The IHC Road Scholars Speakers Bureau allows nonprofit organizations the opportunity to offer high-quality, free public humanities programs to local audiences.

• Please note that we are currently only accepting applications for programs occurring after November 1, 2009. The IHC Road Scholars have been so popular this year that all available engagements have been booked until the beginning of November. Please contact us by email or at 312.422.5580 if you have any questions.
• On Wednesday, July 8, IHC Road Scholar and living historian, Ellie Carlson, dressed in the fashion of Lincoln's time, will shop for fresh, local ingredients and then prepare several traditional dishes that Lincoln might have eaten in his log cabin.  Stop by to savor the sights, sounds and bounty of Green City Market! http://www.chipublib.org/events/details/id/26108/

Like their predecessors who traversed the continents and made each town their classroom, IHC Road Scholars take their programs on the roads of Illinois to the diverse communities and peoples who make up the Prairie State. Illinois' finest writers, poets, historians, anthropologists, and living history scholar-actors will travel to your town and present their programs to the audience you gather for them. In presentations that entertain, educate, and challenge, IHC Road Scholars encourage Illinoisans to reflect upon the human condition from a range of perspectives and offer a context for discussion and dialogue.

Through the assistance of the Illinois Abraham Lincoln Bicentennial Commision, the IHC is proud to  to commemorate the sesquicentennial of the Abraham Lincoln-Stephen Douglas Debates and the bicentennial of Abraham Lincoln's birth with a special edition of the IHC Road Scholars Speakers Bureau: the Lincoln Road Scholars 2008-2009. Our speakers represent a variety of disciplines, come from all over the state, and offer fresh perspectives on the life and times of Abraham Lincoln, the society within which he lived, and the ways in which a grateful nation has commemorated both his presidency and his humanity.  Information about Lincoln Road Scholars

Any nonprofit organization in Illinois is invited to utilize the Lincoln Road Scholars, but the bureau primarily targets organizations in Illinois communities under 2,500 population or less. We invite these organizations to apply for a Lincoln Road Scholar, absolutely free of charge. Organizations from larger communities can still apply, but must provide the standard $75 processing fee.   For information on booking a speaker, including the Lincoln Road Scholars, see "Eligibility & Guidelines" on this page.

Please call the IHC at 312.422.5580 for more information.