Posted November 3, 2026 by L.P. Coladangelo, DS Catalog Project and Data Manager
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New Member
We are proud to announce Dartmouth College as our newest DS member! We look forward to working with them to make their manuscript items discoverable in the DS Catalog as they strengthen and enrich DS with their membership.
If your institution (or an institution you know) is interested in learning more about the benefits of being a DS member, please message [email protected] to get the conversation started! You may also wish to attend an upcoming prospective member information session.
William G. Noel Eureka Fund 2027 Applications Open
The William G. Noel Eureka Fund honors the legacy of one of the world’s great manuscript scholars and powerful advocates of unfettered access to cultural heritage in its handwritten forms. More than anyone else, Will Noel understood the promise of open access for manuscript data to spark new and exciting discoveries about the world’s rich and varied cultural heritages and intellectual traditions. Through his visionary leadership of the Archimedes Palimpsest Project, and as the founding Director of the Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies, Will challenged and overcame conventional and restrictive approaches to data management through radical policies of open access and free use of manuscript data, opening up a wide range of possibilities for new discoveries and insights into the past.
The William G. Noel Eureka Fund Committee, in partnership with Digital Scriptorium, invites DS member institutions to submit grant proposals from the fund. The grants will award up to seven projects with a maximum funding amount of $5000 each for single institutions and $7500 for two or more institutions in collaborative proposals.
The primary objective of these grants is to make possible those “Eureka” moments of discovery that Will so loved by helping DS member institutions enrich and share manuscript data related to their collections. The fund supports projects that will lead to innovative cataloging and digitization practices, the creation of new manuscript descriptions, the education and training of a new generation of librarians, curators, and scholars in the curation of digital manuscript data, and the dissemination of new research. Research results will be incorporated into institutional records that can then be contributed to or refreshed in the DS Catalog to be shared with the wider DS community of scholars, students, and researchers. We especially encourage projects that include the development of training resources for undergraduate or graduate students in manuscript description as a part of the proposal. Collaborative proposals among member institutions are also encouraged.
To apply:
Applications must be submitted by the member institution on behalf of projects proposed by staff or faculty at those institutions and signed by the DS member representative of the applying institution.
In addition to a form questionnaire, application materials include 1) a brief abstract, 2) a 2-page proposal narrative, 3) a project budget, and 4) DS Member Institution commitment letter. File types accepted for uploaded documentation include PDF and Word.
Proposal narratives should include 1) a description of the undertaking or need (project, activity, etc.), 2) an indication of the specific outcome(s) or result(s) anticipated, 3) a project timeline, and 4) a concise description of the applying organization (if applicable, list partnering organizations).
Applications are due on March 19, 2027. Notifications will be sent out by April 15, 2027, and funds will be dispersed on July 1, 2027. Projects must be completed by June 30, 2028. Only one project will be awarded per DS member institution per cycle.
For more information and to submit a grant application, please follow this link: https://digital-scriptorium.org/support-ds/eureka-fund/eureka-fund-call-for-applications/
If you would like to support the William G. Noel Eureka Fund, please visit the following link to make your contribution: https://digital-scriptorium.org/support-ds/eureka-fund/
Upcoming Prospective DS Member Information Sessions
DS is committed to strengthening our network of North American institutions with collections of global premodern manuscripts and our dedication to building an online union catalog for member collections. If your institution is interested in becoming part of the DS consortium, we are offering online information sessions to help you learn more about DS and the benefits of membership. Sessions will be held Tuesday, November 3 (11am-noon ET); Wednesday, November 4 (1pm-2pm ET); and Thursday, November 5 (2pm-3pm ET) via Zoom.
To sign up for a DS information session, please register here to attend.
These sessions are intended for people representing North American institutions with premodern manuscript collections that are interested in joining DS. The information you provide at registration will help us prepare for these sessions and better understand and address your institution’s needs.
New Blog Post
In this month’s blog post, DS Fellow Kelly Tuttle highlights new member Lafayette College and their manuscript copy of the Dīvān, or collection of poems, of Jāmī, a renowned 15th-century Persian poet. Check out her blog post here!