Research and Fellowship Opportunities for Humanities Scholars

The links listed below lead to a variety of research opportunities for scholars of the humanities and related fields. The University at Buffalo Humanities Institute offers Faculty Research Fellowships and Visiting Fellowships to the Special Collections of the UB Libraries.

 

Humanities Institute Faculty Research Fellowships

Humanities Institute Advanced PhD Fellowships

Opportunity for the Futures of American Studies Institute

Research Workshop Funding

UB Libraries Special Collections Fellowships

Humanities Institute Distinguished Scholar in Residence Program

New York Council for the Humanities Graduate Fellowship

Digital Humanities Initiative at Buffalo Research Funding

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Humanities Institute Faculty Research Fellowships

The Humanities Institute offers fellowships for UB tenured and tenure-track faculty engaged in humanistic research. HI defines the humanities broadly, accepting proposals from a wide range of disciplines, including literature, history, classics, anthropology, sociology, geography, music, and more.

These residential fellowships provide the Fellow's department with course replacement funds at the standard CAS adjunct rate ($3,500 per course) to provide a semester of course release, which will allow the Fellow to focus primarily on a major research project and to participate actively in Institute programs.

Two Faculty Fellowships are generously supported by the Office of the Vice President for Research (OVPR).  OVPR/HI Faculty Fellows are selected based on proposals that are especially strong in promoting the interdisciplinary mission of OVPR and HI.

All fellows should expect to participate in the following programs and events over the course of their fellowship:

Humanities Institute Events: Fellows will attend Scholars@Hallwalls talks and monthly lunches with other Faculty Fellows.  In addition, Fellows are encouraged to participate in HI Research Workshops and other interdisciplinary activities.

Faculty Fellow Presentation: Fellows are expected to share the fruits of their research through a presentation open to the UB community and the general public. This is usually a Scholars@Hallwalls talk, but it can also be an exhibition or performance.

Faculty Research and Follow-Up: Fellows will pursue their research topics as outlined in their proposals. The semester following the leave, Fellows must submit a one-page summary of their research that outlines project goals, how the fellowship helped the recipient towards those goals, how close the project is to completion, and how it will be made available to the public (e.g. the publication of a book, a series of articles, an exhibition, a documentary film, a performance).

Selection Criteria

Institute fellows will be selected based on the following criteria:

Applications will be evaluated by an ad hoc committee comprised of faculty members selected to represent a wide cross-section of the humanities.

Application Restrictions

• No current member of the Humanities Institute's Executive Committee can apply for a fellowship
• Fellows must be in residence in the Buffalo area during the term of their fellowship
• Past recipients of a Humanities Institute Fellowship may reapply after five years.
• Fellows may not accept any other internal or external research support designed for salary replacement during the tenure of their award.

Applications must include the following:

 

• Completed Cover Sheet. Click Here to Download Form
• Four- to six-page, double-spaced research proposal.
• Research proposal abstract (200 word maximum)
• Current CV of no more than three pages, which should indicate in detail previous and upcoming research support (grants, fellowships, leaves).
• Signed form from the applicant's department chair that indicates the chair's agreement to free the applicant from two courses in return for course replacement funds at the $3,500 per course adjunct rate. Click Here to Download Form

 

Five (original plus four copies) copies of all application materials in a single envelope should be received by Friday, January 20, 2012 to:

Jinhee Song

Program Administrator
Humanities Institute
University at Buffalo
712 Clemens Hall
Buffalo, New York 14260

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Humanities Institute PhD Fellowships

The Humanities Institute will award five $3,000 PhD Fellowships for 2012-2013. Fellows will meet in a monthly interdisciplinary works-in-progress seminar

Application Process:

Each department in the humanities, broadly defined, may nominate up to two candidates for the Fellowships, as selected by the department’s Director of Graduate Studies.

Applications, which are due Monday April 9 by 3:00pm, must be sent as a single pdf file to HI’s Program Administrator, Jinhee Song <huminst@buffalo.edu>.  The letter of support may be sent as a separate pdf or Word document.

The application must include:

• PhD Fellowship cover sheet
• 200-word dissertation abstract
• four-page double-spaced application statement, including
  • description of the dissertation and its intellectual contributions
  • plans for the fellowship year
  • timetable for completion
• cv of no more than two pages
• letter of support from dissertation chair

Selection Criteria, from most to least important:

• The dissertation’s quality and scholarly potential
• The dissertation’s importance and relevance beyond the applicant’s home discipline
• The applicant’s professional accomplishments, including publications and presentations
• The applicant’s demonstrated ability and desire to participate in HI programs

Fellowship Requirements:

• Fellows must have exhausted support from the home department
• Fellows must reside in WNY during the fellowship year

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Opportunity for the Futures of American Studies Institute

The Humanities Institute announces support for three Ph.D. students to attend the Futures of American Studies Institute at Dartmouth College, June 18-24, 2012.

The FAS Institute is a week-long workshop led by Donald Pease, a former HI Distinguished-Scholar-in-Residence, and several other leading Americanists (in literature, critical theory, and history). Participating students and faculty present and discuss works in progress.

This year’s theme is “State(s) of American Studies.” According to the website, “the term ‘state(s)’ in the title is intended to refer at once to the ‘state’ as an object of analysis, to the state as an imagined addressee and interlocutor for Americanist scholarship, as well as to the reconfigured state(s) of the fields and areas of inquiry in American Studies both inside and outside the United States.”

The fee for participating in the Institute, including housing and registration, is $695, which will be paid by the Humanities Institute for three successful applicants. Students are responsible for travel, meals, and all other expenses.

For more information about the Institute, go to: <http://www.dartmouth.edu/~futures>

To apply for the Humanities Institute subsidy, send application materials to Jinhee Song <huminst@buffalo.edu> by April 25. Successful applicants will be notified by May 1. They then must apply to the Institute by its deadline of May 18. The subsidy is available
only to Ph.D. students who have completed their oral exams.

Application for the HI subsidy must include:
- one-page single-spaced description of the dissertation and the portion to be presented at the Institute
- two-page cv, including date oral exams completed
- letter of support from dissertation chair

 

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Research Workshop Funding

HI Research Workshop funding is designed to support existing interdisciplinary reading groups in the humanities and to encourage the formation of new groups.  Research Workshops may include any number of faculty and/or graduate students, focusing on any topic, but they must be interdisciplinary.  Workshops based exclusively in a single department will not be funded.  Funding levels vary, but the maximum award is $2,500 per year.  In the interest of long-term planning, established groups may apply for more than one year’s funding. 

 

All requests must include the following information:  

• The name of the Research Workshop (RW) and its principal coordinator(s)
• One-paragraph description of the RW’s focus
• How long the RW has been in existence or if it is a new group
• A list of the RW’s membership by name, department, and email address (including both faculty and graduate students)
• The RW’s plans in the academic year(s) for which funding is being requested:  proposed meeting schedule, possible invited speakers, etc.
• Amount of funding requested
• Other funding sources (committed or pending)
• An itemized draft budget

Continuing RW’s must also include the following information:

• A concise summary of the RW’s productivity and results to date
• How often the RW meets and what format its meetings typically take
• An itemized list of meetings and events in the current academic year, including attendance figures for events that have already occurred
• A detailed budget for the current academic year, including expenditures made and anticipated

 

Deadline: 2012-13 Research Workshop applications must be received by Monday, February 20, 2012.

 

Applications may be submitted electronically, preferably in a single pdf document, to <huminst@buffalo.edu>.

 

If submitting in hard copy, include original and 10 copies, and mail to:

 

Jinhee Song

Program Administrator

Humanities Institute
712 Clemens Hall

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UB Libraries Special Collections Fellowships

The UB Humanities Institute, in collaboration with the UB Libraries, is offering two fellowships for visiting scholars and graduate students working on their dissertations to use the UB Libraries' outstanding special collections, which include the Poetry Collection, University Archives, Rare Books, the Music Library, the Polish Collection, and the History of Medicine Collection.

Follow this link to find out more about some of the more notable collections in the UB libraries: http://humanitiesinstitute.buffalo.edu/fellowshipsresearch/LibraryCollectionsDescriptions.shtml

The fellowships provide stipends to cover the cost of fellows' travel to Buffalo and accommodation and expenses during the time of their stay. In addition to the stipend, Fellows will receive library and parking privileges at UB and are invited to participate in any Humanities Institute events that occur during the time of their visit. If feasible, Fellows are invited to give one public lecture on their research. Fellows are also asked to submit a one page, single-spaced report on the value of having used the collection at UB that will be posted on the Humanities Institute website.

The timing and duration of the Fellows' residence in Buffalo are flexible, though we would anticipate a minimum stay of two weeks. Both graduate students at an advanced stage of dissertation research and more senior scholars are invited to apply.

• The James Joyce Fellowship: The stipend is up to $2,000 for scholars and graduate students whose research is centered on the writings of James Joyce, Modernism, Joyce-related research, research on Sylvia Beach, Modernist publishers, Modernist genetic criticism, Joyce's literary circle, his literary colleagues, or his influences.

• The Charles D. Abbott Library Fellowship: The stipend is up to $4,000 for scholars and graduate students whose research would be enhanced by any of the books, manuscripts or unique documents in the UB Libraries special collections, which include materials from the Poetry Collection, University Archives, Rare Books, the Polish Collection, the Music Library, and the History of Medicine Collection.

Please note that applicants may apply for only one fellowship per academic year.

Selection Criteria and Application Procedure

The deadline for applications for the 2012/2013 academic year is January 15, 2013. Applications must include the following in a single PDF file or portfolio:

• Cover letter; 
• Brief two- to three-page, single-spaced research proposal, including length and approximate timing of proposed visit; 
• Current two- to three-page CV that indicates in detail previous and upcoming research support (grants, fellowships, leaves, etc.);
• Letter of support from department chair or dissertation director.

 

Fellows will be selected based on the relevance of UB’s special collections to the proposed project, the value of the project to the applicant’s field, and the qualifications of the applicant as indicated by research experience and other academic achievements.

Applicants must email all application materials as a single PDF file or portfolio by Tuesday, January 15, 2013 to the program administrator at huminst@buffalo.edu.

 

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Humanities Institute Distinguished Scholar in Residence Program

The Humanities Institute invites proposals for our new Distinguished Scholar in Residence program, which brings renowned humanities scholars and artists to the UB campus for a substantial visit—either one semester or a portion thereof.

We are especially interested in scholars who cross disciplines and whose presence on campus will invigorate the intellectual life of faculty and students in more than one department.  We expect that Distinguished Scholars in Residence would teach a graduate seminar or offer a for-credit workshop during their stay.  Other events—lectures, symposia, performances—will be arranged by the Humanities Institute as appropriate.

Funding support for Distinguished Scholars in Residence is flexible, though it is unlikely that the Humanities Institute will be able to fund 100% of any residency.  We anticipate funding 50% of the costs for a Distinguished Scholar in Residence.

Please forward the cv and a narrative description of potential candidates to the Institute Director; please indicate which semester the candidate would be most likely to visit.  Please also indicate what other sources of support for the visit have been requested.   There is no deadline.  Candidates will be considered on an ongoing basis.

At present the Institute is unable to provide office space for Distinguished Scholars in Residence; this should be arranged through the nominating department.

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New York Council for the Humanities Graduate Fellowship

About the Fellowship

The New York Council for the Humanities awards a University at Buffalo Public Humanities Fellowship each academic year. This fellowship is designed to expose graduate students in the humanities to work in the public realm and to encourage excellence in the public humanities in New York State. This fellowship is being offered in conjunction with the Humanities Institute of the University at Buffalo and is supported by the "We The People" initiative of the National Endowment for the Humanities.

The Public Humanities Fellow will play a key role in the Council's Reading Between the Lines (RBTL) book discussion program, which engages members of the general public in facilitated conversations about books chosen to illuminate significant themes in American history, culture, and life. During the course of the fellowship, the Fellow will develop and facilitate a new four-session RBTL series, which will then become part of the roster of series available to non-profit organizations around the state. The Fellow will also take part in a training session and several discussions focused on issues related to public humanities with his or her counterpart from the CUNY Graduate Center.

For more information on the Council's Reading Between the Lines program visit http://www.nyhumanities.org/discussion_groups/adult_audiences/rbtl.php

For questions or additional information contact Jane McNamara at jmcnamara@nyhumanities.org  or 212-233-1131 ext. 24.

Fellowship Requirements

Fellowship applicants are asked to propose a four-session series related to a theme that is selected each year. Series focused on this theme can encompass a wide range of topics and disciplines, but should draw connections between local populations or issues and broader history, politics, and culture. The books selected for the series should be accessible in both tenor and length to non-academic readers, and must be in print and reasonably priced. Generally, Reading Between the Lines series are devoted to non-fiction, although they may include fiction if it is discussed within an historical or cultural context.

The Fellow is required to facilitate the proposed series twice, once during the fall semester and once during winter/spring semester, at public venues in the Buffalo area selected by the Council. In addition, the Fellow is required to participate in a facilitation training session during fall semester, and in two other meetings with his or her counterpart from the CUNY Graduate Center during the course of the fellowship. These discussions will be opportunities to reflect on the field of public humanities and may involve other guests invited by the Council. The Fellow is also required to present an on-campus talk about his or her experience working in the public realm, which will be arranged by the Humanities Institute of the University of Buffalo. In addition, the Fellow will be asked to evaluate both iterations of his or her Reading Between the Lines series, and provide the Council with a written version of the on-campus talk.

There may be additional optional opportunities for the Fellow to participate in meetings and conferences related to the public humanities during the course of the fellowship.

Who Should Apply

Any University at Buffalo doctoral candidate in the humanities who has completed at least one year of graduate-level course work is eligible to apply. Experience teaching and/or working with the public is helpful but not required. This fellowship is particularly appropriate for graduate students who are interested in gaining experience working outside of academia.

Fellowship Stipend

The fellowship carries a $5,000 stipend, which will be paid in two installments ($2,500 in September and $2,500 in January). Additional funds are available to cover travel to the required training session and meetings.

The New York Council for the Humanities invites proposals to develop and facilitate sessions of Reading Between the Lines (RBTL) for adults. This innovative reading and discussion program engages members of the public in facilitated conversations about books chosen to illuminate significant themes in American history, culture and life. The goal of the program is to encourage informed civic discussion. These four-session public discussions are held at libraries, museums, historical societies and other community gathering spaces and are led by graduate students in the humanities who propose the series topics and syllabi through a competitive process. The program is part of the NEH-sponsored "We The People" initiative.

Application Deadline

Eligible applicants should use the form available at

http://www.nyhumanities.org/discussion_groups/adult_audiences/rbtl_buffalo.php

Please also include a current resume and one letter of recommendation with your application.

Applications should be mailed to:

Jane McNamara
Senior Program Officer
New York Council for the Humanities
150 Broadway, Suite 1700
New York, NY 10038

or emailed to:  jmcnamara@nyhumanities.org

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Digital Humanities Initiative at Buffalo (dHIb) Funding

The Digital Humanities Initiative at Buffalo (dHIb) invites proposals for funding twice yearly.

DHIB Working Group

The goal of DHIB Working Groups is to support sustained interdisciplinary collaboration in an area of digital humanities research. Budgets which exceed the announced maximum may be considered if a compelling need is demonstrated. Working groups may apply for more than one year's funding, and should specify milestones to be completed during the first year as conditions of renewed funding. Working groups must consist of

• at least two regular full-time tenure-line faculty (including library faculty) in the humanities and related disciplines who are currently on staff and will remain on staff for the duration of the project, and
• at least two other participants who may be UB faculty, affiliated scholars from other institutions, or UB professional staff. Proposals which actively involve graduate students and which include participating faculty from multiple disciplines are encouraged and may be favored during the reviewing process.

Due date: Friday, 18 November 2011 - 5:00pm

Maximum award: $3,500

For more information, visit here.

 

DHIB Small Research Projects

The goal of DHIB small research project funding is to support the initiation or continuation of digital humanities projects by individual scholars or small teams. Budget requests which exceed the announced maximum may be considered if a compelling need is demonstrated. A given project can only receive funding through this program once in an academic budget year. However, unsuccessful applications submitted for the fall deadline may be revised and resubmitted in the spring.

Regular full-time tenure-line humanities faculty (including library faculty) in the humanities and related disciplines may apply for funding. Graduate students may be funded for work on their own projects, provided that the application for support is submitted by a faculty sponsor who meets the eligibility criteria to apply for a small research project and who agrees to supervise the project and advise the graduate student on how to fulfill the administrative requirements associated with DHIB funding. Any relationship between the proposed activity and the graduate student’s thesis research should be explicitly indicated.

Due date: Friday, 18 November 2011 - 5:00pmTuesday, 31 January 2012 - 5:00pm

Maximum award: $2,400

For more information, visit here.

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