Promotion of the Humanities Professional Development

The Institutes program promotes better teaching and research in the humanities for higher education faculty and K-12 educators. The Landmarks of American History and Culture program promotes better teaching of American history and culture through int

Institutes awards broaden and deepen understanding of the humanities in supporting professional development programs, specifically designed for a national audience of K-12 educators or higher education faculty. The programs provide one- to four-week opportunities for participants to explore a variety of topics relevant to K-12 or undergraduate education in the humanities. The Landmarks of American History and Culture program supports workshops for a national audience of K-12 educators that enhance and strengthen humanities teaching at the K-12 level. Projects employ a place-based approach, teaching historic sites in the United States and its jurisdictions through critical interpretation in order to explore central themes in American history and government, as well as in literature, art, music, and related humanities subjects.

Eligible applicants include U.S. nonprofit organizations with 501(c)(3) tax-exempt status, public and 501(c)(3) accredited institutions of higher education, state and local governmental agencies, and federally recognized Native American Tribal governments.

Depending on the project, beneficiaries include K-12 teachers or higher education faculty in the humanities, as well as their students and colleagues.

Varies by program. See B2. in the relevant Notice of Funding Opportunity.

Applicants are encouraged to contact NEH program officers, who can offer advice about preparing the proposal and review preliminary proposal drafts if they are submitted at least six weeks before the deadline. Time constraints may prevent staff from reviewing draft proposals submitted after that date. Staff comments are not part of the formal review process and have no bearing on the final outcome of the proposal, but applicants have found them helpful in strengthening their applications.

See Review Criteria in the relevant Notice of Funding Opportunity.

NEH staff review all applications for eligibility, completeness, and responsiveness. The agency then conducts a peer review process for all applications that pass this initial screening. Peer reviewers are experts in their fields with knowledge and expertise relevant to the activities that the program supports. NEH instructs peer reviewers to evaluate applications according to established review criteria. Peer reviewers must comply with federal ethics rules governing conflicts of interest. NEH program officers supplement the peer reviewers' comments to address matters of fact or significant points that the peer reviewers have overlooked. They then make funding recommendations to the National Council on the Humanities and the NEH Chairman. The National Council meets at least twice each year to review applications and advise the NEH Chair. By law, the Chair has the sole authority to make final funding decisions.

Notification takes place 9-12 months after the application deadline.

If NEH has previously made an award in support of your project, you may submit an application for a new or subsequent stage of the project, which NEH will assess using the same criteria as other applications in the current competition.