Preservation Assistance Grants for Smaller Institutions | 20210114 PG

Opportunity Information: Apply for 20210114 PG

The Preservation Assistance Grants for Smaller Institutions program is a discretionary grant opportunity offered by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH), specifically through its Division of Preservation and Access. It is designed to strengthen the preservation and long-term care of humanities collections held by small and mid-sized organizations. The central goal is to help these institutions improve their capacity to manage, protect, and sustain collections that have humanities value, such as archival materials, special collections, historical records, photographs, audiovisual media, and other cultural heritage resources. A notable emphasis of this program is outreach to smaller and mid-sized institutions that have not previously received NEH funding, making it a practical entry point for first-time NEH applicants looking to build foundational preservation practices.

Eligible applicants span a broad range of public and nonprofit entities that commonly serve as stewards of local and regional humanities collections. These include state, county, and city or township governments; special district governments; public and state-controlled institutions of higher education; private institutions of higher education; federally recognized Native American tribal governments; and nonprofit organizations with IRS 501(c)(3) status (excluding higher education institutions within that nonprofit category). In other words, many types of libraries, archives, museums, historical societies, cultural organizations, and similar collection-holding institutions can potentially qualify, provided they fit within the eligible applicant types and are responsible for relevant humanities materials.

For this particular funding opportunity listing (Funding Opportunity Number 20210114 PG; CFDA 45.149), the maximum award amount is $15,000, and NEH anticipated making around 55 awards. The original application closing date was January 14, 2021, and the opportunity record shows a creation date of September 25, 2020. The funding activity category is Humanities (linked to the cultural affairs area in CFDA). As a grant instrument, the program typically supports practical, capacity-building preservation activities rather than large-scale, long-duration projects. The underlying intent is to help smaller institutions take concrete steps toward better collections care and risk reduction, often by enabling them to assess needs, plan improvements, and implement basic preservation measures that can have an immediate and lasting impact.

• The National Endowment for the Humanities in the humanities (see cultural affairs in cfda) sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Preservation Assistance Grants for Smaller Institutions" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 45.149.
• This funding opportunity was created on Sep 25, 2020.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jan 14, 2021. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $15,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 55 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Special district governments, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education.

Apply for 20210114 PG

[Watch] Creating a grant proposal using the step-by-step wizard inside the applicant portal: