From Garrett County to Worcester County and everywhere in between, our programs are capturing the attention and imaginations of more and more Marylanders every year.
To what extent do Maryland Humanities programs touch the lives of state residents? To put it in context, let’s consider the numbers from 2020:
Partners: 364 Participants: 81,479 Audience: 190,862 Scholars: 221 Youth Participants: 37,952 Donors: 413 Volunteers: 873 Events: 1,021 Towns: 123
“We had a great experience working with Maryland Humanities. Your team was very hands on, provided clear guidelines and seemed glad to assist us throughout our process. Thank you so much for the support we received to carry out our event and do much needed social justice work in our city.”
“One student in my book club who is in a wheelchair and has a lot of other persona/home issues, was the first to finish the book, and wheeled herself into the library more than once to ask me if I had finished the book because she wanted to talk about it. She was a huge contributor to the discussion.”
“The Smithsonian exhibit, Key Ingredients: America By Food, has left the building but not the community. We got a glimpse of what we can do and how we can bring the community together around a common goal. From this day forward, the sky is now the limit for DCHS.”
“I feel more connected to history.”
“The school I am reporting on is designed as an alternative center for students who are not successful in the “regular” classrooms in our district. These students are challenged by a number of factors, including emotional problems, discipline issues, etc. This particular book was one that a number of students were able to relate to and engage with. As a consequence, students who do not normally read became active participants in both reading and discussing!”
“This Maryland Humanities grant is absolutely vital to the mission of our non-profit organization devoted to archaeological research and public education. Simply put, we could not have carried out our ambitious exhibit projects without this much-appreciated support. Maryland Humanities has enabled us to share meaningful stories and engage audiences in innovative and creative ways. The platform they have provided strengthens our organization and the community we serve. Thank you!”
It’s different from other projects because I actually got to interact with someone and get information from something other than a history book.
“Lifelong learning is continuing to read, listen, learn, share ideas, discuss, and be enlightened by the great ideas and events of the human experience during the course of an entire life.”
“Besides giving my students a relaxed writing situation with a non-threatening prompt (a personal letter, after all), your program challenges students to think ‘outside the box.'”
“During a vascular conference a patient with an extensive medical history was being discussed. The surgeons were going over multiple surgical possibilities for the patient. I spoke up and suggested pallative care. They admitted it wasn’t a bad idea. Nothing they were discussing was going to provide any long term benefit. I am not sure I would have thought of pallitive care, let alone, speak up to a group of surgeons without having been in Literature in Medicine.”
“Lifelong learning is a philosophy, practice, and lifestyle that I’ve long advocated for in both my professional and personal lives. In the rapid pace, constantly changing, technological, social, and cultural environments we find ourselves in, a continuous adjustment to change is necessary. Lifelong learning is essential to understanding where we’ve been, where we are, and where we want to go, both as individuals and as a society.”
“MHD illustrated the applicability of the study of history to contemporary issues and current events. It was very motivating to converse with the students about their historical topic and observe how they applied it to current events and their own life circumstances.”
“[This panel provided] interesting insights into areas of our community that I don’t get by direct observation.”
“We were very impressed with the depth of research all the students did for their History Day projects. It was fun to see them interacting with each other during the competition and events.”
“[The humanities] are what allow us to see the beauty of the world. I often think that humans are the only species that can reflect on how beautiful the world is, can step back and take intense delight in the sounds and colors of it all, can record not only the world but our reactions to it. The humanities matter because beauty matters.”