The Fund for Latino Scholarship

The Fund's Purpose

While Latinos are the fastest growing subgroup in the United States and already comprise more than 12 percent of the total population, less than 2 percent of all political scientists are Latinos or Latinas. This significant underrepresentation within our discipline seriously limits our ability to adequately assess the political incorporation and impact of this increasingly important minority population. The Fund for Latino Scholarship was established to address this situation.

The primary purpose of the Fund for Latino Scholarship is to encourage and support the recruitment, retention and promotion of Latino/a political scientists. A secondary goal is to support research on Latino/a politics.

The fund will award grants to initiatives that: 1) identify promising Latino/a undergraduates and encourage them to enter the profession of political science; 2) provide professional opportunities and financial assistance to Latino/a graduate students in political science programs; 3) support the teaching, research and publishing activities of junior-level, tenure track Latino/a political science faculty; and 4) support activities that advance our knowledge of Latino/a politics.

Guidelines for Grants

Deadline August 3, 2008 

1. The Fund's priority will be travel assistance to young scholars and institutional proposals for student recruitment and retention.  Latino/a scholars (whatever their research field), and all scholars (including non-Latinos/as) who are studying Latino politics in the U.S., are eligible for support. 

2. Three travel grants of $550 and one institutional grant of $1000.

3. In our view, applicant scholars will gain the most by using this grant to travel to the annual meeting of the American Political Science Association.  Many scholars from across political science subfields will be in attendance; employment interviews and professional development are offered; the Latino Caucus for Political Science, and the APSA Committee on the Status of Latinas y Latinos in the Profession, will hold annual meetings; and significant audiences for your research -- among fellow scholars, granting agencies, and publishers -- will be found.

4. We will also consider travel assistance for other purposes, including 1) field research; 2) attendance at a different scholarly conference; or 3) participation in a program of the APSA Centennial Center for Political Science and Public Affairs.

5. Institutional proposals to enhance the recruitment and retention of Latino/a undergraduate and/or graduate students, must include certification that the host institution, department, or program will provide direct financial support at least equal to the maximum $1000 grant from the Fund. Previous successful experience with similar projects would be advantageous, but is not required; we encourage institutional applicants to be innovative.

6. Each grantee must submit a two-page application form, available online, summarizing current research activities which are relevant to the grant. This form may be submitted electronically or by hard copy, but must in either case be submitted to us, postmarked or electronically time-stamped no later than August 3, 2008.

• Download APSA Fund for Latino Scholarship Application (.pdf)

Eligible Applicants

Grants may be awarded to any programs and/or individuals involved in the successful recruitment of promising Latinos into the discipline of political science or, alternatively, grants may be given directly to individual Latino/Latina students (at both undergraduate and graduate levels) who are participating in discipline-related programs and activities. Latino political science faculty in tenure-track positions are also eligible to apply for and receive Latino Fund grants to be used for teaching, research or publishing activities. Individuals conducting research on Latino politics are also eligible to apply.

Supporting the Fund for Latino Scholarship

Find out how to support the Fund for Latino Scholarship at Support Political Science.