Digital Humanities Leadership through the Adler Planetarium’s Preservation, Engagement, and Crowdsourcing Initiatives

FAIN: HC-274267-20

Adler Planetarium & Astronomy Museum (Chicago, IL 60605-2403)
Andrew Johnston (Project Director: May 2020 to April 2025)

Retention of six staff positions to further digital engagement with humanities collections and sustained development of a crowdsourced transcription platform.

This effort will retain and support critical staff leading digital humanities (DH) efforts at the Adler Planetarium, which has long served as a bridge between humanities and science. DH leadership includes support for longtime Adler initiatives like Zooniverse, which provides tools and support for GLAM/humanities teams building crowdsourced research projects. Digital engagement with Adler collections includes Google Arts & Culture exhibitions, current and upcoming Zooniverse projects, and significant in-house experience developing and running live stream events. NEH funds will ensure that Adler DH efforts persist, including continuing to function as a source of support for the broader humanities community by providing tools and guidance for institutions creating meaningful digital engagement with cultural heritage collections. [edited by staff]