The Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission (PHMC) is now accepting applications from qualified museums and official county historical societies for nearly $2 million in Cultural and Historical Support Grants.
Donor Name: Pennsylvania Historical & Museum Commission (PHMC)
State: Pennsylvania
County: All Counties
Type of Grant: Grant
Deadline: 11/07/2022
Grant Size: $65,000
Details:
The goals of the Cultural and Historical Support Grants Program are to:
- strengthen the Pennsylvania museum community;
- supply general operating support to museums and official county historical societies that are not supported by other state agency funding programs;
- provide financial support as unrestricted operating support to address primary needs of museums;
- allow applicants to determine and describe how they will use funds;
- keep the application process fair and simple;
- determine award amounts using an equation based on a percentage of the previous year’s operating budget; and
- achieve geographical balance in the distribution of grants.
Eligibility Criteria
- Museums
- Grant awards are a minimum of $3,000 and not to exceed $65,000.
- Institutions that meet the American Association of Museums’ definition that “a museum must be a legally organized nonprofit institution, essentially educational in nature, with professional staff, which owns or utilizes tangible objects, cares for them, and exhibits them to the public on some regular schedule” may apply for grant assistance. The following are the types of museums that are eligible to apply:
- Children’s Museums
- General Museums (with two or more equally significant disciplines)
- History Museums
- Historic Houses/Sites
- Military and Maritime Museums
- Natural History Museums
- Planetariums
- Science/Technology Centers
- Multipurpose Organizations. Individual museums within multipurpose government or tax-exempt organizations may apply for grants if they function as a discrete unit within the parent organization. A museum that is part of a larger organization will be deemed eligible if:
- The museum has administrative autonomy for its operations;
- The museum has a fully segregated and itemized operating budget within that of the parent organization; and
- The museum is able to separately and distinctly fulfill all eligibility and application requirements as defined in these guidelines.
- To apply for a Cultural and Historical Support grant, a museum must meet the following requirements:
- Must be located in Pennsylvania;
- Must have tax-exempt status (501(c)(3)) with the Internal Revenue Service or be an entity of local government;
- Must have been incorporated and have been exhibiting to the public for at least two years prior to the submission of the grant application; and
- Must have an operating budget in excess of $100,000;
- Must have at least one full-time professional staff person (or approved equivalent);
- Must be registered with the Pennsylvania Commission on Charitable Organizations, as required.
- Official County Historical Societies
- Grant awards are a minimum of $2,500 and not to exceed $4,000.
- To apply for a Cultural and Historical Support grant, an Official County Historical Society must meet the following requirements:
- Must be located in Pennsylvania;
- Must have a designation of the organization as the official historical society for the county;
- Must have been incorporated and operating for a minimum of two years as a membership group with at least 100 paid members prior to filing the grant application;
- Must hold at least one public meeting per year;
- Must have a properly adopted constitution and bylaws and have elected officers to conduct the business of the society;
- Must have tax-exempt status (501(c)(3)) with the Internal Revenue Service;
- Must have a permanent physical facility wherein books, documents, papers and other objects of historical interest are deposited and available to the public at least 100 days per year or by appointment;
- Must have at least one full-time paid or unpaid staff member or the equivalent who is responsible for the operations and programs of the society; and
- Must sponsor programs relevant to county history including educational and public programs and have an active research and publications program.
- Must be registered with the Pennsylvania Commission on Charitable Organizations, as required.
For more information, visit PHMC.
