The New Hampshire Humanities Council is a private non-profit organization that strengthens New Hampshire by
providing free public humanities programs in its communities. While the Humanities Council's mission is specific
to New Hampshire, we are not part of the state government. We are part of a national network of Humanities Councils
affiliated with the National Endowment for the Humanities. We rely on individual, corporate, and foundation support
for our diverse programs, which foster reflection, discussion, and civil debate where people live, work, study, and
play.
The humanities are those fields of inquiry that explore the heart of the human experience. They help us experience
and remember the power of ideas in a world where family, community, and career are in a constant state of flux.
The humanities include but are not limited to literature, history, languages, ethics, philosophy, comparative
religion and culture, and the interpretation of the arts.
The New Hampshire Humanities Council nurtures the joy of learning and inspires community engagement by bringing life-enhancing ideas from the humanities to the people of New Hampshire.
The mission of the New Hampshire Humanities Council is to offer essential opportunities for discovery, self-reflection, and lifelong learning by fostering civil discourse and bringing ideas from the humanities to the people of New Hampshire. We connect people with ideas.
The New Hampshire Humanities Council awards grants and develops and sponsors free public programs such as book discussions, workshops, seminars, and conferences led by scholars in literature, history, languages, ethics, philosophy, comparative religion and culture, and the interpretation of the arts. The NHHC works in partnership with our state’s schools and cultural institutions to improve the quality of life for New Hampshire citizens.
The NHHC’s vision, mission, goals and actions are informed by a set of core values that affirm its best traditions and embody its aspirations for the future. The NHHC’s core values are the unfettered pursuit of knowledge, understanding and self-awareness; integrity; quality; community and diversity; connection to culture, history, and place; cooperation; the importance of inspiration; accessibility; and a belief that education is essential to the vitality of each individual and of our communities, our state, and our nation.
The NHHC promotes the fundamental value of the unfettered pursuit of knowledge, understanding, and self-awareness. The form and content of NHHC programs will be consistent with the value of free and open inquiry, employing approaches that embody open-mindedness, tolerance, objectivity, impartiality, reason, and reflection. NHHC programs will encompass a wide range of issues, will not advocate a particular point of view, will provoke thought, and will encourage the active exploration of a variety of perspectives.
The NHHC strives to assure integrity in all of its decisions, actions, and programs. Integrity is a guiding value not only in its programming -- in which the NHHC encourages exploration of moral and ethical questions -- but in relationships within the NHHC and with its many stakeholders.
The NHHC is committed to delivering programming of the highest quality, characterized by effective and engaging methods of presentation and learning, high standards for content, and honest assessment of effectiveness. NHHC programs emphasize participation, the development of civil discourse skills, and interdisciplinary approaches where appropriate.
The NHHC is dedicated to forming and sustaining community, including communities of interest and affiliation and communities defined by physical proximity, such as neighborhoods and towns. To instill lifelong habits of civic and social responsibility and to overcome social isolation, the NHHC encourages engagement in the life of the community, respect for diversity of backgrounds and viewpoints, and active participation in civil discourse.
The NHHC promotes the understanding of New Hampshire’s culture, history, and sense of place. The NHHC also strives to broaden its constituents’ knowledge, perspectives and understanding of the human community throughout history and around the globe.
The NHHC seeks to form strong and lasting bonds of cooperation with its many constituencies and stakeholders, including program participants, scholars, program partners, funders, the media, and the state’s cultural and educational institutions.
The NHHC believes in the importance of inspiration and strives to feed the human spirit by encouraging intellectual curiosity and creativity.
The NHHC strives to make its programs accessible to all, regardless of age, gender, race, ethnicity, socio-economic status, or location. It is particularly mindful of extending humanities programs to the least advantaged, including those who are most isolated from society and those who face a barrier to knowledge as a result of illiteracy.
The NHHC believes that education is essential to the vitality of each individual, our communities, our state, and our nation. The NHHC is committed to working with K-12 educators in support of excellence in the teaching of the humanities in New Hampshire schools.
Public Programs and Special Series:
- What Is New Hampshire Reading?: a statewide reading program that brings people together to
discuss books and ideas at our town libraries, bookstores, and cafes. Learn more.
- Connections: a literacy program for adult new readers. Learn more.
- Literature and Medicine: a health-care-facility-based reading and discussion series that builds collegiality and team cohesion, increases empathy and communication skills, investigates tradition-bound roles that hinder best practices, and refreshes people working in the healthcare environment. Learn more.
- Special Programs conducted by the Humanities Council including our two-year project, Shifting Ground: Religion and Public Life in America. Learn more.
Educational Programs that Improve K - 12 Learning:
- In-depth Study for Teachers at our Summer Institutes
- Teacher Workshops for Enrichment and Curriculum Development
- Author & Scholar Visits to NH Classrooms
- Technology Day Workshops
Learn more about our programs for teachers.
Grants to Partner Organizations:
Humanites To Go! Catalog
The Humanities Council partners with local, state, and national organizations, including schools, libraries, and historical
societies, and religious, civic, and cultural groups to offer hundreds of programs through our Humanities to Go catalog.
These lectures and series are available through a one-page application form. The Humanities to Go catalog
allows organizations to bring many of New Hampshire's best humanities scholars to speak on a wide variety of topics. These events are like college seminars offered free to the people of New Hampshire.
Our Humanities to Go catalog was updated and expanded in 2006. Contact us at 603-224-4071 to obtain a copy. Learn more about Humanities to Go.
Mini-Grants and Project Grants
The Humanities Council sets aside a portion of its resources to award competitive grants for public humanities projects proposed
by community and civic organizations in collaboration with humanities scholars. Mini-grants are considered monthly for projects
up to $1500. Project Grants are awarded quarterly for ideas of larger scope and cost. Funded grants range from memoir reading
and writing workshops for seniors to Civil War history forums to jazz appreciation series. Learn more about our grant programs.
Our office hours are 8:30- 5:00 Monday - Friday.
Directions to our office:
From the North
From the South
From the East
From the West
New Hampshire Humanities Council
19 Pillsbury Street
Concord, NH 03301
Phone: 603-224-4071 Fax: 603-224-4072
From the North: Take 93 South to exit 12N in Concord.
You are now on South Main Street, proceed for approx. 1 mile. Go past S & W Sports and as you start up a the knoll, you will see a large brick building. Take the left after that building onto Pillsbury Street. We are the second brick building on the left. We are on the first floor.
From the South: Take 93 North to exit 12N in Concord.
You are now on South Main Street, proceed for approx. 1 mile. Go past S & W Sports and as you start up a the knoll, you will see a large brick building. Take the left after that building onto Pillsbury Street. We are the second brick building on the left. We are on the first floor.
From the East: Take Route 4 West to Concord. Take 393 South to 93 South to exit 12N.
You are now on South Main Street, proceed for approx. 1 mile. Go past S & W Sports and as you start up a the knoll, you will see a large brick building. Take the left after that building onto Pillsbury Street. We are the second brick building on the left. We are on the first floor.
From the West:Take I-89 South to Concord. Take 93 North to exit 12N.
You are now on South Main Street, proceed for approx. 1 mile. Go past the S & W Sports and as you start up a the knoll, you will see a large brick building. Take the left after that building onto Pillsbury Street. We are the second brick building on the left. We are on the first floor.
Terry Farish has jonied the Humanities Council staff as Literacy Coordinator. She will direct the Council’s Connections program for adult new readers.
Terry is the author of books for children and adults, including The Cat Who Liked Potato, illustrated by Barry Root and winner of the NH Writers Project’s award for Outstanding Work of Children’s Literature. She’s also the author of If the Tiger, the story of a survivor of the Pol Pot Regime in Cambodia.
She has taught at Rivier College and the Salt Institute for Documentary Studies, and has led writers workshops in schools through the Children’s Literacy Foundation. She has been a children’s librarian in Leominster and Lawrence, Massachusetts, where she developed a book discussion project for adult English language learners called “Tell Me a Cuento.”
For more information about Connections, contact Terry at 224-4071 x12.
Copyright © 2003-2006, New Hampshire Humanities Council, All Rights Reserved
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