The Astor International Travel Fellowship for New York City Teachers, made possible through a generous gift from Mrs. Brooke Astor, celebrates the accomplishments of full-time classroom teachers in the New York City public schools by awarding them a fully-sponsored, ten-day, educational fellowship with NYU Steinhardt faculty.
Summer 2024 Theme: Finding Joy Engaging with the Earth: Biodiversity, Fossils, and Culturally Sustaining Pedagogy
How can culturally-sustaining teaching practices be applied to the natural world? How can we build curricula that inspire students to find joy and wonder? The Summer 2024 Astor Fellows will travel to London, UK and England's Jurassic Coast to explore these questions. Participants will reflect on their teaching practices, develop their observational skills, and consider how nature can be integrated into their work.
Following the Fellows' travels in Summer 2024, participants will present about their experiences at a Symposium event in late October 2024. This is an opportunity for the participants to reflect on their travels, share the impact of the program on their pedagogy and classroom practices, and promote innovation in teaching. The symposium is attended by the NYU community, teacher colleagues, and alumni of the program.
We seek to recruit a diverse cohort of Fellows teaching at all levels and across academic disciplines within the NYC public school system. Please note that Fellows do not receive NYU course credit or continuing education credit.
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Location
The Summer 2024 edition of the Astor Fellows program will travel to London and the Jurassic Coast of England.
Dates
The group will depart New York City on July 31 and return on August 10. Fellows are asked to commit to attending 1-2 pre-travel events in Spring 2024 as well as a post-travel Symposium in late October 2024.
Faculty
Catherine Milne, Professor of Science Education in the Department of Teaching and Learning
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- 2-3 night trip to the Jurassic Coast; museum visits, walking the coast, and fossil hunting
- British Museum
- Natural History Museum
- Eastcheap & the Tower walking tour
- Stonehenge
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NYU Steinhardt, through the generous support of the estate of Mrs. Brooke Astor, will cover the following participant expenses:
- Roundtrip, economy-class group airfare
- Single hotel accommodation during all program dates
- Ground transportation for official program activities
- Some daily meals
- Supplemental international health insurance
Participants are responsible for the following costs:
- Transportation to/from airports
- Obtaining or renewing a passport and any visa expenses
- Some meals and any personal incidental expenses
- Any independent activities, visits, or transportation outside of official program activities
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Who can participate:
In order to be eligible to apply for this opportunity, you must:
- Be a current, fulltime classroom teacher in a New York City Public School
- Have completed at least three years of full-time teaching experience in NYC public schools as of the date of application
- Not be a previous recipient of the Astor Fellowship
Please note: School staff other than fulltime classroom teachers (i.e. substitute teachers, administrators, counselors, principals, etc.) are not eligible to apply.
Application Process:
Applicants must complete the Fellows Application form and request a recommendation from a colleague. Competitive applications should:
- Discuss how participating in the program will enhance your practice as a classroom teacher
- Demonstrate a critical reflection of your own cultural identity and its influence on classroom practice
- Show an interest in and commitment to issues of diversity, social justice, and antibias education; for example, through lessons or curricular choices
Recommendations should be from a fellow teacher or administrator who currently works (or has previously worked) with the applicant. Recommenders will be asked to confirm the applicant's years of work in NYC public school and their recommendation should speak to the applicant's background, current work, and service inside and outside of the classroom.
Application Links and Deadline:
Applications for the Summer 2024 edition of the program are now closed. The Summer 2025 program theme and location will be posted in the fall, and the application will open in early December 2024.
- Applicants must fill out the Astor Fellows Application Form
- Applicants should ask that their recommender complete the Astor Fellows Recommendation Form. Please do not request recommendations from multiple people. Only the first recommendation received for each applicant will be considered
All applications and recommendations must be submitted no later than 11:59 PM (EST) on January 31, 2024. Top candidates will be invited to interview in February and the 2024 Fellows will be notified of their selection by the end of March.
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For questions about the program or application process, please contact astor.fellows@nyu.edu.