Mini Grants for Libraries

Some activities that are commonly funded by this grant include: 

• Community dialogues
• Speaker events that include audience engagement
• Interactive author presentations
• Storytelling
• Programming that connects exhibits to current experiences
• Community-engaged interpretation of history, art history and theory, cultural history, or philosophy

If you’d like additional examples, check out the Mini Grants for Libraries Project Planning Worksheet.

This grant can support program-related expenses that may include, but aren’t limited to, the following:

• Honoraria for conversation facilitators, featured speakers, and conversation participants (excluding audience members)
• Program/event planning costs, including project planning and management salaries
• Event space rental costs
• Supplies and materials
• Labor and technical support for online events
• Cleaning supplies and services
• Event advertising
• Documenting the program through production of video, audio, digital/print publication
• Printing and duplication
• Costs to purchase associated publications that support your event, will be distributed to event attendees at no cost, or gifted for attendees to take home with them.
• Snacks, non-alcoholic drinks for consumption during the event
• Costs to provide onsite childcare during the event
• ADA access. For example: live captioning (Note: capital expenditures and equipment purchases are not allowed)
• Language translation during the event, including ASL translation
• Equipment (maximum of 10% of grant award) purchased to specifically support the program being proposed for funding.

Notes about grant funded activities: 

• Programs can be in multiple languages or be in a language other than English. Grant reporting must be in English.
• Programs can be hosted online or in-person.

This grant funding specifically supports humanities projects and carries the restriction that these funds cannot be used to pay for the creation or performance of art. This grant can fund programs and events about “the history, criticism and theory of the arts” because these are commonly considered to be humanities activities. (Please visit the National Endowment for the Arts’ Grants page and the Oregon Arts Commission’s Grant page for funding opportunities that cover the creation and performance of art.) 

This grant does not fund humanitarian work.

Please read the following documents for more information about eligibility, activity restrictions, and compliance standards for organizations receiving this grant.

• Ineligibility, Restrictions and Compliance Standards for Grant Awards
• Frequently Asked Questions

Priority funding for rural libraries

Public, tribal, community college or volunteer libraries or library branches located in Oregon are all eligible. Applicants who are located in (or adjacent to and serving) rural or frontier zip codes are prioritized for funding. 

We use the Oregon Office of Rural Health’s definition of rural and frontier communities as locations in Oregon ten or more miles from the center of a population center of 40,000 people or more. See this list of zip codes to determine whether your library is located in a rural or frontier area. 

If your library is not located in these zip codes but is adjacent to them, our grant application will provide the opportunity for you to tell us how you serve rural/frontier zip codes/communities.

Eligibility requirements

All current and past Oregon Humanities grant awardees must be in good standing with past awards in order to be eligible to apply for funding. Applicants who are (or are using) fiscal agents and/or fiscal sponsors are not eligible.

Applicants must have a current (active) Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) registration at the time of grant application submission. You will need to provide proof of your UEI registration status in your application. Only one application per entity (based on individual UEI) is allowed per annual grant cycle.

IMPORTANT NOTE: We require that our grantees have a Unique Entity Identifier (UEI) number issued by SAM.gov. It can take anywhere from a few days to months to receive your UEI number. We recommend applying for your UEI when this grant opens for applications. 

Website for UEI registration and further instructions: sam.gov/content/entity-registration. 

Please read the following documents for more information about eligibility, activity restrictions, and compliance standards for organizations receiving this grant.

• Ineligibility, Restrictions and Compliance Standards for Grant Awards
• Frequently Asked Questions

Applications for this grant will open on Monday, November 2, 2026.

We only accept applications submitted through our website. As part of the application, applicants will need to provide proof of the organization's active UEI as well as a W-9 that lists the organization's current address. 

Organizations are limited to one application per annual grant cycle (based on UEI).

We accept applications for multilingual programs, but the grant application and reporting are required to be in English.

If you are in need of an accommodation or any assistance that would help you apply for this grant, we’ll do our best to help! Please reach out to Alex Stoehr, program manager, at a.stoehr@oregonhumanities.org or (971) 361-9892.

This grant’s application is fairly quick and easy to complete. Even so, we know that questions can still come up! Oregon Humanities offers many types of support to help grant applicants write their strongest application.

To be notified of our online and in-person help/info sessions, please sign up for our grants newsletter.

Online information session

We host an online information session with grants program staff to help applicants with questions and to discuss eligibility, program and grant alignment, and all aspects of applying for this grant.

This hour-long, informal session will cover general information about the grant: how to apply, what kinds of programs this grant funds, etc. There will be ample opportunity for attendees to ask questions. (If you have a specific question you’d like covered during the session but would prefer not to ask it during the session, please send it in advance to grants@oregonhumanities.org.) Attendance is recommended, not required, and the session will be recorded. Simply click the link below to register.

• Online General Info Session: Monday, November 9, 2026, 11:00 a.m.–12:00 p.m. PT

Workshop your program idea/application assistance sessions

In these drop-in online help sessions, grant program staff will assist attendees in workshopping their program ideas, coaching them on writing a strong application, and can help applicants fill out an application in real time. Grant program staff will be available for the whole hour of each session, and applicants can drop-in as needed. Simply click the link below to register.

• Online “Workshop Your Program Idea/Application Assistance” Drop-In Session: Thursday, December 10, 2026, 3:30–4:30 p.m. PT
• Online “Workshop Your Program Idea/Application Assistance” Drop-In Session: Friday, January 8, 2027, 10:00 a.m.–11:00 a.m. PT

Individual support

If you would like to get feedback on your program’s alignment with this grant, have your questions answered, or receive technical assistance, please email grants@oregonhumanities.org to schedule a phone or Zoom meeting with our grants manager. Please note that individual meetings are not available during the week preceding the grant application deadline.

Review committee

The Mini Grants for Libraries Review Committee is composed of members of Oregon Humanities staff and board of directors as well as community reviewers (people outside of Oregon Humanities who are affiliated with the organization in some way). Our Review Committee members individually score each application based on the merits of each proposal. After numerical scoring is completed, the applications are ranked according to the scoring. The Review Committee meets to discuss proposals and rankings and determines which applications to fund.

Application scoring

Each section of the application is weighted based on its importance and is scored on a 1-5 scale. A scoring rubric will be used by the grant review committee, and the following criteria will be evaluated:

• How well the proposed events are in alignment with the annual theme (1–5 point scale, 25% of total score)
• The quality of the proposed events (1–5 point scale, 40% of the total score)
  • Feasibility, potential efficacy, and impact
• The proposed use of funding (1–5 point scale, 10% of total score)
  • Clear articulation of how funding would be used
  • Costs are reasonable and allowable
• Alignment with Oregon Humanities’ mission and goal for this grant (1-5 point scale, 25% of total score)
  • Goal: To fund events hosted by libraries throughout the state. We’re particularly interested in programs that explore complex topics, helping people to connect, reflect, and cultivate a stronger sense of agency in their communities.

Review grant ineligibility, restrictions, and compliance standards

Review answers to frequently asked questions

Organizations that receive grant awards will receive a notice of the award amount and a legal Grant Agreement via email. This email will be sent to the contacts named in your grant application as your Project Lead and Authorizing Official. 

Please fully read your Grant Agreement, reach out to us if you have questions about it, and have your Project Lead and Authorizing Official sign it promptly. After OH receives the signed agreement, we will release the awarded funding to your organization. 

The email will also include the links to your grant reporting forms. You’re required to file the report listed below. Please refer to your Grant Agreement for the reporting due dates. 

Oregon Humanities offers the following support to assist you in managing your grant-funded program or event:

Post-award grantee online meeting (recommended)

We recommend that all Mini Grant for Libraries awardees attend a post-award grant management online session. Information and zoom links for the online session will be emailed to grantees. If you are unable to attend either of the scheduled session options but would like to have the benefit of this session, please email grants@oregonhumanities.org to schedule an individual session.

In this session, we’ll discuss the items that grant recipients need to understand, plan for and track, as they apply the grant funding to their programs, including aspects such as documenting your events and your volunteer labor. We’ll also cover the Final Report forms that grantees are required to submit to OH. Sessions will include time for questions and discussion.

Grant management materials for grant recipients

• Grant management materials for 2026 Mini Grant for Libraries recipients

Accessibility

Check out the Oregon Humanities Accessibility Guide for tips to make your programs and events accessible and welcoming.