For Schools

T.E.A. Grant

Teacher Exploration of the Arts

Guidelines

This grant program is for elementary classroom teachers who wish to work one-on-one with a professional working artist in order to develop the teacher's skill in a particular artistic discipline. (Dance, Literary Arts, Media Arts, Music, Theatre, Visual Arts)

You can download a print copy of the Guidelines here:

T.E.A. Grant Guidelines

This grant is for the teacher to pursue an interest in an art form that attracts him or her.

A teacher might work with a visual artist to learn more about drawing, ceramics or glass blowing; with a theatre artist to learn more about directing, acting or set design; with a dancer to learn more about tap, ballet or choreography; with a musician to learn more about singing, playing the saxophone or composing music; with a media artist to learn more about video or animation; or with a writer to learn more about writing poetry, plays or novels. These are only a few ideas from the myriad of possibilities to explore by working with an artist.

The teacher must work with a professional working artist. If the artist is not on the MAC Artist Registry, a resume and a work sample of the artist's work must be included with the application.

(Please call the Education Hotline: 1-800-282-3092 for assistance)

Deadlines

Deadlines are ongoing.
You must apply six weeks in advance of the start-date of your project.
Funding is allocated on a first-come, first-served basis.

Who Can Apply

Any elementary classroom teacher in any public, private, or parochial school is eligible.
No more than two teachers from any given school may apply in a single grant cycle. (July 1 to June 30)
The award is made to the school and the school must pay the artist directly.
At this time, once a teacher receives a one-on-one grant they may not apply again.

Application

The application must be signed by the teacher, the principal and the artist. A signed application form is the applicant's agreement to do what is described in the application and to comply with the Terms and Conditions. Applicants must keep a complete signed copy of the application on file.
There is no cash match required. Matches are provided through teacher time and commitment.
All grants are for $500.

Required Components

Clearly stated skills and knowledge the teacher wants to learn during the process of working with the artist.
A proposed schedule (dates and times) of when the teacher and artist will work together. A minimum of eight hours contact time is required.

Review Criteria

Potential to increase the teacher's confidence to teach the MT Board of Public Education's Content Standards for Arts.

Notification

When a grant is awarded, the Teacher will receive:

An award letter
Final report forms

Once approved, no changes may be made to the grant for its duration or scope unless requested by the Teacher in advance, and approved in writing by the Arts Council. The application is a legal document. Applicants that do not follow the terms of the application may be required to return Arts Council funding, jeopardizing future funding.

Payment

The school must pay the artist the full amount on the last day of the project.
Payment to the school will then be made within 30 days of the Montana Arts Council's receipt of final reports from the Teacher and Artist.
All final reports are due within one month of project completion.

Get the Application

Download the T.E.A. application in Microsoft Word format

You will need Microsoft Word 97 or newer, or a word processor capable of opening Microsoft Word 97 or newer files, in order to fill these forms out on your computer. If you do not have this capability please download the Adobe PDF form and print it.

Download the T.E.A. application in PDF format

Montana Arts Council