The University of Pennsylvania Libraries is pleased to announce a new initiative, the Schoenberg Institute for Manuscript Studies (SIMS) Visiting Research Fellowship program. Guided by the vision of its founders, Lawrence J. Schoenberg and Barbara Brizdle Schoenberg, SIMS aims to bring manuscript culture, modern technology, and people together to provide access to and understanding of our shared intellectual heritage. Part of the Penn Libraries, SIMS oversees an extensive collection of pre-modern manuscripts from around the world, with a special focus on the history of philosophy and science, and creates open-access digital content to support the study of its collections. SIMS also hosts the Schoenberg Database of Manuscripts and the annual Schoenberg Symposium on Manuscript Studies in the Digital Age, now in its eighth year.
The SIMS Visiting Research Fellowships have been established to encourage research relating to the pre-modern manuscript collections at the University of Pennsylvania Libraries, including the Schoenberg Collection. Affiliated with the University of Pennsylvania, located near other manuscript-rich research collections (the University of Pennsylvania Museum of Archaeology and Anthropology, the Free Library of Philadelphia, the Chemical Heritage Foundation, and the Rosenbach Museum and Library, among many others), and linked to the local and international scholarly communities, SIMS offers fellows a network of resources and opportunities for collaboration. Fellows will be encouraged to interact with SIMS staff, Penn faculty, and other medieval and early modern scholars in the Philadelphia area. Fellows will also be expected to present their research at Penn Libraries either during the term of the fellowship or on a selected date following the completion of the term.
Applicants can apply to spend 1, 2, or 3 months at SIMS. Project proposals should demonstrate that the Libraries’ pre-modern manuscript resources are integral to proposed research topics. Recipients will be expected to work on-site at Penn Libraries for the duration of their fellowship, excluding possible short research trips in support of the proposed project to nearby institutions. Proposals with a digital component are encouraged though not required. A total of $15,000 per year will be divided among up to 3 fellows in increments of $5,000 per month. Awards must be used between July 1, 2015, and June 30, 2016.
Applications are due May 15, 2015. For more information on eligibility and the application process, go to: http://schoenberginstitute.org/visiting-research-fellowships.
For more information on SIMS, go to http://schoenberginstitute.org/. For more information on the Schoenberg Collection of Manuscripts, go to http://sceti.library.upenn.edu/schoenberg. On Penn’s pre-modern manuscript holdings in general, go to:http://dla.library.upenn.edu/dla/medren.