Wikimedia Meta-Wiki

Grants:Simple/Applications/Wikimedia District of Columbia/2016-2017

< Grants:Simple | Applications
Grant stage: draft application
Grantee: application under review
Amount granted: US$63,827 (US$63,827)
Funding period: 15 November 2016 to 30 September 2017
Final report due: 30 October 2017

Application

edit

Background

edit

These two requests are required of first-time applicants. In future years, you can use reports to substitute for these requirements.

  1. Link to one program story that showcases your organization's achievements in the past year.
    "Geophysical Scientists Take Red Pencils to Wikipedia" (AssociationsNow); "Mughal Art for the Masses" (Smithsonian Libraries Unbound); "National Archives program trains Wikipedians in cultural heritage outreach" (NARAtions)
  2. Link to one learning story you have created or contributed to, that demonstrates how your organization documents and applies learning.
    "Partnering with a government agency"

Link to these documents only if you have them.

  1. Link to your organization's staffing plan. Staffing plan 2016-2017
  2. Link to your annual plan. Annual plan 2016-2017
  3. Link to your strategic plan. Strategic plan 2016-2017

Please add your global metrics to this sheet. Contact APG staff if you need access. Please visit this worksheet to add or view global metrics targets and progress.


Programs

edit

Institutional Partnerships

Wikimedia DC's institutional partnership program area includes a range of programs whose principal objective is to leverage the resources, holdings, and expertise of institutions in the cultural, academic, and government sectors to improve the Wikimedia projects and other free knowledge repositories—both through the direct contribution of institutional records, collections, and other holdings to such repositories under suitable free licenses, and through the participation of institutional staff and other affiliated individuals in such projects. Institutional partnership programs have historically made up the majority of Wikimedia DC's program work, and we anticipate that this will continue to be the case for the foreseeable future.

We view institutional partnership as a holistic process through which external institutions become full partners in the Wikimedia mission and movement, capable of independently planning and executing Wikimedia-related programs as well as championing Wikimedia to other institutions and the general public; this understanding serves as the basis for Wikimedia DC's institutional partnership scale, which we are introducing as a new mechanism for quantifying the effects of our institutional outreach activities on partner participation.

 
Growth of Wikimedia DC collaborative editing events since 2013
 
Growth of Wikimedia DC institutional partners since 2013

During the 2016–17 fiscal year, we will continue to utilize collaborative editing events as our principal institutional partnership activity. We plan to hold at least 50 events with institutional partners, representing a 22% increase from the 41 events held in the 2015-16 fiscal year. Through these events, we will grow our portfolio of institutional partners to 55 institutions, representing a 22% increase from our existing portfolio of 45 institutional partners (Strategic Objective IP-1). We plan to hold events with institutional partners in several key sectors:

  • GLAMs, including our flagship partners at the National Archives and Records Administration (NARA) and the Smithsonian Institution, as well as institutions such as the DC Public Library (DCPL), the Library of Congress, Historical Society of Washington, the National Museum of Women in the Arts, the Phillips Collection, the Walters Art Museum, and the Laurel Historical Society;
  • Academic institutions, including American University, Howard University, Catholic University, the George Washington University, Georgetown University, George Mason University, the University of Virginia, and the University of Maryland;
  • Government agencies, including the National Institute of Occupational Safety and Health (NIOSH) and the National Institutes of Health (NIH);
  • Professional associations, including the American Association for the Advancement of Science (AAAS), the American Chemical Society (ACS), and the American Geophysical Union (AGU); and
  • NGOs, including the Council on Foreign Relations (CFR) and National Public Radio (NPR).

Of the 50 collaborative editing events planned for the fiscal year, at least 15 will be aimed at improving diversity, representing 30% of the total activity in this program (Strategic Objective IP-2). As part of these events, we aim to create or improve at least 1,580 articles through the addition of at least 1,105,000 bytes of content, representing a 20% increase from the 1,315 articles created or improved and 920,685 bytes of content added during the 2015-16 fiscal year, respectively (Strategic Objective IP-4).

In addition, Wikimedia DC plans to facilitate at least one mass content donation, consisting of no less than 10,000 freely-licensed media files, from a suitable partner institution collection. Our principal candidate institution for this program is the Library of Congress, where we have an established relationship.

Additional information about our institutional partnership programs is available in our Strategic Plan and Annual Plan.

Content Development

Wikimedia DC's content development program area consists of programs whose principal objective is to directly facilitate the creation of high-quality content for the Wikimedia projects, such as editing and photography contests. These programs were a key activity for Wikimedia DC in past fiscal years, during which we organized the Wiki Loves Monuments US and Wikipedia Summer of Monuments contests, but were largely discontinued after the end of Wikipedia Summer of Monuments; we plan to revive this program area in the coming fiscal year, leveraging the best practices developed by online contests such as the "Awaken the Dragon" contest in Wales and the virtual edit-a-thon model developed by WikiProject Women in Red to empower participation by experienced Wikipedians.

During the 2016–17 fiscal year, Wikimedia DC plans to hold at least two editing contests focused on the development of high-quality articles on the English Wikipedia. Our plan is to organize these contests in collaboration with existing editor groups; the principal candidate groups for this program are WikiProject Military history, WikiProject Women in Red, and the state WikiProjects for DC, Maryland, and Virginia. During these contests, we aim to recruit at least 25 volunteers to create or improve at least 250 articles, collectively adding at least 1,250,000 bytes of content (Strategic Objective CD-1 / Strategic Objective CD-2). Of this new content, at least 75 articles, or 30% of the total, will be articles on diversity-related or under-represented topics (Strategic Objective CD-3). Further, we will aim to have at least 65 of the articles, or 26% of the total, raised to Good Article status or higher (Strategic Objective CD-4).

Additional information about our content development programs is available in our Strategic Plan and Annual Plan.

Training and Support

Wikimedia DC's training and support program area includes several programs whose principal objectives consist of providing professional development opportunities and non-financial resources to volunteer contributors to the Wikimedia projects. These programs take several forms, including large training workshops, the development of training materials, and one-on-one mentorship arrangements. Wikimedia DC has historically served as a key provider of such support to the Wikimedia community in the United States, having organized a number of high-profile, high-impact training workshops, including the 2013 and 2016 GLAM Boot Camps and the 2014 Workshop Facilitator Training.

During the 2016–17 fiscal year, we aim to host at least one training workshop, aimed at sharing best practices for event facilitation; to reduce costs, the workshop will primarily involve attendees from the DC area rather than a national or international audience. The workshop will include at least 20 attendees, representing a 33% increase from the 15 attendees at our workshops during the prior fiscal year (Strategic Objective TS-1). Further, we aim to have at least 15 of the attendees, representing 75% of the total, report satisfaction with the content and delivery of the workshop in post-event evaluation (Strategic Objective TS-3).

Additional information about our training and support programs is available in our Strategic Plan and Annual Plan.

Grantmaking and Sponsorship

Wikimedia DC's grantmaking and sponsorship program area includes programs whose principal objective is to provide direct financial support to individuals, groups, and organizations within the Wikimedia movement. These programs include both direct grantmaking activities, where Wikimedia DC evaluates and selects grantees, as well as fiscal sponsorships, where Wikimedia DC acts as a financial administrator for Wikimedia Foundation or third-party grants to eligible groups or organizations. During the 2016–17 fiscal year, we aim to continue our three principal grantmaking and sponsorship programs: small grants, book grants, and fiscal sponsorships.

  • Our small grants program provides funding of up to $2,500 to projects and events independently organized by individuals and groups both within and outside our region. During the 2016–17 fiscal year, we aim to fund a minimum of 5 small grants, including at least 3 grants outside the Wikimedia DC region.
  • Our book grants program provides direct financial support to individual Wikipedia editors by funding the purchase of books to be used as sources for articles, providing an opportunity to achieve significant impact by selecting grant recipients based on prior editing history and demonstrated ability to effectively utilize print sources to create high-quality articles. During the 2016–17 fiscal year, we aim to fund a minimum of 10 book grants, including grants to at least 5 first-time recipients.
  • Our fiscal sponsorship programs are responsible for the majority of the program area's total value in terms of dollars spent. During the past year, Wikimedia DC administered the principal grant funding for the 2016 Art+Feminism campaign as well as for WikiConference North America 2016. During the 2015–16 fiscal year, we aim to further expand our fiscal sponsorships, administering a minimum of 2 grants under fiscal sponsorship with an aggregate grant value of at least $100,000.

Additional information about our grantmaking and sponsorship programs is available in our Strategic Plan and Annual Plan.

Public Policy

Wikimedia DC's public policy program area includes programs whose principal objective is to encourage regulatory and legislative changes that will benefit the Wikimedia projects and the broader free knowledge and culture movement through mechanisms such as public seminars, position papers, and direct and indirect lobbying. In prior fiscal years, we have explored potential opportunities to engage on public policy issues, and our public policy efforts during the 2016–17 fiscal year will continue to take a primarily exploratory form as we seek to better define our long-term direction in this area. To the extent possible, we will coordinate our efforts with those of the Wikimedia Foundation's public policy department.

Wikimedia DC has previously engaged in advocacy on copyright matters, and aim to submit further comments on this topic to regulatory agencies as suitable opportunities arise. We will additionally monitor related areas of public policy activity, including questions of mass digitization, copyright reform, and public domain, for suitable opportunities to comment.

In addition, Wikimedia DC will begin exploring potential public policy positions, partnerships, and areas of activity relative to the subject of online harassment. We will engage with existing groups and organizations in this space, with an aim to create a working group that will serve as a forum for further discussion of this topic and a vehicle for collaboration on and coordination of future activity.

Additional information about our public policy programs is available in our Strategic Plan and Annual Plan.

Staff

edit

Institutional Partnerships Manager

  1. Please link to a detailed job description, which shows how this staff person will help your organization achieve its goals.
    Job description
  2. How long is this staff person or contractor's planned engagement with your organization, and how many hours will they work over the course of this grant?
    1.0 FTE
  3. Use a percentage of that person's total hours to show how they will spend their time on different programs and activities.
    Breakdown of staff time

Budget and resource plan

edit

Link to a detailed budget (that also includes a plan for raising the resources you need). Budget 2016-2017

Midpoint report

edit

This is a brief report on the grantee's progress during the midpoint reporting period: 15 November 2016 - 15 April 2017.

Program story

edit

Please link to one program story that showcases your organization's achievements during the reporting period.

Here is the text you may use to add a story or link!

DC Wikipedia edit-a-thon a chance to shine light on women in the arts (WTOP)
Wikipedia Congressional Committees Edit-a-thon Event Recap (In Custodia Legis)

Progress

edit

Please add text or a link to a page with details on your program progress. This should including reporting against each of the SMART objectives from your proposal.

Institutional Partnerships

As envisioned in Wikimedia DC's plan for the year, collaborative editing events, such as edit-a-thons and editing workshops, comprised the bulk of our institutional partnership program activity. During the reporting period ending on April 15, Wikimedia DC supported a total of 24 collaborative editing events (48% of the fiscal year target) in partnership with 12 different cultural, academic, and government institutions and non-governmental organizations. Our partner institutions included 9 existing Wikimedia DC partners, including 6 cultural institutions (the District of Columbia Public Library; the National Archives and Records Administration; the Law Library of Congress; the National Museum of Women in the Arts; the Smithsonian Institution Archives; and the Smithsonian American Art Museum) and 3 academic institutions (American University; University of Maryland, College Park; and West Virginia University), as well as 3 new partners (30% of the fiscal year target) for whom the collaboration marked their first engagement with Wikimedia DC: the British Broadcasting Corporation, MITRE Corporation, and the United States Holocaust Memorial Museum. Of these 24 events, 20 were aimed at improving diversity, representing 83% of the total activity in the program.

The edit-a-thons and editing workshops were attended by a total of 213 participants (112% of the fiscal year target); these participants including 99 new users (66% of the fiscal year target) and 114 experienced users (285% of the fiscal year target). Collectively, the participants made 1,252 edits to 548 Wikipedia articles (35% of the fiscal year target), adding 2,298,516 bytes of Wikipedia content (208% of the fiscal year target).

  •  
    Attendees at the BBC "100 Women of 2016" edit-a-thon study the Wikipedia Space banners
  •  
    "Women in the Arts" edit-a-thon in progress at the National Museum of Women in the Arts
  •  
    "Women in Science and Engineering" edit-a-thon in progress at MITRE
  •  
    American University students attend an editing workshop at the Smithsonian Institution Archives
  •  
    "Congressional Committees and Hearings" edit-a-thon in progress at the Law Library of Congress

Content Development

Wikimedia DC did not execute any content development program activities during the reporting period.

Training and Support

Wikimedia DC did not execute any training and support program activities during the reporting period.

Grantmaking and Sponsorship

During the reporting period, Wikimedia DC was responsible for administering 3 fiscal sponsorships (150% of the fiscal year target) with a total value of $150,270:

  • Art+Feminism 2016–2017, a Simple Annual Plan Grant with a total value of $99,820, of which $32,318.33 was disbursed over the course of the reporting period.
  • USF SOLIS 2017 WikiEquality Series, a Rapid Grant with a total value of $450, of which $209.31 was disbursed over the course of the reporting period.
  • WikiConference North America 2016, a Conference Grant with a total value of $50,000, of which $39,861.53 was disbursed over the course of the reporting period.

In aggregate, Wikimedia DC disbursed $83,509.87 of grant funding under fiscal sponsorship arrangements during the reporting period, corresponding to 83% of the fiscal year target.

Public Policy

Wikimedia DC did not execute any public policy program activities during the reporting period.

Spending

edit

Please report your organization's total spending during the reporting period, or link to a financial document showing your total spending. $2,484.13

Here is where your spending notes/explanations are.

Total grant funding expenditures for the reporting period were significantly lower than projected, primarily as a result of delays in filling the new staff position. A detailed statement of revenues and expenses for the reporting period is available here.

Final report

edit

This is the final report for your grant, describing your outcomes from the period 15 November 2016 – 30 September 2017.

Program story

edit

Please link to one program story that showcases your organization's achievements during the reporting period.

Library of Congress, National Archives Host Wikipedia Edit-a-Thon (Congressional Data Coalition)

Learning story

edit

Please link to one learning story that shows how your organization documents lessons learned and adapts its programs accordingly.

Mind the Gap: Highlighting Women's Representation on Wikipedia (DemocracyWorks: A Blog of the National Democratic Institute)

Results

edit

Please add text or a link to a page with details on your program results. You should report on each of the objectives you included in your Simple APG application.

Institutional Partnerships

Consistent with past program results, collaborative editing events, such as edit-a-thons and editing workshops, comprised the bulk of our institutional partnership program activity. During the full grant period, Wikimedia DC supported a total of 41 events (82% of our target) in partnership with 24 institutional partners. Of these 41 events, 25 were aimed at improving diversity, representing 61% of the total activity in the program and more than 200% of our target.

Our institutional partners included a broad spectrum of cultural, academic, and government institutions, professional associations, non-governmental organizations, and other groups:

The partner institutions included 14 new partners (140% of our target), for whom the collaboration marked their first engagement with Wikimedia DC, and often with the Wikimedia movement in general; these partners are marked with stars in the list above. Our success in engaging new partners was due in large part to the effective work of our Institutional Partnerships Manager, who was able to systematically identify, contact, and develop partnerships with a spectrum of institutions which had not otherwise engaged with the Wikimedia movement.

The edit-a-thons and editing workshops conducted as part of this program were attended by a total of 286 participants (151% of our target); these participants including 141 new users (94% of our target) and 145 experienced users (363% of our target). Collectively, the participants made 1,688 edits to 727 Wikipedia articles (81% of our target), adding 2,448,842 bytes of Wikipedia content (255% of our target).

  •  
    Smithsonian staff attend a Wikidata workshop at the Smithsonian Institution Archives
  •  
    Attendees at the "Women in Media and Politics" edit-a-thon at the National Democratic Institute
  •  
    "Art Students League" edit-a-thon in progress at the Smithsonian American Art Museum
  •  
    Edit-a-thon in progress at the Heurich House Museum
  •  
    Attendees at the BBC "100 Women of 2016" edit-a-thon study the Wikipedia Space banners
  •  
    "Women in the Arts" edit-a-thon in progress at the National Museum of Women in the Arts
  •  
    "Women in Science and Engineering" edit-a-thon in progress at MITRE
  •  
    American University students attend an editing workshop at the Smithsonian Institution Archives
  •  
    "Congressional Committees and Hearings" edit-a-thon in progress at the Law Library of Congress

Content Development

Wikimedia DC did not execute its planned editing contests during the grant period, principally due to the limited availability of key volunteer organizers, and the execution of similar editing contests by other affiliates and volunteers.

Training and Support

Wikimedia DC did not execute its planned training workshop during the grant period, principally due to schedule conflicts.

Grantmaking and Sponsorship

During the grant period, Wikimedia DC was responsible for administering 3 fiscal sponsorships (150% of our target) with a total value of $150,270:

In aggregate, Wikimedia DC disbursed $124,607.21 of grant funding (125% of our target), distributed across more than 150 discrete transactions, under these fiscal sponsorship arrangements.

Public Policy

Wikimedia DC did not execute any substantive public policy program activities during the grant period.

Spending

edit

Please link to a detailed financial report for your spending during the grant period. This should be in the same format as your detailed budget from your Simple APG application.

Budget Line Budget Actual Notes
Institutional Partnerships Manager $56,327.00 $22,391.20 Salary and fringe costs for 1 full-time employee over five months
Institutional Partnership Events $7,500.00 $3,958.38 Food and beverage costs; Wikimedia DC provided catering for 13 of the 41 events held during the grant period
Total $63,827.00 $26,349.58

A complete financial report, which reflects all Wikimedia DC revenue and expenses during the fiscal year, is also available; as noted in our application, a significant portion of expenditures during the grant period were covered by funding outside of this grant.

Please include the total amount of Simple APG funds you spent during the grant period.

$26,349.58 of SAPG funding and $132,534.59 of non-SAPG funding
Retrieved from "https://meta.wikimedia.org/w/index.php?title=Grants:Simple/Applications/Wikimedia_District_of_Columbia/2016-2017&oldid=18415895"