The Black Archives Awarded $350,000 IMLS Grant to Transform Access to Black South Florida History
Largest IMLS award in organization’s history will expand digitization, workforce development, and AI-powered community access
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Miami, FL – August 6, 2026 – The Black Archives History & Research Foundation of South Florida, Inc. has been awarded a $350,000 grant from the Institute of Museum and Library Services (IMLS) through its Museum Grants for African American History and Culture program. This is the largest single IMLS award the organization has received, surpassing its 2021 IMLS grant of $250,000 that supported digitization efforts through the purchase of a state-of-the-art Quartz A0 HD LED scanner.
The new grant will support “From Preservation to People: Enhancing Collections and Workforce at The Black Archives,” a three- year initiative that strengthens the institution’s collections infrastructure, builds a diverse archival workforce, and leverages artificial intelligence to make Black Miami’s history more accessible and interactive for the public.
Through this project, The Black Archives will:
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Hire a Collections Specialist and engage interns to process and digitize 15,000 high-priority items, including fragile photographs, documents, and ephemera.
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Enhance community-facing AI interface that will allow visitors, researchers, and residents to explore the archive through intuitive, conversational tools.
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Recruit six graduate students for intensive, paid professional mentorship in archival practice and public humanities.
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Establish a peer network of 20 tri-county community volunteers, who will complete a training program in archival basics, strengthening local preservation capacity.
“This award is a profound affirmation of the work The Black Archives has been doing for decades—and the work we must do now to meet our community’s needs in a digital age,” said Kamila E. Pritchett, President & CEO of The Black Archives. “As we approach our 50th anniversary, this investment positions us to move from being seen solely as a repository of records to becoming an active, conversational resource where Black South Florida’s stories can be discovered, questioned, and shared in new ways.”
Project outcomes will include the creation of durable, high-resolution digital surrogates of fragile materials, the integration of archival interns and peer preservationists into a professional workflow at The Black Archives Historic Lyric Theater, and the continued development of an AI platform that helps users meaningfully engage with the collections.
The award comes in a highly competitive national funding cycle. According to the Institute of Museum and Library Services, the FY2026 Museum Grants for African American History and Culture program received 83 applications requesting $16,049,713. From these, IMLS selected 34 projects for funding, totaling, $6,000,000 in awards.
“This grant builds directly on the foundation laid by our 2021 IMLS award,” Pritchett added. “With that investment, we were able to significantly upgrade our digitization capabilities. With this new support, we can go further—training emerging professionals, equipping community members as preservation partners, and using AI to make the archive more responsive to the people whose histories it holds.”
The project aligns with The Black Archives’ long-standing mission to collect, preserve, and disseminate the history and culture of Black South Florida, and it will be a cornerstone of the organization’s work as it prepares to commemorate its 50th anniversary in 2027.
For a list of all IMLS AAHC awardees, visit here.
For more information about The Black Archives and its programs, please visit www.BAHLT.org.