2024-2025 COLFA Collaborative Digital Humanities Fellows Program

 

The COLFA Digital Initiatives (DI) invites applications for the 2024-25 COLFA Collaborative Digital Humanities Fellows (CDHF). The purpose of the Collaborative Digital Humanities Fellows program is to form the foundation of an academic conversation in digital humanities studies in COLFA. The Collaborative Digital Humanities Fellows program will create a cohort that will conduct projects focusing on digital storytelling.

 This 2024-25 CDHF program is designed to support COLFA faculty and students’ 1) professional or creative projects, 2) preliminary projects for research articles, theses, or dissertations, 3) course development in Digital Humanities, and 4) learning and collaborations that enhance classroom projects in digital storytelling. Fellows can use this program as short-term achievements for their long-term plans. This program will provide an excellent opportunity to add robust research credentials in the Humanities and Social Sciences on the paths to tenure and promotion. In this program, Fellows conduct projects that raise awareness, educate people, develop stories, benefit the community, and build a forum for social change. Possible projects for Fellows to refer to can be found at

https://colfa.utsa.edu/digital-initiatives/collaborative-digital-humanities-program.html for 2023-24 and

https://colfa.utsa.edu/digital-initiatives/past-collaborative-digital-humanities-program.html  for 2022-23 and https://storiesforall.org/project-portal/.

The program period is from October 2024 to May 2025. COFA DI plans to select up to four teams. Each fellows team consists of one advisor (can be COLFA faculty or from other colleges, universities, or communities), one faculty fellow (COLFA only), and one student fellow (COLFA only). Each team may have more than one member in each position if the additional member’s role is inevitable. The team will develop one project and complete it by the end of the program in May 2025.

COLFA DI will host 1) a colloquium session and 3) provide resources for the teams during the program. At the end of the Fellows program in May 2025, COLFA DI will host a symposium to showcase the teams’ complete projects.

 

Review Committee

  1. Seok Kang (COM)
  2. Sue Hum (ENG)
  3. Rebecca Bria (ANT)
  4. Miles Friday (MUS)
  5. Scott Sherer (ART)

* Review committee members can apply for the program as well. If review committee members apply as advisors or fellow applicants, they are not eligible to stay on the review committee.

Timeline

  1. August 2024: Announces call for application
  2. October 1, 5 p.m. 2024: Application deadline
  3. October 15, 2024: Fellow team selection
    1. In selection, the Review Committee makes every effort to distribute the fellow teams equally among the nine Departments (AAH, ANT, MLL, COM, HIS, POL, ENG, PHI, MUS).
  4. November 2024: One colloquium
  5. December 2024 – April 2025: Share resources for the fellows.
  6. May 2025: Symposium to showcase Fellows’ complete projects

Fellow Requirements

  1. Eligible to COLFA faculty, graduate students, and undergraduate students only.
  2. Apply as a team (one advisor, one faculty member, and one student).
  3. Attend and participate in colloquia.
  4. Present projects at the final symposium.

Application Process

  1. Each team (one advisor, one faculty member, and one student) submits a short version of a 2-page CV for each member (advisor and fellows) in one file.
  2. Proposal (2-3 pages, single-spaced, 12-point font type, 1-inch margins). Proposal page limit excludes title page (title, applicant names, and personal information), endnotes, and references.
    1. Introduction
    2. Project details
    3. Expected outcomes
    4. Contribution
    5. Timeline
  3. Submit the proposal package as one pdf file, including proposal and CVs to the One Drive Form
  4. The submission file should be labeled as full_name.pdf.
  5. Deadline: October 1, 5 p.m., 2024.
  6. Contact Seok Kang (seok.kang@utsa.edu) for any questions.
2024-25 COLFA Collaborative Digital Humanities Fellows

 

Team 1

“Reverberations of History: Unveiling the Legacy of Opera in San Antonio”

Faculty Fellow: Jourdan Laine Howell

Associate Professor of Instruction, Voice and UTSA Lyric Theatre

School of Music, The University of Texas at San Antonio

 

Advisor: John Nix

Professor of Voice and Voice Pedagogy, Voice Area Coordinator

School of Music, The University of Texas at San Antonio

 

Student Fellow: Abraham Gomez

Bachelor of Music Degree Candidate in Vocal Performance

School of Music, The University of Texas at San Antonio

 

Abstract

San Antonio, Texas, boasts a bountiful musical heritage, yet the history of opera in the

city remains largely overlooked. This digital storytelling project will illuminate the origins

of opera in San Antonio and examine the various opera companies and musical

organizations that have shaped the local culture since the 1800s. Through multimedia

storytelling, we will explore this vibrant legacy, engaging current artists and community

members to highlight the significance of opera in San Antonio’s musical identity.

 

Team 2

“Creating a Sound Nation: Integrating Mariachi into Private Instruction and Bridging Borders in Music”

Faculty Fellow: Nicole Cherry

Assistant Professor of Music, The University of Texas at San Antonio

 

Advisor: Amy Frishkey

Assistant Professor of Ethnomusicology, The University of Texas at San Antonio

 

Student Fellow: Cynthia Elias

Undergraduate in Music Education with emphasis in violin, The University of Texas at San Antonio

 

Abstract

This digital humanities project aims to support students and violin teachers in integrating mariachi music into traditional instruction by creating a digital collection of mariachi specific etudes, scales, repertoire, video tutorials, and teaching guides. By promoting mariachi as a culturally relevant component of violin training, the initiative aligns with UTSA’s College of

Liberal and Fine Arts’ recent expansions, including a new Commercial and Digital Music degree

and an expanded Mariachi program. Given San Antonio's significance as a hub for mariachi

culture, this project enhances cultural pride and diversity in musical education while preparing

students for their careers.

 

 Team 3

“Francophone Voices in Texas: A Multilingual Digital Storytelling Project”

Faculty Fellow: Dr. Robert Watson. Department of Modern Languages & Literatures, The University of Texas at San Antonio

Advisor: Dr. Kevin Hirschi. Department of Bilingual-Bicultural Studies, The University of Texas at San Antonio

Student Fellow: Madeleine Juarez Morgan, B.A. Global Affairs with double minor in French and Foreign Languages (Junior) The University of Texas at San Antonio

 

Abstract

This project proposes to create a video corpus of interviews with French-speaking residents of Texas, subtitled in English and Spanish, through Creative Commons licensing that will be useful for multiple populations: 1) professors and teachers of French looking for first-person stories of immigration and language learning for the classroom, 2) students looking for sources to use when researching, writing or presenting about the lived experiences of French speakers in Texas and the U.S., 3) for family members for whom these videos will serve as oral history about the migratory experience.