Full-time faculty from all colleges of the University are invited to submit a course proposal for the Humanities Center’s Seminar in the academic year 2026–27.
The proposal should outline a broad, interdisciplinary theme that will attract students from across the University. Recent themes have included “Evidence in a Post-Truth World,” “Transversing Gender,” “Lights, Camera, Activism,” “Anti-Politics and Conspiracy Theories,” “Ethnic Studies,” “Fiction, Fabulation, Futurity,” “Banned Books and Censorship” and, for 2025–26, “AI and the Future of Humans.” Past seminar leaders have found that working with the University’s best students as well as with colleagues and visiting lecturers who share their interests is intellectually rewarding.
Here is how the seminar works and what one needs to do to submit a proposal:
- The seminar leader is the instructor for two honors courses on a particular theme, HON 389 in the fall and HON 390 in the spring. The seminar meets each semester on Monday evenings from 5:00-7:20 p.m. and is taught to student fellows, fifteen excellent students from across the University. Students must apply to be fellows and must take the seminar both semesters. In addition, faculty fellows, who are working on research projects related to the Center’s theme, are chosen to give lectures in the spring and to contribute in other ways as agreed upon with the seminar leader. HON 389 and HON 390 will be considered part of the seminar leader’s regular course load.
- The leader works with the director to plan a public lecture series in the spring that supplements the course’s interdisciplinary focus. Each faculty fellow presents one of the spring lectures. The seminar leader also invites outside speakers to participate in the spring lecture series.
- The seminar leader receives a stipend of $1,500 for planning the course.
- The seminar should emphasize the humanities but also approach the proposed topic from multiple disciplines, including those outside the humanities.
- Proposals should have an inclusive lens regarding the topic. Proposals should also demonstrate that the Fall semester (HON 389) will have a logical “narrative structure.” What is the story you want to tell with this course and its content—and why?
- Samples of successful past proposals are available upon request.
Please submit your proposal to Nicholas Ealy, Director (ealy@hartford.edu) by Friday, Nov. 7, 2025, include a description of the proposed seminar theme, topics the seminar would address, possible readings, a brief discussion of the format you would use, and a brief CV.