Beginning in 2014, the John C. Culver Institute of Politics Scholarship will be awarded annually with full tuition toward a graduate degree at the John F. Kennedy School of Government.
Elon University students active in the National Campaign for Political and Civic Engagement and interested in pursuing graduate studies in public service will be eligible to apply for a new scholarship opportunity announced today by Harvard’s Institute of Politics.
Beginning in 2014, the John C. Culver Institute of Politics Scholarship will be awarded annually and provide full tuition for two years toward a graduate degree at the John F. Kennedy School of Government in Cambridge, Mass.
Eligible applicants will include students active at the IOP at Harvard or in public service programming at Elon University and other participating organizations within the IOP’s National Campaign for Political and Civic Engagement, a consortium of 24 colleges and universities around the country committed to creating more politically and civically engaged campuses. Participating schools work on their own campus and collaboratively in three key areas: establishing an ongoing relationship with electoral politics, focusing on career development in public service, and ensuring a foundation in civic education.
The scholarship is named after John C. Culver, who has served on the Harvard IOP Senior Advisory Committee since 1975 – 14 years as chairman – and now holds the committee post of Chair Emeritus. Culver also served as the IOP’s interim director from July 2010 until January 2011. He served five terms in the U.S. House of Representatives as a Democratic representative from Iowa’s second district, winning his first election in 1964, and served one term in the U.S. Senate from 1975 until 1981.
“Our students and staff are very proud to work with Harvard’s National Campaign for Political and Civic Engagement, which has helped underscore the value of public service for countless Elon students,” said Assistant Professor Matthew Weidenfeld, Director of the National Campaign at Elon. “The new John C. Culver Institute of Politics Scholarship will be of great interest to our students and allow even more to continue this important work after college.”
The application process for the John C. Culver Institute of Politics Scholarship will open in the spring of 2014 to support graduate study at Harvard Kennedy School in the fall and cover full two-year tuition and mandatory fees. Selection for a John C. Culver Institute of Politics Scholarship is based upon the candidate’s strong record of academic achievement, demonstrated commitment to politics and public service and proven leadership ability. Strong consideration will be given to candidates who actively participated in their undergraduate organization affiliated with the National Campaign for Political and Civic Engagement.
In addition to taking action to spur student political involvement on their respective campuses, the National Campaign consortium works during the academic year to:
– Issue specific recommendations for government, media, campaigns, and educational institutions to promote political and civic engagement;
– Collect and make available key research; and
– Create new training opportunities for organizations and individuals seeking to promote youth engagement and participation.
Each semester, Elon University student members of the National Campaign plan and sponsor voter registration drives and student political debates. They assist classmates with voter registration procedures and absentee ballot requests. Regardless of students’ political affiliation or ideology, the National Campaign aims to increase overall political awareness and participation at Elon and across the country.
More Information is available online at http://www.elon.edu/e-web/students/ippa/national_campaign.