Deadline: 19-Nov-21
The Social Science Research Council (SSRC) invites letters of interest from early-career researchers for year-long fellowships to conduct qualitative studies of arts organizations founded by and for communities of color in the United States.
The fellowship term will begin in March 2022, and fellows are expected to begin their 12-month studies sometime between March and June 2022. The timeline as well as the nature of work to be conducted will depend on the needs of each organization and will be determined in collaborative dialogue between each fellow and organization.
The aim is to collaboratively produce in-depth studies of their histories, their organizational cultures, and their relationships with and approaches to the artistic or cultural community they serve. In addition, the research will explore how organizations maintain their relevance, how they define and maintain their resilience, and how they perceive their impact(s).
Award Information
- $70,000 stipend for 12-month research period, plus up to $15,000 to cover costs associated with relocation (where relevant), research set-up, and any pre-research activities.
Eligibility Criteria
- The fellowship is open to early career social researchers who hold a PhD or equivalent terminal degree in a relevant field in the social sciences or humanities, including but not limited to anthropology, arts administration, sociology, history, art history, (including performing arts disciplines), arts education, and political science. Prospective fellows’ doctoral degrees must have been conferred no earlier than January 2016 and no later than August 2021.
- Applicants must have conducted substantial ethnographic or similar qualitative research with community-serving or cultural organizations of some kind. Experience with arts organizations of color is valuable, but not required.
- The fellowship requires full-time commitment for the fellowship year, and prospective fellows will be expected to take a leave of absence from other employment for its duration. In cases where a fellow is matched with an organization located outside of their home city, they will be expected to relocate to that organization’s home city for the duration of the research period, subject to pandemic conditions.
- It is critical that all fellows have a demonstrable ability to create and maintain trust within communities like those represented by the participating arts organizations.
- Preference will be given to early-career scholars of color, in particular to researchers with demonstrated familiarity with the cultural, linguistic, and/or regional context of the organizations. Participating organizations will be arts organizations of color, defined here as those founded by (in either artistic or administrative leadership) and for Black, Indigenous, Hispanic/Latinx, Arab American, or Asian American/Pacific Islander communities, and continue to serve those communities today.
For more information, visit https://bit.ly/2Zr2lfG