The Chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH) is the executive leader of the National Endowment for the Humanities, an independent federal agency created in 1965. The Chair directs the NEH and is the sole position in the agency with the legal authority to make grants and awards. The NEH Chair is appointed by the president and confirmed by the Senate. The appointment and term of the Chair are statutorily defined in , and the Chair's authority is defined throughout . The National Council on the Humanities, a board of 26 private citizens who are also appointed by the President and confirmed by the Senate, advises the Chair.

List of Chairpersons

Barnaby Keeney, 1963–1965, Chair of National Commission on the Humanities

Henry Allen Moe, 1965–66, Interim Chair

Barnaby Keeney, 1966–1970

Wallace Edgerton, Acting Chair, 1970–71

Ronald Berman, 1971–1977

Robert Kingston, Acting Chair, 1977

Joseph Duffey, 1977–81

William J. Bennett, 1981–85

John Agresto, Acting Chair, 1985

Lynne Cheney, 1986–1993

Jerry L. Martin, Acting Chair, 1993

Donald Gibson, Acting Chair, 1993

Sheldon Hackney, 1993–97

Bruce A. Lehman, Acting Chair, 1997

William R. Ferris, 1997–2001

Bruce Cole, 2001–2009

Carole M. Watson, Acting Chair, 2009

Jim Leach, 2009–2013

Carole M. Watson, Acting Chair, 2013–2014

William 'Bro' Adams, 2014–2017

Margaret "Peggy" Plympton, Acting Chair, 2017–2018

Jon Parrish Peede, 2018–2021

Adam Wolfson, Acting Chair, 2021–2022

Shelly Lowe, 2022–Present

References

Chair of the National Endowment for the Humanities