October 2023 Public Humanities Newsletter
A monthly newsletter from Humanities for All, an initiative of the National Humanities Alliance.
In This Newsletter:
October spotlight: Professional development course in documenting the impact of the humanities in higher education
If you haven’t already, please consider subscribing to our Substack (for free!) so that you receive the newsletter in your email inbox and don’t miss any news in the future. We also encourage you to submit items to share. If you have any questions or would like to connect about the newsletter, please email please email Younger Oliver at yoliver@nhalliance.org.
Calls for Proposals
2024 Call for Participants: American Examples
Applications due October 15, 2023
American Examples is a collaborative working group for early career scholars who study religion in America, broadly conceived, from a variety of disciplines. The program engages this work across three areas: research, teaching, and digital public scholarship. Applications for the 2024 working group are especially welcome from Ph.D candidates, non-tenure-track instructors, adjuncts, scholars in libraries and alt-ac careers, and independent scholars. Learn more and apply here.
14th Annual African, African American, and Diaspora Studies Conference
Proposals due October 15, 2023
The African, African American, and Diaspora Studies Center at James Madison University invites proposals for its annual interdisciplinary conference, to be held February 7–10, 2024. The conference brings together scholars, archivists, and practitioners from a wide variety of overlapping and intersecting fields. This year’s theme is “Reckoning," a term that evokes the multitudinous ways responsibility and accountability may be linked to forms of measurement, methodology, and knowledge-constitution. Learn more and submit a proposal here.
2024 NCPH-Utah Historical Society Annual Meeting poster session
Proposals due October 18, 2023
The National Council on Public History invites submissions for the poster session at its 2024 conference, which will be held April 10–13, 2024, in Salt Lake City, Utah. The theme of this year’s conference is “Historical Urgency.” Learn more and submit a proposal here.
NHPRC Grant Opportunities
Applications due November 2, 2023
The National Historical Publications & Records Commission invites applications for three of their grant programs: archival projects, public engagement with historical records, and publishing historical records in collaborative digital editions. Learn more and apply here.
Upcoming Events
2023 American Folklore Society Annual Meeting
October 11–12, 2023 (virtual) and November 1–4, 2023 (Portland, Oregon)
The 2023 annual meeting of the American Folklore Society will be held virtually October 11–12 and in Portland, Oregon November 1–4, 2023. The theme of the meeting is “Roots, Rootlessness, and Uprooting.” Learn more and register here.
2023 Oral History Association Annual Meeting
October 18–21, 2023 | Baltimore, Maryland
The theme for the 2023 Oral History Association (OHA) annual meeting is “ Oral History As/And Education: Teaching and Learning in the Classroom and Beyond.” This year’s meeting will provoke many generative discussions about the fundamental roles that oral history can play in educational processes, and the ways critical pedagogy can inform oral history practice. Learn more and register here.
2023 National Humanities Conference
October 25–29, 2023 | Indianapolis, Indiana
Registration is now open for the 2023 National Humanities Conference! In keeping with the state motto of Indiana, “The Crossroads of America,” the 2023 conference theme is “Crossroads.” This annual conference brings together representatives from colleges, universities, state humanities councils, cultural institutions, and other community-based organizations to explore approaches to deepening the public’s engagement with the humanities. Learn more and register here.
October Spotlight: Professional development course in documenting the impact of the humanities
This academic year, the National Humanities Alliance is offering a five-part professional development course in documenting the impact of the humanities in higher education. Individual workshops will focus on methodologies, analyzing and leveraging data, and impact as it relates to specific higher ed contexts (such as the public humanities and humanities centers).
This course will help you learn tools and skills to stay abreast of higher ed’s trend toward data-driven decision making and make sense of what that means for the humanities and students who study the humanities.
Workshop Details
Workshop 1: Introduction to documenting the impact of the humanities
Coming up soon! Attend on October 5th or October 13th
Workshop 2: Research methodologies
Workshop 3: Impact research in a variety of contexts
Workshop 4: Analyzing data
Workshop 5: Storytelling with data
Virtual one-hour workshops start in October and run through April 2024. Registrations for individual workshops are also available as an alternative to the full course.
Publication and Project News
Recently on the Humanities for All website:
On the Humanities for All blog, University of South Florida students Kobe Phillips and Audra Nikolajski and faculty member Sayandeb Basu wrote about Rooted in Place, an honors college course that reimagines the campus botanical garden as a classroom.
“Humanities superpower: forging new leadership in technology” is a recent post on Humanities Watch that transcribes an interview with Rishi Jaitly, a humanities entrepreneur who recently launched the Virginia Tech Institute for Leadership in Technology. In the interview, Jaitly argues that the superpower of the future is the humanities and that centering the humanities in our public discourse will “help ensure that the ‘people in the room where it [technology] happens’ act with more clarity and courage in service of human flourishing when faced with big choices and making big decisions.”
“Academe Must Do More to Support Publicly Engaged Scholarship” is a recent op-ed in the Chronicle of Higher Education by Joy Connolly, President of the American Council of Learned Societies (ACLS). The piece was written in response to an August 23, 2023 article in the Chronicle, “The Insular World of Academic Research,” and outlines how ACLS is working to support publicly engaged research and scholarship.
A recording of the 2023 Jefferson Lecture in the Humanities given by Ruth J. Simmons is available on YouTube. In the lecture given on September 26, 2023, at the Smithsonian National Museum of African American History and Culture, Simmons drew on her more than 50 years as a scholar, pioneering academic administrator, and changemaker in higher education to speak about the role of the humanities in fostering socioeconomic mobility and cultural belonging.
“Colleges Need to Protect Valuable Collections From Climate Change. A New Project Aims to Help” is a recent article in the Chronicle of Higher Education by Calli McMurray. The article introduces a new project out of Louisiana State University, the PROTECCT-GLAM Project, which is aiming to “create a rating scale of the climate risks facing each gallery, library, archive, and museum in the country.”
Employment and Funding Opportunities
The New Jersey Council for the Humanities (NJCH) seeks a Manager of Special Projects to strategically implement special projects that serve the organization’s mission and vision, demonstrating impact and elevating the visibility of NJCH and the public humanities in New Jersey. Consideration of applications began on October 1, 2023, and will continue until the position is filled.
The York County History Center invites applications for a part-time Community Historian for Diversity and Inclusion. This position will help develop community relationships in order to document and include underrepresented histories in the York County History Center. Apply by October 7, 2023.
The history department at Trinity University invites applications for a tenure-track position in African-American history with an anticipated start date of August 2024. They welcome applicants whose research or teaching interests cover the 19th century, as well as candidates with a passion for undergraduate education and a commitment to inclusive pedagogy. Review of applications will begin on October 9, 2023, and continue until the position is filled.
The department of religious studies at the University of Alabama, Tuscaloosa, invites applications for a tenure-track position at the rank of assistant professor in the area of Social Theory and Digital Studies of Religion, beginning August 2024. While a variety of digital specialties are potentially relevant, the department is especially looking for a scholar with demonstrated expertise in digital humanities research methods, digital public humanities, or research methods for the study of religion in digital technology, media, and culture. Review of applications begins October 15, 2023.
The history department at Drake University invites applications for an Assistant Professor of African-American History. This is a 9-month appointment beginning in August 2024; among other possible courses, this position could teach African American History as Public History. For full consideration, apply by October 15, 2023.
The department of English and philosophy at Auburn University at Montgomery invites applications for a full-time, tenure track Assistant Professor with a teaching and scholarly focus in diverse literatures of the U.S. South. In addition to teaching core courses, this position will have the opportunity to contribute to departmental initiatives in growth areas in digital humanities and public humanities. Apply by October 16, 2023.
The history department at Villanova University invites applications for a tenure track position in African American history starting in the fall semester 2024. They value interdisciplinarity and seek candidates who will contribute to the University’s Africana Studies Program and who will build upon some of the department’s interests in public history, urban history, and cultural history. Apply by October 15, 2023.
The College of Information Studies at the University of Maryland, College Park invites applications for a full-time, professional track lecturer in Archives and Digital Curation. The lecturer will teach core courses and have the opportunity to develop new courses in topics such as the intersection of archives, social justice, and public humanities. Apply by October 23, 2023, for best consideration.
The Engaged Humanities Network and the Humanities Center at Syracuse University invite applications for two Engaged Humanities Post-Doctoral Fellowships. These 2-year appointments (July 1, 2024–June 30, 2026) combine publicly-engaged research, programming, curriculum development, and teaching. Apply by October 23, 2023, for priority consideration.
The Leventhal Map & Education Center at the Boston Public Library seeks a Director of Education & Educational Programs. This position will continue building out the Center’s existing portfolio of teaching programs, curricular materials, and teacher professional development workshops, while also working to integrate these activities with educational programs beyond the classroom, including the creation of new digital platforms, high school to college pathways, and public history/public humanities initiatives. Apply by October 23, 2023.
The American Council of Learned Societies invites applications for the Mellon/ACLS Dissertation Innovation Fellowships, which provide a year of support for doctoral students preparing to embark on innovative dissertation research projects. These fellowships support graduate students in the humanities and social sciences who show promise of leading their fields in important new directions. Apply by October 25, 2023.
The department of English at Clemson University seeks a tenure-track assistant professor in African American literature of the 20th and 21st centuries. Applicants may work in any historical period or cultural movement beginning in 1900. Additional focus areas of interest may include literary theory, cultural studies, gender and sexuality, disability, and public humanities. Apply by October 27, 2023.
The department of English at the University of Oregon invites applications for a tenure-track Assistant Professor position specializing in the study of Latinx Literature and Cultural Production to begin on September 16, 2024. Applicants are encouraged to discuss their public humanities experience in their materials. Apply by November 1, 2023.
The University of Miami invites applications for an Assistant or Associate Professor of Modern Languages and Literatures with a specialization in Latin American Cultural and Literary Studies. Preference will be given to candidates who focus on film studies and/or visual culture; candidates with experience in public humanities are especially encouraged to apply. Apply by November 1, 2023.
The history department at Texas A&M University invites applications for two full-time positions in Public History, one at the rank of tenure-track Assistant Professor and one at the rank of Associate Professor with tenure, to begin in the fall of 2024. Apply by November 1, 2023.
The department of European languages and transcultural studies at the University of California, Los Angeles invites applications for an Assistant, Associate, or Full Professor of Black European Studies. Applicants should have fluency in at least one of the main language traditions of the department (French, German, Italian, and/or Scandinavian languages), and may work in film and media studies, literary studies, cultural studies, translation, and/or any area of the experimental humanities (digital, environmental, medical, urban, or public humanities). Apply by November 15, 2023.
The School of International Languages, Literatures, and Cultures at the University of Arizona invites applications for an Assistant Professor in the field of French Cultural Studies. Areas of particular interest include experimental humanities (digital, environmental, urban, or public humanities) among many others. Apply by November 15, 2023.
The department of classical and ancient near Eastern studies at the University of Wisconsin-Madison invites applications for a full-time, tenure-track position at the rank of Assistant Professor of Classical Studies with a specialization in Latin literature. Preferred candidates will help strengthen their existing academic community with collaborations, build new communities through interdisciplinarity and public humanities, and attract new students through innovative courses and pedagogy. Apply by November 15, 2023.
The Jackman Humanities Institute (JHI) at the University of Toronto invites applications for a Visiting Public Humanities Faculty Fellowship (VPH) to be held in 2024–2025. The fellowship is intended to foster knowledge exchange between the academy and the public. The JHI VPH will be a mid-career, tenured faculty member from another institution who has a demonstrated track record of bringing humanities research out of the classroom and university press, and into the broader public realm for discussion, debate and examination across multiple media platforms, and who is experienced in addressing audiences outside the academy. Apply by November 30, 2023.
The Department of Classical Languages and Literatures at Smith College invites applications for a tenure-track position at the rank of Assistant Professor to begin in July 2024. The candidate must also have a record of active engagement with new directions in the Classics field, possibly including but not limited to race and ethnicity in antiquity, environmental issues or science and technology in the ancient world, uses and abuses of the classical tradition and other reception studies, and/or public humanities. Apply by December 15, 2023.
The Justice Studies Program at the University of New Orleans invites applications for a part-time Program Coordinator. This position will support the Director of Justice Studies by coordinating student and community engagement activities and other administrative tasks. Among other responsibilities, the Program Coordinator will help plan, promote, advertise, and execute public humanities events.
The Mellon Foundation is hiring a Senior Program Associate in each of its four granting areas:
The German Village Society in Columbus, Ohio, seeks a Historic Preservation & Civic Relations Manager. This position will be responsible for leading the efforts and activities that seek to preserve the historic fabric of German Village. A degree in historic preservation, city planning, architecture, public history, or a related field is preferred.
As always, check out the latest postings on the job boards for the National Council on Public History and the American Association for State and Local History, which provide lists of opportunities that might be of interest to those trained in the public humanities.
Interested in careers in scholarly publishing? Check out the Association of University Presses and the Society of Scholarly Publishing job boards.
Interested in careers in museums? Check out the American Alliance of Museums job board.