Awards
PAA Impact Award
The genesis of this award was a desire to broaden PAA’s impact on arts education by honoring an organization and its educational programs for youth. This award complements our grants program by directing funds specifically to non-profit organizations that impact youth through contemporary art. Alternatively, our Grants program provides educational funding for the college and graduate school programs. Unlike a grant, this award is not given for a specific purpose but is to be used as the organization sees fit to continue the educational efforts for which it is being honored. Impact Award winners have each received $20,000 - $27,500. The award amount, set each year, is given to a single recipient.
Application Deadline: February 1, 2023
Purpose: To showcase excellence in visual art education with an award to a non-profit organization that impacts youth through contemporary art.
Impact Award Criteria:
- All proposals must fall within the stated purpose of the Pasadena Art Alliance Impact Award.
- For specific eligibility questions, please contact the Impact Award’s chair at paa.impactaward@gmail.com before submitting your Survey Monkey application, which is available below.
- Although awards are given to organizations throughout Los Angeles County, preference will be given to Pasadena/San Gabriel Valley based organizations.
- Awards are available only to qualified tax-exempt organizations, never to individuals.
- Awards will be based on the organization’s quality of programs, level of outreach, inclusion of contemporary art, impact on target audience, and sustainability of organization. Programs should be geared toward youth K-12 and older, but not college or graduate students.
- An organization may not be considered for a PAA Grant and PAA Impact Award in the same year.
- If an organization is given the Impact Award, it may not apply again for 3 years.
Guidelines and Requirements for Award Application:
Applications should be completed by February 1, 2023 and submitted on-line at:
As requested, at the end of the on-line application, organizations must also provide:
- Brief biographies of key administrators
- Current board list
- Current financial statements
- Funding sources
- Confirmation of non-profit status
- Optional – Testimonials from program participants

Evaluation and Site Visits
The attached IMPACT Award Rubric is how the Pasadena Art Alliance will internally evaluate the applicants, and is provided for informational purposes only
Finalists will be contacted by the Impact Award Committee in early Spring to conduct site visits. Award recipients will be announced by June 1.
Impact Award Winners By Year
- 2022 Venice Arts
- 2021 Side Street Projects
- 2020 Art Division
- 2019 Ryman Arts
- 2018 Pasadena Educational Foundation, My Masterpieces
- 2017 Heart of Los Angeles (HOLA)
- 2016 artworxLA (formerly The HeArt Project)