Perhaps the most important part of the application is the essay that must be submitted as part of the complete application. This essay should include any personal and academic information that is relevant; reasons for applying to the particular project; your interest, both intellectual and personal, in the topic; qualifications to do the work of the project and make a contribution to it; what you hope to accomplish by participation, including any individual research and writing projects; and the relation of the study to your teaching.

Although Spanish language ability is a useful asset in the borderlands, it is not a prerequisite for participants. All seminars and field study tours will be conducted in English, and the readings are all in English. For travel across the border into Mexico, participants will need a valid passport.

We expect you to embrace the experience and to engage actively the collegial intellectual inquiry of the institute. In order to develop a shared background and to facilitate our work together, we will ask you to read several books and articles prior to your arrival. For each of our institute days, we have carefully selected shorter excerpts, primary documents and articles that will serve as the basis of discussion among the participants and visiting faculty. Prior to the Institute we’ll post all the readings on line, on our password-protected site. Time is scheduled for reading and reflection during the institute, but based on our experience, we recommend reading as much as possible in advance. We have also set aside some time to enable you to work on your own curricular or research projects, and to make preliminary presentations of these projects during the final week of the Institute.

All selected participants will receive a $3,200 stipend. Although some costs may rise by the time of the institute, your stipend should cover your expenses for books, transportation, lodging and meals at a basic level. You should be prepared to cover out-of-pocket expenses, personal needs, and special arrangements. Lodging and most meals for the 15-day field study tour have been arranged as a package. In order to participate in this program, individuals will need to return a signed form that grants permission to the University of Arizona to deduct these expenses for field study tour lodging and board from the seminar stipend. Participants will receive a check for the remainder.

sample budget >