NEW YORK STATE EDUCATION DEPARTMENT  - STATE ARCHIVES 
DOCUMENTARY HERITAGE PROGRAM ANNOUNCEMENT 
GRANT FUNDING AVAILABLE FOR 2006-2007

The Documentary Heritage Program (DHP) is a statewide program administered by the New York State Archives to ensure the identification, sound administration and accessibility of New York's historical records.  It is anticipated that $100,000 in grant funds will be made available.  Funds may be used for projects that support the DHP goal of ensuring the identification, retention and availability of historical records for underdocumented groups and subjects in New York State.

Grant Project Priorities

Five priority documentation areas have been targeted for attention in the Documentary Heritage Program:
1.      Mental Health Activities in New York 
2.      Environmental Affairs
3.      Latino/Latina-Hispanic communities
4.      Education Policy
5.      World Trade Center - Attack, Response, Recovery

Two secondary priority areas have also been identified for attention:
1.      Deindustrialization and Economic Revitalization in Twentieth-Century New York
2.      New Population Groups in Twentieth-Century New York. 

Projects focusing on these areas will be given very high priority and applications in these areas are strongly invited. Applications focusing on other underdocumented groups and subjects, however, may also be submitted.

Types of Projects Funded

Funding is available for four types of projects:

1.      Projects to identify, survey, and plan for the systematic collection of records. These projects typically entail preliminary surveys to locate appropriate records; detailed inventories (at the collection or series level) to gather information on their origin, content, physical characteristics, and other traits; meetings and conferences to discuss documentation and collection issues; negotiation and acquisition, and development of reports, recommendations and plans. Cost sharing of at least 20% is required for these projects. A State Archives publication, A Manual for Documentation Planning in New York State, Pub.  # 74* explains the methodology that should form the basis for documentation planning initiatives. 

2.      Projects to arrange, describe, and make available historical records. These projects typically entail arrangement and description of records already in historical records repositories and of high priority in terms of research potential. All descriptive work must be done in conformity with standard practices for archival description, including compatibility with the MARC (Machine-Readable Cataloging) Format. A Sate Archives publication, Guidelines for Arrangement and Description of Archives and Manuscripts*, describes standard descriptive practices.    Applicants are strongly urged to read the manual before applying. There is a cost-sharing requirement of at least 50% for arrangement and description projects.

3.      Historical records strategic planning projects. These projects typically entail the hiring of an experienced archivist to evaluate and plan for archival program development. A comprehensive strategic planning project can pinpoint problems, recommend solutions, set priorities and guide the development of archival activity. DHP strategic planning projects do not address preservation or conservation needs.  NOTE:  Funding for these projects in limited.  Applicants seeking funding in this category must first provide evidence of previous institutional efforts of self-study and strategic planning, and must demonstrate the need for additional consultant services. Cost sharing of at least 50% is required for these types of projects.

4.      Regional documentation planning projects.  These projects typically entail hiring an consultant and creating an advisory committee to organize the mass of possible subtopics for documentation within a broad topic area, decide which are most important to document, and determine appropriate documentation approaches. Priority will be given for projects to develop topics within the broad areas developed by the State Historical Records Advisory Board, namely mental health, environmental affairs, Latino history and culture, deindustrialization and economic revitalization, and new population groups in twentieth-century New York. 

Who is eligible to apply for DHP grants?

Applications will be accepted from not-for-profit archives, libraries, historical societies, museums community organizations and similar institutions within New York State, and from consortia or cooperating groups of such agencies. Projects to be carried out by service providers such as historical service agencies, colleges and universities, professional associations, or other not-for-profit institutions or systems which provide services to historical records programs, are also eligible for consideration.

Funding Amounts and Allowable Expenses

Grants will be available in amounts from $1,000 to $25,000. Applicants may seek support for personnel; travel; service contracts, including qualified consultants; supplies; materials, and equipment needed for the project.

Deadlines and Timetables

Grants in this cycle are for 12-month projects, from July 1, 2006 through June 30, 2007. Applications must be postmarked by December 1, 2005. It is anticipated that announcements of projects awarded funding will be made by June 15, 2006.

Not Eligible for Funding

Several types of historical projects are not eligible for funding under the DHP. Where there is doubt about eligibility, a call to the State Archives is advisable. Ineligible funding areas include:
·     Projects that do not have primary focus on New York State 
·     Newspapers, which are not considered to be historical records under the DHP law
·     Preservation, i.e., physical work to conserve, restore, or repair records, or reproduction for preservation purposes such as microfilming 
·     Creating oral history tapes or video tapes, or transcription of these 
·     Item-level description and indexing, and purchase of collections

For further information:

Grant application forms, guidelines and referenced publications, may be obtained from the State Archives or from the State Archives Web site, www.archives.nysed.gov. Applicants are strongly urged to contact the State Archives to discuss potential projects before submitting an application.  The DHP also provides regionally based grant application information sessions at various dates and locations throughout the fall.  For a list of dates and locations or to receive a copy of the grant application materials, please contact:

Ray LaFever/Documentary Heritage Program 
New York State Archives
Room 9C33 Cultural Education Center
Albany, NY 12230
Telephone: 518-474-6926
Fax: 518-402-5372
Email: [log in to unmask]