The proposal submission period has concluded. We appreciate all participants who submitted proposals. We invite you to stay up to date with Confluencenter for upcoming events and funding opportunities.
The Confluencenter for Creative Inquiry
invites graduate students from the University of Arizona working on interdisciplinary research projects on the U.S.-Mexico border to apply for its 2024 Mellon- Fronteridades Graduate Fellowship.
Mellon-Fronteridades Graduate Fellowship
The Mellon-Fronteridades Graduate Fellowship program aims to support current graduate students with humanistic interdisciplinary research projects to advance our understanding of the narratives, experiences, knowledges, histories, performances, spaces, and heritages that shape and are shaped by the U.S.-Mexico borderlands.
Research Project Requirements
Interested graduate students should be working on projects that create new ways of understanding border dynamics in Arizona-Sonora communities by the time they receive their award (Spring 2024).
The proposed creative endeavors and research projects must be:
- Interdisciplinary
- Focused on the U.S.-Mexico border
- Humanities-centered
The proposed project must include at least one discernible product that advances scholarship and understanding of the Arizona-Sonora border and positively impacts these communities. Find inspiration in previously awarded graduate fellows.
Graduate Fellowship Details
The Mellon-Fronteridades Graduate Fellowship program offers individual applicants a one-time $6,000 award. Applicants should propose activities that can be completed during the Spring 2024 session.
Eligibility
Both domestic and international UArizona students can apply for the 2024 Mellon-Fronteridades Graduate Fellowship program. Students must be enrolled in a terminal graduate program (Ph.D., MA, or MFA) at the University of Arizona.
Preference will be given to students enrolled in the colleges of Fine Arts, Humanities, Social and Behavioral Sciences, Education, Architecture, Planning & Landscape Architecture, the James E. Rogers College of Law, and any relevant Graduate Interdisciplinary Program connected to one of the colleges identified above, such as Second Language Acquisition and Teaching.
How to Apply
Applicants should submit their proposals through the online portal found here. The application submission deadline is November 26, 2023, at 12:00 midnight MST.
In the online submission portal, applicants will be asked to provide the following materials.
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Project Summary (250 words max)
This concise overview (abstract) of the proposed project should be understandable to a lay audience and appropriate for posting on the Confluencenter website.
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Project Narrative (1,200 words max, double-spaced, 12-point font)
In language accessible to non-specialist readers, describe the specific creative/interdisciplinary activity for which funding is being sought. The narrative should accomplish the following:
- Provide a general project overview and completion timetable that covers the award duration (January 1 - May 30, 2024).
- The overview should explain how the proposed project will contribute to our understanding of the borderlands’ history, culture, art, context, and experience in ways that challenge or transcend existing disciplinary frameworks and boundaries.
- The timetable must explain the stages of project completion during the grant period and the resulting product and/or outcome. If the funded project is part of a larger project, applicants must specify the feasibility of finishing it within the grant period. All tangible final products (even if only preliminary) must be completed by the end of the grant period. Past products include exhibitions, websites, chapter or article manuscripts, conference presentations, etc.
- Describe how funding will help applicants advance their careers and long-term goals.
- Explain the applicant’s qualifications to complete the proposed project and how activities will advance the applicant’s broader research agenda, intellectual development, or scholarly/artistic career.
- Provide a statement of research ethics and commitment to diversity.
- Upload a Word or PDF file including your project narrative using the naming convention: “Student Last Name_First Name_ProjectNarrative_2024.”
- Provide a general project overview and completion timetable that covers the award duration (January 1 - May 30, 2024).
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Curriculum Vitae (two pages max)
CVs should note any scholarly or creative achievements pertinent to the project. Upload a Word or PDF file including your CV using the naming convention: “Student Last Name_First Name_CurriculumVitae_2024.”
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Budget
Using Confluencenter’s budget template, applicants must include a budget for project expenses not exceeding $6,000. However, if the project costs exceed $6,000, the budget should identify the additional funding. Matching funds are not required for this grant. Upload the Excel file including your budget using the naming convention: “Student Last Name_First Name_Budget_2024.”
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Letter of Support
Applicants are required to submit one letter of support from their advisor or someone familiar with their work. The letter should be saved as a PDF file. Upload the file using the naming convention: “Student Last Name_First Name_SupportLetter_2024.”
A review committee comprised of advisory board members and other faculty from relevant areas will evaluate the proposals and make recommendations to the Confluencenter Director. The Confluencenter will notify awardees via email by December 2023.
Graduate fellows will receive their award into student bursar accounts in January 2024.
During the funding period, award recipients may be required to attend meet and greets with fellow cohort members and special events. Events may involve preparing written materials, visuals, or videos created and distributed for a popular audience or web-based tools to communicate research in 3 engaging ways to the public. Confluencenter staff may contact award recipients on an ongoing basis for updates on outcomes. The Confluencenter will publish recipients' names and projects on the Confluencenter website and social media accounts. Finally, we request recipients to share publicity and event information with the Confluencenter’s team.
Award recipients are required to submit a final report within 30 days of project completion through an online submission portal. The final report should summarize the objectives and results of project activities and note any publications, performances or external funding awarded as a result of the project. Recipients who receive external funding for projects initially supported by the Graduate Fellowship program should report it in the report.
Successful award recipients should acknowledge the Confluencenter’s support in any publications made possible by the Mellon-Fronteridades Graduate Fellowships and display the Confluencenter and Fronteridades logos in any project-related publicity.
Important Dates
| Date | Description |
|---|---|
| Application Due Date: | November 26, 2023, at 12:00 midnight MST |
| Anticipating Award Notification Date: | By December 2023 |
| Project Implementation Date: | 2024 Spring session |
| Final Report Due Date: | 30 days after project’s completion |
Please contact Hiram Peña with any general application questions at hirampena@arizona.edu
ABOUT THE CONFLUENCENTER FOR CREATIVE INQUIRY AND FRONTERIDADES
The Confluencenter for Creative Inquiry at the University of Arizona is a campus-wide research institute that unites three large and robust areas – arts, humanities, and social sciences – as a point of intersection for inquiry across all disciplines. CCI is a Consortium of Humanities Centers & Institutes member and has held a seat on its international board since 2014. Fronteridades: Nurturing Collaborative Intersections in the U.S.-Mexico Borderlands, sponsored by The Andrew W. Mellon Foundation, seeks to promote and define an intersectional space where borders (fronteras) and humanities (humanidades) collide, coexist, and give rise to Fronteridades [fronteras + humanidades].
ABOUT THE BORDER LAB
The Border Lab, an initiative of the UArizona Strategic Plan, seeks to partner with local and global communities to develop innovative, adaptive learners and disruptive problem solvers creating impactful research and community learning opportunities for UArizona and non-UArizona students. In addition, it aims to position UArizona as a top destination for students and faculty pursuing border- related scholarships in global, binational, and regional contexts. The Border Lab builds on years of successful interdisciplinary border research and teaching across campus.