Only four council members advising the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) remain after the White House abruptly fired the vast majority of the advising body amid a government shutdown on Wednesday.
A letter, signed by Mary Sprowls of the White House Presidential Personnel Office, was sent to council members on Wednesday morning, according to the Washington Post. It read: “On behalf of President Donald J. Trump, I am writing to inform you that your position as a member of the National Council on the Humanities is terminated, effective immediately.”
The National Council on the Humanities is typically comprised of 26 scholars and humanities leaders who are appointed for six-year terms by the president. The council advises the chair of the NEH on grants, policies, and funding decisions. The advisory committee’s meetings require a minimum of 14 members, with each having been confirmed by the Senate.
Ahead of the government shutdown, members were reportedly scheduled to attend a meeting scheduled for next week to suggest nominations for the National Humanities Medal, review three “sole source” grant applications, and consider statue proposals for Trump’s National Garden of American Heroes, according to a copy of the meeting agenda that was reviewed by the Washington Post.
The council’s website has also been updated to reflect the four remaining members: Russell A. Berman, Keegan F. Callanan, William English, and Matthew Rose. Some of the members who were appointed by Trump have been removed from the website. The four remaining ones are white men.
The statute establishing the council states that, when selecting members, the President “shall give due regard to equitable representation of women, minorities, and individuals with disabilities.”
A White House spokesperson told the Washington Post that President Donald Trump eliminated these council members as he is “hoping to place members on the board who align more closely with his vision.”
Founded in 1965, the NEH has awarded more than $6 billion in grants to museums, historical sites, universities, libraries, and related organizations.
It’s the latest shift for the endowment agency, whose staff was cut by two-thirds in June. There was also a proposal to eliminate it altogether as part of the national 2026 budget. In April, the NEH was forced to cancel previously awarded grants, though some have since been restored.
Federal courts have pushed back on the Trump administration’s efforts to thwart the agency, with a spate of injunctions issued against these grant cancelations.
Meanwhile, the Trump administration also cracked down on another federal grant-making agency, the National Endowment for the Arts (NEA), which was barred from funding projects that promoted “gender ideology.” The ban was ruled a violation of the First Amendment rights last month.
