Lewis-Houghton Civics and Democracy Initiative | 030ADV23R0047

Opportunity Information: Apply for 030ADV23R0047

The Lewis-Houghton Civics and Democracy Initiative is a pilot education funding opportunity run by the Library of Congress, created and funded by Congress through the Legislative Branch Appropriations Act, 2023. The program is designed to help organizations across the United States and its territories build digitally enabled, project-based learning resources that teach history, civics, and democracy by using digitized primary sources from the Library of Congress. A defining feature of this initiative is its emphasis on creative arts, especially music and other arts-focused materials from the Librarys collections, as the core content students work with rather than as an add-on.

The grant supports the design and implementation of comprehensive and assessable educational products, meaning applicants are expected to produce curriculum and instructional materials that can be used in real classrooms and that include ways to measure learning. The approach is explicitly project-based, encouraging hands-on learning where students analyze and create using primary sources. Another non-negotiable requirement is that funded projects must incorporate rights-free materials from the Library of Congress, drawing from its large set of music and creative arts resources and related online materials. The intended audience is high school students, and the resulting tools and curricula should be appropriate for secondary instruction in history, civics, and democratic principles.

Administratively, this opportunity is a discretionary award issued as a cooperative agreement, which usually signals that the agency expects to have substantial involvement during the project (for example, collaboration, check-ins, or shared development expectations) rather than simply issuing funds and stepping back. The funding activity category is education, and it is listed under CFDA number 42.015. The Library of Congress is the sponsoring agency.

A wide range of applicants are eligible, including state, county, and local governments; independent school districts; public and private institutions of higher education; federally recognized tribal governments and other tribal organizations; nonprofits with or without 501(c)(3) status (as long as they are not institutions of higher education); and for-profit organizations (including small businesses). This broad eligibility is meant to encourage proposals from schools, cultural and arts organizations, education nonprofits, universities, tribes, and private-sector education developers that can build strong digital learning experiences grounded in primary sources.

The opportunity (Funding Opportunity Number 030ADV23R0047) was posted May 22, 2023, with an application deadline of June 30, 2023 at 2:00 PM Eastern Time. The award ceiling is $100,000 per award, and the Library of Congress anticipated making about 6 awards. Overall, the initiative aligns with the Librarys broader mission of connecting its collections to the public and ensuring that educational materials reach and reflect Americans from diverse communities, perspectives, and experiences, using the universal appeal of music and the creative arts to strengthen instruction in civics and democracy.

• The Library of Congress in the education sector is offering a public funding opportunity titled "Lewis-Houghton Civics and Democracy Initiative" and is now available to receive applicants.
• Interested and eligible applicants and submit their applications by referencing the CFDA number(s): 42.015.
• This funding opportunity was created on May 22, 2023.
• Applicants must submit their applications by Jun 30, 2023 June 30, 2023 at 200PM Eastern Time. (Agency may still review applications by suitable applicants for the remaining/unused allocated funding in 2026.)
• Each selected applicant is eligible to receive up to $100,000.00 in funding.
• The number of recipients for this funding is limited to 6 candidate(s).
• Eligible applicants include: State governments, County governments, City or township governments, Independent school districts, Public and State controlled institutions of higher education, Native American tribal governments (Federally recognized), Native American tribal organizations (other than Federally recognized tribal governments), Nonprofits having a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Nonprofits that do not have a 501(c)(3) status with the IRS, other than institutions of higher education, Private institutions of higher education, For profit organizations other than small businesses, Small businesses.

Apply for 030ADV23R0047

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