Opportunities for Princeton Faculty


Opportunities for Curriculum Development and Enrichment

The Center solicits proposals from humanities and social sciences faculty for new freshman courses on topics significantly concerned with the study of religion. Courses can use any of the formats for undergraduate education: Freshman seminars that appeal broadly, 200-level lecture courses open without prerequisites, or more specialized courses.

Freshman seminars, in particular, should be designed to appeal to students who have had no prior introduction to the academic study of religion or to the specific topic of the seminar. Freshman seminars provide a unique opportunity for students to work in a small setting with a professor and a few other students on a topic of special interest. Such seminars are in high demand by students and often result in new regular courses being added to the curriculum. Prior to the Center’s efforts in this area, very few freshman seminars were offered on religion. For a list of freshman seminars offered in prior years, click here.

Faculty members who offer new courses under the Center's auspices will receive up to $7,000 Summer Salary, and the home department will be reimbursed .1665 FTE in the first year.

Applications for the 2007-2008 year are due November 1, 2006. Applicants should submit a paragraph-long description of the proposed course, a tentative reading list, a copy of their c.v., and a note from their department chair in support of the course. Submit applications to the Center for the Study of Religion, 5 Ivy Lane. For further information, contact the Center at csrelig@princeton.edu or 258-5545.

Opportunities for Faculty-directed Events

The Center offers support to help defray the costs of one or more interdisciplinary conferences, symposia, or guest-speaker series that focus on some aspect of religion. Applications from regular members of the faculty in all humanities and social science departments are encouraged. The purpose of this support is to help a faculty member initiate or augment a scholarly research project or teaching endeavor that bears on the study of religion. This opportunity replaces the Thematic Projects sponsored by the Center in previous years.

The conference, symposia, or lecture series could be held during the 2007-2008 or 2008-2009 academic year, depending on the extent of advance planning required. Formats might include a 1-2 day conference, a series of speakers over a semester or year, several symposia, or some combination of these. Requests for funding up to $20,000 will be considered on a competitive basis by the Center's Executive Committee, with up to $5,000 of that amount available for research assistance or partial summer salary.

Selection criteria include: a clear statement of the event's objectives, its specific topics, and likely speakers; how the event relates to the faculty member's major research agenda and teaching; who would benefit from the conference, especially students; whether the event would be connected to a seminar or course; how the event would be publicized; whether additional support for the event could be obtained from other sources; and the likelihood of the event resulting in published work.

Examples of broad areas in which possible themes might be developed include (but are not limited to): religious perspectives in debates about war and peace, religion and healing, religion and ethics in the professions, Islamic or Christian social movements, new developments in Buddhist studies, South or East Asian religions, religion and architecture, religion and literature, religion and immigration, religion and family, the role of religion in welfare provision, or arguments about secularization and desecularization. Previous events sponsored by the Center have focused on the following topics: chant in world religious traditions, religion in cinema, religion and Darwinism, religion and bioethics, religion in the African diaspora, Jewish and Muslim charity in the Middle Ages, death and funerary practices in Buddhism, and ethics in mystical traditions. For full descriptions of recent events sponsored by CSR, click here.

Applications should include a curriculum vitae, a 3-page proposal that addresses the selection criteria listed above, and a tentative budget. Letters of recommendation are also welcome. Submit applications by April 2, 2007 to the Center for the Study of Religion, 5 Ivy Lane. For further information, or to receive a sample planning packet, contact the Center at csrelig@princeton.edu or 258-5545.