Ann Arbor, Michigan – The Tinker Foundation has awarded a generous grant of $45,000 over three years to the Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies (LACS) at the University of Michigan to fund master’s, doctoral, and professional school students conducting preliminary or pre-dissertation fieldwork in Latin America, providing them with the opportunity to establish professional and academic contacts, assess research sites, and refine their projects. The U-M International Institute and the Rackham Graduate School have contributed matching funds for a total of $90,000 to be awarded to U-M graduate students. Research projects will be conducted in the Spanish- or Portuguese-speaking countries of Latin America during trips from two weeks to four months in duration.

LACS held a Tinker Foundation grant from 2013-2015 while the University of Michigan’s International Institute, the Rackham Graduate School, and the LACS Brazil Initiative funded the field research grant program from 2016-2018. In those six years, 99 student projects in Latin America and the Caribbean were funded in the amount of $133,600, significantly contributing to graduate student scholarship across many disciplines on our campus. 

Joshua Cole, professor of history and acting director of the International Institute, commented,

The deadline for applications for travel in 2019 is February 15. For more information on this funding opportunity, eligibility, and grant requirements, please visit the LACS Tinker Field Research Grant page at myumi.ch/aZD7p.