NEH Budget Secures Support for High Quality Humanities Programs

Agency requests $144,335 million for FY 2009

President Bush's fiscal year 2009 budget request for the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) seeks funding of $144.355 million. The 2009 budget request includes $20 million to support the Endowment's We the People program on American history and culture, a $5 million increase over last year's request. Additionally, the Endowment requests $2 million to support existing and new Digital Humanities grants, over $84 million for NEH grant programs in support of the study, preservation, and teaching of the humanities, and over $12 million to leverage nonfederal support.

"The NEH serves and strengthens our democracy through promoting excellence in the humanities and conveying the lessons of history to all Americans," said Bruce Cole, Chairman of the NEH. "The President's budget request for fiscal year 2009 will enable the Endowment to better support the humanities and the vital role they play in educating and improving the lives of our nation's citizens."

The NEH cultivates the best in humanities scholarship and understanding by awarding grants to cultural institutions such as museums, archives, libraries, colleges and universities, public television and radio stations, as well as to individuals such as scholars and teachers. NEH grants support all types of humanities projects—from museum exhibitions, to documentary films, scholarly monographs, workshops for teachers, and preservation of archives and other cultural resources—in order to bring the wisdom of the humanities to all Americans. The NEH's work is complemented and extended by the excellent local programming of the 56 state and territorial humanities councils.

The agency's FY 2009 budget request will support the following NEH strategic objectives:

• Preserve and increase access to cultural and intellectual resources essential for the American people;
• Strengthen humanities teaching and learning in the nation's schools and colleges;
• Facilitate basic research and original scholarship in the humanities;
• Provide opportunities for Americans to engage in lifelong learning in the humanities;
• Maintain and strengthen the programs and activities of the state humanities councils;
• Strengthen the institutional base of the humanities;
• Leverage third-party contributions to humanities projects; and
• Provide administrative funds to operate the agency effectively and efficiently.

Additional information is available in the summary and highlights of the Endowment's FY 2009 appropriation request. The PDF attachment is located in the box above.