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American Council of Learned Societies

@acls1919.bsky.social

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The American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS) is a nonprofit federation of 81 scholarly organizations and the leading representative of American scholarship in the humanities and social sciences. Learn more ➡️ www.acls.org

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · Mar 18

We are excited to join Bluesky! ACLS is a nonprofit federation of 81 scholarly organizations in the humanities and social sciences. ACLS is more than 100 years old, and we believe that knowledge is a public good.

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 8h

Congratulations!!

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 8h

Read more: www.acls.org/news/august-...

August 13, 2025 Advocacy Update

ACLS President Joy Connolly shares an update on assaults on higher education and public history, and how ACLS is responding.

www.acls.org

American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 9h

ACLS President Joy Connolly on campus debate: “Early American administrators, trustees, and faculty did not simply permit political argument on explosively divisive topics; they made it a central part of university life.”

#freespeech #highered #campusdebate

text graphic: “Early American administrators, trustees, and faculty did not simply permit political argument on explosively divisive topics; they made it a central part of university life.”

American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 9h

Join us on October 22 at 4:15 PM at The New York Public Library Stephen A. Schwarzman Building to celebrate the winners of the 2025 ACLS Open Access Book Prizes! This free, public panel will feature authors and publishers of the winning books. Register here: bit.ly/46wpxtk

#openaccess #publishing

Meet the 2025 ACLS Open Access Book Prize Winners. Wednesday, October 22, 4:15 PM. The New York Public Library, Celeste Auditorium, Stephen A. Schwarzman Building, 476 Fifth Ave.

American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 14h

"As Joy Connolly recently noted, federal directives have sought to constrict the freedom of Smithsonian Institution museums & research universities. Institutions that host critical debate are being punished & it is the humanities that foster such debate." @bostonglobe.com

bit.ly/48obMOC

What’s truly at stake when universities cut back on humanities - The Boston Globe

Without the humanities, we may produce efficient workers — fluent in algorithms and markets but unable to envision and inquire.

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 1d

In honor of #IndigenousPeoplesDay, members of the ACLS community shared new and updated resources for our Indigenous Studies Resource List: bit.ly/3kLAm2i

Indigenous Studies Resource Page

ACLS shares its Indigenous Studies Resource Page, focusing on the insights, histories, and experiences of peoples native to the Americas.

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 4d

Luce/ACLS Travel Grants in China Studies enable doctoral students and non-tenure track faculty to visit research sites in China, Hong Kong, Macau, Taiwan, Tibet, Xinjiang, or related collections anywhere in the world. Apply by Nov. 5: https://bit.ly/3sD70K1

#ChinaStudies #grants #gradstudent

Text reads Luce/ACLS Travel Grants in China Studies. Deadline for applications: November 5, 2025, 9 PM EST.

American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 4d

As Sarah McKee writes in our October Community Message, open access books are downloaded 20 times more often than print editions, amplifying the reach of humanistic knowledge to audiences far beyond academia.

Read the message: https://bit.ly/48sSTu1

#OA #openaccess #humanities

"Scholarly monographs speak to readers outside academia by illuminating research relevant to their professions, family histories, personal identities, life experiences, and unique passions. The challenge is to connect with these audiences in an increasingly noisy and fragmented world of content choices." -Sarah McKee

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 5d

ACLS President Joy Connolly is quoted in @insidehighered.com on the dangers of the White House “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education":

"If one by one institutions give in and sign, hoping to mitigate the damage later, it will set a truly problematic precedent."

bit.ly/474T8Jm

Joy Connolly on White House Compact in Inside Higher Ed

ACLS President Joy Connolly shares the danger of institutions signing the White House Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education.

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 5d

#OA #openaccess #publishing #NYC

American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 5d

Join us to celebrate the 2025 ACLS Open Access Book Prize winners at The New York Public Library on October 22 at 4:15 PM! This free event will feature discussions with winning publishers and authors, moderated by Beth Daley, Executive Editor of @theconversation.com

Register here: bit.ly/46wpxtk

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 6d

“Knowledge is not partisan.”

ACLS President Joy Connolly calls out new threats to academic freedom and the humanities—and urges action to defend open inquiry and global understanding.

Read the message: bit.ly/4nDqwhb

#Humanities #AcademicFreedom #Edusky

October 8, 2025 Advocacy Update

Joy Connolly shares how ACLS is mobilizing scholars, institutions, and the public to oppose federal overreach in higher education and champion humanistic knowledge.

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Reposted by American Council of Learned Societies

The Organization of American Historians @oah.org · 7d

As an ACLS member org, OAH remains committed to protecting open inquiry and scholarly independence and stands with American Council of Learned Societies. Read ACLS’s full statement: https://ow.ly/wheu50X7T2O

ACLS Statement Regarding White House “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education”

ACLS stands firmly against this latest White House effort to divide faculties by giving special privileges to students in “hard science programs” and its demand that institutions abolish “units that purposefully punish, belittle, and even spark violence against conservative ideas.”

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 7d

Zoe Shan Lin, 2025 Luce/ACLS Early Career Fellow in China Studies, combs through government documents and other primary sources from the 12th and 13th centuries to find the hidden, human side to the story of the Southern Song dynasty: https://bit.ly/4gHPKs9

A Scholar of the Song

Assistant Professor of History Zoe Shan Lin wins an important fellowship to continue her research into medieval China

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Reposted by American Council of Learned Societies

Linguistic Society of America @lingsocam.bsky.social · 8d

The LSA is a proud member of the American Council of Learned Societies. We encourage all members to read this important statement.

American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 8d

ACLS has released a statement regarding the White House “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education”: bit.ly/3IviMig

We call for the immediate rejection of the “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education”...No institution that is committed to the free pursuit of knowledge should submit to the degradation of autonomy and academic freedom contained in it. -ACLS Statement Regarding White House “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education”

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 8d

ACLS has released a statement regarding the White House “Compact for Academic Excellence in Higher Education”: bit.ly/3IviMig

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 11d

Read more: www.acls.org/news/august-...

August 13, 2025 Advocacy Update

ACLS President Joy Connolly shares an update on assaults on higher education and public history, and how ACLS is responding.

www.acls.org

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 11d

ACLS President Joy Connolly on free speech on campus:

"As a nation, we seem to have forgotten that American universities’ role as energetic hosts of political controversy is older than the United States itself."

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 12d

Join our Virtual Information Session for the 2026 Buddhism Public Scholars Fellowship on October 15! This session will provide an overview of the hosting organizations and job descriptions, eligibility requirements, and evaluation criteria. Register here: https://bit.ly/4nXgVBx

Text graphic: The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Buddhism Public Scholars. Virtual information session: October 15 @ 11 am EST. Applications due January 27, 2026, 9 PM EST.

American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 12d

The latest #OA book supported by the Arcadia Open Access Publishing Award is now available!

"British Working-Class and Radical Writing Since 1700" (@uolpress.bsky.social) is a collection of essays examining the intersection of British working-class and radical writing: bit.ly/4pRkSK4

British Working-Class and Radical Writing Since 1700 - University of London Press

At a time when working-class writing is gaining long-overdue recognition and radical ideas may be more important than ever, this timely collection of eighteen essays examines the powerful intersection...

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 13d

At UC Irvine, a 1960s Samoan canoe has become the catalyst for a richly layered investigation into migration and ecological knowledge, led by Tiara Na’puti and supported by an ACLS grant: https://bit.ly/4h2Us49

Na'puti receives funding for Indigenous research and connections with the canoe at UCI

Na'puti receives funding for Indigenous research and connections with the canoe at UCI You are here: Social Sciences News & Events News 2025 Na'puti receives funding for Indigenous research and connections with the canoe at ...

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 14d

How are colleges and universities advancing the humanities and social sciences in bold, new ways?

Our #InnovationInAction series spotlights real stories of change on campuses nationwide: bit.ly/4aQzzVE

Innovation in Action

Explore stories of institutional, programmatic, and curricular change taking place at colleges and universities across the US.

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 15d

ACLS has signed on to a Coalition for International Education letter calling to reverse the elimination of future funding for HEA-Title VI and Fulbright Hays and reinstate intended Congressional funding: bit.ly/4mFizqE

Text graphic: "Comprehensive global and regional expertise is now more crucial than ever for our nation’s wellbeing today and in the future. Discontinuing funding undermines long-standing national security imperatives, putting America’s strength and competitiveness at risk." -CIE letter to Secretary Linda McMahon

Reposted by American Council of Learned Societies

American Academy of Religion @aarweb.bsky.social · 15d

In the latest AAR Weekly Briefing, AAR Executive Director Claudia Schippert shares thoughts on staying upright in an upside-down world and makes the case for higher education in a hostile climate. mailchi.mp/aarweb/advoc...

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American Council of Learned Societies @acls1919.bsky.social · 15d

Do you study the visual art of the United States? Apply for a Luce/ACLS Dissertation Fellowship in #AmericanArt! These awards of $42K support graduate students at any stage of PhD dissertation research and writing. Deadline 9PM ET October 29: bit.ly/31YOwCY

#humanities #funding #arthistory

Text graphic reads Luce/ACLS Dissertation Fellowships in American Art. Deadline: October 29, 2025, 9 PM EDT. Apply now.

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