NEH is being gutted, and New Jerseyans will suffer as a result.

The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) grants that fund state councils are being rescinded by DOGE. As a result, NJCH will be forced to significantly scale back or cut our grants, programs, and operations. To make an immediate impact, please donate to help us achieve a maximum matching grant of $50,000 from the Mellon Foundation.

Advocate for the Humanities

Donate to NJCH

NEH Seal reading "Democracy Demands Wisdom"

The Mellon Foundation has announced a grant of emergency stabilization funds for all state humanities councils. We are profoundly grateful for this generous gift. However, these funds NOT a replacement of our federal funding, either in the short- or long-term.

Mellon will match your donation dollar-for-dollar up to a total of $50,000. Please maximize your impact by donating today.

Learn more about the Mellon Funding

Donate to NJCH

We explore, cultivate, and champion the public humanities in order to strengthen New Jersey’s diverse community.

What that means

We believe humanities fields such as history, literature, and philosophy are the best hope for our state and country's future. It's the humanities that help us break free from the limitations of our individual experience and see both the perspectives of others and the larger social forces that affect us all.

We work to bring the critical thinking and reflection the humanities spur to the Garden State's broad and diverse population, through programs and support for other humanities organizations.

Our programs, grants, resources, and convenings foster appreciation for the public humanities in every district in the state. Explore our impact >>>

Explore

We help the people of New Jersey explore the humanities through public programs, events, statewide and community-based initiatives, and connections to institutional and non-institutional experts in their fields.

Cultivate

As New Jersey's partner of the National Endowment for the Humanities, we support NJ humanities organizations of all kinds through grants, sponsorships, professional development, resources, and opportunities to network and convene.

Champion

We are the state's leading advocate for the diverse work of the humanities, through legislative outreach, communicating impact, recognizing excellence, and amplifying the voices of NJ communities.

Our Mission

We explore, cultivate, and champion the public humanities in order to strengthen New Jersey’s diverse community.

Grants & Sponsorships

Through a competitive application process, we award Incubation Grants and Action Grants ranging from $3,000 to $15,000 to further the impact of the public humanities in New Jersey. Our COVID-19 grantmaking in 2020 and 2021 also helped pandemic-affected organizations recover and reimagine their work at a critical moment. Sponsorships are primarily aimed at greater visibility and access to audiences that are not currently served by NJCH through our grantmaking and other programmatic initiatives.

Grant Opportunities

Grantee Information

Sponsorships

Grantee Spotlight

RCSG Support Group welcome guests, Newark Mayor Ras Baraka and US Congressman Donald Payne.

Returning Citizens Support Group Inc.

Newark, (Action / $15,000)
Incarceration is a phenomenon that touches on so many aspects of what it means to be human, yet few ever grapple with the questions and themes that surround it. Read more

Meet all of our grantees

In January 2025, NJCH announced $205,716 in Grant Awards to 17 NJ Organizations Meet them »

Events

Featured

Events
Featured

May 28

Virtual Event

Featured 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

Humanities Forward: Creating Community in Times of Crisis (Virtual)

RSVP Now Free

May 23

8:30 am - 5:00 pm

Teaching Revolutionary New Jersey Symposium

May 28

Virtual Event

Featured 1:00 pm - 2:00 pm

Humanities Forward: Creating Community in Times of Crisis (Virtual)

RSVP Now Free

May 29

7:30 pm - 9:00 pm

A Novel in 500 Words: Explore the Challenging and Wonderful World of Writing for Children with Jenna Beatrice

Jun 1

2:00 pm - 3:30 pm

The New Jersey Tomato: From Cherry to Beefsteak with Judith Krall-Russo

Jun 4

Featured 10:00 am - 12:00 pm

Humanities Forward: Creating Community in Times of Crisis (North Jersey)

RSVP Now Free

Jun 7

2:00 pm - 5:00 pm

Mahwah Museum Hosts “Les Paul’s 110th Birthday Celebration Tribute Concert”

News

NJCH receives emergency stabilization funds from Mellon Foundation

April 30, 2025

The Mellon Foundation has announced a grant of emergency stabilization funds for all state humanities councils previously funded by Congressionally apportioned, statutory operating grants from the National Endowment for the […]

Resource Roundup April 2025

April 25, 2025

Our monthly email newsletter for the NJ Humanities community with helpful information, including notifications of funding, professional development events, meetings, and conferences from both NJCH and the larger nonprofit community.

NJCH to Host “Humanities Forward” Gatherings Throughout the State this Spring

April 24, 2025

The New Jersey Council for the Humanities will host a series of gatherings for organizations, professionals, and supporters across the state to discuss the current state of the humanities, funding, […]

NEH is being gutted, and New Jerseyans will suffer as a result. Here’s how you can help.

April 3, 2025

Resource Roundup March 2025

March 26, 2025

Photo of the February 27, 2025 Soul Line Dance party held in the Library of Congress's Jefferson Building Great Hall, photographed from above.

NJCH-funded History Project Celebrated at Library of Congress and on GMA

March 14, 2025

Map with 17 pinpoints showing grantees in New Jersey

NJCH Announces $205,716 in New Grant Awards

January 24, 2025

View all NJCH news »

Ever wonder: what's the story behind the myth of the Jersey Devil?

The Jersey Devil is a distinctive piece of our state's lore, a mythical creature legendary enough to serve as both a symbol of the Pine Barrens region and the mascot of our NHL franchise. Scholars supported with NJCH funds have traced this strange creature's origins to a mish-mash of political, religious, and capitalist conflict over generations of early America.

Learn more (if you dare!) »

Program Spotlight

Prime Time Family Reading

Prime Time Family Reading is a national program serving 6- to 10-year-old kids and their families. Participating families build early literacy skills, engage in critical thinking, and connect with each other through literature and discussion. NJCH is excited to join the national network of this program in 2025!

Learn more

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