Behind every Arts4MC grant award, scholarship recipient, juried exhibition, and poet laureate opportunity is a dedicated group of community evaluators and jurors who help review submissions and inform selection decisions.

While Arts4MC staff facilitate these programs, independent evaluators and jurors help ensure funding and opportunities are reviewed through multiple perspectives from across Monterey County. Community evaluators and jurors play a critical role in these decisions, bringing independent perspectives that help make the process more equitable, representative, and transparent.

Strong arts programs are built through community participation, and community evaluators and jurors play an essential role in helping ensure Arts4MC funding, exhibition, scholarship, and artist opportunities are reviewed through multiple perspectives from across Monterey County.

Because artists, students, cultural organizations, and creative projects exist in every part of Monterey County, we believe the people helping evaluate opportunities should reflect the communities we serve. Evaluators and jurors bring collective experiences, professional expertise, cultural knowledge, and local perspectives that help strengthen fairness, representation, and trust in the process.

Serving as an evaluator or juror is an opportunity to support the future of arts and culture in Monterey County. These roles help strengthen a thriving and inclusive countywide arts ecosystem while offering valuable insight into grantmaking, exhibition review, arts administration, and community-based decision-making. Evaluators and jurors often discover new artists, organizations, and creative initiatives while expanding their professional and community networks.

Wondering whether you’d be a good fit? While experience in the arts and culture sector is valuable, we also seek community members whose professional, cultural, educational, and lived experiences reflect the diverse communities of Monterey County. Educators, nonprofit professionals, community leaders, advocates, business professionals, artists, and many others all bring important perspectives to the table. If you care about supporting arts and culture in Monterey County, your perspective may help strengthen the process.

Interested in serving as an evaluator or juror for current or future opportunities? We’d love to hear from you. Honorariums are provided for evaluator and juror service. View the full description here.

Contact Programs Director Alejandra G. Ramirez ([email protected]) and Programs Manager Klara Hickmanova ([email protected]) to learn more.