The Humanities Council builds long-term partnerships with other anchor organizations to create models and enhance access to Rhode Island’s rich cultural resources. Some of these partnerships take the form of ongoing programs while others are carried out during a specific time frame. Examples of past partnership programs can be found below.
Catalyzing Newport:
Catalyzing Newport, the first iteration of the Council’s Catalyzing Culture model, grew out of a yearlong planning grant the Council received in 2012 from the van Beuren Charitable Foundation to assess the current limitations to, and possibilities for, developing a collaborative platform among cultural historical institutions in Newport. The Council and the project’s key partners, all of which have been Council grantees, collaborated from 2014 – 2017 on this initiative with the goals of seeding sustainable, long‐term, integrative solutions to addressing challenges, improving the outlook for Newport’s cultural institutions, and establishing broader audiences through meaningful dissemination, community engagement, and marketing.
Pell Humanities Initiative:
The Pell Humanities Initiative was organized by the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities, the Pell Center for International Relations and Public Policy at Salve Regina University, and the University of Rhode Island Libraries with the goals of honoring Rhode Island’s late Senator Claiborne Pell — who sponsored legislation that led to the founding of the National Endowment for the Humanities — and of showcasing the vital contributions of the humanities in our society today. Rhode Island’s higher education institutions and major humanities organizations are showcasing events throughout the year to celebrate the 50th anniversary of the National Endowment for the Humanities in Rhode Island.
What is the 21st Century Essay? Pulitzer Series
In 2016, the Rhode Island Council for the Humanities presents What is the 21st Century Essay?, a series of programs to commemorate the 100th anniversary of the Prizes through Pulitzer’s Campfires Initiative. An exploration of the changing nature of journalism and the humanities in the digital age, What is the 21st Century Essay? programming thematically focused on environmental issues because of their urgency and relevance to our health, communities, and economy. As a catalyst for the statewide humanities community, the Humanities Council collaborated with several partners to produce the What is the 21st Century Essay? Pulitzer Series, which included performances, salons, conferences, multimedia interpretations, and publications.
