For all applications

To what extent does the application…

• represent equitable support across the consortium?
  • e.g. Is this an institution that has received few or no Small Grants in the past 2 years?
• align with the profiles, breadth of impact, and strategic priorities targeted by AMICAL’s current Mellon grant?
  (ideally, applications should demonstrate all of the following, but they may still be considered if one of these elements is missing)
  • individuals who are local leaders in direct or indirect ways
  • activities expected to have significant impact beyond the individual, reaching other peers at their institution or across the consortium
  • activities that support one of the following:
    • innovative & effective library & technology leadership
    • information & digital literacies
    • localized & collaborative forms of digital liberal arts
    • other consortially shared goals identified by AMICAL’s member structures such as committees or interest groups
• promote peer collaboration of one of the following kinds?
  • across AMICAL institutions
  • across librarians, faculty, and technologists
• demonstrate that the applicant’s institution is invested in the proposed activity or the goals supported by the activity? The following are welcomed but not required, and applications will be strengthened when one or more of the following are mentioned:
  • partial financial support from the institution (this can be particularly important for consideration of applications that are weaker in other criteria)
  • endorsement by a direct manager or academic officer when that person is not the AMICAL Representative (e.g. a quoted endorsement or a very brief email of support, forwarded to AMICAL)
  • engagement or interest by local peers in the project/goals (e.g. list any local colleagues involved with the project, along with their roles or interest in it)

Criteria specific to each category of activity

Small Grants may be requested for three different categories of activity: Professional development, Staff exchanges, or Projects. Each category has its own criteria that will be used in evaluating the application, in addition to the general criteria listed above.

Professional Development (externally organized)

To what extent does the application…

• explain how the proposed activity clearly aligns with and supports the applicant’s role on their campus? Note that:
  • Lower priority will generally be given to larger, general conferences like ALA, ACRL, EDUCAUSE, etc., unless there is a very specific sub-program/event (e.g. a major workshop, opportunity to develop partnership with other expected participants, etc.) whose value and relevance to the applicant’s work are clearly explained.
  • Higher priority will generally be given to topically focused events that are smaller in terms of attendees, but extended in depth and length (e.g. institutes/programs of a week or more, semester-length online course, etc.)
  • For team activities (e.g. several colleagues coordinating their participation in an event together): this alignment of the activity needs to be clearly demonstrated for the campus role of each member of the team.
• make use of reputable programs or resources for professional development? See our list of recommended events, which include:
  • programs that AMICAL has previously partnered with
  • events which our members have participated in and found valuable
  • recommendations by AMICAL’s committees
  • other programs recognized for their quality, innovation, etc.
• commit to sharing the benefits of the activity with local colleagues or other AMICAL members?
  • e.g. Is the applicant proposing to give a related workshop/presentation/webinar/etc. afterwards?
  • For team activities: What kinds of specific collaboration and follow-up are you planning among team members? Who will do what?
• describe concretely the expected depth of impact of the funded activity on actual practice or resources at their local institution or across the consortium?
  • Is there a clearly explained context for applying the outcomes of the training? In what context (or towards what goal) will the training be applied?
  • For team activities: How, concretely, will participating as a team increase the impact of the activity? Who will do what?

Staff Exchanges/Consultation

To what extent does the application…

• explain how the proposed activity aligns with and supports the applicant’s role on their campus? Note that:
  • For team activities (e.g. several colleagues coordinating their participation in an exchange together): this alignment of the activity needs to be clearly demonstrated for the campus role of each member of the team.
• provide documentation of the partner institution’s (or consultant’s) agreement and commitment to participate in the collaboration? At minimum, the application should state whether this commitment has been received, and who (in what role) provided that commitment.
• provide a rough schedule of anticipated onsite training/consulting activities, indicating objectives where appropriate.
• clearly and realistically articulate the broader planning timeline for the activity, from planning to implementation to expected outcomes and evaluation? The timeline should:
  • demonstrate that the applicant has thought through carefully the dependencies and complexities of their planned activities, with realistic expectations for what can be accomplished by when.
  • indicate any important intermediate/pre-activity milestones (e.g. finalizing schedule of activities, identification/confirmation of specific colleagues for meetings/consultations, sharing of project information with colleagues in advance of consultation, etc.)
  • indicate post-activity outcomes and plans for sharing the benefits of the activity with local colleagues or other AMICAL members (e.g. finalization of plans for a local project, proposal for an inter-institutional collaborative project, training session for local colleagues on return to home institution, etc.)
• describe concretely the expected depth of impact of the funded activity on actual practice or resources at their local institution or across the consortium?
  • Is there a clearly explained context for applying the outcomes of the training? In what context (or towards what goal) will the training be applied?
  • For team activities: How, concretely, will participating as a team increase the impact of the activity? Who will do what?

Projects

To what extent does the application…

• clearly relate to local teaching and learning activities at the applicant’s institution?
• reflect at least one of the following target characteristics?
  • promotes interdisciplinary study or research
  • involves student research and scholarship
  • brings a humanities scholarship lens into focus on local/regional topics
  • supports experimentation or innovation with emerging technologies and practices in the context of libraries, teaching or learning
  • provides some kind of demonstrable benefit for the local or regional public beyond the university itself (e.g. through access to, or use of, project results)
• explain how the project is an original contribution to the institution and/or consortium?
  • i.e., does the application situate itself with respect to other similar work done inside and outside AMICAL (e.g. through a brief environmental scan)?
• explain how the project leader/team has appropriate experience/expertise, or will acquire it through training or consultation, to lead this type of project? If the leader/team does not yet have the needed experience/expertise:
  • The application should show recognition of what is needed and how this will be acquired.
  • Applicants are encouraged to seek needed expertise from AMICAL peers; in such cases the application should show that peer sources have been identified and agree to provide the needed consultation.
• clearly and realistically articulate the timeline and outcomes for the project, from planning to implementation to evaluation? The timeline should:
  • demonstrate that the applicant has thought through carefully the dependencies and complexities of their project, with realistic expectations for what can be accomplished by when.
  • indicate specific project milestones, including intermediate goals (e.g. digitization of material before indexing, gathering of raw data, etc.), and the target dates by which the applicant expects to accomplish and report on them.
  • indicate the final outcomes of the project (e.g. a concrete research product, a teaching/learning resource, a library/information service or resource, etc.)
• commit to the wide sharing of results? This might include:
  • sharing resources produced via open standards (open access, Creative Commons licensing, open discovery protocols, etc.)
  • scholarship in open access publishing venues
  • presentation of results at conferences (including the AMICAL Conference)
  • blogging or other public writing (including posts for the AMICAL blog)