Presidential Arts and Humanities Fellows Program
About this opportunity
Campus:
University-wide
Contact:
Ed Dallis-Comentale, Assistant Vice President for Arts and Humanities,iupah@iu.edu
Jason M. Kelly, Director, IUPUI Arts and Humanities Institute,iupah@iu.edu
Deadline:
January 31, 2024
Award cycle:
Annual
Funding available:
$50,000
The Fellows Program (FP) is an academic year fellowship program that accelerates and amplifies the work of outstanding Indiana University faculty poised to become national and international leaders in their fields.
Program Description
The Presidential Arts and Humanities Fellows Program accelerates and amplifies the work of outstanding Indiana University faculty poised to become national and international leaders in their respective areas. The annual program supports a cohort of scholars who will:
- Advance a significant research or creative activity project with field-changing potential.
- Participate in a professional development program that offers advanced training in areas such as grant writing, scholarly communication with the public, media training, digital scholarship, and more.
- Receive support in developing major external grants and applying for prestigious awards.
- Collaborate with each other to critique and improve their work.
- Be connected to media organizations that can highlight their work in public venues both within and beyond the academy.
- Be recognized by the university as leaders in the arts and humanities at IU.
Fellows will exit the year-long program with a versatile skillset that will support future scholarly success, particularly in terms of prestigious external grants and awards. Fellows, in turn, will model professional success, mentor future cohorts of fellows, advance scholarly community, and raise the standard of excellence throughout the IU system.
The overall goal of the program is to lift and promote Indiana University’s already stellar arts and humanities communities and ensure their continued prestige with an eye to promoting research that makes the campuses national and international centers for scholarship.
Program Terms
The Office of the Vice President for Research will select 7–8 arts and humanities fellows each year, a mix of senior and junior faculty from across Indiana University’s campuses.
Each fellow will be provided $50,000, which can be used flexibly to support travel, materials purchases, and other research needs.
Each fellow is required to use a portion of the funding to bring a guest or guests to one of IU’s campuses to share their work with faculty, students, staff, and local communities as well as use some of the funding to travel for research and/or presentations at other academic locales.
Each fellow is required to attend monthly fellows' meetings which will include professional development sessions and presentations by members of the cohort. Fellows will also be asked to serve as ambassadors at various public arts and humanities events and convenings. Monthly sessions will alternate between the IUB and IUPUI campuses, with the Cook Center and IAHI serving as hubs.
The IUB Arts and Humanities Council and the IUPUI Arts and Humanities Institute (IAHI) will administer the program with support from staff at the Office of the Vice President for Research. Fellows will have access to the arts and humanities resources provided by the Cook Center and the IAHI.
Eligibility
- All IU tenured and tenure-eligible faculty are eligible to apply.
- Non-tenure-track faculty, faculty emeriti, post-doctoral fellows, and graduate students are not eligible.
- Faculty members may receive this fellowship only once.
Funding
- Each fellow will receive $50,000, which can be used to support a variety of research needs.
- Each fellow is required to use a portion of the funding to bring a guest or guests to one of IU’s campuses to share their work with faculty, students, staff, and local communities as well as use some of the funding to travel for research and/or presentations at other academic locales.
- The majority of funds are expected to be spent during the fellowship year.
- Funds cannot be used to reimburse for expenses paid before the award is granted.
Application Requirements
Applicants must complete an electronic application in IU's InfoReady system and upload a completed application form and budget worksheet.
Application sections include:
Completed online application form
- Personal statement (i.e., introduction or executive summary) (1 page)
Project narrative and rationale (2 pages)
Career statement (1 page)
Timeline (1 page)
Budget (1 page)
A short memo from head of the applicant’s department, division, center, or institute confirming departmental commitment to program participation (1 paragraph)
- A letter of support from an expert in the field, uninvolved in the project and not from Indiana University, assessing the significance of the project in the field of expertise and the likelihood of its impact on the field
CV (including list of previous awards and funding)
Application Details
The project narrative/rationale should detail plans for research or creative activity to be undertaken during the fellowship year. It should also outline all project deliverables, potential impacts, and subsequent grantmaking and publishing/exhibition/performance plans.
The career statement should provide a general overview of the applicant’s career trajectory and plans for the future. It should explain the necessity of the fellowship for career advancement at this particular point in time.
The timeline should detail the applicant’s plans for undertaking work during the fellowship year as well as a timeline for completing the overall project.
The budget should provide a detailed overview of how the applicant intends to use the budget during the fellowship year. This may include hiring assistants, purchasing equipment, production costs, shipping, travel, and more. The budget should include the costs of bringing a visiting scholar to campus and hosting an event. Fellowship funds are expected to be spent over the course of the fellowship year.
Selected fellows must be available to attend all program meetings/sessions and commit to the year-long program calendar.
Fellows will be selected based on
- The potential for the proposed project to generate national and/or international attention within academic circles and beyond.
- The potential of proposed project to lead to major grants and/or prestigious awards.
- The importance of the project to the scholar’s career trajectory.
- The feasibility of the proposed plans.
- The disciplinary balance and diversity of the annual fellows cohort.