UCSC Center for Jewish Studies Summer Fellowship

Now accepting applications for Summer 2020! Apply by May 8, 2020 at 10:00 p.m.

Organization: Digital Heritage Mapping (DHM), a 501(c)(3) non-profit organization, specializes in virtual documentation of global cultural heritage sites. DHM is partnered with the American Sephardi Federation at The Center for Jewish History to advance Diarna and Beiteinu.

Project: DHM’s flagship initiative, Diarna: Geo-Museum of North African and Middle Eastern Jewish Life, pioneers the use of digital mapping and database technologies to virtually preserve and ensure untrammeled access to endangered Jewish heritage sites throughout the region. To date, Diarna has documented over 1,100 sites, amassed thousands of photographs and videos, conducted 20 research expeditions to the region, been featured in popular and scholarly publications, and launched online exhibits (https://diarna.org/). Recognizing the need and interest in extending such work beyond the Middle East and
North Africa, Diarna has served as the origin for developing a larger, more geographically extensive project mapping Jewish community sites around the world – the organization is called Beiteinu (“Our Homes” in Hebrew).

Internship: Fellows will work remotely – all work will be conducted online. The work itself covers a range of areas, to be assigned depending upon skill level. Fellows are responsible for their own housing arrangements.

Possible assignments may include:

• Research determining exact locations of Jewish sites in cities and towns across the region
• Sourcing photographs and video (archival and contemporary) of these sites
• Writing brief site entries for mapped locations by analyzing and synthesizing fragments of information culled from diverse sources
• (Note: the above three items may require conducting interviews as well as interfacing with partnered research institutions).
• Translating research documents or project materials for publication
• Helping prepare basic educational materials (e.g., curricular supplements, video presentations, lectures,virtual guided tours)

Fellows are expected to complete assignments in a timely and efficient manner, work for at least two months during the summer, post findings regularly to shared online documents or the project’s research database, meet all assignment-specific deadlines, and contribute in other ways as required.

Compensation: Each fellow will receive 3,000.00 USD in the form of a fellowship administered by UCSC’s Center for Jewish Studies, supported by a generous donation from the Taube Foundation for Jewish life and Culture.

Qualifications: All majors welcome. Knowledge of one or more regional languages (Arabic, Hebrew, Farsi, French, or others) is helpful. Fellows should be comfortable working without daily supervision.

To Apply: Submit transcript, CV, and cover letter to aheckman@ucsc.edu by Friday May 8, 2020 at 10:00p.m.