Center for the Study of the North American West

Short-Term Fellowships in the Study of the North American West

Stanford University’s Bill Lane Center for the Study of the North American West invites applications for its 2007-2008 visiting fellowship program to support new research and writing about the West. Fellows can be in residence at Stanford for periods ranging from two weeks to one academic year. The fellowships are designed to facilitate research toward an article - or book-length study on a topic related to the United States west of the Mississippi, western Canada, and/or northern Mexico.

In Academic Year 2007-2008, the Center is enlarging the focus of the program to welcome fellowship applications on any topic. However, we remain particularly interested in supporting work that intersects with the topical emphases of the Center’s programming, including

Politics and governance, particularly systems of direct democracy
Conservation and land trusts
Metropolitan growth
Natural resources policy
Immigration and demographic change
The image and identity of the West in the media and popular culture

While in residence, fellows are also expected to give a public talk on this research that will be published and disseminated by the Bill Lane Center, lead one seminar session with interested faculty and graduate and undergraduate students, and fully participate in the intellectual life of the Center and of the campus. The fellowship is open to faculty of all ranks from U.S. or non-U.S. institutions, independent scholars, freelance authors, and other public intellectuals. (As the purpose of the program is to bring new scholars and writers to campus, Stanford faculty members are not eligible for the fellowship. The Center also sponsors a separate short-term fellowship program for working journalists seeking support for articles or broadcast segments and series, details of which can be found on our web site.)

Each fellow will receive a stipend of $3,000-$20,000, depending on rank and on length of stay. Fellows are expected to obtain additional funding from external grants, sabbatical or other funding from home institutions. The Center will provide an office with networked computer, library privileges, access to fax, copier and mailroom, and advise the fellow in making housing arrangements in the vicinity.

The deadline for fellowship stays during Academic Year 2007-2008 is January 14, 2007. Interested candidates may submit applications electronically to Margaret O’Mara, Associate Director of the Bill Lane Center, at momara@stanford.edu. Application packages should contain a cover letter indicating desired dates of fellowship, a CV, a one-page description of the research project, and the names and contact information for two references. If a candidate prefers to submit hard copies of their application, please contact Dr. O’Mara for mailing information; packages must be received by the application deadline. Candidates can expect decisions to be made by March 1, 2007. Confirmation of the timing of the fellowship stay will be agreed upon by the candidate and the Center once an application has been accepted.

For more information about the Bill Lane Center and its programming, see http://west.stanford.edu. Questions about this fellowship may be directed to Margaret O’Mara at momara@stanford.edu.

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