Nominations for Volunteer Panelists (2-year term) –Operating Support Grants

Through the Operating Support Grants program, United Arts supports arts and cultural organizations, providing a variety of cultural experiences for residents and visitors in Central Florida. This comprehensive grant program recognizes the high value of arts and culture for our region and the established institutions which provide cultural programming for the public year-round. Funds for these grants are raised through the United Arts campaign, Arts for All Fund. For more information about grants programs: www.UnitedArts.cc/grants, or contact Mary Giraulo at Mary@UnitedArts.cc or 407.790.7844.

United Arts seeks community volunteers to participate in grant review panels. Qualified panel members will be:

Able to commit to serve a two-year term (renewable for a third year; ¼ of panelists rotate off each year); Actively engaged in creating, attending, supporting, promoting, or teaching about arts, culture & humanities ; Knowledgeable about the cultural sector, such as prior board members, arts managers, donors or audience; Experienced with cultural nonprofit organizations (three years or more preferred), in areas such as

management, planning, development/fundraising, finance, marketing & PR, ADA compliance, etc.; and Able to commit significant time in attending cultural events year-round.

Each panel will be chaired by a United Arts board member (non-voting, except in case of a tie) and will have an advisory member (accountant, CFO, auditor) to review financials.

Panelist Responsibilities Confidentiality regarding all application materials, site visits and panel discussions; Observations of arts events (rehearsal, performance, event or exhibition) for approximately 12-15

organizations– all organizations in the budget category. Tickets are on an as-available basis, requiring sufficient advance notice. Applicant organizations are asked to provide 2 tickets per panelist per year, and may redirect to other events when space requires it;

Formal site visits to 2-3 assigned organizations in October, meeting with the organization’s staff or volunteer leadership. A 1-page site visit report form is due a week after the site visit, and you will report (max 2 minutes) at the panel meeting;

Copy Mary@UnitedArts.cc on all communication with applicant organizations; Review of applications on your own time, coming to panel meeting prepared to discuss and assign scores based

on established evaluation criteria; and Attendance at the required panel meeting, to finalize scores and determine funding recommendations.

Program TimelineNOTE: The Operating Support Grants program includes three separate panels that run on the same schedule, Large Budget, Midsize Budget, and Small Budget. Each panel evaluates around 15 organizations. December - October Observation of arts event(s) for each organization in the budget category (on own schedule)

This is a significant time commitment and should be noted.October Formal site visit meetings (each panelist will be assigned 2-3 organizations)October Applications review (15-20 hours over 4-5 weeks)Late Oct / Nov Panel Meeting (1 meeting, 5-6 hours). Max 20 minutes per application; discussion begins with

site visit report and financial report.

Conflicts of Interest (within 2 years)Panelists must serve without self-interest, and for the benefit of the entire community. All potential conflicts within the last two years should be explained to United Arts; the committee will evaluate whether a significant conflict is in place that would prevent the panelist from discussing or voting on that application. Undisclosed conflicts of interest are grounds for immediate removal from the panel. A conflict of interest includes but is not limited to:

Would receive direct financial benefit from the applicant organization or the project; Serves or has served within the past two years as an employee, volunteer or governing board member of the

applicant organization; or as a consultant, assistant, or advisor to the applicant organization, with or without payment;

Has a familial relationship with the applicant or a staff member, volunteer or governing board member of the applicant organization;

Has applied but not been selected for an RFP or other opportunity within the last two years; or Has a real or perceived bias regarding the applicant or its work that would make it difficult or impossible to

render a fair assessment and/or funding decision; particularly if prior actions or statements have indicated bias.Nominees with conflicts regarding one applicant may be eligible for a panel that does not judge that applicant or its peers (such as a different budget category).

Nominations by Grant Applicants: Grant applicants may nominate potential panelists or may forward this form to qualified individuals. Staff or board members of arts groups are encouraged to apply; nominees will be selected for a panel where they have no conflicts. To nominate, email Mary@UnitedArts.cc with the nominee’s name, phone, and email, which type of panel (organizations or artists), and your reasons for nominating him/her.

SELF-NOMINATION FORM – VOLUNTEER PANELISTSUnited Arts Grants Programs

Send the completed form with a resumé to Mary@UnitedArts.cc or fax 407.628.9110, attention Mary Giraulo. Panelists will be selected based on applications and availability. Applications are accepted year-round but panel slots may become available on an unpredictable schedule; UA maintains a list of nominees.

Nominee Contact Information – Name, affiliation & email will be made available to applicants if selected.

Name:       Title (if any):      

Employer:       County of Residence:      

Email:       Phone:      

Address:      

Brief Bio for Panel List (max 50-60 words) – This should serve to introduce your expertise to the arts organizations.

     

Interest in Grant Panel(s)

Operating Support – Small Budget (under $250K)Operating Support – Midsize Budget ($250K-$749K)Operating Support – Large Budget ($750K+)

References (optional) - Persons well known in the arts community are the best references.

Name:       Name:      

Phone or Email:       Phone or Email:      

List of qualifications

Arts Discipline(s) – as practitioner, educator, administrator, volunteer, board member or patron:

Arts Education Media/Film Theater

Dance Multidisciplinary Arts Traditional/Folk Art

Design/Tech Museums Visual Arts

Literary Arts Music Other:      

Nonprofit expertise:

Management Development/Fundraising Other:      

Planning Finance Other:      

Marketing & PR ADA Compliance Other:      

Other:Familiarity with local cultural community (Lake, Orange, Osceola, Seminole counties)Sensitivity in making constructive critical judgments Significant time available year-round to attend arts events and exhibitions (for about 15 organizations depending on panel) Time available in October to perform formal site visits of 2-3 assigned organizations, and to review applications before the panel meeting Time available in November for the all-day panel meeting

Explanation of qualifications – Please explain how your knowledge, skills and experience, in the areas indicated above, qualify you for this position. If you have a main area or area(s) of expertise, please explain. You can attach extra pages if necessary, and must attach a bio and/or resumé.

     

Prior Panel Service – List any past experience as a panelist or juror, including the location/organization.

     

Demographics (optional)

Please check your gender: Male Female

What is your race or ethnicity? (mark more than one if applicable)

American Indian/Alaska NativeAsianBlack/African American

Hispanic/LatinoNative Hawaiian/Other Pacific

Islander

WhiteMulti-Racial (no single race

applies)

Please check your age range: 18-34 35-44 45-54 55-64 65+

Conflicts of Interest (in last 2 years) - See the list of organizations on the next page, and the definition of conflict of interest in this document, and explain any perceived conflicts of interest here (attach extra pages if necessary):

     

This chart also asks you to identify which cultural groups you are familiar with. We are looking for panelists with a wide range of interest and who frequently attend events. Other organizations not on this list may also apply.

Fam

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Confl

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OrganizationLARGE BUDGET CATEGORY ($900K+)

Art & History Museums, Maitland Bach Festival Society Crealdé School of Art (including Hannibal

Square Heritage Center) Downtown Arts District / CityArts Factory Enzian Theater & the Florida Film Festival Garden Theatre Mad Cow Theatre Orange County Regional History Center Orlando Ballet Orlando Fringe Orlando Museum of Art Orlando Philharmonic Orchestra Orlando Repertory Theatre Orlando Science Center Orlando Shakespeare Theater

MIDSIZE BUDGET CATEGORY ($250K-$899K)

Albin Polasek Museum and Sculpture Gardens

Association to Preserve the Eatonville Community - Zora! Festival and The Hurston Museum

Bay Street Players The Center for Contemporary Dance Central Florida Ballet Central Florida Community Arts Florida Symphony Youth Orchestra Holocaust Memorial Resource and

Education Center of Central Florida Mennello Museum of American Art MicheLee Puppets Mount Dora Center for the Arts Osceola County Historical Society Wayne Densch Performing Arts Center The Winter Park Playhouse

Fam

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OrganizationSMALL BUDGET CATEGORY ($25K-$249K)

Asian Cultural Association of Central Florida

Creative City Project Global Peace Film Festival HAPCO Music Foundation Lake Eustis Museum of Art Leesburg Center for the Arts Melon Patch Players Opera Orlando Orlando Gay Chorus Performing Arts of Maitland Steinway Society of Central Florida Urban Think Foundation Winter Garden Heritage Foundation Winter Park Historical Association

Other – please specify:       Other – please specify:       Other – please specify: