Childress Fellowships

A limited amount of financial assistance to upperclassman students majoring in history is available each semester and summer through funds provided by the Childress Family Foundation.  Amounts of individual awards, generally limited to modest sums, are designed to assist the student to meet a particular or unexpected situation and will be determined by the availability of funds and the circumstances of each applicant.

Grants may be made to meet all or part of tuition costs, to help in the purchase of texts and other required books, and to meet other special expenses of an academic or scholarly nature.  Funds under this program are not available for personal needs (such as food, housing, or transportation) and cannot be allocated for unspecified purposes or uses. Assistance is handled in general by budget transfers within the university. For example, the History Department might arrange to pay directly all or part of a tuition bill or a bookstore bill when receipts are presented. No cash is generally disbursed directly to individuals under this program. 

Eligibility and Requirements

Eligible for assistance are all full-time regular students who are juniors, seniors, or master's degree candidates majoring in history in one of the following programs:

Departmental major in history, teaching major in social studies, M.A. in History or Social Science. Assistance for any semester will be given only if the applicant is registered for a minimum of six semester hours of course work in history (including social studies methods and student teaching) during the semester for which aid is sought.

Eligibility is not determined by previous course grades or grade averages but preference will be given to applicants who have demonstrated sound academic ability and accomplishment. Similarly, specific career or academic objectives (such as teaching or pursuit of advanced degrees) are not required but the applicant's apparent potential for reaching his or her goals will be considered.

Applicants are required to submit at least two letters of recommendation with their completed application. One of the letters must be from a member of the Department of History. Recipients are expected to attend the History Department's Honors and Recognition Ceremony to be acknowledged for their achievement.

Selection and Notification

Decisions awarding assistance and determining the form and amount of aid are made by the Curriculum Committee after careful evaluation of all applications. The variations in the amount of money available each semester or summer and in the number and merit of applications make it impossible to specify how many awards might be made for any semester or summer. All applicants will be notified as soon as possible of the Committee's decisions.