Guidelines

Funding is awarded through Project Grants and Mini Grants. See details below. Find lists of past grant awardees here.

Project Grants
Project grants range from $5,000 to $50,000. The application process for Project Grants consists of two parts. Applicants will first need to submit a Summary of Proposal. Proposals will be reviewed and successful applicants will be invited to submit a Full Proposal.

Project Grants require a 15% cash match. These matching funds must come from new fundraising and cannot come from an in-kind donation, such as donated materials or professional services. Matching funds should not come from the organization’s general or rainy-day funds.

The 15% match is calculated in addition to your total grant funding. If, for example, you receive $10,000 in HSG funding, the cash match would be $1,500, and the project total from the grant and the cash match would be $11,500.

Matching funds are intended to be used for a project-related expense. Many organizations use the 15% cash match for contingency funds.

Grant recipients have a total of 16 months to secure their cash match. Fundraising can start up to four months before the Summary of Proposal deadline and funds must be in hand by the end of the grant cycle.

Project Grants require 100% board support in the organization. Board support can be financial contributions, volunteer time or a combination of the two.

Grant Cycle D (this application deadline has passed)
Project timeline: July 3, 2023 through June 28, 2024:

• March 1, 2023 – Summary of Proposal Due
• April 27, 2023 – Full Proposal Due (by invitation)
• June 2023 – Grants Awarded
• Jan. 2024 – Midpoint Reports Due
• Aug. 2024 – Final Reports Due

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Mini Grants
Mini grants range from $500 to $4,999. No outside matching support is required.

Grant Cycle G – Application Deadline: June 1, 2023 (this application deadline has passed)
Project timeline: July 14, 2023 through June 28, 2024

Grant Cycle H – Application Deadline: Sept. 5, 2023 (this application deadline has passed)
Project timeline: Oct. 16, 2023 through Sept. 30, 2024

The objective of the Heritage Support Grants program is to advance the care of and access to history in Indiana, while increasing the capacity of organizations that carry out this work.

In order to apply for a project or mini grant, organizations must meet all the following criteria:

• Be incorporated in the State of Indiana as a 501(c)3 nonprofit corporation*
• Reflect history as a significant component of its mission and/or propose a project that is clearly history focused.**
  Priority will be given to Indiana history projects.
• Have an annual budget of less than $300,000

*A Friends group organization that operates under an agreement with a larger affiliate or parent organization may apply for Heritage Support Grant funding if:

• The Friends group meets all of the eligibility criteria listed above;
• A representative of the Friends group will lead the project or serve on the grant project team;
• And any funds granted by Heritage Support Grants will be held and managed by the Friends group.

Friends group applications for Heritage Support Grants must include a letter from the affiliate/parent organization confirming their support of the project and grant application, and agreeing to the above stipulations for Friends group applications.

**A history-focused project should interpret, present or otherwise disseminate a historical narrative or information. Structures and landscapes will only be considered if they are primarily used to facilitate historical interpretation or house significant historical collections.

• Collections Stewardship – Projects address the storage, management, and care for collections and associated documentation that are entrusted to the organization’s care. This includes historic objects, structures and landscapes as part of collections care. (NOTE: Structures and landscapes will only be considered if they are primarily used to facilitate historical interpretation or house significant historical collections.)
• Diversity, Equity, Access and Inclusion – Projects focus on efforts to ensure that diverse individuals fully participate in all aspects of organizational work, broaden organizations beyond public accommodations, and work to achieve genuine inclusion.
• Sustainability – These projects focus on identifying and accessing internal and external resources the organization needs to achieve goals for greater capacity and to take important next steps. Sustainability projects meet the needs of the present and help set the organization up for future success.
• Planning -Projects identify organizational objectives and assess organizational capacity.

Heritage Support Grants will not fund general operating support, including:

• Rent or mortgage
• Utilities
• Insurance
• Salaries, wages and/or benefits for permanent staff
• Items for resale
• Building purchase
• Retiring organizational debt

Applications must be made using the HSG online grant portal. Hard copy (paper) applications will not be accepted.

For more information about the grant review process and evaluation criteria, see Review Process.

Registered organizations will be assigned a coach from the Local History Services staff who can provide guidance and consultation throughout the grant application process. Coaches are available to answer questions about the online grant application process and serve as sounding boards to discuss grant project priorities, processes and timelines. Coaches can provide additional fundraising resources and review grant applications before submission. Organizations can also access their coach for questions regarding grant processes and implementation. 

Please note that while Local History Services coaches are available to assist organizations throughout the grant application process, they are not part of the grant selection process. All grant applications will be evaluated by an external committee. The use of a Local History Services coach does not guarantee funding.

After grant awards are made, coaches are available to discuss project implementation and provide feedback on final grant reports.

Local History Services offers a series of free fundraising workshops. Attendance at workshops is not a prerequisite to apply, nor is being an IHS Local History Partner member.

For more information and upcoming workshop dates, see Training.

Applicants are encouraged to consider the American Association for State and Local History’s Standards and Excellence Program for Historical Organizations (StEPs) when preparing grant applications. Potential grant projects might address:

• Mission, Vision and Governance;
• Audience;
• Interpretation;
• Stewardship of Collections;
• Stewardship of Historic Structures and Landscapes; and/or
• Management

For inquiries regarding Heritage Support Grants, contact us at  grants@indianahistory.org or (317) 234-0170.