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.
The Flute Player: Educational and Community Events PlanCambodian Master Performers Programmore
Community events using the film, "The Flute Player," a documentary about Arn Chorn-Pond. Events will be targeted to three groups in Lowell: youth, Cambodians and Cambodian Americans, and the general public.
Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
project director: Charley Todd
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $2,819
The Art of City Building: Architecture & Landscape DesignFenway Alliancemore
Two forums focusing on how the design of architecture, public art, boulevards, parks, and gardens influence the creation of a Cultural District.
Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
project director: Minona Heaviland
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $4,980
Brochure and Reading List for Nine Notable Women of BostonBoston Public Librarymore
A print brochure and reading list to describe the "Nine Notable Women of Boston" mural painted in 1980 by Ellen Lanyon and recently installed in the lobby of the Boylston Street entrance of the Boston Public Library.
West Roxbury, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
project director: Michelle Jenney
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $3,000
Richard Yarde: RingshoutWorcester Art Museummore
Support for a program and a gallery brochure exploring the historical context of an installation by artist, Richard Yarde, a work based on religious ceremony, performed by African Americans during the slave era.
Worcester, MA, Worcester County (Central)
project director: Susan L. Stoops
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $3,000
Coffee House ExhibitWistariahurst Museum Association, Incmore
Exhibition Production Grant to mount an exhibition, present related programming, and create website pages on the 100-year history of the Skinner Coffee House, a community center that began as a settlement house with programs for women factory workers, and is now the home of Nueva Esperanza, an organization serving a largely Latino population. The focus of the exhibit and related public programs is the facility's continuing role in the community.
Holyoke, MA, Hampden County (CT Valley)
project director: Carol Constant
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $2,272
Seafarers and Society: Who Defended American Shores in 1812?USS Constitution Museummore
Support for a symposium designed to bring recent scholarship in maritime history to an audience of teachers and the general public, covering topics appealing to people interested in the human dimension of seafaring during the War of 1812.
Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
project director:
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $4,000
Exhibition Brochure - Thanksgiving: Memory, Myth & MeaningPlimoth Plantation, Incmore
Production support for the design and first printing of a brochure to accompany Plimoth Plantation's new exhibition on the history of Thanksgiving.
Plymouth, MA, Plymouth County (Southeast)
project director: Kathleen Curtin
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $4,700
"Understanding Ourselves By Looking Back: Falmouth at Work"Committee to Encourage Public Artmore
Support for a project designed to promote understanding of six early industries in the region, the project - a series of bronze bas relief sculptures depicting industries that were important in the Falmouth area - installed in June 2002 along Main Street in Falmouth - will create a print resource for schools, libraries, chambers of commerce, tourists and the collaborating partners and for the general public.
Falmouth, MA, Barnstable County (Cape & Islands)
project director: Paulette C. Loomis
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $4,000
The Ballou ProjectBrewster Bicentennial Committeemore
Promotion of an exhibit of portraits by a nineteenth-century itinerant painter who spent several years in Brewster. The exhibit will be part of Brewster's bicentennial celebrations and will be presented with contextual materials, including 1858 town maps, daguerreotypes, photographs and biographical information on all the sitters to give viewers a sense of life in Cape Cod towns before the innovations of the Industrial Revolution.
Brewster, MA, Barnstable County (Cape & Islands)
project director: Ellen St. Sure
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $1,000
Desperate Journeys: True Stories of Endurance and SurvivalLeominster Public Librarymore
A reading and discussion series.
Leominster, MA, Worcester County (Central)
project director: Edward Bergman
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $250
Lost Theatres of SomervilleSomerville Historical Society and Museummore
Support for events and publicity for the exhibition "Lost Theatres of Somerville" opening in March 2003, including an interactive catalogue and support for a lecture series along with other scholarly and creative programming.
Somerville, MA, Middlesex County (Greater Boston)
project director: David M. Guss
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $5,000
Video Series On Central AsiaPrimary Sourcemore
Post-production and distribution of the filming of a five-part lecture series for educators K-12, "Central Asia: Islamic Diversity from the Mongols to the Present."
Watertown, MA, Middlesex County (Greater Boston)
project director: Nina Olff
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $5,000
Framingham ArchitectureFramingham Historical Society & Museummore
A major exhibition which will survey four centuries of Framingham architecture, and related programming, including the relationship of these treasures to the social, economic and cultural history of the town, providing a resource for understanding Framingham's contribution to American architectural history.
Framingham, MA, Middlesex County (Metrowest Boston)
project director: Dana Ricciardi
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $4,740
Schools and Society: The Current Debate on Education ReformCambridge Forummore
A series of public forums to be held at the First Parish in Harvard Square, Cambridge, on issues of education reform, the goals of which will be to explore the larger social issues that underlie the current crises of confidence in public education and to examine contemporary efforts to improve school performance with respect to their effectiveness in achieving broad-based education reform.
Cambridge, MA, Middlesex County (Greater Boston)
project director: Patricia Suhrcke
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $5,000
Perspectives on "The Ave"ArtWorks! Partners for the Art & Community, Inc.more
A collaborative, multidisciplinary humanities project involving a painter in residence at ArtWorks in New Bedford as well as local city experts, exploring the character of Acushnet Avenue in New Bedford's North End, a thoroughfare that has changed little over the last several decades.
New Bedford, MA, Bristol County (Southeast)
project director: Karin G. Oen
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $1,500
Loaded Gun: Life, and Death and DickinsonCenter For Independent Documentarymore
Distribution funds and scholar honoraria and travel expenses for scholar/panelists at screenings of "Loaded Gun," a semi-comical film exploring Emily Dickinson's life and work. Funds may be used to establish the film as a teaching tool.
Walpole, MA, Norfolk County (Southeast)
project director: Steve Gentile
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $2,500
Talking to the Wall: The Story of An American BargainPocumtuck Valley Memorial Associationmore
Distribution funds for a one-hour documentary that examines, over a five year period, the impacts and struggles of two rural New England towns that have confronted large-scale retail developments and the clash between national corporate interests and community needs. The proposed distribution plan includes public tv broadcasts, a local premiere, entry in film festivals, and preparing for non-broadcast educational distribution.
Deerfield, MA, Franklin County (CT Valley)
project director: Steven Alves
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $5,000
"Vineyard Voices, American Stories" Pre-Production ProjectMartha's Vineyard Historical Societymore
Media pre-production project consisting of oral history interviews with eight elderly Vineyard residents as resource material for the documentary film, Vineyard Voices, American Stories.
Edgartown, MA, Dukes County (Cape & Islands)
project director: Linsey Lee
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $2,500
Sacco and VanzettiNew York Foundation for the Artsmore
Production phase of a video documentary about the lives and legal case of Nicola Sacco and Bartolomeo Vanzetti, two Italian immigrant anarchists who were executed in Boston in 1927 after a famous and controversial trial. (MFH funded the pre-production phase of the project as well.)
New York, NY, New York County
project director: Peter Miller
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $5,000
The Banjo ProjectCenter For Independent Documentarymore
Pre-production grant of $5000 to complete a treatment and promotional videotape for a national public television documentary about the social history of America's quintessential musical instrument - the banjo.
Walpole, MA, Norfolk County (Southeast)
project director: Marc Fields
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $5,000
Encounter in Norumbega: The Hidden Story of Early New England MapsWestwood Public Librarymore
Reading & Discussion program at the Westwood Library
Westwood, MA, Norfolk County (Metrowest Boston)
project director: Thomas P. Viti
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $800
Northeastern Native American Basketry SymposiumOld Sturbridge Villagemore
One day public symposium on Native American basketry.
Sturbridge, MA, Worcester County (Central)
project director: Ed Hood
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $2,500
Celebrating HawthorneShakespeare & Companymore
Shakespeare & Company, a performance and education center, produces a series of historical and interpretive events celebrating Hawthorne's bicentennial.
Lenox, MA, Berkshire County (Berkshire)
project director: Gordon Hyatt
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $5,000
Voices of Diversity: Literature Connecting Worcester Teachers to the Cultures of Their StudentsWorcester Public Schoolsmore
Professional development initiative to expose Worcester teachers to their students' varied cultures through the study of literature.
Worcester, MA, Worcester County (Central)
project director: Gale Nigrosh
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $4,848
Young Adult Literature Reading and Discussion GroupGaylord Memorial Librarymore
Reading & Discussion group exploring young adult literature.
South Hadley, MA, Hampshire County (CT Valley)
project director: Megan Lambert
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $949
Consider the Source: Old Tales RetoldWilbraham Public Librarymore
Reading & discussion group
Wilbraham, MA, Hampden County (CT Valley)
project director: Ardie McEathron
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $300
Native American Public Interpretation ProgramHistoric Deerfield, Inc.more
Free public walking tours of past archaeological dig sites at UMass' Summer Field School in Anthropology for three weeks in June.
Deerfield, MA, Franklin County (CT Valley)
project director: Elizabeth Chilton
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $2,880
Exhibition and accompanying catalogue of THE CHAIR at WCC, concentrating on the historical context and meaning of the chair's place within culture.
Worcester, MA, Worcester County (Central)
project director: Maryon Attwood
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $2,750
Teachers As Scholars/Boston Public Schools Humanities Seminars, Summer 2002Teachers As Scholars, Inc.more
A series of humanities seminars offered to BPS teachers to enrich curriculum and humanities pedagogy.
Newton, MA, Middlesex County (Metrowest Boston)
project director: William Holinger
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $4,779
Desperate JourneysWilbraham Public Librarymore
Reading & Discussion Series
Wilbraham, MA, Hampden County (CT Valley)
project director: Karen Demers
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $200
Egyptian art and artifacts on exhibit at the George Walter Vincent Smith Art Museum, 1/15/03 - 1/6/04, with related humanities programming.
Springfield, MA, Hampden County (CT Valley)
project director: Kay Simpson
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $15,000
Northampton's Living History Community Heritage ProjectFlorence Associationmore
Short documentary of portraits of people and institutions that reflect Northampton's diverse 350-year history.
Florence, MA, Hampshire County (CT Valley)
project director: James Ault
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $10,000
Distribution of "Someone Sang for Me: Jane Sapp, Cultural Activist"Fund For Women Artistsmore
The Fund for Women Artists will distribute a one hour documentary about Jane Sapp, a leader in cultural activism and music education workshops for 'at-risk' youth.
San Francisco, CA, San Francisco County
project director: Julie Akeret
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $10,000
Planning Grant for Creation of Literary Map of MassachusettsMassachusetts Center For The Bookmore
Massachusetts Center for the Book will plan a two-phase literary map of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, both in-print and on-line.
Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
project director: Sharon Shaloo
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $15,000
Dante at the GardnerIsabella Stewart Gardner Museummore
Five public readings and discussions of Dante's Inferno plus an unspecified 'day-long event.'
Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
project director: Margaret Burchenal
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $8,000
The Skinned Lan: Connecticut River Log DrivesUniversity of Massachusetts Amherstmore
Pre-production grant for a documentary exploring the Connecticut River log drives, 1868-1915.
Amherst, MA, Hampshire County (CT Valley)
project director: Ed Klekowski
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $10,000
Wayside Exhibit: Korean War Veterans MemorialKorean War Veterans Association Cape & Islands Chaptermore
Historic, interpretative installation to accompany the Korean War Memorial, extended until 10/31/02
Dennis, MA, Barnstable County (Cape & Islands)
project director: Sarah Brophy
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $2,550
Gloucester Maritime Heritage Center Oral History BookletGloucester Maritime Heritage Museummore
An oral history project documenting the lives of men who earned livings working at the oldest continuously operating marine railway in the country.
Gloucester, MA, Essex County (Northeast)
project director: Harriet Webster
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $4,925
American Jewish MusicZamir Chorale of Bostonmore
Lecture on American Jewish music, including presentations by three scholars of Jewish music and history. The Zamir Chorale will sing works to illustrate the speakers' points.
Newton, MA, Middlesex County (Metrowest Boston)
project director: Joshua Jacobson
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $1,150
Maverick Photography ProjectZumixmore
Youth residents of Maverick Gardens public housing will attend formal photography training and lab courses, in order to then document images of their community, slated for demolition within the next few years. Photos will be displayed at Maverick Gardens, and a public space TBD.
East Boston, MA, Suffolk County (Greater Boston)
project director: Jennifer Gilbert
awarded on: 1999-11-16
amount: $3,200