The Grant Center has a wide variety of grantseeking resources, all tailored specifically to public media stations. You can find them in the Grantwriting Resources section of the Grant Center website.

Many stations seek funding for arts and humanities projects. The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) are the biggest sources of federal arts and humanities funding, so understanding their priorities and procedures is imperative.

Our Federal Funding Trends page includes two reports, published by the NEA, that focus on arts funding.

These two webinar archives discuss programs at the NEH and the NEA:
A Conversation with the National Endowment for the Humanities (9/6/12)
Media Grants at the National Endowment for the Arts (4/18/12)

These two Success Stories provide insight into how other stations have been successful in pursuing funding from the NEH:
WNET Secures NEH Funding to Produce Innovative Classroom Digital Game (12/4/12)
TPT and WNED Secure NEH Funding for Projects Bringing a Unique Awareness to the Constitution and Frederick Law Olmstead (5/30/12)

Cliff or No Cliff, We've Got Regulations to Update

The latest fiscal cliff issue is the debt ceiling, but budget sequestration is also still on the table and could mean an across-the-board cut of about five percent to non-defense discretionary spending if Congress does not act before March 1, 2013. Stations should therefore continue to plan for potential cuts to key federal grant programs, given the uncertainty around federal funding.

 

Stations also need a plan for demonstrating program effectiveness. The U.S. Department of Education is asking for comment on proposed changes to the Education Department General Administration Regulations (EDGAR). These regulations govern the administration of the Department's formula and competitive grant programs. While changes to EDGAR would normally be considered bureaucratic and mundane, these proposed changes are of interest because they focus on improving performance measurement, evidence of effectiveness, and evaluations, among other things. With regard to performance measurements, the proposed changes would clarify that the Secretary may require competitive grant applicants to propose their own project-specific performance measures, baseline data and performance targets. Further, under the proposal the Secretary could require applicants to describe how they would collect and report the performance data.

 

Read more about the debt ceiling, budget sequestration and proposed EDGAR regulations.

 

Rural Station Digital Equipment Emergency Recovery Grants: The Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) has set aside $500,000 of the remaining digital appropriation funds to provide emergency financial assistance to rural, economically-challenged public television and radio stations to purchase and install digital master control room and/or transmission equipment that has been damaged or destroyed as a result of natural or man-made disaster or act of terrorism. Deadline: Rolling. Once the full grant amount has been awarded, the grant will expire.

Collaborative Operations and Services Grant Program: This Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) program supports projects that use mergers, consolidations, functional integration, centralization or collaboration to preserve service, increase efficiency, or improve performance. CPB expects to make one to two grants of up to $750,000, two to three grants of up to $500,000, and five to seven grants of up to $200,000. Deadlines: February 28, 2013; April 30, 2013; and June 30, 2013.

Indian Education Professional Development Grants Program: The goals of this U.S. Department of Education program are to increase the number of qualified Indian individuals and provide training to Indian teachers. Approximately six awards, each ranging from $300,000 to $400,000, will be awarded. Deadline: March 1, 2013.

Personnel Development to Improve Services and Results for Children with Disabilities: Three different types of grants are available through this U.S. Department of Education program, the purpose of which is to help address state-identified needs for highly qualified personnel to work with children with disabilities and to ensure that those personnel have the necessary skills and knowledge to be successful in serving those children. An estimated $85.8m is available. Deadlines: March 1, 2013, and March 18, 2013.

Gaining Early Awareness and Readiness for Undergraduate Programs (GEAR UP): This U.S. Department of Education program provides financial support for academic and related support services for low-income students. Only applications for the College Savings Account Research Demonstration Project are currently being accepted. Awards will range from $500,000 to $5,000,000, and an estimated 15 grants will be awarded. Deadline: March 11, 2013.

Environmental Literacy Grants for Building Capacity of Informal and Formal Educators: The goal of this funding opportunity from the National Oceanic and Atmospheric Administration (NOAA) is to build capacity of formal and/or informal educators to use NOAA data and data access tools to help K-12 students and/or the public understand and respond to global change. NOAA anticipates making three to five awards, totaling $3m. Deadline: March 12, 2013.

Technology and Media Services for Individuals with Disabilities -- Stepping-Up Technology Implementation: The goal of this U.S. Department of Education program is to support cooperative agreements that will identify resources needed to effectively implement evidence-based technology tools to assist students with disabilities, as well as to develop and disseminate those products among a broad range of schools. An estimated $3m is expected to be granted among six awards. Deadline: March 18, 2013.

YouthBuild: Grantees of this U.S. Department of Labor program will tap the energies and talents of disadvantaged youth to increase the supply of permanent affordable housing for homeless individuals and low-income families and to help youth develop the leadership, learning and high-demand occupational skills needed to succeed in today's global economy. Approximately 75 grants, for up to $1.1m, will be available. Deadline: March 19, 2013.

Support for Participation in TV Multi-Station Master Controls Grant: Through this program, the Corporation for Public Broadcasting (CPB) will assist public television stations with grants to pay for equipment or fees that are required to participate in existing multi-station master control projects. Priority will be given to stations that are likely to encounter difficulty in securing capital equipment funding, especially among rural stations. A total of $1m will be granted. Deadline: June 30, 2013.

Whether you are seeking federal or foundation funding, the Grant Center website, tailored specifically to public media grant seekers, will help you find just what you need. With over 300 funding opportunities, and growing each day, our user-friendly search options help you find the funding opportunity of your choice.

Visit our website. Then, be sure to check back often to see the most recent funding opportunities and news articles. We also encourage you to subscribe to our RSS feed or follow us on Twitter: @aptsgrantcenter.

The Grant Center is made possible by the Corporation for Public Broadcasting.

Questions? Please email the Grant Center: grantcenter@apts.org, or visit our website: www.apts.org/grantcenter.