This program provides eligible faculty with an opportunity to engage in sustained research and/or writing during the Summer. The Center provides a maximum of $3000 to support faculty for a two-month period (analogous to the funds available for a residency at the Center for Advanced Studies at the University of Iowa).

This program is designed as an alternative to the research leave (granted for a regular semester) and is aimed at faculty who normally teach one or more courses during the Summer, for financial or departmental reasons.

Stipulations: No more than two summer research leaves are awarded each year. Award recipients are not allowed to teach during the period for which they receive a research leave award. The program is not available to faculty who have had a tenure-track leave or a research leave within the previous two years.

Proposals for this program should describe in some detail the project that the faculty member plans to work on while continuing to live in the Des Moines area (using available research resources) or while visiting an archive (or area with multiple research resources) for an extended period. The project could be one in which research or writing is either initiated, completed in one of several stages, or completed in full.

Proposals should be submitted to the Board via the Director and should meet the following general criteria:

• The project should make a direct contribution to scholarship in the humanities.
• It should be grounded in the scholarly literature and methods of inquiry distinguishing the humanities, although additional resources may be employed as well.
• It should be intended to culminate in scholarly publication.
• It should be related to the faculty member's previous research and writing or justified as part of her or his research agenda.

Proposals should include a supporting letter from the Department Chair, a current vitae, and any other pertinent materials. Applicants are encouraged to discuss their project plans with the director before submitting a proposal.