| FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
July 16, 2009
Press Contacts
202-653-4632
Jeannine Mjoseth, jmjoseth@imls.gov
Mamie Bittner, mbittner@imls.gov
Guidelines Announced
for American Heritage Preservation Grants
Washington, DC—The
Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) and the
Bank of America Charitable Foundation are pleased to announce
the 2010 guidelines for the American Heritage Preservation
Program. This public-private partnership will fund the
preservation of endangered and fragile art works, rare
books, scientific specimens, and historical documents
(photographs, maps, deeds, etc.) held in small and medium-sized
museums, archives, and libraries. To access application
guidelines instructions, please visit www.imls.gov/collections/grants/boa.htm.
“It is through the preservation
and care of our collective heritage that America’s
communities stay vital,” said Anne-Imelda Radice,
Director of IMLS. “These grants are intended to
assist institutions, as our nation’s stewards of
cultural collections, with activities that ensure the
safekeeping and care of these precious artifacts and with
sharing the impact of these activities with their communities.”
The grants of up to $3,000
are aimed at completing stand-alone conservation projects
that convey the essential character and experience of
the United States. Examples of fundable projects are provided
in the grant guidelines.
The partnership builds on
IMLS’s Connecting to Collections: A Call to
Action, a multi-year, multi-pronged initiative to
raise public awareness and inspire action on the care
of America’s collections. That initiative implements
recommendations of an IMLS-supported study, A Public
Trust at Risk: The Heritage Health Index Report on the
State of America’s Collections, which found
that nearly 190 million objects in U.S. collections are
in immediate danger of deterioration and need restoration
or conservation.
For questions about museum
projects, please contact Christine Henry, Senior Program
Officer, at 202-653-4674 to discuss your questions. For
questions about library or archival projects, please contact
Kevin Cherry, Senior Program Officer, at 202-653-4662.
The deadline for application
is September 15, 2009.
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