1. Overview of NEH Grant Programs Federal Update Webinar Fall 2012
Nadina Gardner, Director
Division of Preservation and Access
(202)

2. What is NEH?
The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is an independent federal agency created in 1965.
It is one of the largest funders of humanities programs in the United States.
NEH supports quality humanities projects in four funding areas: preserving and providing access to cultural resources, education, research, and public programs.

3. What does NEH do?
NEH grants typically go to colleges and universities, museums, archives, libraries, public television, and radio stations, and to individual scholars. NEH grants:
strengthen teaching and learning in the humanities in schools and colleges across the nation
facilitate research and original scholarship
provide opportunities for lifelong learning
preserve and provide access to cultural and educational resources
strengthen the institutional base of the humanities

4. What are the humanities?
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 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.

5. How is the NEH structured?
NEH is directed by a chairman, who is appointed by the president and confirmed by the U.S. Senate, for a term of four years.
Advising the chairman is the National Council on the Humanities, a board of 26 distinguished private citizens who are also appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate. The National Council members serve staggered six-year terms.
NEH grant programs are administered by seven divisions and offices.

6. NEH Chairman Jim Leach 9th NEH Chairman
Nominated by President Obama and confirmed by the U.S. Senate in 2009
Previously served for 30 years in the U.S. House of Representatives
Created the Bridging Cultures Initiative
James A. Leach is the ninth chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities. Prior to being nominated by President Obama for the post, Leach was a Professor at the Woodrow Wilson School at Princeton University and Interim Director of the Institute of Politics and Lecturer at the John F. Kennedy School of Government at Harvard University.
Leach’s brief stint in academia was preceded by 30 years of service as a representative in Congress where he chaired the Banking and Financial Services Committee, the Subcommittee on Asian and Pacific Affairs, and the Congressional-Executive Commission on China.
Leach attended Princeton University, the School of Advanced International Studies of Johns Hopkins, and the London School of Economics.
He holds eleven honorary degrees, has received decorations from two foreign governments, and is the recipient of the Wayne Morse Integrity in Politics Award, the Adlai Stevenson Award from the United Nations Association, the Edger Wayburn Award from the Sierra Club, the Norman Borlaug Public Service Award, and the Woodrow Wilson Medal from Princeton.
The chairman served on the board of several public companies and a series of non-profit organizations, including the Century Foundation, the Carnegie Endowment for International Peace, the Social Sciences Research Council, Pro Publica and Common Cause, which he chaired.
He is a member of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences, the Council on Foreign Relations, and formerly served as a trustee of Princeton University.

7. NEH Divisions & Offices
Division of Education Programs
Division of Preservation and Access
Division of Public Programs
Division of Research Programs
Federal/State Partnership
Office of Challenge Grants
Office of Digital Humanities

8. What does NEH staff do? work with prospective applicants
recruit and oversee peer-review panels
present results of peer review to members of the National Council on the Humanities and the agency’s senior staff
conduct site visits of projects that have received NEH support
represent NEH at regional, national, and international conferences in the humanities

9. NEH Budget Fiscal Year 2009: $155,000,000

10. FY2012 Appropriation Request

11. Division of Education Programs
The Division of Education Programs seeks to improve humanities education at schools and colleges through its programs devoted to teachers and their students. Grants strengthen teaching and learning through new or revised curricula and materials, collaborative study, seminars, and institutes.

12. Division of Education Programs
The division strives to cultivate intellectual curiosity, so that students can:
Deepen their reflections on human experience
Increase their understanding of different cultures and societies, past and present
Achieve the knowledge and wisdom necessary for democratic citizenship

13. Division of Education Programs Grant Categories
Summer Seminars and Institutes
Landmarks of American History and Culture:
Workshops for School Teachers
Humanities Initiatives at:
Historically Black Colleges and Universities
Institutions with High Hispanic Enrollment
Tribal Colleges and Universities
Enduring Questions
Picturing America School Collaboration Projects
Bridging Cultures at Community Colleges Cooperative Agreement
The criteria for any NEH education grant are the same:
1. Excellence of Intellectual Quality. Will the project avail itself of the best humanities scholarship available? Will it deal with significant humanities, topics, and themes?
2. Excellence of Project Design. Is the project designed to achieve its goals? Are appropriate participants committed to the project? Is a good evaluation procedure built in?
3. Potential for Significant Results. Will the project improve significantly teaching and learning in the humanities? Will the results justify the expenditure of scarce federal dollars?

14. Division of Education Programs Summer Seminars and Institutes
Provide opportunities for teachers to:
Create intensive two-to-five week programs that reach a national audience of school teachers or college and university faculty members
Engage in collegial study of significant texts and topics in the humanities
Use the resources of libraries, museums, and cultural sites
These grants support faculty development programs in the humanities for school teachers and for college and university teachers. NEH Summer Seminars and Institutes may be as short as two weeks or as long as six weeks. The duration of a program should allow for a rigorous treatment of its topic.
NEH Summer Seminars and Institutes:
Extend and deepen knowledge and understanding of the humanities by focusing on significant topics, texts, and issues;
Contribute to the intellectual vitality and professional development of participants;
Build a community of inquiry and provide models of excellent scholarship and teaching; and
Promote effective links between teaching and research in the humanities.
A recent change is that Summer Seminars and Institutes now have some spaces reserved for graduate students.
The Division of Education is particularly interested in summer programs in foreign languages for college teachers
or school teachers.  Generally, these have focused on literature—important authors—but they could focus on history,
government, art, or philosophy.  The Division of Education also continues to encourage programs to strengthen
advanced instruction in foreign languages.  Many of the applications received deal with American history, so do encourage
your faculty in European or world history, art, and philosophy to consider this program.

15. Workshops for School Teachers
Division of Education Programs Landmarks of American History and Culture
Workshops for School Teachers
Create multiple intensive one-week programs in
American history that reach national audiences
Engage in collegial study of significant texts and
topics in the American experience at historic sites
Integrate the use of archival sources and material
evidence into educational curricula
The Landmarks of American History and Culture program supports series of one-week residence-based workshops for a national audience of school teachers. NEH Landmarks of American History and Culture workshops use historic sites to address central themes and issues in American history, government, literature, art, music, and other related subjects in the humanities. The goals of the workshops are to:
increase knowledge and appreciation of subjects, ideas, and places significant to American history and culture;
provide school teachers with expertise in the use and interpretation of historical and cultural sites and of material and archival resources; and
encourage historical and cultural sites to develop greater capacity and scale for professional development programs.
NEH Landmarks workshops should take place at or near sites important to American history and culture (e.g., presidential residences or libraries; colonial-era settlements; major battlefields; historic districts; parks and preserves; sites of key economic, social, political, and constitutional developments; and places associated with major writers, artists, or musicians).
NEH has discontinued the program, Landmarks of American History and Culture Workshops for Community College Faculty.

16. Division of Education Programs
Humanities Initiatives for Historically Black, High Hispanic Enrollment, and Tribal Colleges and Universities
Provide opportunities to:
Enhance and redefine institutions’ humanities programs in collaboration with consulting scholars
Support faculty members as they collaborate to strengthen humanities programs
Prepare institutions to develop new humanities programs, take advantage of underused resources, or collaborate with other institutions
Train staff and faculty members in the use of humanities materials and technologies
Humanities Initiatives are intended to strengthen and enrich humanities education and
scholarship, as noted, at Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Institutions with High
Hispanic Enrollment, and Tribal Colleges and Universities. These grants may be used to
enhance the humanities content of existing programs, develop new programs, or lay the
foundation for more extensive endeavors in the future. Each project must be organized
around a core topic or set of themes.
Humanities Initiatives may:
create opportunities for faculty members to study together while improving their
capacity to teach the humanities;
help faculty and administration develop new humanities programs, which may
include but are not limited to writing programs, foreign language programs, new
humanities minors, first-year seminars, capstone courses, or summer bridge programs
for high school students;
help institutions take advantage of underused humanities resources, especially in the
digital humanities;
enhance or develop areas of basic need in an institution’s core humanities programs;
and
build ties among faculty at more than one institution of higher learning, among
college teachers, secondary school teachers, and students, or among faculty members
at institutions of higher learning and their colleagues in museums, libraries, or other
organizations such as historical and cultural societies.

17. Division of Education Programs Enduring Questions
Provide opportunities to:
Design a new course for undergraduate teaching and
learning that promotes engagement with fundamental
issues in the humanities
Focus on an explicitly stated question drawing upon
significant readings from prior to the twentieth century
Stimulate inquiry beyond vocational or specialized areas
(not limited to those trained in or teaching in humanities
disciplines) 
Designed to encourage faculty and students at the undergraduate level to grapple with the most fundamental concerns of the humanities, and to join together in deep, sustained programs of reading in order to encounter influential thinkers over the centuries and into the present day.
What is an enduring question? The following list is neither prescriptive nor exhaustive but serves to illustrate.
What is good government?
Can war be just?
What is friendship?
What is evil?
Are there universals in human nature?

18. Division of Education Programs
Contact info:
(202)

19. Division of Preservation & Access
The Division of Preservation and Access provides leadership and support in the national effort to preserve and create access to cultural heritage resources that constitute the foundation for research, education, and public programming in the humanities.
Overview of the slave trade out of Africa, from An Atlas of the Trans-Atlantic Slave Trade by David Eltis and David Richardson, Yale University Press, 2010.

20. Division of Preservation & Access Grant Categories
Humanities Collections and Reference Resources
Research and Development
Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections
Education and Training
Preservation Assistance Grants for Smaller Institutions
National Digital Newspaper Program
Documenting Endangered Languages (with NSF)

21. Division of Preservation & Access
Cultural Heritage Collections can include:
Decorative and fine art objects
Furniture, textiles, and historical objects
Archaeological and ethnographic artifacts
Prints and photographs
Moving images and sound recordings
Architectural and cartographic records
Books, journals, archives, and manuscripts
Digital materials 21

22. Division of Preservation & Access Humanities Collections and Reference Resources
Applications may be submitted for projects that address one or more of the following activities:
arranging and describing archival and manuscript collections;
cataloging collections of printed works, photographs, recorded sound, moving images, art, and material culture;
providing conservation treatment (including deacidification) for collections, leading to enhanced access;
digitizing collections;
preserving and improving access to born-digital sources;
developing databases, virtual collections, or other electronic resources to codify information on a subject or to provide integrated access to selected humanities materials;
creating encyclopedias;
preparing linguistic tools, such as historical and etymological dictionaries, corpora, and reference grammars;
developing tools for spatial analysis and representation of humanities data, such as atlases and geographic information systems (GIS); and
designing digital tools to facilitate use of humanities resources.

23. Division of Preservation & Access Research and Development
Eligible projects include:
the development of technical standards, best practices, and tools for preserving and creating access to humanities collections;
the exploration of more effective scientific and technical methods of preserving humanities collections;
the development of automated procedures and computational tools to integrate, analyze, and repurpose humanities data in disparate online resources; and
the investigation and testing of new ways of providing digital access to humanities materials that are not easily digitized using current methods.

24. Division of Preservation & Access Sustaining Cultural Heritage Collections
Planning grants might be used to:
reevaluate environmental parameters for collections;
examine passive (nonmechanical) and low-energy alternatives to conventional energy sources and energy-intensive mechanized systems for managing environmental conditions;
analyze existing climate control systems and the performance characteristics of buildings and building envelopes to develop a plan for improved operation, effectiveness, and energy efficiency;
examine options and develop strategies for lighting collection spaces in ways that protect collections while achieving improved energy efficiency; or
evaluate the effectiveness of preventive conservation strategies previously implemented, including energy-efficient upgrades to existing systems and performance upgrades to buildings and building envelopes.
Implementation grants to preserve humanities collections might be used to:
manage interior relative humidity and temperature by passive methods (such as creating buffered spaces and housing, controlling moisture at its sources, or improving the thermal and moisture performance of a building envelope);
install or recommission heating, ventilating, and air conditioning systems;
install storage systems and rehouse collections;
improve security and the protection of collections from fire, flood, and other disasters; or
upgrade lighting systems and controls, to achieve energy efficiency and levels suitable for collections.

25. Division of Preservation & Access Education and Training
These grants support:
regional preservation field services that provide a wide range of education and training (for example, through surveys, workshops, consultations, reference services, and informational materials about the care of humanities collections), especially for staff at smaller libraries, museums, archives, and other cultural organizations;
master’s degree programs in preservation and conservation; and
workshops that address preservation and access topics of national significance and broad impact.

26. Division of Preservation & Access Preservation Assistance Grants for Smaller Institutions
Activities that can be supported include:
General preservation or conservation assessments that will help an institution identify its overall preservation needs and develop a long-range, prioritized preservation plan to address those needs. 
Consultations with preservation professionals to develop a plan for addressing a specific preservation problem.
Attendance at workshops on preservation topics, best practices for cataloging humanities collections, standards for digital preservation, and the care and handling of collections during digitization.
The purchase of preservation supplies, equipment, and storage furniture. Applicants who request funding for the purchase of storage furniture must demonstrate that the request is based on a completed preservation needs assessment or a specialized consultation with a preservation professional.

27. Division of Preservation & Access National Digital Newspaper Program
NDNP is creating a national, digital resource of historically significant newspapers published between 1836 and 1922, from all the states and U.S. territories. This searchable database will be permanently maintained at the Library of Congress (LC) and be freely accessible via the Internet. An accompanying national newspaper directory of bibliographic and holdings information on the website directs users to newspaper titles available in all types of formats.

28. Division of Preservation & Access National Digital Newspaper Program

29. Division of Preservation & Access Documenting Endangered Languages
The Documenting Endangered Languages (DEL) program is a partnership between NEH and the National Science Foundation (NSF) to develop and advance knowledge concerning endangered human languages. Made urgent by the imminent death of an estimated half of the currently used languages, this effort aims also to exploit advances in information technology. Awards support fieldwork and other activities relevant to recording, documenting, and archiving endangered languages, including the preparation of lexicons, grammars, text samples, and databases.

30. Division of Preservation & Access
Contact info: (202)

31. Division of Public Programs
The Division of Public Programs expands understanding of the humanities through engaging and substantive projects that encourage lifelong learning for Americans nationwide. Grants typically support radio and television documentaries, exhibitions and interpretation of historic sites, reading and discussion series, lectures, symposia, and after school programs.

32. Division of Public Programs Grant Categories
America’s Historical and Cultural Organizations
America’s Media Makers
Bridging Cultures through Film: International Topics
Small Grants to Libraries
NEH on the Road

33. Division of Public Programs
Public humanities programs:
promote the experience of lifelong learning in the humanities
offer new insights into familiar subjects
invite conversation about important humanities ideas and questions
reach large and diverse public audiences
make creative use of new and emerging technologies

34. Division of Public Programs America’s Historical and Cultural Organizations
Grants support a wide range of public humanities programs, including:
interpretive exhibitions
websites
reading and film discussion programs
symposia
Awards primarily cover costs for staff, consultation with scholars, audience evaluation, design and production, and ancillary materials.
We welcome projects that use more than one format.

35. Division of Public Programs America’s Historical and Cultural Organizations
Projects in these categories are especially encouraged:
Dissemination Projects present programming at twenty or more venues in a wide range of formats.
Interpreting America’s Historic Places projects draw on the evocative power of historic places to address themes and issues central to American history.
Family and Youth Programs in American History offer programming tailored to youth and family audiences.
NEH’s new Bridging Cultures initiative supports projects focusing on cultures internationally, or within the United States.
Chairman’s Special Awards of up to $1 million support large-scale traveling exhibitions of exceptional reach and visibility.

36. Division of Public Programs America’s Media Makers
Development or Production categories support
media projects that:
explore significant topics or ideas in the humanities;
offer creative approaches to humanities content; and
encourage dialogue and discussion.
Grants for America’s Media Makers in the Development or Production categories support media projects that explore significant topics or ideas in the humanities, offer creative approaches to humanities content, and encourage dialogue and discussion.
Radio projects may feature documentary programs or historical dramatizations and involve single programs, limited series, or segments within an existing, ongoing program vehicle. They may be intended for regional or national distribution.
Television projects may be documentary programs or historical dramatizations that address significant figures, events, or developments in the humanities and draw their content from humanities scholarship. They must be intended for national distribution.
Digital technology projects may expand the content of a radio or television program or they may be components of a larger, non-broadcast project or be projects in their own right. Examples are DVDs, Web sites, games, virtual environments, streaming, video on demand, and podcasts, as well as user-generated content.

37. Division of Public Programs America’s Media Makers
Radio projects may feature documentary programs or historical dramatizations. They may be intended for regional or national distribution.
Television projects may be documentary programs or historical dramatizations that address significant figures, events, or developments. They must be intended for national distribution.
Digital technology projects may expand the content of a radio or television program or may be components of a larger, non-broadcast project or be projects in their own right. Examples include: DVDs, Web sites, games, virtual environments, streaming, video on demand, and podcasts, as well as user-generated content.
Grants for America’s Media Makers in the Development or Production categories support media projects that explore significant topics or ideas in the humanities, offer creative approaches to humanities content, and encourage dialogue and discussion.
Radio projects may feature documentary programs or historical dramatizations and involve single programs, limited series, or segments within an existing, ongoing program vehicle. They may be intended for regional or national distribution.
Television projects may be documentary programs or historical dramatizations that address significant figures, events, or developments in the humanities and draw their content from humanities scholarship. They must be intended for national distribution.
Digital technology projects may expand the content of a radio or television program or they may be components of a larger, non-broadcast project or be projects in their own right. Examples are DVDs, Web sites, games, virtual environments, streaming, video on demand, and podcasts, as well as user-generated content.

38. Division of Public Programs Bridging Cultures through Film: International Topics
Sparking Americans’ engagement with the wider world
through exploration of countries and cultures outside the
U.S., and/or across nations.
Films might:
Take a wide range of approaches to international and transnational topics:
Examine critical issues viewed through an international lens
Document the life and work of an international figure
Explore the history or cultures of a specific region, country or community outside of the U.S.
Projects must be analytical and deeply grounded in humanities scholarship. We encourage innovative nonfiction stories and creative formats that will reach broad audiences. Films must range in length from a stand-alone broadcast hour to a feature-length documentary.
Applicants should demonstrate international collaboration by enlisting U.S.-based and non-U.S.-based scholars and/or by working with an international media team.
Two levels of support are available: Development (up to $75,000) and Production (up to $800,000).

39. Division of Public Programs Small Grants to Libraries
Bring humanities public programming to libraries across the country.
Offer successful applicants a $2,500 grant for exhibition-related expenses and for exhibition programming.
Have reached 48 states, the District of Columbia, and the Virgin Islands.
Grants have included:
exhibitions at 737 sites,
multi-format projects at over 160 venues
completed film and book discussion projects at 125 venues.

40. Division of Public Programs NEH on the Road
Mid-America Arts Alliance developed NEH on the Road
in 2003 so smaller museums and communities would
have high quality humanities programming that fit their
spaces and budgets.
Each NEH on the Road exhibition requires only 2,000
square feet of space
Small to mid-sized museums, libraries, schools, and
universities anywhere in the U.S. may host an NEH on
the Road exhibition.

41. Division of Public Programs EDSITEment
EDSITEment is a partnership among the National Endowment for the Humanities, Verizon Foundation, and the National Trust for the Humanities and is a proud member of the Thinkfinity Consortium of premier educational websites.
EDSITEment offers a treasure trove for teachers, students, and parents searching for high-quality material on the Internet in the subject areas of literature and language arts, foreign languages, art and culture, and history and social studies.
All websites linked to EDSITEment have been reviewed for content, design, and educational impact in the classroom. They cover a wide range of humanities subjects, from American history to literature, world history and culture, language, art, and archaeology, and have been judged by humanities specialists to be of high intellectual quality. EDSITEment is not intended to represent a complete curriculum in the humanities, nor does it prescribe any specific course of study.
EDSITEment is brought to you by NEH in Partnership with the National
Trust for the Humanities, and Thinkfinity, the Verizon Foundation’s
signature digital learning platform designed to improve educational
achievement and literacy.
This educational partnership brings online humanities Resources from
some of the world’s great museums, libraries, cultural institutions, and
Universities directly to the classroom through exemplary lesson plans and
student activities.
LESSON PLANS: Provides over 450 lesson plans integrating EDSITEment’s reviewed online resources to promote active learning through engaging student interactive exercises.

42. Division of Public Programs EDSITEment
EDSITEment ( an educational partnership with National Endowment for the Humanities, the National Trust for the Humanities, and the Verizon Foundation, brings online humanities resources from some of the world's great museums, libraries, cultural institutions, and universities directly to the K-12 classroom.
Example:
Abraham Lincoln on the American Union: “A Word Fitly Spoken”
Lesson 1: Fragment on the Constitution and Union (1861)—The Purpose of the American Union
Lesson 2: The First Inaugural Address (1861)—Defending the American Union
Lesson 3: The Gettysburg Address (1863)—Defining the American Union
Lesson 4: The Second Inaugural Address (1865)—Restoring the American Union

43. Division of Public Programs
Contact info:
(202)

44. Division of Research
The Division of Research Programs encourages research and writing in all areas of the humanities. Grants support individuals and teams of scholars pursuing advanced research in the humanities that will contribute to scholarly knowledge or to the general public's understanding of the world.
Image of the Gettysburg Address from the Bliss Copy held by the Abraham Lincoln Presidential Library.

45. Division of Research Grant Categories
Awards for Faculty
at Historically Black Colleges and Universities
at Institutions with High Hispanic Enrollment
at Tribal Colleges and Universities
Collaborative Research
Fellowships
Fellowship Programs at Independent Research Institutions
Fellowships for Advanced Social Science Research on Japan
Scholarly Editions and Translations
Summer Stipends

46. Division of Research Awards for Faculty at Historically Black, High Hispanic Enrollment, and Tribal Colleges and Universities
Awards support individual faculty members
Awards allow for a range of research-related endeavors, including:
conducting research in primary and secondary materials
writing books and articles based on such research
undertaking research in response to institutional or community needs and aims,
incorporating new research into existing classes
Awards are $4,200 per month for periods of two to twelve months’ tenure (or its equivalent).
Award Length: 6 to 12 months
Amount: $4,200 per month
Funding Ratio: Approximately 1 in 12
Description: The NEH Division of Research Programs provides Faculty Research Awards to support individuals pursuing advanced research in the humanities which will contribute to scholarly knowledge and to the general public’s understanding of the humanities. The Faculty Research Awards program only accepts applications from faculty members of Historically Black or Tribal Colleges or Universities and Institutions with High Hispanic Enrollment.
Recipients usually produce articles, books, monographs, digital materials, archaeological site reports, translations, and other scholarly tools. Grants provide time-flexible support for projects that can be completed during the tenure of the award as well as for work that is part of a long-term endeavor. The award period of six to twelve months need not be continuous, and may be full-time, half-time, or a combination.
Faculty Research Awards may not be used for curricular or pedagogical methods, theories, or surveys or the preparation or revision of textbooks.
Grants provide time-flexible support for projects that can be completed during the tenure of the award, as well as for work that is part of a long-term endeavor.

47. Division of Research Collaborative Research
Grants support original research undertaken by a team of two or more scholars or research coordinated by an individual scholar that, because of its scope or complexity, requires additional staff or resources beyond the individual's salary.
Grants support full-time or part-time activities for periods of one to three years.
Grantees are expected to communicate the results of their work to the appropriate scholarly and public audiences.
Award Length: 1 to 3 years
Amount: $25,000 to $100,000 per year
Description: The NEH Division of Research Programs provides Collaborative Research Grants to support original research undertaken by a team of two or more scholars or coordinated by an individual scholar that, because of its scope and complexity, requires additional staff and resources beyond the individual's salary. Support is available for various combinations of scholars, consultants, and research assistants. Grants support full-time and part-time work for a period of one to three years.
Projects typically include research that significantly adds to knowledge and understanding in the humanities; conferences on topics of major importance in the humanities that will benefit ongoing research; archaeological projects that include the interpretation and communication of results; translations into English of works that provide insight into other cultures; and research that uses the knowledge, methods, and perspectives of the humanities to enhance understanding of science, technology, medicine, and the social sciences.
Collaborative Research Grants may not be used for specific policy studies or educational or technical impact assessments; archaeological materials analysis whose primary goal is refinement of a method; inventories of collections; the preparation or publication of textbooks; recurrent meetings of professional organizations, societies, and scholarly organizations; or planning or putting on exhibitions.

48. Division of Research Fellowships
$4,200 per month for 6-12 months of full time tenure
For individuals pursuing advanced research
Faculty or staff members of colleges, universities, primary, or secondary schools, or independent scholars or writers
No concurrent teaching assignment or other major activity
May hold other concurrent fellowships/grants
Project to be completed during the tenure of an award or as part of a long-term endeavor
Products: articles, monographs, books, an archaeological site report, a translation, an edition, a database, or other scholarly tools
Award Length: 6 to 12 months
Amount: $4,200 per month
Funding Ratio: Approximately 1 in 12
Description: The NEH Division of Research Programs provides Fellowships awards to support individuals pursuing advanced research in the humanities which will contribute to scholarly knowledge and to the general public’s understanding of the humanities. Recipients usually produce articles, books, monographs, digital materials, archaeological site reports, translations, and other scholarly tools.
The Fellowships program accepts applications from college and university professors, primary or secondary school teachers, and independent writers and scholars, regardless of institutional affiliations. Fellowships are provided for projects that can be completed during the tenure of the award as well as for work that is part of a long-term endeavor. The award period of six to twelve months must be continuous, and award recipients must work full time on their projects.

49. Division of Research Fellowship Programs at Independent Research Institutions
Information for Scholars:
Fellowships for 4-12 months, carry a maximum stipend of $4,200 per month.
Individual scholars apply directly to institutions offering NEH fellowships, including:
Folger Shakespeare Library
Institute for Advanced Study
John Carter Brown Library
National Humanities Center
Newberry Library
Schomburg Center for Research in Black Culture, New York Public Library
American Academy in Rome
Information for Scholars
Award Length: 4 to 12 months
Amount: Up to $4,200 per month
Description: The NEH Division of Research Programs provides Fellowship Programs at Independent Research Institutions (FPIRI) to support fellowships for individual scholars at domestic and foreign research centers and institutions. These centers are devoted to advanced study and research in the humanities and offer scholars time and access to resources that are often not available at their home institutions.
FPIRI grants are made directly to the institutions themselves, and the institutions are in charge of administering their fellowship programs. The awards support fellowship stipends and standard allowances, as well as a portion of the cost for both publicizing the availability of the fellowship and selecting the fellows. Awards and stipends for NEH fellows are determined in accordance with an institution's usual practices with the maximum amount set at $4,200 a month. A grantee institution may supplement the stipends of NEH fellows from its own funds, and fellows may receive additional funds from other sources.
Institutions that offer NEH fellowships through FPIRI include independent centers for advanced study, libraries and museums in the U.S.; American overseas research centers; and organizations that have expertise in promoting research on foreign culture. Priority is given to those institutions with library holdings, archives, or other special collections available to fellows.

50. Division of Research Fellowship Programs at Independent Research Institutions
Information for Institutions:
Grants support domestic and foreign research
centers offering fellowship opportunities for
postdoctoral and independent scholars.
Funding priority given to programs that provide
long-term fellowships (4 months or longer).
Only independent research institutions may apply.
Information for Institutions
Award Length: Normally 1 to 4 years
Amount: Open
Description: The Division of Research Programs provides Fellowship Programs at Independent Research Institutions (FPIRI) to support institutions devoted to advanced study and research in the humanities that offer fellowship opportunities to postdoctoral and independent scholars. These NEH fellowships provide scholars with time and access to resources that are often not available at their home institutions.
FPIRI fellowships may be administered by independent centers for advanced study, libraries and museums in the U.S.; American overseas research centers; or organizations that have expertise in promoting research on foreign culture. In evaluating applications, priority is given to those with library holdings, archives, or other special collections available to fellows. American overseas research centers should demonstrate a particular benefit to NEH fellows by virtue of their location and other resources.
FPIRI awards are generally made for a period of one to four years and vary in amount. They are used for fellowship stipends and standard allowances, as well as a portion of the cost for both publicizing the availability of the fellowship and selecting the fellows. FPIRI awards support continuous fellowships that last four to twelve months.

51. Division of Research Fellowships for Advanced Social Science Research on Japan
Joint activity of the Japan-U.S. Friendship Commission (JUSFC) and the NEH.
Awards support research on modern Japanese society and political economy, Japan's international relations, and U.S.-Japan relations.
Encourages innovative research that puts these subjects in wider regional and global contexts and is comparative and contemporary in nature.
Research should contribute to scholarly knowledge or to the general public's understanding of issues of concern to Japan and the U.S.
Appropriate disciplines for the research include anthropology, economics, geography, history, international relations, linguistics, political science, psychology, public administration, and sociology.
The fellowships are designed for researchers with advanced language skills whose research will require use of data, sources, and documents in their original languages or whose research requires interviews onsite in direct one-on-one contact. Fellows may undertake their projects in Japan, the United States, or both, and may include work in other countries for comparative purposes.
Awards usually result in articles, monographs, books, digital materials, archaeological site reports, translations, editions, or other scholarly resources.

52. Division of Research Scholarly Editions and Translations
Grants support preparation of authoritative and annotated texts and documents.
Materials have been either previously inaccessible or available only in inadequate editions.
Projects involve the editing of significant literary, philosophical, and historical materials.
Editions contain scholarly and critical apparatus appropriate to the subject matter and format of the edition.
Applicants are strongly encouraged to propose electronic editions that provide wide access to scholars and students.
Scholarly Editions Grants
Award Length: 1 to 3 years
Amount: $50,000 to $100,000 per year
Description: The NEH Division of Research Programs provides Scholarly Editions Grants to
support the preparation, by a team of at least two editors and staff, of texts and documents that are
currently inaccessible or only available in inadequate editions. Projects usually involve significant
literary, philosophical, and historical material, editions of foreign language materials in the original
language, musical notations, digitization and publication of completed print or microfilm editions
in electronic form, and other types of work.
Editions produced with NEH support contain scholarly and critical apparatus such as introductions
and annotations that provide essential information about the form, transmission, and historical and
intellectual context of the texts and documents. Applicants should demonstrate familiarity with the
best practices recommended by the Association for Documentary Editing or the Modern Language
Association Committee on Scholarly Editions.
Grants support work for one to three years and are normally $50,000 to $100,000 per year.
Recipients are awarded the grant in outright funds, matching funds, or a combination of the two,
depending on the applicant's preference and the availability of funds. The use of federal matching
funds is encouraged. Scholarly Editions Grants do not support the preparation or publication of
textbooks intended primarily for classroom use, editions of translated materials, or the preparation
of bibliographies, descriptive catalogs, dictionaries, encyclopedias, databases, or other research
tools or reference works.

53. Division of Research Summer Stipends
Successful applicants receive an outright award of $6,000 for two consecutive months of full-time research and writing.
Summer Stipends support individuals pursuing advanced research of value to humanities scholars and/or general audiences.
Recipients usually produce articles, monographs, books, digital materials, archaeological site reports, translations, editions or other scholarly resources.
Award Length: 2 months
Amount: $6,000
Funding Ratio: Approximately 1 in 12
Description: The NEH Division of Research Programs provides Summer Stipends to support individuals pursuing advanced research in the humanities which will contribute to scholarly knowledge and to the general public’s understanding of the humanities. Recipients usually produce articles, books, monographs, digital materials, archaeological site reports, translations, and other scholarly tools.
The Summer Stipends program accepts applications from college and university professors, primary or secondary school teachers, and independent writers and scholars, regardless of institutional affiliations. Faculty members teaching full-time at colleges and universities must be nominated by their institutions to apply. The Summer Stipends program supports projects at any stage of development and applicants must work full-time for two continuous months. Summer Stipends are usually taken in the summer months, but alternative arrangements can be made.
Summer Stipends may not be used for curricular or pedagogical methods, theories, or surveys; preparation or publication of textbooks; inventories of collections; specific policy studies or educational or technical impact assessments; or doctoral dissertations or theses.

54. Division of Research
Contact info: (202)

55. Office of Federal/State Partnership
NEH’s Federal/State Partnership is a collaborative effort, dedicated to the study and enjoyment of the humanities in the public sphere, links a national agency with fifty-six nonprofit state and jurisdictional humanities councils. Through its programs, the Federal/State Partnership and the individual councils advance knowledge and understanding, and increase public awareness of the humanities.

56. Office of Federal/State Partnership
Humanities councils are located in each of the fifty states, the District of Columbia, and five territories.
The councils receive general operating support from NEH, and they are also eligible to apply for other NEH grant opportunities.
As independent 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations, they also raise money from diverse sources.
The councils themselves make grants to nonprofit organizations and individual scholars for the preparation or execution of humanities programs and, in a few instances, for independent scholarly research.

57. Office of Federal/State Partnership
Programs supported by the fifty-six state and jurisdictional humanities councils, :

58. Office of Federal/State Partnership
Contact info: (202)

59. Office of Challenge Grants
The Office of Challenge Grants provides institution-building grants to improve humanities programs and carry out long-term plans for strengthening basic resources and enhancing financial stability.

60. Office of Challenge Grants Grant Categories
Challenge Grants for Two-year Colleges
For applications from two-year colleges, in either program, the matching requirement is reduced from 3:1 to 2:1.  The deadline for applications from two-year colleges has been moved from early February to February 20, 2013, to allow applicants time to submit drafts after the holidays.  Notification occurs in August.

61. Office of Challenge Grants Types of Funding
Create or augment endowment
Construction/Renovation
Direct expenditures:
equipment
acquisitions
technology
fundraising costs

62. Office of Challenge Grants
Grants range from $375,000 to $500,000
Up to $1 million maximum
3:1 match required
(1 federal dollar for every 3 non-federal dollars)

63. Office of Challenge Grants
Contact info: (202) #challenge

64. Office of Digital Humanities
Our primary mission is to help coordinate the NEH's efforts in the area of digital scholarship. As in the sciences, digital technology has changed the way scholars perform their work. It allows new questions to be raised and has radically changed the ways in which materials can be searched, mined, displayed, taught, and analyzed. Technology has also had an enormous impact on how scholarly materials are preserved and accessed, which brings with it many challenging issues related to sustainability, copyright, and authenticity. The ODH works not only with NEH staff and members of the scholarly community, but also facilitates conversations with other funding bodies both in the United States and abroad so that we can work towards meeting these challenges. 

65. Office of Digital Humanities Grant Categories
DFG/NEH Bilateral Digital Humanities Program
Digging into Data
Digital Humanities Implementation
Digital Humanities Start-Up Grants
Institutes for Advanced Topics in the Digital Humanities

66. Office of Digital Humanities DFG/NEH Bilateral Digital Humanities Program
This program funds the development of tools and infrastructure to enhance the use of digitized resources and support international digitization work. 
Collaboration between U.S. and German partners is a key requirement for this grant category.
These grants provide funding for up to three years of development of digitization projects.
These grants provide funding for up to three years of development in any of the following areas:
new digitization projects and pilot projects;
the addition of important materials to existing digitization projects; and
the development of tools and infrastructure to enhance the use of digitized resources and support international digitization work.
In order to encourage new approaches and develop innovative methods in any field of the humanities, these grants provide funding for up to three years in any of the following areas:
--developing innovative methods—as well as standards and best practices—for building and merging digital collections that are important to the American and German scholarly community for use in research;
--developing and implementing generic tools, methods, and techniques for accessing and processing digital resources relevant to humanities research;
--ensuring the completion and long-term sustainability of existing digital resources (typically in conjunction with a library or archive);
--creating new digital modes of scholarly communication and publishing that facilitate international cooperation and dissemination of humanities scholarship; and
--developing models and case studies for effectively managing digital data generated in humanities research projects (for example, texts, audio files, photographs, 3D objects).

67. Office of Digital Humanities The Digging into Data Challenge
This program seeks to answer the question:
What do you do with a million books? 
Or a million pages of newspaper?
Or a million photographs of artwork? 
That is, how does the notion of scale affect humanities and social science research? Now that scholars have access to huge repositories of digitized data—far more than they could read in a lifetime—what does that mean for research? 
DID is co-sponsored by the Joint Information Systems Committee (JISC) of the UK, the National Science Foundation (NSF) of the U.S., and the Social Sciences and Humanities Research Council (SSHRC) of Canada.

68. Office of Digital Humanities Digital Humanities Implementation
Implementation grants may involve:
implementation of computationally-based methods or techniques for humanities research;
implementation of new digital tools for use in humanities research, public programming, or educational settings;
efforts to ensure the completion and long-term sustainability of existing digital resources (typically in conjunction with a library or archive);
studies that examine the philosophical or practical implications of the use of emerging technologies in specific fields or disciplines of the humanities, or in interdisciplinary collaborations involving several fields or disciplines; or
implementation of new digital modes of scholarly communication that facilitate peer review, collaboration, or the dissemination of humanities scholarship for various audiences.

69. Office Digital Humanities Digital Humanities Start-Up Grants
Grants support innovative projects that represent the next generation of advances in humanities research, education, preservation, access, and public programming.
They must propose an innovative approach, method, tool, or idea.
These grants are modeled, in part, on the “high risk/high reward” paradigm often used by funding agencies in the sciences.

70. Office of Digital Humanities Institutes for Advanced Topics in the Digital Humanities
Supports major training institutes that enable digital humanities experts to share their knowledge with colleagues from around the country.
Training events must be regional or national in scope.
Funded institutes train participants to use new technologies and methodologies that can be applied to enhance humanities research, education, preservation, access, or public programming.

71. Office of Digital Humanities
Contact info: (202) Subscribe to their digital newsletter:

72. How do I apply? Visit www.neh.gov and read the guidelines.
Talk to someone at your institution to know the resources available to you.
Contact NEH staff.
Register with Grants.gov.

73. Grants.gov
All applications must be submitted online at
Register early.
Identify your institution's Authorized Organization Representative (AOR).
Grants.gov Registration in Brief:
Registration takes approximately 3-5 business days, but allow 4 weeks for completion of all steps.
STEP 1: Obtain DUNS Number STEP 2: Register with CCR STEP 3: Username & Password Complete your AOR (Authorized Organization Representative) profile on Grants.gov and create your username and password. You will need to use your organization’s DUNS Number to complete this step.
STEP 4: AOR Authorization The E-Business Point of Contact (E-Biz POC) at your organization must login to Grants.gov to confirm you as an Authorized Organization Representative (AOR). Please note that there can be more than one AOR for your organization. In some cases the E-Biz POC is also the AOR for an organization. *Time depends on responsiveness of your E-Biz POC.
STEP 5: TRACK AOR STATUS At any time, you can track your AOR status by logging in with your username and password. Login as an Applicant (enter your username & password you obtained in Step 3) using the following link: applicant_profile.jsp

74. NEH Peer Review Panel
Each grant program may have specific evaluation criteria, but in general NEH applications are judged on the following:
The humanities significance of the proposed project
The quality or promise of the quality of the applicant's work
The quality of the conception, definition, organization, and description of the project
The feasibility of the proposed plan of work
The likelihood that the applicant will complete the project

75. General Application Tips
Read the guidelines, FAQs, and sample proposals for the specific grant program, available at:
Call or a program officer to confirm your project’s eligibility and to discuss its likely competitiveness.
If the grant program you’re interested in accepts draft applications for review by NEH staff, take advantage of this offer. Submit your draft well before the deadline for drafts, and you’re likely to avoid the rush and receive a response sooner.
Make as compelling a case as you can for the humanities significance of your project.
If your application is not funded, ask for the peer reviewers’ comments.

76. Application Tips continued
Strike a tone that is concise and positive without being overly optimistic.
Write for a general audience, avoiding unnecessary professional jargon. If your project includes technical work, describe it in detail in the section of the application that addresses the project’s methodology.
Provide examples of projects in your field similar to yours, in order to demonstrate your knowledge of the field and to show the particular value of your own project.
Many NEH grant programs have page limits for narratives but none for appendices; however, remember that voluminous, unnecessary material in the appendices will only obscure the truly important information you want the reviewers to notice and remember.
Include all vital information within the proposal narrative; use the appendices for supporting documentation only.

77. Interesting in Reviewing NEH Applications?
Contact the NEH Division or Office of your choice and send in a C.V.
Enter your contact information online:

78. Overview of NEH Grant Programs Federal Update Webinar Fall 2012
Nadina Gardner, Director
Division of Preservation and Access
(202)