The Prairie Landscape

The Public Humanities Award - 2006 Archive

The Public Humanities Award - 2006

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Given annually by the IHC, the Public Humanities Award recognizes individuals and organizations for their contributions to public understanding of the role the humanities play in transforming lives and strengthening communities.

On April 27 at noon, Chicago Public Library Commissioner Mary A. Dempsey will receive the Council’s 2006 Public Humanities Award on behalf of the Chicago Public Library System.

Commissioner Dempsey will be honored for her commitment to lifelong learning, to public access to information, and for championing the freedom of all people to read, learn, and discover at the public library.

Please join us at the University Club of Chicago on Thursday, April 27 at noon for a benefit luncheon honoring Commissioner Dempsey. Mayor Richard M. Daley serves as the honorary chair for this event. Luncheon tickets are $100. Please call Kate Anderson at (312) 422-5585 x235 for reservations, sponsorship opportunities, and other information.

In 2005, The Hon. Abner and Zoe Mikva were honored for their lifelong commitment to civic education, promoting public understanding of the rights and responsibilities of citizenship, and for a partnership that is more than the sum of two distinguished careers in public service.

Past Public Humanities Award winners include:

  • 1984:
    -John Hope Franklin
    -Stuart Struever
    -The Hon. Jim Edgar
    -The Hon. Paul Simon
    -The Hon. Sidney Yates
    -Louise Año Nuevo Kerr
  • 1985 - J. Michael Lennon
  • 1986 - Mary Ward Wolkonsky
  • 1987 - The Hon. Dawn Clark Netsch and Walter Netsch
  • 1988 - Brena and Lee Freeman
  • 1989 - Cyrus Colter
  • 1990 - Bridget Lamont
  • 1992 - Nancy Anderson Stevenson
  • 1993 -Francis J. Pettis
  • 1994:
    -Martin R. Marty
    -Stanley J. Ikenberry
    -Richard J. Franke
    -Chicago Tribune