Museums & Community Collaborations Abroad (MCCA) supports museum-based international exchanges in which members of the museums’ communities play a leading role in shaping their own collaborative experience while simultaneously creating new connections with their peers abroad.

Applying to MCCA

To be considered for an MCCA grant, US museums:

• Identify a non-US partner by either selecting from the Embassy Nominees or by locating a suitable match on their own and submitting paperwork for a Museum Generated Nomination request.
  
  Museum Generated Nomination paperwork is submitted with the Statement of Intent to Propose (see below) to MCCA. US museums must also request US Embassy Endorsement for their non-US partner museum from the Public Affairs Section (PAS) at the nearest US Embassy or Consulate no later than November 23, 2009. Embassies have until December 14, 2009 to endorse the nomination (see below).
  
  The non-US museum must have the support of the embassy to participate in MCCA.
• Submit a Statement of Intent to Propose to MCCA by November 23, 2009. This statement should be no more than 5 pages in length and should include the name/s of partner museums, their nomination status, requested funding level, and a brief overview of the proposed project similar to an executive summary.  Project concepts that focus primarily on staff training or exhibition design are typically not competitive.
  
• Ensure that US Embassy Endorsements for Museum Generated Nominations are received by the MCCA office no later than December 14, 2009.
• Submit a Final Proposal to MCCA by February 23, 2010.

Selection, Notification, and Implementation

The MCCA Selection Committee, comprised of three museum staff members with extensive experience working internationally, evaluates Final Proposals based on the selection criteria. After selection, provisional award status is announced; the awards become final only upon completion of Implementation Agreements, which are drafted with the assistance of MCCA staff.

The Implementation Agreement serves as a contract between the museums and the MCCA office. It clarifies the terms and conditions of the award and also refines the project activities. MCCA staff work with the museums to fine tune the proposed budget and create an evaluation schema. In collaboration with the US embassy, the team creates a communications plan for sharing the project activities with their local communities.

Until the Implementation Agreement is signed, the award offer may be rescinded if the project design changes considerably from that which was reviewed by the Selection Committee. Any proposed change in partner or significant change in project content during the negotiation of the agreement must be approved by MCCA staff. Upon receipt of the signed Implementation Agreement, the award is considered official, and funds are released for project activities.