Lenora Hammonds, associate professor of jazz studies at North Carolina Central University, received support recently from the National Endowment for the Arts. Hammonds shared advice on her application process at the national HBCU conference this week.
To help address funding needs, a session with panelists who recently received National Endowment for the Arts (NEA) or National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) grants offered advice to prospective applicants.
“It’s important to not be quiet about something you’re doing on campus that you’re excited about,” said Lenora Helm Hammonds, an associate professor of jazz studies at North Carolina Central University (NCCU). Hammonds recently received NEA support for a teaching artist certification program at NCCU. “I just started reaching out to people, saying this is what I have, who do you know that can help me figure out what I don’t know.”
Tina Rollins, director of Hampton University’s William R. and Norma B. Harvey library, agreed and suggested building relationships with the institution’s grant coordination office as well as with NEA or NEH staff.
“Know your connections on campus that will help walk you through what you need for your application,” said Rollins, who received NEH support to develop a national forum on the recruitment and retention of minority library professionals. “It’s always great to have a cheerleader in the office of sponsored programs or grants who will take your calls.”
Rollins and Hammonds both shared the impact of their grants on garnering more respect for their work in the humanities.
“It created a way for activists who were artists in my community to be able to say, ‘Oh, NEA thinks that this is viable and important and interesting to support. Therefore, my work is viable and important and interesting to support,’” said Hammonds.
