Humanities Council of Washington Dc
HumanitiesDC (formerly known as the Humanities Council of Washington, DC) is a 501(c)(3) nonprofit organization based in Washington, D.C. Founded in 1980, it is one of 56 state humanities councils supported by the National Endowment for the Humanities. The organization is located in the historic Uline Arena at 1140 3rd Street NE, 2nd Floor, Washington, DC 20002.
Financial Overview
From 2024 IRS Form 990-PF · View filing
Total Assets
$943K
+13.0% YoY
Annual Giving
$949K
+6.3% YoY
Grant Count
41
-6.8% YoY
Avg Grant Size
$23K
+14.1% YoY
Mission & Focus Areas
HumanitiesDC's mission is to enrich the quality of life, foster intellectual stimulation, and promote cross-cultural understanding and appreciation of local history in all neighborhoods of the District through humanities programs and grants.
The organization's work is guided by the National Endowment for the Humanities definition of humanities, which includes: language (modern and classical), linguistics, literature, history, jurisprudence, philosophy, archaeology, comparative religion, ethics, the history and criticism of the arts, relevant aspects of social sciences, and the application of humanities to the human environment with attention to diverse heritage and traditions.
HumanitiesDC's five guiding values, identified in 2022, include being equity-driven as a core principle.
Public programming engages participants in discussions on community history, socio-political issues, literature, art history and criticism, and topics connected to life and culture in the city.
Grantmaking
HumanitiesDC operates multiple grant programs to support public humanities projects and programming:
Grant Range
s:**
Review Cycle
of May 1.
Grant Types
How to Apply
**
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Geographic Focus
Where this funder awards grants
HumanitiesDC reaches out to all eight wards of Washington, D.C. The organization supports projects and programming throughout all neighborhoods of the District.
Grant Distribution by State
Cities
Financial History
Multi-year comparison from IRS filings
2024 (Most Recent):
- Total Assets: $942,603
- Total Revenues: $2,703,437
- Total Expenses: $2,766,912
- Number of Employees: 12
2023:
- Total Assets: $834,000
- Total Revenues: $2.72 million
- Total Expenses: $2.6 million
2022:
- Total Assets: $741,000
The organization maintains a giving rate exceeding 100% of assets, indicating it distributes more in grants than its asset base annually.
| Metric | 2024 | 2023 | 2022 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Total Assets | $942,603 | $834,273 | $741,220 |
| Revenue | $2,703,437 | $2,720,719 | $3,308,620 |
| Expenses | $2,766,912 | $2,596,603 | $3,194,549 |
| Qualifying Distributions | — | — | — |
| Net Investment Income | $3,060 | $36 | $134 |
| Distributable Amount | — | — | — |
Giving Over Time
Total grant dollars and number of grants per year
Grant Insights
How this funder distributes its grants
Top Recipients
Top 10 recipients in 2024
Grant Size Distribution
231 grants across all recorded years
Open Grants
6 open opportunities from Humanities Council of Washington Dc
DC Oral History - Beyond the Archive Grants
HUMANITIES COUNCIL OF WASHINGTON DC
Amount
Up to US $12,000
Deadline
Rolling / Open
DC Oral History Collaborative Grants- Oral HIstory Interviewing
HUMANITIES COUNCIL OF WASHINGTON DC
Amount
Up to US $8,000
Deadline
Rolling / Open
General Operating Support Grant
HUMANITIES COUNCIL OF WASHINGTON DC
Amount
Up to US $25,000
Deadline
Rolling / Open
Giving History
Grant recipients and amounts by year
No grants recorded for .
Leadership & Key People
Leadership team and compensation from IRS filings
Rebecca Lemos-Otero was hired as Executive Director in September 2021.
Aaron Myers is listed as Executive Director in a 2025 Commission on the Arts and Humanities document.
Tracey Mullery is listed as Program Coordinator.
Compensation Overview
From 2024 IRS filing
From 2024 filing
| Name | Title | Hours | Compensation |
|---|---|---|---|
| REBECCA LEMOS-OTERO | EXECUTIVE DIRECTOR | 40 | $150,992 |
| COLE FIALA | CHAIR | 2 | — |
| ALISON JOHNSON | SECRETARY | 2 | — |
| HEATHER CLARK | TREASURER | 2 | — |
| CHINEDU FELIZ OSUCHUKWU | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| MACEO THOMAS | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| MJ RYMSZA-PAWLOWSKA | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| RAMYA VIVEKANANDAN | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| AYANNA SMITH | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| DARYL SMITH | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| ROB BERGER | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| RUBIE COLES | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| MARK BOSS | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
| SOJIN KIM | DIRECTOR | 1 | — |
Recent News & Activity
Recent developments and announcements
HumanitiesDC announced the conclusion of its 2023 grantmaking season with Cycle I and Cycle II grant recipients. The organization announced upcoming 2024 grant announcements for fall distribution.
HumanitiesDC on Instagram: \"Congratulations to all of our Cycle I and now\The organization offers HumanitiesDC Fellowships as part of its programming.
HumanitiesDC FellowshipsA Community Showcase event was scheduled for April 9, 2026, at 6:00 PM at THEARC (1901 Mississippi Ave SE) to celebrate outstanding work of 2025 Community grant recipients.
Subject Areas
Focus areas based on grantmaking activity
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Data last updated April 2026. Sourced from IRS Form 990-PF filings. Research dossier generated April 2026.
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