DHAG NOFO 2025 030625.pdf

Notice of Funding Opportunity

Digital Humanities Advancement Grants

Funding Opportunity Number: 20250109-HAA Funding Opportunity Type: New

Federal Assistance Listing Number: 45.169

Application Deadlines:

January 9, 2025

May 22, 2025

Applicants to NEH for awards with expected issuance dates on or after October 1, 2024, should be aware of revisions to the Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit

Requirements for Federal Awards (2 CFR Part 200) effective from that date. All NEH awards issued on or after October 1, 2024, will be subject to the revised regulations. You may incorporate these changes into your applications now. Additional information is available at https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/2024-Revisions-to-2-CFR-200.

Ensure your SAM.gov and Grants.gov registrations and passwords are current.

It may take several weeks to register with SAM.gov and Grants.gov.

NEH will not grant deadline extensions for lack of registration.

Office of Digital Humanities Email: odh@neh.gov

OMB control number 3136-0134, expiration date October 31, 2024 https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/2024-Revisions-to-2-CFR-200 https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/2024-Revisions-to-2-CFR-200 mailto:odh@neh.gov

20250109-HAA i

Executive Summary The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Office of Digital Humanities is accepting applications for the Digital Humanities Advancement Grants program. The program supports work that is innovative, experimental, and contributes to the critical infrastructure that underpins scholarly research, teaching, and public programming in the humanities.

Funding Opportunity Title Digital Humanities Advancement Grants Funding Opportunity Number 20250109-HAA Federal Assistance Listing Number 45.169 Deadlines for Optional Draft November 13, 2024, 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time

March 24, 2025, 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time Application Deadlines January 9, 2025, 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time

May 22, 2025, 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time Anticipated Award Announcements August 2025 (for the January deadline)

December 2025 (for the May deadline) Anticipated FY 2025 Funding Approximately $2,200,000 Estimated Number and Type of Awards Approximately 10-15 grants per deadline Award Amounts Level I: up to $75,000

Level II: $75,001 to $150,000 Level III: $150,001 to $350,000

Level III applicants may request an additional $100,000 in federal matching funds per project (for a total award of up to $450,000).

Cost Sharing/Match Required No, unless you request federal matching funds Period of Performance Level I and II: up to 24 months

Level III: up to 36 months January deadline: projects must start between September 1, and November 1, 2025.

May deadline: projects must start between January 1, and March 1, 2026.

Eligible Applicants • nonprofit organizations recognized as tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code

• accredited institutions of higher education (public or nonprofit)

• state and local governments and their agencies

• federally recognized Native American Tribal governments

See C. Eligibility Information for additional information.

Program Resource Page https://www.neh.gov/grants/odh/digital-humanities-advancement-grants

Pre-Application Webinar NEH will post a pre-recorded webinar to the program resource page by October 24, 2024.

Published Modified

Modified

September 4, 2024 February 10, 2025: A2. Background, and D6. Funding Restrictions March 6, 2025: D6. Funding Restrictions https://www.neh.gov/grants/odh/digital-humanities-advancement-grants

20250109-HAA ii

Table of Contents

Executive Summary ................................................................................................ i Table of Contents ................................................................................................... ii A. Program Description

1. Purpose

2. Background

B. Federal Award Information

1. Type of Application and Award

2. Summary of Funding

C. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants

2. Cost Sharing

3. Other Eligibility Information

D. Application and Submission Information

1. Application Package

2. Content and Form of Application Submission

3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management

4. Submission Dates and Times

5. Intergovernmental Review

6. Funding Restrictions

E. Application Review Information

1. Review Criteria

2. Review and Selection Process

3. Assessment of Risk and Other Pre-Award Activities

4. Anticipated Announcement and Award Dates

F. Federal Award Administration Information

1. Federal Award Notices

2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements

3. Reporting

G. Agency Contacts H. Other Information

20250109-HAA

A. Program Description

1. Purpose This notice solicits applications for the Digital Humanities Advancement Grants (DHAG) program from the Office of Digital Humanities.

The Digital Humanities Advancement Grant program supports work that is innovative, experimental, and contributes to the critical infrastructure that underpins scholarly research, teaching, and public programming in the humanities. In addition to the program’s emphasis on experimentation and innovation, DHAG values extensibility, reuse, replicability, and accessibility. If your project is funded, you must analyze your workflow and publish your results in a white paper that NEH will share widely. This body of work contributes to the digital humanities’ research base.

Projects primarily using established tools and methods or seeking to create digital collections are not competitive in this grant program since NEH has other programs that can support digital projects and platforms. Please refer to D6. Funding Restrictions for a list of unallowable activities and Related funding opportunities for other NEH programs that support digital humanities projects.

See E1. Review Criteria for the criteria NEH will use to evaluate applications under this notice.

Funding levels Awards are available at three funding levels to allow you to identify a level appropriate to the scope and maturity of your project. You do not need to have had a Level I award to apply for a Level II project, nor do you need to have had a Level I or II award to apply for a Level III project.

NEH will assign your project to the funding level based on the total outright funds requested.

Please be mindful of this when indicating your funding level in the narrative section of the application.

Level I

• Up to $75,000 and up to 24 months

• Supports smaller-scale projects or experimental or exploratory stages of larger projects

• Activities might include developing research agendas, piloting new methods, convening planning sessions with stakeholders or conducting audience and user experience research, designing prototypes, and facilitating convenings to address field-wide questions

Level II

• $75,001 to $150,000 and up to 24 months

• For projects that can demonstrate completion of an initial planning phase but are not yet ready for Level III funding; should include plans for extending work beyond the applicant institution

• Activities might include developing beta prototypes of open-source tools or software;

evaluating and refining methods and workflows; conducting workshops or tutorials to disseminate project results bookmark://_6._Funding_Restrictions/ bookmark://_Related_funding_opportunities/ bookmark://_1._Review_Criteria/

Level III

• $150,001 to $350,000 and up to 36 months

• For scaling up and expanding mature projects

• Must document completion of a planning or prototyping stage, current user statistics, and dissemination plans beyond the applicant institution

• Activities might include code review and bug fixing; creating training materials and documentation to promote wide use of the grant products; preparing data, software, or websites for future preservation; conducting accessibility compliance review

If you are applying at level III, you may request up to $100,000 in federal matching funds (for a total award of up to $450,000) to leverage external funding. See NEH Federal Matching Funds Guidelines and section C2. Cost Sharing.

Applicants at all levels can use grant funds for holding meetings with advisory boards and collaborators, conducting user experience testing and evaluations, data curation, and engaging in project-related outreach.

Funds may not be used for recurring costs such as day-to-day maintenance operations of existing projects or attendance at conferences or professional meetings, unless to disseminate project-related findings.

Program Outputs Examples of outputs include:

Level I: new consortia or partnerships, user experience testing reports and evaluations, planning documents for next stages, alpha stage experiments, and pilot studies.

Level II: working prototypes of tools, code libraries, or add-ons; beta version of the digital project; new workflows; and training data or models.

Level III: launch of the expanded/enhanced digital project; release of final software, code, or datasets; robust outreach activities beyond the applicant institution; implementation of sustainability plans.

All levels: conference presentations, workshops, tutorials, publications, training materials, and implementation of data management and sharing plans.

Describe your project outputs, and how they align with the overall goals of the DHAG program, in the Final products and dissemination section of your project narrative. If you receive an award, NEH will assess your performance based on the outputs you identify in the proposal. See F3. Reporting.

2. Background NEH offers this funding opportunity under the authority of 20 U.S.C. § 956. Awards are subject to 2 CFR Part 200 Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, and the General Terms and Conditions for Awards to Organizations (for grants and cooperative agreements issued January 1, 2022 or later).

https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/federal-matching-funds-guidelines bookmark://_Final_products_and_1/ bookmark://_Atttachment_1/2:_Narrative bookmark://_3._Reporting/ https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?hl=false&edition=prelim&req=granuleid%3AUSC-prelim-title20-section956 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=236bb02f01d2e050f7a5b60c88a67066&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=236bb02f01d2e050f7a5b60c88a67066&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5 https://www.neh.gov/general-terms-and-conditions-awards-organizations-grants-and-cooperative-agreements-issued-january-2022 https://www.neh.gov/general-terms-and-conditions-awards-organizations-grants-and-cooperative-agreements-issued-january-2022

Under Section 3(a) of the National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965, as amended, “The term ‘humanities’ includes, but is not limited to, the study of the following:

language, both modern and classical; linguistics; literature; history; jurisprudence; philosophy;

archaeology; comparative religion; ethics; the history, criticism and theory of the arts; those aspects of the social sciences which have humanistic content and employ humanistic methods;

and the study and application of the humanities to the human environment with particular attention to reflecting our diverse heritage, traditions, and history and to the relevance of the humanities to the current conditions of national life.”

Use the Funded Projects Query Form to find examples of NEH-supported projects.

Learn more about NEH.

Partnership with Institute of Museum and Library Services The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) anticipates providing funding through this program in support of its efforts to advance national information infrastructures in libraries and archives, subject to the availability of funds and agency discretion. These funds may support DHAG projects that further the IMLS mission to advance, support, and empower America’s libraries, archives, museums, and related organizations. IMLS funding supports innovative collaborations between library and archives professionals, humanities professionals, information scientists, and relevant public communities that advance the preservation of, access to, and public engagement with, digital collections and services. IMLS encourages DHAG applicants to work in collaboration with, and employ the expertise of, library and archives staff at your institution or across the country to strengthen knowledge networks, empower community learning, foster civic cohesion, advance research, and support the traditionally underserved.

If your organization seeks support for digital humanities projects involving museums, libraries, and/or archives, you are encouraged to apply to the DHAG program, but may also consider applying to either the IMLS National Leadership Grants for Libraries program or the IMLS National Leadership Grants for Museums program.

Note that while some DHAG projects may be funded in part by IMLS and identified as joint NEH/IMLS projects, NEH will issue all awards and recipients must follow NEH grant management procedures.

B. Federal Award Information

1. Type of Application and Award NEH seeks new applications in response to this notice.

NEH will provide funding in the form of grants.

2. Summary of Funding

Award amounts You may request up to $75,000 for Level I.

You may request between $75,001 to $150,000 for Level II.

https://www.govinfo.gov/content/pkg/USCODE-1998-title20/pdf/USCODE-1998-title20-chap26-subchapI-sec952.pdf https://securegrants.neh.gov/publicquery/main.aspx https://www.neh.gov/about https://www.imls.gov/ https://www.imls.gov/grants/available/national-leadership-grants-libraries https://www.imls.gov/grants/available/national-leadership-grants-museums

You may request between $150,001 to $350,000 for Level III.

If you are seeking Level III funding, you may also request up to $100,000 in federal matching funds (for a total award of up to $450,000) to leverage external funding. For more information about federal matching funds, see NEH Federal Matching Funds Guidelines and section C3.

Matching.

Totals include the sum of direct and indirect costs.

NEH anticipates awarding approximately $2,200,000 among an estimated 10-15 recipients.

NEH will not determine the funding available each fiscal year until Congress enacts the final budget. This notice is subject to the availability of appropriated funds and is a contingency action taken to ensure that, should funds become available for this purpose, NEH can process applications and issue awards in a timely manner.

Period of performance

• Level I – up to 24 months

• Level II – up to 24 months

• Level III – up to 36 months

The period of performance is the span of time during which you may incur new obligations to carry out the work under the NEH award. It must start on the first day of the month and end on the last day of the month.

If you apply for the January 2025 deadline, you may request a period of performance start date between September 1, 2025, and November 1, 2025.

If you apply for the May 2025 deadline, you may request a period of performance start date between January 1, 2026, and March 1, 2026.

You may have concurrent DHAG awards; however, you must not include the same project costs in two or more federal awards.

C. Eligibility Information

1. Eligible Applicants To be eligible to apply, your organization must be established in the United States or its jurisdictions as one of the following:

• a nonprofit organization recognized as tax-exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code

• an accredited institution of higher education (public or nonprofit)

• a state or local government or one of their agencies

• a federally recognized Native American Tribal government

Individuals and other organizations, including foreign and for-profit entities, are ineligible.

https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/search-for-tax-exempt-organizations https://www.irs.gov/charities-non-profits/search-for-tax-exempt-organizations https://ope.ed.gov/dapip/#/home https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2022/01/28/2022-01789/indian-entities-recognized-by-and-eligible-to-receive-services-from-the-united-states-bureau-of

If your organization is eligible, you may apply on behalf of a consortium of collaborating organizations. If NEH selects your proposal for funding, you will be programmatically, legally, and fiscally responsible for the award.

The recipient may not function solely as a fiscal agent but should make substantive contributions to the success of the project.

2. Cost Sharing NEH does not require cost sharing in this program unless you request federal matching funds.

Cost sharing refers to project costs that are covered with non-NEH funds. NEH distinguishes between two types of cost sharing: voluntary cost sharing and federal matching funds.

Voluntary cost sharing You may contribute voluntary cost share if the total project costs exceed the amount awarded by NEH. Voluntary cost share includes:

• cash contributions made to the project by you or a third party

• your unrecovered indirect costs

• in-kind contributions (non-cash contributions, such as property or services, that benefit the project and are contributed without charge) by you or a third party

While you may describe voluntary cost share in your budget justification, you should not include it on your Research and Related Budget. The Research and Related Budget should only include funds you are requesting from NEH.

Peer reviewers will not consider any voluntary cost share in their evaluation of applications.

Federal matching funds (Level III applications only) Applicants for Level III funding may request up to $100,000 in federal matching funds to leverage third party funding. Funds to satisfy a matching requirement must be from sources outside of the applicant institution (a third party) consistent with the NEH Federal Matching Funds Guidelines. If you request federal matching funds, you must raise third-party non-federal gifts dollar-for-dollar.

Include third-party non-federal gifts on your Research and Related Budget and identify what project activities they will support in the budget justification.

Successful applicants will receive an offer of federal matching funds, subject to specific regulatory and other conditions. NEH will certify the allowability of these gifts and will issue the award only when you have met the conditions of the offer. The full amount of federal matching funds may not be available for release in the first year of a multi-year period of performance.

Typically, NEH distributes federal matching funds on an annual basis over the period of performance.

If NEH selects your project for funding, you must raise and certify all eligible gifts and pledges at least one year before the end of your period of performance. NEH advises applicants who are requesting matching funds to consider a period of performance that allows adequate time to raise and certify funds. If you fail to certify required gifts by the deadline and do not request an extension by the end of the offer period, the matching funds offer may be withdrawn. See NEH Federal Matching Funds Guidelines.

NEH will not release federal matching funds until you raise and certify eligible gifts. In-kind gifts and funds derived from the recipient organization are not eligible sources of certified gifts in this program.

You must maintain auditable records of the source and use of cost share. See 2 CFR § 200.306.

Learn about types of funds NEH offers.

3. Other Eligibility Information An institution may submit multiple applications for separate and distinct projects under this notice, but individuals may not serve as a project director or co-director on more than one DHAG application per deadline. They may serve as personnel (not in a leadership role) on more than one DHAG application per deadline.

Full-time degree candidates may not be project directors or co-directors but may serve in other project roles and be compensated in the budget.

You may revise and resubmit previously rejected applications. Submissions are subject to the application requirements and review criteria of the current competition.

If NEH has previously made an award in support of your project, you may apply for a new or subsequent stage of the project, which NEH will assess using the review criteria of the current competition.

Per 2 CFR § 200.403(f), you must not include the same project costs in more than one application for federal funding or approved federal award budget. If one application to NEH is pending, a second application for the same project costs, even if to a different program, may be ruled ineligible. However, you may submit multiple proposals for complementary aspects of the same overall project. If you are submitting complementary proposals to other NEH programs or government agencies, specify when and to whom in the Supplementary Cover Sheet for NEH Grant Programs. NEH may disallow costs or reject applications that include overlapping project costs. An individual’s level of effort cannot exceed 100% across multiple active federally funded awards.

NEH does not issue awards to other federal entities. If your project is so closely intertwined with a federal entity that the project takes on characteristics of the federal entity’s own authorized activities, it is ineligible. You may use funds from, or sites and materials controlled by, other federal entities in your project, but you may not use them as gifts to release federal matching funds.

NEH does not provide financial assistance to foreign institutions or organizations. If you are an eligible domestic entity, you may apply for collaborative projects involving foreign organizations provided you do not use NEH funds for the purpose of issuing subawards to any foreign organization, as defined in 2 CFR §§ 200.1 and .331(a). You may obtain the services of foreign individuals and consultants to carry out programmatic activities on a fee-for-service basis, as specified in 2 CFR § 200.459. You may obtain goods and services from foreign vendors, such as in-country transportation services, in accordance with 2 CFR § 200.331(b). If you plan to submit an application involving international collaboration, contact program staff at odh@neh.gov.

https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/federal-matching-funds-guidelines https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/federal-matching-funds-guidelines https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=3aeab4e3a836f5b6807999701e518c94&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#se2.1.200_1306 https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/types-funding https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200/subpart-E/subject-group-ECFRea20080eff2ea53/section-200.403 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=35fcd29238edd42c8b1f8b1628e39d47&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#se2.1.200_11 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=b76712a585433486e57dafcd521c952e&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#se2.1.200_1331 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=35fcd29238edd42c8b1f8b1628e39d47&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#se2.1.200_1459 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=b76712a585433486e57dafcd521c952e&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#se2.1.200_1331

Except for the rare cases covered by its late submission policy, NEH will not consider applications submitted after the deadline.

NEH will not consider incomplete, nonresponsive, or ineligible applications for funding.

NEH will not consider applications that exceed mandatory page limits or deviate from formatting instructions. See the Application Components Table.

D. Application and Submission Information

1. Application Package You must apply using Grants.gov Workspace or a Grants.gov system-to-system solution. You can find this funding opportunity in Grants.gov under number 20250109-HAA. There is also a link on the program resource page.

Once you have located the funding opportunity in Grants.gov, you will find the application package under the “Package” tab. It includes a series of required and conditionally required forms. You will upload additional application components using the Attachments Form.

You must complete a multistep registration process prior to submitting your application. See D3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management.

Contact odh@neh.gov to request a paper copy of this notice.

2. Content and Form of Application Submission Your application will include a narrative, budget, and other forms and attachments. You will complete the forms within Grants.gov Workspace and upload other components into the Attachments Form. See the Application Component Table.

Application formatting Your application attachments must be PDFs and conform to the following formatting requirements, unless otherwise indicated:

• pages no larger than standard letter (8 ½" x 11”)

• at least one-inch margins on all sides for all pages

• a font no smaller than 11 points

• In addition, NEH encourages you to format your attachments consistent with the following: single-spacing

• a readable font such as Arial, Georgia, Helvetica, or Times New Roman

• any standard citation style (include citations in page counts)

Application Component Table NEH has assigned each application component one of the following designations:

• Required: You must submit this component.

https://www.neh.gov/grants/policy-on-late-submissions

• Conditionally required: You must submit this component if your proposal meets the specified conditions.

• Recommended: NEH encourages, but does not require, you to submit this component.

• Conditionally required for recipients: You are encouraged but not required to submit this component when you apply. You must submit it if you receive an award if your proposal meets the specified conditions.

NEH will not review applications missing any required documents or relevant conditionally required documents.

Do not include attachments other than those listed in the table in this notice. If you do, NEH will reject your application.

In addition, NEH has established page limits for some application components:

• Mandatory: You must not exceed the page limit.

• Suggested: NEH encourages, but does not require, you to abide by the page limit.

Note page limits and formatting instructions in this notice. NEH will not review applications that exceed mandatory page limits or deviate from formatting instructions.

Application Component File Name Designation Page limit Attachments 1: List of personnel personnel.pdf Required

2: Narrative narrative.pdf Required Level I: 4 pages Level II: 6 pages Level III: 8 pages (Mandatory)

3: Work plan workplan.pdf Required 3 pages (Mandatory)

4: Biographies biographies.pdf Required 1 paragraph per team member (Suggested)

5: Data management and sharing plan datamanagement.pdf Required 2 pages (Mandatory)

6: Sustainability plan sustainability.pdf Required for Level

III

3 pages (Mandatory)

7: Appendices appendices.pdf Recommended 10 pages (Suggested)

8: Letters of commitment letters.pdf Recommended 9: Subrecipient budget(s) subrecipient.pdf Conditionally required

10: Federally negotiated indirect cost rate agreement agreement.pdf Conditionally required

11: Explanation of delinquent federal debt delinquentdebt.pdf Conditionally required for recipients

Grants.gov forms SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance - Short Organizational

Required

Supplementary Cover Sheet for NEH Grant Programs

Required

Project/Performance Site(s) Location Form

Required

Research and Related Budget and Budget Justification

Required

Attachments Form Required Certification Regarding Lobbying

Conditionally

Standard Form-LLL “Disclosure of Lobbying Activities”

Conditionally

Application Components: Attachments Each attachment must be a single PDF file. See the Attachments Form instructions for further guidance about file requirements. Read those instructions carefully, as Grants.gov will not accept files that do not meet the requirements.

Attachment 1: List of personnel (required) List project personnel carrying out programmatic activities, their titles, and institutional affiliations, if applicable. Clearly identify the project director and any co-directors. Include the names and affiliations of advisory board members, if any.

The project director and any co-directors are responsible for the programmatic aspects and day-to-day management of the proposed project. The names on this list should match the names mentioned in Attachment 3: Work plan, Attachment 4: Biographies, and the Activities and project team section of the narrative. NEH uses this list to ensure that prospective peer reviewers have no conflicts of interest with the proposals they evaluate.

Name the file personnel.pdf.

Attachment 2: Narrative (required) Compose a comprehensive description of your proposed project. Your narrative should be succinct, well organized, and free of technical terms and jargon so that peer reviewers from a range of disciplinary backgrounds can understand the proposed project.

Do not include a cover sheet or table of contents. You may include images, charts, diagrams, footnotes, and endnotes if they fit within the mandatory page limit.

• For Level I proposals, the narrative must not exceed four (4) pages.

• For Level II proposals, the narrative must not exceed six (6) pages.

• For Level III proposals, the narrative must not exceed eight (8) pages.

Include all required and relevant details within the narrative. You may embed links to external sources, but NEH does not require peer reviewers to review proposals online or visit links.

Organize your narrative using the following section headings. Each section aligns with one or more review criteria NEH will use to evaluate your proposal.

Overview of the project (one paragraph) State if you are applying for Level I, Level II, or Level III (the level is determined by the total you are requesting not the stage of your project) funding and describe how your project aligns with DHAG program goals and values outlined in A1. Purpose. As a reminder, projects primarily using established tools and methods or seeking to create digital collections are not competitive in this grant program. Provide a concise, non-specialist overview, stating the project’s main goal, key activities, intended audiences, and expected outputs. This section can match the “Description of project” field in field 6.b of the SF-424 form you will submit via Grants.gov. The field has a limit of 1000 characters, including spaces.

Enhancing the humanities Explain how your project benefits one or more humanities disciplines, addressing specific needs or challenges for target audiences (e.g., scholars, students, practitioners, public audiences).

Discuss the anticipated impact of the project’s outputs. Identify the technologies, platforms, and standards you plan to use. NEH views the use of open-source software as a key component in the broad distribution of exemplary digital scholarship in the humanities. If not using open-source software, justify your choice and explain how you will ensure broad access to the project’s results. See Providing access to NEH-funded projects.

Environmental scan Summarize relevant past and current digital humanities work, its relevance to your project, and explain the unique contributions of your project. If you will develop software to solve a particular humanities problem, discuss existing software that addresses similar questions in other content areas outside of your field of expertise, and explain how your solution differs. If existing software products could be adapted for the proposed project, identify them and discuss the pros and cons of taking that approach.

This section should not provide new information about proposed project activities.

History of the project Provide a brief history of the project, summarizing preliminary research, planning, and previous related work, including publications. You should also discuss prior financial support and available resources and research facilities. If you are requesting support for part of a larger initiative, clearly delineate the specific part intended for DHAG funding.

If revitalizing, recovering, or sustaining an older project, describe its current maintenance, user community, and impact on the field.

If you are seeking a Level II award, describe results from your initial planning phases or proof-of-concept work here.

If you are seeking a Level III award, document work completed to date, the results of testing and evaluation from earlier stages, and user metrics.

bookmark://_1._Purpose/ bookmark://_6._Project_Information/ bookmark://_Providing_access_to/

You may include executive summaries of any planning documents, citations, and lists of publications with URLs in Attachment 7: Appendices. Bear in mind that peer reviewers are under no obligation to visit external sites.

Activities and project team Summarize key activities that will take place during the project’s period of performance, indicating which personnel are responsible for which activities. This section should align with Attachment 3: Work plan and Attachment 4: Biographies. Describe how the project will support all staff, including students and contingent faculty, through project-based learning, mentoring, immersion in the activities of the project, or other professional development opportunities.

Explain how you will measure success and impact, possibly by including external evaluators or advisory board members. For example, a software development project might schedule user testing at regular intervals using internal staff, while another project focused on digital public humanities might consult regularly with a specific community outside of the applicant’s institution. Evaluation should align with goals in the “Enhancing the humanities” section. (For more information on evaluating humanities projects, see the Rhode Island Council on the Humanities Evaluation Toolkit.)

Include draft agendas and participant lists (or criteria for selecting participants) for workshops or conferences. Attachment 7: Appendices.

Final products and dissemination Detail expected final products and their alignment with project goals. Outline dissemination plans to reach intended audiences, ensuring tools and results extend beyond the applicant institution. Explain how you will ensure accessibility for individuals with disabilities by identifying the guidelines or standards to which you will adhere with respect to accessibility and universal design, as well as the disabilities you intend to address (for example, cognitive or physical disabilities, impaired sight, or impaired hearing). See H. Other Information for resources for designing for accessibility referencing relevant guidelines.

If you are developing new software, NEH encourages you to make its use, reuse, distribution, and modification free. You should make open-source software or source code publicly available in an online repository, such as GitHub, Zenodo, or the Knowledge Commons CORE Repository, and you should thoroughly document it to promote its reuse and implementation, and to ensure the reliability of data and reproducibility of results.

The narrative must not exceed the page limits designated in the application component table. Note: NEH will determine your funding level by the total costs that you request regardless of how you describe it in the application. Name the file narrative.pdf.

Attachment 3: Work plan (required) Outline the major activities described in the narrative (Activities and Project Team section) ensuring these align with the period of performance indicated on the SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance - Short Organizational and the Research and Related Budget.

Include specific tasks, milestones, and responsible staff (including advisory board members).

Use a Gantt chart or similar schematic if desired. Identify risks (e.g., staff attrition, software delays, travel restrictions) and risk mitigation strategies. For Level III projects requesting https://rihumanities.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/RICH.Toolkit_Sept-2020-Full-WEB-9.16.2020.pdf https://rihumanities.org/wp-content/uploads/2020/09/RICH.Toolkit_Sept-2020-Full-WEB-9.16.2020.pdf bookmark://_i.__Project/ bookmark://_SF-424_Application_for/ bookmark://_SF-424_Application_for/ bookmark://_ii.__Research/ matching funds, specify tasks covered and contingency plans if you are unable to raise matching funds.

The work plan must not exceed three pages. Name the file workplan.pdf.

Attachment 4: Biographies (required) Provide one-paragraph biographies for all project personnel, highlighting their technical and/or humanities qualifications for the project. Indicate if a person is a current degree candidate (student). Include a one-paragraph detailed job description for any open positions. If applicable, provide one-paragraph biographies for advisory board members.

Do not submit CVs or resumes. Name the file biographies.pdf.

Attachment 5: Data management and sharing plan (required) DHAG projects may generate data such as software code, algorithms, databases, digital tools, conference proceedings, reports, articles, research notes, or websites.

Prepare a plan outlining the types of data your project might generate and plans for collecting, sharing, and managing data during and beyond the project’s period of performance. Explain the project’s policies on public access, privacy, security, and intellectual property. Describe who will manage data, including resources and facilities. Address data sharing with partners and stakeholders, legal or ethical restrictions, and the lowest level of aggregated data to share.

Explain mechanisms for sharing data and making it accessible to others. Explain any data management costs in your budget justification.

The Data Management Sharing Plan must not exceed two pages. Name the file datamanagement.pdf.

Attachment 6: Sustainability plan (required for Level III applicants) If you are applying for a Level III award, discuss the long-term technical, personnel, and financial needs of your project and how you will sustain it after the period of performance.

Discuss any institutional support available or that has been committed, including staff time or hosting space, and future funding streams. Consult the NEH-funded reports Sustaining Digital Resources: A Briefing Paper for Leaders of Projects with Scholarly Content and The Socio- Technical Sustainability Roadmap for advice on developing your plan.

Do not include a sustainability plan if you are applying for Level I or Level II funding. NEH will remove sustainability plans if included in Level I or Level II applications.

The sustainability plan must not exceed three pages. Name the file sustainability.pdf.

Attachment 7: Appendices (recommended) Include relevant materials such as bibliographies or works cited, start-up phase materials such as planning documents, agendas and participant lists for workshops and meetings, use cases or scenarios, wireframes or annotated screen shots, and user experience results from earlier stages of the project. Describe images and documents to help reviewers understand what is depicted and how it relates to the project.

The appendices have a suggested page limit of ten pages. Name the file appendices.pdf.

https://sr.ithaka.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/BRIEFING_PAPER-for-digital-project-leaders.pdf https://sr.ithaka.org/wp-content/uploads/2015/08/BRIEFING_PAPER-for-digital-project-leaders.pdf https://sites.haa.pitt.edu/sustainabilityroadmap/ https://sites.haa.pitt.edu/sustainabilityroadmap/

Attachment 8: Letters of commitment (recommended) Include brief letters from personnel outside the applicant institution confirming involvement and responsibilities. Letters of commitment should not discuss the project’s value or potential impact.

Do not include letters of support. NEH will remove letters submitted by individuals not participating in the project from your application.

Name the file letters.pdf.

Attachment 9: Subrecipient budget(s) (conditionally required) If your project includes subawards, you must provide a separate Research and Related Budget and budget justification for each subrecipient.

Download a fillable PDF of the Research and Related Budget form from the NEH website for each subrecipient. You must open and complete this form in Adobe Reader 8.0 or higher rather than in your web browser.

Prepare a budget and budget justification for each subrecipient using the same instructions in this notice, with a few exceptions:

• Enter the subrecipient’s Unique Entity Identifier, organization name, and period of performance start and end date (these fields will not prepopulate).

• For “budget type,” check “Subaward/Consortium.”

If your subrecipients have a federally negotiated indirect cost rate, you must honor it. If they do not have a federally negotiated indirect cost rate, they may negotiate a rate with you consistent with 2 CFR § 200.414 or use the de minimis rate.

Rather than attaching related documents (budget justification, additional personnel, additional equipment) to the form itself, you will separately convert each document into a PDF and combine all subrecipients’ budget forms and related documents into a single document. Do not attach portfolios containing multiple PDFs.

NEH cannot accept security-enhanced PDFs (e.g., XFA files, PDFs that include password-protection, encryption, digital signatures). Remove these features (or “flatten” these files) before merging them into a single PDF and uploading it to the Attachments Form.

Name the file subrecipient.pdf.

Attachment 10: Federally negotiated indirect cost rate agreement (conditionally required) If your organization is claiming indirect costs and has a current federally negotiated indirect cost rate agreement, provide a copy of the agreement. If applicable, provide the indirect cost rate agreements for subrecipients claiming indirect costs. If you and your subrecipients are requesting the de minimis rate, you do not need to submit this attachment.

Name the file agreement.pdf.

https://www.neh.gov/sites/default/files/inline-files/RR_Budget10_3_0-V3.0.pdf https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=d22b09774a679ad264cf0098635dabb8&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#se2.1.200_1414

Attachment 11: Explanation of delinquent federal debt (conditionally required for recipients) If your organization is delinquent in the repayment of any federal debt, explain why. Provide evidence that you have entered into a repayment agreement with the Internal Revenue Service, if applicable, and that you are current on all payments due. Examples of relevant debt include delinquent payroll or other taxes, audit disallowances, and benefit overpayments. See OMB Circular A-129.

Name the file delinquentdebt.pdf.

Application Components: Grants.gov Forms

SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance – Short Organizational (Grants.gov form) This form requests basic information about your institution, the proposed project, and key contacts. Items 1, 2, and 4 will be automatically filled in; leave item 3 blank.

5. Applicant Information a-d. Provide your organization’s legal name, address, and web address. Select the applicant type that best describes your organization from the drop-down menu.

e-f. Provide your organization’s employer/taxpayer identification number (EIN/TIN), and Unique Entity Identifier assigned by the System for Award Management. If you do not know your identifier, contact your grant administrator or chief financial officer. See D3. Unique Entity Identifier and System for Award Management.

g. Provide your congressional district with your two-character state abbreviation followed by your three-character district number. For example, if your institution is located in the 5th congressional district of Alabama, enter “AL-005.” If your institution is in a state or U.S.

jurisdiction that does not have districts, enter “000” in place of the district number. If your institution is outside the U.S., enter “00-000.”

6. Project Information

a. Provide your project’s title. It should be brief (no more than 125 characters, including spaces), descriptive of the project, and easily understood by the general public. If NEH funds your project, the agency may retitle your project for clarity in internal and external communications, including the public announcement of awards. Regardless, you may use your preferred title when carrying out the project.

b. Provide a brief description of your project (no more than 1,000 characters, including spaces).

You should write the description for a nonspecialist audience, clearly stating the importance of the proposed work and its relation to larger issues in the humanities. This description will appear on the cover sheet of your application and will serve as a project abstract during the review process. If funded, this description will also appear in NEH’s database of funded projects.

c. State your project’s period of performance start and end dates. Your project must start on the first day of the month and end on the last day of the month. See B2. Summary of Funding for allowable periods of performance.

https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/omb/circulars_a129_rev2013 https://obamawhitehouse.archives.gov/omb/circulars_a129_rev2013 https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative

7. Project Director Provide the project director’s name, title, and contact information. The project director is responsible for the programmatic aspects and day-to-day management of the proposed project.

You must notify the NEH Office of Grant Management immediately if you need to change project directors.

If the project director is not employed by the applicant organization, you must have a formal written agreement with the project director that specifies an official relationship between the parties even if the relationship does not involve a salary or other form of remuneration.

8. Primary Contact/Grant Administrator Provide the name, title, and contact information for the official responsible for the administration of the award (e.g., negotiating the budget and ensuring compliance with the terms and conditions of the award).

As a matter of NEH policy, the project director and primary contact/grant administrator must not be the same person.

The grant administrator (also called the “institutional grant administrator”) functions as the representative of the recipient organization. This individual should have authority to act on the organization’s behalf in matters related to the administration of the award. The institutional grant administrator must sign or countersign financial reports and prior approval requests such as budget revisions, extensions to the period of performance, and changes in key personnel.

NEH will address official correspondence (for example, the offer letter or Notice of Action) to the institutional grant administrator and copy the project director.

9. Authorized Representative Provide the name, title, and contact information for the authorized organization representative (AOR) who is submitting the application on behalf of the institution. This person, often called an “authorizing official,” is typically someone from the Office of Sponsored Projects, or the institution’s president, vice president, executive director, or board chair. The institution’s Grants.gov E-Business Point of Contact must designate the AOR. The AOR’s signature must match the contact’s name. See the Grants.gov Online User Guide.

Supplementary Cover Sheet for NEH Grant Programs (Grants.gov form)

1. Project Director Select the project director’s major field of study from the drop-down menu.

2. Institutional Information Select your institution type from the drop-down menu.

3. Project Funding

• Under “Outright Funds,” enter the amount of outright funds you are requesting.

• Under “Federal Match,” enter the amount of federal matching funds you are requesting.

• Under “Cost Sharing,” enter the required cost share you will provide to release the federal matching funds (dollar-for-dollar). Do not include voluntary cost share.

https://apply07.grants.gov/help/html/help/index.htm?callingApp=custom#t=GetStarted%2FGetStarted.htm

Learn more about the types of funding NEH offers.

4. Application Information Indicate whether you or others will submit complementary proposals to other NEH programs, government agencies, or private entities. If so, specify when and to whom. NEH will not consider this information when evaluating the merits of your proposal. See C3. Other Eligibility Information for restrictions regarding overlapping costs.

For type of application, check “new.”

Select the project’s primary discipline from the drop-down menu. If applicable, select the project’s secondary and tertiary disciplines.

Project/Performance Site Location(s) Form (Grants.gov form) Provide the primary location and any other locations where you will conduct project activities during the period of performance.

Enter congressional districts using the two-letter state abbreviation followed by your three-character district number. For example, if your institution is in the 5th congressional district of Alabama, enter “AL-005.” If your institution is in a state or U.S. jurisdiction that does not have districts, enter “000” in place of the district number. If your institution is outside the U.S., enter “00-000.”

The form has space for 300 sites. If your project includes additional locations, list them in a separate document. Save the document as a PDF named additionallocations.pdf and attach it under “Additional Locations.”

Research and Related Budget (Grants.gov form) You must submit a project budget using the Research and Related Budget form included in the Grants.gov application package and attach a budget justification. Complete the SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance - Short Organizational form prior to completing your Research and Related Budget.

Complete a separate detailed budget for each 12-month span of the period of performance. The form will generate a cumulative budget.

The form indicates required fields in yellow. Round all costs to the nearest whole dollar. The inclusion of a cost category on the Research and Related Budget form does not automatically indicate that an expense is allowable in this program. See D6. Funding Restrictions to ensure that proposed costs are allowable.

If you…