Operating Grants

Bravo Greater Des Moines offers general operating support to all eligible arts, culture, heritage and interpretive sciences organizations in the Greater Des Moines region. The 2025 grant period (GC25) runs January 1 – December 31, 2025.

THE GC25 APPLICATION IS NOW CLOSED.

Grant Details

Program Overview

Bravo’s Operating Grant program provides general operating support to eligible arts, culture and heritage organizations in the Greater Des Moines region. Operating grants support the administrative expenses and day-to-day costs of running an organization which is essential to supporting an organization’s work and mission.

Click below to view or download the GC25 Operating Grant Overview & Guidelines. Please note, guidelines are subject to change prior to the next grant cycle (GC26).

View PDF

Applicant Eligibility

Eligible Operating Grant Applicants must meet all of the following criteria:

Be a 501(c) organization exempt from tax under the Internal Revenue Code with at least 6 months of active programming history or be an agency, division or department of the State of Iowa which operates a facility open to the public.
Have headquarters in and conduct most of its activities within one of Bravo’s partner local governments.
Demonstrate a primary organizational purpose of arts, culture, interpretative science, and/or heritage that focuses on the collection, preservation, production, presentation and/or promotion of artistic expression, traditions, customs, or stories within creative, educational, or historic contexts. Mission language, programming, public access, support materials, partnerships, and budget must all clearly illustrate arts, culture, interpretative science or heritage as the organization’s primary purpose (at least 60%) in Greater Des Moines.
Note: Eligibility does not guarantee funding. Specific eligibility requirements may be waived at Bravo’s discretion.

Ineligible applicants for operating support include, but are not limited to:

Individual artists
Fiscally sponsored organizations
Private organizations, clubs or groups that do not offer public programming
Political, religious, or academic organizations
Public libraries
Those formed with the express purpose of fundraising on behalf of, supporting and/or promoting applicants that are not otherwise eligible for funding (e.g. friends societies, etc. for libraries, political, religious or academic organizations)
Nonprofit organizations whose primary mission and work advances other sectors such as social services (food, housing, childcare, schools, mental health and wellness, etc.), economic development, business and entrepreneurship, financial services, sports and recreation, technology, etc., even if arts and culture programming is used to deliver some of the organization’s mission.

Additional Requirements & Application Tracks

Applications and requirements are designed to acknowledge the breadth of organizations Bravo serves. Applications will be submitted through SurveyMonkey Apply, Bravo’s grant management software. All eligible applicants will apply for general operating support using the most appropriate application for their organization:

‘New to Bravo’ Applicants For organizations of annual operating budgets over $1,000 that have not received annual operating support from Bravo. New applicants are required to meet with Bravo staff to verify eligibility at least two weeks prior to the application deadline.
Organizations with $1,000 – $50,000 Annual Operating Budgets must have received Bravo funding in at least one previous grant year.
Organizations with $50,000 – $200,000 Annual Operating Budgets must have received Bravo funding in at least one previous grant year.
Organizations with $200,000 – $2,000,000 Annual Operating Budgets must have at least one year-round, full-time employee or full-time equivalent; a completed, current SMU DataArts Funder Report; AND at least three years of consecutive Bravo funding.
Organizations with $2,000,000+ Annual Operating Budgets must have at least 5 full-time employees; a completed, current SMU DataArts Funder Report; AND at least five years of consecutive Bravo funding.

Depending on the application your organization completes, you may be asked to provide some or all of the following documents:

Current fiscal year budget
Board approved summary of final actual revenue and expenses for the most recently completed fiscal year
Current SMU DataArts Streamlined Funder Report
Organizational goals/strategic plan; and
Up to 3 support materials (images, annual report, audio/video clips, etc).

How Grant Awards Are Determined

Organizations are not asked to request a specific grant amount. Final grant awards are based on the merit of an organization’s application and available funds, and they will generally fall within the following target ranges:

Annual Operating Expenses	$2M+	$200K-2M	$30K-200K	$1K-75K	New Applicant
Target Funding Range	1% – 7%	3% – 18%	5% – 20%	5% – 25%	5% – 25%
Maximum Annual Award	$500,000	$150,000	$30,000	$10,000	$5,000

Organizations should not expect to receive the maximum award amount and should conservatively budget contributions from Bravo. The first grant payment is sent the week of January 1, 2024.

Application Review Process

Bravo is committed to a transparent, fair and consistent grantmaking process. All GC25 applications will be reviewed by an anonymous panel of community peers and professionals. Feedback from the panel will be shared with applicants and will be included with award notifications. Panel review meetings are closed to the public. The Bravo Board of Directors will make final funding decisions. Applicants should not directly contact Bravo Board or panel members to discuss applications or funding amounts. There is no appeal of final funding decisions made by Bravo.

Grant Award & Payment Process

Organizations are strongly encouraged to set up Electronic Fund Transfer (EFT) payments through the Community Foundation of Greater Des Moines. If needed, printed checks mailed to the mailing address provided by the organization in the application.

Important Dates

Expected timeline for GC25 Operating Support Grants:

August 19, 2024 Applications & resources available on Bravo’s website and SurveyMonkeyApply at 10:00 a.m.
September 13, 2024 IF APPLICABLE – The SMU DataArts Cultural Data Profile must be updated and a Funder Report with data from the last 3 completed fiscal years must be generated with Bravo as the recipient. Find detailed instructions HERE.
September 13, 2024 Deadline for new applicants to meet with staff
September 27, 2024 Applications due by 3:00 pm
December 5, 2024 Award notifications sent via email by noon
December 20, 2024 Signed grant agreements due by 3:00 pm
January 1, 2025 Funding term starts
December 31, 2025 Funding term ends