Marilyn Hatza Memorial SHINE Grant FY27 (2027): Historical Reference for $5,000 Awards

Marilyn Hatza Memorial SHINE Grant FY27 (2027): Historical Reference for $5,000 Awards

The Marilyn Hatza Memorial SHINE Grant is Maryland Humanities’ general operating support program for eligible nonprofits doing humanities work in Maryland. The FY27 round planned 80 awards of $5,000 each. Its application closed on September 13, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. This page preserves the details of that round for organizations comparing past funding and preparing for a possible future announcement. Maryland Humanities’ grants page still displays an FY27 application callout and form link, but its posted schedule and FAQ identify the September closing date and publish no later application period. A retained application link is not evidence that a new cycle is open. Treat the opportunity as closed unless the funder posts a new cycle and fresh guidelines.

SHINE means Strengthening the Humanities Investment in Nonprofits for Equity. The program responds to the costs that keep a small public-serving organization operating: rent, utilities, salaries, supplies, program costs, and capacity building. These are examples of allowable day-to-day expenses listed by the funder. The award was general operating support, rather than a grant for one narrowly defined exhibit or event. Maryland Humanities says it discourages using SHINE funds for re-granting, new construction, renovations, major capital projects, and collection or property acquisition.

FY27 details

Dates and award details in this table describe the closed FY27 round. The official page listed guidelines availability on May 28, 2026, virtual information sessions on June 23, July 13, and August 4, 2026, and drop-in office hours on July 29 and September 8, 2026. It also listed a September 8 deadline for draft review, applicant notification in late November 2026, and funding disbursement in January 2027. Those support events and application deadlines have passed; the notification and disbursement dates were future milestones when the application closed.

Who met the FY27 eligibility rules

Maryland Humanities’ FAQ sets out four core requirements. First, the applicant had to be a nonprofit organization in good standing with the Internal Revenue Service, as determined through its Form 990 and Charity Check. Second, it had to be physically located and registered as a nonprofit in Maryland, with Maryland residents as its primary constituents. Third, the organization’s total annual budget, counting both income and expenses, had to be $500,000 or less. Fourth, humanities programming had to make up more than 70% of annual programming.

The funder describes eligible types of organizations as museums, historic sites, preservation and historical societies, and community and cultural organizations with a significant humanities focus. The label an organization uses is less useful than what it actually does. Maryland Humanities describes the humanities through activities that explore shared stories, preserve and share cultural identities and traditions, encourage storytelling and dialogue, and bring people together for thoughtful public learning. Examples of subject areas include history, literature, linguistics, law, philosophy, archaeology, religious studies, and ethics.

The FAQ distinguishes humanities programming from visual arts, music, theater, resources for working artists, health and human services, and social services. An organization with a mixed portfolio therefore needed to assess its actual annual programming against the more-than-70-percent threshold and the funder’s definitions, rather than assume that a humanities-themed activity made the whole organization eligible. Maryland Humanities invited applicants who remained uncertain to contact its grants team during the application period.

Fiscal sponsorship was allowed. The FAQ said a fiscally sponsored applicant had to upload both a fiscal sponsorship agreement showing a fiduciary pass-through arrangement and the fiscal sponsor’s most recent Form 990. The FAQ also confirmed there was no match requirement. Eligibility did not guarantee an award: the FY27 round was competitive, and Maryland Humanities said it could not promise funding to every eligible applicant.

What the grant could support

The funder described SHINE as support for the day-to-day costs of operating an existing nonprofit and running public programs. Its examples of allowable expenses included rent, utilities, supplies, salaries, programming costs, capacity building, and other ordinary organizational expenses. An applicant could explain the operating need the funds would address without tying the entire request to a single restricted project. The flexible nature of the award mattered for organizations whose essential expenses—staff time, facility costs, or basic program materials—do not always fit a project-specific grant.

Maryland Humanities discouraged requests to use the grant for re-granting, new construction, renovations, major capital projects, or acquiring collections or property. For any borderline expense, the appropriate source was the FY27 guidelines or the Maryland Humanities grants team, not an assumption that every organizational cost would qualify. The official FAQ does not state a matching contribution requirement, so applicants did not need to build a match into the FY27 request.

The program was supported with seed money from the State of Maryland via the Maryland Historical Trust, according to Maryland Humanities. The grants page describes the broader program goals as expanding general operating support, focusing on small and mid-size humanities, cultural, and educational nonprofits, reaching organizations throughout the state, and distributing funds equitably with fiscal accountability. The official description is useful context for the program’s purpose, but applicants still needed to follow the specific rules and questions in the FY27 guidelines.

How FY27 applications worked

The FY27 application was submitted through the Hatza SHINE FY27 Google Form linked from the Maryland Humanities grants page. The application window ran from June 18 through September 13, 2026, and is now closed. The FAQ says staff first conducted a preliminary eligibility review after the deadline. Eligible applications then moved to a second review round, in which the Grants Review team scored the narrative. Each application was assigned to a randomly selected set of reviewers. The grants and review teams then considered the combined scores to determine awards.

Maryland Humanities made the FY27 guidelines available from its grants page. That document, rather than a generic grant-writing checklist, was the authoritative source for the full application questions and required attachments. The support page described draft review as a check for completeness, eligibility, and compliance with the guidelines; it explicitly said draft review did not provide a score prediction, funding recommendation, or extensive editing. Applicants could email a copy of a draft to the program officer, with the organization name and “draft review” in the subject line, by September 8, 2026. The page asked applicants to allow two to three business days for a response.

The support page also listed a DEAI (Diversity, Equity, Access, and Inclusion) toolkit, exemplary sample answers, questions to consider when preparing narrative responses, staff meetings, information sessions, and open office hours. The toolkit was described as a reflection resource, not a checklist of mandatory completed requirements. Maryland Humanities also offered an oral application interview for accessibility reasons. Its FY27 instructions required applicants who wanted that route to schedule by September 4, 2026; staff would ask the application questions, transcribe the responses, and send the transcription to the applicant to review or approve before staff submitted it.

Because the application form and support dates belonged to the closed round, they should not be used to apply for future funding. An organization preparing for another cycle should wait for Maryland Humanities to publish that cycle’s guidelines, dates, form, and instructions. Requirements, allowable costs, award counts, and support options can change between rounds.

FY27 timeline and outcome checkpoints

• May 28, 2026: FY27 guidelines made available.
• June 18, 2026: application opened.
• June 23, July 13, and August 4, 2026: virtual information sessions listed by Maryland Humanities.
• July 29 and September 8, 2026: drop-in virtual office hours listed by Maryland Humanities.
• September 4, 2026: deadline to schedule an oral application interview.
• September 8, 2026: optional application draft review deadline.
• September 13, 2026, 11:59 p.m.: application closed for all applicants.
• November 2026: Maryland Humanities aimed to notify applicants of their status.
• January 2027: planned award funding disbursement.

The official grants page gives the application and support schedule; the FAQ explains the review sequence and says notification was targeted for November 2026, with delays to be communicated. The page lists funding disbursement in January 2027. These later milestones are the announced plan, not confirmation that a particular applicant received an award or that payment was made. Applicants should rely on direct communication from Maryland Humanities for their own submission status.

Preparing for a future announcement

There is no open FY27 application to submit now. A nonprofit that may fit a future SHINE round can use the time to organize basic records, while treating the next guidelines as controlling if and when Maryland Humanities announces another cycle. Keep the organization’s IRS status documentation, latest Form 990, annual income and expense figures, Maryland registration information, and a clear account of the communities it serves accessible. Fiscal sponsors should retain the agreement showing the fiduciary pass-through relationship and the sponsor’s latest Form 990, since those were required additions in FY27.

It is also useful to map programs against the funder’s definition of the humanities. List the organization’s public activities over a full year, estimate what share qualifies, and be ready to explain how those activities interpret human cultures, ideas, practices, or experiences. If the organization also performs arts or provides social or health services, separate those activities clearly when assessing the share. These records help an organization make an informed eligibility decision; they do not replace a new cycle’s application questions.

For narrative planning, collect concrete examples of public programs, participants, partnerships, and operating needs. The FY27 support materials included sample answers and questions to consider, and the application review focused on narrative responses after an eligibility screen. Those materials can help an organization understand the prior process, but Maryland Humanities may revise them. Before drafting or budgeting for another round, revisit the official grants page and download the current guidelines and support resources.

Frequently asked questions about this archived round

Can I still apply to the FY27 round? No. Maryland Humanities lists September 13, 2026, at 11:59 p.m. as the closing time for all applicants. The FY27 form and deadlines are historical information.

Has Maryland Humanities announced the next SHINE application period? The official grants page and FAQ describe the FY27 cycle and do not give a later application window. Check the grants page for an announcement rather than relying on an old form or a date copied from a prior year.

What was the award amount? The FY27 plan was 80 general operating support grants of $5,000 each.

Could a prior SHINE grantee apply again in FY27? Yes. The FAQ said a prior recipient could apply again if it continued to meet the program’s eligibility requirements.

Was a match required? No match was required for FY27.

Where can an organization verify a future round? Maryland Humanities posts its program information on the official grants page. A future application should be based on the new guidelines and application link posted there.

Official references

• Maryland Humanities Grants — FY27 award amount, count, schedule, guidelines link, application link, program goals, and support links.
• Maryland Humanities SHINE FAQ — eligibility, application period, humanities definitions, fiscal sponsorship, allowable expenses, match requirement, review steps, and award count.
• Maryland Humanities Grant Application Support — FY27 draft review and oral interview processes, accessibility resources, and application support materials.

This page is a historical reference to FY27. The funder’s official materials control if an application period is announced again, and a new cycle should be checked independently for changed eligibility, award terms, or dates.