Discussions
Discussions

Reading Between the Lines

Next RBTL Application Deadline:

Friday, June 8, 2012 for Fall 2012 Programs


Part seminar, part book club, and part community conversation, Reading Between the Lines (RBTL) programs, facilitated by a humanities expert in your community, bring rich humanities content to your participants.

The goals of this program are to:

  • Foster skills of critical inquiry and civic dialogue; we hope to have participants analyzing issues and ideas, weighing evidence, and questioning assumptions
  • Deepen knowledge of local place and its connection to regional, national, and global contexts
  • Strengthen connections between communities and their cultural institutions
  • Encourage humanities scholars to bring their expertise to the general public and to local cultural institutions

Reading Between the Lines is available by application to all New York state tax-exempt organizations. There is no fee to the host organization to apply for or host a Reading Between the Lines series. Learn more in our Common Questions.

In Fall 2012, only two Reading Between the Lines series will be available, Making Sense of the Civil War and Lincoln on the Civil War. Both series are related to the Civil War, in honor of the ongoing Sesquicentennial commemorations locally and nationally.

Not interested in hosting a Civil War series? Already hosted two RBTL series? Develop your own set of themes and texts and apply for a Reading & Discussion grant!

How to apply to host a series

Select a Reading Between the Lines series.
Carefully review the themes and book lists from the series at right. Choose your first and second preferred series.

Consider how a RBTL series might fit into a larger programming or exhibition initiative:

Do the questions, topics, or types of text fit with your organization’s mission? Do your organization’s collections complement the topics, themes, or questions in the series?  Thinking about these questions will help you select a series that builds on or adds to what you already have and do. 

Does the series topic or themes reflect the local history of your community?  Thinking about these questions as you select a series can help you choose a series that will hold broad appeal in your area. 

Find a humanities scholar to facilitate the discussion.
The scholar-facilitator will facilitate four 90-minute discussions for the series; an introductory session is optional. The scholar-facilitator is also required to participate in an online webinar, "Facilitating Adult Reading & Discussion Programs," offered by the Council.

For more information, please read Who Qualifies as a Scholar Facilitator? in our Common Questions.

Decide if you will apply to use Council-supplied books or arrange your own.
Host organizations have the option to apply for the use of Council-supplied books or to arrange their own. For more information on both options, please read How do I get the books for the series? in our Common Questions.

Apply to the Council.
Collect a digital version of the scholar-facilitator's resume or CV.

Complete and submit the Reading Between the Lines application. At that time, you will be asked to upload the scholar-facilitator's resume.

Schedule, promote and host a Reading Between the Lines discussion series.
Upon notification that you have been selected to host the program, register and attend the online webinar "Administering Adult Reading & Discussion Programs." This webinar walks host-site coordinators through the steps of hosting a series.

Schedule dates, times, and venue for each of the discussions. Submit sessions using our online form. Dates should be submitted at least two weeks prior to the start of the series.

The Council provides templates on our Admin page for promotional flyers and press releases. You are expected to make every effort to draw a large and diverse audience to your program.

Need help with your series? Review the "Administering Adult Reading & Discussion Programs" Handbook.

6. Follow-up
At the end of your program, complete the Host Site Coordinator evaluation and return any Council-supplied books (the Council reimburses for shipping costs). Links to evaluation and other forms are on the Admin page.

This program was originally piloted in the spring of 2003 in partnership with the Center for the Humanities of the Graduate Center of the City University of New York. New series are developed by graduate students at CUNY and the State University of New York at Buffalo through our Public Humanities Fellowship.