FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE August 4, 2009

Contact:

Julie Gavin | 602.257.0335 x25 jgavin@azhumanities.org

ARIZONA HUMANITIES COUNCIL
AWARDS OVER $55,000 IN GRANTS

((Phoenix, AZ) - Did you know ....that the Arizona Humanities Council has directed over $10 million to public humanities programs throughout Arizona? These cultural and educational programs offered by museums, libraries, schools and other community organizations have reached approximately 4 million people. Recently, the Arizona Humanities Council awarded $55,900 in grants to 14 Arizona organizations for projects that engage the general public with the humanities. The recipient projects include: an Arizona internment camp oral history project, Hopi & Navajo festival, lectures, a historic photo exhibit, book readings, and a four-day film showcase. These projects encourage the community to explore Arizona's rich history and cultures.
Grants were awarded to the following organizations:

- Museum of Northern Arizona, FLAGSTAFF. "'Humanities Insights' presentations for annual Hopi and Navajo Festivals of Arts and Cultures." AHC funding will support the Museum of Northern Arizona's annual Hopi and Navajo Festival's "Heritage Insights" programming, including cultural perspectives presentations, demonstrations, and performances. Project Director: Jennifer McLerran, 928/774-1527. Total grant award: $5,000.

 

- West Valley Arts Council, AVONDALE. "The Big Read." AHC funds will support the West Valley Art Council's third annual Big Read program, a month-long event including book readings, panel discussions, reenactments, and other literary events. Project Director: Bernadette Mills, 623/935-6384. Total grant award: $3,600.

 

- Gila River Indian Community, SACATON. "Beyond the Barbed Wire Fence: The Gila River Indian Community and Japanese American Experiences of Internment at Gila River During World War II (WTP)." This oral history project will record the stories of Akimel O'odham and Pee Posh individuals who recall the internment camps built for Japanese Americans in Gila River Indian Community lands from 1942 to 1945.Project Director: Barnaby Lewis, 520/562-7152. Total grant award: $10,000.

 

- International Sonoran Desert Alliance, AJO. "Mexican Town and Indian Village: Ajo Memory Project." Historic photo enlargements alongside bilingual interpretive narratives installed in Ajo’s city center, and the creation and distribution of a commemorative booklet of photos and host community events about the former communities in Ajo. Project Director: Mimi Phillips, 520/387-3570. Total grant award: $10,000.

 

- Arizona Border Rights Foundation, TUCSON. "The Diversity of Immigration (WTP)." An exhibition at El Centro Cultural de las Americas featuring the photographs of immigrant families that are residents of Tucson. The exhibit opening will include a panel discussion with scholars and community members. Project Director: Michael Weber, 520/907-8280. Total grant award: $3,500.

 

- University of Arizona, Arizona State Museum, TUCSON. "Native Eyes 2009." AHC funds will support a four-day film showcase with visiting Native filmmakers and humanities scholars, a free, hands-on Culture Craft program for families, and a 6-day intensive filmmaking workshop open to Native youth. Project Director: Lisa Falk, 520/626-2973. Total grant award: $5,000.

 

- ASU School of Geographical Sciences and Urban Planning, TEMPE. "Canalscape Exhibition." AHC funds will support the opening of Canalscape, an exhibit at the ASU Art Museum exploring a vision for the Phoenix metropolitan area of vital urban hubs where canals meet major streets. Opening in November 2009, AHC funds will support public lectures and panel discussions around the exhibition. Project Director: Nan Ellin, 602/496-0461. Total grant award: $5,000.

 

- NAU Humanities, Arts and Religion, FLAGSTAFF. "Cline Lecture Series 2009: Filmmaker Ellen Spiro." Project Director: Curtis Hinsley, 928/523-6203. Total grant award: $1,000.

 

- Arizona State Library, Carnegie Center, PHOENIX. "ONEBOOKAZ 2009." Project Director: Sarah Weber, 602/926-3368. Total grant award: $1,000.

 

- City of Flagstaff, FLAGSTAFF. "Edgar Allan Poe Bicentennial Program." Project Director: Judy Finney, 928/779-7670. Total grant award: $400.

 

- NAU Cline Library, FLAGSTAFF. "Route 66 in Arizona: Don't Forget Winona!." Project Director: Sean Evans, 928/523-4395. Total grant award: $1,000.

 

- Museum of Northern Arizona, FLAGSTAFF. "Insights from the Source: Zuni presentations at the 19th Annual Zuni Festival of Arts and Culture." Project Director: Jennifer McLerran, 928/774-1527. Total grant award: $1,000.

 

- Arizona Opera, PHOENIX. "Opera dell'Arte." A series of five one-hour lecture each highlighting a specific opera that will be presented during the Arizona Opera's 2009-2010 Season. Project Director: Laurie Lemley, 602/218-7341. Total grant award: $1,000.

 

- ASU West Department of Integrative Studies, GLENDALE. "Science and Faith: Darwin's 200th Birthday." A lecture-debate that will discuss the nature of scientific explanation and its relationship to other kinds of knowledge. Project Director: Owen Anderson, 602/543-6027. Total grant award: $1,000.

About the Arizona Humanities Council
www.azhumanities.org

The Arizona Humanities Council, founded in 1973, is an independent nonprofit organization that works in cooperation with the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Stories convey our histories, traditions, social mores, beliefs and insights about what it means to be human. The Arizona Humanities Council creates opportunities for sharing these diverse stories through critical thinking and public discussion, to better understand and appreciate one another, so that we can make informed decisions about our collective future.

Support for grants designated as We the People (WTP) projects has been provided by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed in these programs do not necessarily reflect those of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

###