Arts & Humanities Faculty Fellowships

All regular OU faculty (Tenured, Tenure-track, and Ranked Renewable Term) are eligible to apply for the AHFF. There are no disciplinary restrictions on applicants so long as the work fits solidly within an artistic/humanistic framework. Joint proposals from two regular faculty members are also accepted, but in the case of such collaborative proposals, the budget should address teaching release arrangements for both participants. 

The AHFF provides funding of up to $15,000 per award. This funding can be used to fund teaching replacement costs for a semester (at standard buy-out rates for each unit). If any funding remains beyond course buy-outs, awardees may use this funding to support research-related expenses for their project. Matching funds from colleges and departments are not required. Funds from the AHFF must be expended within twelve months of receiving the award. 

Faculty Fellows may elect to combine their fellowship with other types of leave opportunities, so long as the funding supports different stages of the same project; this distinction should be made clear in the project proposal.  

Faculty who have been awarded a previous AHFF may apply again after an interval of seven years from the completion of the initial award. (For example: an awardee from the 2016-17 Academic Year is eligible to apply again in Spring 2024 for the 2024-25 Academic Year).

Proposals must be single spaced and use a font of 11 points or larger. Page margins should be 1” on all four sides.  

Please be certain that you have included all required components, in order. Late or incomplete applications will not be reviewed.   

Proposals must include each of the following components and be submitted as a single PDF file. Email completed applications to <humanities.forum@ou.edu> with the subject line “[LAST NAME] - AHFF APPLICATION”.

1. Cover Sheet: Complete the proposal cover sheet (PDF)  including 200 word project abstract.
2. Project Narrative (limited to 5  pages, formatted as described above): Keep in mind that your proposal will be read by a diverse group of faculty across the arts and humanities disciplines, some of whom might have limited knowledge about your proposed project. Therefore, the project narrative should keep jargon to a minimum. Sending us a book proposal will not be competitive. The following six sections (A-F) should be clearly delineated in the Project Narrative:
   • Section A: Significance and contribution
     
     • Describe the significance of the proposed project. Write an overview of the project, with special attention to the main research questions or problems you are investigating. What is your main argument (or arguments)? Importantly, explain how your proposed project draws inspiration from existing scholarship and joins relevant scholarly conversations in your field. How will your project contribute to the development of knowledge or expand creative activity in your field? Give specific examples of the various lines of work with which you are in dialogue and which you are seeking to advance. However, when writing this section, please keep in mind that you are writing about these conversations for an audience of scholars outside your field, so make sure your response is legible across broad audiences in the arts and humanities.
       
   • Section B: Methods and organization:
     • Describe in detail the methods that you will be utilizing and how these methods will provide you with the information you need to answer your research question. How will you go about collecting and analyzing this information? If you are primarily writing up previously collected research, the committee expects less information here and more information for how your writing time will be organized under section C (“work plan”). 
       
     • For book projects, explain how the final manuscript will be organized, including brief chapter outlines. For other kinds of projects, make sure the committee understands how your scholarly effort around the project is organized (eg. Paratextual materials for a translation work, technologies developed for a computational humanities project, etc.). We need enough detail so that we know what the book is about, but not so much detail that it overwhelmes the other five sections.
       
   • Section C: Work plan: 
     
     • Provide a complete timeline for the project, and make clear the current project status. Describe in detail the portion of the project that will be supported by the fellowship, including where the work will be conducted and how you will be spending your supported time. The committee is looking for clearly stated and achievable project milestones, especially in support of writing time. If the AHFF supported time will not take a project to completion, explain your plan for finishing the work. 
       
   • Section D: Competencies, skills, and access
     • Discuss how the proposed project aligns with and extends your demonstrated expertise and track record (creative activities and/or program of research and scholarship). How does the project relate to what you have already achieved, and in what ways does it move your scholarship or art in a new direction? Specify any language competencies or digital technology experience needed for the project. If working with academic collaborators, how do their roles, responsibilities, and skills on the project relate to yours? 
       
     • If relevant, explain your plans for accessing necessary materials. If working with Human Subjects, what kinds of institutional and local/community permissions have been secured? If working in archives, collections, or other institutions, what arrangements for access have been made? 
       
   • Section E: Record of Funding History
     • Include a brief statement of previous funding history related to this project, including successful and unsuccessful proposals submitted internally as well as externally. If no relevant funding history exists, please indicate as much. In addition, provide a brief synopsis of accomplishments (outcomes and impacts) from your most recent funded project(s), whether or not related to the current submission. Be sure to indicate funding source, and specify if the funding was internal to OU or an external fellowship/grant.
       
   • Section F: Final product and circulation
     • Explain the intended project outcome(s), with special attention to plans for publication/circulation. If the project has a digital component/outcomes, indicate how that digital project will be sustained beyond the period of the grant. Make sure to explain why your plans for final product and circulation align with your intended audience(s) for your work. 
       
3. Bibliography (3 page limit): In addition to sources directly cited in the proposal, include in your bibliography any primary and secondary sources that relate directly to your project. The committee will be reviewing the bibliography for relevant works not only to your topical specialization but also to your theoretical and/or methodological approach. The bibliography must not exceed three pages, with formatting specifications consistent with the rest of the proposal (above). 
   
4. Curriculum Vitae (limit 2 pages each): Submit a two-page curriculum vitae for the applicant and each co-applicant. The committee is particularly interested in reviewing your vita for information that will help establish your competency for successfully completing the proposed project with the funding requested. 
   
5. Budget and Budget Rationale (maximum of one page): The applicant should include an itemized budget with a compelling narrative for how funds will be spent and why they are needed. It is especially important to demonstrate a direct linkage between budget items and the proposed activity. The support can be used for any legitimate purpose associated with the project if justified in the proposal, including writing. Note that proposals must adhere to State of Oklahoma travel guidelines, teaching release policies (subject to approval by the chair/director and dean), student stipend rates, data collection practices, tuition, equipment, and support for staff.
   
6. Signed Release Time Approval Form: A signed release time approval form (PDF) from the department chair/unit director must be included with the application, endorsing the proposal and confirming that the rate has been negotiated and approved by both the department chair and dean.  
   
7. Supplementary Documentation (no page limit, but content limited to the items listed): These items are project-specific, and not all proposals will include them.
   
   • Projects requiring approval by the Human Subjects-Institutional Review Board and Export Controls must include plans to obtain necessary approval letters or other relevant documents by the time the award is expected to be made.
     
   • If the proposal requests support for an activity for which you have documentation, such as a book contract, or identifies matching or in-kind support, include a copy of the documentation in your proposal.

Proposals must include each of the following components and be submitted as a single PDF file. Email completed applications to <humanities.forum@ou.edu> with the subject line “[LAST NAME] - AHFF APPLICATION”.  

A declined proposal may be revised and resubmitted the following year. A letter containing reviewers’ feedback may be requested for declined proposals.

The Arts & Humanities Faculty Fellowship Committee of the Faculty Senate will consider the following evaluation criteria in making the award selections:  

• Creative approach or scholarly originality (overall significance of the project, including its value to arts and humanities scholars, general audiences, or both). 
• Quality of the conception, definition, organization, and intended outcomes of the project. 
• Feasibility and appropriateness of the proposed plan of work and funding request.
• Congruence of the project with the scholar’s background and demonstrated expertise; and potential effect of the project on the applicant's scholarly/creative development. 

Proposals that are complete and meet the guidelines will be sent to Kimberly Marshall, Faculty Director of the OU Arts & Humanities Forum, to determine whether any conflicts of interest exist between those submitting the proposal and members of the Arts & Humanities Faculty Fellowship Committee of the Faculty Senate. The Committee will use the same conflict of interest policies employed by the Research Council. The reviews, discussion, and vote regarding all AHFF applications are held in strict confidence by the Arts & Humanities Faculty Fellowship Committee.  

The proposals will be evaluated on the following scale: 

1. = Outstanding: project and applicant are in all respects outstanding. 
2. = Very good: project and applicant are strong and highly competitive. 
3. = Good: project and applicant are good, but there are one or two weaknesses or limitations in meeting the scoring criteria. 
4. = Fair: project and/or applicant show potential, but some improvements/revisions may be necessary. 
5. = Marginal: project and/or applicant are below average, with weaknesses along the scoring criteria outlined above. 

Recipients of an Arts & Humanities Faculty Fellowship are subject to the following requirements: 

1. Reporting. The scholar/artist is required to submit a 1-2 page final report, including a budget report, to the Faculty Director, OU Arts & Humanities Forum, with copies to the associated academic director/chair and dean by September 30 of the year following the award. This report should describe the impacts of the project on the following: the field of study, the artist’s or scholar’s research/creative activity program, the arts and humanities at OU, and the university as a whole. It also should include any changes from the project that was originally proposed, and include activities in progress (e.g., proposals, manuscripts, performances/presentations).
   
2. Faculty Fellow Presentation. Each AHFF recipient is expected to present on the award project at a lecture event organized by the OU Arts & Humanities Forum during or immediately after the award year.
   
3. Acknowledging AHFF Support. All written publications (whether in hard copy or electronic form) that have benefited from Arts & Humanities Faculty Fellowship funding must contain the following statement of acknowledgment: "This scholarship/creative activity was supported (in part, if appropriate) by an Arts & Humanities Faculty Fellowship at the University of Oklahoma."
4. Publicity. The funded fellowships, with the name of the project scholar(s)/artist(s), project title, and approved budget amount, will be posted on the Forum’s website.