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SHAFR Opinion

Germany to Greece: Drop Dead

by William Glenn Gray

Germans have chosen to work; Greeks have chosen leisure. For this reason, Germans are furious with Greece for accumulating an unsustainable debt burden and thereby undermining the solidity of the European currency. But the self-righteous anger in Berlin may itself call into question the political basis of the Euro.

Diplomats Among Warriors

by John Prados

In Afghanistan at the moment (February 2010), U.S. Marines, allied troops, and Afghan government soldiers are embarked on an offensive at a town called Marja in Helmand province. American commander-in-chief General Stanley A. McChrystal here makes the first expression of the strategy that underlies the appeal for reinforcements that led to the Obama administration “surge” [...]

Is Wartime a Time to End Don’t Ask, Don’t Tell?

by Mary Dudziak

As the Obama Administration moves (slowly) toward repeal of Don’t Ask Don’t Tell, one argument in opposition is that the nation is at war, and significant changes in the military should not take place during wartime. One response to that point is that all hands are needed during heightened military deployments, and it harms American [...]

Beware Presidents’ Use of History

by John Prados

We are told that history plays as tragedy and repeats as farce. But perhaps that is changing. In the summer of 2007 President George W. Bush invoked the Vietnam analogy to justify an equally or more tragic war in Iraq. And in the West Point speech announcing his new strategy for Afghanistan, President Barack Obama [...]

The State Department Wants You! (or does it?)

by Molly Wood

In October 2007, presidential candidate Barack Obama promised a new approach to American foreign policy.  “It’s time to make diplomacy a top priority,” he announced.  “Instead of shuttering consulates, we need to open them in the tough and hopeless corners of the world. Instead of having more Americans serving in military bands than the diplomatic [...]

Afghanistan and the Chinese Civil War

by William Stueck

Any political historian will tell you that government decisionmakers frequently use historical analogies in making up their minds and that, more often than not, they do so badly.   And Kimber Quinney reminded us in her thoughtful November 9 commentary that historians are not immune to employing such analogies either, or in doing so badly.
Yet as [...]

Twenty Years On: Merkel in Washington

by William Glenn Gray

Twenty years after the fall of the Berlin Wall, the idea of creating new structures for a post-Cold War world is still quite radical. German Chancellor Angela Merkel’s approach represents a familiar way of doing business, one that continues to bank on the essential unity of “the West.” But is it effective?

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Fellowships/Grants

  • 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:

  • 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. To be considered for the 2011 award, nominations and supporting materials must be received by 1 October 2010. 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:

  • 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. To be considered for the 2011 award, nominations and supporting materials must be received by 1 October 2010. 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:

  • 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. To be considered for the 2011 award, nominations and supporting materials must be received by 1 October 2010. Submit materials to fellowships@shafr.org.  The subject line of the email should contain the LAST NAME OF APPLICANT only.

Recent Winners:

  • 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. To be considered for the 2011 award, nominations and supporting materials must be received by 1 October 2010. 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. To be considered for the 2011 award, nominations and supporting materials must be received by 1 October 2010. 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:

  • 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. To be considered for the 2011 award, nominations and supporting materials must be received by 1 October 2010. 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.

Procedures: Self-nominations are expected. Self-nominations are expected. Please download and complete the application found here. To be considered for the 2011 award, nominations and supporting materials must be received by 1 October 2010. 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:

  • 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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