institute 2009
Dear Colleague Letter
Print version of "Dear Colleague Letter" (pdf - 164kb)
John Steinbeck: Voice of a Region, Voice for America
A National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Institute exploring Steinbeck�s sense of place, his California fiction and prose, his environmental and political sensibilities.
Held on the stunning Monterey Peninsula—“The Circle of Enchantment”— July 12-25, 2009
Dear Colleague,
John Steinbeck is best known as America’s engaged artist, the writer who lay bare the suffering of the worker during the 1930s in Of Mice and Men and The Grapes of Wrath. He is a regional writer in the best sense, for his passionate attachment to place and to California’s history and diverse peoples informs much of his finest work, from early short stories to the compelling East of Eden (1952). For many readers, Steinbeck is quintessentially American, the voice of American values. Throughout his long career as social critic, he was unafraid to question “the tomorrow of my people,” yet optimistic enough to add, “my questioning is compounded of some fear, more hope, and great confidence.” Indeed, Steinbeck’s curiosity extended beyond American shores as well. With sensitivity and perspicuity, he wrote journalistic accounts of World War II, post World War II Russia and, in 1966-67, Vietnam. This National Endowment for the Humanities Summer Institute is about those diverse and intersecting visions—about the writer who delineated with great clarity the contours of his region, and who also spoke forcefully and clearly for American values.
Steinbeck is one of the most beloved and most often dismissed (and censored) of American authors. He is beloved because he connects with readers, a stance he cultivated, wanting readers to “participate” in each book, to “understand”; both are words he used again and again. His clear prose and empathetic vision continue to inspire readers at all levels. He creates a relationship—a rapport, even—with a vast body of readers. But he has also been dismissed by some academics and critics who deplore a vision that seems too accessible or who dismiss his sentiment or who belittle what they see as his spongy politics. The seminar will explore why Steinbeck deserves complex consideration and how the deceptively simple texts are richly nuanced.
During this two-week institute based off campus on Cannery Row, California, teachers and scholars will reconsider this iconic American writer, author of more than thirty books, winner of the Pulitzer Prize (in 1940, for The Grapes of Wrath), the Nobel Prize for Literature (1962) and the United States Medal of Freedom (1964). Days will be filled with study, exploration of the area, discussion and reflection. During the two weeks, participants will have ample opportunity to appreciate “Steinbeck Country” through our exploration of the land and Steinbeck’s literature.
Content
The Steinbeck Institute will begin late afternoon on Sunday, July 12, and end in the evening on July 24, after a closing dinner followed by participant reflections. Throughout the institute, participants will be immersed in the social history that informs Steinbeck’s California fiction—the area’s agricultural and fishing industries, the California mission legacy, and the migrant histories that shaped regional diversity. Steinbeck scholars as well as local historians and biologists will lead workshops that focus on the regional influences and historical contexts for several of his major novels. Central to a full appreciation of his work will be site visits to Steinbeck locales: Salinas and the Salinas Valley, the Monterey coast, the environs of Pacific Grove, Carmel and Carmel Valley, and lovely and remote Mission San Antonio, the setting for one of his earliest novels, To a God Unknown. Weekend and afternoon excursions will make use of local resources, including the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas, Elkhorn Slough, Hopkins Marine Station for tide pooling (where Steinbeck himself took classes in marine biology in 1923). An on-site agricultural tour will be offered, where participants learn about crop diversity, water use, and labor and housing issues. Area experts will be on hand to discuss marine life and local history.
The first week examines Steinbeck as a short story writer and social historian, looking at short stories in The Long Valley and the novels Of Mice and Men and The Grapes of Wrath. The second week focuses on Steinbeck in other contexts—philosophical and ecological—with consideration of nonfiction in America and Americans and Selected Nonfiction and two novels, East of Eden and Cannery Row. In these discussions we will move beyond a reading of Steinbeck as social historian of the 1930s to consider how his work resonates with contemporary issues and policies. Participants will also consider how Steinbeck’s literature speaks across disciplines, and the group will explore connections with science, history, and philosophy. The weeks at the institute are filled with discussion and activities; participants, therefore, are expected to have read each assigned work before they arrive.
Utilizing performance pedagogy as a method for interactive interpretation of texts, two sessions will be devoted to integrating performance and performance theory in the classroom. Another session will be given by a professor of creative writing, who will examine the structure of Steinbeck’s short stories and how they reveal the author’s theories about literature. Other workshops will consider the importance of voice and ethnicity—exploring both the varied regional voices that Steinbeck sought to include in his novels (ethnic as well as marginalized workers, southwestern migrants as well as the broad empathy seen in Casy, Doc and Slim) as well as analyzing how these voices continue to speak to larger issues in American society.
The Program Directors and Master Teachers will also meet in curriculum planning workshops designed to help participants adapt institute materials and approaches for their classroom needs. Participants will contribute their resulting lessons to a national project website housing scholarly resources, an image gallery, and curriculum materials developed by the institute: See the results of the 2007 Steinbeck Institute (and additional information on the upcoming program) at http://steinbeckinstitute.org.
Core Faculty
Susan Shillinglaw is a Professor of English at San Jose State University and Scholar-in-Residence at the National Steinbeck Center in Salinas. Mary Adler is an Associate Professor of English at California State University Channel Islands. This is their second time offering this institute together. The co-directors have also separately worked on collaborative summer institutes for teachers, including a well-received summer institute that Susan Shillinglaw organized, sponsored by the Idaho Humanities Council, “John Steinbeck and the Art of Social Engagement: An Interdisciplinary Summer Institute for Idaho Literature and History Teachers.”
Mary Adler was the lead facilitator for a successful university-school collaboration called the “Partnership for Literacy,” which focused on developing high-level discussions of literature in English Language Arts classrooms. The Partnership was sponsored by the National Center for English Learning and Achievement at the University of Albany, State University of New York, and the University of Wisconsin-Madison.
For this institute, we combine our strengths in Steinbeck studies (Shillinglaw) and English education, curriculum development, and classroom discourse (Adler) to produce a two-week program of study in which the voices of scholars and teachers combine with the ideas and needs of future students.
Dr. Susan Shillinglaw will give presentations on Steinbeck as well as site visits to important regional locales. A noted Steinbeck scholar, she has published several articles on the author and has edited Steinbeck’s journalism (America and Americans and Selected Nonfiction) and collections of essays. She has also written introductions to Penguin editions of Cannery Row, Of Mice and Men, A Russian Journal, and most recently The Winter of Our Discontent. She is the author of A Journey Into Steinbeck’s California (2006), a copy of which will be sent to all participants, and has recently completed a biography of Steinbeck’s first wife, Carol Henning Steinbeck.
Dr. Mary Adler is the author, with Eija Rougle, of Building Literacy Through Classroom Discussion (Scholastic, 2005) and is currently at work on a book about teaching creative writing at the secondary level (Heinemann). Dr. Adler holds secondary teaching credentials in English and History from California State University, Northridge. She is a National Writing Project fellow from the University at California, Los Angeles.
In addition to the directors, guest faculty include Dr. Robert DeMott, a Professor of English at Ohio University, author of Steinbeck’s Typewriter: Essays on His Art and editor of Working Days: The Journals of The Grapes of Wrath as well as the Steinbeck titles for the Library of America; Dr. Chris Fink, creative writer and Associate Professor of English at Beloit College, who has been a contributing editor for Steinbeck Studies; Matthew Spangler, an Assistant Professor of Communication Studies at San Jose State University and author and director of over thirty adaptations of literature for the stage; William Gilly, a Professor of Biology at Stanford University; and additional diverse authors and teachers in the fields of performance studies, history, marine biology, and Steinbeck studies.
Participant Expectations
Given that this institute is brief in length (two weeks) and rich in content, participants should expect an intensive but rewarding experience. Workshops are scheduled Monday through Friday of both weeks, with an optional Saturday field trip and Sunday off. Several evenings during the two weeks are set aside for film showings, informal meals, and other gatherings. Institute sessions will include lectures, discussions, small group workshops, individual curriculum development, writing, and participatory performance—each providing a different methodology for understanding and interacting with the institute readings. Participants will be provided with composition books for documenting their thoughts and questions in the course of workshop sessions as well as during their free time. All participants are expected to attend all required events and to have read the key texts before arrival.
During both weeks, participants will be supported in translating ideas, content, and approaches from workshops into an appropriate format to engage students. Dialogic interactions, performance-based approaches, and use of visual images taken during the field trips will be emphasized. Ideas produced in these sessions will be published on the institute website. Use of visual images will be supported through the loan of several digital cameras during field trips; teachers will be able to download their pictures into a common database for all of the participants to use. We will provide flash drives and technical support for participants so that they may incorporate photographs directly into electronic presentations for classroom use.
A letter will be sent to all participants after acceptance detailing specific readings as well as a calendar of presentation topics.
Applicant Qualifications
Applicants to NEH institutes must be practicing full-time (or the equivalent) teachers. We welcome applications from a variety of disciplines. While previous experience teaching Steinbeck or American literature is not required, we prefer applicants who intend to incorporate knowledge of Steinbeck into their professional lives in some meaningful way. We encourage teachers who wish to deepen subject knowledge and improve the effectiveness of their teaching pedagogy.
Academic Resources
Participants will be able to use the California Room at the Monterey Public Library. In addition, the Directors will have available key secondary texts for participants’ use. The hotel is wired for Internet use; participants are strongly encouraged to bring laptops. Computers will be provided for those who need them.
The hotel is wired for internet use; participants should bring laptops. Computers will be provided for those who need them.
Housing
Participants will be housed at off campus at The Clement on Cannery Row, a luxury hotel which opened in the summer of 2008. The hotel overlooks Ed Ricketts’s Lab, the meeting spot for Steinbeck and his best friend and collaborator throughout the 1930s, and is only a block from the Monterey Bay Aquarium (see website). Participants should expect to allocate approximately half their stipend ($1000) for a shared room at this hotel. A few singles are available for a higher rate.
The hotel affords participants the unparalleled opportunity to be within walking distance of numerous Steinbeck sites and points of interest on a daily basis. Its location and accommodations are superb. The hotel offers a 24 hour health and fitness center on site, a lap pool, and an adjacent walking and bike trail (Monterey Bay Coastal Recreation Trail). We will provide a continental breakfast each morning to help defray participant expenses and also offer a list of inexpensive eateries in the neighborhood.
Stipends
Participants for a two-week NEH institute are awarded a $2000 stipend, which is meant to help cover travel, housing, and food costs during the institute. Half of the stipend will be given to participants when they arrive; the remaining amount will be provided near the end of the project. In order to be eligible for the full amount of the stipend, participants must attend all required events and activities.
Continuing Education Credit (CEUs)
Optional continuing education units (CEUs are not equivalent to college course credit, however) can be earned for 1-6 units at the nominal fee of $25 per unit. These units have been arranged at one of the host institutions, CSU Channel Islands, in Camarillo, California. Additional work beyond attendance and full participation at the institute is not required to earn this credit.
Application Procedures and Deadlines
Application information is included with this letter. Your completed application should be postmarked no later than March 2, 2009, and should be addressed to: Susan Shillinglaw, Department of English, San Jose State University, San Jose, CA 95192.
Applications should include the information required by the National Endowment for the Humanities. An application cover sheet (completed and submitted online and printed to enclose with the application); a resume of educational background, noting specific courses taken in American literature and related subjects; a brief essay (no more than 4 double spaced pages) describing the applicant’s reasons for applying--both academic and personal; and two letters of recommendation. We recommend that one letter be from someone who can speak to your teaching experience, and that one be from someone outside your institution who knows your intellectual interests and strengths.
Perhaps the most important part of the application is the application essay. Please be as specific as possible when discussing relevant personal and academic information. Applicants should discuss their reasons for applying to this institute and their interest in the topic, both intellectual and personal. Essays should also address qualifications, goals for the project--including any individual research and writing projects--and the relation of the study to teaching assignments.
Three reviewers will evaluate the applications for the institute: These include both program directors and one local high school teacher or graduate student.
We look forward to a series of productive discussions together, stimulated and enriched by the historical and contemporary backdrop of the beautiful Monterey Peninsula. Our goal is to invite participants into a conversation that examines connections, the ways in which literature, history, geography, science, and social awareness intersect. This is the broad vision that Steinbeck embraced. We hope each participant will come away with a richer appreciation of the ways that Steinbeck’s sense of place—both local and national--informs his social, historical and ecological vision of America. We trust that each participant will take ideas and knowledge back to students for further discussion and exploration. Please join us!
Sincerely yours,
Dr. Susan Shillinglaw and Dr. Mary Adler
Co-Directors, Steinbeck Institute