The Duke Center for Latin American and Caribbean Studies has available at least five non-service fellowships for graduate and professional school students for the 2006 summer session to support the intensive study of Yucatec Maya, Brazilian Portuguese or another less commonly taught language of Latin America and the Caribbean. Each award provides a stipend of $2,500, remission of tuition and registration fees up to $4,000 for one summer intensive language course, plus an airfare allowance of up to $1,000. While priority is given to Duke students, applications are also accepted from students from other universities, especially those interested in enrolling in the Yucatec Maya Summer Institute offered by the Carolina and Duke Consortium in Latin American and Caribbean Studies.

The purpose of the Summer FLAS Fellowships is to permit graduate and professional school students to complete one full year of language study in a summer intensive program. The study program must consist of a minimum of 140 contact hours for beginning courses; or 120 hours for intermediate and advanced courses. (Although a language program brochure may imply that FLAS fellowships may be used, the program will not be approved by the U.S. Department of Education unless it meets the minimum number of contact hours). Applicants who wish to study IN Latin America must enroll at the intermediate or advanced level or for a language not being taught in an intensive summer program in the United States.

The Carolina and Duke Consortium's Yucatec Maya Summer Institute now offers both beginning and continuing six-week programs of intensive Yucatec Maya language instruction. The 2006 course will take place from June 5 to July 15, 2006. The first level begins with two and a half weeks of intensive classes in Chapel Hill followed by a 3-week field study in Yucatán. The continuing course takes place entirely in Yucatán. Those interested can learn more about this program by obtaining the informational brochure which is available in the Center for Latin American & Caribbean Studies or by visiting the Carolina and Duke Consortium's Yucatec Maya web site at http://www.duke.edu/web/carolinadukeconsortium/yucatec_maya/index.html

Of the fellowships to be allocated by Duke, priority is given to individuals who propose to attend the Yucatec Maya program and who can justify their attendance as an integral part of their professional development. Other options for Summer FLAS Fellows include, but are not limited to, the following:

•  the summer intensive Portuguese language program in Rio de Janeiro offered by the University of Florida and the Instituto Brasil-Estados Unidos http://www.ufic.ufl.edu/downloads.sas/sponsored/Rioculture.pdf

•  a summer intensive Portuguese language program offered at a university in the U.S.

•  the intensive course in older and modern Nahuatl for non-native speakers offered by the Zacatecas Institute of Teaching and Research in Ethnology and the Universidad Autónoma de Zacatecas http://homepage.mac.com/idiez/idiezweb/SylSumE2006.pdf

•  the course in Mixtec offered at San Diego State University (e-mail esaenz@mail.sdsu.edu for more information)

•  the Bolivian Quechua courses offered at UCLA http://www.summer.ucla.edu/ or in Cochabamba through Cornell University http://www.einaudi.cornell.edu/LatinAmerica /programs/bolivia.asp

•  the Haitian Creole course offered at Florida International University http://lacc.fiu.edu/academic_programs/ (click on "Summer Programs and Study Abroad" and then on "Haitian Summer Institute")

Details on these and other language programs are available on the web sites indicated or from Natalie Hartman in the Duke Center for Latin American & Caribbean Studies office. All language programs for which Summer FLAS Fellowships are awarded must be approved by the U.S. Department of Education.

Eligibility requirements for Summer FLAS Fellowships :

(1) Recipients must be full time students in a Duke graduate or professional degree program during the regular academic years preceding and following this award;

(2) recipients must be U.S. citizens or permanent residents;

(3) recipients must be of very high professional promise;

(4) a rationale must exist for why the study of Yucatec Maya, Portuguese or another less-commonly taught language will contribute to the professional development of the candidate.

Because of the complicated nature of the FLAS guidelines, students interested in applying are strongly encouraged to consult with Natalie Hartman ( njh@duke.edu or 919-681-3983), Associate Director of the Duke Center for Latin American & Caribbean Studies, prior to submitting their application.

Application materials (as specified below) should be submitted to Natalie Hartman, Center for Latin American & Caribbean Studies, 2114 Campus Drive, Box 90254 by 5:00 pm, Friday, February 17, 2006.

Each file should contain the following:

(1) A completed application form (Click to download PDF);

(2)  a letter of nomination from a Director of Graduate Studies or advisory committee chairperson in which evaluation is made of the graduate performance of the nominee;

(3) a copy of transcripts of the student's graduate record at Duke;

(4) a two-page statement by the nominee of past experiences and future study plans, including explicit reference to how those plans will ultimately lead to professional activity in Latin America and in which Yucatec Maya, Portuguese or another less-commonly taught language will be used. The application should make very clear in which summer language program the nominee plans to enroll.

Results of the competition will be announced by early March. If you have any questions, please do not hesitate to contact Natalie Hartman.