Graduate Hourly - UIC Freshwater Lab

Who:The UIC Freshwater Lab is an initiative to communicate Great Lakes water issues to the general public, create tools to visualize the current state and future scenarios of water sources, engage unaffiliated groups in water planning, and train a new generation of Great Lakes leaders.

What: The UIC Freshwater Lab will have two major projects underway in Fall 2018 and seeks motivated, self-sufficient graduate students to help with research, analysis, and writing.  We will likely hire one person for each project.  However, should you possess skills that overlap or don't perfectly match the individual descriptions, then feel free in your cover letter to describe your particular strengths and how you would like to deploy them.
It is mandatory to enroll in the Fall 2018 Freshwater Lab course [PA 494, ENG 440, HIST 481] that meets on Tuesday afternoons from 3:30-6:15] in order to be apprised of the relevant topics and methods.
Project #1: Chicago's Wastewater Conveyance and Infrastructure
The Freshwater Lab has a grant through the Humanities in a Changing Climate initiative in conjunction with faculty at the University of Wisconsin Madison and Milwaukee campuses entitled Rivers of the Anthropocene.  Teams at each university will focus on a particular river.  The UIC team will investigate the Chicago River and its role in a system of wastewater conveyance that encompasses the Chicago Sanitary and Ship Canal, the Illinois River, the Mississippi River, and the Gulf of Mexico.
A doctoral student in the Department of English will be working on the project's theoretical framework and setting up interviews with residents along the rivers and policy makers whose decisions impact them. The Freshwater Lab seeks a second graduate student to help analyze past, current, and planned infrastructure connected to wastewater conveyance along the system, as well as the Chicago River.  This may entail attendance at public meetings at which river development is discussed and meetings with community groups impacted by the infrastructure.
The analysis will be written up on a regular basis with larger team conferences focused on collating and synthesizing material for publication. 
Term of appointment: Fall 2018 as a graduate hourly position with the potential for extension.

Project #2: Freshwater Internship Program
During the fall 2018 semester, the Freshwater Lab will engage in a planning process for an internship program based in Chicago focused on work connected to freshwater and the Great Lakes.  The overarching goal of the planning process is to draw from existing resources available on the UIC campus and greater Chicago area in order to formulate a stand-out training program for work around the Great Lakes. This involves formulating the program on an administrative level with various departments and initiatives, as well as collaborative planning meetings with partner organizations and student representatives.  As we create a new program, the Freshwater Lab team will draw from past successes particularly the Lab's professional advising program.  The person holding this position will investigate existing programs, gaps in what currently exists, and the specific needs that can be addressed by an urban university with one of the most diverse student bodies in North America. The central goal to be explored during our planning process is how to develop a leading internship program that benefits both students and organizations while empowering a new generation to be water leaders.
Work will involve developing a proposal for an internship that is substantiated by letters of support from partner organizations and formal plans for drawing students from many areas of study.  Our objectives include polling students across campus, consulting with colleagues at other universities about similar offerings, meeting with intern sponsors, and conceiving a plan for internship program's long term sustainability.
We also hope to conduct focus groups on campus to learn about how to locate and recruit the most fitting students for the program.  What might be the best balance between undergraduate and graduate students? How many interns might come from the Humanities, Art and Design, Sciences, Engineering, Public Health, and pre-professional programs in law, medicine and business?  How might we best match student skills and organization needs?
Term of appointment is Fall 2018 with the option for extension should the project gain funding.

Related Project #3
In November 2017, the Freshwater Lab launched Freshwater Stories, a digital storytelling site about Lake Michigan that offers information and supportive action for UIC and Lake Michigan communities.
Although no direct finding is available, we continue to promote the site and its contents through live events and social media platforms. Should you have web and/or social media skills, please include in your cover letter so that we might include some work on Freshwater Stories in the position.

In order to apply for any of these positions, please send a cover letter and résumé to Professor Rachel Havrelock at raheleh@uic.edu
Interviews will occur the week of August 27th on campus.
Feel free to contact Professor Havrelock with any questions.

Please note: Graduate hourly positions do not include a waiver.