NEH lauds Vanderbilt’s Jon Meacham for humanities achievements

Vanderbilt Distinguished Visiting Professor of Political Science and Pulitzer Prize-winning biographer Jon Meachamhas been awarded a National Humanities Medal, the nation's highest honor for contributions to the humanities.

President Joe Biden shakes hands with Jon Meacham alongside First Lady Dr. Jill Biden in the Oval Office during the presentation of the National Humanities Medal to Meacham. Photo provided by the White House.

Meacham, who holds the Carolyn T. and Robert M. Rogers Chair in the American Presidency, was among 19 NEH medalists recognized by President Joseph R. Biden and NEH Chair Shelley C. Lowe in a recent White House ceremony.

The National Humanities Medal honors an individual or organization whose work has deepened the nation's understanding of the human experience, broadened citizens' engagement with history or literature, or helped preserve and expand Americans' access to cultural resources.

"In his bestselling books, in his work with students and as co-chair of the Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy, Jon Meacham does Americans the invaluable service of showing us the countless times in our history when we have worked together across our differences to build a more perfect union," Chancellor Daniel Diermeier said. "He reminds us again and again that the American experiment is never easy but always profoundly worthwhile. I congratulate Jon on receiving this honor at the White House and am proud to call him a member of our Vanderbilt community."

Meacham's New York Times bestsellers include: His Truth Is Marching On: John Lewis and the Power of Hope; The Soul of America: The Battle for Our Better Angels; The Hope of Glory: Reflections on the Last Words of Jesus from the Cross; Songs of America: Patriotism, Protest, and the Music That Made a Nation(with Tim McGraw); Destiny and Power: The American Odyssey of George Herbert Walker Bush; and Thomas Jefferson: The Art of Power. Meacham's book American Lion: Andrew Jackson in the White House, also a New York Timesbestseller, was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for biography in 2009.

Meacham's latest book, The Call to Serve: The Life of an American President, George Herbert Walker Bush: A Visual Biography, was published in May 2024.

Meacham is co-chair of the Vanderbilt Project on Unity and American Democracy. This fall he is co-teaching U.S. Elections, one of Vanderbilt's most in-demand courses, with three other political scientists: John Geer, Josh Clinton and Nicole Hemmer. The U.S. Elections course broke the largest student enrollment record in Vanderbilt's history for an elective class, engaging 1,100 students.

In addition, Meacham and Geer co-host The Choice, a four-part podcast produced by Dialogue Vanderbiltand focused on key moments and ramifications of the 2024 presidential election.

"The awarding of the National Humanities Medal to Jon Meacham is an honor that he richly deserves," said Geer, Gertrude Conaway Vanderbilt Professor of Political Science. "Jon's contributions to our country through his writing and commentary are immeasurable. He has shed a bright light on America, even in its darkest moments, that has deepened the public's understanding of democracy and the central role our leaders have played and continue to play in seeking to make this country a more perfect union. Jon's impact underscores the merits of the old adage-the pen is mightier than the sword."

Meacham, a native of Chattanooga, Tennessee, graduated salutatorian and summa cum laude from Sewanee: The University of the South with a bachelor of arts in English literature.

He is a contributing writer to The New York Times Book Review, a contributing editor of Timeand has written for The New York Times op-ed page, The Washington Postand Vanity Fair, among others. His previous positions include executive editor and executive vice president of Random House and editor-in-chief of Newsweek.

In November 2021 Meacham was named the Canon Historian of the Washington National Cathedral. He is a fellow of the Society of American Historians and a member of the Council on Foreign Relations.

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