| CH-50161-05 | Challenge Programs: Challenge Grants | ACCESS | Arab American National Museum Endowment | 12/1/2003 - 7/31/2007 | $250,000.00 | Anan | | Ameri | | | | ACCESS | Dearborn | MI | 48120-1556 | USA | 2004 | Interdisciplinary Studies, General | Challenge Grants | Challenge Programs | 0 | 250000 | 0 | 250000 | Endowment for the salary of a key humanities position, Manager of Public Programs, at the Arab American National Museum.
ACCESS requests an NEH Challenge Grant of $250,000 to support endowment of the Arab American National Museum (AANM), scheduled to open in January 2005 in Dearborn, Michigan. Income from the endowed funds will support the position of a Manager of Public Programs at the AANM, and will ensure that appropriate humanities-based programming is implemented in conjunction with exhibits both at the Museum, and in other venues where AANM exhibits will travel. Programming will be comprised of conferences, lectures, symposia, readings, seminars, and demonstrations. The Arab American National Museum, developed over the last five years by ACCESS in close consultation with scholars and museum professionals, will provide a focus for the in-depth study of Arab American community history, past, present, and future. |
| GE-250082-16 | Public Programs: America's Historical and Cultural Organizations: Planning Grants | ACCESS | The New Face of Arab America: Immigrant and Refugee Communities | 8/1/2016 - 9/1/2017 | $45,000.00 | Matthew | Jaber | Stiffler | | | | ACCESS | Dearborn | MI | 48120-1556 | USA | 2016 | Ethnic Studies | America's Historical and Cultural Organizations: Planning Grants | Public Programs | 45000 | 0 | 45000 | 0 | Research and planning to inform the Museum’s exhibitions,
collections, and programming about Arab Americans’ experiences, culture, and
history.
This project will examine recent patterns of migration to the US from the Arab world for the purpose of current and inclusive representation in the Arab American National Museum’s public programs, collections, and permanent exhibits. We will partner with leading scholars to conduct community-based research with a representative selection of recent immigrant and refugee communities across the country. Collectively, we will produce a compelling and inclusive portrait of Arab immigration to the US from the 9/11 era until today. NEH planning funds will enable us to: 1) explore specific post 9-11 immigration and settlement patterns to the US from the Arab world, including statistics, qualitative data, and a range of cultural, social, and political influences on the larger landscape of American society; 2) consider important thematic issues that are of greatest significance to our communities; and 3) synthesize findings to draw up an interpretive plan for the AANM's collections and exhibits. |
| GM-26329-01 | Public Programs: Humanities Projects in Museums and Historical Organizations | ACCESS | Arab American National Museum and Cultural Center Conference | 9/1/2001 - 12/31/2001 | $10,000.00 | Anan | | Ameri | | | | ACCESS | Dearborn | MI | 48120-1556 | USA | 2001 | Ethnic Studies | Humanities Projects in Museums and Historical Organizations | Public Programs | 10000 | 0 | 10000 | 0 | Consultation with scholars and museum professionals to develop a vision for the new Arab American National Museum and Cultural Center and to develop a plan for its permanent collections, public exhibitions, and public programming. |
| PB-274317-20 | Preservation and Access: Cooperative Agreements and Special Projects (P&A) | ACCESS | Promoting Public Digital Access to the Arab American National Museum's Educational Resources | 6/15/2020 - 1/31/2021 | $165,532.00 | Diana | | Abouali | | | | ACCESS | Dearborn | MI | 48120-1556 | USA | 2020 | Cultural History | Cooperative Agreements and Special Projects (P&A) | Preservation and Access | 165532 | 0 | 165532 | 0 | The retention of nine staff members who would enable the museum to transform its educational resources and exhibitions to an online delivery system in order to sustain and increase access to its collections and services.
The Arab American National Museum, an institution of ACCESS, requests NEH funds to support core staff as we pivot our educational resources-- lesson plans, object-based learning experiences, and exhibition tours-- to a digital platform for local, regional, and national audiences. |
| PG-50990-10 | Preservation and Access: Preservation Assistance Grants | ACCESS | Equipment Upgrade Proposal | 1/1/2010 - 6/30/2011 | $6,000.00 | Stephen | | Williams | | | | ACCESS | Dearborn | MI | 48120-1556 | USA | 2009 | Museum Studies or Historical Preservation | Preservation Assistance Grants | Preservation and Access | 6000 | 0 | 6000 | 0 | The purchase of environmental monitoring equipment to help preserve a collection comprising approximately 5,000 items, including books, newspapers, archival materials, objects, and photographs related to Arab and Middle Eastern culture and civilization. The collection includes several cuneiform cylinder seals and a 15th-century astrolabe. However, most of the items date from 1880 to the present and document the history of Arab immigration to the United States.
The Arab American National Museum (AANM), a project of ACCESS, kindly requests a Preservation Assistance grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities. This grant would support the purchase of environmental monitoring equipment, including 18 dataloggers and a flood alarm, to upgrade the monitoring system already in place and expand it to include collections storage areas, temporary galleries and library spaces not currently monitored. The grant would also support the purchase of a HEPA-filtered vacuum unit dedicated to collections care. |
| PY-234356-16 | Preservation and Access: Common Heritage | ACCESS | Impacting Dearborn: The Arab American Community | 1/1/2016 - 3/31/2017 | $12,000.00 | Elyssa | | Bisoski | | | | ACCESS | Dearborn | MI | 48120-1556 | USA | 2015 | American Studies | Common Heritage | Preservation and Access | 12000 | 0 | 12000 | 0 | A digitization event, open to the general public, to gather personal collections relating to the history of Dearborn, Michigan, and a community oral history event. The project would provide for a one-day scanning event, complemented by information on preserving family documents and photographs, coordinated by experienced museum staff and community volunteers. That event will be followed by a community-focused community storytelling and spoken word event, which will highlight the cultural history and contributions of notable Dearborn residents. The Arab American National Museum (AANM), in conjunction with the Lebanese American Heritage Council and the Dearborn Historical Society, would coordinate and sponsor these events in Dearborn, which has the highest percentage of Arab Americans of any city in the United States.
The goal of this project is to tell an accurate story about the Arab American community’s continued impact on Dearborn, MI. Dearborn has the highest percentage of Arab Americans of any city in the country. The diverse Arab American community has been a part of Dearborn for nearly a century, creating positive impacts on the city’s economy and cultural landscape. Despite many media depictions, non-Arab residents in Dearborn live peacefully side by side with their Arab American neighbors. This project will help Arab Americans feel pride in their community and will demonstrate, to a local and national audience, the invaluable contributions of the diverse and vibrant Arab American community. To accomplish this, we will partner with two community institutions, the Lebanese American Heritage Club and the Dearborn Historical Society, to capture, preserve, and share images and stories about Dearborn from both Arab and non-Arab residents. |
| ZPA-283521-22 | Agency-wide Projects: ARP-Organizations (Preservation-related) | ACCESS | Sailors, Auto Workers, and Entrepreneurs: Collecting and Preserving Arab American Stories | 10/1/2021 - 11/30/2022 | $200,000.00 | Diana | | Abouali | | | | ACCESS | Dearborn | MI | 48120-1556 | USA | 2021 | American Studies | ARP-Organizations (Preservation-related) | Agency-wide Projects | 200000 | 0 | 200000 | 0 | The rehiring of a Community History Specialist, who would work full-time on the Arab American National Museum’s (AANM) oral history collection project, and the partial funding of six other staff positions, including the Director, Research and Content Manager, Curatorial Specialist, Curator of Exhibits, Librarian, and Multimedia Specialist, all of whom would support the project on a part-time basis.
Funds from the American Rescue Plan: Humanities Organizations are requested to restore AANM’s Curatorial Department to its pre-pandemic capacity in order to embark on a vital oral history collections initiative that will provide more balance, depth and nuance to the national Arab American story. The proposed project will position AANM to rehire a Community History Specialist and will support a portion of the Curatorial Specialist’s salary while we record, transcribe, and upload interviews and related donated objects and ephemera into our collections in order to keep pace with the communities we aim to represent. The results of this work will be made available on AANM’s website and publicly accessible archive, and promoted through AANM’s vast and established network of cultural institutions, Smithsonian Affiliates, academic institutions, museums, and community members across the country. |