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Application Instructions
Prior to applying to a specific seminar or institute, please study the project website and carefully consider the project’s requirements.
Deadline to apply is 11:59pm Tuesday, March 1, 2022. This date is required by the NEH of all projects.
Successful applicants will be notified of their selection on Friday March 25, 2022. They will have until Friday, April 8, 2022 to accept or decline the offer. These dates are required by the NEH of all projects. An individual may apply to a maximum of of two seminars, Institutes, or Landmarks, but may only attend one. Once they have accepted an offer to attend any NEH Summer Program (NEH Summer Seminar, Institute, or Landmarks Workshop), they may not accept an additional offer or withdraw in order to accept a different offer.
Ancient Stories, New Neighbors: Decolonizing Indigenous Homelands and 17th-century New England allows 25 participants to pursue an intensive program of study under a team of scholarly experts who present a range of perspectives on our nation's earliest beginnings. Participants and scholars mutually explore connections between scholarship and teaching. Participants receive a certificate upon completion of the program, but the programs are not intended to duplicate graduate-level courses.
Each participant will receive a $2,200 stipend to help cover the cost of travel, lodging, and meals for the two-week Institute. Click here for more stipend details. Please note that all Institute stipend amounts are pre-tax.
Participants must attend all meetings and engage fully as professionals in the work of the Institute. During the Institute, participants may not undertake teaching assignments or professional activities unrelated to their participation in the Institute. Those who, for any reason, do not complete the full tenure of the Institute will receive a reduced stipend. All participants will submit an evaluation at the end of the Institute.
A completed application consists of the following items:
a résumé or short biography (not to exceed two pages);
an application essay (no longer than three double-spaced pages);
and one letter of recommendation
Ancient Stories, New Neighbors - Institute Application
Please use the link below to submit your application. A full application consists of all of the items listed above.
Please send your completed application to the project director via the form below. Do not send it to the NEH.
Application Essay
The application essay should be no more than three double spaced pages. It should address the following:
your interest in the subject(s) to be studied;
qualifications and experiences that equip you to do the work of the seminar or institute and to make a contribution to the learning community;
a statement of what you want to accomplish by participating;
and, if appropriate, description of an independent project and its relation to the topic of the program and your professional responsibilities.
Submission of Application and Notification Procedure
The application form has three parts: general information, teaching information, and supplemental materials uploads. Complete each section and move to the next using the buttons at the bottom of the form. Once you click submit, your application will be sent to the Institute co-directors for review. If you have any questions or difficulties submitting your application, please contact us at teach@plimoth.org.
Applicant Selection
The Institute Selection Committees comprised of the Institute’s directors and two or more colleagues, at least one of who is a K-12 teacher, will evaluate all complete applications to select a group of Summer Scholars and to identify alternates.
Special consideration is given to the likelihood that an applicant will benefit professionally. It is important, therefore, to address each of the following factors in your application essay:
effectiveness and commitment as a teacher/ educator;
intellectual interests, in general and as they relate to the work of the institute;
special perspectives, skills, or experiences that would contribute to the institute;
evidence that the experience will enhance the long term impact on the applicant’s teaching and scholarship;
special qualifications, such as work with Native American communities.
Preference is given to applicants who have not previously participated in an NEH Summer Seminar or Institute, or who significantly contribute to the diversity of the Institute.
Participants Eligibility Criteria
These projects are designed principally for full-time or part-time teachers and librarians in public, charter, independent, and religiously affiliated schools, as well as home schooling parents. Other K-12 school-system personnel such as administrators, substitute teachers, and curriculum developers, are also eligible to participate. Teachers at schools in the United States or its territorial possessions or Americans teaching in foreign schools where at least 50 percent of the students are American nationals are eligible for this program. Applicants must be United States citizens, residents of U.S. jurisdictions, or foreign nationals who have been residing in the United States or its territories for at least the three years immediately preceding the application deadline. Foreign nationals teaching abroad at non-U.S. chartered institutions are not eligible to apply. Please note: Five institute spaces may be reserved for teachers who are new to the profession (those who have been teaching for five years or less). Individuals may not apply to an NEH Summer Seminar or Institute whose director is a family member, is affiliated with the same institution, or is someone with whom they have previously studied.
Equal Opportunity Statement
Endowment programs do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, religion, sexual orientation, disability, or age. For further information, write to the Equal Opportunity Officer, National Endowment for the Humanities, 400 7th Street, SW, Washington, DC 20024. TDD: 202/606‑8282 (this is a special telephone device for the Deaf).