Visiting Faculty Program

The Visiting Faculty Program funds Israeli academics to teach about Israel at top universities in the United States. This program gives tenured, tenure-track, and full-time contract Israeli scholars the opportunity to spend an academic year abroad teaching about modern Israel and expanding their academic circles.

Grant awards range from $50,000 to $70,000 per year, depending on the qualifications of the applicant and the arrangement with the host university. Grant recipients must teach at least one full-term, three-credit, undergraduate course about modern Israel in each semester/quarter of their placement.

Visiting Faculty are not employees of the Israel Institute and should plan to cover all expenses including, but not limited to, living expenses, taxes, health insurance, travel expenses, bench fees, etc.

Please note that this is a selective program and the Israel Institute does not guarantee placement to those who apply. 

HOW COVID-19 MAY IMPACT THE VISITING FACULTY PROGRAM

Although we hope that campuses in North America will be fully open starting soon, we recognize that the pandemic may prevent this. Our Visiting Faculty exchange program is based on bringing Israeli faculty to the United States to teach in-person classes, foster cross-cultural collaboration with American scholars, and engage in meaningful interpersonal interaction with students and the local public at large. Grants for this program are predicated on these principles and do not cover courses that are scheduled for online, hybrid, or remote delivery. For this reason, the Visiting Faculty Program will only run at schools that meet the following criteria:

• Approximately 2/3 of classes offered at the university are offered in person, with no more than 1/3 of courses taught fully online or in a hybrid model.
• Visiting Faculty are scheduled to teach their courses in person, on campus, and all students are expected to be in the same room, at the same time for all lessons. International students and students who are sick may participate virtually.
• Visiting Faculty hold office hours in person, on campus at least once a week.
• Dorms are open, even if they are accommodating fewer students due to social distancing policies.
• Dining halls are open, even if only for take-out orders.
• The university library is open, and students may study there in person, even if students must practice social distancing.   

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eligibility

Visiting Faculty placements are open to tenured, tenure-track, and full-time contract faculty and professors emeriti from Israeli colleges and universities. All applicants must possess a strong command of English and be able to teach full-term, three-credit, undergraduate courses about modern Israel in the United States. 

HOW TO APPLY

To be considered for the Visiting Faculty Program, applicants must complete the online application, which includes uploading the following documents, via the application portal. 

1) High-resolution headshot (300 ppi);

2) Academic curriculum vitae (CV);

3) Course descriptions for two full-term, three-credit, undergraduate courses about modern Israel that you propose to teach; and

4) A university invitation: Although you are not required to have an invitation when you apply, we give preference to applicants who can obtain invitations from pioroity institutions. See the section below on "Soliciting University Invitations." 

SOLICITING UNIVERSITY INVITATIONS

We invite applicants to contact Dr. Erika Falk (efalk@israelinstitute.org) to discuss their plans before contacting any schools.

Most faculty who receive grants through this program are able to obtain an invitation to visit for a full academic year and teach undergraduate courses about modern Israel at a priority university in the United States. You are not required to have an invitation when you apply; however, you will need to obtain an invitation before any grants can be awarded. 

We give preference to applicants who have or can obtain invitations from our priority universities, which are the top-20 public universities as ranked by U.S. News and World Report.  

INSTITUTE REQUIREMENTS FOR HOST UNIVERSITIES

When requesting an invitation from a school, the university must commit in writing to the Institute's placement requirements:  

• Run at least one full-term, three-credit undergraduate course that the Israel Institute Visiting Faculty member will teach about modern Israel in each semester/quarter during the academic year;

• Provide the Israel Institute Visiting Faculty member with an on-campus office (shared is acceptable);

• Sponsor the visa for the Israel Institute Visiting Faculty member;

• Provide the Israel Institute Visiting Faculty member with library privileges;

• Refer to the Visiting Faculty member as “Israel Institute Visiting Faculty” or some version thereof; and

• Make an effort to cross-list and advertise the Israel Institute Visiting Faculty member’s courses.

DEADLINE TO APPLY

Applications to the Visiting Faculty Program are due by September 14, 2021.

Sign up to receive information about our grants and notification about application deadlines.

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For questions about the Visiting Faculty Program, contact Erika Falk, Program Director, at efalk@israelinstitute.org.

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