COLUMBUS, Ohio — The Greater Columbus Arts Council (Arts Council) Board of Trustees approved a total of $8,578,211 through its two largest grant programs. The Arts Council awarded 15 General Support grants totaling $667,783 and 22 Operating Support grants totaling an unprecedented $7,910,428.
These grants are made possible through funds the Arts Council receives from the City of Columbus through the hotel/motel bed tax and the arts and culture ticket fee, and from Franklin County.
“These historic grant amounts are emblematic of what Columbus can do when we all work together,” says Tom Katzenmeyer, president and CEO of the Arts Council. “I cannot overstate the importance of the steadfast funding from the city and the county. I also want to celebrate the perseverance of our arts organizations and the commitment of Columbus donors and audiences through the past two extremely challenging years.”
Operating Support
Operating Support is directed to the keystone arts and culture organizations with annual budgets over $500,000 that are firmly established, well-managed and have a significant impact and broad community engagement. Operating Support organizations are required to apply the arts and culture ticket fee on admissions.
Award amounts are determined based on a formula of application scores and revenue averages. This is the first year since 2019 that scoring has been applied to calculate award amounts. The Arts Council removed scoring in 2020 and 2021 due to the continuing impact of the pandemic on Columbus arts organizations.
This is the first year for National Veterans Memorial & Museum in Operating Support and Lincoln Theatre’s second. New organizations eligible for Operating Support receive one third of the maximum allowable grant in their first year, two thirds in their second and the full amount starting the third year.
| Operating Support Recipient | Amount |
| Ballet Metropolitan, Inc. | $580,578 |
| CAPA | $654,750 |
| CATCO | $215,214 |
| Columbus Children’s Theatre | $206,155 |
| Columbus Museum of Art | $654,750 |
| Columbus Symphony Orchestra | $597,711 |
| COSI | $668,250 |
| Franklin Park Conservatory | $564,000 |
| Gateway Film Center | $381,017 |
| Glass Axis | $103,121 |
| Jazz Arts Group | $260,696 |
| King Arts Complex | $210,299 |
| Lincoln Theater Association | $119,256 |
| National Veterans Memorial & Museum | $166,667 |
| Ohio Designer Craftsmen | $171,181 |
| Ohio History Connection/Ohio Historical Society | $440,000 |
| Opera Columbus | $253,058 |
| ProMusica | $333,216 |
| Shadowbox Live | $470,526 |
| Short North Stage | $186,433 |
| Thurber House | $127,550 |
| Wexner Center for the Arts | $546,000 |
TOTAL: $7,910,428
General Support
General Support is a new program in 2022 that provides unrestricted financial support and capacity-building resources for small and mid-sized organizations with annual budgets under $500,000. These organizations produce and/or present full seasons of performances, exhibitions and arts events, and had previously received Project Support. General Support will help these organizations on their path to sustainability and growth.
This program follows a calculation model similar to Operating Support grants. To apply for General Support, organizations must pre-qualify by submitting three years of financial documentation to demonstrate acceptable bookkeeping practices and financial stability. All organizations that are pre-qualified and applied for General Support in 2022 saw an increase of Arts Council funding from their previous awards under Project Support.
| General Support Recipient | Amount |
| 934 Inc | $17,155 |
| Actors Theatre | $50,884 |
| All People Arts | $16,270 |
| Available Light Theatre | $25,511 |
| Capriccio Vocal Ensemble | $22,412 |
| Columbus Children’s Choir | $77,838 |
| Columbus Dance Theatre | $50,620 |
| Columbus Gay Men’s Chorus | $77,308 |
| Columbus Landmarks Foundation | $75,816 |
| Friends of Early Music | $76,120 |
| Maroon Arts Group | $52,789 |
| Opera Project Columbus | $49,750 |
| ROY G BIV Gallery for Emerging Artists | $28,439 |
| Six String Concerts | $13,527 |
| Wild Goose Creative | $33,344 |
TOTAL: $667,783
For more information on community funding, including guidelines and upcoming deadlines, go to gcac.org or contact the Grants & Services team at grants@gcac.org or (614) 224-2606.
Mission of the Greater Columbus Arts Council: To support and advance the arts and cultural fabric of Columbus. www.gcac.org
The Greater Columbus Arts Council receives major financial support from the City of Columbus, Franklin County Commissioners and the Ohio Arts Council.
For translations of this release and other pages, please see the dropdown menu at the top right corner of gcac.org.
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CONTACT: Jami Goldstein
(614) 221-8492
jgoldstein@gcac.org
