Appeals Process- a means by which applicants may petition a re-evaluation of the preliminary funding decision regarding their applications. Funding decisions based on insufficient or incorrect information resulting from something other than the fault of the applicant are legitimate grounds for an appeal.

Applicant- the organization under whose Federal Employee Identification Number or Social Security Number an application is submitted. The applicant assumes financial responsibility for administering a funded grant even if funds are passed on to another organization or individual.

Applicant Cash- funds from applicant's accumulated resources.

Artist- an individual with a serious career commitment and some degree of peer acceptance either as an emerging artist of outstanding promise or established artist with a body of work.

Artist Statement- a short statement of one page or less, written by the artist, that provides background information and influences on the artist’s body of work, overall artistic philosophy, and a brief history of the artist’s development.

Artists Participating- the number of artists directly involved in providing art or artistic services specifically identified with the grant activity; including the number of individual artists of a company, troupe, or touring group; including living artists whose work is represented in an exhibition, regardless of whether the work was provided by the artist or by an institution.

Authorizing Official- the person with authority to legally obligate an organization, usually the president of the board of directors.

Capacity Building- an organization’s development of certain skill sets for the general upgrading of performance ability and management structures.

Capitol Fund- a pooled investment usually used for building projects.

Chief Fiscal Officer- person with immediate responsibility for an applicant organization's financial management and fiscal control.

Contact Person- the person to contact for additional information about an application, usually the director or person responsible for implementing proposed activities. Note: It is possible, particularly with smaller organizations, that the contact person, chief fiscal officer, and authorizing official are all the same person, but at least two people must sign the application.

Contracted Services Revenue- revenue derived from fees earned through sales of services (for example, sale of workshops to other community organizations, government contracts for specific services, performance or residency fees, tuition, support from foreign governments, etc.).

Corporate Support- cash support from businesses, corporations, or corporate foundations.

Council- the Louisiana State Arts Council.

Current Year- the organization's present, active fiscal year at the time of application. Current year financial figures are estimated amounts based on active budgets.

Decentralized Arts Funding Program (DAF) - program of the Division of the Arts, administered by Regional Development Agencies and Local Regranting Agencies. Provides grant funds to every parish in the state based on a per capita formula.

Deficit - the spending of more dollars than the organization takes in.

Development- Cost of fundraising expenses. Includes cost of soliciting donors and costs associated with fundraising events.

Discipline- the primary focus of an arts activity as defined among the eight following fields: dance; design arts; folklife; literature; media; music; theatre; visual arts and crafts. See Inter-discipline.

Division- the Louisiana Division of the Arts, Office of Cultural Development, Department of Culture, Recreation & Tourism, Office of the Lt. Governor, State of Louisiana.

Endowment Funds- restricted or unrestricted funds which are invested by the organization and secured for purposes which extend beyond the organization's annual operating cycle. Interest income or dividends from investments may be used by the organization for its annual operations and should be classified as other revenue.

Engagement- a set of services with at least one public performance provided by an artist for a presenter and which may include additional performances and residency activities such as student performances, workshops, master classes, and lecture-demonstrations.

Entrepreneur- one who organizes, manages, and assumes the risks of a business or enterprise.

Equipment Rental and Maintenance- the expense of renting equipment or the cost of maintaining equipment already owned that costs $1,000 or more per unit and has an expected useful life of more than one year.

Evaluation Criteria- standards by which an application will be evaluated.

Evaluation Methods- the procedures, instruments, schedule, and personnel used for evaluation.

Expenses (Expenditures)- costs required to implement the grant activity.

Federal Employee Identification Number- an account number identifying an applicant for purposes of reporting wages and taxes to the Internal Revenue Service.

Federal Government Support- cash support derived from grants or appropriations given by agencies of the federal government.

Fiscal Agent- an organization, acting on behalf of an individual artist or organization lacking legal status to be an applicant. The Fiscal Agent acts as its legal applicant and agrees to submit and sign a grant application on the applicant’s behalf and to pass on such grant. Please note that in such cases the Fiscal Agent remains legally responsible for the use of grant funds. Auditors generally will not provide an "unqualified" financial audit statement for a fiscal agent for an applicant unless the applicant's financial records and related activities are also audited.

Fiscal Agent Fee- a charge for administrative services by the organization acting as the fiscal agent. Fiscal agent fees are intended to offset the cost of personnel, time, and supplies used in the administration of the applicant's grant only.

Fiscal Year- any 12 month period used for financial record keeping and reporting suited to the organization's operating cycle or programming season.

Folk Artist- an individual maintaining a traditional art form learned informally (orally or by example) within the artist's own traditional culture and not learned through books or classes.

Foundation Support- cash from grants given by private foundations.

Funding Activity Year- the dates of activities for which grant assistance is requested. Dates must fall within the Division grant year (that is, July 1 of any year through June 30 of the following year for Statewide Arts Grants, or October 1 through September 30 for Decentralized Arts Funding.

Genre- specific sub categories within each discipline (for example, literature, poetry, fiction, and creative nonfiction).

Humanities- the disciplines of history; philosophy; literature; foreign languages (both classical and modern); linguistics; comparative religion; ethics; archaeology; jurisprudence; art history, theory, and criticism; and philosophical approaches to the social sciences.

Income- present funds and resources (for example, revenues which are earned income, support which is unearned income, such as cash contributions and grants).

Individuals to Benefit- the persons expected to benefit directly from an activity (for example, audience, participants, students, etc.). Large public events will require an applicant to estimate the number of persons to benefit.

In-Kind Donations- the monetary value of donated services. An applicant, another organization, business, or individual may provide in-kind contributions. An applicant must be prepared to substantiate in-kind contributions (for example, time records for volunteers).

Insurance- the fee for the transfer of the risk of loss from one entity to another.

Intent to Apply Form- a signed form indicating the plan to apply to the Louisiana Division of the Arts grants programs.

Inter-discipline- an inter-disciplinary art work integrates more than one arts discipline into a single work. Examples might be a) dance integrated with text, an on-stage musician, and a media collage in one work, or b) an installation involving visual arts, film, and sound art. Inter-discipline does not include musical theatre which is reviewed as a genre within the broader discipline of Theatre.

Last Completed Fiscal Year- an organization's most recently completed fiscal year at the time of application. Prior year financial figures are actual amounts based on audited financial records.

Letter of Intent- a signed document indicating intent to contract with individuals or organizations to provide services, usually in cases where a formal contract is contingent upon availability of funds. A Letter of Intent should include terms that will become a part of the contract (for example, specific services to be performed, fees for each of those services, dates of said services, locations, persons or organizations to perform the services) and should be signed by the persons authorized to sign the anticipated contract for both the contractor and contractee.

Local Arts Agency Support- funds from your local arts agency other than those from the Decentralized Arts Funding Program (DAF).

Local Regranting Agency (LRA)- local arts agency which administers Decentralized Arts Funds within one parish.

Local/Parish Government Support- grants or appropriations from city, parish, or other government agencies given.

Marketing- publicity or promotion costs. Includes costs of newspaper, radio, and television advertising; printing and mailing of brochures, flyers, and posters; and publicity or advertising.

Match- amount of eligible hard cash and/or donated services that is estimated to fund the portion of a grant proposal not covered by grant funds. For example, a 1 to 1 match is when LDOA grants an organization $10,000 and the organization matches grant with $10,000.

Multi-discipline-Events or series - involve more than one discipline, each performed or presented separately are considered multi-disciplinary. For instance, a related series of engagements (one dance, one theatre, and one music) or a chamber music concert with a related visual arts exhibit in the lobby would be considered multi-disciplinary events.

Notice to Proceed- the Division’s official response to an applicant’s Intent to Apply Form submitted by applicants to Stabilization, Capacity Building, and Art-In-Education: General Program Support programs.

Objectives- statements defining the desired outcome of proposed activities and identifying the persons to be served. Objectives should be attainable, measurable, and limited to a specific time period.

Occupancy/Utilities- fees paid for the rental or mortgage of property. Utilities include water, electricity, and gas.

Organization Budget- all funds budgeted for an organization's operations, activities, programs, and services during a fiscal year. Operating funds do not include capital funds, endowment funds, reserve funds or any other funds not allocated to the annual operating cycle of the organization.

Other Applicant Cash- cash revenue derived from sources other than those specifically listed in the budget, advertising in programs, gift shop income, concessions, parking, investment income, etc.

Other Private Support, Fundraising- cash support derived from cash donations or a proportionate share of general donations. Does not include corporate, foundation, or government contributions or grants.

Outside Professional Services-Artistic- payments to firms or persons who are not considered employees of an applicant for artistic services.

Payroll Taxes- taxes which an employer is required to withhold from an employee’s pay or the taxes directly related to employing a worker paid from the employer’s own fund.

Personnel Full-time- employees or volunteers who work at least 35 hours per week for at least 48 weeks per year.

Personnel Part-time- employees or volunteers who work fewer than 35 hours per week.

Postage and Shipping- the cost of mailing envelopes and packages.

Presenter- an organization which contracts with an artist to present that artist’s work to the public. The presenter provides the space and technical support, promotes the event to the community, and pays the artist a fee.

Production- for the Organization Budget Summary, production refers to the expenses involved in producing events, mounting exhibits, or other artistic efforts.

Professional Development- the training required for maintaining a career path or any professional continuing education.

Professional Fees and Services- payments for non-artistic services to firms or persons not employees of an applicant (for example, consultants or employees of other organizations).

Regional Development Agency (RDA)- a local arts agency which administers the Louisiana Decentralized Arts Funding Program for a multi-parish region of the state.

Regional/Multi-State Support- support from statewide organizations or U.S. regional organizations, such as Southern Arts Federation.

Reserve- an amount of capital held back from investment in order to meet probable or possible demands.

Rural- a parish with 100,000 or fewer residents or a city with 25,000 or fewer residents.

Salaries/Wages/Benefits-Administrative- administrative employees receiving payments for salaries, wages, fees, and benefits.

Salaries/Wages/Benefits-Artistic- artistic employees receiving payments for salaries, wages, fees, and benefits.

Salaries/Wages/Benefits-Technical/Production- employees for technical management and staff services.

Sample of Work- a selection of an individual or organization’s body of work.

Site- the actual location of proposed activities.

Special Populations- minorities, children, elderly, disabled, or economically deprived persons, or those in rural and isolated areas.

Stabilization- funds to be used for organizations to expand ongoing operations.

State, Louisiana Division of the Arts (includes DAF)- any funding granted during the last fiscal year from the Louisiana Division of the Arts or your local Decentralized Arts Funding Program.

State, not LDOA- cash support derived from grants or appropriations given by agencies of state government or multi state consortia of state agencies.

Supplies- items costing less than $500 per unit.

Surplus/Deficit- an excess of dollars at the end of a fiscal year.

Technical Assistance- professional advice and assistance provided in the areas of organizational development, gaining nonprofit status, long range planning, professional development, grantsmanship, project design, planning, evaluation, specific arts programming, etc.

Technology and Communications- the cost of phone, internet, fax, and any additional equipment needed for the communications of an individual or organization.

Tour- 1. (n) two or more engagements at different sites, in different communities, contracted through any number of presenters included in one trip away from the artist’s home base. Engagements within the artist’s home base do not constitute a tour. 2. (v) to travel to perform a series of engagements in communities outside a home base.

Travel/Mileage- costs directly related to travel (for example, fares, lodging, food, tolls, auto rental, mileage allowance for private vehicles, tips, and per diem).

Under served population- people who genuinely lack access to arts programs, services, or resources for geographic, economic, cultural, social, physical, or other demonstrable reasons. The term “population” can refer to a group of people with common heritage, regardless of whether they live in the same area.

Urban- a parish with more than 100,000 residents or a city with more than 25,000 residents.