A recent $100,000 grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities will help Slippery Rock University guarantee educational opportunities for future generations.

The NEH is a funding agency that awards grants through an intense selection process. Winning proposals are among the top rated in the country.

“The idea behind our project is to connect the public with the humanities,” said Aaron Cowan, an SRU professor and co-director of the Stone House Center for Public Humanities. “The center is an umbrella for a bunch of projects, including the Humanities Ladder program.”

The Humanities Ladder program, recipient of the $100,000 NEH grant, provides local high schools with college-level humanities courses.

“Research suggests that first-generation students, students of color, non-traditional backgrounds have a hard time adjusting to college,” said Lia Paradis, SRU professor and co-director of the center. “And it's not a matter of academics or economics.”

College students from communities or households lacking college-educated forerunners have no example to follow through schooling.

“Paradis has a nice phrase for this problem, I think: 'It can seem like everyone else knows a secret handshake that you don't know,'” Cowan said.

“Slippery Rock's program fits perfectly within this new initiative we're excited about,” said Ellen Jones, public affairs and outreach specialist at the NEH.

The SRU program covers a breadth of subjects often overlooked in standard high school curricula.

“Once a week we go into the school and we'll teach philosophy, anthropology, art history,” Cowan said. “It builds analytical skills, challenges ethics and addresses moral problems.”

The Humanities Ladder program is currently working with Aliquippa High School, but the directors plan to spread into other schools.

“The NEH grant helps keep the program running, but it will also allow us to expand,” Cowan said. “We're hoping to offer it at Union High School soon.”

Cowan also mentioned an on-campus summer program in development.

“It's about exposing students to the humanities and the college experience in a way that's not intimidating,” Paradis said. “Giving them the confidence to say, 'Hey, I can do this.'”

The NEH has shifted from a simply academic focus to a broader policy of public engagement with the humanities.

“They're speaking to the problems of public life,” said Cowan. “They've piloted other programs to educate returning veterans, for example.”

SRU's initiative is ahead of this trend.

“We want to develop educated and engaged citizens,” Paradis said.

The center provides humanities education and experiences in the community, alongside the Humanities Ladder program.

“We've done plays, lectures, workshops,” Cowan said. “We want the community to see the Stone House as a public venue.”

Cowan and Paradis emphasized the importance of donors and public support to keep the program operating and improving.

“Programs supported by the NEH are highly respected, so we're hoping this creates interest among organizations that could help,” Paradis said.

This NEH grant requires the beneficiary to match the awarded amount, so, while the institution is preparing fundraising, they are also looking to local organizations for aid.

The program also invites the community's input and contribution.

“Maybe someone wants to do a reading group or an art exhibit,” Cowan said. “We're interested in what the community wants to see, and if we could build something together that'd be really exciting.”

For more information or to get in contact with The Stone House Center for Public Humanities, go to www.stonehousecph.org.