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Explore the Mass Humanities funded projects awarded from 2000 to the present. Browse by grant type, city, region or keyword. Subscribe to our newsletter and receive news when grants are awarded.
We Read Frederick Douglass Together as OneFrederick Douglass Neighborhood Associationmore
The third annual public reading and moderated discussion of Douglass's "What to the Slave is the Fourth of July?"
Brockton, MA, Plymouth County (Southeast)
project director: Madeline M. Smith
awarded on: 2017-05-08
amount: $500
Poetry and the Active CitizenEdith Wharton Restoration, Inc.more
A forum on the role of poetry during times of cultural and political crisis.
Lenox, MA, Berkshire County (Berkshire)
project director: Abbie Wilson
awarded on: 2017-05-08
amount: $3,000
No Human is Illegal: A Conversation on Immigrants and the American IdeaWorcester Interfaithmore
Part of the city's Clemente Course in the Humanities to sponsor a public poetry reading and conversation with poet Naomi Shihab Nye on defining the place of immigrants in the American idea.
Worcester, MA, Worcester County (Central)
project director: Lucia Knoles
awarded on: 2017-05-08
amount: $2,812
Our Story: 400 Years of Wampanoag HistoryAquinnah Cultural Centermore
A series of three discussions moderated by Linda Coombs and Paula Peters based on the interactive "Our Story" exhibit of Wampanoag history, along with the Mashpee Nine book/film.
Aquinnah, MA, Dukes County (Cape & Islands)
project director: Linda Coombs
awarded on: 2017-05-08
amount: $1,618
The New American SongbookThe Ground Truth Projectmore
A series of audio documentaries using live radio broadcasts and listening events provoking discussion on the value of immigrant music, culture, and experience for the social life of the Commonwealth.
Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
project director: Charles Sennott
awarded on: 2017-03-17
amount: $15,000
Stories from New Voices: NEPR Media LabNew England Public Radiomore
Three sessions of a free after-school program in journalism, radio/web production, and storytelling for high-school students in Springfield and Holyoke.
Springfield, MA, Hampshire County (CT Valley)
project director: Carlos McBride
awarded on: 2017-03-17
amount: $15,000
A youth-led community development project investigating identities in Lawrence through research, photography, and documentation.
Lawrence, MA, Essex County (Northeast)
project director: Anna Elzer
awarded on: 2017-03-17
amount: $6,095
Transforming this MomentCritical Connectionsmore
A series of conversations exploring threats to civil rights and liberties of vulnerable communities, effective responses, and how such threats affect the country's social fabric.
Longmeadow, MA, Hampden County (CT Valley)
project director: Mehlaqa Samdani
awarded on: 2017-03-17
amount: $5,000
Hip History NBCommunity Foundation of Southeastern MAmore
A local history and interpretation project using creative approaches like hip-hop for students at three area middle schools.
New Bedford, MA, Bristol County (Southeast)
project director: Candace L. Heald
awarded on: 2017-03-17
amount: $9,115
Minds Made for Stories: Springfield Students Engage Local History Through Narrative WritingWestern Masssachusetts Writing Project at UMass Amherstmore
A project including a summer camp for middle-school students and professional development workshops for Springfield teachers,
Amherst, MA, Hampshire County (CT Valley)
project director: Bruce Penniman
awarded on: 2017-03-17
amount: $7,500
The Robbins House, Inc.: The Long Civil Rights MovementThe Robbins Housemore
Development of a multimedia, interactive educational program about civil rights from slavery to the present day,
Concord, MA, Middlesex County (Metrowest Boston)
project director: Linda Ziemba
awarded on: 2017-03-17
amount: $15,000
Life and Labor at The House of the Seven Gables Over Four CenturiesHouse of the Seven Gablesmore
An exhibition, a lecture series, and a series of Community Conversations related to the impact of labor, servitude, and slavery over four centuries.
Salem, MA, Essex County (Northeast)
project director: Julie Arrison-Bishop
awarded on: 2017-03-17
amount: $5,000
Exploring Abolition, Activism and a Principled LifeRotch-Jones-Duff House & Garden Museummore
Research, historic documentation, interpretative writing about the house museum and its inhabitants.
New Bedford, MA, Bristol County (Southeast)
project director: Kate Corkum
awarded on: 2017-03-17
amount: $5,000
International Day of Remembrance of the Slave Trade and Its AbolitionMuseum of African American Historymore
A series of events in observance of the International Day of Remembrance of the Slave Trade and Its Abolition.
Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
project director: Marita Rivero
awarded on: 2017-03-17
amount: $7,500
Loyalty By Another NameKartemquin Educational Filmsmore
Pre-production of the one-hour documentary Loyalty By Another Name.
Chicago, IL, Cook County
project director: David Washburn
awarded on: 2017-03-17
amount: $10,000
Browsing Through Birke'sBoott Cotton Mills Museummore
A film screening of a documentary film about a family, a clothing business, & the legacies of genocide and discussion on the nature and meaning of immigrant and refugee resiliency.
Lowell, MA, Middlesex County (Northeast)
project director: Sheila Kirschbaum
awarded on: 2017-02-06
amount: $3,280
Preserving and Digitizing the John Quinn AIDS Memorial Books CollectionThe History Projectmore
A project inventorying, processing, and digitizing the John Quinn AIDS Memorial Books in preparation for public programming and an online exhibit honoring people in the Boston area who died from HIV/AIDS related illnesses.
Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
project director: Andrew Elder
awarded on: 2017-02-06
amount: $2,000
Family Adventures in Reading at Community DayThe Community Groupmore
A six-session FAIR series with storyteller Nicolette Nordin Heavey.
Lawrence, MA, Essex County (Northeast)
project director: Manuela Su
awarded on: 2017-02-06
amount: $3,000
Exploring Somerville's Economic History/Union Square at WorkSomerville Museummore
A series of five discussion events on Somerville's economic history held in public spaces like bars and social service nonprofits.
Somerville, MA, Middlesex County (Greater Boston)
project director: Charan Devereaux
awarded on: 2017-02-06
amount: $3,485
Plainville Library and Bookstore FAIR TogetherPlainville Public Librarymore
A four-session FAIR series in partnership with a local bookstore.
Plainville, MA, Norfolk County (Southeast)
project director: Laura Brillant-Giangrande
awarded on: 2017-02-06
amount: $2,150
A Century of Work: Greenfield Employers and EmployeesGreenfield Historical Societymore
An inventory of artifacts from three local businesses and explore connections between skilled labor and buying power.
Greenfield, MA, Franklin County (CT Valley)
project director: Robin Yerkes
awarded on: 2017-02-06
amount: $1,500
"What to the Slave is the 4th of July": A Community Reading and ConversationCharlemont Federated Churchmore
A communal and choreographed reading of Frederick Douglass' speech, followed by conversation and musical performance in partnership with Double Edge Theatre.
Charlemont, MA, Franklin County (CT Valley)
project director: Susan S. Purdy
awarded on: 2017-02-06
amount: $1,935
Defining Our History - Creating a Catalog of Amesbury Carriage Museum CollectionsAmesbury Carriage Museummore
Creation of a catalog their collection of carriages and sleighs as part of establishing a professional framework for their collection and developing an interpretive focus on the material culture of Amesbury.
Amesbury, MA, Essex County (Northeast)
project director: John W. Mayer
awarded on: 2017-02-06
amount: $2,000
Birth of a MovementCenter For Independent Documentarymore
Boston premiere of the film Birth of a Movement: The Battle over America's First Blockbuster and community panel discussion.
Walpole, MA, Norfolk County (Southeast)
project director: Susan Gray
awarded on: 2016-12-19
amount: $3,000
Migration Stories: Reading and Writing Across BordersBentley College Center for Business Ethicsmore
A three-session migration-themed discussion project for recent Central American immigrants in Waltham.
Waltham, MA, Middlesex County (Metrowest Boston)
project director: Jane De Leon Griffin
awarded on: 2016-12-19
amount: $1,868
Bringing History to Life Through the ArtsNew Bedford Balletmore
A facilitated discussion, live ballet performance of Esther's Journey, and solo performance a Frederick Douglass impersonator for 85 fifth graders from the Alfred Gomes Elementary School.
New Bedford, MA, Bristol County (Southeast)
project director: Joanne Gracia
awarded on: 2016-12-19
amount: $3,100
Changing Lives Through Literature Reading GroupGreenfield Community Collegemore
Ten Common Good Reads sessions of a weekly reading-and-writing group for probationers, probation officers, and judges on the subject of reentering society from prison.
Greenfield, MA, Franklin County (CT Valley)
project director: Leo Hwang
awarded on: 2016-12-19
amount: $1,500
Literature & MedicineVeterans Education Projectmore
A six-month Literature & Medicine series at the VA Central Western MA Healthcare System in Leeds.
Amherst, MA, Hampshire County (CT Valley)
project director: Susan Leary
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $2,410
The Man in the Cowboy Hat, Premiere Film Screening and DiscussionCenter For Independent Documentarymore
Screening of the documentary film The Man in the Cowboy Hat-chronicling the life of Carlos Arredondo, the Boston Marathon bombing hero-and a post-screening discussion.
Walpole, MA, Norfolk County (Southeast)
project director: Janice Rogovin
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $3,000
Communicating Through Art: Engaging People with Alzheimer'sNew Bedford Art Museummore
A morning-long event with facilitated discussion on the uses of art for communication with people with Alzheimer's and other types of dementia.
New Bedford, MA, Bristol County (Southeast)
project director: Noelle Foye
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $1,300
Boston's Hidden Secret SpacesBrandeis Universitymore
Facilitation of an art and architectural history program for 20-35 residents and staff at retirement/assisted living facilities in Dedham, Concord, and Jamaica Plain on the subject of the hidden sacred spaces of Greater Boston.
Waltham, MA, Middlesex County (Metrowest Boston)
project director: Wendy Cadge
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $3,000
Nursing Ethics at the Heart of HealthcareBaystate Health Systemsmore
A seven-month, ethics-based reading-and-discussion group for bedside care providers on the theme of patient-centered care.
Springfield, MA, Hampden County (CT Valley)
project director: Sarah B. Romain
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $2,810
Documenting the History of New Bedford's Central American Immigrant WorkersCentro Communitario de Trabajadoresmore
A project that will create oral histories with about forty Central American immigrant workers, some documented.
New Bedford, MA, Bristol County (Southeast)
project director: Lisa Maya Knauer
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $7,500
Re-Imagining Bradford: 4 Bradford Daughters and Lives Well-LivedDuxbury Rural and Historical Societymore
Transition of the interpretation of the Bradford House Museum to focus on the daughters who inhabited the house and were socially and politically active yet underrepresented in the house's history.
Duxbury, MA, Plymouth County (Southeast)
project director: Erin McGough
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $7,500
William Bullard: Reimagining an American Community of ColorWorcester Art Museummore
An exhibit of photographs left by a local photographer that capture issues of African-American migration after the Civil War, citizenship and community membership, and historic race relations in Worcester.
Worcester, MA, Worcester County (Central)
project director: Nancy Burns
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $15,000
The Town Spectacle: Engaging the Heart and History of AshfieldDouble Edge Theatremore
A project that seeks to engage the public about the history of the town meeting and identity formation through community readings of a related text and a weekend-long cultural fair and theatrical spectacle.
Ashfield, MA, Franklin County (CT Valley)
project director: Stacy Klein
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $15,000
New City Dreams ProjectPreservation Worcestermore
Day trips to historically important local urban landscapes with students of the University Park Campus school in Worcester.
Worcester, MA, Worcester County (Central)
project director: Susan M. Ceccacci
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $1,670
In the Time of the ButterfliesCasa Cultural Dominicana of Worcestermore
An original theatrical production about the Dominican Republic and Dominican immigrants in the United States based on the Julia Alvarez novel "In the Time of the Butterflies."
Worcester, MA, Worcester County (Central)
project director: Maury Ramirez
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $15,000
Made Here: Rebuilding America's Apparel Manufacturing IndustryDocumentary Educational Resourcesmore
Preproduction work on a film that will document current efforts to revive the apparel industry in the United States, including in the textile cities of Massachusetts.
Watertown, MA, Middlesex County (Greater Boston)
project director: Judith Laster
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $15,000
In Our Own WordsClark Universitymore
An after-school poetry program-involving translation, history, literary analysis, and discussion, along with a thematic focus on migration-for low-income, multilingual middle-school students.
Worcester, MA, Worcester County (Central)
project director: Sarah Michaels
awarded on: 2016-12-09
amount: $6,500