About Digital Humanities Research Institute at Southern Methodist University
What is DHRI?
Digital Humanities Research Institute (DHRI) is a series of workshops that introduces participants to the variety of skills involved in digital humanities projects. Workshops will build on preceding modules; successive workshops will use skills developed in earlier ones. These workshops cover such topics as digital humanities coding, project planning, the use of data, and more.
The initial Digital Humanities Research Institute: Expanding Communities of Practice was funded by a NEH grant
DHRI@SMU was developed by Rafia Mirza, a staff librarian at SMU. She attended a residential workshop, Digital Humanities Research Institute, held in June 2018 at The Graduate Center, CUNY. During the DHRI, participants explored digital humanities research and teaching with leading DH scholars, developed core computational research skills through hands-on workshops, and began work on developing versions of the DHRI for their own communities. DHRI@SMU is a result of Ms. Mirza's experience at the DHRI in 2018.
Feedback from previous DHRI@SMU participants
For me, one of the most valuable parts of DHRI was the chance to meet other people from across campus who are interested in doing this kind of work. Before, I didn't know what kinds of resources might be available on campus. After the workshop, I have a better idea of the possibilities--and now I know that there are knowledgeable and helpful people at SMU who might be willing to help me get started.
To see the information about previous DHRIs, click here.
The DHRI Philosophy
We believe that all participants are experts in something, but none are experts in all areas. By fostering a collaborative, interdisciplinary environment where humanities research questions, methods, and values are most significant, we work to build a cooperative learning experience. We have established an approach that leverages participants' strengths, disciplinary interests, and research interests. DHRI emphasizes foundational skills because we believe that it is the most effective path toward enabling digital humanities researchers to become self-teachers and mentors. This leads to second-and third-order effects as participants teach themselves and others, and provides a common vocabulary, skill set, and experience from which to form future collaborations.
Contact us
If you have questions, please contact Rafia Mirza, SMU Humanities Librarian, Fondren Library, and DHRI @ SMU Coordinator.