•	Endowment-Wide Programs and Initiatives

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1. Louisa May Alcott: Through Her Eyes (A community-wide library event focusing on the life, work, and times of Louisa May Alcott)
   Libraries are encouraged to create a nineteenth-century atmosphere with music, displays of books and other media, food, dance, artwork, games, related programs for children, and other activities. At least one program during the event must be presented by the project scholar. Suggested program ideas include, but are not limited to
   • presentation of film clips from the documentary film, Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women, and reading of passages from the biography of the same name;
   • a program on nineteenth-century gothic novels, including Louisa May Alcott’s little- known thrillers Behind a Mask, or a Woman’s Power; and A Long and Fatal Love Chase;
   • a program about Louisa May Alcott’s personal relationships with the famous Concord Transcendentalists Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, and Nathaniel Hawthorne, and a discussion exploring the utopian ideals of Transcendentalism;
   • readings by community members, including local celebrities and journalists, of works by Louisa May Alcott and the literary figures she knew and admired, including Ralph Waldo Emerson, Henry David Thoreau, Margaret Fuller, and Nathaniel Hawthorne, as well as excerpts from early women’s magazines, such as Godey’s Lady’s Book;
   • a program connecting Louisa May Alcott’s nineteenth-century era to your library’s region. How was your community involved in the Civil War, Abolitionism, Transcendentalism, the women’s rights movement, or social reform?
2. Louisa May Alcott Wrote That? (Reading and scholar-led discussion of Alcott’s lesser-known works)
   Louisa May Alcott is best known for her children’s novel Little Women, but she authored many other stories for adult audiences, including 1) Transcendental Wild Oats, a satire on her family’s life in a nineteenth-century Utopian community; 2) Hospital Sketches, an account of Alcott’s time spent as an army nurse during the Civil War; 3) Behind A Mask, or a Woman’s Power, one of the best of Alcott’s recently discovered thrillers; and 4) Work: A Story of Experience, a novel about women’s rights and responsibilities beyond the family. The project scholar will facilitate a discussion exploring these short works, which together help display the range of Alcott’s writing and exemplify her strong and dynamic connections to the culture in which she lived. Libraries may choose to discuss three of these works, or excerpts from all four texts. The materials are available online, free of charge at
   • Transcendental Wild Oats: www.classicauthors.net/Alcott/trancendental/;
   • Hospital Sketches: alcott.classicauthors.net/hospital/;
   • Behind a Mask, or a Woman’s Power: alcott.classicauthors.net/mask/;
   • Work: A Story of Experience: alcott.classicauthors.net/work/.
3. Louisa May Alcott: Literary Phenomenon and Social Reformer
   This scholar-led program should focus on Louisa May Alcott as a self-trained and successful professional writer, as demonstrated by her stories in new publications for women and mass audiences, such as Godey’s Lady’s Book; and on how she used her writing to advance many of her era’s ideas for social reform, such as Abolitionism and women’s rights.
4. Film screening – Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women
   Viewing of the documentary film, followed by a discussion led by the project scholar about Alcott, her writing, and her legacy.
5. Reading and discussion of the biography – Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind
   Little Women
   A scholar-led discussion of the biography; documentary film clips may be presented during the discussion.

1. Sign an agreement with the project sponsors concerning programming and other project requirements.
2. Recruit a qualified lead scholar for local programming.
3. Collaborate with at least one of the following in planning their programs: a local public television station; a state humanities council; a public, college, or university library; a historical society; or a museum.
4. Charge no fees for the five required programs.
5. Provide required reports, including a final report, to sponsors by the deadline.
6. Appoint one staff member as the local coordinator of the project. The coordinator and the lead project scholar should attend the project planning workshop, to be held in Boston in late winter/early spring 2011.
7. Academic and special libraries applying for the project are asked to contact a local public library to discuss possible collaborations.

1. A $2,500 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities for travel to the workshop and project-related programming expenses, e.g., scholar honorarium, publicity, and other support materials.
2. A site support notebook. Each library will receive a notebook containing materials to guide local scholars in presenting humanities programming, suggestions for organizing programs, and recruiting local partners; lists of books, films, and recordings; an annotated list of websites containing Louisa May Alcott’s works; a press kit with photos, sample press releases, and Public Service Announcements; reporting forms, and other materials.
3. A brochure about Louisa May Alcott for public distribution.
4. Twenty-five copies of a project publicity poster, which will also be available in digital format for downloading by libraries.
5. One copy of the Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women documentary DVD.
6. One copy of the Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women biography.
7. Access to a companion website, www.louisamayalcott.net, to complement the film and biography, with interactive features to allow exploration of topics in greater depth. The website includes film clips from the documentary, excerpts from the biography, content about Louisa May Alcott’s life and works, a timeline of historical events, curriculum materials, and more.
8. A book discussion guide for the biography.
9. Technical and programming support from the ALA Public Programs Office throughout the programs, including participation in an online discussion list for sites.

A planning workshop for the library project director and the project scholar from each selected library will be held in Boston in late winter/ early spring 2011. Accommodation expenses for all participants are supported by the NEH grant to the ALA. The NEH $2,500 grants to libraries may be used to pay for travel to the workshop and for local programming.

1. Why does your institution want to participate in “Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women—Library Outreach Programs”?  Please describe unique collections, local resources, and interests related to Louisa May Alcott and her era.
2. How will your community benefit from this project? What particular aspects of your community could be spotlighted by the programs?
3. Libraries are required to collaborate with at least one of the following in planning their programs: a local public television station; a state humanities council; a public, college, or university library; a historical society; or a museum. Please describe your library’s partner or partners and their projected roles in the project (support letter required from major partner).
4. Libraries are required to enlist a lead project scholar with expertise in nineteenth-century American history or literature to help plan and present programs, ensuring that program content conveys the intended humanities themes. Please describe your project scholar’s relevant experience related to this historical period and his or her experience with presenting programs to the public. Please provide a two-page résumé and a letter of support from your scholar as an attachment to this application.
5. Describe the audience you will target and how you will publicize the five required programs to that audience. If your institution is an academic or special library, describe how you will ensure that the public beyond your own user community will attend programs (saying only that the public will be invited to all programs is not sufficient for academic and special libraries). Academic and special libraries are asked to contact their local public library for program and promotional support (a support letter from the public library will strengthen your application).
6. What is the scope of your current (i.e., within the past year) adult cultural programming, including type and frequency (e.g., book discussion weekly, annual fall lecture series on local history)?
7. Has your library participated in (in the last five years) or is it scheduled to participate in any other program sponsored by the ALA Public Programs Office? If so, please tell us which programs.

1. Application for Federal Domestic Assistance - Short Organizational (SF-424 Short)—this form asks for basic information about the project, the project director, and the institution.
2. Supplementary Cover Sheet for NEH Grant Programs—this form asks for additional information about the project director, the institution, and the budget.
3. NEH Attachment Form—this form allows you to attach your narrative and the other parts of your application.

1. Name of Federal Agency: This will be filled in automatically with “National Endowment for the Humanities.”
2. Catalog of Federal Domestic Assistance Number: This will be filled in automatically with the CFDA number and title of the NEH program to which you are applying.
3. Date Received: Please leave blank.
4. Funding Opportunity Number: This will be filled in automatically.
5. Applicant Information: In this section, please supply the name, address, employer/taxpayer identification number (EIN/TIN), DUNS number, website address, and congressional district of the institution. Also choose the “type” that best describes your institution (you only need to select one).
   If your institution is located in the 5th Congressional District of your state, put a “5.” If your institution doesn’t have a congressional district (e.g. it is in a state or U.S. territory that doesn’t have districts or is in a foreign country), put a “0” (zero).
   All institutions applying to federal grant programs are required to provide a DUNS number, issued by Dun & Bradstreet, as part of their application. Project directors should contact their institution’s grants administrator or chief financial officer to obtain their institution’s DUNS number. Federal grant applicants can obtain a DUNS number free of charge by calling 1-866-705-5711. (Learn more about the requirement.)
6. Project Information: Use the following as the title of your project: Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women—Library Outreach Programs.
   Use the following description for your project under Project Description: This project will support public humanities programs in a library that will explore Louisa May Alcott’s untraditional life, her varied body of published work, and her place in American culture. The library will present five programs that represent the broad scope of Louisa May Alcott’s writing, encourage scholar-led discussion about the project’s major humanities themes, and promote in-depth discussion of the documentary and biography, Louisa May Alcott: The Woman Behind Little Women.
7. Project Director: Provide the name, title, mailing address, e-mail address, and telephone and fax numbers for the project director.
8. Primary Contact/Grants Administrator: Provide the contact information for the official responsible for the administration of the grant (i.e., negotiating the project budget and ensuring compliance with the terms and conditions of the award). This person is often a grants or research officer, or a sponsored programs official. Normally, the Primary Contact/Grants Administrator is not the same person as the Project Director. If the project director and the grants administrator are the same person, skip to Item 9.
9. Authorized Representative: Provide the contact information for the Authorized Organization Representative (AOR) who is submitting the application on behalf of the institution. This person, often called an “Authorizing Official,” is typically the president, vice president, executive director, provost, or chancellor. In order to become an AOR, the person must be designated by the institution’s E-Business Point of Contact. For more information, please consult the Grants.gov user guide, which is available at www.grants.gov/applicants/resources.jsp.

1. Project Director: Select H3: Library Science as the major field of study for the project director.
2. Institution Information: Use the pull-down menu to select your type of institution.
3. Project Funding: Enter $2,500. (Note: Applicants are not required to submit a budget for the $2,500 award from the NEH with this application.)
4. Application Information: Indicate that the proposal will not be submitted to other NEH grant programs, government agencies, or private entities for funding.
   For Type of Application, check “new.”
   For Project Field Code, select A-3: American History.

• Recruitment of a qualified lead scholar for local programming and a major project partner;
• Identification of a collaborating organization in the community from the list provided above (a local public television station; a state humanities council; a public, college, or university library; a historical society; or a museum);
• Contact with other local organizations and institutions for help in supporting programs;
• Commitment to a publicity plan that will make the widest possible audience aware of the project;
• Evidence of library administrative support for the project;
• Enthusiasm and ideas for teaching the community about the life, times, and work of Louisa May Alcott.

• Location of the sites—the selection committee would like programs to take place in all regions of the country.
• Size and demographics of the community. The selection committee seeks a mix of different size communities and varied demographics.