>> Kimber Thomas:
All right. Hi, everybody.
Welcome to the 
webinar for the
Connecting Communities 
Digital Initiatives
Artist or Scholar in 
Residence Opportunity?
My name is Kimber Thomas 
and I'm joined here with my
colleague Olivia Dorsey, 
who will introduce herself.
>> Olivia Dorsey: Hi, everyone. 
My name is Olivia I’m also. I’m a
Program Specialist 
within the CCDI initiative.
>> Kimber Thomas: Today 
we're here to talk about our
Artist or Scholar in 
Residence Opportunity.
But before we get started,
here's a little bit of
housekeeping information.
Please note that this recording
will be posted online and will
be viewable at any time.
If you have any questions about
this opportunity or the
application process, please
email us at LOC-grants@loc.gov
Now let's get started.
The Connecting Communities
Digital Initiative team consists
of Olivia Dorsey, who's 
a Program Specialist.
Brian Foo, who is a 
Senior Innovation Specialist.
Erica Gault who is 
a Program Specialist.
Marya McQuirter, who is CCDIs
Program Director and myself a
Senior Innovation Specialist.
The Program Specialist handled
the coordination of multiple
aspects of the initiative,
including communications,
program, development, 
and awardee support.
The Senior Innovation
Specialist provide technical
support for our grant
recipients by assisting with
project scoping and
experimentation.
We have a lot to get through in
this webinar, but this is what
you can expect.
First, we'll provide an overview 
of the “Of the People” program
and the Connecting
Communities Digital Initiative,
which we might call CCDI
throughout the remainder of this
webinar. Then we'll share more
about the reason you all are
here today, the Artist or Scholar 
in Residence Opportunity.
After that, we'll talk about 
how to apply for this
opportunity and we'll provide
some examples to inspire your
applications, and finally,
we'll point you to some
resources that you might find
useful as you begin your
applications, such as how to
search the library's digital
collections, and we'll provide
you with information about how
you can get support and
assistance during the
application process.
The Connecting Communities
Digital Initiative is part of
“Of the People: Widening the Path”,
which is a multiyear initiative
that creates new opportunities
for more Americans to engage
with the Library of Congress
and to add their perspectives to
the library's collections
through CCDI.
The Library of Congress funds
three programs Libraries,
Archives and Museums, Higher
Education Institutions, and the
Artist or Scholar in Residence.
And I'll turn it over to Olivia
now to talk a little bit more
about the programs that make 
up the “Of the People” initiative.
>> Olivia Dorsey: Thanks, Kimber. 
“Of the People” consist of three
programmatic arms, including the 
Internships and Fellowships program,
the American Folklife Center and
the Digital Strategy Directorate.
The Connecting Communities 
Digital Initiative, also known as
CCDI, is part of the Digital 
Strategy Directorate.
Our program provides 
fellowships and grants
to individuals and institutions
for projects that innovate,
Imagine and remix library
materials to highlight the
stories and perspectives of
Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, or
Latino, Asian American and
Pacific Islander and or other
communities of color from 
any of the 50 U.S. states,
the District of Columbia and its
territories and commonwealths
including Puerto Rico, the
Northern Mariana Islands, Guam,
American Samoa and 
the U.S. Virgin Islands.
In the next few slides, I'll go
into detail about the work of
the other two arms of our
program.
The Internships and Fellowships
Program offers a wealth of
opportunities for
undergraduate, graduate and
recently graduated students 
to work with the library as
interns. The AHHA program's
application for Fall 2023, as
well as the Junior Fellows
Program for summer 2023,
has recently closed.
But stay tuned to the “Of the
People” blog for more information
on additional opportunities.
The American Folklife 
Center offers
Community Collections
Grants which
emphasize
supporting cultural
documentation by communities.
Their grants entail public
participation in the creation of
archival collections, seeking to 
support contemporary cultural
documentation, focusing on 
the culture and traditions of
diverse, often underrepresented
communities in the United States.
They also enable communities 
to document their
cultural life and experiences
from their own perspectives,
while enriching the library's
holdings with diverse materials
featuring creativity and
knowledge found at the local
level. Again, please subscribe
to the “Of the People” blog for
the latest information 
on the next round of
Community 
Collections grants.
We also encourage you to visit
the “Of the People” website to
learn about the 
current CCG recipients.
This year for CCDIs, Libraries,
Archives, and Museums Opportunity.
will award up to three 
grant awards of up to
$70,000 each to support three
local cultural heritage
organizations by enabling
storytelling across a range of
platforms. The grants are 
for up to 12 months.
The funds will support the
creation of projects that make
significant and meaningful 
uses of the library's digital
materials. Projects must also
center one or more of the
following groups, including
Black, Indigenous, Hispanic, or
Latino, Asian American and
Pacific Islander and or other
communities of color.
Please note, while we will be
offering awards of up to $70,000
each. Actual awards 
may be less.
If you are a library archive or
museum at a higher education
institution, you should apply
for a Higher Education Grant.
These libraries, archives and
museums grants are intended for
public libraries, non-profit
libraries, archives and museums.
For more information on this
opportunity, we encourage you to
visit the “Of the People” website
listed here, as well as viewing
our Libraries, Archives 
and Museums webinar.
CCDI is also
offering a grant
for Minority Serving Higher
Education Institutions.
This year will award up to
three grant awards for up to
$70,000 each to enable
storytelling across a range of
platforms. The grants are
for up to 12 months.
Please note actual awards 
may be less than 70,000.
The funds will support the
creation of projects that
facilitate teaching and
learning with the library's
digital collections for
students, staff and or community
members and make significant
and meaningful use of those
digital materials.
Projects must also centre on
one or more of the following
groups Black, Indigenous,
Hispanic or Latino, Asian
American and Pacific Islander
and or other communities of
color. For more information on the 
Higher Education Opportunity,
we encourage you to 
visit the “Of the People”
website, which is listed here.
And you can also view our Higher 
Education Informational webinar.
At this time.
I'll pass along to Kimber to
talk a little bit more about our
Artist or Scholar in 
Residence Program.
>> Kimber Thomas: Thank
So for the Artist or Scholar 
in Residence Program
this year we'll be making up to
two awards of up to $90,000 each
in support of the creation of
new, scholarly and or artistic
works that imaginatively study
experiment with and or critique
the libraries, digital
collections, materials and or
services and that center Black,
Indigenous, Hispanic or Latino,
Asian American and Pacific
Islander or other communities of
color in the United States.
This grant opportunity enables
artists or scholars to engage
with digital collections,
demonstrate possibilities, share
insights, and explore the ways
that technology, library and
memory communities can be
transformed by welcoming unheard
voices and stories.
Just to note that actual awards
may be less than $90,000 and the
library may choose to make no
awards or more than two awards.
The expected start date for the
artist or scholar in residence
will be between November 21st,
2023, and December 31st, 2023.
The application deadline is
August 7th, 2023 by 2:00 pm
Eastern Time.
For this opportunity.
Our best advice is to 
read the entire Notice.
The Notice of 
Funding Opportunity.
This is where you will find
more details on eligibility and
the application process.
While all of the sections in
The Notice are important, you
may want to review 
Sections A, C, D, and E first.
If you have any questions about
the notice, you can send us an
email at LOC-grants@loc.gov.
So let's explore the Program
Description section of
The Notice, so the Library of
Congress seeks to expand the
connections between the library
and communities of color and
strengthen the use of Library
of Congress, Digital Collections
and Digital Tools.
So again, we're awarding two
grants for up to $90,000 to
support the creation of new,
scholarly and or artistic works
that imaginatively study
experiment with and or critique
the library's digital
collections, materials and or
services and that center Black,
Indigenous, Hispanic or Latino,
Asian American and Pacific
Islander and other communities
of color in the United States for 
this Notice, the United States
includes all 50 U.S. states, 
the District of Columbia,
Puerto Rico, the Northern 
Mariana Islands, Guam,
American Samoa and 
the U.S. Virgin Islands.
The purpose of the Artist or
Scholar in Residence Program is
to offer artists and or
scholars the time, space and
money to study, experiment
with, and or critique the
library's digitized and born
digital materials and services.
This study, experimentation and
critique is in service of the
technological and social
possibilities that can come from
centering communities of color
in the United States in this
work. We welcome projects 
that explore gender, sexuality,
class, color, ability and more.
Among one or more of the groups
listed on the slide and we
define artists or 
scholars broadly.
They include but are not
limited to visual artists,
conceptual artists, dancers,
journalists, cultural critics,
independent scholars, academic
scholars and cultural heritage
practitioners, including
librarians.
And through the establishment
of this CCDI Residency, the
library will support artists
and or scholars to undertake
scholarly or artistic projects
connecting their own expertise
and research interests to 
the Library of Congress's
Digital Collections 
and Services.
The project should result in
public facing artistic works or
scholarship that will expand our
imaginations both within and
outside of the library.
And as you get started with
your proposals, a note that the
proposal should explain how 
the artist or scholars would
approach the Digitized
Collections born digital
materials and or digital
services in the library.
And while there's tremendous
flexibility in the form that an
Artist or Scholar in Residence
Project might take, coming to
all projects must be a deep
engagement with the
Digital Collections, materials 
and or services available at
the Library of Congress that will
have a meaningful public impact.
And I'll turn it 
over to Olivia.
>> Olivia Dorsey: So I'll talk about 
the program expectations and
deliverables for the Artist 
or Scholar in Residence.
They're listed here, but I'll
go through each of them.
Artistic or Scholarly Project.
So the Artist or Scholar and
Residence should design, develop
and implement a project that
studies experiments with and or
critiques the library's
digitized collections.
Born digital materials and or
services that center on one or
more of the following groups
Black, Indigenous, Hispanic or
Latino, Asian American or
Pacific Islander or other
communities of color.
As Kimber mentioned, we welcome
projects that explore gender,
sexuality, class, color,
ability and more.
Among one or more of 
all of the above groups.
Time spent at the Library.
So during the first 1 to 3
months of the residency, the
Artist or Scholar in Residence
will be expected to visit the
library for at least ten
cumulative days in person to
meet staff, utilize Library of
Congress resources and to
participate in occasional CCDI
activities for outreach and
engagement. The Artist or
Scholar in Residence will be
expected to engage with both
library staff and the public
during their residency.
This must include at least 
two public engagements.
And finally participate in Summer 
Fuse, the Artist or Scholar in
residence must attend 
and present their work at
Summer Fuse.
Summer Fuse is CCDIs Summer
Symposium and the scholar, the
Artist or Scholar and Residence
can attend either virtually or
in person for this event.
Participation in Summer Fuse
does not count as one of the two
required public engagements.
In-person attendance at 
Summer Fuse is not required.
As we mentioned, you can also
attend virtually if you desire.
So. For applicants who plan to
attend in person, they should
include travel expenses to
Washington, DC for two days in
the travel section of the 
Budget Plan Workbook and
Budget Narrative. You can see 
Section D.5.2.1 of The Notice.
For more information and 
to review these program
expectations and deliverables,
we highly suggest taking a look
at Section A.3 for 
more information.
The library will use a panel
review process to evaluate all
eligible and complete
applications as described in
Section E of The Notice.
Panelists are professionals in
the library and or fields with
relevant knowledge and
expertise in the types of
project activities identified
in the application.
The selecting official will review 
panel recommendations and
make final funding decisions
consistent with the purposes of
the program's mission 
and goals.
Applications will be evaluated
primarily for these items listed
on the slide here, including
Advancement of program goals,
Feasibility of project plans
and outcomes, Alignment of
applicant background and expertise. 
And Reasonableness of
cost and likelihood that budget
will support project execution.
And Kimber will talk about 
those a little bit more.
A few slides later.
Before we jump into the
evaluation criteria and before
we talk about examples of
possible projects you can
propose, let's talk 
about eligibility.
Please note that this
opportunity for the
Artist or Scholar in Residence 
program is for individuals only.
Organizations and Institutions
are not eligible under this
announcement. Organizations and
Institutions can instead review the
Libraries, Archives and Museums 
and Higher Education Institutions
notice opportunities.
Eligible applicants must be
individuals who are U.S. citizens
or permanent residents based 
in any of the 50 U.S. states,
the District of Columbia
Territories and Commonwealths,
including Puerto Rico, Northern
Mariana Islands, Guam,
American Samoa and 
the U.S. Virgin Islands.
Eligible applicants must also
propose a project that must be
conducted within the United
States or a U.S. Commonwealth or
territory, and just as a quick
look at what eligibility looks
like for this opportunity, we
are only accepting one
application per individual.
As I mentioned, Organizations
and Institutions are not
eligible. This opportunity is
only open to individuals.
Projects must involve scholarly
or artistic production that will
have a public impact.
And then finally, Cost Sharing
is not allowed under this Notice.
At this time.
I'll pass to Kimber to share a
few examples and to talk about
some of that 
evaluation criteria.
>> Kimber Thomas:
All right. Thank you, Olivia.
So here are just a few examples
of possible projects you could
submit an application for.
You could propose to develop 
a new application interface,
digital exhibition, publication
or collection.
You could create a series of
podcasts or digital tools for
accessing, remixing, or
re-imaging cultural heritage
materials. You could even
produce a dynamic paper that
discusses the technical
approaches to uncovering stories
using new technologies 
or approaches.
That list of examples is meant
to inspire and not limit the
possibilities for what
successful grants might include.
So the possibilities are endless, 
and we really encourage
you to be as creative 
as possible.
And we are so excited to see
what you come up with.
So going back to The Notice,
when you open The Notice, this
is what you'll see with
Section, the Sections
highlighted. Again, if you have
any questions as you explore the
The Notice or as you begin your
application, please email us at
LOC-grants@loc.gov.
And so as Olivia mentioned
previously, applications will be
reviewed based on the following
criteria advancement of program
goals, feasibility of project plans 
and outcomes, alignment of
applicant background and
expertise and reasonable
reasonableness of cost and
likelihood that budget will
support project execution.
And so here are the key
considerations we will use in
evaluating each application as
it relates to advancement of
program goals.
So we'll be looking at whether
the applicant's proposal
demonstrates new ways of
thinking about the library's
Digitized Collections, Born
Digital Collections and or
Services, and if it foregrounds
Black, Indigenous, Hispanic or
Latino, Asian American and
Pacific Islanders and or other
communities of color 
in the United States.
We'll also be looking to see if
the project makes creative or
scholarly use of digital
Library of Congress materials
and addresses those materials
in ways that are legal and
ethical, and we're also
interested in whether the
individual is proposing a
project that will engage its
audiences in envisioning 
new connections between
the Library of Congress and Black,
Indigenous, Hispanic or Latino,
Asian American and Pacific
Islanders and or other
communities of color 
in the United States.
As it relates to Project
Feasibility, we're evaluating
applications based on whether
the library has the digital
materials and collections
needed for a successful project.
If the applicant has addressed
whether or not those digital
materials and collections are
legally available for the
proposed uses, if the applicant
has addressed whether they have
the permissions and clearances
to share and use materials from
their own collections or other
collections included in the
proposal. If the proposed
activities are informed by
theory and or practice, and if
the applicant has identified any
risks to the project and how
they will mitigate them.
And as it relates to Background
and Experience, we want to see
if the applicant has
demonstrated the ability to
undertake short term projects
that result in considerable
public impact and if they
possess the majority of skills
necessary for successful
completion of the project.
And I'll pass it to Olivia, who
can talk more about the budget.
>> Olivia Dorsey: So here are 
the key considerations we'll use
in evaluating each application 
as it relates to your budget.
We'll be looking at if your
proposal indicates that the
project can be completed 
within a 12 month period.
To what extent the project
strategy aligns with the
availability of the applicant
and the relationship, skills and
experience necessary to
complete the project.
Whether the applicant has
demonstrated an understanding of
the financial aspects of 
the proposed project.
Whether the applicant can
support and complete proposed
activities in the time allocated 
through the effective
deployment and management 
of resources, including travel
equipment and supplies.
Whether costs are allowable
under the cost principles found
in two CFR-200 Subpart E, which
will provide you with a link to
on our website and whether
costs are reasonable and
effective for 
project completion.
As a reminder, Cost Sharing 
is not allowed under this
Opportunity. With the help of
Miriam, one of our colleagues in
the library's Contracts and
Grants Division, we created some
documents to help guide you as
you complete your application.
Here you'll see a screenshot
from our Application Checklist.
This checklist is currently
available on our website and
will help guide you as you
complete your application.
For additional information on
Application Submission, please
review Section D of The Notice.
We will mention, though, one 
of the very first steps that we
recommend you take in the
application process is setting
up an account with www.Sam.gov.
Please note that registration for 
www.Sam.gov is free, but it can
take several weeks for your
account to become active in the
system. Setting up this account
on www.Sam.gov is crucial for
completing your application, so
we highly encourage that you
complete that process early.
These are the pieces of
information you'll need to
include in your Proposal
Narrative along with your
application. The Proposal
Narrative is a way for us to
learn more about you and 
your project, and in order to
complete it, you'll need to
fill out all sections of the
template provided.
Some of the questions in the
Proposal Narrative ask you to
describe the Question or Theme
of your project and how you'll
engage with the library's
collections. Your project's
audience, and how your project
may grow over the course of one
year. It also asks about your
work plan, and we really want to
see what you anticipate the
expected outcomes will be and
what the project 
milestones will be.
To see additional questions on
the Project Narrative Template.
You can go to the CCDIs Artist or
Scholar in Residence page for
more details. The appendices in
the Proposed Project Narrative
should include a full CV and 
or portfolio for the applicant.
Any examples of prior work,
relevant links and background
information as applicable?
Please note that Letters of
Recommendation are not required
under this Notice Opportunity.
You may also be required to
include additional information
if there are special
circumstances relevant to your
specific circumstances.
For example, if you have a
conflict of interest or if you
should provide a disclosure.
Additional circumstances are
described in section D.5.1.1
of The Notice.
The Budget Plan Workbook should
provide detailed costs for all
items that will be funded 
under your project.
We've provided a template in
the form of an Excel file that's
available on our website that
will assist you with this.
We also require 
a Budget Narrative.
Please note that the Budget
Narrative is different from the
Project Narrative.
The Budget Narrative should
show a clear connection between
the required budget items and
the Budget Plan Workbook and
the Project Plan, and then finally,
there are several budget
categories that we want you 
to describe as well, including
salaries, wages and benefits,
travel equipment, supplies,
contractual services and other
direct costs, other direct costs
or costs that are not covered
by the other budget categories
just mentioned, and these can
include items such as space
rental, honoraria, Etcetera.
More details on providing
budget information can be found
in Section D.5.2 
of The Notice.
Lastly, on our website, you'll
also find the SF-424 form.
You'll also need this to
complete as part of your
application. The SF-424 
form is a required form for
organizations applying 
for federal assistance.
It contains basic information such 
as the funding opportunity number,
your Contact Information,
Project Title, and
Project Description.
So definitely make 
sure to fill that out.
Now I'll pass on to Kimber to
talk a little bit more about how
to apply, and she'll also 
talk about our current
Scholar in Residence.
>> Kimber Thomas: Okay, so 
when you submit your application,
please email all of your application 
materials to LOC-grants@loc.gov.
We will not accept applications
submitted through Grants.gov.
If you have questions about 
the application process, please
reach out. We will be accepting
questions about this opportunity
until August 25th, 2023 
at 2:00 pm Eastern Time.
We'll post any questions 
we receive about these
opportunities and the
application process on our blog
“Of the People”, and you can find 
the blog at blogs.loc.gov/ofthepeople
If you encounter any issues
submitting your application via
email, you can request
assistance until
September 6th, 2023 
at 3 p.m. Eastern Time.
And as you email questions to
LOC-grants@loc.gov, make
sure to include the information
in the subject line that's on
the slide here.
And as you get started with
your applications, we encourage
you to check out our 2022 Scholar 
in Residence, Maya S. Cade.
Maya is the Creator and Curator
of the Black Film Archive, which
is a Living Register of Black
Films from 1915 to 1979.
And in her two year residency
at the library, she's exploring
the place of tenderness 
in American Black Film.
Maya is drawing on vast Digital
Collections at the library by
working with librarians,
archivists and preservationists
in the Moving Image Research
Center to make a much larger
corpus of films more 
accessible to the public.
And the bigger goal of Maya's
work is to create space for the
public to think more deeply not
only about Black Film, but also
about the possibilities and
necessities of tenderness,
especially as critical metadata
in Digital Collections.
We encourage you to check out
Maya's work at Black Film
www.BlackFilmArchive.com
and hope that her project 
serves as inspiration as
you start your applications.
I'll turn it back 
over to you, Olivia.
So talk us through how to
search the library's collections
for materials relating to
communities of color.
>> Olivia Dorsey: So one question 
we get a lot is how do you search
the library's collections? Well, we 
have a brief video that'll show you
just how to do that, and in
this video, we review some of
the library's resources and
services that may be of use to
you as you prepare 
your application.
If you're interested in
materials that relate to
communities of color, 
you can find them on
the Library of 
Congress website.
We have a variety of services
available to help you find those
materials. If you have a
particular topic or subject in
mind, you may already 
have questions.
If so, go to this menu on the
right hand side of the Loc.gov
website and click on, 
Ask a Librarian.
Here, you'll be able to ask
questions of our reference
specialists and they'll be able
to assist you in a variety of
different subjects regions,
languages, as well as other
programs and services that are
available at the Library of Congress.
If you click on one of these 
subjects and formats,
for example, Genealogy and
Local History, you'll be met
with a form that will connect
you directly with reference
specialists who specialize in
Local History and Genealogy.
If we go back a page and we
scroll down to the bottom.
We’ll see that there are also
Related Resources that can help
assist you with your research.
Research Guides are another
great example of materials that
can assist you with your research 
at the Library of Congress.
Here we have an index of 
Research Guides that are
available and they are
organized by Subject,
Research Center, or you can just 
view all of the guides at once.
As you can see, the library has
about 82 subjects as of this
recording related to various
topics regarding the materials
at the Library of Congress.
You can also search within
these Research Guides.
For example, if you're
interested in Jazz, you can type
that in the keyword box here.
And then you can click search.
And then you'll be met 
with the results that show
Research Guides that relate 
to the topic of Jazz.
If I click on this Jazz Research 
at the Library of Congress,
it'll bring me to the research 
guide that focuses on
Jazz Holdings within 
the Music Division at
the Library of Congress, and it tells 
you about all of the different types
of materials that are
available. We go back a page?
We can also explore these
subjects and browse what's in
their contents.
For example, if I 
wanted to explore
Asian American and 
Pacific Islander Studies,
I would click on this 
plus symbol here.
And then would be able to view 
all of the Research Guides
that are available relating 
to this particular topic.
For example, the
Filipino-American materials has
a Resource Guide, and again,
this summarizes what the guide
contains, as well as materials
at the library that may assist
you. Now, if you just want to
browse the library's collections
to see what the library has,
you can go to www.Loc.gov.
And you can search within our
Digital Collections or within
the Library Catalog.
If you click on, 
Digital Collections.
You'll see all of the Digital
Collections that are available
at the Library of Congress for
you to view from any device.
Now when you're searching for
collection materials that relate
to communities of color at the
Library of Congress, please keep
in mind that you'll want to be
flexible with the language that
you use. For example, there are
certain terms that may not show
search results if 
you type them in.
For example, if you type in
Latinx and press enter, you
don't get any results
for that term.
However, if you 
search for Latino.
You do get some materials that
show up and relate to that word.
Additionally, the same thing
holds true for Indigenous.
If you'd like to search for
materials related to
Indigenous Peoples. You 
will get some results.
However, if you do search 
for Native American.
You'll get additional results.
This concludes an overview of
the ways in which you can search
the Library of Congress's
collections for materials
relating to people of color.
If you have any questions about
the application process, please
feel free to reach out to us
at LOC-grants@Loc.gov.
We'll be answering questions
from now until July 27th, 2023
at 2 pm Eastern 
Standard Time.
We'll post any questions we
receive about the grants and the
application process on our blog
“Of the people”, which you can
find at 
www.Blogs.loc.gov/ofthepeople
If you're encountering any
issues, submitting your
application through email, you
can request assistance until
August 4th, 2023 at 3:00 pm
Eastern Standard Time.
As far as additional
assistance, as we mentioned,
this webinar is being recorded
and will be available on our
website for you to 
view at any time.
We also have a plethora of
support documents that will be
available on our 
website under our
Artist or Scholar in
Residence Program.
And then finally, we also
invite you to join our live Q&A
event about this grant.
There you'll have the
opportunity to ask our team any
questions that you might have.
Thank you for tuning 
in to this webinar.
We greatly appreciate your time
and we look forward to possibly
reviewing your applications.