The chairman of the National Endowment for the Humanities, William D. Adams, will be leaving his post tomorrow, May 23.
The NEH, which supports K-12 education programs around the country, announced that Margaret Plympton, the organization’s deputy chair, will serve as its acting chair.
Tomorrow was already set to be a big day for the endowment: President Donald Trump proposed eliminating the endowment, along with the National Endowment for the Arts, earlier this year. Trump’s final budget is expected to be released tomorrow and will contain more information on the future of the humanities endowment.
In a press release, Adams noted that the NEH received continued federal financial support for the current budget year—even after Trump’s budget proposal was released: “We’re encouraged that Congress and the President increased our funding for the current year and that the White House has initiated the process of bringing new political appointees to the agency.” He said he was leaving to spend more time on scholarship and with his family.
Adams was appointed by then-President Barack Obama in 2014 and led the humanities endowment through its 50th anniversary year in 2015.
Online, humanities advocates and educators thanked Adams for his support of the humanities and particularly for advocating for its role in everyday public life:
Thank you Chairman Adams for your leadership and vision @NEHgov. You have helped ensure the humanities benefit all: //t.co/qTEEoJmXqw
-- HumanitiesAlliance (@HumanitiesAll) May 22, 2017
Related:
- Arts, Humanities Educators Fear Humanities Cuts
- Proposed Cuts to Endowments, Libraries Raise Concerns for Education
- After Fears of Elimination, Arts, Humanities Endowments Get More Funds