The University of Denver (DU) was one of 25 institutions to receive funding from the Council of Independent Colleges (CIC) for their inaugural Humanities Research for the Public Good initiative. The CIC initiative promotes student research at private colleges and universities, addresses issues of public significance, and showcases the rich archival, library, and museum collections.

To develop the proposal, colleagues came together from across campus, including the Center for Judaic Studies (CJS), University Libraries, the Center for Community Engagement to advance Scholarship and Learning (CCESL), and the Center for Innovation in Liberal and Creative Arts (CILCA) with the Rodolofo “Corky” Gonzales Branch Library. Faculty team members on the proposal included Drs. Sarah Pessin, Jeanne Abrams, and Anne DePrince.

DU’s project will bring community-engaged methods and faculty-mentored student research to the exploration of the Jewish Consumptives’ Relief Society (JCRS) archive collection, held by Beck Archives of Rocky Mountain Jewish History, Special Collections, University Libraries. JCRS was one of two Denver-based Jewish sanitariums in Denver to offer tuberculosis treatment at no cost to immigrants and community members from all religious and cultural backgrounds. Students studying these materials will engage questions around immigration and health equity and consider how a past medical institution in Denver succeeded in providing high quality health care free of charge to vulnerable populations.

Students will share their research with the broader community on and off campus, including at the Rodolofo “Corky” Gonzales Branch Library.

“At CCESL, we’re very excited that this project creates new opportunities for students to do faculty-mentored, community-engaged work in the humanities, made possible by the incredible archival collections here at DU”, said CCESL Director Anne DePrince. “We look forward to partnering with campus and community colleagues to support students to advance discovery using community-engaged methods in the humanities.”

CIC’s Humanities Research for the Public Good initiative is generously supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. For more information, visit www.cic.edu/programs/Public-Humanities.