We are now more than halfway through the Pulitzer Centennial Campfires initiative! Thus far, councils have conducted over 175 events in 82 different cities and towns, and have formed partnerships with more than 100 different organizations. These programs have ranged from presentations on the history of political cartooning to literary hikes in state and national parks to festivals featuring prize-winning authors, musicians, and journalists. As summer comes to a close, and schools and universities are back in session, several councils are preparing to launch their fall Campfires programming.

This month, join councils in various reading and discussion groups, creative writing workshops, lectures and conversations surrounding important local and political issues, youth-centered events, and a jazz festival! For a list of current and past council Pulitzer Campfires programs, please click here.

Reading and Discussion

OK Humanities NEWOklahoma Humanities is kicking off its Pulitzer Campfires programs with a series of reading and discussion groups centered on the theme, “War, Not War, and Peace.” The series uses five different books to examine the elements of war, as well as the periods optimistically called “peace.” In addition to this series, the council is hosting two other reading and discussion series beginning in September focused on the themes, “Civil Rights and Equality” and “The American Frontier.”

The Delaware Humanities Forum and the New Mexico Humanities Council are continuing their reading and discussion groups focused on Pulitzer Prize-winning fiction and nonfiction, which began in April and May, respectively. In addition, the Delaware Humanities Forum is hosting creative writing workshops, some in conjunction with discussions of Pulitzer Prize-winning literature.

Local and Political

GA_Chautauqua Lecture Series_Pulitzer_AugustGeorgia Humanities Council is kicking off a Chautauqua lecture series this month focused on the Pulitzer Prize and its connection to Georgia. These lectures are conducted in partnership with the Coastal Georgia Historical Society and will feature scholars and authors discussing the impact of the Prizes. (Photo credit: Pulitzer.org)

The Louisiana Endowment for the Humanities is partnering with the Satchmo Symposium to hostSatchmo Symposium Pulitzer Panel_August a Pulitzer Prize moderated panel titled, From New Orleans to the World Stage: The Artistic Journeys of Louis Armstrong and Wynton Marsalis with music historian Bruce Raeburn and award-winning jazz journalist Dan Morgenstern. The panelists will focus on the comparison of the two artists’ journeys and how Armstrong’s music and legacy influenced Pulitzer Prize-winning Marsalis. (Photo credit: LEH Facebook Page)

To the west, California Humanities is continuing its On the Road with California Humanities series with its fourth event in Salinas, CA, titled, California’s Water: Rivers, Oceans, and Our Future. This program will feature Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist Bettina Boxall in a panel discussion with Felicia Marcus, chair of California’s State Water Resources Control Board, Abby Taylor-Silva, vice president of policy and communications at the Grower-Shipper Association of Central California, and Bruny Mora, alumni of the University of California – Santa Cruz and Monterey Bay Aquarium Teen Programs. A reception with an opportunity to view students’ research on watershed health will follow the event.AlissaPulitzerWP071316

Up north, the Vermont Humanities Council is hosting the 2016 Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist and New York Times Paris Bureau Chief Alissa Johannsen Rubin for a special lecture and Q&A titled, Crisis in the Middle East: Difficult Choices for our Next President. Rubin won the 2016 Pulitzer Prize for International Reporting for her series that gave voice to Afghan women who were “forced to endure unspeakable cruelties.” (Photo credit: Pulitzer.org)

Youth and the Pulitzer Prizes

dc_humanitiesTwo councils, Humanities DC and the North Carolina Humanities Council, are focusing this month’s programs on their states’ youth. In DC, the council has wrapped up its Soul in the City summer program for students, which introduced participants to journalism and reporting. The workshop culminated with a special event on Friday, August 5, where students presented their projects and described their experiences in a closing ceremony. (Photo credit: Pulitzer.org)christopher_hart_copy

The North Carolina Humanities Council is offering a special event for high school students at the NC Parkway Playhouse where theater producer and playwright Christopher Hart, son of 1937 Pulitzer Prize-winning playwright Moss Hart (You Can’t Take It With You, Drama), will interact with participants and encourage them to consider the importance of the humanities and the arts. (Photo credit: Pulitzer.org)

View the August schedule of council Campfires events.