Press Release

Contact: Sheryl Hayes
Sheryl@virginia.edu
Virginia Foundation for the Humanities
145 Ednam Drive Charlottesville, VA
22903-4629
Phone:(434)924-3296
                                    Fax: (434)296-4714
For Immediate Release
January 8, 2007

VIRGINIA FOUNDATION FOR THE HUMANITIES ANNOUNCES

GRANTS TO ORGANIZATIONS THROUGHOUT VIRGINIA

The Virginia Foundation for the Humanities (VFH) has awarded 32 grants totaling $132,100 to assist Virginia organizations in their efforts to research and interpret Virginia ’s rich history, to explore issues of importance to Virginians, and to showcase Virginia ’s folklife and cultural heritage.

Recipients of the grants include museums, colleges and universities, African American heritage organizations, civic groups, and historic sites.  The funds will be used to support documentary projects, exhibits, oral history research and collection, CD music development and production, and conferences. Grant-supported activities will take place across Virginia cities and counties, from Machipongo to Clintwood, from Abingdon to Falls Church .

Funds for this program have been provided by private donors, the Commonwealth of Virginia , and by the National Endowment for the Humanities.

Grants were awarded to the following organizations and projects:

Afro-American Historical Association of Fauquier County       The Plains, VA  

Virginia Emigrants to Liberia       

$2,500.00 to support the expansion of an existing database of Virginians--emancipated slaves and free blacks--who emigrated from Virginia to Liberia between 1820 and 1866.

American Focus, Inc                                                                      Charlottesville , VA        

The Crooked Road Documentary Film Project                              

$7,500 to support research and planning for a one-hour documentary film on traditional string music of the “ Crooked Road .”

Barrier Islands Center                                                                    Machipongo , VA           

Islands From the Sky                    

$2,500.00 to support a series of events exploring the history, culture, and ecology of Virginia 's barrier islands and how those are interrelated.

Boat People, SOS                                                                           Falls Church , VA

Vietnamese-American Cultural Odyssey     

$ 1,500 to support expansion of an exhibit previously funded by VFH documenting the experience of Vietnamese refugees and the 30-year history of the Vietnamese-American community in Northern Virginia .

Christopher Newport University                                                   Newport News , VA       

The Thieves of Baghdad                

$1,000.00 to support a public lecture and book discussion program featuring Matthew Bogdanes, author of "The Thieves of Baghdad," which deals with the theft and attempt to recover the antiquities taken from the Iraq Museum during the fall of the city and of Saddam Hussein in April, 2003.

Council for America 's First Freedom                                          Richmond , VA  

Conference on America 's First Freedom    

$2,500.00 to support a one-day conference exploring the subject of religious freedom in America . The conference features a keynote address by former Justice Sandra Day O'Connor, will result in a publication, and in a collaborative effort involving the Council, the "Journal of American History," and the Marshall-Wythe School of Law.

Eastern Shore of Virginia Historical Society                               Onancock ,   VA  

Onancock Signature, 2007           

$2,500.00 to support the publication of a history of the Town of Onancock , which is being produced to coincide with the Town's observance of 2007.

Fredericksburg Area Museum and Cultural Center                  Fredericksburg , VA       

The Civil Rights Movement in Virginia

$1,500.00 to support a lecture by the noted journalist Juan Williams, presented in conjunction with a traveling exhibit on the Civil Rights Movement in Virginia .

Historic Fincastle, Inc.                                                                   Fincastle , VA     

Oral History Pilot                        

$2,000.00 to support a pilot oral history project focusing on the cultural and social life of Fincastle , Virginia ( Botetourt County ) during the 20-year period from 1930-1950.

James River Association                                                                Mechanicsville , VA

Chickahominy River -- John Smith Trail     

$10,000 to establish a historic water trail along the navigable portions of the Chickahominy River , focusing on local history—especially Virginia Indian history--and ecology.

Liberty University                                                                           Lynchburg , VA              

$1,500 to support a two-day scholarly and public conference on Christianity and American History, with a particular focus on the influence of  Virginians (Jefferson and others) during the Founding Period, and subsequently.

Montpelier Foundation                                                                  Orange , VA

Interpretive Display

$2,000.00 to support development of interpretive signage for the recently-discovered "Madison-era Agriculture complex" at Montpelier .

National D-Day Memorial Foundation                                       Bedford , VA                  

$1,250 to support the fourth in an annual series of public programs exploring the contributions of African American soldiers, sailors, and support personnel during World War II.

Norfolk State University                                                                 Norfolk , VA      

Voices from Within the Veil, a Conference in conjunction with Jamestown 2007

$ 5,000 to support a conference on African American rights in United States history, presented as NSU’s signature contribution to the 2007 observance and one of eight “Democracy Conferences” to be held nationwide during 2007.

Park Partners, Inc.                                                                        Glouchester , VA            

Gloucester History Video             

$1,500.00 to support production of a documentary video on the history of Gloucester County , focusing in particular on Powhatan Indian history and culture.

Ralph Stanley Museum & Traditional Mountain Music Center    Clintwood , VA

Dickenson County Heritage Music Project 

$3,500 to support a music CD with interpretive liner notes exploring the musical legacy of Billy Gene Mullins, a well-known songwriter, performer and member of the legendary Mullins Family of Dickenson County.

Shenandoah University   History & Tourism Center                      Winchester , VA

"'Sweet Dreams' -- The Life and Time of Patsy Cline" Symposium

$3,000 to support scholars contributions to a three-day symposium on the life of Patsy Cline, her musical legacy, and her influence on American popular culture.   

Southwest Virginia Public Library Directors’ Group                Abingdon , VA

Lessons of Jamestown                   

$10,400 to support a series of lectures, book discussions, and related programs to be held at eight Southwest Virginia libraries during 2007.

Sully Historic Site                                                                           Chantilly , VA    

Forgotten Road Brochure

$2,000.00 to support printing and mailing costs for a brochure on the history of slavery and slave life at Sully Plantation in Fairfax County.

Sultana Projects, Inc.                                                                     Chestertown , Md.

The Captain John Smith Four Hundred Project

$ 9,450 to support design and fabrication of an exhibit on John Smith’s explorations of the Chesapeake Bay, to be displayed initially as part of the Captain John Smith Four Hundred Project’s re-enactment voyage.

Thomas Balch Library                                                                     Leesburg, VA

$2,000 to support a four-part lecture-discussion series commemorating the 400th anniversary of Virginia and the 250th anniversary of Loudoun County .

Thomas Nelson Community College Educational Foundation, Inc. Hampton , VA

Jamestown , 1607-2007: Historic Lecture Series

$1,000.00 to support a four-part lecture series in conjunction with the 2007 anniversary. The focus is on the 17th century history of the Jamestown area and subsequent archaeological work.

Trees Virginia                                                                                  Charlottesville , VA       

Remarkable Trees of Virginia

$ 5,000 to support research and documentation leading to a book connecting the most “remarkable” trees in Virginia with human history.

University of Virginia Center for Digital History                          Charlottesville , VA

Virginia and Liberia : A window into Slave and Free Black Life in the Old Dominion - A Digital History Project   

$9,000 to support research and development of a website on the history of approximately 3,700 African Americans who left Virginia for Liberia between 1820 and 1865.

Urban Alternatives Foundation                                                       Arlington , VA

$2,500 to support the first phase of a larger research and oral history project to document the buildings, people, and traditions of Columbia Pike, a major thoroughfare in Arlington County that is also one of the most ethnically and culturally diverse neighborhoods in Virginia.

Virginia Association of Museums                                                 Richmond , VA

The Virginia Museum Fundamentals Forum                                  

$10,000 to support a three-day intensive museum training program designed to serve the  needs of small and emerging museums including historic sites statewide.

Virginia Association of Museums                                                 Richmond , VA  

2007 Virginia Association of Museums Conference                        

$2,500.00 to support the participation of museum professionals from Great Britain in the 2007 annual conference of the Virginia Association of Museums.

Virginia Law Foundation                                                              Richmond , VA

Virginia 's Judicial History--The Blueprint for Our Country           

$1,500.00 to support planning for a one-hour documentary film entitled " Virginia 's Judicial History--A Blueprint for Our Country."

Virginia Sexual and Domestic Violence Action Alliance             Richmond , VA

The Art of Surviving: Violence and Expression

$ 6,000 to support a four-part lecture series, exhibit, and related events exploring the aftermath of sexual violence and ways the humanities can play a role in the “art” of survival.

Virginia State University                                                                Petersburg , VA

The Petersburg Oral History Project

$10,000 to support an oral history project on the Civil Rights Movement in Petersburg .

Virginia Wesleyan College                                                             Norfolk , VA

 Center for the Study of Religious  Freedom                              

From Jamestown to Jefferson: The Evolution of Religious Authority in Colonial Virginia

$5,000 to support a six-part series of lecture-discussion programs focusing on the role of religion in the lives of people living in Virginia during the Colonial period.

World Affairs Council of Greater Hampton Roads                   Virginia Beach , VA

Great Decisions 2007

$4,500 to support an eight-part lecture series on current topics related to American foreign policy, international relations, and global affairs.

The Virginia Foundation for the Humanities and Public Policy, based in Charlottesville , is a statewide non-profit organization dedicated to promoting the humanities, and to using the humanities to address issues of broad public concern.

In all of its programs, the Foundations works to make scholarship accessible; to promote understanding and discussion of enduring and contemporary issues; and to broaden the range of educational opportunities available to all Virginians.   

For further information, contact Sheryl Hayes at 434-924-3296 or Sheryl@virginia.edu.