CAA News Today

Jessica Jones Irons, executive director of the National Humanities Alliance (NHA), emailed the following Humanities Action Alert on April 8, 2011. Founded in 1981, NHA is a nonprofit organization that works to advance national humanities policy in the areas of research, education, preservation, and public programs.

House and Senate Dear Colleague Letters

Please help support the humanities by taking a few minutes to write your Members of Congress and ask them to sign a Dear Colleague letter regarding FY 2012 funding for the National Endowment for the Humanities. As you may know, President Obama’s FY 2012 Budget proposes $146.3 million in funding for NEH—more than $21 million in cuts to the agency. Although funding for FY 2011 (the current fiscal year) still remains uncertain today, the FY 2012 appropriations process is in full swing, and we must continue our advocacy efforts for the next fiscal year.

House Dear Colleague Letter
Representative David Price (D-NC) is currently circulating a Dear Colleague letter in support of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). The letter, addressed to the Chair and Ranking Member of the House Appropriations Subcommittee, requests $167.5 million in FY 2012 funding for the NEH. This is the same level of funding the agency received in FY 2010. A copy of the letter is available here. Please ask your Representative to sign on to this letter. Click here to send an email today. The Alliance has set up a template message for you to customize for your Representative.

Senate Dear Colleague Letter
Senator Tom Udall (D-NM) is currently circulating a Dear Colleague letter in support of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) and the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA). The letter, addressed to leaders on the Senate Appropriations Committee and Subcommittee, requests $167.5 million in FY 2012 funding for the NEH and the NEA. This is the same level of funding both agencies received in FY 2010. A copy of the letter is available here. Please ask your Senators to sign on to this letter. Click here to send an email today. The Alliance has set up a template message for you to customize for your Senators.

Thank you for your assistance on this important issue. The signatures on these letters will provide an important record of support for federal humanities funding in both the House and the Senate.

Sincerely,

Jessica Jones Irons
Executive Director
National Humanities Alliance