Kansas State University

College of Arts and Sciences Diversity Lecture Series call for 2020 applications

Submitted by April Petillo

The College of Arts and Sciences offers funding of $500 to $1,000 to support departments and student groups interested in hosting prominent speakers, presenters, or performers.

This funding is meant to supplement what applying unit(s) commit to the visit. The guest activities must include a lecture or performance open to the full university community even if the content is aimed at a general audience or primarily at faculty and students in a specific discipline. In all cases and unless special circumstances emerge, speakers are expected to have some assigned time with undergraduate and/or graduate students in their itinerary at K-State in addition to the public event. Speakers' activities should be listed among both the requesting/hosting unit(s) list of upcoming events and the Arts and Sciences Diversity Series. Applications from all Arts and Sciences departments will be considered and collaborative applications are strongly encouraged. When appropriate, partnerships with non-ArtSci units are encouraged as well.

The proposed speaker activities must specifically address issues of diversity, multiculturalism and/or inclusion in a direct manner, as they apply generally in the context of a given discipline or across multiple disciplines. Requests to bring speakers and performers who are underrepresented in their discipline or field are given additional consideration. 

Application deadlines:
Completed application received by 5 p.m. CST Monday, Nov. 18, will receive first consideration for funding to use for speakers expected to present in either spring or fall 2020.

As funds allow, we will review applications for additional speakers to come to K-State in fall 2020 or spring 2020. Those applications should be received by 5 p.m. CST Monday, April 18. 

To apply:
The completed application — not to exceed two pages — should be sent as a single electronic file to cas-diversity@k-state.edu, with the heading CAS Diversity Lecture Series Request (semester of request). The application should clearly specify:

1. The name of the application contact with an email and phone number.
2. The name of the hosting faculty, student group, and/or affiliated department(s), and contact information.
3. Name, affiliation, and area in which the invited speaker works/performs/specializes.
4. Target date range for visit.
5. A paragraph describing the speaker's accomplishments with a CV and/or URL.
6. A paragraph describing the diversity/multicultural dimension of the speaker. Please highlight if this speaker has worked with similarly situated audiences.
7. A short bulleted list of the proposed activities that includes how each activity will benefit other units on campus. If there are plans to record or stream this visit, please include that information about where you anticipate to archive the recording here.
8. A paragraph indicating the importance of this visit, right now.
9. Estimated budget, including the commitments of other funding sources. 

Selection criteria include:

• The relevance of the speaker/performer in modeling principles of diversity, multiculturalism, and inclusion in their discipline(s) or areas of expertise.
• The broad appeal or prominence of speaker/performer in their area of expertise, across campus and/or among the wider community.
• The relevance of lecture — and other planned activities — to address campus concerns and goals, especially as they concern diversity and inclusion.
• Equitable distribution of speakers across disciplinary areas.
• The balance of other sources of support compared to the cost of the visit.

For more information please contact cas-diversity@k-state.edu.