ACLS Digital Justice Grants 2026-27 | Up to $100,000 for Digital Scholarship Projects

Overview

Administered by the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) and funded by the Mellon Foundation, the ACLS Digital Justice Grants Program supports innovative digital projects that center the experiences of historically marginalized communities. The initiative addresses inequities in digital tools and institutional support across the humanities and interpretive social sciences. The program offers two funding categories:

• Digital Justice Seed Grants: Ranging from $10,000 to $25,000 for early-stage projects, planning workshops, and prototyping.
• Digital Justice Development Grants: Ranging from $50,000 to $100,000 for projects ready to move beyond the proof-of-concept stage.

All recipients also receive financial planning coaching from the Nonprofit Finance Fund to build long-term sustainability.

Eligibility

• Principal Investigators must be scholars in the humanities or interpretive social sciences.
• Funds must be administered by a U.S. institution of higher education.
• Projects should be made openly accessible where intellectual property considerations allow.
• Seed Grant applicants must focus on the start-up or prototyping phase.
• Development Grant applicants must demonstrate substantial prior work and public or scholarly impact.

Ineligible projects include creative works, textbooks, straightforward translations, purely pedagogical projects, and projects lacking an equity or justice-oriented focus.

How to Apply

Applications must be submitted through the official ACLS online fellowship and grant administration system. Prospective applicants should carefully review all guidelines, FAQs, and supplementary materials before starting their proposals.

Deadline

Complete applications must be submitted no later than November 3, 2026, at 5:00 PM ET.