News and Stories

Call for Proposals: NYU Special Collections Short-Term Research Fellowship

Sponsored by the Inclusion, Diversity, Belonging, Equity, and Accessibility Project Fund, NYU Division of Libraries

Timeline and Contacts

Deadline for proposals: December 6, 2024
Award Notification: January 17, 2025
Fellowship dates: Research visits January 2025 through June 2025, with final products submitted by August 2025. All fellowship terms are subject to change based on University policies.
Contact: Weatherly Stephan, Head, Archival Collections Management (weatherly.stephan@nyu.edu) and Charlotte Priddle, Director, NYU Special Collections (charlotte.priddle@nyu.edu) 

Overview

New York University Libraries is seeking a researcher for a 3-5 week fellowship to review, analyze, and improve description for the Collection on Enslavement in Cuba (Fales MSS 569). This small archive, measuring two linear feet and containing 85 items, contains primary source documents from the 19th century that are central to the history of slavery in Spanish-colonized Cuba and the infrastructure that supported Spanish and American plantation owners at the expense of enslaved and indentured individuals. The collection contains vital records that are critical sources for people performing genealogical research on enslaved and indentured ancestors from multiple geographic locales, and more broadly are of interest to researchers looking at the history of colonization, enslavement and indentured servitude in the Americas. 

We are seeking a fellow with specialized knowledge of the collection’s regional and temporal history as well as language proficiency to help enhance the existing description of the collection, including descriptive notes and inventory listings. In addition, the fellow is expected to produce a short report for a general audience that discusses the collection in its historical context, and potentially its relationship to similar collections in other special collections repositories in the United States. These two research products will ensure the names of people and places listed in the collection inventory are as accurate as possible; that words, practices, and identities in the records are contextualized with care; and will provide the historical context needed for students and genealogists to use the collection and connect with related collections at other institutions. 

The collection must be consulted on-site at NYU Special Collections. Funding of up to $4000 is available for this fellowship. No additional funds are available to cover housing and travel beyond this total.

To Apply

To apply, please submit:

• A fellowship proposal detailing your interest, knowledge, or experience with the collection’s subject area, and how the Collection on Cuban Enslavement may fit into it, as well as the report deliverable you envision producing. Please also include a rough time frame of when you would plan to access the collection and deliver final products. This proposal should not be longer than two single-spaced pages.
• A resume or curriculum vitae 
• A budget narrative listing your estimated travel and accommodation expenses, if needed.
• One letter of recommendation from a colleague, supervisor, professor or other individual aware of your work and/or qualifications in this area. 
• To apply, place all documents in an online hosted location (e.g. a Google Drive or Dropbox folder) and send the link by email to Weatherly Stephan (weatherly.stephan@nyu.edu) and Charlotte Priddle (charlotte.priddle@nyu.edu). Use the subject line “Short Term Research Fellowship Application.”

We especially encourage researchers from non-traditional backgrounds and researchers with community connections to the collection to apply.

Deliverables

1. Updated collection finding aid and inventory, with translations, completed by research fellow. Draft work will be reviewed by Special Collections and ACM staff to ensure usability and alignment with archival description standards, and final updates will be integrated into web-accessible finding aid by ACM. 
2. Blog or narrative report (to be uploaded to Faculty Digital Archive, an NYU Libraries Research Guide, or The Back Table blog) that discusses the collection, its historical context, and its relationship to similar collections .