Call for Participation: Transforming Community College Education Through the Humanities

Click here to access the complete description and criteria

Summary

Transforming Community College Education Through the Humanities builds on the rich potential of humanities education to foster student success, deepen civic engagement, and strengthen institutional impact. Through a three-year pilot with five community colleges, the effort will embed the humanities more fully into institutional planning and instructional practice. Participating colleges will receive from ATD financial support, expert coaching, and a structured learning community to redesign humanities courses, align them with academic and career pathways, and deepen partnerships with local employers and organizations. By embedding humanities more fully into the student experience, Transforming Community College Education Through the Humanities seeks to improve pedagogy, increase student success, and enhance the cultural and civic vitality of the communities that these colleges serve. This grant opportunity is made possible through the generosity of the Mellon Foundation.

Application Deadline: February 16, 2026

Contact: Please direct any questions about this project and the application to our team at teachingandlearning@achievingthedream.org

Goals

• Strengthen humanities education through program development, curriculum redesign, and culturally relevant teaching practices
• Develop institutional capacity via humanities-focused action plans
• Enhance faculty development through communities of practice and seminars
• Increase institutional commitment to the humanities by engaging leadership and aligning organizational goals
• Beyond the learning and evaluation possible in the three-year grant period, an additional goal is to increase student engagement and success through experiential learning opportunities.

Applicant Commitments

Colleges that apply for this grant commit to the following:

• Convening a diverse team (cross-functional and cross-hierarchical) to develop and implement humanities-focused action plans
• Engaging fully in all project activities
• Attending in-person and virtual convenings, including a kickoff event in spring/summer 2026, DREAM 2027, and virtual seminar and community of practice meetings
• Sharing feedback on processes and resources with ATD throughout the grant period
• Sharing data and lessons learned with the ATD Network and our funder, The Mellon Foundation

Eligibility

ATD Network and non-ATD Network community colleges with robust liberal arts programs, strong transfer outcomes, partnerships with local arts and cultural organizations, and support from leadership are eligible to apply. Successful applicants must commit to remain active in the ATD Network throughout the duration of the grant.

Five successful applicants will be chosen.

Use of Funds

Subawards will support participation and travel to cohort convenings in years one and two and direct implementation expenses in year three, including faculty stipends and student experiential learning opportunities. Valid uses of the funds include, but are not limited to, the following:

• Personnel costs, including stipends for faculty and staff to participate in the initiative
• Professional development costs, including travel to kickoff convening, DREAM, or other related events
• Implementation costs associated with the execution of programs developed during the grant
  • Includes student stipends or paid internships
• Purchase of technologies or supplies required to execute the terms of the grant

Timeline

Evaluation Criteria

Applications will be evaluated based on institutional readiness, alignment with initiative goals, capacity for implementation, and commitment to humanities education. Detailed criteria can be found on the above linked document.

Survey Apply Instructions

Register: Click the “Register” link in the top right corner and set up your log-in credentials.

Provide Basic Information: When signing up for a new account, you will be prompted to provide some basic information such as your name, email address, and organization (if applicable). Fill in the required fields and click "Next" or "Continue."

Choose a Username: After providing your basic information, you will be asked to choose a username for your Survey Apply account. The username should be unique and not already taken by another user. It is essential to pick a username that you can easily remember and that reflects your identity or organization.

Check Availability: Once you have entered your desired username, click on the "Check Availability" or "Verify" button. Survey Apply will verify if the username is available or if you need to select an alternative option.

Create a Password: After confirming the availability of your chosen username, you will be asked to create a secure password. The password should be strong, containing a combination of uppercase and lowercase letters, numbers, and special characters. Ensure the password is unique and not used for other accounts.

Confirm Your Account: Depending on the platform's setup, you might receive an email to confirm your account. Click on the confirmation link provided in the email to verify your email address and activate your Survey Apply account.

Log In with Your Username: After completing the account setup process, return to the Survey Apply login page. Enter your chosen username and the password you created during sign-up, then click on the "Log In" button, which will take you to your application portal, where you can find resources and add/edit your application as often as you like until the deadline.

Submission Instructions

Applications must be submitted electronically to ATD by February 16, 2026. Be sure to click Submit on the left side after completing to ensure submission. You will receive an email from SurveyMonkey Apply once your form is submitted to confirm.