On 30 April 2025, Virginia Humanities announced the Mellon Foundation’s $15M emergency funding for humanities councils.
This investment by the Mellon Foundation will help stabilize many councils after the sudden cancellation of federal operating grants by NEH in early April.
This emergency funding will help provide support to all 56 state and jurisdictional humanities councils across the United States, including up to $250,000 for each council.
Donations received by Virginia Humanities starting April 29, 2025, count towards the Mellon Foundation match. Members of the public can donate by visiting VirginiaHumanities.org/give.
Virginia Humanities is the state humanities council headquartered at the University of Virginia, but serving the entire state. They aim to share the stories of all Virginians—or, better yet, find ways for people to share their own stories. They want Virginians to connect with their history and culture and, in doing that, hope we’ll all better understand one another.