Grant Requirement FAQs

• Are there requirements that grants must meet?
  Yes. All Wyoming Humanities grants have the same basic requirements:
  
  The project must be humanities centered. The humanities encompass the study of all our forms of human cultural expression: our history, arts, literature, philosophy, religion, laws, cultural studies, and languages. These break down further into subsets such as ecological humanities and gender studies. However, projects like arts performances that do not have a Q&A or talk-back session to delve into the meaning and context of the experience of art fall into the realm of Wyoming Arts Council funding.
  
  The program must be publicly accessible. Specifically, we will not fund research projects. If the project isn’t about directly engaging a public audience (through outreach components like lectures, documentaries, digital medias, curated exhibits, moderated film series, etc.) then it is probably not a fit for Wyoming Humanities funding. For the same reason, Wyoming Humanities strongly prefers to support public events that do not charge admission.
  
  The applying organization must be a  state or federally recognized nonprofit state agency. This includes libraries, schools, 2-year and 4-year colleges, tribal nations, and museums. Eligible organizations have a valid tax EIN and UEI number to receive funds to receive the grant and manage the funds. We can only fund registered non-profits; WYH does consider applications that use a fiscal sponsor. 
  
  The project must have a humanities professional in a central role. The humanities professional’s expertise should be appropriate for the project and they should inform the content and/or presentation of the project. 
  
  All Wyoming Humanities grant funds must be matched 1:1 with non-Federal dollars. This match can be both in cash and in-kind; it is often referred to as cost share. Federal dollars can be used to support the project but cannot be accepted as cost share. 
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• Who counts as a humanities professional?
  ‍A humanities professional includes Scholars and Experts. A humanities scholar should be an acknowledged expert in a humanities field related to your project typically, with an advanced degree (MA or above) in a humanities subject. Depending on your project, other humanities experts may also be appropriate; a humanities expert may or may not have an advanced degree but demonstrate extensive knowledge and/or independent research in their respective field of expertise. Some examples of humanities scholars and experts include:
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  - Teaching and/or research faculty at a college or university.
  - Historians or independent scholars who are widely accepted as experts in their field of study by their community.
  - Professional librarians, writers, and others who have an established record of research and/or scholarship in the Humanities.
  - Any person representing various cultural traditions, e.g., a tribal leader or elder that has been recognized as a spokesperson for their traditions, a traditional tradesman like a cowboy/rancher with historical knowledge of the skills and/or land they steward.
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• Are there requirements for what the humanities professional will do for my project?
  ‍The humanities scholar or expert should encourage dialogue, analysis, and critical thinking in your project. They might help to conceive and design the project, shape the program’s content, make a public presentation, lead a discussion, write interpretive materials for brochures, or review exhibition text, copy for catalogues or brochures, among other activities. Lifelong or multigenerational residents of Wyoming are not considered humanities experts unless they have demonstrated extensive knowledge and independent research of their communities or respective field of expertise. 
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• What’s the difference between “in cash” and “in kind” cost share?
  “In cash” include the actual dollars and organizational resources (e.g., staff time directly related to the project) that the organization directs to the project. Cash contributions also include money contributed to the organization from sources such as local and state governments, businesses, foundations, and individuals.
  
  "In kind” cost may include time and materials, office space and equipment, travel, donated services and other non-cash donations. If a lower-than-normal fee is charged for goods or services, the dollar value of the discount can be considered as an in-kind contribution to the project.
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• Can I use grant funds to pay for salaries?
  ‍Yes, but with limits. The project director, fiscal agent, and clerical support staff may be paid from grant funds provided that such work is outside of their normal duties for which they are being compensated by an employer; provided that at least one half of their time working on the project is a cost share (either in-cash or in-kind); and provided that the amount requested for payment to such personnel is less than one-half of the total amount requested from WYH.
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• Do you award grants for preservation?
  ‍Sometimes. Wyoming Humanities will fund preservation projects that are devoted to the preservation of historical materials and/or artifacts, including oral and written histories. WYH grants do not support the physical preservation of places or spaces, but we would consider an application for preservation planning and/or consultants.
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• Do you award grants for advocacy?
  No. Your program must avoid advocacy of a single position to be eligible for a Wyoming Humanities grant.
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• How often can an organization apply for funding?
  Because WYH values making grants available to as many organizations as possible throughout the state, organizations and university and community college departments are limited to winning two grants per fiscal year (Nov. 1 – Oct. 31).
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• My organization has never conducted a humanities program but is interested in doing so. Would my organization be eligible for a Wyoming Humanities grant? 
  Yes. We recommend that you first identity the program/project your organization wants to execute and identify an appropriate humanities scholar or expert that will support the creation, implementation, and execution of the program/project. Please feel welcome to contact Grants and Programs Director, Chloé Flagg, any time for any programmatic or grants-related questions or concerns at chloe@thinkwy.org
  
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Grant Application FAQs

• What are the grant opportunities from Wyoming Humanities? 
  ‍WYH offers a monthly grant opportunity called a Spark Grant. Spark Grant applications are due the first business day of each month for requests up to $2,000. Once in the fall and once in the spring, WYH offers a Crossroads Grant for projects in four broad categories: programming, digital media, preservation, and publication. Crossroads grant projects should explore five themes requests can be submitted up to $10,000. You can learn more about each of these grants on our website www.thinkwy.org/grants 
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• Will Wyoming Humanities give feedback on a grant draft?
  ‍Absolutely! Staff is happy to work with you as you develop your idea into a project; however, we cannot guarantee first reads on drafts less than two week from the submittal date.
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• How do I apply for a grant?
  Wyoming Humanities uses an online grant application system, Foundant. If you haven’t already, you will need to register for a login as well as submit information about your organization. Please do not register yourself as associated with any other organization other than your own. If you believe that your organization may already have a profile in the system, please contact chloe@thinkwy.org to confirm. 
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• What does “fiscal agent” mean? 
  ‍This is the person who will be managing the grant money: receiving, disbursing, and accounting for all grant and cost-share funds. If there is a sponsoring organization, the fiscal agent should generally be associated with that organization (usually the board treasurer or fiscal staff person). Whenever possible, the Project Director should NOT serve as the fiscal agent.
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• What does “fiscal sponsor” mean?  
  A fiscal sponsor is a nonprofit organization that provides financial oversight and management and other administrative services for the applying organization for the benefit of the program or project. Applying organizations should select an involved fiscal sponsor whose mission is aligned with the program or project. Depending on the capacity of the applying organization, applicants may or may not have a fiscal sponsor. Should your organization receive a Crossroads Grant, fiscal sponsors will be required to submit a Letter of Involvement as part of the grant agreement.
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• What do I do if I’m using a fiscal sponsor?
  You should still apply under your organization, not the fiscal sponsor. Information regarding fiscal sponsors is requested within the application. Fiscal sponsors are required to submit a Letter of Involvement outlining: 
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  • the mission-alignment between the sponsored project and the sponsoring organization.
  • a robust knowledge of the sponsored project and the organization being sponsored.
  • demonstrate the fiscal sponsors' involvement as a collaborator on the sponsored project.
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• I can’t find a humanities professional in my area, what should I do? 
  Try talking with staff at your local library and/or community college; they can often help you locate someone. Wyoming Humanities staff can also help recommend someone or connect you with someone who can help. 
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• Can I use grant funds to compensate humanities professionals? 
  Yes, honoraria are acceptable requests for Wyoming Humanities grant. Wyoming Humanities believes strongly in the role of the humanities scholars and experts in our own Wyoming Humanities programming as well as the work of the grantees. Wyoming Humanities encourages an honorarium for the time and expertise sought to ensure quality public humanities programming. It is important to remember that honoraria are an act of gratitude and goodwill and are intended to help cover the scholars or experts’ expenses associated with bolstering your program; honoraria should not be considered or treated as a salary. Honoraria grant requests should not exceed $350 per person, per event unless approved by Wyoming Humanities.
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• Can my organization apply for both a Spark Grant and a Wyoming Crossroads Grant? 
  Yes, but with limits. An eligible not-for-profit organization can apply for, and receive, both a Spark Grant and a Wyoming Crossroads Grant. However, the applying organization must demonstrate that there is no funding overlap between the two grants. This means that each grant must support different activities; those activities may be a part of the same overarching project. In addition to preventing funding overlap, Wyoming Humanities also wants to ensure that organizations have the capacity and resources to carry out multiple projects in a given fiscal year.
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• What are some examples of how projects have used the humanities? 
  ‍There are quite a few. The key thing our grant evaluators are looking for is that you have a clear idea of how your program will not just present humanities content to its audience, but what it will ask your audience to do with that content (e.g., Explore how a law still impacts lives today? Reassess a historical event? Demonstrate the impact drama can have on its audience members?)
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  For instance, an application to host a speaker on the Wyoming Black 14 indicated the talk would help its audience consider present-day issues: “From Black Lives Matter protests to the player protests at NFL games, this national conversation stems from the same issues that John Griffin and the rest of the Black 14 dealt with in the Fall of 1969. We believe conflict can't be resolved without understanding its roots, how it rose, and the forces that shaped it.”
  
  Another application, asking for support for a documentary about three Wind River children who were sent to the Carlisle Indian Industrial School in Pennsylvania, emphasized that the film told a history still not well known: “Highlighting a little-known historical chapter in the nation’s treatment of Native Americans, the film views the conflict of cultures through the prism of Indian boarding schools, a movement begun in the 19th century that continues today. The film challenges stereotypes with a portrait of Northern Arapaho tribal members who turn the tables on the ‘victim’ narrative and take control of their history.”
• What do you mean by “Expanding the Wyoming Narrative to Promote Engaged Communities”?
  From our interactions with citizens and cultural organizations around Wyoming, we find there is a need and desire to explore the lesser known narratives that make Wyoming a unique place and to investigate pre-conceived notions about our past and present. This exploration helps to elevate voices from diverse backgrounds and makes connections within and across groups, from those who share a cultural heritage or interest to those who live in the same town or region.
  
  In other words, Wyoming Humanities is especially committed to funding projects that explore our state’s unknown stories and/or take a closer look at well-known stories. In the process, these projects will ideally make or strengthen connections within and between groups of people in Wyoming.
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• What happens after a grant is awarded?
  When you receive the email notification that you’ve been awarded a grant, you’ll need to log back into the granting system to:E-sign the grant contract and addendumsContact WYH’s Communications Director Troy Rumpf at troy@thinkwy.org for our logo and use it in your promotional materialsContact your organization’s state legislators, there is a sample letter available on our website www.thinkwy.org/grants Keep the Wyoming Humanities updated on all public programs affiliated with your grant; we understand that days and times may change but do let us know for our own records and advertising.
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• What are the reporting requirements for Wyoming Humanities grants?  
  45 days after your grant is completed, you’ll submit a final grant report, which provides WYH with attendance numbers, tells us how the program went (and how you might improve it in the future), and reports on grant finances and cost-share. Please note: you’ll need to hang on to receipts for all grant funds and cost share for three years after the grant ends, in case you are randomly audited by WYH.
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  Please note: You’ll need to hang on to receipts for all grant funds and cost share for three years after the grant ends, in case you are randomly audited by WYH.

Download the Grant FAQs