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Lectureships

Guidelines for Filling out Lectureships Application Forms

Purpose

The Lectureships funds are intended to support proposals to bring to the campus outstanding individuals from outside the Brown community. These individuals should present lectures of a broad and interdisciplinary nature or of current interest in a special area not ordinarily available at Brown University. The intent is to introduce people and topics that stimulate thought and discussion. The proposals can be for a single lecture or for a series of lectures that follow a coherent theme.

The Lectureships funds are not intended to support departmental seminars or to support Brown faculty in providing outside lectures.

Suggestions for Proposal Preparation

Prepare a short proposal (one to three pages) and submit with the Application for Lectureships and Budgeting for Lectureships forms linked below. Please submit six (6) copies. Describe the lecture topics, your key reasons why these lectures will interest the Brown community, and a brief biography of the individuals who will give the lectures. Please consider carefully and enumerate the expenses you anticipate (travel, publicity, e.g.). Also, indicate alternative sources of funding being sought; these are regarded favorably, as evidence of breadth of appeal.

Foreign Visitors

When inviting speakers from abroad, you should inquire about current procedures for independent contractor payments to foreign visitors. This information is available on the Web at www.brown.edu/Administration/Controllers_Office/travel.htm

Criteria for Proposal Evaluation

The proposals received will be evaluated by a faculty committee on three points:

  1. Quality of proposed lectures
  2. Breadth of interest to the Brown community
  3. Cost effectiveness.Criteria applied to the first point are the scholarly merit of the lecture topics and the credentials of the lecturers. The second point concerns these questions: To what audience will the lecturers speak; what impact will the lectures have on the Brown community? The third point reflects the need of the faculty committee to distribute finite funds to a number of worthy proposals, so those proposals that show wise usage of funds will be preferred.

Budget

The average amount awarded per application in 2007-08 was approximately $4,000. Applications for funds in excess of $5,000 are discouraged. In extenuating circumstances, more money can be awarded if the breadth of the proposal warrants it and if funding is available. Please note that Honoraria generally do not exceed $500 in these budgets. Please keep in mind that in-house speakers are not to be included. Visitors should be housed on campus whenever possible. Generally, room and board should not exceed $200. However, the faculty committee will consider recommendations for other amounts in exceptional cases. All requests for reimbursement for entertainment expenses must be in compliance with Brown University policies. Lectureships funds may be supplemented by other university or outside sources.

Signatures

The applicant(s) must sign the application form. It is also required that the Chair(s) of the Academic Unit(s) sign the form to avoid any misunderstanding over the sponsorship of the lecture or lecture series.

Forms