Fellowship
About the Fellowship
Each year, the Center selects fellows from a broad range of disciplines and backgrounds such as law, journalism, higher education, social science, technology and government.
The Center welcomes candidates from all backgrounds to apply, and invites a wide range of innovative projects. As part of the University of California, the Center is committed to promoting diversity and equal opportunity in its education, services and administration, as well as research and creative activity. We are focused on projects that address current issues affecting students, staff, administrators and faculty and will have a direct impact on individuals and communities across campuses. Work products can take many forms such as (but not limited to) qualitative/quantitative research, curricular modules, toolkits or training programs/pilots.
As a Center fellow, you will be welcomed into a community of practitioners, students, educators and scholars who share the common purpose of advancing the mission of the Center. Incoming fellows are connected with former fellows and become part of a larger UC-wide and national network of higher education stakeholders, advocates and policymakers.
This year we are particularly interested in the following issues:
- How best to safeguard academic freedom in response to the national and global climate including legislative assaults and other threats to the creation and transmission of knowledge;
- Exploring the interaction between anti-discrimination laws and expression on campus;
- Navigating values-based polarization and political partisanship in higher education;
- The role of AI and/or social media in the future of free speech and civic engagement in higher education;
- Higher education’s role in supporting democracy and democratic learning;
- Strategies for engaging students, faculty, and staff in democratic governance and policy making at the institutional, local, and national level;
- The relationship between civic engagement and anti-authoritarianism;
- The intersection of climate and expression on campus, including the impact of national and international events;
- The role of civic engagement and service-learning work in restoring public trust in higher education.
We also welcome additional themes, topics and activities that fit within the Center’s mission.
