The Vivian G. Harsh Society, Inc. Announces 2009 Timuel D. Black, Jr. Fellowship Recipients
April, 2009
CHICAGO, IL - The Vivian G. Harsh Society, Inc is pleased to announce the first two Timuel D. Black, Jr. Short-Term Fellowships in African American Studies. The Timuel D. Black, Jr. Fund, a standing committee of the Vivian G. Harsh Society, Inc., is providing short-term research fellowships related to the Vivian G. Harsh Research Collection of Afro-American History and Literature housed at the Carter G. Woodson Regional Library of the Chicago Public Library (the Collection). The fellowship program supports scholars, writers, educators and institutional researchers who would benefit from research conducted at the Vivian G. Harsh Collection. The fellowship period is for one or two months during summer 2009. Fellows will receive a stipend of $2,000 per month while conducting research in Chicago.
The Timuel D. Black Jr. Fellowships for 2009 were awarded to a community activist and a scholar. Both have exhibited excellence in their inquiries, have a significant body of work, and have demonstrated a need to conduct research in the Vivian G. Harsh Research Collection of Afro-American History and Literature.
The 2009 Timuel D. Black, Jr. Fellows are:
Sherry Williams has on her own, and in conjunction with the Bronzeville/ Black Chicagoan Historical Society, explored the Vivian G. Harsh Collection to identify and organize African American Civil Rights participation and experiences of Black activists in Chicago. The longer-term intention of the research is the creation of a graphic museum exhibit and the production of community-based learning materials.
Professor Sonja Williams, chair of the Department of Radio, Television, and Film in the John H. Johnson School of Communications at Howard University. Professor Williams is working on a book length project on editor, media producer, and radical educator Richard Durham, best known for his Chicago-produced radio drama series, "Destination Freedom," during the late 1940's. Durham, a pioneer in cultural education through both old and new media in the black community, offers a uniquely revealing window into the mid-century history of Black Chicago.
The 2009 Review Panel
The 2009 review panel for the fellowships consisted of:
- Timeul D. Black, Jr., Member, Board of Directors
- Sammie Dortch, Chair of the Board of Directors
- Michael Flug, Archivist, the Vivian G. Harsh Collection, Carter Woodson Library
- Adam Green, Associate Professor, Department of History, University of Chicago
- James Grossman, vice president for research and education, Newberry Library
- Robert Miller, Curator, the Vivian G. Harsh Collection, Carter Woodson Library
- R. Susan Motley, Secy, Board of Directors; Chair, Timuel D. Black Committee.
The Vivian G. Harsh Society, Inc., is an Associate member of the Black Metropolis Research Consortium. We thank BMRC for its support and management of this Fellowship.
The Timuel D. Black, Jr. Short-Term Fellowships in African American Studies is made possible by the generous support of individual contributions to the Vivian G. Harsh Society, Inc., a 501c3 nonprofit, Ariel Investments and The Polk Bros. Foundation.
