Humanities Tennessee

The future we build begins with you. 🌱 Join Humanities Tennessee’s spring fundraising campaign — May 4 through June 18 — to help raise $25,000 for a more curious, connected, and civil Tennessee. Be part of something growing. Donate / share / follow: link in bio #HumanitiesTN #SpringCampaign #TheFutureWeBuild

Tennessee History Day is a year-long history program that invites middle and high school students to do hands-on research and present their interpretations about a topic of their choosing through exhibits, performances, documentaries, websites, or papers. This year, the projects centered on the theme Revolution, Reaction, Reform in History. As we have done for many years, Humanities Tennessee proudly presented two special awards at the state contest recently to the best projects interpreting Tennessee's history: Best Project in Tennessee History, Junior Division Junior Individual Documentary Voices On The Mountain: The Highlander Folk School’s Story of Freedom and Change Rameen Alborz Clayton-Bradley STEM Academy, Blount County Educator: Nicole Whitecotton Best Project in Tennessee History, Senior Division Senior Group Performance Listen to Mama: The Ratification of the 19th Amendment Julia Anderson, Catherine Fields, Noah Grant, Sky Huskey, Sofia Turpin-Bolanos Chattanooga School for Arts and Sciences, Hamilton County Educator: Kelly Davis Congratulations to the all the students who explored their curiosity through Tennessee History Day and good luck to those preparing for the National History Day contest in June! #historyday #publichumanities

🌸 The future we build begins with you. 🌸 This spring, we’re dreaming bigger — and we need you with us. From May 7 – June 18, Humanities Tennessee is raising $25,000 to help build a more curious, connected, and civil Tennessee. Why? Because the conversations we start today shape our communities for years to come. Whether it’s through literature, history, or public dialogue, your support makes space for understanding instead of division. Here’s how you can help: 🔹 Donate at the link in our bio 🔹 Share this post to spread the word 🔹 Follow along as we share stories of impact all spring long Let’s grow a kinder, wiser Tennessee — together. 🌱 #HumanitiesTN #SpringForCuriosity #TheFutureWeBuild #TNnonprofit

The latest episode in our Curating Tennessee: 1776-2076 podcast series dropped today. Listen in to hear Patrick Hollis, Executive Director and Curator at the Mabry-Hazen House in Knoxville, discuss this biscuit table and more. Search for Humanities in Action wherever you get your podcasts or click the link in our bio. - This episode is part of By the People: Conversations Beyond 250, a series of community-driven programs created by humanities councils in collaboration with local partners. The initiative was developed by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and Smithsonian Folklife. This project is also funded under an agreement with the State of Tennessee administered by the Tennessee Commission for the United States Semiquincentennial (Tennessee 250).

🚨CALLING ALL HIGH SCHOOL AGED CREATIVE WRITERS IN TENNESSEE🚨 We want YOU to attend the Tennessee Young Writers’ Workshop this June 21-27, 2026! Come live on a college campus for a week and immerse yourself in the craft of writing, all while participating in activities that still scream summer camp — think swimming, tie-dye, arts & crafts, themed nights, and more! For more information, check out the link in our bio. Deadline to apply is May 15, 2026, and scholarships are available! #creativewriting #summercamp #highschool #tnyoungwriters #tnyoungwritersworkshop

What exhibit at Red Clay State Historic Park do park staff think would have been inconceivable to America's founders? Listen to this short bonus episode of Curating Tennessee: 1776-2076 to find out! Search for Humanities in Action wherever you listen or find the link in our bio. - This episode is part of By the People: Conversations Beyond 250, a series of community-driven programs created by humanities councils in collaboration with local partners. The initiative was developed by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and the Smithsonian Folklife . This project is also funded under an agreement with the State of Tennessee administered by the Tennessee Commission for the United States Semiquincentennial (Tennessee 250).

Join us for presentation of the Tennessee Book Award, Reading, and Reception honoring Didi Jackson on May 2, 2026, at Parnassus Books. Jackson is the author of the poetry collections My Infinity and Moon Jar. Her poems have appeared in The American Poetry Review, The Atlantic, Bomb, The New Yorker, and World Literature Today among other journals and magazines. She has had poems selected for Best American Poetry, Academy of American Poets’ Poem-a-day, and The Slow Down with Tracy K. Smith. She is the recipient of the Robert H. Winner Memorial Award from the Poetry Society of America and has received fellowships from Vermont Studio Center and Virgina Center for Creative Arts. She is a Dean’s Faculty Fellow at Vanderbilt University in Nashville, Tennessee, where she teaches creative writing. Most recently she completed her certification as a Tennessee Naturalist. RSVP here: /e/celebrating-didi-jackson-2025-tennessee-book-award-poetry-winner-tickets-1986228217065?aff=oddtdtcreator

Time for the next episode of Curating Tennessee, 1776 - 2076. We're joined by Erin Medley and Aubrey Michaels of Red Clay State Historic Park. Listen by clicking the link in our bio or searching for Humanities in Action wherever you get your podcasts. - This episode is part of By the People: Conversations Beyond 250, a series of community-driven programs created by humanities councils in collaboration with local partners. The initiative was developed by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and the Smithsonian Center for Folklife and Cultural Heritage. This project is also funded under an agreement with the State of Tennessee administered by the Tennessee Commission for the United States Semiquincentennial.

Our next TN Writers | TN Stories event will feature Sheri Sellmeyer and her book, "Nashville’s New Americans: Tracing the Journeys of Immigrant Neighbors" on Saturday, April 11 at 10:30 a.m. Whether it’s building skyscrapers, running successful restaurants, researching diseases, performing music, cleaning hotel rooms, or holding public office, immigrants are changing Nashville from a mid sized city known for its country music industry to an increasingly diverse, multicultural destination. Author Sheri Sellmeyer provides a case study from one of the fastest-growing cities in the country on the contributions immigrants are making to its culture and economy. She will be joined in discussion by WPLN reporter Cynthia Abrams, as well as two individuals highlighted in the book, Ahmed Konteh and Loraine Segovia-Paz. RSVP 🎟️ at the link in our bio. This free book discussion is part of our TN Writers | TN Stories series presented in partnership with @chapter.16 , @humanities_tn , and @vanderbiltuniversitypress .

The Tennessee Young Writers' Workshop provides high school students ages 14-18 with a unique overnight summer camp experience focused on creative writing. This year's camp will be hosted at Austin Peay State University in Clarksville, Tennessee from June 21-27, 2026. Applications are due May 15, 2026. Link in bio!

Why does Cragfont State Historic Site's Executive Director Tonya Staggs believe this artifact would have been inconceivable to America's Founders? Listen to our short bonus episode of Curating Tennessee: 1776-2026 to find out! Search for Humanities in Action on your podcast platform or find the link in our bio. -- This episode is part of By the People: Conversations Beyond 250, a series of community-driven programs created by humanities councils in collaboration with local partners. The initiative was developed by the Federation of State Humanities Councils and Smithsonian Folklife. This project is also partially funded under an agreement with the State of Tennessee administered by the Tennessee Commission for the United States Semiquincentennial.

Humanities Tennessee is happy to announce that we are a recipient of a $5,000 publication grant for Tennessee America 250 initiatives from the Tennessee Commission for the United States Semiquincentennial. The grant award will be used for a digital exhibit composed of artifacts and stories from our podcast series “Curating Tennessee: 1776-2076.”