Division of Research Programs

The Division of Research supports advanced humanities research by making grants to scholars, teachers and writers, and to educational and research organizations. These grants support individuals and collaborative teams of scholars and researchers in exploring archives, interpreting humanities texts and materials, developing and using digital tools, discovering new knowledge or rediscovering truths. The Division of Research also supports the humanities by commissioning studies on the state of the humanities to assess Americans’ engagement with the humanities and monitor trends within individual fields of study. 

The projects that the division supports are as diverse as America itself: editions of the Dead Sea Scrolls, a book on the history of “The Star Spangled Banner,” and the autobiography of Mark Twain. Teachers and media makers rely on new research findings in many fields—history, literature, music, the history of science and technology—to educate, inform, and inspire their audiences. Research projects add to the existing store of knowledge and reach all Americans.