"The prompt was revealed in a tranche of discovery material released Friday as part of a case challenging the termination of more than $100 million in grant funding from the NEH. The trove of documents-including depositions with top NEH administrators and DOGE staff, as well as emails, spreadsheets and text messages-suggest rushed, chaotic funding termination decisions and reveal the extent of DOGE's influence in terminating 97 percent of the agency's grants."
"In addition to using ChatGPT to review grants, DOGE employees who had no experience in academic research or the humanities determined whether NEH grants should be funded, depositions show. But there was little pushback on DOGE's actions from inside the agency; emails show that Michael McDonald, acting chair of the NEH from March 2025 to January 2026, yielded his authority to cancel grant funding to DOGE staff."
"DOGE's Small Agencies Team met with NEH leaders on March 12; by April 1, the NEH had canceled $100 million in grants and terminated 65 percent of its employees. In May, the American Council of Learned Societies, the American Historical Association (AHA) and the Modern Language Association, all representing grant recipients, filed a lawsuit seeking to reinstate funding."
The Department of Government Efficiency used ChatGPT to identify National Endowment for the Humanities grants allegedly violating Trump's executive orders on DEI, gender ideology, and environmental sustainability. Discovery documents reveal DOGE staff without academic expertise made funding decisions, while NEH leadership yielded authority to DOGE. Following a March 12 meeting between DOGE and NEH leaders, the agency canceled $100 million in grants and terminated 65% of employees by April 1. Academic associations including the American Historical Association and Modern Language Association filed lawsuits challenging the terminations as unconstitutional, characterizing the process as haphazard and unlawful.
#government-efficiency #neh-grant-termination #dei-executive-orders #ai-decision-making #legal-challenge
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