This RFP is closed.
Overview
The Asian Women Giving Circle (AWGC) believes culture is an essential part of any strategy for social change. We support projects led by Asian American women or gender-expansive people in NYC that harness the power of arts and culture to:
- Bring about progressive social transformation
- Raise awareness and catalyze action around critical issues that affect Asian American women, girls, gender-expansive people, and families, and
- Highlight and promote their central role as leaders, creators, developers and managers of these projects.
In this grants cycle, we anticipate that 6-8 project grants will be awarded, contingent on available funding. The maximum grant amount is $8,000. To see past funded projects, visit our website: www.asianwomengivingcircle.org
Our Mission
We promote grassroots philanthropy and pool our resources to fund projects led by Asian American women, girls and/or gender-expansive people who use their creativity to move hearts, minds and communities to be free of fear, bias and injustice. Our goals are to:
- Channel more resources into our local communities
- Engage more people to invest in creative projects by and for our communities
- Shine an authentic spotlight on our experiences and stories
- Promote progressive social change
- Raise the visibility of Asian American women and gender-expansive people doing philanthropic work
Eligibility Criteria
- This RFP is open to both 501(c)(3) organizations and individual artists
- Artists and collectives that are not 501(c)(3)s must apply under a fiscal sponsor that is a 501(c)(3) organization, which they must list on their application as the applying organization.
- NOTE: Failure to provide 501(c)(3) documentation or to provide a fiscal sponsor with the same will automatically disqualify the application.
- All artistic disciplines will be considered, including cross-disciplinary work
- Projects must incorporate the arts in an integral way
- Projects must highlight women’s and gender-expansive people’s leadership and/or central role
- Projects must demonstrate a commitment to NYC-based communities (Please note that we have made grants outside of this geographic scope to projects of exceptional merit)
- Grants must be applied to specific projects and cannot support the organization’s ongoing programs, operations, capital or endowments
- Applicants can be at any stage in their careers but must have a track record of developed work that demonstrates their capacity to complete the proposed project and manage the funds requested
- • Proposals must make a clear case for the theory of social justice change envisioned by the project, based on the applicants’ own criteria for defining and measuring impact
What We Do Not Fund
- Capital or endowment campaigns
- Equipment purchases
- Support to address financial crises or shortfalls
- Purely personal works of artistic expression with little or no social justice impact
- Documentation that is primarily of cultural events
- Performances or personalities that do not provide a social change analysis or social justice focus
- Student productions or projects associated with a degree program and academic credit
Criteria and Review Process
Applications are reviewed by AWGC members who select a shortlist of finalists. We then encourage our broader donor community to vote via online ballot on this finalist list and make our final decision once the ballots are in.
In the interest of fairness and transparency, if you have made a donation in the year that you are also an applicant, you will not be able to vote via online ballot.
Applications will be reviewed with the following criteria:
- The project is led by AAPI women or gender-expansive people and/or has AAPI women and girls and/or gender-expansive people in central roles in the project’s conceptual framework, design and implementation.
- The arts and social change are related in an integral way.
- Has a clear and persuasive strategy to move hearts and minds toward progressive social change and a strong potential to do so.
- Raises awareness and/or intervenes around critical issues affecting AAPI women, girls, and/or gender-expansive people and families, e.g., human rights, bias, injustice, gender-based violence, immigrant rights.
- Demonstrates a deep commitment to NYC-based communities. (Please note that we have made grants outside of this geographic scope to projects of exceptional merit)
- Demonstrates a vision and plan for using the grant funds effectively and for completing the project.
- Demonstrates exceptional creativity, artistically and/or through social intervention.
Important Dates
- Notification of Grant Awards will be made in June 2024.
- All grantees will be required to submit a narrative and financial report at the end of the grant year (June 2025).
How to Apply
This RFP is administered via the grants portal of the Ms. Foundation for Women. Applications will be accepted ONLY via this online process.
NARRATIVE PROPOSAL: ELEMENTS
Under the Narrative Proposal section of the RFP, please combine all proposal elements below into ONE (1) PDF document to be uploaded. Please ensure the responses adhere to the maximum allowable number of words specified, and provide the following information in the order detailed:
| Short Project Description | Describe the project in one or two brief sentences (max. 50-75 words) |
| Long Project Description | Describe the proposed project, e.g., genesis, historic or current context, the issues it seeks to address, its narrative or formal elements (max. 300 words). |
| Artist/Organizational Statement | Please share a brief artist statement and/or organizational mission (max. 300 words) |
| Impact | What impact do you hope to have? Describe your intended artistic and community goals, and the project’s theory of change based on your own criteria. How will you know if your goals have been achieved? (max. 300 words) |
| Activities & Timeline | List the activities you will carry out to achieve the goals of your project. Include a project implementation plan and a timeline for the proposed activities. |
| Access | How will members of the community participate or gain access to the project? What is the applicant’s relationship to that community? (max. 300 words) |
| Project Budget | Use this provided project budget template and incorporate it into the proposal PDF document. This is the budget for the specific project you are seeking funding for, not your overall organizational budget. Note: Overhead/ indirect or administrative costs may account for up to 15% of your project budget. These costs refer to any ongoing operating expenses of the regular business of the applicant that are not directly related to the project. This percentage should be explicitly shown in the budget. Please provide a list of foundation and corporate supporters for the proposed project and all other sources of income, with amounts, including pending funding sources for your current and most recent year. |
| Organization Budget & Income | Provide your organization or fiscal sponsor’s operating expense budgets for the current and most recent fiscal year. Be sure to note the beginning and end of your fiscal year. |
| Project Bios | Provide narrative bios or CVs for the project’s primary collaborators. |
| Work Samples (Optional) | If you are submitting a work sample, provide a short description and how it relates to the proposed project. See guidelines below. |
Work Samples
Works samples are optional but encouraged. Your work sample should be a current representation of your proposed project, or representative of your approach or style.
PLEASE SUBMIT ONLINE SAMPLES ONLY. We cannot accept samples by mail.
Acceptable work samples are:
NOTE: PLEASE IMBED HYPERLINKS where possible for reviewer access.
- Digital Images: Six digital images total:
- Images must be saved as JPEG files, 1500 pixels in the longest dimension.
- Video/Audio: Four minutes of video/audio:
- Links to time-based media only.
- Applicants may submit up to two clips of video/audio, together totaling no more than four minutes of footage.
- Written sample:
- No more than 10 pages, double spaced, 12-point font.
Format for Proposals
Narrative must follow the following format:
- Type, use a 12-point font size and single-space
- Answer all the questions in the order listed
- Save in PDF format
Once you’ve saved your proposal as a PDF, you may then upload it through the online application procedure described below.
Online Application Procedure
Your proposal must be submitted through the Ms. Foundation’s online application process.
NOTE: In order to view your application, your internet browser must be able to view cookies.
- When you access the application form, you will be prompted to create a username and password. This will allow you to save your work and access your application in the future. Please retain your username and password. Neither the Giving Circle nor the Ms. Foundation has access to your account login information.
- Once an application has been saved or submitted, you can log back into the system using the same link to the application form.
- The online application will ask you a set of questions before prompting you to upload your proposal saved in PDF format.
NOTE: There is a 3 MB size limit for files uploaded to your application. If you do not already have PDF conversion ability, you can create a PDF within the size limit by using PromoPDF software (to download for free, visit www.primoPDF.com). Note that scanning a printed document to create a PDF will likely produce a document that is too large for uploading.
The system will shut down at 11:58 pm EST. After that time, applications can no longer be accepted. We cannot make exceptions for late applications, even if the delay was due to computer problems or other unforeseen complications.
Please note that incomplete applications, applications sent via regular mail, or applications that do not adhere to the specified requirements will not be accepted.
- Please familiarize yourself with this online application before the deadline.
- You will receive a confirmation email (sent to the email you noted on your application) once your application has been received.
Contact Information for RFP
Visit asianwomengivingcircle.org for a FAQ related to this RFP under “APPLY.”
Email [email protected] if you have additional questions.
Email [email protected] for technical problems or questions.