Faculty Fellowship Program

Rice University's Boniuk Institute for the Study and Advancement of Religious Tolerance is a premier interdisciplinary research and scholarly institute.  We want to understand the conditions that lead to religious conflict, tolerance, and pluralism, and then help people apply our findings.  The Institute houses the Religion and Public Life Center and plans to launch a new center on Religion and Science.

The Institute invites applications for the inaugural cohort of up to eight Boniuk Institute 2027 Faculty Fellows.  The fellowship term will be for two years (July 1, 2027-June 20, 2029).

Boniuk Fellows are faculty who will exemplify the Boniuk Institute's mission through rigorous scholarship on religious pluralism and religious violence and further public dialogue on these topics.

Benefits: Fellows will be part of a collaborative cohort, with attached professional development opportunities.  They will be invited to a funded visit to Rice University for a Fellows Gathering.  They will receive special invitations for institute programming and collaboration opportunities.  They will be invited to a Fellows dinner at the AAR or SSSR.  They will have access to Institute data, given fit with Fellows' research.  Fellows will receive public recognition via announcement at selection, named on the Institute website, and be invited to podcast and video interviews related to the institute's work.

Contributions: Fellows will be an advisory resource to the Institute in their area of expertise and serve as Institute ambassadors to the wider academic community and the public.  They will present one in-progress/ recently concluded work on religious violence and/ or pluralism at the Institute year-long scholars meeting.  They will be interviewed for the Institute newsletter and/ or podcast.  The will be required to attend the once-a-year Fellows Gathering at Rice University.

Eligibility: Faculty with established institutional affiliation at US or international accredited college or university.

Application: Please submit a one-page statement on the fit of your research and any public engagement with the mission of the Institute and any anticipated alignment with its centers (Religion and Public Life Center and anticipated Center on Religion and Science) and a copy of your curriculum vitae.

Email applications to Hayley Hemstreet at hjh2@rice.edu by January 15, 2027.