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SHAFR Opinion

Visions of War

by Susan Brewer

On December 15th President Barack Obama welcomed home U.S. troops from a war he once had called “dumb.” His speech avoided the reasons why the Iraq War was fought and focused instead on honoring the American servicemen and women who fought it.  Inspiring words–“extraordinary achievement,” “honor,” “sacrifice,” “finest fighting force,” “unbroken line of heroes,” “progress [...]

Newt Gingrich and the (ab)Uses of History

by Andrew Johnstone

It is an honor to join the SHAFR blogging team for 2011-12.  While SHAFR is (as the name makes perfectly clear) a society that focuses on the history of American foreign relations, there is no doubt that we are as well placed as anyone to make connections between historical events and contemporary issues in American [...]

Issues for the 2012 Presidential Election

by Nick Sarantakes

The United States of America is about to enter a presidential election year.  Actually, it already has entered the political season.  The election of 2012 will most likely turn on economics, but as Andy Johns pointed out in his blog, foreign policy is always important and next year’s contest will be no different.  In addition, [...]

W(h)ither the Bilateral Study?: what of the History of U.S. Foreign Policy can tell us about the Emergent Multilateral World

by James Siekmeier

Back during the Cold War, bilateral studies were common. Indeed the proliferation of bilateral studies seemed to be almost a natural process—it was thought that we humans were seemingly biologically hard-wired to separate things in to this/that, either/or,  good/evil, etc.
Recently, however, the genre of “United States and …[insert country name here] “ studies seem to [...]

Rising Isolationism, A Renewed Danger?

by Christopher McKnight Nichols

It is an honor to be kicking off the blog for the Society for Historians of American Foreign Relations for the fall of 2011. I thank Andrew Johns, Brian Etheridge, and the officers of SHAFR for the invitation, and I look forward to an excellent year of diverse debates and dynamic discussions.
For this column, which [...]

A Note from Europe: The End of the World is Nigh

by Michaela Hoenicke Moore

The mid-July headline of the German newspaper Sueddeutsche Zeitung (SZ) commenting on the two debt crises in Europe and the United States reads “The End of the World Is Near – But Only for You.” The article cleverly illustrates the deepening transatlantic gap when it comes to political and economic frames of reference. Americans are [...]

Moving Beyond (and Before) the Cold War

by David Ekbladh

I’ll take up the point raised by Shane Maddock’s recent post on moving beyond the Cold War.  I share his feeling that the focus on the conflict has imposed its own “interpretive framework” on scholarship in U.S. foreign relations and international history generally and that this scaffolding can limit our understanding of a slew of [...]

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Fellowships/Grants

SHAFR Dissertation Completion Fellowship

SHAFR invites applications for its dissertation completion fellowship. SHAFR will make two, year-long awards, in the amount of $20,000 each, to support the writing and completion of the doctoral dissertation in the academic year 2011-12. These highly competitive fellowships will support the most promising doctoral candidates in the final phase of completing their dissertations. SHAFR membership is required.

Applicants should be candidates for the PhD in a humanities or social science doctoral program (most likely history), must have been admitted to candidacy, and must be at the writing stage, with all substantial research completed by the time of the award. Applicants should be working on a topic in the field of U.S. foreign relations history or international history, broadly defined, and must be current members of SHAFR. Because successful applicants are expected to finish writing the dissertation during the tenure of the fellowship, they should not engage in teaching opportunities or extensive paid work, except at the discretion of the Fellowship Committee. At the termination of the award period, recipients must provide a one page (250-word) report to the SHAFR Council on the use of the fellowship, to be considered for publication in Passport, the society newsletter.

The submission packet should include:

  • A one page application letter describing the project’s significance, the applicant’s status, other support received or applied for and the prospects for completion within the year
  • A three page (750 word) statement of the research
  • A curriculum vitae
  • A letter of recommendation from the primary doctoral advisor.

Applications should be sent by electronic mail to dissertation-fellowships@shafr.org., The subject line should clearly indicate “Last Name: SHAFR Dissertation Completion Fellowship.

The annual deadline for submissions is 1 April.  Fellowship awards will be decided by around May 1 and will be announced formally during the SHAFR annual meeting in June, with expenditure to be administered during the subsequent academic year.

Recent Winners:

  • 2010 Hajimu Masuda, Cornell University
    Sudina Paungpetch, Texas A&M University
  • 2009 Ryan Irwin, Ohio State University
    Mara Drogan, State University of New York, Albany
  • 2008 Min Song, University of Georgia
    Vanessa Mongey, University of Pennsylvania

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The Stuart L. Bernath Dissertation Research Grant

The Bernath Dissertation Grant of up to $4,000 is intended to help graduate students defray expenses encountered in the writing of their dissertations. The award is announced formally at the SHAFR luncheon held during the annual meeting of the American Historical Association. (Applicants for this award will be considered automatically for the Holt, Gelfand-Rappaport, and Bemis grants.)

Applicants must be actively working on dissertations dealing with some aspect of U.S. foreign relations history. Membership in SHAFR is required.

Procedures: Self-nominations are expected. Please download and complete the application found here. The annual deadline for applications is October 1. Submit materials to fellowships@shafr.org.  The subject line of the email should contain the LAST NAME OF APPLICANT only.

Within eight months of receiving the award, each successful applicant must file with the SHAFR Business Office a brief report on how the funds were spent. Such reports will be considered for publication in Passport.

Recent Winners:

  • 2011 Sarah Miller-Davenport
  • 2010 Kevin Arlyck
  • 2009 Christopher Dietrich
  • 2008 Jennifer Miller
  • 2007 Blair Woodard
  • 2006 Peter Shulman, Robert McGreevey
  • 2005 Jessica Chapman
  • 2004 Meredith Oyen
  • 2003 Adam Howard
  • 2002 Larry Grubbs
  • 2001 Hiroshi Kitamura; Clea Bunch
  • 2000 Joseph Henning
  • 1999 Elizabeth Kopelman Borgwardt; Deborah Kisatsky
  • 1998 Max Friedman
  • 1997 D’Arcy M. Brissman
  • 1996 David Fitzsimons
  • 1995 Amy L. S. Staples
  • 1994 Delia Pergande
  • 1993 R. Tyler Priest; Christian Ostermann
  • 1992 Shannon Smith
  • 1991 Eileen Scully
  • 1990 David McFadden
  • 1989 Thomas Zeiler; Russel Van Wyk
  • 1988 Elizabeth Cobbs; Madhu Bhalla
  • 1987 Janet M. Manson; Thomas M. Gaskin; W. Michael Weis; Michael Wala
  • 1986 Valdinia C. Winn; Walter Hixson
  • 1985 John Nielson

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The W. Stull Holt Dissertation Fellowship

The W. Stull Holt Dissertation Fellowship of up to $4,000 is intended to defray the costs of travel necessary to conduct research on a significant dissertation project. The award is announced formally at the SHAFR luncheon held during the annual meeting of the American Historical Association. (Applicants for this award will be considered automatically for the Stuart L. Bernath, Gelfand-Rappaport, and Bemis grants.)

Applicants must be actively working on dissertations dealing with some aspect of U.S. foreign relations history. Membership in SHAFR is required.

Procedures: Self-nominations are expected. Please download and complete the application found here. The annual deadline for applications is October 1. Submit materials to fellowships@shafr.org.  The subject line of the email should contain the LAST NAME OF APPLICANT only.

Within eight months of receiving the award, each successful applicant must file with the SHAFR Business Office a brief report on how the funds were spent. Such reports will be considered for publication in Passport.

Recent Winners:

  • 2011 Stephen Macekura
  • 2010 Lauren Beth Hirshberg
  • 2009 Christopher Dietrich
  • 2008 Ryan Irwin
  • 2007 Sudeepto Ani Mukherji
  • 2006 Kate Burlingham
  • 2005 Keri Lewis, Jongnam Na
  • 2004 David Snyder
  • 2003 Jason Colby
  • 2002 Erez Manela; Daniel Michael
  • 2001 Mary Montgomery
  • 2000 Jason Parker; Jeffrey Engel
  • 1999 Michael Donoghue; Gregg Brazinsky; Carol Chin
  • 1998 Christopher Endy; Richard Wiggers; Xiaodong Wang
  • 1997 Max Paul Friedman
  • 1996 Philip E. Catton
  • 1995 John J. Dwyer
  • 1994 Christian Ostermann
  • 1993 Darlene Rivas
  • 1992 Robert K. Brigham
  • 1991 Kyle Longley
  • 1990 Katherine A. S. Siegel
  • 1989 Joseph Bedford

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The Lawrence Gelfand – Armin Rappaport Dissertation Fellowship

SHAFR established this fellowship to honor Lawrence Gelfand, founding member and former SHAFR president and Armin Rappaport, founding editor of Diplomatic History.

The Gelfand-Rappaport Fellowship of up to $4,000 is intended to defray the costs of dissertation research travel. The fellowship is awarded annually at SHAFR luncheon held during the annual meeting of the American Historical Association. (Applicants for this award will be considered automatically for the Stuart L. Bernath, Holt, and Bemis grants.)

Applicants must be actively working on dissertations dealing with some aspect of U.S. foreign relations history. Membership in SHAFR is required.

Procedures: Self-nominations are expected. Please download and complete the application found here. The annual deadline for applications is October 1. Submit materials to fellowships@shafr.org.  The subject line of the email should contain the LAST NAME OF APPLICANT only.

Recent Winners:

  • 2011 Thomas Westerman
  • 2010 Stefanie Bator
  • 2009 Candace Sobers
  • 2008 Min Song
  • 2007 Sarah Manekin
  • 2006 Heather Dichter
  • 2005 Joey S.R. Long
  • 2004 Susan Haskell

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Samuel Flagg Bemis Dissertation Research Grants

The Samuel F. Bemis Research Grants are intended to promote dissertation research by graduate students.  A limited number of grants of varying amounts (generally, up to $2,000) will be awarded annually to help defray the costs of domestic or international travel necessary to conduct research on significant scholarly projects.  The award is announced formally at the SHAFR luncheon held during the annual meeting of the American Historical Association.  (Applicants for this award will be considered automatically for the Stuart L. Bernath, Holt, and Gelfand-Rappaport grants.)

Applicants must be actively working on dissertations dealing with some aspect of U.S. foreign relations history. Membership in SHAFR is required.

Procedures: Self-nominations are expected. Please download and complete the application found here. The annual deadline for applications is October 1. Submit materials to fellowships@shafr.org.  The subject line of the email should contain the LAST NAME OF APPLICANT only.

Within eight months of receiving the award, each successful applicant must file with the SHAFR Business Office a brief report on how the funds were spent. Such reports will be considered for publication in Passport.

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The Michael J. Hogan Foreign Language Fellowship

The Michael J. Hogan Foreign language Fellowship was established to honor Michael J. Hogan, long-time editor of Diplomatic History.

The Hogan Fellowship of up to $4,000 is intended to promote research in foreign language sources by graduate students. The fellowship is intended to defray the costs of studying foreign languages needed for research.   The award is announced formally at the SHAFR luncheon held during the annual meeting of the American Historical Association.

Applicants must be graduate students researching some aspect of U.S. foreign relations history. Membership in SHAFR is required.

Procedures: Self-nominations are expected. Please download and complete the application found here. The annual deadline for applications is October 1. Submit materials to hogan-fellowships@shafr.org.  The subject line of the email should contain the LAST NAME OF APPLICANT only.

Within eight months of receiving the award, each successful applicant must file with the SHAFR Business Office a brief report on how the funds were spent. Such reports will be considered for publication in Passport.

Recent Winners:

  • 2011 Erica Smith
  • 2010 Victor Nemchenok
  • 2009 Nicholas Molnar
  • 2008 Barin Kayaoglu
  • 2007 Sara Berndt
  • 2006 Ryan Irwin
  • 2005 Heather Dichter
  • 2004 Maraget Peacock
  • 2003 Mark Hove

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William Appleman Williams Junior Faculty Research Grants

The William Appleman Williams Junior Faculty Research Grants are intended to promote scholarly research by untenured college and university faculty and others who are within six years of the Ph.D. and who are working as professional historians. Grants are limited to scholars working on the first research monograph.  A limited number of grants of varying amounts (generally, up to $2,000) will be awarded annually to help defray the costs of domestic or international travel necessary to conduct research on significant scholarly projects.  The award is announced formally at the SHAFR luncheon held during the annual meeting of the American Historical Association. Membership in SHAFR is required.

Procedures: Self-nominations are expected. Please download and complete the application found here. The annual deadline for applications is October 1. Submit materials to williams-fellowships@shafr.org.  The subject line of the email should contain the LAST NAME OF APPLICANT only.

Within eight months of receiving the award, each successful applicant must file with the SHAFR Business Office a brief report on how the funds were spent. Such reports will be considered for publication in Passport.

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The Myrna F. Bernath Fellowship

The Myrna F. Bernath Fellowship was established by the Bernath family to promote scholarship in U.S. foreign relations history by women.

The Myrna Bernath Fellowship of up to $5,000 is intended to defray the costs of scholarly research by women. It is awarded biannually (in odd years) and announced at the SHAFR luncheon held during the annual meeting of the American Historical Association.

Applications are welcomed from women at U.S. universities as well as women abroad who wish to do research in the United States. Preference will be given to graduate students and those within five years of completion of their PhDs.  Membership in SHAFR is required.

Procedures: Self-nominations are expected. Please download and complete the application found here. The biannual deadline for applications is October 1 of even years. Submit materials to myrnabernath-committee@shafr.org.  The subject line of the email should contain the LAST NAME OF APPLICANT only.

Within eight months of receiving the award, each successful applicant must file with the SHAFR Business Office a brief report on how the funds were spent. Such reports will be considered for publication in Passport.

Recent Winners:

  • 2011 Theresa Keeley
  • 2009 Jessica Johnson
  • 2007 Lisa Covert
  • 2005 Jennifer Heckard
  • 2003 Bethany Moreton
  • 2001 Mary Montgomery
  • 1999 Alexandra M. Friedrich
  • 1997 Deborah Kisatsky; Mary Elise Sarotte
  • 1994 Regina Gramer; Jaclyn Stanke; Christine Skwiot
  • 1992 Shannon Smith

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