Introduction

If defining the scope of the humanities has posed an evergreen challenge, finding the language to describe the public humanities may be even harder. More than just something to be studied, the humanities are meant to be practiced. So when trying to understand what it means for members of the public to practice the humanities, a sensible approach is to look to those practitioners most engaged in the field. In our current landscape, these practitioners include the fifty-six independent nonprofits that compose the network of state and jurisdictional humanities councils. Established in 1971 by Congress to make the humanities as accessible as possible, these councils have a significant impact on the cultural landscape of their states and territories, reaching 42.8 million people through their support of more than 5,100 local organizations with $51 million in funding in 2024 alone.1 In both the work they do every day and in how they define their work, the councils place the public at the center of their humanities engagement in a way that other practitioners—typically those working in academia—do not.

“In both the work they do every day and in how they define their work, the councils place the public at the center of their humanities engagement in a way that other practitioners—typically those working in academia—do not.”

This research brief examines how state and jurisdictional humanities councils publicly define their work through mission statements, definitions of the humanities, and criteria for regarding someone as a humanities “scholar.” The humanities councils serve as microcosms of the broader cultural ecosystem in the field, making their work ideal for understanding more broadly what the public humanities entail.2