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Call for Applications
Theme: Decolonization
Type: 8th International Summer Seminar
Institution: National History Center
American Historical Association
John W. Kluge Center, Library of Congress
Location: Washington, DC (USA)
Date: 7.7.–3.8.2013
Deadline: 1.12.2012
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The National History Center invites applications from early-career
scholars to participate in the eighth international summer seminar on
decolonization, which will be held for four weeks, from Sunday, July
7, through Saturday, August 3, 2013, in Washington, D.C.
As in the previous seven seminars in the series, the participants
will engage in the common pursuit of knowledge about various
dimensions of 20th-century decolonization in Asia, Africa, and the
Caribbean. The 15 participants selected to participate in the
four-week seminar will receive a small stipend to cover daily living
expenses (food, local travel, and so on). The Center will arrange and
pay for participants’ accommodation in Washington. The Center will
also reimburse (subject to limits) travel costs incurred by the
selected participants for traveling between their workplace or place
of normal residence and Washington, D.C., and back.
The seminar will be an opportunity for the participants to pursue
research at the Library of Congress, the National Archives, and other
repositories of historical research materials in Washington, D.C., on
projects within the overarching theme of decolonization; to exchange
ideas among themselves and with the seminar leaders; and to produce a
draft article or chapter of a book with the guidance of the faculty
leaders, who, together with the participants themselves, will offer
comments and critiques on the evolving draft papers.
That is, significant time will be allocated during the seminar to
discussions (collective as well as individual), while participants
will also be given time to conduct research in local libraries and
archives.
Aims of the seminar
A. Provides an opportunity for historians at the beginning of their
careers to interact and exchange ideas with others working in the
field of decolonization. Participants bring to the seminar multiple
viewpoints and take away new ideas about the topic, knowledge about
research methods, and new skills in communicating their ideas to
fellow historians and to the public.
B. Enables the participants to conduct archival research on projects
within the overarching theme of decolonization at the Library of
Congress, National Archives, and other repositories of historical
research materials in Washington, D.C.
C. Requires participants to produce a draft article or chapter of a
book (approximately 6,000 words). The focus will be on developing and
improving the participants’ writing skills as the seminar also
functions as a writing workshop. Seminar faculty and participants
offer comments and critiques on the research, content, style, and
argument of the evolving draft papers. The goal is to produce a piece
of scholarly writing that meets the rigorous standards demanded by
fellow historians yet can be understood by those with no specialized
knowledge of the subject. Discussions concentrate on style, argument,
and points of historical evidence, including the challenge of making
historical writing comprehensible to a broader or general audience.
D. Offers guidance on teaching and professional development to the
participants.
Seminar Faculty Members
Wm. Roger Louis, Kerr Professor of English History and Culture and
Distinguished Teaching Professor at the University of Texas at Austin
(and the founding director of the National History Center), will
direct the seminar. Other seminar leaders will include Dane Kennedy
(George Washington Univ.), Philippa Levine (Univ. of Texas at
Austin), Jason Parker (Texas A & M Univ.), Pillarisetti Sudhir (AHA),
and Lori Watt (Washington Univ. in St. Louis).
Application Process
Applicants should preferably have a recent PhD and be at the
beginning of their careers. Applications from advanced PhD students
who are nearing completion of their dissertations are also encouraged.
Applicants should note that all the academic activities (including
discussions and written work) will be in English. Applicants must,
therefore, be fluent in English.
Those selected will have to agree that they will actively participate
in the seminar, including all required meetings and events, for its
entire duration.
Applications should contain the following items:
(i) a cover letter of not more than two pages that includes a brief
(100 words) statement about the proposed research project relating
to the history of decolonization;
(ii) a c.v. of not more than two pages;
(iii) a statement of not more than 1,000 words outlining the research
project and indicating in particular
(a) the research already done by the applicant;
(b) the aims of the proposed project;
(c) the hypotheses or conjectures, if any, that the applicant
expects to test or research;
(d) the project’s relationship to the theme of decolonization;
(e) the major archival sources the scholar proposes to
consult or use;
(iv) a one- to two-page select bibliography of sources relevant to
the proposed research.
Applicants should also have three letters of recommendation in
support of their application sent directly to the address given
below.
Applications and all supporting materials should reach the Associate
Director of the National History Center by November 1, 2012. They
should be e-mailed to:
decol2013ap...@nationalhistorycenter.org
Once selected, participants from outside the United States must make
their own arrangements to obtain the necessary U.S. visas, but the
National History Center will provide any documentation that may be
required.
More information about the seminar series is available online at:
http://nationalhistorycenter.org/2013decolonizationapplications/seminardetails2013
Contact:
Marian J. Barber, PhD, Associate Director
National History Center
400 A Street, SE
Washington, DC 20003-3889
USA
Phone: +1 202 450-3209
Fax: +1 202 544-8307
Email: mbar...@historians.org
Web:
http://www.nationalhistorycenter.org/applications-invited-for-2013-decolonization-seminar/
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http://interphil.polylog.org
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