Grant aims to revitalize historic black churches and preserve African American history. Funding will aid in community development and restoration.
Preserving Black Churches is a project of the African American Cultural Heritage Action Fund of the National Trust for Historic Preservation. Annual grants from Preserving Black Churches are intended to preserve historic Black houses of worship either with active congregations and non-active congregations and advance ongoing preservation activities while strengthening capacity for historic congregations, and preservation and community organizations to steward, manage, and better utilize their historic structures.
Grants from Preserving Black Churches will range from $50,000 to $200,000. Applicants may apply for one of five categories: Capital Project, Endowment and Financial Sustainability, Organizational Capacity and Operations, Programming and Interpretation, or Project Planning.
Entities representing Historic Black Churches. Historic Black Churches are defined as one or more of the following:
• Religious historic buildings built and erected by Black congregations and continuously occupied by active Black congregations.
• Religious historic buildings designed and/or constructed by Black architects/builders, currently occupied by active Black congregations, or repurposed for Arts, Culture, Community, and Social Justice programs.
• Religious historic buildings not originally built by or for Black congregations, but continuously occupied by an active Black congregation for at least 50 years.
• Active historic Black congregations that are a part of historic Black religious denominations including, but not limited to African Methodist Episcopal Church (AME), African Methodist Episcopal Zion Church (AMEZ), the Baptist Church, Christian Methodist Episcopal Church (CME), Church of God in Christ (COGIC), Non-denominational.
• Active historic Black congregations that are a part of traditional religious denominations including, but not limited to the Baptist Church, Episcopal Church, Lutheran Church, United Methodist Church, Presbyterian Church, Catholic Church, Non-denominational.
• Non-Christian Black congregations and churches* (non-Christian churches will be funded on a case-by-case basis in consultation with Lilly Endowment Inc.).
Eligible Applicants include:
• Historic Black Churches with active and non-active congregations. Active congregations are those which hold regular worship services and public programming in historic religious buildings (defined above).
• 501(c)(3) nonprofit organizations stewarding non-active Historic Black Church buildings reused and repurposed for community, programmatic, and interpretive uses are eligible to apply, including statewide and local preservation organizations, churches, accredited private colleges or universities, historic sites, museums, historical societies, and genealogical associations.
• Public agencies: State or local agencies including boards, commissions, departments, accredited public colleges or universities, offices, agencies, public bodies, or political subdivisions of the state or of a county or municipality. Examples include state historic preservation offices, city and county preservation offices and planning departments, state and local commissions focused on different aspects of heritage, and publicly owned historic sites and museums.
Grants from Preserving Black Churches may be used to fund up to 100% of the proposed project. Matching funds are not required for the following funding categories: Capital Projects, Project Planning, Programming and Interpretation, and Organizational Capacity Building and Operations. Projects in these categories that are leveraging additional investments are strongly preferred.
Matching funds are required for the Endowment & Financial Sustainability funding category.
-Project Categories
Capital Projects
• Funding will be given for the restoration, rehabilitation, stabilization, preservation of historic buildings, parsonages, annex and educational buildings attached or directly adjacent to the historic Black church, including bricks-and-mortar construction and planning costs.
• Historic Black churches with active congregations can apply for funding up to $200,000 and can direct up to 15% of awarded grant funds for construction planning and documents. 501(c)(3) and other non-profit organizations established by (or affiliated with an active congregation) with a mission to preserve a historic Black church with an active congregation are also eligible under this category.
• 501(c)(3) Not-for-Profit Organizations and Public Agencies owning or leasing long-term historic Black churches with non-active congregations and repurposed for public programming can apply for funding up to $100,000 and can direct up to 15% of awarded grant funds for construction planning and documents.
Project Planning
• Obtaining the services of consultants with expertise in the areas such as preservation architecture and planning, landscape architecture, cemetery conservation, business development, engineering and environmental studies, legal issues, fundraising, organizational development, education, and trainings, etc. to develop plans for implementation by organization.
• Development of viable business plans for preservation organizations, pre-development planning activities, feasibility studies for market-driven revitalization projects, preservation plans, engineering and environmental studies, property condition assessment reports with cost analysis, historic structures reports, etc.
• Development of planning documents, guides, and assessment studies for historic Black cemeteries is eligible, but the cemeteries must be owned by and contiguously connected to a historic Black church.
• Obtaining the services of consultants to complete nominations for historical designation of historic Black Churches leading to listing on the National Register of Historic Places, designation as National Historic Landmarks and/or local landmarks.
Programming and Interpretation
• Designing and implementing innovative interpretive programs.
• Designing and implementing new art and culturally based programming.
• Collaborating with artists, creatives, and scholars to create and/or re-imagine interpretation and public programming that elevates the significance of the historic Black church, legacy, and contributions to the community, and that advances new approaches to storytelling and public education.
Letter of Intent Deadline: Early August 2024- All applications must be submitted through the National Trust’s online grant application system by the deadline, or they will not be reviewed.
Create Log in to View Grant and Apply
#BlackHistory #HistoricPreservation #CommunityRevitalization
