Past Grant Special Initiatives

Students at Vivien T. Thomas Academy participate in round table discussions with medical professionals at the Celebration of Excellence event.

Humanities and the Legacy of Race and Ethnicity in the United States (2016)

Funded programs gathered residents of Maryland to connect with one another across lines of race, socio-economic background, and/or geographical boundaries for deep dialogue and reflection on the role and legacy of race and ethnicity in our contemporary lives. Programs used the humanities as a lens through which to view the topics of race and class and encourage difficult discussions around inequity in housing, education, economic opportunities, and other subjects.

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Back row (l-r): Students Deneira Ray, Dom Carter, (student), Dr. Karsonya Whitehead, and student Jadzia Hall. Middle row (l-r): Student Shakura Shird, teacher Ms. Harrington, Poet Kondwani Fidel, and student Leandre Carroll. Front: Kamerin Crase.

Humanities Fund for Baltimore (2015-2016)

In November 2015, Maryland Humanities announced a new special grant program, the Humanities Fund for Baltimore. This program was formed to support local nonprofit organizations in creating public programs that use the humanities to respond to, interpret, and shed light on the Baltimore unrest of April 2015. Funded programs brought people together to understand the many contexts for the unrest, support humanities programs that educated young people and adults about the history and roots of economic and racial inequality in communities of color in Baltimore City, and tap into and build on work already being done by others in the community.

Round 1

Round 2

  • “Funding from the Maryland Humanities to distribute our first publication allowed Wide Angle Youth Media to expand our reach and share youth voice in a way we have never done before. With your support, this project has not only been successful in programmatic outcomes, but has inspired and empowered young people, giving them the platform to become published artists and share their voices in our city and beyond.”

    Wide Angle Youth Media, Humanities Fund for Baltimore grantee, Baltimore City

  • “We had a great experience working with Maryland Humanities. Your team was very hands on, provided clear guidelines and seemed glad to assist us throughout our process. Thank you so much for the support we received to carry out our event and do much needed social justice work in our city.”

    New Lens, Humanities Fund for Baltimore grantee

  • “It is difficult to properly express our gratitude to Maryland Humanities for the help and support that we received through the grant-making process and through the project. The grant was crucial to the success of the project, and instrumental in bringing the poet (and 2016 MacArthur Fellow) Claudia Rankine to our campus. As the author of “Citizen: An America Lyric,” Rankine’s powerful reading and discussion of her work provided the anchor for our programming about public education and the role it plays in shaping the political citizen… (Maryland Humanities staff) were a constant source of encouragement and support–and we are proud to have been one of the projects that it recognized this year.”

    Dr. Kimberly Coles ~ Chair, Education and Citizenship Project Committee, University of Maryland College Park

  • “This Maryland Humanities grant is absolutely vital to the mission of our non-profit organization devoted to archaeological research and public education. Simply put, we could not have carried out our ambitious exhibit projects without this much-appreciated support. Maryland Humanities has enabled us to share meaningful stories and engage audiences in innovative and creative ways. The platform they have provided strengthens our organization and the community we serve. Thank you!”

    Lost Towns Project, Inc., Major Grant recipient, Anne Arundel County

  • “It is difficult to properly express our gratitude to Maryland Humanities for the help and support that we received through the grant-making process and through the project…The support of (Maryland Humanities) was not in funding alone. By including a spot about the initiative in (their) Humanities Connection program on WYPR, Maryland Humanities did much to help promote our initiative and alert the general public about the program that we were running in the early months of the fall.”

    Dr. Kimberly Coles ~ Chair, Education and Citizenship Project Committee, University of Maryland College Park

  • “Without support from Maryland Humanities, we never could have put together an exhibit and programming at this scale. This support allowed us to cover many more writers, artists and musicians in the exhibit than we otherwise could have done. It enabled us to offer at lease 50 percent more programming than we could have done on our own. The funds also enabled us to promote the exhibit and programs to a wider market. Furthermore, knowing there was a chance for this grant to be awarded, we felt able to apply for (even more) support from the local cultural arts board… We are enormously grateful.”

    Carol Allen, Director for the Library & Hays-Heighe House, Harford Community College, Major Grant recipient

  • “We have truly enjoyed every funding experience with Maryland Humanities – mostly because it feels like a collaborative relationship. The staff at (Maryland Humanities) is very helpful when preparing grant proposals and reports, and we love seeing (Maryland Humanities) administrators attending our performances and other programming.”

    Center Stage, Humanities Fund for Baltimore grantee, Baltimore City
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