National Search to Begin for Northwestern Fellowships Director

EVANSTON, Ill. --- Northwestern University will begin a national search for the next director of the Office of Fellowships, the office that assists students applying for national and global grants and scholarships.

A committee, including representatives from the administration, faculty and staff, will convene regularly as part of the search process. Sara Vaux, the inaugural director of the Office of Fellowships, will retire Aug. 31, 2016.

The committee seeks inquiries, nominations and applications for the position. The application process will remain open until Jan. 29, 2016.

Since its founding, the Office of Fellowships has grown substantially in breadth, reach and success. Over the last academic year, more than 300 Northwestern students or alumni won fellowships. For the10th consecutive year, Northwestern has been ranked among the top eight research institutions for Fulbright U.S. student award winners. And prized scholarships for study at British universities and elsewhere around the world, as well as National Science Foundation fellowships, have increased markedly in recent years. 

The director of the Office of Fellowships will lead efforts to support and guide students through every step of preparing for national and international competitions for fellowships.

A description of the position and application information can be found on the search committee Web page.

The search committee includes: 

• Ronald Braeutigam, committee chair, associate provost for undergraduate education and the Harvey Kapnick Professor of Business Institutions in the department of economics
• Adam Goodman, director, Center for Leadership
• Robert Gundlach, director, Cook Family Writing Program, and professor, department of linguistics
• Matthew Grayson, associate professor, department of electrical engineering and computer science
• Barbara Newman, professor, department of English
• Mary Poole, senior lecturer, department of theatre
• Mark Presnell, executive director, Northwestern Career Advancement 

Celina Flowers, director, academic administration, Office of the Provost, is staffing the committee.