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REQUEST FOR PROPOSALS

The Bill Lane Center for the Study of the North American West

Stanford University 

In order to expand Stanford undergraduate and graduate course offerings in the study of the western US, western Canada, northern Mexico, and the Pacific Rim, the Bill Lane Center for the Study of the North American West invites Stanford faculty to apply for course development grants to support the design and development of courses with a strong regional emphasis.   Course development funds may be used for a variety of purposes, including but not limited to:

* Support for faculty preparation time spent developing course materials.

* Stipends to support graduate or undergraduate research assistance with course development and implementation.

* Stipends to support a graduate teaching assistant for the course.

* Expenses for student activities related to course requirements.

* Visiting speakers.

* Other direct costs related to the production of course materials. 

SIZE OF AWARD

Awards will range from $1,500 to $7,500, depending on budget requests and scope of winning proposals.   

FUNDING PRIORITIES

The purpose of this program is to enhance Stanford’s regular undergraduate and graduate offerings in the study of the North American West, strengthening overall curriculum and allowing students to design coherent courses of study that focus on the region’s past, present, and future.  Thus, the Center gives funding priority to courses that will be

• taught by regular Stanford teaching faculty (tenured and untenured),
• likely to become part of the sponsoring department’s regular course offerings, and
• taught at Stanford at least twice.

 
 

Applications may either propose new courses on Western subjects or the redesign of existing courses so that the West (defined as the US west of the Mississippi, western Canada, and/or northern Mexico) is the central site of scholarly inquiry.  

TOPICAL FOCUS

Faculty of all departments and disciplines are encouraged to apply, and we especially welcome proposals for courses that are: 

* Innovative, creating opportunities for Stanford students to study Western topics and region-specific approaches not presently offered in the university curriculum.

* Interdisciplinary in substance and scope, using sources and methods of more than one discipline, with an appeal to students majoring in subjects outside the course’s home department.  Such courses could possibly be co-taught by faculty from more than one department.

* Transnational, introducing topics and problems that cut across national borders, considering matters of relevance to North America and the Pacific Rim, not simply domestic issues.  

APPLICATION PROCEDURE

Course development proposals can be submitted electronically to Margaret O’Mara at momara@stanford.edu.  If you prefer to submit a paper proposal, please contact Prof. O’Mara to make mailing arrangements.   All proposals will be accepted on a rolling basis for review by a committee made up of members of the Center’s faculty advisory board.  Applicants will be notified of funding within eight weeks of submitting an application. 

The proposal should provide basic information (involved faculty, department, name, date of planned offering) and a brief course description that articulates how this course will contribute to the study of the North American West at Stanford, how it relates to the broader university undergraduate and graduate curricula, and how the course fits within the faculty member’s regular teaching schedule.  The proposal should also include a budget listing itemized expenditures and the total amount of funds requested.  Please make this budget as specific as possible.   

Note to visiting/other faculty applicants:  The Center is not a degree-granting program that lists courses, nor does it support teaching salaries.  If the applicant is not regular Stanford teaching faculty and/or this course is not part of his or her regular departmental teaching load, he or she is expected to make independent arrangements to ensure departmental sponsorship of the course, including course listing, teaching salary, and office space.  Please indicate sponsorship arrangements in the proposal document; written confirmation from the departmental chair is not necessary until your proposal has been selected for potential funding.