Public Impact Projects 2025 NOFO.pdf

Notice of Funding Opportunity

Public Impact Projects Celebrating America’s 250th Anniversary

Funding Opportunity Number: 20250611-TA

Funding Opportunity Type: New

Federal Assistance Listing Number: 45.164

Application Deadline: July 9, 2025

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.

Division of Public Programs Email: publicpgms@neh.gov

OMB control number 3136-0134, expiration date October 31, 2027 mailto:publicpgms@neh.gov

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Executive Summary The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) Division of Public Programs is accepting applications for the Public Impact Projects Celebrating America’s 250th Anniversary program.

This program supports cultural organizations in creating and developing scholarship-based public programs that celebrate the people, events, ideas, and legacies related to the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

Funding Opportunity Title Public Impact Projects Celebrating America’s 250th

Anniversary Funding Opportunity Number 20250611-TA Federal Assistance Listing Number 45.164 Application Deadline July 9, 2025, 11:59 p.m. Eastern Time Anticipated Award Announcement December 2025 Anticipated FY 2025 Funding Approximately $4,000,000 Estimated Number and Type of Awards Approximately 40 grants Award Amounts Up to $200,000 Cost Sharing/Match Required No Period of Performance Up to two years.

Projects must start between March 1, 2026, and May 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/program/public-impact-projects-celebrating-americas-250th-anniversary

Published May 16, 2025 https://www.neh.gov/program/public-impact-projects-celebrating-americas-250th-anniversary https://www.neh.gov/program/public-impact-projects-celebrating-americas-250th-anniversary

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Table of Contents

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

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A. Program Description

1. Purpose The Public Impact Projects Celebrating America’s 250th Anniversary program (PIP) aims to renew public engagement with America’s history through projects that focus on the people and events of 1776 and the meaning of the Declaration of Independence. These awards help museums and cultural organizations develop scholarship-based interpretive public humanities programming commemorating the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence (or “Semiquincentennial”) in 2026. Applications must demonstrate the project’s relationship to the 250th anniversary. This milestone is an important opportunity for Americans to learn about the full sweep of our nation’s past. Projects may draw connections to the 250th anniversary by, for example, interpreting the legacy of the Declaration or the nation’s founding ideals. Similarly, your project may consider how the revolutionary period shaped the history of your state or locality even if it was not a part of the United States at the time.

The goals of PIP are to help your organization identify interpretive connections between your collections and the nation's founding principles; increase your ability to provide interpretive public programs celebrating the 250th and/or chronicling the nation’s progress toward becoming a more perfect union; and enrich your relationships with existing audiences or attract new ones.

Projects should have a regional or national reach, or deep engagement with local communities demonstrated through partnerships or involvement of community members.

All applications must have strong public humanities interpretation at their core and must be related to the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

How NEH defines the humanities Successful projects will demonstrate how the humanities matter to American audiences and communities. NEH’s definition of the humanities is wide-ranging and includes history, art history, ethnomusicology, archaeology, anthropology, literature, philosophy, and other areas that offer critical examination of human history and culture (see A2. Background). While PIP does not support performing arts or artmaking activities, it can support public programming that uses the humanities to consider the historical or cultural significance of the arts. For example, pre- or post-performance discussions or lectures that explore the historical or cultural significance of a musical, dance, or theatrical work are eligible activities, but not the performances themselves.

See Project Design below for further distinction between the arts and the humanities.

How NEH defines public interpretation Strong public humanities interpretation is the key factor driving funding decisions under PIP.

Public interpretation, according to NEH, refers to providing audiences with interpretive presentations exploring the historical and/or cultural significance of a topic. Examples of public interpretation are curatorial wall texts in an exhibition, analytical ideas offered by tour guides, historical trail markers, or a panel discussion with humanities experts who may help audiences understand resources like a documentary film, work of art, historic district, or work of literature.

Proposals must include public interpretation to be successful. All short-term and long-term activities must, ultimately, strengthen public interpretation for your audiences.

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Examples of allowable and unallowable activities Collections review with a goal of new interpretation and storytelling is allowable, whereas a collection preservation assessment by a conservator (funded in NEH’s Preservation Assistance Grants program) is not.

PIP can support limited oral history collection provided that you clearly articulate how, during the period of performance for the award, the content of the oral histories will be used to plan interpretation or will be incorporated into public programs.

Festival programming such as analytical discussions or lectures concerning the historical or humanities significance of a subject is allowable. Creative-oriented festival activities such as art and craft making, sales of art, creative writing, and dance, musical, and theatrical performances are not.

For more information regarding ineligible activities see D6. Funding restrictions.

Project Design Humanities content and scholarship-based public interpretation are central to this program. A grounding in scholarly research and emphasis on interpretation of content are core aspects that distinguish NEH-funded projects from other grant programs, such as the artmaking and performance-based projects supported by the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA).

PIP supports planning and/or implementation of projects that interpret and analyze humanities topics for public audiences. As such, you must collaborate with humanities scholars from outside your organization. You are also encouraged to include other collaborators, such as public interpretive specialists who can assist in identifying compelling stories and accessible ways to share them with audiences, and community partners, like schools, or other community organizations. For projects taking a local focus, community engagement is essential. You should describe the qualifications and suitability of outside consultants and experts in your narrative, and include a one-paragraph biography for each outside consultant in Attachment 3:

Biographies of key personnel, scholars, and consultants.

You must center your project on interpretation of and public programming related to the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence.

When designing your project, consider the following questions:

• What are your organization’s humanities needs or programmatic goals for interpreting the Semiquincentennial?

• How would they benefit public audiences?

• How might these goals help audiences connect to the people, events, and ideas from the Revolutionary Era?

Projects might involve staff development, evaluation, or interpretive planning to enhance your organization’s ability to address topics related to the cultural value and meaning of the founding of the United States . Public programming activities may take many forms, such as exhibitions, walking tours, or public discussions. NEH welcomes approaches that engage your community and extend audience reach, such as bringing public interpretation to spaces outside your organization (e.g., parks, local government buildings, and public transportation).

https://www.neh.gov/grants/preservation/preservation-assistance-grants-smaller-institutions https://www.neh.gov/grants/preservation/preservation-assistance-grants-smaller-institutions

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Peer reviewers will evaluate proposed engagement based on its potential to provide opportunities for critical thinking and deep analysis of humanities themes and takeaway ideas.

Similarly, reviewers will evaluate the potential for your proposed activities aimed at strengthening interpretive methods using evaluation, staff development, or interpretive planning to reach your audience and improve its engagement with the celebration of the 250th. (See E1.

Review Criteria.)

Allowable activities include but are not limited to:

• hiring an interpretive consultant to help you think about ways your collections and site can address the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence

• working with an evaluator to conduct focus groups, or front-end or formative evaluations aimed at understanding how your audience connects to the Founding Era and assessing their knowledge, needs, and expectations for interpreting this story

• consultation with scholars and interpretive consultants to develop new narrative frameworks for your collections or site

• professional development to enhance staff and volunteer skills to present and plan public programing that focuses on the story of national progress and the meaning of the nation’s founding principles. This may include attendance at conferences focused on interpretive approaches and best practices for addressing the 250th, or the creation and implementation of interpreter training to present 250th celebrations at your organization

• visits to other organizations to observe best practices

• planning and/or delivery of interpretive public programs

See D6. Funding Restrictions for unallowable activities. Applications unrelated to the purpose of this program or that include unallowable costs or activities may be judged nonresponsive and returned without review.

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

Program Outputs and Outcomes The outputs of a successful PIP Celebrating America’s 250th Anniversary award may include, but are not limited to:

• an assessment report outlining potential interpretive methods and/or storylines

• participation of staff and/or volunteers in professional development training in new interpretive methods and/or content

• an interpretive plan for the implementation of new public programs

• a new exhibition, tour, or other public programs

The outcomes of a successful PIP Celebrating America’s 250th Anniversary award might include but are not limited to the expansion of staff knowledge and skill in interpreting the meaning of the Semiquincentennial, expanded areas of public programming to increase audience engagement with the 250th, and/or increased engagement with audiences.

You will describe your project outputs, and how they would support the overall purpose of the PIP program, in Attachment 1: Narrative. If you receive an award, NEH will assess your performance based on the outputs you identify in the proposal against what you describe in your performance report. See F3. Reporting.

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2. Background NEH offers this funding opportunity under the authority of 20 U.S.C. § 956 and Executive Order 14189, Celebrating America’s 250th Birthday. 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

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.

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 apply for an amount based on the average of your total annual operating costs for the three most recently completed fiscal years. If required to file, 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations should refer to their 2023 Form 990 (Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax), part one, line 18.

Level I: Organizations with an annual operating budget of less than $1,000,000 may request up to $50,000.

Level II: Organizations with an annual operating budget of between $1,000,000 and $10,000,000 may request up to $100,000.

Level III: Organizations with an annual operating budget greater than $10,000,000 may request up to $200,000

NEH anticipates awarding approximately $4,000,000 among an estimated 40 recipients.

NEH will not determine the exact amount available for funding until Congress makes official appropriations for FY 2026 and will issue awards subject to the availability of appropriated https://uscode.house.gov/view.xhtml?hl=false&edition=prelim&req=granuleid%3AUSC-prelim-title20-section956 https://www.federalregister.gov/documents/2025/02/03/2025-02231/celebrating-americas-250th-birthday 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-grants-after-oct-2024 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

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funds. NEH is publishing this notice as a contingency to ensure that NEH can process applications and issue awards in a timely manner, should sufficient funds become available.

Period of performance You may request a period of performance of up to two years with a start date between March 1, 2026, and May 1, 2026.

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

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.

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.

NEH encourages proposals from the intended applicants described above.

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.

Cost sharing refers to project costs that are covered with non-NEH funds. 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 Do not include voluntary cost share on your Research and Related Budget. The Research and Related Budget should include only funds you are requesting from NEH. You may describe voluntary cost share in your budget justification.

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

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 You may submit multiple applications for separate and distinct projects under this notice. An individual may serve as project director for multiple proposed projects under this notice.

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

Per 2 CFR § 200.403(f), NEH does not permit overlapping costs on two or more awards for federal funding and/or approved federal award budgets. If you are submitting 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 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.

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 publicpgms@neh.gov.

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.

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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 20250611-TA. 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 publicpgms@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.

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

• 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.

https://www.neh.gov/program/public-impact-projects-smaller-organizations

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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: Narrative narrative.pdf Required 10 (mandatory) 2: Work plan workplan.pdf Required 2 pages

(suggested) 3: Biographies of key personnel, scholars, and consultants bios.pdf Required One paragraph per person (suggested)

4: Subrecipient budget(s) subrecipient.pdf Conditionally required

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

6: 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

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.

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Attachment 1: Narrative (required) Copy and paste the following questions into a document, creating a questionnaire format.

After each question, insert your brief answer. If a question is not applicable, respond “N/A.”

Leave a blank line between questions. Your answers should be succinct, well organized, and free of technical terms and jargon so that peer reviewers can understand the proposed project

You must limit the narrative to 10 or fewer single-spaced pages (including the reiteration of the questions below). Do not include an executive summary, cover page, or table of contents.

You may include images, charts, diagrams, footnotes, or endnotes if they fit within the page limit. Name the file narrative.pdf.

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

Summary of the proposal Provide a brief, one-paragraph summary of your proposal and request. Then, respond to each question below. The length of each response may vary. Provide only information related to your organization as the applicant of record. Do not include information related to other institutional partners on the project.

Part 1: Your organization (aligns with review criterion Institutional suitability)

• What is your organization and what does it do?

• Provide a link to your organization’s web page.

• What is your organization’s mission statement (or vision statement/short statement on organizational focus)?

• When was your organization founded?

• What was your annual operating budget in fiscal year 2023? If required to file, 501 (c)(3) nonprofit organizations should refer to their 2023 Form 990 (Return of Organization Exempt from Income Tax), part one, line 18. Other level II and Level III applicants should provide information from audited financial statements to convey the organization’s total operating costs. Level I applicants may use unaudited financial statements.

• What are your year round or seasonal open hours?

Part 2: Your organization’s relationship to the humanities (aligns with review criterion Relationship to the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and the humanities)

• How is your organization related to the humanities?

• In what ways does your organization currently engage your audience in the interpretation of humanities ideas and content?

• If your organization does not currently offer public interpretation in the humanities, why is it important to add such humanities-based public programs for your audience?

Part 3: The nature of your project, activities, and expected outcomes (aligns with review criteria Relationship to the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence and the humanities, Audience and institutional impact, and Project feasibility) (minimum two pages)

• What is your proposed project and project activities?

• How will these activities strengthen or expand your humanities-based public interpretation around the celebration of the 250th?

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• How will these activities improve interpretation of the anniversary of the Declaration of Independence?

• Are you proposing any professional development activities for your staff and/or volunteers (for example: undertaking an assessment of interpretive directions, conducting front-end evaluation, or professional training)? If so, what are they?

• Are you proposing a public-facing, interpretive program? If so, what are the formats and intended content of the final public program, or series of public programs?

• How will your project employ humanities scholarship and key humanities resources, such as documents related to the Founding or other archival and artifact collections, works of art, works of literature, or documentary films?

• Are your humanities advisers knowledgeable about the Declaration of Independence, 1776, or in the Founding era?

• What are the expected outcomes of your project?

Part 4: External subject experts, advisors, partner organizations, or consultants (aligns with review criteria Project feasibility and Personnel) (list the name of each individual or organization followed by the answer to the following questions)

• For individuals, what is their title and their main area of expertise? For organizations, what is their mission statement or brief explanation of their organizational focus? What qualifications do they bring to the project?

• What role will they play in the project?

• And for humanities advisers, how will they contribute to the interpretation of the

Revolutionary Era or the meaning of the Declaration of Independence?

Part 5: Your organization’s audience (aligns with review criterion Audience and institutional impact)

• What is your annual visitor attendance?

• What is your current total membership, if applicable?

• What are typical costs for visitors or participants, such as fees for admission, event registration, or special tours?

• For projects proposing public programs, what are the key learning objectives or ideas you would like audiences to understand? For each, please limit responses to 100 words.

• For projects planning site or collections assessments or audience evaluation, how would this project advance audience understanding of ideas related to the 250th?

• Are there any special audience challenges or needs that this project aims to meet? If yes, please explain the need and how the project would address it.

• What segments of your audience, or what new audiences, are you targeting with this project? Why would this project appeal to those audiences?

Attachment 2: Work plan (aligns with review criterion Project feasibility) (required) Your work plan should reflect the major activities you describe in your narrative, the project dates on your SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance - Short Organizational, and your Research and Related Budget.

Describe the activities that will take place during the period of performance to achieve each of the proposed objectives. Use a timeline that includes each activity and identifies responsible staff, scholars, and consultants. Explain how outcomes from one activity will carry over into the next. For multi-institutional collaborative projects, discuss the distribution of responsibilities

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across each institution. As appropriate, identify meaningful support and collaboration with key stakeholders in planning, designing, and implementing activities.

The work plan has a suggested length of two pages. Name the file workplan.pdf.

Attachment 3: Biographies of key personnel, scholars, and consultants (aligns with review criteria Project feasibility and Personnel) (required) Provide short biographies for the project director and all key personnel, including advisors, and consultants. For new or vacant positions, in place of the biography, provide a brief job description and short explanation of the relevant qualification you seek in a candidate. For partner organizations provide a short paragraph describing the work of the organization.

The biographies have a suggested length of one paragraph per person. Do not include résumés.

Name the file bios.pdf.

Attachment 4: 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.

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Attachment 5: 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.

Attachment 6: 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.

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

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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.

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.

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.

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3. Project Funding Enter the amount requested under “Outright Funds.” Do not enter anything under “Federal Match” or “Cost Sharing.”

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 provide voluntary cost share, do not include it on the Research and Related Budget form.

You may describe it in your budget justification.

All costs must be reasonable, necessary to accomplish project objectives, allowable in terms of 2 CFR 200 Subpart E - Cost Principles, auditable, and incurred during the period of https://www.neh.gov/grants/manage/types-funding https://www.house.gov/representatives/find-your-representative https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200/subpart-E https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=236bb02f01d2e050f7a5b60c88a67066&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#sp2.1.200.e

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performance. Costs are subject to audit, record retention, and other requirements set forth in 2 CFR 200 Subpart F - Audit Requirements.

You should include only your own employees under A. Senior/Key Person and B. Other Personnel. Include team members in leadership roles in the project under A. Senior/Key Person. Include other team members under B. Other Personnel. Include costs for non-employees under F3. Consultant Services or F5. Subawards/Consortium/Contractual Costs, as appropriate.

If you charge indirect costs to the project, you must not charge the same costs to the project as direct costs. See H. Indirect Costs.

Introductory Fields Your SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance - Short Organizational form should pre-populate introductory fields. If not pre-populated, indicate your organization’s Unique Entity Identifier, name, and the period of performance. This should match the information you provide on your SF-424 Application for Federal Assistance - Short Organizational. Your period of performance must start on the first day of the month and end on the last day of the month. For budget type, check “project.”

A. Senior/Key Person Include personnel who are employed by the applicant institution in leadership roles on the project. Do not include collaborators at other institutions or consultants, as you will include them in F. Other Direct Costs.

Enter the base salary (annual compensation) for each senior/key person and identify the number of months they will devote to the project. If you do not include base salaries, your award may be delayed.

Many non-academic institutions organize their budgets using calendar months. If your organization does not differentiate between academic and summer months, use only the calendar months column.

If your organization follows an academic calendar, you may differentiate levels of effort by using the academic and summer months columns. You may use both columns if your institutional policy requires separate accounting for academic and summer months. If your institution does not use a nine-month academic year and a three-month summer period, include your institution's definition of these terms in your budget justification.

Enter the requested salary and fringe benefits for each senior/key person. Per 2 CFR § 200.431, fringe benefits are allowances and services you provide in addition to salaries and wages. Fringe benefits may include the costs of leave (e.g., vacation, family-related, sick, or military), employee insurance, pensions, and unemployment benefit plans.

Requested salaries and wages must comply with 2 CFR §§ 200.430 and .466 and fringe benefits must comply with 2 CFR § 200.431.

The form will calculate the requested salary and fringe benefits for each key person.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200#subpart-F https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200#subpart-F https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=35fcd29238edd42c8b1f8b1628e39d47&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#se2.1.200_1431 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=35fcd29238edd42c8b1f8b1628e39d47&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#se2.1.200_1431 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=35fcd29238edd42c8b1f8b1628e39d47&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#se2.1.200_1430 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=35fcd29238edd42c8b1f8b1628e39d47&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#se2.1.200_1466 https://www.ecfr.gov/cgi-bin/text-idx?SID=35fcd29238edd42c8b1f8b1628e39d47&mc=true&node=pt2.1.200&rgn=div5#se2.1.200_1431

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The form has space for up to eight people. If you request funds for additional key personnel, list them in a separate document using the same format as the Research and Related Budget.

Save the document as a PDF named additionalpersonnel.pdf and attach it under “Additional/Senior Key Persons.” If applicable, enter the total funds requested for additional senior/key persons in the "Total Funds requested for all Senior/Key Persons in the attached file" field.

B. Other Personnel Include personnel employed by the applicant institution who will play a supporting role on the project. For each project role, identify the number of personnel proposed, the total number of months, total salary, and total fringe benefits requested as described in A. Senior/Key Person.

The form will calculate the requested salary and fringe benefits for each group.

Post-doctoral associates, graduate students, and undergraduate students If applicable, include charges for tuition remission and other forms of compensation paid to students as, or in lieu of, salaries and wages. You must report such costs in accordance with 2 CFR § 200.466(b), and must treat them as direct or indirect costs in accordance with the actual work performed. You may charge tuition remission on an average rate basis.

Administrative/Clerical In most circumstances, you should include the salaries of administrative, secretarial, or clerical staff as indirect costs (see H. Indirect Costs). Per 2 CFR § 200.413(c), you may charge salaries for administrative or clerical staff as direct costs only if they meet the following conditions:

• The administrative or clerical services are integral to a project or activity.

• The individuals can be specifically identified with the project or activity.

• You explicitly include these costs in your budget or have prior written approval from

NEH.

• You do not recover the costs as indirect costs.

If you include administrative or clerical salaries in your budget as direct costs, describe how direct charging meets all four conditions in your budget justification. NEH may request additional information to assess if proposed costs are allowable.

Additional Other Personnel List additional project roles, if applicable. The form has space for six named roles. If you have more, combine project roles on the form and explain in your budget justification.

Requested salaries and wages must comply with 2 CFR §§ 200.430 and .466 and fringe benefits must comply with 2 CFR § 200.431.

Do not list collaborators at other institutions or consultants here, as you will include them in F.

Other Direct Costs.

C. Equipment Description Equipment is nonexpendable personal property costing $10,000 or more per item and having a service life of more than one year (unless your organization has established a lower level). See 2 CFR §§ 200.313 and .439.

https://www.ecfr.gov/current/title-2/subtitle-A/chapter-II/part-200/subpart-E/subject-group-ECFRed1f39f9b3d4e72/section-200.