About the Summer Institute

We are thrilled to announce the inaugural Eugene England Summer Institute (EESI), which will take place in Midway, Utah, June 8-14, 2025. This will be a week-long writing retreat for graduate students, early-career faculty, and independent scholars working on topics related to Mormon studies. EESI fosters scholarship on “Mormonism,” broadly construed, through mentoring and peer support. We create community and relationships among scholars representing a diversity of backgrounds, research subjects, and methodologies.

Summer seminars–including those run by Richard Bushman, Claudia Bushman, and Terryl Givens–have played a crucial role for Latter-day Saint scholarship in the twenty-first century. They have created community, enabled networking, and cultivated cutting-edge research. The EESI aims to continue that legacy by supporting scholars seeking to navigate tumultuous scholarly and cultural terrains.

EESI participants will remain in-residence in a luxurious townhome at Zermatt Resort from Sunday night through Saturday afternoon. Mornings will be dedicated to writing, as everyone will work on their manuscripts-in-progress. Afternoons will feature workshops on topics related to scholarship and community. There will also be recreational activities, one-on-one mentoring, and guest lectures/discussions throughout the week. Following the week-long institute, participants will provide ongoing feedback to one another in monthly paper workshops via Zoom for the following year.

Potential workshop topics: 

  • Constructing a dissertation/book manuscript

  • The process of writing and researching

  • Drafting a book proposal

  • The stakes of being a Mormon intellectual

  • Surviving the academy/scholarly world

Participation is restricted to 1) graduate students, 2) independent scholars who have yet to publish a book, and 3) junior academics within five years of receiving their PhD who have not published their first monograph.

Housing and food will be covered for all accepted participants. Limited travel reimbursements may also be available on a needs basis.


Meet the Directors

Why Eugene England?

Eugene England (1933-2001) was a paradigmatic Latter-day Saint scholar and intellectual. He believed in creating intellectual communities and was a driving force in Mormon studies. He founded Dialogue: A Journal of Mormon Thought, pioneered the first Mormon studies program at Utah Valley University, and wrote prolifically about Mormon literature, ideas, and history.

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