View the report below or click here to download the PDF.
For 50 years, Rhode Island Humanities has ensured that the humanities build
empathy, strengthen community, and contribute vital knowledge to the Ocean
State. As we head into the next 50 years, I am delighted to enclose our Annual
Report, which reflects on the accomplishments of 2023—including national
recognition of our RI Civic Health Index—and introduces exciting developments
for the year ahead.
Through our standard grantmaking program, in 2023 RI Humanities supported
41 projects that inspire community participation, envision progress, and tell
Rhode Island’s stories. At a time when the public humanities have never been
more relevant, these grants support people and programs to spark dialogue,
make connections, and bridge differences while enabling museums and historic
sites to create new, more inclusive interpretations to broaden their audiences.
In 2024, we are continuing to make grants that ensure humanities programs
and projects take place throughout the state. We are also excited to launch
our new THRIVE state-funded operating support grants.
In addition, as part of the nationwide United We Stand initiative of the National
Endowment for the Humanities, we are mobilizing the Rhode Tour app and
website—a partnership between RI Humanities and the RI Historical Society—
to tell community stories that build empathy and combat hate-based violence.
We are also helping to plan the 2024 National Humanities Conference in
Providence, November 13-17. The conference is hosted by the Federation of
State Humanities Councils and the National Humanities Alliance and will bring
hundreds of humanities professionals from across the country to Rhode Island
this fall. In keeping with Rhode Island as the Ocean State, the conference’s
theme, Making Waves, Navigating Currents of Change, will highlight the many
connections between water, human experience, and global challenges.
Thank you for the many ways that you contribute to making the humanities
by and for all Rhode Islanders.
Best wishes,
Elizabeth Francis, Executive Director
