The Governor’s Historic Preservation Awards are presented annually under the sponsorship of the State Office of Historic Preservation (OHP) to organizations or public agencies whose contributions demonstrate notable achievements in preserving the heritage of California. Their purpose is to recognize meaningful achievements in historic preservation and to increase public awareness, appreciation, and support for historic preservation throughout the state.

OHP invites you to participate in celebrating the preservation of California’s heritage by nominating organizations or agencies you believe are deserving of the Governor’s Historic Preservation Award. Nominations must be postmarked no later than 5:00 PM on Monday, April 30, 2007.

For additional information, see http://ohp.parks.ca.gov/?page_id=22050.

NEH CONSULTATION GRANT PROGRAM DISCONTINUED
The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) will no longer offer consultation grants for museums, historical organizations, or libraries in their earliest stages of development. Applications for consultation grants submitted by the September 2006 deadline are currently under review, and NEH will announce the final round of awards in this category in March 2007. The Endowment expects to modify its guidelines for the planning grant category to broaden the types of early-stage activities eligible for NEH support. Revised planning grant guidelines will be on the NEH Web site (http://www.neh.gov) in the early summer, and applications will be accepted in September. Libraries, museums, and historical organizations undertaking projects that need planning funds are encouraged to call the NEH Division of Public Programs (202-606-8267) and speak to a program officer.

REPORT SCRUTINIZES SMITHSONIAN SALARIES
A report by the Smithsonian Institution’s acting inspector general raised concerns about the museum’s pay practices, noting that 19 top executives were paid higher salaries than the vice president of the United States, reports The Washington Post. While many of the museum’s employees are paid based on a government scale, other salaries are paid out of a fund from private donations and thus can exceed government caps. To read the complete article, see http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2007/01/30/AR2007013001854.html.

IMLS HOSTS CONFERENCE CALL FOR NATIVE AMERICAN MUSEUM SERVICES GRANT PROGRAM
The Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) has scheduled a technical assistance conference call to assist potential applicants to the Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services grant program. Application guidelines are available on the IMLS Web site at http://www.imls.gov/applicants/grants/nativeServices.shtm. The application deadline is April 1, 2007. This conference call offers an opportunity to speak with program staff, ask questions about the program and/or listen to the conversation with other applicants. The call will last approximately one hour. To participate, dial the number below and request the "Native American/Native Hawaiian Museum Services" audio conference: Wednesday, February 21, 2007, 3:00PM EST – Dial (800) 500-3792. In order to help facilitate a full discussion, please call 5 to 10 minutes prior to the scheduled start time.

SAVE AMERICA'S TREASURES GRANTS
Grants support preservation and conservation work on nationally significant intellectual and cultural artifacts and nationally significant historic structures and sites. Intellectual and cultural artifacts include artifacts, collections, documents, sculpture and works of art. Historic structures and sites include historic districts, sites, buildings, structures and objects. Seventy-five awards will be given. The closing date is April 26, 2007. For additional information, see http://www.cr.nps.gov/hps/treasures/application.htm.

$70 MILLION IN AFTER-SCHOOL FUNDING NOW AVAILABLE FROM CALIFORNIA DEPARTMENT OF EDUCATION
Applications for $70 million in new 21st Century after-school funding are now available from the California Department of Education. The deadline to apply is March 12, 2007. For more information about 21st Century funding, including tools prepared by the Bay Area Partnership for Children and Youth to assist with the application and program planning, see http://www.bayareapartnership.org/21cclc.htm or click on http://www.fightcrime.org/ca/21st_Facts.pdf.

SCHOLARSHIPS FOR FUNDRAISING COURSES AVAILABLE
Scholarships are now available for representatives of under-resourced nonprofits in the San Francisco Bay Area to attend the Foundation Center's full-day training courses in spring 2007. If you represent a nonprofit organization in the nine-county Bay Area with a budget under $1,000,000, you are eligible to apply. To serve the greatest number of applicants, the scholarship will cover partial cost of the courses, based on the organization's budget size. Nonprofit organizations may receive up to two scholarships per calendar year. For a complete list of courses available, see http://foundationcenter.org/marketplace/catalog/subcategory_training_city.jhtml?id=cat170003. To download the application, click on http://foundationcenter.org/sanfrancisco/sf_spring07_app.doc.

MCKNIGHT FOUNDATION OFFERS ONLINE RESOURCES FOR ARTS GROUPS
The Nonprofit Management Toolkit on the McKnight Foundation Web site offers fundraising resources, tips for honing your nonprofit's message for the media and the public, technology assistance, and advice about recruiting and working with volunteers. The fundraising resources section provides links to information compiled by the Foundation Center, the Association of Fundraising Professionals, Charity Channel, Idealist.org, the Minnesota Council on Foundations, and other organizations. To access the Nonprofit Management Toolkit, see http://mcknight.org/resources/toolkit.aspx.

IRS PANEL CONSIDERS PLAN TO ENCOURAGE NONPROFIT GROUPS TO DISCLOSE ERRORS
According to The Chronicle of Philanthropy, an Internal Revenue Service advisory committee is seeking feedback from charity lawyers and other officials on whether the tax agency should create a new self-regulation program for tax-exempt organizations. The effort would give nonprofit officials a way to disclose errors or instances of wrongdoing in the hopes of receiving a lesser punishment for the offense than if the IRS had discovered the problems. To read the entire article, see http://philanthropy.com/free/update/2007/02/2007020602.htm. (Excerpted from The Chronicle of Philanthropy, February 6, 2007.)

BANK OF AMERICA ACCEPTING APPLICATIONS FOR NEIGHBORHOOD EXCELLENCE INITIATIVE
The Neighborhood Excellence Initiative, Bank of America's signature philanthropic program, focuses on developing relationships with and investing in strong nonprofits/charitable organizations with great leaders. The program is offered in Bank of America's forty-four markets. One program component is Neighborhood Builders, which provides grants of $200,000 each for operating support to two nonprofit/charitable organizations in each of Bank of America's forty-four markets. The deadline is June 29, 2007. For additional information, see http://www.bankofamerica.com/foundation/index.cfm?template=fd_neighborexcell.

FINAL DEADLINE FOR MAP APPLICATIONS IS FEBRUARY 15
The final postmark deadline for applications to the Museum Assessment Program (MAP) is tomorrow, February 15. There are four assessments available: Institutional Assessment, which reviews the museum's entire operation; Collections Management Assessment, which focuses on collections management issues in the context of the museum's total operations; Public Dimension Assessment, which examines the museum's public perception, experience, and involvement with the museum; and, Governance Assessment, which helps a museum's governing authority examine its structure, roles, and responsibilities. All assessments are free for museums with annual general operating expenses of $125,000 or less. All other museums pay between $350 to $750 depending on their budget size. For more information or to download the application, go to http://www.aam-us.org/map or contact MAP at (202) 289-9118.

SAN DIEGO MUSEUMS OFFER HALF-PRICE TICKETS IN FEBRUARY
San Diego’s Museum Month was created in 1989 to promote awareness of the region’s museums, historical sites, educational institutions and cultural offerings. Museum visitors can receive 50% off admission with a free Museum Month pass, available at Macy’s stores throughout San Diego. This year, participating museums and historical sites include: Birch Aquarium at Scripps, California Center for the Arts Museum (Escondido), Coronado Museum of History & Art, Flying Leathernecks Aviation Museum, Heritage of the Americas Museum, Maritime Museum of San Diego, MCRD Command Museum, Mingei International Museum, and Museum of Contemporary Art San Diego. For more information, see http://www.sandiegomuseumcouncil.org.

SAN FRANCISCO FOUNDATION SEEKS NOMINATIONS
The San Francisco Foundation (http://www.sff.org) seeks nominations of outstanding community leaders for the San Francisco Foundation Community Leadership Awards. The deadline is March 1, 2007. The awards recognize individuals and organizations whose leadership has made a significant impact in their particular San Francisco Bay Area communities and whose work confronts societal or civic issues, addresses health or environmental concerns, or promotes the arts and humanities. Nonprofit organizations and individuals in Alameda, Contra Costa, Marin, San Francisco, and San Mateo counties are eligible to apply. Individuals receive $10,000 awards each and organizations are awarded $20,000 each. For complete nomination guidelines, visit the awards page at http://www.sff.org/awards/nomination.html.

Get the Word Out in CAM e-News!
Please email the CAM office at editor@calmuseums.org to list any announcements pertaining to professional development programs, grant opportunities, or related opportunities in future editions of CAM e-News and on the CAM web site. Since it is not possible to include all the details of an announcement, please include a phone number, web site address, or email address so interested parties can get additional information. Please do not exceed a limit of 150 words per listing. All announcements are subject to editing by CAM personnel.