CHICAGO, IL- June 21, 2012—The Illinois Humanities Council (IHC) Board of Directors has awarded a total of $30,500 to seven nonprofit organizations across Illinois for development and production of public humanities projects. Community support for these projects totaled $289,632. The grantees are:
- Inventory Training– Effingham County Cultural Center and Museum Association (ECCCMA) ($1,500) The ECCCMA’s mission is to preserve, maintain, restore, and operate the Effingham Courthouse in Effingham Illinois. Funding will provide training to staff on methods and techniques to inventory the Society’s artifacts.
- ‘63 Boycott Documentary– Kartemquin Films ($5,000) Funding to support ’63 Boycott, a documentary film and companion website chronicling the Chicago Public School boycott of 1963, when more than 200,000 Chicagoans marched to CPS headquarters to protest the policy towards overcrowding in segregated schools.
- Out in Chicago Exhibition Video Tour– Chicago Historical Society ($5,000) Funding to support the production and distribution of a video tour of Out in Chicago, a recently closed exhibition examining the history of the LGBT community in Chicago from 1859 to the present.
- Korean Senior Citizen’s Understanding of American Way of Life– Korean Cultural Center of Chicago ($5,000) Funding to support a series of classes for retired, Korean immigrants on American history and culture.
- Caught in the Sweep of History: Egypt in the Civil War– General John A Logan Museum ($4,000) Funding to develop a short video of the lives of Civil War veterans to coincide with and augment the museum’s year-long exhibition on the sesquicentennial of the Civil War.
- Free Write Jail Arts and Literacy Program– Chicago Lights ($5,000) Funding to support a series of five writing workshops and a publication by visiting writers for youth incarcerated in the Cook County Juvenile Detention Center.
- History Conservatory: Bringing the History of Peoria and the Central Illinois River Valley to Life History– Peoria Historical Society ($5,000) Funding to support the HistoryConservatory, an integrative website that will allow the organization and public to add value to digitized exhibits, encyclopedias, and collections.
The IHC invites nonprofit organizations to apply for its next cycle of grant awards by July 15, 2012. Any nonprofit group, organization, or institution is eligible to apply for financial support from the lHC. The IHC funds public projects in the humanities, including documentary films, local and community history projects, literary symposia, and oral history projects. Nonprofits with annual budgets of $250,000 or less can apply for technical assistance grants, and nonprofits with a primary focus on the humanities can apply for general support grants.
Potential applicants may review and download grant applications and guidelines by visiting www.prairie.org/grants. Please call 312.422.5580 or send an email to ihc@prairie.org. IHC program officers are available for consultation, and new applicants are encouraged to contact program officers for grant advice.
The IHC makes it a priority to fund projects developed by, for, or aimed at reaching new or historically neglected audiences. The IHC also encourages applications for projects about American history and culture.
For more information about the IHC or the grants program, please call 312.422.5580 or visit www.prairie.org.
About the Illinois Humanities Council
The Illinois Humanities Council is an independent, nonprofit state affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities, dedicated to fostering a culture in which the humanities are a vital part of the lives of individuals and communities. The IHC creates programs and funds organizations that promote greater understanding of, appreciation for, and involvement in the humanities by all Illinoisans, regardless of their economic resources, cultural background, or geographic location. The IHC is supported by state, federal, and private funds.
Media Contact:
Carlos Velázquez
(312) 422-5580, x233
cav@prairie.org
D A R E T O K N O W
# # #