Potential Applicants
Calvin
College established the Graduate Study Fellowship program to enhance
the recruitment of ethnic minority persons to the college faculty.
The college has declared an all-college need to increase the presence
of minority faculty members. Applicants for these fellowships shall
be North American ethnic minority persons who:
- are college graduates
or in their senior year,
- plan to enter a graduate program leading
to a terminal degree, & are willing to commit themselves to the obligations
required of recipients of the fellowship as stated below.
Obligations
Fellowship
recipients must teach (or provide a service mutually agreed upon by the
recipient and the college) long enough for total earnings from salary
(excluding fringe benefits) to equal twice the cumulative amount of money
received from-the fellowship program or reimburse the college the cumulative
amount received plus an interest charge. The interest charge shall be
eight percent (8%) per year. The maximum obligation to Calvin is not to
exceed four years of full-time employed service.
Fellowship
Guidelines
Fellowships
will range from a minimum of $ 1,000 to a maximum of $15,000 per academic
year and will be considered annually. The amount of the fellowship will
be based on financial need and will be determined by estimated living
expenses, the cost of tuition at the institution the student will be attending,
the student's (and spouse's, i applicable) own resources, and other aid
the student is receiving. For each recipient, there will be a limit of
two fellowships for a master's degree and a total of four for a doctoral
degree. Actual disbursement of the fellowship is contingent on acceptance
in an approved graduate program A maximum of four years of graduate study
towards a master's degree and a maximum of seven years for, a doctoral
degree will be allowed.
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The
Application Process
- The applicant may present his or her letter of application to either the, Dean for Multicultural Affairs or to the appropriate department.
The application letter should identify a) current educational status,
b) the area of graduate study the applicant intends to pursue, c)
universities the applicant is applying or intends to apply, d) his
or her long range career goals in higher education, & e) his or her
desire to teach in a Reformed, Christian college. The application letter
should also list those asked to submit letters of recommendation.
- The applicant
should ask three persons to submit letters of recommendation to either
the Dean for Multicultural Affairs or to the appropriate
department. At least one should be a person who knows you well in an
academic role and at least one should be a pastor who knows you well
enough to.comment on your Christian commitment and life.
- When the application
file is complete, the department reviews the file. Applicants whose
nomination departments decide not to pursue will be notified by letter.
Other applicants will be invited for departmental interview. If the
process ends at this point, the applicant will be notified by letter.
- To nominate an
applicant, a department must submit to the Dean for Instruction, together
with the complete application, a letter proposing a plan for how the
applicant will fit the staffing needs of the department and rationale
for the nomination. The appropriate academic dean presents the nomination
to the Professional Status Committee (PSC). The PSC makes final selection,
subsequent to its review of the application materials and a personal
interview with the applicant.
- Applicants selected
for the Fellowship must complete two financial documents each year,
the FAF and a projected budget developed with the Dean for Instruction.
Also, they must submit transcripts and a letter from their advisor each
year.
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Frequently
Asked Questions
- What happens
if a fellowship recipient does not make sufficient progress, toward
a degree, discontinues his or her graduate study, or does not fulfill
the teaching obligation to Calvin at the conclusion of graduate studies?
He or she will be required to reimburse Calvin, beginning from the time
the student discontinues, the amount of support given plus an interest
charge of eight percent per year
- What happens
if Calvin College cannot provide a teaching (or comparable obligation
service) opportunity at the conclusion of the fellowship period?
Calvin College. would absolve the obligation to repay the college.
- How can, a
department accurately project their needs?
The projection should include both identification of the area of specialization
within the department toward which this applicant would eventually direct
his or her teaching and scholarship and the long range identification
of openings in a way similar to the approach used with State of Department
reports.
- What type of
appointment is given for the obligation period?
Normally, a term (non-tenure track) position is used for the obligation
period; the expectation is that a tenure-track position will be provided
ai the conclusion of the obligation period.
- Are Calvin's faculty requirements relative to the confessions, church membership,
and Christian schooling (see the explanatory document, available from
the academic deans) operative?
Yes, with respect to the commitments each party is making for each other.
Term appointees are expected to affirm the Reformed confessions and
are required to sign the denomination's form of subscription. While
term appointees are strongly encouraged to meet the church membership
and Christian school requirements, this is not mandatory in the first
two year of such appointments. Those holding tenure-track appointments
must' meet all requirements, normally by the beginning of the second
year of the tenure-track appointment.
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