What Are the Public Humanities? No, Really, What Are They?

Virtually all scholars in the humanities agree that the public humanities are important, but consensus frays when it comes to discussing the degree of institutional investment in the public humanities, methods of public humanities engagement, and even the definition of what counts as the public humanities. To that end, Jeremy Browne (of BYU’s Office of Digital Humanities) and I created a survey whose data we compiled from dozens of institutions in the international Consortium of Humanities Centers and Institutes. What emerges are a series of perspectives, at once diverse and overlapping, about such issues as the definition and perceived impact of the public humanities, both within and outside universities.