Mississippi Delta Heritage Receives Support through NHA Grants

Recipients of the Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area (MDNHA) 2019 grant program gathered at Delta University for the grantee orientation workshop. MDNHA is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year.

Robertson Scholars, The Delta Center

Cleveland, MS (August 5, 2019) – The Mississippi Delta National Heritage Area (MDNHA) has awarded more than $200,000 in grants this year to support heritage projects in communities across the Mississippi Delta. Now celebrating its 10th year, MDNHA works to preserve and celebrate the region’s history and culture through collaborative partnerships and sustainable economic development.

MDNHA grantee committee chair Meg Cooper (far left) and executive director Dr. Rolando Herts (second from left) congratulate Delta Hands for Hope on receiving a $15,000 grant to support a civil rights heritage storytelling project.

Mississippi Delta NHA

This year, 13 organizations received grants from $5,000 to $20,000 each. Their projects range from educational programs, such as the Grammy Museum’s youth music and songwriting workshops, to the preservation of the Delta’s historic landmarks, such as the Ellis Theater in downtown Cleveland.

“MDNHA is working to build and expand a network of community resources and organizations that work together to promote the cultural heritage of the Mississippi Delta,” said Dr. Rolando Herts, executive director of the Mississippi Delta NHA. “With this fourth year of funding through our partnership between the people of the Mississippi Delta and the National Park Service, this network is a critical part of our mission of preserving, perpetuating, and celebrating the heritage of the Mississippi Delta.”

You can learn more about this year’s grantee projects through the Delta Center for Culture and Learning, which manages MDNHA.

The GRAMMY Museum in Cleveland, MS, received a grant for the Next Generation Project engage local students in “Saturday Sessions,” where they will learn to play the guitar, participating in songwriting workshops, and receive their own guitar at the completion of the workshop.

Delta Center for Culture and Learning/Mississippi Delta NHA

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