Grants for Hidden Collections

From the Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR)...

CLIR Accepting Proposals for 2012 Cycle of Cataloging Hidden Special Collections and Archives Grant Program

Washington, DC, January 10, 2012—The Council on Library and Information Resources (CLIR) is now accepting proposals for the 2012 cycle of the Cataloging Hidden Special Collections and Archives grant program. Information about the program and links to the online application and guidelines are available at http://www.clir.org/hiddencollections/index.html. The deadline for submitting proposals is Friday, March 16, 2012.

CLIR will host a webinar for applicants on Friday, January 20, 2012 from 2:00 – 3:15 pm EST. For more information on the upcoming webinar, please visithttp://www.clir.org/hiddencollections/applicants.html#webinar.

In 2012 the program expects to award about $4 million in grants that range from $75,000 to $500,000. Applicants may request terms as short as 12 months or as long as 36 months, or any period in between. All projects must begin between January 1 and March 1, 2013, and be completed by February 29, 2016.

The application process has two phases. The initial proposal round is open, and anyone interested in applying for a grant through this program must submit an initial proposal by March 16, 2012. The final proposal round is by invitation only. Only those applicants whose initial proposals have been approved by the Hidden Collections Review Panel will be allowed to submit a full final proposal.

Decisions will be announced by December 31, 2012.

The program awards funds to institutions holding collections of high scholarly value that are difficult or impossible to locate through existing finding aids. Award recipients will create descriptive information for their hidden collections that will be linked to and interoperable with all other projects funded by this grant, to form a federated environment that can be built upon over time. Funding for the program comes from The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

CLIR is an independent, nonprofit organization that forges strategies to enhance research, teaching, and learning environments in collaboration with libraries, cultural institutions, and communities of higher learning. Information about CLIR and its work is available at www.clir.org.