Amid budgetary woes and economic concerns, the Awards To Louisiana Artists and Scholars Program continues to provide University professors and scholars with funding to complete research efforts within their respective fields.
The ATLAS program is funded by a Louisiana Board of Regents Support Fund and provides faculty members in humanities, arts and social sciences with the financial support necessary — up to $50,000 per project — to take a leave of absence from teaching in order to complete scholarly projects.
Ann Whitmer, assistant dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences, has advised ATLAS applicants within her college since the program’s inception in 2004, but she said the program has grown in popularity among University staff in recent years.
“The ATLAS Program is highly competitive. Garnering a grant is no easy feat,” Whitmer said.
According to Whitmer, faculty members in the College of Humanities and Social Sciences generally submit 25 to 30 applications a year for the ATLAS Program, with six to 10 receiving the grant. 
The program welcomes applications from all faculty members within the state and specified fields.
Whitmer said the applicants’ proposals are assessed by outside reviewers and ranked based on their findings. The criteria for selection, as outlined by the Board of Regents, factors in the proposals’ feasibility and potential impact upon the academic field, as well as the project’s current progress and likelihood of completion.
“A broad range of projects are selected,” Whitmer said. ”There is a misconception that projects involving Louisiana are Renaissance.”
“I wouldn’t have been able to complete this book-length project for another two years without the ATLAS grant,” Zerba said.
Zerba cited the unimpeded research time as an especially alluring aspect of the program, as did Malcolm Richardson, associate dean of the College of Humanities and Social Sciences.
Richardson, who received his grant in 2008, worked sporadically on a book for several years before receiving his ATLAS grant. 
“It enabled me to completely rethink everything I was doing with the book and allowed me time to reform my opinions on some topics,” Richardson said.
Richardson’s research yielded a book, “Middle Class Writing in Late Medieval London,” as well as a change in his thought process.
“It completely affected my thinking toward my work and made me miss teaching, seeing students,” Richardson said.
Richardson said the ATLAS program’s creation of faculty absence does not  adversely affect the students. He said classes taught by absent faculty members may be taught by other faculty or delayed.
The ATLAS program continues to enjoy a sterling reputation throughout the academic world. It is beneficial to faculty members, as well as the state of Louisiana, Zerba said.
“The ATLAS program gives Louisiana good academic press; it lets the world know Louisiana still supports the arts,” Zerba said.
 
__
Contact Josh Naquin at [email protected]