IMLS Invests Over $6 Million in Museum National Leadership Projects
Federal Grants Advance Museum Profession and Practice

Archivists recan and clean Pakistani films. Shelving units in background hold processed Indian films. Photo courtesy of The George Eastman Museum, MA-245614-OMS-20.

Washington, DC—The Institute of Museum and Library Services announced the selection of 16 projects from a pool of 46 applicants for the highly competitive National Leadership Grants for Museums program.

National Leadership Grants for Museums support projects led by museums and related organizations that address critical needs of the museum field and that have the potential to advance practice in the profession so that museums can improve services for the American public. The projects will receive funds totaling $6,324,656, and the organizations receiving the awards are matching them with $3,424,395 in non-federal funds.

“These leadership grants for museums celebrate and sustain the best and most forward-looking programs in the museum world and we are proud to provide this recognition to these fine institutions and programs,” said IMLS Director Crosby Kemper.

The IMLS website lists all projects funded through this year’s National Leadership Grants for Museums, including:

• The Madison Children’s Museum along with nine partners will develop a climate and resiliency framework, developmentally appropriate for children ages birth through 8, that focuses on empathy, resiliency, and the environment. Each institution will also commit to lowering their carbon emissions through activities such as buying wind power or installing a solar array. The project will provide museum professionals with culturally relevant climate science education, training in the science of mindfulness and tools for its application, and support in creating locally based creative initiatives and climate solutions for their museums.

• The Image Permanence Institute at the Rochester Institute of Technology will research approaches that help support the physical stability of plastics and plastic composite materials in museum collections. Objects such as modern and contemporary artworks, design, fashion, and ethnographic items often include plastics, as do the storage materials used for photographs. The project will establish safe preservation and handling conditions for these plastics, specifically temperature and relative humidity.

“These projects highlight the expertise, ingenuity, and collaborative nature of the museum field,” said Laura Huerta Migus, Deputy Director, Office of Museum Services. “From original research on species and materials conservation to collaborations addressing social issues, this year’s projects exemplify the power of the museum field in generating new knowledge and preserving our nation’s heritage.”

The FY 2023 National Leadership Grants for Museums Notice of Funding Opportunity will be posted later this month. The anticipated application deadline is November 15, 2022. For more information, please visit the IMLS website.

About the Institute of Museum and Library Services
The Institute of Museum and Library Services is the primary source of federal support for the nation's libraries and museums. We advance, support, and empower America's museums, libraries, and related organizations through grantmaking, research, and policy development. IMLS envisions a nation where individuals and communities have access to museums and libraries to learn from and be inspired by the trusted information, ideas, and stories they contain about our diverse natural and cultural heritage. To learn more, visit www.imls.gov and follow us on Facebook and Twitter.