The 2004 deadline for this program has passed. Guidelines for 2005 will be available in the spring. In the interim, the guidelines below can be used for reference, but should NOT be used to prepare an application.

� Grant Program Description � Award Information � Eligibility � How to Prepare and Submit an Application � Application Review � Award Administration Along with the instructions contained in this document, you will need to download the following form--provided as Adobe PDF--to complete an application: � cover sheet � budget form (10 pages) � sample budget form (1 page) If you do not already have Acrobat Reader, you can download it for free from Adobe's website. � Sample Projects � Frequently asked questions � DUNS number requirement � Definitions of Types of Funding

Questions

Contact the staff of the Division of Education Programs at 202-606-8500 or via e-mail at education@neh.gov. Hearing-impaired applicants can contact NEH via TDD at 1-866-372-2930.

Type of Award

Grants of up to $25,000 in outright funds will be awarded.

How to obtain a print-version of this application

Call 202-606-8446, send an e-mail to info@neh.gov, or write to NEH, Office of Public Affairs, 1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, D.C. 20506

Institutional Grants are intended to strengthen and enrich humanities education and scholarship at historically black, Hispanic-serving, and tribal colleges and universities. The grants can be used to enhance the humanities content of existing programs, develop new programs, or lay the foundation for more extensive endeavors in the future. Each project must be organized around a core topic or set of themes.

Institutional Grants may:

• support collaborative work among faculty members to devise ways for strengthening humanities programs;

• fund visiting scholars to help improve or redefine an institution's humanities programs;

• help institutions develop new humanities programs or take advantage of underused humanities resources;

• train staff and faculty members in the use of humanities materials and technologies; or

• build ties between institutions of higher learning, between institutions of higher learning and secondary schools, or between institutions of higher learning and museums, libraries, or other organizations such as historical and cultural societies.

Applicants are encouraged to draw on the knowledge of outside scholars who can contribute expertise and fresh insights to the project. These scholars would commonly take an active part in leading discussion of the chosen texts and topics. In addition, outside scholars can also offer advice on strengthening certain aspects of a project.

Applicants are also encouraged to collaborate with other institutions to share resources and expand the project's potential audience.

Institutional Grants should not replace money already spent on humanities programs. Instead, grants are intended to augment and improve the institution's commitment to the humanities. For example, funds may be used to pay the travel expenses and honoraria for guest scholars and visiting consultants, books and other materials, modest purchases of computer equipment directly related to the project, logistical support, and released time for participants. Project participants should also be remunerated for their participation.

Types of projects NOT supported

Institutional Grants cannot be used for:

• large-scale acquisition of computer equipment by colleges;

• creative or performing arts;

• empirical social scientific research;

• specific policy studies;

• educational or technical impact assessments;

• work undertaken in the pursuit of an academic degree;

• the preparation or publication of textbooks;

• projects that focus on pedagogical theory, research on educational methods, tests, or measurements;

• projects on cognitive psychology; or

• projects devoted to advocacy.

We the People Grant Initiative

To help Americans make sense of their history and of the world around them, NEH has launched an initiative: We the People. NEH encourages applications that explore significant events and themes in our nation's history and culture and that advance knowledge of the principles that define America. To learn more about We the People, visit the initiative's website. Proposals will be evaluated through NEH's established review process and will not receive special consideration.

Institutional Grants of up to $25,000 will be awarded. All project activities and the expenditure of project funds must occur during the grant period, which can be up to three years.

Definitions of types of funding offered by NEH are available online.

Cost sharing

Cost sharing is not required for Institutional Grants, but institutions are encouraged to help support these grant projects. Cost sharing consists of the cash contributions by the applicant and third parties, as well as third-party in-kind contributions, such as donated services and goods.

Institutional Grants are available to historically black, Hispanic-serving, and tribal colleges and universities. Collaboration with other organizations is welcome, but the project director and the institutional applicant must be from an eligible institution. If you are unsure of your institution's eligibility, check the U. S. Department of Education Office of Civil Rights website.

NEH generally does not award grants to other federal entities or to applicants whose projects are so closely intertwined with a federal entity that the project takes on characteristics of the federal entity's own authorized activities. This does not preclude applicants from using grant funds from other federal entities in their projects, as long as these resources are not used as gifts to release NEH matching funds.

Preliminary steps

Preliminary contacts with NEH are a normal part of the application process. Applicants may submit a draft of the proposal for a preliminary review by NEH staff, preferably six weeks or more in advance of the deadline. The staff can explain how the application review criteria apply to a proposal, note material that may be missing, and anticipate the questions that panelists are likely to raise during the review process. Once an applicant submits a formal application, NEH will not comment on its status until the review process is complete.

NEH staff can also give a prospective applicant the narrative sections of successful proposals. Please keep in mind that these are samples, not models. Each application makes its own case for funding.

Preliminary questions about Institutional Grants can be answered by the staff of the Division of Education Programs at any time up to the grant deadline. Call 202/606-8463 or e-mail education@neh.gov.

Preparing an application

Applicants should provide an intellectual justification for the project and a work plan, keeping in mind the criteria (listed below) used to evaluate proposals. The application should be collated and numbered consecutively throughout.

A complete application contains:

1. Application cover sheet

   Using the instructions, complete the cover sheet.

   The project title should be brief, descriptive, and substantive, and the cover sheet should be signed by the official authorized to submit an application on behalf of the institution.

   All institutions applying to federal grant programs are required to provide a DUNS number, which is issued by Dun & Bradstreet, as part of their application. Project directors should contact their institution�s grant administrator or chief financial officer to obtain their institution�s DUNS number. Federal grant applicants can obtain a DUNS number for free by calling 1-866-705-5711. More information about the new requirement is available.

2. Table of contents

   Include all parts of the application, with page numbers.

3. Summary

   Provide a one-page, single-spaced summary of the narrative.

4. Narrative description

   The narrative description is an extended discussion of the project's content, activities, and intended audience. Limit the narrative description to ten double-spaced pages. The font size should be no smaller than eleven point and all pages should have one-inch margins. It must including the following:

   • Intellectual Rationale

     Explain the central issue the project will address and how it will improve the quality of humanities teaching and learning at the institution.

   • Content and design

     Describe the project's humanities content in detail, discussing topics that will be explored, the texts to be used, why they were chosen, and in what order they will be studied. Describe all of the project activities. If necessary, use an appendix to provide more detailed information about the work plan, schedule of activities, and readings for the project. Discuss how the project approaches particular issues of teaching and learning in the humanities. Finally, identify the intended beneficiaries.

   • Institutional context

     Describe how the project relates to the mission, curricular history, and students of the institution. If more than one institution is involved, describe any previous collaboration, and include letters of commitment from each institution in an appendix. Describe the humanities programs and resources at your institution and those of collaborating institutions. Show how the resources (e.g., faculty, library, archival or museum holdings) of the participating institution(s) support the project, and describe any previous efforts to address the issues and objectives of the project. If the proposal is related to a project previously funded by NEH, describe how the current effort builds on past work, and include, in an appendix, an evaluation of the initial project.

   • Staff and participants

     Using a brief paragraph for each person, identify project staff members, consultants, and visiting scholars. Define their roles and state their qualifications for their responsibilities in the project. In an appendix, provide brief r�sum�s (two pages each) for the project director and all scholars, along with letters of commitment.

   • Evaluation

     Include a specific internal evaluation plan that is appropriate to the project. Explain the benchmarks for evaluating the project while it is ongoing. Describe the anticipated impact of the project and the criteria by which this impact will be measured. The plan should include an evaluation of the project's effects on teaching and learning in the humanities. Describe how and when any grant products will be completed and what arrangements will be made for their ongoing availability.

     Outside evaluation is not required for Institutional Grants.

   • Follow-up and dissemination

     Describe the anticipated long-term impact of the project and any activities (e.g. workshops with colleagues or dissemination of new curricula) planned after the grant period. If digital materials will be developed, describe arrangements for maintaining them after the end of the grant period.

5. Budget

   Review the following budget instructions in addition to those accompanying the budget forms. A sample budget (1-page PDF) is also available.

   • Salaries and wages

     Include all project personnel employed by the applicant institution. Calculations for faculty compensation must conform to the policies of the institution. Commonly, the budget includes a percentage of academic year or annual salary for those faculty members participating in the project. Such amounts may be used to released faculty members from normal duties for a specified amount of time or, alternatively, to pay them for time they devote to the project over and above their normal duties. In some cases, such as professional development activities conducted in the summer, a uniform stipend may be provided for faculty participation. In no case, however, may this grant support replacement teachers or pay faculty members for performing their regular duties. Compensation for support staff may be calculated as a percentage of salary or based on an hourly rate.

     Salary compensation for employees of colleges and universities should be shown in the project budget as follows:

     • For project directors during the academic year, released time normally should not exceed one course per quarter or semester.

     • For project directors during the summer, compensation is based on a percentage of the director's academic year salary. For example, one month of full-time work would equal one-ninth or 11.1 percent of a nine-month academic year salary.

     • For faculty participants, stipends should be calculated on the basis of $100 per full day.

   • Fringe Benefits

     Fringe benefits may include contributions for social security, employee insurance, pension plans, etc. Only those benefits that are not included in an organization�s indirect cost pool may be shown as direct costs.

   • Indirect Costs (Overhead)

     These are costs that are incurred for common or joint objectives and therefore cannot be readily identified with a specific project or activity of an organization. Typical examples of indirect cost type items are the salaries of executive officers, the costs of operating and maintaining facilities, local telephone service, office supplies, and accounting and legal services.

     Indirect costs are computed by applying a negotiated indirect cost rate to a distribution base (usually the direct costs of the project). Organizations that wish to include overhead charges in the budget but do not have a current federally negotiated indirect cost rate or have not submitted a pending indirect cost proposal to a federal agency may choose one of the following options:

     1. The NEH will not require the formal negotiation of an indirect cost rate, provided the charge for indirect costs does not exceed 10 percent of direct costs, less distorting items (e.g., capital expenditures, participant stipends, major subcontracts), up to a maximum total project charge of $5,000 per year. (Applicants who choose this option should understand that they must maintain documentation to support overhead charges claimed as part of project costs.)

     2. If your organization wishes to use a rate higher than 10 percent or claim more than $5,000 in indirect costs per year, an estimate of the indirect cost rate and the charges should be provided on the budget form. If the application is approved for funding, you will be instructed to contact the NEH Office of the Inspector General to develop an indirect cost proposal.

   • Consultant fees

     List individuals contributing to the project as visiting lecturers or leaders of faculty study sessions. The honoraria for visiting faculty and other consultants range from $250 to $350 per person per day or $1,250 per person per week, not including travel and subsistence costs. Travel and subsistence costs should be entered in budget section 4.

   • Travel

     Calculate travel and subsistence costs, including participant travel, in conformity with institutional policy. The lowest available commercial fares for coach or equivalent accommodations must be used. All project directors will attend a planning meeting at NEH's offices in Washington, D.C. Directors should budget for a one-day meeting for the first year of the requested grant period.

   • Supplies and Materials; Services

     List all materials or equipment to be purchased with grant funds. See "Inadmissable Budget Items," below.

   • Other costs

     Include stipends for any project participants not employed by the applicant institution. (Reminder: consultant fees are entered on line 3.)

   • Inadmissible budget items

     The following costs are not allowable and may not appear in project budgets:

     • compensation for faculty members performing their regular duties;

     • the rental of recreational facilities and costs related to social events such as banquets, receptions, and entertainment;

     • tuition fees for participants;

     • travel associated with independent scholarly research; or

     • development of educational technologies or materials that are solely pedagogical.

   • Budget narrative (optional)

     If needed, include a brief supplement to the narrative explaining projected expenses or other items in the financial information provided on NEH's budget form.

6. Appendices

   Use appendices to provide supplementary but essential materials, such as workplans, reading lists, syllabi, brief r�sum�s (two pages each), and letters of commitment. Include only relevant information concisely presented. Each appendix should be identified clearly and listed in the table of contents. Pages of the appendices should be numbered consecutively. The proposal narrative should refer to items included in the appendices or samples of work.

   Projects proposing a digital component (e.g., website, CD-ROM, or DVD) should provide samples that demonstrate the proposed component and its relationship to the goals of the project. Applicants may provide a website address, or material on CD-ROM, or on DVD (eight copies). Samples should also be provided in the form of print-versions of screen shots of essential pages or components. All samples must be clearly labeled with the name of the project director, the applicant institution, and the title of the project. When applicable, include operating instructions.

7. One copy of the institution's current catalog

Application Checklist

Do not use covers, notebooks, or other methods of binding that add unnecessary weight. Please clip, rather than staple, application pages together.

Include eight copies, each arranged in this order:

• signed application cover sheet
• table of contents
• one-page summary
• narrative
• budget (a copy of NEH's budget form and the optional budget narrative)
• appendices or attachments, which may include the following:
  • workplans or schedules
  • reading lists or syllabi
  • brief r�sum�s for all project personnel
  • documentation confirming the commitment of key project personnel, including those not affiliated with the applicant institution (for example, visiting lecturers or outside consultants)
  • evaluation of projects previously funded by NEH (if applicable)
  • samples of digital materials such as CD-ROMS, website addresses, or videos (please include identification on all materials)

In addition, place the following on top of the set of eight copies of the proposal:

• application cover sheet with an original signature
• 3 copies of the application cover sheet
• 3 copies of the one-page summary
• original completed budget form
• one copy of the institution's current catalog

Send applications to:

Institutional Grants
Division of Education Programs
National Endowment for the Humanities
Room 302
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW
Washington, D.C. 20506
202-606-8500

NEH continues to experience lengthy delays in the delivery of mail by the U. S. Postal Service. To ensure that your application arrives by the receipt deadline, please consider using a commercial delivery service. NEH will acknowledge the receipt of your application by e-mail. Although formal applications cannot be accepted by e-mail or fax, we do recommend the use of such alternatives for other kinds of correspondence, including inquiries, preliminary drafts, recommendations, or reports.

To ensure that your application is processed in a timely fashion, the envelope or package used to send your application materials should prominently display your return address and not covered with tape.

Deadline for Submissions

Applications must be received by June 15, 2004, for projects beginning no earlier than January 1, 2005.

Once NEH has received a formal application, the staff will not comment on the status of that application except with respect to issues of completeness or eligibility.

Criteria

Proposals for Institutional Grants are evaluated according to their:

1. Intellectual quality
   • the rationale for the project is clear and persuasive;

   • the project engages significant humanities topics or texts;

   • the project draws on sound scholarship;

   • the proposed study plans are thoughtful and stimulating; and

   • the project addresses effectively the appropriate issues of teaching and learning in its subject area.

2. Design quality

   • activities are well planned and described in adequate detail;

   • personnel are qualified to carry out their responsibilities;

   • activities advance the project in thoughtful and creative ways;

   • plans for administration are sound;

   • the letters from scholars, other consultants, and prospective participants demonstrate interest and commitment;

   • evidence of commitment and support among the participating institutions is provided;

   • plans include appropriate evaluation; and

   • the project budget is reasonable.

3. Potential for significant impact
   • the project will lead to opportunities for enhanced humanities teaching and learning;

   • the results will be disseminated to those who will find them most useful; and

   • the results will extend beyond the period of the grant.

Review and Selection Process

Knowledgeable persons outside NEH will read each application and advise the agency about its merits. The Endowment's staff comments on matters of fact or on significant issues that otherwise would be missing from these reviews, then makes recommendations to the National Council on the Humanities. The National Council meets at various times during the year to advise the NEH chairman on grants. The chairman takes into account the advice provided by the review process and, by law, makes all funding decisions.

Award notices

Applicants will be notified by letter in late December 2004. All applicants may receive the comments about their proposals provided to NEH by outside evaluators at the initial stage of the review proces. Please write or e-mail the Division of Education.

Administrative requirements

Before submitting an application, applicants should review their responsibilities as a grantee, the Davis-Bacon Act, and certification requirements.