National Leadership Grants for Libraries (2027)

The National Leadership Grants for Libraries program is a federal grant opportunity administered by the Institute of Museum and Library Services, or IMLS, under Assistance Listing Number 45.312 and Funding Opportunity Number NLG-Libraries-FY27. IMLS advances, supports, and empowers America's museums, libraries, and related organizations through grantmaking, research, and policy development. The National Leadership Grants for Libraries program is intended to strengthen library and archival services for the American public by developing, enhancing, or disseminating replicable practices, programs, models, or tools. Projects are expected to strengthen libraries and archives as important centers of digital, civic, social, and economic life, influence practice in the library and archives fields, use collaboration where appropriate, disseminate activities and findings, and generate measurable results. Supported work may address public learning needs; community prosperity; broad access to and preservation of information and collections; or services to communities affected by emergencies or disasters. Examples include adult reading and literacy, health and financial literacy, American history programming and archival practices, workforce and economic development, civic dialogue, digital access and preservation, privacy and security, artificial intelligence, community memory, collections stewardship, and emergency and disaster management. Five project types are available. Planning projects support exploratory work for one to two years, and Forum projects support convenings for one to two years. Community-Centered Implementation projects adapt established models to a specific organizational context for one to two years. National Implementation projects develop and execute work intended to transform library and archival services nationally for one to three years. Applied Research projects investigate significant questions relevant to libraries and archives for one to three years. IMLS expects to award approximately 11500000 dollars through the announcement and anticipates approximately 45 awards. Planning and Forum awards range from 75000 to 200000 dollars. Community-Centered Implementation awards range from 25000 to 100000 dollars. National Implementation awards range from 75000 to 1000000 dollars, and Applied Research awards range from 75000 to 750000 dollars. No cost share is required for Planning, Forum, Community-Centered Implementation, or Applied Research projects. National Implementation requests exceeding 299999 dollars in IMLS funds require at least a one-to-one cost share from non-federal sources. Generally allowable expenses include project personnel, travel, materials and supplies, software and equipment directly related to project activities, accessibility resources, participant support, third-party costs, publication and design, evaluation, training, paid internships or fellowships, stipends or honoraria, and allowable indirect costs. General fundraising, endowments, general operating support, general promotional advertising or public relations, construction or renovation, and social activities, receptions, or entertainment are unallowable. Eligible lead applicants must be units of State, local, or Tribal government or private nonprofit organizations and must be located in an eligible United States jurisdiction or specified Freely Associated State. Applicants must also qualify as an eligible library or parent organization responsible for a library, an eligible academic or administrative unit, a qualifying digital library or archives, an official library or archival government agency, a qualifying library or archives consortium, a qualifying library or archives association, or an eligible nonprofit organization affiliated with and supporting a library or archives. Libraries applying through the applicable library category must be open and operational to the public when the application is submitted. Partnerships and collaborations are welcome, but one organization must meet all eligibility requirements, serve as lead applicant, and accept programmatic, fiscal, and legal responsibility. Applicants may submit multiple Planning, Forum, National Implementation, or Applied Research applications, but only one Community-Centered Implementation application, and the same proposal may not be submitted under multiple project types. Applications must be submitted electronically through Grants.gov Workspace or a Grants.gov system-to-system solution by 1159 p.m. United States Eastern Time on November 13, 2026. Applicants must have a Unique Entity Identifier, an active SAM.gov registration, and an active Grants.gov registration with an approved Authorized Organization Representative. A complete application includes the SF-424S, the IMLS Library - Discretionary Program Information Form, a Narrative of no more than 10 numbered pages, Schedule of Completion, IMLS Budget Form, Budget Justification, resumes of key project staff and consultants, Digital Products Plan, and Performance Measurement Plan. Depending on the applicant or project, proof of private nonprofit status, proof of foundation status, a Final Federally Negotiated Indirect Cost Rate Agreement, or a Public Access Plan for Research Projects may also be required. Supporting documents may be included as appropriate. IMLS estimates that a complete application takes an average of 45 hours to prepare. IMLS first reviews applications for eligibility and completeness and may reject applications that are late, incomplete, submitted by ineligible applicants, outside the applicable funding range, or inconsistent with funding restrictions. Eligible and complete applications undergo peer review by professionals with relevant expertise. Reviewers assess Project Justification, Project Work Plan, and Project Results, including the documented need or opportunity, relationship to existing practice or research, intended beneficiaries, feasibility of the work plan, stakeholder involvement, staff and partner qualifications, evaluation, adaptability and generalizability of results, dissemination, sustainability, and management of digital products. Applied Research and certain other project types have additional project-specific review considerations. Cost share is an eligibility criterion but is not considered in the merit review. The IMLS Director considers review input and makes final funding decisions. Successful and unsuccessful applicants are expected to receive final funding decisions by email in July 2027, subject to availability of funds and IMLS discretion. Projects must begin August 1, 2027, and may operate for one to three years according to project type, with the overall anticipated performance period extending through July 31, 2030. Awardees must comply with applicable federal and IMLS administrative requirements and submit interim and final financial and performance reports through eGMS Reach according to their official award documents. The source provides the program email imls-librarygrants@imls.gov and the telephone number 202-653-4744 for requests for copies or recordings of the announcement. Grants.gov technical support is available at support@grants.gov and 1-800-518-4726. The notice does not state that this opportunity is recurring or provide a future application cycle beyond the current November 13, 2026 deadline.

Support the identified need, challenge, or opportunity with relevant data, research, and current practice; clearly explain how the work differs from, complements, builds upon, or adapts existing models, standards, theories, scholarship, or practice; identify and justify beneficiaries; align the work plan, schedule, budget, staff expertise, stakeholder input, and evaluation with promised results; make deliverables adaptable, generalizable, and usable by other institutions and communities; provide a strong dissemination and sustainability plan; demonstrate national impact where required; Community-Centered Implementation projects should clearly identify and adapt an established model; Applied Research projects should present clear research questions, appropriate theoretical framing, methods, analysis, and broad dissemination beyond academic publication.