Supporting History & the Work of Historians in 2025
Historians Defend the Smithsonian
The AHA reiterates its support for an independent Smithsonian Institution that belongs to all the American people. Historians practice our craft with integrity. Political interference into professional curatorial practices and museum and educational content places at risk the integrity and accuracy of historical interpretation and stands to erode public trust in our shared institutions.
ACLS, AHA, & MLA File Lawsuit to Restore the NEH
The ACLS, AHA, and MLA have filed a lawsuit in federal district court, seeking to reverse the recent actions to devastate the National Endowment for the Humanities.
Historians Respond to Federal Actions
AHA members are providing important historical context and insight to the public on the recent actions by the federal government.
Tracking Federal Actions Affecting History
The AHA is tracking information on federal actions and their impact on history and education.
Support AHA Advocacy
The American Historical Association provides leadership for the discipline, defends academic freedom, and promotes the critical role of historical thinking in public life. The AHA, in collaboration with our colleagues at the American Council of Learned Societies and the Modern Language Association, have filed a lawsuit in response to the illegal dismantling of the National Endowment for the Humanities. We need your support for this and our ongoing advocacy efforts at the federal and state levels. Please join join or donate today.
AHA News & Announcements
AHA News & Announcements
Stay up to date with the latest AHA activity supporting history and historical thinking in public life. Check out our latest advocacy statements and letters, member news, press releases, and more.
AHA Reads
We invite you to participate in the fourth annual AHA Summer Reading Challenge. Participants will complete three (or more) reading tasks in the months of June, July, and August. These tasks encourage you to read widely—outside your field, your areas of expertise, and your personal experiences—and define “history” as nonfiction at any length (a book, an article, a chapter).
Advocating for the Discipline
Why History Matters
History informs our understanding of everything, and historians' voices, research, and scholarship are essential in conversations about current events.
AHA Advocacy
The American Historical Association is unique among history organizations with the breadth and depth of our advocacy efforts.
History & Public Policy
The AHA is committed to honest history—in the classroom, in public memory, and through the many programs through which the federal government supports research.
Teaching History with Integrity
The AHA leads or participates in several initiatives to provide resources and support for history educators facing intensifying controversies about the teaching of the American past.
American Lesson Plan: Teaching US History in Secondary Schools
The AHA’s 2024 report shares findings from the most comprehensive study of secondary US history education undertaken in the 21st century. The report provides empirical evidence and rigorous analysis to inform current debates over how history is taught in our schools.
Teaching & Learning
Resource Library
The AHA's Resource Library includes hundreds of resources developed or vetted by the AHA and our partners. Our resources range from classroom syllabi, to archival documents from the Civil War, to standards and guidelines for the discipline, and much more.
K–12 Education
The AHA strives to ensure that every K–12 student has access to high quality history instruction. We create resources for the classroom, advise on state and federal policy, and advocate for the vital importance of history in public education.
Undergraduate Education
Teaching and learning are at the foundation of the AHA’s mission to promote historical thinking in public life. What do students learn in undergraduate history courses? How and why are history majors so successful in a variety of careers?
Graduate Education
Many historians will pursue graduate training at some stage in their career. To meet the needs of both students and graduate programs, the AHA creates resources, provides platforms, and convenes conversations about student success from application to completion.
Guiding Principles for Artificial Intelligence in History Education
The AHA announces the publication of Guiding Principles for Artificial Intelligence in History Education, a disciplinary approach to AI that focuses on specific aspects of history education that might not be addressed in broader institutional policies.
Upcoming Events & Opportunities
Join us in Chicago for AHA26
Since 1884, the AHA annual meeting has been the premier gathering for historians to come together to share research and professional development, to learn about the discipline, and to network with other scholars from across the world. Our 2026 annual meeting will take place on January 8–11, 2026, in Chicago, IL.
September 10 - 13, 2025
AASLH 2025 Annual Conference
October 24 - 25, 2025
2025 Texas Conference on Introductory History Courses
American Historical Review
The American Historical Review is the flagship journal of the AHA and the journal of record for the historical discipline in the United States, bringing together scholarship from every major field of historical study.
History in Focus
History in Focus is a podcast by the American Historical Review. Go behind the scenes with the world's leading history journal as we explore the who, what, how, and why of doing history in the 21st century.
AHR History Lab
The AHR History Lab is a new, experimental space in the middle of the journal featuring collective projects that seek to reimagine how we approach historical practice in terms of content, form, and method.
#AHRSyllabus
The #AHRSyllabus is a collaborative project designed to help teachers and students look "under the hood" at how historians do the work of history. Each contribution features a practical hands-on teaching module that foregrounds innovative uses of historical method in the classroom.
Methods for Archival Silence in Early History
The American Historical Review seeks proposals for a special issue illustrating a range of methodological approaches to archival silence developed by scholars of early history. Proposals should be submitted via Google Form by September 16, 2025.
Perspectives on History is the newsmagazine of the AHA and is the principal source for news and information about the discipline of history. Since 1962, Perspectives has promoted our work by publishing articles and commentary on all aspects of the historical discipline.
Community & Careers
A Platform for Historians
The AHA brings together historians from all specializations and all work contexts, embracing the breadth and variety of activity in history today.
Affiliated Societies
Over 125 history-oriented organizations are affiliated with the AHA, representing a broad network of organizations promoting collaboration and communication across the history community.
Professional & Career Resources
As the leading professional association for historians in the United States, the AHA serves as a hub for information on jobs, careers, and employment in the historical discipline. The AHA provides guidance, information, and job listings for historians in all stages of their careers.
AHA Career Center
Whether you’re looking to find a job or to advertise a position, the AHA Career Center is the go-to hub for connecting with history professionals.
About the AHA
About Us
The American Historical Association provides leadership for the discipline and promotes the critical role of historical thinking in public life. As the largest membership association of historians in the world, the AHA serves historians in a wide variety of professions, and represents every historical era and geographical area.
Membership
The AHA brings together historians from all specializations and all work contexts, embracing the breadth and variety of activity in history today.
Advertise with the AHA
Promote your publications, products, and services to historians by advertising in one of the AHA’s publications, exhibiting at our annual meeting, or renting the AHA’s mailing list for your own direct-mail campaigns.
Donate
Your support is vital to our efforts to promote historical work and the importance of historical thinking in public life.