
Scholarship Residency (formerly Writing Renewal Retreat) is a three-day retreat with a community of faculty scholars seeking renewal with their scholarship. Scholarship Residency programs are generally held in the fall and early summer with an open application period proceeding each.
Faculty development research suggests that faculty retreats, away from campus, increase productivity and collaboration. Research also suggests the positive physiological and psychological benefits that natural environments have on people of all ages, including faculty. Finally, research suggests that the use of contemplative practices, a core feature of this unique retreat, has positive influences on brain elasticity, resilience, focus, attention, and overall productivity. In addition to gratitude and feelings of connection, JMU faculty who attended past off-campus Scholarship Residency programs have reported significant productivity in terms of pages produced, grants written, and projects completed.
Scholarship related to the program
Scholarship Residency Fall 2022
Scholarship Residency (Faculty Community)
Scholarship Residency will take place Friday, 10/28/22 from 1-6pm, Sat. 10/29/22 from 8am-5pm, and Sunday, 10/30/22 from 8am-12pm at Mountain Valley Retreat Center with some overnight accommodations available.
Preview the application questions.
DEADLINE: Applications are due by Friday, October 7, 2022 @ 12 noon.
Seeking renewal with your scholarship that has been harder than ever due to the pandemic? In-person scholarship residency is back this fall! Join a three-day scholarship residency with a community of faculty scholars at Mountain Valley Retreat Center at the base of Massanutten Mountain near Harrisonburg, VA, about 25 minutes from campus.
Reconnect to your scholarship and stimulate creativity as you commit sustained time dedicated to completing a project or developing your research agenda in a beautiful natural setting. The retreat agenda is balanced between open sessions of self-directed time to work on your scholarship and facilitated sessions that involve reflection and discussion of creative ways to sustain a positive relationship with your scholarship and connect to colleagues.
Meals and housing will be provided courtesy of the Center for Faculty Innovation.
Facilitated by:
Daisy Breneman, Justice Studies, Center for Faculty Innovation
Dayna Henry, Ph.D., Health Sciences, Center for Faculty Innovation
Participant reflections on Scholarship Residency
Here are some ways faculty members from different academic units have reflected on scholarly productivity and their retreat time:
“It was so energizing to be in a context in which I was only focusing on my scholarly identity. I was able to get excited about my project again.”
Scholarship Residency Program outcomes
Faculty participants will make progress toward
- Renewing oneself as a scholar
- Making progress on a scholarship project
- Developing metacognitive awareness of writing process and habits
- Appreciating practices for increasing focus, awareness, and well-being