Nevada Humanities awards $194,000+ in grants to 30 Nevada Cultural Organizations

Thirty cultural organizations across Nevada have been awarded $194,110 in Major Project Grants by Nevada Humanities.

These grants fund humanities projects across the state and benefit nonprofit organizations and government and tribal entities, including libraries, museums, and schools to fund public and educational programs in the humanities. Nevada Humanities Major Project Grants offer up to $7,500 to facilitate local cultural programs and explore issues that matter to Nevadans.

From supporting the keynote speaker at the 2023 National Cowboy Poetry Gathering in Elko to reintroducing Nevadans to land art works in the deserts around Las Vegas to creating a prose-poem winding along the Truckee River in Reno, Nevada Humanities Major Project Grants will open the hearts and minds of the people of Nevada to cultural and heritage experiences that weave through their everyday lives. Projects are taking place across Nevada beginning on November 1, 2022, and running through October 31, 2023.

“Our 2023 grant recipients truly reflect Nevada’s diverse communities that will benefit from these exciting and relevant humanities programs, events, and exhibitions that reach all corners of the Silver State,” said Christina Barr, Executive Director of Nevada Humanities. “Through these grants, Nevada Humanities is helping nonprofit organizations across Nevada directly serve their communities and the wide range of visitors to our state. These programs meet real needs across Nevada, helping to preserve our cultural infrastructure, showcase our diverse heritage, and engage Nevadans in civic discourse.”

Additional grant funding is available as part of the FY2023 Nevada Humanities Project Grants cycle. Nevada Humanities also offers Mini-Grants (up to $2,000) and Planning Grants (up to $1,000) that respond to the year-round, immediate programmatic needs of Nevada cultural organizations by funding public humanities projects with a flexible application deadline of no less than ten weeks prior to the proposed program date. To learn more or apply visit nevadahumanities.org.

2023 grant recipients are:

- 300 Stewart Avenue Corporation dba The Mob Museum, Las Vegas, $6,000
The Evolving Landmark: From U.S. Post Office and Courthouse to The Mob Museum
A new permanent exhibit will chart the rich history and preservation of the Mob Museum’s building as a post office, courthouse, and community gathering place in downtown Las Vegas.

- Board of Regents, Nevada System of Higher Education, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Beverly Rogers, Carol C. Harter Black Mountain Institute, Las Vegas, $6,750
Black Mountain Radio Institute Events 2022-2023
Humanities-focused readings and conversations will be held at the University of Nevada, Las Vegas.

- Board of Regents, Nevada System of Higher Education, University of Nevada, Las Vegas, Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art, Las Vegas, $6,750
Dry Heat Publication and Panel
Nevada writers will be commissioned to write essays for Dry Heat, a new literary publication with a mission to highlight ideas that connect the cultural landscape of southern Nevada to broader stories of our current time.

- Board of Regents, Nevada System of Higher Education, University of Nevada, Reno, Department of Theatre and Dance, Reno, $6,000
An Iliad: Activating Nevada Veteran Histories
Nevada veterans will be invited to watch a modern adaptation of Homer’s The Iliad, discuss the play, and reflect on their own experiences serving in the armed forces. The veterans will write their own monologues inspired by The Iliad.

- Board of Regents, Nevada System of Higher Education, University of Nevada, Reno, University of Nevada Press, Reno, $3,500
Vegas Strong: Bearing Witness 1 October 2017
A collection of personal essays that reflect upon the Harvest Musical Festival mass shooting in Las Vegas—the largest mass shooting to date in American history. The book will share a broad diversity of perspectives and voices, shedding light on the scope of this tragedy.

- Board of Regents, Nevada System of Higher Education, Truckee Meadows Community College (TMCC), Reno, $5,250
TMCC Speaker Series
The TMCC Distinguished Speaker Series will invite two guest speakers to provide presentations on their work as it relates to the topic of sustainability.

- Boulder City Chautauqua, Boulder City, $6,000
2023 Boulder City Chautauqua
The theme of the 2023 Boulder City Chautauqua is “Famous Journalists.” This annual performing arts event uses entertainment to bring history alive and features history scholars who perform portrayals of famous journalists.

- Capital City Arts Initiative, Carson City, $7,500
CCAI Today
For the past 20 years, Capital City Arts Initiative has presented contemporary visual art exhibitions. These installations have grown to include art essays, related lectures, and videos that expand the reach as well as archive tours about these art projects.

- Channel 5 Public Broadcasting, Inc. dba PBS Reno, Reno, $7,500
PBS Reno FoodNotes
A new food series that highlights the rich diversity of culinary expression and identity that exists in northern Nevada. FoodNotes will capture the interconnected link between culture, food, and story.

- Dam Short Film Society, Boulder City, $6,000
Dam Short Film Society
The Dam Short Film Festival is an annual event in Boulder City, Nevada, that celebrates global filmmakers and artists. Selected films showcase the perspectives of filmmakers who are from a variety of cultural and sociological backgrounds.

- DISCOVERY Children's Museum, Las Vegas, $6,750
DISCOVERY Cultural Celebration Months
DISCOVERY Children’s Museum will host celebrations of cultural and historical months, featuring educational programs such as performances by guest artists, science demonstrations, story-time with cultural literature, and more.

- Friends of Dangberg Home Ranch, Inc., Minden, $6,750
Chautauqua Studies and Performance at Dangberg Home Ranch
This project uses Chautauqua to share American and world history through a workshop and a series of
public performances, featuring both experienced regional Chautauqua performers and amateur presentations.

- Henderson Writers Group, Henderson, $6,000
Las Vegas Writers Conference
The Henderson Writers Group will create a hybrid version of the Las Vegas Writers Conference, which provides diverse activities and a curriculum for writers of all levels, regardless of their publication history.

- Las Vegas Natural History Museum, Las Vegas, $7,500
2022 December to Remember: Exploring Cultural Traditions
This program has educated and enhanced understanding of how Nevada’s diverse communities celebrate winter holidays. Eighteen community groups that represent different cultures, religions, and ethnicities shared their traditions through displays and presentations.

- Latino Arte and Culture, Reno, $6,615
Poetry, Short Stories, and Spanish Book Fair
This project includes an open call for written submissions of poems and short stories in English or Spanish. Writers will read their submissions at a scholar-moderated discussion, and select poems and stories will be published in a book.

- Neon Museum, Las Vegas, $6,000
Capturing Stories in the Neon Boneyard
The Neon Museum continues its effort to record oral histories of notable individuals who had an impact on the city of Las Vegas and/or The Neon Museum. These oral histories, which reflect the diversity of voices of those involved with signs, will be used to develop future educational resources.

- Nevada Center for Civic Engagement (NVCCE), Reno, $6,000
NVCCE Ask the Expert Speakers and Field Trip Series
This virtual lecture series of monthly episodes that engage in civil discourse through virtual field trips with humanities scholars, exploring historical artifacts, and delving into civics. Sessions include humanities resources, work with schools statewide, and are open to the public.

- Nevada Museum of Art, Reno, $6,750
The Art of Ben Aleck
This exhibition, on display April-October 2023, features artworks by Ben Aleck—an internationally recognized artist, educator, and Native American advocate with ancestral ties to Pyramid Lake, Nevada—who has inspired important conversations about cultural representation related to the traditions and contemporary issues of his community.

- Nevada State Museum, Carson City, $7,250
Celebrating Nevada's Cultural Diversity
Throughout the year the Nevada State Museum celebrates three different cultures within the Carson City community—Dia de los Muertos, Chinese (Lunar) New Year, and Lei Day. These celebrations honor the cultures of diverse groups living in Nevada and broaden community awareness of these holidays.

- Nevada Women's Film Collective, Las Vegas, $6,750
Nevada Women's Film Festival
The Nevada Women's Film Festival raises awareness of women in film, increases cultural opportunities for Nevadans, educates youth, draws visitors to Nevada’s economy, and promotes Nevada as an arts and culture destination. The Nevada Women’s Film Festival is June 22-25, 2023.

- Nevadans for Cultural Preservation, Las Vegas, $6,000
Modern Desert Markings: A Homage to Las Vegas Area Land Art
Through the Marjorie Barrick Museum of Art, Modern Desert Markings: A Homage to Las Vegas Area Land Artreintroduces the public to five iconic Land Art works in the deserts around Las Vegas. Historical images will be presented alongside a new art work created in response to the same landscapes and inspired by each of five featured historic Land Art pieces.

- Poetry Promise, Inc., Henderson, $5,895
Poetry Promise Presents...
Poetry Promise Presents is a community-based support project for writers of all levels. Working writers help students and members of the community find personal expression through creative writing experiences and support poets’ efforts to tell their own stories. This project gives local writers access to current trends by bringing national writers to Nevada, helping writers develop their skills.

- Project REAL, Las Vegas, $6,750
Statewide Illustrated Mock Trials
Project REAL will create up to 20 cut-out kits on 'plastic blind slat' 'like sheets for live-animation mock trials with one set donated to each school district in the state. Kits will assist classroom teachers to create a more realistic mock trial setting for students.

- Reno Bike Project DBA KWNK-LP 97.7FM, Reno, $6,750
KWNK 2022/23 Humanities Community Based Programs
A series of humanities and community-based programs that focus on local interviews, storytelling, cultural commentary, historical, and educational shows. These programs are created for and by the people of Reno. Programs will be broadcast on 97.7FM in Reno, available as a podcast, and via mixed/multimedia content.

- Sparks Heritage Museum, Sparks, $5,850
Nevada's Neon: Illuminating Our Collective History
This project celebrates Nevada's rich heritage of roadside signs and large-scale neon art. The museum will design a photo exhibit to complement the museum’s collection of vintage neon signs that will also be on display. Lectures and programs will also be part of this exhibition.

- Terry Lee Wells Nevada Discovery Museum, Reno, $6,750
Science Distilled
The Science Distilled lecture series, created by Desert Research Institute (DRI) and The Discovery, merges cutting-edge science with the humanities through approachable presentations on current and curious topics that are held at popular locations in a social atmosphere.

- The Holland Project, Reno, $7,500
Curator Series
The Holland Project's humanities and visual arts programming are brought together to explore contemporary dialogues in art and culture. Emerging creators serve as “resident" curators to conceptualize a six-week project that uses contemporary art as a jumping-off point for bigger conversations about culture.

- Truckee Meadows Parks Foundation, Reno, $7,500
Confluence: Stream, Science, Handwriting, and Urban Curbs
This project is an interactive public installation that will create an over 4,000-word, prose-poem along sidewalks and pathways to reflect on stream ecology, land formation, and how stories shape our experience of place. The poem will run continuously for almost a mile through Reno, following the flow of water.

- Western Folklife Center, Elko, $7,500
National Cowboy Poetry Gathering Keynote Address
The Western Folklife Center, in partnership with the Humanities Center at Great Basin College, brings former U.S. Poet Laureate Joy Harjo to deliver the Keynote address at the 2023 National Cowboy Poetry Gathering as well as speaking with local Native students at Great Basin College.

- Writing Downtown, Las Vegas, $6,000
Writing Downtown Presents - Strengthening Connections: Wellness, Sovereignty, and Creative Community Building
Three resident writers will lead workshop and discussion events centered around their creative endeavors, community-building, and wellness. Planned events include a youth-focused workshop, an adult-focused workshop, and a wellness and the environment discussion aimed at creating connections between Nevada’s creative and civically-minded communities.

About Nevada Humanities: Nevada Humanities is one of 56 independent, nonprofit state and territorial humanities councils that partner with the National Endowment for the Humanities. With offices in Reno and Las Vegas, Nevada Humanities creates public cultural programs and supports public cultural projects statewide that define the Nevada experience and facilitate the exploration of issues that matter to the people of Nevada and their communities. For more information about Nevada Humanities visit nevadahumanities.org.