To be eligible for funding, an organization must meet the following definition of a museum:

A museum is a non-profit, permanent institution in the service of society and its development, open to the public, which acquires, conserves, researches, communicates and exhibits the tangible and intangible heritage of humanity and its environment for the purposes of education, study and enjoyment.

For the purposes of this initiative, “museums” refers broadly to historic house museums, historic sites, historical societies, art museums, children’s museums, science centers, special-interest museums, natural history museums, university museums, arboretums/botanical gardens and zoos.

Additional Eligibility Requirements

All of the following requirements must be met:

• Have tax-exempt status under Section 501 (c)(3) of the Internal Revenue Code OR be owned by a municipality
• Be incorporated in Connecticut
• Be registered with the Secretary of the State to do business in the State of Connecticut and be in Good Standing (able to obtain a current Certificate of Legal Existence/Good Standing)  Note:  This does not apply to municipally-owned museums.
• Have its primary place of business and operations in the State of Connecticut
• Have financial documents/statements for the period of time that covers July 1 – September 2, 2019
• Have operating expenses of more than $25,000
• Will be open for in-person visitors at least eight (8) hours a week between July 1 – September 6, 2021  Note:  Virtual programs, tours, events, etc. are not considered “open” for visitors.
• Was open to visitors in the calendar year of 2018 and/or 2019.

NOTE:  The Connecticut Office of the Arts (COA) and/or Connecticut Humanities reserves the right to request documentation as needed to determine an applicant’s eligibility.

• If your museum has an operating budget of $249,999 or less, you will be applying through Connecticut Humanities.
• If your museum has an operating budget of $250,000 or more, you will be applying through the Connecticut Office of the Arts’ online application portal SurveyMonkey Apply.

The Application 

The application consists of the following:

• Eligibility questions.  Please carefully review the program’s eligibility requirements before applying.
  
• Organization Information
  • Name, Address, etc.
  • Organization’s mission statement
  • How do your exhibitions and programs support your museum’s mission statement?
  • Date of IRS Determination Letter
  • Federal Tax ID Number (FEIN)/Employer ID Number (EIN)
  • CT Business ID number issued by the Connecticut Secretary of the State’s Office
  • DUNS number
  • Website address and social media sites, if available
  • Legislative districts
    Note:  There is a link to help you obtain this information.
    
• Visitation numbers for the 2019 calendar year. Note:  If you were not open in 2019, you may report 2018 data
  • Total # visitors from Connecticut
    • # of visitors from Connecticut who are over 18
    • # of visitors from Connecticut who are under 18
  • Total # of visitors from out-of-state
    • # of out-of-state visitors who are over 18
    • # of out-of-state visitors who are under 18
• What method or process do you to track and report the number of visitors?
• 2019 admission categories and cost for each.
• Tell us your plans for re-opening. What days will you be open?  For what hours?  Please share any information you feel will help us understand your museum’s operations.
• Is your organization currently a registered Connecticut Tourism Partner with a listing on the State of Connecticut’s official tourism website CTvisit.com?  Note:  This is not a requirement for funding.
• Operating Budget Information
  Note: We are interested in your data for the period of July 1 – September 2, 2019, so we ask for the data for your fiscal year that covers that specific period of time.  If your museum was not open in 2019, you may report 2018 data from the time period of July 1 – September 3, 2018.
  
  • Fiscal year start & end date
  • Upload a financial document that details your organization’s Annual Operating Revenue and Expenses for the full fiscal year that covers the period of July 1 – September 2, 2019.
  • Referring to the uploaded financial document report your organization’s operating expenses, as well as operating revenues, for the full fiscal year.
  • Referring to the uploaded financial document report your organization’s operating expenses, as well as operating revenues, for the period of July 1 – September 2, 2019.
• Revenue from Admissions for full fiscal year and Revenue from Admissions for the period of July 1 – September 2, 2019 for the following categories:
  • CT visitors over 18
  • CT visitors under 18
  • Out-of-state visitors over 18
  • Out-of-state visitors under 18
• Operating Expenses and Revenue for your organization’s FY2020 and projections for FY2021.
• Basic information on the application’s contact person, your organization’s president/chair of the board and its executive director/president/CEO.
  Note:  We will ask you to identify who will be signing the legal grant contract if your organization is awarded funds.  Must be either president/chair of the board or the executive director/president/CEO.  To expedite the contracting and payment process, we will also ask you to complete and upload a W-9 form, which will be provided within the application.

Application opens: Friday, May 14, 2021

Application deadline: Tuesday, June 1, 2021, Noon

Application review: June 2 – June 16, 2021

Notification of grant award to applicants: Expected week of June 14, 2021

Applicants must accept awards and notify funder by Wednesday June 23, 2021

Contracts (UPON approval by state legislature) will be sent to applicants between June 23 – June 30, 2021

Payments will not begin until mid to late July

NOTE TO APPLICANTS:  The CT Museums’ Kids are Free Summer grant program is pending necessary authorization from the state legislature. All funding associated with this program is contingent upon such approval.

Note: Any museum in Connecticut may participate in the initiative regardless of whether they apply for or are eligible for funding. Organizations choosing to participate in the free admission initiative, but not to apply for funding are invited to join the listing by registering here.

Visit here for the updated list of frequently asked questions.

Colleague Circle: CT Museums–Kids are Free Summer Grants Info Session

Host: Connecticut League of History Organizations
When: Thursday, May 20, 2021, at 12:00 PM, EDT
Where: Zoom
RSVP

Join staff from CT Humanities and CT Office of the Arts to learn more about this grant opportunity, find out how to participate and ask any other questions you may have.