The Pomeroy Fund for NYS History has awarded 20 history-related organizations across New York State $5,000 each during its fifth grant round to bring back or hire museum educators. The Pomeroy Fund, which is a partnership between the William G. Pomeroy Foundation® and the Museum Association of New York (MANY), has awarded almost $300,000 to 96 history-related organizations across New York State since spring 2020.  “We are grateful to museum educators across the state who help enhance our understanding of history,” said Deryn Pomeroy, Trustee and Director of Strategic Initiatives at the Pomeroy Foundation. “We are proud to provide funding and support to these organizations and their dedicated employees, who play a vital role in preserving and sharing New York’s rich historical heritage.” Educators receiving support through the fifth round of the Pomeroy Fund will plan and deliver interpretive programs, including school programs, teen programs, early childhood programs, family days, festivals, programs for older adults, programs for New Americans, and targeted audience-specific programs. “We are honored to be able to continue this partnership with the Pomeroy Foundation to support the work of museums that tell the story of New York State’s history through their collections and programs,” said MANY Executive Director Erika Sanger. “This was an especially competitive grant cycle and awards were made to only the most outstanding applicants. Museum Education staff and the programs they deliver were especially hard hit in the past three years and these grants will make a real difference in twenty different communities.”

Pomeroy Fund for NYS History Round Five Grantees (listed alphabetically):

Beacon Historical Society (Mid-Hudson) will hire an educator to assist with their year-long project “The West End Story” which examines the history of Beacon’s changing landscape during Urban Renewal. Beacon Historical Society hopes to amplify elder community voices, immigrants, and People of Color who were most affected by Urban Renewal to raise questions and form ideas for the future of Beacon.

Delaware County Historical Association (Southern Tier) will hire an educator to administer a new in-person adult letter transcription workshop focused on reading and understanding 18th and 19th-century handwriting offering ongoing educational opportunities in reading, transcribing, and understanding historical documents. 

Edward Hopper House Museum & Study Center (Mid-Hudson) will rehire an arts education program manager to plan and implement education and community outreach initiatives to engage a broad audience and support audience diversity and cultural experiences. The arts education program manager will work with staff to bring back in-person programs including the Nighthawks Teen Leadership Program which trains high school students in visitor services, interpretive public speaking, and serving as junior docents. 

Glens Falls-Queensbury Historical Association/Chapman Museum (Capital Region) will hire a seasonal museum educator to lead the Ticket to Ride program at the Glens Falls Feeder Canal where students use inquiry skills to analyze photographs, examine artifacts, explore hands-on STEM-based exhibitions, and learn about the historic and economic impact of NYS Canals. 

Greater Astoria Historical Society (New York City) will hire an educator to plan, coordinate and implement a historical walking tour during the summer months for elementary school-aged children. Tours will focus on architecture, local history, the environment, civics, and the arts.

Historic Cherry Hill (Capital Region) will expand the hours of their education assistant hired in 2022 to support the museum’s expanded public hours, develop new school programs, and update existing programs to meet the needs of students. Programs include the Hudson River School Trading Game for 4th and 5th graders which connects students to Albany’s significant history as a Hudson River port that includes stories of People of Color.

Historical Society of Saratoga Springs/Saratoga Springs History Museum (Capital Region) will hire an educator to coordinate and conduct programming beginning in Spring 2023 to increase the accessibility of off-site school programming and to partner with Saratoga Springs High School on an elective course “The History of Saratoga Springs.”

John Brown Lives! (North Country) will hire a part-time educator to help develop, deliver, and evaluate a field trip program and work with NYS Archives Partnership Trust to prepare, promote, and schedule a two-day professional development program for teachers, librarians, and teaching artists interested in making “Timbuctoo” a central feature of the curriculum in North Country schools and for other museum and historic site colleagues.

Lewis County Historical Society (North Country) will rehire a summer educator to work with its education committee to strengthen school partnerships. The educator will develop “Classroom Learning Kits” for 4th-grade students that focus on local history, including the Black River Canal and the local logging industry, in order to develop a foundational understanding of events that have impacted their community.

Michigan Street African American Heritage Corridor Commission (Western NY) will hire a visitor experience specialist to expand open hours, provide tours, coordinate volunteer docents, assist the program manager, and assist in the planning and development of new tours with the goal to inspire visitors to better understand social justice and their role in creating equitable communities. 

Mount Gulian Society (Mid-Hudson) will hire a part-time museum educator/program manager to plan, promote, launch, and evaluate public and student programs. Programs will focus on the stories of the people who lived and worked at Mount Gulian through on-site and off-site school presentations, living history re-enactments, public lectures, summer camp programs, exhibitions, and specially-themed tours.

North Creek Railway Depot Preservation Association (Capital Region) will hire a museum educator to expand the museum’s current pre-K to 4th-grade school program “People and Trains That Could” to high school students. This educator will also connect programs to ongoing community events, increase the number of public group tours, enhance onsite tours, develop live-streaming presentations, and offer interpretive presentations and lectures to North Creek’s assisted living and nursing home residents.

Putnam History Museum (Mid-Hudson) will hire a museum educator to create educational and public programming for the exhibition, Indigenous Peoples in Putnam County, scheduled to open in May 2023. Working with the Stockbridge-Munsee Band of Mohicans, the museum educator will create several interpretive activities and programs to coincide with this exhibition including an elementary and middle-school field trip guide and plans for a Native American Heritage Day at the museum which will include demonstrations, discussions, walks, and in-person and virtual talks.

Seneca Falls Historical Society (Finger Lakes) will hire a museum educator to help coordinate school and public programs including a summer camp program that partners with the Seneca Museum of Waterways and Industry, and EEEK! (Explore, Experiment, Engage for Kids) a once a month education resource bag designed for students in grades 3rd through 5th. 

Slate Valley Museum Foundation (Capital Region) will hire a museum educator to revive and deliver programs to schools and seniors, and develop collaborative program partnerships. With the hiring of this education, the museum will be able to meet the needs of the community’s school and senior groups seeking programming about local history, culture, and science. 

The Friends of Mills at Staatsburgh (Mid-Hudson) will hire an interpreter to deliver programs, including a new outdoor program for ages 9 to 14, “Shaping Staatsburgh: Exploring the Language of Architecture” along with other family programs. This interpreter will also assist staff with family tourism and craft programs and with the delivery of K-8 onsite lessons reaching across the Mid-Hudson region. 

Time and the Valleys Museum (Mid-Hudson) will hire a museum educator to help create two new educational programs and redesign two existing programs to align with current teaching standards, reduce pressure on volunteers, and include the expanded 1930s Lost Catskill Farm complex –expanding in 2023 to increase the number of programs offered. 

Underground Railroad Education Center (Capital Region) will increase the hours of the deputy director to lead one-week-long immersion experiences for pre-teens and teens focused on selected historic topics that have contemporary relevance including “Women of Mark” which focuses on the impact of selected Black female artists who changed the trajectory of history and a workshop series that will use visual art as a tool to tell historic and personal stories.

Vander Ende Onderdonk House/Greater Ridgewood Historical Society (New York City) will use grant funding to pay docents to lead education programs designed to complement NYS Social Studies Standards for K-8 and public group tours exploring the oldest stone house in New York City. Program topics include enslaved persons and Dutch farming, immigration and housing in Ridgewood, 18th-century life on the farm, women in New Netherland, and Ridgewood now and then.

Wappingers Historical Society (Mid-Hudson) will hire a museum educator to develop, create, and lead in-person programs for elementary and middle school students to support and supplement the New York State Social Studies curriculum for grades 4 and 7 using exhibitions and collecting items for the basis of these programs. 

About the William G. Pomeroy Foundation  The William G. Pomeroy Foundation® is committed to supporting the celebration and preservation of community history; and working to improve the probability of finding appropriate donor matches or other life-saving treatments for blood cancer patients. Established by Trustee Bill Pomeroy in 2005 to bring together his two greatest passions, the Pomeroy Foundation is a private, philanthropic organization located in Syracuse, N.Y. As the nation’s leading funder of historic roadside markers, the Pomeroy Foundation has awarded over 1,800 grants for markers and bronze plaques in 46 states and Washington, D.C. To learn more about the Pomeroy Foundation, visit wgpfoundation.org.

About the Museum Association of New York The Museum Association of New York is the only statewide museum service organization with more than 700 member museums, historical societies, zoos, botanical gardens, and aquariums. MANY helps shape a better future for museums and museum professionals by uplifting best practices and building organizational capacity through advocacy, training, and networking opportunities. Visit www.nysmuseums.org and follow MANY on Facebook, Twitter, Instagram, and LinkedIn @nysmuseums