ABOUT MCLA-IAH

The Massachusetts College of Liberal Arts was awarded a $360,000 grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to support the launch of the MCLA Institute for the Arts and Humanities. In June 2019, the College officially launched the Institute in collaboration with Berkshire County arts and humanities partners, local community figures and cultural leaders. 

According to Lisa Donovan, Ph.D., the grant’s principal investigator, the arts can play a powerful role in exploring multiple perspectives, creating space for dialogue and building community. “This grant provides us a unique opportunity for interdisciplinary scholarship and dialogue while deepening connections with area arts and humanities organizations to advance conversations and implement strategies to increase diversity, equity, and inclusion, on campus and off,” Donovan said.

​

This latest Mellon grant follows a $50,000 award to MCLA in 2017. That funding allowed the College to explore curricular connections to regional collaborations and extend best emerging humanities practices in teaching, learning, and community engagement by utilizing new and deeper ways to connect resources in the area.