Thanks to the generosity of Donald and June Brown, David and Sylvia Nelson, Amy Rose Silverman, and many other generous donors, the Residential College awarded $29,300 in the winter 2018 term to 25 RC students for spring and summer term study abroad and internship opportunities. This round of applications was highly competitive, with the largest number of applications to date. Awards were based upon many factors but in particular: the strength and clarity of the application, student and family need, and commitment to sharing the learning with RC peers upon return to Ann Arbor were prioritized. Awardees received funds to participate in the RC's Semester in Detroit Program, the New England Literature Program (NELP), to offset expenses for internship opportunities in Washington, D.C., Dominican Republic, Ann Arbor, New York City, and California, and to study in Japan, Switzerland, Spain, Cuba, Netherlands, England, Brazil, and France. 

About her participating in the Prison Creative Arts Project program in Brazil, the awardee says:"This study abroad is the ideal setting in which to explore the meaning of community engagements by using theater to show the power that the creative arts have to promote self and community growth. I will be working in a Brazilian prison, Maré Favela, and several hospitals. These are all areas with high risk of violence, poverty, sickness and few resources. It is in these circumstances that the creative arts can be so powerful––when there are few ways to explore one’s identity or to connect with others."

By attending NELP, "I will be capable of spending six and a half weeks reading works of literature while being removed from all distractions and learning to be a literary critic in a way that a regular classroom setting has never permitted. I wanted the ability to focus on fostering my growth as a literary critic in a concentrated fashion. I believe that being able to be around a cohort of individuals with the same goal will allow my skills as literary critic and passion for it to flourish exponentially."

"I am a participant in the U of M Public Service Internship Program (PSIP), which sends a number of students to Washington, D. C. each year to intern in a variety of fields. I have  applied to a number of nonprofits and internships focusing on human rights, which is the area I’d like to focus on, as I hope to be a human rights advocate in my future career."

 

Thank you to all the students who applied for funding this summer. We wish we had the resources to fund every request we received. May you all have amazing experiences wherever in the world you may be this spring and summer! 

Thanks to the generosity of donors, the Residential College provides funding opportunities each semester for RC students. Please be on the lookout for notifications about the application requirements and deadlines after the start of the Fall and Winter semesters.