The Kosciuszko Foundation is a

charitable foundation A foundation (also a charitable foundation) is a category of nonprofit organization or charitable trust that typically provides funding and support for other charitable organizations through grants, but may also engage directly in charitable ac ...

based in

New York City New York, often called New York City or NYC, is the List of United States cities by population, most populous city in the United States. With a 2020 population of 8,804,190 distributed over , New York City is also the L ...

. It was created by

Stephen Mizwa Stephen Paul Mizwa, ''Stefan Piotr Mierzwa'' (November 12, 1892, Rakszawa – January, 1971, Houston) was the founder and long-time president of the Kosciuszko Foundation, a Polish-American scholarly and cultural institution headquartered in New Y ...

to fund programs that promote Polish-American intellectual and artistic exchange.

History

The Polish American Scholarship Committee was established in 1923 by Dr.

to bring students to universities in the United States. Mizwa worked with the president of

Vassar College Vassar College ( ) is a private liberal arts college in Poughkeepsie, New York, United States. Founded in 1861 by Matthew Vassar, it was the second degree-granting institution of higher education for women in the United States, closely foll ...

, Henry Noble MacCracken, who had visited Poland. The two expanded the Scholarship Committee's mission to promote cultural and educational exchanges between the United States and Poland. In December 1925, the Scholarship Committee changed into the new Kosciuszko Foundation. Exhibition the Kosciuszko Foundation - the American Center of Polish Culture Senate of Poland 02

Exhibition the Kosciuszko Foundation - the American Center of Polish Culture Senate of Poland 02

The Foundation is named in honour of

Tadeusz Kościuszko Andrzej Tadeusz Bonawentura Kościuszko ( be, Andréj Tadévuš Banavientúra Kasciúška, en, Andrew Thaddeus Bonaventure Kosciuszko; 4 or 12 February 174615 October 1817) was a Polish military engineer, statesman, and military leader who ...

, a Polish general and patriot, who after unsuccessful battles in uprising for Polish freedom, migrated to

North America North America is a continent in the Northern Hemisphere and almost entirely within the Western Hemisphere. It is bordered to the north by the Arctic Ocean, to the east by the Atlantic Ocean, to the southeast by South America and th ...

and fought in

the American Revolutionary War The American Revolutionary War (April 19, 1775 – September 3, 1783), also known as the Revolutionary War or American War of Independence, was a major war of the American Revolution. Widely considered as the war that secured the independence of t ...

. The organization was founded in 1925, on the eve of the 150th anniversary of Kosciuszko's enlistment in the American liberation cause. The headquarters are in a limestone neo-Renaissance three-story mansion built in 1917. The building was designed by Harry Allan Jacobs for James J. Van Alen, whose in-laws, the

Astors The Astor family achieved prominence in business, society, and politics in the United States and the United Kingdom during the 19th and 20th centuries. With ancestral roots in the Italian Alps region of Italy by way of Germany, the Astors settl ...

, lived down the block. The second-story ballroom functions as a gallery, as well as a lecture and concert hall for chamber-music and solo recitals.

Activities

The foundation provides scholarships and fellowships to Polish students, scholars, and artists. They were invited for research or educational stay by an institution of higher education in the United States. Several programs are also targeted at Polish musicians. Grants for U.S. citizens include research and study opportunities in Poland. The foundation organizes cultural events for the Polish community. It is the largest public institution in North America dedicated solely to Polish art. Exhibitions are held that draw from the permanent collection of oils, watercolors, prints, drawings, ceramics, sculpture, tapestries and photographs. An annual Chopin Piano Competition showcases young talent.NYC Arts, Culture Guide and Calendar
Retrieved on December 2, 2007. The foundation sponsors and publishes the biggest Polish-American and American-Polish dictionary, known as ''Kosciuszko Foundation Dictionary'' and published in a book and CD-ROM format. The recent version, titled ''New Kosciuszko Foundation Dictionary'', was issued in 2003. Its editor-in-chief was a renowned Polish professor of the English language. Kosciuszko Foundation Stazewski opening Oct 2021

Kosciuszko Foundation Stazewski opening Oct 2021

The foundation's Washington office provides a venue for local Polish-American events through a wide range of activities, including films, concerts, exhibitions, educational programs, publications, and seminars. It uses its website to provide information on events, collections and topics of interest to those who interested in Poland.

Regional Chapters

The Kosciuszko Foundation has regional chapters in: * Buffalo (Western New York State) *

Chicago (''City in a Garden''); I Will , image_map = , map_caption = Interactive Map of Chicago , coordinates = , coordinates_footnotes = , subdivision_type = List of sovereign states, Count ...

, Illinois *

Denver Denver () is a consolidated city and county, the capital, and most populous city of the U.S. state of Colorado. Its population was 715,522 at the 2020 census, a 19.22% increase since 2010. It is the 19th-most populous city in the Unit ...

, Colorado (Rocky Mountain) *

Houston Houston (; ) is the most populous city in Texas, the most populous city in the Southern United States, the fourth-most populous city in the United States, and the sixth-most populous city in North America, with a population of 2,304,580 ...

(Texas) *

Ohio Ohio () is a U.S. state, state in the Midwestern United States, Midwestern region of the United States. Of the List of states and territories of the United States, fifty U.S. states, it is the List of U.S. states and territories by area, 34th-l ...

Philadelphia Philadelphia, often called Philly, is the largest city in the Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, the sixth-largest city in the U.S., the second-largest city in both the Northeast megalopolis and Mid-Atlantic regions after New York City. Since ...

, Pennsylvania *

Pittsburgh Pittsburgh ( ) is a city in the Commonwealth (U.S. state), Commonwealth of Pennsylvania, United States, and the county seat of Allegheny County, Pennsylvania, Allegheny County. It is the most populous city in both Allegheny County and Wester ...

, Pennsylvania * Springfield, Massachusetts (New England) *

Warsaw Warsaw ( pl, Warszawa, ), officially the Capital City of Warsaw,, abbreviation: ''m.st. Warszawa'' is the capital and largest city of Poland. The metropolis stands on the River Vistula in east-central Poland, and its population is officiall ...

Poland Poland, officially the Republic of Poland, is a country in Central Europe. It is divided into 16 administrative provinces called voivodeships, covering an area of . Poland has a population of over 38 million and is the fifth-most populou ...

* Washington, D.C.

References

External links

The Kosciuszko Foundation website
{{Authority control Non-profit organizations based in New York City Educational foundations in the United States Polish-American culture in New York City Scholarships in the United States Polish-American organizations Arts foundations based in the United States Organizations established in 1923 1923 establishments in New York City