SMFS Rising Star Grant 

 All materials due to Carissa Harris (carissa.harris@temple.edu) by March 1, 2022 

Purpose  

The new grant program will support the work of BIPOC medieval scholars whose work addresses the intersections of two or more of the following areas: race, gender, sexuality, disability, and social justice. This award particularly seeks to support work focused on medieval law/legal discourse; the work of scholar-activists; and/or those researching historical dimensions of racial justice issues. 

The award is intended to support BIPOC medieval scholars who are in early stages of their career (e.g. graduate students and ECRs), independent scholars, or members of the academic precariate, in an effort to provide timely, meaningful support and to help their work become visible to the larger scholarly community. It is intended for the development of a conference paper, a journal article, or a dissertation chapter.   

Grant amount 

One grant of $500 awarded annually 

Eligibility 

• Who can apply? BIPOC medieval scholars who are in early stages of their career (e.g. graduate students and ECRs), independent scholars, or members of the academic precariate. 
• For what kinds of projects?  Projects with an intersectional scope and methodology (see details in “purpose”) such as conference papers, library visit, doctoral research/writing, or essay completion. 
• Membership? Applicants do not need to be members of SMFS, but a free two-year membership will be offered as part of the award.  
• Residence? This competition is global and therefore open to BIPOC scholars residing anywhere in the world.  
  
   

Application process and materials required  

• Application form: please state your name, contact info (email and postal address), project title, area(s) of academic study, university affiliation if applicable, and current employment status.
• Statement of intent / proposal (300-400 words) providing an overview of the project (or how this fits into a larger project), a specific discussion of how the funds will be used, and a statement of other funding (sources, amounts, and what the status of the funding is)
• CV (2 pages) listing educational background, academic employment history (if applicable), any publications, and any campus or community involvement relevant to your application.
• Please send all application materials as a single pdf to Carissa Harris (carissa.harris@temple.edu) with “SMFS Rising Star Grant Application” as the subject line by March 1, 2022.
• Once the project is completed, the successful candidate is expected to provide a brief report on the outcomes of the funding with the option of an additional blog post (published on the SMFS website) and/or virtual talk to promote the scholar’s work more widely and visibly.

Timeline: 

Call for applications opens	November 22, 2021
Applications close	March 1, 2022
Winner announced	May 1, 2022
Recognition of winner	At the International Medieval Conferences in Kalamazoo and Leeds