As we begin our work in this group, it will be beneficial to pin down some concrete goals to work toward. With the process of backward design in mind, I’m hoping we can use this space to hash out some objectives and desired results then move forward to solutions.
Along with goals, I’m interested in learning if we have any particular areas we want to focus on. We’ve already heard from people working in/with HBC/U programs, but I’m certain there are other specific areas and groups we want to address.
What are some things we can work toward?
About Ian Thomas
Ian Thomas is an adjunct instructor of literature and composition in and around Little Rock, AR. Most of his research is in contemporary literature and popular culture and has recently focused on the role of the big novel in American culture. When not teaching or reading very long novels, he is slowly teaching himself various programming languages (with varied success) and generally enjoying what he can figure out about the digital humanities. Along with his academic pursuits he enjoys blogging, cooking, singing, tweeting, and most good music.
I am interested in increasing THATCamp participation (and DH involvement) among community college faculty and students.
As Stewart said in his post, it’s important that we reach out to community colleges when planning THATCamps, but I am also interested in putting together a THATCamp Community College to bring together like-minded CC faculty to learn how to better integrate DH in our classrooms. Many CCs face unique challenges when it comes to tech accessibility both on campus and at home and it would be useful to discuss these challenges with people in similar situations.
ADA type issues for access are of interest.
Specific goal: participation in regional THATCamps of at least one representative of a local heritage site.
I am interested in increasing THATCamp participation (and DH involvement) among Research University faculty and students.
Very specifically:
a) The creation of post-docs and/or grad fellowships geared towards projects that work in Africana/Af-Am or Ethnic Studies areas of inquiry. These positions should be hosted if possible at institutions with strong DH credentials.
b) The creation of travel grants for minority groups to attend THATCamps and other DH conferences.
c) The activism of those working in outreach capacities to seek out faculty and graduate students of color, learn about their projects and research and encourage them to participate in our world. This also means strong collaborations with Africana/Af-Am and Ethnic Studies institutes/departments.
d) The activism of those working in curation to seek out projects around fragile and marginal collections in the global south.
No small order that one, so I would be happy if we can even focus on one of the above and do a great job at it.