Assistance Listings

Promotion of the Humanities Public Programs

Objectives

Public Programs grants provide opportunities for the American public to explore human history and culture through humanities programs in museums, historical organizations, libraries, community centers, and other gathering places, as well as on public television, radio, the Internet, and other digital media. The Public Humanities Projects program supports projects that bring the ideas of the humanities to life for general audiences. The Media Projects program supports the development, production, and distribution of radio programs, podcasts, documentary films, and documentary film. The Digital Projects for the Public program supports projects that interpret and analyze humanities content in primarily digital platforms and formats. Public Impact Projects helps small and mid-sized cultural organizations expand their public programs.

Examples of Funded Projects

Assistance Listing Description

Range and Average of Financial Assistance

Award amounts vary by program and project type; see B2. in the relevant Notice Funding Opportunity. In FY22, awards ranged from $40,000 to $699,154.

Accomplishments

Account Identification

59-0200-0-1-503

Types of Assistance

B - Project Grants

Credentials and Documentation

Applicant Eligibility

Eligible applicants include U.S. nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status, public and 501(c)(3) accredited institutions of higher education, state and local governmental agencies, and federally recognized Native American Tribal governments.

Beneficiary Eligibility

U.S. nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status, public and 501(c)(3) accredited institutions of higher education, state and local governmental agencies, and federally recognized Native American Tribal governments.

Length and Time Phasing of Assistance

Varies by program. See B2 in the relevant Notice of Funding of Funding Opportunity. Method of awarding/releasing assistance: NEH will pay recipients through electronic funds transfer on an advance basis, unless otherwise specified in the award, Advance payments must be limited to the recipient's immediate cash requirements in carrying out the purpose of the approved program or project.

Use of Assistance

Awards support discovery, prototyping, and development costs for Digital Projects for the Public, development and production costs for Media Projects, and planning and implementation costs for Public Humanities Projects. See A1. Purpose in the relevant Notice of Funding Opportunity.See D6. Funding Restrictions in the relevant Notice of Funding Opportunity.

Deadlines

Preapplication Coordination

Preapplication coordination is not applicable. Environmental impact information is not required for this program. This program is excluded from coverage under E.O. 12372.

Application Procedures

2 CFR 200, Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards applies to this program.

Notice of Funding Opportunities (NOFO) for this listing will be posted on Grants.gov (opens in new window) (opens in new window).

Applicants must submit their applications to NEH through Grants.gov. Additional application information is available online (https://www.neh.gov/divisions/public).

Criteria for Selecting Proposals

A successful application will demonstrate significance or impact, outreach to groups of Americans not often engaged in public humanities projects, collaboration among cultural institutions and organizations as well as other similar or different groups, and use of a broad spectrum of the most effective formats, technologies, and venues for lifelong learning in the humanities. Although every proposal will not be expected to meet all of the criteria outlined above, the Division will give priority to applications that further these objectives. See E1. Review Criteria in the relevant Notice of Funding Opportunity.

Award Procedure

NEH staff review all applications for eligibility, completeness, and responsiveness. The agency then conducts a peer review process for all applications that pass this initial screening. Peer reviewers are experts in their fields with knowledge and expertise relevant to the activities that the program supports. NEH instructs peer reviewers to evaluate applications according to established review criteria. Peer reviewers must comply with federal ethics rules governing conflicts of interest. NEH program officers supplement the peer reviewers’ comments to address matters of fact or significant points that the peer reviewers have overlooked. They then make funding recommendations to the National Council on the Humanities. The National Council meets at least twice each year to review applications and advise the NEH Chair. By law, the Chair has the sole authority to make final funding decisions.

Date Range for Approval/Disapproval

From 120 to 180 days. Approximately six months.

Renewals

If NEH has previously made an award in support of your project, you may submit an application for a new or subsequent stage of the project, which NEH will assess using the same criteria as other applications in the current competition.

Appeals

Applicants may request written reasons for rejection and reapply with revised proposal to a subsequent competition.

Policy Requirements

Reports

Audits

Records

Recipients must retain documentation of expenditures and other fiscal records for three years following the submission of the final financial report.

Regulations, Guidelines, and Literature

45 CFR 1100 and 1105. NOFOs are available online at http://www.neh.gov/grants/grants.html or by request from the National Endowment for the Humanities, Washington, DC 20506.

Formula and Matching Requirements

Regional or Local Locations:

Headquarters Office: