Weed Research Fellowships

The Weed Summer Research Scholars Program provides opportunities for African American, Asian American, Latina, or Native American students to develop their skills in research and work closely with a faculty mentor on a specific project in the humanities or social sciences. Students apply through the Universal Application Form. The primary selection criteria for the award are the student's desire to participate in active research, her preparation to conduct the research, her academic achievement, and her career interests. A primary goal of the program is to provide support for talented students who want to pursue a doctorate in an academic field and introduce them to the challenges and rewards of a career in higher education.

Program Objectives

• Provide opportunities for students to work independently with the support of a faculty mentor on a significant research project that might continue in the year following the summer work.
• Support students who plan to pursue careers in college teaching and research.
• Present research at the LEAP Symposium in the fall.

Eligibility Criteria
The Weed program is open to rising juniors and seniors who are US citizens of African American, Asian American, Latina, or Native American descent. Students may need specific coursework in order to be eligible for particular research projects; the faculty mentor will indicate such required coursework. Mentors provide support to scholars to help them fulfill their responsibility for presenting their summer research work and experiences to other students and faculty at the LEAP Symposium in the fall.

Stipends
The selection committee will decide on the appropriate funding level for each student; the decisions will be based on financial need and duration of the project. Awards are $2,500 for either domestic or international projects.  In addition, students may be reimbursed for up to $1,000 for books, travel and other research-related expenses (receipts required) and be eligible for a grant to partially replace summer earnings. The Weed Award is considered a scholarship and therefore is not taxed by the College. It can, however, be taxable to the individual and should be reported as "other income," when the student files her tax returns. She should be sure to keep receipts or other documentation to show how the money granted to her was spent.

Selection Criteria
Weed Scholars will meet the following criteria:
 
• 3.0 or higher cumulative grade point average (GPA)
• Evidence of required coursework
• Faculty recommendation and commitment to support the student during the summer and continuing into the following academic year
• Student’s desire to pursue research topics in the humanities and the social sciences
• Student's statement of academic and career interests, including pursuit of a doctorate and a career in higher education 

Faculty Eligibility for Mentoring Student Researchers:

Faculty Mentors support prospective Research Scholars by writing a letter of recommendation on behalf of the student’s proposed project.   Mentors perform the critical task of conveying the complexities of academic research.  They are expected to work closely with student researchers in designing and helping them complete the research they will be undertaking.  Mentors must provide support and guidance to students as they develop the presentations of their summer research work and experiences for other students and faculty at the LEAP Symposium held each fall.  The mentor practices with the student as she prepares her presentation and approves the researcher’s abstract for inclusion in the Symposium’s program.  Mentors should encourage and assist scholars to continue their independent study in their remaining time at the College.  They should advise scholars on their applications to graduate school.

Any member of the teaching faculty may:

• Commit to being a faculty mentor for a prospective Weed Research Scholar’s proposed project
• Recruit a particular student and encourage her to submit the UAF to apply for a Weed Scholarship to work on research in which the faculty member is actively involved ( i.e., research that will hopefully stimulate an interest in academic research and academic life)
• Support prospective Weed Scholars by writing a letter of recommendation on behalf of a student’s proposed project with another faculty member

Faculty mentors will have access to an expense budget of up to $300 to use for research-related expenses during the academic year following the Weed Scholar’s summer research. 

Faculty members who will serve as mentors will be asked to complete a Faculty Mentor-Scholar Agreement, after their students have been awarded Weed Scholarships.