PUBLISHING HISTORICAL RECORDS IN COLLABORATIVE DITIGAL EDITIONS | EDITIONS 202411

Opportunity Information: Apply for EDITIONS 202411

The National Historical Publications and Records Commission (NHPRC), part of the National Archives and Records Administration, is inviting proposals for projects that publish online, scholarly digital editions of historical records. The core purpose of the program is to expand public discovery and access to primary sources that help tell the American story, while also providing strong editorial framing so that readers can understand what the documents are, where they came from, and why they matter. The opportunity is aimed at projects that will make collections available online in a way that is searchable, fully transcribed, and meaningfully annotated, rather than simply scanned or described at a high level.

A wide range of source materials can be supported under this program. Eligible records include traditional paper documents and photographs, as well as born-digital content and analog audio. The thematic scope is intentionally broad, covering major movements and topics in U.S. history such as politics, law (including social and cultural legal history), social reform, business, the military, and the arts. The Commission places special emphasis on projects that center the voices and experiences of Black, Indigenous, and People of Color, and it explicitly welcomes work documenting African American, Asian American, Hispanic American, and Native American history. In addition, with the United States approaching the 250th anniversary of the Declaration of Independence, NHPRC is also encouraging projects that surface and interpret collections connected to the nation’s founding ideals and the long-running debates over those ideals up to the present.

The program is focused on documentary source materials, and applicants are expected to follow established scholarly editing standards. Proposals should show familiarity with best practices promoted by the Association for Documentary Editing (ADE) or the Modern Language Association (MLA) Committee on Scholarly Editions. At the same time, the Commission draws clear boundaries around what it will not support. It generally does not fund critical editions of already-published works unless those published materials make up only a small part of a larger documentary edition, and it does not support film or video documentary production. Applications made up entirely of activities that fall outside the program’s eligibility rules will be rejected.

For new applicants, the bar for digital delivery and preservation planning is especially clear. Any project that has not previously received NHPRC funding must present definitive plans to publish and preserve a digital edition that provides online access to a searchable, fully transcribed, and annotated body of documents. Print publication can be included, but only if the content of any print volumes will also appear as a fully searchable digital edition within a reasonable time after the print release. NHPRC strongly encourages free public access to the online edition, and it will not consider proposals that lack credible, concrete plans for digital dissemination and long-term preservation at the time of application.

A defining feature of the grant category is collaboration. Awards are intended for teams rather than solo efforts, and proposals should include at least two scholar-editors along with other needed expertise such as archivists, digital scholars, data curators, and technical staff. NHPRC also strongly encourages teams that place BIPOC faculty and staff in key roles and that engage partners from Historically Black Colleges and Universities, Hispanic-Serving Institutions, Tribal Colleges, and other Indigenous or Native American tribal scholars and community members, as well as members of the Asian American community. Beyond formal institutional partnerships, the program encourages meaningful involvement of community participants and undergraduate or graduate students across project phases, so the work supports learning, workforce development, and community benefit in addition to producing the edition itself.

Renewal applications face additional expectations and a firm cap on long-term support. Projects seeking continued funding must show they met the performance objectives of prior NHPRC awards, provide updated details on upcoming activities, explain the content and historical significance of the materials slated for editing during the next grant period, demonstrate progress toward completing the edition, and justify costs with a refreshed budget. Importantly, NHPRC now limits how long it will support projects in this category: renewal requests are constrained to a maximum of 10 total years of NHPRC funding beginning with (and including) any funds awarded since fiscal year 2022, even if those funded years are not consecutive.

Funding is structured as one-year awards of up to $125,000 per year. NHPRC expects to make up to 28 awards, with an anticipated total program allocation of up to $3.5 million. Projects funded under this cycle may begin no earlier than January 1, 2025. Recipients must acknowledge NHPRC support in publications, publicity, and other products that result from the grant.

Eligibility includes a range of U.S.-based entities: nonprofit organizations and institutions, colleges and universities (public or private), state and local government agencies, and federally acknowledged or state-recognized Native American tribes or groups. Applicants are expected to review NHPRC’s administrative rules to confirm compliance before applying.

Cost sharing is required and is a major part of the program design. NHPRC will cover no more than 75 percent of the total project cost, meaning applicants must provide at least 25 percent in matching support. The cost share can include direct and indirect expenses, in-kind contributions, non-federal third-party contributions, and project-generated income. However, a key budgeting constraint is that NHPRC grant funds may not be used to pay indirect costs; if indirect costs are part of the overall project budget, they must appear on the applicant’s cost-sharing side.

Finally, there are important federal registration requirements that can affect timing. Applicant organizations must be registered in the System for Award Management (SAM), keep that registration active throughout the application and award process, and include a valid Unique Entity ID in the submission. Because SAM.gov and Grants.gov registration or reactivation can take up to a month, applicants are expected to confirm early that accounts, passwords, and organizational registrations are current. NHPRC indicates it will not extend deadlines due to incomplete registrations. The listed opportunity information includes Funding Opportunity Number EDITIONS 202411, CFDA 89.003, an application deadline of November 7, 2024, and an award ceiling of $125,000.

• The National Archives and Records Administration in the humanities sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "PUBLISHING HISTORICAL RECORDS IN COLLABORATIVE DITIGAL EDITIONS" 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 2023-11-27.
• Applicants must submit their applications by 2024-11-07. (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 $125,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 28 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 EDITIONS 202411

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