Young Scholars in American Religion, 2014-16: Call for Applications

 YOUNG SCHOLARS IN AMERICAN RELIGION

Call for Applications

Beginning in 2014, a series of seminars devoted to the enhancement of teaching and research will be offered in Indianapolis. The aims of all sessions of the program are to develop ideas and methods of instruction in a supportive workshop environment, stimulate scholarly research and writing, and create a community of scholars that will continue into the future.

The dates for these seminars are:

Session I:                  September 17-21, 2014
Session II                  April 15-19, 2015
Session III:                October 15-19, 2015
Session IV:                April 13-17, 2016

Laurie F. Maffly-Kipp and Douglas Winiarski, both of whom participated in the YSAR program early in their careers, will lead the 2014-2016 seminars.

Maffly-Kipp is a Distinguished Professor at the Danforth Center on Religion and Politics at Washington University in St. Louis. She received her BA from Amherst College in English and Religion, and completed the PhD in American History at Yale University. Her research and teaching focus on African-American religions, religion on the Pacific borderlands of the Americas, and issues of intercultural contact. Her publications include: Religion and Society in Frontier California (Yale University Press, 1994), articles and edited collections on Mormon-Protestant conflicts in the Pacific Islands, African-Americans in Haiti and Africa, and Protestant outreach to Chinese immigrants in California; Practicing Protestants: Histories of Christian Life in America, 1630-1965 (Johns Hopkins University Press, 2006) with Leigh Schmidt and Mark Valeri; Setting Down the Sacred Past: African-American Race Histories (Harvard University Press, 2010); American Scriptures, a Penguin Classics anthology of sacred texts (Penguin, 2010); and Women’s Work, a co-edited collection of writings by African-American women historians (Oxford University Press, 2010). Currently she is working on a survey of Mormonism in American life that will be published by Basic Books. She is the recipient of numerous fellowships and grants, including a grant for a collaborative project on the History of Christian Practice from Lilly Endowment, Inc., fellowships at the National Humanities Center, and an NEH Fellowship for University Professors.

Winiarski is Associate Professor and Chair of the Religious Studies Department at the University of Richmond. He received his BA from Hamilton College, an MTS from Harvard University, and his PhD at Indiana University. He specializes in the religious history of eighteenth-century British North America, with research and teaching interests in popular religion in early New England, Native American religions, alternative religious movements, and material culture. His essays have appeared in leading academic journals, and his book, Darkness Falls on the Land of Light: The Travail of New England Congregationalism, 1680−1770, is forthcoming from the Omohundro Institute of Early American History and Culture/University of North Carolina Press.

Eligibility: Scholars eligible to apply are those who have launched their careers within the last seven years and who are working in a subfield of the area of religion in North America, broadly understood. Ten scholars will be selected, with the understanding that they will commit to the program for all dates. Each participant will be expected to produce a course syllabus, with justification of teaching approach, and a publishable research article. Costs for transportation, lodging, and meals for the seminars will be covered, and there is no application fee.

To Apply: Applicants must submit: (a) a curriculum vitae; (b) three letters of reference directly supporting their application to the program (no portfolios with generic reference letters, please); and (c) a 700-word essay indicating why they are interested in participating, their current and projected research, and teaching interests. Please note that the deadline for applications is 15 February 2014. Essays, CVs, and letters of reference should be sent in PDF format to raac@iupui.edu. Letters of reference should be submitted directly by referees.