Anthropology Faculty Member to Use National Endowment for the Humanities Grant for Summer Institute

Nov. 28, 2011 - PRLog -- Dr. Laraine Fletcher, professor and chair of anthropology at Adelphi University and her co-director Dr. George Scheper, faculty associate, Advanced Academic Programs at Johns Hopkins University; and emeritus professor of humanities at the Community College of Baltimore County, have been awarded a grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities (NEH). The grant money will fund an NEH Summer Institute administered by Project Manager David A. Berry, executive director of the Community College Humanities Association, the institutional recipient of the award. The institute entitled, “Mesoamerica and the Southwest: A New History for an Ancient Land,” is scheduled from June 17 to July 23, 2012. It will be held on site at various locations in Mexico and the U.S. Southwest. This will be the tenth grant Dr. Fletcher has received to conduct an NEH Summer Institute. This fellowship is an opportunity for faculty from various community and four-year colleges and universities to enhance their teaching and research by engaging with scholars in a wide range of disciplines. Up to three openings are available to graduate students in humanities.

Drs. Fletcher and Scheper will choose 24 fellows to attend the Summer Institute and participants will explore how Mesoamerican and Southwestern studies are connected. The multidisciplinary approach of this seminar will provide a distinct perspective from 10 visiting scholars, allowing for a greater understanding of the complexities inherent in the history and culture of these two diverse, yet interrelated regions of the Americas. Seminars, discussions, museum trips, and on-site field study will be conducted. Site visits will enable participants to evaluate firsthand the similarities and differences in architecture, site design, iconography, worldviews, and religious and ceremonial systems between Mesoamerican cultures and the Puebloan cultures of the Southwest.

Each year, the NEH Division of Education Programs offers teachers opportunities to study a variety of humanities topics through NEH Summer Seminars and Institutes designed primarily for teachers of American undergraduate students, and in a parallel program, for K-12 school teachers.  Qualified independent scholars and those employed by museums, libraries, historical societies, and other organizations may be eligible to compete provided they can effectively advance the teaching and research goals of the project. NEH, created in1965, is an independent grant-making federal agency of the United States government that supports research, education, preservation, and public programs in the humanities. The purpose of the grants is to strengthen the teaching and learning of humanities in schools and colleges across the nation, facilitate research and original scholarship, provide opportunities for lifelong learning, and preserve and provide access to cultural and educational resources.

To apply, visit http://www.ccha-assoc.org/MesoSW12/index.html, the deadline is March 1, 2012.

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About Adelphi University: Adelphi is a world class, modern university with excellent and highly relevant programs where students prepare for lives of active citizenship and professional careers. Through its schools and programs—The College of Arts and Sciences, Derner Institute of Advanced Psychological Studies, Honors College, Ruth S. Ammon School of Education, University College, and the Schools of Business, Nursing, and Social Work—the co-educational university offers undergraduate and graduate degrees as well as professional and educational programs for adults. Adelphi University currently enrolls nearly 8,000 students from 41 states and 60 foreign countries. With its main campus in Garden City and centers in Manhattan, Hauppauge, and Poughkeepsie, the University chartered in 1896, maintains a commitment to liberal studies in tandem with rigorous professional preparation and active citizenship.