Newberry Library Seminars Program

Your source of adult education in the humanities for more than 25 years.

Teach a Seminar

Interested in teaching a class for the Newberry Library Seminars Program? We are always looking for new instructors and different courses. We offer approximately 150 courses annually over three terms - fall, winter/spring, and summer, and all of our course offerings are based on instructor proposals.

Instructor Qualifications:
Much like seminar participants, our instructors have a wide variety of experiences and backgrounds. Instructors are not required to have an advanced degree. However, we do require that applicants demonstrate their knowledge and expertise in the subject through previous teaching experience, publications, or public lectures.

Proposing a Course:
The seminars are designed to demonstrate the value of humanistic inquiry among intellectually curious adults. The program strives to create a forum in which discourse prospers: courses rely heavily on discussion and collaboration. Accordingly, course proposals are evaluated to a great extent on their relevance to the humanities, creativity, and intellectual and methodological sophistication. In developing your proposal for a seminar, please keep in mind that seminars are aimed at the general public and participants are assumed to have no previous exposure to the subject matter; avoid topics that are narrowly-specialized or that require large amounts of reading or photocopying, or the purchase of many texts. As in past years, seminars may differ in size, duration (generally no longer than 10 weeks), cost, and format. Seminars should take a humanities-oriented approach to the material, and should relate to some aspect of the Newberry's collections . Each term's offerings are chosen by a committee of Newberry staff and seminar instructors; for that reason a complete and thorough application is vital. The Seminars Selection Committee uses 4 criteria in evaluating seminar proposals:

(1) Applicants must demonstrate knowledge of the subject, both in their CVs or personal statements, and in their proposals
(2) Proposals must exhibit a sound, humanities-oriented methodology. The applications should approach the material in a critical way that interrogates the ideas, assumptions, terms, or rhetoric of a text, pieces together the details of an event into a coherent narrative, or places the text or event in historical context
(3) Proposals should appeal to a general audience. The seminar topic and readings should not be so esoteric that no one has heard of them
(4) Proposals should, if possible, relate to the Library's collections.

The Seminars Manager, Tom Popelka, is available to discuss any questions you have about the proposal process, from the idea stage to the finished proposal. Please contact him at (312) 255-3592 or popelkat@newberry.org.

The Proposal Application:
Proposals for the Fall 2008 session are due by 5 pm on Friday, May 9, 2008.

The proposal is comprised of the official application, plus 4 sections:

• A CV or resumé that highlights relevant job experience, particularly teaching experience, research, publications, and activities.
• Seminar Description (2-3 pages): Please attach a description of your seminar that includes: a general description of the seminar which delineates your overall approach to the topic (about 1 page); a seminar outline/syllabus, including weekly reading assignments and the way(s) you intend to approach the individual readings; and how the proposed seminar relates to the humanities and/or the Library's holdings.
• Catalog Copy (75-100 words): Please write a short description of your seminar of no more than 75 words for advertising purposes, including a one-sentence identification of yourself. If your course is accepted, this description will be edited for publication and promotional purposes.
• Text/Materials List: List the texts you intend to use and specify certain editions when necessary. Please note that we will not consider proposals that require out of print texts or large amounts of photocopying; check to see that the texts you have listed are in print! Likewise, we will not consider proposals that ask participants to read more than 200 pages of fictional prose per week or more than 75 pages of poetry or non-fictional prose per week. If this is a hands-on seminar, please list the materials each participant will be required to purchase and how you recommend that they be obtained (e.g., from the instructor at cost, at a local art supply shop, etc.).

Important Dates and Times:
Proposals for the Fall 2008 session are due by 5 pm on Friday, May 9, 2008.
The Seminars Program runs three terms over the course of a year -- Winter/Spring (February - April), Summer (June - August), and Fall (September - December). Classes may be offered once a week during the day on Tuesday, Wednesday, Thursday, and Saturday, and in the evening on Tuesday, Wednesday, and Thursday. Seminars are scheduled in consideration of each instructor's preferences; however, due to room availability, we may have to accommodate a class on an alternate day.

Instructor Payment:
Payment is dependent on the number of persons enrolled in the class and the cost of the course. Seminar instructors receive 60% of all tuition collected for their class. Forty percent of each tuition fee will go to the Newberry to cover administrative costs.

Cancellation Policy:
If the seminar fails to reach a minimum of seven registrations before the first class meeting, the seminar will be cancelled. The instructor is required to teach the seminar if it reaches seven registrations prior to the first class meeting. In some cases, a seminar may be offered with fewer than seven registrations at the option of the instructor.