California Story Fund Guidelines
Deadline: July 2, 2007
*Please note: An application for this grant line will be available on the CCH website on June 1, 2007. All applications must be submitted electronically via the CCH site by 4 pm on July 2, 2007. The application window for this grant is from June 1 to July 2, 2007. No applications will be accepted after 4 pm on July 2, 2007
Program Overview
The California Story Fund is an on-going grant program of the California Council for the Humanities. The Council will award competitive grants of up to $10,000 twice a year for public humanities programs that bring to light compelling stories from California's diverse communities and provide opportunities for collective reflection and public discussion. We hope that the California Story Fund will encourage Californians from many communities to share their stories thus promoting greater understanding and appreciation of the richness and complexity of our state. Please join us in this effort to enlarge the California story.
Note: Due to the Council's new youth-focused campaign, 'How I See It', the Council is especially interested in projects that will engage California youth in interpreting and reflecting on their experience through humanities-based programming. Organizations serving youth are strongly encouraged to apply. Youth-oriented projects, like all projects for which CSF funding is requested, must conform to the current guidelines to be competitive.
Descriptions of previously funded CSF projects can be viewed at: http://www.calhum.org/programs/story_intro.htm.
What are the project requirements?
CCH invites projects that fit all of the following criteria:
- Address the mission of the California Council for the Humanities: “To foster understanding between people and encourage their engagement in community life through the public use of the humanities.”
- Use grant funds to identify or collect stories from community members, present and communicate the stories to the general public, and foster public discussion of the meaning and significance of the stories.
- One or more of the following formats may be used to present and communicate these stories: photography and interpretive exhibit, radio documentary, digital media, dramatic presentation, interpretive artwork, poetry readings, storytelling events, film festivals, and community conferences. Other formats may be eligible: check with a CCH program manager.
- Host a community discussion component that engages people in discussion of the stories and their relevance to the community as part of your program.
- Involve at least one humanities expert (in addition to the project director) in the design and implementation of the project (see FAQ).
- Produce photos, transcripts of stories, or audio and video recordings that can be archived and made available to the general public. (2 to 6 of the most compelling stories and images must be submitted to CCH upon completion of the project).
- Have a total budget of no more than $50,000.
- Project activities funded by CCH must not start before October 1, 2007, for proposals submitted for the July 2, 2007 deadline. All project activities must be completed by September 30, 2009.
- Culminating events should be free and open to participation by the general public (see FAQ).
- Include plans for assessing project outcomes.
- Note: Organizations or project directors with open CCH grants are NOT eligible to apply. Please see FAQ for details.
FUNDS MAY NOT BE USED FOR:
- Projects that are looking to tell institutional histories.
- Projects that advocate on behalf of a cause.
- Projects that are promotional pieces.
- Film/Video and Radio Projects that will require more than $50,000 to produce.
For more information
We recommend that you contact the programs manager at the CCH office nearest you to discuss your project or clarify any questions you may have about the process.
San Francisco Bay Area
Ralph Lewin
Associate Executive Director
415/391-1474, ext. 305
rlewin@calhum.org
Central Valley and North Coast
Raeshma Razvi
Programs Manager
415/391-1474, ext. 316
rrazvi@calhum.org
Los Angeles Area and Central Coast
Felicia Kelley
Senior Programs Manager
213/623-5993
fkelley@calhum.org
San Diego, Imperial County and Inland Empire
Amy Rouillard
Senior Programs Manager
619/232-4020
AmyR@calhum.org
Proposal Narrative
- Program description (suggested length, 2 pages).
- Provide an overall description of your project.
- Tell us why this project is important.
- Describe the community in which this project takes place.
- Tell us whose stories will be told and/or interpreted.
- Describe the methods and process you will use to identify, select and present the stories.
- Explain how the humanities expert will play a role in the project.
- If working with youth, describe your organization’s prior experience in youth programming.
- Tell us which language(s) will the program be offered in.
- Culminating event (suggested length, half a page)
- Please provide a detailed description of your culminating event. Describe how your event will include a public discussion of the stories’ meaning and significance that will invite community reflection and discussion.
- Provide us with the tentative date and venue for your event.
- Audience and outreach (suggested length, half a page).
- Describe the anticipated audience (size and demographic characteristics)
- Outline your publicity and outreach plan for securing this audience.
- Outcomes (suggested length, half a page).
- Tell us what you hope to accomplish.
- Describe how you will archive any stories your project will collect and how any project-produced materials will be made accessible to the public after the end of the project.
- Describe your plan to evaluate your program.
- Project personnel (suggested length, 1 page).
- Tell us who will be directing the project.
- Please provide short bios for the humanities expert, project director and project staff. Please include full contact information (phone number, e-mail, and address). Include in the bios, background information about each person’s expertise. Please note: Project personnel must have the technical expertise required by the project (radio/video production, photo documentation, exhibit design, etc.). Humanities scholar expertise must also be relevant to the project.
- Be sure to briefly explain each person’s role in the project.
- Sponsoring organization (suggested length, half a page).
- Please provide a description of the sponsoring organization.
- Describe the sponsoring organization’s role in the project.
- Describe how the project director and sponsoring organization will work together to administer the project.
- Timeline (suggested length, one-half to 1 page).
Provide a detailed description of your monthly activities, from planning to completion, including a tentative schedule of events. Keep in mind that CCH funds cannot be used for expenses that have been incurred prior to funding notification (funding cannot be applied retroactively).
- Full Project Budget and Budget Narrative.
- Each project may request up to $10,000 in outright funds. The grant request should be matched by at least an equivalent amount of cash or in-kind contributions from local sources (see FAQ). Funds from NEH, NEA, state humanities councils, or other federally assisted programs cannot be applied towards your required match.
Please download and use the
CCH full project budget form. The budget should reflect all eligible expenses associated with the project, including those to be supported by CCH grant funds as well as local in-kind or cash matching funds (
see FAQ). You should also provide a narrative explanation of each item you are requesting specifically from CCH, including additional information about staffing, salaries, professional services (including contracts with humanities scholars) and other program costs. Please follow the outline of the full project budget form when preparing the narrative portion.
Application Procedure and Deadline
Applications must be submitted before 4 pm on July 2, 2007. Applicants will be notified of receipt of their proposals by e-mail. Awards will be announced within three months of application.
Tips for Preparing Your Proposal
- Download the CSF FAQ (available on the CCH website). Keep it handy!
- Download CSF Guidelines (File Format: PDF/Adobe Acrobat) and Full Project Budget Form (File Format: Microsoft Word document)
- Prepare your proposal narrative. Make sure to respond to the questions in the order listed. Please use our headings to organize your answers.
- Complete the Online Grant Application by 4 pm on July 2, 2007 (available on our website on June 1, 2007). Please be prepared to electronically attach and submit the following:
- Proposal Narrative
- CV/Resume for project director
- Full Project Budget Form
- Allow at LEAST one and a half hours to complete the online grant application.
