fy22-oms-me-nofo 20211005.pdf

OMB Control #: 3137-0107, Expiration Date: 07/31/2024

MUSEUMS EMPOWERED:

PROFESSIONAL DEVELOPMENT OPPORTUNITIES FOR

MUSEUM STAFF

FY 2022 NOTICE OF FUNDING OPPORTUNITY

Federal Awarding Agency Institute of Museum and Library Services

Funding Opportunity Title Museums Empowered

Announcement Type New

Funding Opportunity Number ME-FY22

Assistance Listing Number 45.301

Application Deadline Submit through Grants.gov by 11:59 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time on November 15, 2021.

Anticipated Date of Notification of Award Decisions

August 2022 (subject to the availability of funds and IMLS discretion)

Beginning Date of Period of Performance Projects must begin on September 1, 2022.

Table of Contents A. Program Description B. Federal Award Information C. Eligibility Information D. Application and Submission Information E. Application Review Information F. Award Administration Information G. Contacts H. Other Information Appendix One – IMLS Assurances and Certifications Appendix Two – Guidance for Required Registrations Appendix Three – Guidance for Completing Forms and Other Application Components Appendix Four – Guidance for Creating a Digital Products Plan Appendix Five – Conflict of Interest Requirements

Museums Empowered:

Professional Development Opportunities for

Museum Staff

A. Program Description A1. Agency Mission, Goals, and Objectives The mission of the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) is to advance, support, and empower America’s museums, libraries, and related organizations through grantmaking, research, and policy development. Guiding our grantmaking are three agency-level goals with two objectives each.

• Goal 1: Champion Lifelong Learning o Objective 1.1: Advance shared knowledge and learning opportunities for all.

o Objective 1.2: Support the training and professional development of the museum and library workforce.

• Goal 2: Strengthen Community Engagement o Objective 2.1: Promote inclusive engagement across diverse audiences.

o Objective 2.2: Support community collaboration and foster civic discourse.

• Goal 3: Advance Collections Stewardship and Access o Objective 3.1: Support collections care and management.

o Objective 3.2: Promote access to museum and library collections.

Museums Empowered: Professional Development Opportunities for Museum Staff (hereafter “Museums Empowered”) is designed to support the achievement of these agency-level goals and to facilitate the delivery of significant results consistent with the IMLS federal authorizing legislation (20 U.S.C. § 9101 et seq.; in particular, § 9173 (Museum services activities)). Each award that IMLS makes through Museums Empowered will align with one of these agency-level goals and one associated objective and will thus contribute meaningfully to the achievement of both program and agency-level goals.

Click here to search awards made through Museums Empowered by year, log number, state, city, and/or or keyword.

Throughout its work, IMLS places importance on diversity, equity, and inclusion. This may be reflected in an IMLS-funded project in a wide range of ways, including efforts to serve individuals of diverse geographic, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds; individuals with disabilities;

individuals with limited functional literacy or information skills; individuals having difficulty using a library or museum; and underserved urban and rural communities, including children from families with incomes below the poverty line.

This may also be reflected in efforts to recruit and develop future professionals in the library or museum fields (e.g., paid internships), develop strategies for building or enhancing access to collections and information, and compensate project participants (e.g., students, staff, community members, advisors) as appropriate for their time and expertise.

https://www.imls.gov/grants/awarded-grants?field_states=All&field_city=&field_program_categories_text=Museums+Empowered%3A+Professional+Development+Opportunities+for+Museum+Staff&fulltext_search= https://www.imls.gov/grants/awarded-grants?field_states=All&field_city=&field_program_categories_text=Museums+Empowered%3A+Professional+Development+Opportunities+for+Museum+Staff&fulltext_search= https://www.imls.gov/grants/awarded-grants?field_states=All&field_city=&field_program_categories_text=Museums+Empowered%3A+Professional+Development+Opportunities+for+Museum+Staff&fulltext_search=

A2. Museums Empowered Goals and Objectives Museums Empowered is a special initiative of the Museums for America grant program. It is designed to support projects that use the transformative power of professional development and training to generate systemic change within museums of all types and sizes. Projects are expected to involve multiple levels of staff, leadership, and volunteers in a set of logical, interrelated activities tied directly to addressing a key need or challenge; reflect a thorough understanding of current practice and knowledge about professional development; and generate measurable results. As a result, Museums Empowered has significant potential to generate positive societal impact through project activities undertaken as part of the grant-funded work and activities that may be complementary to the project. IMLS does not prescribe the type, focus, reach, or scale of societal impact required for each project, but the questions to be addressed in the application Narrative and the review criteria reflect the agency’s commitment to both advancing knowledge and understanding and to ensuring that the federal investment made through grants generates benefits to society.

Applicants should keep these two aims in mind when they conceptualize their projects, identify the target group(s) they propose to reach, prepare their work plans, and formulate their intended results.

Reflecting IMLS’s agency-level goal of championing lifelong learning, Museums Empowered has four program goals and two objectives associated with each goal. Each applicant should align their proposed project with one of these four goals and one or more of the associated objectives. Goal and objective choices should be identified clearly in the Narrative (see Section D2c). The choice of program goal also informs the choice of project category (i.e., Digital Technology, Diversity and Inclusion, Evaluation, and Organizational Management), which is requested in the IMLS Museum Program Information Form.

• Goal 1, Digital Technology: Provide museum staff with the skills to integrate digital technology into museum operations.

o Objective 1.1: Support staff learning and integration of digital communication platforms and social media tools to enhance audience engagement and community outreach.

o Objective 1.2: Support staff learning and integration of digital tools and services that enhance access to museum collections.

• Goal 2, Diversity and Inclusion: Support museum staff in providing inclusive services to people of diverse geographic, cultural, and socioeconomic backgrounds and to individuals with disabilities.

o Objective 2.1: Create training and learning opportunities that increase cultural competency of museum staff and enhance relevancy of museum programs.

o Objective 2.2: Develop and implement inclusive fellowship, internship, and mentoring programs to increase support for emerging professionals from diverse communities entering the museum field.

• Goal 3, Evaluation: Strengthen the ability of museum staff to use evaluation as a tool to shape museum programs and improve outcomes.

o Objective 3.1: Increase staff knowledge of program evaluation methods and the usefulness of evaluation reports, tools, data and metrics.

o Objective 3.2: Provide museum staff with the tools and strategies to adapt evaluation methods to address a specific audience or institutional need.

o Goal 4, Organizational Management: Strengthen and support museum staff as the essential part of a resilient organizational culture.

o Objective 4.1: Develop comprehensive organizational learning opportunities that address one or more emerging priorities facing a museum.

o Objective 4.2: Develop programs that address the specific learning and growth opportunities identified by staff needs assessments.

Click here for samples of recently funded applications.

A3. Performance Measures Museums Empowered uses four performance measures as a basis for understanding (1) how well the grant program is meeting its goals and (2) how individual projects are being managed.

• Effectiveness: The extent to which activities contribute to achieving the intended results

• Efficiency: How well resources (e.g., funds, expertise, time) are used and costs are minimized while generating maximum value for the target group

• Quality: How well the activities meet the requirements and expectations of the target group

• Timeliness: The extent to which each task/activity is completed within the timeframe proposed

Each applicant is asked to describe how they will monitor and assess their performance in carrying out their project as a whole using these four measures (see Section D2c Item 8).

A4. Authorizing Statute and Regulations Statute: 20 U.S.C. § 9101 et seq.; in particular, § 9173 (Museum services activities).

Regulations: 45 C.F.R. Chapter XI and 2 C.F.R. Chapter XXXI

Recipients must follow the IMLS regulations that are in effect at the time of the award.

The Office of Management and Budget (OMB) guidance on Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards (Uniform Guidance) can be found at 2 C.F.R. part 200. With certain IMLS-specific additions, IMLS regulations at 2 C.F.R. part 3187 formally adopt the 2 C.F.R. part 200 Uniform Guidance.

A5. Equal Opportunity IMLS-funded programs do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age. For further information, email the Civil Rights Officer at CivilRights@imls.gov or write to the Civil Rights Officer, Institute of Museum and Library Services, 955 L’Enfant Plaza North, SW, Suite 4000, Washington, DC, 20024-2135.

B. Federal Award Information

Total amount of funding IMLS expects to award through this announcement $3,800,000 https://www.imls.gov/grants/apply-grant/sample-applications#me https://www.imls.gov/grants/apply-grant/sample-applications#me mailto:CivilRights@imls.gov mailto:CivilRights@imls.gov

Expected performance indicators, targets, baseline data, and data collection See Section A3.

Anticipated number of awards 21

Expected amount of individual awards $5,000 - $250,000

Average amount of funding per award experienced in previous years $176,583

Anticipated start dates for new awards Projects must begin on September 1, 2022.

Anticipated period of performance September 1, 2022 – August 31, 2025. Project activities may be carried out for one to three years.

Type of assistance instrument Grant

The funding in the above Federal Award Information table is subject to the availability of funds and IMLS discretion. IMLS is not bound by any estimates in this announcement.

If your request for federal funding, including all direct and indirect costs, is less than $5,000 or more than $250,000, your application will be rejected from consideration for funding in this program.

Applications for renewal or supplementation of existing projects are not eligible to compete with applications for new awards.

Contingent upon the availability of funds, the quality of applications, and IMLS discretion, IMLS may make additional awards from the pool of unfunded applications from this competition.

C. Eligibility Information C1. Eligible Applicants To be eligible for an award under this Museums Empowered Notice of Funding Opportunity, your organization must meet all three of the following criteria:

1. Must be either a unit of State, local, or tribal government or be a private, nonprofit organization that has tax-exempt status under the Internal Revenue Code;

2. Must be located in one of the 50 States of the United States of America, the District of Columbia, the Commonwealth of Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Guam, American Samoa, the Commonwealth of the Northern Mariana Islands, the Republic of the Marshall Islands, the Federated States of Micronesia, or the Republic of Palau; and

3. Must qualify as one of the following:

(a) A museum that, using a professional staff, is organized on a permanent basis for essentially educational, cultural heritage, or aesthetic purposes; owns or uses tangible objects, either animate or inanimate; cares for these objects; and exhibits these objects to the general public on a regular basis through facilities that it owns or operates.

1) What types of institutions are included in the term “museum”? If they otherwise meet these requirements, “museums” include, but are not limited to, aquariums, arboretums, art museums, botanical gardens, children’s/youth museums, general museums (those having two or more significant disciplines), historic houses/sites, history museums, natural history/anthropology museums, nature centers, planetariums, science/technology centers, specialized museums (limited to a single distinct subject), and zoological parks.

2) What does it mean to be “using a professional staff”? An institution uses a professional staff if it employs at least one staff member, or the full-time equivalent, whether paid or unpaid, primarily engaged in the acquisition, care, or exhibition to the public of objects owned or used by the institution.

3) What does it mean to “exhibit the objects to the general public”? An institution exhibits objects to the general public if such exhibition is a primary purpose of the institution. An institution that exhibits objects to the general public for at least 120 days a year is deemed to exhibit objects to the general public on a regular basis.

An institution that does not have the exhibition of objects as a primary purpose and/or does not exhibit objects to the public for at least 120 days a year may be determined to be eligible as a museum under certain circumstances. For more information, please see 2 C.F.R. § 3187.3.

(b) A public or private nonprofit agency that is responsible for the operation of a museum that meets the eligibility criteria in 1, 2, and 3(a), applying on behalf of the museum.

Native American tribal organizations may apply if they otherwise meet the above eligibility requirements.

Eligibility of Museums Located within a Parent Organization

A museum located within a parent organization that is a State, local, or tribal government or multipurpose nonprofit entity, such as a municipality, university, historical society, foundation, or cultural center, may apply on its own behalf if the museum:

• is able to independently fulfill all the eligibility requirements listed in the above three criteria;

• functions as a discrete unit within the parent organization;

• has its own fully segregated and itemized operating budget; and

• has the authority to make the application on its own.

When any of the last three conditions cannot be met, a museum may only apply through its parent organization.

Eligibility of Nonprofit Organization Affiliated with a Museum

IMLS may determine that a nonprofit organization that is affiliated with a museum is eligible for this program where the organization can demonstrate that it has the ability to administer the project and can ensure compliance with the terms of this Notice of Funding Opportunity and the applicable law, including the IMLS Assurances and Certifications. The applicant organization must submit an agreement from the museum that details the activities that the applicant and museum will perform and binds the museum to the statements and assurances made in the grant application.

C2. Cost Share Requirements For Museums Empowered, recipients must provide funds from non-federal sources in an amount that is equal to or greater than the amount of the federal award.

Cost share that appears in the project budget should be carefully calculated. Recipients are expected to meet their cost share commitments. If you do not include at least 1:1 cost share in your project budget, your application will be rejected from further consideration.

Click here for further information on cost share.

C3. Other Eligibility Information Eligible applicants may submit multiple applications for separate and distinct projects under this announcement.

Applications involving partnerships or collaborations are welcome. When two or more eligible institutions or organizations work together on a project, one of them must meet all eligibility requirements, serve as the lead applicant, and administer the award on behalf of the other(s). If IMLS funds the project, the lead applicant will be programmatically, fiscally, and legally responsible for the award.

IMLS will not review applications from ineligible applicants. IMLS will notify each applicant whose application will not be reviewed because the organization is determined to be ineligible.

IMLS will not make awards to ineligible applicants. In order to receive an IMLS award, an organization must be eligible and be in compliance with applicable requirements.

All application materials must be received through Grants.gov by the application deadline, 11:59 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time on November 15, 2021. Late applications will not be considered for funding under this notice.

D. Application and Submission Information D1. Application Package Applicants must apply electronically through Grants.gov Workspace or a Grants.gov system-to-system solution. Use one of the following identifiers to locate the application package in Grants.gov:

• Funding Opportunity Number: ME-FY22

• Assistance Listing Number: 45.301

To request an audio recording of this announcement, call 202-653-4744. To request a paper copy of this announcement, call 202-653-4744 or email imls-museumgrants@imls.gov.

https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/workspace-overview.html https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/workspace-overview.html https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/search-grants.html mailto:imls-museumgrants@imls.gov mailto:imls-museumgrants@imls.gov

Persons who are deaf or hard of hearing (TTY Users) can contact IMLS at 202-207-7858 via 711 for TTY-Based Telecommunications Relay Service.

D2. Content and Form of Application Submission The Table of Application Components below will help you prepare a complete application. The links lead to more information and instructions for each application component.

Applications missing any Required Documents or Conditionally Required Documents from this list will be considered incomplete and may be rejected from further consideration. (See 2 C.F.R. § 3187.9.)

D2a. Table of Application Components

Component Format File name to use

Required Documents Please see the guidance in Section D2c for more information.

The Application for Federal Domestic Assistance/Short Organizational Form

(SF-424S)

Grants.gov form n/a

IMLS Supplementary Information Form (including Abstract) Grants.gov form n/a

IMLS Museum Program Information Form Grants.gov form n/a

Organizational Profile (one page max.) PDF document Organizationalprofile.pdf

Strategic Plan Summary (two pages max.) PDF document Strategicplan.pdf

Narrative (seven pages max.) PDF document Narrative.pdf

Schedule of Completion (one page per year max.) PDF document Scheduleofcompletion.pdf

Performance Measurement Plan (two pages max.) PDF document Perfmeasurement.pdf

IMLS Budget Form IMLS PDF form Budget.pdf

Budget Justification PDF document Budgetjustification.pdf

List of Key Project Staff and Consultants (one page max.) PDF document Projectstaff.pdf

Resumes of Key Project Staff and Consultants (two pages each max.) PDF document Resumes.pdf

Conditionally Required Documents Please see the guidance in Section D2d for more information.

Proof of Private, Nonprofit Status PDF document Proofnonprofit.pdf

Final Federally Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement PDF document Indirectcostrate.pdf

Digital Products Plan (two pages max.) PDF document Digitalproduct.pdf

Supporting Documents Please see the guidance in Section D2e for more information.

Information that supplements the Narrative and supports the project description provided in the application

PDF document Supportingdoc1.pdf Supportingdoc2.pdf Supportingdoc3.pdf

D2b. Format, Name, and Sequence of the Application Components Document format: Aside from the SF-424S, the IMLS Supplementary Information Form, and the IMLS Museum Program Information Form, which are created in Grants.gov Workspace, all application components must be submitted as PDF documents.

Page limits: Note the page limits listed in the table above. IMLS will remove any additional pages and will not send them to reviewers as part of your application.

Naming convention: Use the naming conventions indicated in the table above. IMPORTANT:

Attachment file names are limited to the following characters: A-Z, a-z, 0-9, underscore (_), hyphen (-), space, period (.). If attachment file names use any other characters, the application may be rejected by Grants.gov.

Attachment order: In Grants.gov, attach all application components in the sequence listed in the table above. Use all available spaces in the “Attachments Form” first. Attach any additional application components using the “Other Attachment File(s)” boxes.

Complete applications: Use the table above as a checklist to ensure that you have created and attached all necessary application components.

D2c. Instructions for Required Documents

1. The Application for Federal Domestic Assistance/Short Organizational Form (SF-424S)

The SF-424S is part of the application package that you complete in Grants.gov Workspace. Click here for instructions on completing the SF-424S.

2. IMLS Supplementary Information Form

The IMLS Supplementary Information Form is part of the application package that you complete in Grants.gov Workspace. Click here for instructions on completing it.

3. IMLS Museum Program Information Form

The IMLS Museum Program Information Form is part of the application package that you complete in Grants.gov Workspace. Click here for instructions on completing it.

4. Organizational Profile

Create a one-page Organizational Profile for the lead applicant, addressing the following, and save it as a PDF.

• Your organization’s mission or statement of purpose, noting the source, approving body, and date of the official document in which it appears.

• Your organization’s governance structure. If your museum is located within a parent organization or if your organization is a nonprofit affiliated with a museum, explain the relationship.

• Your service area (i.e., communities and/or audiences served, including size, demographic characteristics, and geographic area).

• A brief history of your organization, focusing on the organizational unit that will be directly involved in carrying out the work.

If your proposal is selected for funding, the Organizational Profile may be published online, or otherwise shared, by IMLS. As such, it must not include any sensitive, proprietary, or confidential information.

5. Strategic Plan Summary

Write a two-page summary of your organization’s strategic plan as context for linking your project to your institutional goals and objectives. Please do not submit a copy of your organization’s entire strategic plan. Indicate when and by whom the plan was approved. Save this document as a PDF.

If your proposal is selected for funding, the Strategic Plan Summary may be published online, or otherwise shared, by IMLS. As such, it must not include any sensitive, proprietary, or confidential information.

6. Proposal Narrative

Write a Narrative that addresses the questions listed under each section heading, and save it as a PDF.

• Limit the Narrative to seven numbered pages. We will remove any additional pages, and we will not send them to reviewers as part of your application.

• Consider each Narrative question and be mindful of the review criteria as listed in Section E1.

• Be clear and concise with minimal use of technical jargon and acronyms.

• Include references throughout your Narrative to any Supporting Documents that provide supplementary material.

• Make sure your organization’s name appears at the top of each page.

• Use at least 0.5-inch margins on all sides and a font size of at least eleven points.

If your proposal is selected for funding, the Narrative may be published online, or otherwise shared, by IMLS. As such, it must not include any sensitive, proprietary, or confidential information.

Organize your Narrative using the section headings of Project Justification, Project Work Plan, and Project Results. Consider the Museums Empowered goal and objective(s) you have selected (Section A2) as you develop the Narrative.

Project Justification

• Which program goal/project category and associated objective(s) of Museums Empowered will your project address (see Section A2)?

• How will your project advance your museum’s strategic plan?

• What need, problem, or challenge will your project address, and how was it identified?

Describe how you have used demographic information, economic circumstances, condition assessments, and other relevant data from reliable sources to define the need, problem, or challenge and develop the scope for the project.

• Who is the target group for your project and how have they been involved in the planning? “Target group” refers to those who will be most immediately and positively affected by your project. Identify the number of individuals in the target group or in each target group, if you identify more than one.

• Who are the ultimate beneficiaries for this project? “Beneficiaries” refers to those who are likely to be aided in the long-term by your project. They may or may not be the same as your “target group.” Identify the number of individuals who will benefit from your project in the long term, if reliable and defensible counts are possible. Otherwise describe the characteristics of the beneficiaries you expect to be served eventually by your project.

Project Work Plan

• What specific activities will you carry out and in what sequence?

• What are the risks to the project and how will you mitigate them?

• Who will plan, implement, and manage your project?

• How is the project team organized and structured to support engagement of all participants?

• What time, financial, personnel, and other resources will you need to carry out the activities?

• How will you track your progress toward achieving your intended results?

Project Results

• What are your project’s intended results and how will they address the need, problem, or challenge you have identified? Be sure to address this question from the dual perspectives of advancing knowledge and understanding and ensuring that the federal investment made through this grant generates benefits to society.

• How will the knowledge, skills, behaviors, and/or attitudes of the target group change as a result of your project?

• What products will result from your project?

• How will you sustain the benefit(s) of your project beyond the conclusion of the period of performance?

See Section E1 for the review criteria.

Please be advised that reviewers may also choose to visit your organization's website, as listed on the SF-424S form provided with your application.

7. Schedule of Completion

The Schedule of Completion should reflect each major activity identified in your application Narrative and the project dates identified on the SF-424S and the IMLS Budget Form. It should show when each major project activity will start and end. The schedule must be no longer than one page per project year. See the sample Schedule of Completion below. Save this document as a PDF.

If your proposal is selected for funding, the Schedule of Completion may be published online, or otherwise shared, by IMLS. As such, it must not include any sensitive, proprietary, or confidential information.

8. Performance Measurement Plan

The Performance Measurement Plan should show how you will monitor and assess your performance as a grantee from the perspectives of Effectiveness, Efficiency, Quality, and Timeliness for your overall project (see Section A3).

For each measure, identify what data you will collect from what source, the method you will use to collect it, and according to what schedule. The chart below provides sample statements for each measure and a space to record your own. Click here for a fillable version of this chart (DOCX, 25KB), which you are welcome, but not required, to use. Limit your Performance Measurement Plan to two pages and save your document as a PDF.

If your proposal is selected for funding, the Performance Measurement Plan may be published online, or otherwise shared, by IMLS. As such, it must not include any sensitive, proprietary, or confidential information.

9. IMLS Budget Form

Download and complete the current IMLS Budget Form (PDF, 1.7MB). Click here for instructions on completing it.

10. Budget Justification

Write a Budget Justification to identify each expense and show the method of cost computation used to determine each dollar amount, including any that you may have consolidated and http://www.imls.gov/sites/default/files/2021-08/imls-performance-measurement-plan.docx http://www.imls.gov/sites/default/files/2021-08/imls-performance-measurement-plan.docx https://www.imls.gov/sites/default/files/2021-05/imls-budget-form.pdf https://www.imls.gov/sites/default/files/budgetform.pdf summarized on the IMLS Budget Form. Save this document as a PDF. Click here for detailed instructions.

11. List of Key Project Staff and Consultants

Write a one-page list of only those staff and consultants whose expertise is essential to the success of the project and save it as a PDF. Do not list all staff involved in the project. If you cannot identify key project staff by the application deadline, then list the position title(s) instead.

This list must include the Project Director listed in Item 7 of the SF-424S.

12. Resumes of Key Project Staff and Consultants

Provide a resume of no more than two pages for each individual whose expertise is essential to the success of the project. Save all the resumes in a single PDF. You must include the resume of the Project Director listed in Item 7 of the SF-424S. If you cannot identify key project staff by the application deadline, then instead of a resume, provide position description(s) including the qualities, range of experience, and education necessary to successfully implement and complete project activities.

(Back to Table of Application Components)

D2d. Conditionally Required Documents These are documents that may be required, depending upon the circumstances. Please see the table below.

Failure to provide a Conditionally Required Document will result in your application’s being considered incomplete, and it may be rejected from further consideration.

If you are: Then you must provide: Notes:

Applying as a private, nonprofit institution, as indicated by choosing “M” as the Applicant Type code in 5d of the SF- 424S form

A copy of the IRS letter indicating your eligibility for nonprofit status under the applicable provision of the Internal Revenue Code of 1954, as amended.

You must submit this letter with each application whether or not you have submitted it with other applications in the current year or in previous years.

We will not accept a letter of State sales tax exemption as proof of nonprofit status.

Using a federally negotiated indirect cost rate in your budget

A copy of your current Final Federally Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement.

If you do not have a current negotiated (including provisional) indirect cost rate and elect to charge a de minimis rate of 10 percent of Modified Total Direct Costs (see 2 C.F.R.

part 200, including 2 C.F.R. §§

200.1 and 200.414(f)), you do not need to provide any documentation.

Proposing to generate digital content, resources, assets, or software

A Digital Products Plan (two pages max.)

Describe the types of digital products you will create during your project and address issues relating to availability, permissions, and sustainability for each type.

See Guidance for Creating a Digital Products Plan.

If your proposal is selected for funding, the Digital Products Plan may be published online, or otherwise shared, by IMLS. As such, it must not include any sensitive, proprietary, or confidential information.

(Back to Table of Application Components)

D2e. Supporting Documents Applicants may submit a reasonable number of supporting documents that supplement the Narrative in support of the project description. Supporting documents should help IMLS staff and reviewers envision the project in greater detail, but they should not be used to introduce new topics nor to continue answers to the Narrative questions. Give each document a clear, descriptive title at the top of the first page. You may wish to consider the following:

• Letters of commitment from partners, consultants, or any third party that will receive grant funds or make substantial contributions towards the completion of project activities.

• Bibliography or references relevant to your proposed project design or evaluation strategy

• Letters of support from experts and stakeholders

• Relevant images that support your proposed project

• Reports from planning activities

• Contractor quotes

• Equipment specifications

• Products or evaluations from previously completed or ongoing projects of a similar nature

• Collections, technology, or other departmental plans for the organization as applicable to the proposed project

• Web links to relevant online materials

• Needs assessments

(Back to Table of Application Components)

D3. Registration Requirements Before submitting an application, an applicant organization must have a current and active Dun and Bradstreet Universal Numbering System (D-U-N-S®) Number; a current and active System for Award Management (SAM) registration; and an active Grants.gov registration with an approved Authorized Organization Representative (AOR). Check materials and registrations well in advance of the application deadline to ensure that they are accurate, current, and active.

Organizations must maintain current information in SAM, including information on their immediate and highest-level owner and subsidiaries, as well as on all of predecessors that have been awarded a federal contract or federal financial assistance within the last three years, if applicable. IMLS may reject an application if the SAM registration is not active and current at the time of submission. IMLS may determine that an applicant without an active and current SAM registration at the time an award is made is not qualified to receive an award and use that determination as a basis for making an award to another applicant.

D3a. Unique Entity Identifier The Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number is a non-proprietary alphanumeric identifier assigned to all entities (public and private companies, individuals, institutions, or organizations) who register to do business with the Federal Government. The UEI is replacing the D-U-N-S® Number and is requested in, and assigned by, the System for Award Management (SAM). Award recipients must inform any subrecipients that the recipient may not make a subaward unless the subrecipient has also obtained a UEI. Click here to learn more about planned UEI updates.

D3b. System for Award Management (SAM) The System for Award Management (SAM) is a federal repository that centralizes information about grant applicants and recipients. There is no fee to register with SAM. Click here to learn more about SAM registration.

D3c. Grants.gov Grants.gov is the centralized location for grant seekers to find and apply for federal funding opportunities.

Applicants must register with Grants.gov prior to submitting an application package. The multistep registration process generally cannot be completed in a single day. If your organization is not already registered, allow several weeks before the application deadline to complete this one-time process.

Do not wait until the day of the application deadline to register.

The Grants.gov user ID and password obtained during the registration process are required to submit an application when it is complete.

Click here to learn more about Grants.gov registration and tips for using Grants.gov.

D4. Submission Dates and Times All organizations must submit their applications for funding using Grants.gov Workspace. Do not submit through email or postal mail to IMLS.

For Museums Empowered, Grants.gov will accept applications through 11:59 p.m. U.S. Eastern Time on November 15, 2021.

Under certain circumstances, IMLS allows an extension of grant application deadlines for adversely affected applicant organizations that are located in counties listed in Emergency Declarations and/or Major Disaster Declarations. See Application Deadlines for further information.

IMLS strongly recommends that applicants obtain a D-U-N-S® number, register with SAM and Grants.gov, and complete and submit applications early (see Section D3). IMLS makes grants only to eligible applicants that submit applications, including attachments, through Grants.gov, on or before the deadline, as indicated by the date stamp generated by Grants.gov.

Visit Grants.gov Support, email support@grants.gov, or call Grants.gov Applicant Support at 1-800- 518-4726 for technical assistance. Grants.gov Applicant Support is available 24 hours a day, seven days a week, except for federal holidays.

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Grants.gov will generate a series of emails confirming the status of each application. Applicants can check the status of their application(s) in Grants.gov by using “Track My Application.” For further details, visit Check Application Status at Grants.gov.

D5. Intergovernmental Review This funding opportunity is not subject to intergovernmental review per Exec. Order No. 12372.

D6. Funding Restrictions D6a. Allowable and Unallowable Costs Applicants may use IMLS funds and cost share only for allowable costs as found in IMLS and OMB government-wide cost-principle rules. Please consult 2 C.F.R. part 200 and 2 C.F.R. part 3187 for additional guidance on allowable costs.

The following list includes some examples of generally allowable costs, both for IMLS funds and for cost share under this announcement:

• personnel salaries, wages, and fringe benefits

• travel expenses for key project staff and consultants

• materials, supplies, software, and equipment related directly to project activities

• adaptive and/or assistive technologies and other resources and services to improve accessibility for persons with disabilities

• equipment to improve collections storage and exhibit environments

• third-party costs

• publication design and printing

• program evaluation

• staff and volunteer training

• paid internships/fellowships

• indirect or overhead costs

Applicants must explain all proposed expenses in the Budget Justification.

The following list includes some examples of unallowable costs, both for IMLS funds and for cost share under this announcement:

• general fundraising costs, such as development office staff or other staff time devoted to general fundraising

• contributions to endowments

• general operating support

• acquisition of collections (see 2 C.F.R. § 3187.15(b))

• general advertising or public relations costs designed solely for promotional activities other than those related to the specific project

• construction or renovation of facilities (generally, any activity involving the construction trades is not an allowable cost) https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/track-my-application.html https://www.grants.gov/web/grants/applicants/track-my-application.html https://www.grants.gov/help/html/help/Applicants/CheckApplicationStatus/CheckApplicationStatus.htm https://www.grants.gov/help/html/help/Applicants/CheckApplicationStatus/CheckApplicationStatus.htm

• social activities, ceremonies, receptions, or entertainment

• research projects (see 2 C.F.R. § 200.1)

If you have questions about whether specific activities are allowable, contact IMLS staff for guidance.

D6b. Costs for Third Parties When a project requires the payment of federal funds to third parties (such as partners, consultants, collaborators, vendors, and/or service providers), it is the applicant organization’s responsibility to determine whether a third party should be characterized as a subrecipient or a contractor. The characterization must be reflected in the terms of each agreement made with each third party. (See 2 C.F.R. § 200.1 for definitions of contract, contractor, subaward, and subrecipient; see also 2 C.F.R.

§ 200.331 (Subrecipient and contractor determinations).) IMLS grant funds may not be provided to any federal agency serving as a third party.

D6c. Indirect Costs An applicant can choose to:

• use a rate not to exceed their current indirect cost rate already negotiated with a federal agency;

• use an indirect cost rate proposed to a federal agency for negotiation, but not yet finalized, as long as it is finalized by the time of the award;

• use a rate not to exceed 10 percent of the Modified Total Direct Costs (MTDC) if the organization currently does not have a federally negotiated indirect cost rate and is not subject to other requirements (e.g., for States and local governments and Indian tribes); or

• not include any indirect costs.

Click here for further information on indirect costs.

E. Application Review Information E1. Review Criteria IMLS instructs reviewers to evaluate applications according to the review criteria listed in this section and to consider all Required, Conditionally Required, and Supporting Documents as listed in Section D2a.

Cost share is an eligibility criterion and is not considered in the review of applications. Cost share requirements for this grant program are addressed in Section C2.

Project Justification

• Has the applicant selected an appropriate program goal/project category and one or more associated objectives of Museums Empowered described in Section A2?

• Are the ways in which this project advances the institution’s strategic plan specific and measurable?

• How well has the applicant used relevant data and best practices to describe the need, problem, or challenge to be addressed?

• Are the project activities designed to use professional development and training to generate systemic change within the museum?

• Has the applicant appropriately defined the target group(s) and beneficiaries, as applicable, for this work?

• Have the target group and other project stakeholders been involved appropriately in planning the project?

Project Work Plan

• Are the proposed activities informed by relevant theory and practice?

• Are the goals, assumptions, and risks clearly stated?

• Do the identified staff, partners, consultants, and service providers possess the experience and skills necessary to complete the work successfully?

• Is the proposed project team structured in a way that is equitable and mutually beneficial to those involved?

• Are the time, financial, personnel, and other resources identified appropriate for the scope and scale of the project?

• Is the proposed Performance Measurement Plan likely to generate the required measures of Effectiveness, Efficiency, Quality, and Timeliness?

• If present, does the Digital Products Plan reflect appropriate practices and standards for creating and managing the types of digital products proposed?

• Will the proposed methods for tracking the project’s progress toward achieving the intended results allow course adjustments when necessary and result in reliable and measurable information about the results of the project?

Project Results

• Are the project’s intended results clearly articulated, realistic, meaningful, and linked to the need, problem, or challenge addressed by the project?

• Is the plan to effect meaningful change in knowledge, skills, behaviors, and/or attitudes solidly grounded and appropriately structured?

• Is it clear that the federal investment made through this grant will generate identifiable benefits to society?

• Will the products created by the project be made available and accessible to the target group?

• Is the plan to sustain the benefits of the project beyond the conclusion of the period of performance reasonable and practical?

E2. Review and Selection Process IMLS uses a peer review process to evaluate all complete applications from eligible institutions.

Reviewers are professionals in the field with relevant knowledge and expertise in the types of project activities identified in the applications. IMLS instructs reviewers to evaluate applications according to the review criteria. Peer reviewers must comply with IMLS’s federal ethics and conflicts of interest requirements.

The Director takes into account the input provided by the review process and makes final funding decisions consistent with the purposes of the agency’s mission and programs.

E3. Designated Integrity and Performance System IMLS, prior to making a federal award with a total amount of federal share greater than the simplified acquisition threshold (currently $250,000 but periodically adjusted), is required to review and consider any information about the applicant that is in the designated integrity and performance system accessible through SAM (currently FAPIIS) (see 41 U.S.C. § 2313 and 41 U.S.C. § 134).

An applicant, at its option, may review information in the designated integrity and performance systems accessible through SAM and comment on any information about itself that a federal awarding agency previously entered.

IMLS will consider any comments by the applicant, in addition to the other information in the designated integrity and performance system, in considering the applicant’s integrity, business ethics, and record of performance under federal awards when completing the review of risk posed by applicants as described in 2 C.F.R. § 200.206 (Federal awarding agency review of risk posed by applicants).

E4. Anticipated Announcement and Award Dates IMLS will not release information about the status of an application until the applications have been reviewed and all deliberations are concluded. IMLS expects to notify both successful and unsuccessful applicants of the final decisions by email in August 2022.

F. Award Administration Information F1. Federal Award Notices IMLS will notify both successful and unsuccessful applicants of funding decisions by email.

F2. Administrative and National Policy Requirements Organizations that receive IMLS grants or cooperative agreements are subject to 2 C.F.R. part 200 Uniform Administrative Requirements, Cost Principles, and Audit Requirements for Federal Awards, 2 C.F.R. part 3187, the IMLS General Terms and Conditions for IMLS Discretionary Grant and Cooperative Agreement Awards (PDF, 459KB), and the IMLS Assurances and Certifications.

Organizations that receive IMLS funding must be familiar with these requirements and comply with applicable law.

Applicants for federal funds must certify that they are responsible for complying with certain nondiscrimination, debarment and suspension, drug-free workplace, and lobbying laws. These are set out in more detail, along with other requirements, in the IMLS Assurances and Certifications. By submitting the application, which includes the Assurances and Certifications, applicants certify that they are in compliance with these requirements and that they will maintain records and submit any reports that are necessary to ensure compliance. Failure to comply with these statutory and regulatory requirements may result in the suspension or termination of an award and require that the recipient return funds to the government. For information about award termination, please see the IMLS General Terms and Conditions for IMLS Discretionary Grant and Cooperative Agreement Awards and 2 C.F.R. § 200.340.

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F3. Reporting Recipients must comply with the following reporting requirements.

Interim and final financial and performance reports are due according to the reporting schedule that is part of the official award notification. Grantees must submit reports using the IMLS electronic grants management system. In support of the agency’s commitment to open government, interim and final performance reports may be made accessible on the IMLS website to engage the public in communities of practice and to inform application development and grant-making strategies.

For details, please see the Manage Your Award: Grant Administration page on the IMLS website.

Grantees must also comply with 2 C.F.R. §§ 180.335 and 180.350 and 2 C.F.R. part 3185 with respect to providing information regarding all debarment, suspension, and related offenses, as applicable.

If the federal share of the award is more than $500,000 over the period of performance, recipients should refer to the post-award reporting requirements reflected in 2 C.F.R.