CFDE Imagine Teaching Fellows

How can we make our classrooms and campuses broadly accessible spaces, in which all students can fully participate and actively learn? 

Imagine Teaching Fellow Program

Call for Faculty Participants

2026-2027 (cohort #4)

 
“Dream a little before you think.” – Toni Morrison
 
“…the idea of collective imagination, as when we imagine different worlds together, writing shared stories and plotting futures in which we can all flourish.” – Ruha Benjamin
 
Higher education is at an inflection point. Should we look to retread the well-worn paths of the past or reimagine a more vibrant and more inclusive future?  This fellowship invites faculty to reimagine the classroom experience through the pedagogies of imagination, storytelling, and worldmaking. We will also explore student-centered, innovative strategies for making our classrooms, labs, and clinical settings more welcoming and inclusive spaces where everyone can thrive. Through the fellowship, faculty will stretch their imaginations and co-design ways to share what they learn with a broader Emory audience. This cohort starts in January 2026 and ends May 2027.  

Aims

  • Support faculty from across the campus as they imagine and research a project that focuses on creating classroom, clinical, and lab spaces that are welcoming, student-centered, accessible, and inclusive. 
  • Share research and strategies with the campus community 
  • Expand our pedagogical curriculum, as faculty add new material to existing offerings 
  • Support student-centered practices  
  • Foster disciplinary and/or interdisciplinary approaches to accessible classrooms  
  • Highlight existing faculty teaching expertise 
  • Expand the cohort of people who can lead workshops on imagining welcoming classrooms, labs, and clinical spaces

Program

  • Open to all full-time faculty  
  • 18 months-long: starts January 2026- May 2027  
  • $4000 stipend dispersed in four payments into a research or departmental account (it cannot be as salary) 
  • Applicants must have a speedtype to which money can be disbursed 

Eligibility

  • All full-time faculty engaged in teaching  

Applications

  • Applications are due Friday, November 21, 2025 
  • Chairs and deans may nominate; self-nominations are also accepted  
  • Accepted applicants will be notified by Friday, December 5, 2025. 
  
 Applications must be sent to dtroka@emory.edu.
 
Application must include
  • Your name, email, department, and title (Associate Professor, Clinical Professor, Professor of Pedagogy, etc.) 
  • A brief email from chair supporting the application (email directly to dtroka@emory.edu) 
  • A 1-to 2- page statement identifying the specific topic you want to imagine and develop, including intended specific outcomes (which must include a presentation).

On acceptance, the Teaching Fellows will

  • Meet once a month with Donna Troka, the CFDE Dean’s Teaching Fellow, and their cohort members to discuss common readings (from Jan 2026-May 2026; we may meet less regularly after that)
  • Create an annotated bibliography on project-related resources (articles, books, podcasts, etc.) to be completed by August 14, 2026.
  • Deliver a "practice run" of your presentation to Donna Troka (and your cohort, if you would like) by December 11, 2026.
  • Develop a one or one-and-a-half hour training session for other faculty on their project topic to be completed and delivered in Spring 2027.
  • Write up a short one-page reflection on your experiences with the fellowship. 
 
Please direct your questions to Donna Troka at dtroka@emory.edu.