WASHINGTON, DC—The American Council of Trustees and Alumni today congratulated friend and board member Dr. Stephen Balch, president of the National Association of Scholars, for winning the prestigious National Humanities Medal.
“Steve Balch has carried the banner for higher education integrity longer and better than almost anyone I can think of,” said Anne D. Neal, president of ACTA. “By founding the National Association of Scholars and inspiring ACTA and other organizations, he has performed a singular service, invigorating academic and alumni voices on behalf of liberal arts education and helping to reform the politically correct university.”
The National Humanities Medal, awarded by the National Endowment for the Humanities, annually honors the contributions individuals or groups make in engaging citizens in the humanities, increasing Americans’ understanding of the humanities, and improving access to resources in the humanities.
President George W. Bush presented the medal to Dr. Balch and several other recipients in a ceremony this morning in the East Room of the White House. The President was joined by First Lady Laura Bush, National Endowment for the Arts chairman Dana Gioia, National Endowment for the Humanities chairman Bruce Cole, and NEH (and ACTA) chairman emeritus Lynne V. Cheney.
The American Council of Trustees and Alumni is a nonpartisan, nonprofit, national organization dedicated to academic freedom, academic quality, and accountability. Its network includes alumni and trustees from more than 600 colleges and universities across the country. ACTA has issued numerous reports on higher education, including The Vanishing Shakespeare, How Many Ward Churchills?, Intellectual Diversity: Time for Action, The Hollow Core, and Losing America’s Memory: Historical Illiteracy in the 21st Century.