The Jackman Humanities Institute at the University of Toronto invites applications for a Visiting Public Humanities Faculty Fellowship (VPH) to be held in 2025-26. The JHI VPH Faculty 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. This fellowship is most suitable for faculty members who will be on leave from their home institution during their residency
Deadline for Applications: November 28, 2024 at 4:00pm EST
2025-26: Dystopia and Trust
A new millennium, rapid advances in science and technology, and a new determination to fight social injustice could have encouraged dreams of utopia. Instead, as though from the predictable plot of some pulp sci-fi or true crime story, they seem to have delivered a nightmarish dystopia. Easy information has given way to facile misinformation, the promise of solidarity to faction and polarization, democracy to authoritarianism, supremacism, and the kleptocracy of the 1%. People all over the world have lost trust, not only in many major institutions of societies, but also in each other. Are these trends reversible? Can widespread political and social trust be achieved, within and across societies? If not, with what consequence? If so, how should the subjective, social scientific, and philosophical dimensions of our dystopia be analyzed and re-imagined? What possible utopia has our dystopia, if it is one, betrayed?
The JHI VPH Faculty Fellow will hold a fellowship at the JHI, where they will pursue research in their own discipline, engage in the public humanities and continue to develop their public profile. Residence is normally required September to April, while the JHI’s Circle of Fellows is meeting weekly. The JHI VPH Faculty Fellow is expected to:
- Propose, write, and publish innovative public humanities projects, some on the JHI’s annual theme, with the goal of taking humanities research into the public domain
- Participate in activities with the multigenerational circle of fellows, including weekly lunch seminars and occasional workshops and lectures
- Strengthen the U of T research network of publicly engaged humanities scholars by facilitating a workshop on public-facing research and writing in the humanities
- In addition, the JHI VPH Faculty Fellow may participate, as appropriate, in the other JHI activities as the opportunity arises
The Jackman Humanities Institute interprets “Humanities” as a broad category, including political theory, interpretive social science, music, and the arts.
Eligibility
- Applicants must have achieved tenure by the beginning of the fellowship (July 1, 2025). Any award will be conditional on a successful promotion
- Faculty members employed by the University of Toronto are ineligible
- This fellowship is open to citizens of all countries. Application for appropriate visa documents is the responsibility of the Fellow
- The University of Toronto is strongly committed to diversity within its community and especially welcomes applications from visible minority group members, women, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, members of sexual minority groups, and others who may further expand the range of ideas and perspectives
Selection Criteria
We are seeking individuals whose intellectual scope moves between formal academic research and public communications. The JHI is a site for interdisciplinary humanities research conversations, and we are therefore interested in candidates who have an interest in and capacity for presentation of their research across disciplinary and institutional boundaries. Candidates will be evaluated on the basis of commitment to the public humanities knowledge exchange, achievement as appropriate to their career stage, promise of excellence, and relevance of their proposed research project to the Annual Theme of Dystopia and Trust.
The Fellowship
The Fellowship provides funding of $50,000 CAD plus benefits. This fellowship is most suitable for faculty members who will be on leave during their residency. The JHI will provide an office, University of Toronto Library access, and administrative support. Fellows are expected to attend weekly lunches on Thursdays during their residency.
Procedure
- Apply online
- You will be asked to upload the following documents in your application, formatted as a single pdf file (check our FAQs below for directions on length and formatting):
- Letter of Application
- Proposal for Public Humanities research relevant to the annual theme of Dystopia and Trust
- Curriculum Vitae
- Writing Sample (academic) – a published book chapter or article
- Communications Sample (public) – an article for popular press, a blog post, podcast, interview, or other media product. Provide URL link to audio or video files if you wish
- 100-word research description
- 100-word biographical statement
- You will be asked to provide the names and email addresses of two references. Your referees will receive an automated request for their letters, which will be due on December 5, 2024. Please ask your referees to watch for our request email.
You will be able to SAVE your application and return to edit it before the deadline. When you SAVE, copy the special code that appears on the screen. You will receive an email receipt that contains a link to enable you to return by using this code. When you are finished, please SUBMIT your application. After you SUBMIT your application, you will not be able to re-enter it. Please remember to SUBMIT your application before the deadline.
Deadline
All applications must be submitted online by November 28, 2024 at 4:00pm (EST). Faxed, emailed, and paper applications will not be considered.
Questions?
- Questions about the scope and expectations of this fellowship? Email JHI Director, Professor Alison Keith
- Questions about the JHI and the application process? Email JHI Associate Director, Dr. Kimberley Yates
- Technical questions about the application form? Email JHI Communications Officer, Sonja Johnston
Frequently Asked Questions About the JHI Visiting Public Humanities Faculty Fellowship
Fellowship Support
The JHI provides:
- Sabbatical top-up funding of $50,000 CAD
- An office on the 10th floor of the Jackman Humanities Building (170 St. George Street, Toronto) with administrative support
- Membership in the JHI Circle of Fellows, an engaging cohort of around 20 people selected for the relevance of their research to the annual theme (faculty, artist in residence, postdoctoral fellows, senior graduate students, and senior undergraduate students)
- The opportunity to present your research to the Circle of Fellows
- The opportunity (and support) to develop events and workshops related to the annual theme during your stay. We welcome your ideas.
- Full access to the University of Toronto Libraries.
You will be expected to:
- Propose, write, and publish innovative public humanities projects, some on the JHI’s annual theme, with the goal of taking humanities research into the public domain
- Participate in activities with the multigenerational circle of fellows, including weekly lunch seminars and occasional workshops and lectures
- Strengthen the U of T research network of publicly engaged humanities scholars by facilitating a workshop on public-facing research and writing in the humanities
- In addition, the JHI VPH Faculty Fellow may participate, as appropriate, in the other JHI activities as the opportunity arises
There is no funding available for moving or accommodation costs, but the JHI will assist in locating suitable accommodation.
You are expected to bring your own computer. JHI will arrange for your machine to be connected to the local network for printing and Wi-Fi access.
No. Fellows are selected each year by competition for the relevance of their work to the annual theme.
You are expected to be in Toronto while the Circle of Fellows is meeting, from September to early May. You are welcome to stay or travel during the remainder of the term of the fellowship (July 1, 2025 to June 30, 2026. The University of Toronto is normally closed for about two weeks in late December/early January.
Eligibility
Tenured faculty members from any university (worldwide), excepting the University of Toronto, are eligible to apply. You may not hold this award more than once.
JHI will consider all proposals from the humanities and qualitative social sciences, as well as from the professional disciplines of Music, Information, Law, Architecture, and Education.
Yes. We encourage applications from people who plan to be on leave during the time they wish to hold the VPH fellowship at the JHI.
Application
You are welcome to propose any project, existing or new.
Application materials will be considered in either English or French. Applications in other languages will not be considered because selection committee members may not all have ability in other languages.
We prefer applications that are in a legible 12-point type, with 1-inch margins and either 1.5 or double spaced, for legibility. The letter should be about 1-2 pages long (up to 500 words) and it should explain your public humanities work and your interest in holding this fellowship. The proposal should be 3-4 pages long (up to 1000 words) and should explain what you plan to do as a fellow. These are guidelines only, and not restrictions; no applicant will be disallowed for differently formatted materials.
Yes. Until the application deadline has passed, you can choose to SAVE your application. You will be given a code for re-entry. Record this code and use it to go back into your application. If you load a second copy of your application document, the first version will be deleted. Please review your application. When you are satisfied with your application, choose SUBMIT. After you have submitted your application, you will not be able to re-enter. Please submit your application before the deadline. Please do not create more than one application.
The deadline for applications for fellowships to be held in 2025-26 is Thursday, November 28 at 4:00pm EDT.
For questions relating to the scope and expectations of this fellowship, please email JHI Director Professor Alison Keith or Dr. Kimberley Yates, Associate Director. For questions about the web interface of the application, or challenges with submission or re-entering an existing application, email Sonja Johnston, Communications Officer.