Wisconsin Humanities: More than $422,000 in recovery funds awarded to 52 nonprofits

MADISON, WI, August 23, 2021 – Across Wisconsin, 52 historical societies, museums, libraries and other nonprofits were awarded Wisconsin Humanities Recovery Grant funds to help our state prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from the pandemic. The awards represent the first round of funds provided to Wisconsin Humanities by the National Endowment for the Humanities and the American Rescue Plan Act of 2021.  

A second grant round will open September 15 with a deadline of October 15. 

“We received 114 applications expressing more than $1.6 million in need.” says Dena Wortzel, Executive Director of Wisconsin Humanities. “We weighed factors including need, location, strength of their public humanities work, the audience that organizations serve and how they would use these funds to help them address the impacts of the pandemic.” 

Funds awarded will help organizations with everything from salary support and utility bills to improving access through digitization of collections and programming. “We saw so much need,” says Wortzel. “We hope these funds can help these Wisconsin nonprofits that provide cultural programming remain resilient as we try to emerge from the pandemic.”  None of these funds were used to cover the cost of administering this special grant program. 

The second round of WH Recovery Grants will award more than $340,000 in additional funds for activities taking place between December 1, 2021, and October 31, 2022. Recovery grants are intended for nonprofit organizations, accredited public or nonprofit institutions of higher education, state or local governmental agencies, or federally recognized Native American tribal governments. Applicants may request $2,000-20,000 for their work in the humanities.   

Funds for general operating expenses, programming, strategic planning and capacity building, technical/consultant needs related to a digital transition, expansion of outdoor and virtual humanities programming and activities and equity assessments and planning related to coronavirus and the economic crisis as part of pandemic recovery are offered to organizations that have the humanities as their core mission. 

Arts, civic, and other organizations whose mission is not humanities-centered may request support for their work related to the humanities but are not eligible to receive funds for general operating expenses.  

According to Wisconsin Humanities, the humanities are defined as “the ideas and knowledge about human history and culture that help make sense of [one’s] life.” Fields in the humanities include archaeology, cultural anthropology, ethnic studies, folklore, history, linguistics, literature, philosophy, religious studies, social sciences, and the history, theory, and criticism of the arts.    

For more details on eligibility and how to apply, interested organizations should go to the Wisconsin Humanities’ Recovery Grants website.  

The following organizations were awarded grants this week: