ICAST Summer Humanities Fellowship

Any member of the OU regular faculty, regardless of discipline, whose research falls solidly within the frameworks of humanistic and/or interpretive scholarship.

Selection preference will be given to faculty who have achieved tenure, given the support for Junior Faculty already provided by the VPRP through the Junior Faculty Fellowships.

The faculty member who is selected for this fellowship will be expected not to teach during the months of June or July, so as to focus all of their attention on their research and writing.

Proposals must be single spaced and use a font of 11 points or larger. Page margins should be 1” on all four sides.  

Please be certain that you have included all required components, in order. Late or incomplete applications will not be reviewed.   

Proposals must include each of the following components and be submitted as a single PDF file. Email completed applications to <humanities.forum@ou.edu> with the subject line “[LAST NAME] - ICAST FELLOW APPLICATION”.

1. Cover Sheet: Complete the proposal cover sheet (PDF)  including 200 word project abstract.
2. Project Narrative (limited to 3 pages, formatted as described above): Keep in mind that your proposal will be read by a diverse group of faculty across the arts and humanities disciplines, some of whom might have limited knowledge about your proposed project. Therefore, the project narrative should keep jargon to a minimum. Sending us a book proposal will not be competitive. The following six sections (A-E) should be clearly delineated in the Project Narrative:
   • Section A: Intellectual Merit and impact (scholarly and/or public)
     
     • Describe the significance of the proposed project. Write an overview of the project, with special attention to the main research questions or problems you are investigating. What is your main argument (or arguments)? Importantly, explain how your proposed project draws inspiration from existing scholarship and joins relevant scholarly conversations in your field. How will your project contribute to the development of knowledge or expand creative activity in your field? Give specific examples of the various lines of work with which you are in dialogue and which you are seeking to advance. However, when writing this section, please keep in mind that you are writing about these conversations for an audience of scholars outside your field, so make sure your response is legible across broad audiences in the arts and humanities.
       
   • Section B: Methods and organization:
     • Describe in detail the methods that you will be utilizing and how these methods will provide you with the information you need to answer your research question. How will you go about collecting and analyzing this information? If you are primarily writing up previously collected research, the committee expects less information here and more information for how your writing time will be organized under section C (“work plan”). 
       
     • For book projects, explain how the final manuscript will be organized, including brief chapter outlines. For other kinds of projects, make sure the committee understands how your scholarly effort around the project is organized (eg. Paratextual materials for a translation work, technologies developed for a computational humanities project, etc.). We need enough detail so that we know what the book is about, but not so much detail that it overwhelmes the other five sections.
       
   • Section C: Work plan during June/July 2024 
     
     • Provide a complete timeline for the project, and make clear the current project status. Describe in detail the portion of the project that will be supported by the fellowship, including where the work will be conducted and how you will be spending your supported time. The committee is looking for clearly stated and achievable project milestones, especially in support of writing time. If the Summer Fellowship will not take a project to completion, explain your plan for finishing the work. 
       
   • Section D: Competencies, skills, and access
     • Discuss how the proposed project aligns with and extends your demonstrated expertise and track record (creative activities and/or program of research and scholarship). How does the project relate to what you have already achieved, and in what ways does it move your scholarship or art in a new direction? Specify any language competencies or digital technology experience needed for the project.
       
     • If relevant, explain your plans for accessing necessary materials. If working with Human Subjects, what kinds of institutional and local/community permissions have been secured? If working in archives, collections, or other institutions, what arrangements for access have been made? 
       
   • Section E: Final product and circulation
     • Explain the intended project outcome(s), with special attention to plans for publication/circulation. If the project has a digital component/outcomes, indicate how that digital project will be sustained beyond the period of the grant. Make sure to explain why your plans for final product and circulation align with your intended audience(s) for your work. 
       
3. Bibliography (2 page limit): In addition to sources directly cited in the proposal, include in your bibliography any primary and secondary sources that relate directly to your project. The committee will be reviewing the bibliography for relevant works not only to your topical specialization but also to your theoretical and/or methodological approach. The bibliography must not exceed two pages, with formatting specifications consistent with the rest of the proposal (above).
   
4. Statement of Contribution to Fellowship Theme "Access to Opportunity" (maximum of one page): How does your long-term scholarly project help bring a humanities perspective to ICAST's mission to improve access to opportunity? As described above, we are particularly interested in projects that help us think broadly about the meaning of "opportunity," and how barriers to "opportunity" have been lived and represented as part of the human experience.
   
5. Budget and Budget Rationale (maximum of one page): The applicant should include an itemized budget with a compelling narrative for how funds will be spent and why they are needed. It is especially important to demonstrate a direct linkage between budget items and the proposed activity. The support can be used for any legitimate purpose associated with the project if justified in the proposal, including in its entirety as a summer stipend to support writing. Note that proposals must adhere to State of Oklahoma travel guidelines, student stipend rates, data collection practices, tuition, equipment, and support for staff.
   
6. Curriculum Vitae (limit 2 pages each): Submit a two-page curriculum vitae for the applicant and each co-applicant. The committee is particularly interested in reviewing your vita for information that will help establish your competency for successfully completing the proposed project with the funding requested.
7. Supplementary Documentation (no page limit, but content limited to the items listed): These items are project-specific, and not all proposals will include them.
   
   • Description of plans for review from OU or Tribal IRB, if approporiate
     

The Forum’s Faculty Advisory Committee will review all proposal materials in consultation with the ICAST Leadership. Proposals will be evaluated for scholarly excellence and potential for substantive contribution to the mission of ICAST.

• By September 15, 2024, the fellow is required to submit a brief (1–2 page) report on work achieved during the period of the Fellowship.
• The ICAST Summer Humanities Fellow is expected to apply for ICAST Affiliate Status, and to attend ICAST events during the 2024-25 academic year.
• The ICAST Summer Humanities Fellow is expected to present on their research for an ICAST audience at some point during the 2024-25 academic year.
• All written publications (whether in hard copy or electronic form) should acknowledge the support of the Institute for Community and Society Transformation the OU Arts & Humanities Forum, and the Office of the Vice President for Research and Partnerships.