August 5, 2021, §103-53, Hawaii Revised Statutes (HRS), Internal Revenue Service (IRS) tax clearances are suspended with conditions. Due to delays in IRS federal taxes compliance, the Governor’s Emergency Proclamation of 8/5/2021 allows state offices to accept non-compliant certificates IF the only non-compliant item listed is Internal Revenue Services as either “Submitted” “Pending”. Please note this is an Emergency Proclamation and could change or be extended at any time, including at the time of contracting awards approved for funding.

Note: Your identifying information in Hawaiʻi Compliance Express for the compliance certificate must match exactly your identifying information in Form W-9 that SFCA will need for contracting grants that are approved for funding.

What are the application requirements?

  • Meet the individual eligibility requirements (see above).
  • Each grant is $7,225 and is only for individual artist stipend/artist fees to carry out specific projects and activities consistent with the programmatic objectives of the SFCA (read more here in the Biennium Grant Categories PDF).
  • Only one application per individual artist applicant.
  • The entire application is submitted online in the Hawaii GO Smart online application system (Hawaii.GoSmart.org).
  • Projects must be implemented entirely in the State of Hawaiʻi.
  • Projects are not intended to fulfill academic requirements.
  • Project implementation period is January 1, 2022 through June 30, 2022.
  • A final report is required upon project completion.
  • The SFCA American Rescue Plan (ARP) Recovery Grant supporting eligible artists and cultural practitioners will be open August 1, 2021 through September 30, 2021.
  • Individual artist applicants must submit a Hawaiʻi Compliance Express certificate showing “Compliant” with their application by the application deadline of September 30, 2021.
  • The grant request amount is $7,225 and there is no match requirement for individual artists.

The recovery grant supports a stipend/fee for the Individual Artist applicant to carry out a project or activity.

What is Hawaiʻi Go Smart?

Hawaiʻi Go Smart is SFCA’s online system to manage several of the agency’s calls for application. Each call for applications is a cycle. The system allows us to do the following:

  • Register users – applicants, panelists
  • Application module – set up and manage the entire application every time there is a call for applications from either organizations or individuals
  • Panel Review module – set up the panel review for panelists’ scores, comments and summaries for panel meeting(s)
  • Final Report module – set up and manage the entire final reporting for all grants and projects that are funded in a cycle
  • Accommodates uploading of materials as needed – PDF documents, audio and video clips, photo images
  • Staff assistance – staff can easily access each user’s work to provide needed assistance during the entire process of application through panel review and through final reporting, and includes helping you with your login.

Detailed application information and instructions will be linked in Go Smart for you to access.

Where can I find official information designating Congressional and State districts?

This information is required in your GO Smart Applicant Profile when you register for your login.

These data are used to provide SFCA with an overview of areas served statewide with arts and culture, by districts. For Congressional Districts: https://www.govtrack.us/congress/members/HI#representatives

Hawai’i has two congressional districts. The 1st District encompasses urban Honolulu and its immediate suburbs – District 1 is Representative Ed Case. The 2nd District includes the rest of Oʻahu and all other islands – District 2 is Representative Kaialiʻi Kahele. Both Senators serve the entire state.

For State Senate and House Districts: https://www.capitol.hawaii.gov/findleg.aspx

Can I still apply if:

It depends.

No: if the project that you are proposing as an individual artist for this grant is the same and your artistic/cultural services are the same as the project that is contracting you.

Yes: if the project that you are proposing as an individual artist for this grant is different from the project that is contracting you, or if the artistic/cultural services that you are providing are different.

If you have more questions about this scenario, email us at [email protected].

Dates to remember

  • Application open period: August 1 through September 30, 2021.
  • Application deadline: Thursday September 30, 2021 at 11:59 p.m. Hawaiʻi Standard Time.
  • Grant Project Implementation Period: January 1 through June 30, 2022.
  • Grant Final Report Deadline: July 30, 2022.

Grant Funds

Each grant request is $7,225.

If you application is approved for funding, you will receive $7,225.

SFCA can fund twenty (20) individual artist grants.

Each grant is for an individual artist stipend/fees to support a project that has community impact.

The total grant amount must be spent within the grant implementation period, which is January 1 through June 30, 2022.

Yes. Please keep good records and receipts to support grant funds spent on individual artist stipend/fees during the grant implementation period.

Examples of projects/activities that have community benefit

Project activity formats

  • virtually/on-line
  • streaming
  • broadcast radio or television
  • in-person

Project activites may take place in different venues:

  • Public places (inside or outside)
  • Private places (inside or outside)
  • Web-based sites

Project activity types may include:

  • Exhibitions, Displays
  • Performances, Readings
  • Lectures, Lecture-Demonstrations
  • Workshops, Classes
  • Residencies, Professional Development
  • Creating art works, cultural works
    •  Composing
    •  Choreographing
    •  Literary works, playwriting
    •  Visual, Craft and Occupational art works (includes fishnets, Hawaiian tools and instruments, etc.)
    •  Broadcasts (radio, tv, web-based)
    •  CD or DVD production
    •  Podcasts
  • Building/Maintaining culturally significant works
    • Traditional hale
    • Fishponds
    • Stone/Rock walls
  • Presentations in Festivals, Conferences, Seminars, Institutes
  • Teaching: In-School time, Out-of-School time (including arts, culture, arts/culture integration)

SFCA Priority Underserved Populations

  • Neighbor Islands (Hawaiʻi Island, Kauaʻi, Lanaʻi, Maui, Molokaʻi)
  • Rural (neighbors islands and rural Oʻahu)
  • At-risk children and adults (e.g. incarcerated, homeless, poor)
  • Individuals with neurodiverse or physical disabilities

Scenarios of possible project activities

Examples include and are not limited to:

Yes (for example – performance admission, workshop fees).

Your project activities can describe both. You will be the grant recipient which means that if you are funded, the grant will be contracted to you. The grant’s artist stipend/fees are paid to you, and you can pay your musician partners.

The grant’s artist stipend/fees will compensate you for time but not for supplies/materials or any travel costs.

Yes. For example, the facility where you present, perform, or teach can provide the space, technical support, supplies/materials, and so forth.

Will I need work samples for the application?

Yes. There will be a section for Application Support Materials (i.e. work samples or work evidence) in the application.

  • You are limited to one (1) compiled PDF document of five (5) pages.
  • Must enhance the panelists’ understanding and appreciation of your application narrative.

If you choose to submit a 5-page PDF of work evidence to support your application, here are a few ideas for each page:

  • One or two-page photos or photomontage.
  • One page with one to three embedded video or audio links with a short annotated description. Choose your video and audio samples carefully, panelists may not have time to watch or listen to a long clip. Maximum of three to five minutes in length is sufficient.
  • One or two-page letter(s) from a student, teacher, parent, project participant describing the value of their experience.
  • One or two-page concert program or flyer.
  • One or two page news or magazine article about a similar type of work that you did in the past.

Final reporting about completed project grant activities

  • For grant funding accountability.
  • To collect information that is useful for annual and other reports and for promotion and advocacy of arts and culture in the state.

Examples include and are not limited to:

  • number of audience participation.
  • number of artists directly involved.
  • number of children, youth, adults directly served.
  • islands served
  • locations of activities (for geographic mapping).

Examples include but are not limited to:

  • feedback from audiences and participants.
  • project highlights that made an impact.
  • project benefits to the project’s target population.

All questions are subject to review by the Hawaiʻi State Ethics Commission.