The Hoosier State’s humanities organizations are optimistic about the health and popularity of the humanities in their counties, despite flat or declining funding, according to a new study conducted as part of a national initiative called Humanities at the Crossroads.
That’s good news to Keira Amstutz, president and CEO of Indiana Humanities, which commissioned the study.
“We know the humanities – which includes the fields of history, literature, philosophy and other related disciplines – are at a crossroads in America,” Amstutz said. “We wanted to study the situation to get a better understanding and a benchmark for where the humanities are today and what options we have for strengthening Hoosiers’ access to humanities-based programs.”
Indiana Humanities worked with researchers from CIRCLE at the Jonathan M. Tisch College of Citizenship and Public Service, Tufts University, on the study. The findings come at a time when, in many places, funding for the humanities is down, constituencies are aging and organizations struggle to assert their purpose and claim a place in important civic conservations.
The first study of its kind, the Indiana Case Study sheds light on the organizations that support the humanities in Indiana and the connections among them. It provides basic data that hasn’t been gathered before, but also gives insights into the opportunities and challenges these organizations face. Nearly 400 people from 88 counties in Indiana participated in the survey, including museum directors, librarians, school superintendents and local historians.
“In addition to providing information about the situation in Indiana, this study was created as a model for other states,” Amstutz said. “As such, the impact will reach beyond Indiana to help strengthen the humanities across the nation.”
Key findings from the study:
- The humanities are as popular as or even more popular than in the past and that these activities contribute to the sense of place that every community is trying to enhance.
- Most organizations say they never or only sometimes use the term “humanities” with their constituents, but rather talk about programs such as book discussions, movie showings, author visits.
- There is potential for strengthening humanities organizations in Indiana and for building up the network of humanities groups.
- On the whole, organizations are fairly optimistic about the state of the humanities in their communities.
- They are neutral or slightly positive about the humanities being accessible for everyone.
- Organizations providing humanities content in Indiana are lean and longstanding. More than 20 percent have been in existence for a century or more.
- Funding sources for the humanities are flat or in decline.
“There’s a lot of great information in this study,” said survey respondent Brenda Myers, the executive director at Hamilton County Tourism, Inc. “But perhaps the most important thing we can get from this study is a sense of what questions we need to ask to ensure that the humanities continue to play a role in conversations about the future of our communities and our state.”
For more information or to download the full report, visit indianahumanities.org/hac.
Humanities at the Crossroads is a national initiative to better understand the status and future of the humanities in America, and to research the ways the humanities have been practiced, transformed, supported, evaluated and justified in the past 50 years. It is funded by the Carnegie Corporation, Lilly Endowment, MacArthur Foundation and the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Indiana Humanities connects people, opens minds and enriches lives by creating and facilitating programs that encourage Hoosiers to think, read and talk. Learn more at IndianaHumanities.org.
