MCDHH Awarded Two History Project Grants

Published 08-26-2010

MCDHH Awarded Legacy Grant from the Minnesota Historical Society

MCDHH was awarded a $64,100 grant by the Minnesota Historical Society to collect the oral histories of deaf, deafblind, and hard of hearing people in Minnesota! This project (titled Minnesota Oral/Visual History Project) will use video interviews to document the work of deaf, deafblind, and hard of hearing Minnesotans in civil rights and education reform.

Through this project MCDHH hopes to increase awareness about the historical contributions of the deaf, deafblind, and hard of hearing community, improve understanding of discrimination against the community, and heighten the Minnesota Historical Society’s incorporation of this community into the society’s general scope of work. Congratulations to Cynthia Weitzel for writing this excellent proposal, to Dr. Barb Sommer for introducing us all to the methodology of oral history and to all of the community members who helped.

Click here to view announcement of grantees on MNHS website.

MCDHH Awarded Grant from Minnesota Digital Library: Reflections Project

MCDHH, as coordinator in partnership with MADC, Thompson Hall, and MSAD Alumni Association Museum, has been granted the opportunity to have selected historical photographs and documents of the three contributing partner organizations scanned, digitalized and archived. Once the process is complete, the collections will be made public on the Minnesota Reflections website – a service of Minnesota Digital Library funded by a Library Services and Technology Act grant through the State Library Services and School Technology division of the Minnesota Department of Education, and by the time and talent of the participants in the Minnesota Digital Library Coalition.

Once these collections are made public later this fall, they will become an invaluable resource for historians, researchers, teachers, students, legislators, community members and so on. Many thanks to our partners and community members who are helping to make this happen, especially the countless hours donated by MADC History Committee Chaired by Deaf Historian, Doug Bahl. The estimated value of this project is close to $20,000.