Applications Invited for Soros Justice Fellowships in Advocacy and Media | PND

A program of the Open Society Foundations, the Soros Justice Fellowships fund outstanding individuals working to implement innovative projects that advance reform and spur debate on a range of issues facing the criminal justice system in the United States.

The fellowship program is part of a larger effort by the Open Society Foundations' Criminal Justice Fund to reduce the destructive impact of current criminal justice policies on the lives of individuals, families, and communities in the U.S. by challenging the overreliance on incarceration and harsh punishment, and ensuring a fair and equitable system of justice.

Advocacy Fellowships fund outstanding individuals — including lawyers, advocates, grassroots organizers, activist academics, and others with important perspectives — to initiate innovative policy advocacy projects at the local, state, and national levels that will have a measurable impact on one or more of OSF's U.S. criminal justice priorities. Projects may range from litigation to public education to coalition-building to grassroots mobilization to policy-driven research. Advocacy fellowships are eighteen months in duration and may be implemented in conjunction with a host organization. Fellows are expected to work full-time on their projects during the term of the fellowship. Projects can begin in the spring or fall of 2013. Advocacy stipends range from $75,000 to $105,000 (depending on level of experience) for the eighteen-month fellowship period. Additional funding will be provided for student loan repayment assistance, health insurance, professional development, and travel to fellowship-related gatherings.

Media Fellowships support writers, print and broadcast journalists, bloggers, filmmakers, and other individuals with distinct voices proposing to complete media projects for local, regional, and national markets that engage the public and spur debate on one or more of OSF's U.S. criminal justice priorities. The fellowships aim to mitigate the time, space, and market constraints that often discourage individuals from pursuing important but marginalized, controversial, or unpopular issues in a comprehensive manner. Media fellowships are twelve months in duration, and fellows are expected to work full-time on their projects during the term of the fellowship. Projects can begin in either the spring or fall of 2013. Media stipends range from $50,000 to $70,000 (depending on level of experience) for the twelve-month fellowship period, and additional funding will be provided for project-related expenses, professional development, health insurance, and travel to fellowship-related gatherings.

The program strongly encourages applications for projects that demonstrate a clear understanding of the intersection of criminal justice issues with the particular needs of low-income communities; communities of color; immigrants, gay, lesbian, bisexual, and transgender people; women and children; and those disproportionately affected by harsh criminal justice policies; as well as applications for projects that cut across various criminal justice fields and related sectors, such as education, health and mental health, housing, and employment. The program particularly welcomes applications from individuals directly affected by, or with significant direct personal experience with, the policies, practices, and systems their projects seek to address (e.g., applicants who have themselves been incarcerated or who have a family member or loved one who has been incarcerated and whose fellowship project emerges from that experience).

The fellowship program does not fund enrollment for degree or non-degree study at academic institutions, including dissertation research; projects that address criminal justice issues outside the U.S. (applicants themselves, however, can be based outside the U.S., provided their work directly pertains to a U.S. issue); past recipients of a Soros Justice Fellowship; or lobbying activities.

Complete program guidelines are available at the Open Society Foundations Web site. The online system will begin accepting applications on July 30, 2012.

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