Standing at his desk, Woodmere Art Museum Director and CEO William Valerio opened the email that arrived late at night. 

He learned of the electronic missive from the Institutes for Museum and Library Sciences (IMLS) during a meeting that morning. 

ILMS is the independent federal agency charged with overseeing funding for libraries and museums nationwide, including the $750,000 grant awarded to Woodmere in September 2024.  

Valerio suspected he would be receiving an email informing grantees about changes at IMLS. Just nine days earlier, on March 31, most of the institute’s 77-member staff was placed on administrative leave after what news reports labeled a “brief” meeting with representatives of the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE). 

“I knew there were changes coming at IMLS and frankly, look, I think that government funders, like any funders, have the full right to change their priorities and that there are different funding directions they want to take,” he said.

As Valerio read the email, he had to sit down. The museum’s grant was cancelled. It left him, Valerio said, “caught in midair.” 

“While I expected that changes would be coming at the IMLS, I thought it would have an impact on future grants and future interactions,” he said. “I did not think it would have an impact on a grant that we applied for in the past, a grant that we were awarded and a grant that we signed a contract for. That surprised me.”

Valerio is not alone. Philadelphia-area museum and library directors at Drexel, the Penn Museum, the South Asian American Digital Archive, and the Rosenbach Museum received similar grant-cancelling emails.

“My understanding is that there are $175 million dollars of grants that have been terminated across the country,” Valerio said.

The American Alliance of Museums (AAM), which represents Woodmere and other history museums, science centers, and zoos, did not respond to an email request for comment. However, on its website the AAM urged members to “call and write” their members of Congress.

“They need to be aware of the direct impact,” the AAM writes. “They will not know if you do not tell them. Call and write to ensure the message gets received.”

In its April 4 edition, The Art Newspaper reported that a coalition of 21 state attorneys general have sued President Donald Trump and his administration for attempting to “eliminate Institute of Museum and Library Services through an executive order and actions.” The lawsuit called the move “illegal several times over.”

Valerio has reached out to U.S. Senators Dave McCormick (R), John Fetterman (D), and U.S. Rep. Dwight Evans (D). He also contacted members of the Pennsylvania legislature.

“We asked them if there is any way the money can be restored, or if there was any other avenue to explore,” he said. “They have been very sympathetic and we remain in contact with them. They certainly want to help us.” 

The grant cancellation comes as Woodmere nears completion of its new Frances M. Maguire Hall for Art and Education. In 2021, the museum purchased Saint Michael’s Hall and four acres of land from the Sisters of Saint Joseph for the new center, scheduled to open in October. 

Money from the grant was not part of the almost $28 million used to purchase, renovate, and fund an endowment for the center. But 90% of the grant money was committed to projects related to Maguire Hall, including art conservation, framing art for display, building pedestals for sculptures, and furniture designed for storing art.

“The money was earmarked specifically for projects that are happening in our new building, Maguire Hall,” said Amy Ferracci, Woodmere’s director of Marketing and Communications.

Grants are reimbursed quarterly. Woodmere’s grant was approved last September, when the museum was just beginning to sign contracts for art conservation projects. In December, Woodmere received $16,000 in grant money. Since then, the museum has signed several more contracts, many with local craftspeople. 

“We also submitted a request for reimbursement at the end of the first quarter of 2025,” he said. “We do not expect to receive that money.”

Canceling the grant is not just the museum losing the money, Valerio said. Museums are economic drivers in their communities with direct impact on local small businesses, like coffee shops and restaurants. And in Woodmere’s case, local contractors.  

“Our painting conservator lives right here in Northwest Philadelphia and he is an independent contractor, who has a small business and is basically self-employed. So, in all the activities of the museum, we are driving the economy of the local community. I think the basic infrastructure in the operations of the museum is something that is incredibly important to our community.”

Valerio said Woodmere will honor its contracts. At a special board meeting on April 18, members pledged to help close the financial shortfall to make sure work at Maguire Hall is completed. Valerio spoke with and guaranteed contractors that, “by hook or by crook,” the museum will see that they are paid.

“We were doing everything right,” he said. “We had the grant. We contracted the work to be done. Like I said, we were caught in midair.”