The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation New Professorships in Buddhist Studies

The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Program in Buddhist Studies is designed to expand the understanding and interpretation of Buddhist thought in scholarship and society, strengthen international networks of Buddhist studies, and increase the visibility of innovative currents in those studies.

New Professorships in Buddhist Studies offer multi-year grants to colleges and universities seeking to establish or expand teaching in Buddhist studies. This opportunity for seed funding complements other competitions supported by The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation Global.

UNIVERSITY OF MINNESOTA TWIN CITIES

2026-2030

The grant to the University of Minnesota Twin Cities will establish a new professorship in Buddhist Studies in the College of Liberal Arts to address the strong interest in Buddhism within the university’s diverse student body. The position, which will be a joint appointment between the Department of Asian and Middle Eastern Studies and the interdisciplinary Program in Religious Studies, will expand the department’s research and course offerings on Buddhism, while also contributing to the growth and balance of the Religious Studies program. The new professorship will enhance both undergraduate and graduate programs, with a focus on interdisciplinary collaboration and the incorporation of Buddhist Studies into the broader curriculum.

UNIVERSITY OF UTAH

2023-2027

The New Professorship grant will help establish the first tenure-line position focused on teaching and research in Buddhist Studies in the College of Humanities at the University of Utah. The appointment will not only strengthen the University’s Asia-related research and teaching, it will also help them better serve the growing ethnic, cultural, and religious diversity of their students. The successful candidate will be housed in either History, Philosophy, or World Languages and Cultures, depending on their disciplinary training, and affiliated with the federally funded Asia Center. Ultimately, the hope is that the creation of this position will pave the way for the future development of a new Department of Religious Studies at the institution.

RAJAMANGALA UNIVERSITY OF TECHNOLOGY KRUNGTHEP

2023-2026

The Rajamangala University of Technology Krungthep is the first Asian university to receive the grant. The New Professorship will assist in the creation of graduate programs in Buddhist Studies that will help educate Buddhist monks, nuns, and laity in becoming leaders and innovators in the modern information-based, multicultural, and globalized world. The program aims to produce morally grounded and socially engaged Buddhist intellectuals capable of applying research and data for the betterment of Buddhism and society as a whole.

SIMPSON COLLEGE

2021-2026

The grant seeding a New Professorship at Simpson College will help strengthen a robust liberal arts curriculum at Simpson College by offering a range of courses in Buddhist Studies. In doing so, it will contribute both to the curriculum of the Department of Religion and of the college at large, extending teaching and research into new areas. The position will enhance positive relationships with Buddhist communities in Des Moines, providing students from those communities with courses on Buddhist philosophy, practice, and history. This position will contribute to Simpson College’s larger aim of cultivating a globally-connected community committed to leading lives of meaning and purpose.

EÖTVÖS LORÁND UNIVERSITY (ELTE)

2020-2024

The New Professorship at ELTE will significantly strengthen the newly established Department of Buddhist and Tibetan Studies. The New Professor will join the one other professor of Buddhism on the Department’s faculty and will be responsible for teaching students in the recently created MA program in Buddhist Studies, contributing to the program’s internationalization by conducting classes in English. The grant to ELTE is the first made in Central Europe by The Robert H. N. Ho Family Foundation and confirms the Foundation’s commitment to nurturing Buddhist Studies worldwide.

NEW YORK UNIVERSITY (NYU)

2021-2024

The grant for seeding a New Professorship at New York University will make possible the first full-time, permanent position in Buddhist Studies at NYU, anchoring the field in the rapidly developing Department of Religious Studies.  Because of NYU’s international character – with an imposing number of students from many countries at its New York campus and with campuses in Dubai and Shanghai — the position will make Buddhist Studies available to a large international audience.

THE UNIVERSITY OF WYOMING

2019-2023

This will be the University of Wyoming’s first position in Buddhist studies. The new faculty member will join the recently merged Department of Philosophy and Religious Studies and will therefore play a foundational role in creating new undergraduate offerings in the study of Buddhism. This position will also help shape the Religious Studies curriculum for a new master’s degree program and provide the anchor for Buddhist studies within that degree. The new position will strengthen the department’s focus on the comparative study of world religions by bringing an international specialization in Mahayana Buddhism, with a specific geographical focus on East Asia.

EL COLEGIO DE MÉXICO

2019-2022

This position, situated in the Center of Asian and African Studies (CEAA), will continue El Colegio de México’s distinguished history in the study of Buddhism. The new faculty member will be involved with the curricular planning of the institution’s two-year Master’s Degree in Asian Studies. By continuing CEAA’s development and promotion of Buddhist Studies in Spanish-speaking countries, this new position will have a significant impact on the study of Buddhism in the Global South.

ÉCOLE FRANÇAISE D’EXTRÊME-ORIENT

2017-2021

This new professorship in the study of medieval Chinese Buddhism, in which the professor will have an affiliation with an EFEO center in East Asia, will add an important new element to the international network of sites that constitute EFEO. The position, continuing a tradition of excellence that extends back to the nineteenth century, will strengthen the worldwide field of Buddhist studies by training postgraduate researchers from both Europe and Asia and by developing scholarly networks among a range of institutions.

UNIVERSITY OF CALIFORNIA, IRVINE

2018-2022

This new professorship in a large public university will create synergies in graduate and undergraduate programs as it builds upon existing strengths in East Asian studies and religious studies to offer new curricula. This will be the institution’s first position in Buddhist studies. The position will be affiliated with the university’s growing Program in Religious Studies, a significant development given the large Asian and Asian-American communities in that area of southern California.

SKIDMORE COLLEGE

2016-2020

Skidmore College in Saratoga Springs, New York is planning a professorship to augment its existing interdisciplinary Asian studies program and to anchor the newly created Religious Studies Department. The position will respond to the growing interest in Buddhist studies among undergraduates at Skidmore College, enabling them to pursue MA and PhD degrees in the field.

UNIVERSITY OF NEW MEXICO

2017-2020

The Department of Philosophy is seeking to strengthen its concentration in Asian philosophy with the appointment of a professor of Buddhism. The university plans to introduce the study of Buddhism into a new disciplinary context, training graduate students in Buddhist philosophy.