With sadness, the trustees and staff of the National Humanities Center note the passing of trustee emeritus Meyer H. (Mike) Abrams on April 21, 2015. He was 102. One of the Center's cofounders, Abrams was a towering figure whose contributions to the humanities were vast. We are grateful for his scholarly imagination, leadership, and dedication which have helped make the Center a vital institution for nearly 40 years.
The National Humanities Center announces the appointment of 37 Fellows for the academic year 2015–16. Chosen from 537 applicants, these leading scholars will come to the Center from 11 states, Australia, Germany, the People’s Republic of China, and the United Kingdom.
The first of the National Humanities Center’s summer institutes in digital humanities, devoted to digital textual studies, will convene for two one-week sessions, first in June 2015 and again in 2016. The objective of the Institute in Digital Textual Studies is to develop participants’ technological and scholarly imaginations and to combine them into a powerful investigative instrument. “Our summer institutes in digital humanities are designed for ambitious scholars who want to learn how computational methods or digital technologies might enhance or even completely reshape their scholarship,” says Elizabeth Mansfield, NHC vice president for scholarly programs.
The NHC Board of Trustees has elected philanthropist and financial services veteran Patricia Morton of Charlotte, NC, as its new chairman. She is the first woman to hold the position and the first North Carolinian since William C. Friday. Morton has served on the NHC board since 2004 and co-chaired the Center’s recently concluded capital campaign that raised over $19 million.
The National Humanities Center announces the appointment of Robert D. Newman as its next President and Director. On July 1, 2015, he succeeded Geoffrey G. Harpham, who led the Center since 2003. “Robert Newman intends to continue and enhance the role of the Center as a leading voice nationally in support of the humanities,” said Center trustee William Jordan.
The National Humanities Center has received the 2014 Primary Source Award for Teaching from the Center for Research Libraries for its interactive America in Class® Lessons. The award recognizes faculty, researchers, and others in the academic community who incorporate primary source materials like historical documents and literary texts into classroom instruction in innovative ways. In presenting the award, the CRL described the America in Class Lessons as "an innovative program that embodies an impressive combination of timeliness, collaboration, convenience, and educational excellence."
The Center is pleased to announce the launch of a four-year project that will bring three scholars each year from leading universities in Greater China for residential fellowships, beginning in fall 2014. Supported by a grant from the Henry Luce Foundation and four partnering universities, the Chinese Scholars Program will give selected scholars an opportunity to spend a year in the rich and productive environment of the National Humanities Center.