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Illinois Humanities, NEH, and other Humanities Councils targeted by DOGE. Take action today: Contact your congressional representatives!

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Illinois Humanities Executive Director Gabrielle Lyon discusses her advocacy efforts for Illinois Humanities in Washington, D.C. in this month's letter.

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2024 Odyssey Graduation reception ilhumanitiesodyssey05112024 1799 cr Glitter Guts

Each year, Illinois Humanities actively recruits new students for The Odyssey Project/Proyecto Odisea through various outreach efforts. In this feature, soon-to-be-alumna Deb Grant and faculty member Lucy Biederman share their perspectives on the program's impact.

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GPS 202503 Carlvinville Winning Communities Ribbon Cutting Best

The Carlinville Winning Communities NFP is developing a new program series entitled, "Community Conversations." Learn more about the organization and this new program in this month's Grantee Partner spotlight.

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Our Grantee Partners

Our Impact in 2024

For 50 years, Illinois Humanities has worked throughout the state to make the public humanities accessible to all. Through grants, partnerships, and public programs, we have worked with groups of all sizes, disciplines, and stages of development to increase their local and statewide impact and support the state’s cultural ecosystem.

Explore the map to discover our vast network of grantee partners across the state and connect with a public humanities organization near you. Below, see a snapshot of how Illinois Humanities grants and programs provide free and transformative humanities experiences for all Illinoisans.

4,050

Illinoisans in 47 counties engaged with culture, history, and contemporary social issues through free Road Scholars Speakers presentations

200 %

increase in visitors to Museum on Main Street, our traveling Smithsonian exhibition showcasing local heritage across seven Illinois towns

988

youth poets statewide participated in our annual Gwendolyn Brooks Youth Poetry Awards

13 %

growth in applications to the Odyssey Project/Proyecto Odisea, our free college program empowering adult learners in a supportive educational community

Recent Grantee Partners

Action, General Operating, Multiplier, and Vision Grants (FY2024)

D-Composed, Cook County, $4,000
Dream Seeding, Inc., St. Clair County, $4,000
Governors State University, Will County, $4,000
Madison County Historical Society, Madison County, $2,700)
Paramount Arts Centre, Kane County, $2,100
Peoria Historical Society, Peoria County, $4,100
Raices Chicago Story Coalition, Cook County, $2,000
Ten Thirty-One Pictures Foundation, Woodford County, $4,250
Umuwi Ethnic Studies, Cook County, $4,250
Public Media Institute, Cook County, $10,250
Illinois Association of Museums, Cook County, $10,000
Community Food Navigator, Cook County, $10,100
South Asia Institute, Cook County, $10,250
University of Illinois Springfield History Department, Sangamon County, $10,250
¡Anímate! Studio, Cook County, $4,250
Howard Brown Health, Cook County, $4,250
Narratives QC, Rock Island County, $4,100
Parole Illinois, Cook County, $4,000
Johnson County Genealogical & Historical Society, Johnson County, $4,150
Dwight Historical Society, Livingston County, $4,000
The Hub-Arts and Cultural Center, Schuyler County, $2,000
Kuumba Lynx, Cook County, $4,000
Coalition for a Better Chinese American Community, Cook County, $4,250
Elmhurst Art Museum, DuPage County, $4,250
Gilloury Institute DBA Silk Road Cultural Center, Cook County, $4,100
DeKalb County History Center, DeKalb County, $4,100
American Indian Association of Illinois, Cook County, $10,000
Bronzeville / Black Chicagoan Historical Society, Cook County, $10,000
Center for Native Futures, Cook County, $10,000
Clinton County Historical Society, Clinton County, $10,000
Guild Literary Complex, Cook County, $10,000
Heterodyne Broadcasting, Jackson County, $10,000
Honey Pot Performance, Cook County, $10,000
Lucky Jefferson, Cook County, $10,000
Metro East Literacy Project, St. Clair County, $10,000
National Cambodian Heritage Museum & Killing Fields Memorial, Cook County, $10,000
Red Line Service, Cook County, $10,000
South Macon Public Library, Macon County, $10,000
The RealiTea ProjecT, Cumberland County, $10,000
Western Illinois Museum, McDonough County, $10,000

Activate History Microgrants (FY2024)

Anderson Taylor, Henry County, $700
Maroa-Forsyth School Archives, Macon County, $750
New Salem Baptist District Association, St. Clair County, $1,000
About Face Theatre Collective, Cook County, $1,000
Annie Share and Sivan Spector, Cook County, $1,000
Chicago Black Artist Union, Cook County, $1,000
Jefferson Mok, Cook County, $850
Patric Gregory McCoy, Cook County, $850
The World Music Foundation, Cook County, $850
Ana Croegaert, Cook County, $1,000
Black & Brown Femme Films (BBFF), Will County, $1,000
Black Cornerstones Project, Cook County, $1,000
City of Macomb Illinois, McDonough County, $750
The Hub-Arts and Cultural Center, Schuyler County, $750
Jacqueline E. Luciano, Cook County, $1,000
Peoria Historical Society, Peoria County, $750
Theodore Williams, Cook County, $750
Winnebago Community Historical Society (WCHS), Winnebago County, $750

Envisioning Justice Grants (FY2024)

Chicago Torture Justice Center, Cook County, $10,000
Chicago Books to Women in Prison, Cook County, $10,000
ConTextos, Cook County, $10,000
Stomping Grounds Literary Arts Initiative, Cook County, $10,000
Free Root Operation, Cook County, $10,000
Storycatchers Theatre, Cook County, $10,000
Recipe for Change, Cook County, $10,000
Galesburg Public Library, Knox County, $7,500
Dominican University, Cook County, $10,000
Beyond the Walls: The Movement, Jackson, $5,000
Mud Theatre Project, Cook County, $5,000
Chicago 400 Alliance, Cook County, $10,000
Dan Protess, Cook County, $5,000
Ruth L. Poor, DuPage County, $5000
Melissa Amelia Pavlik, Cook County, $5000
Sonja Henderson (Mother's Healing Circle), Cook County, $5,000
Geneseo Public Library District, Henry County, $5,000
Knox College, Knox County, $5000
Urbana Champaign Independent Media Center, Champaign County, $10,000

Events

April 4, 2025

Community Read Kickoff

Knox County

April 6, 2025

Creating Our Future

McDonough County

April 7, 2025

Family Heirloom Recipes From the Illinois State Fair

Jefferson County

More Events

Featured Event

April 23, 2025

(RE)GENERATION: A People’s Salon

Cook County

Contact

Suite 650, 125 South Clark St.
Chicago, IL 60603

312.422.5580 312.374.6787

info@ilhumanities.org

600 Troy Road
N4, Room 207
Edwardsville, IL 62025

618.468.5580

statewide@ilhumanities.org

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Illinois Humanities is supported in part by the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the Illinois General Assembly [through the Illinois Arts Council], as well as by contributions from individuals, foundations, and corporations.

Illinois Humanities respects the privacy of its audiences and will at no time sell or distribute personal information to any party not directly affiliated with Illinois Humanities and its programs.

Any views, findings, conclusions, or recommendations expressed by speakers, program participants, or audiences do not necessarily reflect those of the NEH, Illinois Humanities, our partnering organizations, or our funders.