The list of FY2024 awards below is updated following the annual major grant cycle and each quarterly mini grant cycle (November, February, May, and August) for public project, documentary film and media, and research grants. It also includes THRIVE Operating Support Grant recipients. Please check back regularly for the most current details.
MINI GRANT AWARDS (November 2023)
PUBLIC PROJECT GRANTS
Towards an Anti-Racist North Kingstown, $2,000 to We Are ALL Readers Supports the third annual We Are ALL Readers festival, an in-person celebration of diverse children’s book authors, illustrators, and readers including presentations and workshops. In collaboration with Write Rhode Island, this year’s festival will host an exhibition created by teens across Rhode Island featuring banned and challenged books.
RESEARCH GRANTS
Anthony “AM.” Andrade, $2,000 to Queer Femme Afro-Diasporic Ethnomusicology Supports researching, documenting, and archiving music heritage traditions of Afro-Latinx music from Rhode Island, West Africa, Cape Verde, and the Caribbean, with a focus on Queer Femme artists. Research findings will be shared in a public presentation and listening session, and will be published online.
Reza C. Clifton, $2,000 to Wild Bill: Stories about a Father, a Family, and Black Jurists in Rhode Island Supports research and a multimedia project about the life and legacy of the late Rhode Island District Court Judge William “Bill” Clifton. The story of Judge Clifton and his family highlights the contemporary history of African American lawyers and justices in Rhode Island, and the impact they have had on the bench and in communities statewide.
Providence Inner City Arts, $2,000 to Meet Me at the Court – Feature Length Documentary Film Supports research on archival materials, interviews, and public storytelling events to support the production of Meet Me at the Court (working title). This feature-length documentary tells the story of the formation of The North Providence Summer Basketball League – which, over the course of 30 years, saw over 20 of its members play in the NBA and European Pro Leagues.
MINI GRANT AWARDS (February 2024)
PUBLIC PROJECT GRANTS
Farm Fresh Rhode Island, $1,973 to Cultivating Conversations: Bridging the Past and Present in Agriculture and Sustainability Funds support a discussion series about the local food system in collaboration with humanities scholars and community partners. Event topics include the heritage of Indigenous land management and food production practices, the history of cultivation in Rhode Island, and exploring ancient and modern food preservation techniques.
Friends of the Pokanoket Tribe, $2,000 to Pokanoket Heritage Day Funds support the development and production of a fourth annual celebration of Indigenous history and culture. The celebration focuses on expanding public understanding of the contemporary and historic impact of the Pokanoket people on America’s history and culture.
The Manton Avenue Project, $2,000 to The “Solito” Partnership Funds support playwriting and script development for 4th grade students inspired by the Reading Across Rhode Island selected book Solito. In partnership with Living Literature and the Rhode Island Center for the Book, participants will develop scripts inspired by a Reader’s Theatre adaptation of Solito, which will then be performed, with a talkback, by the Wilbury Theatre Group and toured to libraries statewide.
RESEARCH GRANTS
Tracy Jonsson-Laboy, $2,000 to Practice Based Research: For Flax Sake Funds support research on the history of linen production with parallel practical research through the cultivation of flax in Rejmyre, Sweden and Portsmouth, Rhode Island. The project will create an implementable toolkit for the production of homespun, small-scale linen textiles and an annotated bibliography of resources for small-scale flax growing and linen production.
Julie Adams Strandberg, $2,000 to Collecting, Transcribing, Documenting, and Sharing Authentic Voices of Elders Funds support the collection and transcription of oral histories on the theme of water from residents at the Hattie Ide Chaffee Nursing Home. The stories, and projects inspired by those stories, will be shared with the public through a published volume; an interactive workshop; and a panel discussion.
MAJOR GRANT AWARDS (March 2024)
A humanities program focused on Indigenous cultural practices, a documentary film about the Armenian-American community in RI, a civics program at a historic house museum for adult english speakers of other languages, and a middle- and high-school writing program that uses graphic novels to explore identity, isolation, exclusion, and mental health are among the 12 projects awarded a Rhode Island Humanities major grant in 2024. Ranging from just over $7,500 to $12,000, grants have been awarded to documentary films and public projects that showcase the power of the humanities to connect communities, expand knowledge of our collective past and present, and celebrate the rich cultural diversity in our state.
In total, RI Humanities awarded $134,795 in the annual major grant cycle. This year, RI Humanities was only able to fund a quarter of received applications, making this cycle one of the most competitive in the organization’s 50-year history. “These grant projects will tell Rhode Island’s many stories in compelling ways and ensure that more people learn about our diversity of heritages and experiences. In a year with so many strong applications, it’s notable that awards have been granted to organizations that range from entirely volunteer-led operations with annual budgets under $50,000 to those with large professional staff and annual budgets of over $2.5 million. This wide spread of grantee and project types is vital to the cultural and civic health of our community, and we’re proud to support their innovative approaches to public humanities work,” said Elizabeth Francis, Executive Director.
Rhode Island Humanities’ grant review committees are made up in part by members of our Board of Directors and in part by community reviewers, who are all Rhode Island-based humanities professionals. Each committee has a diversity of identities, locations, subject matter expertises, and professional backgrounds represented. Committee recommendations are then reviewed and approved by the full Board of Directors. Read on for a full list of this year’s major grant projects.
DOCUMENTARY FILM AND MEDIA GRANTS
Armenian Historical Association of Rhode Island, $12,000 to Armenian Chronicles: A Living History Funds support the production and post-production of a documentary film preserving and presenting the story of the Armenian-American community in Rhode Island, including the impact of the 1915 Armenian Genocide on immigrants and descendants. Designed to be incorporated into Rhode Island’s Holocaust and Genocide Education Curriculum, the film will have multiple segments and will be accompanied by a teacher’s guide and other resources.
Fractured Atlas, $12,000 to Scandalous Conduct: A Fairy Extravaganza Funds support a multi-channel musical documentary reconstructing the 1919 Newport Navy Sex Scandal. The experimental video installation unravels themes of homophobia and surveillance, and pairs primary-source historical documents and archival photography with recreated excerpts from Jack and the Beanstalk, a 1919 vaudeville production staged by the Navy in Newport.
Tikkun Olam Productions, $12,000 to Breakin’ Away Funds support the production of a feature-length documentary film on four Rhode Island-based BIPoC professional breakdancers who seek to represent the United States at the 2024 Summer Olympics. The project includes producing a 10-minute proof of concept video, a community feedback series, and a publicly available archive of interviews.
West Broadway Neighborhood Association, $12,000 to Superman: A Building and Its City Funds support production/post-production of a 90-minute documentary film on the history of and current civic discourse around the redevelopment of the Industrial Trust Building, popularly known as the Superman Building, in downtown Providence.
PUBLIC PROJECT GRANTS
Dirt Palace Public Projects, $12,000 to Letterpress Printers and Printing in Providence, 1762 – 2024 Funds support an exhibition and accompanying panel discussion highlighting the robust history of newspapers, stationers, and other forms of commercial printing in Rhode Island. The exhibition will reveal the various roles of craftspeople in the letterpress printing process from journeymen, typesetters, compositors, and printers, and delve into the techniques and equipment still used by printers in Providence today.
Little Compton Historical Society, $12,000 to The Sakonnet Mishoon Project Funds support a series of free program days and public events showcasing the cultural and historic significance of the Wampanoag mishoon (dugout canoe) in the traditional homelands of the Sakonnet Wampanoag People (the area now called Little Compton). The public events will feature the traditional burning of the Wampanoag mishoon, a mishoon launch ceremony on the Sakonnet River, and a lecture and essay by master mishoon maker and traditional artisan Jonathan James-Perry (Aquinnah Wampanoag). The mishoon will ultimately become part of a permanent exhibition on the history of the Sakonnet people.
Newport Historical Society, $12,000 to “A Name, A Voice, A Life: The Black Newporters of the 17th-19th Centuries” Exhibition Funds support the production of the “A Name, A Voice, A Life” exhibition, which explores the lives of five Africans and African Americans who lived in Newport between 1639 (the year of the city’s founding) and 1842 (the year slavery was banned in Rhode Island). Researched through the BIPoC History Database Project, the project will also inform a series of blog posts and walking tour content.
Preserve Rhode Island, $8,845 to Lippitt House Museum Civics Program for Adult English Language Learners Funds support the Lippitt House Museum’s Civics Program, a series of civics lessons and field trips in partnership with organizations providing services and support for adult English speakers of other languages (ESOL) studying for the United States Citizenship & Immigrant Services (USCIS) Civics exam. The program will culminate in a Civics Celebration Open House for the public and a video sharing immigrant stories.
Providence Public Library, $12,000 to Washed Funds support a series of programs and participatory events exploring the sea as a dynamic space of ungovernability, constant motion, and unfixable indeterminacy. Through interdisciplinary engagement with histories of slavery, conceptions of queer identity, and climate change, the project investigates how fluidity has made the sea a generative space of literal and metaphorical transformation, dissolution, washing away, and renewal.
Queer.Archive.Work, $12,000 to Queer/Trans Zinefest (QTZ) 2024 Funds support an independent small works publishing festival and associated programming showcasing the work of queer, trans, and gender-nonconforming writers, poets, cartoonists, independent publishers, zine makers, and unaffiliated scholars.
School One, $10,150 to Write Rhode Island’s Pictures with Words: Comic and Graphic Novel Program Funds support a year-long program for students in grades 7-12 that uses graphic novels to explore themes such as identity, isolation, exclusion, and mental health. The program will include discussion groups, craft workshops, author and scholar talks, and a public exhibition of student work.
Wanderground Lesbian Archive/Library, $7,800 to Exploring the Archives: Sharing Stories/Building Connections Funds supports a series of exhibits, pop-up events, recordings of oral herstories, workshops, and community conversations engaging with the Wanderground Lesbian Archive/Library, as well as physical and digital documentation of the project’s findings. The archive/library is a curated selection of Rhode Island, regional, national, and international publications, artifacts, and personal memorabilia demonstrating the diversity of vibrant Lesbian communities, cultures and spaces from 1950-2000.
MINI GRANT AWARDS (May 2024)
PUBLIC PROJECT GRANTS
PVD World Music, $2,000 to A Bridge Between Worlds – A Dialogue on Contemporary African Arts, Life and Culture Funds support a panel discussion with contemporary African filmmakers at the 6th annual African Film and Arts Festival. Through this conversation, filmmakers, musicians, and community members will reflect on contemporary African realities as seen through films and music, and engage in a discussion with local African refugees and the broader community.
Stages of Freedom, $2,000 to Rudolph Fisher: Rhode Island’s Gift to the Harlem Renaissance Funds support an exhibit, lecture, short story workshop, and community reading centered on Rudolph Fisher, a Rhode Islander active in the Harlem Renaissance as a novelist, short story writer, dramatist, and musician.
West Broadway Neighborhood Association, $2,000 to West End Historical Marker Funds support a public panel discussion on the historical and ongoing Indigenous stewardship of the land now known as the West Side neighborhood in Providence, and a historical marker to be installed at the Dexter Training Grounds Park. The project aims to increase the awareness of, respect for, and connections to Indigenous connections to the land and knowledge of the past and present contributions of Indigenous peoples.
RESEARCH GRANTS
Delia Rodriguez-Masjoan, $2,000 to History of Latina Elected Officials in Rhode Island Funds support research on the history of Latina elected officials in Rhode Island over the past three decades and the impact of Latina leadership in the state. The findings will be shared in bilingual (Spanish/English) formats via a radio broadcast, a panel conversation on the process and discoveries, and a website.
THRIVE Operating Support Grants (May 2024)
THRIVE provides funding for small cultural heritage organizations and local historical and preservation societies that support and strengthen Rhode Island’s many diverse, dynamic communities. Each organization receives $5,000 in operating support funds. The program is supported by an allocation from the State of Rhode Island. Recipients include:
Blackstone River Watershed Council – a local historical and preservation society dedicated to restoring, enhancing and preserving the physical, historical and cultural integrity of the Blackstone River, its watershed and its ecosystem.
Centro Cultural Andino – a cultural heritage organization dedicated to preserving and promoting the rich cultural heritage of the Andean countries (Colombia, Ecuador, Peru, Bolivia, Chile, Venezuela, and Argentina) in Rhode Island communities.
Cultural Society – a cultural heritage organization dedicated to preserving and promoting Asian American and Pacific Islander heritage and building healthy communities in Rhode Island.
East Providence Historical Society – a local historical and preservation society dedicated to enriching and educating the citizens of East Providence and surrounding communities about the history of the town.
Foster Preservation Society – a local historical and preservation society dedicated to the preservation of historic buildings, rural character, colonial heritage and the orderly growth and development of the town of Foster, RI.
Friends of Pomham Rocks Lighthouse – a local historical and preservation society dedicated to ensuring the historic restoration and preservation of Pomham Rocks Lighthouse in East Providence and to improving public awareness, appreciation and access to Pomham Rocks Lighthouse.
Friends of the Pokanoket Tribe – a cultural heritage organization and local historical and preservation society dedicated to serving the Pokanoket people, an Indigenous group in present-day Rhode Island and Massachusetts, and supporting the people and lands that fall within the traditional territories that the Pokanoket call Sowams.
India Association of Rhode Island – a cultural heritage organization dedicated to strengthening the unity of Rhode Island’s Indian community and encouraging, protecting, and celebrating India’s rich social, cultural, and educational heritage in Rhode Island.
Jamestown Historical Society – a local historical and preservation society dedicated to collecting, preserving, and sharing with others the heritage of Jamestown, RI, through properties, collections, programs, exhibits, and publications.
Museum of Newport Irish History – a cultural heritage organization and local historical and preservation society dedicated to telling the story of Irish immigrants and their descendants in Newport County, RI, and the surrounding area from the colonial era to the present; to preserving artifacts relating to their experiences; and to facilitating research on Irish history and heritage.
Newport Middle Passage Port Marker Project – a cultural heritage organization and local historical and preservation society dedicated to honoring the lives of the captive Africans who perished in the Middle Passage journey and the slave trade, and to celebrate the economic and cultural contributions of the survivors and their descendants who helped build Newport and America. *Part of the National Middle Passage Ceremonies and Port Marker Project.
Newport Pride – a cultural heritage organization dedicated to supporting and working with the LGBTQ+ community and its allies in the Newport, RI, area to provide resources and education that expand community understanding, support diverse LGBTQ+ identities and history, and produce events for people to connect, learn, and celebrate.
Puerto Rican Institute for Arts & Advocacy – a cultural heritage organization dedicated to promoting and facilitating civic and cultural awareness of the Puerto Rican culture, as well as other Latino/a/x heritages, through performance, workshops, visual art, literature, crafts, and the Afro-ancestral arts.
Rhode Island Black Film Festival – a cultural heritage organization dedicated to showcasing films that showcase the historical and cultural contributions of people of African, African-American, and Afro-Latin descent. RIBFF gives voice to diverse cultures, features emerging filmmakers of color, and seeks to increase participation of youth of color in Rhode Island’s film production industry.
RI Kung Fu & Lion Dance Club – a cultural heritage organization dedicated to promoting the cultural and martial arts of Chinese lion dance and kung fu, and fostering cross-cultural community understanding and learning by sharing these arts through performances and programming.
South County Museum – a local historical and preservation society in Narragansett, RI, dedicated to preserving rural and coastal Southern Rhode Island’s material culture for education and inspiration; telling the diverse stories and histories that have shaped South County; and empowering individuals with the knowledge, skills, and creativity needed to master traditional craft disciplines.
Sowams Heritage Area Project – a cultural heritage organization and local historical and preservation society led by a regional coalition of town planners, tourism entities, historical societies, environmentalists, tribal leaders, and other volunteers from the nine towns and cities that today comprise Sowams, along the northeastern shore of Narragansett Bay.
Wanderground Lesbian Archive/Library – a cultural heritage organization dedicated to collecting and providing access to a broad selection of New England-based publications, artifacts, and personal memorabilia from the period 1950-2000 in an effort to reclaim Lesbian visibility and lived experience; and offering gathering spaces in order to preserve the vibrant past of local Lesbians, encourage present-day learning and discovery, and cultivate a future of thriving Lesbian communities.
MINI GRANT AWARDS (August 2024)
PUBLIC PROJECT GRANTS
Gail Burton, $2,000 to Story Circles: Confronting the Historical Grief of the Transatlantic Slave Trade
Supports multiple engagement activities and discussions confronting the history of the Transatlantic slave trade in Bristol. Undertaken in partnership with the Bristol Middle Passage Port Marker Project, the project creates educational scaffolding for the upcoming unveiling of the Bristol Middle Passage Port Marker.
FirstWorks, $2,000 to Raise Your Voice: In Conversation with Artivists
Supports a panel discussion on the cultural and historical origins melding Americana roots and Indigenous traditional music, featuring Black folk musician and scholar Jake Blount and Odanak First Nation composer, bassist and vocalist Mali Obomsawin.
Newport Restoration Foundation, $1,900 to Naming the Houses: A Telling Stories Project
Funds support a community panel discussion on the naming conventions of historic house properties; how historic house names shape community understanding of a house’s history and importance; and Newport Restoration Foundation’s reconsideration of their house naming process to work towards more accessible and inclusive practices.
Virginia Thomas, $2,000 to Trans Women of Color Oral History Workshop with Queer StoRIes Project and Weber Renew
Supports oral history training sessions and the production of individual and group oral histories documenting the lives of transgender adults in Rhode Island. Completed oral histories will be uploaded to the Providence Public Library’s digital repository and shared at a public listening party.
RESEARCH GRANTS
Ryan Brown, $1,901.12 to Cultural Resilience through Silenced History
Funds support the collection of oral histories from Pokanoket tribal elders on tribal history and culture, and a multimedia public presentation of the histories alongside photographs, video clips, and diagrams. The research is part of a documentary film and media project.
Total of $183,748 awarded through 41 grants in FY2023
In FY2023, the Council awarded 41 grants in support of public history, cultural heritage, civic education, and community engagement. For a full listing of grants awarded from November 2022 – October 2023, click here or on the image below to view the RI Humanities 2023 Annual Report. https://issuu.com/rihumanities/docs/rihumanities_2023ar-pages_1_
Total of $176,264 awarded through 32 grants in FY2022
In FY2022, the Council awarded 32 grants in support of public history, cultural heritage, civic education, and community engagement. As Executive Director Elizabeth Francis noted, “[Awarded projects] include free humanities workshops to support a 90-day recovery program; a statewide nonfiction writing program for youth; a civic education and leadership collaboration between the Naval War College Foundation in Newport and a local high school; and exhibitions, programs, and documentary films addressing topics from the legacies of slavery to how we will remember and grow from a global pandemic.” For a full listing of grants awarded from November 2021 – October 2022, click here or on the image below to view the Council’s 2022 Annual Report. 
Click here to download a PDF of the 2022 Annual Report.
Total of $760,00 awarded through 112 grants in FY2021
In FY2021, the Council awarded 112 grants in support of public history, cultural heritage, civic education, and community engagement. Throughout this second year of the pandemic, the Council maintained its standard grantmaking program while also establishing new grant opportunities to disburse federal relief funds and support civic engagement initiatives. For a full listing of grants awarded from November 2020 – October 2021, click here or on the image below to view the Council’s 2021 Annual Report. 
Click here to download a PDF of the 2021 Annual Report.
