Applications to COCA's FY25 Grant Cycle Open Now
Posted: Apr 23, 2024
The FY25 application for all COCA grant programs is now available in Submittable.
Next Deadline: June 18, 2024 at 11:59 p.m.
COCA has three grant programs available for the period of October 1, 2024 – September 30, 2025:
Cultural Grant
Cultural Tourism Marketing Grant
Local Community Grant
An eligible organization can submit a single application to all three programs. Please read the FY25 Grant Guidelines prior to submitting an application.
Cultural Grant
The Cultural Grant funds programming expenses. Applicant programming must meet at least one of the following goals:
Offer arts, history, or cultural programs with exemplary standards and objectives.
Provide educational opportunities in arts, culture, and/or history for young people or adults.
Serve a special or diverse population or need, fill a unique niche or engage the community in the creative or artistic process.
Funds for the Cultural Grant come from Leon County's Tourist Development Tax (TDT) revenue. Therefore, applicants must also meet all of the following expectations:
In addition to arts and culture, the applicant must have as one of its main purposes the attraction of tourists, as evidenced by the promotion of the activity, service, venue, or event to tourists.
Applicant must clearly identify public relations/promotional/marketing tactics used to reach visitors outside of Leon County.
Applicant must have a marketing plan that clearly indicates out-of-market advertising or promotion.
Applicant must track and report the number of out-of-county visitors served by the grant-funded programs.
In this grant program, an organization's maximum allowable request will depend on their type (non-profit versus state entity) and their allowable operating income from the previous fiscal year. (See pages 13-15 in the Guidelines to calculate your request.)
Cultural Tourism Marketing Grant
Applicants who meet all the Cultural Grant requirements may request an additional $3,500 to support out-of-county marketing and promotion of arts and cultural programs. Funds for this grant also come from Leon County's Tourist Development Tax revenue.
Local Community Grant
The Local Community Grant funds programming expenses. Applicant programming must meet at least one of the following goals:
Offer arts, history, or cultural programs with exemplary standards and objectives.
Provide educational opportunities in arts, culture, and/or history for young people or adults.
Serve a special or diverse population or need, fill a unique niche or engage the community in the creative or artistic process.
Unlike the Cultural Grant and the Cultural Tourism Marketing Grant, funds for the Local Community Grant come from the City of Tallahassee's General Revenue fund. Therefore, applicants must also meet the following expectations:
Applicants must track and report the number of Leon County and/or Tallahassee residents served by programs.
Applicant programming should align with one or more of the following City of Tallahassee priorities (see pages 12-13 of the Guidelines): economic development; impact on poverty; public safety, and; quality of life.
An organization can request up to $10,000 to support local arts programs. Funding for this grant depends on the City budget. The City budget may not be determined until after the panel meeting.
How to Apply
An organization can request up to $10,000 to support local arts programs. Funding for this grant depends on the City budget. The City budget may not be determined until after the panel meeting.
Follow these steps to submit an application:
Navigate to https://tallahasseearts.submittable.com
Next to “FY25 COCA Grant Programs,” click “submit.”
Create a Submittable account, or log into your Submittable account, and confirm your address.
Fill out the following form, “FY25 COCA Grant Programs – Basic Eligibility.”
Based on your answer to the question “Please select the grant programs from which you would like to request funding,” you will receive one or both of the following forms within one business day of your submission.
If you indicated that you wish to request the Cultural Grant and/or the Cultural Tourism Marketing Grant, you will receive the form “FY25 COCA Grant Programs – CG + CTMG.”
If you indicated that you wish to request the Local Community Grant, you will receive the form “FY25 COCA Grant Programs – LCG.”
All relevant forms (Basic Eligibility, CG + CTMG, LCG) must be submitted by:
JUNE 18, 2024 AT 11:59 P.M.
For a timeline and more information about COCA's grant services, please check the Grant Programs page. For questions, please contact Summer Callahan at summer@tallahasseearts.org.