Virginia Humanities has been working to connect the academic and public sides of the humanities for decades through their fellowship programs. Their newest fellowship supports faculty and alumni of HBCUs—historically Black colleges and universities. The focus at these schools is often on teaching, which means opportunities for humanities research can be limited. The HBCU Scholars Fellowship gives these humanities scholars time to focus on research projects, projects that in turn enrich the public. In this episode, we speak with current HBCU Scholars Fellow Dr. Monika Rhue and Virginia Humanities’ Yosef Medina, who runs the program. Show notes and transcript available at statehumanities.org/podcast.

Illinois Humanities believes education is liberatory and should be accessible to all. That belief led them, 25 years ago, to partner with The Clemente Course in the Humanities to offer free college courses to low-income adults in the Chicago area through a program called the Odyssey Project or Proyecto Odisea. In this episode, learn more about this program and how it changes lives. Our guests are Dulce Maria Diaz (Odyssey Project alumnus), Dr. Rebecca Amato (Director of Teaching and Learning, Illinois Humanities), and Dr. Aaron Rosen (Executive Director, The Clemente Course in the Humanities). Transcript and show notes available at statehumanities.org/podcast.

Does reading poetry make the world a better place? Are poetry readings better in the great outdoors? Every summer, Vermont Humanities hold a series of poetry readings in Vermont state parks called Words in the Woods, which connects participants with the state’s natural resources and its living literary legacy. Dive into the relevance of poetry in our modern world, the relationship between nature and poetry, and the importance of supporting living poets in this conversation featuring Jacob Pelletier, Community Programs Officer at Vermont Humanities, and Bianca Stone, Vermont Poet Laureate (and past Words in the Woods speaker). Transcripts, photos, and related content available at statehumanities.org/podcast.