Carl and Cindy Hayden Teaching Fellowship

 

Overview

The Carl and Cindy Hayden Teaching Fellowship program is funded by the Community Foundation of Elmira-Corning and the Southern Finger Lakes from an endowment created by Carl and Cindy Hayden. The Center for Mark Twain Studies deeply appreciates all of their magnanimous, continued support.

The Center for Mark Twain Studies offers one fellowship-in-residence in 2027 for any K-12 teacher, librarian, and/or educational support specialist located in the region served by the Community Foundation of Elmira-Corning and the Finger Lakes, giving them the opportunity to research educational projects and creating lesson plans aimed at bringing Mark Twain Studies more effectively into their classrooms and/or service areas.

Cindy and Carl Hayden

The Hayden Teaching Fellow has the once-in-a-lifetime opportunity to work and reside at Quarry Farm, the family home of Twain’s sister- and brother-in-law, Susan and Theodore Crane. Twain and his family lived at Quarry Farm for over twenty summers. During this time, in an octagonal study located about one hundred yards from the main house, Mark Twain wrote the majority of The Adventures of Tom Sawyer, Adventures of Huckleberry Finn, A Connecticut Yankee in King Arthur’s Court, and many other major works. Fellows are consistently struck by the beauty and quiet of the home and its surroundings, an environment inspiring in its own right and especially conducive to research and production.

 Furthermore, the Hayden Teaching Fellow is granted full access to a world-class selection of primary and secondary sources on the premises related to Mark Twain Studies and nineteenth century United States literature and history.  Fellows are also welcome to use the Mark Twain Archive located in the Elmira College Gannett-Tripp Library. The Archive houses an exhaustive assemblage of biography, criticism, and reference sources; microfilm of material related to Elmira from the collections of the Mark Twain Project, the Mark Twain House, Vassar College, and the Huntington Library; and a library of photographs. The Archive also holds the association volumes from Quarry Farm, containing Mark Twain’s marginalia, and the Antenne Collection of books from Mark Twain’s personal library. The Collection is updated continuously.

Reflecting the mission of the Center for Mark Twain Studies, Quarry Farm Fellowships foster and support scholarship and creative works related to Mark Twain, including, but not limited to, his literature, life, family, associations, influences, reception, and significance. The fellowship selection process aims to assist teachers, librarians, and educational support specialists in producing work of highest distinction and cultivate a wide-ranging community of participants with diverse backgrounds, specializations, and ranks.

The Hayden Teaching Fellow will be granted a two-week residency, including housing at Quarry Farm, and a $5000 honorarium.

The residency date will be determined by the Director of the Center for Mark Twain Studies in conjunction with the successful applicant.  Please note that the residency will take place during the summer, outside of the traditional academic year. Fellows will be assured of their privacy since they will be the sole occupants of the Quarry Farm main house during their stay.  Immediate family members may accompany the Hayden Teaching Fellow, but this must be pre-arranged with the Director. Fellows have access to a fully equipped kitchen. Linens are provided. A full-time Caretaker is on the premises in an apartment adjacent to, but separate from the main house, and is available to assist Fellows throughout their residency.

Requirements

  • Fellows must currently work in a New York State recognized school as a K-12 teacher, librarian, or educational support specialist.
  • Fellows must work in a school located in the region served by the Community Foundation of Elmira-Corning and the Finger Lakes.
  • Fellowships require fellows to be in residence for a majority of their fellowship.
  • Fellows are expected to work on their proposed projects and future Mark Twain Studies lesson plans while they are in residency.
  • Collaborative educational teams must be limited to two people. The honorarium will be divided in half for each person.
  • Fellows will have the opportunity to lead the next year’s Mark Twain Summer Teachers Institute, a one-day workshop for local teachers interested in incorporating Mark Twain Studies more effectively in the classroom.  The workshop will be limited to 15 participants and take place at Quarry Farm.
  • Fellows must provide at least two-unit lesson plans of at least three lessons aimed at students somewhere between grades K-12.
  • The Fellow must relinquish their rights of the aforementioned lesson plan for the purpose of reproduction in perpetuity for publication by CMTS and Elmira College.
  • The lesson plans will be archived on the CMTS website and made available at no cost to the general public.
  • CMTS recognizes that many teachers, librarians, and educational support specialists do   not have the ability to be away from their home for an extended period of time due to domestic and professional obligations. As a result, successful applicants may propose a shortened residency of 3-7 days, if required by their circumstances, for projects to be continued at their home base.

    Elementary School Field Trip to Quarry Farm

    Application Process

    Applications must be submitted to Dr. Joseph Lemak, the Director of the Center for Mark Twain Studies at jl****@****ra.edu. Applications for 2027 will be accepted until November 30, 2026. Applicants are notified when applications are received, and are notified of the fellowship competition outcome by January 31, 2027.  Please make sure to include the following:

     

    • Contact and biographical information about the applicant
    • Current resume or CV of no more than 10 pages
    • A cover letter of no more than 1500 words describing the pedagogical project(s) and its/their progress to date
    • The proposal should explain how access to the unique setting and resources at Quarry Farm will inform/enable the educational project and lesson plans
    • The proposal should express if the applicant is willing to lead a one-day Mark Twain Studies workshop for other local teachers, along with a proposed overview of the workshop.

    Application Criteria

    Fellows will be chosen by a six-person selection committee. Applications will be judged on the following factors:

    • The project’s potential value to Mark Twain Studies in general
    • The project’s potential value to local classrooms
    • The clarity, relevance, and current status of the specific project being proposed.

    2027 Quarry Farm Fellowship Committee

    • Kristi Gates-Radford, 2026 recipient of the Hayden Teaching Fellowship and Corning-Painted Post High School English teacher
    • Carl Hayden, representive of the Carl and Cindy Hyden family
    • Randi Hewitt, president of the Community Foundation of the Elmira-Corning and the Southern Finger Lakes
    • Donna Homuth, community member-at-large
    • Joseph Lemak, director of the Center for Mark Twain Studies
    • Barbara Snedecor, Mark Twain Studies scholar and director emerita of the Center for Mark Twain Studies

    Past Carl and Cindy Hayden Teaching Fellows

     

    Kristie Gates-Radford (2026)

    Kristie Gates Radford is a dedicated educator and International Baccalaureate (IB) Coordinator at Corning-Painted Post High School. Her career is defined by a commitment to academic rigor, equity, and holistic student development. She teaches IB English and Theory of Knowledge while serving on several district committees, including the Safe & Supportive Schools Committee. Radford also leads community-focused initiatives such as Hawks Thrive, a school-based food center, and sponsors student equity teams. Her efforts to create inclusive learning environments earned her the inaugural Equity Catalyst Award from Corning Incorporated.

    Her project, titled “Spirituality, Faith, and Moral Ambiguity,” investigates how the “moral flip”—choosing personal conscience over social dogma—is reflected in the American vernacular tradition. The project places Mark Twain’s The Adventures of Huckleberry Finn in conversation with Zora Neale Hurston’s Their Eyes Were Watching God and the contemporary lyrics of Kendrick Lamar at the center of its investigation. By examining immoral protagonists who tell holy stories, she aims to develop a cross-disciplinary curriculum and specific lesson plans for her Higher Level IB English A: Literature  course. The research highlights radical empathy and spiritual agency outside traditional institutions.