Inspire! Grants for Small Museums (2025)
At a glance
Inspire! Grants for Small Museums (2025) is a closed federal grant opportunity from the Institute of Museum and Library Services. The application deadline was November 15, 2024. Individual awards are listed as $5K – $75K, with about 75 awards expected and $3M in total estimated funding. Applicant types listed as eligible include others (see notice). Cost sharing or matching is required. It is funded under Assistance Listing 45.301 (Museums for America).
Summary assembled from the official notice's fields. The official notice governs.
Key facts
- Posted
- Aug 15, 2024
- Close date
- Nov 15, 2024
- Est. award date
- Aug 15, 2025
- Award floor
- $5,000
- Award ceiling
- $75,000
- Est. total funding
- $3,000,000
- Expected awards
- 75
- Cost sharing
- Required
- Funding instrument
- Grant
- Opportunity category
- Discretionary
Who can apply
- Others (see notice)
Additional information on eligibility (from the notice)
See the Notice of Funding Opportunity for eligibility information. IMLS is extending the deadline for Inspire! Grants for Small Museums from November 15, 2024, to December 13, 2024, for institutions located in Federally declared emergency and/or major disaster areas who have not been able to meet the current November 15, 2024, deadline because they have been adversely impacted by such emergencies and/or disasters. An affected organization must, by December 13 at 11:59pm EST, submit its completed application with a written statement from its Authorizing Official that: • Specifies the applicable Emergency Declaration and/or Major Disaster Declaration for the area in which the applicant organization is located (see FEMA’s listing of Declared Disasters https://www.fema.gov/disaster/declarations) and • Confirms that the applicant organization was unable to meet the original application deadline of November 15, 2024, due to the emergency or disaster. This statement should be prepared as a Supporting Document and uploaded as part of the application submitted through Grants.gov. For those applicants who have not been adversely affected by such emergencies and/or disasters, the deadline remains November 15, 2024, at 11:59pm EST.
Based on the published notice. Review the official notice for complete eligibility requirements.
What it funds
Official synopsis as published by the agency, formatted for readability.
Inspire! Grants for Small Museums is a special initiative of the Museums for America program. It is designed to support small museums of all disciplines in project-based efforts to serve the public through exhibitions, educational/interpretive programs, digital learning resources, policy development and institutional planning, technology enhancements, professional development, community outreach, audience development, and/or collections management, curation, care, and conservation. Inspire! has three project categories:
- Lifelong Learning
- Institutional Capacity
- Collections Stewardship and Access
Assistance Listing
What is an ALN?Reported obligations under ALN 45.301
Historical data · not a predictionAgency contact (as published)
Institute of Museum and Library Services
imls-museumgrants@imls.gov
202-653-4634
Quick answers
Who is eligible to apply for “Inspire! Grants for Small Museums (2025)”?
The official notice lists these applicant types as eligible: Others (see notice). Additional restrictions may apply; review the full notice.
How much funding is available through “Inspire! Grants for Small Museums (2025)”?
Per the notice, individual awards are listed as $5k – $75k, total estimated program funding is $3,000,000 and the agency expects to make about 75 awards.
How do I apply for “Inspire! Grants for Small Museums (2025)”?
Applications are submitted through the official source, not through GrantsJunction. Open the official notice on Grants.gov (opportunity IGSM-FY25), and review the full announcement and application package. Organizations applying through Grants.gov generally need an active SAM.gov registration and a Grants.gov account, which can take several weeks to set up.
Related open opportunities
Matched on shared Assistance Listings, agency, categories and eligible applicant types.
Inspire Grants for Small Museums (2027)
Institute of Museum and Library Services- Award range
- $5K – $75K
- Closes
- Nov 13, 2026
- Who can apply
- Others (see notice)
Museums for America (2027)
Institute of Museum and Library Services- Award range
- $5K – $350K
- Closes
- Nov 13, 2026
- Who can apply
- Others (see notice)
Museums Empowered (2027)
Institute of Museum and Library Services- Award range
- $5K – $350K
- Closes
- Nov 13, 2026
- Who can apply
- Others (see notice)
Museum Grants for African American History and Culture (2027)
Institute of Museum and Library Services- Award range
- $5K – $500K
- Closes
- Nov 13, 2026
- Who can apply
- Others (see notice)
21st Century Museum Professionals Program (2027)
Institute of Museum and Library Services- Award range
- $100K – $500K
- Closes
- Nov 13, 2026
- Who can apply
- Others (see notice)
Museum Grants for American Latino History and Culture (2027)
Institute of Museum and Library Services- Award range
- $5K – $500K
- Closes
- Nov 13, 2026
- Who can apply
- Others (see notice)