The National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) invites applications for the 2016 round of the Public Scholar Program, which is intended to support well-researched books in the humanities that have been conceived and written to reach a broad readership. Books supported through the Public Scholar Program might present a narrative history, tell the stories of important individuals, analyze significant texts, provide a synthesis of ideas, revive interest in a neglected subject, or examine the latest thinking on a topic. Most importantly, they should present significant humanities topics in a way that is accessible to general readers.

The Public Scholar Program is open to both independent scholars and individuals affiliated with scholarly institutions. It offers a stipend of $4,200 per month for a period of six to twelve months. The maximum stipend is $50,400 for a twelve-month period. Applicants must have U.S. citizenship or residency in the U.S. for the three years prior to the application deadline. In addition, they must have previously published a book with a university or commercial press or at least three articles and essays in publications reaching a large national or international audience.

Application guidelines (including a full statement of the eligibility requirements) and a list of F.A.Q.’s for the Public Scholar Program are available on the NEH’s website athttp://www.neh.gov/grants/research/public-scholar-program. The application deadline for this cycle is February 2, 2016. Recipients may begin the term of the grant as early as September 1, 2016 or as late as September 1, 2017. In the last cycle of the competition, the Endowment received 485 applications and made 36 awards.

The press release announcing the 36 winners in last year’s competition is available here: http://www.neh.gov/news/press-release/2015-07-29