Apply

To apply for an ICS Faculty Fellowship, please carefully read the application criteria below to ensure that you have submitted all necessary materials. We encourage potential applicants to discuss plans for the fellowship period with the ICS Director, Dr. Valeria Grinberg Pla by emailing either vgrinb@bgsu.edu or ics@bgsu.edu.

All proposed projects must demonstrate a clear alignment with ICS’ mission, vision, and principles, which include the following values: modeling inclusion, collaborating intentionally, empowering others, coming with an open mind, and questioning the status quo.

We also require that applicants address their commitment to community engagement. According to the Carnegie Foundation, “Community engagement describes collaboration between institutions of higher education and their larger communities (local, regional/state, national, global) for the mutually beneficial exchange of knowledge and resources in a context of partnership and reciprocity. The purpose of community engagement is the partnership of college and university knowledge and resources with those of the public and private sectors to enrich scholarship, research, and creative activity; enhance curriculum, teaching, and learning; prepare educated, engaged citizens; strengthen democratic values and civic responsibility; address critical societal issues; and contribute to the public good.” 

We encourage you to address how your project fits within this definition. 

At ICS, we believe that meaningful public engagement requires purposeful interaction between university and community populations (which may include communtities beyond Northwest Ohio), with the goal of generating tangible, mutual benefit. Such engagement can only be achieved through intentional, thoughtful collaboration with community partners and by valuing the knowledge and expertise of all parties.

As an ICS Fellow, you should consider carefully how your project might address, inform, respond and/or solve issues for a non-BGSU constituency. Is the goal of your project to inform the public about an issue by making scholarly work more accessible and comprehensible? Is it to listen and respond to the community’s concerns, using access to academic knowledge and resources to provide a path forward? Is it to collaborate with a community organization, drawing from a variety of knowledge bases, to solve a problem together?

There is no “one size fits all” approach to community engagement. Your choice of engagement activity(ies) should reflect the audience(s) and goal(s) for your fellowship work.

Below, you will find some recent examples from our fellows:  

• Dr. Michaela Walsh (2022) worked with students in Bowling Green High School spanish classes to create spanish language posters about COIVD and COVID vaccination which were posted in the Wood County Distict Public Library and BGSU ArtsX 
• Dr. John Dowd (2022) collaborted with the Bowling Green High School Drama Club in the creation of a play that deals with the relationship between internet selfie culture and body dysmorphia 
• Dr. Niki Kalaf-Hughes (2022) led a public workshop on crafting rhetorically effective constituent appeals, in partnership with Way Public Library and the League of Women Voters.
• Dr. Bruce Collet (2021) brought community organizers from large and small cities across the U.S. to share current sanctuary practices and policies in schools and churches, and to create models for communities without robust support systems for undocumented people. 
• Dr. Chris Witulski (2021) created a digital humanities project featuring 20+ musicians, scholars, and activists from across the country who are working to preserve, curate, and create Arab American community through music.
• Starr Keyes (2020) partnered with K-12 educators in Lucas and Wood Counties to address racial disproportionalities in school discipline, particularly as it pertains to special education.
• Lisa Hanasono (2018) provided training in effective and compassionate communication around miscarriage and pregnancy loss to medical residents at the University of Toledo.
• Lara Lengel (2018) created a peer education program around issues of human trafficking and grooming, in collaboration with Bowling Green High School’s drama club.

You can find examples of recent strong applications by past fellows on our ScholarWorks page 

Application Process

Please complete all components of the application to ensure full consideration.

Applications are due by October 15th, 2024 

Complete the online form to apply and upload your application materials. Through this form, you will be asked to submit the following: 

• Project Title (75 characters maximum).

• Project Description for Publicity (250 words maximum, in accessible language). This description should address how the proposed fellowship project will utilize the humanities to benefit communities beyond the academy. Your description should reflect how you will build both civic and intellectual community by generating and sharing knowledge outside the university. If the applicant wishes to include a community partner, the extent of community involvement should be laid out clearly for reviewers. Applicants do not need to have an established relationship with a community partner at this stage of the application but must explain what type of community engagement is central to the project and what communities (local, regional, national, or international) would be a part of the project. 

• Project Narrative (1,000 words maximum): The project description should be written in a clear, jargon-free style that is broadly accessible to colleagues outside the applicant’s discipline and the wider community. The narrative should describe how the project aligns with ICS's mission, vision, and principles. ICS welcomes interdisciplinary approaches that employ the humanities to inspire and empower diverse publics to use their voices, experiences, and expertise to contribute to the public good both in and outside of the academy. ICS defines the humanities as the qualitative study of society and culture, the written and oral narratives that shape people’s lived experiences and potential for change. We define the public good as increasing access, equity, and opportunity via social, cultural, and civic engagement.

• A brief bulletpoint timeline of what you are hoping to accomplish throughout the semester.