Our scholarships and awards include:
Scholarships & Awards
Carleton T. Hodge Prize
The Carleton T. Hodge Prize was established by the African Studies Program to recognize annually one of our advanced Ph.D. students for their commitment to excellence in African Studies. Those eligible for the award are Indiana University students in any discipline, who are advanced in the Ph.D. program, have a concentration on topics relating to Africa, and are actively engaged in African Studies Program activities.
Roy Sieber Fellowship Award
This graduate student fellowship provides financial support for African Studies students to travel for African Studies focused presentations at conferences, either domestic or international. This fellowship is awarded annually on a competitive basis through nomination by Faculty and/or Professional Staff of the African Studies Program. Graduate students must be seeking and MA, PhD or PhD Minor with and African Studies focus. Preference is given to 1) students conducting research on African arts and culture, 2) international students, 3) students who have not received conference travel assistance in the past.
The fellowship is funded by the Sieber family in memory of the late IU Emeritus Professor Dr. Roy Sieber, Rudy Distinguished Professor of Art, Arts of Africa, Oceania, and the Americas (1962-1994). Dr. Sieber was the first American Scholar to receive a PhD in African Art and was a founding influence in African Art History, as well as the broader field of African Studies. He joined the faculty at Indiana University in 1962 as one of the original scholars associated with the African Studies Program (ASP) and helped grow the IU academic program into an internationally recognized leader in African Studies and African arts and culture. Dr. Sieber encouraged graduate students, faculty and others in the ethical collection and donation of works of art for the then IU Art Museum. Now the Eskenazi Museum of Art (EMA), its collections of African, South Pacific and Indigenous Americas are among the best in the U.S. and internationally known because of his and his students’ efforts. In 1993, he was asked to join the staff at the Smithsonian and assisted in the development of the National Museum of African Art with Warren Robbins. He would serve at the national institution for 10 years while at IU. For his dedication to African Studies, he was awarded a Distinguished Africanist Award for a lifetime of distinctions by the African Studies Association.
Patrick O’Meara Conference Travel Award
The African Studies Program offers supplementary assistance (up to $300 travel support) to Indiana University Bloomington African Studies students (M.A. degree students and Ph.D. minor students) who are presenting Africa-focused papers at academic conferences. Awards are made on a competitive basis, with no more than three awards each year. Preference is given students who have not received assistance in the past.
This award is named after Professor Patrick O’Meara, who served as vice-president for international affairs and as emeritus and former African Studies program director. The funds are royalties donated by the current Africa Today editors.
African Students Research Award
The IU African Students Research Award was established to assist Indiana University Bloomington graduate students who are African nationals with research or writing leading to the Ph.D. minor or the master’s degree in African Studies. Awards are dependent upon individual donations to the ASP program’s scholarships and awards fund.
Certificate of Appreciation
Awarded annually to exceptional undergraduates and graduate students in the ASP by the ASP faculty, director, and associate director. They may be awarded for academic excellence and/or service to the program.
Foreign Language & Area Studies Fellowships
Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowships are funded by the Department of Education and support undergraduate and graduate students studying less commonly taught languages and cultures, particularly those of critical interest to the United States. FLAS fellowships help fund students who intend to make their careers in college or university teaching, government service, or other employment where knowledge of foreign languages and cultures is a prerequisite for success.