Davis Projects for Peace
Davis Projects for Peace: At a Glance
Eligibility:
- First, second, third, and fourth-year students
Selection Criteria:
- Project should be creative, community-centered, and scalable
- Project would contribute in a meaningful way to the promotion of peace, conflict resolution and related topics
Candidates for Davis Projects can affirm the following:
- My project is feasible in terms of scope, financing, and timeline
- I have secured a letter that documents the support of, and collaboration with a partner institution(s)/organization(s) on this project
- My partners and I possess the requisite skills to complete this project on time
Extensive Description
Davis Projects for Peace is an initiative for undergraduate leaders to design and implement their own grassroots project that focuses on conflict resolution, reconciliation, building understanding, breaking down barriers which cause conflict, and finding solutions for resolving conflict and maintaining peace. Projects may be implemented anywhere in the world during the summer immediately following receipt of the grant. These projects may be designed either by individual students or undertaken collaboratively by a team of UChicago undergraduates.
This program is funded by Kathryn W. Davis, a renowned philanthropist who earned her BA from Wellesley and her PhD from the University of Geneva. The "project for peace" may be defined by the student and should encourage creativity, innovation and social entrepreneurship.
Note: the University does not allow students to travel to countries on the State Department Travel Warning list (https://travel.state.gov/content/travel/en/traveladvisories/traveladvisories.html).
Deadline Information
Campus Application Deadline: Friday, January 5, 2024
Nominee and Alternate Final Draft Deadline: Tuesday, January 30, 2024
National Deadline: Monday, February 5, 2024
Responsibilities
Recipients of the award must execute the proposed project during the summer immediately following receipt of the award.
After the conclusion of the project, recipients must submit a final report to the CCRF office by early September of their award year.
Eligibility Requirements
Open to all College students, but first year students may only apply in collaboration with second, third, or fourth year students. Fourth year students can undertake the project the summer after graduation.
Undergraduates who are residents of International House are also eligible to apply through I-House.
Application Process
Students must apply for university endorsement by the stated campus application deadline. If you are applying as a group, each member of the group needs to complete the online application. Groups can upload the same proposal, budget, and letter of agreement, but each group member must have two letters of recommendation as a part of the complete application. A complete application consists of the following:
- Online campus nomination application in the Survey Monkey portal
- Project proposal (2 pages maximum). Applicants are encouraged to follow the section and content guidelines provided by Davis Projects for Peace proposals.
- Project budget (download Davis' Budget Worksheet here; please review an explanation of their categories is here)
- CV/academic resume
- Two letters of recommendation submitted through online application portal by stated campus deadline (January 5, 2024 at 12 pm CT)
- Letter of agreement from off-campus groups, agencies, or individuals (required) that indicate their support of and willingness to collaborate on this project
Students who are interested in this opportunity should email Johanna Best (bestjl@uchicago.edu) by December 1, 2023 to set up a meeting to discuss their project idea and the application process.