Press Release

NEH Announces $25.2 Million in New Grants

WASHINGTON, (March 24, 2003)

Awards include funds for humanities projects in U.S. history and culture

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) today announced the awarding of $25.2 million to 288 successful grant applications nationwide, including many that explore topics in U.S. history and culture. The grants are in four of NEH's program areas--preservation and access, research, education, and public programs.

"Many of these humanities projects will contribute significantly to our citizens' understanding American history and culture," said NEH Chairman Bruce Cole. "It is my pleasure to announce the latest round of NEH grants, including those that support the goals of the Endowment's We the People initiative, for projects that will broaden access to significant documents, support our nation's scholars and teachers, and deepen our understanding of our nation and the world in which we live."

In September 2002, President George W. Bush announced a new NEH initiative called We the People, which included a call for grant applications to explore significant events and themes in our nation's history. This cycle of NEH grants, representing projects in a variety of humanities disciplines, includes many that focus on U.S. history and culture, such as the following:

  • Grants to 40 public libraries in 29 states to support a traveling exhibition and related public programs that reexamine President Abraham Lincoln's efforts to abolish slavery during the Civil War;
  • A grant to the Bill of Rights Institute in Washington, D.C., to create a teachers' guide, pilot workshop, interactive Web site, and other teaching aids to improve students' knowledge of the contributions of the Founding generation to American democracy;
  • A grant to the Maine Humanities Council, Portland, for an exemplary education project that will conduct seminars and develop interactive curricular resources for Maine teachers who will study the work of poet Henry Wadsworth Longfellow and his influence on the American identity;
  • A grant to the University of Wisconsin, Madison, for compilation of the fifth volume of the Dictionary of American Regional English;
  • A grant to the Illinois State Historical Library, Springfield, for planning statewide book discussions and exhibitions about the cultural and historical significance of the early portion of the Lewis and Clark Expedition;
  • A grant to the Historical Society of Western Pennsylvania, Pittsburgh, for an exemplary education project to create print- and Web-based curriculum materials for K-12 teachers relating to the Native American cultures of the eastern United States from the time of contact through the colonial period; and
  • A grant to the South Valley Academy, Albuquerque, N.M., for a curriculum enrichment project on World War II and New Mexico's contribution to the war effort.

In this award cycle, institutions and individuals in 42 states, the District of Columbia, and Puerto Rico received grant offers from the National Endowment for the Humanities. A state-by-state listing of grants is available as an Adobe PDF file in the above box.

Programs, total number of projects, and total dollar amounts for grants included in this announcement are as follows:

Preservation and Access (63) $18,703,973

  • Preservation/Access Projects (59) $16,348,127
  • National Heritage Preservation Program (4) $2,355,846

Research Programs (126) $2,451,500

  • Fellowship Programs at Independent Research Institutions (9) $1,866,500
  • Summer Stipends (117) $585,000

Education Programs (34) $3,469,650

  • Education Development and Demonstration Projects (16) $3,084,650
  • Schools for a New Millennium grants (K-12 curriculum enrichment through collaboration with local cultural and educational institutions) (4) $357,000
  • Humanities Teacher Leadership Program (to individual K-12 teachers for development and distribution of teaching materials) (14) $28,000

Public Programs (65) $541,402

  • Humanities Projects in Libraries and Archives (42) $81,985
  • Humanities Projects in Museums and Historical Organizations (21) $389,417
  • Humanities Projects in Media (1) $60,000
  • Special Projects (1) $10,000

NEH grants are awarded on a competitive basis. Throughout the year, humanities experts outside of the Endowment read all applications and advise NEH on the quality and significance of each proposed project.

Additional information about the National Endowment for the Humanities and its grant programs is available on the Internet at www.neh.gov.

Media Contacts:
Office of Communications: (202) 606-8446 | info@neh.gov