Eligibility and Guidelines

From the NEH Eligibility Criteria 
"NEH summer institutes are designed principally for full-time and part-time classroom teachers and librarians in public, charter, independent, and religiously affiliated schools, as well as home schooling parents. Other K-12 school personnel, including administrators, substitute teachers, and classroom professionals, are also eligible to participate.

Teachers at schools in the United States or its territorial possessions or Americans teaching in foreign schools where at least 50 percent of the students are American nationals are eligible for this program. Applicants must be United States citizens, residents of U.S. jurisdictions, or foreign nationals who have been residing in the United States or its territories for at least the three years immediately preceding the application deadline. Foreign nationals teaching abroad at non-U.S. chartered institutions are not eligible to apply.

​Individuals may not apply to an NEH Summer Seminar or Institute whose director is affiliated with the same institution or is a family member. Individuals must not apply to seminars directed by scholars with whom they have previously studied. Institute selection committees are advised that only under the most compelling and exceptional circumstances may an individual participate in an institute with a director or a lead faculty member who has previously guided that individual’s research or in whose previous institute or seminar he or she has participated. To be considered eligible, applicants must submit a complete application. This includes an NEH cover sheet and the additional materials requested on the individual seminar or institute website."

Please email Robert Johnston (johnsto1@uic.edu) or Rachel Allmen (allmen@chicagohistory.org) if you have questions regarding eligibility.

Recent participants in NEH programs are eligible to apply, but project selection committees are directed to give first consideration to applicants who have not participated in an NEH-supported Seminar, Institute, or Landmarks Workshop in the last three years (2014, 2015, or 2016). 

An individual may apply to up to two projects in any one year (NEH Summer Seminars, Institutes or Landmarks Workshops), but may participate in only one. Also please note that eligibility criteria differ between the Seminars and Institutes and the Landmarks Workshops programs.

NEH institute participants are required to attend all meetings and to engage fully as professionals in the work of the project. During the project's tenure, they may not undertake teaching assignments or any other professional activities unrelated to their participation in the project. Participants who, for any reason, do not complete the full tenure of the project must refund a pro-rated portion of the stipend.

Once you have accepted an offer to attend any NEH Summer Program (NEH Summer Seminar, Institute or Landmarks Workshop), you may not accept an additional offer or withdraw in order to accept a different offer. Endowment programs do not discriminate on the basis of race, color, national origin, sex, disability, or age.  For further information, write to NEH Equal Opportunity Officer, 1100 Pennsylvania Ave., N.W., Washington, D.C. 20506.  TDD:  202/606‑8282 (this is a special telephone device for the Deaf).

Project Scope

While the preparatory readings are at the college level and are rooted primarily in history, the subject matter covers a range of disciplines from literature, journalism, sociology, art, music—so that the inspired, creative teacher of any grade will be self-enriched as well as find opportunities to bring their students into this world.