Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) 2016
Summer Intensive Language Study Fellowship for
Undergraduate Students.
CALL FOR PROPOSALS
Deadline for Application: WEDNESDAY, FEBRUARY 19, 2016
Introduction
The Stone Center for Latin American Studies receives funding from the U.S. Department of Education’s
Title VI for Foreign Language and Area Studies (FLAS) fellowships. Part of the FLAS fellowships
administered by the Stone Center are available to undergraduate students for the intensive study over the
summer of Kaqchikel Maya, Portuguese, or another less-commonly taught Latin American language.
Federal regulations require that undergraduate students must be at the intermediate or advanced level of
language study to be eligible for a FLAS fellowship. Eligible undergraduate students wishing to engage in
intensive study of such a language at the intermediate or advanced levels are encouraged to apply for one
of these fellowships. The fellowships consist of a stipend of $2,500 to pay for the costs of travel, room,
and board expenses, and a program fee/tuition cost allowance of up to $5,000. Only U.S. Citizens or
permanent residents are eligible to receive these fellowships; and only intensive summer language
programs approved by the US Department of Education are eligible under this program. A listing of some
of the approved programs can be found at the following website:
http://claspprograms.org/Language_Instruction.htm.
Students will have to submit a complete Summer FLAS Fellowship Proposal application packet by
February 19, 2016. The application packet includes the “Summer FLAS Fellowship Application Form,” an
official undergraduate transcript, the “Summer FLAS Fellowship Faculty Sponsor Recommendation
Form,” and a statement of financial need that indicates whether you are a dependent and that includes the
types and amounts of financial aid received.
Eligibility and Application Guidelines
1. Summer FLAS fellowships support undergraduate students enrolled in:
a. Formal domestic summer programs of intensive language study at the intermediate,
or advanced level; or
b. Formal overseas summer programs of intensive language study at the intermediate
or advanced level; or
2. Only U.S. Citizens or permanent residents are eligible to receive FLAS awards.
3. Recipients must be full time students in a degree granting program during the regular
academic year following the award. Non-Tulane undergraduate students are eligible to apply.
4. Recipients must enroll in the formal study of Kaqchikel Maya, Portuguese, or another
indigenous language of Latin America (i.e. Haitian Creole, Yucatec Maya, Nahuatl, Quechua,
etc.) Information such as a brochure that outlines the cost, intensity, and duration of a FLAS
approved program must be submitted along with the application.
5. Funding priorities in order of importance are the following:
a. Kaqchikel Maya Intensive Language and Culture in Guatemala (Tulane University);
b. Portuguese Language and Culture in São Paolo, Brazil (Tulane University)
c.
Study of Portuguese or Haitian Creole at all levels in approved FLAS programs; and
d. Other less commonly taught Indigenous languages of Latin America (i.e. Yucatec
Maya, Nahuatl, Quechua, etc.)
6. The degree of intensity of the summer language program must be equivalent to one year of
college-level language instruction. Generally, this is equivalent to 120 contact hours of
advanced level language instruction or 140 contact hours of intermediate language instruction
in programs lasting 4-6 weeks.
7. Applicants must provide in their application a rationale for why the proposed language study
will contribute to their professional development.
8. Applicants applying for funding for either domestic or overseas language study must provide
definitive proof of language ability at the intermediate or advanced level. Such proof would
consist either of a transcript showing successful completion of coursework in the relevant
language up to the intermediate or advanced level of instruction or of a language assessment
evaluation letter by a college professor or certified instructor of the relevant language.
9. Applicants should also indicate if their future career intentions include the possibility of
government service.
10. Applicants whose proposals have been approved for funding but who have standing
incompletes at the end of the Spring 2016 term will forfeit the summer FLAS fellowship.
11. Completed applications are due FEBRUARY 19, 2016. Applications, including a scanned copy
of your official transcript, must be submitted by email to
upload.Stone_C.oco998go23@u.box.com as a single .pdf file attachment with the .pdf
electronic application file named accordingly:
YourLastName,YourFirstName_UniversityAffiliation_ProposedLanguageOfStudy_ProposedPr
ogramOfStudy. So, for example, if Joe Smith, an undergraduate student at Tulane, wanted to
submit a grant application to study Kaqchikel Maya through the Tulane Summer Kaqchikel
Maya program, he would create a single .pdf file that included his completed application and a
scanned copy of his official transcript, and he would save this file under the following name:
Smith,Joe_TulaneUniversity_KaqchikelMaya_TulaneSummerInGuatemalaProgram.pdf.
Joe Smith would then email this single .pdf file as an attachment to the above-listed email
address.
12. Applicants should discuss the proposed language study program with an appropriate faculty
member who will agree to sponsor the application and who will testify as to the importance of
such intensive language study to the applicant’s academic and professional development.
The faculty sponsor should complete the “Summer FLAS Fellowship Faculty Sponsor
Recommendation Form,” should scan and save this form as a single electronic .pdf file, and
should email this .pdf file to upload.Stone_C.oco998go23@u.box.com. Recipients of Summer
FLAS Awards will be notified no later than Friday, March 11, 2016.