Vanderbilt may nominate one candidate for the 2015 New Directions Fellowship competition. The program is intended to enable strong scholars in the humanities to work on problems that interest them most and at an appropriately advanced level of sophistication.
In addition to facilitating the work of individual faculty members, these awards should benefit scholarship in the humanities more generally by encouraging the highest standards in cross-disciplinary research.
The fellowship provides support for exceptional faculty in the humanities who received their doctorates between 2003 and 2009 and aims to facilitate long-term investment in the scholar’s intellectual range and productivity. Fellows will receive: (1) the equivalent of one academic year’s salary; (2) two summers of additional support, each at the equivalent two-ninths of the previous academic year’s salary; and (3) tuition or course fees or equivalent direct costs associated with the fellows’ training programs.
Final budgets, which should include items for salary and standard fringe benefits, projected training costs, project-related travel, and in certain circumstances (such as vital professional meetings and short site visits) lodging, commonly range from $175,000 to $250,000; the maximum is $300,000.
The principal criteria for selection are: (1) the overall significance of the research; (2) the case for the importance of extra-disciplinary training for furthering the research; (3) the likely ability of the candidate to derive satisfactory results from the training program proposed; and (4) a well-developed plan for acquiring the necessary training within a reasonable period of time.
Those interested in being considered as Vanderbilt’s nominee must submit the following (in Microsoft Word) to LSO@vanderbilt.edu by 5 p.m. on Aug. 10, 2015:
- A brief (two-page maximum) research plan including summary budget. Budget summary should use the Mellon budget template accessible here;
- A brief statement of support from department chair/center director. Letter should address the candidate’s preparation and the relationship of the “new direction” to the nominee’s research and pedagogy (can be submitted in PDF form);
- A brief CV or NIH Biosketch (no more than five pages).
Submissions should reference the program name in the subject line of the email.
Once received, all proposals will be forwarded to an internal review committee that will choose the final nominee. The chosen nominee will submit a full proposal to the foundation by the Sept. 1, 2015, deadline.
If you have any questions about the foundation or its interests and priorities, please contact Vivian Carmichael, executive director of Foundation Relations, at vivian.carmichael@vanderbilt.edu or 615-875-4915.