Freedom and Opportunity Academic Prize
Financially supporting the next generation of researchers, professors, and authors dedicated to
freedom and opportunity and encouraging a more diverse intellectual environment on campus.
About
The Heritage Foundation is excited to launch a new initiative to support and encourage the research, publications, and programs of faculty members who are aligned with the foundation’s mission at colleges, universities, and seminaries throughout the United States.
The Freedom and Opportunity Academic Prize recognizes and provides financial awards to faculty members at higher education institutions as they write and disseminate original research and develop projects and programs that explore topics related to The Heritage Foundation’s current priority issue areas and broader issues around freedom and opportunity.
Prize winners receive financial awards of between $5,000–$25,000 in recognition of their past accomplishments, current work, and future promise. They will also be invited to participate in a Summer Colloquium and Workshop with their fellow Prize Winners.
Why the Academic Prize?
The academic environment is particularly challenging for faculty members who wish to research, publish, teach, and develop programs in areas that explore economic freedom, the dignity of the person, human flourishing, constitutional governance, national sovereignty, and other issues related to freedom, opportunity, and traditional American values. Moreover, funding opportunities for such projects are increasingly scarce.
Recognizing the importance of critical thinking and thoughtful research on these issues and the impact such work has on its own policy initiatives and the broader public debate, the Heritage Foundation is making a new investment in the academic community.
Through the Freedom and Opportunity Academic Prize, Heritage hopes to encourage the robust exploration and development of ideas that help sharpen our own scholars’ thinking, support the work of courageous faculty members on often-hostile college campuses, grow the network of talented researchers and public intellectuals, encourage new partnerships, and ultimately help to advance Heritage’s vision of building an America where freedom, opportunity, prosperity, and civil society flourish.
Read the press release here.
Guidelines and Process
GUIDELINES
Applicants must be full-time or adjunct faculty members at colleges, universities or seminaries in the United States who are actively engaged in research, writing, programming, or course development that relate to the Heritage Foundation’s current priority issue areas or broader questions around economic freedom, the dignity of the person, human flourishing, constitutional governance, national sovereignty, or other issues that explore the notions of freedom, opportunity, and traditional American values. Priority will be given to applicants whose scholarship has relevance to current policy debates.
Prize awards will range between $5,000–$25,000 in recognition of past professional accomplishments, current work, and future promise. Funding will be directed to individual faculty members rather than their home institutions. Winners also will participate in a Summer Colloquium and Workshop in Washington, D.C., with fellow Prize Winners.
APPLICATION AND REVIEW PROCESS
Applications for the 2023 Academic prize are no longer being accepted. The application round for the 2024 prize will open later this year.
As part of the application, applicants will be asked to provide:
- Applicant’s curriculum vitae
- A description of your past and current scholarship and/or other activities and potential policy applications
- Writing sample relevant to your application
- List of one or more references who could speak to the quality of your scholarship and future potential
- Additional information may be requested if needed for further evaluation, and interviews may be conducted as part of the application review and evaluation process.
After submission, applications will be reviewed by Heritage staff and advisors, and top applications will be shared with an Academic Advisory Committee that includes scholars from across the country. Final Prize decisions will be made by an internal selection committee and will be announced in May 2023. Prize winners also will participate in a Summer Colloquium and Workshop with their fellow Prize winners in August 2023.
Email inquiries can be sent to [email protected].
