Visiting Public Humanities Faculty Fellow, 2026-2027

The Jackman Humanities Institute at the University of Toronto invites applications for a Visiting Public Humanities Faculty Fellowship (VPH) to be held in 2026-27. The JHI VPH Faculty Fellowship is intended to foster knowledge exchange between the academy and the public. The JHI VPH will be a mid-career, tenured faculty member from another institution who has a demonstrated track record of bringing humanities research out of the classroom and university press, and into the broader public realm for discussion, debate and examination across multiple media platforms, and who is experienced in addressing audiences outside the academy.

The JHI VPH Faculty Fellow will hold a fellowship at the JHI, where they will pursue research in their own discipline, engage in the public humanities and continue to develop their public profile. Residence is normally required September to April, while the JHI’s Circle of Fellows is meeting weekly. The JHI VPH Faculty Fellow is expected to:

• Propose, write, and publish innovative public humanities projects, some on the JHI’s annual theme, with the goal of taking humanities research into the public domain.
• Participate in activities with the multi-generational circle of fellows, including weekly lunch seminars and occasional workshops and lectures.
• Strengthen the U of T research network of publicly engaged humanities scholars by facilitating a workshop on public-facing research and writing in the humanities.
• In addition, the JHI VPH Faculty Fellow may participate, as appropriate, in the other JHI activities as the opportunity arises.

The Jackman Humanities Institute interprets “Humanities” as a broad category, including political theory, interpretive social science, music, and the arts.

2026-27 Annual Theme: Doubles, Doppelgangers. Doubles, mirror images, and infinite recursive nesting of identical structures are omnipresent in nature and in culture. Our stories rely on concepts such as the play within a play, game within a game, dream within a dream, mise en abyme, self-representation, halls of mirrors, replicas/worlds in miniature, imposters, cycles, microhistories and metanarratives. Within our reflections on mind, thought, and metaphysics, we explore reality as (nested) simulation, infinite or eternal spaces or beings, cosmologies where each thing reflects/contains each other thing, hauntings/ghostly echoes/premonitions, and reflections into infinity. Our reflections of nature, whether human, biological, or computational, rely crucially on notions of recursion, recurrence, fractals, and the distortions that accrue across them (mutation, tradition, drift). In disciplines across the humanities, we observe the use of fractals, spirals, images contained in themselves, doubles, reflections (of reflections of reflections), and rhizomes. What might an exploration of doubles and recursion reveal about the ways that we reflect our realities?

Eligibility

• Applicants must have achieved tenure by the beginning of the fellowship (1 July 2026). Any award will be conditional on a successful promotion.
• Faculty members employed by the University of Toronto are ineligible.
• This fellowship is open to citizens of all countries. Application for appropriate visa documents is the responsibility of the Fellow.
• The University of Toronto is strongly committed to diversity within its community and especially welcomes applications from visible minority group members, women, Indigenous persons, persons with disabilities, members of sexual minority groups, and others who may further expand the range of ideas and perspectives.

Selection Criteria We are seeking individuals whose intellectual scope moves between formal academic research and public communications. The JHI is a site for interdisciplinary humanities research conversations, and we are therefore interested in candidates who have an interest in and capacity for presentation of their research across disciplinary and institutional boundaries. Candidates will be evaluated on the basis of commitment to the public humanities knowledge exchange, achievement as appropriate to their career stage, promise of excellence, and relevance of their proposed research project to the Annual Theme.

The Fellowship The Fellowship provides funding of $50,000 CAD plus benefits. This fellowship is most suitable for faculty members who will be on leave during their residency. The JHI will provide an office, University of Toronto Library access, and administrative support. Fellows are expected to attend weekly lunches on Thursdays during their residency.

Procedure You must compile the following documents as a single pdf file to be uploaded on the JHI website at: https://www.humanities.utoronto.ca/news/2026-27-visiting-public-humanities-faculty-fellowship

1. Letter of Application
2. Proposal for Public Humanities research relevant to the annual theme of Doubles, Doppelgangers
3. Curriculum Vitae
4. Writing Sample (academic) – a published book chapter or article
5. Communications Sample (public) – an article for popular press, a blog post, podcast, interview, or other media product. Provide URL link to audio or video files if you wish.
6. 100-word research description
7. 100-word biographical statement

You will be asked to provide the names and email addresses of two references. Your referees will receive an automated request for their letters, which will be due on 5 December 2025. Please ask your referees to watch for our request email.

You will be able to SAVE your application and return to edit it before the deadline. When you SAVE, copy the special code that appears on the screen. You will receive an email receipt that contains a link to enable you to return by using this code. When you are finished, please SUBMIT your application. After you SUBMIT your application, you will not be able to re-enter it. Please remember to SUBMIT your application before the deadline.

Application Timeline

• Application Open: Tuesday, September 2, 2025
• Application Deadline: Tuesday, November 25, 2025, at 4:00pm EDT
• Referee Deadline: Tuesday, December 2, 2025
• Fellowship Period: July 1, 2026 to June 30, 2027

Questions? For questions relating to the scope and expectations of this fellowship, please contact Professor Alison Keith, Director, at jhi.director@utoronto.ca or Dr. Kimberley Yates, Associate Director, at jhi.associate@utoronto.ca. For technical questions about the application interface, contact JHI Communications Officer Sonja Johnston at jhi.communications@utoronto.ca.