51¸£ÀûÉç has been awarded a federal planning grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) in support of a regional digital humanities program involving institutions of higher education and secondary education institutions.

Led by Associate Professor of English Dr. Geremy Carnes, and Dr. Meg Smith of Southern Illinois University Edwardsville, the grant will benefit high school and college students and educators in the St. Louis region and will last 18 months, from January 2022 through June 2023.

“We will be holding a workshop that will involve representatives from institutions both at the secondary and higher education level,” Carnes explained. “Our goal will be to generate ideas for how we can leverage our strengths to better serve the teaching of digital humanities in the St. Louis area.”

Lindenwood’s selection as a grant recipient formalizes the NEH support of the University as a leader in digital humanities research and scholarship. And establishing a working network of humanities educators in the region will expand engagement opportunities for students and shrink the divide between secondary and higher education. According to Dr. Kathi Vosevich, dean of the College of Arts and Humanities, “Very importantly, this grant also validates the college’s strategy to break boundaries in a holistic approach to learning. We are so honored to be awarded a prestigious Digital Humanities Advancement Grant, one of only two in the state and 15 in the country.”

To facilitate these groundbreaking initiatives, the grant is supported by an advisory committee comprised of local educators including Dr. Lara Kelland from University of Missouri St. Louis, Dr. John McEwan from Saint Louis University, and Dr. Geoff Ward from Washington University in St. Louis. The high school advisory committee includes Donna Canan from Kirkwood High School, Christine Henske from Maplewood-Richmond Heights High School, and Bridget Nelson from East St. Louis Charter High School.

Awarding of the grant is the culmination of several years of work and funded projects secured by Lindenwood digital humanities faculty. Additionally, the NEH presented at Lindenwood in April 2021 which identified this grant opportunity and encouraged the grant application. 

 “At Lindenwood, we look at projects like kindling for a fire that can grow. We can in turn, support research in the right way that can lead to some pretty significant grants and sponsored projects,” Michael Leary, assistant vice president, research and compliance institutional effectiveness remarked.

Carnes and Smith will begin work immediately and anticipate an event in early fall.