News & Updates
View in Suffolk, Thomas Gainsborough, c. 1755 Oil on Canvas, 37 3/4 x 49 3/8 in, Saint Louis Art Museum
The 55th Annual Meeting of the American Society for Eighteenth-Century Studies has concluded. Stay tuned for the Call for Proposals for ASECS 2026 in Philadelphia!
Humanities & Nonprofit News
- Lawsuits
- ACLS/AHA/MLA Lawsuit to restore NEH funding, FAQs
- MESA/AAUP/Knight Foundation Lawsuit challenging non-citizen deportations
- AHA Resources for Foreign Scholars (Information on travel for international scholars traveling abroad)
- Policy Updates
- National Council of Nonprofits, “President Trump Proposes to Slash Funding for Domestic Programs in FY2026”
- Advocacy in Action
- Save the NEH! National Humanities Alliance call to action
- NEH for All – National Humanities Alliance resource
- American Council of Learned Societies Advocacy Corner
- Historians Respond to Federal Actions (AHA)
- Resources for Foreign Scholars (AHA)
- PEN Action Alerts
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New ASECS Webinar Series, “The 18th Century in the Present”
Friday, May 16, noon-1pm EDT: Webinar. You’re invited to the new webinar series, organized by ASECS President Paola Bertucci and Executive Board Members Brian Cowan and Meghan Roberts, highlighting the importance of the 18th century today! Registration required: Webinar 18th Century Today “Citizenship, Political Dissent, and Presidential Power in the Early Republic.” Speakers:
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ASECS Community Discussion, “Advocating for the Humanities”
Please join us for a community discussion where members can talk about how federal policies have impacted their scholarship, exchange information, and discuss how individuals and ASECS can engage in effective advocacy. Monday, May 12, noon-1pm EDT/9-10am PDT: Community Discussion, “Advocating for the Humanities.” Registration required: Member Discussion Federal funding cuts and threats to the…
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ACLS, AHA AND MLA FILE LAWSUIT ALLEGING ILLEGAL DISMANTLING OF NATIONAL ENDOWMENT FOR THE HUMANITIES
ASECS shares this important press release regarding the ACLS, AHA, and MLA joint lawsuit regarding the cuts to the NEH. ASECS is an institutional affiliate of the American Council of Learned Societies, the American Historical Association, and the Modern Language Association. Press release can be found here: ACLS MLA AHA LawsuitThe full text of the…
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Levan Book Chat—Emily Hodgson Anderson, Shadow Work
May 8, 2025 12:00 PM PDT A discussion of Emily Hodgson Anderson’s new book, Shadow Work: Loneliness and the Literary Life (Columbia University Press, 2025). The author will be joined in conversation by Julia Lee (Loyola Marymount University) and Anahid Nersessian (UCLA), moderated by Dana Johnson (USC). Organized in partnership with the Department of English and the Early…
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Deborah Knuth Klenck Obituary
ASECS is sorry to hear of the passing of Professor Deborah Knuth Klenck. The obituary can be found here: Knuth Klenck
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National Humanities Alliance Update, NEH Grants
ASECS is a member of the National Humanities Alliance. The NHA has provided this Memo to Members for distribution, dated April 3, 2025. From: National Humanities AllianceApril 3, 2025URGENT UPDATE: DOGE Rescinds NEH Grants We learned this morning (April 3) that DOGE has begun terminating previously awarded NEH grants. We understand that this includes operating…
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New ASECS Webinar Series, “The 18th Century in the Present”
Friday, May 16, noon-1pm EDT: Webinar. You’re invited to the new webinar series, organized by ASECS President Paola Bertucci and Executive Board Members Brian Cowan and Meghan Roberts, highlighting the importance of the 18th century today! Registration required: Webinar 18th Century Today “Citizenship, Political Dissent, and Presidential Power in the Early Republic.” Speakers:
General Announcements
Helpful Resources
Conference Planning
- Lau, Travis and Jason Farr, “Towards a More Accessible Conference Presentation,”MLA Profession, n.d. [ca. 2019].
- Florvil, Tiffany, Alicia E. Ellis, Damani Partridge, Eli Rubin, and Chunjie Zhang. “Why Are We Having Different Experiences? Reflections of the GSA Committee on Institutional Transformation and Social Justice.” German Studies Review 46, no. 1 (2023): 117-122. doi:10.1353/gsr.2023.0006.
- White, Willow, Shelby Johnson, and Katarina O’Briain, “Indigenous Language Guidelines and Resources,” 2024.
Publishing
- AUPresses Subject Area Grid is a free, downloadable spreadsheet that can be sorted by subject or publisher. Prospective authors, researchers, librarians, bibliographers, and publishers have found this to be a valuable reference for discovering publishers that have either an active program acquiring new work in a subject or in-print backlist still available.
- Babyak, Tekla. “Steps Journals Can Take to Support Authors Living with Disabilities,” Interview, Scholastica, n.d. [2023].
Humanities Resources and Advocacy Toolkits
- American Council of Learned Societies. “We are Humanistic.” n.d.
- American Historical Association. “Why Study History? Department Advocacy Toolkit.” n.d.
- American Philosophy Association. “Advocacy Toolkit.” 2019.
- College Art Association. “Guidelines for Addressing Proposed Substantive Changes to an art, Art History or Design Unit or Program at Colleges and Universities.” 2018.
- Modern Language Association. “Toolkit on Academic Freedom.” 2020.
- National Humanities Alliance. “Between Two Bookshelves: How to Advocate for Humanities Departments to Senior Administrators.”
- National Humanities Alliance. “Documenting the Impact of the Humanities Toolkit.” n.d.
- Muir, Scott. “Expanding Access to Undergraduate Education: Models and Strategies.” National Humanities Alliance, 2024.
- National Humanities Alliance. “Study the Humanities Toolkit.” n.d.
- National Humanities Alliance: “Tip Sheet: Working with Communications Officers.“ n.d.