City Council Memorandum
TO: HONORABLE MAYOR AND CITY COUNCIL DATE: FEBRUARY 28, 2023 FROM: MUSEUM DEPARTMENT
SUBJECT: ACCEPTANCE OF CALIFORNIA HUMANITIES GRANT IN THE AMOUNT OF $4,500 TO SUPPORT AN APRIL 2023 CIVIL RIGHTS SITE TOUR, A PUBLIC PROGRAM OF THE MUSEUM OF RIVERSIDE AND PROJECT PARTNERS – SUPPLEMENTAL APPROPRIATION ISSUE:
Accept a $4,500 grant award from California Humanities to support an April 2023 civil rights site tour, a public program of the Museum of Riverside and its project partners.
RECOMMENDATIONS:
That the City Council:
Authorize the Museum of Riverside to accept a grant award from California Humanities in the amount of $4,500, or in the amount of the award, to support an April 2023 civil rights site tour, a public program of the Museum of Riverside and its project partners; Authorize the Museum Director, or designee, to accept all grant assurances and certifications and execute all grant documents including making minor and non-substantive changes as needed; and With at least five affirmative votes, and upon receipt of the award, authorize the CFO, or designee, to record an increase in revenue in the amount of $4,500 or in the amount of the award, and an equal amount appropriated in the Grants and Restricted Programs Fund, Humanities for All Quick Grant project accounts.
BACKGROUND:
Through 2022, members of Riverside’s cultural community informally collaborated on a series of related exhibitions, programs, performances, and events that related to local civil rights history. The series title was In/VISIBLE, Un/HEARD: Riverside’s Civil Rights Stories. A successful element of this series was a one-day, self-guided auto tour of four civil rights sites, which took place on April 9, 2022. The interest expressed by participants in that tour led to the decision to conduct a second tour in 2023.
DISCUSSION:
California Humanities is a private nonprofit whose mission is “To connect Californians to ideas and one another in order to understand our shared heritage and diverse cultures, inspire civic participation, and shape our future.” Staff in the Community and Economic Development and Museum departments prepared an application through California Humanities Quick Grants program for funding to ensure success for the April 15, 2023, In/VISIBLE, Un/HEARD civil rights tour. The grant has a matching requirement that will be satisfied by staff time and in-kind contributions from the planning partners. All deliverables and reporting for this grant will be completed by June 30, 2023.
Organizing partners for the 2023 tour are the Museum of Riverside, Inlandia Institute, Empower You Edutainment, the Center for Social Justice & Civil Liberties, the Civil Rights Institute of Inland Southern California, and Sherman Indian High School. Tour stops planned include the Jeffrey Owens marker in City parking lot 16 (Owens was a victim in 2002 of a homophobic hate crime); the Allen Chapel, Riverside’s oldest Black church; the site of Riverside’s second Chinatown at Brockton and Tequesquite avenues; and Sherman Indian High School on Magnolia Avenue. The program will again be organized as a self-guided auto tour with performances, presentations, and discussions at each site to activate these unique historic places that relate to the civil rights history and diversity of Riverside.
STRATEGIC PLAN ALIGNMENT:
The activities of the Museum of Riverside align with the Strategic Priority, “Arts, Culture and Recreation.” The program In/VISIBLE, Un/HEARD: Riverside’s Civil Rights Stories supports goal 1.1 (strengthening Riverside’s portfolio of arts, culture, recreation, senior, and lifelong learning programs and amenities), goal 1.2 (enhancing equitable access to arts, culture, and recreational service offerings and facilities), and goal 1.5 (supporting programs and amenities to further develop literacy, health, and education of children, youth, and seniors throughout the community).
Museum programs further support the Strategic Priority, “Community Well-Being.” Specific goals supported by Museum programs and partnerships include goal 2.3, which includes strengthening neighborhood identities, and goal 2.5, which points to fostering relationships between community members and partner organizations.
Community Trust – Community trust grows when stories and places unique to a community are known and honored. The Museum uses grant funds and public resources responsibly to execute inclusive programming.
Equity – Programs that reach into Riverside’s many diverse neighborhoods and acknowledge its many histories promote equity as well as understanding.
Fiscal Responsibility – The City seeks non-municipal funding when it is available in order to enrich the quantity and quality of its services. The Museum pursues and executes grants in compliance with the City’s grant management policy and Finance Department requirements.
Innovation – Programs that go beyond the familiar classroom or lecture experience draw participants into a greater understanding of local history. Activating historic sites through performance and authentic, onsite experiences is an innovative method to build communities’ knowledge of their own past, which informs their present.
Sustainability & Resiliency – Programs that build understanding and foreground the community’s diverse populations and experiences support cultural sustainability. Program promotion and materials will primarily be digital, thus reducing solid waste.
FISCAL IMPACT:
The fiscal impact of this action is $4,500. Upon City Council approval and grant award, an increase of $4,500, or in the amount of the grant award, will be recorded in the Grants and Restricted Programs Fund, Humanities for All Quick Grant, revenue account 9177100-331100 and an appropriation in an equal amount in account 9177100-421000. Matching funds required for this grant satisfied by personnel time allocations to the project.
Prepared by: Robyn G. Peterson, Ph.D., Museum Director
Certified as to
Availability of funds: Edward Enriquez, Interim Assistant City Manager / Chief Financial Officer
Approved by: Kris Martinez, Assistant City Manager
Approved as to form: Phaedra A. Norton, City Attorney
Attachment: California Humanities Grant Agreement
California Humanities Grant ● Page 3