ITMS Shannon Fellowships
Shannon Fellowships Up to five Shannon Fellowship awards, of a maximum of $750 each, are awarded annually to enable qualified researchers to visit the Thomas Merton Center archives at Bellarmine University in Louisville, Kentucky, or other repositories of Thomas Merton materials, such as Columbia University, Harvard University and St. Bonaventure University. The awards are named in honor of William H. Shannon, founding President of the International Thomas Merton Society.
Awards must be used between June 1, 2025 and July 31, 2026.
Awards will be based on a) the quality of the proposal
submitted and on
b) the need for consulting archival materials at the site
proposed. Applicants
must be members of the ITMS; they may join the Society at the time of
application by including a check for $25, (or $40 to include The Merton
Annual) made out to "ITMS", along with their proposals. (Membership
Information) Current
officers and Board members of the ITMS, as well as grant committee members,
are not eligible for fellowships during their term of office.
The deadline for applications is March
15th, 2025.
Applications for Shannon Fellowships must
include the following:
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a detailed proposal of 500-750 words explaining the subject and goals of the applicant's research and the rationale for consulting primary sources at the Merton collection selected by the applicant. Applicants are strongly encouraged to demonstrate in their application that they have consulted online finding aids for the Merton Center (https://merton.org/Research/) or for other archival collections of Merton’s work. (A list of subjects of previous awardees can be found at: Previous Research Topics.)
-
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a letter of recommendation from a scholar familiar with the applicant's qualifications and research interests
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a proposed expense budget: grants will cover costs of travel to and from collections; expenses for accommodations and food during time of research at archives; costs of photocopying; disclosure of any other sources of funding awarded or applied for, with amounts received or requested.
Applications are encouraged from
established scholars, from researchers without academic affiliation, and
from students and younger scholars, including those engaged in research for
theses and dissertations.
Successful applicants are required to
submit an accurate expense account and a report summarizing the results of
their research.
Completed applications for fellowships, or requests for further information, should be sent to the ITMS Resident Secretary for forwarding to the selection committee chair:
Dr. Paul M Pearson,
International Thomas Merton Society,
Bellarmine University
2001 Newburg Road,
Louisville. KY. 40205.
e-mail:
[email protected]
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"The ITMS has played an essential role in
my studies of Thomas Merton's works, beginning with the Shannon
Fellowship which launched my research at the archives in Louisville.
Since then, I have met a host of fascinating colleagues who work
together to further Merton studies and many friends who share in the
causes of peace and spiritual hospitality promoted by the ITMS."
- Lynn Szabo, Langly, British Columbia
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