Works-in-Progress Program
Works-in-Progress Program
The Dean’s office is pleased to announce a Works-in-Progress Program. The intent of this program is to encourage the discussion of works in progress, as well as sharing strategies for advancing scholarly and creative work. Ideally, participation in a roundtable discussion will foster a spirit of collaboration and collegiality among faculty members that lasts beyond the funding period. Each semester, the Dean of the Faculty will fund up to twelve faculty members to participate in this program.
Interested faculty are encouraged to form complementary groups of four, whose responsibilities will be to meet for discussion at least seven times during the semester and to organize a schedule of reciprocal exchanges of works in progress. These self-organized small group partnerships are meant to be informal and social, yet focused on exchanging ideas and gathering feedback about one’s scholarship or creative work.
Eligibility. All Hamilton faculty are eligible to participate regardless of rank or employment status (full-time or part-time). It is possible to participate more than once, but not in the same semester and not with the same set of colleagues. Preference will be given to pre-tenure faculty and, in future years, to those who have not yet participated in the works-in-progress program.
Application Procedure. Self-formed groups of four faculty colleagues should submit their names, a list of the work each group member will be sharing, and a short, one-page description of the rationale for the group’s composition to the Dean of the Faculty (Apply Here).
Guidelines. Groups of four may be formed within or between departments, programs, or divisions. The groups can also be formed within or between faculty ranks. However formed, the constitution of each group should be conducive to informed and dialogue and exchanges.
Deadline. The application deadlines are:
September 8 for participation during the fall semester, and
December 1 for participation during the spring semester.
Applications will be accepted after these dates if the program is not full.
Reporting. Each group is required to submit a short report describing the process and schedule of their lunches and exchanges, and reflecting on the value of the experience, including the advancement of works in progress. These reports should be submitted to the Dean of the Faculty within one month of the end of the semester.
Incentive. In addition to the Dean’s office covering lunch for seven group meetings (reimbursable by receipt or department charge if on-campus), each participant will also receive $500 for research expenses or a stipend.
Highlights from the 2022-23 academic year reports include:
- The program “acted as a commitment device for research” to have dedicated time to work on research, better understand colleague’s research, make substantive progress on their own works in progress, and help transition out of the COVID-19 research mode that faculty had become accustomed to;
- Helped to reframe arguments and address comments that may come up in the peer review process;
- Aided in interdisciplinary collaboration and also “knitting together” strands from research, teaching, and “collective institutional impact”;
- Provided a structured way to read and discuss literature on academic publishing and understand the peer review process; a formal way to provide and receive colleagues feedback on works-in-progress;
- Several reports indicate that the program included the presentation of works-in-progress at conferences and manuscripts were submitted for peer review and;
- The program served as a catalyst for faculty mentorship and support in publishing and grant writing.
