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9/18/26— Application Deadline: Spring 2027 Obermann International Fellows
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Upcoming Events
Registration Deadline: Junior Faculty and Graduate Student Session with Walter Biggins, Obermann Editor-in-Residence
University of Iowa junior faculty and graduate students at all stages are invited to join Walter Biggins—editor-in-chief at the University of Pennsylvania Press—for a light breakfast and a conversation about turning an article, thesis, or dissertation into a book on Tuesday, Oct. 6, from 9–10:30 a.m. at the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies library. Please bring any questions you have about that process or about scholarly publishing in general.
Register by Wednesday, September 30.
Biggins is...
AI Is Not Your Friend: Cautions and Vents about Its Uses and Abuses in the Creation of Scholarly Publications — public lecture by Walter Biggins, Obermann Editor-in-Residence
On Tuesday, Oct. 6, from 3–4 p.m. at the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies, Walter Biggins, editor-in-chief at University of Pennsylvania Press—will offer his perspective as both a longtime acquiring editor and as a writer on how the advent of AI affects the present and possible futures of scholarly publishing. In particular, he will discuss how the emerging technology creates concerns and unresolved tensions—ethical, legal, and otherwise—in publishing around intellectual property, peer...
Application Deadline: Obermann Interdisciplinary Research Grants (Summer 2027)
Obermann Interdisciplinary Research Grants (IDRG) foster collaborative scholarship and creative work by offering recipients time and space to exchange new ideas leading to invention, creation, and publication. IDRG groups work at the Obermann Center for two weeks, usually in July and/or August. Applicants propose work on a project with colleagues from across the University, across disciplines within their own department, or with colleagues from other parts of the country or the world. Projects...
Holding Space: Stories of Interdisciplinary Collaboration — Counterpoint event featuring Stephanie Miracle
This public event will comprise a dance performance, an award ceremony, and a panel conversation featuring:
Stephanie Miracle, assistant professor, Department of Dance, and winner of the 2026 Obermann Interdisciplinary Achievement Award
Deema Totah, assistant professor, Department of Mechanical Engineering
Eric Gidal, professor, Department of English
For each annual event in Obermann’s new Counterpoint series, two University of Iowa researchers from different disciplines will discuss a compelling...
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Featured Programs
AI + Care @ Iowa: Challenge and Promise
Directed by Kenneth Nepple (Department of Urology), Jason Misurac (Department of Pediatrics), and Weiguo Patrick Fan (Department of Business Analytics), this symposium builds on the University of Iowa Health Care’s deployment of AI to engage the issue of care in all its dimensions. Practitioners and researchers from different disciplines will address issues from the cancer rate in Iowa and healthcare provider burnout to the values underlying different approaches to caring for others and the self. The event will facilitate interdisciplinary discussions between professionals in medicine, business analytics, humanities, law, the arts, software engineering, journalism, social sciences, education, and more. Our goal is that the symposium will bridge these perspectives to look productively at an issue that generates both trepidation and hope.
The symposium takes place April 1 and 2, 2027.
Spring 2027 Obermann International Fellowships
We offer flexible fellowships for international researchers and artists to develop collaborations and pursue independent work at our beautiful Iowa City campus. International Fellows will receive a $3,000 stipend to help defray the cost of travel and lodging; University of Iowa health insurance coverage for the duration of the fellowship; office space at the Obermann Center for Advanced Studies; temporary University of Iowa affiliation, including access to UI libraries; and structured opportunities for scholarly exchange.
Applications for Spring 2027 fellowships are due September 18, 2026.
Book Ends: Book Completion Workshop
This program supports University of Iowa faculty from disciplines in which publishing a monograph is required for tenure and promotion. The award is designed to assist faculty members turn promising manuscripts into important, field-changing, published books. Book Ends brings together a panel of senior scholars for a candid, constructive three-hour workshop on a faculty member’s book manuscript. The award provides a $500 honorarium for two external senior scholars ($500 for each). We will also ask one University of Iowa senior faculty member to participate.