OARS funding Libraries & Museums

National Leadership Grants for Libraries (NLG-Libraries) and National Leadership Grants for Museums (NLG-Museums), under which this special initiative falls, support projects that address challenges faced by the library and museum fields and that have the potential to advance practice in those fields. Successful projects will generate results such as new tools, research findings, models, services, practices, or alliances that can be widely used, adapted, scaled, or replicated to extend the benefits of federal investment. What is this special initiative? Activating Community Opportunities Using Museums/Libraries as Assets is part of a special Community Catalyst initiative under the National Leadership Grant programs. For this special initiative, the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is interested in supporting projects that address significant challenges and opportunities facing the library, archive, and museum (LAM) fields and that have the potential to advance theory and practice. This joint Libraries and Museums special call for proposals invites projects that will help LAMs and their communities learn together how to build upon the unique abilities of LAMs to achieve positive change. Successful projects will exemplify how LAMs can provide trusted spaces for ongoing community dialog and exploration of the intersections between individual narratives. In addition, successful projects will demonstrate the viability of using and adapting existing approaches gleaned from the collective impact, social well-being, and community development arenas. A range of approaches are currently being employed in these fields that could be helpful as potential applicants consider their proposed projects.

The Gerald R. Ford Presidential Foundation awards grants of up to $2,200 each in support of research in the holdings of the Gerald R. Ford Library. A grant defrays travel and living expenses of a research trip to the Ford Library. Overseas applicants are welcome to apply, but they will be responsible for the costs of travel between their home country and North America. The grants only cover travel within North America. Library collections focus on Federal policies, U.S. foreign relations, and national politics in the 1960s and 1970s. There are earlier and later materials depending upon your topic

The Preservation and Access Education and Training program supports the development of knowledge and skills among professionals responsible for preserving and establishing access to humanities collections. Thousands of libraries, archives, museums, and historical organizations across the country maintain important collections of books and manuscripts, photographs, sound recordings and moving images, archaeological and ethnographic artifacts, art and material culture collections, electronic records, and digital objects. The challenge of preserving and making accessible such large and diverse holdings is enormous, and the need for knowledgeable staff is significant and ongoing. Preservation and Access Education and Training grants are awarded to organizations that offer national or regional education and training programs that reach audiences in more than one state. Grants aim to help the staff of cultural institutions, large and small, obtain the knowledge and skills needed to serve as effective stewards of humanities collections. Grants also support educational programs that prepare the next generation of preservation professionals, as well as projects that introduce the staff of cultural institutions to new information and advances in preservation and access practices.

The Course Hero-Woodrow Wilson Fellowship for Excellence in Teaching will support rising stars in the academy who love teaching, demonstrate excellence as educators, and are making their mark as exceptional researchers, poised to shape their fields. Designed for young scholars working towards tenure, the Course Hero-WW Fellowship is a "genius grant" that will emphasize the balance between scholarly excellence and commitment to teaching practice that draws on new approaches to pedagogy, creating a new level of engagement for students in and beyond the classroom. In short, Fellows will be emerging heroes in their fields, on a clear trajectory to become great college educators. In its inaugural year, the Course Hero-WW Fellowship will identify five outstanding junior faculty members. Fellows will receive a one-year grant of $40,000-approximately $30,000 to support the engagement of a student assistant and the balance to be used for research and travel support. Exceptional candidates teach in ways that build student confidence and mastery of a subject; encourage critical thinking; explore foundational concepts through the lens of broader themes and global events; promote the power of learning communities beyond the classroom; leverage technology to complement the classroom experience; consider and serve different learning styles; prepare students for lifelong learning; and can serve as replicable teaching models for other educators. Selection takes place in June 2018. The five Fellows will be invited to attend the Course Hero Education Summit in July 2018, where their Fellowships will be announced.

The Medical Library Association is accepting applications for the MLA Scholarship for Minority Students. Through the program, a scholarship of up to $5,000 will be awarded to a minority student who is entering a graduate program at an American Library Association-accredited library school or has yet to finish at least one half of the program's requirements in the year following the granting of the scholarship. African American, Hispanic, Asian, Native American, or Pacific Islander American individuals who wish to study health sciences librarianship are eligible to apply. In addition, the applicant must be entering a master's program at an ALA-accredited graduate library school or, at the time of the awarding of the scholarship (February), have completed no more than one-half of the academic requirements of the graduate program.

Miami University researchers can provide input about the professional development opportunities they'd like to see OARS offer in the next year by completing this 5-minute survey.

Fellowships support individuals pursuing advanced research that is of value to humanities scholars, general audiences, or both. Recipients usually produce articles, monographs, books, digital materials, archaeological site reports, translations, editions, or other scholarly resources in the humanities. Through NEH-Mellon Fellowships for Digital Publication, the National Endowment for the Humanities and The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation jointly support individual scholars pursuing interpretive research projects that require digital expression and digital publication. To be eligible for this special opportunity, an applicant's plans for digital publication must be essential to the project's research goals. That is, the project must be conceived as digital because the nature of the research and the topics being addressed demand presentation beyond traditional print publication. Successful projects will likely incorporate visual, audio, and/or other multimedia materials or flexible reading pathways that could not be included in traditionally published books, as well as an active distribution plan.

Cost Share Requirement: For applications requesting grant funding of more than $25,000, you must provide funds from non-federal sources in an amount that is equal to or greater than the amount of the request. No cost sharing is permitted for applications requesting amounts of $5,000-$25,000. The goal of the Museums for America (MFA) program is to support projects that strengthen the ability of an individual museum to serve its public. Museums Empowered: Professional Development Opportunities for Museum Staff is a special MFA initiative with the goal of strengthening the ability of an individual museum to serve its public through professional development activities that cross-cut various departments to generate systemic change within the museum. IMLS encourages applicants to invest in the professional development of museum staff, volunteers, and interns to enhance their skills and ensure the highest standards in all aspects of museum operations.

Digitizing Hidden Special Collections and Archives: Enabling New Scholarship through Increasing Access to Unique Materials is a national grant competition administered by the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) for digitizing rare and unique content in collecting institutions. The program is generously supported by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation and is built upon the model of CLIR's Cataloging Hidden Special Collections and Archives program (2008-2014).

The goal of the FY 2018 Native American Library Services Basic Grants Program is to support existing library operations and maintain core library services. Effective for this FY 2018 Native American Library Services Basic Grants Program, there is no separate Education/Assessment Option. Funding for tribal library staff to: attend library-related continuing education courses or training workshops; attend or give presentations at conferences related to library services; and/or hire a consultant for an onsite professional library assessment should be included in the Library Services Plan and the Budget. No more than $3,000 of the total $10,000 may be allotted for education/assessment activities or travel. For this FY 2018 Native American Library Services Basic Grants Program, Basic Grants are only available for a one year period.

AAMC members or curators wwho are eligible for AAMC membership may apply. Curators who work in museums with no funds for professional development travel are encouraged. Members may only apply for one Fellowship. Descriptions and applications of the Travel Grant Fellowshi opportunties are below.

The Friends of the University of Wisconsin-Madison Libraries is pleased to offer several one month residential grants intended to offset expenses for out-of-town scholars wishing more deeply utilize the rich resources held by the UW-Madison General Library System. Awards of up to $2,000 each are available to scholars living in the United States and $3,000 to those from elsewhere around the world. Consideration may be given for support for shorter periods of research in Madison for individuals who reside in the United States. 

The program defines a landmark as a site of historic importance within the United States and its territories that offers educators a unique and compelling opportunity to deepen and expand their knowledge of the diverse histories, cultures, traditions, languages, and perspectives of the American people. Projects employ a place-based approach, teaching historic sites through critical interpretation in order to explore central themes in American history and government, as well as in literature, art, music, and related humanities subjects.

Applicants for the funds may be students or faculty. The project, program, or entrepreneurial idea must be created by, led by or benefit women. Grants are awarded in values of $2500 to $20,000. While we prefer the base grant to be $5,000, we are considering a limited number of $2500 which will be required to show high impact. These applicants will be considered on a case-by-case basis. The grants must be submitted online via the link below and must include a 2-minute video. Applicants will be narrowed to a pool of 10-15 finalists by our M.I.A.M.I. WOMEN Grants Committee. This committee will review applications; contact applicants if additional information is required, and present the finalists to the M.I.A.M.I. WOMEN Steering Committee and Development Staff. Grant deadline for this year is Feb. 9, 2018. These finalists will perform in a fast-pitch style Hawk Tank event on April 11, 2018. Finalists will be offered fast-pitch training courtesy of the Farmers School of Business - school of Entrepreneurship, and will receive coaching and support. They will then pitch their idea in 5 minutes or less on April 11, 2018 at the event. Giving Circle members are the voters who will determine winners. Absentee voters will be given the option to vote online. Winners will be announced that night or the next day at the Symposium, to be determined.

The Schlesinger Library on the History of Women in America invites applicants for a variety of research grants. The library's special collections document over two centuries of United States history, from abolition to transgender rights. Manuscripts, books, periodicals, audiovisual material, photographs, and other objects make up the collections. These materials illuminate the lives of ordinary women as well as American icons such as suffragist Alice Paul, Harlem renaissance writer Dorothy West, civil rights activist Pauli Murray, feminist Betty Friedan, the Republican Party activist Anna Chennault, poet June Jordan, chefs Zarela Martinez, and zine author Cindy Crabb, among many more. Applications will be evaluated on the significance of the research and the project's potential contribution to the advancement of knowledge, along with its creativity in drawing on the library's collections. The awards may be used to cover travel and living expenses, scanning, and other incidental research expenses, but not for the purchase of durable equipment or travel to other research sites.

The Big Read, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts, aims to restore reading to the center of American culture. Managed by Arts Midwest, the program provides organizations with grants and comprehensive resources that support efforts to inspire their community to read and discuss a single book or the work of a poet. Community organizations participating in the Big Read develop and produce reading programs that encourage reading and participation by diverse local audiences. These programs include activities such as author readings, book discussions, art exhibits, lectures, film series, music or dance events, theatrical performances, panel discussions, and other events and activities related to the community's chosen book or poet. Activities must focus on a book or poet from the Big Read Library. Previous grantees must select a different reading choice from their previous programming. The program is accepting applications from nonprofit organizations to develop reading programs between September 1, 2018, and June 30, 2019. Organizations selected to participate receive a grant, educational and promotional materials, and access to online training resources and opportunities. Approximately seventy-five organizations will be selected from communities of varying size in the United States. Eligible organizations may apply for grants ranging between $5,000 and $15,000. Grants must be matched on a one-to-one basis with non-federal funds. Grant funds may be used for such expenses as book purchases, speaker fees and travel, salaries, advertising, and venue rental.

Through the competition, grants of up to $6,000 will be awarded to help meet the costs of travel to libraries and archives for research purposes; the purchase of microfilm, photocopies, or equivalent research materials; costs associated with fieldwork; or laboratory research expenses. Franklin grants are made for noncommercial research and are not intended to meet the expenses of attending conferences or the costs of publication. The society does not pay overhead or indirect costs to any institution, and grant funds are not to be used to pay income tax on the award. Grants will not be made to replace salary during a leave of absence or earnings from summer teaching; pay living expenses while working at home; cover the costs of consultants or research assistants; or purchase permanent equipment such as computers, cameras, tape recorders, or laboratory apparatus. Applicants are expected to have a doctorate or to have published work of doctoral character and quality. PhD candidates are not eligible to apply, but the society is interested in supporting the work of young scholars who have recently received the doctorate. Independent scholars and faculty members at all four- and two-year research and non-research institutions are welcome to apply provided that all eligibility guidelines are met. American citizens and residents of the United States may use their Franklin awards at home or abroad. Foreign nationals not affiliated with a U.S. institution must use their Franklin awards for research in the United States. Applicants who have previously received a Franklin grant may reapply after an interval of two years.

The Ohio State University Libraries is partnering with the Association of American Universities (AAU), Association of Research Libraries (ARL), and the Association of University Presses (AAUP) on an Open Access digital monograph publishing initiative that will advance the wide dissemination of humanities and humanistic social science scholarship. Under this initiative, peer-reviewed and professionally edited university press humanities and humanistic social sciences monographs will be funded through partnering universities and published as Open Access digital editions, available at no cost to the public. The Ohio State University Libraries is offering subventions for scholarly monographs in the humanities and the humanistic social sciences. The Libraries will provide a baseline publishing grant of $15,000 to a participating university press to support the publication of an Open Access, digital monograph of 90,000 words or less. We have set a target of awarding three publishing grants per year and we are committed to participating in this initiative for five years.

The Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections (SCHC) program helps cultural institutions meet the complex challenge of preserving large and diverse holdings of humanities materials for future generations by supporting sustainable conservation measures that mitigate deterioration, prolong the useful life of collections, and support institutional resilience: the ability to anticipate and respond to natural and man-made disasters. Cultural institutions, including libraries, archives, museums, and historical organizations, face an enormous challenge: to preserve humanities collections that facilitate research, strengthen teaching, and provide opportunities for life-long learning. To ensure the preservation of books and manuscripts, photographs, sound recordings and moving images, archaeological and ethnographic artifacts, art, and historical objects, cultural institutions must implement measures that slow deterioration and prevent catastrophic loss from natural or man-made emergencies. They can accomplish this work most effectively through preventive conservation. Preventive conservation encompasses managing relative humidity, temperature, light, and pollutants in collection spaces; providing protective storage enclosures and systems for collections; and safeguarding collections from theft, fire, floods, and other disasters. As museums, libraries, archives, and other collecting institutions strive to be effective stewards of humanities collections, they must find ways to implement preventive conservation measures that are sustainable. This program therefore helps cultural repositories plan and implement preservation strategies that pragmatically balance effectiveness, cost, and environmental impact. Sustainable approaches to preservation can contribute to an institution's financial health, reduce its use of fossil fuels, and benefit its green initiatives, while ensuring that collections are well cared for and available for use in humanities programming, education, and

For applications requesting Museums for America funding of more than $25,000, you must provide funds from non-federal sources in an amount that is equal to or greater than the amount of the request. No cost sharing is permitted for applications requesting amounts of $5,000-$25,000. Program Overview: The Museums for America (MFA) program supports projects that strengthen the ability of an individual museum to serve its public. MFA has three project categories: Learning Experiences, Community Anchors, and Collections Stewardship