The University of Notre Dame will support the Institute of International Education’s USAID award of the Centroamérica en Ascenso Fellowship as one of three academic institutions providing a haven for individuals working on behalf of human rights in Central America. Applications for one- and two-year fellowships through the program are open now through June 7, 2024 for the inaugural cohort.
Through the five-year Centroamérica en Ascenso Fellowship managed by the Institute of International Education, as many as 40 lawyers, journalists, educators, and community organizers facing threats in their home countries of El Salvador, Guatemala, Honduras, and Nicaragua will be afforded sanctuary and support to continue their anti-corruption work in the United States. These residential fellowships will enable human rights defenders to strengthen their skills and professional networks across fields of advocacy.
American University and the University of Florida will also serve as hosts to Centroamérica en Ascenso visiting scholars. At Notre Dame, the work of visiting fellows will be supported by programming and resources provided by the Keough School of Global Affairs’ Pulte Institute for Global Development.
Pulte Institute Senior Researchers and Co-directors of the Central America Research Alliance Tom Hare and Estela Rivero will serve as technical advisors for the program at Notre Dame where three to four fellows will be welcomed to campus in fall 2024 and provided resources and programmatic support to ensure the protection of their work to advance human dignity.
"This award strengthens the Pulte's Institute collaboration with Latin American researchers," Rivero said. "Through the Central America Research Alliance and its projects, Pulte has formed a long-lasting network of strong partners to improve the well-being of people in the Americas. This fellowship uniquely contributes to that end, as it allows us to work closely with Latin American researchers with whom we had not worked before, to facilitate their interaction with faculty, and to build the trust and personal ties to sustain the collaboration once they leave Notre Dame."
Pulte Institute Executive Director Michael Sweikar called the opportunity to share in the work of the Centroamérica en Ascenso Fellowship "an honor and a critical responsibility."
For additional information about the application process or program details for the Centroamérica en Ascenso Fellowship, visit the Institute of International Education at https://t.ly/hl5a5.