Challenge Grants for Two-year Colleges
Grant: Challenge Grants for Two-year Colleges
Agency: National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH)
Division: Office of Challenge Grants
Deadline: The deadline was February 20, 2013.
Description: The National Endowment for the Humanities invites two-year colleges to apply in a special Challenge Grant competition to strengthen their long-term humanities programs and resources. The perspectives of history, philosophy and literature can enrich the educational experience of students attending two-year colleges, deepening their understanding of questions related to differences among cultures, as manifested in diverse understandings of citizenship, politics and ethics. NEH seeks to encourage two-year colleges to develop models of excellence that enhance the role of the humanities on their campuses.
The goals of this initiative are:
- To enable two-year colleges to strengthen programs in the humanities, especially the study of the world’s many cultures and civilizations.
- To support model humanities curricula at two-year colleges that may be replicated at other institutions.
- To encourage two-year colleges to broaden the base of financial support for the humanities.
Challenge Grants for Two-year Colleges are capacity-building grants intended to help eligible institutions secure long-term improvements in and support for their humanities programs and resources. Grants may be used to establish or enhance endowments or spend-down funds that generate expendable earnings to support ongoing program activities. Funds may also be used for one-time capital expenditures that bring long-term benefits to the institution and to the humanities more broadly.
NEH welcomes plans to strengthen the technological infrastructure of two-year colleges, thereby enhancing their ability to make use of new technologies in research, education, preservation and public programming in the humanities. Challenge grant funds may be used, for example, to purchase equipment and software, to renovate computing centers devoted to the humanities and to purchase databases. Virtually any ongoing expense associated with uses of digital technology in the humanities can be supported by a challenge grant.
Fit for public broadcasting: Stations are not eligible to apply for this program, but NEH encourages partnerships. Stations that have relationships with two-year colleges will want to explore this opportunity, and other stations can use this as an opportunity to begin a relationship with local two-year colleges. Public broadcasting stations’ expertise in creating humanities programs and using media to communicate topics in the humanities is of particular importance to this program. Two-year colleges without significant humanities programming will need a partner with more experience in humanities education. Public broadcasting stations can fill this role.
Eligibility: Institutions eligible to apply in this competition are accredited U.S. two-year colleges and community colleges that predominantly award associate degrees that can be earned in two years of study. Both private, independent colleges and government-supported colleges are eligible. Community-college districts and two-year college consortia may also apply, in collaboration with at least one two-year college. Associate-degree-granting institutions are encouraged to partner with other institutions to carry out grant-oriented activities, but one two-year college must serve as the applicant of record.
Anticipated funding: The maximum amount an applicant may request is $500,000. Smaller grants for sharply defined purposes are encouraged. Grant recipients must raise, from nonfederal donors, two times the amount of federal funds offered. The federal portion of a challenge grant is typically offered over four years, but the grantee may take up to 80 months to raise funds for matching.
How to apply: Prior to submitting a proposal, applicants are strongly encouraged to contact program officers who can offer advice about preparing the proposal, supply samples of funded applications and review draft proposals. Program staff recommends that draft proposals be submitted, via e-mail, at least four to six weeks before the application deadline. Applications must be submitted electronically on Grants.gov. Online submission requires registration, a process that usually takes three to five business days but can take as long as four weeks. Be sure to visit Grants.gov and begin registering well in advance of the grant deadline.
Resources:
Program Notice
Office of Challenge Grants Website
Frequently Asked Questions
2011 and 2012 Grantees
