Scholarships
Ronald Raven Annual Award
The Walter P. Reuther Library, Archives of Labor and Urban Affairs, invites applications for the Ronald Raven Annual Award for the Winter 2023 semester.
Graduate students enrolled in Wayne State University’s Department of History or School of Information Sciences are eligible for this award. The successful applicant must be in good academic standing and demonstrate financial need. The award consists of a $2,000 tuition stipend and a one-semester internship at the Walter P. Reuther Library.
Applicants should be able to commit to 135 hours of on-site archival processing and records management work with the University Archivist. Preference will be given to applicants who have completed the introductory archival administration course LIS 7710/HIS 7840. This position requires the ability to climb a ladder and to lift, shelve, and retrieve boxes weighing up to 40 pounds.
This award is sponsored by Wayne State University alumnus Ronald Raven, a former graduate student intern in the Labor History Archives in the early 1970s. Raven earned a certificate in Archives Administration from the Wayne State University Department of History.
The 2023 application process is closed. The 2024 application round will be announced in 2024
To apply, email your resume and cover letter to Taylor Henning, University Archivist (taylor.henning@wayne.edu). Your cover letter should confirm your current enrollment status, describe relevant coursework and experience, and explain how you would benefit from receiving the Raven Award and its accompanying internship in the Wayne State University Archives.
The Sam Fishman Travel Grant
The Walter P. Reuther Library of Labor and Urban Affairs provides awards
up to $1,000 to support travel to the Reuther Library to access archival records related to the American labor movement. The award is named in honor of Sam Fishman, a former UAW and Michigan AFL-CIO leader. Widely considered to be a labor intellectual and a dynamic leader, Fishman began his career in the union movement when he was 12 years old, and during 50 years as a trade unionist, worked as a UAW union steward, advisor to UAW President Walter
Reuther, Leonard Woodcock, and Doug Fraser. He later became president of the Michigan AFL-CIO before passing away in 1986 at the age of 62.
Recipients are selected through an annual competitive application process and awards may only be used to reimburse actual expenses. As part of their research visits, awardees are invited to speak about their work at an informal event at the Reuther Library, be interviewed for our podcast series "Tales from the Reuther Library," or submit a proposal for the North American Labor History Conference held on the Wayne State University campus in the fall. Recipients are required to submit a two-page research report and expense report within one month of the conclusion of their research visit, and must complete their research within one year.
The 2024 application process is closed. The 2025 application round will be announced in late 2024
For further information, please contact:
Aliqae Geraci, Chair
Sam Fishman Travel Grant Selection Committee
Walter P. Reuther Library
Wayne State University
Detroit, Michigan 48202
aliqae.geraci@wayne.edu
The Albert Shanker Fellowship for Research in Education
The American Federation of Teachers in conjunction with the Walter P. Reuther Library of Labor and Urban Affairs, Wayne State University seek applicants for The Albert Shanker Fellowship for Research in Education. This research grant provides assistance for advanced graduate students and faculty utilizing the American Federation of Teachers archives as well as collections related to educational history housed at the Walter P. Reuther Library. Two grants in the amount of $600 each will be awarded in support of research.
Application Procedure: Applications must be received no later than December 20, 2024. Fellowship awards will be announced no later than January 17, 2025. Award funds must be used between March 2025 and September 2025. Send your application to Daniel Golodner, AFT Archivist
| Attachment | (click to download) | |
|---|---|---|
 | 2024_Fishman_Travel_Grant_Award_Application.doc | 34 KB |
 | 2024_Fishman_Travel_Grant_Award_Application.pdf | 231.05 KB |
| 2025 Shanker Fellowship app.doc | 29.5 KB |
| 2025 Shanker Fellowship app.pdf | 83 KB |