Scholarships

Each school year, a handful of sophomore students majoring in Politics will be chosen to receive a Hatton W. Sumners scholarship. The award amount will be $10,000 per year to help defray the cost of tuition, and will typically be awarded for two years. Sumners Scholars are expected to attend certain programs sponsored by the Foundation, including the Hatton W. Sumners Distinguished Lecture Series and the annual Sumners Scholars Public Policy Seminar, typically held on a weekend in November. Sumners Scholars also have special access to a variety of public policy, leadership, and civic participation programs. Among the distinguished figures who have appeared in the Sumners Lecture Series are Supreme Court Justice Clarence Thomas, Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu, Senators Daniel Patrick Moynihan and Kay Bailey Hutchison, Czech President Vaclav Klaus, pundit George Will, and Brit Hume and Bill O'Reilly of Fox News.

During the spring semester, selected sophomores will be invited to apply by the university's Sumners Scholars Committee, which consists of selected faculty members of the Politics Department. Students eligible for nomination must be American citizens, and expect to receive a bachelor's degree at the end of three to five semesters beyond the current academic year. Nominees will be required to submit the following items: a completed application form (including standardized test scores, academic history, extracurricular activities, etc.); academic transcripts for undergraduate and graduate work; a resume; and an essay discussing the candidate's background, reasons for selecting the field of study, and future educational and career ambitions.

A panel comprised of selected Sumners Board of Trustees members will subsequently interview each nominee and determine which students will be awarded scholarships. The students selected will be those judged most likely to contribute to the Sumners Foundation's purpose of "encourag[ing] the study, teaching, and research into the science and art of self-government, to the end that the American People may understand the fundamental principles of democracy and be guided thereby in shaping governmental policies." This determination will be based upon the student's academic record; leadership potential; participation in community and civic affairs, including voting; responsiveness to interview questions; the quality of the essay; career goals, ambitions, and commitment; appearance and demeanor; and anything else disclosed during the interview which appears to be relevant.

The Scholarship award, once made, will be renewed without further application for the period designated in the scholarship award letter, provided the Sumners Scholars (1) maintain a minimum 3.4 cumulative grade point average at the end of each semester (students who fall below this average might not be renewed the following semester or year); (2) are full-time students (for undergraduates, at least 12 semester hours); (3) continue to be credibly enrolled as Politics majors, with their schedules approved every semester by an advisor in the Politics Department; (4) continue to be in good standing with the University; (5) as their schedules allow, attend events sponsored by the Sumners Foundation.

If you are interested in applying for the scholarship, contact Tiffany Miller, Associate Professor of Politics, tiffmiller@udallas.edu

The Department is pleased to be able to offer this scholarship totaling $45,000 to an incoming  Ph.D. student. The scholarship honors the life and work of one of IPS' founders, Willmoore Kendall. 

One scholarship is available for the 2027 application cycle.

Only United States citizens are eligible to receive the scholarship.

How to apply:

Applicants for the Ph.D. in Politics should, in addition to their regular application materials, also send a statement of interest in the Kendall Scholarship. The statement should be no longer than one page, single spaced. It should indicate some degree of familiarity with Willmoore Kendall's thought and reflect a willingness to pursue something related to his broad set of intellectual concerns—i.e., the "Great Tradition" of the West and its intersection with American political thought. Interest in canonical political theorists is highly encouraged.

The applicant's statement ought also to make clear how the student's intellectual work will be fundamentally pro-Western and pro-American in orientation while upholding the highest scholarly standards and reflecting genuinely independent thinking. 

If a statement of interest is received, the student may be invited to a 30 minute Zoom interview with Dr. Matthew T. Cantirino. Not all who submit statements of interest may be invited to a Zoom meeting.

If the student is ultimately selected for the Scholarship, they will be expected to attend at least one meeting per semester with Dr. Matthew T. Cantirino to track their academic progress, receive mentoring, and discuss opportunities (such as presenting at conferences or publishing their work). 

If awarded, funds will be distributed in increments of $15,000 per year for three years. Funds for the second and third years will be released upon the administrator (Dr. Matthew T. Cantirino)'s written determination of a student's successful first and second years, respectively, aligned with the expectations discussed here and in the initial interviews.

Questions:

Contact Dr. Matthew T. Cantirino at mcantirino@udallas.edu