The Albany Chefs’ Food & Wine Festival (ACFWF) is a 501(c)3 not-for-profit that provides sustainable funding for the support and preservation of the not-for-profit arts community in Albany, NY, through an annual 3-day Food & Wine themed Festival that markets our restaurants, chefs, and their innovative cuisine and educates consumers on healthy, sustainable agriculture. The Board of Directors of the ACFWF is committed to assisting the Arts in Albany, therefore all net proceeds from the 3-day festival will be awarded to deserving Beneficiaries, directly supporting our mission to provide sustainable funding for the not-for-profit arts community in Albany.  Since inception, we’ve provided nearly $1.5 million in funding that has supported 16 not-for-profit arts in Albany. The Board of Directors encourages and welcomes all arts nonprofits to apply!

QUALIFICATION PROCESS  To apply for funding, the following criteria must be met:

• A 501(c)3 Not-for-profit that is Arts oriented 
• Based in the City of Albany 

Although not mandatory, the Board of Directors will also prioritize organizations that are Women-led, BIPOC-led, 50% of their Board represents the Community they serve; and/or have an operating budget under $350K.      EVALUATION CRITERIA  Submitted applications will be reviewed by the Board of Directors through discussion and a new impact scoring card that is based on a points system with 5 categories. The applications will be scored on the following categories:

• Priority Arts Organizations (Women-led, BIPOC-led, an operating budget of less than $350K annually, and/or their Board represents the Community they serve) 
• Festival Deliverables (Planning efforts towards meeting marketing requirements, collecting an auction item, and purchasing tickets to the festival) 
• Award Impact (Impact for how the Beneficiary will leverage the festival through creativity and innovation for use of the funds and/or collaborating with other arts organizations) 
• Beneficiary History  
• Leverage & Engagement (Additional ways the Beneficiary leverages their resources/community to engage before/during/after the festival) 

  If selected as a Beneficiary, you must exhibit significant support of the 3-day Festival by fulfilling each of the following:

• Clearly demonstrate your impact on leveraging the festival through continuous marketing efforts to your patrons and prior to the start of all your performances/exhibits;  
• Creative use of the funds awarded towards your mission, including collaborating with other local arts organizations; 
• Commit to one (1) or two (2) purchased tickets for the Festival Grand Tastings/Seminars (one day) and The Gala Reception and Dinner; 
• Secure one (1) auction item for the Grand Gala (note that a minimum value is set for each award level); 
• For a period of 1-year following the receipt of the award from ACFWF, you will include acknowledgement of your funding. 

  AWARD DETERMINATION

• A total of seven (7) Beneficiaries will be selected by the Board of Directors, who will then be distinguished between two (2) award levels, Premier and Spotlight. There will be a total of 4 Premier Beneficiaries and 3 Spotlight Beneficiaries.  
• Awarded Beneficiaries will be notified of their selection early December. 
• Award disbursements will be presented to the Beneficiaries during a Check Presentation Reception later in 2023. There will be an 80/20 split of the total net proceeds among the two award levels.