St. Paul, MN - Planting People Growing Justice Leadership Institute (PPGJLI) is honored to be one of 65 organizations across the country selected to receive a 2025–26 NEA Big Read grant, administered in partnership with Arts Midwest. (artsmidwest.org) PPGJLI will use the grant to support a season of literary and community engagement programming around Their Eyes Were Watching God by Zora Neale Hurston.
The NEA Big Read initiative, supported by the National Endowment for the Arts, funds community-wide reading programs designed to inspire conversations, strengthen community ties, and elevate diverse voices. (artsmidwest.org) Under the theme “Our Nature,” this grant cycle supports projects that invite reflection on how the physical world shapes experience and connection.
Program Highlights and Community Engagement
Through this grant, PPGJLI will host a series of community-centered events designed to engage readers, writers, and neighbors in meaningful dialogue. The planned programming includes:
- Community book readings
- Poetry slam
- Creative writing workshop
- Book discussion circles
- Film screening
These activities are intended to explore Hurston’s text, uplift Black narratives, encourage storytelling, and foster cross-generational connections through art and literature.
Why Their Eyes Were Watching God and Why Rondo / St. Paul
Their Eyes Were Watching God resonates deeply with both the St. Paul and Rondo communities, which have a rich African American heritage and a shared story of resilience. Hurston’s use of natural imagery, portraying storms, landscapes, and gardens, mirrors the novel’s emotional and spiritual journey and illustrates how environment and identity are intertwined.
The Rondo neighborhood, once a thriving center of Black-owned businesses and cultural life, was disrupted in the 1960s by the construction of Interstate 94. The community’s ongoing efforts to rebuild and reconnect, especially through initiatives such as the PPGJLI Rondo Renaissance (https://www.ppgjli.org/rondorenaissance), reflect the same themes of restoration and renewal found in Hurston’s novel.
By centering Their Eyes Were Watching God, PPGJLI seeks to:
- Preserve and uplift African American culture through shared reading and storytelling
- Foster diverse authorship and narrative inclusion within the Black community
- Connect lived experiences in St. Paul and Rondo to universal themes of selfhood, nature, and community healing
- Inspire new leadership through engagement with literature, arts, and civic expression
“As we bring this grant to life, our aim is to cultivate space for reflection, dialogue, and creative expression in Rondo,” said Dr. Artika Tyner, Executive Director at PPGJLI. “We believe that combining culture and community is one of the most powerful ways to energize leadership and possibility within our children, families and elders.”
About PPGJLI and the NEA Big Read
Planting People Growing Justice Leadership Institute (PPGJLI) is a St. Paul-based nonprofit committed to developing youth and young adult leaders through literacy, storytelling, and civic engagement. By planting the seeds of justice and voice through books and writing, PPGJLI nurtures a new generation of leaders grounded in creativity, culture, and collective responsibility.
The NEA Big Read, a program of the National Endowment for the Arts in partnership with Arts Midwest, supports nonprofit organizations across the United States in delivering reading and community literary programming. In 2025–26, Arts Midwest awarded a total of $1,094,670 in grants to 65 organizations.
Media Contact
Company Name: Planting People Growing Justice LLC
Contact Person: Media Relations
Email: Send Email
Phone: (651)-303-6566
State: Minnesota
Country: United States
Website: www.ppgjli.org
