Invited Speaker Resources
There are several opportunities to invite a speaker to campus that involves little or no cost to the College.
Mellon Collaborative Speakers Bureau
The Mellon Foundation has generously provided funds for Colgate, Hamilton, Skidmore, and Union to support an assortment of new initiatives, including, a speakers bureau.
New York Council for the Humanities
We are allowed to invite up to four speakers each year, and must apply to the council at least 8 weeks prior to the event. There are over 100 different speakers on the list - or sign up to become a speaker!
Launched in 1983, the Speakers in the Humanities program brings the best in humanities scholarship to thousands of people at hundreds of cultural organizations in virtually every corner of New York. To host a lecture in your town, just select a topic, contact the Speaker, and apply for funding through the Council. Speakers events must be open to the public and free of charge. If your application is successful, the Council covers the cost of the Speaker's honorarium and travel expenses.
Fulbright Occasional Lecturer Program.
The Council for International Exchange of Scholars (CIES) provides travel awards through the Occasional Lecturer Program (OLP), which enable Fulbright Visiting Scholars except for those on the Fulbright Visiting Specialists Program: Direct Access to the Muslim World, who are currently in the U.S. to accept guest lecturing invitations at colleges and universities.
The Woodrow Wilson National Foundation sponsors week-long visits with speakers. There are more than 100 Woodrow Wilson Visiting Fellows.
Fellows usually spend five days on campus, and their activities typically include classes, workshops, public lectures, and informal conversations with students, faculty, and administrators (often over breakfast, lunch, or dinner). Fellows not only teach about their substantive areas of expertise, they also talk about career paths and broader issues such as the importance of a broadly educated citizenry in a democratic society.
Woodrow Wilson matches the interests of participating institutions with the experience and availability of the Fellows; offers suggestions for planning the visits; monitors scheduling; provides publicity materials, and evaluates each visit at its conclusion. Participating colleges cover housing, local transportation, meals and publicity.