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From: Michael Sartisky <sartisky@leh.org>
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News from LEH
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November 2007 LEH Newsletter
CFSB awards $100,000 challenge grant to LEH
 
The LEH is one of ten organizations to receive $100,000 Endowment Challenge Grants from the Community Foundation of Shreveport-Bossier. The $1 million initiative is designed to build capacity among non-profit organizations that provide program services in the Shreveport-Bossier area. For its part, the LEH has committed to exceeding the Challenge requirements by providing $150,000 to the project.

The $250,000 combined endowment will generate enough funds annually to significantly augment the LEH's existing efforts in Shreveport-Bossier. When LEH programs such as the Prime Time Family Reading Time, RELIC, the summer Teacher Institutes, the Teaching American History institutes and the LEH Grants Program are added together, the LEH has invested more than $2.2 million in educational and humanities programming in the Shreveport-Bossier region. "This is why local foundations and donors ought to leverage their charitable investment through the LEH to maximize quality and impact," said LEH President and Executive Director Michael Sartisky. The LEH has launched a new initiative to work closely with foundations and donors throughout Louisiana to leverage their charitable funds through the LEH to increase LEH programming in their communities.

This marks the third major challenge grant the LEH has received in the past year. In addition to this grant, the LEH has been awarded a $400,000 Challenge Grant from the Kresge Foundation and a $350,000 Challenge Grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. All three grant processes were highly competitive. The fact that all three were awarded within a year indicates the effectiveness of the LEH's programs, the confidence these organizations have in the LEH, and especially in the case of Kresge and the NEH, the confidence they have in the LEH's new Louisiana Humanities Center and in a re-building New Orleans.

For more information about the Community Partners Initiative and how it can work in your community, please contact Michael Boyle, Director of Development at boyle@leh.org or call (504) 620-2482.

LEH seeks annual humanities award nominations
 
The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities is now accepting nominations for its Annual Awards for Outstanding Achievement in the Humanities including the Humanist of the Year, Humanities Teacher of the Year, Humanities Book of the Year, the Chair's Institutional Award for Support of the Humanities, etc. Winners will be honored next spring at the Annual Humanities Awards Event.

Click here to view the award categories and nomination procedures:

LEH offers grants to historians, writers and documentary photographers
 
Writers and documentary photographers, exploring Louisiana-related cultural topics, may be eligible to receive special grants up to $4,000 through the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities' annual Louisiana Publishing Initiative grants program. The LEH announces the availability of grants to authors writing on Louisiana humanities non-fiction topics, such as literature, history, languages, music, cultural anthropology, folk life or other humanities disciplines. Grants of $4,000 also are available for documentary photographers to document various aspects of Louisiana's diverse culture. All awards must culminate in a completed book-length manuscript. Novels and poetry are not eligible. The application deadline is Feb. 15, 2008.

Past recipients include books such as Philip Gould's Louisiana's Capitol, Gwendolyn Midlo Hall's Africans in Colonial Louisiana, Elizabeth Mullener's Eyewitness: Tales of New Orleanians in World War II, and Jay Edwards's Plantations by the River.

For additional information about these and other grants, go to the LEH website at www.leh.org, click on the Grants Program in the left column, or contact John Kemp at the LEH, 504-620-2481 or at kemp@leh.org.

PRIME TIME workshop for new team members
 
PRIME TIME is hosting a training workshop for the new team members working with Spring 2008 PRIME TIME sites in Louisiana. The training workshop is scheduled for Dec. 1-2, 2007, at the Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities' state-of-the-art Education Center at Turners Hall. The two-day workshop will prepare team members in their respective roles. "The PRIME TIME staff and training workshop presenters look forward to meeting and working with all new team members," said PRIME TIME Director Faye Flanagan. For more information on this and future PRIME TIME training workshops contact Assistant Director Shantrell Adams at adams@leh.org.
Shreveport's Bethune Middle Academy teachers attend PT workshop
 
Seventeen teachers from Bethune Middle Academy in Shreveport attended the Saturday teacher workshop designed to train educators in using the PRIME TIME methodology in their classrooms. PRIME TIME scholar Helen Taylor, PhD, PRIME TIME Associate Director Olivia Pass, PhD, and PRIME TIME storyteller Janine Demerath led the one-day intensive workshop that focused on Socratic learning and discovery through discussion. Although the workshop was originally planned for only humanities teachers, math teachers and others outside the humanities learned to create open-ended questions to raise the critical thinking skills of their students. Among the comments collected from teacher evaluations were the following: "Excellent presenters and collaboration!" and "The presenters demonstrated excellent application skills and strategies that will enhance our faculty preparation, application, and interactive skills within the classrooms." Schools or school systems interested in learning more about the PRIME TIME Teacher Workshops should contact Associate Director Olivia Pass, PhD, at pass@leh.org.
New Orleans PRIME TIME site a great success
 
"Teamwork and dedication to the families are the ingredients that are making the eight-week PRIME TIME program at Benjamin Banneker Elementary School (RSD) in New Orleans a great success," said PRIME TIME Assistant Director Miranda Restovic, who is the monitor for the Banneker site. With an average attendance of 60 participants per session, the Banneker PRIME TIME team is able to reach out to nearly 30 families and engage them every Wednesday for what Principal Cheryllyn Branche coined "dinner and a book." Discussion leaders are Ken Rayes, UNO faculty member, and Olayeela Daste, a local storyteller. School staff includes Assistant Principal Sister Marie Noel, teacher Kathleen Wagner, teacher Carolyn Dupuy, and a number of staff and student volunteers.
LEH takes Caddo Parish teachers to Washington, D.C.
 
On Oct. 25th, the LEH took nine Caddo Parish public school teachers on a three-day visit to Washington, D.C., as part of the LEH and Caddo Public School System's three-year Teaching American History Grant from the U.S. Department of Education. While in Washington, teachers visited the National Archives, U.S. Capitol, White House and Library of Congress. Teachers also were given time to visit other Washington landmarks during their stay. Leading the tour was Dr. William Pederson, director of LSUS's International Lincoln Center for American Studies, and LEH Deputy Director John Kemp. The LEH and Caddo School System are now in the third year of the program. Over the last two summers, 129 Shreveport area public school teachers attended six graduate-level institutes in American history at LSU Shreveport. This past summer the LEH completed a similar program for public school teachers in Orleans Parish. Next summer, the LEH will begin a three-year Teaching American History series of summer institutes in partnership with Calcasieu Parish Public Schools and McNeese State University.
RELIC completes summer and fall programs
 
The RELIC Summer/Fall programs are winding down and audiences have enjoyed discussions in readings in subjects ranging from immigration and Creole culture to the American West and World War II. Public libraries participating this summer and fall were located in Abbeville, Baldwin, Bastrop, Baton Rouge, Covington, Gonzales, Houma, Metairie, Ringgold, Vidalia and Winnfield. Those interested in participating in future RELIC adult reading groups should contact their local libraries. For more information about future RELIC programs, contact Jim Segreto at 504.620.2477, 800.909.7990 ext. 118 or segreto@leh.org
LEH Staff Changes
 
Beginning Nov. 1, Jennifer Mitchel will become Director of Special Projects, overseeing LEH's data management and the development of the Louisiana Online Encyclopedia of History and Culture. Associate Director Gary Talarchek, PhD, has been promoted to Director of Grants.
Upcoming LEH sponsored events
 
Louisiana Book Festival (LEH grant of $20,389)
Saturday, Nov. 3, 10am-5pm
Louisiana State Capitol, Baton Rouge
Louisiana's FREE, world-class literary celebration offers children and adult booklovers unique opportunities to interact with over 100 exceptional poets, writers and storytellers and to enjoy an inspiring variety of book-related activities, exhibitions and demonstrations. Food & Music, too! www.louisianabookfestival.org

Louisiana Main to Main: A Cultural Road Show (6 LEH grants totaling nearly $14,000) Various Saturdays in November in Ruston, New Orleans, Eunice, New Iberia, Abbeville and Plaquemine. Experience authentic Louisiana heritage, music, art and crafts, food, and much more during a month-long extravaganza of festivals and special events in November. Louisiana Main Street and designated Main Street Communities throughout the state host the first annual "Louisiana Main to Main, A Cultural Road Show" to collectively showcase our culture, commerce, history, and our abundance of creative and natural assets, and encourages road trips from one Main Street community to the next. See www.louisianamaintomain.org

Conversations with Brenda Marie Osbey (LEH grant of $2,500)
Nov. 10-11
Calcasieu Parish Library, Lake Charles
Contact: Ursula Jones at (337) 475-8798
A $2,500 LEH grant will underwrite a two-day scholar-in-residence program with state poet laureate Brenda Marie Osbey in Lake Charles. Ms Osbey will present a creative writing workshop and a reading/discussion program focusing on her works.

Tom Dent Literary Festival
Nov. 1-3
New Orleans Public Library
The New Orleans Public Library began paying tribute to this native son by allowing his inspiring spirit to be rekindled in an annual literary forum focused on the works of African American authors. Following Hurricane Katrina, 2007 marks the return of the Tom Dent Literary Festival. The library invites the public to take part in its rebirth, moving forward in the spirit of Tom Dent to continue to promote the works of African American writers. http://nutrias.org/~nopl/info/aarcinfo/dent/dent2007/tomdent07.pdf

Louisiana Cultural Vistas for the Holidays
 
Give the gift of all things Louisiana this Holiday Season by purchasing subscriptions to Louisiana Cultural Vistas. The quarterly magazine of the LEH features the best of the Bayou State's artists, writers, photographers and scholars. For a mere $16, treat family, friends, clients and coworkers to a year's worth of enlightenment and entertainment. Make your shopping quick and easy by simply logging on to www.leh.org or call (504) 523-4352. We invite you to view seven past issues of our award-winning magazine by logging onto our website as well.
 

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