Wyoming Humanities announces two big new grant opportunities for the state

CHEYENNE, Wyo. (PRESS RELEASE) - To better serve the state and its residents, Wyoming Humanities is thrilled to announce two new grant lines to support Wyoming communities and organizations.

Applications open on July 15.

“These grants can provide significant funding to both nonprofit humanities organizations and organizations that provide humanities programming,” said Chloe Flagg, the director of grants and programming with Wyoming Humanities.

Wyoming Humanities will host a webinar at 11 a.m. on Friday, July 16, to explore these grant opportunities, to help with applications, and to answer any questions. Registration for that event can be done at //thinkwy.org/grants.

The first new grant – Wyoming Humanities American Rescue Plan Grant – is made possible with ARP funding channeled through the National Endowment for the Humanities. This money will support nonprofit organizations as they prevent, prepare for, respond to, and recover from the coronavirus. Grants will be offered in the following categories:

• General Operating Support, available to humanities-focused organizations only for operational and salary support.

• Programming Support, available to nonprofit organizations that align with the public humanities values advanced by Wyoming Humanities to support their humanities-based programs or projects.

• Recovery Support, available to nonprofit organizations for specific efforts related to recovery from the coronavirus pandemic.

The second new grant is Wyoming Crossroads, which supports a larger multi-year initiative of Wyoming Humanities. Communities will be encouraged to explore the idea of Wyoming’s growth through change. Applicants should consider how to help organizations and communities to expand their idea of public humanities work and tap new participants and audiences through four broad categories: programming, publication, preservation, and digital media

According to Flagg, the aim in these grants is to serve the primary goals of that larger initiative:

• Increase Wyoming’s intellectual, community, social and civic wealth as the state restructures its economy

• Apply humanities 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

Further, as part of an ongoing effort from Wyoming Humanities to strengthen communication and outreach, the entire application process for grants is being simplified and refocused on improving the relationship between the grantor and the grantees.

“To serve these goals and increase the variety of programming to include more out-of-box humanities work and engage new, untapped audiences, we are streamlining the process of grant application and awarding,” Flagg added.

To apply or for more information, visit //thinkwy.org/grants.