August 12, 2024

Grant recipients will address critical needs of the museum field to advance the profession and strengthen museum services for the American public.

Museum visitors creating clay sculptures.
Photo courtesy of Hands On Children’s Museum.

Washington, DC—The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has announced its final Fiscal Year 2024 grant recipients. Awardees of the National Leadership Grants for Museums (NLG-M) will lead projects that address broad needs within the museum field, strengthen the museum profession, and strive to improve museum services for the American public. This year, 18 institutions were awarded NLG-M awards.

“IMLS is thrilled to announce this final cohort of Fiscal Year 2024 museum grant recipients,” said IMLS Acting Director Cyndee Landrum. “Fittingly, we are concluding this grant cycle with a program that looks to the future of the museum profession. It is our hope that the selected projects will inspire the museum field to imagine new paths forward, and to see IMLS as a partner for the journey to come.”

NLG-M and seven other IMLS grant funding opportunities will reopen for applications on August 15th, 2024. Please subscribe to the IMLS newsletter for updates.

All awarded FY24 NLG-M projects can be found on the IMLS website. Three of this year’s awardees are detailed below:

  • Environment and Culture Partners (ECP) will research the financial, energy, and greenhouse gas emissions impacts from environmental conditions within museum spaces, both where collections are stored and exhibited. The project will examine spaces managed at temperature and relative humidity broader than common practice to identify appropriate conditions where changes in practice can save money, energy, and reduce emissions. Building upon a previous IMLS project, ECP will partner with the New Buildings Institute to work with eight museums virtually and through site visits. The project will develop three representative energy models and a free online dashboard to support museums in deciding environmental parameters and protocols to achieve energy and carbon savings.

  • Washington Museum Association will conduct a pilot program that provides basic training in core museum competencies to individuals working in volunteer-run museums. In partnership with the Washington State Historical Society, the program will build capacity amongst Washington’s smallest history organizations through a cohort-based approach, connecting them to well-established professional development opportunities offered by national organizations. The pilot will result in a sustainable model that other state museum associations, state historical societies, and heritage organizations can adapt for their own use.

  • Hands on Children’s Museum will develop a toolkit for museum professionals on building programs for families impacted by incarceration, one of the country’s most at-risk and underserved populations. The project will partner with the Regnier Family Wonderscope Children’s Museum of Kansas City, Kansas Children’s Discovery Center, and New York’s Sciencenter to draw on a diverse range of experiences, both inside and outside prisons. The team will jointly design, test, and pilot the toolkit to ensure its usability and adaptability for various types and sizes of museums. As a result of the project, the museum field will gain increased awareness of families impacted by incarceration and the ability to develop programs to support those families by partnering effectively with prisons and other community organizations.

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 LinkedIn.

Programs
National Leadership Grants for Museums