Ted Shapiro Awards
About The Awards
The Shapiro Award, administered by the American Studies Program at Tufts University, honors the memory of Ted Shapiro, an American Studies major, class of ’82, who died in a drowning accident a year after graduating. His parents established this award to allow American Studies majors to pursue summer plans during their sophomore or junior year that incorporate opportunities for personal and academic growth, and that are not open to them without the support of the award. Awards can be used for exploratory work that supports the Senior Special Project or the Honors Thesis, but this is not required. Students are encouraged to submit proposals that present independently designed projects drawing on their current knowledge, skills, curiosity, and questions.
While each student can only receive an award once, multiple awards are given each year and the process for deciding on the awardees is not competitive. That is, all qualified proposals may be funded. To be “qualified,” a proposal must meet the purpose of the Shapiro award and be a well-written, clear statement of the proposed project. All of the questions in the attached Ted Shapiro Proposal Form must be answered. Your proposal should explain your project in such a way that the Selection Committee understands what you propose to do, when it will be completed, what it will cost, and what product will result from the award. Please read carefully the following directions for applying to the Shapiro Fund.
Directions for applying to the Shapiro Fund
- Discuss your proposal with your/an American Studies advisor; he or she needs to review and sign this application.
- Each proposal must include an itemized budget sheet that proposes at least two budget plans, one more stringent than the other.
- You should not expect to be given a chance to revise your proposal once it is submitted. When a proposal is turned in, it is final.
- All awardees (unless they are studying abroad) are expected to attend three ceremonies:
- the Shapiro Awards presentation Ceremony in the spring to accept their award and meet the Shapiro family,
- the Shapiro Awards Project Presentation Program in the fall following the summer during which you have worked on your project to present to faculty and students, and
- the Shapiro Awards Presentation Ceremony next spring to present your results to the Shapiro family. The Shapiro's are very interested in what American Studies students are doing and come to Tufts each spring for the presentation program, at which they get a chance to meet the awardees and to learn about their work.
- All awardees must prepare, minimally, a five-page write-up of their project for the Shapiro family as well as for the American Studies program.
- All awardees must sign a form agreeing to return the award money if the project they propose is either not done or only partially done.
- Please complete the Application for Ted Shapiro Memorial Award and submit it with your project proposal.