MADISON, WI — May 28, 2026 — Following the historic celebration of its grand opening on May 6, the Center for Black Excellence and Culture (The Center) is moving swiftly from construction to community impact. The Center announced today that it has been awarded a two-year, $247,000 grant from the New York-based Dana Foundation to launch a groundbreaking civic science research initiative, proving that the newly opened landmark is wasting no time building on its immense momentum.
The grant will fund a dedicated Civic Science Fellow to lead a collaborative project between The Center and the Center for Healthy Minds (CHM) at the University of Wisconsin–Madison. Operating out of The Center’s brand-new, state-of-the-art physical space, the Fellow will spearhead research into how Madison’s Black residents define wellbeing, healing, and brain health, translating cutting-edge neuroscience into culturally relevant, community-led practices.
“The Center was built to be a living platform for Black leadership, healing, and innovation,” said Dr. Alex Gee, President and CEO of the Center for Black Excellence and Culture. “We aren’t resting on the laurels of a beautiful new building. We are immediately leveraging this space to tackle systemic health and research disparities. This grant allows us to cultivate a community-centered research system where our neighbors are not the subjects of science, but the co-researchers driving the agenda.”
The 18-month fellowship project will establish a national model for community-inspired research. Key initiatives will include trust-building and listening sessions in local spaces like churches and barbershops, qualitative interviews, and the co-design of a Black-led research framework. Ultimately, the Fellow will develop a specialized toolkit for civic science engagement and pilot culturally adapted brain health and contemplative practices.
The initiative bridges grassroots wisdom with world-class academic scholarship, with support from the Collective for Research Impact and Social Partnerships in the UW College of Letters & Science.
“The Center for Healthy Minds at the University of Wisconsin-Madison is thrilled to partner with the Center for Black Excellence and Culture on this new initiative funded by the Dana Foundation,” said Dr. Richard J. Davidson, founder and director of the Center for Healthy Minds. “This project centers the lived experience of Black residents of Madison in shaping a new research agenda around wellbeing, healing and brain health within the Black Community. I look forward with a lot of humility to the novel insights that will surely arise from this work and will serve not only the Black community in Madison, but also an exemplar for many other Black communities throughout our nation.”
By marrying the unique cultural environment of The Center with the interdisciplinary research strengths of CHM, the project aims to replace external institutional assumptions with genuine community insight, creating sustainable, multidirectional trust that benefits Black residents across Dane County and serves as a blueprint for the nation.
About The Center for Black Excellence and Culture
The Center for Black Excellence and Culture (The Center) will answer the decades-long absence of cultural space to celebrate and advance Wisconsin’s Black community. Located within the heart of a historically Black neighborhood on Madison’s South side, The Center will be a physical place where Black residents and others throughout the community can gather to plan for and celebrate current and future growth and advancement.
Specifically, the Center will: Celebrate and promote Black excellence; Foster a sense of family and community; Pay tribute to Black history; Nurture and develop Black business and community leaders; Attract, connect, and retain Black talent; and provide the space for conversation, connection, and growth.
