What We Do
The Illinois
Humanities Council's programs, including its community grants program,
offer Illinois residents the opportunity to experience the humanities
through a rich variety of formats. From small
discussion groups in neighborhood coffee shops, to lectures and performances at
cultural venues, to reading and reflection seminars in hospitals across
the state, IHC programs are designed
to broaden public involvement in civic dialogue, deepen
the quality of community conversation and reflection, increase
public access to the humanities by lowering barriers to participation, and expand
humanities activities in unexpected places.
Here are some examples of the diverse programming the IHC offers:
All IHC Programs
The IHC presents All-Consuming, a year-long, state-wide series that examines the key issues related to access to and control of oil and water using the lens of the humanities.
Capitol Forum, a year-long civic education initiative of the
Choices Program at Brown University, raises international awareness and promotes educated civic exchange among high school students statewide.
The IHC funds non-profit organizations that develop public humanities programs for Illinois audiences that are shaped by and significantly involve humanities scholars and/or other community experts and that reach historically underserved audiences.
Folksongs of Illinois is a series of three CDs that document the rich and varied history of folk and popular music in Illinois.
A listing of programs that IHC has sponsored in the past.
The IHC Road Scholars Speakers Bureau allows non-profit organizations the opportunity to offer high-quality, free public humanities programs to local audiences.
Literature & Medicine is a discussion-based program that brings hospital staff together monthly to reflect on the larger mission of medicine through facilitated conversations about literature.
MoMS, a partnership with the Smithsonian Institution, offers high-quality traveling exhibitions to small museums, libraries, and historical societies in Illinois towns with populations of 30,000 or less, or by invitation.
The Meaning of Service (MoS) is a national reading and discussion program for service volunteers featuring discussions that use short philosophical and literary texts on the nature of justice, service, and related themes.
Odyssey provides a college-level introduction to the humanities through text-based seminars led by professors at top-tier colleges and universities to help adults with low incomes more actively shape their own lives and the lives of their families and communities.
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.
The Public Square fosters debate, dialogue, and exchange of ideas about cultural, social, and political issues with an emphasis on social justice.
The Studs Terkel Humanities Service Award is a biennial honor bestowed on individuals who carry the torch of the humanities. These humanities heroes are nominated by Illinois mayors.
Velosophie is a reading-discussion program that combines physical, outdoor excursions in natural settings with evening reading and reflection.
Voices is an annual radio series that showcases a wide variety of programs created or funded by the Illinois Humanities Council. The series is produced by 98.7WFMT, Chicago's Classical Experience.
