Teagle Foundation Awards Clemente a Grant for Youth Programming
February 14, 2019
The Teagle Foundation has awarded Clemente a $37,000 grant for its “Pathways to the Liberal Arts” initiative. The grant will enable Clemente to undertake an in-depth review of affiliate programs geared toward youth and determine how best to expand those programs to other locations.
Clemente programs for high school students are currently held in three places:
Each of these programs brings the Clemente model of an intensive humanities seminar to high school students, building communication and writing skills as well as preparing them for the transition to college. Students explore literature, art, US history, and philosophy with college faculty and have the opportunity to earn college credit. The programs have strong partnerships with local educational and community organizations. There is no cost to the student for participating.
More information about our youth programming is available in our Fall 2018 newsletter.
The grant from the Teagle Foundation will support a working group that will determine how Clemente youth programs operate in their respective communities, gather key practices from those courses, and articulate models to support future programs both locally and nationally. As Clemente enters its third decade, we are investigating how we can adapt our courses to serve both adults and specific and often-overlooked populations, such as opportunity youth, veterans, and those aging out of foster care.
We are grateful to the Teagle Foundation for its generous support.
- Chicago: Sojourner Scholars, supported by Illinois Humanities
- Salt Lake City: Clemente Course, supported by Utah Humanities
- Portland: Alder Early College Course, supported by Oregon Humanities
Each of these programs brings the Clemente model of an intensive humanities seminar to high school students, building communication and writing skills as well as preparing them for the transition to college. Students explore literature, art, US history, and philosophy with college faculty and have the opportunity to earn college credit. The programs have strong partnerships with local educational and community organizations. There is no cost to the student for participating.
More information about our youth programming is available in our Fall 2018 newsletter.
The grant from the Teagle Foundation will support a working group that will determine how Clemente youth programs operate in their respective communities, gather key practices from those courses, and articulate models to support future programs both locally and nationally. As Clemente enters its third decade, we are investigating how we can adapt our courses to serve both adults and specific and often-overlooked populations, such as opportunity youth, veterans, and those aging out of foster care.
We are grateful to the Teagle Foundation for its generous support.
You will live as long as your life has meaning. I embarked on this educational journey to satisfy my life’s desire to learn. This opportunity crossed my path at the right moment and is supplying me with the chance to evaluate my ability to perform on the college level with like-minded people within the veteran’s community, where a person can always find support. All of the instructors and staff are helpful! Thank you for this possibility. – George, Coast Guard, Ocean City, NJ The New Jersey Clemente Course Veterans Initiative (CCVI) launched its second cohort on September 25, 2025, welcoming twenty-four veterans from every branch of service. The cohort includes eight women; and while most come from communities across New Jersey, the course has also drawn participants from New York. Part of the wider Clemente Veterans Initiative and operating in partnership with the New Jersey Council for the Humanities and Atlantic Cape Community College , the CCVI brings transformative humanities education to those who have served.
You may be familiar with Clemente's 30+ programs across the United States, but did you know that Clemente also has a long and rich history in Australia?
The Clemente Course in Worcester, MA continues to thrive through partnerships that bring the humanities to life in unexpected ways. Hosted by the Worcester Art Museum , the course benefits from inspiring classroom space and exclusive after-hours gallery tours led by Art History instructor Elissa Chase, the first of which took place in early October. A new partnership with Indigo Fire Studio in Watertown brought an especially hands-on dimension to learning this fall: the studio donated 25 pounds of clay and kiln space; and under the guidance of Mass Humanities' Sarah Carroll, students participated in a clay handbuilding class that wove together Philosophy of Art, Art History, and creative expression.
Amy Howard on how Clemente changed her life and her community.
25 years ago, The Clemente Course partnered with Illinois Humanities to offer free college-level humanities courses to low-income adults in Chicago through The Odyssey Project and Proyecto Odisea . Clemente Executive Director, Dr. Aaron Rosen, recently joined Dulce Maria Diaz (Odyssey Project alumna and founder of the SHE Gallery ) and Dr. Rebecca Amato (Director of Teaching and Learning, Illinois Humanities) on the Federation of State Humanities podcast Humanities= . In this episode, hear how this transformative program changes lives!
The Clemente Course in the Humanities is proud to announce writer and U.S. Marine Corps veteran Phil Klay as the first recipient of the Public Humanities Prize.