2008 Awards
The following
Humanities Initiative Grants were funded during the 2007 fiscal year. Support for this program is provided by a grant to the Indiana Humanities Council from the
National Endowment for the Humanities.
- TRACES Center for History and Culture, St. Paul, MN
Michael Luick-Thrams, 651.292.8700
The TRACES program will take a museum installation on a bus to small towns throughout the country, including at least 15-20 Indiana communities. The theme for this year is "Behind Barbed Wire: Midwest POWs in Nazi Germany." (Apr. 15-22 and May 7-10, 2008)
- Merrillville High School, Merrillville
Danny Lackey, 219.650.5307
Members of the high school’s STAND (Socially Together and Naturally Diverse) Club will visit Washington, D.C., to learn about the Holocaust and Darfur, then prepare a program for the junior and senior classes. (May 1-4, 2008, trip)
- Eye2theWorld, Inc., Goshen
Joseph Rueff, 574.537.4609
Elkhart County had a minority population of about 5% in 1990. Today that number is approaching 40%, and the county ranks third in the state for total Hispanic population. The time is right for government agencies, ethnic and other nonprofit organizations, schools, colleges, and churches to join in discussing goals for successful change. (June 2008)
- Purdue University, West Lafayette
Adriela Fernandez, 765.494.3663
A public forum on immigration will feature speakers from Purdue University and Ivy Tech's Lafayette campus. The forum will provide education and information about immigration and the social, political, economic and cultural dimensions of this phenomenon. (Feb. 19, 2008)
- Central Indiana Powwow, Inc., Anderson
Debbie Webb, 765.617.4923
The Andersontown Powwow honors the heritage of Anderson, Indiana, originally a Delaware Indian village on the banks of the White River. Grant funding will help to bring Native American artists, educators, and craftspeople to present at the event’s Education Day as well as the weekend powwow. Cosponsors include the City of Anderson, the Anderson Center for the Arts, and the Anderson/Madison County Visitors & Convention Bureau. (Sept. 4 and 6-7, 2008)
- Anderson University, Anderson
Dulce Maria Scott, 765.641.4511
Collecting the stories of immigrant women’s journeys to America and their experience of adaptation and integration into Indiana communities is the first goal of this project. The Indiana Diversity Women’s Network will then sponsor public events during 2009 using the resulting publication as a basis to engage women in discourse about immigration. (Summer 2008, research; Dec. 2008, publication)
- Lafayette-West Lafayette Development Corporation, Lafayette
Liddy Romero, 317.501.8276
A consortium of Tippecanoe County organizations will sponsor a public forum on the questions and themes of immigration. Using an innovative format for collaborative dialogue and active engagement, the project will bring together people from across the community’s social networks to talk about the many aspects of immigration in Indiana. (Sept. 2008)
- Learning Generation Initiative, Elkhart
Lisa Walenceus, 574.215.7801
IHC funding will be used to bring academic and legal experts together with civil and human rights workers and community leaders to explore the history, current status, and future of immigration law. The project is cosponsored by the Elkhart County Human Rights Commission, the Institute for Latino Studies at Notre Dame, and the Center for Intercultural Teaching and Learning at Goshen College. (June 16-17, 2008, in Elkhart)
- Dearborn Highlands Arts Council, Lawrenceburg
Marilyn Bower, 812.539.4251
Artist-scholars from the Cincinnati College Conservatory of Music and the Indiana University School of Music will present and interpret the music of Dearborn County’s older and newer immigrant groups. Programs will offer Indian and Middle Eastern music, German and Austrian volksmusik, the traditional music of Ireland, Scotland, England, and Wales, and Latin music. Hosted by the Lawrenceburg and North Dearborn Public Libraries. (Sept. and Oct. 2008; Mar. and Apr. 2009)
- Groups Student Support Services, Bloomington
William H. Wiggins, 812.855.0508
Latino and African American alumni and faculty of Indiana University’s Groups program will serve as speakers and mentors for Indianapolis high school students on a weekend visit to the campus. By participating in activities centered around college life and the Groups Program, the students will learn about the history of minority issues and achievement at a major Indiana university. (Oct. 24-25, 2008)
- Marion County Commission on Youth, Indianapolis
Jose R. Rosario, 317.274.6819
Film, narrative, and dialogue will set the stage for a civic conversation on immigration from the perspective of Latino youth in Indianapolis. The El Puente Project will sponsor the project, and its Campecine Youth Leadership Academy will train youth as facilitators for the program. Cosponsoring organizations include the Indianapolis Museum of Art and the Sagamore Institute. (Sept. 26-27, 2008)
- Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana, Indianapolis
Shannon Borbely, 317.636.5409
A special exhibit at the Morris-Butler House Museum will illustrate the Victorian art and customs associated with mourning. The Herron School of Art & Design at IUPUI, the Indiana Medical History Museum, and the Indiana State Museum are partnering with the Historic Landmarks Foundation of Indiana on this project. (Feb. 25-May 23, 2009)
- Indiana University, Indianapolis
William H. Schneider, 317.274.4750
The State of Indiana’s enactment of the world’s first eugenic sterilization legislation in 1907 was a notorious episode in Hoosier history. Recently commemorated by an exhibit and symposium in Indianapolis, the issue will be further explored in a virtual exhibit to be developed by the Medical Humanities-Health Studies Program at IUPUI. (July 31, 2008, launch)
- Columbus Area Arts Council, Columbus
Warren W. Baumgart, Jr., 812.376.2536
A demonstration of traditional instrument building will be presented at the Driftwood Valley Museum Festival in Columbus. The arts council is sponsoring the program in cooperation with Traditional Arts Indiana, a program of Indiana University’s Folklore and Ethnomusiciology Department and the Indiana Arts Commission. (Sept. 27, 2008)
- Lew Wallace Study Preservation Society, Crawfordsville
Amanda Wesselmann, 765.362.5769
A summer day camp will provide humanities learning and experiences for middle school students in Montgomery County. The program is based on topics related to General Lew Wallace’s life and accomplishments in the fields of writing, art, statesmanship, inventions, and the military. (July 8-12, 2008)
- Henager Family Museum, Inc., Elberfeld
James G. Henager, 812.795.2230
To celebrate the Lincoln Bicentennial, the Henager Family Museum in Gibson County will mount a special exhibit reflecting Lincoln’s life and influence in southwestern Indiana. (Sept. 2008 through Dec. 2010)
- University of Southern Indiana, Evansville
Leslie Townsend, 812.465.7013
This year’s Lincoln Institute for K-12 teachers will focus on “Lincoln and the Emergence of Modern Politics.” Led by historians and guest lecturers, participants will learn more about events leading up to the Civil War, including the Lincoln-Douglas Debates, the Kansas-Nebraska Act, and the rise of the Republican Party. (June 19-20, 2008)
