What’s at stake?

Overnight, on April 2, 2025, Michael McDonald, Acting Chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) in conjunction with the Department of Government Efficiency (DOGE), sent a letter to Nevada Humanities and 55 other state and jurisdictional humanities councils stating that their five-year general operating support grant funding has been terminated effective immediately.

Nevada Humanities receives approximately 75% of our funding from the NEH, which amounts to roughly $1 million each year. NEH is also being targeted with the aim of terminating more than 600 other grant awards, substantially reducing its staff and eliminating many of the agency’s previously announced grant programs. The termination of NEH grant funding will have a devastating effect on every congressional district across the country, including the people of Nevada, decimating our ability to serve our communities and eliminating programs essential to Nevadans across the state.

How can you help?

• Call or message your U.S. senators and representatives and urge them to protect Nevada Humanities, NEH, and humanities councils, and the public’s access to the humanities across our state. See a sample script below.

• Share this federal action alert from the National Humanities Alliance and our email directly to five people in your network—anyone who believes the humanities should be accessible to all Nevadans—and ask them to join you and take action.

• Send us stories of how Nevada Humanities has supported your work and how the loss of Nevada Humanities might negatively impact you or your community.

• Write an op-ed letter to your local newspaper explaining why humanities councils are important and the importance these federal dollars have in your state and community.

• Make a donation to Nevada Humanities

Script/Message for Contacting Elected Officials

Subject: Protect NEH/Save Our Humanities Council

As a constituent, I am [writing/calling] to urgently request that you support the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) in the face of the Department of Government Efficiency’s (DOGE) attempt to substantially reduce its staff, cut the agency’s grant programs, and rescind grants that have already been awarded.

NEH is the only agency that funds our nation’s 56 state and jurisdictional humanities councils, which provide vital cultural services and critical funding to local nonprofit organizations across the nation.

Nevada Humanities engages hundreds of thousands of Nevadans and hundreds of local partner organizations through in-person and digital programs and grants to Nevada organizations. Federal funds from the NEH to Nevada Humanities leveraged local support at a ratio of approximately $2 of funding for every federal dollar, leveraging important local funding that might not otherwise be raised.

NEH was created by an act of Congress in 1965 and reaffirmed by Republican and Democratic Presidents and legislators over the following 60 years. DOGE’s reductions to the NEH budget and workforce will block the agency’s ability to carry out Congressional intent.

Every Congress for 50 years has supported the state humanities councils and their effective distribution of federal dollars across America. These funds go directly to states and local districts.

The loss of NEH funding to humanities councils will decimate the ability of these nonprofits to serve communities across our state, eliminating programs that are essential to our region’s cultural infrastructure.

Again, I urge you to protect NEH and NEH funding for all humanities councils.