William H. Crook Program in International Affairs : Promoting global economic development and fighting poverty

The 2013 Crook Fellowship Award application period is now closed.   

The William H. Crook Program in International Affairs is dedicated to promoting global economic development and fighting poverty. It sponsors innovative research on global poverty with the specific aim of generating concrete, practical recommendations that policymakers and the public can embrace.  The Program also develops imaginative undergraduate and graduate programs that will give students the opportunity to tackle development issues on their own.

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The Program is named in honor of William H. Crook, a pioneer in global development. Mr. Crook established the Office of Economic Opportunity at the request of President Lyndon B. Johnson in 1965 and was national director of Volunteers in Service to America, now known as AmeriCorps. He also served as Ambassador to Australia. Upon returning to Texas, he had a distinguished career in business and remained active in poverty relief, establishing two orphanages in Ethiopia during the 1985 famine.

Honoring his impact in the fight on poverty, the program annually presents the Crook Fellowships, which are awarded to talented students working with innovative nonprofit organizations to make a difference in the lives of the underprivileged throughout the world. Since 2008, 21 fellows have engaged in cutting-edge, important and often difficult work to improve the economic, social and educational conditions of communities in Africa, Asia and Latin America.

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2013 Crook Fellowship Program Application Guidelines

Application

We are no longer accepting applications for  2013 Crook Fellowship Awards.

The Robert S. Strauss Center for International Security and Law makes grants to support LBJ School students working in the developing world in the summer for non-profit development organizations. The grants, awarded in amounts up to $6,000, are made possible by the William H. Crook Chair in International Affairs. Students may use the grants to cover travel and living expenses while abroad. Students interested in applying for the grants must submit:

  • A cover sheet with name, contact information (including e-mail address), the internship topic, location and organization and dates of planned internship;
  • A one- to two-page description of the planned summer work;
  • A detailed one-page budget that shows all sources of summer support, including salaries or stipends;
  • The names of two LBJ faculty willing to serve as references;
  • Confirmation by the sponsoring non-profit of the planned summer work;
  • A UT transcript (can be unofficial);
  • An up-to-date resume;
  • The LBJ internship form, if taking the internship for LBJ School credit.

Selection

A selection committee makes the grant awards based on their assessments of the applications and how well they fit with the goals of the Crook Chair: promoting global economic development and fighting poverty.

  • The students’ summer work must be for a non-profit organization, and their work should take place in a developing country. The non-profit organization can be based in any country.
  • The grants are for travel and living expenses while abroad only. They cannot be used to support existing research such as dissertation fieldwork. The student does not need to be taking the summer internship for credit in order to qualify for the grant.
  • The committee will make their recommendations for awards and amounts to the Strauss Center Director. Final selection is at the discretion of the Director.
  • The committee will determine how many projects to fund, and their funding levels.

Report and Presentation

Upon completion of their summer work, students awarded grants will be required to write a paper describing their summer work experience and to participate in a public presentation. The final report should include description of the non-profit organization, a description of the student’s work or research, lessons learned and other observations and advice for students interested in working in international development abroad. These reports will be published on the Strauss Center web site and in print.

The Strauss Center organizes an informal public presentation at the LBJ School in the fall. The award winners speak briefly to the audience about their experiences working abroad.

For more information about the Crook Fellowships, please email Jacqueline Chandler at jchandler@austin.utexas.edu.

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