Scholarship & Award Opportunities

The Richard Meisler Writing Award in American Studies: 

The Richard Meisler Writing Award in American Studies:  Starting in 2017, American Culture will make an annual $500 award for an outstanding essay in American studies. This writing award is named in honor of our cherished colleague and department advisor, Richard Meisler, who took great delight in getting to know our students’ unique talents and perspectives. In that spirit, this award recognizes those same talents as they are so often reflected in their outstanding writing and research. 

ELIGIBILITY

Must be a current student in the Department of American Culture of any class standing. This includes students in the American Culture Major, Latina/o Studies Major, Ethnic Studies Sub-Major, American Culture Minor, Latina/o Studies Minor, Asian/Pacific Islander American Studies Minor, Arab and Muslim American Studies Minor, and Native American Studies Minor. Essay must be written no earlier than the most recent winter term, and the student must be enrolled during the term in which the essay is written. Only one entry per student.

CRITERIA

Essays will be evaluated on originality, clarity of presentation, and contribution to understanding an aspect of American Culture, but they do not have to be written for an AMCULT class. Example topics include issues emerging from race and ethnic studies, history, literature, media studies, performance studies, women's studies, LGBTQ studies, the social sciences, and other related fields.

FORMAT

Essays should have a title, be between 5 and 30 pages, be typed and double-spaced, and include notes and/or a bibliography. Please do not put your name anywhere on the essay.

A scholarship for students with financial need who are majoring/minoring in American Culture or one of our Ethnic Studies minors. 
The Siegel Scholarship was established through a gift from the late Joel S. Siegel.

A scholarship for students with financial need who are studying American Culture.
The scholarship was established in 2015 to honor Robert J. McCannell's memory and pay forward the generosity afforded student athlete, Elizabeth McCannell, in the form of scholarships during her time as a University of Michigan Women's Rowing student-athlete with degrees in American Culture and History. The Donor hopes that this gift will inspire the recipients to give back to the University in the future to assist other students with their financial needs.