Funding for Faculty
Upcoming Application Deadline: Monday, November 17, 2025
Ladder-rank faculty members can apply for an IHC Faculty Fellowship, which will grant them release from teaching one quarter to concentrate on research projects. The fellowship term must take place within the academic year following the award application deadline. Recipients must be in residence during the fellowship term. While the award releases recipients from teaching responsibilities for one course, recipients may not teach during the fellowship term. It does not exempt them from service and advising responsibilities. Award recipients will be designated IHC Fellows and may deliver a public lecture or hold a seminar on a topic related to their research during their tenure as fellows. The award does not provide for release from summer teaching, nor does it provide a salary supplement. It will be calculated as a replacement cost of up to $5,000 for one course. Faculty may receive this award once every five years and must not teach during the award quarter. Faculty whose primary departmental affiliation is in the Division of Humanities and Fine Arts or the Division of Social Sciences are eligible to apply. Applications are due no later than 5:00 pm on the deadline date.
For further information, contact IHC Associate Director Christoffer Bovbjerg at cbovbjerg@ihc.ucsb.edu.
Application Instructions
To apply, submit an online application form, which also requires you to upload the following as PDF files:
- a project description (5 double-spaced pages, see instructions below)
- a bibliography (1-2 pages)
- a brief curriculum vitae (2 pages maximum)
- a letter from the applicant’s department/program chair indicating approval of release time if an award is made (do not submit a full letter of recommendation; submit only a letter approving release time)
Project Description Guidelines
The project description should:
- state the objectives, ideas, and methodology of the project
- discuss the project’s significance and originality with reference to current scholarship and/or arts practice
- specify the interdisciplinary scope of the project
- include a timetable and work plan, specifying project activities in the proposed award period
- define the project’s target audience(s) and the form(s) in which the research will eventually be disseminated (e.g. book, article, art exhibit, performance)
Upcoming Application Deadline: Monday, November 17, 2025
The IHC offers awards to encourage faculty collaboration beyond the confines of particular departments and disciplines and to support collaborative, interdisciplinary work that draws upon techniques, methodologies, and media from multiple disciplines for its execution. Eligible projects include: conferences, symposia, exhibitions, and performances at UCSB or in the local community; partnerships with another faculty member, teaching artist, or community organization to create an interdisciplinary, cross-departmental, or cross-institutional component for a remote or in-person course; and initiatives to bring visiting scholars and arts practitioners to campus for collaborative research. The award amounts are up to $2,000 each, and funds must be used within 18 months of award notification. Award funds may not be used for UC faculty stipends/honoraria. (Note: Award decisions are announced approximately one month after the award deadline. Please factor this into your budget planning for projects that take place close to the award deadline.) The principal applicant must be a faculty member whose primary departmental affiliation is in the Division of Humanities and Fine Arts or the Division of Social Sciences. Applications are due no later than 5:00 pm on the deadline date.
For further information, contact IHC Associate Director Christoffer Bovbjerg at cbovbjerg@ihc.ucsb.edu.
Application Instructions
To apply, submit an online application form, which also requires you to upload the following as PDF files:
- a project description (5 pages, double spaced, see instructions below)
- a preliminary budget that includes any cosponsorships. Please use this template as a starting point for your budget and briefly explain any budget items that are not self-explanatory. (NB: IHC funds can be used for equipment rental but not purchase. Award funds may not be used for UC faculty stipends/honoraria.)
- a brief curriculum vitae (2 pages maximum) of the principal investigator
Project Description Guidelines
The project description should:
- state the objectives, ideas, and methodology of the project
- discuss the project’s significance and originality with reference to current scholarship, pedagogies, and/ or arts practices
- if the project is part of an ongoing series of similar events/projects or a recurring conference, explain how the current project or convening productively extends previous work and how the themes and topics to be addressed advance the interdisciplinary objectives of this award
- explain the new, interdisciplinary knowledge and scholarship the project will generate and its broader impacts (e.g. on campus culture or specific communities)
- state the particular expertise and potential contribution of each participant
- include a timetable and work plan, specifying project activities and names of outside speakers who have been or will be invited
- define the project’s target audience(s) and the form(s) in which the research will eventually be disseminated (e.g. book, article, art exhibit, performance)
- if proposing a course collaboration, describe its collaborative components (e.g. synchronous lectures shared by two courses and the topics to be covered in them, student collaborative activities such as group discussions, projects, and assignments)
Upcoming Application Deadline: Thursday, January 15, 2026 (for projects taking place through Spring 2027)
The Interdisciplinary Humanities Center offers individual and collaborative awards of up to $1,000 for interdisciplinary projects in the visual, performing, and media arts. The competition is open to UCSB faculty and graduate students. The award supports creative work that uses its medium in innovative ways to explore topics of humanistic concern. Projects that engage audiences both within and beyond the university are strongly encouraged. Proposals should discuss the format(s) of dissemination to be used. Funded projects will be designated an IHC activity and accorded full administrative support. Award funds may not be used for UC faculty stipends/honoraria. Applications are due no later than 5:00 pm on the deadline date.
For further information, contact IHC Associate Director Christoffer Bovbjerg at cbovbjerg@ihc.ucsb.edu.
Application Instructions
To apply, submit an online application form, which also requires you
- to upload the following as PDF files:
a project description (5 pages, double spaced, see instructions below) - a preliminary budget. Please use this template as a starting point for your budget and briefly explain any budget items that are not self-explanatory. (NB: IHC funds can be used for equipment rental but not purchase. Award funds may not be used for UC faculty stipends/honoraria.)
- a brief curriculum vitae (2 pages maximum)
Project Description Guidelines
The project description should:
- state the objectives, ideas, and methodology of the project, clearly articulating how it advances humanistic understanding
- discuss the project’s significance and originality with reference to current scholarship and arts practice
- specify the interdisciplinary scope of the project
- include a timetable and work plan, specifying project activities
- indicate how the project will engage audiences on and off campus and the form(s) in which it will be disseminated
- be clear and coherent to non-specialist readers
For collaborative projects, the description should also:
- explain the nature of the collaboration
- state the particular expertise and potential contribution of each participant
The NEH will not be running a competition for the Summer Stipends program for 2026.
For further information, please contact IHC Associate Director Christoffer Bovbjerg at cbovbjerg@ihc.ucsb.edu.