Community Based Archives – Jul 1

Posted by Andrew W. Mellon Foundation on June 9, 2020

Andrew W. Mellon Foundation Invites Proposals for Community Based Archives

The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation endeavors to strengthen, promote, and, where necessary, defend the contributions of the humanities and the arts to human flourishing and to the well-being of diverse and democratic societies.

For the purposes of this call, community-based archives are defined as collections of materials gathered, collected, and shared primarily by members of a marginalized community to document their collective histories. These archives play an important role in combatting what UCLA assistant professor of archival studies Michelle Caswell calls the “symbolic annihilation” of marginalized communities from mainstream memory institutions and in recognizing that they are essential to the creation of a more inclusive and poly-vocal American story.

To that end, awards ranging between $50,000 and $100,000 for up to two years will be awarded in support of community-based archives that represent and serve communities marginalized due to oppression based on race, ethnicity, national origin, gender, class, sexuality, religion, or ability.

The following areas of need will be supported: operational support for the organization, including general support for staff, space, and utilities; collections care, including the acquisition of new materials, physical and digital storage fees, and access and preservation efforts; and programming activities, including events, exhibitions, and publications.

To be eligible, organizations must be located in the United States or one of its territories; be tax exempt under section 501(c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code or have an organization with 501(c)(3) status serve as a fiscal sponsor; and have an annual operating budget of no more than $1 million.

See the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation website for complete program guidelines and application instructions.

Deadline: July 1, 2020

Learn more and apply: https://mellon.org/programs/scholarly-communications/call-for-proposals-community-based-archives/