Federal grant programs / National Endowment for the Humanities

Promotion of the Humanities Federal/State Partnership (45.129)

• Awarded, FY 2021 to 2025$328 million
• Grant awards302
• Typical award$630,809
• Awarded in FY 2025$30.2 million
• Size rank473 of 1,823
• Type of assistanceFormula grants

Key findings

• Annual funding fell from $107 million in fiscal 2021 to $30.2 million in fiscal 2025.
• It is the 473rd largest of 1,823 federal grant programs by five-year awards.
• The 20 largest recipients received 50% of the money.
• Awards went to recipients in 56 states and territories.

What the program funds

Federal/State Partnerships promote local, statewide, and regional humanities programming through annual grants to humanities councils in each of the fifty states, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, the U.S. Virgin Islands, Northern Mariana Islands, Guam, and American Samoa. The humanities councils use those grants to conduct humanities projects and grant programs for local nonprofit organizations, institutions, and groups, and occasionally for individuals. Under the provisions of 20 U.S.C. 956(f)(8), only one entity in each state may receive assistance from NEH as the state humanities council.

From the federal Assistance Listing. Read the full listing on SAM.gov.

Open opportunities

No opportunity under this program is open or forecast on Grants.gov right now. Programs often post once a year, so the funding history below shows what to expect.

Rules from the program listing

Who can apply

Nonprofit 501(c)(3) state and jurisdictional humanities councils which conform to the requirements of 20 U.S.C. 956(f). See https://www.neh.gov/about/state-humanities-councils.

What the money can and cannot pay for

Grants may be used to fund local, statewide, and regional humanities projects, subject to guidelines determined by each state and jurisdictional humanities council. See D6. Funding Restrictions in the relevant Notice of Funding Opportunity.;

Matching requirements

Statutory Formula: Title National Foundation on the Arts and the Humanities Act of 1965, Part 956, Subpart (f)(4),Public Law Public Law 89-209, 20 U.S.C. §956 (f) (4).As established by the Congressional funding formula, each State and jurisdictional council receives $200,000 of the definite funds appropriated to Federal/State Partnership. The remaining funds are distributed by a formula based on population. State and jurisdictional humanities councils must match the federal award on a one-to-one basis.State and jurisdictional humanities councils must match the federal award on a one-to-one basis.MOE requirements are not applicable to this assistance listing.

Award range and average, in the agency's words

In FY 2022 the range of assistance was $212,874 to $2,793,592. Average was $997,582.

Examples of funded projects

Fiscal Year2022: State and jurisdictional humanities councils offer a wide array of programming that makes the humanities accessible to general audiences. Council-conducted programs and grant making reflect the interests, resources, and diverse experiences of the local communities they serve. Council programs include competitive grants, civic education programs, book festivals, reading and discussion programs, speakers bureaus, educator institutes, Clemente courses, films, traveling exhibitions, and programs for veterans. They also help extend the reach of NEH-funded projects, and ensure NEH remains connected to local and regional communities. Through council initiatives and grant-making, state and jurisdictional humanities councils enrich lives through the humanities—with an emphasis on the specific needs of the communities they represent.Fiscal Year2025: State and jurisdictional humanities councils offer a wide array of programming that makes the humanities accessible to general audiences. Council-conducted programs and grant making reflect the interests, resources, and diverse experiences of the local communities they serve. Council programs include competitive grants, civic education programs, book festivals, reading and discussion programs, speakers bureaus, educator institutes, Clemente courses, films, traveling exhibitions, and programs for veterans.

Continue reading on SAM.gov

Quoted from the program's federal Assistance Listing. The notice of funding opportunity is the official source for each competition's rules.

Who usually wins

By state

55 states have a page for this program: those that received at least $1 million or 10 awards.

Award amounts are federal obligations reported to USAspending.gov for fiscal 2021 to 2025; see how our data works.