MGA Awarded National Endowment for the Humanities Grant To Explore Creation of Digital Humanities Lab

Author: Sheron Smith
Posted: Monday, August 18, 2025 12:00 AM
Categories: Students | Faculty/Staff | School of Arts and Letters | Pressroom

Macon, GA

Placeholder

Middle Georgia State University (MGA) has received a $29,986 exploratory grant to help integrate digital technologies into the humanities and, ultimately, equip students with skills that can help lead them to specific professional careers.  

The yearlong project is called Fostering Opportunity for the Community and Underserved Students (FOCUS) in Digital Humanities, and the grant is from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). The goal is to lay the groundwork for establishing a Digital Humanities Lab (DHL) within MGA’s School of Arts & Letters (SOAL).   

The DHL would serve as an interdisciplinary hub, integrating digital technologies with the humanities and connecting students with community partners through direct, project-based learning.  

“This project is about opening doors,” said Dr. Monica Miller, an MGA associate professor of English who serves as principal investigator for the project team. “By combining the strengths of the humanities with emerging digital tools, we’re preparing students not only to adapt to the modern workplace but to shape it.” 

Miller and other MGA faculty leading the project plan to assess SOAL faculty needs, consult with national experts, visit existing digital humanities labs at other Georgia universities, and create professional development opportunities to prepare faculty for teaching in this evolving field. 

The ultimate goal is to equip MGA students with the combination of humanities-specific competencies such as research, analysis, and critical thinking, along with digital skills like coding, mapping, and visualization. This skill set is increasingly in demand in fields such as user design, user experience, archiving, historic preservation, curation, and communication. 

Once operational, the DHL will give students opportunities to apply what they learn in redesigned SOAL courses to community focused projects, gaining career-ready experience in the process. 

Besides Miller, project leaders are Dr. Susan Asbury (History and Political Science), Dr. Andre Nicholson (Media, Culture, and the Arts), and Dr. Sabrina Wengier (Media, Culture, and the Arts). Working in collaboration are Dr. Donna Balding and Dr. Tyler Achatz in MGA’s Office of Research and Sponsored Projects.  

The Center for Middle Georgia Studies and the Center for Career and Leadership Development will help identify community partners for potential student projects.