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 • Sample Financial Summary (2-page PDF) • Frequently Asked Questions • Sample projects • DUNS Number Requirement • Definitions of types of funding • Registration Checklist • Download the current version of Adobe Reader • How to convert documents into PDFs • Tips for Creating PDF Files in Grants.gov Applications • 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.

• faculty and staff salaries and benefits;
• acquisitions for collections;
• faculty, teacher, and staff development;
• research fellowships;
• lecture or exhibition series;
• visiting scholars or consultants;
• publishing subventions;
• preservation and conservation programs;
• construction, renovation, and maintenance of facilities;
• purchase of equipment and software; and
• fund-raising costs (totaling no more than 10 percent of challenge grant funds).

• one-time expenditures with no long-term impact;
• recovery of indirect costs;
• support for projects eligible for grants from other NEH programs; or
• scholarships or stipends for students below the graduate level.

• invested in permanent endowments, the income from which supports ongoing and recurring costs such as salaries, honoraria for visiting scholars, fellowships, and maintenance;
• spent directly on one-time capital costs for items that have inherent longevity, such as facilities (new construction or renovation), equipment, and acquisitions; or
• combined in "spend-down" funds that are invested, with both the income and the principal expended over a defined period of years. Spend-down funds are particularly appropriate for programs that may be long-term but not permanent.

Sample match and release schedule for a regular We the People challenge grant NEH Challenge offer of $300,000, with a three-to-one matching ratio    Year 1   Year 2   Year 3   Year 4   Year 5     Total NEH funds (federal) offered   $25,000 $100,000 $100,000  $75,000     n/a   $300,000 Nonfederal funds to be raised   $75,000 $300,000 $300,000   $75,000 $150,000   $900,000 Total grant funds (federal + nonfederal) $100,000 $400,000 $400,000 $150,000 $150,000 $1,200,000

Sample match and release schedule for a We the People challege grant to an HBCU, Tribal College, or two-year college NEH Challenge offer of $300,000, with a two-to-one matching ratio    Year 1   Year 2   Year 3   Year 4   Year 5   Year 6     Total NEH funds (federal) offered   $60,000  $75,000  $75,000  $50,000  $40,000     n/a   $300,000 Nonfederal funds to be raised $120,000 $150,000 $150,000 $100,000  $40,000   $40,000   $600,000 Total grant funds (federal + nonfederal) $180,000 $225,000 $225,000 $150,000  $80,000   $40,000   $900,000

1. Table of contents
   Include all the parts of the application with page numbers.
2. Abstract
   Summarize the proposal, including the activities to be supported and the plans for raising funds for matching. Applicants should describe the significance to the humanities of what they are proposing. This summary may be single-spaced and should not exceed one page.
3. We the People challenge grant budget
   Do not use the standard NEH budget form. Instead, provide an itemized one- or two-page budget describing all challenge grant funds and indicate:
   • the portions of the total NEH funds being requested in years 1, 2, 3, and 4 of the grant period; and
   • how all We the People challenge grant funds—federal and nonfederal combined—will be expended.
   For purposes of expenditure, there is no distinction between federal and nonfederal funds. Even if part of a larger campaign, the challenge grant budget should be limited to requested NEH funds plus the minimum required nonfederal funds. Planned annual expenditures from endowment or spend-down yield should be broken down by specific cost categories. Challenge grants do not include indirect cost recovery.
   The following sample budget is for a grant of $300,000, plus $900,000 in nonfederal donations. (Three modes of expenditure are included for purposes of illustration; applicants should propose only the mode or modes of expenditure appropriate to their planned humanities activities.)
   Sample We the People challenge grant budget

   Total NEH funds requested: $300,000 Year 1: $25,000 Year 2: $100,000 Year 3: $100,000 Year 4: $75,000   Total nonfederal contributions $900,000   Total Grant Funds (NEH plus Match) $1,200,000   Planned Expenditures:   Direct* $200,000   Endowment Endowment principal $750,000 Rate of expendable return 5% Projected annual income* $37,500   Combined (spend-down fund) Fund principal $250,000 Rate of expendable return 5% Number of years 10 Annual expenditure (income + principal)* $32,376

   * Indicate what the expenditures are for, and in the proposal narrative provide detailed information about these expenditures and justify the amounts allotted for the various items in terms of the plans for the humanities. Also, please include a brief explanation of the institution’s investment management policy.
   Calculating a “spend-down” fund
   The amount needed for a spend-down fund is based on the rate of return on investment, the number of years the fund will exist, and the amount to be spent each year.
   The amount needed can be calculated using a tool, such as the PV financial function in Microsoft Excel, that calculates the “present value” of funds needed to allow the desired expenditure over the specified number of future years.
   NOTE: If the We the People challenge grant includes support for any part of a construction or renovation project, the entire project is subject to Davis-Bacon requirements, and applicants must take into account the effect on costs of the Davis-Bacon Act. For purposes of compliance with the Davis-Bacon Act, there is no distinction between federal funds and nonfederal donations raised for matching.
4. Institutional fact summary
   For applications involving multiple institutional partners, only the applicant of record must provide an institutional fact summary. Partner institutions, however, may also submit fact summaries to document their institutional character and humanities capacities.
   Provide the following in a one-page outline:
   • Relevant facts and statistics about the institution or organization, such as its
     • history;
     • mission;
     • governance and administration;
     • physical facilities;
     • humanities staff size and composition (including the percentage of all staff who are in the humanities);
     • humanities collections (including the percentage of all collections that are in the humanities); and
     • accreditation or affiliation (if applicable).
   • Data on recent humanities activities, such as the
     • types and numbers of enrollments, programs, exhibitions, courses, and degrees awarded in the past two years;
     • percentage of total offerings that are in the humanities;
     • size and nature of audience or population served;
     • cost to participants (if any);
     • number of publications produced (if applicable); and
     • evidence for the success of these activities or offerings.
5. Financial summary
   Include a one- or two-page summary of the institution's finances. Please refer to the Challenge Grants Sample Financial Summary (2-page PDF) for a suggested format. Where the application concerns a sub-unit of a larger whole (e.g., a library on a university campus), include summaries for both the larger and smaller units. The purpose of the summary is to give a clear picture of the financial status of the institution during the most recent three-year period. Information should be provided about annual operating budgets, exclusive of capital campaigns or other special income and exclusive of capital project expenditures. Figures should be compatible with figures cited elsewhere in the proposal. Significant operating surpluses or deficits should be explained.
6. Narrative
   Narrative descriptions are limited to twenty-five double-spaced pages. The font size should be no smaller than eleven-point. All pages should have one-inch margins, be collated, and numbered consecutively throughout. Statistical and other supporting materials may be relegated to appendices. The narrative should provide a clear, logical, and concise description of the activities the challenge grant will support. Describe how the We the People Challenge Grant in United States History, Institutions, and Culture will encourage the exploration of significant themes and events in our national heritage and thereby enhance knowledge of how the founding principles of the United States have shaped, and been shaped by, American history for more than two hundred years.
   In the narrative, the applicant should do the following:
   • Describe the significance and intellectual quality of the humanities activities, programs, and holdings relevant to the understanding of U.S. history, institutions, and culture. Explain why these activities are important, and to whom, and explain how the activities advance knowledge of the founding principles of the United States, as they have affected, and been affected by, American history, institutions, and culture.
   • Describe the institution’s long-range plans for advancing and/or disseminating humanistic knowledge. Explain how the institution, through its mission, personnel, governance, facilities, and resources, is capable of sustaining outstanding humanities activities that explore significant themes and events relating to the founding principles of our nation. Identify any collaborators or partners and provide evidence, such as letters of support, of institutional commitment to the long-range plans and the challenge grant.
   • Discuss the impact of the challenge grant. Explain how grant funds will strengthen and improve the understanding of U.S. history, institutions, and culture. Delineate clearly and in detail the planned We the People challenge grant expenditures (federal and nonfederal combined). Explain how the NEH challenge grant will sustain and enhance significant humanities activities over the long term. Describe the mode of expenditure (direct, endowment, or combined) by which the challenge grant will support humanities activities, and explain why it is appropriate to the activities and how it will improve them over the long term. Provide a plan for assessing, in both qualitative and quantitative terms as appropriate, the impact of the grant.
   • Describe the plans for raising funds to meet the NEH matching requirement. Offer evidence of long-term financial stability at the institution, and explain how the institution’s resources, leadership, staff, and experience will enable it to conduct a successful campaign. Give details of the fund-raising strategy; explain its feasibility and how it will broaden the base of institutional support.
   Applicants should also briefly describe, when relevant, any recent NEH or state humanities council grants received by the institution, as well as any pending NEH applications, related to the activities that the We the People challenge grant would support.
   If the applicant holds or is currently applying for any NEH grants that include a matching component, these must be described (including the amount of the match) in the section of the narrative that discusses the feasibility of fund-raising. Applicants who held a prior NEH challenge grant should briefly discuss the fund-raising experience and the benefits to the humanities resulting from the grant(s).
7. Lists of trustees and staff
   Provide a list of the institution's board of governors or trustees with their professional affiliations and a list of staff and faculty members principally involved with the challenge grant, indicating their professional qualifications.
8. Résumés
   The project director is the person primarily responsible for implementing the humanities activities described in the narrative proposal. Attach a two-page version of this person's résumé as an appendix to the application. Résumés or job descriptions for any position being supported should also be attached.
9. Letters of support
   Include in an appendix letters of commitment or support from appropriate institutional officials, confirming the institution’s commitment to the humanities activities and to meeting the NEH challenge. Other letters of support, such as from partners, scholars in the field, staff involved in carrying out the humanities activities, and participants in or beneficiaries of the humanities activities, may be included as appropriate.
10. Optional appendices
    Copies of printed brochures, flyers, or other descriptive materials may be included and referred to in the text of the narrative.
    Single copies of bulky ancillary materials, such as catalogs, journals, or books, may also be submitted but are neither required nor encouraged. See How to Submit Supplementary Materials.

1. Application for Federal Domestic Assistance - Short Organizational (SF-424 Short)—this form asks for basic information about the project, the project director, and the institution.
2. Supplementary Cover Sheet for NEH Grant Programs—this form asks for additional information about the project director, the institution, and the budget.
3. NEH Attachment Form—this form allows you to attach your narrative, budget, and the other parts of your application.

1. Name of Federal Agency: This will be filled in automatically with “National Endowment for the Humanities.”
2. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: This will be filled in automatically with the CFDA number and title of the NEH program to which you are applying.
3. Date Received: Please leave blank.
4. Funding Opportunity Number: This will be filled in automatically.
5. Applicant Information: In this section, please supply the name, address, employer/taxpayer identification number (EIN/TIN), DUNS number, Web site address, and congressional district of the institution. Also choose the “type” that best describes your institution (you only need to select one).
   If your institution is located, for example, in the 5th Congressional District of your state, put a “5.” If your institution doesn't have a congressional district (e.g., it is in a state or U.S. territory that doesn’t have districts or is in a foreign country), put a “0” (zero).
   All institutions applying to federal grant programs are required to provide a DUNS number, issued by Dun & Bradstreet, as part of their application. Project directors should contact their institution’s grant administrator or chief financial officer to obtain their institution’s DUNS number. Federal grant applicants can obtain a DUNS number free of charge by calling 1-866-705-5711. (Learn more about the requirement.)
6. Project Information: Provide the title of your project. Your title should be brief, descriptive, and substantive. It should also be informative to a nonspecialist audience. Provide a brief description of your project. The description should be written for a nonspecialist audience and clearly state the importance of the proposed work and its relation to larger issues in the humanities. List the starting and ending dates for your project.
7. Project Director: Provide the Social Security Number, name, title, mailing address, e-mail address, and telephone and fax numbers for the project director.
   Disclosure of Social Security Numbers is optional. NEH uses them for internal application processing only.
8. Primary Contact/Grants Administrator: Provide the contact information for the official responsible for the administration of the grant (e.g., negotiating the project budget and ensuring compliance with the terms and conditions of the award). This person is often a grants or research officer or a sponsored programs official. Normally, the Institutional Grants Administrator is not the same person as the Project Director. If the project director and the grant administrator are the same person, skip to Item 9.
9. Authorized Representative: Provide the contact information for the Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) who is submitting the application on behalf of the institution. This person, often called an “Authorizing Official,” is typically the president, vice president, executive director, provost, or chancellor. In order to become an AOR, the person must be designated by the institution’s E-Business Point of Contact. For more information, please consult the Grants.gov user guide, which is available at: www07.grants.gov/applicants/app_help_reso.jsp.

1. Project Director: Use the pull-down menu to select the major field of study for the project director.
2. Institution Information: Use the pull-down menu to select your type of institution.
3. Project Funding: Enter your project funding information. Note that applicants for Challenge Grants should use the right column only; applicants to all other programs should use the left column only.
4. Application Information: Indicate whether the proposal will be submitted to other NEH grant programs, government agencies, or private entities for funding. If so, please indicate where and when. NEH frequently cosponsors projects with other funding sources. Providing this information will not prejudice the review of your application.
   For Type of Application, check “new” if the application requests a new period of funding, whether for a new project or the next phase of a project previously funded by NEH. Check “supplement” if the application requests additional funding for a current NEH grant. If requesting a supplement, provide the current grant number (applicants should discuss their request with a NEH program officer before submitting such an application).
   For Project Field Code, use the pull-down menu to select the humanities field of the project. If the project is multidisciplinary, choose the field that corresponds to the project’s predominant discipline.

September 1, 2008	Date prior to the February deadline from which advance fund-raising may count toward the matching requirement.
Six weeks before deadline	Target date for submission of draft proposals for comment by NEH staff.
February 3, 2009	Receipt deadline for applications.
September 2009	Notification of awards.
March 31	Annual date after notification by which the grantee must submit certification of the gifts required to claim each year's installment of federal funds.

1. The significance of the humanities activities
   What is the evidence that the current and planned activities—particularly those that will be affected by the We the People challenge grant—are significant and that their intellectual quality is high? Why are these activities important, and to whom? How do the activities enhance the exploration of significant themes and events in our national heritage, with special attention to advancing knowledge of how the founding principles of the United States have shaped and been shaped by American history and culture for more than two hundred years?
2. The appropriateness of the resources and plans
   What evidence is there of realistic long-range institutional planning to advance and/or disseminate humanistic knowledge? Is the institution, through its mission, personnel, governance, facilities, and resources, capable of sustaining outstanding activities in the humanities, especially with regard to programs that increase knowledge of the founding principles of the United States? What evidence (such as letters of support) is there of sufficient institutional and community commitment to the long-range plans?
3. The impact of the challenge grant funds
   What impact will grant funds have on strengthening and improving the understanding of U.S. history, institutions, and culture? Is the mode of expenditure (endowment, direct, combined) appropriate to the humanities-related costs and to the nature of the activities to be supported? Are the planned We the People challenge grant expenditures (federal and nonfederal combined) described clearly and in detail? How will the NEH challenge grant sustain and enhance significant humanities activities over the long term? How will the institution assess the impact of the challenge grant?
4. The feasibility of fund-raising
   Does the institution provide evidence or promise of long-term financial stability? Do the institution’s resources, leadership, staff, and experience augur well for its ability to conduct a successful campaign to meet the NEH matching requirement? What evidence is offered that the fund-raising plan is feasible? Will the fund-raising strategy broaden the base of institutional support?