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Thu, February 27, 2014

Travel Grant Opportunity


Cook Inlet Historical Society Reeder-Davies Grant Program

Cook Inlet Historical Society is starting a program to encourage historical research and writing about the Cook Inlet area and Alaska.

Recipients of the John Reeder Memorial Travel Grant must be conducting research in a library or archives in Alaska.  The Brian Davies Memorial Grant for Alaska History supports creative projects and in-depth research that make a significant contribution to the study of Alaska history.

John Reeder Memorial Travel Grant

Range of Awards:  $400 – $1,000

John Reeder (1941-2013) was born and raised in Dallas, Texas.  After obtaining a B.A. in history from Wesleyan University in Connecticut, he attended law school at Southern Methodist University in Dallas.  He spent two years as a Peace Corps volunteer primarily at the headwaters of the Amazon in Peru.  Returning to Dallas, John served as house counsel for a small energy startup, Earth Resources Company, before the call of the mountains, and the Alaska Attorney General’s Office, lured him and his VW bus north to Alaska in 1971.  He met Loisann Lindemood in Anchorage and they were married six months later.

John served three years as chief attorney in the Anchorage branch of the Attorney General’s office, before joining BP Exploration as chief counsel in Alaska, a position he held for twenty-two years. In addition to his professional career, John was an active community volunteer who served on the boards of the Alaska State Council on the Arts, Anchorage Historical and Fine Arts Commission, the building committee for the recent expansion of the Anchorage Museum, Cook Inlet Historical Society, Alaska Photographic Center, Susitna Valley Association, and Alaska Common Ground.

John was a member of the Board of Directors of the Cook Inlet Historical Society for nearly two decades before his death, serving as its membership chair the entire period.  As chair of the Anchorage Historical and Fine Arts Commission, he was instrumental in crafting the current governing ordinance for the Anchorage Museum.

Description

This award will be granted to assist with expenses, such as travel to an archive or library, to conduct research on Cook Inlet history and cultures.  This travel grant is based on a history-related theme specified by CIHS in the grant solicitation.  Some of the themes will be connected to a current or future exhibit of the Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center.

Themes for the 2014 grants are:

  • Anchorage Centennial, 2015
  • Alaska Railroad Centennial, 2014-2023
  • Cold War, 1945-1991
  • Arctic Exploration
  • Aviation

Upper-division undergraduate or graduate students with a course of study related to Alaska who reside in the Municipality of Anchorage, Matanuska-Susitna Borough, or Kenai Peninsula Borough are encouraged to apply.  Applications are also encouraged from teachers, and independent researchers.

The recipient will be asked to provide a letter report to the Cook Inlet Historical Society’s Board of Directors at the end of the project along with research product.  The grant recipient will acknowledge assistance from CIHS.  The recipient may be asked to present their research at a Cook Inlet Historical Society program and/or contribute to Cook Inlet Historical Society’s web site.

To qualify, an applicant must:

  1. Be a member of the Cook Inlet Historical Society at the time of application.
  2. Be a resident of the State of Alaska.

Information about the Cook Inlet Historical Society and becoming a member is available on the Cook Inlet Historical Society’s website (http://www.cookinlethistory.org ).

Application Procedures:

An application consists of items 1 through 4:

1. A letter of intent describing the research project for which you are requesting funds (no longer than two pages, single spaced).

  • Include information outlining the topic of interest as well as the nature, scope, and goals of the proposed project.
  • Include your name, mailing and email addresses and telephone number.

2. A timetable for completion within one year from the date of the start of the project.  The anticipated work may start during the summer prior to the start of the school, college, or university fall semester/quarter and completed by the end of the summer of the following year.

3. A current resume.

4. A budget.  Include a description of how the requested funds will be used.

Grant Criteria:

Applications will be evaluated by a committee according to the following criteria:

1. Overall quality and clarity of proposal;

2. Importance of classroom-based project or school, academic, or independent research  project to the study of Alaska history; and

3. Ability of the applicant to carry out the project within the proposed budget and  timeline.

Applications that are incomplete or that do not follow the instructions in the application procedures will be disqualified.

Due Date:     April 1 of each year (postmarked or hand delivered)

Send applications to:

Cook Inlet Historical Society
Anchorage Museum at Rasmuson Center
625 C Street
Anchorage, Alaska  99501-3544

For more information or to have any questions answered contact:  Ayse Gilbert, Treasurer, Cook Inlet Historical Society, by e-mail:  vonkotzebue@gci.net

An applicant who is selected for a grant will be notified by May 15.