Colorado Creates Grant

Colorado Creates is Colorado Creative Industries' largest annual competitive grant program and is administered through the Colorado Office of Economic Development and International Trade. The program supports arts programs, services, and activities associated with carrying out the National Endowment for the Arts strategic plan and is supported in part by an award from the National Endowment for the Arts. Colorado Creates provides general operating support to arts-focused organizations for the presentation of public programming. Awards are competitive, and not every eligible applicant will receive funding. The next application cycle is expected to open in early 2027. Awards range from $6,000 to $14,000 and are flat amounts determined by the applicant's cash operating revenue for its most recently completed fiscal year. Organizations with revenue of $25,000 to $99,999 request $6,000; $100,000 to $299,999 request $8,000; $300,000 to $599,999 request $10,000; $600,000 to $999,999 request $12,000; and organizations with revenue of $1 million or more request $14,000. General operating expenses may include facilities rent for the home base of operations, operations costs, maintenance, insurance, and administrative costs directly associated with proposed operations. Funds may not be used for capital improvements, new construction, renovation, restoration, major equipment purchases, debt or deficit reduction, re-granting, or indirect costs. No cost-share or matching requirement is stated. Eligible applicants include arts-focused 501(c)(3) organizations and qualifying independent components of organizations, colleges, universities, or units of government. Applicants must have their primary business location in Colorado, have supporting the arts as their organizational mission, have presented public arts programs in Colorado for at least two years before the application deadline, and have at least $25,000 in cash operating budget for the most recently completed fiscal year. They must be in Good Standing with the Colorado Secretary of State, have a Unique Entity Identifier, and be current on reporting for other Colorado Creative Industries grants or programs. Independent components must be programmatically and administratively distinct from their parent organizations, including having independent oversight, a distinct mission, dedicated staff or volunteers, separate financials, and public programs or services. University or college components must serve audiences that are at least 50 percent non-student or non-faculty. Ineligible applicants include organizations managing a state-certified Colorado Creative District, organizations required to sit out after receiving Colorado Creates funding, public and private K-12 schools and school districts, and applicants using a fiscal agent or sponsor. Certain affiliated organizations cannot apply in the same cycle, such as a support organization whose primary purpose is channeling resources to an affiliated organization when that affiliated organization also applies. Academic departments and schools of colleges and universities, general city or county governments, and programs or fundraising bodies that are not qualifying independent components are also ineligible. Mixed-use organizations with other primary goals may qualify only in specified circumstances involving proportionally significant artistic or cultural programming and must contact Colorado Creative Industries well before the deadline to seek clearance. Applications are submitted online through the OEDIT Grant Portal. Applicants must verify eligibility, review the Colorado Creates Guidelines, obtain a UEI, register for the portal, complete the online application, and upload all required support materials. Application materials include narrative responses covering artistic excellence and merit, community involvement and impact, and implementation capacity; financial questions and materials; organization materials; and artistic work samples. Required financial materials include the most recent fiscal-year income statement with cash operating revenues and current fiscal-year budget projections. An independent financial audit and findings are required only for organizations that received more than $1 million in federal funds during the prior two years. Organization materials include a qualifying Certificate of Good Standing and at least one artistic work sample, with discipline-specific work-sample requirements. For the documented cycle, applications opened February 3, 2026 at 8 a.m. MT and were due May 5, 2026 at 4 p.m. MT, with no late submissions accepted. Review panels evaluated applications from May through June 2026, the CCI Advisory Council reviewed recommendations in July, applicants were notified in August, and procurement and contracting were scheduled for August through October. Applications are evaluated on artistic excellence and artistic merit at 40 percent, community involvement and impact at 40 percent, and implementation capacity at 20 percent. Peer specialists review and score applications, funding recommendations are based on average scores and available funds within regional panels, and recommendations are not final until approved by the Creative Industries Council. The period of performance runs from the award or purchase order date through June 30, 2027, with the final report due July 20, 2027 at 4 p.m. MT for FY27 grantees. Awards of $6,000 to $10,000 receive 50 percent as an advance and the remaining 50 percent after the final report as reimbursement. Awards of $12,000 to $14,000 require a formal grant agreement or purchase order and specified procurement and insurance documentation, followed by the same 50 percent advance and 50 percent final reimbursement structure. Grant recipients must comply with applicable state and federal requirements and submit required final reporting. Questions about Colorado Creates may be directed to Emma Acheson at Emma.Acheson@state.co.us. Grant portal questions may be directed to Katy Zeigler at Kathryn.Zeigler@state.co.us or 720-910-2241.

Review the guidelines thoroughly and register in the portal well before the deadline. Address the weighted review criteria directly: artistic excellence and merit 40%, community involvement and impact 40%, and implementation capacity 20%. Explain questionable budget estimates, major financial changes, and any recent deficit. Use work samples that demonstrate artistic excellence or merit, community benefit, and implementation capacity, reference support items in the narrative, and prioritize quality over quantity.