Last year was a wonderful year and heading into 2025 we were buoyed by great optimism for the future, the wonderful reception of Vermont Reads: Gather, and many other impactful experiences from 2024.
But on April 2nd, in the middle of the night, Elon Musk’s “Department of Government Efficiency” (DOGE) sent letters to all 56 state and jurisdictional Humanities Councils cancelling our grants from the National Endowment for the Humanities. In Vermont, that represents 42% of our annual operating funds. Two days later, DOGE fired 80% of the staff at NEH, leaving only a skeleton crew to manage a devastated humanities landscape.
But we remain bravely optimistic in staying the course in our work. Most importantly, we continue to champion our community partners by providing grant funding, one-on-one support, educational resources, and professional training amid the storm.
Our community has stepped up in support of our work as well, and for that we are grateful. You have provided over $200,000 in emergency support. In addition, the Federation of State Humanities Councils worked with the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation to secure $15 Million in Emergency Funding for State Humanities Councils.
With this support, the Federation offered an immediate $200,000 for every state humanities council and an additional $50,000 available in matching funds through “Humanities 100” offered by the Federation of State Humanities Councils with support from the Mellon Foundation.
In a few short weeks, we reached our goal of raising $50,000 to unlock the match and we are so grateful to all of you who contributed. And yet, it is important to note that private philanthropy cannot sustainably replace annual federal support for the Arts & Humanities. As of the end of May, Vermont Humanities has raised a little more than half of the amount we planned to receive from the NEH in 2025. Nevertheless, we persist, and we will continue to focus on our mission, our vision, our values, and our community.
Thank you for your commitment, we can’t do this work without you! Your support helps make our communities more just, vibrant, and resilient through the humanities.
