Two Mississippi Museums Making A Difference
Black History Month kicks off with the Mid South Foundation
May 23, 2024
Foundation For The Mid South
Why Racial Healing in Mississippi?
Many Mississippians want to do something about the state of race relations here, and TRHT gives them a place to start.
The Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT) initiative, supported by the Foundation for the Mid South, is Mississippi’s answer to that call. It brings people together around four pillars: narrative change, storytelling, relationship building, and economic transformation.
At the center of it all is one simple belief: every Mississippian, regardless of race or ethnicity, deserves access to opportunity and deserves to be treated with dignity and respect.
training
Transformational Leadership & Racial Healing Cohort
TRHT Mississippi runs a five-month Transformational Leadership & Racial Healing Cohort, built to equip a diverse group of leaders with the tools, relationships, and vision to carry racial healing and systemic change back into their own communities. Anchored in the TRHT framework, the program blends historical reflection,
personal growth, and hands-on strategy into one immersive experience.
Each cohort track is led by a Mississippi TRHT Alliance member, and every participant works through five core modules over the course of the program:
Understanding the TRHT Framework: laying the foundation for what TRHT is and why it matters.
Shifting the Story: building the skills to challenge dominant narratives and tell more honest, healing-centered stories.
Healing Across Divides: building relationships, trust, and the skills to facilitate racial healing circles.
Tackling Systems That Divide Us: mapping systemic inequity and identifying where change is possible.
Leading Change in Your Community: turning everything learned into a real action plan, with a timeline and public commitment.
Along the way, participants also get:
• Five full-day learning sessions with facilitators, guest speakers, and hands-on workshops
• Monthly peer learning circles for accountability and support
• Mini-grants to help seed local projects
• Individual coaching, technical assistance, and a library of resources and toolkits
• Recognition upon completion, including a certificate and a chance to showcase their impact
Partners of The Mississippi TRHT Alliance
In 2024, six institutional partners were selected to lead the Mississippi’s TRHT initiative because of their deep community ties, capacity, and commitment to racial healing.
Philanthropy
The Delta Story Project
The Delta Story Project, also known as Delta Narratives,
aims to amplify the voices of the Mississippi Delta through
the power of art and culture. Through storytelling, the
project promotes truth-telling, fosters racial healing, and
drives narrative change across the region.
Sponsored by W.K. Kellogg Foundation and affiliated with Mississippi Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation (TRHT)
Full announcement: fndmidsouth.org/2026-delta-story-cohort-announcement
Seven Cultural Ambassadors, $49,200 awarded
As Told By SIR/Steven Randle
Jackson, MS
We2gether Creating Change
Drew, MS
Scott Barretta
Greenwood, MS
Immigrant Alliance for Justice and Equity (IAJE)
Jackson, MS
Brejenn Allen Jackson, MS
LaTonya Lark / In Her Shoes, Inc.
Mound Bayou, MS
SpiritHouseGlass / Elizabeth Robinson
Jackson, MS
COMMUNITY
One Community Conversations
“One Community” listening sessions were held in Picayune, Hattiesburg, and Biloxi, Mississippi, bringing together community members, local business leaders, and
faith organizations for meaningful dialogue about race, economic equity, and solutions to longstanding issues.
Mission Mississippi organized multiple pre-meetings with regional leaders to ensure diverse representation, working with stakeholders like the MS Gulf Coast Chamber of Commerce, United Way of Southeast MS, Hattiesburg Area Development Partnership, and Hattiesburg High School.
Research
Impact Reports & Resources
Evaluation reports track how TRHT is landing with local residents — mapping perspectives, and highlighting both pathways and roadblocks to racial unity across Mississippi.
Download Reports:
• TRHT 2022–2023 Evaluation Report
• TRHT 2023–2024 Evaluation Report
Racial Healing Webinars:
• Growing Coalition of Change
• Mississippi Unchained
• Elevation Through Racial Healing
W.K. Kellogg Foundation and National Day of Racial Healing
Mississippi’s TRHT Alliance is part of something much bigger. The W.K. Kellogg Foundation (WKKF) launched Truth, Racial Healing & Transformation as a national framework in 2016, working with more than 140 partners to build a process communities across the country could use to confront racism’s historic and present-day impacts. Mississippi joined that national community of practice in 2022.
Learn more about WKKF’s national commitment to racial healing: wkkf.org/racial-healing
Partners of The Mississippi TRHT Alliance
In 2024, six institutional partners were selected to lead the Mississippi’s TRHT initiative because of their deep community ties, capacity, and commitment to racial healing.
Jackson State University
Founded in 1877, Jackson State University is a public historically black research university in Jackson, Mississippi. It is one of the largest HBCUs in the United States and the fourth largest university in Mississippi. The Institute for Social Justice and Race Relations (ISJRR) at Jackson State University (JSU) is dedicated to addressing issues of social justice, racial equity, and community engagement. Through research, public forums, and educational initiatives, the ISJRR works to foster dialogue about race and promote understanding across diverse communities
Millsaps College
Millsaps College, located in Jackson, Mississippi, is a private liberal arts institution known for its commitment to academic excellence, community engagement, and the fostering of social justice and equity. Established in 1890, Milsaps has a long history of leadership in higher education within the state and region. The college’s emphasis on developing well-rounded citizens who are prepared to engage in complex societal issues makes it an ideal partner in the Truth, Racial Healing, and Transformation (TRHT) initiative.
Mission Mississippi
Mission Mississippi is a faith-based organization that has been at the forefront of fostering racial reconciliation and healing across Mississippi for over 31 years. Rooted in the Gospel message, their mission is to encourage grace and unity across racial lines by promoting honest dialogue, building relationships, and addressing systemic racial and economic disparities. Mission Mississippi creates safe spaces for meaningful conversations on race, truth, and reconciliation.
Neshoba Youth Coalition
Played a critical role in organizing the 60th Anniversary Freedom Summer events, drawing in 564 participants from across the state. The events commemorated the civil rights movement while engaging youth and adults in conversations about racial healing, community building, and the ongoing fight for racial justice. The broad reach of these events demonstrated the power of history in mobilizing new generations to continue the work of social justice advocacy.
Tougaloo College
Emphasized economic empowerment in the agricultural sector by hosting panel discussions and fireside chats involving over 50 participants. These events aimed to address the historical and systemic barriers faced by Black farmers and agricultural stakeholders, reframing agriculture as a pathway to economic equity for BIPOC communities.
The Alluvial Collective
Focused on Jackson’s water crisis, facilitating symposia and webinars attended by over 100 individuals. These efforts highlighted the intersection of environmental racism and systemic neglect in Mississippi’s capital city. By addressing the water infrastructure crisis through a racial equity lens, the Alluvial Collective brought together key stakeholders to develop long-term solutions that prioritize racial justice and resilience.
Capstone Project or Trailer from Summer Conversations
Latest Evaluation Report
Download the Truth Racial Healing and Transformation 2023-2024 Evaluation Report
Listen to Racial Healing Webinars
Webinars
Listen to Racial Healing Webinars
Led by the Foundation for the Mid South, Mississippi’s TRHT alliance works to bring people together, to bridge cultural divides, and work toward racial healing across the state. At the heart of the Mississippi Truth Racial Healing and Transformation (TRHT) Alliance is a commitment to building a state where everyone, regardless of race or ethnicity, has access to opportunities and are treated with dignity and respect.
6 Changemaker Organizations Selected to Spearhead Mississippi Truth Racial Healing & Transformation Initiative
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE January 16, 2023 Grant Partners Jackson State
May 23, 2024
Blog
One Community Conversations
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