educational access

NEH and HNY FUNDING inNEW YORK’S SEVENTEENTHCONGRESSIONAL DISTRICT

Mercy CollegeFunder: NEH

Mercy College crafted an interdisciplinary Latino andLatin American Studies curriculum with NEH funding.Designed largely for the many students who areplanning careers that will involve serving Latinocommunities, the curriculum includes courses in history,literature, political science, sociology, psychology, andinternational relations that help students betterunderstand those communities. Spanish courses havebeen adapted for professional tracks like lawenforcement and health care. And global experiencecourses, which include a study abroad component, offerinternational opportunities to students who wouldotherwise not be able to afford them.

Westchester Community CollegeFunder: NEH

An NEH challenge grant, which generated an additional$600,000 in private support, helped WestchesterCommunity College establish a humanities institutethat supports workshops, writers-in-residence, andfaculty fellows. The institute partners with studentgroups and outside organizations to bring majorspeakers to campus. And in an area in which one out ofevery four residents are foreign-born, the institute'stheme of immigration creates a common ground fordialogue and learning, helping students integrate thehumanities into their studies more broadly.

A participant in an ArtsWestchester event coinciding with theexhibition “HATtitude: The Milliner in Culture & Couture,” which

was funded in part by HNY.

EXPANDING EDUCATIONAL ACCESS

Jacob Burns Film CenterFunder: NEH

With NEH funding, the Jacob Burns Film Center andthe Brooklyn Historical Society developed CreatedEqual: Image, Sound, and Story, a program for localmiddle schools that combines historical study with themedia arts. In the classroom, students fromWestchester County and Brooklyn use primary sourcesto investigate the past through the lens of currentevents—they begin by composing a photograph andconclude by developing their own documentaries.

Student participants in the Jacob Burns Film Center’s program Created Equal:Image Sound, and Story screen their documentaries at a closing celebration.

Historic Hudson ValleyFunder: NEH

Since 1977, the NEH has supported Historic HudsonValley’s work preserving and interpreting local sites. Inthe 1990s, NEH funding helped Historic Hudson integratethe history of slavery in the North into its interpretation ofPhilipsburg Plantation. Recently, the NEH has extendedthe impact of this effort by supporting two summerinstitutes for K–12 teachers on the topic and thedevelopment of a website, to be launched in 2019, thattells the story of slavery on the plantation and provideseducational resources to the broader American public.

Smarthistory, Inc. Funder: NEH

With more than 37 million page views, Smarthistory.orgprovides art and cultural history resources to peoplearound the world. An NEH grant helped the organizationcreate its “At Risk Cultural Heritage Education” series(ARCHES). With 10 essays and 20 videos, ARCHESprovides in-depth, expert-vetted information aboutendangered cultural heritage worldwide to students,reporters, and the general public.

An NEH grant helped architectural historian Judith Dupré publish One World TradeCenter: Biography of the Building. The image-rich work was prominently featured by“CBS Sunday Morning,” received outstanding reviews from the New York Times andArchitectural Digest, and was named among the top ten art, architecture, andphotography books published in spring 2016 by Publisher’s Weekly.

In New York’s 17thcongressional district, grants from the NationalEndowment for theHumanities (NEH) andHumanities New York(HNY) help build stronglocal institutions, expandeducational access, andfoster civic engagementthrough communityconversations. Both NEH and HNYfunding spur additionalprivate investments in the humanities.

“Defying Labels: New Roles, New Clothes,” an exhibition developed by theLyndhurst National Trust for Historic Preservation, attracted more than 4,000viewers.

Warner LibraryFunder: HNY

With support from an HNY grant, the Warner Library,located in Tarrytown, hosted “The Essential Hamilton,”a discussion series that examined the life of AlexanderHamilton and his contributions to the founding of theUnited States of America.

Suffern Public LibraryFunder: HNY

The Suffern Public Library hosted a Reading andDiscussion program, entitled “Pulitzer CampfireReadings: Reaching for the American Dream.” Theprogram, which was supported by HNY, convened agroup of community members for a deep conversationon the American Dream and other themes from avariety of perspectives.

At Historic Hudson Valley, a music and dance groupleads a crowd in celebration of Pinkster, a holidaycelebrated by African and Dutch communities ineighteenth-century New York.

BUILDING LOCAL INSTITUTIONSCULTIVATING DIALOGUE AND CIVIC ENGAGEMENT

In the past two years alone, HNY has supported humanities programs that brought together more than 6,000 participants for conversations, readings, exhibitions, presentations, and many other culturally rich events.

Lyndhurst National Trust for Historic PreservationFunder: HNY

Humanities New York supported the critically-acclaimed exhibition “Defying Labels: New Roles, New Clothes,” which was on viewat the 67-acre Lyndhurst estate in 2016. The exhibition,which garnered over 4,000 visitors, told the story of therevolutionary changes in women’s roles from 1880 to1940 as reflected in their clothes.