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About the Council When we ask who we are and what our lives ought to mean, we are using the humanities. The Nebraska Humanities Council enhances the quality of life in communities across our state through programs that study the human race, its achievements, its creations, its dreams and aspirations, its failures and triumphs. The NHC promotes a better understanding of Nebraska–who we are and where we have been–to build a better future. The NHC was established as a state-based affiliate of the National Endowment for the Humanities in 1973, primarily to award grants. By the 1980s, the NHC realized that in Nebraska, grants alone were not enough to reach the entire state, and subsequently started a Humanities Resource Center with traveling exhibits, videos and films, and a Speakers Bureau that now includes nearly 300 humanities programs. Other NHC programs now include Chautauqua and its scholars portraying historical characters, Capitol Forum on America’s Future for high school students, the Prime Time Family Reading Time reading and discussion program, Museum on Main Street exhibitions from the Smithsonian, the Nebraska Book Festival, and the annual Governor’s Lecture in the Humanities. The Nebraska Foundation for the Humanities works with the Council to secure private monies and advocate for public funding to support these programs.
Five-year strategic plan is unveiled
The Nebraska Humanities Council recently began implementation of a new five-year strategic plan. Goals of the plan include making high-quality programming available to all Nebraskans, building a strong base of private financial support for a statewide program, increasing the visibility of the council’s work, sustaining and enhancing state and federal support for the Council’s work, and ensuring effective and appropriate use of the Council and Foundation’s staff and resources, including annual review of performance and structures.
Significant new strategies were developed in consultation with NHC board, members, staff, partner organizations and program attendees. These strategies include providing outreach to American Indian organizations and organizations in the western third of the state, implementing locally based civic discussion programming, fostering cultural tourism, maintaining successful programming such as Capitol Forum, Museum on Main Street, Speakers Bureau, and Prime Time Family Reading Time, and developing and marketing programming to attract young adults, including improving the Council’s use of technology.
Click on the link in the left-hand column for details on the strategic plan.
Serving Nebraska since 1973
In January 1972, the National Endowment for the Humanities invited six Nebraskans to Washington, D.C., to be briefed about a state-based humanities program. They represented academic humanists, administrators in adult education programs and groups in the public sector.
Returning from Washington, the committee met in Omaha and elected William Brandenburg of Wayne State College as chair and Edward Janike as vice chair. A board of 20 members was formed and met in Lincoln on Aug. 9, 1972. On Oct. 26, E.W. Janike was named chair, and Robert Apostol was named vice chair. Throughout the planning period, Wayne State College served as fiscal agent for the committee. The committee awarded its first grants in 1973.
The Nebraska Humanities Council continues to provide high-quality humanities programs, events and publications.
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Phone 402-474-2131 or e-mail nhc@nebraskahumanities.org |
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