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Date posted: February 15, 2008
Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance (CFDA) Number: 45.168
Questions?
Contact Dwan Reece at 202-606-8254 or via
e-mail at fedstate@neh.gov. Hearing-impaired applicants can contact NEH via TDD at 1-866-372-2930.
e-mail at fedstate@neh.gov. Hearing-impaired applicants can contact NEH via TDD at 1-866-372-2930.
We the People Project Grants for State Humanities Councils support programs sponsored by state humanities councils that explore significant events and themes in American history and culture, and that advance knowledge of the principles that define America. Councils are encouraged to think of ways to explore themes related to We the People through both new and existing programs. To learn more about We the People, visit the program's Web site.
Projects may combine a variety of programming formats and should reach as broad an audience as possible. Projects may include:
- theme-based RFPs (Request for Proposals),
- reading or film discussion series,
- lectures,
- speakers' bureau presentations,
- teachers' institutes,
- temporary exhibitions,
- publications,
- media programs, and
- Web sites.
Providing Access to Grant Products
As a taxpayer-supported federal agency, the NEH endeavors to make the products of its grants available to the broadest possible audience. Our goal is for scholars, educators, students, and the American public to have ready and easy access to the wide range of NEH grant products. Such projects may include reading and discussion programs, traveling exhibitions, teachers’ institutes, conferences, speakers’ bureaus, community programs in the humanities, digital tools, Web sites, and the like. For projects that lead to the development of Web sites, all other considerations being equal, the NEH gives preference to those that provide free access to the public.
Successful applicants will be awarded a grant in outright funds, matching funds, or a combination of the two, depending on the request of the applicant.
The grant period may run between twelve and eighteen months. In determining the grant period, applicants should refer to Articles 12 and 6 of the General Terms and Conditions for Awards to Organizations. The grant period is the span of time designated in the grant award, or an amendment thereto, during which the grantee has the authority to obligate grant funds and undertake project activities. Normal grant beginning dates are determined by the National Council meeting at which the application is considered. Applications received on the March 18, 2008, deadline will be considered at the National Council meeting in May and should have a beginning date no earlier than
July 1, 2008. Applications received by the May 1, 2008, deadline will be considered at the National Council meeting in July and should have a beginning date no earlier than September 1, 2008. However, when the grantee determines that it is necessary, project costs may be incurred in the 90-day period prior to the beginning date of the grant period. For more on this, see Article 6.
Cost Sharing
Cost sharing is not required unless the council is requesting federal matching funds. In this case, gift funds equal to the amount of matching funds must also be included in the budget and expended on project activities. Both the gift funds and the federal matching funds must be expended solely on We the People project activities during the grant period.
(Learn more about different types of grant funding.)
Only the 56 state humanities councils are eligible to apply. These councils are independent nonprofit organizations that operate in the United States, the U.S. territories, and Washington, DC. The 56 councils have been established in accordance with NEH's authorizing legislation.
Ineligible applications will not be reviewed
Application advice and proposal drafts
Applicants may submit preliminary proposal drafts. The staff recommends that proposal drafts be submitted by March 3, 2008, for proposals that are to be submitted at the March 18th deadline and by April 1, 2008, for proposals that are to be submitted at the May 1st deadline. Time constraints may prevent staff from reviewing draft proposals submitted after those dates. Although this preliminary review is not part of the formal process and has no bearing on the final outcome of the proposal, previous applicants have found it helpful in strengthening their applications.
Draft narratives may be submitted by e-mail attachment (fedstate@neh.gov), to your program officer directly or by fax (202-606-8365).
Applicants must submit their applications online at http://grants.neh.gov/fedstate/login.aspx.
To begin the application process, select your state from one listed in the pull-down menu and enter the password provided by NEH.
APPLICATION COMPONENTS
After completing each section, click the "Save Data" button located at the top of the form to continue to the next section.
- Project Cover Sheet
Enter the following information in the corresponding fields:
- The name of the council;
- The council's employer identification number (EIN);
- The council's DUNS number (see below);
- The council's Web site;
- The name, form of address, and contact information for the project director; and
- The name, form of address, and contact information for the institutional grant administrator.
Note: 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 requirement is available. - Project Details
Using the pull-down menu, select the beginning and ending dates for the grant period.Select the box(es) that correspond to the types of proposed activities.Using the pull-down menu, select the field of the proposed project.Provide a brief, descriptive, and substantive title for the proposed project.Provide an abstract for the project not to exceed 600 characters (approximately 100 words).Provide a narrative of the project. The narrative should be written for a non-specialist audience and should clearly describe the project, its principal activities, the specific audiences to be served, and the estimated number of people to be reached. Describe all activities to be funded by the grant.Tip: NEH recommends that you write the narrative in a word processing program and paste the text into the form. The narrative cannot exceed 4000 characters (approximately 550 words). The form will indicate if the text exceeds the character limit.Provide a project rationale. Describe the project's relationship to the principal themes and goals of the We the People initiative. The project rationale cannot exceed 700 characters (approximately 100 words).Describe the funding distribution among projects. Indicate how the council's We the People funding would be distributed among the different project activities (e.g. conference, $10,000; regrant program, $15,000; reading and discussion, $5,000). The description cannot exceed 300 characters (approximately 45 words).Advice on Formatting
Your application will be saved as plain text. Special formatting such as italics, underlining, and "curly quotes" will not be saved. You should plan accordingly by using alternatives to such formatting, i.e., putting book titles in quotation marks or all uppercase letters. You should not, however, use angle brackets ("<" and ">"). Brackets are commonly used in HTML, the code that drives the web-based online application system. If you use brackets, the system will interpret it as faulty HTML code and generate an error message. - Project Budget Form
In the categories provided, enter the dollar amounts. Do not enter dollar signs, commas, decimals or cents. If a field does not apply to your project, enter "0."Indicate whether or not the proposed project will be submitted to another NEH division, government agency, or private entity for funding. If yes, indicate where and when.The budget request should not exceed the amount of FY 2008 funding that has been allocated by NEH to the council for We the People programming.Cost sharing is not required for this initiative unless the council is requesting federal matching funds. In this case, gift funds equal to the amount of matching funds must also be budgeted and expended on project activities. The expenditure of gift funds should be shown in the "Other" column, and the items in the NEH column should equal the total of the outright and matching funds requested. If no matching funds are being requested, only the "NEH" column needs to be completed.Councils may include indirect (overhead) costs in their budgets. This can be done by charging a flat rate of up to 10% of direct costs, less distorting items (e.g., capital expenditures, major subcontracts, transfers of funds to participating organizations), up to a maximum total charge of $5,000 per year of the grant period. Please note that auditable records of all indirect cost charges must be maintained.
Evaluation Criteria
Grant proposals should demonstrate how the project:
- is grounded in the humanities;
- explores significant events or themes in American history and culture; and
- has broad appeal and effectively engages its targeted audience.
Late applications will not be reviewed.
Review and Selection Process
The Endowment's staff comments on matters of fact or on significant issues, 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 June 2008 (for the March deadline) and August 2008 (for the May deadline). Institutional grants administrators and project directors of successful applications will also receive at that time award documents by mail.
Administrative requirements
Before submitting an application, applicants should review their responsibilities
as an award recipient and the lobbying certification requirement.
Award Conditions
The requirements for awards are contained in the General Terms and Conditions for Awards to
Organizations, any specific terms and conditions contained in the award document, and
the applicable OMB circulars governing federal grants management.
Please note that We the People Project Grants for State Humanities Councils are subject to the General Terms and Conditions for Awards to Organizations, and not the General Terms and Conditions for General Support Grants to State Humanities Councils. Some of these provisions may be different than the ones outlined for a state humanities council's general operating support. For example, fundraising costs, which are an allowable cost in a council's grant for general operating support, cannot be charged to a project grant.
Reporting Requirements
A schedule of report due dates will be included with the award document.
Interim and final performance reports will be required. Further details can be found in Performance Reporting Requirements (formerly Enclosure 2).
A Federal Cash Transactions Report (2-page PDF) will be due within 30
days after the end of each calendar quarter. A final Financial Status Report (2-page PDF) will be due within 90 days after the completion date of the award period.
Further details can be found in Financial Reporting Requirements (formerly Enclosure 1).
If you have questions about the program, contact:
Dwan Reece
Federal/State Partnership
National Endowment for the Humanities
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20506
202-606-8254
fedstate@neh.gov
Federal/State Partnership
National Endowment for the Humanities
1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, N.W.
Washington, D.C. 20506
202-606-8254
fedstate@neh.gov
Privacy Policy
Information in these guidelines is solicited under the authority of the National Foundation on
the Arts and Humanities Act of 1965, as amended, 20 U.S.C. 956. The principal purpose for which
the information will be used is to process the grant application. The information may also be
used for statistical research, analysis of trends, and Congressional oversight. Failure to
provide the information may result in the delay or rejection of the application.
Application Completion Time
The Office of Management and Budget requires federal agencies to supply information on the time needed to
complete forms and also to invite comments on the paperwork burden. NEH estimates the average time to complete
this application is fifteen hours per response. This estimate includes time for reviewing instructions,
researching, gathering, and maintaining the information needed, and completing and reviewing the application.
Please send any comments regarding the estimated completion time or any other aspect of this application,
including suggestions for reducing the completion time, to the Office of Publications, National Endowment
for the Humanities, Washington, D.C. 20506; and to the Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction
Project (3136-0134), Washington, D.C. 20503. According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons
are required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB number.