America's Historical and Cultural Organizations: Planning Grants

Post Date

June 22nd 2009

Application Due Date

August 26th 2009

Funding Opportunity Number

20090826-GE

CFDA Number(s)

45.164

Funding Instrument Type(s)

Grant

Funding Activity Categories

Humanities

Eligibility Categories

State Governments
City or Township Governments
Special District Governments
Public and State Controlled Institutions of Higher Education
Federally Recognized Native American Tribal Governments
Non-Profits With 501 (c) (3) Status With The IRS (Except Higher Education Institutions)
Private Institutions of Higher Education

Funding

• Award Range:

  $0 - $75000

Grant Description

America’s Historical and Cultural Organizations grants support projects in the humanities that explore stories, ideas, and beliefs that deepen our understanding of our lives and our world. The Division of Public Programs supports the development of humanities content and interactivity that excite, inform, and stir thoughtful reflection upon culture, identity, and history in creative and new ways. Grants for America’s Historical and Cultural Organizations should encourage dialogue, discussion, and civic engagement, and they should foster learning among people of all ages. To that end, the Division of Public Programs urges applicants to consider more than one format for presenting humanities ideas to the public. Planning grants are available for projects that may need further development before applying for implementation. This planning can include the identification and refinement of the project’s main humanities ideas and questions, consultation with scholars in order to strengthen the humanities content, preliminary audience evaluation, preliminary design of the proposed interpretive formats, beta testing of digital formats, development of complementary programming, research at archives or sites whose resources might be used, or the drafting of interpretive materials. America’s Historical and Cultural Organizations grants support projects that are presented in these formats: traveling exhibitions that are presented at multiple venues; long-term exhibitions at one institution; interpretive Web sites or other digital formats; interpretation of historic places or areas; reading and discussion programs; panel exhibitions that travel widely, reach a broad audience, and take advantage of complementary programming formats (e.g., reading and discussion series, radio, or other media) to enhance the visitor experience; or other project formats that creatively engage audiences in humanities ideas. Applications that make innovative use of emerging technologies are encouraged. Projects must do more than simply provide a digital archive of material. They should offer new ways of contextualizing and interpreting information that engages public audiences interactively. Applications may, for example, include plans to create PDA tours and resources, podcasts, virtual environments, wiki formats, other formats that utilize user-generated content, virtual imaging, GIS mapping, online scholar-led discussions, streaming video, games, or other digital formats. When it is relevant, applications must explain how user-generated postings to public cyberspace will be vetted by qualified scholars or project staff for accuracy and public educational value. Digital components must rest on sound humanities scholarship and enhance the project’s humanities content for the general public in ways that take unique advantage of the proposed formats.

Contact Information

• Agency

  National Endowment for the Humanities

• Office:

  None

• Agency Contact:

  Division of Public Programs
  National Endowment for the Humanities
  Room 426
  1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
  Washington, D.C. 20506
  202-606-8269

• Agency Mailing Address:

  publicpgms@neh.gov

• Agency Email Address:

  publicpgms@neh.gov

• More Information:

  http://www.neh.gov/grants/guidelines/AHCO_PlanningGuidelines.html