Board of Directors Steven Adams, Chairperson Life Science Librarian & Psychology Liaison, Northwestern University Erik Gellman, Vice Chairperson Associate Professor of History, Roosevelt University Elisabeth Long, Treasurer Associate University Librarian for Digital Services Library, University of Julie Wroblewski, Secretary Archivist, Archives & Manuscripts, History Museum Janet Harper, Librarian, Center for Black Music Research, Columbia College Valerie Harris, Associate Special Collections Librarian and Assistant Professor, University of Illinois at Glenn Humphreys, Librarian, Special Collections, Harold Washington Library Center, Public Library D. Bradford Hunt, Vice President for Research and Academic Programs, Newberry Library Morris (Dino) Robinson, Jr., Founder, Shorefront Legacy Center Cecilia L. Salvatore, Associate Professor, Dominican University Coordinator, Archives and Cultural Heritage Trustee Emeritus Leroy E. Kennedy, Vice President, Office of Community Affairs, Illinois Institute of Technology Faculty Advisor Jacqueline Stewart Professor, Department of Cinema & Media Studies and the College, University of BMRC Staff Anita Mechler, Program Manager/ Archivist October 5, 2016 Thank you for your interest in the Black Metropolis Research Consortium 2017 Summer Short-term Fellowship Program. This document contains information about the Fellowship; eligibility requirements; application procedures and materials specific to scholars and artists; deadlines and contact information; Fellows responsibilities; and facilities and services. About the Fellowship Through an international competition, the BMRC offers 1-month residential fellowships in the City of for its Summer Short-term Fellowship Program. Generously funded by the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation since 2009, the Summer Short-term Fellowship Program has engaged scholars, artists, writers, and public historians from the United States and Europe to better formulate new historical narratives of s past. The new, original research and art developed through this program is significant as it illuminates the national and international importance of s African American community. The purpose of the Summer Short-term Research Fellowship is: To create research opportunities for scholars and artists to conduct primary research in -based archival repositories; To generate new knowledge in the field of African American history; To engage the local community in the history of their history. With the latest round of Mellon Foundation funding, the BMRC has introduced a new cohort model in which scholars, researchers, and artists will be selected based on their work in broad, yet defined, subject areas. This subject-area cohort model has enabled BMRC staff to concentrate its support efforts, along with its member institutions, in focused subject areas. This also enables Fellows to share and exchange ideas and facilitate collaboration with other cohort members. This approach is fostering lasting ties and relationships between Fellows that extend beyond the length of the summer program itself. As one previous Fellow commented for an evaluation, Often I feel isolated at my university in the work I do and this [short-term fellowship] made me feel a part of a much larger and vital endeavor of historical recovery.
The subject areas for the 2017 Summer Short-term Fellowship Program are: Gospel Music August 2017 will mark the 85 th anniversary of Thomas A. Dorsey s (Father of Gospel Music) gospel music standard, Take My Hand, Precious Lord, which was composed here in. The BMRC will invite scholars, musicologists, and musicians to submit proposals to research the under-investigated musical genre of gospel music and its impact on American popular music, Jazz, and/or other musical genres. Design, Urban Design and Architecture In 1937, Laszlo Moholy-Nagy, a Hungarian photographer as well as professor in the Bauhaus school, was recruited from Europe to found the New Bauhaus in, which would later become the School of Design and then the Institute of Design. We will invite researchers to investigate the lives and careers of African American designers working in and/or how modern design approaches, through architecture and urban design, affected African American communities in the City of. Each Fellowship consists of one-month of support during the summer fellowship period. The BMRC provides a stipend of $4000 for each Fellow to be utilized during the summer in the year in which it was awarded. The BMRC awards approximately 12-15 fellowships each year. Fellowships may not be deferred. Eligibility Citizens or permanent residents from any country (applicant from countries outside the United Stats must hold a valid passport and be able to obtain a J-1 visa even if they are currently in the United States) Scholars and artists with outstanding capabilities and experience from a variety of backgrounds (including academia, journalism, and other professions) English language proficiency Application Procedures All materials must be submitted electronically, starting on November 15, 2017 to: bmrc.submittable.com/submit. The following application materials must be submitted by January 15, 2017:
Applications Materials All files should be submitted in PDF or MS Word Format, unless otherwise noted. You may submit application materials in separate files or all in one file (all in one file and PDF preferred). Please include your last name in file name of all documents. 1. Cover letter: Applications should provide a compelling narrative of his/her interest in researching African American history, evidence of leadership and innovation, showing how the fellowship opportunity could generate new perspectives on history and contributing knowledge to the field of African American history in the City of. 2. Title Page: Include applicant s name, contact information, project title, academic sponsor and/or research institution, and reference names and institutions. 3. Curriculum vitae 4. Statement of Intent: What is the anticipated impact of your research? Who or what will be most affected? (<200 words) 5. Project Description: A statement of outlining the project with a maximum of 1500 words. Please describe your project, and explain its significance. The project description must demonstrate the need for collections in at least two BMRC institutions. (Please see https://bmrc.uchicago.edu/about-bmrc/bmrc-members/ for descriptions of BMRC member institution s collections and for links to search their collections.) These BMRC collections should be vital to the applicant s research. Outline your plan of work, and the status of any project already begun and any data already collected. Applicants should take special care to be as specific as possible about materials to be consulted during the proposed fellowship period. When appropriate, applicants should also make specific reference to previous published scholarship that will be revised or supplemented by the proposed project. 6. Letters of recommendation: Three (3) letters of recommendation addressing the merits of the candidate and the candidate s proposal. Individuals familiar with the applicant s skills, experience, and research should write these letters. Letters should emphasize the qualification of the applicant, in particular any unique abilities to contribute significantly to the field of African American history. Letter writers must submit an electronic copy of their recommendation letters via an email sent directly from Submittable. Letters sent on the applicant s behalf should include applicant s last and the sender s last name in the file name. It is the applicant s responsibility to have three letters of recommendation sent to the BMRC by the application deadline.
7. Support materials: All submitted work samples should have been completed within the past four (4) years. A note of explanation should accompany any work sample completed outside of this time frame. Scholars One scholarly paper or article that does not exceed 25 pages, including all footnotes, endnotes, and images. Upload a PDF file in manuscript format, double-spaced, and in an easily readable 10- or 12- point font. The file cannot exceed 10MB. All Artists Any work done with a collaborator must be noted. Please describe your role with respect to the work. Please submit samples of critical reviews of your work, if available. Film/Video Arts Submit two different film or video samples. Work-in-progress is fine. Do not submit trailers as your work sample(s). If the applicant plans to produce a video work intended for a gallery installation and/or presentation, the application should be submitted as a visual artwork. Feature Length: For feature length or films that exceed five minutes, upload two 5-minutes excerpts. Files cannot exceed 120 MB each. In addition, if the full work is available online through Vimeo, or SoundCloud, please note the location (webpage/url) in the application. Screenwriters: Upload a PDF file of a full screenplay. File cannot exceed 10 MB. Upload a PDF file of a one-page summary of the same screenplay. Upload a visual sample (less than 5 minutes), if available, of the same project or another project. File cannot exceed 120 MB. Musicians/Composers Submit documentation of two different works, at least one of which was completed within the last four (4) years, with recording and score, as directed below.
Upload an audio recording of each work: One track per piece, movement, or excerpt (no more the five tracks per work). Please title the audio file to correspond with the title (and movement ) of the score. Audio files are limited to 30 MB in size. Composers must also upload the score as a PDF file of the submitted work. Please title the PDF of the score or lead sheet to correspond with the title of the audio file. Composers who do not use traditional scores must upload a PDF describing the transmission/performance method of their work, in the work sample section of the application. Theater Following the guidelines noted below, submit a sample of a completed work. Do not submit works-in-progress. Directors: DVD of a performance. Playwrights: Submit a section of a produced play, up to 15 pages total. Visual Artists Upload eight digital images: Preferred file size for all still images is less than 3MB each Only one artwork per image, unless it is an installation view. Two of the eight images may be detail shots, installation views (to show scale), or video, when appropriate. Writers/Literature Submit a writing sample of completed work or work-in-progress. The title of the work should appear on the top of each paper of the uploaded file. Upload a PDF file in manuscript format, double-spaced, and in an easily readable 10- or 12- point font. File cannot exceed 10MB. Fiction writers: 15 pages minimum, 25 pages maximum Nonfiction writers: 15 pages minimum, 25 pages maximum Poets: 6-10 poems in ONE PDF document. Poets do not need to double-space their submissions. Total sample should not exceed 15 pages. Journalists: Submit 3 substantive published articles, up to 20 pages total. Deadlines and Contact Information All application materials, including letters of recommendation, must be received by the BMRC at bmrc.submittable.com/submit by 12AM CST at the end of January 15, 2017.
The selection process begins immediately after this date. There are no extensions for this deadline date and incomplete applications may be disqualified. Questions about the application process may be directed to the BMRC at bmrc@uchicago.edu. Selection Criteria, Process and Notification The ideal proposal will clearly articulate concepts and objective that are both innovative and feasible. Fellows are selected according to four criteria: 1. Professional record Education, training and/or experience and quality of previous work; 2. Quality of the Project The project s significance, and the extent to which it will advance research in and promote use of material pertaining to African American culture and history; 3. Capacity The capacity to successfully complete the research, as evidenced by planning skills, and potential to manage and carry out the proposed project; 4. Impact Demonstrated need for access to the BMRC member institution s repositories. Applications will be reviewed beginning immediately after the deadline. A review panel comprised of a broad spectrum of external researchers and scholars within each subject area will jury all applications submitted. The review panel will select a pool of semi-finalists deemed eligible for interviews. Interviews will be conducted before making a final selection. All candidates will be notified of the status of their application by Monday, April 3, 2017. Funds are available for Fellows to start their one-month research period anytime between May 1 and June 1, 2017. The application and selection process is confidential. Fellows Responsibilities The work produced by the Fellows is viewed as a gift to the people of. Therefore, the BMRC s expectations for Fellows are to: 1. Diligently pursue active research related to the topic outlined in application proposal; 2. Participate in opening and mid-summer events. These events provide numerous opportunities for the Fellows to meet each other, the BMRC member archivists they will be working closely with, and other BMRC stakeholders. 3. Present a final public presentation of their research activities at the close of the summer program;
4. Provide the BMRC with an end of fellowship report and participate in a short survey for feedback. Although not required, we strongly encourage former Fellows to maintain contact with the BMRC and participate in the Fellows Alumni Group. This forum provides opportunities for Fellows to update their colleagues and the BMRC on their continuing work and scholarship in the field of African American history, act as jurors for future applicants, and/or act as mentors for current Fellows. Facilities and Services Fellows will have access to a furnished office in the BMRC suite during regular business hours. The BMRC is located on the campus of the University of. The University of provides Fellows with access privileges at the University Library including digital resources, book, and journal collections. Although fellows are responsible for locating their own housing in, the BMRC staff can assist, if necessary, with locating on-campus housing at the University of.