Research: Art Works

CFDA No. 45.024
2012NEAORA

Application Deadline: Organizations are required to submit their applications electronically through Grants.gov, the federal government's online application system. The Grants.gov system must receive your validated and accepted application no later than 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on November 8, 2011. We strongly recommend that you submit at least 10 days in advance of the deadline to give yourself ample time to resolve any problems that you might encounter. The Arts Endowment will not accept late applications

Grant Program Description

Background

In October 2010, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) adopted a strategic plan that sets forth a new vision and mission and related goals, outcomes, and performance metrics for the agency. For the first time, the NEA's strategic plan identifies research as a mission-critical goal -- specifically, "to promote public knowledge and understanding about the contribution of the arts." Through high-quality research, the NEA will expand the body of evidence for "the value and impact of the arts."

In support of this research goal, the NEA's Office of Research & Analysis' (ORA) has identified the following priorities:

1. Cultivate new data sources and conduct research on the value and impact of the U.S. arts sector.
2. Evaluate NEA programs and partnerships for their value and impact.
3. Communicate results and policy implications through research reports, presentations, and convenings.
4. Elevate the profile of arts-related research as a field of study.

To help achieve items 1, 3, and 4 above, the ORA is inaugurating a grants program for research in and about the arts. These grants will support the investigation of novel and significant research questions about the value and impact of the U.S. arts sector through the analysis of existing and/or newly established datasets. The resulting projects will enhance the current state of knowledge about the value and impact of the arts in the U.S., and will yield valuable information about the utility to arts-related research of various kinds of datasets -- including those not previously mined for this purpose. It is hoped, moreover, that by providing financial support to deserving projects that engage researchers from multiple fields and disciplines, this program will spur growth in the number of people experienced in and knowledgeable about arts-related research in the United States. In this spirit, the NEA encourages applicants from diverse research backgrounds, including applicants who have not specialized in arts-related research.

Research Opportunity

The NEA will make grants for research projects that use existing datasets to mine data for analyses of the value and impact of the U.S. arts sector on the nation, whether on individuals or communities. Applications should present novel research questions that have not previously been explored with the referenced dataset(s). Projects that will be conducted in partnership with for-profit entities, and/or which use commercial and/or administrative datasets, are also encouraged.

The agency has determined that all grants awarded under this category will have the following as their primary outcome:

• Enhancing knowledge and understanding: Evidence of the value and impact of the arts is expanded and promoted.

Organizations will be asked to address the anticipated results of their projects in their applications. If a grant is received, grantees will be asked to report their findings in their final report. Before applying, please review the reporting requirements on the National Endowment for the Arts Final Descriptive Report form and the "Administrative Requirements" for information about a final work product research report.

In the first year of the program, funds will be given only for the analysis of high-quality datasets. In future years, it may be possible for applicants to submit requests for projects involving primary data collection.

Data Sources

Applicants should investigate only those datasets most relevant to the research questions proposed. The quality, validity, and reliability of the dataset will factor in the review of applications. A list of possible datasets is provided below. This list is by no means exhaustive, however, and applicants are encouraged to propose sources entirely different from those below. Among publicly available datasets are:

• Fast Response Survey System (National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education)
• National Assessment of Educational Progress (National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education)
• Educational longitudinal studies, including National Educational Longitudinal Study, Early Childhood Longitudinal Study, and High School Longitudinal Study (National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education)
• High School Transcript Study (National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education)
• Schools & Staffing Survey (SASS), Teacher Follow-up Survey (TFS), and Principal Follow-up Survey (PFS) (National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education)
• National Household Education Surveys (NHES) Survey Program (National Center for Education Statistics, U.S. Department of Education)
• National Survey of Student Engagement and High School Survey of Student Engagement: summary tables and annual reports (Indiana University)
• Survey of Public Participation in the Arts (National Endowment for the Arts)
• American Community Survey (U.S. Census Bureau)
• Current Population Survey and related supplements (U.S. Census Bureau)
• American Time Use Survey (Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor)
• Quarterly Census of Employment and Wages/Location Quotient (Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor)
• Occupational Employment and Wages/Occupational Employment Statistics (Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor)
• National Income and Product Accounts Data (Bureau of Economic Analysis, U.S. Department of Commerce)
• Consumer Expenditure Survey (Bureau of Labor Statistics, U.S. Department of Labor)
• Economic Census (U.S. Census Bureau)
• Service Annual Survey (U.S. Census Bureau)
• County Business Patterns (U.S. Census Bureau)
• IRS Form 990 Filings (National Center for Charitable Statistics, Urban Institute)
• Cultural Data Project (operated by The Pew Charitable Trusts): Permission to use Cultural Data Project data will be bestowed to grantees who wish to use the data. Contact CDP (research@culturaldata.org or 877-707-DATA) for available data
• Panel Study of Income Dynamics (PSID), Child Development Supplement (CDS), and Transition into Adulthood (TA) study (The University of Michigan; click on the following links for additional information: brief description of the studies and overview, PSID Art-Related variables)

The NEA also welcomes the use of datasets in the private domain, including commercial and/or administrative datasets, and/or data collected by the researcher. The purchase of datasets needed for analysis is an allowable cost.

Final Work Product

Grantees will be required to submit a research report at the end of the grant period (see "Administrative Requirements" below for more information).

Award Information

Grant Amounts and Matching Funds

The Arts Endowment anticipates awarding up to 25 grants, based on the availability of funding.

Grants generally will range from $10,000 to $30,000.

Grants do not require matching funds. However, applicants are encouraged to provide some cash and/or in-kind services in support of this project.

Minimal federal funds may be used to support administrative costs. However, grantees must incur direct costs equal to the amount of an award.

Period of Support

The Arts Endowment's support of a project may start on May 1, 2012, or any time thereafter. A grant period is not expected to exceed one year.

No pre-award costs are allowable in the Project Budget. Project costs that are incurred before the project start date will be removed from the Project Budget.

Applicant Eligibility

Nonprofit, tax-exempt 501(c)(3), U.S. organizations; units of state or local government; or federally recognized tribal communities or tribes may apply. This may include, but is not limited to, colleges and universities.

To be eligible, the applicant organization must:

• Meet the Arts Endowment's "Legal Requirements," including nonprofit, tax-exempt status, as detailed in the FY 2012 Grants for Arts Projects guidelines, at the time of application.
• Have submitted acceptable Final Report packages by the due date(s) for all Arts Endowment awards(s) previously received.
  

An organization whose primary purpose is to channel resources (financial, human, or other) to an affiliated organization is not eligible to apply if the affiliated organization submits its own application. This prohibition applies even if each organization has its own 501(c)(3) status. For example, the "Friends of ABC Museum" may not apply if the ABC Museum applies.

All applicants must have a DUNS number (www.dnb.com) and be registered with the Central Contractor Registration (CCR, www.ccr.gov) and maintain an active CCR registration until the application process is complete, and should a grant be made, throughout the life of the award.

See "How to Prepare and Submit an Application" for the documentation that is required to demonstrate eligibility. Ineligible applications will be returned.

For projects that involve multiple organizations, one organization that meets the eligibility requirements above must act as the official applicant, submit the application, and assume full responsibility for the grant.

An organization may submit more than one application under these Research: Art Works guidelines.

The designated fifty state and six jurisdictional arts agencies (SAAs) and their regional arts organizations (RAOs) are not eligible to apply under the Research: Art Works guidelines.

An application in response to this announcement does not preclude an organization from applying under other Arts Endowment funding opportunities including Grants for Arts Projects. In each case, the request must be for a distinctly different project.

How to Prepare and Submit an Application

Organizations are required to submit their applications electronically through Grants.gov, the federal government's on-line application system. The Grants.gov system must receive your validated and accepted application no later than 11:59 p.m., Eastern Time, on November 8, 2011. We strongly recommend that you submit at least 10 days in advance of the deadline to give yourself ample time to resolve any problems that you might encounter.

See "How to Prepare and Submit an Application" for further instructions.

Application Review

The following criteria are considered during the review of applications:

The artistic excellence of the project, which includes the:

• Significance of the project to arts policy and practice.

The artistic merit of the project, which includes the:

• Potential of the project to achieve results consistent with the NEA outcome for Enhancing knowledge and understanding: Evidence of the value and impact of the arts is expanded and promoted. This includes the:

  • Potential to enhance the current state of knowledge about the value and impact of the arts on the nation, whether on individuals or communities.
  • Uniqueness of the research questions, methodology, and approach.
  • Potential to spur growth in the number and diversity of people experienced in and knowledgeable about arts-related research in the U.S.

• Appropriateness of the proposed performance measurements and their ability to provide evidence that the NEA outcome for Enhancing knowledge and understanding: Evidence of the value and impact of the arts is expanded and promoted was achieved.

• Appropriateness of the research plan, including the analytical techniques that will be used; the relevance of the dataset(s) to be investigated to the research questions proposed; and the quality, validity, and reliability of the data sources.

• Plans for timely reporting and dissemination of the project results, including distribution strategies to make the research findings and data accessible to the public.

• Ability to carry out the project based on such factors as the appropriateness of the budget, the quality and clarity of the project goals and design, the resources involved, the quality of any partnerships (including those with for-profit entities, and/or using commercial and/or administrative datasets), and the qualifications of the project's personnel.

What Happens to Your Application

All applications are reviewed by an advisory panel. Panel recommendations are forwarded to the National Council on the Arts, which then makes recommendations to the Chairman of the National Endowment for the Arts. The Chairman reviews the Council's recommendations and makes the final decision on all grant awards. Pending the availability of funding, it is anticipated that applicants will be notified of award or rejection in April 2012.

Award Administration

Crediting Requirement

Grantees must clearly acknowledge support from the National Endowment for the Arts in their programs and related promotional material including publications and web sites. Organizations that receive grants may be provided with specific requirements for acknowledgment of this initiative.

Administrative Requirements

Before submitting an application, organizations should review the Grants for Arts Projects guidelines and General Terms & Conditions for detailed information on legal requirements, financial reviews and audits, and other administrative matters that pertain to this announcement.

At the end of the grant period, grantees will be required to submit a 30-50 page research report that includes:

• An executive summary.
• A summary of the analysis conducted, and related findings.
• A conclusions section, including research and/or policy recommendations, based on the findings.
• A technical note or summary of the methodology used.
• If applicable, web links to research that resulted from this project.

Grantees will be required to provide their reports in a specific format which will be provided at a later date.

The NEA intends to publish grantees' research reports on its web site. All federal grantmaking agencies retain a royalty-free right to use all or a portion of grantees' final report material for federal purposes.

Agency Contacts

If you have questions, please contact the staff at nearesearchgrants@arts.gov

Reporting Burden

The public reporting burden for this collection of information is estimated at an average of 32 hours per response, including the time for reviewing instructions, searching existing data sources, gathering and maintaining the data needed, and completing and reviewing the collection of information. The Arts Endowment welcomes any suggestions that you might have on improving the guidelines and making them as easy to use as possible. Send comments regarding this burden estimate or any other aspect of this collection of information, including suggestions for reducing this burden, to: Office of Guidelines & Panel Operations, Room 620, National Endowment for the Arts, 1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20506-0001. Note: Applicants are not required to respond to the collection of information unless it displays a currently valid U.S. Office of Management and Budget (OMB) control number.

August 2011

OMB No. 3135-0112 Expires 11/30/2013

National Endowment for the Arts · an independent federal agency
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue NW
Washington, DC 20506