For Immediate Release
August 15, 2006
Contact: Melanie McDonald, director of public relations, 574-284-4579

Fellowship Worth up to $24,00 Available for Future Teachers

NOTRE DAME, Ind.—The James Madison Memorial Fellowship Foundation, a federally endowed and privately funded program designed to strengthen instruction about the Constitution in the nation’s schools, will award generous fellowships in 2006 for master’s degree-level graduate study of the framing and history of the U.S. Constitution. “College seniors and college graduates who intend to become secondary school teachers of American history, American government, or social studies are eligible for the fellowships,” explains Dale Banks, chair of the Saint Mary’s College Education Department and a local fellowship representative.

Through a nationwide competition, James Madison Fellowships will be awarded to at least one legal resident of each state, the District of Columbia, Puerto Rico, and other U.S. territories. After completing study under their fellowships, James Madison Fellows are required to teach American history, American government, or social studies in grades 7-12 for a minimum of one year for each academic year of graduate assistance they receive.

Fellowships carry a maximum stipend of $24, 000 for up to two years of full-time study for college graduates, which is used to cover the costs of tuition, required fees, books, and room and board. Fellows must enroll in graduate programs leading to master’s degrees in American history, political science, or education offered by an accredited U.S. university. Participation in an accredited four-week Summer Institute held at Georgetown University on the principles, framing, ratification and implementation of the Constitution and Bill of Rights is required of all Fellows, normally during the summer after the commencement of study. The Madison Foundation pays for fellows’ attendance at the Summer Institute.

Details about the program may be obtained locally from Dale Banks at Saint Mary’s College, 574-284-4701, dbanks@saintmarys.edu or from the James Madison Fellowship Program, P.O. Box 4030, Iowa City, IA 52243-4030; telephone 1-800-525-6928; e-mail madison@act.org. Application materials may be downloaded from the Foundation’s website: www.jamesmadison.com. Application materials must be received by March 1.

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