Apply Now for the 2022 Polly Stewart Student Travel Stipend

The AFS Women’s Section invites applications for the Polly Stewart Travel Stipends for one or more students to attend the AFS annual meeting. If enough qualified applications are received, the Section awards a First Place Prize of $500 and a Second Place Prize of $300 in the hopes of facilitating participation in the annual meeting by emerging scholars who show promise of furthering the study of women’s folklore, gender issues in folklore, and/or feminist approaches to the study of folklore. The award supports travel costs (transportation, meeting registration, lodging and/or per diem expenses) for students or recent graduates who are members of the AFS Women’s Section and who plan to attend the annual meeting and present their work.

The deadline for submission via the AFS application portal is July 15. 

The recipient will be notified in late July.

Eligibility

To be considered for the stipend, an applicant must meet the following criteria:

• Be enrolled as a student at the time of application. (Those who will have earned their degrees before the AFS meeting at which they present are eligible.)
• Be a dues-paying member of the AFS Women’s Section at the time of application and for at least one year following the award.
• Demonstrate commitment to the study of women’s folklore, gender issues in folklore, or feminist approaches to the study of folklore as part of your research agenda.
• Plan to attend the annual AFS meeting for at least two full days, including the business meeting of the AFS Women’s Section during the year you win the award (where you will be acknowledged and asked to briefly describe your participation).
• Be willing to submit a brief written report of your participation in the AFS meeting to the co-conveners of the Women’s Section within 60 days of the conclusion of the meetings in the year that you receive the award. Your statement will be circulated to the section membership along with the minutes of the annual business meeting.
• Have not received the award previously.
• Be willing to serve on the selection committee the year following your receipt of the award.

To apply, submit a single Word or PDF document that includes:

• Student’s name, address, email, phone number, university, degree objective, and expected month and year of completion. 
• 100-word abstract for paper, diamond session, or media presentation proposed for AFS (and title of session if proposed as part of an organized session).
• Brief statement (250 words) describing:
  • Your research focus,
  • Your professional goals,
  • Ways you hope to contribute to the discipline of Folklore; to the study of women’s folklore, gender issues in folklore, or feminist approaches to folklore specifically; and/or to AFS,
  • Ways you expect to benefit from attending the meeting and what contributions your presence at the meeting will make to the field or the society.
  • Budget estimate of the travel expenses you expect to incur (Include airfare or other transportation costs, lodging and meal expenses, and meeting registration fees). It is understood that the $500 or $300 stipends may not cover all expenses. Include additional sources and amounts of any other funding that you will apply for and decision dates if not already awarded.
• A copy of your message from AFS indicating that your proposal has been accepted for the annual meeting.

Apply here

Review Criteria

Applications are reviewed by the stipend selection committee, which is composed of representatives from the Women’s Section, including recent recipients of the travel stipend, on the basis of:

• The quality and significance of the applicant’s work, as based on the abstract and statement of research and goals.
• The extent to which the applicant’s attendance at the AFS meetings will benefit both the applicant and the field, especially with regard to women’s folklore, gender issues in folklore, or the feminist study of folklore.
• The feasibility of the budget and the applicant’s demonstrated need of the stipend in order to attend the meeting.

For questions about the Women’s Section’s Polly Stewart Student Travel Stipend, please contact Christine Widmayer at [email protected].