Travel Grants and Fellowships

The Department of Special & Area Studies Collections is able to offer support for researchers looking to travel to our collections to advance their work. Our Travel to Collections grants are eligible for research across any of our collections, while other opportunities are focused on particular collections.

If you have questions about the suitability of your proposal for a specific collection, please contact the curator of that collection. If you have questions about the grants or application process in general, please contact Ramona Caponegro, committee chair, at lib-sasctravel@uflib.ufl.edu or 352-273-2623.

Current Fellowship Opportunities and Deadlines

Special and Area Studies Collections, Travel to Collections Grants 
(up to $2,500)

Deadline: April 15, 2024

Travel grants of up to $2,500 will be awarded to undertake research activities in Special and Area Studies Collections at the University of Florida between July 1, 2024, and June 30, 2025.

Proposals that include interdisciplinary research, the use of more than one collection, the use of holdings related to understudied people and topics, and a tangible outcome for an audience (academic or public scholarship) will be prioritized during the review of applications. Preference will also be given to researchers who must travel 100 miles or farther.

Grants must be used for onsite research and are available in any of the department’s collections. In addition to these general funds, dedicated funding is available for research on the following topics:

  • Jewish culture, life, and religion in Florida, Latin America, and/or the Caribbean
  • African American experience and history
  • The Panama Canal, the Canal Zone, and the Republic of Panama
  • History of science, biomedicine and the humanities, and intellectual property

Submissions should be directed to the SASC Travel to Collections Grant Committee at lib-sasctravel@uflib.ufl.edu. Awardees will be notified of the outcome of the proposal review process by Thursday, June 1, 2024.

Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature,
Louise Seaman Betchel Visiting Professor Travel Grant Program
(up to $2,500)

Deadline: Currently On Hold

Travel grants of up to $2500 will be awarded to undertake research in the Baldwin Library, one of the largest collections of Anglo-American children’s literature in the world, between July 1, 2023, and June 30, 2024. As part of the award, recipients will also give a work-in-progress talk to the university community during residency.

To be eligible for the travel grant, applicants must be currently enrolled in a graduate program and/or hold a master’s or doctoral degree. Preference will be given to researchers who must travel 100 miles or farther to visit Gainesville, Florida, as grants must be used for onsite research.

Proposals that focus on understudied people and topics within children’s literature and have a tangible outcome for an audience via academic or public scholarship will be prioritized during the review of applications.   

Submissions should be directed to the Baldwin curator at lib-Baldwin@uflib.ufl.edu.

Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature,
Louise Seaman Bechtel Fellowship
(up to $7,500)

The Louise Seaman Betchel Fellowship provides up to $7,500 to a qualified children’s librarian from North America to spend up to four weeks reading and studying at the Baldwin Library of Historical Children’s Literature. The Baldwin Library is a special collection of 120,000 of children’s literature published from 1668 to present day. The fellowship is endowed in memory of Louise Seaman Betchel.

Please note that fellowship winners are chosen by the Association of Library Services to Children, American Library Association. For the most up to date information and deadlines, please consult their website by clicking the button below.

Center for Latin American Studies, Library Travel Grants 
(up to $1,000)

Deadline: March 10, 2023

The Center for Latin American Studies at the University of Florida is offering library access grants for spring and summer 2021 for scholars from qualified U.S. colleges and universities to use the extensive resources of the Latin American and Caribbean Collection. The grants are funded by a Title VI National Resource Center grant from the U.S. Department of Education. Recipients are awarded an average of $1,000 to support travel expenses such as airfare, ground transportation, lodging, and meals.

P.K. Yonge Library of Florida History, Chase Family Grant for Visiting Graduate Scholars
(up to $1,200)

Deadline: November 3, 2023

The Chase Family Grant is made possible through an endowment by members of the Chase family, pioneers in Florida citrus growing. Its purpose is to allow graduate students to conduct research in the P.K. Yonge Library of Florida History, or other special collections at the George A. Smathers Library, University of Florida.

Applicants should be enrolled in a graduate program leading to the master’s or doctoral degree and actively engaged in research on Florida history or that incorporates Florida as a major focus. Application is open to all students at institutions of higher learning. Preference will be given to students coming from outside the State of Florida who require onsite access to materials. Awardees are required to spend at least one week (five working days) in Special Collections at the George A. Smathers Libraries. One grant will be made annually for a maximum of $1,200 to help defray travel expenses.