Scholarships and Prizes
2008 Scholarship winners
The Women's Studies Program usually awards approximately $25,000. in scholarships every year. In 2009, however, due to the financial crisis and lack of yield on endowment funds, WMS awarded much less, but still offered something for scholarship recipients. The largest proportion usually comes from the Eleanor M. and Oscar M. Carlson scholarship endowment for single mothers. The rest is awarded to Women's Studies majors and minors, and is usually derived from several endowments: the Eleanor M. Carlson Trust, the Dorothy F. Donnelly Endowment and the Mother Jones endowment. In alternate years, the WMS Program awards the Dana Shugar Memorial Scholarship. Please keep posted for updates on scholarship awards for 2010.
Eleanor M. & Oscar M. Carlson Endowed Scholarship for Single Mothers
Established by Eleanor M. Carlson, this scholarship is awarded annually. While the award is for a year, the progress of recipients is checked after the fall semester. If there is an academic problem, change of marital status or a dependent is no longer in the household, the scholarship may be terminated. Scholarship holders may reapply for subsequent years.
Criteria
Student must be a woman who is a single-parent head of household with one or more dependent children. Preference will be given to candidates who meet one or more of the following criteria:
- Candidates who have followed a non-traditional educational track.
- Candidates with financial need.
- Candidates in good academic standing with at least 12 credits at college/university level.
- Rhode Island residents.
- Candidates pursuing a major or minor in Women's Studies.
The scholarship is advertised in March of each year. Applications may be requested by calling the Women's Studies Office at (401) 874-5150 or by downloading the application by clicking on the link above. In addition to information requested about the applicant and her dependent child(ren), each applicant is asked to attach a statement which addresses the following points: information about herself; what she has been doing since leaving high school; how the scholarship will help her to attain her educational goals; and her future plans after graduation. Recipients are notified in early summer.
The Eleanor M. Carlson Trust Scholarship
Established with a bequest from Eleanor M. Carlson for students enrolled in the Women's Studies Program. The scholarship amount is determined by the funds generated by the endowment. The scholarship amount is determined by the funds generated by the endowment.
Criteria
Students must be a major or minor in Women's Studies who has completed 24 undergraduate credits in any subject. Additionally, two Women's Studies courses, one of which has a WMS designation, must be completed by the time of the award. Preference will be given to candidates who meet one or more of the following criteria:
- High academic achievement.
- Participation in community and/or campus service.
- Financial need.
Recipients are notified in early summer. Recipients of the Carlson Endowed Scholarship for Single Mothers are ineligible for the Carlson Trust Scholarship. If no suitable applicants for the Trust Scholarship are identified, the Women's Studies Program reserves the right to consider applicants who have received the Carlson Scholarship for Single Mothers.
The Eleanor M. Carlson Award
The Eleanor M. Carlson Award is given to an outstanding graduating student in Women's Studies whose qualifications may include: contributions to the campus or community; job or family commitment; feminist scholarship or activities; leadership or voluntary service; and academic excellence.
Selection is determined by the Women's Studies Advisory Committee.
The Dorothy Donnelly Scholarship
The WMS Program is pleased to announce the Dorothy F. Donnelly Scholarship to be awarded to a major or minor in Women's Studies based on a combination of academic excellence, community, campus service and financial need. The award in 2009 will be $250.
"Mother" Jones Scholarship
Endowment established by Patricia Farnes, M.D., and increased by the bequest of Lucile Farnes. The scholarship amount is determined by the funds generated by the endowment. Award amounts may vary from year to year.
Criteria
Student must be a major or minor in Women's Studies who has completed at least two Women's Studies courses, one of which has a WMS designation, by the time of the award. Selection is based on financial need as determined by rankings from the Financial Aid Office. Among students who are equally needy, academic excellence will be the determining factor in the selection. Applications are announced in March and available here. The scholarship is also announced in The Cigar. Recipients are notified in June.
The Dana Shugar Memorial Scholarship
The Dana Shugar Memorial Scholarship was established by Dr. Sam and Shirley Shugar in memory of their daughter, Dana R. Shugar (1961-2000), a Professor of English and Women's Studies. Recipients are selected by the English Department in the spring of even-numbered years (2006, 2008, etc) and by the Women's Studies Program in the spring of odd-numbered years (2007, 2009, etc).
Scholarships are announced in March, and applications are available here.
Patricia Farnes Essay Contest
Deadline for entries in Spring 2010 will be announced. They will be submitted to the WMS Office, Roosevelt 315. No emailed or faxed submissions.
The Women's Studies Program offers a prize for an outstanding paper on any topic of feminist scholarship. Three finalists will be selected by a panel of judges from the Women's Studies Advisory Committee. The first-place winner will receive $50 and a certificate. Second- and third- place winners will receive Honorable Mention certificates. (The judges have the option of recommending that no first-, second-, or third-place prize be awarded if there is no paper of sufficient excellence.)
The prizes will be awarded at the Fredrika Wild Schweers Memorial Lecture or at another WMS sponsored event.
Criteria
The contest is open to all URI undergraduates enrolled for the 2009-2010 academic year. Papers may be submitted by students or nominated by any faculty member. Each student may submit only one paper. Faculty may nominate up to three papers each.
Submissions may be critical, theoretical, analytical, or interpretive, but the subject matter must be approached from a feminist perspective and must follow a standard academic format (e.g. MLA, APA, Turabian, etc.)
Essays should be written without assuming that readers are familiar with particular methodologies or with the works being discussed. Therefore, essays originally written for a course may require revision for a generally educated and interested audience, but without any specific knowledge of the subject matter.
Essays will be judged on strength of argument, clarity of writing, quality of writing, and attention to m
Submissions should be 1,200 to 3,000 words long, which is approximately 5-10 pages (given one-inch margins and using 10- or 12- point type). Shorter or longer papers will be disqualified automatically.
Essays should include full documentation of all sources and a reference list.
If the essay has been submitted elsewhere, please include information on previous submissions (e.g. the course for which the paper was prepared and the context of its preparation, the publication for which the essay was written.)
Include your name, local address, telephone number, and word count on the cover page. Your name should appear only on the cover page, which will be removed for anonymous judging. Please number all pages after the cover page. The prize-winners will be notified in June.
Scholarship Winners
View Lists of Past Scholarship and Award Winners
List of Legacies
Legacy of Eleanor Carlson
- 51 full tuition scholarships to single mothers.
- 27 partial scholarships.
- Annual Lecture series has reached an audience of 1500 people.
- Endowed chair, currently held by Professor Donna Hughes.
- Library books.
More about the Legacy of Eleanor Carlson
Legacy of Patricia Farnes
- An annual essay contest prize.
- 29 scholarships.
- Fredrika Wild Schweers Memorial lecture series has reached an audience of 3600 people.
Legacy of Dana Shugar
- The Dana Shugar Library in the Women's Center.
- A scholarship offered in even years by the WMS Program; offered in odd-numbered years by the English Department.
