Reciprocity and Redistribution in Action

Application Deadline

Overview

Humanities Without Walls:
Reciprocity and Redistribution in Action

Thanks to the support of the Mellon Foundation, Humanities Without Walls has distributed millions of dollars across its partner consortium to support two chief arenas of activity since 2014: Career Diversity and Grand Research Challenges. In brief, we have helped to educate over 250 HWW Career Diversity alums and to develop over 50 collaborative HWW research projects. An overview of the whole grant cycle, a list of the projects funded, and an archive of feature stories on many of our activities over the last decade can be found here on the HWW website.

Our reorientation from thematic calls toward the methodological commitment to “reciprocity and redistribution” (R&R) in the 2019 renewal proposal stands as HWW’s most significant contribution to the national discourse on public humanities. This turn is undergirded by a commitment to community-based practices of social justice and equity and is rooted in a recognition of the urgency of reeducating university faculty, staff, and students away from a static notion of public humanities and toward a vision of the humanities as a social practice in the world beyond the campus or the seminar room. To read more about the evolution of HWW, and the impact of that shift beyond the grant itself, read an article on the R & R methodologies and also about “Humanities Without Walls” in practice.

As the HWW heads toward the end of its third and final renewal, we have the opportunity to run one more grant opportunity aimed at continuing the R&R methods. We invite each center or institute director in the consortium to submit a proposal for “R&R in Action,” a paid summer internship program with a local community organization for Ph.D. students in the humanities, arts, and related fields which enacts R&R methods in its design and implementation.

Information Sessions

HWW will run two Zoom information sessions to explain the opportunity and address your questions : July 22, 2025 noon to 1 p.m. Central and September 8, 2025 noon to 1 p.m. Central.

Register for the September 8 info session

In preparation for the information session, we recommend you consult the work of HWW’s “Bridge” program at Illinois, which is one possible model for “R&R in Action”:

Funding Amount

Maximum funding request: $30,000

Application Documents (Downloads)

HWW Budget Justification Template.docx14.5 KB HWW Budget Template.xlsx13.03 KB

Application Guidelines

Proposal requirements: Using our online form, please submit

The narrative of plans should include discussion of how the summer internship builds on or connects to work already happening at the Institute or Center; the timeline for the internal competition; the process for partnering with local organizations and ensuring the internships are co-created; the training students will receive in advance of their placement; and plans for assessing the outcomes which reflect the experience of both the student and the community partner.

The budget narrative and Excel spreadsheet should address how the monies will be allocated, i.e., what percentage to students in remuneration for their work and what percentage to the collaborating community partner.

Visit the submission form

Application Deadline Details

Submit your proposal by 11:59 p.m. on October 1, 2025.

Eligibility

Proposals will be accepted from Center or Institute Directors from one of the HWW consortial institutions or approved designate (contact Antoinette Burton at aburton@illinois.edu).

Eligible projects: A paid summer internship program which enables humanities Ph.D. students to partner with a local community organization to contribute to its mission through work that serves ambitions and needs that are critical to the sustainability of the organization.

Terms

Period of performance: Your local “R&R in Action” must take place during the summer of 2026 and conclude by September 1, 2026 at the latest.

Reporting: A final report (2 pages maximum) is due to HWW by September 30, 2026.

Contact

Please direct your questions about this opportunity to hww-info@illinois.edu.