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Enhancing
the Humanities at Furman
By Margaret
Oakes
"The first thing I shall do, as soon as I receive the money, is to buy Greek authors; after that, I shall buy clothes." - Desiderus
Erasmus Erasmus' comment characterizes the financial straits that have plagued scholars for centuries. And as economic resources are increasingly focused on science and technology, funding for projects and research in the humanities has become correspondingly difficult. The Humanities Development Fund (formerly the NEH Challenge Grant) is trying to change that.
In December, 1997, Furman received a challenge grant from the National Endowment for the Humanities to help develop the humanities at Furman in, as the grant stated, "the Digital Age." Since then, humanities faculty have developed new courses and incorporated increased use of digital technology into humanities pedagogy. New courses have been created under the rubric of Humanities 21 - currently "Reading the Rhetorical in Classical Antiquity," taught by Richard Letteri and Anne Leen - and revisions and updates have been made to the Humanities sequence.
Since the four-year term of the NEH's participation in the grant is now over, the committee overseeing the HDF (Bill Allen, Ron Granieri, Richard Letteri, myself, Richard Prior and Claude Stulting) has decided to expand the abilities of the fund. For the first time, the committee will solicit applications for a variety of projects other than course development, limited only by the imagination and enthusiasm of the faculty.
Providing funding for speakers or holding special symposia are only two of many possibilities. In addition, the HDF will provide financial compensation and support for the editorship of the Furman Humanities Review. As Granieri says, "The existence of this fund offers an exciting opportunity to find creative new ways to introduce students to the humanities."
A notice about applications will appear shortly. For more information, please contact me at 3148. The Humanities Development Fund won't help with those clothing bills, but it will help further Furman's commitment to the liberal arts.
Margaret Oakes is a professor of English and chair of the Humanities Development Fund Committee.