It’s not often that a humanities researcher is awarded a grant for nearly a million dollars – especially when the money is distributed from the government of another nation.
But such is the case for Washington State University historian Jesse Spohnholz, who will receive a $917,000 grant from the Dutch National Organization for Scientific Research.
He and colleague Mirjam van Veen of the Free University Amsterdam will investigate historical factors that helped shape today’s culture of toleration in the Netherlands. The six-year project will examine the role that exiles from Germany played during the Middle Ages in developing this culture of acceptance.