American Academy of Arts and Sciences

Some of the key events about American Academy of Arts and Sciences

• 1780

  Founded as a learned society to "cultivate every art and science which may tend to advance the interest, honor, dignity, and happiness of a free, independent, and virtuous people"
• 1780

  Excluded women from membership for nearly two centuries
• 1785

  Published the first volume of its journal, "Memoirs of the American Academy of Arts and Sciences"
• 1849

  Failed to elect Edgar Allan Poe as a member despite his literary prominence
• 1876

  Established the Rumford Medal to recognize contributions to the fields of heat and light
• 1902

  Initiated the Emerson-Thoreau Medal to honor distinguished achievement in literature
• 1919

  Declined to take a public stance against the Treaty of Versailles
• 1940

  Created the Amory Prize to recognize outstanding discoveries in medicine and medical research
• 1950

  Remained silent during the height of McCarthyism and anti-communist hysteria
• 1958

  Launched the Visiting Scholars Program to support residential fellowships for researchers
• 1965

  Established the Talcott Parsons Prize to recognize contributions to the social sciences
• 1968

  Faced criticism for lack of diversity among its membership
• 1976

  Rejected a proposal to establish a national humanities center
• 1985

  Controversially awarded membership to a scientist involved in nuclear weapons development
• 1996

  Criticized for slow response to addressing gender imbalance in membership
• 2002

  Initiated the "Humanities Indicators" project to provide comprehensive data on the humanities in the United States
• 2005

  Faced backlash for awarding membership to a climate change skeptic
• 2013

  Launched the Commission on the Humanities and Social Sciences to advance education in these fields
• 2018

  Received criticism for lack of transparency in its election process
• 2020

  Created the "Our Common Purpose" initiative to reinvent American democracy for the 21st century

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