I. Program Description II. Endowment-Wide Programs and Initiatives III. Award Information IV. Eligibility V. Application and Submission Information VI. Application Review VII. Award Administration Information VIII. Points of Contact IX. Other Information • Frequently asked questions • NEH Supplemental Information for Individuals form (2-page PDF) • Previously Funded Summer Stipends • Download the current version of Adobe Reader • How to convert documents into PDFs • Grants.gov FAQs • Grants.gov customer support To obtain a printed version of these guidelines, call 202-606-8446, send an e-mail to info@neh.gov, or write to NEH, Office of Communications 1100 Pennsylvania Avenue, NW, Washington, DC 20506. * - Modification (7/01/2008): Instructions clarified for submitting simultaneous applications to Summer Stipends and other NEH programs. ** - Modification (8/14/2008): An update to Section IV clarifies the eligibility requirements for foreign nationals.

Date posted: April 30, 2008

Date modified: July 1, 2008 *

                         August 14, 2008 **

CFDA Number: 45.160

Type of Award:
Successful applicants receive an outright award of $6,000 for two consecutive months of full-time research and writing.

Questions?

Summer Stipends support individuals pursuing advanced research that is of value to scholars and general audiences in the humanities.

Recipients usually produce articles, monographs, books, digital materials, archaeological site reports, translations, editions, and other scholarly tools.

Summer Stipends support full-time work on a humanities project for a period of two months.

Summer Stipends support projects at any stage of development.

Summer Stipends are awarded to individual scholars. Organizations are not eligible to apply.

Summer Stipends may not be used for:

• research for doctoral dissertations or theses by students enrolled in a degree program;
• specific policy studies or educational or technical impact assessments;
• the preparation or publication of textbooks;
• studies of teaching methods or theories, surveys of courses and programs, or curriculum development;
• inventories of collections;
• works in the creative or performing arts (e.g., painting, writing fiction or poetry, dance performance, etc.);
• projects that seek to promote a particular political, philosophical, religious, or ideological point of view; or
• projects that advocate a particular program of social action.

Providing Access to Grant Products

As a taxpayer-supported federal agency, the NEH endeavors to make the products of its awards available to the broadest possible audience. Our goal is for scholars, educators, students, and the American public to have ready and easy access to the wide range of NEH grant products. For the Summer Stipends program, such products may include digital tools, Web sites, and the like. For projects that lead to the development of Web sites, all other considerations being equal, the NEH gives preference to those that provide free access to the public. Detailed guidance on access and dissemination matters can be found in Section V., Final Product and Dissemination, below.

Summer Stipends provide $6,000 for two consecutive months of full-time research and writing. Recipients must work full-time on their projects for these two months, and may hold other research grants supporting the same project during this time. Summer Stipends normally support work carried out during the summer months, but arrangements can be made for other times of the year.

Those with questions are encouraged to contact the Summer Stipends staff at stipends@neh.gov.

Cost Sharing

NEH Summer Stipends do not require cost sharing.

The Summer Stipends program accepts applications from researchers, teachers, and writers regardless of their institutional affiliations. Applicants with college or university affiliations, however, must be nominated by their institutions (see the "Nomination of college and university faculty" section , below).

Only individual applicants are eligible to apply for Summer Stipends.

All applicants must have completed their formal education by the application deadline. While applicants need not have advanced degrees, individuals currently enrolled in a degree-granting program are ineligible to apply. Applicants who have satisfied all the requirements for a degree and are awaiting its conferral may apply, but such applicants need a letter from the dean of the conferring school attesting to the applicant's status as of October 1, 2008. This letter must be faxed to the Summer Stipends program at 202-606-8204.

Citizenship

Recent grants and fellowships held by the applicant

Recipients of a Summer Stipend in 2004 or after are ineligible.

Previously supported projects

Nomination of college and university faculty

Each institution must announce its nominating procedures to all prospective applicants. Prospective applicants should become familiar with their institution's nomination procedures before the October 1 application deadline. Each institution should designate a nominating official, usually an academic vice president or dean. Nominating officials will receive an e-mail soon after the application deadline asking them to confirm the status of all individuals who require nomination.

Applicants exempt from nomination

• independent scholars not affiliated with a college or university;
• college and university staff members who are not faculty members and will not be teaching during the academic year preceding the award tenure; and
• adjunct faculty, part-time faculty, and applicants with academic appointments that terminate by the summer of the award tenure.

• Fellowships,
• Faculty Research Awards, or
• Fellowships at Digital Humanities Centers.

Prior to beginning, applicants should review the evaluation criteria listed below in Section VI and consult the Frequently asked questions.

Because of the large number of applications, the Summer Stipends staff is not able to read and comment on draft proposals. However, potential applicants may discuss with the staff specific concerns or questions that arise during the preparation of their proposals. Contact NEH's Division of Research Programs at 202-606-8200 or stipends@neh.gov. Hearing-impaired applicants can contact NEH via TDD at 1-866-372-2930.

Once an application has been submitted, the staff will not comment on it except with respect to issues of completeness and eligibility. NEH does not accept applications by e-mail or fax.

You will prepare your application for submission via Grants.gov just as you would a paper application. In addition to forms described in Step 4 below, your application should consist of the following six parts:

1. Narrative—Not to Exceed Three Single-Spaced Pages

   Applicants should provide an intellectual justification for their projects, conveying the ideas, objectives, methods, and work plan. A simple statement of need or intent is insufficient. Applications exceeding this page limit will not be reviewed. Format pages with one-inch margins and with a font size no smaller than eleven point.

   The narrative should not assume specialized knowledge and should be free of technical terms and jargon.

   In the course of writing a narrative, applicants should address the following areas:

   • Research and Contribution

     Describe the intellectual significance of the proposed project, including its value to scholars and general audiences in the humanities. Explain the basic ideas, problems, or questions examined by the study. If the area of inquiry is new to the applicant, provide reasons for working in it. Explain how the project will complement, challenge, or expand relevant studies in the field.

   • Methods and Work Plan

     Clarify the part or stage of the project that will be supported by the Summer Stipend. Provide an overview of the project and describe what will be accomplished during the award period. Supply a brief work plan. For book projects, explain how the final project will be organized. If possible, provide a brief chapter outline. For digital projects, describe the technologies that will be used and developed, and how the scholarship will be presented to benefit audiences in the humanities.

   • Skills and Materials

     Specify the level of competence in the languages or digital technologies needed for the study. Describe where the study will be conducted and what research materials will be used. If relevant, specify the arrangements for access to archives, collections, or institutions that contain the necessary resources.

   • Final Product and Dissemination

     Describe the intended audience and the intended results of the project. If relevant, explain how the results will be disseminated and why these means are appropriate to the subject matter and audience. For example, discuss publishing arrangements and publicity plans. If the project has a Web site, please provide the URL.

     The Endowment expects grantees to provide broad access to all grant products, insofar as the conditions of the materials and intellectual property rights allow. In the case of digital products NEH strongly encourages projects that will offer free public access to online resources. For projects that lead to the development of Web sites, all other considerations being equal, the NEH gives preference to those that provide free access to the public.

2. Bibliography—Not to Exceed One Single-Spaced Page

   The bibliography should consist of primary and secondary sources that relate directly to the project. Include works that pertain to both the project’s substance and its theoretical or methodological approaches. Do not include titles that are cited in the application narrative. Evaluators will use the bibliography to assess your preparation in the subject area.

3. Résumé—Not to Exceed Two Single-Spaced Pages

   Your résumé should provide the following:

   • Current and Past Positions.
   • Education: List degrees, dates awarded, and titles of theses or dissertations.
   • Awards and Honors: Include dates of tenure. If you have received support from NEH, indicate the dates and the results.
   • Publications: Include full citations for publications and presentations.
   • Other Relevant Professional Activities and Accomplishments.
4. Appendix—Only for Editions, Translations, or Database Projects, or for Proposals that Include Visual Materials
   • Editions or Translations: Provide a sample of the original text (one page) and the edited or translated version (one page).
   • Database Projects: Provide a sample entry (one page).
   • Visual Materials: Provide a sample (one page) in .pdf format, not .jpg or other common graphic format.
5. Reference Letters—Must Be Submitted Online to NEH Not Later Than October 19, 2008

   Based on the information provided in the application, NEH contacts the referees by e-mail requesting that they submit their letters online (see Step 4 below).

   Applicants are responsible for providing referees with relevant materials. Letters of reference are more highly regarded if they address the specific proposed activity and how well the candidate is suited to undertake it. Ideally, referees should come from different institutions.

6. Nominations Status Confirmation—Must Be Submitted Online to NEH Not Later Than October 19, 2008

   Based on the information provided in the application, NEH contacts the nominating official by e-mail requesting that they confirm your nomination status. Officials must confirm all nominations by October 19, 2008. When they have done so, both nominating officials and applicants will receive a confirmation via e-mail. NEH will declare ineligible all applicants who do not fit one of the exempt categories and do not have their nomination status confirmed.

1. Application for Federal Assistance SF424-Individual—this form asks for basic information about the project and the applicant.
2. NEH Attachment Form—this form allows you to attach your narrative, bibliography, résumé, and appendix.

• A completed SF424-Individual Form; and
• An Attachments Form to which you must attach a completed NEH Supplemental Information for Individuals form, project narrative, bibliography, résumé, and appendix (these attachments are described at length elsewhere in these guidelines).

1. the intellectual significance of the proposed project, including its value to scholars and general audiences in the humanities;
2. the quality or promise of quality of the applicant's work as an interpreter of the humanities;
3. the quality of the conception, definition, organization, and description of the project and the applicant's clarity of expression;
4. the feasibility of the proposed plan of work, including, when appropriate, the soundness of the dissemination and access plans; and
5. the likelihood that the applicant will complete the project.

The Endowment expects grantees to provide broad access to all grant products, insofar as the conditions of the materials and intellectual property rights allow. For projects that lead to the development of Web sites, all other considerations being equal, the NEH gives preference to those that provide free access to the public.

Review and Selection Process

Award notices

Responsibilities of Award Recipients

Award conditions

Reporting Requirements

If you have questions about the program, contact:

Privacy Policy

Application Completion Time

Please send any comments regarding the estimated completion time or any other aspect of this application, including suggestions for reducing the completion time, to the Office of Publications, National Endowment for the Humanities, Washington, D.C. 20506; and to the Office of Management and Budget, Paperwork Reduction Project (3136-0134), Washington, D.C. 20503. According to the Paperwork Reduction Act of 1995, no persons are required to respond to a collection of information unless it displays a valid OMB number.