Funding & Awards

James Oliver Horton was the Benjamin Banneker Professor of American Studies and History at GW and Historian Emeritus of the Smithsonian Institution’s National Museum of American History. He taught the “tough stuff” of American history with a quick wit and deep historical knowledge, introducing classes to invisibility issues being raised by black feminists, masculinity challenges for enslaved and newly freed black men and class overlaps and tensions among working-class men and women.

Horton’s graduate teaching produced a generation of museum staff and curators attuned to making African American history central to the history of the country. He acted as historical expert for then-First Lady Hillary Clinton, and he held international influence as a visiting lecturer and professor in parts of Europe and Asia. In 2006 Horton was elected to the National Academy of Arts and Sciences. That same year, he received the George Washington University President’s Medal for scholarly achievement and teaching excellence. He died in 2017.

John Vlach was a professor in the Department of American Studies for thirty-two years. With special expertise in folklife and folk art, African American folklife, and vernacular architecture, he authored ten books and served as a guest curator or consultant to numerous museums, including the New Orleans Museum of Art and the Henry Gallery in Seattle. Shortly after his retirement, in 2013, the Vernacular Architecture Forum awarded him its Henry Glassie Award for lifetime scholarly achievement in vernacular architecture studies. Vlach passed away in 2022.

At the request of American Studies alumna Libby Ellsworth-Kasch (BA ’08), the Jeffrey C. Kasch Foundation pledged a generous donation to the department to support student research. The foundation’s five-year pledge of annual donations will go toward the Horton-Vlach Fund, to support graduate and undergraduate students who have travel or other expenses related to their original research projects.

Many of our awardees have used their Horton-Vlach funding to conduct research around the globe.
*Denotes current students 

• Craig Lanier Allen
• Colin Anderson
• Sara Awartani
• Vyta Baselice
• Jacklin Bolduan
• Ashley Brown
• Cam Cannon*
• Jasmine Cannon
• Julie Chamberlain
• Thomas Dolan
• Brady Forrest
• Liz Foshe*
• Molly Henderson*
• Michael Horka
• Maddie House-Tuck*
• Aryn Kelly*
• Scott Larson
• Harry Lewis
• Joe LoyaconoBustos
• Pat Nugent
• Kimberly Pendleton
• Kim Probolus
• Zaynab Quadri
• George Ramirez
• Rahima Schwenkbeck
• GJ Sevillano*
• Samantha Silver*

Thanks to the generous support of our alumni and donors, the GWU Department of American Studies supports undergraduate research and other innovative projects. If you are doing a project that requires research support, or if you would like to participate in a summer program or other intensive experience that would be related to your course work in American Studies, please apply for the AmSt Undergraduate Research and Training program.

This fund supports a wide variety of educational, research, and training experiences. These might include, but are not limited to:

• Funds for travel to do research for the senior thesis or other major projects
• Funds to support participation in summer intensive programs, such as language or other skills
• Funds to present papers at academic conferences

The American Studies department does not provide funds for ordinary summer courses, internships, or summer living expenses. AmSt Undergrad RSF grants range from $250 to $1500.

Provide a one-page statement of your project, which includes what you will do, when it will occur, and how it will support your research and learning goals as an American studies major. Also provide a brief budget, and ask a faculty member to submit a short letter of support.

Applications for Undergraduate Research/Scholarly Funding should be emailed to the Director of Undergraduate Studies (Libby Anker) and copied to the [email protected] email. Deadlines will be announced via email.