The Daily Bulletin Archive

Academic Affairs reminds faculty members in the arts and the humanities that proposals for the E. O. Smith Arts and Humanities Faculty Development Fund are due by 11:59 p.m. Friday, November 10. These competitive, peer-reviewed projects funded at $2,000–$7,000 support opportunities for the professional development of full-time Buffalo State faculty members in the arts and the humanities. Eligible candidates must be members of departments included in the arts (art, fine art, design, art conservation, theater, music, dance) or the humanities (history, art history, museum studies, philosophy, religious studies, literature, English, modern and classical languages) and that teach disciplinary-specific courses in the arts and humanities.

Candidates are required to submit their proposals to the selection committee detailing how they would use the funding and include a curriculum vitae and detailed project budget. Funds may be used only for expenses directly related to professional development in the applicant's discipline, including research, supplies used in research or publication of research, travel, or other similar professional activities. Funds may not be directed toward internal administrative or social functions or for personal use. Projects consistent with the mission and goals of the Monroe Fordham Regional History Center will be given preference. Previously funded candidates may reapply (for a new phase of the funded project, or a new project), but previously unfunded candidates will be given preference.

Information about the fund and application process is posted on Blackboard. Completed applications must be submitted online by the deadline. The announcement of funded proposals will be made in December, and expenses according to the approved budget must be incurred during the calendar year from January 1 to December 31, 2018. Recipients will be required to complete or make significant progress on their projects during that time.

The fund's benefactor, SUNY Distinguished Service Professor and historian Edward Owen Smith Jr. (E. O. Smith), was a member of the faculty of the Buffalo State History Department since 1963, serving as the chair of the History and Social Studies Education Department for many years and as the first director of the Monroe Fordham Regional History Center. He also founded the college’s museum studies certificate program.

During his 50-year tenure, he was known for his concern for students, his chairmanship of numerous college committees, and his efforts to improve the economic and cultural life of Buffalo’s West Side. He also held a deep interest in art and the visual image as a document, and had been honored by the Burchfield Penney Art Center for his participation in and leadership of many collaborative center projects. Dr. Smith was named a SUNY Distinguished Service Professor in 1999 and had previously received the President’s Award for Excellence in Professional Service. Dr. Smith passed away in March 2014, and his gift endowing this fund leaves a lasting legacy at Buffalo State.