The board of directors of CT Humanities has approved $203,479 in Capacity, Planning, and Implementation grants to 13 cultural organizations to support humanities projects throughout the state.
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE, January 22, 2025
CONTACT: Dana Barcellos-Allen, dbarcellos-allen@cthumanities.org, 860.937.6648
Funded projects include ones that:
- Expand the historic and cultural narrative around marginalized peoples including Black, Indigenous, Puerto Rican, and queer communities.
- Commemorate America’s Semiquincentennial – the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence taking place in 2026.
- Inspire civic involvement among youth and adults.
- Support exhibitions, lectures, and films on Connecticut artists, writers, and photographers.
“We are pleased to support opportunities for the public to connect and engage with humanities content and themes, and these projects are stellar examples,” said Dr. Jason R. Mancini, executive director for CT Humanities. “Through our grant funding, we help our cultural organizations cultivate the curiosity, knowledge, and understanding that is essential to a healthy democracy.”
Of the 13 total awards, three were for Capacity grants, totaling $25,650. Capacity grants help Connecticut organizations that bring humanities to the public think strategically, better understand their audiences, assets, and operations, and plan for the future.
The remaining $177,829 was awarded to 10 organizations for Planning and Implementation grants, which support the planning and execution of humanities projects, such as exhibitions, public programs, and interpretive digital media projects.
CAPACITY GRANTS:
Coventry Historical Society (Coventry, $5,652)
A Strategic Plan to Fuse the History of Coventry to a New Era
The Coventry Historical Society will use a Capacity grant from CT Humanities for strategic planning, developing a path for their next five years of growth toward a successful future. Areas of focus for this project are expansion of programs, storage and display as well as plans to secure the financial wellness of the organization and integrate newly acquired collections including the Intellectual Property of Coventry’s Caprilands Herb Farm.
Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center (Stonington, $9,999)
Strategic Planning
Denison Pequotsepos Nature Center will hire consultants Fio Partners to craft a strategic plan to guide the organization’s growth for the next five years with an outlook for the following five years. The plan will consider community and stakeholder needs to address inclusive practices to expand programming, public activities, and environmental stewardship with an emphasis on furthering our mission by enhancing the interpretation of the connection between nature and human communities.
Thames River Heritage Park (New London, $9,999)
2nd Decade Roadmap for Impact
Since 2016, Thames River Heritage Park Foundation has successfully implemented the plan created by Yale Urban Design Workshop to establish a water taxi operation to connect heritage sites; design collaborative promotional materials, signage and marketing campaigns; and develop collaborative programs such as their annual Docent Academy and Lecture Series. TRHP is primed to revisit and update its mission, vision, and strategic plan, which will direct and aid the navigation for the next 10 years, 2026-2025.
PLANNING AND IMPLEMENTATION GRANTS:
African American Society #024 (Hamden, $20,000)
The Legacy We Carry: Roots of Resilience, A Black Heritage Exhibit
The African American Society #024 seeks to conduct an in-depth planning phase focused on engaging community voices, refining exhibit content, and ensuring cultural authenticity – critical steps in designing an inclusive and representative permanent exhibit. This grant will empower AAS to assemble a diverse team of curators, artists, and educators of color from across Connecticut, with a strong emphasis on the careful preservation and impactful presentation of historic cultural artifacts.
Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum (Ridgefield, $20,000)
Connecticut Edition of the National Scrollathon
To celebrate America’s Semiquincentennial, The Aldrich Contemporary Art Museum will host the Connecticut edition of the National Scrollathon. This special one-day community event will take place at the Museum on February 25, 2025, and will invite residents from diverse social, ethnic, and economic backgrounds to the Museum to participate in a workshop of civic engagement, asking them to reflect on their experience as an American and what they hope for the future of our nation.
Citywide Youth Coalition (New Haven, $20,000)
Rise Up, Youth for Civic Action
The Rise Up, Youth for Civic Action project empowers civic engagement through the voices and leadership of young people. By hosting community conversations, both in-person and virtual, along with the Blueprints for Freedom podcast, we bring new stories and fresh ideas to light. With youth at the forefront, we’ll examine our shared histories, to inspire civic involvement at all levels, encouraging people of all ages to see themselves as key players in building a just and inclusive future.
Discovering Amistad (New Haven, $20,000)
Amistad-CT 250th Interactive Experience (ACT250)
Discovering Amistad will use this grant to advance its “floating classroom experience” for America’s 250th, by developing a variety of interactive exhibits that elevate the narratives of “unsung heroes” of 1839 Amistad Uprising. DA will use its inclusive and culturally relevant approach to share BIPOC American stories and foster civic engagement, including upgrading/creating dockside exhibits, interactive ship portals, narratives and other multimedia components for ship, dockside and virtual.
Fairfield Museum and History Center (Fairfield, $20,000)
Planning for Fairfield 250
Fairfield Museum and History Center will plan an ambitious series of exhibitions and public programs to commemorate the 250th anniversary of the signing of the Declaration of Independence, telling inclusive stories and celebrating the power of place. Funding from CTH will support consultation with humanities scholars, preparing content and design for three exhibitions, and planning for a symposium on the enduring ideals of the Declaration.
Florence Griswold Museum (Old Lyme, $20,000)
Their Kindred Earth: Photographs by William Earle Williams: Exhibition & Programs at the Florence Griswold Museum Exploring CT’s Black History
The Florence Griswold Museum will present its first solo exhibition by a contemporary Black artist, “Their Kindred Earth: Photographs by William Earle Williams” (February 22-June 22, 2025). This exhibition of new photographs will reveal unmarked locations throughout Old Lyme and CT with significance to enslavement and emancipation. An array of educational programs – many led by important Black scholars – will help visitors unpack these lesser-known CT stories and grapple with their ramifications.
James Merrill House Foundation (Stonington, $7,000)
Discussion-Based Public Programming Planning Grant: “James Merrill: The First Hundred Years”
The James Merrill House Foundation is planning an inspirational wide-ranging discussion-based public program in October 2026 celebrating the centennial of the birth of James Merrill. “James Merrill: The First Hundred Years” will explore Merrill’s multiple legacies: his writing, his life in his Stonington home, now a National Historic Landmark, and the 120+ diverse writers of all genres and career stages who have been in residence in the Merrill House since 1996.
New Britain Museum of American Art (New Britain, $20,000)
New Initiatives in American Art: Celebrating Puerto Rican Art and Culture
NBMAA is pursuing a multi-year initiative addressing the intersections, past and present, between the art of Puerto Rico and the U.S., organized around two modes of presentation: collaborations with museums and curators to bring historical Puerto Rican art into dialogue with the NBMAA’s canonical American art collection and an exhibition series featuring contemporary Puerto Rican artists and exploring themes of diaspora, community, and national identity.
Sharon Historical Society (Sharon, $10,829)
Indigenous Peoples in the Northwest Corner
The Sharon Historical Society and Museum and Litchfield Historical Society will actively engage with representatives of Indigenous communities to create relationships leading to two distinct exhibitions focusing on the Northwest Corner. By building lasting structures that encourage mutual respect, communication, and sharing knowledge, we hope to increase understanding in the area about how Indigenous peoples, colonial settlers, and current residents have shared lands and histories.
Stonington Historical Society (Stonington, $20,000)
The Days of Rollie McKenna: A Life in Photography
This feature-length film explores the life, work, cultural influence, and impact of queer photographer Rollie McKenna. The film builds on recent projects, new scholarship, newly acquired collections, oral and video histories, and expanded perspectives to examine McKenna’s extensive photographic catalog documenting the literati and architecture of the twentieth century. A premiere in the fall of 2025 will be shown locally, expanded regionally with CPTV, and distributed across educational networks.
For information on grants eligibility and application due dates, visit cthumanities.org/grants
# # #
Connecticut Humanities (CTH) is an independent, nonprofit affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities.
CTH connects people to the humanities through grants, partnerships, and collaborative programs. CTH projects, administration, and program development are supported by state and federal matching funds, community foundations, and gifts from private sources. Learn more by visiting cthumanities.org.
