Omaha, Neb. — The Buffett Early Childhood Institute at the University of Nebraska is accepting applications from advanced doctoral students within the university system for 1-year fellowships worth up to $25,000. 

The Buffett Early Childhood Institute Graduate Scholars program awards grants to a maximum of four doctoral students every year. The program, which was launched two years ago, is designed to foster the growth of diverse, exceptional graduate students conducting research that has implications for early childhood, with particular attention to children placed at risk as a consequence of economic, social, and environmental circumstances. Applications from students working on early development in any doctoral program in the NU system are welcome.

The Buffett Institute Graduate Scholars program is the first financial support program for doctoral students who have reached Ph.D. candidacy at the University of Nebraska that focuses solely on the first years of life.

Samuel Meisels, founding executive director of the Buffett Institute, said the innovative program seeks to support high-quality research from diverse fields that impacts the early years, including health, education, social work, music, art, the neurosciences, and others. Multidisciplinary research and practice and new methodologies are encouraged.

“Research from various academic disciplines has important implications for children, families, and communities,” Meisels said. “Consistent with the mission of the Institute, we encourage applicants to consider how their work can transform the lives of young children.”

To increase the diversity of perspectives in research on young children, the Buffett Institute encourages applications from scholars from historically disadvantaged or underrepresented groups, including individuals of color, first-generation college graduates, and individuals from low-income communities.

Scholars will work with their faculty mentors on a dissertation that represents an in-depth exploration of early childhood-related research. The Institute will create opportunities for scholars and mentors to communicate, network, and collaborate with one another.

Three students received grants for the 2017-18 academic year: Sonya Bhatia, a school psychology student in the Department of Educational Psychology and affiliated with the Nebraska Center for Research on Children, Youth, Families, and Schools (CYFS) at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln (UNL); Amy Colgrove, a student in human sciences in the Department of Child, Youth, and Family Studies at UNL; and Jordan Wickstrom, a student in exercise science (concentration in motor development and control) in the Department of Biomechanics at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Full applications from applicants for 2018-19 are due Friday, March 30. The 2018-19 award winners will be announced by the end of June. 

To view the Buffett Institute Graduate Scholars RFP, visit http://buffettinstitute.nebraska.edu/buffett-scholars.