• Mini Grants are for $1,500 or less.
• Major Grants are for more than $1,500.
• Media (Film/Radio/Television) and Website/Digital projects are treated as major grants but they have additional requirements and must be submitted at an earlier deadline.

Grant deadlines:

Grant applications must be submitted no later than the due date. If the due date falls on a weekend or holiday, the grant is due the next business day.

• Mini Grants: Jan. 1, March 1, May 1, July 1, Sept. 1 and Nov. 1 (Mini grants can fund projects that begin at least one month after the application deadline.)
• Major Grants: March 1 (for programs beginning May 1 or later)  Aug. 1 (for programs beginning Oct. 1 or later)
• Media and Website/Digital Grants: Jan. 15 (for projects beginning May 1 or later) June 15 (for projects beginning Oct. 1 or later)

Eligibility:

• Any nonprofit group is eligible to apply for grants, including schools, libraries, museums, civic groups, government agencies, service clubs, tribal organizations, professional associations, historical societies, educational institutions and community organizations. For-profit entities and individuals are not eligible.
• Grants are given only for projects or programs that take place in Nebraska and/or have direct significance to Nebraska.
• Nebraskans must be a primary target audience for all grant projects or events.
• Grant applications from organizations outside of Nebraska will only be considered if (1) their proposed project is about Nebraska and/or has direct relevance to Nebraskans and (2) there is a well-developed plan to provide Nebraskans with access to the results of the project.
• Applications must demonstrate that the humanities are central to the project. The National Endowment for the Humanities has defined the humanities as including, but not limited to, history, literature, languages, jurisprudence, philosophy, comparative religion, archaeology, ethics, the social sciences when they employ humanistic perspectives, and the history, theory, and criticism of the arts.
• All projects must include at least one humanities resource person or “humanist.” Typically, the humanist is a college or university professor in a humanities discipline. If a non-academic humanist is chosen for a project, the applicant must provide sufficient background information on the individual to demonstrate that he or she will capably represent the humanities. A resume of no more than two pages and a letter from the scholar explaining his or her involvement in the project must be included for every scholar.
• Grant applications will not be reviewed if they are (1) incomplete and/or (2) are from organizations with overdue reports.

Speakers Bureau:

• Individuals (must be a nonprofit organization)
• Programs, projects or events with advocacy or partisan objectives
• Direct action campaigns
• Operating costs, construction or renovation
• Travel to professional meetings
• Profit-making projects
• Creative or performing arts (unless the project includes a significant humanities-based educational component)
• Book publishing
• Alcoholic beverages, food or entertainment for audiences
• Scholarships and fellowships
• Occupational training
• Printing costs not related to public project
• Institutional planning and development
• Museum, school or library acquisitions
• Academic credit
• Research for solely scholarly purposes
• Universities, colleges or affiliated organizations for programs designed primarily for their students

GRANT APPLICATION REQUIREMENTS

• Grant applicants must identify all other assistance or resources from the Nebraska Humanities Council (such as the Speakers Bureau) that will support or be part of their project, program or event (whether applied for by their organization or some other organization).
• The NHC discourages multiple grant applications for a single project/program. Applicants should combine all parts of a project/program into a single grant application.

Funding and budget:

• The grant must be received and approved prior to the date of the program. The applicant should allow at least one month for mini grant processing and approval between the application deadline and the time of the event. For major grants, the applicant should allow at least two months for processing and approval. (Project expenses covered under the grant should not be incurred earlier than one month after the due date for mini grants and two months after the due date for major grants).
• The grant applicant must provide at least half of the total project costs, either through cash or in-kind contributions. For major grants of more that $1,500, at least 10% of the match must be cash.
• In-kind includes such items as volunteer time, office and meeting space, free publicity, donation of equipment, facilities or refreshments for an event.
• Project directors who plan and develop grant applications as part of their salaried positions should list their contributions as cash cost share. Project directors who are not preparing the grant as part of their salaried positions should list their time as in-kind.
• Ordinarily, the NHC can fund up to 20 percent of the total NHC funds requested to support administrative expenses. Some exception may be made in areas of program emphasis. The bulk of funds should be used to pay for humanities scholars and resources, travel and per diem when necessary, publicity to develop an audience and production costs.
• Use of NHC grant funds for indirect costs (overhead) is not allowed. These expenses should be listed as in-kind cost share.
• While the NHC has no fixed scale, stipends paid to humanities scholars usually amount to $100-$200 for an eight-hour day, with a ceiling of $500.
• Except when necessary to the project (for out-of-town speakers), food and lodging costs will not be covered by NHC grant funds. No NHC funds may be expended for entertainment, social activities or liquor. NHC funds may not be used for meals or refreshments for audience participants. These items, however, may be listed as in-kind cost share.
• The NHC does not ordinarily pay for media advertising (television and radio).
• Grantees may move up to 10 percent of the approved grant budget to some other expense without checking with the NHC. Changes to the grant budget greater than 10 percent must be approved in writing by the NHC.

Fees: Programs supported by NHC grants should be open to the public and free of charge or at a nominal fee. If an admission fee is charged it must be used to cover project costs (anticipated revenue must be accounted for in the budget to show the costs it will cover).

• Necessary travel is allowed at a rate not to exceed 42 cents a mile for privately owned automobiles.
• Maximum per diem (daily allowance for meals and lodging) may not exceed $75 per day per person.
• The NHC funds cannot contribute to more than $500 per day honorarium (the grantee can pay a higher honorarium if they choose by adding funding from some other source).
• Air travel, where necessary, should be figured at economy rates, including a Saturday night stay-over if that lowers the cost.

• Per diem and mileage rates may change. Applicants are responsible for knowing the current rates. Staff will adjust per diem and mileage totals downward if figured on rates that exceed NHC current rates but will not adjust rates upward.

MEDIA AND WEB SITE/DIGITAL GRANTS

 

Under certain circumstances funding for pre-production aspects of media and Web site/digital projects is available through the mini grant process. Consult with NHC staff about this possibility.

 

The NHC will send media and Web site/digital grant applications to outside reviewers who have expertise in the area. Each reviewer will assess the technical merits of the project and the capability of the project team to deliver the proposed results. The applicant will receive a copy of each reviewer’s assessment and will be allowed to submit a formal response to the technical review as part of the application process.

 

Following the technical review, media and Web site/digital grant applications will be included in the major grant process.

 

Applicants from outside the state of Nebraska must submit a $150 processing fee to subsidize the cost of the technical review process.

 

Digital products, such as Web sites, DVDs, or CD-ROMs, may be components of a larger project or be projects in their own right. Projects relying heavily or solely on a digital format should have strong humanities content, be based on sound scholarship, and offer users an interactive and engaging experience. These projects could be humanities-based Internet presentations such as online exhibitions that might be interactive and could include open dialogue moderated by humanities scholars. Projects must be humanities-based programs. The NHC will not fund organizational Web sites or promotional Web sites or CD/DVDs.

 

GRANT AWARDS

 

The NHC may choose to not fund a grant, fund a grant at a lesser amount, fund only certain aspects of a grant, and/or fund a grant with certain stipulations.

 

THE PROGRAM OR EVENT