NJ Humanities Announces $272,408 in Grant Awards to 22 Organizations

Grant awards focus on using the humanities to amplify under-told stories

CAMDEN, NJ, UNITED STATES, July 13, 2023/EINPresswire.com/ -- The New Jersey Council for the Humanities (NJCH) has announced $272,408 in grant funding to 22 organizations across the state for Spring 2023.

The awards are split between 11 Incubation Grants and 11 Action Grants. Incubation Grants help organizations plan, research, develop, and prototype public humanities projects and events. Action Grants help organizations implement a wide array of humanities-based projects, including public programs, exhibitions, installations, tours and discussion groups.

“This grant funding represents support for a mixture of new projects and ongoing, important work,” said Carin Berkowitz, Ph.D., executive director of NJCH. “In that way, it mirrors the fundamental purpose of the humanities, examining our history and culture in ways that shape our current understanding of the world.”

The funded projects range from a museum exhibit on pioneering Black press magnate T. Thomas Fortune to an interview series capturing the stories of individuals with experience in the child welfare system to cultural programming for citizens who have returned home from prison. Many projects focus on amplifying under-told stories from the Garden State’s history and many of its communities.

“New Jersey abounds with history and stories. We pride ourselves on supporting efforts to ensure those stories are heard, both by current Garden Staters and future generations,” Berkowitz said.

NJ Humanities’ next round of grant funding will open in the fall. Letters of Intent will be accepted September 1-30, and applications are due October 17, 2023.

For full information on past and future grant opportunities, visit https://njhumanities.org/grants/grants-overview/.

Incubation grants were awarded to:

Willingboro Community Development Corporation, Willingboro ($15,000) to support ongoing research and public outreach around New Jersey’s only remaining Futuro house, one of just 19 of its kind in the country.

Gloucester County Historical Society, Woodbury ($8,029) to support “History on the Road,” an inquiry-based “trunk show” to be made available for classroom use in Gloucester County schools.

To support production of a new installment of “The Price of Silence,” a popular documentary TV series on NJ PBS exploring the history of slavery in New Jersey, which will focus on the Great Migration.

American Littoral Society, Highlands ($15,000) to support “River Relationships,” a story-gathering project focused on Camden residents’ experiences in relation to pollution of the Delaware River.

Sussex County Community College, Newton ($5,000) to support the Skylands Research Institute Innovation Lab, a hub for multidisciplinary research and scholarly activity in Northwest New Jersey.

Ramapo College, Mahwah ($15,000) to support “Englewood Makes History,” an initiative to collect and digitize archival materials related to the vibrant history of the City of Englewood, in particular those of African American residents in the 4th Ward and immigrant communities in the 3rd Ward.

Montclair State University, Montclair ($14,981) to support the Race and Regency Lab, an incubator for new ways to bring the public into community-based dialogues about trade and representation by tapping into renewed interest in the Regency period.

Rowan University, Glassboro ($15,000) to support the development of a community-engaged digital archive around celebrations of Juneteenth in New Jersey.

Hudson County Community College, Jersey City ($14,960) to support an oral history project to document the dramatic changes that have impacted Jersey City and surrounding communities, including rapid real estate development, altered neighborhoods, and resident livelihoods.

Classis New Brunswick Community Development Corporation, Highland Park ($15,000) to support the development of an interdisciplinary statewide project on art and mass incarceration.

CivicStory, Summit ($12,210) to support the addition of a humanities journalist to the newsroom staff for a four-month evaluation period.

Action grants were awarded to:

Hunterdon County Cultural & Heritage Commission, Flemington ($15,000) to support content creation and revision for the HuntHistory.org website.

Court Appointed Special Advocates (CASA) for Children of Essex County, Newark ($15,000) to support interviews conducted by and with individuals who have experience with the child welfare system to document the historic systemic problems that have led to disproportional representation of families of color and the impoverished.

Gloucester County Library System, Swedesboro ($3,000) to support a speaker series focusing on the history of New Jersey.

Save Ancient Studies Inc., Teaneck ($15,000) to support the “Archaeogaming Education Program,” which provides teachers with easy-to-use, engaging resources about the Ancient World for use in their classrooms.

Jewish Community Center of Central New Jersey, Scotch Plains ($3,600) to support a three-part immersive series exploring the history of racism and antisemitism in Scotch Plains.

Literacy Volunteers of Somerset County Inc., Bridgewater ($12,628) to support the next phase of a continuing project exploring topics related to the diverse cultures served by the organization.

Returning Citizens Support Group Inc., Newark ($15,000) to support the implementation of Ritual4Return, an arts-based dialogic cultural program exploring the many dimensions of mass incarceration, reentry, and homecoming for citizens who have returned home from prison.

Bayard Rustin Center for Social Justice, Princeton ($15,000) to support the development of a repository of the papers, artifacts, and ephemera of Bayard Rustin, chief organizer of the March on Washington for Jobs and Freedom and advocate in the civil rights, nonviolence, and gay rights movements.

Northern New Jersey Community Foundation, Hackensack ($8,000) to support the development of a website and digital content expounding on the meaning, significance, and process of The Black Women’s Mural in Englewood.

Asbury Park African-American Music Project, Asbury Park ($10,000) to support the continued documentation of the history and stories of Asbury Park’s Springwood Avenue, known as “Little Harlem,” once a vibrant center for music venues and businesses.

T. Thomas Fortune Foundation, Red Bank ($15,000) to support the creation of a permanent exhibit highlighting Fortune’s leading role in the Black Press, including his final years as publisher of the New York Age.

Dan Armstrong
NJ Humanities
+1 (847) 749-9675
darmstrong@njhumanities.org
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