College of Arts & Science

HumanitiesWorks

Call For Applications

As humanists we’re all well aware that the skills students learn in our classrooms are essential in the workplace. But students and the general public don’t always make that connection. Over the past four years at Miami, the College of Arts and Science, the Center for Career Exploration and Success, and the Humanities Center have organized two HumanitiesWorks programs, involving 20 faculty and staff, in efforts to address this problem. HumanitiesWorks 2.0, which concluded in May 2019, was recognized with an international career innovation award from the Career Collective Leadership Professional Association. For more on the history of HumanitiesWorks and the award, please see this story. Thanks to all the faculty involved.

In 2020 HumanitiesWorks 3.0 aims to make classroom-to-the-world linkages more substantial and visible. We invite applications from faculty interested in modifying an existing course to include an applied or public component.

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‍HumanitiesWorks 3.0

The program will provide summer salary and a collaborative environment for faculty interested in developing new projects and assignments for classes to be offered in the 2020-2021 academic year. Selected faculty will meet every three to four weeks during the spring of 2020 and will work independently during the summer on a classroom activity or project with significant ties to the community or a workplace. Participants are expected to discuss their work at several informal faculty forums and to participate in an end-of-semester event related to the program. Applicants may come from any discipline in the general area of the humanities, and projects can reflect a wide range of professional activities or community service activities.

The following examples indicate the kind of hands-on professional projects that could help students develop and explain the practical value of their humanities education:

Program Details ‍

  • Up to 5 faculty members will be selected from a range of Humanities disciplines across departments and divisions.
  • Preference will be given to faculty who have not previously participated in HumanitiesWorks projects.
  • Applications must be approved in advance by the applicant’s department chair.
  • Departments and applicants must agree to offer the project course at least twice in 2020-21 and/or 2021-22 academic years.
  • The program project must represent a significant portion of the coursework and final grade for the course.
  • Only existing, regularly offered courses are eligible for the program. Any necessary changes to SLO’s will need to be proposed through the curriculum change process.
  • Selected faculty will receive $5,000 plus benefits, or a $6000 professional expense account, to be paid in increments, concluding with the completion of all program expectations including a final report on outcomes.
  • Selected faculty agree to discuss their project and the program, if asked, at one or more informal forums (such as brown bag lunches or department meetings) beginning in spring 2020
  • Participants are expected to participate, with their students, at an end-of-semester event showcasing their assignment in front of students, faculty, alumni, and/or employers.

Proposals should describe, in less than a page, the proposed classroom project, its role to the class, and its significance for students. The proposal may also address how the project will benefit the department or the instructor's role in developing the project. The proposal must contain a statement affirming that the project has the support of the applicant's chair and that the relevant course will be offered at least two times in 2020-21 and 2021-22.

Proposals should be titled “[YourLastName] HW3 Application.pdf” and submitted to humanitiesgrants@miamioh.edu.  Please copy your department chair. Proposals for HumanitiesWorks 3.0 are due January 13, 2020.

We welcome inquiries. Please direct questions to Shelby Ballard or Tim Melley.