In an incredibly competitive cycle, Wyoming Humanities recently announced the recipients of its Wyoming Crossroads grants to organizations across the state.
These grants support programs, preservation, and digital media projects that dig deep into the larger themes of the Wyoming Crossroads initiative: Wyoming’s identity, sense of community, connection to the land, persistence, and ability to manage change.
“I’m thrilled with the variety of projects we’re able to support,” said Chloe Flagg, director of grants and programming for Wyoming Humanities. “It really does feel like we’re on to something – helping to create an even larger, more accessible environment for high quality humanities programming and events.”
Wyoming Humanities has awarded hundreds of thousands of dollars in Wyoming Crossroads grants since last year. Funding was made possible by the Wyoming legislature through the Wyoming Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources.
This spring’s recipients are:
• Eastern Shoshone Cultural Center - $10,000: This event will gather approximately 5,000 more Eastern Shoshone words and recordings to complete the Eastern Shoshone Online Dictionary, designed specifically for community members to easily update, revise, and expand content. The digital nature of this dictionary also makes this knowledge available to scholars and members of the public who would like to learn more about Eastern Shoshone language and culture.
• Heart Mountain Wyoming Foundation - $19,940: This digital storytelling workshop for Japanese-American and Apsáalooke youth explores the historical and cultural connections to Heart Mountain. The program will culminate in an intensive workshop in Park County, where participants will shoot final footage for video shorts at the Heart Mountain site, work closely with mentors in the editing and post-production process, and screen their films publicly and online.
• Moorcroft Historical Society - $8,340: This project is a collaboration among the Moorcroft Historical Society, history educators and students at Moorcroft High School, and regional historians. This project will engage students in the humanities, think critically, and develop an appreciation for local history and those that pioneered the West Texas Trail, culminating in a digital and permanent exhibit at the West Texas Trail Museum.
• Relative Theatrics - $8,500: The group will implement the Play/Write literacy education program in the fifth-grade classrooms of two Albany County schools. Participants will write eight short plays and expand one into a fully developed 10-minute play. The culmination will be a community celebration of the creative endeavors of young writers and the community of artists and audiences that have gathered to bring the writing to life.
• Teton Science School - $8,950: Funds will be used to share Olaus and Mardy Murie’s story through docent tours for Grand Teton National Park visitors and field education experiences for Teton Science School students of all ages, and Front Porch Conversations to draw in members of the local community to engage in conversations about our connection to the natural world.
• True Troupe - $8,350: The group will travel to rural and larger communities across Wyoming to present “Classics in the Park: Macbeth.” The perspective of Macbeth explores ideas of modern feminism, non-conforming gender roles, and the idea of how these gender roles play to each character. Each performance includes a discussion with humanities scholars.
Wyoming Humanities created three goals for these grants:
• Increase Wyoming’s intellectual, community, social and civic wealth as the state restructures its economy
• Apply programming in new and innovative ways to reach audiences that do not typically engage in public humanities
• Develop new partnerships with groups and associations not typically considered “humanities” or cultural organizations.
