Humanities Iowa redesignated as the state humanities council

Humanities Iowa supported a program called “Timeless Journeys” at the University of Northern Iowa. (Photo: HI)

The National Endowment for the Humanities recently redesignated the nonprofit Humanities Iowa as the state’s humanities council. For the past several years, the designation was held on an interim basis by the Iowa Department of Cultural Affairs, until it closed during the state government’s realignment in 2023, and then the State Historical Society of Iowa.

As the state’s humanities council, Humanities Iowa supports and funds humanities programs that connect Iowans to history and culture.

In recent years, Humanities Iowa has hosted community roundtables and intergenerational storytelling programs, helped restore small-town archives, promoted the Iowa Poet Laureate and Iowa Student Poet Ambassador, and organized a statewide speakers’ series. In all, these 200 programs and partnerships have reached more than 250,000 Iowans over the past two years.