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Mississippi Humanities Council Newsletter - March 2018
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Stuart Rockoff
MHC executive director |
Director's Message
Serving Mississippi
A few weeks ago, I traveled to Washington D.C. with our board treasurer Erik Hearon, to visit with our senators and congressmen about the National Endowment for the Humanities and the work of the Mississippi Humanities Council. We do this annually as part of the "Humanities on the Hill" event convened by the Federation of State Humanities Councils. During our meetings, we focus on the impact we have on Mississippi. We come armed with maps, lists of grants, and features on particular programs that would be of interest to each member. One of my favorite documents from this year was an alphabetical list of communities where we sponsored programs in the last year. The list was long, with three columns and even rolling over to the back to get all of them in. In all, the MHC sponsored programs in 87 different Mississippi towns and cities in 2017. Some, like Jackson and Hattiesburg, saw many MHC-supported programs, while others hosted just one. But taken together, the list is a testament to the Council's outreach, showing how we serve Mississippi.
How does a small organization with only five full-time employees achieve this broad reach? The simplest answer is our commitment to partnerships. Even more than the 87 communities, I am especially proud that we partnered with over 200 different Mississippi organizations and institutions on public humanities programs during 2017. If we tried to organize and carry out all of these programs ourselves, we would be unable to have anywhere near the impact. Instead, we offer grants to organizations to fund their own projects, make humanities speakers available to nonprofit organizations, free of charge, and also collaborate with strategic partners for all of our council-conducted initiatives.
But more than just a list of communities, grants, and partners, what makes me especially proud of the Council's work is our commitment to service.
But more than just a list of communities, grants, and partners, what makes me especially proud of the Council's work is our commitment to service. When a group of Mississippians organized to try to preserve the Mississippi River Basin Model, we helped them develop a public program that incorporated tours and presentations about the history and significance of the engineering marvel. While we don't have the funds to fully restore the 200-acre model, we can help the group raise awareness and educate the public about it. When a group in Greenville wanted to create a new, local literary festival, they came to us for seed money. Our board's decision to give our maximum grant of $7500 to help launch the Literary Arts in the Delta festival was true
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MHC Executive Director Stuart Rockoff, left, spent time with Sen. Thad Cochran last week, sharing the work of the Council in Mississippi. MHC board member Erik Hearon, right, accompanied Rockoff.
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to the original spirit of the Council. Quite simply, we were created in 1972 to help support initiatives like this. The festival's tremendous success last weekend shows the hunger people in Mississippi have for programs that engage their minds and examine our state's rich history and culture. And we are here to feed this hunger.
This commitment to serving Mississippi is what we have in common with our congressional delegation. Each member and their staff appreciate the support we provide to their districts. Some strongly support funding increases for NEH and state councils; others, worried about the federal budget and national debt, can only promise to support level funding. None expressed any interest in eliminating the NEH and state councils. Once again, we learned that support for the humanities is strong and bipartisan. It was especially bittersweet to meet with Senator Thad Cochran for the last time during Humanities on the Hill. He has been a champion for the arts and humanities during his long tenure in the Senate. Despite his important position as chairman of the Senate Appropriations Committee, he has always met with us in person during our visits. Just two days after he announced his retirement, Senator Cochran took the time to meet with me and Erik. Senator Cochran and his phenomenal staff understand that service to Mississippi is their highest calling. It is ours as well.
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MHC Board Member to Receive Governor's Award for Volunteer Excellence
Betty Lou Jones, a longtime Mississippi Humanities Council board member, will receive a 2018 Governor's Initiative
for Volunteer Excellence (GIVE) Award. The GIVE Awards were established through the Office of the Governor and Volunteer Mississippi to recognize individuals and organizations that have made an outstanding impact through their gifts of service, advocacy, and outreach on behalf of the citizens of Mississippi.
Jones was appointed to the Mississippi Humanities Council by Gov. Haley Barbour in January 2005. The Council is composed of 22 members from across the state, five appointed by the Governor and the remainder elected. During her time on the board, Jones has been an active and generous contributor to the work of the Council. She leveraged her connections in Meridian to attract local support for the traveling Smithsonian Exhibit, "Produce for Victory: Posters on the American Home Front, 1941-1945" when it toured Mississippi in 2002. Again in 2007, she helped host the national kickoff for another traveling Smithsonian exhibit, "
New Harmonies: Celebrating American Roots Music," at the MSU Riley Center in Meridian. She was instrumental in creating a venue and connecting with local veterans for a local production of the MHC-sponsored "The Telling Project," a national performing arts project that employs theater to deepen our understanding of the military and veterans' experience.
Jones has also played a crucial advisory role in the Council's humanities-based prison education work. As a member of the Mississippi Parole Board, her guidance has been invaluable. "I can think of few people who qualify for an award for 'outstanding servant leadership' more than Betty Lou," says Dr. Stuart Rockoff, executive director of the Mississippi Humanities Council. "We are fortunate that the Council is one of the organizations she cares for so deeply."
A total of 12 Mississippians will be honored with GIVE Awards at a private ceremony at the Mississippi Museum of Art April 6.
Nominations are made by the general public and a group of industry peers serve as judges to review the submitted information and to determine the recipients. Nomination information is sent out by Volunteer Mississippi in January of each year.
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Ideas on Tap Spring Series Continues Through April
If you have not been able to attend one of the Ideas on Tap "Emerging Mississippi" spring programs, there are still two more chances to do so! The MHC's popular Ideas on Tap spring series, which focuses on young Mississippians in professional fields, will continue on March 20 and April 24 in Jackson.
The March 20 program will focus on young Mississippians involved in art and culture. Hinds Community College history professor and community activist Garrad Lee will moderate the panel, which includes local artist and arts education Ginger Williams Cook and Phillip Rollins, a DJ and owner of Offbeat in Midtown Jackson.
The spring series, co-sponsored by Rethink Mississippi and the Women's Foundation of Mississippi, will continue on April 24 with a program on young Mississippians involved in media. More details will be announced soon.
Learn More
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Ideas on Tap Releases New Podcast
If you've ever wanted to listen to Ideas on Tap while working out, driving, showering, cooking, avoiding work, etc.-well, today is your lucky day! Ideas on Tap is now available as a podcast! Give it a listen and tell us what you think! It's available on iTunes and Google Play.
https://soundcloud.com/user-996466849
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Kevin Powell, one of the most acclaimed political, cultural, literary and hip-hop voices in America today, will deliver a keynote lecture at the 2018 Winning the Race Conference.
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MHC Grant Supports Youth Engagement in DSU's Winning The Race Conference
The Mississippi Humanities Council is again providing grant support for Delta State University's Winning the Race Conference, scheduled March 26-27 on the DSU campus in Cleveland. The conference is among 43 projects funded through MHC's racial equity fund.
With the Council's support, the 2018 conference continues to work to engage high school students in the Delta area. This year, more than 40 students from various schools and backgrounds participated in pre-conference activities designed for them. Students discussed implicit bias, types of racism, and the power of their voice. The full conference schedule offers sessions especially for high school students which allow them to interact and discuss issues important to them.
The two keynote speakers for the conference are Kevin Powell and Dave Dennis. Powell
is one of the most acclaimed political, cultural, literary and hip-hop voices in America today. He is a native of Jersey Cit and studied at Rutgers University in New Brunswick, thanks to New Jersey's Educational Opportunity Fund. He has gone on to author 12 books, including his newest title, The Education of Kevin Powell: A Boy's Journey into Manhood. It is a critically acclaimed and brutally honest memoir about his life.
Dennis participated in the first Freedom Bus ride from Montgomery, Alabama, to Jackson, Mississippi, in 1961 as they were attempting to desegregate the interstate bus system, and in voter registration efforts during the 1964 Freedom Summer.
The Delta State University Winning the Race Conference is free and open to the public.
Learn More
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Dr. Rhea Williams Bishop, director of programs for the W.K. Kellogg Foundation in Mississippi and New Orleans, will deliver a keynote address at MHC's Racial Equity Convening.
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MHC to Host a Convening for Nonprofits Engaged in Racial Equity Programming
The Mississippi Humanities Council will host a Racial Equity Convening in Jackson April 6, which will bring together several current and future grantees engaged in racial equity work throughout the state. The purpose of the gathering is to discuss the impact of MHC support for humanities-based programming centered on racial equity in Mississippi. MHC's racial equity grants program has supported an impressive range of projects that have enabled communities across the state to address sometimes difficult subjects related to race.
The MHC racial equity grants programs has been funded by the W.K. Kellogg Foundation, which continues to be a leader in helping communities heal. Dr. Rhea Williams Bishop, director of programs for Mississippi and New Orleans, will deliver remarks during the convening as our keynote speaker. To learn more about the convening or to inquire about attending, please contact Timothy Lampkin at
tlampkin@mhc.state.ms.us.
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Next Major Grant Deadline is May 1
The Mississippi Humanities Council grants program supports projects that stimulate meaningful community dialogue, attract diverse audiences, are participatory and engaging, and apply the humanities to our everyday lives. Grants may be used to support public humanities programs, exhibits, the planning of larger projects, and the development of original productions in film, television, radio or online resources
The Council also offers special grants to support oral history projects around the state.
Larger grants ($2,001-$7,500) deadlines are May 1 and September 15. Funded events may not occur fewer than ten weeks from the deadline date, and pre-consultation with MHC staff is required before submitting an application. Grant application forms and other related documents may be found on the Grants page of the MHC website.
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Coming Up: Humanities Programs Sponsored by MHC
25th Oxford Conference for the Book
March 21-23, 2018
University of Mississippi and various off-campus locations, Oxford
Annual literary conference based on the University of Mississippi campus. The 2018 conference will explore a range of topics, from the desegregation of public libraries, the role oflong-form journalism in our current news environment and award-winning poetry to the Latino experience in the American South.
Ben Jonson, Our Contemporary
University of Southern Mississippi, Gulf Park Campus, Long Beach
Series of events exploring the continuing relevance of Shakespeare's greatest contemporary dramatist, including a performance of Ben Jonson's comedy "Volpone," preceded by a public lecture on the topic of dramatic satire.
Delta State University's Winning the Race Conference 2018
Delta State University, Cleveland
Delta State University's award-winning race relations conference Winning the Race returns to campus for a fifth year. The 2018 theme is "Intersections in Action: The Quest for Equity, Access, and Justice." Conference topics will highlight the various ways in which race and race relations intersect areas of our daily lives - from politics, economics, health and housing, to education, entertainment, art and science.
Freedom of Information Act: Learn how researchers are using FOIA at the University of Mississippi
University of Mississippi, J.D. Williams Library, Oxford
Join UM Libraries as we celebrate our 135th anniversary as a Federal Depository Library. Attendees will get an inside look at the most unique and interesting items in our Federal Documents collection. This month's event is a panel discussion about how researchers across the university use the Freedom of Information Act to access valuable government information for their research.
Socio-Political Research through Government Documents
University of Mississippi, J.D. Williams Library, Oxford
Join UM Libraries as we celebrate our 135th anniversary as a Federal Depository Library. Attendees will get an inside look at the most unique and interesting items in our Federal Documents collection. The April program features Dr. Becky Marchiel will discuss her research on urban history and capitalism and the important role government documents have played in her research process. Attendees will be able to browse related materials from our Federal Documents collection and Department of Archives and Special Collections.
Dialogue on Race in Mississippi: Jackson County
April 16, 2018
Knight Non-Profit Center, Gulfport
Facilitated dialogue series focused on education, action and transformation to encourage open, honest conversation about race.
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