The Townsend Center for the Humanities provides support for faculty, graduate students, undergraduates, and research professionals at the University of California, Berkeley through a range of funding opportunities.
Since its inception, the Center has defined the humanities in its broadest terms as not only the departments officially within the Division of Arts and Humanities, but also the related social sciences and professional schools such as law, journalism, and architecture.
Please note that the Townsend Center does not offer external fellowships or residencies.
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The workshop provides support to associate professors for the development and completion of scholarly monographs. It provides a structure for generating constructive, informed criticism on book projects, at a moment in the writing process when authors can most effectively utilize feedback. The goal of the workshop is to contribute to the intellectual development of the manuscript in preparation for submission to a publisher.
The one-day workshop, led by the Townsend Center director, convenes up to two external, US-based reviewers and two UC Berkeley reviewers, chosen by the author in consultation with the director. The meeting begins with presentations from reviewers on the strengths of the draft and areas for further development. The author responds, and an open discussion with the group follows.
Eligibility
The program is open to all ladder-rank associate professors in the arts, humanities, and humanistic social sciences. Applicants should have scholarly manuscripts that are near completion but still in a position to benefit from review.
Authors and their book projects will be selected based on the potential significance of the finished work and the potential impact of group discussion and feedback on the author's progress.
Awardees should expect to hold their workshop in one of the following four academic semesters: Fall 2025, Spring 2026, Fall 2026, or Spring 2027. They must be prepared to submit a substantial draft of the book manuscript two months before the scheduled workshop.
Grant Provision
The Townsend Center handles all logistics and expenses related to the workshop, including issuing formal invitations to workshop participants, making travel arrangements for external guests, scheduling the workshop, and paying honoraria. The workshop convenes two external, US-based reviewers, and two UC Berkeley faculty reviewers.
The maximum total cost of the workshop is $6000. Each of the four reviewers will receive a $750 honorarium, paid in the form of research funds for UC Berkeley faculty.