Undergraduate Opportunities

Undergraduate Research Awards

Awards are given to Calvin College faculty members for research projects, with the funding utilized to engage Calvin student fellows to work in collaboration with the faculty member on a particular research endeavor related to the Christian faith and public life. This program seeks to enable Calvin faculty to facilitate certain aspects of their research goals, as well as to provide the opportunity to personally mentor undergraduates in scholarly research. Applications for the research funding are considered by the Henry Institute Governing Board in the spring of each year, for the following academic year.

Henry Institute Undergraduate Fellowship

The Henry Institute offers academic year opportunities for Calvin College undergraduate students to pursue research in cooperation with Institute faculty. A limited number of summer research opportunities for graduate and undergraduate students from any college or university are also available, as negotiated between the student and Institute faculty.

Several Henry Institute Undergraduate Fellowships are available each year for selected students, providing an opportunity to engage in research and activities related to the study of Christianity and politics.

Institutional Research Programs

The Henry Institute has created a dataset archive of surveys conducted since the 1940s on religion and politics. The surveys include general public opinion surveys, and also targeted surveys of, for example, members or clergy of particular denominations and religious traditions. These surveys are available to researchers interested in these issues. Click here for a complete list of datasets.

The Institute also conducts, alone or in conjunction with other scholars, research projects involving the range of interconnections between religion and politics, public officials, and public policy.

The Cooperative Clergy Research Project

The Cooperative Clergy Research Project program involved about 25 scholars from many colleges and universities who examined the opinions and activities of clergy from a variety of religious traditions in the context of faith and political belief, action and activities. The survey results have been compiled and form Pulpit and Politics, a book published in 2004.

The Civic Responsibility Project

In 2005,2006, and 2007, the Henry Institute has received an ongoing grant from the Lynde and Harry Bradley Foundation to examine the relationships between religion and civic responsibility. Five researchers are examining various aspects of this interrelationship as part of the grant on Religion and Civic Responsibility.