The Scholar-in-Residence (SIR) program has been envisioned for quite some time by HFA educators, parents, and other stakeholders as an opportunity to engage students with various academic experts who will share what they know, thereby extending the existing curriculum.

The program was officially established during Hume-Fogg's sesquicentennial celebration in 2005 and the school welcomed its first visiting scholar in early 2006.


A broadly representative committeee consisting of faculty from each department, students from each grade, a parent, and a community representative, plan and coordinate the program's activities, which could range from a single visit by a leading scholar to the delivery of a year-long course. While the ultimate vision for the program is expansive, the committee has chosen to implement that vision in manageable increments to ensure the long-term success and sustainability of the program.

The committee was fortunate to secure participation by four prominent Nashvillians during the program's first semester. Using a lecture-seminar format, each visiting scholar works with students on two separate days. On the first date, the expert delivers a full-school presentation; on the second date, the scholar conducts a seminar with a smaller group of interested students who have registered for the session.

Visiting Scholars for Spring 2006 are:

• Joe Hamilton, Physicist, Vanderbilt University
  
• Christine Kreyling, Architecture and Urban Planning writer, Nashville Scene
  
• John Seigenthaler, Founder, First Amendment Center;
  Chairman Emeritus, The Tennessean
  
• Cindy Young, Artistic and Founding Director, Rhythm & Roots

The committee plans to continue with programs similar to the inaugural lecture series, but is also working to have a scholar who is actually in residence at HFA throughout the 2006-07 school year teaching a course and leading seminars about important topics.

Funding for SIR activities comes from two sources: income from a designated fund created in 2005 for this purpose and annual operating funds from the Hume-Fogg Association, the school's non-profit parent-teacher organization. As the SIR endowment fund grows over time, the SIR program could eventually become self-sustaining and no longer dependent on annual funding from the Association.

Alumni and others wishing to provide lasting support to the school are encouraged to consider a gift to the SIR fund, which is held for Hume-Fogg's benefit by the Nashville Alliance for Public Education, an independent non-profit organization dedicated to supporting Nashville's public schools. Information about contributing to the endowment is available on the Alliance for Public Education web site (be sure to specify that your gift is for Hume-Fogg). The Hume-Fogg Association receives its funds primarily from parent donations to its annual Invest campaign conducted each fall.