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Mass Humanities urges community-led programming for 250th, highlights 'Expand Massachusetts Stories' results
Summary
Brian Boyles of Mass Humanities told the commission that recent grantmaking and research emphasize community leadership, accessibility and broader storytelling; the organization's Expand Massachusetts Stories initiative distributed roughly $3 million for story projects and prioritized small and first-time grantees.
Brian Boyles, executive director of Mass Humanities, told the commission that the 250th commemoration is an opportunity to broaden which Massachusetts stories are told and who tells them.
Boyles described lessons from the nonprofit’s recent grantmaking, including a strategic emphasis on community-driven projects and accessibility. He said Mass Humanities’ Expand Massachusetts Stories initiative required projects to center the experiences of Massachusetts residents and that the foundation prioritized new applicants and small local organizations to reduce barriers to participation.
“We said there are tradition bearers. There are people with lived experience. Not only should they be funded, they should be part of the decision making,” Boyles said. He framed the work as an effort to make public history feel relevant and accessible to audiences who have historically been underrepresented in museums and archives.
Boyles gave summary figures for the foundation’s recent work: he said Mass Humanities distributed about $3,000,000 in story projects (funding provided in part by Mass Cultural Council and the Barr Foundation) and also noted the organization distributed $1,600,000 in grants in 2024. He described the pandemic-era expansion of grantmaking and a three-year strategy that foregrounded narrative inclusion, translation, and funding for smaller groups without professional grant writers.
Boyles recommended that the commission consider accessibility standards, statewide distribution of programming and support for reimagined forms of expertise—beyond academic historians—to include community leaders, oral-history projects, podcasts and other media. He said these approaches can help bring people “into the story of Massachusetts” and urged commissioners to support programming that centers community leadership during the 250th.
