Opportunities

CALL FOR APPLICATIONS: Curricular Fellowship & Research Assistantship for the Puerto Rico Syllabus

November 13, 2020

About the Puerto Rico Syllabus:

The Puerto Rico Syllabus site began in 2017 as a hashtag campaign to address topics related to Puerto Rico’s deepening debt crisis. Given that public debt is often discussed in narrow economistic terms, the Syllabus sought to emphasize humanities-based approaches in order to historicize the debt crisis, place it in a larger framework of colonial relationships, and emphasize raced and gendered experiences of indebtedness and austerity. Over time the project has morphed from a hashtag campaign into a public syllabus that has provided guidance through its site (PuertoRicoSyllabus.com) and social media platforms to numerous students, scholars, journalists, artists, and activists seeking reliable tools to make sense of the present-day challenges and the complicated history of this US territory—particularly in the wake of two devastating hurricanes in 2017.

1) Curricular Fellowship

Eligibility: All Faculty or graduate students with teaching experience in the humanities or humanistic social sciences.

Application Deadline: December 6, 2020

Stipend: $3,000

About This Opportunity:

The selected candidate(s) will expand the Puerto Rico Syllabus’ contributions to public scholarship by preparing a course for self-study based on the Syllabus’ materials. This course is not expected to cover the full expanse of the Puerto Rico Syllabus, but would, instead, focus on a specific theme or topic (such as a gendered or racial lens on the PR debt crisis, or visual/literary representations of austerity). The chosen candidate is required to conceptualize a course theme, and develop online modules (readings, worksheets, multimedia content etc) that build and expand on Puerto Rico Syllabus’ content. These modules should be designed to facilitate self-study for people of a wide variety of ages and preparations. We welcome candidates with knowledge on media, digital tools, and social scholarship who could deploy this knowledge to enrich the modules’ aesthetic, design, and accessibility. Fellows will be credited as authors of their modules and retain copyright of them.

Responsibilities of selected Curricular Fellow:

Study the Puerto Rico Syllabus to get a sense of its scope.
Choose a specific topic or concept for a course that is based on the Puerto Rico Syllabus
Prepare course materials, which include lesson plans, worksheets, quizzes, etc.
Participate in regular meetings with the Puerto Rico Syllabus team to discuss the course development and organization.
Work with the Communications Manager to upload the modules to the site
Organize a series of virtual study groups to discuss the content.

Project Timeline: Fellows will be chosen by the end of December. From January to March the fellows will develop their online content in coordination with the team and schedule and plan their study group meetings.

Eligibility: Faculty or graduate students with teaching experience in the humanities or humanistic social sciences.

How to Apply: Please provide your CV and a one-page proposal for your imagined course. Be sure to list the materials you would use and a description of the digital resources you would create. You can include hyperlinks and a separate bibliography as applicable. Click here to apply: https://tinyurl.com/PRS2020app
*For CUNY Students: Before applying, please contact the office of financial aid at your campus to ensure that you are eligible to receive this funding without it adversely impacting your existing financial aid package. In your email to them, please include the fellowship amount, the semester you would receive it, and your EMPL ID, which you can find in CUNYFirst under Student Center.

Questions: Please direct any questions to: [email protected]

2) Research Assistantship

Eligibility: CUNY undergraduate or graduate students in the humanities or humanities-related social sciences.

Application Deadline: December 6, 2020.

Compensation: $25/hour for 8-10 hours a week.

About This Opportunity:

The selected candidate will aid in the regular revision and update of the Puerto Rico Syllabus. This revision of web content includes tasks such as the integration of new bibliographic references, the elimination of obsolete entries, and the reorganization of sections. Therefore, we welcome candidates with knowledge of digital tools as well as an interest in Puerto Rican culture, history and current politics.

Responsibilities of selected student researcher:

Study the Puerto Rico Syllabus to get a sense of its scope.
Go through the links and media that have been gathered, but not reviewed by the Puerto Syllabus team.
Prepare a plan for the Puerto Rico Syllabus’ content update and reorganization.
Participate in regular meetings with the Puerto Rico Syllabus team to discuss the before mentioned plan.
Regularly monitor news about Puerto Rico and make suggestions for new additions
Work in coordination with our communications manager to apply changes to the site.

Project Timeline:

Fellows will be chosen by the end of December and will work with the team through the end of the Spring semester.

Time commitment:

Work will average 5-8 hours a week.

How to Apply: Please provide your CV and a one-page description of your qualifications and interests. You can include hyperlinks and a separate digital portfolio as applicable. Click here to apply: https://tinyurl.com/PRS2020app
*For CUNY Students: Before applying, please contact the office of financial aid at your campus to ensure that you are eligible to receive this funding without it adversely impacting your existing financial aid package. In your email to them, please include the fellowship amount, the semester you would receive it, and your EMPL ID, which you can find in CUNYFirst under Student Center.

Questions: Please direct any questions to: [email protected]