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The UNCF/Mellon Programs were created in 1989 with a generous grant from the Andrew W. Mellon Foundation. Designed with the goal of strengthening the number of qualified minority faculty within the Academy, these programs target undergraduates and faculty at the consortium of 39 UNCF institutions and Hampton University. Since the inaugural year, the Programs have instituted the Mellon Mays Undergraduate Fellowship Program (1989), the Summer Internship Program for Ecology Research (1994), and the four components of the Faculty Career Enhancement Program including the Faculty/Doctoral Fellowship (1990), the International Faculty Seminar (2002), the Teaching and Learning Institute (2001), and most recently the Faculty Residency Program (2006).
Our Mission
The Mission of the UNCF/Mellon Programs is to Transform the Academy by creating a pipeline of undergraduates who will pursue the Ph.D. with the sole intention of becoming faculty members. Our mission is to aid in the transformation of the Academy through the presence of a racially and ethnically diverse faculty whose scholarship and teaching represent diverse world views, appreciation for issues of social justice and who share a commitment to continuing to develop a pipeline of scholars of color to inhabit the halls of the Academy as students and faculty. In addition, the Programs aim to strengthen teaching and learning at UNCF institutions by creating opportunities for UNCF faculty to enhance their teaching and scholarship through the participation in Faculty Career Enhancement Opportunities that focus on comparative scholarship and analysis of selected topics and encourage collaboration with distinguished faculty within and outside of the UNCF consortium. Faculty Career Enhancement programs support the continued growth and development of UNCF faculty, and we aim to support initiatives that enhance the teaching and learning environment.
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We are most happy to share information with you about the exciting suite of Programs offered to UNCF undergraduates and faculty through the Mays Undergraduate Fellowship Program. Scholars Transforming the Academy is the slogan that describes the work of the UNCF/Mellon Programs. This slogan is operationalized through a variety of undergraduate and faculty programs. Specifically, we believe that transformation will occur in the following ways: - the creation of a pipeline of outstanding undergraduates who will enter our nation’s best graduate schools, obtain the Ph.D. and become outstanding scholars who inhabit the halls of the Academy as faculty who inform and challenge existing canons and create new ways of seeing and knowing within the respective Mellon disciplinary areas;
- exposing UNCF undergraduates and faculty to special research opportunities in the areas of ecology and environmental sciences and increasing the number of UNCF undergraduates who pursue advanced degrees in the areas of ecology and environmental sciences;
- continuing to recognize the outstanding history of mentorship within UNCF institutions and supporting faculty with career enhancement opportunities that will help strengthen their scholarship and teaching portfolios; and
- aiding UNCF institutions by providing funding to support teaching and learning initiatives that can be shared throughout the UNCF network.
We hope that you will find a program that interests you and that you will be able to join us as we work with others within the Mellon Mays family of Programs to Transform the Academy.
Sincerely,
Cynthia Neal Spence, Ph.D.
Director, UNCF/Mellon Programs |
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