Brookville. December 8, 2023 – JCHS is proud to announce it is among the 24 distinguished recipients of a Wingspan grant, chosen out of 180 applications. This major initiative by PA Humanities is part of its ongoing 50th anniversary celebration. The grant objective is to help 12 Rural Organizations and also 12 BIPOC (Black, Indigenous, and People of Color) organizations across the state that are committed to community-based humanities work soar by providing financial support, amplifying their voices, and cultivating new space for creativity and connection.
“This is another important step towards bringing greater equity to the humanities in Pennsylvania and helping these organizations to really spread their wings,” said PA Humanities executive director Laurie Zierer.
As a Wingspan recipient, JCHS is set to receive significant financial support, which will be instrumental to our new project, Community History Storytelling. The funds are restricted for use on this new project only.
Our project will use videography to interview county residents, film historic locations and create vignettes for our new JCHC YouTube channel, on our website, and integrated into new exhibits.
This funding will enable us to further our mission of preserving our county’s history, fostering community dialogues, and thereby enriching cultural understanding of our past, present and future.
In addition to financial support, JCHC will join the Wingspan Learning Community Rural Cohort composed of 12 grantee organizations. Kicking off in January 2024, we will meet regularly to discuss topics like equitable access to the humanities, building a sense of “belonging” for new audiences, navigating the challenges of leadership, and how cultural work can provide spaces for residents to connect and better understand our collective histories which have shaped our communities today.
“We are excited to have this phenomenal opportunity to pursue our new project and connect with the local community and residents of the county with the goal of including their own personal histories and perspectives in the work we do – inclusive of our exhibits, and programming,” said Kat Lyons, JCHC Operations/Grants.
Funding for Wingspan is made possible with the generous support from Spring Point Partners, and additional funding from PA Humanities, individual donors and the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH).
For more information about JCHC and its upcoming projects, please visit jchconline.org and facebook/jchconline.
View the press release here.
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