The American Astronomical Society (AAS) Solar Eclipse Task Force is pleased to announce a program of small grants to fund programs and activities aimed at engaging the public with the solar eclipse that will cross the continental US from coast to coast on August 21, 2017.

Julena Steinheider Duncombe. Credit: AAS.

They anticipate funding 20 to 50 grants in the range $1,000 to $5,000. Support for these mini-grants is provided by the US National Science Foundation (NSF). Accordingly, grants may go only to organizations within the United States. Proposal deadline: 5:00 pm Eastern time, Friday, January 13, 2017.

Highest priority will be given to programs specifically designed to engage meaningfully in eclipse outreach activities with under-represented groups (URGs; including women/girls, ethnic minorities, and people with physical and/or mental disabilities) who often do not imagine themselves in science careers or who believe that science is “not for them.”

This mini-grants program is named for Julena Steinheider Duncombe (1911−2003), an outstanding astronomer and educator who started the US’s first school-lunch program for underprivileged children. For many years she published eclipse predictions for the US Naval Observatory. Several towns in Nebraska where she taught school will be in the path of the Moon’s shadow on August 21, 2017.

For more information, or to apply for a mini-grant, please visit the following pages:

More information here at AAS Solar Eclipse 2017 page.