Archives Collaboratives | COLLABORATIVES 201904

Opportunity Information: Apply for COLLABORATIVES 201904

The Archives Collaboratives grant opportunity is run by the National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC) within the National Archives and Records Administration. Its core goal is to help bring collections held by small and under-represented archives into wider public view, making them easier for people to discover and use. Rather than funding a single institution working alone, the program is designed to strengthen networks of archives by encouraging them to work together, compare approaches, and build shared capacity. In practice, this means funding groups that can jointly identify what is working, what is missing, and what practical steps will make their holdings more visible and usable over the long term.

A central requirement is that an Archives Collaborative must include at least three organizations. These partners do not have to be in the same physical area; they can be local, statewide, regional, or entirely virtual. What matters is that they have some meaningful connection that makes collaboration logical and productive. That connection might be a shared subject focus in their collections, similar organizational missions, or serving similar user communities. The program is explicitly aimed at helping members share best practices, tools, and techniques; assess institutional strengths and opportunities; and create the kinds of plans and management structures that support long-term sustainability and growth.

Funding is structured in two phases: Planning Grants and Implementation Grants. The Planning Grant phase is essentially the setup stage. During this period, the lead applicant organizes outreach to potential partners, secures commitments, and works with the group to define the collaborative itself. The members are expected to develop a clear mission for the collaborative, along with a workplan and timeline. The plan should outline either a shared project they intend to carry out together or a shared best practice, tool, or technique they want to develop and adopt across institutions.

Implementation Grants are intended to support carrying out the work designed during the planning phase. These awards are tied to the planning effort, meaning they are meant to fund the projects that emerge from the Planning Grant. Collaboratives that can show real member commitment, along with a concrete workplan and timeline, may apply for up to $100,000 total for implementation, shared across the consortium. Importantly, completing a Planning Grant successfully does not guarantee an Implementation Grant; implementation proposals go through a separate review and funding recommendation process by the Commission.

In terms of award size and volume, the opportunity anticipates making up to six Planning Grants, each up to $25,000, for a total program allocation of up to $125,000 for the planning stage. Planning grant projects can begin no earlier than July 1, 2019. For the implementation stage described in the notice, implementation applications were expected to be due in December 2019, with an implementation start date of July 1, 2020. The source listing also notes a closing date of April 4, 2019 for the opportunity as posted.

Eligibility is broad and includes nonprofit organizations and institutions, colleges and universities, state or local government agencies, and federally acknowledged or state-recognized Native American tribes or groups. The source data further specifies eligible applicant categories such as state governments, county governments, city or township governments, public and state-controlled institutions of higher education, private institutions of higher education, federally recognized tribal governments, and 501(c)(3) nonprofits (other than higher education institutions).

Cost sharing rules differ by phase. No cost sharing is required for Planning Grants, which lowers the barrier to forming a collaborative and doing the initial design work. Implementation Grants, however, require shared project costs: NHPRC will cover no more than 75 percent of total project costs, meaning the applicants must cover the remaining share. The applicant contribution can include direct costs as well as indirect expenses, in-kind support, eligible third-party non-federal contributions, and income earned directly by the project. A key restriction is that NHPRC funds cannot be used for indirect costs under the cited federal rule (2 CFR 2600.101); if indirect costs exist, they must be counted on the applicant side as part of cost sharing rather than charged to the grant.

The opportunity also emphasizes compliance and application completeness. Applicants must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM) before applying, keep that registration active through the application and award period, and include a valid DUNS number in the application materials (as referenced in the notice). A complete application package must include Standard Form 424 (Application for Federal Assistance), Standard Form 424B (Assurances for Non-Construction Programs), a project narrative, a summary, supplementary materials, and a budget. Applications missing required components are not considered, and proposals that consist entirely of ineligible activities will not be reviewed. Applicants are directed to NHPRC guidance on funding limitations through the "What we do and do not fund" page on the National Archives website, which is meant to help organizations avoid proposing activities the Commission cannot support.

Finally, award recipients must acknowledge NHPRC support in any publications or products that result from the grant. Overall, the program is geared toward helping multiple smaller or under-recognized archival organizations coordinate around shared needs, formalize how they will work together, and then carry out practical, sustainable improvements that expand access and public discovery of their collections.

• The National Archives and Records Administration in the humanities (see cultural affairs in cfda) sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Archives Collaboratives" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 89.003.
• This funding opportunity was created on Nov 26, 2018.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Apr 04, 2019. (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 $25,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 6 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township 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 COLLABORATIVES 201904

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