Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services

To support Indian tribes and organizations that primarily serve and represent Native Hawaiians in sustaining heritage, culture, and knowledge through exhibitions, educational services and programming, professional development, and collections stewardship. The IMLS CARES Act Grants for Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum and Library Services was added for FY2020 to support Indian tribes and organizations that primarily serve and represent Native Hawaiians in responding to the coronavirus pandemic.

The Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services program serves Federally recognized Native American tribes and Native Hawaiians by supporting projects that develop exhibitions, educational/interpretive programs, digital learning resources, professional development, partnerships, community-focused activities, data collection and evaluation activities, and collections management, curation, care, and conservation in order to sustain heritage, culture, and knowledge.

An applicant to FY2021 Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services program be one of the following: 1. An Indian tribe, meaning any tribe, band, nation, or other organized group or community, including any Alaska native village, regional corporation, or village, which is recognized as eligible for the special programs and services provided by the United States to Indians because of their status as Indians (see the list of eligible entities available from the Bureau of Indian Affairs); or 2. An organization that primarily serves and represents Native Hawaiians. The term "Native Hawaiian" refers to an individual who is a citizen of the United States and a descendant of the aboriginal people who, before 1778, occupied and exercised sovereignty in the area that now comprises the State of Hawaii. In order for a museum to be eligible, it must demonstrate that it is established as an organization that meets this statutory eligibility criteria.

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; equipment to improve collections storage and exhibit environments; third-party costs; publication design and printing; staff and volunteer training; and indirect or overhead costs.

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

1. Ensure that required 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 complete 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.

Successful applications in this grant program are structured to address an identified need or challenge facing an organization; 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 invites them to consult with specific IMLS staff when determining whether to revise the proposal and submit it again to IMLS or another funding agency.