The Duke University Humanities Writ Large Visiting Faculty Fellowship Program is seeking proposals for the 2012-13 academic year, made possible by a generous grant from the A.W. Mellon Foundation. This funding will allow faculty members from Liberal Arts Colleges (LACs) and / or Historically Black Colleges and Universities (HBCUs) to participate in a comprehensive effort to redefine the role of the humanities in undergraduate education. Duke is committed to reasserting the importance of the humanities by connecting humanistic inquiry broadly across domains of knowledge and linking it to an active, integrative model of education. These Fellowships are meant to mesh individual research projects with larger collaborative ventures already ongoing at Duke. The Fellows may be tied to innovative intellectual projects that involve undergraduates and that are conceptualized within or across humanities and interpretive social sciences departments; with interdisciplinary centers or institutes or interdisciplinary working groups; with Emerging Humanities Networks, or with Humanities Labs (Haiti Lab, BorderWork(s), and GreaterThanGames). Each Fellow must be committed to the goal of connecting humanists and the humanities to new neighbors and adjacencies, sometimes outside of traditional disciplines, in ways that make the humanities a central part of new knowledge projects.

For complete program details and application information, visit humanitieswritlarge.duke.edu/visiting-fellows/visiting-faculty-fellows-2012-13-call-for-proposals. For more information contact Laura Eastwood at humanities-writ-large@duke.edu

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The School of Criticism and Theory was founded in 1976 by a group of leading scholars and critical theorists in the conviction that an understanding of theory is fundamental to humanistic studies. Today, in an unparalleled summer campus experience, the SCT offers professors and advanced graduate students of literature and related social sciences a chance to work with preeminent figures in critical thought—exploring the relationships among literature, history, art, anthropology and the law; examining the role of ideological and cultural movements; and reassessing theoretical approaches that have emerged over the last fifty years. Cornell also offers participants the resources of one of the great research libraries in the United States.

In an intense six-week course of study, faculty members and graduate students from around the world, in the humanities and social sciences, explore recent developments in critical theory. Participants work with the SCT’s core faculty of distinguished scholars and theorists in one of four six-week seminars. Each faculty member offers, in addition, a public lecture and a colloquium (based on an original paper) which are attended by the entire group. The program also includes mini-seminars taught by scholars who visit for shorter periods. Finally, throughout the six weeks, distinguished theorists visit the SCT as lecturers.

The application deadline is February 1, and admissions decisions are announced in March. All applications must be submitted online. The online application may be accessed at the site listed below beginning on December 1, 2011. For complete application and program information, visit http://sct.arts.cornell.edu/, or contact: Mary Ahl at mea4@cornell.edu.

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In our call for proposals, we asked for ideas for future CHCI programs that combine high-order scholarship and key intellectual issues in the humanities with the creation of models for new, tangible, and scale-able resources within CHCI. The objective of the initiative is to build on the creativity of our members toward the development of plans for projects and programs that forge new mechanisms for collaboration within our network. The initiative is specifically intended to support planning and pilot activities: the rollout of fully operational programs is not, as yet, the intended outcome, but we are hopeful that the range of program plans produced under the initiative will provide springboards for new, exciting, and fund-able opportunities for CHCI members.

The four project groups are now beginning their discussions and planning work, and representatives of each group will convene in Seattle in early 2012 for a group workshop. The intention of this session will to discover areas of mutual interest, engage in a lively group critique, and to underscore the need to develop projects that can eventually produce benefits for the widest possible range of CHCI members. The project groups will present the results of their planning work at the 2012 CHCI Annual Meeting at the Australian National University

The CHCI Project Committee and Board would like to express thanks to all members involved in developing proposals, and congratulations to the four funded project groups, which include:

Humanities for the Environment
Co-convened by Sarah Buie (Higgins School of Humanities, Clark University), Sally Kitch (Humanities Research Center, Arizona State University), and David Phillips (Institute for the Humanities, Wake Forest University), in close collaboration with Dianne Harris (Illinois Program for Research in the Humanities), Poul Holm (Trinity Long Room Hub, Trinity College, Dublin), E. Ann Kaplan (Center for the Humanities, Stony Brook University), Beth Levy and Carolyn de la Pena (Center for the Humanities, UC-Davis), Iain McCalman (University of Sydney), Leerom Medovoi (Portland Center for Public Humanities, Portland State University), Pauline Phemister (Institute for Advanced Study in the Humanities, University of Edinburgh), and Ann Waltner (Institute for Advanced Study, University of Minnesota).

The project to be pursued by CHCI’s long-standing Humanities for the Environment group will seek to take the work of the group to a new level of engagement, pursuing themes such as global/regional, reimagining the city, and interdependence and empathy. Promising ideas for program structures – “platforms” – such as a humanities environmental observatory, an expanded website, and teams of scholars working under the construct of a humanities “greenhouse,” will be developed, among other projected program components.

IGHERT (Integrative Graduate Humanities Education and Research Training)
Co-convened by Richard Grusin (Center for 21st Century Studies, University of Wisconsin, Milwaukee), Nathaniel Deutsch (Institute for Humanities Research, UC-Santa Cruz) and Tyrus Miller (Vice Provost and Dean of Graduate Studies, University of California, Santa Cruz), and Ansgar Nünning (International Graduate Centre for the Study of Culture (GCSC), Justus Liebig University Giessen, Germany)

The IGHERT group aims to map a new role for CHCI member organizations in graduate humanities education that reflects the rationale of the National Science Foundation’s Integrative Graduate Education and Research Training (IGERT) program, and Canada’s National Sciences and Engineering Research Council Collaborative Research and Training Experience program. Asserting that that the imperatives of 21st-century humanities research are strongly analogous to those that the NSF-IGERT program seeks to foster in the STEM fields—interdisciplinary innovation, collaborative exchange, and attention to social impact – the project will create a comprehensive humanities education initiative, incorporating: a holistic model for graduate humanities research, training, and financial support; a diverse funding model to provide sustainable support for graduate research initiatives; a role for CHCI members in organizing research and training of humanities graduate students; international collaboration; and a web-based platform to disseminate and archive materials, facilitate collaborative research threads, and deliver research results from the network to broader audiences.

Medical Humanities
Co-convened by Stathis Gourgouris (Institute for Comparative Literature and Society, Columbia University), Brian Hurwitz (Centre for the Humanities and Health, King’s College London), and John McGowan, Director, Institute for the Arts and Humanities, University of North Carolina at Chapel Hill, in collaboration with the Heyman Center for the Humanities (Columbia University), Walter Chapin Simpson Center for the Humanities (University of Washington), Centre for Philosophy, Justice and Health (University College London), McGovern Center for Humanities and Ethics (University of Texas Medical School), and the Center for Medicine, Health, and Society (Vanderbilt University).

When several CHCI members gathered in a breakout group at the 2011 CHCI Annual Meeting to discuss the realm of possibilities for the humanities in the field of global public health, they discovered that several organizations were already working on initiatives in this area, and that many of these models could benefit from communication with others pursuing similar work. With these trends in mind, the group will undertake planning for a program that will leverage the CHCI network in the development of models for collaborative research between humanities, social sciences, and medical school faculties, along with professionals outside the academic arena. Some questions to be addressed by the group in their planning work will include: how can our research inform curriculum, and vice versa?; what are the models for collaboration between humanities departments and medical centers?; how can the CHCI membership work together to increase the international scope of our individual medical humanities initiatives?; and how can humanities research work most beneficially with governmental and corporate medical institutions?

Religion, Secularism, and Political Belonging
Co-convened by Leerom Medovoi (Portland Center for Public Humanities, Portland State University), Rosi Braidotti (Centre for the Humanities, Utrecht University), Raef Zreik (Minerva Center for the Humanities, Tel Aviv University), Liu Xiogan (Research Centre for Chinese Philosophy and Culture, Chinese University of Hong Kong).

This distinctly international – hailing from four world regions – and strongly interdisciplinary group will seek to jointly explore the shifting relationships between religion, secularism, and political belonging in a global context. Starting with topical vehicles such as the civilizational clashes in the post-9/11 United States, Islam in the European Union, and the place of Confucianism and Buddhism in the wake of Chinese economic expansion, the group will seek to gather CHCI member for discussions of five key topics: immigration; fundamentalism; secularism; religious language in politics; and gender and sexuality. Through modeling mechanisms for scholarly exchange and dissemination, local/global events, and digitally mediated dialogues, the group will build the basis for a multi-faceted, scale-able digital platform for research on issues in secularism, religion, and politics.

From January to June 2012, Femke Halsema will hold the Treaty of Utrecht (Vrede van Utrecht) Visiting Chair at Utrecht University Centre for the Humanities. In her role as visiting professor, she will conduct research on the meaning of communication technology and social media for human rights and democracy.

Worldwide, the Internet connects people in powerful new ways and provides new opportunities for the dissemination of information and knowledge. The downside of social media however is that citizens can become vulnerable to surveillance from political regimes and intelligence services.

During her guest professorship, Halsema will address such questions as: Can communication technology, the Internet and social media play a key role in protecting human rights and ‘arming’ people against oppression and violence? Does ‘diplomacy 2.0’ have a future? How sustainable are social media and initiatives such as crowd sourcing and crowd funding? Can they play a meaningful role in supporting vulnerable citizens in emerging economies?

These topics fit in perfectly with the research themes of the Centre for the Humanities and the Treaty of Utrecht, which include social sustainability, cultural participation and responsible citizenship.

Lectures, Inaugural Address and Other Activities
Femke Halsema’s activities as Treaty of Utrecht professor will include public lectures, seminars and master classes in Utrecht. On March 8, she will participate with Professor Rosi Braidotti (Utrecht University Professor and director of the Centre for the Humanities) in a special International Women’s Day programme. Later in the spring she will give the Treaty of Utrecht public lecture; on May 25 she will present the spoken column during the annual Treaty Concert and on May 31 she will deliver her inaugural address.

Femke Halsema
Femke Halsema (1966) has an established track record as a politician and opinion maker. She was member of the Lower House for the GroenLinks party from 1998 to 2010 and party chairman from November 2002. Her previous work included her role at Wiardi-Baeckman Stichting (the PvdA research agency). She is alumnus of Utrecht University, having graduated in Law in 1993. She is currently active as an independent publicist, television producer and consultant.

Treaty of Utrecht Chair
The Treaty of Utrecht Chair is an initiative of the Province of Utrecht and is a joint venture between the Province, Treaty of Utrecht and the Utrecht University Centre for the Humanities. The Treaty of Utrecht was signed in 1713 and is considered to be the commencement of modern diplomacy. In 2013, the 300th anniversary of the Treaty of Utrecht will be celebrated. The aim of the fixed-term professorship is to keep alive today the body of thought of the Treaty of Utrecht from 1713, which is typified by globalisation, world citizenship and cultural diversity. For more information, visit: www.uu.nl/vredevanutrechtleerstoel

An award from the Department of the Taoiseach and the Irish Research Council for the Humanities and Social Sciences (Grants in Theology and Religious Studies) has been made to the UCD Humanities Institute for a three-year research project entitled Protestants, print and Gaelic culture in Ireland, 1567-1722. Applications are now invited from qualified doctoral graduates for two post-doctoral fellowships funded through this project. One fellowship will be of two years duration and the second is a one year fellowship. Salary will be at the current IRCHSS post-doctoral fellowship rate of €31,745 per annum. The doctoral fellowships are awarded and held on the basis of the relevant IRCHSS terms and conditions. Applications will only be considered where they relate directly to the history of early modern religion, culture and society in Ireland, especially in the area of Gaelic culture, print and Protestantism from the sixteenth to the beginning of the nineteenth centuries. The closing date for the receipt of applications is Monday 31st August 2009 at 12 noon. Please find the application form and further information attached. Please feel free to forward this information on to those you feel may be interested. Informal enquiries can be sent to Dr Marc Caball, HII Director, at marc.caball@ucd.ie.

The IE School of Arts and Humanities invites applications for full time Assistant Professor permanent positions. Job/Position description: willingness and ability to teach undergraduate courses in the following syllabus, depending on candidate’s interest and departmental needs. Required Qualifications: Ph.D. in Art History, fluency in English and basic knowledge in Spanish is not required but highly valued. Application Process: Interested candidates, please send a cover letter that includes teaching and professional interests, current curriculum vitae, graduate transcripts, and 3 professional references to: arts-humanities@ie.edu. More information on our website: www.ie.edu/university.

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The University of Pittsburgh School of Arts and Sciences is now offering up to eight postdoctoral fellowships in the humanities and social sciences to begin in January 2011. The fellowships are for one year and are renewable for an additional year. Fellows will teach two courses per year, complete scholarly work, and participate in the academic and intellectual community of the School of Arts and Sciences and the Department with which they are affiliated. The annual stipend will be $45,000.

We invite applications from qualified candidates in the humanities and social sciences who have received the PhD between December 1, 2007 and November 1, 2010. Applicants who do not have the PhD in hand at the time of application must provide a letter from their department chair or advisor, stating that the PhD will be conferred before the term of the fellowship begins. Applications are due JUNE 1, 2010. For complete information visit www.as.pitt.edu/postdoc or e-mail postdoc@as.pitt.edu.

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CHCI continues to grow steadily, and our membership, as of November 2009, is the largest in the organization’s history, with 168 current members. Among many other positive effects, our increasingly international membership will mean that our Annual Meetings will also continue to grow, both in scale and diversity. Between September and November, 2009, we have been honored to welcome the following new members, most of which reflect our growing internationalization:

Center for the Humanities and the Public Sphere, University of Florida
Centre for Advanced Study Sofia, Sofia, Bulgaria
Humanities Foundation, Boston University
Institute for Advanced Studies in Humanities and Social Sciences, Nanjing University, China
Institute for Advanced Studies in the Humanities, Binghamton University
Minerva Center, Tel Aviv University, Tel aviv, Israel (in development)
Portland Center for Public Humanities, Portland State University
Research Centre for Human Values, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Research Institute for the Humanities, The Chinese University of Hong Kong
Transforming Cultures Research Centre, University of Technology Sydney, Australia

Profiles of each of these new members can be found by searching or browsing our newly improved member directory. A warm welcome to all of our new and returning members!

The newest addition to the Humanities Plaza at UC Irvine—the Humanities Gateway Building—is the new home of the University of California Humanities Research Institute, which occupies offices on the fourth floor. The building itself serves as a “front door” and reception area to the Humanities and brings under one roof the School’s multidisciplinary centers, including the International Center for Writing and Translation, the Samuel Jordan Center for Persian Studies and Culture, and the Humanities Center as well as the Office of the Dean, the Departments of Art History, Asian American Studies, Film and Media Studies, Women’s Studies, and the Program in African American Studies.

In addition to the Center’s core programs, the new facility includes a Digital Media and Learning Research Hub, designed to provide an international center to nurture exploration of and build evidence around the impact of digital media on young people’s learning and its potential for transforming education. Funded through a $2.97 million grant from the John D. and Catherine T. MacArthur Foundation, the Center was announced today at a national forum at Google headquarters that brought together leading thinkers around the challenge of reasserting American global leadership in education.

“Global digital media are rapidly becoming a driving force in globalization, scientific advances, and the intersection – and sometimes clash – of cultures,” said David Theo Goldberg, director of UCHRI and co-director of the Digital Media and Learning Research Hub. “Every day new questions arise about the ability of traditional systems and institutions to prepare both young people and life-long learners for the social, economic and political demands of a complex and networked new century.”

Through the study of how youth are using digital media, researchers will seek to understand the implications inherent in how this generation of youth – unlike any previous one – is embracing the online world to access information, socialize, and engage in public life. Research is expected to help schools, libraries, museums and other institutions engaged in teaching and learning better prepare students for the 21st century workforce.

“We’re at the very early stages of this phenomenon where youth and kids are learning so much more outside of the classroom via the Web and social networking,” said Mizuko Ito, University of California, Irvine researcher and co-director of the Research Hub. “If we don’t tap into the learning revolution that is going on today, I’m very concerned we’re going to have many kids being left behind.”

With a physical office at UC Irvine and a new virtual destination – www.dmlcentral.net – the Center will support emerging research on digital media and learning by hosting international conferences, facilitating workshops and working groups, and bringing together researchers, practitioners, policymakers, industry leaders and others working on related projects. It will also house related research initiatives of the MacArthur Foundation’s digital media and learning initiative. Harvard’s Berkman Center for Internet and Society and the nonprofit research group FutureLab are partnering with UC Irvine on Hub activities.

“At this time of extraordinary transformation, it is critical to harness and coordinate research that provides insight into the impact and applications of digital media for learning,” said Connie Yowell, director of MacArthur’s education grantmaking. “MacArthur has long been committed to improving public education in the U.S., and we see the emerging research and practices in the field of digital media and learning as holding the potential to transform the way we prepare our young people to be engaged citizens and to compete in the 21st century workforce.”

Two MacArthur initiatives are already active at the Hub. They are bringing together researchers and practitioners to explore 1) the transformation of learning and assessment in the 21st century and 2) the unprecedented ways in which technology is enabling youth to participate in the political and public sphere. These investigative efforts, lead by Mizuko Ito and Mills College professor and researcher Joseph Kahne, respectively, are major initiatives of the University of California Humanities Research Institute, the system-wide UC research center for the humanities and social sciences, based at UC Irvine.

UCHRI’s new address is:

University of California
Humanities Research Institute
4000 Humanities Gateway
Irvine, CA 92697-3350

More information about the Digital Media and Learning Research Hub can be found at www.dmlcentral.net.

The Virginia Foundation for the Humanities in Charlottesville, Virginia, offers residential fellowships to scholars in the humanities. We seek proposals for projects that are intellectually stimulating, imaginative, and accessible to the public. There are no restrictions on topic, but we especially encourage proposals on the history, literature, and culture of the South Atlantic region; African American studies; modern and contemporary poetry; and violence and survival. We also have a particular interest in projects that complement VFH programs in folklife and Indian heritage. Fellows have private offices with free parking at the Virginia Foundation for the Humanities, located on a scenic property several miles from the University of Virginia. They hold visiting faculty privileges at the University of Virginia and have access to all UVa research and recreational facilities. UVa library books are delivered directly to the VFH. Although housing is not provided, there are many reasonably priced options available in and around Charlottesville. We offer stipends up to $15,000 per semester; summer Fellows receive travel funds only. Residencies may be for a semester, an academic year, or a summer term. Applicants need not have advanced degrees, but we do not support work toward a degree, nor do we typically support dissertation revisions. Former VFH Fellows must wait three years before applying for another fellowship. For complete application information visit http://www.virginiafoundation.org/

The editors of Chiron Review announce a one-time invitation for submissions of novella manuscripts. Word limit is 14,500. The deadline for submissions is January 30, 2010. The chosen manuscript will be announced March 30, 2010 and published in the summer, 2010 issue, around June 20. The novella will be copyrighted in the author’s name who will retain all rights. The author will also receive one contributor’s copy with 50% discount on unlimited additional copies. There are no taboos, no reading fee and no purchase required. Novella submissions should be sent via e-mail to John Brantingham, jbrantingham@mtsac.edu , or via the post office with self-addressed, stamped envelope for reply/return to: John Brantingham, P.O. Box 1409, Upland, CA 91785. The chosen manuscript will be announced around March 30, 2010. For more information about Chiron Review, please visit www.chironreview.com. Click here to browse all opportunities at CHCI member organizations.

By connecting ACLS fellows with CHCI member organizations, the program aims to provide fellows with a supportive working environment that facilitates access to unique resources, materials, and people, while at the same time enabling CHCI member organizations to diversify and further invigorate the intellectual climates of their organizations.

Eligibility to participate in the program is limited to ACLS fellowship recipients in the Charles A. Ryskamp Research Fellowships, the Mellon/ACLS Recent Doctoral Recipients (RDR) Fellowships, and the ACLS Fellowships programs. Information on ACLS fellowship programs can be found at www.acls.org.

Click here for complete information on the program.

The University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee invites applications and nominations for the position of Director of the Center for 21st Century Studies. The Center fosters innovative cross-disciplinary scholarship and creative production in the humanities and encourages dialogues with the arts, the social sciences, and the natural sciences. The Center organizes study groups, informal colloquia, public lectures, performances, and conferences, supports a group of resident fellows each year from various disciplines, and produces the book series 21st Century Studies (formerly Theories of Contemporary Culture), published by Indiana University Press. The new director will have the opportunity to shape the future of the Center as it seeks to enhance its tradition of radical interdisciplinarity and build new local and international publics through its events, publications, and on-line presence. Candidates should have a record of interdisplinarity, scholarly distinction commensurate with a tenured faculty appointment, and experience in intellectual leadership and program development. We are especially interested in applicants with interdisciplinary breadth, internationally recognized scholarship, a significant record of leadership in an academic setting, and a demonstrated commitment to faculty research and intellectual community on and beyond campus. Review of applications will begin November 15, 2009, and continue until the position is filled. For details and application procedures, click here. Click here to browse all opportunities at CHCI member organizations.

CHCI Members: we are seeking photographs for the rotating image display on our homepage, which changes on each page refresh. If you have a photograph of your facility, a recent program, your fellows, or any other images representative of your organization, please send them along. Images should be able to survive cropping to the size of the image on our homepage, and must be accompanied by a brief caption. Please do not send large, hi-resolution files, as the image will be formatted for web display. Please send your image(s) as email attachments to chci@duke.edu.

The Center for 21st Century Studies, University of Wisconsin-Milwaukee’s interdisciplinary humanities research center, seeks an Editor (Assistant Director) who will write articles and coordinate, create and/or produce all Center publications. The Editor will manage, coordinate, and maintain development, outreach, and promotional activities for the Center. S/he will also provide curricular and research support for faculty, fellows, and graduate students. The Editor will maintain the Center website and manage, advise, and support the Center on all technical issues and activities. A Masters Degree in the humanities, arts, social sciences, or related area, an understanding of research and scholarship in the humanities and social sciences, two years minimum experience with publishing, excellent writing skills, and appropriate web experience required; experience as a publications editor, the ability to communicate and cooperate with authors, colleagues, faculty, students, and the public, as well as advancement, development, and/or grant writing background preferred. Must apply by November 13, 2009; for details and application procedures, click here.

Mr. Leach is a 15-term Republican congressman from Iowa. He served as Chairman of the House Committee on Banking and Financial Services (1995-2001), as a senior member of the House Committee on International Relations, and as Chairman of the Committee’s Subcommittee on Asian and Pacific Affairs (2001-2006). Since 2007, he has taught at Princeton University and served as the interim director of the Institute of Politics at Harvard University’s John F. Kennedy School of Government.

In 2004 Leach co-founded, along with Rep. David Price (D-NC), the bipartisan Congressional Humanities Caucus to increase awareness of the importance of the humanities in public life. He received the 2005 Sidney R. Yates Award for Distinguished Public Service to the Humanities from the National Humanities Alliance in recognition of his work as a champion for the humanities.

The Washington Post has published a detailed article on the appointment. President Obama also recently appointed David S. Ferriero as Archivist of the United States. The other major humanities-related leadership post in the US Federal Government, Director of the Institute of Museum and Library Services, is Anne-Imelda M. Radice, who was appointed in 2005.