Museum Grants for African American History and Culture

To build the capacity of African American museums and support the growth and development of museum professionals at African American museums.

The Museum Grants for African American History and Culture program supports projects that nurture museum professionals, build institutional capacity, and increase access to museum and archival collections at African American museums and Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs). IMLS welcomes applications from museums of all sizes and geographic areas whose primary purpose, as reflected in their mission, is African American art, life, history, and culture.

An applicant to FY2021 Museum Grants for African American History and Culture must meet geographic and governance criteria and qualify as one of following types of organizations: 1. A museum whose primary purpose, as reflected in its mission, is African American life, art, history, and/or culture, encompassing: the period of slavery; the era of Reconstruction; the Harlem renaissance; the civil rights movement; and other periods of the African American diaspora; and 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. For more information, please see 2 C.F.R. §3187.3. 2. 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. 3. A museum service organization or association whose primary purpose, as reflected in its mission, is to support museums whose primary purpose, as reflected in their mission, is African American life, art, history and/or culture; or 4. A historically black college or university, as defined by the Higher Education Act of 1965, as amended, 20 U.S.C. Section 1061, and pursuant to Executive Order 13256, dated February 12, 2002.

2 CFR 200, Subpart E - Cost Principles applies to this program.

Grant funds must be used for the purposes outlined in the Notice of Funding Opportunity, and in accordance with the Institute of Museum and Library Services General Terms and Conditions. Examples of allowable costs include personnel salaries, wages, and fringe benefits for project staff; travel expenses for key project staff and consultants; materials, supplies, software, and equipment related directly to project activities; third-party costs; publication design and printing; staff and volunteer training; student tuition and fees; internships/fellowships; and indirect or overhead costs.

Projects must begin on July 1, 2021, and project activities may be carried out for one to three years.

1. Ensure that registrations are active and user names and passwords are in place. 2. Read the Notice of Funding Opportunity carefully to get all the information required for applying. 3. Compose the application, using resources available through www.imls.gov (e.g. live and on-demand webinars, instructions, Sample Applications, Outcome Based Evaluations, Shaping Outcomes tutorial, Reviewer Resources). 4. Contact an IMLS staff member to ask any questions about the application and review process. 5. Submit the application via Grants.gov by the deadline of November 16, 2020.

Successful applications in this grant program are structured to build the capacity of a museum and/or support the growth and development of museum professionals at an African American museum and/or HBCU; reflect a thorough understanding of current practice and knowledge about the subject matter; define a work plan consisting of a set of logical, interrelated activities tied directly to addressing a key need or challenge; and are designed to generate measurable results that tie directly to the identified need or challenge.

IMLS staff review applications for eligibility and completeness. IMLS uses a peer review process to evaluate all eligible and complete applications. Peer reviewers are experts 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 outlined in the Notice of Funding Opportunity. Peer reviewers must comply with Federal ethics and conflicts of interest requirements. The IMLS 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.

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 by June 2021.

IMLS may extend particular grants at the discretion of the Director.

IMLS provides copies of reviewer comments and scores to all unsuccessful applicants and invite them to consult with specific IMLS staff when determining whether to revise the proposal and submit it again to IMLS or another funding agency.