Wyoming Humanities awards Spark Grants across the state this summer

Cultural innovation continues to grow across the state, and Wyoming Humanities is proud to announces that it has provided thousands of dollars in Spark Grants to four organizations this summer.

Projects are selected based on communities’ needs and programs designed to spark new insights and perspectives. Funding is provided by the state of Wyoming through the Wyoming Department of State Parks and Cultural Resources. Grantees, who receive up to $2,000 with this opportunity, provide equal or greater matching funds and in-kind contributions. WYH grants generate significant social and economic impact five times greater than state funding.

“We’re thrilled to help provide funding to these groups and the projects that really reflect the fascinating stories of Wyoming,” said Chloe Flagg, Wyoming Humanities director of grants and programming.

This summer’s recipients are:

• Big Horn Basin Nature & Discovery Center, Wyoming Discovery Days: This two-day folk festival demonstrates Wyoming's unique folk life and folk art, while teaching the importance of preserving our culture and heritage.

• Fort Phil Kearney/Bozeman Trail Association, History of Native American Languages and Introduction to the Arapaho Language: This presentation by Dr. (James) Andrew Cowell and Wayne C'Hair explores the significance, history, and the cultural impact of Native American languages, which are as vast as the territory where they were once spoken.

• Sheridan Community Land Trust, Firearms that Influenced Powder River Country: The program includes history that considers the humanities related to the social and cultural human studies along the Bozeman Trail, along with the material culture study of how these events were influenced by the technological advances and design innovations of firearms.

• Wyoming Chapter of the Oregon-California Trails Association, Leaving the Platte: Oregon-California Trails Association National Convention: As part of the group’s 40th convention, this tour visits Indigenous sites in the Red Desert, as well as other key Wyoming locations, with a variety of presentations during the week.

For more information about Wyoming Humanities and its grant programs, visit thinkwy.org/grants.

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