Frequently Asked Questions

To be eligible for a Maryland Humanities SHINE grant, an organization must:

• conduct programming in the humanities as a significant part of its work (>70% of annual programming). Eligible non-profits include museums, historic sites, preservation and historical societies, and community & cultural organizations with a significant humanities focus.
• be designated as a nonprofit organization and maintain good standing with the Internal Revenue Service (IRS) as determined by organization’s 990 and Charity Check.
• be physically located and registered as a nonprofit in Maryland and have Maryland residents as its primary constituents.
• have a maximum total annual budget (income and expenses) of $500,000 or less.

The application will open on June 20, 2025 and will close on September 14, 2025 at 11:59PM. After it opens, you can access your application in our Grants System Portal.

The humanities explore, interpret, and preserve the diversity of human cultures, ideas, practices and experiences, past and present. The humanities supports the building blocks of civil society, helping to examine the human condition, promote civics education, understand our cultural heritage, foster mutual respect for diverse beliefs and cultures, and develop media and information literacy. The most common humanities subjects include: history, literature, linguistics, law, philosophy, archaeology, religious studies, and ethics.

Organizations conducting activities in the humanities provide programs that do two or more of the following:  

• Explore and elevate our shared stories of the past, present, and future to connect people
• Preserve, share, and celebrate cultural identities, heritage, and traditions
• Promote storytelling and enriching communities through dialogue, discussion, and participation
• Bring people together to encourage thoughtful and accessible programs that value equity, democracy, collaboration, and life-long learning

For the purposes of this grant, the humanities do not include:

• Arts (visual, music, theater, resources for working artists)
• Health and human services (organizations providing medical services, therapeutic support, etc.)
• Social services (organizations providing basic living necessities e.g. housing aid, food pantries, shelters, social work)

We encourage applying organizations to view Maryland Humanities’ mission, vision, and values and to look for how their organization’s programming aligns.

We welcome all eligible applicants to apply. Please reach out to our Grants team If you’re still unsure whether your organization is eligible after reviewing the eligibility requirements. Additionally, you can view a copy of the application prior to starting an application in our grants system. As this is a competitive grant program, we cannot guarantee every applicant will receive an award.

Yes, if your organization received a Hatza SHINE award last year and still meets the grant program’s eligibility requirements, your organization can apply again this year.

Yes, organizations with fiscal sponsors are welcome to apply. Each of the following additional documentation are required by email to eross@mdhumanities (dot) org before the application deadline: 1) Fiscal Sponsorship Agreement between the sponsor and sponsored organization that demonstrates a fiduciary pass-through arrangement; 2) 2024 annual budget of the sponsor organization; 3) Copy of 2024 990 form of the sponsor organization.

No match is required for this funding.

Allowable costs include rent, utilities, supplies, salaries, programming costs, capacity building, and other day-to-day expenses of an organization. The SHINE funds are meant to cover the day-to-day costs associated with doing business as an existing nonprofit and running programs for the public. We discourage the use of this funding for re-granting, new construction, renovations, major capital projects, and collections or property acquisition. If you have questions about a specific cost, please contact our Grants team.

After the application period closes on September 14, our Grants team will conduct a preliminary review of all applications to confirm each applicant’s eligibility.

All eligible applications will then be passed on to the second round of review. This round is conducted by our Grants Review team, who will score the narrative section of the applications. Each application will be scored by a randomly selected set of reviewers.

Once the second round is complete, the Grants team and Grants Review team will convene to view final combined scores and determine the list of awarded applicants. We are aiming to notify applicants of their decision status by late November 2025. Any delay in this process will be communicated to applicants.

For FY26 we will award 30 organizations.

We received 180 eligible applications for FY25 and awarded 90 organizations.

We received 130 eligible applications for FY24 and awarded 95 organizations.

Contact us or attend a virtual information session.