Welcome to the Humanities Initiative

In an effort to encourage new interdisciplinary directions in the humanities and to call attention to the close relationship between teaching and research in the humanities, the Humanities Initiative offers stipends to pairs of faculty to develop and implement team-taught courses for both undergraduate and graduate students. Existing courses may be used for the team-taught initiative, or new courses may be proposed, either to be cross-listed in different departments and/or schools. Funded courses will be offered in spring or fall of 2012.

Eligibility
All full-time faculty in the humanities, social sciences, and sciences are eligible to apply. It is the hope of the Humanities Initiative that funded courses will help to bring together faculty and students from different departments and schools. Therefore, members of a faculty pair may not be from the same department. At least one of the faculty members, however, must be from a humanities discipline.

Course load
Faculty members must consult with their department chairs regarding their intent to apply. It is expected that the proposed course will be offered during spring or fall 2012, and will count as one full course toward their normal teaching load for that semester. Chairs should write a brief letter in support of the proposal and indicate their departments’ willingness to assign the faculty members in this manner during that semester.

Selection criteria
Successful proposals will both draw on and reflect the disciplinary and research interests of the two faculty members and address either a wide-ranging problem in the humanities or the interface between humanistic and other forms of inquiry in the social sciences, arts, and/or sciences. 

Review process
Stipends will be awarded by the Humanities Initiative Advisory Board, composed of senior faculty and administrators appointed by the Provost, based on review of the applications.

Funding
The total award amount is $8,000:
$4,000 ($2,000 per faculty member) is made available for course development during the summer preceding the grant year. Funds may be spent on any reasonable expense that is directly related to the course, such as: the purchase of materials (books, journals, videos, cd’s etc.), xeroxing fees, travel/transportation for course research purposes (to a library, conference, etc.), website development, and student researcher salary and fringe. The latter expenditure is encouraged.

$4,000 ($2,000 per faculty member) is reserved for course implementation (field trips, guest speakers, technology services, etc.).

Reporting
Each team will be asked to provide a written assessment of their experience no later than two months following the end of the semester during which the course was taught. Stipend recipients may also be invited to present their findings during one of the weekly lunch meetings of the Humanities Initiative Fellows. (They will be welcome to attend all Fellows’ meetings during their award year, generally held on Tuesdays, from 12:00-2:00 p.m.)

Application format
Applications should contain the following materials:

1. Face sheet
   A face sheet must accompany the application materials; it should include the following information for each member of the faculty team:
   • Name
   • Full title (professor, associate professor, assistant professor, etc.)
   • Department and school
   • Office address, telephone and fax numbers
   • E-mail address
   • Name of department chair
   • The face sheet should also indicate the title of the proposed course and specify its intended audience (freshman, sophomore, junior, senior, master’s, doctoral)
2. Proposal
   The proposal, consisting of no more than 1000 words, should suggest the significance of the course for humanistic education and research, as well as the rationale for having two faculty teach it. That is, what benefits will the course offer to faculty and students alike by virtue of it being team-taught? The intended audience should also be addressed: Is this a course designed for undergraduates or graduates, and what will the prerequisites be? There should also be a brief discussion as to how the course enhances existing curricular offerings, what each faculty member conceives his/her role to be, and why this pair of faculty is especially appropriate.
3. Proposed budget
   Please provide some indication of how funds will be spent for course development and course implementation.
4. Abbreviated curricula vitae
   In no more than five pages, each member of the faculty team should indicate his or her education and positions held, publications and major presentations, honors and awards.
5. Syllabus
   The Board understands that the course will only fully emerge during summer planning, but applicants should include a provisional two- to three-page syllabus with anticipated workload, requirements, and reading list. 
6. Letters of support from department chairs

Application deadline and submission
Proposals for Team-Teaching Stipends are due no later than Monday, January 24, 2011, by close of business. Items 1-5 described above should be submitted electronically, as a single Microsoft Word (or compatible) document to This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it . Department chairs should forward their letters (Item 6) separately, also to the e-mail address noted above. Scanned letters bearing the chairs’ original signature are preferred, although simple e-mails from their NYU-issued address will also be accepted.

Notification
Faculty and their respective departments will be notified of award decisions on or around
March 7, 2011.

Further information
Questions regarding applications are welcome and should be addressed to Asya Berger.