Research Grants
Humanities/Humanity is a program that brings together small groups working to advance thought about foundational topics connecting disciplines. Each year Humanities/Humanity funds a number of exploratory initiatives, in which distinguished teams of scholars gather at the Whitney Humanities Center for meetings of two or three days each. The themes explored in these workshops are framed by the Yale faculty that envisage them, in interaction with the group they convene. Workshop leaders collaborate with their invited participants to devise a program of readings and other preliminary materials in preparation for in-person meetings.
Application Guidelines
We welcome applications from multidisciplinary teams of at least three members—in faculty or equivalent senior academic administrative or curatorial roles at Yale University—coming from three different Yale departments, programs, or institutions. Applications from scholars at different stages of their careers are particularly welcomed.
Applications should combine the following three elements into one PDF. The filename should be the proposed workshop title.
Humanities/Humanity: Overview
In recent years, the humanities of pluralism have reasserted their commitment to understand the humanity of likeness, shared capacity, and common aspiration that was always implicit in them. The interplay of these two trajectories—the endeavor to describe human diversity and the investigation of the founding of this diversity on human commonality—is a source of much innovative thinking in humanistic research. The multidisciplinary reach of humanistic thought today creates productive interactions with fields once thought to be far from the humanities. The potential of these interactions to reshape research agendas and humanistic pedagogy calls out for collaborative exploration.
This new development comes from many quarters, arising especially, perhaps, from novel approaches to the analysis of deep-seated conceptual forms, expressive patterns, and configurations of practice. Many examples of these approaches might be cited: emergent complexity in dynamic cultural systems, cultural geographies, the play of scale in human histories, the relations of material and virtual media, the connections and distinctions of information and semiosis, the interplay of aesthetic presence and aesthetic interpretation, and a revisiting of the nature of historicity in and beyond the humanities. These approaches are not new in themselves, but each is entering in new ways into humanistic thought. Many more innovative areas might be suggested by Yale faculty from the vantages of their own research programs, and it is the aim of Humanities/Humanity to support them.
After each workshop, the group or some subgroup of its members will submit a report discussing the outcome and implications of the conversations, normally by the end of the summer following the workshop. These will be published electronically and with open access on the Whitney Humanities Center website.
- Workshop title and description. In no more than 1,500 words, describe the topics and issues to be discussed and their significance.
- Preliminary roster of 8–15 participants (inclusive of Yale faculty sponsors), accompanied by a brief description of the areas of expertise and expected contributions of each.
- Detailed budget not exceeding $16,000 and a proposed calendar of one or two periods when the workshop will convene at the WHC. We understand that in this uncertain pandemic time, any proposed timetable is a best guess. We encourage you to include contingency plans that will allow your team to meet and collaborate virtually in preparation for in-person meetings.
Deadline
The application deadline each year is March 1. Please send application materials as an email attachment to whitneyhumanitiescenter@yale.edu
Workshop Websites and Archives
Visit the Humanities/Humanity archive.
The A. Whitney Griswold Faculty Research Fund was established to support Yale faculty research in the humanities. The Fund awards grants for specific research projects to full-time faculty members on continuing appointment in any department or division of the University. Preference is given to first-time applicants and to applicants who do not have other current research grants.
Grants up to $8,000 per academic year may be sought for purposes such as (a) travel to inspect primary-source materials, (b) acquisition of inaccessible books or visual materials (later transferred to a University library), (c) research assistance. The award is not intended for reimbursement of expenses already incurred.
How to apply
Please download and complete the application form.
Along with the application, please submit a 2-3 page proposal that includes the following elements:
- A description of research to be conducted during the award period.
- An explanation of the relationship between the research and the broader project to which it will contribute. This may include a summary of a planned article, translation, or book project.
- An itemized budget.
- A statement concerning any previous grants awarded by the Griswold Research Fund.
- Mention of any other research grants that can be applied to the project and their balance.
Please combine the above elements into one PDF; all materials should be emailed to Inessa.laskova@yale.edu
Important dates
The deadlines for submission of Griswold applications, including supporting materials, are November 1, February 1, or April 1 each year.
What the grant is for
This fund was established through the generosity of the late Frederick W. Hilles to assist full-time early-career faculty members on continuing appointment in the humanities at Yale with the publication of their original manuscripts. It is administered by the Whitney Humanities Center; a committee appointed by the director of the WHC will review the applications.
The Hilles Fund supports expenses related to the publication of a scholarly book, which may include e.g., indexing, images, charts and maps, copyediting, proofreading, fact checking, publisher’s subventions, and translations.
Preference will be given to first-time applications from assistant and associate professors. As funding permits, the committee will consider applications from other full-time faculty members (lecturers, lectors, and adjuncts) who have been members of the Yale College faculty for at least two years. Normally, no more than $7,000 will be awarded to any applicant for any one book. Submitting an application does not guarantee funding.
How to apply
Authors should apply only after the manuscript has been accepted for publication by a university or scholarly press. Application letters should include the following:
- A letter of application that includes a summary of the manuscript.
- At least one reader’s report attesting to the merits of the manuscript.
- A letter of acceptance and endorsement from the publisher that breaks down publication costs and, if a subvention is requested, explains how a subvention will be used.
- An itemized list of manuscript preparation expenses not paid by the press, e.g., indexing, images, charts and graphs, and permissions.
- If the book project is eligible for funding from another Yale department or program, please provide details.
Please combine the above elements of the application into one PDF. Applications are accepted twice each year, with November 1 and April 1 deadlines. Kindly submit applications by email to Inessa Laskova.