Other Programs

• Ohio Heritage Fellowships
• Ohio River Border Initiative

This section of Guidelines is available as a PDF for you to download and print out if you prefer to read it offline. You must also read Appendix A: Legal Requirements if you plan to apply for OAC funding. A PDF of the complete version of the Guidelines is available in the Introduction.

OHIO HERITAGE FELLOWSHIPS

Recognizing Individual Achievement in Folk and Traditional Arts

Dedicated individuals working in the folk and traditional arts, through their creativity, excellence and service, reflect the history, practices, beliefs and values of diverse peoples throughout Ohio. The Ohio Heritage Fellowship program was created to honor and celebrate these living cultural treasures. Award recipients are recognized within their communities as exemplary practitioners of a folk or traditional art form with work of the highest quality and authenticity. Through an open nomination process and careful consideration by recognized professionals in the field; the Ohio Heritage Fellowship program offers statewide visibility and a one-time financial award that allows master artists and community leaders to share their expertise and promote the awareness of folk and traditional cultures. The Ohio Arts Council values the history and background of each citizen of our state and recognizes that the quality of life in Ohio depends on continued vitality of traditions of every kind. Ohio Heritage Fellows represent the best of those things that make us unique combined with the most enduring of that which is common to all, and the Ohio Heritage Fellowship program ensures that those working in the folk and traditional arts do not remain among us just as faded photographs or distant memories but have an essential place in the present and future of Ohio.

NOMINATION DEADLINE: January 15

WHAT THE PROGRAM SUPPORTS

The Ohio Heritage Fellowship program recognizes Ohio folk and traditional artists who are the finest and most influential masters of their particular art forms and traditions and whose work in the folk and traditional arts have had a significant impact on the people and communities of the state. Awards are given in three categories: Performing Arts, Material Culture (folk art, folk crafts, folk architecture) and Community Leadership. The OAC expects awardees to adhere to cultural artistic traditions and work in order to maintain the aesthetics and preservation of their art form, in the process contributing to the public visibility of the folk and traditional arts; be actively participating in their art form as a practitioner, a mentor, teacher or community leader; and be creating work of depth and brilliance that deepens our awareness of the rich and diverse cultural and artistic traditions of the people of Ohio.

Allowable Expenses
Ohio Heritage Fellowship awards may be used for a variety of expenses related to the growth and development of the artist and their work. The award may be used for any purpose designated by the receiving individual except to continue their education through a degree-granting program.

Grant Awards
Ohio Heritage Fellowship awards are $3,500. Grant amounts are recommended by a review panel. All recommendations must be approved by the OAC Board.

WHO MAY APPLY

Individuals must be nominated in order to receive an award from the Ohio Heritage Fellowship program. Individuals may not nominate themselves. Nominees must have lived in Ohio for one year prior to the January 15 deadline.

HOW TO APPLY

Nomination Form
The Ohio Heritage Fellowship program nomination form is NOT part of OLGA. The nomination form is available online at:
www.oac.state.oh.us/search/OhioHeritageFellowships/SearchFellowshipNominations.asp.

Although the OAC does not accept draft nominations, we will answer any questions you have about your nomination prior to the deadline. Applicants must be sure to submit their nomination electronically by 5 p.m. on the final deadline date. If the nomination is not officially submitted electronically, it will not be accepted.

Nominations remain active for three years and will be reviewed annually. Information may be added to a nomination during this three year period.

Support Materials
To complete their nomination for this program, all nominators must submit one complete set of support materials to the OAC along with discipline–specific work samples. Nominations that do not include support materials will not be accepted. All support materials should represent the folk or traditional art form of the nominee.

Support materials should include:

1) Letters of Support for Nominee. Letters of support should be from community members who are knowledgeable about the traditional art form. A minimum of three letters must be submitted.

2) Work Samples. Submit samples of work (DVDs, videotapes, cassettes, audio CDs, digital CDs, color slides or photographs) demonstrating artistic quality and technical ability. This enables the selection panel to evaluate nominees. These samples may be submitted together on a single disk or tape or may be submitted separately. Panelists may review some or all of submitted material. All audio-visual work samples must be accompanied by a Cover Sheet for Work Samples. Work samples that do not adhere to the guidelines may not be reviewed.

a) Folk Craft: Submit five to 10 images of the work of the master artist-digital images on disk are preferred. If possible, include an image that shows the place in which your work is created.
b) Music/Verbal Arts: Submit one copy of one sound recording (CD, DVD or videocassette) of the master artist. Provide a list identifying performers, instruments and the material being presented. Be sure to describe the typical audience and venue for this music/verbal art form on the Cover Sheet for Work Samples. Indicate track number(s) or cue tape to preferred starting point.
c) Dance/Ethnic Theatre: Submit one copy of one video (DVD or videocassette) of the master artist that best demonstrates the quality of the work. Label the video with title and length of work; provide a list with a description of your dance form or theatre, performers and typical venue on the Cover Sheet for Work Samples. Indicate track number(s) or cue tape to preferred starting point.

Support materials such as brochures, newspaper and magazine articles, exhibition catalogues and programs may also be submitted. Slides, audiotapes and videotapes submitted with applications will be returned if a mailer large enough to hold them is included with the application. The return mailer must have the appropriate amount of U.S. postage. Do not send cash, checks or Federal Express mailers for the return of materials. If an addressed, stamped mailer is not included with the application, support materials will be kept for one year and then discarded.

Support materials must be received in the OAC office no more than seven calendar days after the application deadline date by 5 p.m. (regardless of postmarked date). If the support materials do not reach the OAC within this timeframe, the nomination will not be accepted.

Timeline
The timeline below presents a general outline of the grant process for the Heritage Fellowship. Please note that if a deadline falls on a weekend or state holiday, the deadline will be extended until the next business day.

Evaluation and Scoring
A panel consisting of folklorists, arts professionals and other community members meets to evaluate and score Ohio Heritage Fellowship applications and support materials.

At the panel meeting, an evaluative discussion will take place for each application. The review process is competitive and only exemplary nominations will be recommended.

Review Criteria
Panelists use a combination of the following criteria to make award recipient recommendations. Any one or combination of criteria is sufficient to substantiate an award recommendation:

• Work reflects the highest quality of craftsmanship, design, and authenticity


• Body of work is consistently high in quality


• Recognized within their community as an exemplary practitioner of a folk or traditional art form


• Learned their art form through informal study and by carefully watching, listening and doing


• Creates works of depth and brilliance that deepen our awareness of the rich and diverse cultural and artistic traditions of the people of Ohio


• Participates in their art form as a practitioner, mentor, teacher or leader


• Adheres to cultural artistic traditions and work in order to maintain the aesthetics and preservation of their art form, in the process contributing to the public visibility of traditional arts, crafts, and artists.


• Audiovisual materials are relevant and high quality

OHIO RIVER BORDER INITIATIVE

APPLICATION DEADLINE: Feburary 1

The Ohio River Border Initiative (ORBI) is a joint project of the West Virginia Commission on the Arts and the OAC to support the arts community in the Ohio River valley. ORBI's programs are open to artists, arts groups and community arts programs in all Ohio and West Virginia counties that touch the Ohio River. These counties are Wayne, Cabell, Mason, Jackson, Wood, Pleasants, Tyler, Wetzel, Marshall, Ohio, Brooke and Hancock in West Virginia, and Lawrence, Gallia, Meigs, Athens, Washington, Monroe, Belmont, Jefferson and Columbiana in Ohio.

Since 1994, ORBI has offered an annual grant program to fund projects that encourage active collaborations among artists, communities and/or organizations on both sides of the Ohio River. ORBI also offers grants of up to $500 for individual artists through its Artist Fast Track program.

Fast Track grants are intended to support immediate, short-term projects that have a positive impact upon the career development of artists by helping them:

(1) increase access to audiences and venues;
(2) develop new skills and insights;
(3) investigate new artistic ideas and approaches.

Deadline for the Artist Fast Track is 60 days before the funds are needed.

The maximum grant award is $3,000 to any one group or artist. Grants are awarded for projects that actively involve artists, audiences and communities on both sides of the Ohio River. For more information about ORBI, visit www.orbi.org.

This section of "Guidelines" is available as a PDF for you to download and print out if you prefer to read it offline. You must also read Appendix A: Legal Requirements if you plan to apply for OAC funding. A PDF of the complete version of the "Guidelines" is available in the Introduction.