• Applications for general operating support will be accepted from April 27th – 5 PM on May 15th. Decisions will be made by June 8th.
• Grants range from $2,500-$7,500 based on organizational budget size. No matching funds are required.
• Please use the appropriate location-specific application.  Choose the location based on whether your organization is based within (or outside of) Cook County, regardless of where programming takes places. Illinois Humanities is committed to geographic diversity and equitably serving the entire state.
• As required by the National Endowment for the Humanities, organizations must have a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number in order to receive funding. A DUNS number is not required to apply, however, funds cannot be awarded to organizations not registered. If you do not have a DUNS number – please register for one here. There is no cost to register. Please note that it can take up to two weeks to receive a DUNS number.

• Non-profit humanities and cultural organizations based in Illinois with a demonstrated commitment to the public humanities.
• Annual budgets of $1.5M or less.
• 501c3 status or non-profits designated by the state.
• The following types of organizations are ineligible for general operating support: public libraries; K-12 schools; universities, colleges, and academic departments; chapters of national organizations; organizations focused solely on the arts that do not have an explicit commitment to humanities programming; for-profit organizations; religious organizations; individuals; and recipients of the first round of Illinois Humanities COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grants.

• Applications will be available April 27th.
• Preview application as a PDF. This PDF is for preview purposes only; please apply using the appropriate application link below. Application questions are the same regardless of location.
• Organizations based within Cook County apply HERE.
• Organizations based outside Cook County apply HERE.

• Applications for program innovation and adaptation grants will be accepted from May 15th – 5 PM on June 15th. Decisions will be made by July 6th.
• Grants are for $5,000. No matching funds are required.
• As required by the National Endowment for the Humanities, organizations must have a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number in order to receive funding. A DUNS number is not required to apply, however, funds cannot be awarded to organizations not registered. If you do not have a DUNS number – please register for one here. There is no cost to register. Please note that it can take up to two weeks to receive a DUNS number.

• Non-profit humanities and cultural organizations based in Illinois with a demonstrated commitment to public humanities.
• Annual budgets of $1.5M or less.
• 501c3 status or non-profits designated by the state.
• The following types of organizations are ineligible: K-12 schools; universities, colleges, and academic departments; chapters of national organizations; organizations focused solely on the arts that do not have an explicit commitment to humanities programming; for-profit organizations; religious organizations; individuals.

• Applications will be available May 15th. The application deadline is 5 PM on June 15th.
• Preview application as a PDF. This PDF is for preview purposes only; please apply using the appropriate application link below.
• Apply HERE.

• Applications for Community Resilience project grants will be accepted from May 15th – 5 PM on June 30th. Decisions will be made by July 24th.
• Grants are for $6,000. No matching funds are required.
• Projects must be completed by October 31st.
• Funded projects need to document their story-capturing process.
• Resulting projects must be available to the public and shareable.
• As required by the National Endowment for the Humanities, organizations must have a Data Universal Numbering System (DUNS) number in order to receive funding. A DUNS number is not required to apply, however, funds cannot be awarded to organizations not registered. If you do not have a DUNS number – please register for one here. There is no cost to register. Please note that it can take up to two weeks to receive a DUNS number.

• Non-profit humanities and cultural organizations based in Illinois with a demonstrated commitment to public humanities.
• Annual budgets of $1.5M or less.
• 501c3 status or non-profits designated by the state.
• The following types of organizations are ineligible: K-12 schools; universities, colleges, and academic departments;  organizations focused solely on the arts that do not have an explicit commitment to humanities programming; for-profit organizations; individuals.

• Applications will be available May 15th. The deadline is 5 PM on June 30th.
• Preview application as a PDF. This PDF is for preview purposes only; please apply using the appropriate application link below.
• Apply HERE.

Through this program Illinois Humanities will be supporting general operations, which means you can apply these funds to any aspect of your organization’s expenses as you see fit, as well as program innovation and adaption, which will provide support to your organization in order to  adapt current programming and content to meet the needs of our current moment and to innovate new programs that will help strengthen your organization. Finally, we will be funding a community resiliency project that will help make community experiences during the pandemic visible and highlight resiliency throughout the state.

A humanities organization has a mission explicitly connected to the humanities along with a track record of specifically working in the humanities, as opposed to a group that occasionally tackles or delves into humanities-based themes or activities. Humanities organizations include, but are not limited to, historical societies, historic houses, groups doing oral history projects, cultural centers, museums, groups that celebrate preservation, libraries of various sorts, archives, groups that use the arts to explore humanities themes (again, on a regular basis), literary groups,  groups that celebrate the lives of leaders in the humanities, groups that use creative means to engage people of all ages in exploring humanities-based questions and content.

The humanities are the examination of what it means to be human through the interpretation and discussion of all forms of thought, interest and expression. While we value traditional humanities disciplines, such as art history, literature, history, and philosophy, our emphasis is on the public humanities, which means that we look at the humanities as more than an academic discipline.

For us, the public humanities are a mode of inquiry and conversation that aims to engage, support, or challenge the ideals, beliefs, tensions, and prejudices of the communities in which we live. We believe that important thought can happen outside of the academy – in neighborhood institutions, schools, churches, and at kitchen tables across the country. We are especially interested in instances of the public humanities that promote civic engagement – in raising critical issues facing everyday people and conducted with the hope of increasing their thirst for staying engaged. Rather than being defined by rigid disciplinary boundaries, it is the humanistic lens, which emphasizes curiosity, questioning, and dialogue, that matters.

For the Community Resilience grants, community may be a group of people who live in a specific geographic place; community may also be a group of people who share a common identity, common cultural background, or who share other experiences and maybe be located in the same geographic place or not.

Yes, but there are limitations. If you have already been awarded general operating support through the COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grants, as part of the applications that were available April 3rd (Round 1), please do not apply again for General Operating Support.

Also, of the three categories being announced at this time (general operating support, program innovation and adaptation, and community resiliency project) we ask that you only choose two categories to apply. A separate application is required for each category.

No. Individuals are not eligible for these grants.

Yes, these grants are open to nonprofits, whether 501c3 or as designated by the state of Illinois. The following organizations are ineligible for Illinois Humanities COVID-19 Emergency Relief Grants: K-12 schools; universities, colleges, and academic departments; chapters of national organizations; public libraries; organizations focused solely on the arts that do not have an explicit commitment to humanities programming; for-profits; churches and individuals. Note that public libraries, however, are eligible for the Program Innovation and Adaptation as well as the Community Resilience grants.

Since these are Emergency Relief Grants, Illinois Humanities will streamline the reporting process. We will ask groups to submit a report to us by October 1st, that describes how they have been impacted by COVID-19 and how the Illinois Humanities grant has helped them. More details will be included in the award letter.

Yes! The remainder of 2020 is a busy year for our grants program. In addition to the COVID-19 emergency relief grants, we are continuing to provide support through: 1) Community Grants program, with deadlines on May 15th and September 15th  2) Activate History micro-grants, with a September 1st deadline; 3) Envisioning Justice grants, which will be announced on May 30th, with deadlines on August 15th and October 15th. If you’re interested in learning more, go to www.ilhumanities.org/grants.