To encourage the development of courses that more intentionally cross disciplinary lines, particularly in the humanities, we are announcing a new source of funding made possible by the Mellon Foundation. Specifically, we invite faculty to propose a course development project that designs a new course—or revises an existing course—that can serve more than one major, at least of one which is in the humanities or humanistic social sciences,[1] and helps students see connections between disciplines to which they would otherwise not be exposed. (Please see below for additional eligibility requirements.)
Eligibility
All faculty at Wellesley are eligible to apply.
To be eligible for funding, the proposed new or existing course must:
- Be cross-listed in two departments, at least one of which is a humanities or humanistic social sciences department. (See the footnote below for additional guidance; we are happy to discuss eligibility further with you.)
- Be approved by both departments and CCAP to count towards a particular major[2].
- Include a plan to assess the impact of the course on students’ learning and other relevant outcomes (e.g., engagement, reducing opportunity gaps).
- Include an itemized budget requesting no more than $3,500.
The strongest proposals would describe courses that departments would foresee offering again in the future. We may support courses in a team-taught format for one or two offerings and then the courses can be taught in alternating years by each of the participating faculty.
We also note that in the same academic year, faculty can apply for and receive ER&D and faculty research awards as well as a Mellon Interdisciplinary Course Development Grant. Furthermore, the maximum amount awarded for a faculty research or ER&D award will not be impacted by having a Mellon grant.
Proposal Submissions
Please download, complete and email the proposal template to erd@wellesley.edu.
Proposals will be accepted on a rolling basis and evaluated for funding during our regularly scheduled meetings which typically occur in September, November, February and April.
[1] For the purposes of this grant, we adopt the American Council of Learned Societies (a close partner of Mellon) definitions: “the humanities and related social sciences include but are not limited to American studies; anthropology; archaeology; art history and architectural history; classics; economics; ethnic studies; film and media studies; gender studies; geography; history; languages and literatures; legal studies; linguistics; musicology; philosophy; political science; psychology; religious studies; rhetoric and communication; science and technology studies; sociology; and theater, dance, and performance studies.” We also ask that proposals coming from the social sciences “employ predominantly humanistic approaches and qualitative/interpretive methodologies (e.g., economic history, law and literature, political philosophy, history of psychology).”
[2] For Fall 2021 proposals, CCAP is willing to extend approval of cross-registration to existing courses.