Free State of Jones Spotlighted by National Humanities Alliance as Exemplary NEH-Sponsored Work!

I’m excited to announce that The Free State of Jones (Chapel Hill: University of North Carolina Press, 2001, 2016) is featured on the new National Humanities alliance website!

The National Humanities Alliance Foundation recently released NEH for All, a website that spotlights 102 exemplary projects funded by the National Endowment for the Humanities. Established in 1965, the NEH recognizes the unique role the humanities play in fostering the wisdom, vision, and knowledge required to participate in a thriving democracy. To this day, the NEH supports excellence in humanities research, teaching, and lifelong learning opportunities that provide millions of Americans the knowledge of our history and culture essential for engaged citizenship. NEHforAll.org highlights that excellence by calling attention to 2–3 projects per state.

The National Humanities Alliance Foundation advances the humanities by conducting and supporting research on the humanities and communicating the value of the humanities to a range of audiences including elected officials and the general public. About NEH for All, NHA Executive Director Stephen Kidd remarked that “The grant projects featured on the website are a sampling from across the country and represent the significant investments the NEH is making in our communities. From big cities to small towns, the National Endowment for the Humanities is successfully bringing culture, history, and economic opportunities to life in the United States,” said Kidd. “The NEH for All website highlights many valuable investments in an easily searchable format that we will continue to build upon, showing the incredible impact access to the humanities has on people of all ages and walks of life.” NEH for All​ features National Endowment for the Humanities grantees across all 50 states and shows the impact of each project, drawing the connection from the initial funding of a grant to the end result. Featured projects, funded with large and small grants alike, demonstrate excellence in humanities work. From preserving American heritage, to providing resources and training for educators, fostering community conversations, and developing award-winning exhibitions, their efforts have long-lasting impacts on their communities and on the American public. Cumulatively, the projects highlight the galvanizing effect of NEH funding in rural and urban communities.

For those who use the site, NEH for All is an opportunity to learn about the kinds of humanities work that goes on in their communities and across the United States. Visitors can search projects by state and explore the tangible benefits the grants have on specific impact areas, including preserving cultural heritage; ensuring rural access to high-quality programming; enriching K–12 education; providing lifelong learning opportunities for diverse audiences; facilitating community dialogue; supporting cutting-edge research; fostering local tourism; supporting veterans; promoting civic education; and collecting and curating local histories. In 2017, the NEH provided over $107 million in grant investments to nearly 1,000 humanities projects in every state of the nation and U.S. territorial jurisdictions. NEH for All is an initiative of the National Humanities Alliance Foundation and is supported by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation.

Visit the website at​ ​nehforall.org.

Click here to view the site’s Free State of Jones page.