Mass Humanities Announces 2025 Funding Opportunities

07:41AM / Saturday, March 22, 2025Print Story | Email Story

NORTHAMPTON, Mass. — Mass Humanities has announced its 2025 funding opportunities through its Expand Massachusetts Stories (EMS) initiative.

This year, the EMS initiative features:

Promises of the Revolution: Organizations are invited to explore how people, past and present, responded to the promises of the American Revolution in preparation for the country's 250th anniversary in 2026.
Story Forward: Organizations that have received funding from Mass Humanities in the past can advance their storytelling to reach new audiences or build on previous work.

Reading Frederick Douglass Together grants are currently open, with applications accepted on a rolling basis throughout the year.

Application materials for EMS grants are available on the Mass Humanities website. Letters of Inquiry are due June 9.

Mass Humanities has set aside $600,000 to fund projects in the Promises of the Revolution track.

Mass Humanities launched the EMS initiative in 2021 with the support of Mass Cultural Council and the Barr Foundation.

In 2024, Mass Humanities awarded $1.2 million in EMS grants to 64 cultural nonprofit organizations.

Eligibility requirements and grant guidelines can be viewed on the Mass Humanities grants website.

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Pittsfield Council Revisiting DEI Office Rename

By Brittany PolitoiBerkshires Staff
04:11PM / Tuesday, October 13, 2026

PITTSFIELD, Mass. — The conversation about the DEI office renaming that was halted by a charter objection will resume on Tuesday.

The City Council will discuss a request from Mayor Peter Marchetti to rename the Office of Diversity, Equity, and Inclusion.

It proposes to rename the DEI office to the Office of Equity, Access, and Opportunity and merge the Human Rights Commission and Affirmative Action Committee into an Equity, Access and Opportunity Commission.

The Ordinance and Rules Subcommittee supported the changes in August, and in September, Ward 2 Councilor Cameron Cunningham delayed the vote with a charter objection.

Pittsfield's City Code prohibits charter states that "if a single member present objects to the taking of the vote, the vote shall be postponed until the next meeting of the city council." It also stipulates that at least four members must object if it is an emergency measure.

Cunningham also submitted a petition, which was referred to O&R under Rule 27, to replace the DEI Office and the Human Rights Commission with an equity, access, and opportunity coordinator in the Department of Community Development, with formal complaints and Equal Employment Opportunity and Affirmative Action functions assigned to Human Resources.

At the last meeting, he spent more than an hour querying the mayor and chief diversity officer about functions and effectiveness of the department, wanting more quantitative data. Cunningham proposed an ordinance that he says keeps Pittsfield's commitment to equity, access, and opportunity, "refocuses it on measurable results for our residents, and delivers it at a fraction of the current cost."

Under this petition, the equity, access, and opportunity coordinator would be a $60,000 to $80,000 per year position.

The DEI Office's fiscal year 2027 budget was about $200,000 after cuts during budget season; $106,700 for the chief diversity officer and $58,000 for the administrative assistant. The coordinator would be appointed by the director of community development and the mayor.

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