PRAx Collaborative Faculty Fellowship

Huang Yi and KUKA performance

Location: OSU campuses and beyond

PRAx Collaborative Faculty Fellowships offer Oregon State University faculty a unique opportunity to engage in interdisciplinary collaborative inquiry for a year. The program supports collaborations and projects that have the potential to help people better understand the world, envision more just futures and address complex challenges.

There are two branches of this fellowship: one for faculty in the arts and humanities and one for faculty in the sciences and engineering. In both cases, fellows identify a question, project or issue in their own research that could benefit from interdisciplinary collaboration, and PRAx pairs each fellow with someone working in another discipline whose own professional interests or creative practices align. If you already have a collaborator in mind, you are welcome to propose working with that person in the application.

Together, the collaborative pair partner for a year on curiosity-driven exploration of questions and ideas central to their shared interests. The fellowship culminates in a public-facing offering such as a reading, panel discussion, exhibition, concert, podcast or video series.  

Inspiration and Ideas 

  • An art historian and a computer scientist create an exhibition that questions AI-produced art  

  • A literature scholar and a veterinarian write about representations of animal-borne disease  

  • A composer who investigates the rhythms of human and nonhuman systems collaborates with a gravitational astrophysicist 

  • An Indigenous Studies professor and a botanist collaborate to grow, harvest, and weave baskets from traditional materials  

For Arts & Humanities Faculty at OSU 

All OSU faculty in the arts and humanities are welcome to apply to collaborate with a researcher in any field of science or engineering. The process of pairing faculty fellows will be led by PRAx staff, and the collaborator may be from OSU or elsewhere. We use the following broad terms to identify collaborators:  

  • Science includes physical sciences focusing on non-living systems (e.g., chemistry, astronomy and astrophysics, geosciences, etc.), life sciences focusing on living organisms and life processes (e.g., biology, ecology, genetics, neuroscience, etc.) and formal science focused on abstract systems and logic (e.g., mathematics, computer science, statistics).  

  • Engineering includes mechanical, electrical, chemical, civil, computer, biomedical, aerospace, environmental, materials, etc.  

Science and Engineering faculty selected as collaborators for this program will have: 

  • A compelling research portfolio. 

  • An interest in humanities or arts methodologies and/or practices. 

  • An openness to multi- or interdisciplinary collaborations. 

  • A commitment to learn alongside the faculty fellow in creative practices or research activities and to involve the fellow in scientific investigations, research, lab and/or field work, and experiments when appropriate. 

For Science & Engineering Faculty at OSU

Faculty with active research portfolios working in any field of science or engineering are welcome to apply to collaborate with an artist, writer, or humanities scholar, internal or external to OSU. The process of pairing faculty fellows will be led by PRAx staff. We use the following broad definitions to identify collaborators: 

  • Arts include visual arts, performing arts and media arts. 

  • Creative writing includes fiction, creative nonfiction and poetry. 

  • Humanities include academic disciplines that explore and interpret human culture, such as language, literature, history, ethics and philosophy. 

Artists, writers and humanities scholar collaborators selected for this program will have:

  • A compelling visual, performative, multimedia, creative or scholarly practice. 

  • An interest in scientific or technical research and discoveries. 

  • An openness to multi- or interdisciplinary collaborations. 

  • A commitment to learn alongside the faculty fellow in lab or fieldwork activities and to involve the fellow in artistic investigations, the creative process, humanities research and experiments when appropriate.

For more Information:

Check the PRAx calendar for upcoming information sessions or contact Joy Jensen at [email protected] with questions.  

crooked river gorge bridge
lake abert from above
cross section of corn
snowy plover

Fellowship Details

The following Oregon State University faculty are welcome to apply:  

  • All faculty working in the arts and humanities.   

  • Faculty with active research portfolios working in any field of science or engineering.

This fellowship thrives on clear communication and mutual respect, deep curiosity about inquiry and research, and openness to new experiences or unexpected insights. The nature of the collaborative relationship in this program is complementary rather than supplementary.  

Applications are accepted from individuals only. If you are working on a project with multiple faculty collaborators or in a team-based lab, please choose one person to submit an application. 

Most teams will develop their project over a year, though projects can be extended to accommodate situations like fieldwork schedules. 

Fellows will: 

  • Involve their collaborator in research activities, readings, current projects, relevant exhibitions, lab or field experiences, and gatherings relevant to the discipline, with the goal of clarifying methodologies and research questions. 

  • Participate in “reverse residency” activities by learning about their collaborator’s methods of research, writing, creative practice, lab or fieldwork and/or attend relevant gatherings. 

  • Work with PRAx staff and the collaborator to develop a work plan and budget. 

  • Participate in quarterly online check-ins with program leaders.  

  • Participate in public programming and events connected with the fellowship. 

  • Submit a brief final reflection on the experience (3 pages max) and provide programmatic feedback throughout the fellowship. 

Fellows will receive:

  • A unique opportunity to learn alongside an artist, writer, humanities scholar, scientist or engineer who is interested in questions connected with their research.  

  • Engage in collaborative methods of inquiry and experimentation that can lead to new perspectives, insight and forms of outreach. 

  • Support from PRAx staff on fellowship activities. 

  • Support in coordinating and showcasing the process and outcomes of the fellowship. These may take a variety of forms: a public presentation, performance, installation, short film, lectures, panel discussion, small publications, etc. PRAx will work with fellows and collaborators to shape mutually beneficial outcomes. 

  • Typical awards are $15,000, and fellows are required to share funds with collaborators.   

  • Fellows in the arts and humanities will use a portion of the funding to engage science or engineering collaborators in shared research question(s) and public facing work. Science and engineering collaborator funding may support a range of connected expenses such as time, travel or field/lab experiences.  

  • Fellows in the sciences and engineering will use a portion of the funding (typically 75%) to support the arts and humanities practice of the shared research question(s) and public facing work. Artist and humanities collaborators will use the funding to support their time, travel and material costs on the project. Collaborators will receive a flat payment through a personal service contract with OSU. 

  • November 1, 2025: Application window opens. 

  • January 5, 2026: Applications due via Submittable. 

  • By March 1, 2026: Applicants notified of status. 

  • By May 1, 2026: PRAx pairs fellows with collaborators.   

  • June 2026: Program orientation. Fellowship begins. 

  • September 2027 and beyond: Public event(s) featuring the process and work from collaborations.  

The short application form in Submittable consists of a few questions about your research and interests.  

Applications will be reviewed by a diverse selection committee from relevant fields. This program opens for application annually. If you are not awarded a fellowship, we encourage you to reach out for feedback and re-apply. 

PRAx Faculty Fellows are supported by the L.L. Stewart Endowment, the Office of the Provost, and the Mary Jones and Thomas Hart Horning Endowment, the College of Liberal Arts.  

Apply Now

Current Fellows

The first selected cohort of the 2025-26 PRAx Collaborative Faculty Fellows includes seven Oregon State University faculty members across science and engineering fields. Learn about the fellows and their collaborators.