The deadline for grant applications is September 15, 2011 (for the U.S. and Canada competition). Here is a summary of the program.
The John Simon Guggenheim Memorial Foundation provides fellowships for advanced professionals in all fields (natural sciences, social sciences, humanities, creative arts) except the performing arts. The fellowships are intended to further the development of scholars and artists by assisting them to engage in research in any field of knowledge and creation in any of the arts, under the freest possible conditions.
Fellowships are awarded through two annual competitions. Fellowships are grants to selected individuals made for a minimum of six months and a maximum of twelve months. Since the purpose of the program is to help provide fellows with blocks of time in which they can work with as much creative freedom as possible, grants are made freely. No special conditions attach to them, and fellows may spend their grant funds in any manner they deem necessary to their work.
The amounts of grants vary, and the foundation does not guarantee it will fully fund any project. Working with a fixed annual budget, the foundation strives to allocate its funds as equitably as possible, taking into consideration the fellows' other resources and the purpose and scope of their plans. Members of the teaching profession receiving sabbatical leave on full or part salary are eligible for appointment, as are those holding other fellowships and appointments at research centers.
The full RFP is here. There are approximately 220 fellowships up for grabs, so folks with sabbaticals, leaves, etc. may want to check this out.
Bridget, thanks for posting this. Every year I get queries from Guggenheim applicants, so I thought I'd share a few tips. For starters, if you're going to go to the trouble of applying for a Guggenheim, you should apply for as many relevant fellowships as you can, especially obscure ones you don't even know about until you do the research. Many, many highly qualified applicants are passed over by Guggenheim every year. The year I was awarded a Guggenheim, a poet who had applied every year for 20 years was finally awarded one. You can't count on this one, no matter how wonderful your project is. But there are so many other fellowships. And being awarded others helps you develop a track record so that you're more competitive for the fanciest fellowships in the future. And also -- money and support is money and support. There are more fellowships out there -- you just need to explore what's available in your field. (And do it quickly -- since the deadline season is coming up.)
The other most important thing: you need to keep in mind that non-law scholars are going to be reading your application. They probably expect books, and law profs more frequently write articles. I take up how to address this problem in a post: How to Get a Fellowship: Tips for Law Faculty
More advice from the Legal History Blog -- including what needs to go in your proposal, is here. And a post on the care and feeding of your references is here.
Best of luck!
Posted by: Mary Dudziak | August 03, 2011 at 09:09 PM
Links in my comment didn't work. Trying again:
tips for law faculty applying for fellowships: http://legalhistoryblog.blogspot.com/2007/07/how-to-get-fellowship-tips-for-law.html
more fellowship advice -- including what goes in your proposal: http://legalhistoryblog.blogspot.com/2010/07/fellowship-resources.html
regarding references: http://legalhistoryblog.blogspot.com/2011/07/fellowship-advice-how-to-make-life.html
Posted by: Mary Dudziak | August 03, 2011 at 09:48 PM