The GCI Faculty Scholars program is designed to create a platform for campus-wide urban research by providing University of Illinois at Chicago faculty members or research teams with a one-year appointment that releases them from formal teaching and administrative obligations to pursue collaborative research agendas while participating in Institute activities. The program supports GCI’s mission of bringing together scholars across disciplines to engage in ongoing conversations on how research can be transformed into actions that can improve the quality of life of people living in Chicago, its metropolitan region, and cities throughout the world.
Since 1995, GCI has appointed over 154 Faculty Research Scholars from more than 34 different departments and units of the University of Illinois at Chicago. Over the years, the Faculty Research Scholars have made seminar presentations, organized public events, and conducted and published highly regarded research that has:
- Enriched their respective academic disciplines;
- Contributed to public conversations about issues impacting quality of life; and
- Led to changes in policy and practices, locally and beyond.
In exchange, Faculty Research Scholars participate in designated Institute activities, including:
- Presenting a public seminar at the Great Cities Institute Lecture Series;
- Contributing a paper to the Great Cities Institute publication projects; and
- Participating in the Great Cities Institute Honors College course, “Great Cities: UIC’s Metropolitan Commitment”.